Tag Archives: western mass

Aug 11 2017

A Mystic Experience in CT

Mystic, CT draws hundreds of tourists each year to experience its many attractions.  The town is rich in history.  It’s home to Mystic Seaport, one of the best maritime museums in the country,  Mystic Aquarium, and numerous marinas and restaurants.  As in most early settlement locations, Mystic has its share of old cemeteries.  Two of them are quite interesting each in its own way.

Elm Grove on Greenmanville Avenue, (Rt. 27), was established in the mid-1800s by a board of leading families from the area. Their Victorian influence created a resting place that looks like a park bordering the Mystic River.  Streets were laid, plots were planned out, trees and flowers were planted, and benches dotted the area for people to relax during their walks around the grounds – a common weekend activity.

One of the last times we were there, we were on the west side of the cemetery.  The land slopes down to the water and you can look out and get a picturesque view of the Seaport Museum.  There are many boats traveling up and down the river, too.  As I was turning around I saw a woman dressed in a flowing white dress.  She seemed to come from somewhere near the middle of the area.  She floated to a spot on the shore and just stared out to the sea as if waiting for someone.  She remained visible for two or three minutes before fading away.

The woman looked to be in her mid-thirties.  She had long dark brown hair. She looked like a living person and if she hadn’t floated I probably wouldn’t have watched her.  I tried talking to her, but her gaze stayed riveted on what she was looking for.  She could have been residual energy, or just very focused on perhaps finding what she had lost.

Whitehall Burying Ground on Whitehall Avenue, close to the Whitehall Mansion Inn, is quite  stark in comparison to the gracious Elm Grove environment with its artistic monuments.  It dates back to the 1600s.  The stone markers are mostly rectangular and domed and seem to be made of sandstone, limestone, and/or slate.  Decorations run from willows, angels of death, scrollwork, skulls, and other earlier types of art generally reflecting the solemnity of death.

Whitehall seems to host early settlers, sea captains, veterans of wars gone by including the Revolutionary and I think, Civil Wars.  It’s a rather small spot, but larger than the older, widely used family burial plot usually established on the person’s property who once lived there.

You don’t seem to ever feel like you’re alone when walking around Whitehall.  Shadows can even be seen in broad daylight.  Shadows are apparent at night, too, as well as orbs.  Orbs are commonly thought to be circles of energy visible to the naked eye.  Some skeptics call them ‘dust’ or ‘bugs’ and this could be true in some instances, but I find it difficult to believe that in a place as dark as Whitehall is at night, you’ll be watching illuminated, dancing dust particles.  And if you happen to visit in the autumn when dried leaves have fallen, sometimes you can hear what sounds like footfalls crunching them behind you as you walk through that spot of eternal rest  —  or unrest as the case may be.

So maybe next time you’re in Mystic you can add a couple of more places to your ‘have to see’ list.  And if you’re lucky, maybe you’ll get to experience even more.

ashanta

Apr 16 2017

October Mountain Mystery

This is an experience I had years ago while living in a different town.

About 5 miles from where I was living, in Western Massachusetts, there is a state forest that covers roughly 16,500 acres[1]. I had been told by numerous people it was a bizarre place, so a friend and I decided to go for a hike around an old Boy Scout camp that used to be there[2] next to Felton Lake. Being curious we hiked around for a while and found it. The camp no longer existed because someone had burned it down at one time or another. We had decided to hang out by the lake and look around for a while. When it became late afternoon we realized it was time to leave if we were to get out of the woods before dark.

After a while, as we were hiking back, we started hearing these grunting sounds. They seemed to be coming from quite a ways away from us. The first thing we thought was that it was a bear and so we picked up our pace. The noise seemed to pick up pace with us,although it still sounded to be a distance away.

As the sun went down and it got closer to dark the grunts seemed to get closer to us and started to come from different spots. It was as if something was communicating, as strange as that sounds.

When we got out of the forest and back onto the road I looked back and saw these eyes looking out at us. I swear they seemed to be 6 or 7 feet off the ground!

