Two Pagan Events in London Tomorrow Evening

Here are two pagan events taking place in London on Thursday 3 March 2014 that got missed out of my earlier listing for the week. They both look very interesting.

2012 - Where Did it Get Us So Far? 
Talk by Andy Thomas, author of The Truth Agenda: Making Sense of Unexplained Mysteries, Global Cover-ups and Visions for a New Era.Part of the Sacred Space at Steiner House series of events, organised by members of the Earthstars Group. Venue: Steiner House, 35 Park Rd, London NW1. Time: 7.30pm start (doors open at 7pm). Entrance £10, concessions possible. http://www.earthstars.co.uk/ http://www.rsh.anth.org.uk/

Atlantis Bookshop is hosting a Psychic Cafe looking at Angels in the Cards.
This interactive evening about using divination tools is presented by Bali and Geraldine at Atlantis Bookshop, 49a Museum Street, London WC1A 1LY. Psychic Cafe is a creative and sociable environment where like-minded people come together to satisfy and heighten their curiosity. The Psychic Cafes are designed for novice and experienced individuals who want to gain insight in to the many topics of psychic awareness. The event starts at 7pm and tickets are £8, advance booking required. If you have any questions or would like to book your place, contact The Atlantis Bookshop. Tel: 020 7405 2120 or email atlantis@theatlantisbookshop.com.

So, What Are Your Plans For 21 December?

I've had the song It's The End Of The World As We Know It...buzzing around my head for the past few days. After all, this Friday, 21 December 2012, is going to be the end of the world according to some predictions. Others think it will be the day when we all attain enlightenment and world peace; "Cats and dogs living together" to quote a line from the movie Ghostbusters.

Or it could just be another normal Winter Solstice, when a few hardy types go to watch the sunrise at Stonehenge, most pagans have a bit of a party to celebrate and everyone else just goes about getting ready for the holidays next week.

I know a very large number of people do think something awful or something amazing will happen on 21/12/2012. And I know a good number of people have made money out of that. There have been loads of books published on the subject with titles like The 2012 Survival Guide and even the disaster movie 2012. Just the other day I saw an advert on a website offering to let people "download the attunement to the 21/12 Mayan energy extension" just for a cost of £5. It was guaranteed by a genuine archangel too. I wonder how many people will pay their fiver?

Now if you are a regular reader of my blog you will know that I don't actually believe the world will end on 21/12; although I do think that we are living in troubled times. Economic crashes, ecological disasters, violence and tragedy are regular news headlines.

I don't think humans will suddenly start living in harmony this Friday either. But I do believe that however bad things seem, there is always hope. I think we can all work to make the world a better place - even if we only act in small ways, on a local level. And the Winter Solstice is as good a time as any to make a resolution to that effect.

Or, of course, I could be wrong. This time Saturday I could be blogging from the Mother Ship having been rescued by kindly aliens from the destruction of Planet Earth. That would be exciting.

But what do you think? What are your plans for the predicted end of the world as we know it? Whatever they are, I hope you have a very happy Winter Solstice, and feel just fine.

Links and previous related posts
It's The End Of The World As We Know It...
Ghostbusters [DVD] [2004]
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/11/friday-13-2012-and-age-of-stupid.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2008/07/review-surfers-of-zuvuya.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/01/review-future-in-stars.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/09/review-astrology-of-2012.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2012/01/book-2012-survival-guide.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2012/01/dating-site-uses-mayan-calendar-to.html

Solar Eclipse this Sunday, May 20 - My Birthday

The solar eclipse this Sunday, May 20, is one that has special significance for me - it is on my birthday. For those living in England, this isn't a particularly important eclipse because it won't be visible from any part of the UK. Also, it isn't a total eclipse. It is what is called an annular eclipse, when the moon appears slightly smaller than the sun so doesn't cover it entirely - a ring of light appears to shine around a black sphere.

Nevertheless, when I realised there'd be a solar eclipse actually on my birthday in 2012, I felt I ought to do something exceptional to mark the occasion. I checked where the eclipse would be visible from; places including China, Japan, Canada, the USA and Mexico.

Wow, I thought, Mexico! I could take a holiday to Mexico and watch the eclipse over the Mayan ruins of Chichén Itzá. That really would be the birthday experience of a lifetime. I had time to plan the holiday. I could do it if I emptied out all my savings and borrowed a bit on plastic.

