Rootless and homeless, I wandered through London waiting for guidance. I met an old Druidic friend and he suggested I visit a couple of magical people he knew who lived in Cornwall. They had just built a stone circle on their land and were sure to put me onto the right track.

Guidance! I hitched down to Penzance the next day, arriving after dark. I followed my friend's directions and walked the five or so miles to their house. I felt very nervous about knocking on the door of people I had never met before and having to beg their hospitality. According to the instructions given to me I found the house, old and deserted, and resigned myself to spending a cold and damp night in the only covered space available which was the woodshed. On an impulse I knocked on the door of a modern house opposite, lights ablaze and cheerful, to ask where the people I wanted to visit were.

That one was the right house! I explained the purpose of my visit and after a moment's hesitation, the owner of the house, Peter, invited me in. Over supper I related my story: I was looking for a suitable base of operations in order to work with the crystals, a magical environment, good people to share space with, and freedom to be myself. Not much, really!

While I was there I spent most of my time with Alan's wife Sue, as he was preoccupied with the publication of his book The Fruits of the Moon Tree. Sue was a talented artist, an ardent exponent of the power of woman and a lover of the Earth. We talked, laughed and enjoyed time together. Some pictures have remained fresh in my memory from my time at Alan and Sue's:

I am alone in the early morning, sitting in the stone circle and being warmed by the young sun. Sounds of awakening life in the surrounding countryside, busy, vital. Cleaning a crystal for each of the eighteen large stones in a small cheerful stream nearby, singing. Two concentric circles of large white boulders stand regally to my left, reflecting the sun brightly. I feel the stones, and sense each one's bewilderment at its removal from the field behind, and being repositioned in mandala form together with new brothers and sisters.

I experience a knowing that in time the confusion will dissolve and a growing teamwork with the other stones will emerge. I sense an increasing harmony with the environment and the human beings who love and work with them. A possibility of being an important sacred space in the network around the land, if worked with often, and correctly. And yet there is a gnawing doubt. What is really going on here? I don't feel that the atmosphere is very conducive for true teamwork. Not yet, anyway.

Sue appears, wearing a simple ceremonial costume and carrying a wooden box. We sit together in the silence of morning, irradiated by Brother Sun and supported by Sister Earth. The box opens, revealing a beautiful Native American pipe, decorated lovingly with carvings, beads and feathers. The world holds its breath as one of the oldest and most sacred of ceremonies is enacted amongst the stones while Spirit witnesses. We pray for the healing of the Earth, the completion of tasks given, and guidance. During one of the stages of the ceremony, the space darkens above us, It is filled with wheeling, crying, spiralling Winged Ones who dance with us awhile. They sing joyfully that we have been heard, and fly off into the eight directions to deliver our prayers.

And later, in the kitchen making a cup of tea: Sue comes into the room, wild eyed, features twisted, hands clawing the space in front of her, her long nails pointing menacingly at me. I can feel her energy very strongly and, under different circumstances, would have been overcome by terror.

Protected and clear, I actually enjoy this experience. It represents a compartment in my consciousness that is a place for dark fears, and it is as if I have an opportunity to exorcise it, or partly, anyhow. I observe as she exudes a wild, sensual serpent energy and assumes a mask I know she plays with often: the nasty evil witch. With a whining, croaky voice she dances a sinewy oppressive dance and waves her pointed, clawed fingers at me. I am cornered by the oven.

"You are too strong," she rasps."Become weak. Learn to limp!"

For a few minutes this performance is enacted, the evil sorceress stalking and attacking her recalcitrant prey who keeps on bursting out laughing. To this day I don't really know what it was all for, maybe there needs be no reason. Soon the scenario dissolves from whence it came and with a smile we enjoy a cup of tea together. It still remains one of the more memorable experiences of my life, and it has remained with me clearly to this day.

It soon became obvious that their space was not suitable as a base for my operations, and after a couple of very pleasant days I readied myself to continue the quest.

