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This Month's Moot - is in the Red Lion for 4pm!

Friday 3 December 2010

The Snow Moot!


Wow, isn't the scenery in and around Avebury so very stunning? This month's Pagan Moot is back in the pub and we'll be having a talk by Terry Dobney, Arch Druid and Keeper of the Stones and a general get together and chit-chat. The original plan to help fix up the West Kennet Long Barrow prior to the Moot has been postponed until another time, so it'll be in the Well Room for 3pm.

A big thanks to The Red Lion for having us back again. Having tried a few different venues now, the general consensus is that it'd be best held in the Red Lion. So come along for a chit-chat and join me in celebrating new life, my son Oberon.




Friday 5 November 2010

Samhian - who's watching?






New Blood Needed! As Winter draws in and the home fires start to burn again, you’re probably wondering, “what amazing projects can I be getting on with over the next few months?” Look no further because we’re asking for some new volunteers to come and take an active roll in running, hosting and having fun at the Moot. We’d all like to see the Moot driven by the community, for the community – so here’s your chance... put you driving gloves on now and let us know what you’d like to do, see, hear... even feel hmmm.

Volunteers and needed to help on a number of fronts:
Scheduling Speakers
Hosting individual Moots
Running the Cafe
And a whole host of other essential tasks that all contribute to bringing us the chucky stew that is the Avebury Moot. If you’re interested then contact us and we’ll talk though what can be done.



This month's Moot will be offering a one off showing of the amazing little film, Erasing David. See the trailer and get you thinking caps on! We’re starting the film dead on 3pm (I mean it this time!) as we’ve got to clear out of town a few minute early this week. Bring cake.

Erasing David -

A DOCUMENTARY ABOUT PRIVACY, SURVEILLANCE AND THE DATABASE STATE

David Bond lives in one of the most intrusive surveillance states in the world. He decides to find out how much private companies and the government know about him by putting himself under surveillance and attempting to disappear, a decision that changes his life forever. Leaving his pregnant wife and young child behind, he is tracked across the database state on a chilling journey that forces him to contemplate the meaning of privacy and the loss of it.

Click here for a trailer and the website!

Come along and have a look...
Also the Moot is packing it’s picnic bag and putting on it walking boots again – that right, we’re on the move again.... keep an eye wide open here for further details.

Friday 1 October 2010

States of Mind - October Moot


Greetings Mooties - this month's moot, States of Mind, looks at the power of our thoughts... and the ultimate power we have over Them. Utilising simple and sophisticated tools, both ancient and modern, we'll delve into the power of the mind. Magic! 3pm at the National Trust Learning Resource Centre.

Would everyone please also turn their thoughts to Samhain and the Labyrinthe, particularly whether they want to get involved. We need people to play with fire; poi, staffs, fire breathing etc, etc, people to help set up, people to make lanterns between now and then, drummers, chanters etc etc. Those taking part will also need to think about costume too. Drummers, black and skeletal, fire dancers red and sexy!
If anyone wants to get involved they can email Leon at crow.dark@virgin.net or phone him evenings on 01672539679.

Also, fancy looking at some real nasties in Swindon - then look no further the Swindon Ghost Fest... here!
Lots of really cool FREE talks and events on ghosts, ghosthunting and Wiltshire folklore.

Wednesday 15 September 2010

The Rainbow Serpent Project... here in Avebury on the 30th September!

What's this serpentine being slithering through the stones.... ?


The Rainbow Serpent Feature documentary is five years of work showing one man’s pilgrimage. Tor travels around the earth chakra points:
The Base chakra is Mnt Shasta CA,
Sacral; chakra Lake Titicaca Peru,
Heart chakra; Glastonbury UK,
Solar Plexus: Uluru Australia,
Throat chakra; Egypt,
Third Eye chakra; Currently Glastonbury UK,
Crown chakra; Mnt Kailash Tibet.


