A Bealtaine Sacred Womyn’s Tour

Departure: August 27 – September 4, 2011

Reservations Now Closed

Locally Hosted by International Teacher and Facilitator Amantha Murphy
Join your Sisters for a journey to enlighten, enrich and nourish your soul. This journey introduces you to the way of the Seabhean. The Seabhean is the wise woman who crosses the path between the worlds. She holds the presence and abilities of the Shaman and the wisdom of the wise Cailleach.

The Shamanic tradition goes back over many thousands of years. Each clan or grouping of people held in reverence the Shamanic Way. This Way allows a person to Journey into these worlds for healing, for answers, for visions, which brings a sense of continuity, wholeness and integration for self and for the clan.

The Cailleach holds sacred the Mysteries/Rites of Passage for women and for the clan. She reminds us of who we are and the sacredness of passing on our tradition. Re-weaving, Remembering, Retrieving allows us to Re-claim our Passion and our Power.

Retrace the footsteps of the ancient people of the Great Goddess! Her timeless spiritual presence is waiting to meet you! It has always been the way to come in Pilgrimage – to journey to the sacred land for celebration and ritual.

Your Celtic and Shamanic Host in Ireland

Amantha Murphy: “I grew up spending my summers in Kerry with my grandmother, a midwife and healer, who opened my awareness from an early age to the essence of the Mother, the Land and Her Nature.” Amantha started her spiritual work 40 years ago as a clairvoyant and moved quickly on to trance mediumship. She developed many tools along the way with her spirit and ancestral teachers guiding. Amantha is an International teacher as well as a Mother and Grandmother and lives in Kerry, Ireland. Amantha works primarily with the Land, Rites of Passage, Ancient Goddess Pilgrimages and also teaches ‘The Way of the Seabhean, Pre-Celtic Shamanism and the Celtic Wheel.

Featured Hotels or similar
Killarney: The Lake Hotel

THE TOUR PRICE INCLUDES:

Transportation throughout Ireland
Hotel Taxes and VAT service charges
Airport transfers
7 Breakfasts, 5Lunches, 4 Dinners

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS:

A special program featuring the Seabhean
Journeying with your allies and ancestral teachers
Connecting with your Ancient Goddesses upon the ancient Wheel of the Sun
Drumming, Trance dancing and chanting
Stories to help us weave into the Tradition
Taking our awareness out onto the Land to commune
Celebrating the Ancient Bealtaine Ceremony
The beat of our hearts as the pulse of our Mother Earth

TOUR ITINERARY

(B = Breakfast; L = Lunch; D = Dinner)

Day 1, Saturday, August 27: Depart USA – To Ireland
Depart this evening for Shannon International Airport, Ireland. Please arrange your flights to arrive no later than 11:00 AM to meet with your airport transfer to Killarney. Very important: If you are interested in only the Main Tour, you should book roundtrip flights in and out of Shannon. If you plan on extending your tour to include Dublin, you will fly into Shannon and out of Dublin.
Note: Body Mind Spirit Journeys will be happy to assist you with your flight plans.
Day 2, Sunday, August 28: Arrival in Ireland (Tour Begins) / Grange Stone Circle / Welcome Dinner (L/D)
Morning arrival in Ireland where you will transfer to your charming Irish hotel in Killarney, home base for your time here in Co. Kerry, south-western Ireland. Rest and settle in before your welcome dinner with Amantha at the hotel. Overnight Killarney.

