Anthroposophy in the Bay Area & Beyond

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Six Basic Exercises

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You are invited to join with a group of students and friends to create an online practice group to support personal transformation and world healing. Each weekday we meet for 15 minutes to practice the six “basic exercises” as described by Rudolf Steiner.

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/266986103?pwd=bXU4a0EvMmJkMDZTR0Rqcm0xZ0pUZz09

We will practice each of the 6 exercises for one month. We begin the time every day with a 5-minute leading thought on one aspect of the practice. We follow that with a 5- minute period in which we turn off our cameras and practice or meditate individually. After the five-minute bell, we allot 2 minutes to journal about our experience,
and the end the call with a 3-minute closing thought.

We are a diverse group of newcomers and long-time practitioners; we welcome anyone interested in taking up these exercises.

On Thursday, September 21 & Friday, September 22, we will have 2 days of introduction for newcomers.

Regular Practice begins Monday, September 25, 2023 and ends on Friday, March 29, 2024.

This group will meet every weekday for 15 minutes each weekday. The schedule each day (ET):

12:00: Opening thought/reading
12:05: 5-minute individual practice space 12:10: Journal time
12:12 Closing thought/reading
12:15 Close the space

Everyone is invited to participate. Come when you can and will. Free of charge.

We intend to stay as close to time as possible.

Introductory sessions
Thursday, Sept 21 (the six basic exercises) Friday, Sept 22 (how we practice)

Concentration/Clear Thinking

September 25 – October 20

Focused Willing

October 23 – November 17 (no meetings week of Nov 20)

Equanimity

November 27 – December 22

~ Break for Holy Days ~ Positivity

January 8 – February 2, 2024

Open-Mindedness

February 5 – March 1

Harmony

March 4 – March 29, 2024
This is a practice group AND a research group.

Our resource page: https://padlet.com/angelaARC/6BEof2023and24

Why we journal: You are encouraged to bring a journal to make notes and keep track of your progress. We acknowledge that as students on the path we can become spiritual researchers. Our daily practice and our own biographies can become research when we are conscious of what we are working towards. When we write notes in our journals, we bring more focused will to our practice.

Co-creating the space: The intention is that we all co-create the container, with each other and the spiritual world. We need each other to participate so that our vessel will grow and evolve. All participants are invited to bring in a leading or closing thought. We have an online signup sheet and anyone can take a turn! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/508054DAFA72AAA8-6bepractice1

Short & Sweet: By keeping the entire call to only 15 minutes, we hope to make it accessible to everyone in the middle of daily life. Bringing leading thoughts that are limited to 5 minutes, allows us to hone “what is essential” and trust that valuable lessons can be revealed through rhythm and time.

Time: weekdays 12:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

PLEASE MUTE YOURSELF UPON ENTERING

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/266986103?pwd=bXU4a0EvMmJkMDZTR0Rqcm0xZ0pUZz09

Meeting ID: 266 986 103 Passcode: 345338. One tap mobile: +13126266799,,266986103#,,,,,,0#,,345338# US (Chicago)

+16465588656,,266986103#,,,,,,0#,,345338# US (New York)

Practical Meditation for Everyday Use

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An Online Workshop introducing three simple techniques rooted in anthroposophy for practical applications.