Working with ceremonies at each of the sites in order, interviewing Tribal Elders, Charley Thom, Bob Randell etc... Then all Tor’s synchronics, crazy and beautiful findings and all of the adventures are present in a rich tapestry of images and poetry, with mixed media footage of nature and beauty from the sacred world. Tor links the myths and legends from all over the universe displaying a deep culture that many have missed. This film is to inspire people to travel consciously around the world and into their hearts. The tag line is ‘The Pilgrim Age to 2012 and beyond’




There is a a screening of this Film at The Avebury Social Centre, High St, Avebury, Wiltshire........Thursday 30th September at 7.30pm


There will be tea and cakes and Tor will be here to present the film, and talk about the preparations for the next part of the Adventure. The lovely people there will be raising money for this, and all contributions are welcome.

See more at Tor's site here.


Friday 10 September 2010

OMPHALOS EQUINOX FAIR


Calling all Mooties - some special is brewing up in Bath!

Sat & Sun 18th/19th September 2010
2pm- 7pm
St James Wine Vaults, St James Square, Bath. BA1 2TW

A Weekend of talks on the Magical arte:
Mogg Morgan
Adebisi Data Adekundle
Levannah Morgan
Geraldine Beskine
Karl Le Marcs
Jane Stratton Kent

+ Entertainment and Magical Craft Stalls

Just a few quid will see you good for the whole weekend - checkout futher details here

Thursday 2 September 2010

Occult war for the New Aeon: magical paradigms and strategies for dealing with the coming apocalypse.


Out of New Order erupts Chaotic Rumblings - this month's fantastic Moot is titled, "Occult war for the New Aeon: magical paradigms and strategies for dealing with the coming apocalypse." Is civilisation as we know it coming to and end? What is the threat? Does a threat exist? And what can we do to counter this threat?

See you at the National Trust's Learning Centre at 3pm.

Friday 16 July 2010

MAGICAL MINDSCAPES: How landscape was invested with meaning in the Ancient World


I'm delighted to announce that our next speaker will be Paul Devereux, whome I'm sure many of you already know of. For anyone wanting more info on what Paul get up to then check out his website here.

Paul will give us a highly illustrated tour of the Ancient World, looking at several varieties of visual and other sensory sacred geographies, from Native American ground drawings to Chinese and Japanese gardens and much else besides, and suggest what environmental wisdom we can draw from them today. The presentation will be a celebration of Paul's major new book, "Sacred Geography", being published this year by Gaia Books.

Paul Devereux is a founding editor of the academic publication, Time & Mind – The Journal of Archaeology, Consciousness and Culture (Berg), a research affiliate with the Royal College of Art, a Senior Research Fellow of the International Consciousness Research Laboratories (ICRL), Princeton, and the Director of the Dragon Project Trust. He has written a great many articles for general publications and a string of peer-reviewed papers plus twenty-six books since 1979, many published internationally, dealing variously and primarily with the anthropologies of consciousness, archaeoacoustics and other aspects of ancient sites, landscapes and lifeways, as well as selected other topics. He lectures in Europe, the UK and North America.

This Moot is on Sunday the 1st of August - experience has taught me that some people get caught out by Moots on the 1st of the month, so make sure you write this one in to your diaries. Our last moot was a lovely and relaxed affair with a free form and open format. Paul's talk will see us return to rows of chairs etc to ensure everyone can get in and listen to this fabolous talk. Teas and Coffees will still be available.


See you at about 2.45pm at the National Trust's Learning Centre in Avebury (behind the Barn and next to the toilets).

Friday 2 July 2010

Herbal Medicines


Greetings Mooties, this month's Moot is all about herbal medicines. See a selection of plants that you see growing around you everyday and see how they can benefit your physical and spiritual health. The Moot will be presented by the lovely Carlie, host of the Calne/Chippenham Moot.

We're still at the Learning Centre in the National Trust area, and still there on Sunday for 3pm sharp. See you there :)

Tuesday 1 June 2010


Greetings Mooties, this month's moot will be at the National Trust Learning Centre again, situated behind the barn next to the toilets. My moot talker has cancelled so I'm working on another couple of possible moot talkers for this Sunday. Same time, 3pm.

Wednesday 28 April 2010

Beltaine's Moot - A Peak into Change

Happy Bealltainn - May you all be rampant and free :)

So much to squeeze into one little weekend! A weeding, a birthday, a moot, a chase, a stag and a maypole... to name but a few. For Avebury, Beltane is often one of the most lively and gentle festivals.


