Public
Lectures and Events
Public
Lectures and Events
All events are held in the lodge (in the same building as Quest Bookshop and the lending library), at:
717 Broadway Avenue East, Seattle, WA 98103 (206) 323-4281
·Suggested
Donation is $5.00 - $10.00, except some special events
·Most Sunday events start at 4:00pm - special events
scheduled as noted
·Parking may be difficult so allow extra time for arriving
·Sunday Morning Meditation: 2nd & 4th Sundays, 10 am -
OPEN TO ALL!!
The Theosophical Society in Seattle 717 Broadway East Seattle, Washington 98102 (206) 323-4281 invites you to enjoy its Public Lectures, Workshop & Sunday Morning Open Meditation
Your Donations are important to us. They
literally keep the heat and lights on and make it possible for us to show some
appreciation to our speakers who donate their time when presenting our programs.
No one will ever be turned away for lack of funds. Yet we ask you to be as
generous as you can be within our expanded "suggested" range of $5-
$10 for a lecture and $40 -$60 for a day long workshop. Thank you!
January - March, 2005
Sacred Sounds
with the World Meditation Ensemble
January 23
Sunday,
4:00-5:30 pm
Pack your bags for a peaceful, soaring journey in sound as the World Meditation Ensemble takes us on another excursion into exotic vibrational realms. Using musical instruments and sacred chants from around the world, “global magic carpet ride” would probably best describe what you’ll experience as this finely tuned professional group takes off. And check out their CD Sacred Fusion!
Born with a Most Dubious Sun Sign!
with Ellen Finn
January 30
Sunday,
4:00-5:30 pm
We are all aware of the positive characteristics of our sun signs. But in the real world, looking at our friends and loved ones (but certainly not at ourselves), we are probably aware of some of the downsides of sun signs. Join us for a cup of mirth as we laugh in the new year with Ellen Finn, a well known local astrologer with over 20 years experience. There’ll be some meaningfulness, as well, as we check out the shadowy side of sun signs, something we probably see around us every day. Ellen is gifted with an infectious sense of humor, and could be a standup comic in any comedy club. Audience participation encouraged.
The
Once and Future Christos
A Special 6
Week Class with David Spangler
Begins Monday,
Jan 31
7 pm to 8:30 or 9:00 pm
Embodying an Esoteric and Incarnational Christianity for the Twenty-First Century
Based on his own research and contact with inner worlds, David Spangler offers a 6-week class exploring the Christ from an esoteric and incarnational perspective. In particular, this class is focused on embodiment. It is about the sacred Idea of Christos manifesting in our everyday lives.
There will be six evening classes one night a week every Monday evening and a half-day workshop on a Saturday at the end to summarize, celebrate, and ground all we have learned together. The class will be built around a central exercise. Each evening class will consist of a lecture and discussion followed by part of the exercise. These parts will build cumulatively throughout the program to arrive at a deep inner experience of the Christos within each of us and how we may bring that spirit into our rapidly changing twenty-first century world. There will likely be homework each week. Each evening class will be from one and a half to two hours long, depending on the nature of that evening’s work. The following is a list of the topics we will be covering:
Session 1. JANUARY 31: The Christ Event and the Edge of Time
Session 2. FEBRUARY 7: Christos, Redemption and Transformation
Session 3. FEBRUARY 14: Jesus, Christos, and Incarnation
Session 4. FEBRUARY 21: Christos and Cosmos
Session 5. FEBRUARY 28: Mystery and the Unknown Christos
Session 6. MARCH 7: Being Christos: The Two Selves
Session 7. MARCH 12: Gathering of Christs: A Half-Day Event practicing what we have learned together.
David Spangler has been writing, lecturing and teaching since the early 1970s when he was co-director of the spiritual community of Findhorn in northern Scotland. He is the author of Revelation: The Birth of a New Age; Emergence: The Rebirth of the Sacred; Everyday Miracles; A Pilgrim in Aquarius; The Call; Blessing: The Art and the Practice; and most recently Parent as Mystic, Mystic as Parent.