Friday, July 14 · 12 noon – 2:30 pm PDT

  • First, we will work with the Planetary Parliament to create a safe, collaborative space. Using the planets as guides, we will work together to ensure that we stay within our time constraints, that everyone feels safe to ask questions and share, and that all the logistical functions of a meeting are carried by the group as a whole. The purpose of using this is to show you how one person does not have to hold all these functions to run a meeting, the group can work together harmoniously to do this.
  • We will then work through a guided meditation, Logic of the Heart. This meditation is extremely effective for balancing sensory discomfort, overwhelm, sticky emotions, and obsessive thoughts. You don’t have to name your sensation or feeling or thought, and you don’t have to share or know what the circumstances are that led to your sensation or feeling or thought. This meditation utilizes multi-sensory imagination to work with the underlying soul substances of sensations, thoughts, or feelings. The purpose of doing this meditation is to give you a tool that you can use to come to a state of inner peace.
  • Once we have this tool to come to a place of inner peace, we will dive into kinesiology testing. This is a method of connecting to spiritual beings or cosmic energy to make decisions in harmony with the world we live in. You can use any spiritual school for working with these beings or energy forms, all are welcome. If you’re more comfortable thinking about cosmic energy, that also works and is welcome. The purpose of learning kinesiology testing is to give you a tool for making decisions in collaboration with the spiritual influences that we usually ignore but which have a large impact on our lives, whether we’re conscious of that or not.

I began using kinesiology testing when I was a toddler, but I’d noticed that when I was emotionally distressed, I wasn’t open to understanding the information I was receiving. This is why I’m including Logic of the Heart first because that meditation allows you to be open to deeply hearing the spiritual beings or cosmic energy that you’ve connected to. Sometimes they don’t tell you what you want to hear, and having Logic of the Heart as a practice in your toolbox means you have a concrete method for separating from your emotional or intellectual reactions so you can make a decision from a neutral empathic place.

About the Instructor:

Arianna Golden grew up in an anthroposophical household and went to the East Bay Waldorf School from 1995-2004. She has degrees in Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering, which only began to be useful after she figured out she had autism in 2019. The spiritual and meditation techniques that she teaches have transformed her life in very deep ways and she hopes to share the usefulness of these methods with those who choose to learn from her.

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Bay Area Center for Waldorf Teacher Training Upcoming Events

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Healing Through Art Online Taster Day – April 29, 2023 (9am-1:15pm) – Please join us for one or more of our online Taster Days if you are interested in enrolling in the new cohort of the Healing Through Art program. These online classes will allow you to experience our way of working and our approach to artistic therapies. Click this link to learn more and to register.

Visiting Day – May 13, 2023 (10am-1pm) – Interested in learning more about becoming a Waldorf teacher? Join the BACWTT faculty for an introduction to our Teacher Training and Foundation Studies Programs. This is a free, in-person event but registration is required. Click this link to learn more and to register.

Your Star Child – May 10, 17, 24 & 31, 2023 (10am-11:30am) – Inspirations from Anthroposophy for Expectant Parents – Learn how to gently welcome your child into the world as a spiritual being, both before birth and in the first months of life. Click this link to learn more and to register.

Healing Through Singing­­­­ – June 16-18, 2023 (times vary by date) – With Christiaan Boele and Kate Hammond. This workshop is for anyone seeking to deepen their relationship to the restorative power of tone and sound, and to connecting more closely with the healing, life-giving power of the breath and singing. No prior experience with singing needed! Click this link to learn more and to register.

Early Childhood Teacher Rejuvenation – June 19-23, 2023 (8am-4pm) – With Diane David, Kate Hammond, Anna Rainville, Christiaan Boele, Andrea Pronto, Nancy Mellon, Sibylle Eichstaedt, and Renate Lundberg. Come join Early Childhood educators for a week of exploring the mystery of the child through the unique perspective of Waldorf education and its practical applications. There will be time for small group conversations for teachers in Birth to Three, Nursery and Kindergarten. Click this link to learn more and to register.

Teacher Rejuvenation Grades 1-5 – June 19-23, 2023 (8am-4:30pm) & Grades 6-8 – June 26-30, 2023 (8am-4:30pm) – Join our summer program to remember why you love this work, to nourish yourself, and to collaborate with your colleagues in creating a learning environment filled with vigor, warmth, and enthusiasm for today’s children! This year, we are very happy to have Nancy Mellon with us for both weeks, along with the BACWTT grades track faculty, and summer arts faculty. Click this link to learn more about both weeks and to register.

