Feather Stone Fire Bone:
Conversations With an Animate World

Topic 1: A new, old way of knowing – September
Information versus instinct; logos versus mythos. We’ll examine the history of how we know things, and how different kinds of ‘knowing’ have been valued throughout history. We’ll explore different traditional ways of ‘knowing’, from gut instinct to divination and portends and begin to intuit a framework of meaning through which we can dialogue with all life.

Topic 2: You are made from the love of millions – October
An exploration of our relationship with death and renewal. Seasonality, cycles of life, grief, letting go, renewal. Working towards a relationship with some of our ancestors as we approach Sawain, Calan Gaeaf, Halloween: the time of ancestors.

Topic 3: Lore – November
Drawing from stories, ancient texts, folk-wisdom and song, an exploration of what our ancestors knew about living in harmony with each other and the natural and unseen world, which our modern world may have overlooked. A discussion of what it might mean to re-invigorate some of these wise principles of living well in our lives today.

Topic 4: Gathering and sharing wisdom at the fireside – December
A firelight or candlelight midwinter gathering filled with stories, poetry and songs that have inspired us along our journey so far. The value of living with the seasons, the importance of nourishing each other and community during the darkest point of the year.

Topic 5: What’s in a dream? – January
Mythic Imagination and the collective unconscious. Different perspectives. Dreaming awake, opening ourselves to further connection and working with guides.

Topic 6: Our magical selves within a mythic landscape – February
We are bound to land – though we may have lost connection. Connecting deeply with place, holding it as sacred, being in relationship to the natural world is fundamental to human wellbeing. Orienting ourselves with the directions, elements archetypes and features in our local landscapes, we’ll begin to weave our way deeper into magical connection with it.

Topic 7: Magic of the everyday: small ceremonies and rituals. Why they are important – March
Why the small ceremonies and rituals of our day are potent. How they shape our interaction with the world and each other. In this session we’ll explore ways to create a practice of small rituals, and moments to help us distill the magic of every day and sustain soulful connection.

Topic 8: Hollow bone – April
Learning to listen deeply. We’ll return to earlier work with our intuition and examine some relevant theories and philosophies. We’ll begin to refine a ‘divinatory’ or symbolic framework with which we can understand moments of synchronicity, magic and connection.

Topic 9: Tides and times – May
The flow of dawn to dusk, full to new moon, season to season. Placing ourselves within the tides, synchronising, allowing them to move us, feeling the ebb and flow.

Topic 10: Places of reverence, things of magic. Altars, shrines, talismans and tools – June
Why create them and how to do it. An exploration of working with an altar or shrine and how to make magical talismans and tools.

Topic 11: The journey of life and rites of passage – July
Where are we in the tide of life, at what life phase? An exploration of the archetypes of each phase. An examination of magical understanding of the initiatory process of life as mapped in the Tarot and other systems.

Topic 12: Honouring this moment – August
We draw the thread of the year circle to a close together by co-creating a ceremony to mark an ending and beginning, a rite of passage that celebrates who we are, where we’ve been and the becoming we sense ahead. We’ll delve into guidance and intuition, and find ways of committing ourselves to what comes next, magically.

(The final sharing circle will fall a month later in mid September 2024)