But I'm not going - and that was a conscious decision. Money has been tight ever since I took redundancy last summer and have been trying to make a living from freelance writing. I'm getting paid work, but not enough to afford a second foreign holiday after going to see the Northern Lights this spring. I decided to be sensible. But with the eclipse taking place in just couple of days time, I'm wondering if it was the right decision. Maybe I should have just booked an eclipse tour and paid the bills later.

But it doesn't serve any useful purpose to spend time getting depressed over regrets for what might have been. It is better to concentrate on what I'll be doing instead - apart from having a birthday party with my lovely friends in a London pub, that is.

Solar eclipses always happen at the time of the new moon, which I have found to be a good time for scrying using a dark mirror or other forms of divination. An eclipse is generally a better time for inner journeying than for travelling somewhere in the real world - unless that somewhere is a good place to watch the eclipse, I guess.

This eclipse occurs when the sun is in Gemini, which has to do with communication - words, writing, discussion and, nowadays, the internet. Maybe this eclipse, on my birthday, is a time for me to take a good look at what I really want to do as a writer; and use a birthday wish to make my dreams come true.

Links and previous related posts:
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2012/05/book-of-magic-eclipse-magic-workbook.html
http://www.eclipsemagic.co.uk/html/about_mani.html
http://www.eclipsemagic.co.uk/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_eclipse_of_May_20,_2012
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/11/eclipse-new-moon-and-dark-mirrors.html 
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/07/solar-eclipse-myths-and-meanings.html 
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/01/solar-eclipse-god-time-for-change.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2012/01/pictures-of-northern-lights.html

Dating site uses Mayan calendar to boost business

Marital Affair, an adult dating site, has issued a press release suggesting that if the world is going to end on 21 December  2012, as some people are predicting, then people might want to spend the year before the apocalypse having more sex.

The press release states:

The Mayan Calendar tells us the end of the world will be December 21st 2012 and should this be true, it poses a lot people a small dilemma. What haven’t I done, what will I do with the time I have left and finally and of course, most importantly, have I had sufficient sex in my lifetime? Most people will answer this question with a resounding, hesitation free “no”. Ricky Gervais uses the classic, yet slightly optimistic chestnut of ‘The world is going to end’ in the film, The Invention of Lying in order to gain his wicked way with a believing blonde. The end of the world has power, especially when it comes to getting more sex.

When your time is cut short, people propel themselves into a frenzy of must do’s before I die. Sky Diving maybe a primary choice, god knows why, as this only increases the odds of the death knell chiming a littler sooner; some opt for seeing The Great Barrier Reef or hitting Vegas where they’ll spend their life’s savings trying to pull off a gamblers dream, but most, if they are honest, will bring sex into the equation. It’s like in the final hours of our inevitable death; our instincts allow us to think of nothing, but creating more life. 

Marital Affair is an adult dating site, offers people, both married and single, the doorway to uncomplicated encounters with other members. Averaging 700 new members a day the site has seen a substantial increase, some 40% in fact, in people joining over the previous week to over a 1000 new members a day. This incredible spike is very interesting as the spike coincides with the recent run of articles in the press about the alleged closure of planet earth. To add further evidence that people are joining on the back of the looming Armageddon, member profiles have been found with humorous yet catchy one liners such as “I’m going out with a bang” and “free till December 21st”.

Paul Graham the founder of Marital Affair says, “We can’t put the huge surge in membership down to anything else, January is typically very busy for us, but numbers are very, very high, particularly over the last week. Maybe this rise in numbers is down to people wanting to fulfil their fantasies before it’s too late. If we do have a whole host of people opting for 10 months of fantastic sex and the world doesn’t end, I’d say they’ve had a pretty good time preparing for it.”

Adult Dating site Marital Affair is a UK-based extramarital and infidelity service founded in 2006 and is now available through desktop and mobile.Visit  http://www.maritalaffair.co.uk/

TV: Pagan Rite and Apocalypse 2012

There are a couple of programmes on television tonight that might be of interest to pagans.

BBC2 at 8pm  is reshowing an episode of The Good Life called The Pagan Rite, which was first broadcast in 1975.