We were freaked out to say the least and got the hell away from there as fast as we possibly could. I haven’t been back there since for obvious reasons. Now, many years later I want to go back with our paranormal group and maybe get some answers to what I saw, as well as the things that have been reported by other people. Over the years spirits have been reported near a long abandoned cemetery and along the path that leads to it. UFOs have also been seen in the area.

Felton Lake is in October Mountain State Forest. It consists of several parcels of land located in Becket, Lee, Washington, and Lenox, MA. It is the largest State Forest in Massachusetts. (www.mass.gov)

Reported sightings include anthropoid creatures, like Bigfoot, mysterious lights, and a ghost girl in the abandoned 1800’s cemetery.

[1]    October Mountain State Forest

[2]    Camp Eagle

–  Bran

Mar 10 2017

A Beautiful and Haunted Museum

A beautiful and haunted museum sits next to the Connecticut River in rural Hadley, MA.  Situated on acres, amongst farmland, this c. 1752 Colonial-style house has been home to many of the same-family members over the course of a couple hundred years.  In 1949, Dr. James Huntington opened the home to the public and the Porter, Phelps, Huntington House Museum was born.

After such a long history, it isn’t too surprising that the house seems to be home to more than one family member who just didn’t want to leave.  Phenomena associated with the house are doors that open and shut on their own, footfalls walking the halls and rooms,  disembodied voices, and encounters with someone that quickly moves past visitors.  It seems that most of the activity is from a woman or two, and possibly a child who seems to like the staircases best.

Moses Porter constructed the house outside the Hadley village stockade on about 600 acres of fertile land and created a home for his wife Elizabeth and their young daughter Betty.  Things went well until the French and Indian War broke out and Moses was called to duty.  He was deployed to the Lake George area in 1755.  Capt. Porter was killed in battle and buried in New York.  One night, one of the Porter’s servants handed Elizabeth her husband’s sword from battle.  She knew then, he’d never be home again.  Elizabeth never got over the death of her husband.  The house experienced a long period of sadness and emotional distress that continued in a downward spin.

Eventually, the house was passed along to Elizabeth Porter’s daughter Elizabeth. Betty lived in the mansion with her husband Charles Phelps, Jr. and their several children.  After Charles died, Elizabeth hoped her son, Charles, would bring his family and come to the house to live with her.  He never did.  After Betty’s death, the house went to her daughter, Elizabeth Whiting Phelps,  who had married Dan Huntington, the parents of Dr. James Huntington.  The House is now managed by the Porter Phelps Huntington Foundation.

It has been purported that an impression in the bed can be seen in the front bedroom that belonged to Elizabeth and Moses….the place where Mrs. Porter got the devastating news her husband was dead.   We’ve toured the property on several occasions and on one of them a definite shape could be seen in the bed.  We’ve heard knockings, and there are definite shadows that can been seen out of the corner of one’s eyes.   I understand that the family themselves, and only among themselves, knew some of their relatives never left the property.

Who is the woman there?  It’s up for grabs.  It could be either Elizabeth Porter or Elizabeth Phelps.  They both seemed to have reason enough to stay on.  Maybe if you go and visit you can determine the source of activity…..and experience it for yourself.  There’s a prominent feeling of being both watched and followed.   I don’t think you could ever feel like you were alone in the place.  And the child?  Maybe one of the children who never reached adulthood and left this world at a very young age.

It’s worth a visit to this museum for it’s historical, architectural, and aesthetic value alone.  But, if you’re fortunate enough to have a family member visit you while you’re there – it’s an extra treat.

–  ashanta

ashantaofthelema@gmail.com

Oct 19 2016

An Angel?

Was he an angel??

My good friend argued his best with me not to buy that car. But, I wanted it.  Ever since losing my last MG Midget there wasn’t another car that would take its place.  So, overlooking all good reason not to invest in this little sporty model, I purchased it.  It was great!  That lasted almost a month.

One day while out doing grocery shopping with my small daughter, elderly grandmother, and a puppy, we were on our way home.  Now,  you have to consider the size of this vehicle….  it’s about the size of two grocery carts abutting one another.  You also need to know that while sitting in the two front seats – you’re literally sitting on the floor of the car.  There is no backseat.  There’s a small console that rises up enough for a six-year old to fit on and stick a small puppy beside her on the floor next to her.  Groceries were in the trunk….directly behind the small console with the small child and little dog.  This mobile contraption was stuffed to the gills.

