Reawakening the sacred:
Alchemy and the mystical union of body & Soul
may 14 & 15
This weekend retreat is an introduction and emersion into the sacred mysteries of inner alchemy. It is a pre-requisite for a monthly closed mentoring group.
Alchemy is an ancient art and science which, in essence, is about creating and deepening our relationship with the sacred--the divinity at the heart of matter--and undergoing transformations to restore the living light of divine matter. The gateway into the divine transfiguration and transmutation of matter occurs through intimately engaging with that within us which appears to be of little or no value and thus that which we reject and deny within ourselves. This is the work on the shadow. Far more than a purely psychological approach, alchemical shadow work is a soul centered approach rooted in intimate connection with deep feeling attention and a profound and deepening relationship to the sacred through our bodies. It is a process of unification of our highest and lowest natures. This work is fundamentally a process of restoring the divinity to the material world through igniting the imminent power of our nature.
Or in the words of Stephan Hoeller, a scholar of Gnosticism:
“God redeems humanity, but nature needs to be redeemed by human alchemists, those who are able to induce the process of transformation, which alone is capable of liberating the light imprisoned in physical creation.”
Plato was first to share of the world as a divine and magical soul in which all of life is intricately connected. He termed it Anima Mundi, the Soul of the World. This is the light that is restored from the depths of matter.
This alchemical transformation of the shadow, often referred to as the prima materia, “the primordial dark matter that is the mother, origin, and root of all things,” is the goal of human alchemists. Alchemists recognize the shadow to be a dark, raw, paradoxical, and chaotic substance which, once heated and purified of is impurities births the Philosopher’s stone (the secret Deity of Mother Wisdom that is hidden within the prima materia).
The eternal feminine principle of Nature within us has been denied. We have locked the shadow into a very vile state in our demonization and control of these aspects of our Nature that are fecund, dark, unknowable and wild. Many of us have been conditioned to avoid our shadows and to live in a stoned relationship to to loss, death, to sensuality, to our bodies. This is represented through many myths and archetypes of the Dark Goddesses’ like Lilith, Kali, Innana and the Black Madonna. This dismissive relationship to our fundamental feminine Nature is reflected from the deepest ground of our being in how we have treated women, nature and our bodies. It is reflected in how we dismiss feeling, intuition and instincts.
This alchemical work of restoring the light from the roots of creation is to begin to shift the fundamental building blocks of our reality. It is working with archetypal patterns, these original patterns, that inform our personal experience, like an ocean gives rise to a wave. Alchemy works to restore purity and unity to these aspects of our dark feminine Nature that have been denied. In our journey into our depths, we can become more intimate with these darker aspects, bringing them to light and undergoing a rebirth which restores the imminent power of the light of matter, of soul to the world.
Our bodies are an expression of the Great Mystery of the feminine face of God, Mother Nature. 'Mater' is a root word for Mother. The World is wild, alive, divine, mystical, magical and sensuous. Matter is living light yearning to be re-sensitized through the intimate confines of our body and to life. The work of alchemy isn't a 'technique' or a 'how to.' It is developing a profound relationship with the sacred through our bodies. Alchemy is the invocation of divine love, a sacred fire in which we can approach our depths with awe and reverence and turn and face the shadows, so we can discover the secret gems of wisdom of our truly divine soul. Alchemy is a divine process that begins to heal the fissure between body/spirit, high/low, light and dark. As we learn to wholeheartedly and intimately open to our depths, we mine the gems In alchemy, we mine the gems that birth us into our intimate radiance.
These gatherings are an opportunity to discover Divinity as a your lover as the living light of intimacy with all of life. It is the opportunity to discover this intimacy within every dancing molecule of our beings, allowing the brilliance of matter's light, to be restored and unveiled in the brilliance of all of her rays and all of her colors. it It is an opportunity to discover the fierceness, compassion, beauty and paradoxical glory of the wild and sacred feminine wisdom called life. And live in the radiance that dances through the trees, sings through the birds and lives as the indwelling mystery of matter living within all things.
My journey in the past five years has guided me into these imminent mysteries of the sacred feminine. After five years of deep initiations into the great alchemical mystery of Soul, I am inspired to share these direct revelations and insights. I am also deeply inspired and excited to hear your wisdom and what you have been realizing and what wisdom wants to emerge from our group field as we gather together in honor of the Sacred.
During our time together we will participate in sacred ritual, prayer as a gateway into the depths of our Nature, inspired mystical poetry, skillful shadow work, body-centered depth healing work and personal tantric movement dance practices.
