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Summary - click on links to go to full details:
- Modern Tibet: Music and the Struggle for National Identity and Survival, Fri 5 Dec, Oxford
- Witchcraft Beliefs in Ancient Mesopotamia: Babylonian Rituals for Fighting Enemies and Healing Witchcraft-Induced Illnesses, Thu 11 Dec, London
- The Gorsedd of Bards of Cor Gawr, Sun 14 Dec, Stonehenge
- Tuatha De Bridget Early Midwinter Festival, Sun 14 Dec, Glasgow, Scotland
- Winter Solstice, Thu 18-Tue 23 Dec, Newgrange, Ireland
- Anderida Gorsedd – Winter Solstice Ritual, Sun 21 Dec, Long Man of Wilmington, Sussex
- Caer Bann Yule Rite, Sun 21 Dec, Woodhouse Eaves, Leics
- Solstice Managed Open Access, Sun 21 Dec, Stonehenge, Wiltshire
Friday 4 December 2008
MODERN TIBET: Music and the Struggle for National Identity and Survival
NOA Community Centre (Ferry Centre), Summertown, Oxford
Lama Jabb for the Jupiter Trust. 7:30pm. £8 (Friends £3).
This talk will focus on modern Tibetan music as an influential cultural output, which helps to reinforce national identity as it often evokes a glorious past, stresses cultural bonds, bemoans current tragedy and expresses aspirations for the future. The wider reach and contemporariness of Tibetan popular music and the effectiveness of its message also make it an ideal tool to reflect upon the current situation in Tibet, and the future survival of Tibetan culture.
Lama Jabb is an independent researcher and interpreter. He graduated from the University of London with a BA Hons in Political Science and an MSc in International Relations, and is currently carrying out a PhD in Modern Tibetan Literature at Oxford University.
FFI ring 01865 407490
Trust Website
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Thursday 11 December 2008
WITCHCRAFT BELIEFS IN ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA: Babylonian Rituals for Fighting Enemies and Healing Witchcraft-Induced Illnesses
Treadwell's Bookshop, 34 Tavistock St., Covent Garden WC2E 7PB
Dr Daniel Schwemer (SOAS)
7.15 for 7.30 start. £5.
Tonight's illustrated talk will introduce you to Mesopotamian witchcraft beliefs, and then go into a more detailed discussion of a rite called the Maqlû (“Burning”) - the most extensive Babylonian anti-witchcraft ritual, which involved numerous ritual actions and the recitation of almost a hundred incantations.
People in all periods of ancient Mesopotamia, people believed witchcraft to one of the causes of serious illness. There survive a large corpus of anti-witchcraft rituals along with related drugs prescriptions and preparation; these provide a wealth of information on the witchcraft fear phenomenon in 2nd and 1st mill. Babylonia and Assyria. For all we know, witchcraft beliefs and witchcraft accusations never dominated whole segments of Babylonian or Assyrian society, but Babylonian and Assyrian healing experts, most importantly the ashipu (‘exorcist’ or ‘conjurer’), did regard witchcraft as one of the three basic causes of certain kinds of illnesses. When these illnesses occurred, the exorcist/ conjurer would speak of witchcraft attack: a counter-intuitive, out-of-the-ordinary (yet culturally accepted) diagnosis. The surviving evidence show us that the rites and prescriptions for undoing the curses are as fascinating as the beliefs about the attacks themselves.
This will be a night for those who love ancient Mesopotamia, for everyone with an interest in magic, for those who are curious about psychosomatic illness, cures and curses.
Daniel Schwemer is a Reader in Ancient Near Eastern Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London. His has published extensively on Mesopotamian religion and magic. Together with Tzvi Abusch, Brandeis University, he is preparing the Corpus of Mesopotamian Anti-witchcraft Rituals.
BOOKING: Please book in advance via info [at] treadwells-london [dot] com( email) or Tel. +44 (0)20 7240 8906 or via Skype at treadwells-london. Map on our website.
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Sunday 14 December 2008
THE GORSEDD OF BARDS OF COR GAWR - YR ORSEDD BEIRDD CÔR Y CEWRI
Alban Arthan (Midwinter) Gathering
Stonehenge, Wiltshire
Limited access, date subject to alteration.
