Stonestrider

Seek and Find The Sacred


September 11, 2017

New Grange

Share Button

Location: County Meath, Ireland

Note: Every so often, with a little luck and determination, you come across things that give cosmic pause. This article is dedicated to those rare moments rather than the beautiful trails to be found in Ireland that are usually reviewed. Hiking starts to take on a next-level significance when you stumble upon practically impossible things. Sometimes they are small things, like perfectly circular concentric rings imprinted on a stone, high above the Black Valley in Killarney.  (Image/Below) Sometimes they are jaw-dropping big things, like the balancing Capstone on a giant-sized ‘Proleek Dolmen’ on the boarders of the Mourne Mountains, north of Dublin. (Image/Below) This Dolmen is one of the most massive and well hidden miraculous secrets in all of Ireland, with a 40 ton capstone standing at roughly 15 feet high! Incredible. And yet this pales in comparison to the temple at New Grange. The more you look at that specific area north of Dublin, the more amazing mystery you will find. Just as Egypt’s mystical culture was birthed out of the Nile river, and Babylon’s from the Tigris and Euphrates, Ireland’s incredible spiritual origins were born along the Boyne-River-Valley. Although the Boyne-River-Valley culture was most likely not featured in your mandatory History 2.0 undergraduate course requirements, it definitely should’ve been. Egypt has the Great Pyramid; Babylon had it’s great Tower, and Ireland has the incomprehensible, magical, mystical, temple of New Grange, literally tucked into a curvature above the Boyne River.(Image/Below) New Grange also sponsors other megalithic masterpieces like Knowth, which is an incredible megalithic chamber also located on these grounds. 

The hedgy river-road that runs along the Boyne River from the hamlet of Rosnaree, just a mile south of New Grange, is the best, and only way to get there.  New Grange sits on the highest elevation above the solitary hedge rows and roads without names. You can walk these practically fictional looking hedge-row-paths for days if you are looking to get some trekking in before seeing the Temple, but beware, it would be easy to get lost in this green labyrinth of fields and cart-roads with no names, so make sure you have your device on you to at least navigate at all times. 

If you are ready to go directly to the Monument go to the Bru-na-Boinne Vistors Center along Staleen Road. Here you will find a ticketed bus line which will take you there. The ride is only 10 minutes, through the hedgy maze. When you arrive at the top of the hill you will be looking at nothing less than a Temple which has stood 2000 years before Moses climbed Mount Sinai. New Grange is older than Stonehenge, The Great Pyramid, and The Parthenon, which puts it in the running for the the oldest Temple on Earth. That’s quite a title. The way history has been explained in recent years, you might think that the oldest temple on Earth would look fairly primitive, as human history is generally thought to have gone from basic abilities to very complex ones, but the actual fact appears to be the utter opposite. The construction of New Grange is a study of the highest levels of engineering and accomplishment, bordering on the impossible for a culture not yet capable of using metal tools!? This is a circular mound centered on a main-chamber pathway constructed of roughly 34 level megalithic slabs, each weighing roughly 10 tons (20,000 pounds). Imagine 30 Proleek Dolmens lined perfectly together!  Some of the slabs came all the way from the Mourne Mountains to the north, as well as other far off sacred zones. These facts alone start the mind reeling on the impossible story of the stones, which were moved from afar, and finally fit in dry-laid corbel fashion with such perfection that the light of the  Solstices shines straight to the heart of the chamber two times a year. This Temple is a celestially connected megalithic miracle. It is surrounded by several massive Standing Stones which are roughly 15-20 tons, and most of them are over 8 feet in height. Moving these stones alone, to what is the highest elevation in this small River Valley, is hard to imagine.  These Standing Stones are territorial markers, and once upon a time, if you passed by these  Standing Stones without permission it would certainly have cost you your life. The larger the Standing Stone, the more serious the warning, and sacred the place. In this regard, you will realize that you are standing on truly holy ground. The exterior of the Temple is now lined in a modern white-quartz stone ring. The original Temple was much more concealed and blended into the hill for strategic reasons. It was literally part of the valley. The monumental stone slab at the entrance is one of the most important Celtic relics in the world, with gorgeous iconic Celtic rings imprinted into the megalith. This iconic stone is laid-out in a protective fashion, guarding the entrance, but is also clearly a display. It is a truly magical statement from the beginning of time. Imagine a solitary bean of light on the solstice day shining for only half a minute above this beautiful stone, making it glow, and continuing into the heart of the chamber! It just doesn’t get any better than this. And what’s more, the chambers in New England frequently have the same precise solstice feature. The connections between Celtic and New England antiquity cultures just grows from here, literally.