Cost: $250, registration required.
Location: TBA
Alchemy is an ancient art and science which, in essence, is about creating and deepening our relationship with the sacred--the divinity at the heart of matter--and undergoing transformations to restore the living light of divine matter. The gateway into the divine transfiguration and transmutation of matter occurs through intimately engaging with that within us which appears to be of little or no value and thus that which we reject and deny within ourselves. This is the work on the shadow. Far more than a purely psychological approach, alchemical shadow work is a soul centered approach rooted in intimate connection with deep feeling attention and a profound and deepening relationship to the sacred through our bodies. It is a process of unification of our highest and lowest natures. This work is fundamentally a process of restoring the divinity to the material world through igniting the imminent power of our nature.
Or in the words of Stephan Hoeller, a scholar of Gnosticism:
“God redeems humanity, but nature needs to be redeemed by human alchemists, those who are able to induce the process of transformation, which alone is capable of liberating the light imprisoned in physical creation.”
Plato was first to share of the world as a divine and magical soul in which all of life is intricately connected. He termed it Anima Mundi, the Soul of the World. This is the light that is restored from the depths of matter.
This alchemical transformation of the shadow, often referred to as the prima materia, “the primordial dark matter that is the mother, origin, and root of all things,” is the goal of human alchemists. Alchemists recognize the shadow to be a dark, raw, paradoxical, and chaotic substance which, once heated and purified of is impurities births the Philosopher’s stone (the secret Deity of Mother Wisdom that is hidden within the prima materia).
The eternal feminine principle of Nature within us has been denied. We have locked the shadow into a very vile state in our demonization and control of these aspects of our Nature that are fecund, dark, unknowable and wild. Many of us have been conditioned to avoid our shadows and to live in a stoned relationship to to loss, death, to sensuality, to our bodies. This is represented through many myths and archetypes of the Dark Goddesses’ like Lilith, Kali, Innana and the Black Madonna. This dismissive relationship to our fundamental feminine Nature is reflected from the deepest ground of our being in how we have treated women, nature and our bodies. It is reflected in how we dismiss feeling, intuition and instincts.
This alchemical work of restoring the light from the roots of creation is to begin to shift the fundamental building blocks of our reality. It is working with archetypal patterns, these original patterns, that inform our personal experience, like an ocean gives rise to a wave. Alchemy works to restore purity and unity to these aspects of our dark feminine Nature that have been denied. In our journey into our depths, we can become more intimate with these darker aspects, bringing them to light and undergoing a rebirth which restores the imminent power of the light of matter, of soul to the world.
Our bodies are an expression of the Great Mystery of the feminine face of God, Mother Nature. 'Mater' is a root word for Mother. The World is wild, alive, divine, mystical, magical and sensuous. Matter is living light yearning to be re-sensitized through the intimate confines of our body and to life. The work of alchemy isn't a 'technique' or a 'how to.' It is developing a profound relationship with the sacred through our bodies. Alchemy is the invocation of divine love, a sacred fire in which we can approach our depths with awe and reverence and turn and face the shadows, so we can discover the secret gems of wisdom of our truly divine soul. Alchemy is a divine process that begins to heal the fissure between body/spirit, high/low, light and dark. As we learn to wholeheartedly and intimately open to our depths, we mine the gems In alchemy, we mine the gems that birth us into our intimate radiance.
These gatherings are an opportunity to discover Divinity as a your lover as the living light of intimacy with all of life. It is the opportunity to discover this intimacy within every dancing molecule of our beings, allowing the brilliance of matter's light, to be restored and unveiled in the brilliance of all of her rays and all of her colors. it It is an opportunity to discover the fierceness, compassion, beauty and paradoxical glory of the wild and sacred feminine wisdom called life. And live in the radiance that dances through the trees, sings through the birds and lives as the indwelling mystery of matter living within all things.
My journey in the past five years has guided me into these imminent mysteries of the sacred feminine. After five years of deep initiations into the great alchemical mystery of Soul, I am inspired to share these direct revelations and insights. I am also deeply inspired and excited to hear your wisdom and what you have been realizing and what wisdom wants to emerge from our group field as we gather together in honor of the Sacred.
During our time together we will participate in sacred ritual, prayer as a gateway into the depths of our Nature, inspired mystical poetry, skillful shadow work, body-centered depth healing work and personal tantric movement dance practices.
Cost: $250, registration required.
Location: TBA
