The Wheel of the Year has turned once again, and we were blessed with a magnificent and sunny Spring Equinox on Wednesday. As darkness and light were in equal balance once again, we welcomed the arrival of spring, the buds, the spring flowers, and our rising energy. May this time be full of joy, enthusiasm and activity for you, and may the creative passionate fires burn brighly in you!

Clay Lowe gave a very interesting talk about core shamanism at the last WSN meeting on 15th March. He took us through his personal journey before explaining his spiritual path in some depth, and answered general questions about shamanism and its deep connection with nature. For the practical part of the evening, Clay guided us through a scrying exercise, for which we used rocks. This is an ancient rock ceremony, in which objects, such as rocks, water, smoke, crystals, and so on, are utilised to aid the subconscious in guiding our conscious selves. We paired up with a partner, and each of us asked a question, and then described images we saw on the surface of the rocks - leading us to often surprisingly accurate answers. The evening was enjoyed by all, so thanks again, Clay.

On this note, the format of Warwickshire Spiritual Network is changing. Meetings will from now on by quarterly, instead of monthly, at least for the foreseeable future. The reason for this decision is that both Beth and I are very busy this year with our individual projects, and holding monthly meetings (with associated admin, publicity etc.) is just not possible for us at the moment. However, if you would like more frequent meetings and would like to host these, or organize other events, then please get in touch - remember, this is your group, and your input will be gratefully received! So, please note this in your diaries: the next WSN meeting will not be until Thursday 21st June now, coinciding with the Summer Solstice!

We have also set up an interactive Yahoo-Group, for which all WSN-members should by now have received an invite. On this Yahoo group, you can post messages, inform other members of events, workshops, and other interesting spiritual matters, and keep in touch with each other. The web address for this group is:

http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/spiritual_network/ If you have not received an invite, and would like to join, follow the instructions on the website with a little introduction about yourself, and we will add you to the list.

The Faiths Trail, organised by the WDFF on Saturday 17th March went very well. Anne from Coventry Earth Spirit gave an excellent talk about Paganism and Holy Wells at the Sacred Well outside Leamington library, and even made it into the Courier newspaper today (Friday 23rd March)! It was a well-attended event (even the Bishop of Warwick showed up!) with visits to various Faiths Centres, a delicious vegetarian lunch at Babe Ke Gurdwara, and an interesting seminar about the importance of Friends, Family & Friendship in the different faiths. Talks were given by Sikh, Buddhist, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Pagan and Christian representatives. Transcripts of both Anne's and my talk have been uploaded on the 'files' section of the Yahoo group. Photos of the event will follow shortly.

Peace Festival news: We are now getting to work on this year's Holy Wells Procession on Sunday 17th June. For this, we will be collaborating with Pauline Warner from Nuneaton, who is organizing another water event in Warwickshire in conjunction with the charity Water Aid. For her project, people all across Warwickshire are knitting blue squares of wool, which will be sewn together in June to symbolize a river. Pauline will bring this 'river of wool' to the Peace Festival, which might be around one mile long by then, and we will be processing it through Jephson Gardens to the Sacred Wells. Further details about this will follow, and if you would like to get involved in the planning, please get in touch. We would like to hear from musicians, poets and storytellers in particular. We are also finalizing details about a new Sacred Drama about the Goddess of the Water, which will involved storytelling and percussion this time. Watch this space!

Did you see the lunar eclipse on Saturday night? It was truly awesome - Anne, Barry and I watched it from the (rather muddy and freezing cold) Earlsdon Common. Seeing the brightly lit Full Moon become darker and darker until it was completely eclipsed and dark red was mind-blowing. It was like experiencing the entire monthly lunar cycle in a few hours. Maybe this explains why everything seems to move so incredibly fast at the moment! It was a full moon in Virgo, and according to the wondrous Tara at Wise Moon - http://wisemoon.blogspot.com/ - 'a full moon in Virgo during Pisces highlights the role of the healer in the world, and the healing needed for the world. It is a time for us to really visualize the changes that we would like to see in the world, for the world, but also for ourselves.' Makes sense!

Last month, we were all inspired by Mandy of Wild Soul Art's talk. It was a fairly small meeting (due to some confusion about the new venue and date, I've been told) but because of that, it worked really well. Mandy talked us through her own creative journey, awakening, and the blocks she had to overcome before becoming a successful artist. She also took us through a series of exercises that helped us to assess where we are creatively at the moment, and the resulting awareness was quite deep and moving for some people. Mandy, who is also a Barefoot Boogie DJ, is organizing another party in March - just in time for the Spring Equinox - called 'The Mad March Hare Ball' - on Sunday 25th March at St Columba Hall in Moseley, Birmingham, at 7 pm. Cost is £7. Contact her on mail@mandykasafir.com for more information.

This month's meeting will be on Thursday 15th March at KARMA, 23 Portland Street, Leamington Spa at the usual time of 8 pm. Guest speaker will be Clay Lowe of Ascent Experience, who will talk about core shamanic practice and the visible face of spirit. Clay is a trainer, coach and facilitator. He has been a spiritual seeker for the past 25 years, and has now found a home in the shamanic roots of Taoism. Note: Please bring 2 grapefruit-sized rocks and a blanket to the meeting. For more information on Clay, please visit http://www.ascent-experience.com/

I now have the timetable for the Warwick District Faiths Forum's Faith Trail on Saturday 17th March. This is a day of visits to different faiths centres, and the Programme is as follows:

Faith Trail Programme

9.00 - 9.45 Shree Krishna Centre (Hindu Temple)

10.00 - 10.15 Sacred Well (Pagan site, outside the library)

10.30 - 11.15 All Saints’ Church

11.45 - 12.15 Buddhist Centre in Sherbourne

12.30 - 13.30 Babe Ke Gurdwara (Sikh Temple - including Lunch)

14.00 - 16.00 Seminar at Town Hall Leamington Spa
Presentations by different Faith Groups

Meeting point for the day is at 9.00am Shree Krishna Community Centre, 10(b) High Street, Crown Terrace, Leamington Spa CV31 3EN (but you can join in at any point during the day).

Transport to the Buddhist Centre is available from All Saints’ Church at 11.15am.
For further information contact:

Jatinder Birdi - Chair Warwick District Faith Forum. Tel: (0795) 858 9464
Tim Healey - Warwickshire County Council. Tel: (01926) 736 138

We are particularly pleased about the inclusion of the Sacred Well in the Faiths Trail. Anne Barrowcliffe of Coventry Earth Spirit will give a talk at the Well on the day, and I will give a talk on Paganism at the Town Hall in the afternoon. Hope to see some of you there!