Greenmantle (Sample)

Gree n ma n t le A Pagan Journal

Samhain 2011

ÂŁ3.75

Featuring: Damh the Bard Gary Andrews, Tim Plestor, Kit Berry and Kenneth Johnson

Gree n ma n t le A Pagan Journal

Samhain 2011

ÂŁ3.75

Acknowledgements This Issue is dedicated to the memory of Kenneth Rayner Johnson All contents are Š to the individual authors and artists and may not be reproduced without consent.

Photos courtesy of: Paul Pearson, Spirit of Albion, Lusete, Kit Berry, Tim Plestor Our thanks to all contributors, authors and artists.

Any queries should be sent to the editorial address:

Greenmantle

Flat 2, 1 Dover Road, Brighton BN1 6LP England Email: uther8@hotmail.com Cover Photography by Paul Pearson Layouts and design by Carolyne Griffin Graphics by Rowan Wulfe

The Editorial Gestalt: Editor and Co-ordinator: Paul Pearson Proof Editor: Tallis Harill Graphics: Patricia Gill Layout and Design: Carolyne Griffin

Greenmantle

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Contents Editorial

An extended Editorial exploring our adventures and misadventures..............05

Primal Scream

Richard Gordon explores sound and vocal tools in the first part of a twopart article................... 07

French Folklore on Menhirs and Dolmens

Patou Soult gives an insight into French neolithic and magical sites...............10

An Interview with Kit Berry

The author of the popular Stonewylde series of books talks to Kim Parker about her work and her life...............................12

The Pagan Ninja

Back with a vengeance, the illustrious columnist marks another target for his outspoken views...................15

The Spirit of Albion

An interview with producer/ director Gary Andrews and Damh The Bard and a behind the scenes look at the forthcoming film inspired by Damh’s music.................17

Kenneth Rayner Johnson

A look at the life and work of writer, journalist and Greenmantle contributor who died earlier this year...22

A Traditional Wheel of the Year

A Mythopoetic Journey through the seasons and festivals of the year by Gwyn.....24

Way of the Morris

An interview with Tim Plestor, director of Way Of The Morris, probably the best documentary on the subject of Morris Dancing................... 27

Dancing with Jesus

A reprint of Kenneth R. Johnson’s article looking at the ritual circle dance................29

Reviews

A round-up of the latest films, books and music.............................33

Moots, Events & Exchange Ads

Magazines and meetings from around the Pagan world...........................36

Contributors

A look at those wonderful people who made this magazine possible.............................37

Greenmantle – Samhain 201

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Editorial

Editorial

What We Did On Our Holidays It’s been a busy time for us here at Greenmantle, and much has happened, both good and bad.

Hence, this extended editorial.

First, there was the good, beginning with a trip to The Atlantis Bookshop to attend the launch of the Wildwood Tarot, by Mark Ryan, John Matthews and Will Worthington, all three of whom were in attendance.

the wonderfully talented Paul Mitchell, who entertained everyone with his irreverent and hilarious songs. Hallelujah For Satan and Far Better Pagan summed up the feel for the evening, whilst Talis brought a tear to a few eyes with the first live performance of Goodnight Sarah Jane, mourning the loss of actress Elisabeth Sladen.

Food was laid on, including two wonderful Greenman fruit cakes decorated and donated by Kim Parker — and yes, they were delicious! The evening was a success, and everyone enjoyed themselves, especially those lucky winners of our raffle.

Sadly, just a few weeks after Beltaine, writer, journalist and long-time contributor to Greenmantle, Kenneth Johnson passed away.

Kenny was a great friend and a multi-faceted character who was prolific and professional in his writing.

John Matthews, Will Worthington, Mark Ryan

Having our tarot sets signed, and a general chat, we were about to return to Brighton, but Mark insisted we stay and join the merry gang for a drink. Naturally, anything that includes beer is bound to attract a Pagan Ninja, thus we duly followed for drinks in the local pub. Tentative arrangements were made for an in-depth interview with Mark, John and Will, (watch this space!) before we reluctantly departed.

The following evening, our latest edition of Greenmantle launched with a Beltaine Celebration in Bright­ on. Our special guest, of course, was Talis Kimberley, who had generously contributed an exclusive CD that was given free with the Beltaine issue (if you missed out, sorry. We sold out.), but although Talis was our special guest, she Paul Mitchell shared the bill with Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

His book on alchemy, The Fulcanelli Phenomenon is still a seminal book on the subject, but we will always remember him as a fascinating contributor, with articles ranging from classical occultists to Hollywood icons. Kenny was a cornerstone for the magazine and gave us inspiration. As a friend and companion, he will be sorely missed; but his contribution to Greenmantle will continue: his archive, spanning decades and rich with his written manuscripts and correspondences, was donated to Greenmantle shortly before he died, ensuring his legacy. More about him and by him appears elsewhere in this issue.

Kenny Johnson & Boris Karloff

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Editorial Later in May, we were invited by producer/ director Gary Andrews to a location shoot for the forthcoming movie Spirit of Albion. Those used to filming will know that the process can be slow, repetitive and boring. On this occasion, however, it was fascinating. Seeing gods and goddesses appear amidst the beautiful countryside was something in itself, and capturing Herne tangling his horns in some low branches on film was priceless! We felt very privileged to be invited.

Damh the Bard @ Wilmington

July saw us celebrating Lammas at the Long Man Of Wilmington, led by Damh the Bard. The makers of The Spirit of Albion were also present, filming Damh, the Pentacle Drummers and a few dozen extras (Greenmantle staff included) singing Damh’s title song The Spirit Of Albion.

The ritual was beautiful, with the sun shining and a wonderful circle of people giving the ritual warmth and a feeling of fellowship.

take may have become somewhat fluffy, losing the atmosphere of Williamson’s ‘pennydreadful’ display. I was pleasantly surprised. The museum has changed little, really (despite the terrible floods of 2004) and the sensationalist aspects have been excised without losing any of the atmosphere. Afterwards, we met owner Graham King who gave us a tour of the library and museum archives. We shared anecdotes and ideas, thoroughly enjoying the experience.

The final leg of our journey took us to Wiltshire for a pleasant meeting with the delightful Talis Kimberley at her home just a few short miles from Avebury. Those who have heard Talis play will know of her natural talent to captivate an audience; those fortunate enough to have met her know of her warmth and friendliness. After tea and biscuits, we walked to her studio where she performed three new songs for us. Alas, our trip was drawing to a close and, after accepting a bag of home-grown apples, we hugged and parted, heading for our final destination before home — Avebury. Little needs saying about this monument, except, perhaps, that it never loses the energy and magic that the stones emit. With the sky darkening and a large silver moon rising gloriously, we headed home, where Greenmantle waited.

We hope you enjoy this issue, it was created with love and tears, possibly our most emotionally driven issue to date.

The Editorial Gestalt

The sunshine, however, hit hard, and the following week saw the editor suffering with heatstroke, which led to an ongoing ailment which lasted a few weeks. In addition, there were more losses to family of Greenmantle staff and supporters. To recuperate from this series of blows, we decided that a break was needed and we set our sights on Cornwall.

The trip to the West of England took us through the New Forest, Somerset, Dorset, Devon and finally Cornwall. One of the main reasons for visiting Cornwall was to see the Witchcraft Museum in Boscastle. It had been some years since I had seen the museum, back in the days when run by Cecil Williamson. I was a little apprehensive, fearing that the more modern

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Witchcraft Museum, Bocastle

Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

Primal Scream

Primal Scream (pt. 1)

The True Power of Words by Richard Gordon

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ncient scriptures, spells, grimoires, forbidden words and words of power, most of these conjure up visions of ancient rituals and the witches, wizards and wise mages of myth and legend. So we come to the question, are there any genuine words of power that hold actual magickal energy and if this is the case, can we still utilise them within the structure of our modern day lifestyles?

Before we approach the words themselves I would firstly like to touch upon the ideas laid down in my last article. It is my belief that our early ape-like ancestors from the dawn of prehistory, became removed from the animal world consciousness after their collective morning call slowly tuned into and reflected the higher universal vibrational rate of energy, a sort of encoded mental activation that lead to a waking self-awareness of both their surroundings and their place within the structure of their surrounding reality.

Everything within our universe is in a constant state of motion, electrons revolve around the atom, the moon revolves around the earth, the earth around the sun, the sun around the centre of the galaxy, and whilst within this state of motion every particle in our universe also vibrates at a certain rate, and it is this variation in the energy of this vibrational rate that causes one thing to differ from another; it‘s what makes you, “you” or a rock a rock. Although the energetic state of matter can be transformed it can never be totally destroyed, the higher the energy involved becomes, the higher the associated vibrational rate.

Although atomic particles group together forming the basic universal building blocks of life and matter, such as gases, water, rocks and carbon etc., there appears to be no reason why they would “choose” to stay within a structured formation rather then randomly floating in a

Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

state of suspension. When we come into contact with what we believe to be a solid object there is a tendency to accept without question that the information that our sensory input is telling us is correct; but on closer inspection, we find that at the atomic level everything we encounter is almost entirely composed of what is essentially empty space and therefore the solidity of our reality is somewhat illusionary in nature.

There must be something akin to an underlying universal signal that acts to keep everything within its structured order. As an example: we are surrounded by radio waves, but without a receiver we are oblivious to the music and conversations that permeate the air we breathe.

If we construct a receiver, the invisible world of the radio signal is revealed in all its glory.

The more advanced the receiver becomes, the greater the waveband of available signals and frequencies that we can tune into.

In the past these radio signals were only being used for communication or entertainment purposes such as music, news and chat shows, but as our technological abilities became more advanced it become possible to update the software of our phones and computers at the

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Primal Scream push of a button, it is not out of the question to assume that it is possible that certain tones or frequencies could also cause a material, physical or mental change within the structure of our reality.

The daily collective “chant” of our ancestors would have become the focal point for the group’s morning call to rise and the evening call to sleep, thus becoming a regular bonding ritual within the group, today we still find plenty of examples of this type of social behaviour within primate society.

As the humanoid brains reacted to the new frequencies there would have been created a need to communicate on a higher level. In the formative years there would have been no actual words, only variations of meaningful vocal calls, then one day the call would have become the first true word, representing food, anger, love, pain, plants or animals or perhaps even a variation of “Yahweh” (one of the earliest known name addressed to a “god”), and so things would have continued until finally short bridging words would have progressed towards forming the basics of a simple language.

In these modern times we now find ourselves living in a multilingual world with many subdivisional dialects, the syntactic value and pronunciation of a word in one language may be completely different to that of another.

As an example, the word for magic in Spanish becomes magia and in German magie or in Bulgarian marnr. It is quite obvious that these variations come from a commonly sourced word but as all have a slightly different vibrational pronounceable quality, we can also be pretty sure that the word itself holds no true power; it just becomes an expressive syntactic tool that the human brain/mind can address in a objective or subjective manner.