“David
Spangler’s work is one of the shining lights on any serious seeker’s path.”--Marianne
Williamson
“Like a clear spring gushing up from some bottomless source, David Spangler’s
writing splashes into us, quenching our thirst for the intelligence and
sweetness and fullness of Love.”--Richard Chamberlain
There is a suggested donation for this event of $180. Due to pre-registration interest it has been thought best to limit the group size to 32 people so that the classes can be most effective..
Pre-registration is necessary through Quest Bookshop (206) 323-4281
The Evolution of the Soul A
Friday night event with William Meader
February 4
Friday, 7:30 pm-9:00 pm
When
walking the spiritual path, an understanding of the soul and its evolution is
important. In the Esoteric Tradition, the soul is understood as the center
of one’s true identity, and it is seeking to express itself through its outer
reflection, the personality (ego). Spiritual evolution is rooted, therefore, in
the soul’s increasing capacity to do this. In this talk, William will discuss
the stages of the soul’s unfoldment leading to final enlightenment and
liberation.
Suggested Donation for Friday only $5.00 - $10.00
Spiritual Initiation -
A
Day Long Workshop with William Meader
February 5
Saturday, 9:30 am-4:00 pm
When walking the spiritual
path, an understanding of the soul and its evolution is important. In the
Esoteric Tradition, the soul is understood as the center of one’s true identity,
and it is seeking to express itself through its outer reflection, the
personality (ego). Spiritual evolution is rooted, therefore, in the soul’s
increasing capacity to do this. In this talk, William will discuss the
stages of the soul’s unfoldment leading to final enlightenment and liberation.
Spiritual initiations are
the milestones of development in the soul’s long evolutionary journey. Every
initiation indicates that the soul has taken control over some aspect of the
personality. In this workshop, we will examine the prerequisites that guide an
individual into the mysteries of initiation. Each of the five initiations will
be deeply considered, leading to the final achievement of enlightenment itself.
In addition, we will consider the nature of consciousness that must be evident
at each of these milestones, and the techniques that lead a person toward
eventual initiation. Below are a few (but not all) of the specific themes to be
presented and discussed:
~The nature and implications of each of
the five initiations.
~The requirements associated with each of these milestones of development.
~How consciousness is changed as a result of initiation.
~The importance and role of the probationary phase of evolution.
~The problem of distortions within the personality, and their elimination.
~Techniques designed to transform the personality for eventual initiation.
William Meader has been a student and teacher of Esoteric Psychology for over 20 years,. His teaching work is drawn from an amalgamation of subjects central to progressive spirituality which include the psychology of the soul, esoteric astrology/cosmology, and the creative magic of the soul. His passion is to teach people the deeper implications of modern spiritual development, and the means to more effectively express the soul in the outer world. In addition to his spiritual interests, William has an advanced degree in the behavioral sciences, and has had several years experience as a psychology professor in California.
William will also be offering esoterically interpreted astrological readings.
Called the Astrology of the Soul, this form of reading is designed to reveal the
soul’s purpose. In addition, it indicates how the personality (ego) tends to
inhibit the soul, and the means to overcome such tendencies. Available are
natal, transits/progressions or solar return readings. To register for the
readings only call Karen Johannsen 206-542-8655. Readings are $95.00.
Suggested donation for Friday
& Saturday $45.00 - $65.00 (Lunch Included)
Please pre-register through Quest Bookshop (206) 323-4281
Alchemy, the Destiny of
Humanity and the End of the Age with
Jay Weidner
February 6
Sunday, 4:00-5:30 pm
To
understand and use alchemy one would need to know that we are multi‑dimensional
beings, and that with the proper alchemical work done in these dimensions, such
as spiritual work, we are each able to go through a process of awakening. Jay
Weidner will describe the intricacies of the dimensions of our own being, and
how various cultures and history have always made available processes of
awakening, such as initiation. Initiation still continues and there is
initiation to come. Jay will also speak about humanity’s sacred destiny, about
what several of the Mystery Traditions have pointed to as a time we are moving
towards when this process of awakening will accelerate, when time will stop and
the dimensions will open up for humanity to take its rightful place in the
hierarchy of the Universe. Please join us for this stimulating talk.