More4 at 10pm is showing a new programme called The Mayan Apocalypse 2012, which looks at claims that the ancient Mayans predicted the world could end on 21 December 2012.

Book: The 2012 Survival Guide

This year, 2012, has been named as the year the world will end - or at the very least the year things get pretty tough for us humans. Fuelled by internet conspiracy theories and the real threat of economic meltdown doomsayers are having a field day.

In a new book called The 2012 Survival Guide,which just released in Kindle edition,Daily Mail astrologer Jonathan Cainer looks at all of the supposed threats to our future and predicts what is actually in store for all of us in the coming year.

And he talks a lot of sense, in my opinion. He points out that the people spreading scare stories about the end of the world really do believe them, but that doesn't necessarily mean they are true. There have been plenty of predictions of doomsday in the past, but the world hasn't ended yet - and there is no more reason to believe the world will end in 2012.

The biggest story doing the rounds is that the ancient South American Mayan calendar predicts the end of the world on the Winter Solstice, on 21 December 2012. According to Jonathan, this won't happen. He says: “In my own astrological judgement, 2012 is going to be a surprisingly good year.”

Yet we are definitely living through times of change - natural and man-made disasters are giving us repeated wake-up calls and the economic situation is currently very difficult. But, throughout history, humans have proven themselves time and time again as being very good at responding to such wake-up calls and times of recession. We will do so again and the world will be a better place as a result, without things getting so bad that civilisation is destroyed.

However, there is one big threat that we do have to take seriously. In 2012 we are overdue a solar maximum. This rare occurrence is when the Sun ejects flares (gigantic blasts of light, gas and radiation) which could potentially cause serious disruptions to communications systems and even shut down electricity supplies. Jonathan says: "We may have surprising power outages and communication problems with disruption to international travel.”

In his book, Jonathan also examines the theory that we are under threat from Planet X, Nibiru or a Brown Dwarf star – an invisible giant cosmic force that some say is about to exert humongous gravitational pull on our planet. This, Jonathan says, is not going to come about in the foreseeable future.

His summary of 2012 is that, though it remains a worrying time, as long as we know how to handle our challenges everything will turn out for the best. “Ultimately, it is all going to be okay,” he says.

Other books by Jonathan Cainer include Cosmic Ordering: How to make your dreams come true,Jonathan Cainer's Guide to the Zodiacand The Psychic Explorer: A Down-to-earth Guide to Six Magical Arts - Astrology, Auras, the Tarot, Dowsing, Palmistry, ESP.

Links and previous related posts:
2012 Survival Guide
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/coffeebreak/horoscopes/index.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/09/review-astrology-of-2012.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/01/review-future-in-stars.html

Choosing a pagan diary for 2012

It is that time of year when I need to pick a diary for 2012.

My current one is the Astro Diary 2011 and I've been very pleased with it. As well as being a good size for entering appointments and the like, it gives details of daily planetary movements and moon phases. The introduction provides explanations of astrological terms and their meanings, combined with a forecast for the year and features on gardening according to the phases of the moon and pagan festivals.

The Astro Diary 2012looks even better - it has colour artwork and higher quality paper. I nearly bought it when I saw it on publisher Astrocal's stall at the PF 40th Conference (pictured above), along with an Astrology Calendar 2012,which shows moon phases, and a lunar phase poster (pictured right).

But I do like to ring the changes. There are a few good pagan diaries around for 2012 and I'm still a bid undecided which to go for. Mind, body, spirit publisher Llewellyn does a nice diary called Llewellyn's 2012 Witches' Datebook,which includes dates for pagan festivals and seasonal spells, as well as a 2012 Witches' Calendar.

I'm also attracted to the Earth Pathways Diary 2012,published by Moonshares Co-operative, because it has really gorgeous artwork. It isn't specifically pagan, but is aimed at anyone who loves the Earth including environmentalists, artists, writers and those following a nature-based spiritual path.

The company that produces the Earth Pathways Diary is a co-operative that is based in the UK and is formed of artists and creative people who love the land, which is also good to know.

I probably need to decide quite soon which diary to buy myself for 2012. I'm already starting to get some exciting invitations for things to do and people to see in the coming year and if I don't write them down in a sensible place I'm likely to forget them.