There are several other monumental stones with designs on them around the exterior of the Temple. with specific geometric features to observe on these stones, aside from the spirals. A closer look at this slab opposite the entrance reveals several iconic shapes, and more specifically, interconnected equilateral triangles, as well as mesmerizing Celtic spirals. These are not the only triangles to be found on the megaliths at New Grange. To see the others, we will need to step inside.

 Welcome to the impossible. Here you are entering a chamber of what is the equivalent of 40 Dolmens in one corridor,  all fit to perfection leading into a central chamber perfectly aligned to the stars, with a  roughly 20 ft high corbel ceiling. Imagine ancient Ireland, a land where giants roamed across the hills, and dangers unknown lurked beyond the next valley; and then imagine the absolute strength and safety you would feel walking through these impossible stone pillars. Here at least, in the ancient times, you were as safe as any Celt could be. The holistic benefits of living in a synergetic stone temple would most likely be wonderful, in comparison to the huts and wood fortresses of less fortunate clans. At the end of the long singular corridor from the entrance you will encounter stones with imprinted triangles and diamonds before entering the central chamber. 

Imprinted on this entryway stone at the main-chamber are distinct equilateral triangles that are seemingly transitioning into diamond shapes. There is  profound connection here to the megalithic sites in New England, which utilizes this exact same meme at practically all the megalithic sites. Specifically in New England, you will find equilateral triangles etched into granite by waterfalls, and massive diamond cut stones along ancient trail ways. This is the central megalithic meme in New England, and here are those very same shapes in the heart of the oldest megalithic chamber in the world.  Here are some examples of New England megaliths cut exactly into triangles and diamonds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

The evidence is too strong to dismiss. It seems highly likely that the megalithic culture that existed in Ireland had a relative culture across the Atlantic in New England. The question will arise: what is so important about triangles and diamond shapes? It might be that the Triangle is the first shape to develop from any linear set of points, and this culture was the first to develop in linear history, and so they claimed the Triangle as their calling card symbol. The ‘diamond’ is the result of the functionary crafting of cross-sections and equilaterals. If you cut a proper X into a stone, the result is four diamond shapes that are consistent with each other, and these utility cross-sections that create diamonds are found all over New England mountain trails. It as if the Neolithic culture were marking zones and territories as a warning to those passing through, and letting us know that the original culture once claimed this area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anther stone in the interior of the chamber at New Grange displays dozens of whimsical triangles and diamonds cascading all over the stone. This just can’t be a coincidence; there must be some relation between New England’s and Ireland’s oldest cultures. Neolithic Culture: Here is the part of the article that gets surreal and a bit ‘heady’. The history and chronology of how neolithic cultures relate, if they relate, must be found in their works. The works are obviously similar in structure, and also in symbolism. As New Grange is considered the oldest temple in the world, it seems logical that these geometric themes originated here, and spanned-out to the rest of the world. If this is true, then the pre-Celtic neolithic culture in Europe is the original ancestor of the neolithic culture that somehow crossed the Atlantic and ultimately made it’s way to New England. Their works are massive, beyond human in scale, like the Standing Stones outside New Grange.There is also the philosophical aspect of the Triangle, which is a shape specifically relevant to consciousness and divine comprehension. Is the neolithic culture referencing a direct connection to God Itself, like the neolithic tribes of Genesis? This is an intense reference, but according to the Bible the first generation on earth was the ‘Nephilim, meaning: “those who fell from heaven”. The offspring of these angels came from their copulating with human women, and that offspring was said to be Giants. (Genesis: 6) It sounds like extreme science fiction, and yet that’s exactly what the biblical accounts say. Moreover, when the Israelites went into the Promise Land and Joshua scouted out the territory, he found tribes of Giants. Joshua says the tribes he encountered  made him feel he was ‘the size of a grasshopper’. What is going there?

 With that in mind, you might eventually ask yourself: are these works the productions of these Giants in both Ireland and New England? Why are so many myths based upon Giants? The relations are there, and the relevant meaning of the chosen memes and symbols are there too. The hard part is, it utterly changes the current story of history, which is evolution based. New Grange is truly an otherworldly ancient temple that evokes wonder and humbling respect for the course of hallowed Time. Our particular modern era looks increasingly like ‘life in a controlled bubble’ when we look at the grand scheme of History. Almost all of our information is pre-packaged and funneled into specific themes, and if you disagree with them, you will be found to be disagreeable and ultimately failed in your assigned studies. The revised history that is given to our children is a set of theories sponsored by commercial academic institutions. The ‘technological era’ is a mere blip of 100 small years at the tail end of 40,000 years of human culture. When we look closely at what the antiquity suggest, it increasingly looks as if our culture is intentionally turning its back on the evidence in order to passively inject a more “convenient” theory of culture, based on erroneous assumptions. New Grange is one of the holiest places in the world, as a temple that has been here since the beginning of anthropological history, it is exquisitely rare. If we are truly sincere about going where the evidence leads us, then we must be prepared to challenge memes that don’t add up. Stonestrider.com isn’t a religious website; it’s about finding the best trails and photos you can, but it is impossible to deny that places like New Grange challenge so many things we assume about human progress. So, even if you are in Dublin just for a few days, plan a morning to visit New Grange. It is something, even with all our modern answers, we still don’t completely understand. Something incredible, almost otherworldly, took place in antiquity in order to build this temple. Walking into it’s main chamber is like walking into a miracle. It just doesn’t get more sacred than this, and a hillside is sometimes so much more than a hillside, so keep hiking.  