Day 3, Monday, August 29: Attunement / Paps of Anu / Ballyvourney (B&D)
After breakfast and Attunement, you depart for your drive through the lovely Irish countryside. You journey first to ‘the City’, nestled beneath the Paps of Anu, where you take time to commune with Anu, the Great Mother Goddess. Notice how the ‘Paps’, the two mountains, are shaped like her breasts. Legend says this is where the Shining Ones, the people of the Great Mother Goddess Anu, lived. Open your heart to receive a blessing from them.Then you continue to Ballyvourney Church in Co. Cork to see one of the remaining Irish Sheela-na-gigs, an ancient symbol of woman’s freedom and creativity. They are sometimes associated with “hags” or the Crone and are often seen as the wild woman in Irish myth. The ‘Sheela’ is situated above a window on the south wall of the church. She is still visited regularly, especially each year on February 11, the feast day of St. Gobnait’s, a woman saint who built a convent in the area and was known for her healing powers with honey. During the pilgrimage rubbing of the image is part of the ritual. Perhaps you will also be able to touch and feel her, as you commune with her in meditation to honor the wild aspect of yourselves. Your last stop for the day is the local sacred well that has long been visited as a place of pilgrimage. Many of the sacred wells in Ireland were originally the sites of pagan shrines. The Celts believed the earth’s waters were especially sacred and healing, that they issued from the realm of the Underworld Goddess who ruled both birth and death, and linked her domain with the upper world. The waters represented her eternal wisdom and her life giving properties. The people believed that the easiest way for them to gain access to the Otherworld was through the divine springs and wells. Every well had its own local goddess who presided over it. Here you will facilitate your sacred ritual, or “doing the rounds”, during which you will encircle the well a certain number of times, while reciting your prayers and/or affirmations. You then offer water to the Mother Earth in thanksgiving, then to your own face, and finally you drink of Her lifeblood! (Bring a small plastic bottle and you can take some of the blessed water home with you!) After lunch on your own with the group at a local inn, you return to your hotel. You have your late afternoon Sharing Circle to connect with your Sisters. Overnight Killarney.

Day 4, Tuesday, August 30: Ring of Kerry (B/L/D)

Your full day of exploration is around the world-famous Ring of Kerry, a winding scenic route on the Iveragh Peninsula that connects the communities of Killorglin, Cahersiveen, Waterville, Sneem, and Kenmare in south-western Ireland. Some say it’s the best that Ireland has to offer…with its romantic glens, towering peaks and constantly changing color. As you visit the various places and interact with the landscape, focus on your Maiden, Mother and Crone and see where and when you connect more fully with each aspect. What brings Her out? What keeps Her inside? Is She happy? Is She sad? Reflective? Joyful? This is an awesome opportunity to live the gamut of yourself today!

You will visit ancient Cahergall Fort (Caher Gael) outside of Cahersiveen, originally built around 2,500 BC. Like many ancient forts the local community used it as a supply of building material after it was abandoned around AD 900. You stop for your group lunch at the Smuggler’s Inn outside of Waterville, (An CoireÁn – The Little Whirlpool), the premier coastal tourist centre on the Ring of Kerry. Afterwards, you’ll visit a nearby 5,000 year old stone circle, where legend says Amhairghin, the Milesian bard, landed when he and his brothers led their tribe across the seas from Spain for our first Celtic invasion. His magic was powerful. You take time to commune with his ancient energies.

You continue your drive, almost overwhelmed with panoramic views of the nearby lakes and mountains. Can it get any better? Your last stop for the day is to known locally as “fairy fort”. You return to the hotel in the evening and share dinner together. Overnight Killarney.

Day 5, Wednesday, August 31: In Killarney – Seabhean Program (B/L/D)

An introduction to the Way of the Seabhean. The Seabhean is the wise woman who crosses the path between the worlds. She holds the presence and abilities of the Shaman and the wisdom of the wise Cailleach. Throughout time, there have always been women who have held sacred The Way. These were the light bringers, the keepers of the Lore and Land, the Holders of the Sacred Spiral Wheel, the wise old woman, the Cailleach, the Seabhean. In this workshop you’ll use ancient pre-Celtic Shamanic paths to awaken again this aspect within you, journeying to the place of your ancestors and totems, using drumming, sound and movement. You will work with the Goddesses within the Pre-Celtic Wheel using their myths and stories to awaken within you your Stories and place within your personal wheel. You’ll weave the web of your energetic bodies to live in the authenticity of your life, weaving the web of your physical bodies to create a web of holding within the group. Weaving the Sisterhood of the Seabhean.

Day 6, Thursday, September 1: In Killarney – Seabhean Program (B/L)

Continuation of the Way of the Seabhean program. Wakening Woman’s power is using the archetypes of the Celtic and pre-Celtic Goddesses you journey together in bringing forth, in a safe and nurturing environment, those aspects of yourselves as Women – as WOMAN. You unfold yourselves to allow the maiden, the mother, the crone and the wild woman to emerge; bringing integration and trust of your own inner calling. Recognizing yourselves as wondrous Goddesses of delight, passion and wholeness. You will work with the Myths of our land and ‘re-call’ Bridget, Eiru, Aine, Mabd, Tealta, Mocha and Tlachtar to name but a few. Allowing yourselves to embrace the Callaugh as that which you grow towards, just as you are now held in the arms of Anu, your great Mother Goddess