We were driving up River Street in West Springfield, went under the railroad overpass, and got to the front of the line facing a red light.  While idling there waiting for a green light, smoke started rising out of the hood.  Lots of smoke from under the hood.  Then a small red/orange flicker that looked like a lit candle.  More smoke.

The car was in first, so I put on the e-brake and turned the thing off.  Now  —  what to do next?  And —  think fast.   Get everyone out of the car.  My daughter and the puppy were no problem.  My 90-year old gimpy grandmother, sitting on the floor of a small container was no easy situation.  Did I also tell you that she has a heart condition, is blind in one eye, and doesn’t move very quickly?  The smoke is getting thicker and larger flames are happening.

I’m in the middle of two lanes struggling with keeping it together and trying to wrestle my grammy out of that tiny box called a sports car.  Out of nowhere a man appeared and asked if he could help.  Yes!!  Any help would be appreciated.  He seemed to have been walking along the sidewalk and saw the dilemma.  He easily extracted Nana out of the MG.  We headed for a garage diagonally across the street from the intersection.   Within a couple of minutes this man had everything under control, everyone safe, and everything taken care of.  I thanked him and he walked out of the garage.  I told my family I’d be right back, hoping to ask him if I could pay him for his help and thank him again.  It was only a minute.  I went outside and there was no-one there.  I ran to the sidewalk and looked up and down.  Went back to the garage and looked all around the area.  The place is wide open…..no ‘hidden’ areas.  The man who helped us was nowhere to be seen or found.  He was just gone.  I asked the mechanic at the garage if he knew the person who helped us….he didn’t see a man with us!

I’ve thanked this man so many times over the ensuing years and think that if he was a Guardian Angel he must certainly know how thankful we all were that he was there!!

–  ashanta

Jun 24 2016

Are Pentagrams Good or Evil?

Is the pentagram good or evil?  What a question!  It’s neither.  The pentangle is a symbol, a philosophy, a mathematical theory, and a tool.  From ancient times the pentagram has been used to better understand the Universe and man’s place within it.  Pythagoras used it to represent man.  DaVinci expanded upon his theory.  http://leonardodavinci.stanford.edu/submissions/clabaugh/history/leonardo.html

The number five has represented the five elements:  air, earth, water, fire, and aethyr (spirit).  Five represents the path Venus makes on her trip around the sky: https://johncarlosbaez.wordpress.com/2014/01/04/the-pentagram-of-venus/ .

The pentagram has also been used to illustrate the Golden Ratio:  http://www.livescience.com/37704-phi-golden-ratio.html .

The five-pointed star has been used for millennia on flags, on buildings, in cities, (i.e. Washington, D.C.), and even worn by early Christians to protect themselves against evil.  And yes – it’s used in ceremonial rituals and ceremonial magick.

When used in a mystical sense, the attitude that it is infused in the process is what matters – not the star’s orientation.  Point up or down makes no bit of difference one way or another.  One point up, two points up….really?  What fluff.  Point reference was started in the mid-19th century by a self-proclaimed, jealous, closed-minded magician who called himself Eliphas Levi.  His real name is Alphonse Louis Constant.  Mr. Levi / Constant was a Catholic, very dedicated to the church, who in his later years disavowed magic.  He perhaps came to his writings and teachings with a prejudiced inclination.  The pentagram as evil is really a 19th century folly.

People, usually enthralled with the concept of evil, for whatever reasons, were intrigued.  And, Hollywood, wanting to make money off these strong emotions, started producing films to build up the fenzy and make more money.  That brings us to Anton LeVey  and his Church of Satan.  LeVey, born Howard Stanton LeVey, jumped on the bandwagon seeing an opportunity to promote himself and make some bucks.  LeVey was always a showman, working from an early age in the circus and carnivals.  He was a gifted musician and a good businessman.  He was intelligent and had great marketing skills.