Links and previous related posts:

Astrology Diary 2012 (Astrology Diary)
Astrology Calendar 2012 (Astrocal Lunar Calendars)
Llewellyn's 2012 Witches' Datebook (Annuals - Witches' Datebook)
Llewellyn's 2012 Witches' Calendar (Annuals - Witches' Calendar)

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2007/12/pagan-dates.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/11/starting-new-diary-for-2011.html

http://www.astrocal.co.uk/
Earth Pathways Diary 2012

http://www.earthpathwaysdiary.co.uk/

http://www.llewellyn.com/

Review: The Astrology of 2012

You'd have to have been living in total isolation - and certainly not reading witches' blogs - not to know that December 21, 2012, is an important date, at least in popular consciousness.

The winter solstice of 2012 marks the end of a period of time in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar, which was the calendar used in Central America before the arrival of Europeans.

Many people believe that the ancient Mayans saw 2012 as the end of an age. Some say it will even be the end of the world - as the Earth collides with an asteroid, solar activity wipes out all life on the planet, volcanic eruptions obliterate civilisation or the Earth's magnetic poles switch and cause havoc. However, most scientists say catastrophic events such as these are very unlikely, and mainstream Mayanist scholars say the surviving ancient Mayan accounts of this time don't contain any predictions of doom.

New Age philosophies instead tend to view 2012 as the start of a new era - a time when people will become more spiritually developed and enlightened. Some go as far as to say that the human race will be transformed due to the cosmic events that will take place on the December 21, 2012.

A new book calledThe Astrology of 2012 and How It Affects Youlooks at 2012 and the decades around that date from a western astrological perspective. It looks at the alignments of the planets and how they might affect the human race in general and us as individuals.

Author Marcus Mason points out that our world is definitely changing. We are not only witnessing the effects of global warming and pollution on the environment, we are also seeing social, political and economic changes all over the world. From an astrological point of view, he says we can understand what is going on by looking at the stars.

Ever since the 1960s many astrologers - and New Age philosophers - have been talking about the dawning of the Age of Aquarius. This is meant to be a time when we move away from traditional, rigid and outmoded systems and ways of thinking, and learn to live in greater harmony with each other and with the world we inhabit.

Marcus Mason sees December 21, 2012, as an important pivotal point in that change of consciousness. He says it marks the end of a 25,626-year time cycle, caused by the Earth gradually changing her orientation in space. He describes a significant alignment of planets that occurs on that date, linking the Earth to the Galactic Equator. This indicates that a big shift in perspective is possible, opening people's minds to new possibilities to help find original solutions to intransigent problems.

The book's publisher, Hay House, says on its website: "As we approach the end of one cycle and the beginning of the next, approaching astrology from the perspective of the soul's evolution can help us understand the inner, spiritual purpose behind the events and experiences of our lives. By exploring the sequence of astrological changes as they unfold, this book shows you that we are all being offered the exciting opportunity to change our perceptions, by uniting the intelligence of the mind with that of the heart; understand how we can truly connect with each other and live in harmony; remember how to honour our Mother Earth; and create a new, and infinitely more positive vision for our future."

The Astrology of 2012 also explains how this applies to individuals, based on personal sun signs. This is written in the form of a horoscope for the year to come for each sign of the zodiac. It describes what to expect, and what changes of outlook might be necessary for each of us to get the best out of the year to come - and the new age we are entering into.

As I've mentioned before, I'm always a bit sceptical about prophecies of doom and gloom, but I do believe it is possible to predict trends and influences that are likely to affect the future. I like The Astrology of 2012 because it looks at what might happen on next year's Winter Solstice in the context of significant heavenly events over the past decades and into the future.

Perhaps I'm a bit of an old hippy but, as a child of the 1960s, I grew up in an era that anticipated the dawning of the Age of Aquarius. It is a lovely idea that, in the not-too-distant future, we might actually begin to see evidence of the new consciousness promised in that famous song of the 1960s, Age of Aquarius:

"Harmony and understanding
Sympathy and trust abounding
No more falsehoods or derisions
Golden living dreams of visions
Mystic crystal revelation
And the mind's true liberation"

But, as much as I'm a sceptic about predictions of apocalypse, I'm also a bit too cynical to believe that, overnight, we will all learn to love each other, bring about world peace and probably save the whale at the same time.