Who is This Child? Child Study Workshop – June 26-28, 2023 (8am-4pm) – With Diane David, Kate Hammond, Kristine Deason, Nancy Mellon, and Christiaan Boele. Join us in exploring how to prepare ourselves as teachers to carry out the sacred work of truly seeing and supporting the child in accordance with their life purpose, and working within what Waldorf education has to offer. Click this link to learn more and to register.

Enlivening Our Speech, Enlivening Ourselves – July 1, 2023 (9am-4pm) – Creative Speech Workshop with Sibylle Eichstaedt. This one-day speech intensive is for teachers and recent teacher training graduates who wish to deepen their understanding and practice of Rudolf Steiner’s speech impulse. Click this link to learn more and to register.

A Mystery Drama Evening

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March Branch Meeting
Tuesday, March 21, 7:00 PM at Paloma Hall

A Mystery Drama Evening

presented by
Coleman Lyles

The ultimate Mystery Drama is life itself. In this regard every branch meeting is a scene from an ongoing play conceived before we were born. This reality, arising out of the karmic ground of previous earth existence, finds artistic expression in Rudolf Steiner’s four Mystery Dramas written between 1910-1914.


The first Goetheanum which was destroyed by fire a hundred years ago was conceived and designed for the production of these plays. Therefore, it is fitting in this centennial year to turn to them. In doing so we tap into an inexhaustible source of inspiration, insight and intrigue.

Although set in Middle Europe in the early 20 th century these plays are essentially universal in their portrayal of human archetypes, and, literally, timeless as they move back and forth through the centuries. So, let’s come together in our next monthly mystery drama Branch meeting for an artistic evening with the Mystery Dramas!

Requested Donation: $20 or $10 for paid-up branch members.
No one turned away.

Paloma Hall • 3920 Fairway Drive, Soquel California

Susan Cook, David Eyes, Douglas Wylie
The Core Group
Santa Cruz & Monterey Bay Anthroposophical Society
a branch of 
The Anthroposophical Society in America
coregroup@anthroposophysantacruz.com

Mystery Drama weekend reminder

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Please note that this weekend events are at the SFWS Grade School location

2938 Washington Street (between Broderick and Divisadero), allow time for parking and arrival

The Mystery Dramas by Rudolf Steiner

A case study of Lucifer and Ahriman in human biography

Evening presentation and workshop with Marke Levene

Friday March 3, 7.30 pm Lecture

@SFWS Campus, 2938 Washington St.

An introductory evening lecture and Saturday workshop for deepening an understanding of Rudolf Steiner’s Mystery Dramas.

Marke Levene is a co-founder of Portal Productions and has been connected to the production and performance of the four Mystery Dramas in the english speaking world.

This lecture and workshop is intended for people with interest in anthroposophy, who wish to get to know and deepen their understanding of the plot and character of the Mystery Dramas first published and performed in german and available in a variety of english translations.

Marke will introduce the characters of the play and the underlying questions explored in the plot guiding us to an understanding of the relevance of the plays in our present age.

This lecture and workshop is co-sponsored by AnthroposophyBayArea.org and the Wednesday evening study group and we hope to welcome many interested people to this wonderful opportunity. The event is free and open. Donations are welcome.

Kindly contact Monika Leitz at skyleitz@gmail.com with questions and registering your interest for attending the Saturday, March 4 workshop from 10-4 pm.

Mystery Drama

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-a reminder-

The Mystery Dramas by Rudolf Steiner
A case study of Lucifer and Ahriman in human biography
 
Evening presentation and workshop with Marke Levene
 
Friday March 3, 7.30 pm Lecture
@SFWS Campus, 2938 Washington St.
 