LeVey didn’t believe in Satan and he didn’t much care for what he considered the hypocrasy of humankind.  Go to bars and brothels during the week and then make a showing at church on Sunday.  In his teachings, LeVey promoted self-confidence and gave people the feeling of personal empowerment.  Who doesn’t want that?  He had some good thoughts on the subject, too.  Read his Nine Satanic Statements….not to shabby and nothing evil.

So, is the pentagram good or evil?  It’s entirely up to you.  What do you put into it?  If it’s good thoughts, it’s from within you.  If it’s evil — maybe you are, too.  Just remember the law of three.  What you wish for someone else is what you’ll get back times three.  That’s just the Universal Law of Reciprocity.

– ashanta

Dec 5 2015

Who Were They?

I grew up in a small village in southern Rhode Island. It was one of those places that if you were driving through and sneezed, you’d miss it. We had one main street through the center, three small side streets, and a long earthern private driveway. There was also a church, a mom and pop small store, a volunteer fire house, and very few street lights.

What we did have in addition to a surrounding forest were lots of trees, plenty of wildlife, and a dark, magnificent night sky. Stars shone like brilliant diamonds and the Milky Way stood out as the special thing it is. When a growing moon slid across the vastness of space above it lit up the earth and you could see the countryside like a Norman Rockwell night scene.

At the time UFO’s were a popular topic of conversation. Roswell had happened a few years before and even though I was very young I had a good understanding of the prevalent skepticism of the government’s flimsy explanation of the event. There were strange things seen in the sky on various occasions and no one doubted there was always the possibility it could be something unknown.

One bright night when I was in bed trying to get to sleep I noticed a movement by the window. As I watched, the sight turned into something that looked like a black-robed hooded figure. While not liking this very much, it became more curious than frightening. The figure walked to the side of the bed and stood there looking at me. I closed my eyes thinking maybe I was dreaming. When I got up enough courage to look again – the figure was still there.  (At this I pulled the covers over my head and probably yelled for my parents……(don’t remember that part).

Now if this was just a one-time deal, the memory of it probably would have gone away a l-o-n-g time ago, but that’s not how it happened. This event occurred many times over the course of several months. On the last time, I had been asleep and felt something touching the inside of my wrist. I opened my eyes to see this same clothed figure standing by the bed with an arm outstretched and the pointer finger touching me. I asked, for the first time, “Where do you come from?”. The being moved closer to the window, raised it’s arm, and pointed to the sky. With that it vanished.

To this day, I cannot sleep with an arm hanging over the side of the bed. I also prefer long sleeves no matter what the weather…..the ones that cover your wrists!

– ashanta

Oct 28 2015

The Ouija Board & Evil?

On All Hallow’s Eve, when the dead come back home and the veil between existences is the thinnest, communing with them is supposed to be easier than any other time of year.  There are a number of ways those who have translated can interact with us on this side, but what do we do to initiate the conversation?  Automatic writing,  candle flame scrying, deep meditation to channel?  How about an Ouija Board?

The witchboard was introduced to our country around 1891 when an interest in the Spiritualist movement was at its peak.  It was a popular form of entertainment for decades practiced by a large following of believers from just about every background, including Mary Todd Lincoln, the President’s wife.

Ouija boards seem to be to the occult what cilantro is to cooking….you either love it or hate it!! I know people who won’t go near one and certainly would never touch one because of the supposed inherent evil they contain.  I don’t understand this questionable thinking process.  How can a piece of wood or pressed cardboard be made bad?  Certainly the movie The Exorcist helped this idea develop!!  And religions, also, jumped on the bandwagon in an effort to scare a dwindling Sunday attendance back into the pews so congregations could keep one step ahead of the Devil….

In November 2014 DailyMail.com ran a story saying the sales of Ouija boards was up 300%.  Couldn’t find stats for this year so far, but imagine sales are still pretty good; especially considering when times are tough people turn more to the paranormal for answers they don’t get anywhere else.  Ouija’s are still manufactured by Hasbro, who bought out Parker Brothers in 1991, and I don’t think they package a piece of Satan in every box!

