the good: Robin Heath is a cutting edge researcher into megalithic sites and astronomy, building on past work and adding a lot of his own. This book the good: Robin Heath is a cutting edge researcher into megalithic sites and astronomy, building on past work and adding a lot of his own. This book describes a new discovery which links the Preseli Hills in Wales, where the bluestone found at Stonehenge originated, with Stonehenge on an astronomical and metrical (systems of measurement) basis. Amazing new original research.
the bad: Heath's writing style is too chatty, and he spends too much time making snide comments about orthodox archaeology.
This would have made a good book combined with Proto Stonehenge in Wales which talks about another aspect of the Preseli area megalithic and landscape archaeoastronony (?is that a word?).
This is really the only place as far as I know to find this kind of work, however, so if you're interested you just need to deal with these self published pitfalls....more
the good: Robin Heath is a cutting edge researcher into megalithic sites and astronomy, building on past work and adding a lot of his own. This book dthe good: Robin Heath is a cutting edge researcher into megalithic sites and astronomy, building on past work and adding a lot of his own. This book describes a new discovery which links the Preseli Hills in Wales, where the bluestone found at Stonehenge originated, with Stonehenge on an astronomical and metrical (systems of measurement) basis. Amazing new original research.
the bad: Heath's writing style is too chatty, he spends too much time making snide comments about orthodox archaeology, and the actual topic of this book only takes up one chapter and feels quite rushed, and the rest of which is devoted to recapping his findings on Stonehenge.
So, if you haven't read Sun Moon Stonehenge, that could be a plus. If you have, much of this is repetitive.
This would have made a good book combined with Temple in the Hills which talks about another aspect of the Preseli area megalithic and landscape archaeoastronony (?is that a word?).
This is really the only place as far as I know to find this kind of work, however, so if you're interested you just need to deal with these self published pitfalls....more
The best thing about this book are the beautiful pictures, very well selected and printed, of a wide variety of styles of Islamic Geometric Design. VEThe best thing about this book are the beautiful pictures, very well selected and printed, of a wide variety of styles of Islamic Geometric Design. VERY worthwhile to a student of this topic.
The worst thing about this book is the prose. Repetitive and banal: it reads like a schoolkid's padded submission where they have stretched 2 pages of information out to fit the minimum length assignment length of 5 pages.
As usual with such bloated prose, it obscures and sours and really makes inaccessible what good information there is.
Though the ideas are so repetitive that each page functions much like a hologram of the whole-- read it and you will quickly become acquainted with the central thesis of the book, which is...
The provocative notion that the "craftsmen" who produced these works were: 1) not acquainted with whatever esoteric meaning these symbols and shapes were held to posses by the scholar-geometer class 2) purely interested in technical problems of executing attractive patterns to fill the space presented to them.
I note that this is likelier to be true of a modern Dutch draftsman (i.e. the author) than someone working in a religious society on art for sacred applications.
While a few bits of decent evidence are presented which support the general notion that craftsmen were less acquainted with esoterica (the very meaning of which is "the hidden") and more focused on technical achievement, I imagine the reality was that there was a continuum of knowledge and personal devotion among those that executed these designs.
Broug poses a lot of questions about what designs or styles were executed and why, and presents no answers. Might some of these answers lie in the areas of esoteric meaning and devotion?
Again to his credit, Broug does a good job analyzing the technical considerations and methods of execution of these designs. He is a working practitioner in this field and he knows his stuff-- the stuff required to make designs in this style for a modern secular audience, which has obviously required a lot of work with the designs, a lot of looking at historical designs, and a metaphysical belief system in accord with the present day.
Note that if your interest is purely in making these designs yourself then his earlier book may better suit your purposes, cost less, and take up less space on your bookshelf....more
Worthwhile but not perfect. Ayani has a lot of experience, and background in Andean traditions and the eclectic assortment one expects from a westerneWorthwhile but not perfect. Ayani has a lot of experience, and background in Andean traditions and the eclectic assortment one expects from a westerner.
This book presents her own model of the personal-oriented metaphysical universe and discusses the ways in which one needs to heal in order to make progress.
I found the book to be very helpful, to have real transmission qualities, and to have inspired a few impromptu sessions of profound personal healing as well as adding new conceptual tools to my kit.
On the other hand I found the emphasis on the model to be way too heavy and note that there were several healing modalities absent from what she prescribes, due in part I would guess to the limitations of her own individual experience as well as things she decided for whatever reason she ought not to talk about. There is for instance a dedication to San Pedro but no discussion of entheogenic healing practices.
