CAPRICORN SUN CANCER FULL MOON – Wheel of Life Meditation

January 13th 2024
12 noon local time

CAPRICORN THE ‘CONSOLIDATOR’ AND ‘INITiATOR’

Symbol of the earth-bound existence which consolidates the inner process of evolving wisdom and knowledge, Capricorn during the winter time brings deep dark seed sprouting. Some seeds have sprouted in the autumn such as spring flowers, others a putting down roots deep into the earth with no outer form.

Seeds being pushed out by roots in the earth.

Like seeds, our past year’s insights are consolidated into chrysalis-like seedpods, and kept in the dark, moist earth of stillness, as the cold slows our bodies and minds down to become incubators of new life.

‘Earth structures’ of our ancestors provide us with ‘roots’ of cultural devotion, scientific observation and cultural growth.

Quote adapted from ‘The Music of Stonehenge’ by Maria Wheatley (Lyhunters Newsletter, Imbolc 2025)

‘Remarkably, at Stonehenge I observed that the harmonic relationship the earth energy circles form to one another, equate to musical harmonics, as if they are singing to one another….Gaia is communicating to us in both number and sound, and perhaps the inaudible music touches the soul. This gives me great comfort as many of Stonehenge’s harmonics are incredibly healing.’

THE DIAMOND SPANNING CAPRICORN AND AQUARIUS

It is suggested that Megalithic mathematics emerged from observations of the lunar and solar cycles. These held rules of proportion, and have been equated to Pythagoras’ theorem, and his ‘sacred triangle’ of 3x4x5. Does the ‘Oxford diamond’ conform roughly with Pythagoras’ sacred triangle, where four link together at a crossway containing four 90 degree angles? As Megalithic measurements use the megalithic yard etc, across a span of landscapes, these could approximate to the distances shown. In addition, the use of the ‘golden lozenge’ for containing solsticial and equinoxial orientations, could also have represented a ‘map’ of the heavens as ‘lighting up’ specific areas of sacred landscape.

Gold artefacts in the shape of a ‘lozenge’ depict alignments with solar/lunar activity, found in Wiltshire and Dorset. These discoveries were so important to the Megalithic societies that their observations were encoded in gold artefacts discovered within burial mounds.

Each of these cities became coronation sites for Anglo-Saxon Kings. In Kingston eight Saxon kings were crowned at the ‘coronation stone’.

Centre of the Oxford ‘diamond’ - Beacon Hill Camp near Highclere Castle.

Highclere Castle originated as The Priory of St John the Baptist at Sandleford was founded for the Augustinian Canons Regular by Geoffrey, Earl of Perch and his wife Maud some time between 1193 and 1202. This small priory of Austin canons was founded by Geoffrey, the fourth count of Perch, and Matilda of Saxony, his wife,

Sandleford Priory is a largely 18th century country house at Sandleford in the civil parish of Greenham in the English county of Berkshire. It incorporates the chapel of a former monastery and is currently the home of St Gabriel's School. After the old monastery on the site was abandoned by its canons, the estate was given to the Dean and Canons of Windsor.

HEAVEN'S GATE folly, Sidown Hill, near Highclere Castle.

Are these follies, accidentally placed features or intended ‘orientation’ devices in the centre of the ‘diamond’.

The Etruscan Temple folly at Highclere Castle.

Temple of Diana folly, Highclere Castle
[Images from https://www.ladycarnarvon.com/follies/]

THE EARTH/STONE SANCTUARIES AND WELLSPRINGS OF THE FOUR CITIES:

Capricorn representing our inner qualities of ‘consolidator and initiator’ is our questing sun sign, and Cancer (representing our inner guardian) the reflective moon is our responsive ‘intuitive’ sign. Intuitively, I suspect the earth sanctuaries (forming part of the Gatekeeper Trust charitable objectives to research earth structures) are important ‘cultural roots’ for us to explore.

As the ‘Initiator’ and consolidator of golden wisdom, Capricorn reveals how the ‘kindly luminous beings’ in our natural landscapes help us consolidate all our year’s insights. At the same time, we mirror those alignments of our ancestors, in this way strengthening our ‘wisdom roots’ and shedding more light on their message.

OUR QUEST: How do we create ‘earth boundaries’ to our vision of a restorative future?. What does our ‘inner guardian’ suggest as ‘good boundaries’, and how do they successfully anchor our ancestor’s ‘golden wisdom’ through EARTH, STONE AND WATER?

