The first Chapter

Today, I feel I am entering the most sophisticated labyrinth of all time. On a journey, a quest, excitingly fumbling at the entrance of a dark cave with a blazing torch in my hand struggling to translate the hieroglyphics scratched and etched out on the wall. Deep within there may be a treasure, but I better watch out for the traps. They go hand in hand with the treasures deep inside labyrinths
Is it possible, that without knowing it, I have entered this labyrinth? And that this labyrinth is the ultimate original mother of them all, so sophisticated, so grandiose and yet so fundamental. Not only have I entered it, but I have also helped build it.
Could it be that I have been creating labyrinths unknowingly since I was a child? And labyrinths are tools, which help develop my mind. Could it also be there is a natural state behind the thoughts which builds labyrinths, which has been lost and forgotten, a primordial state of mind, “Garden of Eden”!
Not only have I entered this labyrinth, but also maybe I have become trapped in it, this New Age. Trapped and held spellbound by its glamour its mystery, a place where I am seeking hidden treasures, a place full of angels and dragons, temples and grottos, heroes and villains, all offering a veritable kaleidoscope of magical spells and miracles.
Who do I trust, and how do I know the difference, and what is mine, and what do I own, and what do I take, and what do I give away. And why am I going in here in the first place?
Each part of the labyrinth is in itself a labyrinth, growing and evolving, labyrinths within labyrinths abounding in all directions.
“Which way to go!”
“Trust your intuition!”
I could not help but see that intuition and labyrinths were one and the same thing. I felt this was too simple an explanation, It uneased me that it was so simple, this connection between labyrinths and intuition, yet somewhere within me I knew that here was something worth investigating, and for the first time, I began to observe what I had spent so many years identifying with – The New Age.
Was it possible that labyrinths were designed to develop the intuition?. And if the New Age is a labyrinth, then surely the goal of the New Age - is to overcome it - to survive it, to conquer and master it
What was I saying to myself? How could I ever imagine letting go of the New Age? I knew it all of my adult life, the heart of it, my family – Findhorn. Without a doubt I was moving into an unknown land, to move against the “Flow”, my comfort zone, my security, my home.
I was beginning to see into a landscape unlike any other, my own unique perception of a landscape. The temples spiritually imagined, were not what I thought they were. They were not those golden pyramids, or Greek white Parthenon’s, “no!” they were skyscrapers reaching up to the heavens. “Yes!” they offered great vision, I could see for miles, but I had no feet on the ground. I needed to leave such temples, my years of work, to get back down, to here on the ground, here, to shake them loose, my earthquake, 10 on the Richter scale, my silent Armageddon.
Free from such temples, at least I now knew I was trapped in the centre of the labyrinth. This is little comfort to someone who for many years had called it home.
I needed to know more about intuition, about labyrinths, and at a time and an age when it seems that everyone around me was rushing in, I needed to find a way out.
I further embarked on my travels to find out more
Strangely enough labyrinths are more common than I realised, they are found an all cultures carved out on stone, on the earth. in caves all over the world in all shapes and sizes. They are as fascinating as the pyramids and equally mysterious. What is their purpose and precise function?