Deaf Access.
Tickets will be on sale to TDN members only from 1 October and to all comers from Calan Gaeaf (1 November). Please order early to avoid disappointment!
Tickets available only in advance, price £2 each.
Please send £2 per ticket (max 6 per request), and a stamped self addressed envelope (or IRCs) to:
Sue Bouvier,
186 Swievelands Road,
Biggin Hill,
Kent TN16 3QS.
Please make cheques out to 'The Druid Network'.
For information on ticket availability, contact: Cor Gawr Tickets
FFI about the Gorsedd, see our Cor Gawr page.
FFI about accomodation around Stonehenge see our Accomodation page.
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Sunday 14 December 2008
TUATHA DE BRIDGET EARLY MIDWINTER FESTIVAL
Pollok Country Park, Glasgow, Scotland
Tuatha De Bridget is an Open Druidcraft Group in Glasgow.
We meet at 1pm in the Burrell Car Park and then walk through the woods to the Ancient Earthworks Site.
After our ceremony, we walk back to the Burrell and then have a warm drink, maybe something to eat in the café and some informal chat.
Contact: siusaidhc [at] gmail [dot] com( Siusaidh) for details.
Also see Group Website
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Thursday 18 to Tuesday 23 December 2008
WINTER SOLSTICE
Brú na Bóinne - Newgrange, Ireland
Winter Solstice Lottery
People gather at Newgrange for dawn on each of the mornings from December 18th to December 23rd inclusive. Sunrise is at 8.58am.
All access to the chamber is decided by lottery. However, everyone else is welcome to come and stand on the outside of the monument.
To enter the lottery, you can fill out an application form in Brú Na Bóinne Visitor Centre when you visit Newgrange. Alternatively you can send your postal address, a contact telephone number and an indication whether or not you have ever visited Newgrange by brunaboinne [at] opw [dot] ie( e-mail). On receipt of these details a member of staff will complete an application on your behalf. Applicants must be over 10 years of age. An adult must accompany children under 18 years of age. Only applications on the official form can be entered into the draw. Applications are valid for the current year’s draw only.
The draw for places at Newgrange for Solstice 2008 will take place on September 26th 2008. Children from three local schools will choose the winning applicants. The successful people will be notified by mid October.
Fifty names are drawn, and each of those fifty people is invited along with a guest to attend on a specific morning. There are ten lottery winners and their guests in the chamber on each of the mornings. Some additional names are also drawn and placed on a reserve list. The reserve list is there in case someone whose name is drawn for the initial list is not contactable or else finds it impossible to travel to Newgrange on the date they have been assigned. The place at Newgrange for dawn is non-transferable. Lottery winners cannot offer their place in the chamber to someone else.
There were 28,106 entries in 2007!
There is no guarantee that there will be sunlight in the chamber on any of the mornings…the event is totally weather dependent!
For further information see Website.
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Sunday 21 December 2008
ANDERIDA GORSEDD – WINTER SOLSTICE RITUAL
The Long Man of Wilmington, Sussex
The Anderida Gorsedd is a Druid group, facilitated by Damh the Bard and Cerri Lee, that has been holding regular open rituals at the Long Man of Wilmington since Spring Equinox 2000.
Anderida Gorsedd open Winter Solstice ritual. Meet 1.30-2pm near the Long Man of Wilmington car park, for a walk up the hill at 2pm. Then after retire to the Giants Rest pub for a social drink.
FFI anderida [at] BardicArts [dot] com( Email)
Website
See also our Directory page.
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Sunday 21 December 2008
CAER BANN YULE RITE
Beacon Hill, Woodhouse Eaves, Leicestershire
By Charnwood Grove of Druids.
Meet at Beacon Hill upper car park, 11.30 for 12 am. Bring a dish and share lunch in Woodhouse Eaves afterwards. Everyone welcome.
FFI: corn_mother [at] hotmail [dot] com( Email) for details.
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Sunday 21 December 2008
SOLSTICE MANAGED OPEN ACCESS
Stonehenge, Wiltshire
Please see important notice about this event in Sacred Sites.