Day 7, Friday, September 2 : Torc Waterfall / Seven Sisters Stone Circle (B)
This morning you visit Torc Waterfall, in Killarney National Park, 60 ft high with surrounding trees, and views of the Lake area on the way up to the waterfall….yet another place of the fairies. As you relax beside the running water, take time to meditate and connect with the magical child inside, your Maiden who is in ecstasy and can sense and connect with the elementals! Afterwards you’re off to the Seven Sister’s Stone Circle, a stone circle from the Bronze Age in Lissivigeen near Killarney town. These stones of the circle are known locally as the Seven Sisters, while the outlying stones are known as pipers or musicians. This is the place of the Grandmothers, where you hold a Sacred Ceremony to connect with the Crones. Return to hotel or ‘drop-off’ in Killarney for some Retail Therapy and where you have the evening free to sample some of the wonderful Killarney restaurants in town. Overnight Killarney

Day 8, Saturday, September 3 : Dingle Peninsula / Inch Strand / Sharing Circle (B/L/D)
Your destination today is the glorious Dingle Peninsula with its wealth of early Christian sites and where you enjoy the rare beauty of the light and color of the Atlantic ocean stretching out before you. Your touring will also include the Garralus Oratory and the Celtic Christian beehive huts. Your last evening Sharing Circle at the hotel, before your Farewell Dinner. Overnight Killarney.

Day 9, Sunday, September 4: Depart to USA or Optional Extension to Dublin & Newgrange (B)

Transfer to Shannon Airport for your flight back to the USA. Arrive same day or take an optional independent tour to Dublin and Newgrange.

Please note: This itinerary is subject to change without notice due to circumstances beyond our control. Pre/post nights are available upon request. Travel insurance is highly recommended. Some inclusions may not be available on indicated dates and dates may have to be adjusted. Listed local Hosts and guides are subject to availability and will be hosting your itinerary wherever possible. However, due to scheduling, there may be some times when the local Host or guide is not available. If this occurs, BMSJ will provide a comparable and experienced substitute.

TOUR PRICES:
** Bonus! SAVE! You will receive a 5% discount if ALL payments are made by check or money order. This discounted price is noted below in red.

Tour – Per Person, double occupancy, LAND ONLY (no flights)
$2,499 payments via check or money order
$2,631 payments via credit card.

PLUS: (to be added to above price)

Pre-Paid Gratuities:
$70 payments via check or money order
$74 payments via credit card

Single Room Supplement:
$395 payments via check or money order
$4416 payments via credit card

NOTE: The Single Room Supplement applies for those who would like to secure a private room throughout the tour.

ROOMMATES: We will be happy to try to find a suitable roommate for those who are traveling alone and would like to share a room. Per our Terms and Conditions, registration for the tour will be held open until 4 weeks before the departure date in order to try to match everyone with a roommate. If, by that date, we have not been able to match you with a suitable roommate, you will be responsible to pay for the single supplement. An early registration will facilitate this process.

Please note: The above price for the tour is based upon a minimum participation of 10 passengers. Should the total number of passengers fall below10, this tour may be cancelled (see Terms & Conditions).

OPTIONAL INDEPENDENT EXTENSION TO DUBLIN & NEWGRANGE

THE TOUR PRICE INCLUDES:

Transportation throughout Ireland
Hotel Taxes and VAT service charges
Airport transfers
4 Breakfasts, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS:

A special program featuring the Newgrange and Hill of Tara
Visit Fairy Tree and Sacred Well at Lough Crew
Special closing ceremony

Day 9, Sunday, September 4: To Dublin (B)

Transfer to the rail station where you board your train for the journey across Ireland to Dublin, the capital of and largest city in Ireland, located near the midpoint of Ireland’s east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the center of the Dublin Region. A city with humble beginnings as a Viking trading port, Dublin evolved into a walled medieval city and then into an elegant Georgian metropolis with wide streets, gracious squares and great houses, neatly bordered by its two canals. Check in at the hotel and then a tour of the city. Evening and dinner on your own. Overnight Dublin.