 

 

Share Button
May 15, 2017

Giant’s Causeway

Share Button

Location: Hamlet of Bushmills/County Antrim/Northern Ireland/(U.K)

Note: Every so often a place emerges for trailblazers that is so mysterious, so utterly stunning, that a reactionary discussion is unavoidable. The simplest question emerges: “How did this happen?”  Welcome to The Giant’s Causeway, the slightly golden, hexagonal stone courtyard on the absolute northernmost coastal point of the Emerald Isle. This is a gorgeous coastal trail, of roughly five amazing miles, that slowly elevates and bends around two gorgeous bays which cinematically ensconce one of the most mysterious sacred sites in the world.   

Scientific Theories:  The landscape of Ireland is not just a minor variation from the nearby nations of England, Scotland, and France, just across the Irish Sea; it is distinctly different. Take a look at the image above, along the bay of The Giant’s Causeway; the green coastline emerges like a Jurassic jade stone. It’s breathtaking. How does a landscape like this happen? How did Ireland happen? The answers come from all sides, and each is more challenging than the next. The author J.P Mallory in his book ‘The Origins of The Irish’ attributes Ireland’s unique glowing ‘green-colored-universe’ to the primordial history of it’s formation in the earliest periods of geological history. Get ready for this: Once upon a time, believe it or not, just after the breaking-up of the singular Pangaea Continent, Ireland was actually off the coast of… Australia. Ireland’s earliest tropical attributes come from this region. In an oversimplified explanation, Ireland slowly made its way (in what is scientifically called the ‘Ordovician Period‘) through extreme Ice Ages, Floods, and drastic Continental shifts, to reside at its preset position. That’s what scientists believe.  Adding to that initial tropical origin, Ireland is at the glorious finish-line of the Atlantic Jet Stream, which is the warmest and largest tropical under-water-highway in the world, literally running from Jamaica to Ireland in it’s final phase. As result, Ireland’s southern coast (and England’s) is subtly marinated with Palm trees, something many people just don’t know.  While hiking through Ireland you can easily begin to wonder what the actual story of this landscape is?

History and Religious Myth: It is hard to accept a theory that has Ireland’s earliest origin off the coast of Australia, but the uniqueness of Ireland’s semi-tropical south, and ‘thousand shades of green’, indicate something special. As noted before on Stonestrider.com, once, while hiking Kinnitty Mountain in the landlocked heart of Ireland, I found seashells on the mountain trail, about 2200 feet above sea level. What were seashells doing at the top of a mountain? Ireland must have been covered by the ocean at one point or another, just as other landmasses, for this to happen; and more directly, this evidence would point to the last time it happened, meaning the Biblical Flood. For some people this is also hard to reconcile, and yet it is hardly less realistic than a theory transporting Ireland from the coast of Australia. To this point, in the southwest of Ireland, there is a magical view of the Gap of Dunloe from the N71 Road, that is so spongy, so filled with undulating vegetation, that picturing it at the bottom of the ocean seems uniquely possible. (Image/Below) Like shells on mountaintops, or Palm trees growing in a northern European nation, The Causeway’ contains features that are compelling, and require some secondary consideration, to say the least. The first and most obvious of the features here are the small, but dense, golden hexagonal stone pillars lining this brilliant coastal cove. School-Age textbooks attribute the geometry of these stones to a process of volcanic lava being cooled and shaped by the ocean some 40 million years ago. For an impressionable ten year old child reading a fancy textbook this explanation might seem o.k, but for an educated, sentient adult, aware of logic and context, the explanation is almost insulting. Simply put, there are so many problems with the accepted theory. For example, in Hawaii this process of “lava cooling” is still taking place in real-time, and yet there is not a single hexagonal to be found. In fact, the lava-solids in Hawaii looks exactly as you would think; like grand layers of “syrup” slowly solidated into large round bulges of stone. These are strangely different results for two coastlines undergoing the exact same process.  (Giant’s Causeway Hexagonals/Image/Below) Furthermore, there are no hexagonals to be found anywhere else along the coast of Ireland; not a single one. That just doesn’t make sense for such a small national coast.  There is also the apparently miraculous geographic placement of The Causeway’, set like a perfect northern gateway into Ireland from Scotland, which isn’t even 70 miles north across the inner Atlantic bay. It’s as if the area says: “Welcome to our side of the Sea”; a striking entry zone specifically facing the only other international land mass in the vicinity, Scotland/Wales.