The book was strong enough that I have decided to try out her other more practice oriented material....more
While this is chock full of great information and drawings, the writing is very terse and dry. Hard to follow sometimes. The illustrations all look liWhile this is chock full of great information and drawings, the writing is very terse and dry. Hard to follow sometimes. The illustrations all look like they were done, though neatly, by hand. You can probably do better looking some of this stuff up on the internet, with this book to guide you. No real overarching narrative and no large pretty pictures, so hard to really sit down and dig into, but rewarding once one has done so, because if you have the motivation it will be worthwhile. So yes "source book" sums it up neatly....more
Nowadays it =may= be the case that one can find this information on the internet, but when I read this it opened up a whole world.
The best of this desNowadays it =may= be the case that one can find this information on the internet, but when I read this it opened up a whole world.
The best of this describes the increasingly wooly territory outside of the often built icosahedral domes. There are octahedral domes, tetrahedral domes, and, gasp, irregular domes. It has been the case for me that irregular domes built on an octahedral geometry have suited my projects and the available materials better... and that's the point.
Get this book if you are good at maths and want to have a much wider solution space available for your projects.
If you can find windome.exe on the internet and a good rendering program, and then explore all the options, you may be able to skip the maths, or maybe even this book....more
This is a great book written by a long time student of labyrinths and earth mysteries, and contains much useful and rare information. Lots of picturesThis is a great book written by a long time student of labyrinths and earth mysteries, and contains much useful and rare information. Lots of pictures, lots of experiential exercises, really casts a wide net. Recommended.
Unfortunately the prose is amateurish. It's completely readable but the clumsy wording is distracting in places, and at times simple things are ridiculously over explained and unusual complicated things are given few words-- the meaning is not always clear.
Nor is all the information here to be taken as given-- there are contradictions with some information Jeff Saward's site, who is a friend and fellow labyrinth enthusiast. Also some incorrect information regarding tunnels under Macchu Picchu which many experts get wrong, admittedly. So while this book is a real treasure trove of info be a little careful....more
This is a book about Marma science, which is the Indian version of the Chinese meridian system. It was apparently written by a master in this field whThis is a book about Marma science, which is the Indian version of the Chinese meridian system. It was apparently written by a master in this field who was in year 2000 selling a line of skin care products and rejuvenation treatments based on this science.
Joseph Kurian not so long after he wrote this disappeared, like, people have looked for him and cannot find him. Whether someone else disappeared him or whether he disappeared himself, I don't know.
So somewhere buried amongst extensive verbiage devoted to touting his products, there might be esoteric knowledge not normally seen by the uninitiated. Or maybe if you read it you will find it a frustrating bunch of marketing for makeup.
There are a number of very good maps of the Marma energy systems, rare, some common mudras, and instructions on a mahamudra series of movements I can't find anywhere on the internet as of this writing, which I find both easy and very beneficial.
Prices on the limited number of these books out there are already getting pushed high by used resellers......more
My interest is in the underlying sacred geometry of the cathedral, and there is heaps here. The underlying unit ofThis book really is a tour de force.
My interest is in the underlying sacred geometry of the cathedral, and there is heaps here. The underlying unit of measurement and its derivation, proportions related to musical notes, link with other gothic cathedrals and older sites of geomantic worship, these are just a couple of examples off the top of my head.
The book also has a huge amount of historical material about Knights Templar, the Ark of the Covenant, and theories about who built Chartres and why and how. I have heard too many new age alternate history stories to take any of them seriously at this point (a triumph of misinformation campaigns perhaps?) but you will be well served if these are to your liking.
The author does a very good job of packing in a huge amount of material that will be satisfying to many different flavours of readers, though materialists will of course be offended at the very existence of this tome ;-)...more
Very available cheap, second hand(used). At first this book seemed very simplistic to me, but it has grown on me.
At the first and easiest level of useVery available cheap, second hand(used). At first this book seemed very simplistic to me, but it has grown on me.
At the first and easiest level of usefulness, you can look at the designs, see which one you like, and stare at it and do the mantra.
At the second level you can copy the outlines and colour them in.
At the third level you can make like a proper geometer and make the designs by hand with a compass and straight edge, and then colour that in, which as the author suggests is a form of meditation and with repetition a spiritual path in its own right.
To do my first one, and I have a bit of experience doing geometric constructions, it took four 3 hour sessions or so to end up with a complete design. This is a lot of time out of anyone's life, but my wife and I did them side by side as a togetherness activity, in addition to whatever other benefits, and it was certainly a better way to spend time than watching the box together.