This realisation doesn’t lead to us disregarding or discounting the power of all magickal words from the equation, only those that change according to the language that they are spoken in. This leaves us with several options. We can either use ancient words that have been constructed with specific vibrational elements, which may have built up energy due to their historic use and may have even been channelled directly to us via contact with deities: or secondly, we can pronounce a word in our own language in the

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The fiction offshoot of Greenmantle is available now from Lulu.com in both hardcopy (£4.00) and pdf download (£1.50). Poems and shortstories by various authors, illustrated by Greenmantle artist Rowan Wulfe. hope that it will still bring about the desired result: or thirdly, we can construct our own words and try to express that energy in the same way that our ancestors once did.

Certain energetic vocal tones can create an evocative, emotional or even sexual response, causing chemical signatures to key into what appear to be pre-existing neural receptors, it is possible that these vibrational tones create new neural pathways or reactivate dormant neurological circuits that were built into our DNA, redirecting the energy of the spirit back towards its creational source, a sort of hyperspatial link for the soul with the purpose of uploading or downloading information that would otherwise be outside of our mortal reach.

If we take time to study, and esoterically speaking, separate the wheat from the chaff, and grasp a true understanding of the nature of the magickal energetic current and how to use it, we find that in fact all of the above options can be made to work, it is not the pronunciation of the words that create the magickal action but our willed intention that comes into play whilst speaking the words, or to put things in their correct magickal order, intention, will, creation!, thus causing a wave of vibratory change within Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

Primal Scream the base energy of our surroundings and redirecting and redesigning its energy towards that of our willed desires, if we then reinforce that mental energy with a physical harmonically created interpretation of that mental intention we produce a doubled polarity of energy creating a trinity within its focused energy.

“primal scream” or a variation on it carried on into relatively modern times. The ancient cave dwellings of our ancestors would have made a prime location for the vocal chant due to their amplifying qualities. Could it be that other ancient structures such as temples were built with these acoustic qualities in mind?

With this ideology in mind we can then approach a chosen word or magickal phrase in a new way, by matching its tone and pronunciation to that of our intention and thoughts or perhaps completely replacing it with a single harmonic tone. Given the fact that a word is a physical representation of a mentally produced vibrational thought we can begin to refocus our energies on several levels, it is a reconnection and reactivation of that first experience of primordial energy, a direct connection to the divine signal of creation that pulsates throughout the entire creational fabric of the universe.

It is well known that the inner chambers of the pyramids work in this way, it has even crossed my mind that the enigmatic stone circles we all know and love may have been an attempt to amplify and direct a collectively produced vocal tone back towards a central point. The newly discovered 19 feet high stone circles at Gobekli Tepe in Turkey that have been carbon-dated to 12,000 years old may point to the fact that they could have been using the standing stones as natural energetic acoustic accelerators, perhaps focusing the group’s chanted desires into a high priest or sacrificial victim who would then carry and deposit their wishes directly into the structure of the afterlife or spirit world.

After spending many years studying with occultists, shaman and like-minded thinkers from various locations across the world, the one fact that stands out within traditional magickal practices, is the belief that vocal tones and words can be employed to heal or cause change within reality. This belief is Trans-cultural, an illness can be sung away or a “wish”, prayer or question answered by addressing the correct thought to a vocal tone, this often takes the format of a magickal song that is sung by the village shaman or spiritual leader. Within tribal societies these results go without question and are simply accepted as concrete proof that power of magick is real.

(Coming soon — Primal Scream (Part 2) Activating the Magickal Power of Words.)

In these modern times we have to face many obstacles that act as a mental block on our connective or esoteric abilities. From an early age we are told that magick is a fallacy, and as this information becomes embedded within our subconscious it becomes ever necessary to de-condition ourselves from the misinformation we have accepted as being truth. Self belief in our abilities and predicted results must become total, even a pinch of self-doubt will act like the deadliest poison and bring a magickal working to a screeching halt. This is one of the many pitfalls we face and why many fail in their attempts to create magick.

It could be that the primordial magick of our prehistory and the practice of its activating Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

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French Folklore

French Folklore on Menhirs and Dolmens by Patou Soult

W

e know about the scientific consensus in matters of standing stones, their age (predating the pyramids by many thousands of years), their astronomical and cultural uses in Neolithic times and later on to the Celtic peoples and their druids. Yet very little is known about their mythology and the legends that grew out of them in rural areas during the last millenium.

France has many such stories, transmitted orally down to our cartesian modern era…

MEGALITHS CONSTRUCTION It is generally agreed that the rural French people attribute the erection of Menhirs and the construction of Dolmens to supernatural beings endowed with magical powers. First the faeries, then the giants. Giants always seem to come second to the faeries in status, they are often called Gargantua, Pantagruel, Roland or Samson, though they may also be anonymous. These disc-throwing individuals, perhaps ordered by the faeries, are thought to have either planted or thrown the enormous stones into their permanent places.

MEGALITHS MOVEMENTS These extremely heavy monuments have, according to popular beliefs, the power to move

at certain times of the year which correspond to festivities (today christianised) but which in ancient times, were in direct connection with now forgotten cults. Yet the greatest number of these movements coincide with the two main solstices of the year (summer and winter), times of marvel and feasting among our prechristian ancestors.

In Normandy, Anjou, Touraine, Brittany, Berry, Picardie, the Paris region (Ile de France), Poitou, Burgundy and Gascony, Menhirs are known to turn on themselves at midnight. Menhirs that go drinking water from the rivers are quite numerous all over Brittany and there is also one in Normandy. During those events, as their base is suddenly revealed, one can see and grab its treasures in the short time the stone is moving.

It is said that the seeker must hurry but not take too much from them since at the last 12th stroke of midnight from the church bells, the huge stones go back to their place.

VARIOUS MARVELS In the northern half of France, certain megaliths play music (possibly the wind against their natural dents) and in Anjou, they are known to light up at night. In Brittany, Berry and Picardie, certain stones are known to grow larger or taller; this belief is explained by the landslides due to heavy rainfall in areas full of ravines, which reveal or bury parts of the stones. In Upper Brittany, certain stones are known to shrink. To the French peasants, their biggest appeal was that they hid untold treasures, thus many were destroyed by unscrupulous looters.

WHO LIVES THERE? Dolmen’s eery forms easily lend themselves to the popular imagination and they were believed to be (and still are in some parts) the residences of supernatural beings. The most famous legends make them the homes of faeries, or those of witches/wise women (like the Martes ugly faeries’ of central France and the Lamignac of

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Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

French Folklore

the Basque country, see footnote). In the Massif Central, the Midi and in Brittany but particularly in Charente, they are Dwarves’ dwellings. In Corsica, Gascony and Languedoc, they are known to be the homes of giants.

The strange duality of the most christianised French region (Brittany) attributed them to be the homes of either Saints or the Devil. In parts of Gascony and upper Brittany, they were mystical animals residences.

Footnote: THE LAMIGNAC (Laminak) Nocturnal elf-like beings (about 50cms high) from the Basque country (both French and Spanish). Comes from ‘Lamina’, plural ‘Laminak’ (also homonym for ‘Genie’). Believed to predate Homo Sapiens, they live in majestic castles hidden deep inside dens on the ragged hillsides of the Pays Basque and have feet as hard as corn (sometimes a zoomorphic lower body with hen’s feet, palmate feet, goat’s feet or fishtail) and wild golden hair. They may steal from humans, they are proud and peaceful. They are great magicians and can make things disappear by knotting their belts. When angry they can trigger avalanches where humans quarry. They used to tattoo spirals on their cheekbones as ornament.

Their women (who are of human size) wearing phallic headgear would offer a black hen that can produce one golden egg per day to those human females they judge deserving. (From this legend comes the local expression for a very lucky person that “He or she has received a black hen”.) In that region, many places owe their names and the construction of numerous harbours and buildings to the Lamignacs.

Some however are faeries, dwarves, witches and giants’ tombs used for the sabbats, when all these characters along with diabolical cats appear to dance around them. In Normandy, they are believed to be haunted by the living dead. Stories in the Aveyron tell of children sacrifices near Menhirs and on Dolmen tables at particular times of the year.

This seems to confirm the XIX century Celtic School’s theory (now erroneous) that these monuments were erected as altars for human sacrifice.

“The natural receptacles and channels within the flat stones would fill up with the victims blood and their heads would be placed on the atmospheric erosions and other broken bits of the stones.” These stories of sacrifice were made up and exaggerated by the mainstream historians and the locals in recent times until the beginning of the XX century when less sensationalist researchers proved them irrelevant.

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Refs: rupestre.on-rev.com/page0/page12/assets/ Sebillot_1900.pdf www.jason-voyance.com/spip.php?article1259 fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamina_(mythologie)

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Interview with Kit Berry

Interview with Kit Berry conducted by Kim Parker

K

it Berry is the author of the Stonewylde series of books, the first being Magus of Stonewylde. The fourth and penultimate book of the series, Shadows at Stonewylde, was published in August. Kit lived in Weymouth in Dorset for many years, where she studied for her first degree in English and Media Studies at Weymouth College.

Kit’s interests include local history and walking in the fields and woods around the Jurassic Coast. She is now a full-time writer working on the fifth and final book in the Stonewylde series.

You just made a lucrative deal with Gollancz.

Are you surprised by the popularity and success of your books?

Yes, I am. It’s taken a long time to get here and I self-published originally. It was a big decision to make, having achieved success as a self-published author. It was a huge gamble — a step in the dark.

I had to make a big decision about whether to find a publisher or not. I thought, well, we’ll give it a go and if it doesn’t work I’ll carry on doing as I am because, you know, it was doing quite well. I got an agent; this was all around the full moon. I posted letters and made my calls at full moon. I always try to tie everything into sacred pattern. You kind of try and do things, and hope it helps. I am surprised! One of the problems with Stonewylde and mainstream publishers is they try and pigeonhole it, as you have to in any business. You have to put it into a genre in order for the marketing to work. But Stonewylde doesn’t really fit into any genre, it’s not really fantasy — well, I don’t think it’s fantasy, I mean, it could be real! It’s not romance. Well, it is a bit but it’s not completely.

So they’ve chosen to market the books as young adult, which is what I originally wrote it for. It’s the fact that most of my readership is well into adulthood that really surprises me!

Following your success, what do you think the future is for Pagan literature (as opposed to the pure fantasy novels available)?

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Blimey! Well, I hope that this will open doors.

I’m not trying to set myself up as an ambassador for Paganism at all, I really wouldn’t want to do that job. I’ve done lots of talks at MBS [mind, body and spirit –ed.] fairs and also been to lots of Pagan stuff. I’ve also tried to branch out more, I’ve done lots of talks about reconnecting with nature and there were a lot of people who, as we know as Pagans, are afraid of the whole Paganism thing. There are some people who are terrified and think it all stems from witchcraft, magic and evil. It’s overcoming that prejudice, which I really hope Stonewylde will help to do.

I hope it will open people’s minds in a way that a non-fiction book doesn’t, because people wouldn’t pick it up unless you’re interested in finding out about Wicca or Druidism or whatever.

But through reading Stonewylde hopefully people will realise that there is this lovely spirituality based on the natural world. You don’t have to give it a label or say what you are, but it’s all to do with honouring the earth and nature. I’m hoping that it will open people’s eyes and I think that’s what’s happening already quite a lot. I’m hoping that it will therefore reduce people’s prejudice and open them up to other Pagan books. That would be good.

Do you have plans for any non-Stonewylde books or stories?