 View From The Trail: As you might expect from a World Heritage Site, at the beginning of the trail is a busy commercial station and parking lot that requires payment. There is even a small bus line that will take physically challenged people to the The Causeway’. Don’t use the bus-line. Walk the 200 dramatic yards down the small road to the actual trail. From here the first full vantage of the northeasterly coastline pathway appears, and it couldn’t be more inviting.  In the Sun, this scene looks like a Celtic northern California.

In this initial bay, before even arriving at the mysterious Causeway’, are massive stones and boulders that seem to have some kind of secret. Many of the large shapely boulders have names, and are famous in the area for their form (Image/Below). There are stones look to have been placed specifically as seats, with brilliant curvatures and character. Other stones are more stoic and classic in stature, looking like legitimate standing stones (Image/Below), fixed squarely into the rock beneath them. The entirety of this rocky opening scene, before arriving at the Causeway paints a picture of a ‘rock garden’ that reveals a small taste of the striking geomorphic strangeness taking place here.Continuing eastward along the trail the Causeway’ emerges, and not without what looks like playfully designed characteristics. At first glance, the leveling of the hexagonal stones in certain areas, combined with the orientation of this circular stone enclosure, give the impression that it was once perfectly carved-out to face the Sun, all while encapsulating water in a small protected ‘hot tub’ type space (Image/Below).Taking a seat on the stones while the Sun shines overhead absolutely creates the feeling of a Spa.  The area feels entirely functional and intentional, like many Neolithic places along waterfalls and mountainsides in New England, Wales, Scotland, and England. Continuing on the trail will bring you through a hexagonal stone gate, over a small hill, and then up the coastal path you go. As you begin the minor incline upward, yet another lessor-written-about feature is embedded perfectly into the coastal mountain face, and in only one specific area. How did lava quarry-out a perfectly squared set of evenly sectioned and leveled hexagonal stones inside the mountain? Why does the stone directly above these towering hexagonal shafts remain regular? Wouldn’t these stones have absolutely been affected by this magical lava flow which seems to pick and choose, even organize, specific sections of the coast for influence? Wouldn’t these shafts be spread at random, all over the scene, for miles perhaps? It just doesn’t make sense. And of course, these shafts are not published and written about in so many text books. Why? Because the logical questions they raise are too free of the authority of those who write the textbooks. Academics know that most of us will never see this place for ourselves. Stonestrider.com exists to inspire hikers, humble or affluent, to break through the paradigm and expectations of the individuals who are re-writing our histories, and see for themselves. 

Continuing up this wonderful trail brings an endearing visual of the entire bay. It is no wonder that about 5 miles west, down the coast, sits Dunluce Castle, a gorgeous 13th century fortification built at the edge of a cliff, and practically the northern edge of Ireland. This castle was utilized and enhanced wonderfully in Game of Thrones, a well deserved compliment to the area. In its day, Dunluce must have been one of the most desired residences in all of Ireland. The grounds at Dunluce are open for walking, and it is certainly recommended to any sojourners to visit this incredible stone palace.Returning to the easterly trail above the Causeway’, the elevation rises as you approach the edge of the bay. Why don’t the stones below the trail, which are much closer to any theoretical flow of lava which they say came up from the water, have hexagonals? How did the lava pass them over, and then cut into the specific stones above? Logically it just doesn’t hold up. Just beyond, and above the trail, is another set of singular hexagonal stones, and in an even more specific position. These stones mark the edge of The Giant’s Causeway, like a specific warning sign; it says someone skillful enough to create these picturesque pillars once occupied this place (Below/Left). 

