Exploring Celtic Spirituality

With Edie Stone, MA

Merlin points to the future

A Series of Classes and Ceremonies Celebrating the Celtic Wheel of the Year
Boulder, Colorado 80302     
303-415-3755

Learn about the original Merlin, whose prophetic vision calls us to awaken to the perils & possibilities of our times.

Merlin's Prophecies and 2012: Tools to Transform the Future

Friday, February 24, 2012.  7-9 pm.  Presentation and discussion, $10
Saturday, February 25, 2012.  Noon-5 pm.  Workshop, $50
    RSVP: estone@ediestone.com or 303-415-3755

     Metaphysical Research Society of Denver               
     1001 East 7th Avenue, Denver, Colorado 80218
     Details and location below
     Article below: Merlin's Prophecies, the Mayan Calendar, and 2012

Merlin or Leonardo? Actually, the Elder Merlin was a poet, philosopher, and astronomer also.In ancient Wales, young Merlin "occupied" King Vortigern's tower, and spoke truth to power. He then foresaw the whole of British history, ending with visions of pollution and disruption which are coming true. As an old man, Merlin went mad with grief from the ravages of war. As his mind cleared, he spoke of cosmic order and of Avalon, island of healing.

This is not the wizard with the pointy hat or the Merlin of romantic fantasies. Rather this is the primal Myrddin found in early Welsh legends and bardic poetry. This is the Merlin whose presence can still be felt in the land in Wales and Britain.

In the workshop we will explore tools to create change; challenge destructive patterns in self & society; and discover paths of personal and planetary healing from shamanism & Celtic spirituality.

Friday's presentation is 7-9 pm, $10. The experiential workshop is Sat, 12-5pm, $50.
Call 303-415-3755 or email estone@ediestone to register for the workshop and get supply list.

Edie Stone, MA, LPC
Edie Stone teaches Celtic spirituality and shamanism
Edie teaches classes in dreams, mythic symbolism, Celtic spirituality, and shamanism. She has taught workshops in Colorado, Wales, and England on "Merlin and 2012" and "Psychotherapy and Shamanism." Her articles have appeared in publications in Colorado and Wales.


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ARTICLE

Merlin's Prophecies, the Mayan Calendar, and 2012:

By Edie Stone, MA
The red and white dragons as seen by Merlin in his vision
In the legends of ancient Wales, the youth Merlin "occupied" King Vortigern's tower, and spoke truth to power. He then foresaw the clash of the red and white dragons, and the whole of British history, ending with visions of pollution and disruption which are coming true in our times.

As an old man, Merlin went mad from the ravages of war, lived in the wildwood, and spoke with the animals. As his mind cleared, he lived in a stellar observatory, and spoke with the poet Taliesin of cosmic order and of Avalon, the island of healing.

This is the primal Myrddin, as he emerges from the oral history and poetry of the original Welsh-speaking tribes of Britain of the Dark Ages, not the familiar magician in a pointy hat of Arthurian romances.

Young Merlin's story was first written down about 1135 AD by Geoffrey of Monmouth as Prophetiae Merlini, Prophecies of Merlin, changing his name from Myrddin to Merlin. Old Merlin, the wild Merlin of the woods, was scribed by Geoffrey about 1150 AD in Vita Merlini, or The Life of Merlin.

While Merlin was studying the stars, the rest of Europe was slipping into the Dark Ages. But at the same time, Maya civilization was coming into its height, noting the precession of the equinoxes and other cosmic cycles with detailed stone carvings and precisely aligned architecture. The Maya created several complex, interlocking calendars, including the now famous Long Count, which ends on the Mayan date 13.0.0.0.0, which is December 21, 2012.

Ancient civilizations in Peru were also advanced time-keepers. The Inca calendar marked cycles of 500 years, with 20 year transition periods. The previous cycle ended in 1992, which adding 20 years brings us to 2012, the beginning of a new cycle.

Merlin’s prophecies end with environmental and social upheaval, followed by chaos on a cosmic level. Many people have projected onto the Mayan calendar great catastrophes in 2012. We certainly are in an era of great challenges and transitions.

But there are rays of hope as well. The stellar symbolism of the Maya can be viewed as the birth New Sun of consciousness from the womb of the Cosmic Mother. And elders in the Andes are teaching of a new era of heart-centered consciousness that is needed to heal Mother Earth.

The prophecies of Merlin are quite dark. But the character of Merlin is  quite strong as he goes through an initiation of shamanic dismemberment, restructuring of consciousness, and return to the light. We can learn from his story to speak truth to power, to grieve destruction, and to seek higher knowledge.

As for Merlin's prophecies… a prophecy is a warning as well as a prediction. If we heed the warnings, we may avoid the predictions. So may we use this year to challenge destructive patterns in self and society, and to find paths of personal and planetary healing.


Article Merlin's Prophecies, the Mayan Calendar, and 2012 © by Edie Stone 2012
Use with permission and website citation.

A shorter article on this topic appeared in The Celtic Connection, February, 2012.
Many thanks to Pat McCullough!

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