Moot Location

Thank you to the National Trust who have allowed us to use their facilities for this moot. So our new location is in the Learning Centre which is the building behind the Barn, situated with all the other main Trust facilities - the shop, cafe etc. If you're still not sure where that is then we're right next door to the toilets, so go to this area and follow the signs to the toilets - easy.

Please don't bring any vehicles into this area. As usual there'll be refreshments and laughter for all.


The Moot

We've reached an interesting time in our world's time line - the simultaneous onset of both peak oil and climate change. Now, the climate change part we should all know about... the media has at least insured we're all acquainted with the fundamentals. Whether you believe there's global warming, or believe it's just a scam using false science and media to bring about a world bank, world police, world government... the effects are still the same. Shortages. More tax. More expense.

Whether you believe peak oil(an oil thirsty world encountering a slowing down of oil production) has happened or not, or even if you believe it's been orchestrated as well... the effects are just the same. Shortages. More tax. More expense. At least, that's what I thought until I researched the matter a little bit more closely.

Dooooom! Dooooooooom! Well, maybe not. This weekend's fact busting talk is about how we, the people, can take personal responsibility for ourselves to build in a resilience into our very own communities to these types of changes. Meet Transition Towns. Will the ancient site of Avebury become another exemplar, a flagship leading earth-friendly systems through to a safe land where our children and grandchildren can look back and thank the gods that we, you and me, made the change we wanted to see in the world. Come along to this weekend's moot and find out.

We live at a fascinating point in history. The convergence of challenges, most particularly global warming and peak oil, have brought us to a point where we are profoundly challenged to act. We are surrounded... by individuals telling us that this means the end, that we have gone too far, that it is inevitable that life as we know it will collapse catastrophically and very soon.



Yet, at the same time, something very powerful is stirring and is taking root the world over. People are choosing life and are manifesting that in their lives and their communities. People are starting to see peak oil as the Great Opportunity, the chance to build the world they always dreamt of. As one man said during a group discussion at the end of a screening of The End of Suburbia... “we’ve just seen that the end of the Oil Age will bring about the collapse of industrial society … bring it on!”. The scale of the challenge is huge, and the obstacles are plenty, but there is an emerging energy to succeed, a sense of quickening and an exhilaration in talking and listening to each other once again, to visioning what we want and then rolling up our sleeves and starting to co-create it. This is not a denial of the scale of the challenges we face, rather a practical and instinctual response to it. In towns and cities all over the world people are asking each other “what can we do about this?”.


From transitionculture.org

Tuesday 30 March 2010

April's Moot - The Labyrinth, a trip through the Homeopathic Rainbow


This month's Moot will see Sam, a Registered Homeopath and resident of Avebury, talking about what she knows and loves the most - Labyrinths, Homeopathic Medicine and Rainbows. Her presentation style is lively, interactive and fun - and I'm sure you will all have a jolly time.

A big thanks to Janice who, in my absence, will be hosting the Moot this month. There will also be a few new and cheery faces dishing out tea and take :)

You'll also be interested to learn that we have speakers booked into the Moots for the next 6 months... I'll publish the lineup for you when we've dotted the eyes :)

Hope you all enjoy the moot and I can't wait for it to be published as a Podcast, so that I can have a good old listen. Incidentally, last month’s moot and two roaming moots will soon be available to listen to as well… watch this space.

Thursday 25 February 2010

The Nebuchadnezzar has launched.



Greetings mooties. Good news, the Avebury Moot's new Radio Station has been launched - the Nebuchadnezzar Radio Broadcast. It's taken some time, fun and effort to get this underway. From now on, the majority of the Moots will be broadcast across the matrix for everyone to listen in to. You can tune in to the most recent Moot right hereherehere.

The next Moot on the 7th of March, which is the day of my 53rd solar cycle *hem*, is to be presented by the Stag of Avebury, Steve. He'll giving us a talk on, "Avebury and the great moon cycles." Steve, next time we'll be able to get the broadcast out more quickly so that listeners will get news that's still in date;) Once again the Moot will be held at the Social Centre, which is in front of the nursery, opposite the church, on the High Street.

Monday 8 February 2010

A very Social setting...