Within the ‘sacred diamond’ landscape of Bath, Winchester, Kingston on Thames and Oxford, lie sacred stones and holy wells. These are the nurturers of vision in the landscape, crystalline rock and pure water, helping us tune into to the SPIRIT OF PLACE. These qualities suggest a good time, and the right conditions for preparing future vision ‘seeds’ of light and love…. out of this conception a pilgrimage is born.

https://shoffmire.blogspot.com/2014/04/oxford-castle-unlocked.html?m=1

The well of Oxford castle, planted deep in the mount under Oxford Castle, gives the whole city a mystery for us to decode: pure water for us in present day conditions is a ‘holy jewel’ to be sought. Chemicals said to purify water may in fact be inimical to our health…. how is this so?

The metaphor: The ceiling with its six spokes symbolises our ‘inner grail’, a numerical value that keeps new insights from premature outflow, and prepare the careful collection of the ‘waters of inspiration’ ready for the inspirational activation at the right time of the solar cycle. The hexagon is a sacred symbol of symmetry and revelation of spiritual ‘outpouring’.

‘Physic Well’ in Cumnor, Oxford. Earth, stone and woodland protect the sacred purity of the water.

Oxford also holds a secret ‘ritual henge’ under the Kendrew Quadrangle and Keble College. Its banks vast and accommodating, signifies a special ritual landscape and a complex collection of burial mounds. Within burial mounds coil be found golden artefacts representing ancient wisdom of the earth.

Thames Valley Archaeological Society investigation revealed this ritual henge under the Kendrew Quadrangle. Nearby are signs of a barrow graveyard.

Was it accidental that the University of Greek-sourced philosophical learning that underpins our modern society of a learned population with professional identities. The colleges uphold civilised institutions, - was it accidental that these should emerge at the site of prehistoric sacred henge?

The central significance in Celtic alignments, of Oxford city. [Graham Robb ‘Ancient Tracks’].

The alignments of Oxford represents astrophysical ‘solar and lunar’ alignments with other sacred sites. Robb investigated ancient tracks that focused upon Oxford, and aligned with solar and lunar alignments, roads and a range of other significant sanctuaries such as Anglesea and St Albans, Winchester etc.

ARTFORMS DECODED

The Battersea Shield solstice bearings. [Graham Robb p. 247]

The Aylesford Bucket The solar orientations superimposed the Aylesford Bucket – Graham Robb [p. 247]

OTHER ORIENTATIONS CONNECTED TO ROYAL SITES

Ireland’s Royal centres depict the orientation of the solar festivals:

Ireland’s alignments of royal sites which extend to the Hebrides. [Graham Robb p. 246]

Oxford’S pre Roman Henge - is there a Celtic orientation grid around the central henge and ritual landscape? Roger Bacon the Francisan friar and inventor, lived at the ‘Folly Bridge’ island, tapping the natural water energy at what could be the ‘root chakra’ of Oxford’s energy temple.

Freddy Silva says: ‘Our predecessors had the antidote: build a global network of sacred places where a person can reconnect with the source of things and the nature of the self….’We are the ones we have been waiting for’ he suggests, ‘…go visit your local sacred space, your temple (or build your own), where you will be reminded of your greatness and your potential as a co-creative being.’

Does the Oxford ‘diamond’ replicate the ‘recording techniques’ of the Megalithic culture’s unique gold artefacts? valued above other metals gold symbolised spiritual ‘otherworldly’ values and living entities.

The encoding of the landscape within Gold artefacts - breastplate triangles and ‘lozenges’ - encapsulates the way cosmic orientations were used for designing the landscape and establishing towns, waterways, and roads for kingly connections connecting sacred territories.

Sun ‘egg’, from Mount Pleasant, Dorset. (StonehengeOlogy.com)

GOLD ARTEFACTS – a quick survey of gold artefacts reveal the discovery of many masks and jewelry, but these symmetrical shapes seem to be holding a ‘geometric riddle’, since the Pythagorean ‘sacred triangle’ is depicted. It could in fact relate to the solar orientation of seasonal cycles.

‘The Bush Barrow lozenge, near Stonehenge - StonhengeOlogy.com:

‘This nine-megalithic-inch-long artefact was unearthed, resting across the chest of the Bush Barrow man. His final resting place was a round barrow burial mound nestled south of Stonehenge, approximately aligned with the southernmost moonset from the centre of Stonehenge….The Lozenge respects the Stone Age 10-degree rule with 80 and 100-degree angles.’

THE LUNAR EGG stone circle

The ‘Lunar Egg’ woodhenge aboveDurrington:

Woodhenge ‘lunar egg’ -

‘In the 1960s Professor Alexander Thom surveyed hundreds of neolithic stone circles and discovered they were often egg-shaped, elliptical or deliberately flattened, like eyeballs, on one side. Further work by Ron Curtis in the Outer Hebrides demonstrated that stone circles there were actually all pointing to one another, often over many miles.’

