Conference of Birds – Part 1

“Conference of  the Birds” by Mohammed ibn Farid-ud-din ATTAR The purpose has been to look at two Teaching Stories from the Sufi Tradition, both originating from Medieval Islam  :  one a so-called “philosoph...

The Hero Soul

The Epic of Gilgamesh and the Vision of Arjuna It has often be said that life is a journey and the metaphor is apt - but is it to be an adventure , a struggle for survival, or a pilgrimage of discovery? Is the...

The Power of Storytelling

Storytelling in all its many forms, enthralls as much today as it ever did around the firesides of the past. The phenomenal success of the Harry Potter series demonstrate that television has by no means replac...

Excalibur

Excalibur is the mythical sword belonging to King Arthur.  It is associated with Arthur’s sovereignty of Britain and features in different ways in the legend. In one version, Arthur pulls it from a stone, a...

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

One New Year’s Day King Arthur and his knights are gathered in the Hall at Camelot, feasting and celebrating. In the midst of the festivities, the door flies open and into the hall rides a huge man upon a hug...

The Golden Key

Once in the wintertime when the snow was very deep, a poor boy had to go out and fetch wood on a sled. After he had gathered it together and loaded it, he did not want to go straight home, because he was so fr...

Cap O’ Rushes

Well, there was once a very rich gentleman, and he’d three daughters, and he thought he’d see how fond they were of him. So he says to the first, “How much do you love me, my dear?” “Why,” says she, “as I l...