GREENLEAF MAGAZINE
THE FESTIVAL WHEEL REVIVED
[Along with its feature on "Healing Wizards of Peru" a report, "The Call went out to Stop the Solstice" describing how Girven, then Chief Constable of Wiltshire, prevented all but a few people from briefly reaching Stonehenge that Summer, GREENLEAF magazine published on AUGUST 7TH 1989, partly as a gesture of defiance, the following feature] THE GREAT FESTIVAL WHEEL Interest in our ancient monuments revived in the 18th Century and the rediscovery of the old straight tracks on the ridgeways opened the way to speculation about ley lines and geometrical features on the countryside in general. But Geomancy as a practical and a popular art could be said to date from the 1960's when otherwise ordinary people began to seek for sacred and ancient places to have "deeply meaningful experiences", spiritual awakenings, New Age gatherings and whatever. Were it not for the writings of the English mystic and scholar John Michell we might not have a modern cult of Geomancy, and thousands might not (for better or worse) be descending annually on Glastonbury and Stonehenge. In Michell's latest book "Maps of Paradise" he mentions that Llantwit Major in Glamorgan was an ancient sacred site. It translates, folks, as "the church of the great Welsh Twit' whatever twit means in Welsh but what is extraordinary is Michell's discovery that Llantwit and Stonehenge make an angle of 144 degrees at Glastonbury and the 3 sites are the vertices of a decagon. The next point east is at Goring-on-Thames. another ancient site, claims Michell while he says the centre in the Malverns is of great antiquity and sanctity. One cannot resist drawing a circle on the map to locate the ather sites. Is there a Great Festival Wheel? Apart from Glastonbury and Stonehenge are there 3 sacred sites in Wales and 5 more in the Midlands perhaps known so far only to Druids and antiquarians? Great Energy forbid that people should stop going to Glastonbury and Stonehenge! But equally those sites suffer from overexposure, from excessive public demand both as Festival areas and places of worship. It may even seem the wheel is now unbalanced due to extreme attention to its most Southerly points and we must "awaken" the other paints to balance it. When the time is ripe we may gather in the centre and peace and harmony will then reign. Meanwhile the map names APPROXIMATE sites for ten great festivals. Remember the Glastonbury Festival is a few miles from the tor and the mundane site must be a place where people can stay. There are two sets af pentagons and pentagrams, one includes Glastonbury and might have inward-looking, prophetic, lunar. yinnish vibrations. The Stonehenge wheel might have outward-looking, power-maglc, solar, yangish qualities. To find out we'd need to visit the sltes. We think the Idea of eight new festivals will be taken up. GREENLEAF wants to hear of personal experiences and folklore from the eight areas. And we predlct it is only a matter of time before this map is hanging on the ops room wall and causing grief to eleven different police counties! [Those who study John Michell's writings will read about The White Leaved Oak, and Summer Hill, which are at the centre of the Wheel. Close by is Castlemorton Common, where the tribes of festival-goers landed a few years later, at the end of a big police operation attempting to drive them out of Gloucestershire. The time was definitely not ripe and peace and harmony did not reign. But the republication of this information in 2002 may seem appropriate.] .
Click here to go to PADRAS/Stonehenge site Click for information about Robin's Greenwood Gang Click here to return to RGG home page

GREENLEAF MAGAZINE

THE FESTIVAL WHEEL REVIVED

[Along with its feature on "Healing Wizards of Peru" a report, "The Call went out to Stop the Solstice" describing how Girven, then Chief Constable of Wiltshire, prevented all but a few people from briefly reaching Stonehenge that Summer, GREENLEAF magazine published on AUGUST 7TH 1989, partly as a gesture of defiance, the following feature]

THE GREAT FESTIVAL WHEEL

Interest in our ancient monuments revived in the 18th Century and the rediscovery of the old straight tracks on the ridgeways opened the way to speculation about ley lines and geometrical features on the countryside in general. But Geomancy as a practical and a popular art could be said to date from the 1960's when otherwise ordinary people began to seek for sacred and ancient places to have "deeply meaningful experiences", spiritual awakenings, New Age gatherings and whatever.

Were it not for the writings of the English mystic and scholar John Michell we might not have a modern cult of Geomancy, and thousands might not (for better or worse) be descending annually on Glastonbury and Stonehenge. In Michell's latest book "Maps of Paradise" he mentions that Llantwit Major in Glamorgan was an ancient sacred site. It translates, folks, as "the church of the great Welsh Twit' whatever twit means in Welsh but what is extraordinary is Michell's discovery that Llantwit and Stonehenge make an angle of 144 degrees at Glastonbury and the 3 sites are the vertices of a decagon. The next point east is at Goring-on-Thames. another ancient site, claims Michell while he says the centre in the Malverns is of great antiquity and sanctity.

One cannot resist drawing a circle on the map to locate the ather sites. Is there a Great Festival Wheel? Apart from Glastonbury and Stonehenge are there 3 sacred sites in Wales and 5 more in the Midlands perhaps known so far only to Druids and antiquarians? Great Energy forbid that people should stop going to Glastonbury and Stonehenge! But equally those sites suffer from overexposure, from excessive public demand both as Festival areas and places of worship. It may even seem the wheel is now unbalanced due to extreme attention to its most Southerly points and we must "awaken" the other paints to balance it. When the time is ripe we may gather in the centre and peace and harmony will then reign.

Meanwhile the map names APPROXIMATE sites for ten great festivals. Remember the Glastonbury Festival is a few miles from the tor and the mundane site must be a place where people can stay. There are two sets af pentagons and pentagrams, one includes Glastonbury and might have inward-looking, prophetic, lunar. yinnish vibrations. The Stonehenge wheel might have outward-looking, power-maglc, solar, yangish qualities. To find out we'd need to visit the sltes. We think the Idea of eight new festivals will be taken up. GREENLEAF wants to hear of personal experiences and folklore from the eight areas. And we predlct it is only a matter of time before this map is hanging on the ops room wall and causing grief to eleven different police counties!

[Those who study John Michell's writings will read about The White Leaved Oak, and Summer Hill, which are at the centre of the Wheel. Close by is Castlemorton Common, where the tribes of festival-goers landed a few years later, at the end of a big police operation attempting to drive them out of Gloucestershire. The time was definitely not ripe and peace and harmony did not reign. But the republication of this information in 2002 may seem appropriate.]

Click here to go to PADRAS/Stonehenge site

Click for information about Robin's Greenwood Gang

Click here to return to RGG home page