Oh gosh, yes! I mean Book 5 will be the end of the series of Stonewylde. I mean a lot of my fans on the forum have suggested all kinds of spinGreenmantle – Samhain 2011

Interview with Kit Berry offs, but a lot of people would like a prequel.

They would like to know what it was like when Magus and Clip were boys, or Raven and Mother Heggy were younger. They would love that.

I’m not sure if it would work. I wouldn’t say it definitely wouldn’t work but I’d be reluctant, to be honest. I feel that the reader can fill in those gaps themselves; they can imagine it pretty well. But there’s also other talk of things like a Stonewylde cookbook based on the seasons or hedgerow stuff. Some people also would like Mother Heggy’s Book of Shadows, country tips not necessarily spells, you know, country tips.

Other people would love a moon diary, a diary for the year ahead. But that is already covered

by Glennie Kindred’s Earth Pathways diary.

It’s possible there may be spin-offs, but the Stonewylde series is definitely finished with 5.

But I have other ideas; I’m just not sure what exactly they are yet.

You lived in Weymouth and were inspired by the countryside. What was it that you found so inspiring?

I think it’s the hills, so when you walk up on the hills and you look at the sky, with the larks and swallows, you feel that uplifting feeling. I love anywhere with hills, the South Downs are beautiful. But I also love woodland so I think it’s just the land itself that’s so incredible. I lived in a very little house with no money at all. From my window I could see on the horizon three tumuli known as Bincombe Bumps. I would wake up every morning and see those, and the summer solstice sun would rise behind them. And the winter solstice full moon also rises in the same place as the summer solstice sunrise so that would come up behind them. How can you not be inspired by that! I really miss Dorset!

The stone circle is a very important part of Stonewylde. Was there a particular stone circle you had in mind?

NO! I completely made that one up, I can see it perfectly, I can picture it and I’m hoping it exists! It’s just a weird thing, I couldn’t think of one that was just what I wanted it to be.

How have your personal experiences affected your writing?

Well, very significantly, it’s what made me start writing. I’m sure you know about the hare and labyrinth. One day I had an encounter with a Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

huge golden hare in some woods near where I lived in Dorset. It was the most strange experience standing right next to a wild creature like that, with enormous ears and amber eyes that seemed to stare right into my soul. I went home and started researching hares and folklore, and discovered Paganism. Then I visited a woodland labyrinth and whilst I was in there I had another strange experience, so definitely my encounter with the hare was the huge thing that got me going on the whole thing. That was a very profound experience that made me understand about the power of nature and the spirit behind it all. I’ve had experiences where I’ve been walking in woods and I’ve been convinced if I look around I would see the Green Man behind me, but you can’t quite bear to look because you’re not quite sure what you will see, maybe you’ll see nothing at all. But you know it’s there.

The whole pattern of the moon, you know it’s there. All those experiences have fed into what I believe in myself and what I’ve written about.

It’s amazing when you’re writing as I don’t really plan, you’ll write something and look back later and think, Oh my goodness, that happened to me! But it’s come out, it all feeds into it. There’s a bit in Magus, the bit where mother Heggy has sent Yul to pick the beech wood sickeners in order to make the spell for Alwyn and he’s walking through the beech woods and I describe it (it’s not an original thing at all) as being his church. The cathedral of trees, the anthem of

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Interview with Kit Berry birds. As he’s walking there’s all these bats come out of this tree and flutter around him, it actually happened to me and my son. We were in these woods and this dead tree, there was a weird squeaking noise and we were concerned, then suddenly these bats just poured out of this tree.

Things like this feed into your writing all the time, the more experiences you’ve had, which is why I think it’s easier to write when you’re older, just done more so have more to draw on.

Are you surprised at the success of the Stonewylde online community?

Yes! Absolutely. My husband, it was his idea to set it up. In 2006/7, this was before Facebook exploded. People were sending me emails saying how much they liked the books and I would reply and then they would reply and in the end I couldn’t keep up with it, there were too many people and I couldn’t keep up with who was who and who’d said what. So he said “if we set up a forum then people can interact with each other and you can pop in and out.” So we set it up and I’m amazed. It started off quite slowly as these things do, with twenty members, then thirty, then fifty and now there’s hundreds.

What amazes me is how people meet up. It’s the ages of people; we’ve got members in their seventies! It’s not just youngsters; well, there are youngsters, but lots of older people too.

It amazes me how successful it is and how real, genuine friendships and romances have arisen. I love it! The members feel like my family. I’m on there every day and if I’m away and I can’t I feel like “Ooh, I haven’t seen them all today”. It has surprised me how successful it is. We’ve had very little bitching on there. I’ve heard that on some forums you get a lot of bitching, but we’ve had very little of that. I think perhaps it’s because we’re not based on a particular spirituality or one thing as it’s for people who have enjoyed the books, so it comes from a broader spectrum of people.

Is there a particular Pagan path you are drawn to? Why? Not really, I find that I’m very interested in Druidry particularly, but that’s happened since I wrote the books. Having found out a bit more about Druidry and reading Stonewylde again I’m thinking “Ah, actually that’s what I was always quite interested in”. Perhaps it’s more the nature side of things. But I love it all and I don’t follow a particular path. It makes me laugh when

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I read some of the reviews on Amazon saying “It’s clearly Wiccan”. It’s not; I’ve deliberately not followed any one path so as not to alienate anyone who’s just general. That’s the whole point with Stonewylde — I tried to make up my own slant on things and not follow one way.

Hallfolk or Villager?

Well, I’d be a Stonewylder as they exist in Book 4. I mean obviously one would like to be hallfolk because of the comforts. But of course the simple village life is what we all love, which is why I think Stonewylde is so popular, because inside all of us we hanker for the simplicity and that lovely natural way of living and growing your vegetables and being out of the rat-race, not having to worry about money at all because money doesn’t exist, and society without any of that pressure of traffic and what to wear because you might not look right or makeup and you know. It’s brilliant isn’t it, the whole thought of living close to nature like that and also the sense of community. I think it’s not just the nature side, it’s the idea that you’re part of a big community where you’re all accepted for what you are. You have your place and the lovely regularity of the seasons and the festivals, you know what’s happening, it’s that side which appeals to people.

Whereas the hall-folk, for all their having the privileges, they don’t have that lack of pressure that the villagers have. So, of course, that’s what we all love. So I think you might find in Book 4 we perhaps put it right.

At the coming-of-age ceremony all Stonewylders get a totem necklace. What would be on yours?

It would have to be a hare, wouldn’t it, I mean my birth symbol is, I’m September 17th so I’m autumn equinox, which is the acorn, which is nice because I like acorns. I think it would be a leaping hare, it’s not just the animal or totem you choose, it’s also the aspect to it. So there’s a difference between a moon gazing hare and a leaping hare. I think I would have a hare that’s leaping, it’s that forward motion, and it’s the leap-of-faith thing that resonates with me.

Running wild and free rather than sitting and gazing, which I like as well!

Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

The Pagan Ninja

The Pagan Ninja

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Commercial Tit for Tat

injas like to get away. We love travel and we certainly like to have a break, which includes something interesting and wondrous. Apart from interesting ales, we like to see new places that have a certain beauty, magic or history. Cornwall was just the place. We were heading for Boscastle, which is annoyingly close to Tintagel for my liking.

Now don’t get me wrong, Tintagel has a lot to offer ­— the castle, although no more Arthurian than a cupcake, is impressive, the coastline and the caves are dramatic, and some of the pubs sell decent ales. However, on my last excursion to Tintagel some years ago, the town was awash with Arthurian tat and New Age wares.

Commercialism had swamped the place and very quickly I was bored with the romanticized, shiny armour-clad legend. It was like an Arthurian theme park designed for fluffy bunnies. This Ninja was overwhelmed and sickened by how consumerist the Pagan market had become.

Thus we avoided Tintagel. However, by accident, in the middle of nowhere on a small lane that allegedly led to Boscastle, we came across The Arthurian Experience. Suspecting from its homemade signage an even cheaper, tackier exhibit than anything we may have found in Tintagel, we almost ignored it; however, it promised a tea room and rest room, and both were needed (although off-season in the rain,

Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

the tea room did not really materialize; perhaps we could have shared a cuppa with the curator if we had asked). I was loathe to pay the £3 admission, but my companion, having found the restroom and seen more of the exhibits, urged otherwise. The small museum area was slight and far from sensational, but informatively explored the Arthur of myth and art. A display of armour used in John Boorman’s Excalibur (my favourite Arthurian movie) formed the main artefacts.

Once through the small museum area we found ourselves outside, following a small path which led to a 13th century dig and some ancient earthworks. Continuing, we walked through some charming woodland, passing an 18th century garden and a Medieval cider press, to a spot overlooking the River Camel — and specifically, a 6th century inscribed standing stone, fallen or pushed to lie at the river’s edge.

The inscriptions were both Latin and Ogham, which helped in the dating, and appeared to concern someone named Arturi (though this has been debated). Across the river was a field of battle, for which the nearby bridge was named Slaughterbridge. If there could be such a thing as “genuine Arthurian”, this is as likely as it gets.

The ramble was delightful: quiet, interesting and avoiding the sensationalism that is often part of such attractions. Literature suggests that re-enactments are sometimes held. For a place that is so off the beaten track, it turned out to be a little gem, and despite a couple of

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The Pagan Ninja commercial hooks, was obviously more labour of love than business. It is rare for the Ninja to approve of such places, but anyone who displays Helen Mirren’s breastplate is fine by me!

Pleasantly surprised by this find, we continued towards our next destination, St Nectan’s Glen.

St Nectan’s Glen is an area of woodland in Trethevy, Cornwall, near Tintagel. As so often in Celtic lands, there never was a St Nectan.

The name is a Christianised form of the Cornish water god Nechtan.

So, what is special about this place? A thirtyminute walk through ethereally beautiful glades and woodland leads to a spectacular sixty-foot waterfall known as St Nectan’s Kieve, the only waterfall of its kind, where the water falls down through a holed stone into the basin below. The waterfall is said to have healing powers, and is described as being one of the ten most spiritually significant places in the country. Except…

There is a £4 admission charge, which is at best jarring (and our party differed as to whether the upkeep of the path justified the price). The tea deck would be pleasant on a dry day — which this wasn’t — and a meditation room, which we did not inspect, is provided.

Even worse, why is it that when people find a spiritual place, they have to ruin the atmosphere and natural beauty by adorning the site with keepsakes, ribbons, memorabilia, pictures and other items? True, most of these appeared heartfelt, left to remember someone or to ask for healing; so don’t get me wrong, I’m all for such offerings, in moderation. My suggestion would be to leave offerings that would wash away, or crumble. Like magical spells that require the talisman or offering to rot in the ground or be washed away by the stream. This is what could potentially spoil the waterfall, and to a degree the glade leading to it. When the human offerings begin to hide the natural beauty, the magic wanes.

St Nectan’s Glen is a wonderful and special place to track down if you are visiting Cornwall. But please, leave your tat at home…

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Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

The Spirit of Albion

An Interview with Gary Andrews (Producer/Director) and Damh The Bard Greenmantle: Spirit of Albion originally started out as a stage production, how difficult was it to adapt for the screen?