Before I left, they told me that I had to visit a friend of theirs called Carol who lived in Ashburton, a small town on the outskirts of Dartmoor. Gifted with the next thread to follow and unravel in the Crystal Journey, I left them with my good wishes and heartfelt gratitude.

I sat nervously, drinking my third cup of coffee in a cafe in Ashburton. Again I had to take the plunge and knock on an unknown door. Oh shit. It petrified me, the mere thought of introducing myself to someone I didn't know, hoping they would accept me into their space and... well, Great Spirit must decide what came next. Oh well. I looked at the address again and reckoned the house was somewhere on the opposite side of the street. I felt very uncomfortable, and tried to find the energy to get up and do it, to get it over with. I saw two women running playfully along the opposite pavement, and immediately recognised Carol although I had never met her before.

With trepidation I knocked at the number I had been given, and, sure enough, the woman I had recognised earlier on the street opened the door. She invited me into the kitchen, and over a cup of tea I hesitatingly explained my visit. She was naturally suspicious and reluctant to open herself to a stranger in her own protected space. She reminded me of a she-bear in her cave, fiercely protective of her cubs, yet forced both by circumstance and an innate curiosity to invite a strange, large male bear inside. My certainty gave me the strength to persist in my story and soon I could tell that she was hooked. Eventually she was bubbling with excitement as the Crystal Journey and all its ramifications unfolded, and we fired each other's dreams like children with new treasures to share and play with. I knew I had found the right place, the right person, and the right circumstances at last.

Carol is a woman who loves the Earth. Many people speak of their love of this wonderful Being, or dream about it: she lives it. In the same way she is also dedicated to the spirit of Woman and the feminine, and is committed to Her re-empowerment. To many people, the spirit of the Earth, and of Woman are ultimately the same. I recognised Carol as someone who knew, and who lived her knowledge. My first impression of her was of a full woman, solid and all embracing like the Earth itself, yet dancing with an unusual lightness of spirit.

We spent hours discovering each other and sharing our feelings about our planet on that first meeting. Ideas and feelings tumbled out between us, falling over themselves and merging like mountain streams gushing and breaking over rocks in our eagerness to cover ground and make contact.

Crystals and stones littered the kitchen table, maps were strewn everywhere and underlying it all our new task made itself known: we were together to love, to work with, and to help heal the Earth.

At that pivotal meeting, I knew that my internal guidance system had been true: I had found both my base and working partner for the duration of the Crystal Journey and I gave thanks. Shocked at the perfection and speed of the workings of Great Spirit, all I could do was accept this gift, honour it and determine to use it well.

From that decisive afternoon Carol's space was my home and base. When I had completely moved in, I spent time quietly collecting my thoughts and making a plan to shape my life around the crystal journey. What I needed was a strategy, and soon it became clear what I had to do.

First of all, I needed to research the properties and whereabouts of the sacred sites in these islands. I knew that the crystals were meant to be planted at these special places, but why, and what were sacred sites anyway? This information was to be found in libraries, books and from people in the know. Carol had a good selection of relevant books, and so did many of her friends. I determined to spend as long as it took to understand, and to compile comprehensive lists of these powerful places in order to be able to undertake my task as well as I was able.

In addition, I decided to visit the nearest main library and study the ordnance survey maps of each area, transposing the relevant sacred sites onto my own personal travelling map. As my master map filled up, I could then plan 'crystal routes' across the country. I decided to divide the British Isles into regions and visit each one methodically, spending however long was necessary in each area.

I knew that I had to study the realms of earth energies, or Geomancy as it is known, and try to get clear about its basic principles before I started to work seriously with them. I also needed to spend time at sacred places, and to allow them to speak to me 'in the field'. I already enjoyed a good working relationship with sacred stones and with Nature as a whole, and I knew that the bottom-line aspect of this whole journey was basically common sense, and guidance. I had to make sure that I was open, clear, able to attain the Silence, and be ready to receive instructions at all times.