This beautiful trail bends around to the next grand cove, and up out of the coastal wall, continuing on the mainland, looping back to its start for another 1.5 miles. But the other coves do not contain the hexagonals; intact, no other coves do anywhere in Ireland, Many people simply walk back down the trail from the direction they came to get a last look at the Causeway’. Who could blame them? Passing through this place a hiker can see that there really is no logical way to explain what has taken place here. The magical aspect of hiking and trailblazing is palpable; stories about its origin have survived for century upon century. Just as the earliest Hebrew scriptures record the presence of Giants in the land, well before the tribes of mankind swept into their valleys, Ireland and England’s earliest tales are of giants. The name “Giant’s Causeway” is not without substance. It is here that Fin McCool, the most famous Giant in both Ireland and England, is said to have exacted tolls upon those wishing to enter Ireland from the north. There are stories of epic battles with other Giants from Scotland and England, and looking around the Causeway’ it is just impossible to ignore the possibility of Fin’s presence. Looking back on the entire scene would justify any fight in order to hold on to this beautiful and epic space.Hikers, anthropologists, story-tellers, and locals, are left to choose between stories or scientific theories, both of which stretch our imaginations, either in one direction or the other. Science seems no less ridiculous than myth, and our personal cognitive abilities are ultimately required to decipher places like this, which is a testament to its magical vibration. It would be a lot easier to dismiss the idea of Giants as ridiculous if they weren’t written about so clearly in ancient scripture, and embedded in literally every cultures deepest mythical roots. Hike the Causeway’ for yourself, it’s the only way to get just a little closer to what actually might be the case here. As a new Spring emerges, give yourself a worthy challenge and head to the beautiful northern Irish coast; it’s a “can’t miss”. And of course, may the road rise to meet you, until the cove of hexagonals greet you. 

 

Share Button
February 17, 2017

Cavan Burren National Park (Part 2: Wedge Tombs)

Share Button

Location: Blacklion/County Cavan Ireland/Cavan Burren National Park

Note: Much like the way the Skellig Islands on the southwest coast of Ireland are represented in the final scene of ‘Star Wars/The Force Awakens’, Cavan Burren National Park feels like the last bastion for recluse Jedi Knights to live out their days in a galaxy, far, far away. The only way to describe this set of rolling Celtic elevations, the cinematically striking Hawthorn trees vibrating on the horizon,the ancient stones strewn across the valley like dominos, is complete scintillation.

The rare and strange megalithic ‘calf house’ in the top image above is at the base of a small mountain. The excellently constructed trails here wind down the elevation and diverge along paths which take you into pristine Celtic forest bedded entirely in clover, with ancient megaliths in mysterious rows running straight through the trees.Known as Killykeen Forest, this significant preserve of rare Celtic trees feels like an original fairytale backdrop. Adding to the universe of rolling clover are huge boulders covered in moss; these are giant green monoliths glowing between the roots and branches along the trail. 

Moving deeper into the woods the sunlight blasts away beyond the hedges, while occasionally unrestricted shafts of light peak through into the inner thickets. When the Sun peaks through the mossy trees and hedges they shimmer with a misty light. The woods here are like the opening scene for the most classic Celtic myth, at one moment bright and shimmering, and the next, shadowy and dark.You can take the lower trail away from the forest to caverns and small cliffs where saint Patrick himself may have met with Druid kings. These caves are supported by what look like singular pillars which were carved out of the cliff at some point, either by an ancient culture, or by the wind. It is for you to decide. Before you make your decision about what’s possible and what’s not, consider some of the most amazing megalithic chambers in the world waiting to be viewed nearby…In a grove of ancient mossy stones and trees, set in an otherworldly vision about 1.5 miles into the lower trail, is one of the most amazing and mysterious megalithic chambers in Ireland. In this grove you almost expect a reclusive Jedi Knight to emerge from the mysterious stone chamber, which is clearly the centerpiece of this scene. This of course is an imaginary context, but the actual depth, beauty, and mystery that exists here is not imagined at all.

This is a 4000 to 6000 year old Celtic megalith. It is a mix of a wedge tomb, cairn, and stone chamber all in one. It should first be understood that the limestone slab that has been placed as a type of panel above the small entranceway looks to weighs at least 10 tons, if not more. This is a four inch thick, rock-strip of 7 by 14 foot wide singular slab, of solid limestone.To quarry and craft this chamber would have taken an immense amount of work, yet there are no markings on it. No chips from a chisel at its edges, or Pic-axe cuts of any kind. The dedication and resources of an entire village would’ve been necessary to quarry and move this stone to this specific spot. This seems like an extremely strange amount of effort for a Neolithic village to produce just to build a “house for a calf”, which is what the archaeologists of this area have actually had the nerve to label this chamber. The idea of a community exerting the resources and risk necessary to transfer this specific monolithic stone in a precise placement and location just to “house a cow” is insultingly absurd, and borders on fraud.