Ouija, like any other tool, can be used for any purpose. I believe that any evil that is associated with the witchboard comes to it with the intent of the person, or people, using it.  It can work as a conductor for any energy, but does not have any inherent energy of its own.  It’s like white or black magick  —  no such thing  —  there’s only magick.  What you do with it is what defines it.

Happy Halloween!!

–  ashanta

 

We would like to invite anyone who would like to contact us, share a story, comment on anything, or just keep in  touch to reach us at:

ashantaofthelema@gmail.com                                Thank you!!

Oct 7 2015

Witches & Witchcraft

(This is a bit lengthy, but it is Halloween Season…)

In an anthropological, religious, and mythological context, witchcraft is the alleged practice of using magickal powers to either help or harm another person and/or his possessions.

But – how did all this start?

Witchcraft, as all the other earth-based nature religions of Paganism have their origins in pre-history.  Small communities and other groupings of people lived in harmony with nature and the earth was considered to be nurturing – thus the concept of Mother Nature was assumed.  The earth fed, clothed, and sheltered her own.  The Goddess was born,  a figure to express the divine seen and experienced in the natural world.

The Goddess expressed one aspect of Nature’s fertility and being natural – her Consort – the Great Horned Father symbolized the other aspect of nature’s fecundity.  He is also represented as the Green Man, or Robin of the Wood.  Both God & Goddess had as many  names as there were people communing with them.  These gods/goddesses weren’t thought to be above humanity – they resembled humanity.  Just as we have both good and bad sides – so did they.

Paganism is generally henotheistic –   there is more than one god/dess  even though only one is worshipped at a time.  There were generally 8 major celebrations or festivals that took place in spots that were considered sacred.  Nature was all around and natural cycles and rhythms  were the things revered.

There were no rule books, there was no bible, there were no written rites, but these people more than likely had a better relationship with their world and others in it than  we do today.

So what happened?

 The man-made religion of Christianity happened.  While Nature Religions are Matriarchal, Christianity is not and Patriarchy was trying to be pushed at everyone who could be rounded up.

Christianity spread through towns and villages before it reached the more rural areas.  And – contrary to the widespread belief that conversions were immediate, they were not.  With the progression of the church hierarchy demanding pagans convert whole countries were classified as Christian.  In actuality only the rulers had adopted the new monotheism and some only half-heartedly.  The church made many deals with many rulers to sway them to their side.  It took over 1000 years for The Old Religion to be pushed back out of peoples minds and practices.

In a further attempt to manipulate and control the masses, around the turn of the 7th century,  Pope Gregory the Great ordered his bishops to smash any pagan idols they could find and sprinkle holy water on the sacred sites of the Old Religion.  He felt if he built his Churches on the sacred places of the heretics, more people would attend the new church.

And that wasn’t the only attempt at substitution Christians resorted to….they also assumed pagan celebration days and symbols from the heathen.

Of course the builders, woodcarvers, and stonemasons the church used to build their new edifices were adherents to the old ways and they weren’t as stupid as Pope Gregory might have hoped.  These artisans incorporated images of their own deities in the decorating of the new churches and worshiped their own during Mass.

Pagans of every kind became the enemies of Christianity.  So the Church set out to destroy it’s rival.  As it has been said, “The Gods of an old religion become the Devils of the new.”, and so it was with the burgeoning Christian movement.  The Great Horned Father became the newly personified Satan.  And as we know from the Deviled Ham Wrapper – the Devil has horns!   Therefore all Pagans must be devil-worshippers. And so the thread of fear started to be woven.

By the way – Horns are a symbol of Wisdom.  There is a statue of Moses at the Vatican with Horns and a few pictures that have been painted of him in the same way.

Another aside while we’re at it….Satan is a device created by the Church to instill fear.  Fear makes control easier to attain.  Capital letter “S” Satan doesn’t appear in the Bible until the New Testament.  There are references to ‘the satans’ in the Old Testament, but the translation of the word Small letter “s” satans is “adversary” or “tempter”.  The satans tested people to make sure their faith was good.

Under the Churches guidance the 2 sides of man became 2 opposing forces: one of good and one of evil….God vs. Satan and the battle was on.

