Bøger af Emma Restall Orr

Ten long years have passed in the wide world since the first appearance of The Apple and the Thorn. Ten times the length of the Tale itself, yet less than a moment in the span of the timeless ages. For all these years, Vivian and Eosaidh have traveled far beyond the earthly bounds of Avalon; have become a faint memory in the minds and hearts of those who still walk her reed lined shores, her ruined walkways, and mysterious hills. Yet the story remains as young as it is ancient. So it seems good that a new hearth fire be kindled, and new generations gather around its warm light shining in the darkness to hear told once again the Tale of the Apple and the Thorn. This story is not true in the sense that most people use that word. It emerges out of the mists of time, rooted deep in the heritage of Britain and western spirituality. It is a weave of mythologies, theologies, traditions, and histories. The story stands upon the traditions of two mythical characters: the Lady of Avalon, and Joseph of Arimathea. But the land is itself a living character in the tale, as is the surrounding marsh, the invading Roman legion, and a very special cup of blue glass that unites them all. Tales of Avalon: A magical sequel to "The Apple and the Thorn," This is a novel of ancient Avalon in which the thirteen Marsh Tales are recounted. It is the story of a priestess of Avalon who has survived the Roman massacre of the druids on the Isle of Mona, and the Celtic tribal Healer who brings her back to health. Woven into this story are the thirteen "Marsh Tales," the ancient Wisdom of Avalon, original myths by Melnyk, based upon traditional Welsh fairies. Fianna, called to return to Avalon before it is enclosed forever by mists to protect against the Romans, teaches the Tales to Cethin the Healer. The unique and intriguing format is that of a novel containing thirteen short stories, in which the timeless quest of the human spirit is brought vividly to light.

Second Edition This story is not true in the sense that most people use that word. It emerges out of the mists of time, rooted deep in the heritage of Britain and western spirituality. It is a weave of mythologies, theologies, traditions, and histories. The story stands upon the traditions of two mythical characters: the Lady of Avalon, and Joseph of Arimathea. But the land is itself a living character in the tale, as is the surrounding marsh, the invading Roman legion, and a very special cup of blue glass that unites them all. The legend of the Lady emerges from the great body of Arthurian literature, but predates and underlies the story of Arthur by some four hundred years. Vivian is a Lady who is already the stuff of myth by the time Arthur meets the Lady of the Lake. She is the sovereignty of the land itself, the spirit of the mud and dark water of the marshes, seer of an ancient people, priestess of the Isle of Mist, and keeper of the apples. She clings to the ancient earth for her people at a time when the old Druids are finding new connections to a Roman culture they are no longer able to defeat. At the time of the tale, which we would today name as circa 45 CE, the Roman invasion under Emperor Claudius is two years old. Vespasian is leading the II Augusta Legion across the southwest of Britain, fast approaching the great inland sea, which is the realm of Avalon. Ancient Britain will soon be Roman. Into this ferment comes Joseph of Arimathea, great-uncle of Jesus of Nazareth. Traditions of Joseph abound in the Cornwall and Somerset regions of England; Joseph, the Cornish tin and lead merchant, mine owner and supplier of metals to the Roman military across the Empire. In this tale we make use of one particular tradition that says Joseph was indeed born in Cornwall, a Jew of the Diaspora, and only later went to Palestine in his capacity of trader in tin. There he became Minister of Mines for the Roman army, a worldly-wise merchant who knew the Mediterranean world, and much of the Roman leadership. In this tale, he is known by a Cornish-inspired name, Eosaidh (Yaw'-sheh) of Cornualle, or Eos (Yawsh). According to tradition, Eosaidh made many trips from Palestine to the mines of Cornwall and the Mendip hills north of Avalon, and on some occasions brought his nephew with him. Eosaidh, Vivian, and "the lad" have all met before, years before this tale begins. And Vivian has already had profound, but different, influence upon them both. The underlying images in the tale are the Cup of Life, later to become known as the "Holy Grail," the Apple trees of sacred and fertile Avalon, and the Hawthorn staff of Eosaidh's tradition. It is a tale of the coming of the Jesus tradition to the ancient world of Avalon, and what happens when these worlds collide. But there is unexpected conflict, too, when Eosaidh is confronted with the new "church," bringing a cult of Jesus that even he cannot accept. In the end, Eosaidh must chose between Avalon and Jerusalem, between two loves. And this is truly a love story, for the worldviews that meet, and clash, and dance and clash again do not do so in the abstract. Eosaidh and Vivian are flesh and blood. Their struggle to understand one another, and indeed themselves, takes them out of the realm of theological debate into the whirlwind of human emotion. What would be a work of theology becomes instead the most powerful of love stories. And this is as it should be. This second edition contains no changes in the story line. But numerous typographical and formatting problems in the original have been corrected. The reader will find this edition an easier read, especially in discerning the shifts in time and space. The original edition contained an epilogue, which does not appear here. Upon consideration, we felt the epilogue did not add to the original tale, and indeed tended to detract from it. In this edition, the tale ends where it should.

For many, the word Druidry conjures up images of white-robed figures involved in esoteric rituals. But modern Druidry is not wrapped up in a veil of secrecy - it is celebrated openly, in the sunlight of the meadow or the shady leafiness of forest glade. Druids are passionate about the environment, and their worship is above all focused on Nature through the celebration of the changing seasons of the year. Spirits of the Sacred Grove is a very personal journey through the seasons seen through the eyes of a modern female Druid. Emma Restall Orr takes the reader through the cycles of nature, from the chaos of Samhain or Halloween into the dark of winter, through the energy of spring and into the bright summer months - then back through autumn to Samhain. At the same time she acts as a guide along the paths of the sacred rituals. Spirits of the Sacred Grove reveals Druidry as an accessible and compelling spiritual path that offers enormous potential for personal healing and empowerment. Exploring rites of passage and weaving in references to many other spiritual traditions, this book is an intensely rich mixture of the ideas and images of a Pagan Druid priestess.

Over the past few hundred years, animism has been dismissed as a primitive, naive and irrational perspective, irrelevant within the civilised West. In The Wakeful World, Emma Restall Orr argues that this is based on the misrepresentation, drawn in crayon, that each tree and stone has its own Christian-like immortal soul. Taking the reader on a philosophical adventure, Restall Orr explores the heritage of Western thought with precision, enthusiasm and sensitivity, considering how soul, spirit, mind and consciousness have been understood through millennia. Challenging the prevailing worldviews of materialism and dualism, she presents animism as a radically different, yet mature and coherent philosophy. Providing deep green ethics with a wholly rational metaphysical foundation, The Wakeful World is a compelling view of the nature of existence and the experience of reality, giving solid ground for the now necessary journey to a sustainable world. This original and lively book brings back animism - a most useful range of ideas which reductivists have somewhat wildly abandoned during the last century - into focus once more just when it is badly needed to cure current confusions about mind and body - Dr Mary Midgley, Moral Philosopher

Kissing the Hag by Emma Restall Orr is based upon the old tale of The Marriage of Sir Gawain, and carries us from girlish innocence through to the nauseating horror of the hag - the raw side, the dark side, the inside of a womans.

A provocative,articulate and uncompromising exploration of how Paganism can provide the philosophical guidance to live honourably in a twenty-first Western society.

In Living Druidry Emma Restall Orr opens the doorway to a powerful and ancient spirituality in a way that is both accessible and inspiring.