Jay Weidner
is a filmmaker, author and hermetic scholar who has spent the past twenty years
investigating and documenting the relationships between Alchemy, Gnosticism,
Kabbalah, and the Egyptian mysteries. He is the writer/director of the recently
released documentary, Secrets of Alchemy; The Great Cross and the End
of Time and coauthor of The Mysteries of the Great Cross of Hendaye
and A Monument to the End of Time. In addition, he has produced and
directed documentary films on prominent contemporary figures such as visionary
artist Alex Grey and Shaman/Healer Dr. Alberto Villoldo.
“My
Funny Valentine”
with Nancy Lehwalder & Stephen Thompson
February 11
Friday, 7:00 pm
Come on, come all ! Join us for a musical benefit for the Theosophical Library. We will celebrate Valentines Day with warm and fuzzy gentle jazz by Jerome Kern, Hoagy Carmichael and other songwriters from the era of romantic song. Stephan Thompson on piano and vocals, Nancy Lehwalder, vocals.
Prophecies For
A New Humanity
with John Hogue
February 13
Sunday, 4:00-5:30 pm
We are entering the evolutionary crisis foreseen by prophets, both ancient and modern. We have crossed the threshold of the "last chance" century--a 100-year window in time that will give birth to two destinies for the human race: suicidal breakdown or evolutionary breakthrough.
Let prophet scholar, John Hogue, take you on a journey towards a revolutionary new understanding of collective prophecies, both ancient and modern, that foresee the appearance of a wise and joyous humanity that "you" will bring into the world. The promise foreseen in our past is becoming our present. The prophets of a new humanity, such as H.P. Blavatsky, Gurdjieff, Krishnamurti and others, have already seen our oncoming struggle for survival against evolutionary pitfalls in the next hundred years. They understand that the seed of a new humanity needs the right climate and season of evolutionary crisis for its germination. In a way, our new century is not the last but the first chance century, wherein the seed of our greatest evolution may sprout. Long ago, the prophets of a new humanity put their trust in us--all of us--alive today as the hope of the world. There can be no more important time than now to hear their message.
John Hogue, defines himself as a "Rogue" Scholar. He has traveled three times around the world studying meditation disciplines, reporting on new religious movements, cults, and compiling a reference of the world's prophecies concerning the future of humankind entering a new millennium. Considered a world authority on Nostradamus and other prophetic traditions, Hogue is critically acclaimed for his ability to cut through the social, religious, and nationalistic projections of prophets and their interpreters to find threads of insight they all share.
He is an author of 10 books-in-counting, with over 1,000,000 in print in 18 languages. His most recent best selling books include the biography Nostradamus: A Life and Myth (Thorsons/Element--A Div. of HarperCollins) and Nostradamus: The New Millennium (Thorsons/Element). Hogue's other books include the internationally renowned Nostradamus: The Complete Prophecies For The Second Coming (Thorsons/Element), Messiahs: The Visions and Prophecies For The Second Coming (Thorsons/Element), The Last Pope: The Decline and Fall Of the Church Of Rome (Thorsons/Element), and Essential Nostradamus: Predictions For The 21st Century and Beyond (Chysalis/Vega Books). Other books include Nostradamus and the Millennium (Doubleday/Dolphin), The Millennium Book Of Prophecy (Harper San Francisco), Nostradamus: The New Revelations (Element Books), and 1000 For 2000: Startling Predictions for the New Millennium (Harper San Francisco).
He has received wide international recognition appearing on over 100 television and 700 radio shows on three continents. His North American Television appearances include Ancient Prophecies Part I-IV (NBC and The Learning Channel), The View (ABC), Unsolved Mysteries (CBS), Prophecies of the Millennium (FOX), A&E's Biography: Nostradamus (A&E), Sightings (Fox/SciFi Channel), Ancient Mysteries with Leonard Nimoy (A&E), Nostradamus: A Skeptical Inquiry (Discovery Channel) and the Today Show (NBC). His international appearances include CNN International and BBC WORLD Radio. For further information visit his web site: www.hogueprophecy.com.