A refined consideration of this chamber should first take note of the specific angle of the slab, which, as can be seen by the refractory blast of light glaring off its surface (first image above) is facing directly towards the course of the Sun through the valley. The specific angle of this extremely hard to move megalith indicates that it was intentionally placed in such a fashion in order to absorb as much of the Sun’s energy as possible. Additionally, connected to it, absorbing the Sun’s energy, are three stone-linings. This is a type of energy epicenter. Just as solar panels are angled on rooftops and plugged into an attached house for energy, this slab looks to serve the exact same purpose with the connecting stone-linings. This is a Neolithic solar panel distributing the harnessed energy of the Sun to the stone-linings which act as ‘cables’ transferring energy out to the landscape.  Look at the stone-linings (which are a massive megalithic project also) in this image below, they plug-in and diverge in three different directions, which leads us to our next observation about this magical grove where wildflowers bloom like muffins in the grass.Modern archaeologists have dismissed these stones as primitive objects thrown down without any secondary functional purpose, perhaps other than to restrict the movements of herds. That’s problematic from the start. These stones couldn’t restrict a blind billy goat with three legs. This is a massive amount of effort to build something that doesn’t even perform its assumed functional purpose. This is because it’s not a “wall”. If we truly look at this scene functionally, from an engineering standpoint, it starts to make sense. Stones have energetic properties,  transferring and storing energy if harnessed. How do we not acknowledge this in our particular day and age? Distributing harnessed energy is what our modern culture does with miniature ‘microchip landscapes’ every day. How could we not identify this larger model for the exact same concept, which is a landscape with connectors and harnessers of solar power that synergizes the entire area? This is the first engineering culture on earth, fully conscious of the utility properties of the elements in the landscape. Early antiquity was anything but primitive.  “Archaeologists” selling people the idea that this priceless monument is a “calf house” are a patronizing disgrace.  

Just 10 yards from this beautiful chamber is an amazing isolated boulder that sits specifically above another granite foundation. There are no other level granite tables protruding out of the ground anywhere else in the grove. There are perfectly parallel slashes along the side of the free-sitting boulder, which gives the impression more akin to a sculptural statement, or display of decoration, rather than clumsy cracks from random toppling.This boulder was specifically place on this exact spot as a marker for anyone approaching the area. It is obviously a statement that displays incredible strength and ingenuity, warning anyone passing through that the region is habituated by an individual(s) capable of this statement. The area is inundated with cultural megalithic statements, and yet, “scientists” somehow have the nerve to isolate this particular statement of megalithic balance and power, as random “glacial activity”. People need to get their heads around the idea of megalithic engineering in antiquity, and the ability to move and utilize massive stones. These engineered stones are in every forest and wildlife reserve from Gortnavern Ireland, to Monument Mountain Massachusetts. We need to stop being afraid of the possibility of a different history that the ‘postmodern era’ has perpetuated. Cultural history, after the last glacial flood period, spans some 12,500 years. In just the last 100 short years of human culture, which is a whopping 8% of the overall Era,  ‘modern culture’ has decided to literally theorize everything, just ignoring the other 92% of cultural history along with the various forms of evidence we have inherited but mostly ignored. When defending the the 92% portion of overall history with a “modern scholar” they will dismiss the concrete evidence of engineered megaliths and historical texts with the painful logic that these statements are “just too old to be true”, or ” made-up stories created to manipulate culture”. This makes a practice of dismissing anything outside of the approved of narrative. If cultures just follow narratives and not the scenes themselves, those cultures will forget themselves. These stones are incredible coded puzzles that have been handed down to us from antiquity. They are literally priceless. In all our “modern wisdom” we still have yet to explain the purpose for these wedge tombs. This fact alone is enough to dismiss the assumptions of those who say that todays era is the height of cultural progress and achievement. It simply isn’t true, and the stones prove it. Let’s look closer.  

Just 2oo yards further up the trail is yet another priceless megalithic statement. This classic Celtic Wedge Tomb is at the top of a beautiful knoll with a 360 degree view on the Reserve. Placing these stones at this elevation would’ve been a serious endeavor, requiring years of specified labor.

This chamber has several features that are mysterious and fantastic. Roughly measured the chamber reveals a 17 foot long set of fitted and crafted blocks of limestone. There is a captivating symmetry and set-up to these 1000 pound stones, with a centered entranceway. Two ‘pillar stones’ guard the entrance about 7 feet from the immediate left and right of the center entrance. The implementation of symmetry into a grand stone scene indicates dynamic planning and geometric comprehension, even beauty.Their are squarely placed roof and side-stones which are cut and fitted in eloquent styles. Beds of vibrant wildflowers populate the hill all around the chamber. With the clouds rolling swiftly by above the entire scene it truly feels dreamlike and utterly surreal.        There is another classic wedge tomb on the initial elevation when starting the trail. Unfortunately this chamber is dilapidated, but with the help of the other chambers down the trail, we can make a pretty good guess as to what this scene may have looked like once. There are 1000 pound ceiling stones which have been toppled, while the side stones are no longer standing straight up. It was once a beautiful limestone chamber with an incredible view of the mountain beyond. There’s a good chance that this chamber once mimicked the beautifully distinct Culigagh Mountain in the background, which is a technique found in many of the stones at Mount Bearnagh in the Mourne Mountain Range to the east.

