Clava Cairns, Culloden, and Cawdor...and then Karen Matheson...
It has been a full day and I'm sitting back here at the laudromat/internet cafe in Inverness trying to process it all. The Neotlithic standing stones and barrows were incredible...the depth of energy, the Mother-Hearbeat thng there, the Holding energy...there really are no words for the backbone breathing space that happens in a place like that. The stones themselves vibrate. And it's not all that wierd. It felt like "Home" to me...it was a group of three barrows and passage tombs and literally hundreds of standing stones that we had open to us. While we were there, a group of nature-loving, connected folk showed up and began chanting and communing with the stones and trees there. I felt, again, right at home. It made some of the Texans on our Rick Steves tour somewhat uncomfortable. Not me. There was a split stone and if anyone of you have read the Highlander series (pure kilted, violent heart and mind candy for the lassies, I slipped in between in hopes that I might make the jump back in time, and then I remembered that I would miss the bus and the ferries to Iona and said to meself,"meybe later."
Culloden made me nauseous. The McKAssons' music captures from the heart the tragedy, waste and violence. The lost dreams. The lost lives. The lost everything. And it wasn't over anything I can relate to from my contemporary NW USA self. The ground still screams with the violence. I have no words for this kind of stuff. This kind of ground screaming happened all over Ireland, too, particularly, in the abbeys and places where there had been massacres. And that was just what Culloden was. I found the spot where the MacLean clann was obliterated. Being sensitive to this kind of stuff isn't a bad thing. You just have to stay grounded. I make it a point to be open to the Healing and Balancing of a place as well. Some cedar from the dancing trees in front of my cottage from home helps as an offering with prayers for peace. Our guide wasn't too interested when I asked him about the ley lines running through that part of Scotland. He's an archeologist by trade and not the intuitive kind. I'll have to do my own research on that. It will bring no surprises I'm sure.
We spent a delightful afternoon at Cawdor Castle, the 11th, 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, and 19th century layered castle and grounds. It is the castle in Shakespeare's Macbeth althought that actual castle was motte and bailey and a ways away from the present one. The Dowager Duchess only lives in the castle during the winter months. The gardens, walled and wild, were impressive. There is really a secret dungeon and trapdoor that was used throughout the centuries. They actually only uncovered the real thing 20 years ago. They have a display of some of the things they found down there. Fascinating.....I had to calm my spirit some so I found a quiet corner and sketched for a good while after that.
I bought a ticket for the concert tonight. I am somewhat bummed I won't be here on Sunday. Cunningham will offer a workshop and a concert in the afternoon and Dougie MacLean is slated for the evening. Can you imagine what a glut of the best music in the world would do to you? i will be satisfied with this evening's events. I couldn't convince any of the other Ameeerricans to come and get a taste of the REAL MUSIC and ENERGY of Scotland tonight. They are holding out from some unknown musician that will play for us in Oban later this week.
I am really missing home and my family and beloveds. Traveling by myself is fun but it is not my favorite sometimes when I get into certain moods. Scotland is an amazing place. Tomorrow we are off to the most famous highland castles in Scotland and to try and get a glimpse of Nessie.
It has been a full day and I'm sitting back here at the laudromat/internet cafe in Inverness trying to process it all. The Neotlithic standing stones and barrows were incredible...the depth of energy, the Mother-Hearbeat thng there, the Holding energy...there really are no words for the backbone breathing space that happens in a place like that. The stones themselves vibrate. And it's not all that wierd. It felt like "Home" to me...it was a group of three barrows and passage tombs and literally hundreds of standing stones that we had open to us. While we were there, a group of nature-loving, connected folk showed up and began chanting and communing with the stones and trees there. I felt, again, right at home. It made some of the Texans on our Rick Steves tour somewhat uncomfortable. Not me. There was a split stone and if anyone of you have read the Highlander series (pure kilted, violent heart and mind candy for the lassies, I slipped in between in hopes that I might make the jump back in time, and then I remembered that I would miss the bus and the ferries to Iona and said to meself,"meybe later."
Culloden made me nauseous. The McKAssons' music captures from the heart the tragedy, waste and violence. The lost dreams. The lost lives. The lost everything. And it wasn't over anything I can relate to from my contemporary NW USA self. The ground still screams with the violence. I have no words for this kind of stuff. This kind of ground screaming happened all over Ireland, too, particularly, in the abbeys and places where there had been massacres. And that was just what Culloden was. I found the spot where the MacLean clann was obliterated. Being sensitive to this kind of stuff isn't a bad thing. You just have to stay grounded. I make it a point to be open to the Healing and Balancing of a place as well. Some cedar from the dancing trees in front of my cottage from home helps as an offering with prayers for peace. Our guide wasn't too interested when I asked him about the ley lines running through that part of Scotland. He's an archeologist by trade and not the intuitive kind. I'll have to do my own research on that. It will bring no surprises I'm sure.
We spent a delightful afternoon at Cawdor Castle, the 11th, 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, and 19th century layered castle and grounds. It is the castle in Shakespeare's Macbeth althought that actual castle was motte and bailey and a ways away from the present one. The Dowager Duchess only lives in the castle during the winter months. The gardens, walled and wild, were impressive. There is really a secret dungeon and trapdoor that was used throughout the centuries. They actually only uncovered the real thing 20 years ago. They have a display of some of the things they found down there. Fascinating.....I had to calm my spirit some so I found a quiet corner and sketched for a good while after that.
I bought a ticket for the concert tonight. I am somewhat bummed I won't be here on Sunday. Cunningham will offer a workshop and a concert in the afternoon and Dougie MacLean is slated for the evening. Can you imagine what a glut of the best music in the world would do to you? i will be satisfied with this evening's events. I couldn't convince any of the other Ameeerricans to come and get a taste of the REAL MUSIC and ENERGY of Scotland tonight. They are holding out from some unknown musician that will play for us in Oban later this week.
I am really missing home and my family and beloveds. Traveling by myself is fun but it is not my favorite sometimes when I get into certain moods. Scotland is an amazing place. Tomorrow we are off to the most famous highland castles in Scotland and to try and get a glimpse of Nessie.
posted by MihErn @ 7:44 AM
1 Comments:
At 10:32 AM,
Anonymous said…
I would love to walk those places with you and hear you speak of what you feel and what you sense...
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