Sleep

Briar Rose

These weeks we are having stories with a common thread, the sleep and the union of the Prince and Princess, as depicted so clearly in Briar Rose. These are stories of the union of the soul and the spirit which need to take place in order that Man can be awaken. It is also the task of the Consciousness Soul, to take notice of the Spirit so to say:

" So much of the human development hangs on the question of whether human beings can take the next step into the consciousness soul and then onward to the spirit.......One way the opposing forces work on young children is to awaken the nerve-sense system prematurely.........Fairy tales provide wonderful pictures that can live and grow in the children and help them prepare for the time they may become inwardly active and seek the union of the soul and spirit. Rudolf Steiner spoke of fairy tales as being a good angel that accompanies a child from birth onward. He also spoke of the importance of puppetry and marionette work, calling it a remedy for the ills of civilization"

Joan Almond "Early Childhood and the Consciousness Soul"

 

Jacob's Ladder

In falling asleep, or upon awaking, we adults, can also enter into that dreamy state, -"We must look into our soul to see what is there by remaining awake before fully awakening within that dull and dreamy consciousness..." R. Steiner Boundaries of Natural Science -and explore the relationship between the soul and the spirit.

In my experimentation, this in between worlds comes up as dream-like images, where my I has metamorphosed into a character and is living a scenario, I am deemly aware of it, but can notice the images being of a different nature than when fully awake, more rapid, more diverse, more filled. The first thing as consciousness slips away is a slowing of the breathing pattern, I can hear the breath going slower and deeper, and then the sense of hearing notices a feeling of a mantle that comes inwardly from the chest periphery and then upward  away from the crown in the head. Then I am asleep. Before this happens I take time to ask questions, revisit the day and prepare for my journey. Upon awakening I take time to hear what the spiritual world brings, in ideas that arise within myself but that are not my own.

The Seven Ravens

A friend of mine has sent me this poem, and found it to be very relevant to this week, as we seek to work with the angels and the spiritual world:

There is a Knighthood of the 21st Century 
Whose riders do not ride
through the darkness of physical forests, as of old,
but through the forests of darkened minds.
They are armed with a spiritual armor.
And a spiritual sun makes them radiant.
Out of them shines healing,
healing that flows from the knowledge
that the Human Being is a spiritual being.
They must create inner order, inner justice,
Peace and conviction in the darkness of our time.
They must learn to work side by side with Angels.
 
Karl Konig
founder of Camp Hill movement
<http://www.camphill.org>