Stonehenge relation to Durrington Walls (StonhengeOlogy.com)

The authors of research at Stonehenge discover a dynamic between the Durrington Walls circle and Stonehenge: is this the ‘mother of Stonehenge’

‘The much-derided Beaker people, often overlooked in archaeology, were the masterminds behind the architectural marvels of the Durrington Walls henge, its timber egg-shaped circles, and even Stonehenge.79...’

Their thesis is that these henges had a scientific purpose: The purposes of stone circles were to create a ‘viewing place’ – AN INTERNAL DEVICE - for the ritual group, where the solar radiation is reflected from the smoothed stone, and visible from outlying hill sanctuaries. When the sun rises above the horizon, it is dangerous to look at, but its effect upon the reflective surfaces of the stone circle can be seen as part of ritual ceremony. Hence the measurements of orientations are only partially precise. They were meant as ‘viewing platforms’ at a distance, hence the hill alignments were accurate.]

Sunset from inside the Durrington Walls henge. In relation to Stonehenge, the sun symbolised a fertilising agent for the burials inside the large henge, having first arisen over Stonehenge the ‘sun temple’.

Along with Mount Pleasant, the gold lozenge sites link to each other in a mysterious way, indicating a high value to the landscape, one (Wiltshire) related to the other (Dorset) as testimony to the culture’s value of sacred measurement, orientation and devotion to cosmic ‘dieties’.

Mount Pleasant Henge

Mount Pleasant Henge (white marks) with Conqueror Barrow at the back.

The stone holes and erect stones today… with related Knowlton church re-translating the Megalithic symbology.

An egg-shaped henge, built before Stoneneges.

Wiki: Like other 'superhenge' sites such as Durrington Walls much of the earthworks have been ploughed or weathered away and it was not rediscovered until Stuart Piggott visited the area in 1936. On finding the site they diagnosed it as a henge as its bank was outside its ditch and a later Bronze Age barrow (known as Conquer Barrow) had been placed on top of the bank.[2] The enclosure is egg-shaped, measuring 400 yd (370 m) along its long axis and dates to 2878–2470 cal BC.’

…The holes were arranged in five concentric rings with a cross-shaped layout of aisles leading into the centre. Within the aisles were further holes interpreted as being for stones. This inner feature was similar to timber circle features at The Sanctuary and Woodhenge.

Distances between stone circles - the significance of Stonehenge’s relationship with Durrington Walls and Woodhenge.
The orientations around Stonehenge, implies that the surrounding hills have a part to play in observing the reflection of the sun’s rays off stone circles: recreating light, resurrecting the sun.

THE MEGALITHIC 'ASTRONOMY’ AND ROMAN GRIDS OF CITY LAYOUTS:

CITY GRIDS tilted to a ‘diamond’ shape incorporating the ‘Beltain-Samhain’ religious orientation, which encapsulates the importance of the start of the pagan new year. Hereafter applied mathematical knowledge became integrated into the new Christian era.

Silchester with the amphitheatre in the SE oriented to the Beltain festival.

In orientation to the ‘Oxford Diamond’ (see Sagittarius Article) Silchester is oriented to the SE

Bath’s Roman city grid appears to be SE-NW.

In summary it seems that Beltain-Samhain orientation were the significant the ‘ritual’ axis for city grid foundations, being oriented to the start of the pagan new year Samhain.

Winchester city grid - SE-NW… Tilted towards Beltain-Samhain..

London Roman city grid

CONCLUSION

‘GOOD BOUNDARIES’ ENABLE SACRED SITES TO OPERATE within the annual cycle of solar festivals:

The sanctuaries left us by the Egyptians, Culdee, Maya, Druids etc, are portals where our physical reality overlaps with the magical, the numinous, the liminal transition space between ourselves and the great spirit within nature… we come to meet this indwelling presence and collaborate with all things physical with a particular vision in mind. The Earth’s Wisdom is guiding our own destiny as enlightened beings.

Sanctuaries. hilltop or woodland, stone or wood lined, also set ‘good boundaries’, and within these nurturing parameters we can allow our ‘star self’ to speak, and seed a new creative cosmic ‘hum’ into manifestation.

The ‘sun god’ religion in which the cycles of sun and moon create light reflections and refraction, seems to have triggered a whole science of orientation and measurement. Megalithic mathematics show the wisdom of ‘observation’ by the tribal magi.

WHEN WE RELATE TO THE LANDSCAPE ‘SPIRIT OF PLACE’ we discover the ‘luminous Being’ that inhabit the earth and gives us a platform of continuous enlightenment through direct experience in our physical incarnation. Our own physicality plays an important part of our attunement to the invisible, subtle, creative life force of the Universe/

Editors Charlotte Yonge, Richard Douglas and Rose Williams, 2025.