It was helpful that there was a supply of art stuff around the house-- decent paper, coloured markers, pencils, compasses, ruled transparent straight edges, and paint. Maybe this wouldn't be such a good book for you if you had to buy all that stuff. Certainly try to go the less is more approach and work with what you have or make your purchases minimal. In the end what you make won't look exactly like what is in the book anyway, so roll with it, make do to some extent. You do need a compass though, and if so better a decent size still cheap compass like the "Helix Technical Giant Bow Compass" than the wee ones kids get in school. You could certainly manage with the latter though.
Making art is itself a great spiritual path, as one has to deal with all sorts of surges of both deluded and wise energy passing through. At the end, you've got a thing. Not just a thing, of which we have plenty these days, but a hand made thing. As an aside, I was made keen into the idea of computer controlled laser cutting of geometric designs into panels for a while, but even the coolest designs lack something compared to a hand cut, though imperfect design. Of course it is still just a thing even though it may be a thing that aids on your path of personal development for a while, but giving it away or letting it go some other way such as fire is also informative.
So yeah in the end, GOOD BOOK. Made the whole thing pretty easy as far as these things go. I don't agree completely with the way some technical aspects of the construction went, but hey that's the path of the artist, if I make another one, and I am planning to, I will do it more my way next time. The virtue of this book is that it makes it seem achievable, draws you in subtly, and you can get there. Or just look at the pretty pictures for a while and then pass it on to someone else.
This book is an incredibly valuable resource for anyone looking to expand their work with platonic solid, geodesic, or polyhedral construction. The apThis book is an incredibly valuable resource for anyone looking to expand their work with platonic solid, geodesic, or polyhedral construction. The approach is to show a picture of many different polyhedra, mostly stellations, and the plan for building a paper model.
There are also a few sections explaining a bit more of the maths and general principles.
So you can go at it without any maths at all, you can contemplate the maths to whatever extent you like, you can go at it with plywood instead of paper and build something like this https://plus.google.com/photos/113254...
If you are interested in this sorts of stuff you will, like me, spend many hours just looking at the pictures and contemplating. I have found myself returning to it again and again over the years, and it has something new to offer every time....more
A bit lacking. While a good many pages in a short book are given to explaining the construction and islamic oirgin of pointed arches, and the root thrA bit lacking. While a good many pages in a short book are given to explaining the construction and islamic oirgin of pointed arches, and the root three rectangle as the pattern for the space, for me the most intriguing aspect of the design of Chartres mentioned is the dual axes of the north and south spires, which the author suggests links sun moon calendrical variation and the pythagorean comma. Because he also links these things with Stonehenge, however, he mistakenly discards it as site background information and thus not worthy of the more extensive coverage he gives other topics.
His writing is unfocused and amateurish, to boot.
But some topics are covered well and it's a nicely put together book and a lovely physical experience....more
This is a beautiful book, a pleasure to read. Much lovely art. The only sacred geometry book my wife has picked up and read.
This is definitely the mosThis is a beautiful book, a pleasure to read. Much lovely art. The only sacred geometry book my wife has picked up and read.
This is definitely the most accessible sacred geo book I own. Another 2 houseguests just picked it up and spent the week reading it.
There is a narrative here about how the world arises through the interplay of number, but it's light and really what's worthwhile here is just the images created by one of the modern masters in this field.
In fact let that be a lesson to all of you who would study this field-- narratives, discursive analysis, words, are all well and good but the core realizations come by doing. So seek inspiration here, but do something....more
The coincidences referred to in the title are the arrangements of the planets and sun of our solar system. This book points out many measurement relatThe coincidences referred to in the title are the arrangements of the planets and sun of our solar system. This book points out many measurement relationships that correspond to platonic solids, musical ratios, and other geometric relationships familiar to students of sacred geometry.
There are lots of pretty spirograph like pictures mapping orbits against eachother, as well as showing other relationships.
Reading this book definitely gave me the sacred geometry flavored buzz of pleasure.
I see in other reviews here that people would like to have had some explanations of why these relationships occur. That's the point of the title-- that our contemporary science has no explanation for these relationships and that they must therefore be coincidences.
If you are looking for explanations you will have to look outside of mainstream science. Have a look at Michael Schneider: A Beginner's Guide to Constructing the Universe; John Michell: How the World is Made-- the Story of Creation According to Sacred Geometry....more
This book packs a tremendous amount of very densely written information into a concise package.
While there are only about 24 pages of text the discussThis book packs a tremendous amount of very densely written information into a concise package.
While there are only about 24 pages of text the discussion is so rich and compact that it's best read just a page or even a few paragraphs at a time. Likewise, the 100 pages of images and description is best lingered over and reviewed again and again.