Participating in the
Evolution of our Soul & Spirit with Christina
Sophia
February 20
Sunday, 4:00-5:30 pm
Using the spiritual
insight of Rudolf Steiner, Christina will describe his perceptions of the step
by step growth of soul & spirit we have each experienced in different cultures
up through the present day. Using practical images representing these stages of
development, we will journey through the great mystery schools of the cultural
epochs of the past, arriving in our modern time. Each point of a culture’s
growth marking it’s pivotal passage into heightened potential will be
demonstrated through images that highlight that stage of becoming, and a
practical exercise will be given for our personal journeying. What kind
of soul and spirit growth is best for us to be experiencing now, in this
materialistic era ? Please attend to hear how Rudolf Steiner’s initiatory
mystery wisdom can inform seekers towards the creation of a new personal western
paradigm that is the answer to this question.. Throughout her presentation
Christina will lead us through exercises and practice to help us discover and
work with various attributes of soul.
Christina Sophia has Masters Degrees in Education and Teaching, and is working on her PhD in the field of Education. She has studied Anthroposophy and given presentations on the works of Rudolf Steiner around the United States for over 30 years. Additionally, Christina Sophia has initiated and mentored the growth of Waldorf Education around America, including the Waldorf Schools in Bellingham and Tacoma.
The Dance of Isis and the Tree of Life with Sharron Rose
February 27
Sunday, 4:00-5:30 pm
The dance of Isis is all of our dance in the sense that its gestures, taken from Egyptian hieroglyphs, describe the human journey we are still embarked on of spiritually awakening in matter. The foundation for this dance lays in ancient Egypt, where the study and practice of art and science was linked with the revelation and transmission of spiritual truths. As keepers of this sacred science, the priests and priestesses underwent years of physical, artistic and intellectual training, as well as intensive personal reflection. This experience allowed them to become caretakers and transmitters of essential truths, truths describing the interaction of spirit with matter, which contains keys to our spiritual unfoldment.
Through the universal language of symbol, these teachings were passed down through the generations into the esoteric heart of the spiritual traditions of the West. For many years, author, scholar and choreographer, Sharron Rose has been studying the common esoteric knowledge found in symbols shared by the Hebrew Kabbalists and Christian Gnostics, noting their Egyptian roots. From her knowledge of Egypt and the hieroglyphs she has been able to put life into the temple dance, chant and ritual of ancient Egypt, from which our Western traditions have sprung.
In this participatory event, you will travel with Ms. Rose to the mystic temple of Isis to experience symbols and teachings of this Great Goddess of the Alchemists and Keeper of the Sacred Mysteries. Beginning with a meditation on the cleansing and rejuvenating light of the Divine Feminine, you will be introduced to:
~The underlying meaning
of symbols drawn from ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, painting and sculpture.
~Their physical expression through the universal language of mudra. (Hand
gestures used as a magical means of communication with the deities and forces of nature that
sealed a ritual act and endowed it with mystic
power.)
~Chants
and invocations to Isis from ancient texts such as The Book of the Dead and The
Pyramid Texts.
~The mythic and symbolic relationship between the mystic
teachings of ancient Egypt, the Hebrew Kabbalah, and Gnostic Christianity
Sharron Rose, MA. Ed., is an internationally acclaimed teacher, writer, choreographer and performer in the fields of World Mythology, Religion and the Traditional Arts of Dance, Theatre and Music. She is the author of The Path of the Priestess; A Guidebook for Awakening the Divine Feminine, winner of the “Visionary Award” for best Biographical /Self-Help book of 2003, the DVD, Yoga of Light; Meditations, Mudras and Expressions of the Divine Feminine and president of Sacred Mysteries Productions for whom she has produced DVDs featuring visionary artist Alex Grey, shaman /healer Dr. Alberto Villoldo, alchemist, Jay Weidner and more.. The techniques and exercises offered in her workshops have been drawn from her years of first-hand experience in the ancient arts of Tantra, Dzogchen, Indian and Egyptian temple dance and healing, as well as her research into the feminine principle in the mystic teachings of the alchemists, Hebrew Kabbalists and Christian Gnostics.