This Month's Moot will be broadcast here soon!
WATCH THIS SPACE

Greetings all, another splendid Moot! I don’t know about you but I really enjoyed the moot being at the village hall. It was more intimate, focused and much more social. We also enjoyed the use of the kitchen for hot drinks and we opened the Tantric CafĂ© for the first time, providing various snacks for donations.

Anyhoos, this month’s talk was presented my none other than me. It’s the first moot I’ve ever given and I have to admit, it was thoroughly enjoyable. Thank you for being a great bunch of listeners who gave me some great interaction. Also thanks to Steve the Stag, he locked horns with us and told us all about the astrological events that will take place over the following month – a new and regular contribution to the Moot.

The topic of the talk was about additives. I first described what I thought an additive is i.e. a product that’s sold to us by a corporation that uses marketing to appeal to our non-rational minds – often backed up by misleading and bad science… or words to that effect.

So first I discussed Fluoride and talked about how this toxic substance found its way, not only into our water supply, but also into orange juice, vegetables and toothpaste. I didn’t mention at the time but often toothpaste contains fluoride 1000 times more toxic than that found in our water. As a result all American toothpaste comes with the advisory that any child swallowing any amount of toothpaste should be admitted to hospital immediately. My main point however was to discuss how bad science, marketing (Edward Bernays!) and political influence pushed through a toxin for profit into our food supply.

I mentioned Edward Bernays just then because I think it’s important to find out a little about this genius. This film is about Bernays and gives us an insight into marketing and corporate control… the story starts by telling us about the,
...relationship between Sigmund Freud and his American nephew, Edward Bernays. Bernays invented the public relations profession in the 1920s and was the first person to take Freud's ideas to manipulate the masses. He showed American corporations how they could make people want things they didn't need by systematically linking mass-produced goods to their unconscious desires. Bernays was one of the main architects of the modern techniques of mass-consumer persuasion, using every trick in the book, from celebrity endorsement and outrageous PR stunts, to eroticising the motorcar. His most notorious coup was breaking the taboo on women smoking by persuading them that cigarettes were a symbol of independence and freedom. But Bernays was convinced that this was more than just a way of selling consumer goods. It was a new political idea of how to control the masses. By satisfying the inner irrational desires that his uncle had identified, people could be made happy and thus docile. It was the start of the all-consuming self which has come to dominate today's world.

Bernays was also the guy drafted in by the military and the Searle Corporation to market fluoride as a beneficial product.

The Century Of Self Part 1 (of 4) Happiness Machines - well worth the education.



I then went over Aspartame in the same vein before discussing pharmaceuticals, insulin in particular. We then discussed food and how many of the additives contribute to addictions – especially MSG.

For a bit of good insight into the addictive quality of additives have a quick watch of this short vid about MSG



For more info on Fluoride it's well worth having a look at this video, if only to demonstrate how big business essentially use marketing and politics to manipulate science and people...



And the same sort of thing for aspartame...



I brought up toilet paper and running shoes as well – both of which I view as additives i.e. things we believe we can’t do without, which we consume and consume and consume. Even moon cups we’re discussed which are a great way of breaking out of poisonous tampax styled sanitary products.

Martyn suggested that I maybe outline a day in the life of me! to demonstrate some of the ways in which I’ve been able to break away from some of the ‘additives’ that were in my life.