In review, the designated trails here are a short 3 mile loop that take you from megalith to megalith, branching off into the forest as well. The roads and pathways approaching the Reserve run for several miles all their own, and are completely accessible as well.  This is a once in a lifetime excursion. The first culture in Ireland once thrived in this region, and found joy in creating impossible engineering spectacles built into the landscape, too grandiose to be removed some 6000 years later. Photography here is an opportunity to capture the beautiful spirit of Ireland’s oldest rural wonderland. These images tell a tale of complete beauty and mystique, of wonder and grandeur. An excursion here can lead you off-trail too, where Celtic stone-linings might be your only guide for miles. If possible, give yourself a chance to discover something away from the path. Wander into the hills to experience the breezy sway of the hillside brushing against your gear. A nearly scriptural level of simplistic beauty can emerge while passing by the flocks in these hills. The realness of witnessing a hallowed ‘rural order’ gives us a primordial reminder that life can hold incredibly simplistic beautiful moments, if we so choose. Cavan Burren National Park is the perfect place to wander into that type of moment. Seek and find.  

 

  

Share Button
January 19, 2017

Hill of Tara

Share Button

Location: County Meath/Ireland

Elevation: 508 ft

Note: It is fitting that the Hill of Tara, the historic site where it is said the High Kings of Ireland were once crowned, is on a road with no name. This sets the tone for the experience of County Meath, and within it, the enchanting hamlet of Castletown, a place deeply dedicated to preserving the beauty of Celtic life in all its aspects. Castletown is wonderfully lacking in the exacted labels of modernity, with lanes and lands that have names known only by the local farmers and families. It is here that The Hill of Tara is embedded, and without a GPS, or mapping system on your phone, you simply will not find it. Be prepared. The deeply rural aspect of Tara’s location has been challenged by organizations wishing to modernize this area with more expansive highways, and this effort has been met with overwhelming resistance. The people here clearly value a connection to the sacred land over monetary expansion, and this gives us yet another connection between Celtic and Native American culture. The Hill of Tara is the central natural monument for the earliest Celtic identity of the Irish people, while Newgrange is the Megalithic complex with equal stature. It is understood that the High Kings of Ireland were crowned, and kept their High Seat, here. There is a standing stone and stone chamber at the top of the Hill, marking the very spot where the High King was crowned in ancient times. There is a main trail from the car park, and several minor trails that encircle the hill. A full hike of the area is about 4 miles long, if you so choose, rounding the Hill. Perhaps more importantly is the option to sit down and understand the depth of what this place represents, and feel what it exudes. It is not a cliche taking place at Tara’, it is in fact one of the realest connections you can feel to the landscape in all of Ireland. There are several specific monuments that should not be missed here. The stone chamber is a beautiful example of corbel layering in the Celtic style. It is placed specifically at the zenith of the Hill, and built into the ground in order to connect with the earth below. This exact style of stone chamber exists mysteriously in the forests of New England. Below are examples of the stone chambers at Upton and Nashoba Brook, Massachusetts/USA. They are very similar in construction to The Hill of Tara stone chamber, but lack the pinnacle context of the Irish chamber, so obvious with a single glance. The question arises: What are identically constructed stone chambers doing an ocean apart from each other? A full analysis of the stone chambers, both in Ireland and New England, may reveal astrological, as well as geomorphic significance. While standing inside the Upton Stone Chamber when I took the image below, over two years ago, several small glowing orbs began floating around my camera lens. (image below/left of center, 2 orbs connected) This is a strong indicator for the purpose of harnessing energy in these chambers.

I had never before seen an orb up until that particular moment, or even believed that they existed. It became clear to me that what takes place in the stone chambers is most likely a harnessing of energy. This is very similar to what is done with electrical current and quartzite utilities in today’s era. The stone chamber at Tara’ would very likely have the same energetic benefits, and therefor be a good place for the High King of Ireland to be. After spending some time upon The Hill of Tara, I began to feel that the entire Hill was harnessing energy somehow, and I certainly wasn’t the only one. (Image below/Kings Stone/site of the crowning of the High King)

Within the Stone Chamber at Tara’ is a type of “keystone” (image below) which maps out the megalithic works of the entire area. On this day I didn’t see any orbs in the Chamber, but it was abundantly clear that Tara’ is a spiritual center that was designed in a very specific way. This would’ve taken an enormous amount of effort. These megalithic monuments date back at least 5000 years. It is very likely that the High Kings chose this place specifically because they knew of an even older megalithic culture that once dwelt upon this Hill, which was a culture capable of harnessing energies through the positioning and aligning of stones with the Sun, Moon, and Stars. The Hill of Tara is a type of energy center, with several large concentric earthworks built into the hillsides. The exact meaning of concentric earthworks is not known, but science is beginning to understand fractal and concentric patterns as extremely useful in the reverberation and harnessing of electric currents.          