I think The Astrology of 2012 hits the balance about right - seeing next year's midwinter as just one important date in a very long period of change.

Author Marcus Mason has practised and taught astrology for nearly 30 years. You can see his website at http://www.heavenandearth.uk.com/ You can order The Astrology of 2012 and How It Affects Youin paperback from Amazon. The Kindle editionis due out very soon.

Links and previous related posts

http://www.hayhouse.co.uk/

http://www.heavenandearth.uk.com/

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/01/review-future-in-stars.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/06/review-avebury-cosmos.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/06/review-planetary-spells-rituals.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/11/friday-13-2012-and-age-of-stupid.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_phenomenon

http://www.elyrics.net/read/0-9/5th-dimension-lyrics/age-of-aquarius-lyrics.html

Review: The Future in the Stars

For some time I've wanted to learn more about astrology. I've even made it one of my resolutions for 2011. And perhaps fate is also nudging me in that direction as I over the past few months I have been sent two lovely astrology-related things to review.

First I saw sent the Astro Diary 2011, then I got a fascinating new book called The Future in the Stars: The Planets' Message for 2012 and Beyond, which was published just a few weeks ago.

Future in the Stars, by Alison Chester-Lambert, is written in a way that those with very little knowledge of astrology can easily understand it - but it is no beginner's guide to basic astrology. Instead it is a look at the dwarf planets around Pluto, many of which have only been discovered by scientists in the early years of the 21st century.

At the time of the discovery, Pluto was controversially re-categorised to join this group, many which were given the names of little known deities from indigenous peoples - gods and goddesses from ancient civilisations as far apart as the Arctic, Greece and Polynesia - breaking with centuries of tradition of naming planets after Roman gods.

In her book, Alison Chester-Lambert explains the mythology surrounding each of the dwarf planets. Makemake, for example, is the god of Easter Island. He represents fertility, human creation, natural population controls such as pandemics, but he also offers a newly discovered substance that extends life, strategies and a positive resilience.

Alison also says that the influence of the dwarf planets, and the mythology of the deities associated with them, will be important to the human race in the 21st century because in astrological terms, large fundamental changes in awareness of the Solar System usually coincide with fundamental changes in the collective consciousness.

For some time, many people have been concerned about predictions for the year 2012 - with some prophesying doom and gloom .

The subtitle of The Future in the Stars is "the astrological message for 2012 and beyond", and part of the book looks at this issue.

Alison professionally debunks the hype about 2012 and offers researched astrological analysis of the meaning behind the energy of this year. She believes that claims of impending apocalypse are simply metaphors from the collective unconscious. She says that it is commonly accepted in psychology that dreams of cataclysm often precede times of great revelation and evolution. Alison sees 2012 as only part of a major shift in the human race, which began in 2008 and will continue until 2016. She believes this will be a positive process with a happy outcome, leading to greater understanding of our world, the universe and spirituality.

The Future in The Stars is published by Findhorn Press and was released in December 2010.

Author Alison Chester-Lambert trained at the Faculty of Astrology and then completed a further year at the Centre for Psychological Astrology in Regents College, London. She has worked for several national newspapers and opened the Midlands School of Astrology in 2002.

Links
http://www.midlandsschoolofastrology.com.uk/
http://www.alisonchesterlambert.com/
Future In The Stars : The Planets' Message for 2012 and Beyond
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/11/starting-new-diary-for-2011.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/12/making-new-years-resolutions.html
http://www.findhornpress.com/

Friday 13, 2012 and The Age of Stupid

Today is Friday 13 - a day many consider unlucky.

I wrote about Friday the 13th superstitions back in February, on the first Friday 13 of this year. The basic facts are that people consider Fridays unlucky because Christ was crucified on a Friday and think the number 13 is unlucky because there were 13 people at the Last Supper. However, according to insurance companies, fewer accidents are reported on Friday 13 than any other day - perhaps people are being extra careful.

This Friday 13, however, movie makers are drawing on our fears of another date - 2012 - with the launch of the film with that name.

Our concerns about 2012 are making money for authors as well as film companies, as there are thousands of books on the subject, with many different takes on what the future holds. Just a few of the titles listed on Amazon include The Mystery of 2012: Predictions, Prophecies and Possibilities, Fractal Time: The Secret of 2012 and a New World Age, 2012 and Beyond: An Invitation to Meet the Challenges & Opportunities Ahead and 2012: The Year of the Mayan Prophecy.