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he Spirit of Albion is a thoughtprovoking, inspiring and ultimately entertaining ‘play with songs’, complete with ethereally beautiful music and existential themes. It follows three protagonists as they find themselves led into a woodland glade by mysterious ‘guides’ and asked to contemplate their dissatisfaction with their respective modern lifestyles. It transpires the guides are in fact the ‘old ones’, ancient Pagan gods who have taken it upon themselves to enlighten these world-weary travellers, opening their eyes and minds to the natural world. All this is accompanied and unravelled through the medium of song.

Gary Andrews: It wasn’t too hard really. The play itself is quite stylised and consists of several short scenes that suggest many different locations, so it wasn’t a case so much of ‘opening out’ a script as often happens with a stage-to -screen transfer but more a case of actually being able to show what we were simply able to suggest on stage.

Also, it gave us the chance to really expand on the visuals with the songs.

GM: Damh the Bard’s music is obviously an integral part of Spirit of Albion. Was his music the inspiration for the drama?

Writer/Producer/Director Gary Andrews runs the Archway Theatre Young Adults Workshop, where The Spirit of Albion began its life. He cowrote the play with the Workshoppers and has directed every stage version. He has appeared in several films and has played over 50 shows, and has written and adapted many theatrical works, including, of course The Spirit of Albion.

Greenmantle caught up with Gary and asked him about the film-project version of the play.

Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

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The Spirit of Albion

GA: Totally. When we developed the play the songs came first. We narrowed it down to ten tracks which we put in an order that made sense to us. The three main (human) characters were based on the verses of the song ‘Only Human’ ­— who would sing this verse? What issues would they have? Then we chose which gods would appear to each of them and what songs would fit that… and so on. We then improvised scenes based around this and wrote the script from there. Damh very kindly supplied backing tracks for us to use in the stage show and is very involved with the recording of the new versions of the songs for the movie. He also appears in the film (as himself) and performs two of the songs.

GM: How long do you expect filming to last and what locations are you using?

GA: We will start shooting on 30th April and wrap on 11th September. In between we have about twenty shooting days spread over that period. The locations are very exciting. We have a main scene that forms the core of the story set in a woodland glade and have some beautiful private woodland where we are filming that.

We are shooting a scene for one of the songs at the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum in Singleton, hopefully shooting a scene at East Surrey Hospital, another in a local solicitor’s offices and so on. We are also having a very exciting ‘road trip’, where we will be shooting at the Rollright Stones, Uffington, Dartmoor and so on.

GM: What kind of challenges are you facing making this film?

GA: I guess the usual challenges faced by all independent film-makers, the main one being

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how to get the best results on a very low budget!

I am very lucky in that I have many friends who are actors and artists of all sorts, as well as many student friends studying media and so on — so casting and crewing has been fairly straightforward. We have given the film a fairly lengthy pre-production period in order to make sure that all the details are well in place so that once filming begins, things can go as smoothly as possible.

GM: What differences will there be between the stage and film version?

GA: There aren’t really any major differences.

A couple of the scenes are in a different order, some speeches and lines have been re-assigned.

In the stage-play, the ensemble opened the play with a shared speech but this has now been given to one of the gods — stuff like that.

Also, tonally some stuff will feel different. The stage play has to be quite broad at times and this is toned down for the film. Likewise, with a different cast, some of the characters are quite different in the way they are being interpreted.

The play has been performed by two different casts so far and each time felt very different. In the film, there is a mixture of casts from both stage versions plus a few new cast members so the dynamic will change yet again. It’s a journey each time and one I am really looking forward to travelling!

GM: What are your plans for exhibiting and distributing the film?

GA: Well, first and foremost it will be a DVD release (both PAL and NTSC) and will be available to buy online via the official website. DVD will be the best way to experience the film, as there will be plenty of extras on the disc (commentaries, Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

The Spirit of Albion

Spirit Of Albion Location Report — “Stone Farm Rocks? Where is that?”

After some confusion and searching, we spotted these stunning formations on the hills above Weirwood Reservoir and Nature Reserve and, putting aside for later the question of how we had lived so long in Sussex without knowing about them, we pulled into the tiny carpark at the same time as the cast and crew of Spirit of Albion.

From overcast, it became a stunning morning, with clouds, sun and wind all playing about us to change the view and the temperature minute by minute. This must have made it devilishly difficult to get reliable shots and ensure continuity.

Nevertheless, director Gary Andrews and his skilled and friendly team dug in, and

with remarkably few retakes (oh yes, I’ve done filming before), canned several very impressive scenes by lunchtime.

I was unfamiliar with the play which formed the basis of the script, and this left me gaping at a swirl of intriguing images — moulded metal breastplate and gauntlets, leaf-bedecked boots, stunning gowns, antlers, and obligatory cascades of curls in golden, raven and magnificent auburn — and entranced by snippets of inspiring dialogue: “The Old Ones have not abandoned you”, “If the pressure, the pain, the doubt and despair get too much, call us, and we will find you”.

When time allowed, the cast and crew were happy to answer our questions about the film, and their own careers and experience.

All seemed enthusiastic about the project and devoted to Gary, whose reputation for focused directing and kindness to his team seem well established.

All in all, it was a special morning in a special place, and we are keen to see how it translates to film when Spirit of Albion is released. Video diaries, glorious photos and more information on film, cast and crew can be found at: www.thespiritofalbionthemovie.com Or at Dahm The Bard’s Blog: http://damh.wordpress.com/

Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

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The Spirit of Albion behind-the-scenes and more). I am also starting to turn my thoughts to film festivals and so on.

Perhaps later on we will also look at other online outlets (iTunes, DVD Baby etc) but right now I am mostly focused on making the film to the best of my abilities!

GM: You’re about to begin shooting. Do you have a release date scheduled?

GA: Well, that is the big question! We are HOPING for a Yule 2011 release but I have said all along that we won’t sacrifice quality to meet a deadline so we are keeping everything crossed that we can meet that. Like all low-budget independent films though, we will be at the mercy of time and money! I have lots of talented people who are helping make this film and much will rest on their availability — the problem with good people is that they are in demand! I guess the best thing to do is keep following progress and I will be regularly updating on the Facebook page/website as we go.

The Spirit of Albion was inspired by the music and songs of popular Pagan musician, Damh The Bard. Greenmantle asked him about his involvement.

GM: How did you first become involved with Spirit of Albion? One assumes it began with the stage production?

Damh: Gary the director of the film has been a fan of my music since the Spiral Castle days, so when the time came around for his youth theatre group to begin to dream up their play for 2010 Gary suggested creating the plot around some of my songs. The cast loved the idea, so Gary got in contact with me and I supplied him with 10 of my songs with my vocals stripped out so the cast

could sing along. I was delighted to be involved, and what was really wonderful is that, although Gary gave me a copy of the script, I didn’t read it, so when I first arrived on the opening night of the play the entire thing was a surprise.

GM: How do you feel about re-recording the songs with the cast members? Were you impressed with the new musical interpretations of your songs?

Damh: I loved it, and it was surreal. I never saw this one coming, so working with a cast and rerecording their vocals on my songs was really exciting, but also pretty weird as they were acting their roles whilst singing, not just singing.

That took a while for me to get used to. I know that Gary chose the cast on their acting ability and the way they would fit into the character they play, but I’ve been incredibly impressed with their singing and musical abilities too.

GM: Do you think the drama portrays an accurate representation your beliefs?

Damh: The play certainly did, and it had most of the Pagans in the audience in tears. Once again I’ve not seen the changes that Gary may or may not have made to the film version, so the first time I’ll see it might well be when it’s all finished and ready for me to create the soundtrack.

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Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

The Spirit of Albion GM: A few people have (perhaps unfairly) grumbled that the casting of the God/esses are too young and that there is no ‘crone’ presence.

Would you agree with this or simply accept that it’s dramatic/cinematic license?

Damh: I’m sure that’ll not be the only thing a few might grumble about. The thing is that Paganism is so diverse Gary would never have been able to make a film that ticked everyone’s boxes. In the end it’s art, and my hope is that people will see that this is a film made by Pagans for Pagans, and get excited about that rather than grumble over personal detail. For me the cast represents the Gods they are working with beautifully.

making a film based on a future album, so watch this space!

UPDATE: The release date for Spirit of Albion is now scheduled for Beltaine 2012 Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/ The-Spirit-of-Albion-the-Movie/154835874546758 Website: www.thespiritofalbionthemovie.com Twitter: @AlbionStuff

GM: Obviously, you hope that the film is a success, would you like to see more productions of this nature and would you be happy to repeat your involvement?

Damh: I believe that this is the first movie of its kind. That in itself means that we are working with the unknown. I would love to see more Pagan film makers create projects like this, and me and Gary have already been talking about

Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

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Kenneth R. Johnson

Kenneth R. Johnson (1942 – 2011)

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enneth Rayner Johnson, a consummate professional in the field of journalism and creative writing, and long-serving con­ tributor to Greenmantle, sadly passed away on 22nd May 2011.

Ken was something of a phenomenon. For all his many facets, it was not easy to know the true man. His first conversation to me, a complete stranger in a pub, was about Aleister Crowley. His contribution to the field of occult and spiritual research is perhaps under-appreciated. And yet, his most notable book, The Fulcanelli Phenomenon (1980), is an important work on alchemy and commands a high secondhand price from the cognoscenti.

A few weeks prior to succumbing to cancer, and just a couple of months after the passing of his friend Kenneth Grant (whose obituary featured in the last issue of Greenmantle), Ken bequeathed us his literary works — his manuscripts, research and correspondence.

From this we were able to glean a fascinating insight into his life and his work.

As a journalist he reported extensively from war zones such as Aden in the 1960s, then transferred himself to Canada where his journalistic skills were put to good, if less exciting use. Ken also worked extensively in England, employed by the Oldham Chronicle as well as writing for such magazines as Weekend and Titbits. Later he also contributed to magazines such as The Unexplained and several volumes of Man, Myth and Magic, and other Readers Digest books.

His real ambition, however, was to write books and this he did. Those with a taste for horror movies may recall his novelisations of Zoltan: Hound of Dracula and the lesser cult movie Blue Sunshine. Although making money (and favourably reviewed), these were breadand-butter work, allowing Ken to work on his own creations. To fans of dark fantasy he may be better known for his novels Succubus and The Cheshire Cat. Succubus and Homunculus were the first two books of a proposed trilogy and, whilst hardly bestsellers, were favourably received by the horror/fantasy audience.

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Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

Kenneth R. Johnson

Ken’s interest in the horror genre was longstanding. Fascinated by horror icons such as Boris Karloff, Christopher Lee and Vincent Price (all of whom he met in the course of his journalistic career), his knowledge of the subject was encyclopaedic. It was this interest that led to the writing of Succubus, the outline of which was originally intended as a screenplay.

Of course, Ken also ventured into non-fiction, producing books such as The Ancient Magic Of The Pyramids, the more sensational Armageddon 2000, and his magnum opus The Fulcanelli Phenomenon. Much of his work appeared in periodicals and com­ pilations, including his varied contributions to Greenmantle.

stand up and deliver a sharp performance at the occasional open-mic night.

As we explore his archive we discover more and more about this one-of-a-kind man — ghostwriter of Lady Dowding’s autobiography, scriptwriter, novelist, correspondent, chronicler of the occult and the unusual, drinking companion and friend. He will be sorely missed.