OK, well, in the morning I’ll get up and maybe go for a run. As part of my training I include a small element of barefoot running with the aim of ridding myself of running shoes by the end of the summer.
I’ll have a shower and will only use a couple of drops of diluted essential oil (I often have a oil/water mix in a small spray bottle). No shampoo, No soap. I’ll then shave. To date I get through maybe 10 bic style razors every 6 months or so but am currently looking for a old, serviceable cut throat razor. To shave I have a small bottle of almond oil, which I find better that olive oil because it’s lighter, with a few drops of tea tree and lavender essential oils. I use just maybe 5 drops or so and shave. Easy, and the oil keeps the blades sharp. As for the oils, I think I have a way of manufacturing my own nut oil and am hoping to work out how to make my own essential oils.
Breakfast. Fruit – maybe a banana, apple, orange and a few almonds.
Lunch. Crazy Salad. An anything salad, as long as it’s raw and vegan. I might have spinach leaves, celery, apple, banana, avocado, carrot, broccoli, pepper, onion etc – all with my own dressing. Dressing is normally something like olive oil, cider vinegar, mustard, maybe honey, maybe pepper, maybe chili oil… you get the picture.
Dinners - same sort of madness.
Drinking water is a pain. I have to stay hydrated so I mix up my sources – some tap, some bottled. I’m going to get myself a big old British Briefed ceramic water filter which will both will reduce some of the fluoride from tap water and also allow me to collect most of my water from a local spring. These filters are washable and last a long while but come at a price. I don’t know of any other way of avoiding fluoride in tap water without spending lots of money on kit to treat water using reverse osmosis, the only way to truly remove fluoride I think.
The only problem with filtering this way is that you wipe out some of the useful minerals that a healthy body needs and so in response to that I will be adding some types of dried seaweed to my diet. This will replace the missing minerals but is a short-term solution really.
As for food. I have different ways of getting food that’s either free, cheap and good quality. As the spring comes in I will be stomping about the wilds more and more in search of edible weeds. Most of these are true super foods – your ramsons, dandelions, nettles etc etc. Full of micro nutrients, anti oxidants, photo chemicals etc. We’ve also been given use of a large 750m2 plot to develop a permaculture site – so by the end of this year most of my food will be either picked or grown and picked by me. No chemicals, transportation, big business, processing etc. Raw, live food in abundance for everyone involved on the project and hopefully a surplus that can be passed onto others.
One last thing that I do – sprouting. You can sprout so much stuff and it changes a legume, nut or seed from a useless pile of starch to a living organism rich in amino acids, chlorophyll and enzymes that your body yums up. You can pretty much live off of these.

So that’s some of the things that I do and plan to do get out of the constant buying of products most of which appear to have harmful chemicals added to them, be it food, clothes or furniture. As we agreed at the Moot, the change happens in your own mind first. It did for me. And I’m not sure if these are the answers, but they are my answers that I have faith will lead me to a place of excellent health, a crystal clear mind, a greater spiritual connection and freedom from… all that other stuff.

I'll also add a quick intro to permaculture and a rather jazzy raw food documentary - it's very American but very much worth a watch to gain a deeper understanding about how nutrition is the magic red pill.

Establishing a Food Forest the Permaculture Way.
Geoof Lawton
(I've got copies of this full film if anybody would like one)




Oh, and for you runners... or anyone interested in natural walking...


Ha ha - can't stop adding stuff - Mick "The Barefoot Sensei" Dodge: Exuberant Animal

Saturday 6 February 2010

Location Location Location.


Guess what? We have a new Location!!! But first I want thank Caroline.

Last month we were honoured to have Caroline give as a talk about her experiences of the movement to revive the spiritual feminine in our fair land. She is a Priestess of Avalon and the Temple Artist at the Goddess Temple in Glastonbury. This amazing place is the first of it's kind in the UK for many years and is a registered place of worship. All the major festivals are celebrated here and they also run courses and have regular healing sessions. More information can be found at their website here.
The temple is open to the public, run by volunteers and donations and is a beautiful place for contemplation after a day on the Tor.
Caroline explained that reviving the sacred feminine and devising rituals has been largely a process of research coupled with intuition and trust. Rediscovering womanly power is a sacred duty for some and it can manifest at many levels of life from the household to the wild moors. For any women out there wishing to find out more and to connect with their own goddess power, Caroline will be hosting a women's meet in Avebury on Wednesday, 17th February at 7.30pm in the Social Centre. Minimum donation is £5 and expected finish time is around 10pm. If you want to know more about Caroline and the feminine wheel of the year then go to www.spinningthewheel.com.

This Month's and next Month's Moot will be held at the Social Centre (in front of the school and opposite the Church on the High St.). I'm also talking with three other parties who are keen to host the Moot in and close to Avebury. Over the years the Moot has been well placed in the Red Lion. But things change and it's time for the Moot to spread it's wings and venture into new locations.

This month we have a special guest speaker giving us rant on Additives... but not necessarily the ones you find in food, drinking water or diet sodas. Hmmm, interesting! See you at the Social Centre at 3pm Sunday.

Also, keep tuned for a new announcement soon... the Moot has gone techno and will soon have it's own Radio Station broadcasting to the world... and beeeeeyyyoooonnnndddd.

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