As time passed the idea that anyone who was not a Christian was the Devil’s own grew in strength and the ardor of those in the Church to eradicate anyone not like themselves grew to fever pitch.   In 1484 Pope Innocent VIII  published his Bull against Witches.  2 years later Heinrich Kramer and Jakob Sprenger, both monks, wrote the Malleus Maleficarum – The Witch’s Hammer  and with this large tome of instructions on how to torture and punish witches – the hunt was on.

Between 1480 and 1700 over 100,000 men and women were tortured, crushed, burned, hanged, drowned, and in several instances drawn and quartered.   Some estimates quote the number at closer to 9 million.

Within this time-frame, immigration to the new land had started.  The Puritans, The Pilgrims were creating their settlements and larger numbers kept coming to get a new start.  New starts, however, do not imply New Ways, so these people brought there old beliefs with them.  They were a superstitious people and they faced a hostile native population,  their crops failed, they suffered starvation, and disease.  Prayer and fasting didn’t mitigate their harsh conditions and they wanted these bad things to stop and soon.

With all that negativity surely some of the witches must have followed them to the new land.  They also still got into feuds with their neighbors – so perhaps one of them could be the sorcerer.

The Protestant ministers of New England didn’t follow the tenets of the Catholic Church, but they still felt themselves to be God’s Chosen.  They preached fire and brimstone and blamed The Devil for all the ills of their people.  Fear among the people was rampant and as it spread the Clergy found itself with a lot of power to wield among those less wise  and worthy than themselves.

Cotton Mather, one of the most famous Men-of-the-Cloth, preached that his people should “fight a holy war against the army of devils who are ready to strike a any moment.”.

In 1692 the Salem Witch hunts began.  The Rev. Samuel Paris had become the parson of the Village of Salem and he wasn’t too well liked by the people.  At the suggestion of his daughter Betsy and niece Abagail, the Paris’ West Indian slave Tituba was accused of dabbling in magick.   And – she confessed.  The hysteria had started.

The courts decided that Spectral information would be allowed at trial.  Spectral information involved ghosts appearing to the accusers to give them information on the victims they were turning in to the court.  When someone was accused of being a witch, the accuser’s word was taken as truth without question.    No other evidence mattered.

200 men and women in New England were accused of being a witch.  24 of them were tortured and killed.   95 Percent of all witch executions happened in New England.  Until the horror at Salem, only 5 people were brought up for trial.  They were all acquitted and 2 of the men filed slander and libel charges against their accuser’s and won.

The straw that broke the back of hysteria in Salem ended when the Rev. George Burroughs was executed.  Prior to his hanging, he recited the Lord’s Prayer – something, as it was known, no witch could ever do.  The court had sentenced him to death – however – so the lynching went on.

Five years after these trials occurred it was determined that the court system was inadequate.  It was then that “Innocent until Proven Guilty” was established.

In 1951 the last Witchcraft Act from 1735 and the Fraudulent Medium Act were repealed in England making the discussion, practice, and interest in Witchcraft legal.  Gerald Gardner, a practicing coven member from a group in New Forest, England wrote 2 books that were published there and abroad.  He published Witchcraft Today in 1954 and The Meaning of Witchcraft in 1959.   With his new Neo-Wiccan Bible for Christians-in-Denial came a tremendous interest in the practice of bending the laws of physics to achieve what one wills.  New Age Covens sprang up everywhere and a new order of witchcraft was born.

Today, half a century later, there are active covens all over our 50 states, but there are a lot more people practicing the Old Religion, who revere Nature, who practice as solitaries.  These people today are  no more Satanists than those that were persecuted before them.

There are some good tenets to Paganism:    “that it hurt no one – so mote it be”

“love is the law – love under will”

whatever one does to someone else – the energy will return to the sender by the power of 3  and scrying techniques are utilized for the betterment of the user…..   gazing balls, tarot cards, astrology charts, to name a few are techniques employed to grow, as an individual, to a higher spiritual level.  Trying to attain spiritual compatability with the Creator doesn’t sound evil to me. And the use of sigils, symbolism, and magickal instruments to attempt to connect with a higher energy to be used for the good of all shouldn’t be damned.