The feeling at The Hill of Tara: In J.R.R Tolkien’s masterpiece The Lord of The Rings there are two chapters that take place in an enchanted forest called Lothlorien. Deep within Lothlorien there is a hill named Cerin Amroth, and the description of what happens when the company of travelers from this epic tale first glimpse this ancient Hill is poetically relevant to the Hill of Tara. The passage reads:

“Behold! You are come to Cerin Amroth,” Said Haldir. “For this is the heart of the ancient realm as it was long ago, and here is the mound of Amroth, where in happier days Amroth’s high house was built. Here ever bloom the winter flowers in the unfading grass: the yellow elanor, and the pale niphredil.” The others cast themselves down upon the fragrant grass, but Frodo stood a while still, lost in wonder. It seemed to him that he had stepped through a high window that looked on a vanished world.  A light was upon it for which his language had no name…”(pg 350;LOTR)

Here is a picture of high plateau of Tara’s wildflowers from up close. They are delicate and beautiful, colorfully vibrant, rich, and unfading, very much like the description of Cerin Amroth in Tolkien’s Lotlorien. Perhaps it was because the angle of the light on the field was personally different for me; just as the Irish angle on the Sun is different than that of the angle of the Sun in the American northeast where I’m from; but from my foreign perspective the Hill seemed to literally glow in the late-day Sun. It glowed in a way I had never seen before. I could feel a type of electricity all around me, and yet it was a simple landscape on the surface. I truly had to sit down and collect myself for a moment as my head was nearly spinning. I know it sounds strange, but it’s true. It is very hard to explain, but as I came up the Hill, I began to see that the Irish understood this feeling, completely.

I included the fictional description of The Hill of Cerin Amroth experienced by the characters of The Lord of The Rings above because it was the most relevant passage I could find in all of literature to describe my very real personal experience with The Hill of Tara. When I arrived people were literally sprawled out in the grass, attempting to harness the energy of the Hill. (image/below) I found myself blinking hard at what I was seeing.

I walked above the stone chamber to get a glimpse from the highest point of the area. Two Irish kids jumped up in front of me and began posing for a picture in the most hilarious way. They were absolutely carefree. With all of Ireland in the backdrop, I suddenly felt as if all my concerns were, at best, ridiculous.   Off in the distance I marked a couple kissing, and then not far from them were college kids sitting and talking softly above the ancient circular rings now covered with earth. Coming from the America of the last 15 years, I just wasn’t accustomed to this type of uninhibited joy and calm. There was no stress, no observational angst, no fear whatsoever. And you could feel it.

 

 

 

Whatever the original function of Tara’ once was, there is a remnant of it still today. On a sunny day Tara’ feels like the safest place on earth, and this is no exaggeration. In the hills beyond are ruined bell-towers of abbeys long since diminished. It should be appreciated by the readers that these towers, although they look extremely old in their picturesque way, are practically young, comparatively, to the stone chamber and standing stone at Tara’s peak, as well as the stone chambers in New England, for that matter. Bective Abbey, a classic Medieval complex, is only 1.5 miles from Tara’, and it is a wonderfully tranquil place. (image below) You can walk the ground and see some beautiful architecture from inside the cells. The monks must have known how spiritually potent this area was, with its proximity to Tara’. They would’ve gladly choose to live-out their days in the presence of The Hill, knowing they could certainly do a lot worse. Adding to this energetic feeling of the land and stone-works from the earliest Neolithic period, to Celtic and Medieval, is the oldest element of all, the Boyne River, which cuts North to South through the area. This is the Boyne River Valley, an ancient and sacred landscape filled with stone engineering. “The High Man”, a Celtic complex of astrologically-aligned hill-forts, wedge tombs, and standing stones, is not far from this area. Its monuments are built in precise fashion along the Boyne river in order to be a reflection of the Belt of Orion astrological system actually built into the Irish hills. The entire area is absolutely sacred.

The Hill of Tara has been preserved by the efforts of Irish citizens who have resisted the modern world’s “advances”. They have openly protested any modernization of the area. If you are lucky enough to find the Hill of Tara and walk the grounds; if you come to Castletown and cross the river Boyne; realize it is anything but a simple hike through rustic terrestrial trails that you are taking, but rather, it is a hike into the way things were in the beginning of Time.

Share Button