Now I admit I haven't read any of those books. My shelves are already burdened with too many old books on prophecies the world has already outlived - I certainly don't need more trees to die in the cause of soon-to-be-obsolete predictions.

Neither am I an expert on 2012 - but one prediction I will make is that no prophecy about 2012 will be 100% correct. No prophecies ever are 100% correct.

What I do believe is that there are many threats in this world that could cause future disasters, and that taking action now could change what will happen in the years to come.

So I won't be going to watch 2012 and more than I'll be buying any of those books on it. I think I'd rather watch another disaster movie I've been hearing good things about - The Age of Stupid.

This film, which was released in UK cinemas on 20 March, is about a man living alone in the devastated future world of 2055, looking at old footage from 2008 and asking: why didn’t we stop climate change when we had the chance?

From the reviews I've read, it has more chance of happening than anything in the movie 2012.

And, as with our fears about Friday 13, if we are extra careful about not wasting the Earth's resources, perhaps we might avert disasters that would otherwise have occurred.

The picture above shows the cover of 2012 Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, which is available through Amazon

Links
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/02/friday-13th-lore-luck-and-superstitions.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/07/day-of-bad-omens-god-of-week.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_the_13th
http://www.ageofstupid.net/the_film

Review: Surfers of the Zuvuya

On Sunday, I spent a lazy afternoon lying on the sofa reading Surfers of the Zuvuya: Tales of Interdimensional Travel by Jose A Arguelles.

I picked the book up in a charity shop a few weeks ago. Then, after watching Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull last week, I found myself in the mood for another epic tale of South American weirdness and adventure.

Surfers of the Zuvuya fitted the bill perfectly. It even starts with a journey to a South American tomb:

"To get to the tomb of Pacal Votan [in Mexico] you first climb up to the temple on top of the pyramid. Then you go down narrow stairs. It is dank and dark. Finally you get to the tomb room. An ancient stone door has obviously been pulled open with great effort, like in the movie 'Raiders of the Lost Ark'. An eerie feeling comes over you. Will the tomb ever be closed again? 'Ohmigod! you think. What does this mean?"

From there the adventure really kicks off, as the author, Jose A Arguelles, meets his dimensional double, who guides him in inter-dimensional travel using Zuvuya - the Mayan memory circuit.

The idea behind this is that the ancient Mayans were advanced beings - galactic engineers - who left behind clues so that we can follow them by astrally surfing the cosmic beams across the universe and through multi-dimensions. Also thrown into the book are Atlanteans, light beings, UFOs and a journey to the centre of the Earth to find giant healing crystals.

If that wasn't enough excitement, the book tells us that our current era of human civilization will end in 2012, with an elemental disaster of a catastrophic proportions. To survive, we are going to have to evolve some sort of higher state of consciousness and stop polluting the planet.

Of course, this book was written in the late 1980s, when this kind of New Age stuff was the rage and Millennium fever was beginning to get us all a bit edgy. Readers could at that time feel comforted with the thought of 25 years' grace in which to embark on their own cosmic journey and sort the planet out at the same time. Now, with just over three years to go until 2012 and the planet more polluted than ever, that seems a tall order.

But Surfers of the Zuvuya is not a depressing, doom-and-gloom, end-of-the-world book. It is a fantastic journey through weird and wonderful places and beliefs, written with a massive sense of humour and lashings of poetic license. It is mythic rather than factual. The foreword says:

"Myths are not for believing or disbelieving. They are for using. If a myth or metaphor works in revamping our deepest values, it is truer than the evening news or the textbook fact."

Arguelles has come in for quite a bit of criticism with regards to the accuracy of his facts, but I would say that if a book provides an entertaining tale of adventure, then go along for the ride and enjoy it. Afterwords, decide for yourself if it has any deeper meaning.

Surfers of the Zuvuya: Tales of Interdimensional Travel costs about £7.99 new or £3.10 secondhand through Amazon.

Links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jos%C3%A9_Arg%C3%BCelles
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Votan
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2008/06/charity-shop-bargains.html
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0367882/
Surfers of the Zuvuya: Tales of Interdimensional Travel