The Way of Haiku with Andrew Barker
March 6
Sunday, 4:00-5:30
pm
The temple bell fades
And the scent of cherry blossoms rises
In the evening
-Matsuo Basho
Andrew Barker, longtime presenter at the T.S. in Seattle, has studied Zen, haiku, and other related practices for almost thirty years. In combining sensitive depictions of images of nature, the Japanese art form known as haiku strives to discover the essence of reality. Zen teaches that when the human mind fully grasps that all life is one, spiritual enlightenment unfolds spontaneously. We will explore how the great haiku poets were able to speak "the Truth that cannot be spoken" through the art of Haiku.
Sudden Awakening A Meeting with Eli Jaxon-Bear
March 13
Sunday, 4:00-6:00
pm
Prepare to have your mind shifted and cleaned. The title of Eli Jaxon-Bear’s latest book, Sudden Awakening, is an appropriate description of what can happen to Western consciousness when exposed to Eli’s writing. Consider the next paragraph lifted from one of his recent books.
“There is a living intelligence in all people that seeks ultimately to discover its true identity and source. It is a fortunate and mysterious moment when the desire for happiness leads to the investigation into personal identity, also known as self-inquiry. In the light of direct self-inquiry, limitations that once seemed to define oneself are discovered to be more like transparent lines drawn on water. They exist only on the surface of consciousness in one’s imagination. When these illusions of mind are clearly exposed, true limitless being reveals itself.”
Eli will present to us a new model of the ego and the psyche. Combining his background in Buddhism with the Sufi work on essence, he’ll present a new approach to awakening by looking at what the ego is not. He will show us how our habits of egoic identification continuously appear to veil our pure consciousness, which is what we really are. When these habits of mind are exposed, me can make the choice to end the bondage of ego-based suffering and realize the inherent freedom of our true nature. Eli will give us a map of the prison of our minds and the keys to our freedom.
The two hour conversation with Eli will start with his providing a 15-20 minute description of “awakening.” At several points during his afternoon presentation he’ll invite questions so that his own sharing can evolve into a dialogue.
Eli Jaxon-Bear’s. eighteen-year spiritual search, which took him to various parts of the world, started in 1971, after a profound awakening while a federal fugitive from fighting against the war in Vietnam. In 1978, he became the first president of The Tibetan Buddhist dharma center in Marin County. In 1982, he was presented with a Zen Teaching Fan at ChoShoJi Zen Temple in Japan, and in 1987, he was initiated into a Sufi clan in Morocco. He met his final teacher, Sri Poonjaji in India in 1990, and has since dedicated his life to passing on his mentor’s spiritual message.
A teacher at the Esalen Institute for over twenty years and at the Omega Institute, the nation’s largest holistic learning center, he has taught in many different fields of consciousness evolution.
The author of The Enneagram of Liberation: From Fixation to Freedom, Eli has been writing and teaching about the enneagram (a tool for understanding personalities) for over a decade. He is the editor of Wake Up and Roar, which is available in 10 different languages. His audiocassettes include Way of the Bodhisattva and Death as an Ally: Meeting at the Holocaust Museum. Eli’s TV show “Meeting with Eli” airs on 30 different stations and is Marin County’s most popular community access show.
Eli’s new book Sudden Awakening into direct realization based on ancient teachings, years of contemplation, and a direct transmission of a silent mind, shows how spiritual awakening can be a springboard for stopping destruction in the world. Using insights from psychology, astronomy, physics, and biology, the book presents a new understanding of the structure of the ego and is a practical guide that helps spiritual seekers to awaken to their essential nature.
Humanity, Nature and The Divine A
Day Long Workshop with Dorothy Maclean
March 19
Saturday, 10:00 am-5:00 pm
This one-day workshop is a rare opportunity to work directly with one of the co-founders of the Findhorn Community in northern Scotland. Beginning in the 1970’s Dorothy Maclean was one of the people most directly responsible for communicating with the devic kingdom of nature at Findhorn, enabling Findhorn to grow vegetables and fruit of such size and in such quantity on non-arable land that people visited from around the world to witness what they had accomplished.