The spiral and associated shapes encode some of the deeper esoteric teachings and this book is a valuable guide to assimilating this knowledge on a deep level.
But it's not a quick and easy read, or at least it wasn't for me....more
This book is a real gem. It is clearly written, well researched and documented, and solidly grounded in real world astronomy and geometry.
The majorityThis book is a real gem. It is clearly written, well researched and documented, and solidly grounded in real world astronomy and geometry.
The majority of the book is taken up with the examination of Stonehenge and other stone circle monuments in Northern Europe. A variety of complicated calendrical alignments with sun and moon cycles are demonstrated, and the geometrical construction of the circles is examined.
All of the above rests on solid materialist science, and the author makes an unshakeable case that these circles were aligned to sun and moon cycles and laid out according to precise geometry. Status quo science does not entirely agree that the people of 3500 - 2000 BC were capable of such things, but the evidence that they were is lying all over Europe.
In the smaller part of the text the author goes further still, exploring possible connections with middle eastern cultures, finds connections with Celtic legends, and explores further sacred geometry relationships. He never wavers from the solid approach taken in the main part of the book and presents evidence and suggests interesting questions and possible answers without being dogmatic or unduly speculative....more
This mostly a very concise presentation of different ways to visualize the fourth dimension, with some fascinating esoterica thrown in. Slow going butThis mostly a very concise presentation of different ways to visualize the fourth dimension, with some fascinating esoterica thrown in. Slow going but very good. I finally understand why if you head off in one direction in spacetime you eventually come back the other side.
Like a lot of Steiner books, this is a collection of notes other people took at his lectures (given in German), organized by topic. So there are some filters between the reader and Steiner's thoughts....more
This book is staggering in its achievement, and staggering in the effort it demands from the reader. Worth it, but lots of work. I've sunk hours and hThis book is staggering in its achievement, and staggering in the effort it demands from the reader. Worth it, but lots of work. I've sunk hours and hours into it and am proud to be on page 60 (when I first wrote this).
Sacred Geometry, Egyptian worldview, the doctrine of the study of man as the universe.
Best quote so far:
You are I are not two. In the identity of form, in the origin and in the end, we are one. I am responsible for your evil and your good, for your truth and your falsehood. I can do nothing to change you now, but I can improve you by improving myself.
I'm updating this review and downranking it to 4 stars. After spending a lot of time with this and its undeniable revelations and transmitive power, I do feel there is an aspect of sacred geometry where, without knowing what was in the mind of the builder, one can after the fact apply analytical tools and perhaps find meaning and order that was not consciously intended by the builder, and I do think some of that is in evidence here.
The thing is, in an inspired construction not all meaning is conscious. Same as an inspired analysis.
This is a very special book but one of very limited appeal. I find myself marveling over my response to it, as it's the sort of thing I would have takThis is a very special book but one of very limited appeal. I find myself marveling over my response to it, as it's the sort of thing I would have taken one look at and ashcanned during the vast majority of my life (so far).
What is going on here mostly is a mathematical decoding of the revelation of St. John from the bible, and Plato. Specific sacred geometrical shapes and specific measurements are constructed and analyzed based on the source material.
Plato had contempt for astronomers who studied the stars, rather than abstract figures, where he felt the true nature of the heavens lay revealed. I was going to say this is pretty much the opposite of the current paradigm, but then I remembered string theory...
Don't even think about reading this unless you have a couple of other sacred geometry books and some practical experience under your belt. I would suggest Lawlor's Sacred Geometry and A Beginner's Guide to Constructing the Universe: Mathematical Archetypes of Nature, Art, and Science by Michael S. Schneider as good places to start....more
This is a wonderfully accessible book that takes each of the numbers from one to ten and devotes a chapter to the symbology and geometry behind it.
ThThis is a wonderfully accessible book that takes each of the numbers from one to ten and devotes a chapter to the symbology and geometry behind it.
The author does an amazing job condensing a vast amount of historical and mathematical information into a concise and highly readable text. He is a professional educator and it shows (in a good way)
Contemplating/meditating on the concepts in this book has been very conducive to some powerful experiences*. This book is a real keeper and I go back to it for reference from time to time. Highly recommended.
If you are more of a multi media person you can get a DVD containing some of the same (and some additional) information presented in more of a slide show format-- just google for the author's web site.
To get technical, in the introduction the author discusses the differences between symbolic and sacred geometry, and says the book is mostly about symbolic. But the sacred aspect of it oozes out of every word. A great reference for those seeking enlightenment :-)...more
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