–  ashanta

We would like to invite anyone who would like to contact us, share a story, comment on anything, or just keep in  touch to reach us at:

ashantaofthelema@gmail.com                                Thank you!!

Sep 29 2015

Wizard’s Glen — Haunted or Just Eerie?

Wizard’s Glen is located along a part of the Appalachian Trail that runs through the Berkshires in Western Massachusetts.  Nestled in the hills of Dalton, this site sits along Gulf Road which starts at the intersection of High Street and Park Avenue in the Southeastern part of town.  It’s a four-mile unpaved designated scenic road that looks more like a pathway.

As you traverse up the street the air seems to get cooler as you approach a high rocky ravine cut through flint rocks.  The area narrows as huge boulders ascend skyward through the densely treed area.  Other large rocks that have fallen among the boulders look like they’ve been dumped from the sky to fall where they may.  A lot of the rocks are moss covered and the overgrowth of bushes and dense foliage take over the place.  Even though,  crevasses in the rubble are obvious….at least they were when we last visited the place.

There’s a local myth that claims over a 100 years ago a local man had been out hunting and was bringing home a deer he had gotten when a terrible thunderboomer hit the area.  The rain was blowing sideways and the lightening was frequent.  Not wanting to travel further that night, the man hung his quarry from a tree branch and went to find shelter under one of the overhanging monoliths.  All of a sudden the place started lighting up. He watched as an evil spirit and its minions started dancing around, whirling themselves into a frenzy.  Suddenly, an Indian girl was brought forth and heaved onto one of the large flat stones.  All the demons charged at her with knives, killing her.  As she turned her head away she caught the eyes of the hidden onlooker.  He grabbed his Bible, lunged to his feet, and ordered the spirits to leave her alone.  The scene then vanished in the next crash of thunder and everything was again dark.  When the man rose to leave the next morning he believed it all to be a dream, but found someone, (or some things), had stolen his deer  —  and who else could it have been?  Can the screams of the young girl still be heard on some dark, stormy evenings?

Hobomocko, the Algonquin spirit of death, is attributed to being the organizer of the human sacrifice made that terrible night.  And the area already had a reputation for being a power spot for the Native American shamans who performed their invocations and rituals.  Even now, the huge, flat, altar stone can still be seen.  Some claim the red iron ore stains are really the spilled blood of many unfortunate others who became the ritual gift to a higher deity.

–   ashanta

We would like to invite anyone who would like to contact us, share a story, comment on anything, or just keep in  touch to reach us at:

ashantaofthelema@gmail.com                                Thank you!!

Sep 24 2015

Commune with the Universe – Meditate

All meditation can lead to a channel that opens up to inner wisdom, regeneration, and connection to all that exists in the Universe.

What do you think of when you hear the word ‘meditation’?  I think meditation is one of the most misunderstood spirituality practices in use today.  It seems to carry an aura of some sort of superiority in the quest for enlightenment. Those who practice it seem almost apart from many other people.  And, it appears to retain a shell of mystery as to comprehension of its inner connections to all things transcendental.  I wonder if this veneer has been planned and finely honed or if it is inherent in the belief that it is a study of eastern ways as opposed to being introduced by the west.

Meditation can be practiced by anyone,  anywhere, anytime.  It doesn’t have to be done while sitting on a mat in an uncomfortable position.  It can be utilized while taking a walk for a few minutes in the middle of a hectic workday.  It can be done while sitting poolside, ocean side, on a deck, or in your living room.

Meditation is a tool to reunite with the unseen, the unknown, and the incalculable.   It can inspire, teach, and open pathways. The most important thing to do to reach the most desirable state of meditation and produce the best results is to try and quiet your mind.  It’s important to stop your internal dialogue.  And these things are easier to say than to achieve.

Try to not focus your attention on anything specific because when you do that your mind becomes fixed on that thing and stillness escapes.  While you will hear things around you don’t try to figure out where they are coming from or what they are.  That will also draw your mind to fix on something else besides the task at hand.

Let the Universe guide you and open yourself up to the things it has to offer. These results can be just as beneficial and potent as the ones achieved by a practitioner who rests in one position for hours on end….and who knows  –  maybe they are napping.

–   ashanta

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