Day 10, Monday, September 5: In Dublin – Excursion to Newgrange & Hill of Tara (B)

It is hard to visit Ireland and not visit the oldest engineered building in the World! Two thousand years older than the Pyramids and still present to this day to astound and astonish us. To walk upon Tara, the place of the Kings and the place of Maeve the Ancient Goddess of the Land is spiritually special. Today you’ll visit one of the world’s most famous archaeological valleys, the Boyne Valley, 30 miles from Dublin. Here the development of man can be traced back over 9,000 years to Neolithic times, with many well-preserved sites, buildings and monuments. The highlight of your visit is to one of Ireland’s most important sacred sites, the spectacular world-famous passage grave or passage Tomb of Newgrange with its kerbstones and megalithic art. Newgrange, with its sister sites Knowth and Dowth, were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site and feature some stunning examples of megalithic art, including the beautifully carved entrance stone. Continue as you visit another of Ireland’s most important sacred sites, The Hill of Tara, which is said to represent the mother womb of Ireland. The Hill of Tara was once the ancient seat of power in Ireland – 142 kings are said to have reigned there in prehistoric and historic times. In ancient Irish religion and mythology it was the sacred place of dwelling for the gods, and was the entrance to the other world. Sitting on top of the King’s Seat is the most famous of Tara’s Monuments, Ireland’s ancient coronation stone, known as the Lia Fáil or “Stone of Destiny”, which was brought here, according to mythology, by Tuatha De Danann as one of their sacred objects. It was said to roar when touched by the rightful king of Tara. Priestesses of Maebh would lie with a chosen chieftain and he would be the head Chieftain for the year. Great enclosures here held the people and the Stone of Destiny, which screamed when the rightful heir to the Irish land touched it, is still here. Tara is the Royal Centre of Ireland and it was here that the High Kings and Chieftains were crowned. It was the place of the Ban Fheis – the sacred marriage of the Goddess and the king (Green Man) – the people to the land at the time of Bealtaine. You have time to meditate in this powerful place to connect with the ancient and other-worldly energies. Later return to your hotel. Dinner on your own at one of the city’s local restaurants. Overnight Dublin.

Day 11, Tuesday, September 6: Excursion to Lough Crew (B/L/D)

Lough Crew Passage Cairn is on the hill of Sliabh na Calli – the hill of the hag, or witch, as is often referred to in these latter days. The main cairn is magnificent with the interior stones having the Neolithic hieroglyphs. The back stone of the chamber is illuminated by a beam of light at sunrise on the Spring and Autumnal Equinoxes. The Equinox Stone in the Hag’s Cairn is of similar design to Newgrange. It has been traditionally described as a Passage Tomb and place of ritual. Outside of the main cairn is the Hags Seat, where traditionally, the elder of the clan would sit for her tribe to receive illumination for the peoples. You will also visit the fairy tree and the sacred well for your closing ceremony before returning to Dublin for your farewell dinner.

Day 12, Wednesday, September 7: Depart to USA (B)

Transfer to Dublin International Airport for your flight back to the USA. Arrive same day.

TOUR PRICES:
** Bonus! SAVE! You will receive a 5% discount if ALL payments are made by check or money order. This discounted price is noted below in red.

Tour – Per Person, double occupancy

$1,079 payments via check or money order
$1,136 payments via credit card.

PLUS: (to be added to above price)

Pre-Paid Gratuities:
$40 payments via check or money order
$42 payments via credit card

Single Room Supplement:
$349 payments via check or money order
$367 payments via credit card

NOTE: The Single Room Supplement applies for those who would like to secure a private room throughout the tour.

ROOMMATES: We will be happy to try to find a suitable roommate for those who are traveling alone and would like to share a room. Per our Terms and Conditions, registration for the tour will be held open until 4 weeks before the departure date in order to try to match everyone with a roommate. If, by that date, we have not been able to match you with a suitable roommate, you will be responsible to pay for the single supplement. An early registration will facilitate this process.

Please note: The above price for the tour is based upon a minimum participation of 10 passengers. Should the number of passengers fall below the minimum, the following supplements may be imposed: 6-9 $260pp; 3-5 $370 pp. Should the total number of passengers fall below 3, this extension may be cancelled (see Terms & Conditions).

Travel Insurance

Body Mind Spirit Journeys highly recommends the purchase of Trip Cancellation/Interruption Travel Insurance, and we therefore provide you with an easy way to contact BMSJ’s preferred insurance provider, Access America.

If you need additional information or have questions, please call Access America directly at
800-284-8300, and refer to code F025323.

Please read our Body Mind Spirit Journeys Terms and Conditions.