But Ken was much more than just the writer.

This was a man who had rubbed shoulders with The Beatles and was on first-name terms with some of the rock ‘n’ roll greats. A devoted fan of the genre, Ken also performed frequently, and even in his later years he could always

Artwork/Magazines/Brochures /Posters …concept to reality

Carolyne (Sunny) Griffin carolyne@purpleland.com

Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

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A Traditional Wheel of the Year

A Traditional Wheel of the Year

By Gwyn

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he following mythopoetic journey of the horned god of the witches around the ritual Wheel of the Year comes from a modern neo-traditional witchcraft source. It describes the Horned God’s twin aspects as the Lord of Light and Darkness, Life and Death, and his ever-changing roles and masks at each of the seasonal festivals in relation to the witch-goddess. It is offered as a mythical introduction to one version of the Old Craft as it is still practised today.

The Old God walks the solar path of the Wheel of the Year, following the changing cycle of the seasons and the weaving pattern in the sky of sun and stars. At Yule, the midwinter solstice, the time between time when the sun stands still at Bull’s Noon, the witching hour of midnight when the clock chimes thirteen, the God is sol invictus the Lord of Light. At this magickal time of the year he is born (or reborn) from the womb of the Great Mother as the Horned Child of Promise. He is Arthur, the Once and Future King, and Lucifer, the Lightbearer and Lightbringer, the saviour and redeemer of the human race.

In the cold midwinter darkness of the longest night, as the Old Year is dying the New Year still waits to be born, the Morning Star heralding the

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birth of the Lord of Light shines brightly in the night sky as a sign of hope and redemption for clay-born mankind.

On Twelfth Night, at the end of the luminal Twelve Days of Yule, the Young Horned God adopts the mask of the clown, jester and trickster. He is the Master of Revels and the Lord of Misrule presiding over the anarchy of the season. In the orchards the wassailing song is sung, loud noises drive away the sprites that might harm the trees, and apple cake and cider are offered to the earth.

On Plough Monday the Young Horned God is Cain the Ploughman. In the sacred circle of old, now often under the shadow of tower and cross, the plough is blessed anew. More cake is buried in the first furrow of the field, along with the corn dolly from last year’s harvest, for the fertility of the land and a good harvest to come.

When Candlemass draws nigh, cold and bright with snowdrops and snowflakes, the Young Horned God is the buck stag who bears the rising sun between his antlers. As the icy mist and the frost are melted in dawn’s early rays, he is initiated into the male mysteries of warriorhood and divine kingship by Our Lady, Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

A Traditional Wheel of the Year the Goddess of the Wise Ones, the People. It is she, as Sovereignty, the Goddess of the Land, who instructs the Young Horned God in the ways of sacred kingship and the just rulership of its folk. It is the Lady who gives him the deadly gifts of the sword, the symbol of the king, the spear of destiny, and the bow and arrows he must use as the defender of the land.

At the vernal equinox, when night and day are in equal balance, Lady Day, as the earth slowly stirs from its wintry slumber, the Young Horned God accepts the hand of the Goddess as his brideto-be in her aspect of the Maid or Maiden. This partnership is sealed in the maze dance in the faery ring beneath the oak tree on May Day or Beltane. Then he becomes the Oak King, donning his foliate mask and green cloak of leaves.

He is the Green King, Puck, Robin Goodfellow, the Jack-in-the-Hedge, the Green Man, the Lord of Animals. In this sylvan guise the Horned God celebrates the Great Rite in the greenwood bower with the Lady. She who is the May Queen, the Queen of Elfhame, Lilith the mother of the elementals, elves and goblins, the goddess of the land who has granted the Young Horned God the right of kingship in the rite of the sacred marriage. She can appear in dual form as either a beautiful young woman or as a wizened hag, a Bride or Cailleach. It is for the God to choose which she should be by day or in his bedchamber, and in that vital choice kingdoms are won or lost.

At Midsummer it is the time of owl feathers and elderflowers. The Bright Champion is at his zenith of solar and phallic power. As the longest day comes and goes, the Horned God is the virile King Stag with seven tines on his rack of antlers. He stands proud and erect on the hill, lording over the land below. Yet the red poppies flowering in the corn fields below are an omen of his wyrd and his eventual waning power. Harvest and the time of sacrifice approach like a shadow across the land. But all this is a bad dream to come as the sun still shines high and bright in the noonday.

On Midsummer’s Eve as dusk sweeps across the hollow hills, the king and queen of the faeries, the Lord and Lady, dance in wild abandon in the mazes of the greenwood with the Good Folk.

By Lammastide the powers of the Horn God are wilting in the summer heat and fading with the Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

ever-decreasing light in the evenings. As the harvest is gathered in, and corn dollies are made from the last sheaf to hang above the hearth, the days begin to shorten, heralding the coming of the fall. The Horned God is drugged with the sacred mushroom and tied to the tau cross of oak branches with willow thongs. His flowing blood, red as the poppies in the fields, is spilt by the Dark Mother with her silver crescent sickle to revitalise the land.

The Horned God is Old Cain and John Barleycorn, the spirit of the corn, whose blood and bone is mixed and ground to fertilise the earth. Blood and bone and earth! The Old King is dead! Long live the king!

As the nights draw in, autumn comes creeping onwards with mists and fruitful mellowness. At Harvest Home or Michaelmas, the Horned God passes through the standing stones, the twin portals of the dolmen.

He becomes the Lord of the Mound and descends towards the dark domain of the Lady, she who is the Snow Queen, Old Mother Goose herself, the Old Queen, the dark witch goddess of fate, death and transformation, crone guardian of the Cauldron of Inspiration and Regeneration that brings initiation and spiritual rebirth.

As the dry leaves turn brown, red and yellow and fall from the branches, heralding the onset of winter’s icy grip, the Horned God makes his last journey in Our Lady’s silver crescent moonbarge. He travels like Arthur across to Avalon, the island beyond the setting sun on which stands the Hollow Hill. On the Isle of the Dead he crosses over the alder bridge spanning the river of forgetfulness to the Castle of Roses beyond the grave, the home of the Old Queen.

As winter approaches with fog and early frosts, the Old Horn God prepares to don the silver mask and starry cloak of the Holly King. He who is Jack O’Lantern, Jack Frost, and Old Father Yule in his green gown and crown of holly and ivy leaves and berries.

Before that time it is Hallows or Winter’s Night, Hallowe’en, the Night of the Dead. Then black candles gutter and flicker in turnip masks, the spirits of the dead wander the land and scarecrows come alive in the barren fields. It is

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A Traditional Wheel of the Year the time of the Dumb Supper and the calling of the ancestral dead into the circle of the living.

The transformation from the Young Horned God to the Old Horned God is complete.

Now he is the dread Lord of the Wildwood, the Wild Hunter, Old Herne with his hell hounds and an owl flying before the demonic pack to lead the way. He is the Angel of Death who flies silently on shadowy wings, the Grim Reaper with a scythe and a black-cowled robe, whose skeletal hand beckons the chosen to their fate and comes when he is least expected, the Masked and Hooded One who partners the Night Mare.

In his dark aspect the Old Horned God wears a cloak of shadows and the goblin mask or stag’s skull of the Master of the Wild Hunt, the Terror

by Night and Hunter of Souls, Grim or Woden and his black, red-eyed faery hounds who ride the north wind and howl at the gibbous moon as they seek their human prey.

He is the dark ruler of the Mighty Dead, Cain as master of the Hidden Company, Azazel as the Black Goat of the Witches’ Sabbath and the leader of the Watchers, the Primal Ancestors and the Elder Gods.

the guardian and teacher of forbidden occult wisdom, a cultural exemplar and the cosmic trickster.

At his most elementary level, the Horned God, the Old Lad, Old Nick, the Devil, the Old One, as he is known by many names, is the god who rules over life, death and resurrection. He is symbolised by the erect phallus at Beltane, represented by the Maypole, and the skull and crossbones resting at the base of the stang or forked stave at All Hallows. He is the dying and sacrificed god who is eternally reborn.

This initiatory experience of birth, life, death and rebirth is represented symbolically in the Old Craft by the ritual Wheel of the Year and physically by the annual cycle of growth, decay and renewal in the natural world. For that reason the Horned God of the witches is called Lord of the Animals and the Lord of This World.

The Light is in the Darkness and the Darkness is in the Light.

The Wheel of the Year turns once more at Yule and the Morning Star shines bright in the stygian darkness of midwinter. Angelic messengers bring hope to the clay-born sons and daughters of Adam and the Children of Cain of the witchblood rejoice at the coming birth of the Child of Promise.

On the longest night of the year the Horned God arises anew from the Cauldron of the Lady. Again the ‘black sun shines at midnight’ and the stars dance and sing in the sky as the Lord of Light once more walks among the people.

Remember always that behind the stag mask of the Old Horned God is the foliate mask of the Young Horned God and they are twin aspects of the same power. The Horned God in traditional witchcraft represents many different aspects of masculine energy and divine force.

He has many masks and is a solar deity, a god of vegetation, fertility and the seasonal cycle of nature and agriculture, the co-ruler of the underworld, a guide to the dead, the master of animals, divine blacksmith and first horseman, king of the faeries, goblins and elves,

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Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

Way of the Morris

Way of the Morris Interview by Amelia Gregory Actor and film director Tim Plester has produced a beautiful documetary film inspired by his childhood antagonism towards the reignited Adderbury village cult of Morris Dancing. Modern footage is interspersed with old recordings as Way of the Morris follows the lives of current Adderbury Village Morris Men: the film is a touching look at the current renaissance of Morris Dancing in modern lives, put together with wonderful camera work that catches the Morris Men mid motion like brightly costumed village warriors.

What inspired you to make this film? Was there one particular thing that finally kick started the idea into action, and if so what was it?

There is a single Polaroid photograph that has haunted me for most of my life. Taken in April 1976, it shows me (aged just 5-and-a-half years old), stood outside the family home in Oxfordshire, dressed-up as a Morrisman. There is a corn-dolly pinned to my breast and there are coloured ribbons tied about my knees. The photo shows me looking towards the camera‘s lens with a smile stretched across my unblemished face. But looking at that instant image now, the smile I see displayed there betrays itself as something else entirely. For looking at that photograph now, the captured smile is clearly more of a grimace. It is a simian smile born only of fear. The rictus grin of a scared and hairless ape. The look of someone who is unable to turn and face his own destiny. I’ve been running away from my Morris dancing roots ever since the day that photograph was first taken.

What finally stopped me in my tracks and forced me to confront my birthright, was the decision I took to travel to Northern France in the summer of 2008. I‘d been invited to visit The Somme as a guest of the Adderbury Village Morris Men (a revival side which my Father and Uncle helped found in the self-same year that the Polaroid image of me was taken); there to commemorate Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

the lives of those village dancers who lost their lives in the stinking trenches of World War One. Of the young fresh-faced team that volunteered to fight for King & Country, only one was to ever return home again. Finding out about that Lost Generation of Morrismen provided me with all the kick-start I ever needed.

How long did it take to make, and how did you manage your other career as an actor around it?

