Remembering the Great Mother:
An Exploration of Her Sacred Sites
Course Dates
Spring Equinox
Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 March 2024 (Brighde Room on 16th, Rhiannon Room on 17th)
Who is the Great Mother?
Stoney Littleton and Stanton Drew Pilgrimage
We will journey to the ancient sites of Stoney Littleton and Stanton Drew. Stoney Littleton is a beautiful neolithic long barrow on a hillside at Wellow near Bath. The long barrow dates to 3500BCE. It is aligned with the rising of the sun at winter solstice and was a place where the dead were honoured and buried. Stanton Drew is the third largest complex of standing stones in Britain with three circles and a three-stone cove. The Great Circle is 113 metres in diameter and has 26 surviving upright stones. Inside this circle were nine concentric rings of wooden posts, each standing several metres tall. This wonderful ancestral site dates to 2500 BCE.
Beltane
Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 May 2024 (Banbha Room)
Stonehenge Pilgrimage
Stonehenge is the most famous megalithic structure in the world where the ancient stones are aligned to the rising and setting of the sun and moon at the solstices and equinoxes. Stonehenge is a place of deep mystery and wonder and is believed to be a Solar Temple, Earth Temple, Lunar Temple, and a place where Fertility and Death practices took place. The earliest structures were totem posts, erected between 8,500 and 7000BCE, and the stones we see today were raised in 2,500BCE. Stonehenge circle is a part of a much wider sacred landscape that stretches over many miles. The wide-open spaces allow us to breathe Her air.
Solstice
Saturday 22 and Sunday 23 June 2024 (Nolava Room)
Dartmoor Pilgrimage
Dartmoor is an incredible place to visit, covered with many sacred sites, including stone circles, stone rows, hut circles and kistvaens. Dartmoor contains the largest concentration of Bronze Age remains in Britain. In the wild landscape there is ancient woodland, beautiful high tors and sacred waters. Here there are many birds, fish in the rivers, butterflies and bees, free-roaming Dartmoor ponies and sheep. Dartmoor is known for its myths and legends. It is reputedly the haunt of pixies, a headless horseman, a mysterious pack of spectral hounds and a large black dog, among others. You can really feel the presence of the ancestors and the Great Mother.
Lammas
Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th August 2024 (Brighde Room)
Avebury Pilgrimage
The sacred landscape of Avebury is one of the most magnificent ancient sacred sites found in England. Here there is a huge complex of neolithic structures: the world’s largest stone circle, the 5000-year-old burial chamber of West Kennet Long Barrow, Silbury Hill, the Sanctuary and two stone avenues! Visiting Avebury transports you to another time and place when our native ancestors honoured the Great Goddess in Her sacred landscape.
Each weekend we will have one day in Glastonbury and one day visiting the sacred site. The day in Glastonbury will vary but they will involve learning about sacred sites, sharing, ceremonies and meditations. We may go out onto the land in Avalon if the weather is fine.