I began to imagine all sorts of possibilities of why labyrinths were there in the first place. They seemed to be used for some type of ritual, initiation
“Imagine for a moment the Wise men of Old who designed the labyrinths, they chose carefully their would-be disciple before they sent he or she into the labyrinth. It was usually someone in the community who was sensitive and had visionary dreams, open to other realms. This was important as survival tools, because the Wise Men of Old, were also aware, that the initiate entering might not return.
The initiate would increase intuition by entering, but the purpose of the labyrinth is to survive it by coming out, only then can the initiate be ready for service in the larger community.
The would be disciple has entered into a place which is deliberately designed to deceive, so that he or she can learn to work their way through the deception, and come out a better person.
This seems to be the principle of a labyrinth. Yet is there more to it?
What do I bring out of the labyrinth, which makes me a better person? What is this treasure that is worth all the risks? What is it that the Wise Men of Old are waiting for? The developed intuition! They know this will eventually come. They deliberately designed the labyrinth to speed-up intuition. It was something else they were after, of greater value, for they knew that intuition was not enough to survive the labyrinth, even though the labyrinth increased the intuition.
Here I felt was the final irony, the Great Deception of the labyrinth. By developing my intuition I become increasingly lost in the labyrinth... intuition has a blind spot...
I become “high” from it.
It is like a drug, which is addictive. As certain moods can release certain chemicals in the body, so it is, with intuition. The euphoria, which accompanies it, is so powerful that I feel divinely guided, but my consciousness may be out of balance, therefore I will only be divinely misguided.
I enter with caution.
Yet caution is seen as a weakness. Caution is for those who are not “tuned- in”, for those who are not inspired by some divine mission. I, like one of the lemmings throw caution to the wind as I plunge into the New Age. In a kind of mad rush to find myself I enter the labyrinth. The labyrinth, brilliant to distract and deceive, forces me to concentrate and focus on what is of real value.
The Wise Men of Old knew this, and certainly knew what was of value. To them, intuition was not enough, not enough to give service to the larger community, and not enough to survive the labyrinth. It is one thing to enter, it is another to reach its centre, and it is a whole other thing to come out. The wise men of Old were wishing to work with those that came out. They would bring with them a fully awakened intuition, which by then would have meant very little. Yet the initiate would have the pearl. They have survived the distraction the deception, they have survived the temptations, and passed through darkness even though it appears to be made of light, (which I believe is the construction of our modern day New Age labyrinth.)
The story of the Minotaur, the beast, half-man and half-bull, in the centre of the labyrinth in Greek mythology, highlights so clearly the perils involved. The Minotaur symbolises the animal instinct suppressed deep down within me, no matter how civilised and super-civilized I become. The offering, the sacrifice to the Minotaur every 9 years to be devoured, is seven young boys and seven young girls.
That which is pure and innocent is sacrificed to feed the basic animal instinct. (To hopefully pacify it) This animal instinct is so uncontrollable that it can devour and overcome anyone who enters its’ world, it's labyrinth. In ancient Crete, such a ritual, which is so powerful within the human psyche, created a whole cult and civilisation around it.

