Earth Dance Manila 2011

After last year's memorable Earth Dance, the event has been much awaited by many people in the Pagan community.

This year's Earth Dance though  is a lot less Pagan-ish. The location was in the posh Bonifacio Global City which was nice enough, but I found it quite difficult to find and to get to. There were a lot less people who were able to attend than before, and much of the non-Pagan crowd were seemingly of the "upper class" type. Frankly I was missing last year's larger venue, as well as the Pagan Pride day, the Incan shamans and priestesses, the giant bonfire, the prayer tent, the overnighter, the globally synchronized prayer, etcetera.

That is not to say this Earth Dance isn't cool though. Dancing under the sky, barefoot, and together with friends old and new is always tons of fun.

The party ended early but with a flare. Fire lanterns were lit bringing our wishes to the sky. Only as soon as the last of the fire lanterns reached the clouds, the first drops of the coming storm began to fall. 

Blessed be Gaia!

These kids know how to jam.

El flamenquero.

Ate Bet and Khaye lets it all out.

I love the bamboo bikes. Mm, I love the sound of that. "bamboo bikes".

Goofing off on a palm tree.

Fire dancers and fire lanterns. (and a nice pair of legs)

Up, up and away!

Basbasan Nawa!

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A Feast for Hekate of the Storms

Last year Aldrin, Pol, Ish and I came together to celebrate the feast of one of neopaganism’s most important deities. We honored Hekate as the lady of the underworld, and now we honor Her as queen of heaven. This time the intentions were less personal, the theme more significant, and on a superficial level, the ritual was less “darker” – no burning pharmakos, no chicken hearts; in broad daylight and incidentally under some threatening rain clouds.

“We ask of You to defend us now as you did then, to guard and watch over our land and our grain from ravaging storms and raping gales, from the terrible onslaught of heaven’s spears. ” Khairete Hekate Ouranie!

Pol performs  a traditional babaylan ritual to appease the indigenous spirits

Offerings to the spirits of the land

 

Aldrin leads the ritual.

Devotees of Hekate Ourania wearing white.

A "Greek" dance to celebrate the feast

Altar to Hekate Ourania

Basbasan Nawa!

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The Art of Ritual Making

Lights of inspiration.

Although  it was mostly geared towards beginners, it's nice to hear about ritual from a classroom perspective. As a practicing Pagan I'm used to doing rituals as catalyst for inner change, but it's interesting to learn from the other participants (comprising of a doctor, a mother, a teacher, a businesswoman, among others) on how necessary and helpful ritual is in their everyday lives.

A pleasant surprise of the day is meeting a fellow member from the OBOD whom I have made contact with a few weeks ago. He has been in the Order for quite a number of years since he joined in the Netherlands. He's been asking around the officers for any other member of the Order from the Philippines and got my email address. We've been exchanging mails ever since, but it was only a day before the seminar when I found out that he is actually friends with the seminar instructor. Small world indeed! He dropped by after the seminar for some chit-chat and brought some veggie pancit as well which was perfect grounding food after all those rituals.

Ms. Leah Tolentino opening the seminar in ritual.

Ms. Arlene,  from the Asian Social Institute, talks about indigenous ritual in the Cordillera mountains.

My little artwork from one of the activities.

Participants in the seminar.

Some stuff around the venue, Bahay Ginhawa

Basbasan Nawa!

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Medicine for Gaia 2011

I'm back at the Peacemakers' Circle office in Katipunan with the rest of the Medicine for Gaia folks. Ishilta has got some exciting plans for our URI circle this year - lectures on Babaylanism, drumming workshops, Balinese new year, trips to local Buddhist temples and Islam mosques, etc. I just hope all of it will push through, and that I may be able to attend most if not all of them.

I also got assigned as web keeper and documentor. Which reminds me, I really got to work on our logo. Where the heck is inspiration when I need it?

The meeting begins with an agnihotr, and a multi-faith prayer.

Multifaith altar.

How to get people together: food

Basbasan Nawa!

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Mandala Workshop

Healthy food for body and soul: mandala-writing for peace and healing, and a sumptuous all-veggie dinner at a cozy restaurant with friends from the Gaia Circle. Just what I badly needed to tame the warrior spirit in me which is becoming a bit too unruly these days.

Mandalas big and small.

Ate Bet, Lei, and the boys doing their stuff.

My stuff: I am on Eastern-mystic mode

Some cool stuff inside the Peacemaker's Circle office where the workshop was held.

Yummy vegetarian lunch at Greens, somewhere along Tomas Morato, Quezon City.

Basbasan Nawa!

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Navaratri

I just joined in the celebration of Navaratri with folks from the interfaith coop circle and some newly-met friends. It was the last of a series of nine Hindu feast days paying homage to the divine feminine. It actually felt very awkward for me since I had no idea at all what the priests were saying (everything was in an Indian language), and I was totally at a loss as to what to do during the rituals. So I just played "mimic the Hindus", prayed to the gods not to embarrass myself, and enjoyed the immersion in Indian culture, music, and food. Jai Shakti.

The girls look totally cool in their outfits.

On the other hand, the skullcap was too big for me. I look like a chef.

An offering to the siva lingam.

Photo ops outside the temple.

A conclave of dark goddesses: Oya, Eris-Discordia, and Kali. I purchased this beautiful Kali figurine from Ishilta during our visit to the Hindu temple and after bringing it home, I noticed how its colors and motif matches very closely those of the Oya painting I made months ago, and that her name can be found on the golden apple of Discord ("Kallisti").

Basbasan Nawa!

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