I lost 2-and-a-half years of my life making Way of the Morris, and had to juggle any acting work around the filming and lengthy post-production period. On-screen my hair changes colour 2 or 3 times over the course of the documentary’s 64 minute running-time; the result of a couple of roles elsewhere, that had required a significant change of appearance. I can only recall one instance when the documentary and my acting day-job came into direct conflict with each other.

Luckily, I have a very understanding agent. And luckily the documentary won out.

What inspired the look of the film, which features lots of old photos and videos interspersed with some new imagery that has also been given an old patina? What feeling were you hoping to achieve?

All of the vintage super-8 used in the film was shot by my late grandfather Harold Jeffrey Plester, who I was very close to. As a child, growing up in Adderbury, I spent almost as much time with him and my paternal Grandmother as I did with my own parents. There is something potent and magical about the flicker-flicker of 8-millimetre footage. It carries with it an in-built nostalgia.

A nostalgia underpinned by melancholy. A homesickness if you like. A lament for lost lands.

Way of the Morris also features contemporary super-8 footage shot by me, my Father and my Uncle James. The idea here was to keep things in the family whilst helping echo and enforce recurring motifs of circles and cycles and death and rebirth. And finally, in a bid to counteract all of that whilst also acknowledging the reckoning of time, there is some digital HD Flip camera footage to be found right at the very tail-end

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Way of the Morris of the film. This being the modern home-movie equivalent of the footage my grandfather shot.

If President John Fitzgerald Kennedy were to be assassinated in public today, then I’d like to think he’d be assassinated on a HD Flip camera.

How easy was it to research everything? Any tales of woe?

The research was the easy part of the process really. Coming from the village, and having known all the major-players my entire life gave me an unquestioned access-all-areas pass. I am extremely grateful to Barry Davis (an old school-friend of my Father’s) for allowing me to trawl though his extensive collection of archival photographs, and also to Bryan Sheppard, the long-standing Fool of the Adderbury Village Morris men, who kept a meticulous log-book during the team’s fledgling years, and who also (along with his sister), helped unearth all of the information we have regarding that young team that went to war. One poignant aspect of the filmmaking process that I remember clearly, (though not technically a part of the research or a tale of woe) is my initial response to visiting the WW1 memorials in Northern France.

I was expecting to be moved by those great towering monoliths and the far-too-many names painstakingly carved upon their stone white walls. But what actually grabbed me by the gut, was the gently rolling countryside that surrounds them on all sides. Scalped, sodomized and maimed beyond all recognition, those farmer’s fields were left in tatters by the 4 years of abject misery rained down upon them (1914-18).

And yet today, the top soil and the wildlife have long since returned, whilst the nearby villages of Pozières and Albert have been rebuilt brickby-brick. The old landscape was lost beneath the blood and the clay. Only to be reborn anew, much like the Morris dancing itself.

Did you find it hard to direct and feature in the film together ?

For this I have to give thanks to my co- director Rob Curry of Fifth Column Films. Rob was always onhand whenever I was needed on the flipside of the camera, and therefore in danger of neglecting any directorial duties. Amongst other things, Rob must also take a lot of the credit for the way in which we ended-up shooting the raw footage of the Adderbury dancers. Rob has longheld this belief that the Morris is, in some strange way, a kind of arcane English martial art.

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For that reason we shot the dancing mainly in close-up, and tried to capture the kinetic energy of what it’s like to be caught-up within the maelstrom of oscillating willow-sticks and flying pocket-hankies, rather than being on the outside simply looking in.

What is the best thing about coming from a small village in England? What do you have that others can only dream of or aspire to?

I left the shire many years ago, and have lived in North London for longer than I ever lived amidst the wheat fields. But Adderbury is still the place I go to when I daydream. She is my own private Avalon. A place where landscape and melody entwine. The locally-brewed Hook Norton beer takes some beating that’s for sure. Sweet, fullbodied and devilishly fruity, Old Hooky is a hallowed ale, brewed -up by a benevolent Malt Giant and his 9 steam-powered billow maidens.

So Godspeed the ploughshare and drink of it deep good people. And give thanks to birthplace and to rural brotherhood. If that in any way, shape or form answers your question?

What is the best way to encourage community, if Morris Dancing is not an option?

In an age of interactive widescreen 3D television screens, Morris dancing is definitely one way of encouraging community spirit whilst helping maintain a strong connection with one‘s cultural identity. But there are certainly others. There’s egg-yarping for one. And cheese-rolling for another. Hastings has its Jack-In-the Green sacrifice, whilst Hallaton and Medbourne have their once-yearly Hare Pie scramble and bottlekicking fixture. And then of course there’s traditional tar-barrel racing, tutti-kissing and various seasonal mumming activities to consider.

How is the Morris Dancing these days?

It’s enjoying something of a renaissance, truth betold. There are a number of younger teams springing-up around the country, and in Adderbury itself there are currently more people dancing the old ancestral dances than there were during the glory days of the longhaired 1970s. Dances to make the crops grow tall. Dances to honour the resurrection. For Herne the Hunter and spritely Robin Goodfellow.

Dances to hold up the very sky. Or, in the words of the English composer Gustav Holst; Ye who dance not, know not what we are knowing. Here endeth the lesson.

Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

Dancing with Jesus

Dancing with Jesus

by Kenneth Rayner Johnson [This article, highlighting evidence that early Christians engaged in ancient sacred circle-dances, was first printed in the Imbolc 2001 issue of Greenmantle and is reprinted here in memory of Ken. Edited by Tallis Harrill.]

It’s perhaps a fair surmise that only a smallish percentage of theologians and clergymen, an even smaller number of readers of fairly esoteric books, and some students of comparative religion or the occult may have bothered to delve into M.R. James’s translation of The Apocryphal New Testament. It was first published in 1924 by the Clarendon Press, Oxford.

This fat little volume consists of various texts which the early Church Fathers, in their wisdom — or lack of it — saw fit NOT to include in the canonical Gospels. The word apocrypha, which is of Greek derivation, was originally used to signify works that were ‘hidden’ or ‘kept secret’ from the general public and reserved only for the use of initiates or members of a particular sect. But because of the general overview of such writings, the adjective ‘apocryphal’ eventually came to mean ‘spurious’ or ‘false.’

The main argument against their inclusion in the orthodox versions of the New Testament is that, like similar books not included in the Old Testament, they were evidently not written by their purported authors. [The irony being that in most cases, the included books are also not written by their purported authors–Ed.] Another name for them is ‘pseudepigraphia’.

For example, there are in the Apocrypha books which were originally attributed to such Gospel characters as Thomas, Peter, Philip, James, Bartholomew, Barnabas, Paul and John which, for various reasons, the compilers of the New Testament decided were definitely not written by men of these names — and certainly not by the same people in the Gospels themselves. The so-called Gospel of Nicodemus, for example, is also known as the Acts of Pilate, and although there is evidence that the Roman procurator was a historical figure — which is more than can be said for the named writers of the four main orthodox Gospels — it is generally acknowledged Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

that he was definitely not the author of this particular work. And one of the spurious Epistles in the N.T. Apocrypha mentions a supposed correspondence between Christ and King Abgar of Edessa, in which the latter asks Jesus to come and heal him. But that, as they say, is another story…

However, whether or not the Apocrypha texts were written by their purported authors, and despite their possibly dubious pedigree, there is no doubt that the contents of some of these works are of a very curious and extremely interesting nature. The one with which I am concerned here is a text known as the Acts of John, or sometimes, the Leucian Acts of John.

Scholastic opinions vary about the time it was written, the general consensus dating it to sometime between the Ist century AD and the mid-2nd century. Its supposed author, Leucius, was claimed to have been a companion of the Apostle John. Whoever he was, there is a fair chance that he was a contemporary of the other more ‘acceptable’ disciples, and therefore, by implication, of Jesus himself.

What is most interesting — and to many orthodox Christians, no doubt, startling — about the Leucian Acts of John is that in it, Jesus is depicted as leading his disciples in a circular dance, not dissimilar to that performed not only by modern witches or Wiccans, but a form of Pagan ritualistic dance dating back to prehistory.

Carefully examined, it is none other than a “dance of the cosmos”, akin to that of the pre-Christian Hindu god Shiva, in his role as Sri Nataraja — “Lord of the Dance.” But before we

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Dancing with Jesus delve into the almost worldwide prevalence of this age-old ritual, let us first have a look at this sacred dance as it is described in the Leucian Acts themselves. Verse 94 says that before Jesus was arrested: …he gathered all of us together and said: Before I am delivered up to them let us sing a hymn to the Father, and so go forth to that which lieth before us. He bade us therefore make as it were a ring, holding one another’s hands, and himself standing in the midst he said: Answer Amen unto me. He began, then, to sing an hymn and to say: Glory be to thee, Father.

And we, going about in a ring, answered him: Amen.

Glory be to thee, Word: Glory be to thee, Grace. (Amen.)

Glory be to thee, Spirit: Glory be to thee, Holy One: Glory be to thy glory. (Amen.)

We praise thee, O Father, we give thanks to thee, O Light, wherein darkness dwelleth not.

(Amen.)

The next verse, 95, has an almost surrealist flavor, and the recurrent dualism in its careful juxtaposition of opposites, indicates a definite and powerful Gnostic strain. The early Christians — or adherents of “primitive Christianity” as later orthodoxy disapprovingly labelled them — believed in gnosis or a direct, personal experience of the Godhead, or Absolute, which the power-hungry later orthodox Church hierarchy sought to stamp out. After all, if a form of DIY religion was possible, then popes, archbishops, bishops and priests would all be out of their ‘middle-man’ jobs, wouldn’t they?

However, let the text speak for itself (the italics are mine): Now whereas [or whereforel we give thanks, I say: I would be saved, and I would save. (Amen.)

I would be loosed, and I would loose. (Amen.)

I would be wounded, and I would wound.

(Amen.)

I would be born, and I would bear. (Amen.)

I would eat, and I would be eaten. IAmen.)

I would hear, and I would be heard. (Amen.)

I would be thought, being wholly thought.

(Amen.)

I would be washed, and I would wash. (Amen.)

Grace danceth. I would pipe; dance ye all.

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(Amen.)

I would mourn: lament ye all. (Amen.)

The one Ogdoad [eight] singeth praise with us.

(Amen.)

The number Twelve danceth on high. (Amen.)

The whole on high hath part in our dancing.

(Amen.)

Whoso danceth not, knoweth not what cometh to pass.(Amen.)

I would flee, and I would stay. (Amen.)

I would adorn, and I would de adorned. (Amen.)

I would be united, and I would unite. (Amen.)

A house I have not, and I have houses. (Amen.)

A place I have not, and I have places. (Amen.)

A temple I have not, and I have temples.

(Amen.)

A lamp am I to thee that beholdeth me.

(Amen.)

A mirror am I to thee that perceiveth me.

(Amen.)

A door am I to thee who knockest me. (Amen.)

A way am I to thee a wayfarer. (Amen.)

96: Now answer thou unto my dancing. Behold thyself in me who speak, and seeing what I do, keep silent about my mysteries.

An Essene, a Manichaean, or any true Gnostic would have no difficulty in appreciating the essence of these words. Unlike, perhaps, many of today’s denominations, who learn hymns and repeat them parrot-fashion every Sunday, modern orthodox Christians of any canonical Biblical passages and prayers Sunday and, in many cases, not having the slightest idea of the meaning of what they are saying.