This will be a hands-on experiential workshop that helps attendees to move beyond the constraints of normal, everyday consciousness as we learn how to make contact with the intelligences of nature. The workshop will begin with Dorothy leading us through a process that allows us to access our own inner divinity. From this point she will then help us to attune to the mineral kingdom, and then to the plant kingdom, and then on to the other intelligences of nature. Those who have attended before will find this an excellent refresher course in techniques of communication with the natural world that have disappeared from our culture. During the day Dorothy will also share the stories and learnings she has derived from her years of communicating with nature, as well as from her spiritual sight of the Angelic kingdom that oversees cities and countries. An emphasis will be placed on contact with nature as a vital aid in dealing with human destruction of the planet. Time allowing, the question of good and evil will be addressed.
Dorothy spent eleven years involved with the Findhorn Community. She is the author of Choices of Love and To Hear the Angels Sing. Much of her time is spent giving talks and leading workshops worldwide.
Suggested donation $45.00 - $65.00 (Lunch Included)
Please pre-register through Quest Bookshop (206) 323-4281
The Proper Care and Feeding of Crystals, as well as their use for healing and meditation
with Collen Marquist
March 20
Sunday, 4:00-5:30 pm
Do you own a crystal, or ever been intrigued by them? The Seattle Theosophical is fortunate to have visiting us one of the premier crystal sensitives, someone who has been, in fact, sensitive to the world of subtle energies (which has created some difficulties for her, and she might talk about this) her entire life. Utilizing this sensitivity she has written a book which many people (this would include Quest Bookshop) consider the best printed in recent time on the subject of the qualities and characteristics of crystals. How would you use a crystal in meditation or healing? Are there advantageous placements of crystals in the home environment? What is some good advice about caring for crystal(s)? Come to hear how Collen responds to these questions, or just to meet someone who is attuned to this part of the world.
Collen Marquist is the author of Crystalline Communion 2000, and has discovered that she has sensitivities especially tuned to earth energies. She is a professional environmentalist employed on an air pollution research grant at the University of Washington and has served on the Boards of the Snohomish Land Conservancy, the Snohomish Wetlands Alliance, and the Planning Commission of the City of Kirkland.
Rumi, Mullah and the Quran
with Jamal Raman
March 27
Sunday, 4:00-5:30 pm
Of his ecstatic utterances, Rumi repeatedly said," I am a slave of the Quran; I am dust on the path of Muhammad. The teaching stories of the fabled Mullah are woven around Quranic insights. Join us in exploring verses of compassion, beauty and wisdom from the Quran, with Rumi and the Mullah as our guides and teachers.
Jamal Raman comes from the Sufi lineage of Bengal and is the minister at the Interfaith Community Church in Seattle. About his book The Fragrance of Faith : “A priceless book! You cannot read The Fragrance of Faith and not be equally inspired by its eminently practical spirituality, its awesome humility, and its heartfelt humanity.” Brother Wayne Teasdale, author of The Mystic Heart and A Monk in the World.
SERVICES OF THE THEOSOPHICAL SOCIETY IN SEATTLE
Sunday Morning Meditation at 10:00 AM - Open to
All
Theosophical Lending Library
A Research Library and Learning Center now inviting new members and patrons.
Library fees ($20 annually) This service is included in your membership if you
join the TS in Seattle.
Hours: Open Saturday, Sunday, and Tuesday 1:00 to 6:00 pm.
Open Monday and Wednesday Noon to 5:00 pm
Theosophical Lending Library
A Membership Library, Volunteer Run
Open Saturday, Sunday & Tuesday, 1pm.- 6pm
Open Monday & Wednesday, Noon to 4pm
Telephone: 206 323-4281
Quest Bookshop
Over 10,000 books in stock
Open at 11am Seven Days a Week
Telephone: 206 323-4281