An introductory evening lecture and Saturday workshop for deepening an understanding of Rudolf Steiner’s Mystery Dramas.
Marke Levene is a co-founder of Portal Productions and has been connected to the production and performance of the four Mystery Dramas in the english speaking world.
This lecture and workshop is intended for people with interest in anthroposophy, who wish to get to know and deepen their understanding of the plot and character of the Mystery Dramas first published and performed in german and available in a variety of english translations.
Marke will introduce the characters of the play and the underlying questions explored in the plot guiding us to an understanding of the relevance of the plays in our present age.
This lecture and workshop is co-sponsored by AnthroposophyBayArea.org and the Wednesday evening study group and we hope to welcome many interested people to this wonderful opportunity. The event is free and open. Donations are welcome.
Kindly contact Monika Leitz at skyleitz@gmail.com with questions and registering your interest for attending the Saturday, March 4 workshop from 10-4 pm.

Waldorf Education in Kenya and California

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Please join us for our February Branch event welcoming Victor Mwai, the Pedagogical Director at the Santa Cruz Waldorf School.

Victor will share his insights and experiences with Waldorf education across the broad scope of his involvement with Waldorf Education within diverse cultures and geographies.

Victor has been involved in educational leadership and teaching for 28 years. He helped to found and lead the East Africa Association of Waldorf Schools for 13 years and served as a member of the International Forum for Waldorf Education for 8 years. Victor was also among the 24 people who signed the founding Memorandum of Understanding of the International Network “Emergency Pedagogy without Borders”. He was also selected as one of the speakers during the celebration of 100 years of Waldorf schools held at the Tempodrom Berlin, and played a leading role in the documentary Waldorf 100.

Victor is a big believer in teamwork and collaboration. He is inspired daily by his wife and daughter, who is a student at the Santa Cruz Waldorf School. In his free time, Victor likes to hike, play chess and listen to music.

Requested Donation is $20, $10 for current branch members
Susan Cook, David Eyes, Douglas Wylie
The Core Group
Santa Cruz & Monterey Bay Anthroposophical Society
a branch of
The Anthroposophical Society in America
coregroup@anthroposophysantacruz.com

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Mystery Drama Lecture

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The Mystery Dramas by Rudolf Steiner

A case study of the presence of Lucifer and Ahriman in human biography

Evening presentation and workshop with Marke Levene

Friday March 3, 7.30 pm Lecture

@SFWS Campus, 2938 Washington St.

An introductory evening lecture and Saturday workshop for deepening an understanding of Rudolf Steiner’s Mystery Dramas.

Marke Levene is a co-founder of Portal Productions and has been connected to the production and performance of the four Mystery Dramas in the english speaking world.

This lecture and workshop is intended for people with an interest in anthroposophy, who wish to get to know or deepen their understanding of the plot and character of the Mystery Dramas first published and performed in german and available in a variety of english translations.

Marke will introduce the characters of the play and the underlying questions explored through the dramas guiding us to an understanding of the relevance of the plays in our present age.

This lecture and workshop is co-sponsored by AnthroposophyBayArea.org and the Wednesday evening study group. We hope to welcome many interested people to this wonderful opportunity. The event is free and open. Donations are welcome.

Kindly contact Monika Leitz at skyleitz@gmail.com with questions and registering your interest for attending the Saturday, March 4 workshop from 10-4 pm.

Upcoming Events for The Bay Area Center for Waldorf Teacher Training

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February 4th (10am-1pm) – Visiting Day – Interested in learning more about becoming a Waldorf teacher? Join the BACWTT faculty for an introduction to our Teacher Training and Foundation Studies Programs. This is a free, in-person event but registration is required. Click this link to learn more and to register.

February 11th & April 29th (9am-1:15pm) – Healing Through Art Online Taster Day – Please join us for one or more of our online Taster Days if you are interested in enrolling in the new cohort of the Healing Through Art program. These online classes will allow you to experience our way of working and our approach to artistic therapies. Click this link to learn more and to register.