Two separate worlds, the animal instinct, and that which is pure and innocent, were kept apart until the time of the ritual where they were brought and forced together in a deadly game.

The Minotaur was so frightening, that even if one escaped confronting it face to face, one was bound to get lost in its enormous and complicated labyrinth. Yet even though it appeared that the fate of the children was inevitable, there was still a chance to survive, though a slim one indeed.

Every nine years, the pure and the innocent were consumed and overwhelmed by such a beast and it’s world. Each 9 years the hope and dreams of society, the children, the best of the children, played a deadly game, and battled it out in a labyrinth.

I would not dream of creating such a labyrinth in my life, not intentionally, not consciously, yet maybe deep down nothing has changed in my psyche, for the beast within if I suppress and deny it, will rise up and consume the world of my visions hopes and dreams.

I believe the secret to overcoming the labyrinth, the key to survive it, to conquer it, lies in the story of the Minotuar, the classical Greek story in its classical definitive state. It was not what he brought out, but what he took in. Only this could guide him through the labyrinth safely, only this could survive the deception, only this could pass through the darkness and thus slay the beast. He brought a ball of string, which he unravelled as he entered and followed on his way out.
I call this ball of string, common sense.

Without common sense how do I know that I am on the path of wisdom?
Without commonsense it may as well be any path. Who would know?
Common sense lights up the path and shows the way.
Yet in my mad rush to cleanse and purify my body, by forcing and ridding myself, (like some intensive “work-out in the gym), of my unhealthy diets, bad habits, negative and impure thinking I attempt to squeeze myself into the program called “Holistic”
I change my name, and change my relationships, and change my religion, or try to adopt them all, for I am becoming spiritual. I raise my vibrations beyond the physical body, communing with higher beings, and higher levels receiving messages of guidance, and seeking “signs” for a better world. I am building a New World and I am building it with my Soul-body. Not just content to be civilised, I want to be super-civilised.
And all the while, the Beast within is stirring, denied and despised and even hated, building up into an enormous rage.
This type of wholeness is out of balance with itself, not just creating a division, but a chasm too wide to even attempt to bridge, but not quite.
There is a “thin thread of light” offering hope, a possible solution, a way out of this labyrinth.
The Greek hero, Theseus, a young boy, in the story of the Minotaur, volunteers to enter the labyrinth to slay the beast. The Goddess of Love, Aphrodite on hearing of his bravery, makes the princess fall in love with him and because of the princesses love for Theseus she tells him the secret of how to survive the labyrinth.
She gives him a ball of string made of silver, (a silver thread of light)
This he ties to the portal as he enters and unravels as he journeys through the labyrinth. He reaches the centre and slays the Minotaur and survives the labyrinth. He eventually becomes king of his homeland.
A child, and the secret this child knows defeats the Minotaur.

The writing on the wall in the Labyrinth
“ A labyrinth is a precision tool. It is a tool of consciousness. It has a function. Its function is Initiation... and a particular form of Initiation, Labyrinths are designed to initiate, awaken, activate, the intuitive faculty. It is an excellent tool for developing the intuition. Labyrinths encourage the intuition to come forward, to take a more active role in the human consciousness. The would-be disciple on entering the labyrinth, becomes quickly disorientated, his or her normal daily faculties, the logical rational, intellectual, no longer function at their best. The would-be disciple has entered chaos, yet the labyrinth only has the appearance of chaos, it is brilliantly designed to create this effect in their minds, forcing other dormant faculties within their consciousness to come forward, primitive faculties, primitive instincts, such as fear, anxiety, confusion, survival, (flight or fight). Squeezed open like an oyster the primitive part of the consciousness hopefully will emerge it’s pearl... the intuition”.
I turn my attention on Intuition. This is a popular subject with those involved in the New Age. People talk as if they are using it, and they share with one another example after example of experiences that have happened to them. They talk as if it is enjoyable, that it is a wonderful feeling to have intuitive experiences, they express it in such a way as if they were taking a walk around the garden, an everyday event. For me it is a whole other way of walking. Intuitions’ walking is far beyond the security of the garden. Such talk glamorises and trivialises.
Intuition has had profound effects on my life.
People, who have genuinely lived it out, are reluctant to talk about it. Most never do. It is so personal, so profound. Words can barely touch it.
But if I look deep enough, I can see in people’s eyes those who have experienced the compelling power of Intuition, and maybe some of those have overcome its addiction and passed beyond its Path.
Women are known to have it more developed than men. It is known as something feminine, which dwells in the feminine side of our psyche.
Women are the largest proportion of people that are involved in the New Age. They are drawn to that which is intuitive. The New Age movement is largely a feminine movement, up until now.
For myself, the New Age language is feminine. It encourages such words as, sensitivity, tuning-in, awareness, intuition, wholeness, infinite, universal consciousness, limitless love and truth.
The language is expansive and spacious. The New Age is emerged in this feeling of expansion and space. The New Age gives me the feeling that it is vast, that it is eternal, and will always be. There appears to be endless ways to expand, to transform, and to change. But this is only an appearance. The New Age I believe is limited, and has boundaries, and has form and shape, And I am so glad for that, because I believe that energy and form are the same, and I cannot experience one without the other.
For a long time I believed that I was finally home after struggling and searching for so many years, but this is natural, this feeling of being home is what I experience when I use my intuition...this sense of connectedness with all things. My walk on the path, to my journey home probably has not even begun yet. Why? I am still lost in a labyrinth.
copyright © excerpt from "The New Age Labyrinth