As the Greek-Armenian mystic Gurdjieff once said: “A modern man lives in sleep, in sleep he is born and in sleep he dies.” And: “The religions of the West have degenerated to such an extent that for a long time there has been nothing alive in them.” (My italics.)

[The Gnosticism of Leucian/John is a separate question, and I here omit long quotes which the author used to demonstrate this, but which do not bear on the issue of dancing — Ed.] Then, in verse 101, Jesus speaks of the esoteric significance of the circular dance in which he and his disciples took part: Nothing, therefore, of the things which they will say of me have I suffered: nay, that suffering Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

Dancing with Jesus also which I showed unto thee and the rest in the dance, I will that it be called a mystery. For what thou art, thou seest, for I showed it thee, but what I am I alone know, and no man else.

Suffer me then to keep that which is mine, and that which is thine behold thou through me, and behold me in truth, that I am, not what I said, but what thou art able to know, because thou art akin thereto. Thou hearest that I suffered, yet did I not suffer; that I suffered not, yet did I suffer; that I was pierced, yet I was not smitten; hanged, and was not hanged; that blood flowed from me, and it flowed not; and, in a word, what they say of me, that befell me not, but what they say not, that did I suffer. Now what those things are I signify unto thee, for I know that thou wilt understand. Perceive thou therefore in me the praising (or ‘slaying’ or ‘rest’) of the (or a) Word, the piercing of the Word, the blood of the Word, the wound of the Word, the hanging up of the Word, the suffering of the Word, the nailing (fixing) of the Word, the death of the Word. And so speak I, separating off the manhood. Perceive thou therefore in the first place of the Word; then thou shalt perceive the Lord, and in the third place the man, and what he hath suffered.

Several authors have, in the past, noted the suggestive similarity between Jesus and his group of I2 disciples, making 13 in all — the same number as the traditional witches’ coven. And in her valuable, well-written and encyclopaedic work, An ABC of Witchcraft Past and Present, (Robert Hale, 2nd, corrected edition, 1984), under the entry “Dancing, Its Use in Witchcraft”, the late Doreen Valiente noted: “…the round dance, performed around a person, or around some object such as a tree or a bonfire. The aim of the round dance is to raise power. When it is done with some person, probably the leader of the coven, in the middle, then that person is directing the ‘Cone of Power’ that is being raised.” (My italics.) Later she says: “The round dance is an imitation of the circling stars, the movement of the heavenly bodies. Consequently it is a kind of imitation of the universe. It is the wheel of the seasons, the wheel of life itself, of birth and death and rebirth. To dance it is to enter into the secret and subtle harmonies of Nature, and become one with the Powers of Life.”

Further mention of the circular dance is made

by Arkon Daraul in his Secret Societies (Tandem, 1965), in which he writes of “The Two-Horned Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

Ones”, of the Dhulquarneni [I have changed Ken’s transliteration to one that is recognized — barely — by Google, for anyone wanting to track down more on this intriguing sect. Please! – Ed.].

This strange and secret organisation originated in Morocco sometime between the 7th and 15th centuries, and was carried into Spain, where, with the great confluence of Arab scholars and Jewish Qabalists there, had been established great centres of learning. Attempts were made by orthodox adherents of Islam to suppress the cult, which appears to have been associated with moon-worship. And certainly, both the ancient Egyptjan goddesses Isis and Hathor, and the later Greek Artemis, or Roman Diana, have been depicted wearing crescent-moon headdress, with the two points of the crescent upwards, like horns.

“The devotees of this cult met on Thursday nights, were initiated by having a wound inflicted somewhere on the body (which left a small scar), and believed that they could raise magical power by dancing in or around a circle” says Daraul. (My italics).

Similarities of the Dhulquarneni rites to some of the ceremonies and practices of Mediaeval witchcraft have been pointed out by both Doreen Valiente and Arkon Daraul. For example, people of both sexes were admitted to the cult, they uttered the Islamic prayers backwards and they invoked El Aswad, (the ‘Black Man’) for aid.

It should be pointed out here, however, that the trilateral Arabic root word for ‘black’ may also be used to signify ‘wise.’ The ritual knife used to mark initiates was known as Adh-dhamme, or bloodletter. Its similarity to the witch’s athame will not go unnoticed. The Dhulquarneni also met at crossroads by night. The Arabic historian Ibn Jafar wrote that “Each carried a staff with the two horns in brass upon the head; which is symbolical of the goat which is ridden, the sign of power and il-resistibility. This is the meeting which is called the Zabbat, the Forceful or Powerful one; and the circle of companions are the Kafan (Arabic for winding-sheet).” This single white sheet, in which the Dhulquarneni would eventually be buried, was all that the participants in their rituals wore over their naked bodies.* “The initiates saw the purpose of their elders to spread joy throughout the world, and considered themselves companions of the Rabbana (our Lord), exemplified by the blacksmith.” Daraul points out that “in Morocco

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Dancing with Jesus to this day, blacksmiths are considered to be great sorcerers.”

To the beat of drums, the twelve initiates whirled in a circular dance with their kafans, or windingsheets over their heads, until there came a loud shout. “At this,” says the Jewish sorcerer who was Daraul’s informant, “our eyes were uncovered and we saw that the leader had appeared.”

The celebrants swore allegiance to the Rabbana.

A cock was sacrificed by cutting its throat with the Al-dhamme, then each initiate was marked on the arm with the knife . The dancing resumed, widdershins, (against the sun) or anti-clockwise and ended in a form of ecstasy.

Arkon Daraul also uncovered another, similar sect among the blue-eyed Berbers of the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. They, too, believed in a hidden leader called Dulquarnen, the ‘two horned lord’ whose name, by a play on words, also means ‘Lord of the Two Centuries.’ This, says Daraul, is because Rabbana has a useful life of 200 years. The first portion is until he dies. After that, for the remainder of the two centuries, he remains attached to the earth in some sort of spirit form, able to direct the work and play of others, and attaining wisdom in this fresh dimension until he is ready to descend to the world of mankind as one of the men of perfection, in a sort of reincarnation. He chooses what form of incarnation he prefers, and retains a full and complete memory of his life on earth.’

None of these mystic tales has received the cachet of Church approval, and yet they are fresh occurrences! That is to say, none of them appears in the legends that formed part of religions or fables before Jesus’ birth.

The ‘Dance of Jesus’ is the earliest-known of all Christian mystery rituals and was still being performed as an initiatory rite as late as the 4th century, when clandestine pockets of Gnosticism still distanced themselves from the orthodox followers of Christianity. [*There is an obscure reference to this in the canonical Gospels. Mark 14:51-52 states that when Jesus has been arrested and the other disciples have fled: And there followed him a certain young man, having a linen cloth cast about his naked body; and the young men laid hold on him: And he left the linen cloth, and fled from them naked.

This suggests that members of a similar cult were either known to Jesus, or were known to the writer of Mark and considered noteworthy.

— Ed.]

Limited Edition Pagan Mantra Print

In The Teachers of Gurdjieff, (Gollancz, 1966), Rafael Lefort, who has been identified by Peter Washington, author of Madame Blavatsky’s Baboon, as none other than the Sufi teacher, Idries Shah Sayed, also draws attention to the sacred, circular dance of Jesus’s disciples in the Leucian Acts. He wrote: Moslem mystical writers call Jesus a Prophet, a Teacher, a Messenger, and give him the rank of Insan Kamil or Complete Man. Many of their historians deal with his life and teachings and dwell on the esoteric side to the exclusion of much that appears in the later Gospels collected a generation after his death. Abdul Qarn of Ramallah records an occasion when Jesus and his disciples performed a “circle dance” strikingly similar to that of the Whirling Dervishes. This appears in some of the Apocrypha, as do tales of mystical meaning.

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11.75" by 16.75" print.

Art work by Rowan Wulfe, words by Richard Gordon.£9.99 plus £3 P&P Please send cheques or postal orders to: Karen Sanderson, 485 James Reckitt avenue, Hull HU8 0JE or payments by paypal to: thevipersden@hotmail.co.uk Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

Reviews

Reviews

A roundup of the latest available books, film and music.

Lost Girl

TV

(SyFy Channel) After the reinvention of the vampire and shapeshifter in True Blood, the rejuvenation of zombies in The Walking Dead and a rebooting of the werewolf in Teen Wolf, one wonders what magical creatures can be brought to the screen. Perhaps the answer is inevitable, given the rise of Faerie in recent popular fiction. Enter Lost Girl. Potentially a dream series for people who like to dress in black.

Bo is a succubus who grew up in an adopted human family, unaware of the source of her non-human powers and of the Fae world of which she is part. In the pilot episode, Bo saves a human girl named Kenzi and the two quickly become friends and team up, whereupon Kenzi in turn saves Bo from another Fae. Confronted by the Fae elders with having to choose a side (“Light” or “Dark”), Bo declares herself neutral, deciding to side with humans. The early episodes of this series are refreshing and although it has the potential to soar, it also has the potential to fall into mediocrity. Adopting a succubus as a lead is certainly novel, and works well, especially when introduced to other members of the Fae, all interesting characters (except, perhaps, a bland and over-glamorous Morrigan). Certainly a show to watch and hopefully, it will fulfil its potential and gain an audience without losing integrity. — PP

The Trollhunter

FILM

(Cert. 15. 103mins. Director: André Øvredal.

Starring: Otto Jespersen, Glenn Erland Tosterud, Johanna Mørck, Tomas Alf Larsen) After some po-faced hand-held camera thrillers (The Blair Witch Project, Paranormal Activity etc.)

Trollhunter is a breath of fresh air. Its jerky-camera thrills are tongue-in-cheek, with the usual note stating the footage was unexpectedly discovered. It begins with a group of students filming a man they believe kills bears for a living in the deep woods and hills of Norway. Soon however they discover the truth: the intrepid hunter is on the trail of trolls. From then on, it’s a well-paced hunt for various species of the fabled beasts.

Despite the sometimes hilarious knowing humour (watch out for the goats), this film is that rare treasure, a spoof which is often tense and thrilling on its own terms. The trolls themselves are loud and rather wonderful, even though some do look a bit like Muppets.

Jespersen as the troll hunter is superb: deadpan as he sets off with his oversized flashbulb to kill the creatures, world-weary after years of the dangerous night-time work. The three main students are also excellent and the Norwegian scenery also plays a full part, with lush woodland and snow-covered mountains. Having discovered this obscure gem sometime back, we were delighted that it has developed such a cult online following that it is being released to cinemas in the UK. It will be interesting to see how it fares on the big screen. Recommended. — PP

Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

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Reviews

I Will Sing You This Song

AUDIO

(By The Yirdbards. MP3 Download Price £4.83) Handed the Yirdbard CD by a mutual friend, I found it a mixed bag of delights. Two lead singers, one with a traditionally melancholy folk voice, the other an almost American countryfolk sound, and all with a pleasant acoustic accompaniment.