February 15th & March 15th (6pm-7:30pm) – Healing Through Art: Art History – Join BACWTT Director, Ken Smith, in conversation on how Rudolf Steiner contributed a practice of looking at art as a way to enter into the inner world of our ancestors. This is an online event. Click on this link to learn more and to register.

February 22nd-24th (9am-3pm) – Northern California Waldorf Teachers Conference 2023 – Restorative Practices: Wellsprings of Wellbeing for Waldorf Teachers with Keynote Speaker Elan Leibner. Attendees may participate either online via Zoom or in-person at Marin Waldorf School. Click on this link for more information including the daily schedule and workshop offerings, or to register.

New Nightingale, New Rose

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A benefit concert @ White Feather Ranch Saturday January 28 in Placerville

Velsum presents: 
‘New Nightingale, New Rose’

A Benefit Concert to support Nancy Jewel Poer
and the amazing community events at White Feather Ranch

Saturday, January 28th, 2023, at 2 pm PT
In the Peace Garden at White Feather Ranch, Placerville, CA

~ All Ages
~ All Love Donations Appreciated

Come join Velsum’s for their West Coast Debut!
 
Dress in warm clothes for a hearty heart-filled afternoon of music and celebration.
We will have an outdoor fire. If it is too chilly we can meet in the Ranch House.
Pack your own picnic lunch or dinner.
 
Can’t make the concert? You can still Donate to 
White Feather Publishing 

RSVP to receive directions to White Feather Ranch hazel@reverseritual.com

‘Velsum‘ is a musical initiative formed through Lucien Dante Lazar and Ultra-Violet Archer. Celebrating harmony, rhythm, prayer, and the human voice, Velsum’s songs are inspired to develop our human capacity for Love and Logic. Each song is permeated with a sincere interest in the other, the self, the world, and the cosmos. Velsum’s music is a product of listening – we hope that by listening to these songs, you feel heard!
 
Lucien and Ultra met as children at the Chicago Waldorf School, and became friends and collaborators as young adults. They now write, record and perform original music through the initiative Velsum. They debuted the show ‘New Nightingale, New Rose’ last winter at Angelic Organics Farm, and have performed it throughout the Midwest. Through weaving harmonies, poetic recitations, and movement, ‘New Nightingale, New Rose’ invites the audience on a quest for love and wisdom.  A joyful experience awaits young and old! 

Here is a short video clip of Velsum,
and here you can find their link to all links! https://linktr.ee/velsum
 
Ultra-Violet Archer – (b. Chicago, IL, 1999) is a songwriter and music producer, exploring music as a tool for healing and storytelling. After studying at Oberlin College & Conservatory and spending a year in Järna, Sweden, at the International Youth initiative Program, she currently studies music at Columbia College Chicago. She strives to make music that invites people to honor the parts of themselves they feel but can’t yet put into words. https://linktr.ee/UltraVioletArcher

Lucien Dante Lazar (b. Chicago, IL, 1994) is an interdisciplinary artist whose praxis is founded in the intersections of art, science, and spirituality. He received his BA from Bard College (2016), his MFA from California College of the Arts (2020), and is currently working on his PhD in the Philosophy, Cosmology and Consciousness program at California Institute of Integral Studies. His dissertation will concern the pedagogy of spiritual development through the diversity of the arts.

The Portal of Initiation

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The Portal of Initiation

A reading group has formed to share the first Mystery Drama by Rudolf Steiner. Come and join into this endeavor.

The cycle of four Mystery Dramas will be performed summer 2023 in Dornach, Switzerland at the Goetheanum. There is a worldwide initiative to read the plays in as many languages and settings as possible to prepare the ground in support for this event.

It is not too late to join! We are having great fun reading in parts and pondering the questions and mysteries of these plays together.

Our regular time is Wednesdays from 7.30 to 9 pm. (For those who wish there is a light potluck supper from 6.30 onward)

Please contact our host James Nunemacher, jn@vanguardsf.com if you would like more information and address. Or contact skyleitz@gmail.com