I’m not enough of a folk expert to know why “Tramp Air” sounds like “Fish-Fingering”, but I became an immediate fan of the more serious lyrics about White Horse Hill. In fact, one of the accomplishments of this CD was to introduce me to Peter Please (three of the songs are by him), whose website tells me he is a storyteller but doesn’t mention his skill with song lyrics about spirits of the land. “Last Leviathan” appears to be the lesser known of two songs with that title. This version sounded to me more heartfelt than that of the composer Richard Quin’s (as found on YouTube). This CD won’t rock any boats, but for quiet, Pagan-friendly folk music, it is a commendable effort with a feel of sincerity and unspoken spiritual depth. — TH

Labyrinth of the Heart

BOOK

(By Daniel Cohen. Published by Wood & Water. ISBN-13: 978-0951385128 Price: £8.95) Cover blurbs can almost be overdone. Can a slim volume of retold myths praised highly by Robin Williamson, Caitlin Matthews, Ronald Hutton and Carol P Crist ever live up to the hype? Well, yes. Daniel Cohen has produced a stimulating, entertaining, and intensely rewarding collection of Story. As the cover says, “We have a real need for magical champions, but not male heroes who dominate. Daniel reveals heroes who relate. They address men’s relationships with women and each other, and their role in the natural world. They are designed to support men in using their talents and strengths to heal rather than harm, to find new and nonoppressive ways of being.” This description, however, seems somewhat limiting, as these stories are so much more, and I as a woman loved them.

Covering not just a variety of mythic traditions, the tales also range wildly in style, from the blatantly Jungian to the folksy, from the too-personal to the Universal, from the meditative list to the bated-breath narrative. While in some the agenda may appear unsubtle to the ”unconverted”, other stories should be profoundly engaging to young people or those unfamiliar with nonoppressive manhood. All hit a different psychospiritual (or even political) pressure point — or sometimes several at once — and the result is always truthful and usually instructive. I wept with recognition more than once. Turning back through so that I could suggest my favourites, I found it impossible. At nearly every page I was thinking, “Oh, yes, that one!” and feeling surprise and delight all over again. The Greek ones all speak to me, and “The Seer in the Hawthorn Tree” — and who can resist Esmeralda the Dragon?

The illustrations too range from old to new and vary in style, with the lush drawings of the Green Man and Orpheus especially beautiful. My regret is that the book has not (so far?) been picked up by a publisher who could give it the wide promotion and distribution, and the full-colour production, it deserves. A book to be cherished and re-read, The Labyrinth of the Heart is a perfect gift for anyone concerned with re-visioning myth or re-thinking gender relations — a special treat for a friend, a partner or for yourself. — TH

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Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

Reviews

The Stonewylde Series

BOOK

(By Kit Berry. Published by Gollancz. Various Prices) The Stonewylde series is a set of five books (the last of which is still being written) which are set in the fictional community of Stonewylde. The books were originally written for a young-adult audience although there is now a great following among people from all age groups across the world.

The series begins with Magus of Stonewylde, an enchanting opener which introduces the reader to Magus, Sylvie and Yul, who are intertwined by a sinister prophecy which foretells of the union of Sylvie and Yul. In the next instalment, Moondance at Stonewylde, the story continues with Magus discovering Sylvie’s secret. In this second book Magus’s hatred of Yul takes on a horrendous new passion. In the third book, the moment of the prediction arrives. But will the prophecy of the crone come to pass, or will Magus manage to thwart Yul’s plans?

The storyline is down to earth and realistic in a way uncharacteristic of most modern fiction for the projected age group. There are no special effects here, just the good old spark of imagination.

The reader is immediately enchanted by the believability of the characters, and by the end of the first book Sylvie and Yul feel like personal friends. The reader is spellbound in such a way that makes it difficult to put the book down for even a second, as the coming together of Earth and Moon magic is savoured. The story itself is so beautifully written that you can almost feel the magic oozing from the pages as you are led by the hand into this deeply religious yet surprisingly easy to digest series. — KP

The Way of the Morris

DVD

(Cert U. Safercracker Pictures. Directed by Tim Plester. Price: £9.99) The Morris Dance is as quintessentially English as a game of cricket or a plate of fish-and-chips, and one of England’s most ancient roots traditions.

Yet to your average man on the street, it‘s often seen as little more than a national joke. In this heartfelt and very personal documentary, Tim Plester returns to Adderbury, the village of his childhood, where he was born into a family of Morris dancers; here he explores the roots of the dance, the effects on the community, and questions its history, its revival and its future.

Any documentary attempting to explore the Morris traditions is always in danger of being mawkish, or too heavy-handed or even just too shallow. Tim Plester has managed to avoid such pitfalls, and has delivered something that is both palatable and intimate even to the outsider. Possible origins of the Morris are explored briefly and ambiguously and are ultimately left unanswered, which is fitting and honest. Following the history of just one team brings emphasis on the tradition, allowing the team themselves to map the history on a personal and real level.

In WWI the entire team, with the exception of one man, died in action on the Somme. The dance should have died with them, but the team rose from the ashes, phoenix-like, and grew in strength, becoming one of the most respected teams in the country. The film culminates with a visit to The Somme, and director Tim Plestor finally succumbs to family tradition, capping the personal edge of the story, and succinctly ending a chapter of a story, which, in reality, has no end. This is a documentary without the frills — it is raw, honest and deeply human. Probably the most meaningful film about Morris ever made… — PP Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

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Pagan Moots

Pagan Moots Barnsley Moot 1st Wednesday of the month, The Gatehouse (Next to Bus Station) For further details tel. Liz 01226 790156 Bridgend Moot 1st Tuesday of the month, The Railway, Bridgend.

For further details tel.

Kit 01792 578309 Brighton Moot 3rd Wednesday of the month, The Northern Lights, Little East Street (Opp. the Town Hall) (Contribution of £2 to pay for speaker) Further details on Facebook ­— Pagans of the South East. The merry moot of Brighton comes together each month on the third Wednesday at 8pm in the pub the Northern Lights 6 Little East Street in Brighton (opp. the Town Hall) We kindly ask for £2.00 towards the speaker. Meet and greet other Pagans, and informal socialising. Contact details are on FB group Pagans of the South-East Chelmsford Moot 1st Wednesday of the month, The Woolpack, Mildmay Rd For further details tel.

01787 238257 Chester Moot 1st Monday of the month, The Town Crier, City Rd, Chester. For further details tel. Ronnie 07856 977741 Colchester Pagan Network 2nd Monday of the month, The New Inn, Chapel Street, For further details tel.

01206 331183

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Croydon Crows Moot 3rd Monday of the month.

The Skylark (Wetherspoons), Southend, Croydon. For further details tel. Paul 020 8407 5259 Ellesmere Moot 3rd Thursday of the month.

The Ellesmere Hotel, Ellesmere, Shropshire.

For further details tel. John or Rachel 01948 710817 Hull Pub Moot 1st Monday of the month, Spring Ban Tavern (front public bar) Manchester Pagan Wheel 1st Monday of the month (except Bank Holidays), The Waldorf Pub, Gore St. For further details tel. Robin 07933 259195 Newcastle Moot 2nd Tuesday of the month, Bob Trollops Bar (private party sign is on the door) For further details tel. 07890 340484 Preston Oakleaf Moot 2nd Sunday of the month, The Bitter Suite (upstairs function room) For further details tel. Carrina 01772 741001 Stockport Pub Moot 2nd Monday of the month, The Pack Horse, (market area) For further details tel. Susan or Tony 0161 2852963 York Moot 2nd Monday of the month, The Black Swan Inn, Peaseholm Green, York For further details tel.

Marcus 01904 654819 Uxbridge Moot Last Tuesday of the month, The Swan & Bottle, Oxford Rd, Uxbridge

Magazines THE CAULDRON: Long running & well established magazine with articles on the Craft and Western Traditions.

Subscription Rates: UK: Single issue £3.50 Annual subscription £15.00 (Make cheques/postal orders payable to M.A.Howard).

Europe: 4 issues 30 euros.

USA: US$45. Canada: Can$50.

Australia: Aus$50. New Zealand: NZ$60. We accept foreign cheques (payable to M.A.Howard). Please note we cannot take credit or debit cards, Paypal or Transcash.

Available from M.A. Howard, BM Cauldron, London, WC1N 3XX, England.

The Hedgewytch: £3.50 per issue payable to AHW, available from BM Hedgewytch, London WC1N 3XX Merry Meet: £1.95 per issue available from 51 Prospect Road, Dorchester, Dorset Meyn Mamvro: £3,00 per issue. Available from 51 Carn Bosavern, St Just, Penzance, Cornwall Pagan Dawn: From the publishing arm of the Pagan Federation. £3.25 per issue available from: BM Box 7097, London, WC1N 3XX Pentacle: Quarterly Pagan Magazine. £3.75 per issue or £14 annual subs. Available from Pentacle, 78 Hamlet Road, Southend, Essex SS1 1HH Quest: Long running pagan journal. £3.00 per issue.

Available from BCM/SCL Quest, London, WC1N 3XX White Dragon: £2.75 per issue. Available from Rowan, 103 Abbotswood Close, Wingates Green, Redditch, Worcestershire Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

Contributors

Contributors Patou Soult is a musician and Traditional Medicinal herbs gardener with a French heathen rural ancestry. She is an ‘anartist’ and has exhibited her esoteric/pagan paintings in London. She now investigates the anthropological heathenism of continental Western Europe.

Tallis Harrill is a writer and lifelong student of paganism, the occult, and the history of religions. She has a degree in transpersonal studies and has worked with a number of prominent names including Dolores Ashcroft Nowicki and Paddy Slade.

Patricia Gill is a long-standing artist and designer working primarily with Pagan imagery. Her work has been exhibited in Glastonbury and Brighton, and has been featured in many publications. She is also an expert on the Morris dance traditions.

Paul Pearson is both writer and editor of Greenmantle. He is a founder member and scribe of The Hermetic Order Of The Silver Blade. He is currently completing his book, The Mountain & The Stream based on his experiences with the rural Italian Strega.

Richard Gordon is a writer and directional artist, he describes himself as being a “Shamanic mystical occultist” and has a great interest in hermetic and ritual magick, he is currently working on his book The Lakarne, in which he aims to trace our universal origins and deliver a new system of creational magick. Richard can be contacted via facebook at, richardmagick@facebook.com Gwyn is an experienced, traditional priest in modern traditional witchcraft and has written exten­ sively on witchcraft.

Amelia Gregory’s Amelia’s Magazine online is now the place to come for exclusive articles on the best underground creative projects in the worlds of art, fashion, music, illustration, photography, craft and design. Amelia’s Magazine is updated daily in four sections: art, fashion, music and earth (http://www.ameliasmagazine.com/) Kim Parker is a new contributor. A long-standing supporter of Greenmantle this issue sees her debut as a reviewer and interviewer. She is a witch with Druidic leanings and active in the Sussex pagan scene.

Greenmantle – Samhain 2011

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Limited edition Crowley, Lilith & Baphomet

prints

Each print measures 11.75" by 16.75", original art work by Rowan Wulfe, directional concept by Richard Gordon. Each print costs ÂŁ9.99 plus ÂŁ3 P&P Please send cheques or postal orders stating which poster you wish to recieve to: Karen Sanderson, 485 James Reckitt avenue, Hull HU8 0JE or payments by paypal to thevipersden@hotmail.co.uk