I was particularly determined to work with these sacred places in a 'real' way. Although I needed to acquire information and ideas from others, from books and the experiences of those practicing Geomancy, I knew that at all costs I needed to acquire my own knowledge and experience as soon as possible. In order to fulfil the task given me I had to "know" with all certainty what I was doing was right. This would only come from my own feelings, coupled with skill and eventual mastery of my new craft.

I had all the support I needed to fulfil my task: I had found my base, and the welfare state would provide my simple needs. I had no problem about accepting support from the government. I knew I was working full time on a project which would have far-reaching effects on this beautiful land, and I needed to be able to devote all my time towards it. My workings would never be recognised as a respectable occupation by those in temporal authority, although I had fantasies about applying for a grant from the government along the lines of healing the spirit of the land. I never tried it, but I sometimes wonder what would have happened if I had!

I knew that I was under guidance and I had total trust both in the Journey and in the way it was unfolding. I truly felt that I had everything I needed for the completion of my task, and I relaxed into the natural flow of my new life. Confidence and a sense of certainty were my constant companions. This was a new experience for me and a constant source of wonder. Something had changed for me on a very deep level.

For the first time ever, I felt focused on my life's purpose and this state of affairs remained until the last crystal found its home years later. I felt completely empowered in matters concerning my task, yet would ask for help and guidance from any available and appropriate source when needed. In magical terms, my will had been activated fully for the first time and I was committed to complete my task to the best of my ability. Conversely, I shuddered to think of the consequences if I should fail.

This was a project-and-a-half! I knew that, despite the occasional megalomaniac fantasy, I had to operate invisibly and with stealth in order to create as few waves and repercussions as possible. Although I trusted the Earth implicitly, human beings were an entirely different matter. Many people are working with the Earth in diverse ways, ranging from the gentle intuitive approach to some very heavy obsessional methods, and I wanted to attract no unwelcome attention.

In this vein, I was also aware that people with a strong relationship to an area have a deep intuitive contact with it. I knew I would be entering many such 'worked' spaces for my own purposes, and did not want to have to deal with any over-possessive landowners or angry sorcerers tipped off by my clumsiness.

I made my preparations, researched diligently, and waited. This was definitely a waiting game, and I kept myself ready for instructions that could come at any time. The next crystal found its home in Carol's garden under an apple tree. Her house was opposite an old church which attracted many Earth energy beams or leys through it, and a crystal also found its home there. I had arrived, and was trucking!

While I waited, I got clear about my beliefs about what I was doing, and why.

I see the planet Earth spinning majestically through the heavens, mostly bright blue with areas of white, brown and green on her surface. An intense deep blue aura envelopes her with healing, evolving lifetides. Inside her I see blackness, the absence of light, until I move towards her centre.

As I glide through her body in my imagination, it becomes hotter and hotter and the rocks start to glow. Further in, the heat becomes intense, and the brightness climbs through reds, golds, whites, blues, and eventually to a transparent, blinding crystalline radiance. This is her crystal heart which is intimately connected through space and time to her sister planets across the universe, with which she shares a common destiny. This heart is also her connection to the stars, for our magical planet is actually a star that, due to her size and the conditions at her birth, didn't fully ignite.

This miracle of existence is no accident. Seen from an intuitive and 'hands on' perspective, it is plain to me that the Earth is an intelligent, sentient Being who is vital and alive in her own right. All that lives over, on and inside her is an integral part of her Being as are organs, bones and individual cells in the human body. Balanced in her motion around the sun in the optimum position for life, she dances with her siblings, the planets, around their great parent. The sun in turn revolves around a central star which some say is Alcyone in the Plaiedes, which in turn revolves around... Wheels within wheels, circles within circles, without end.

I call her 'she', as only a mother can provide such an unconditional and all-embracing, loving environment for her children, all living things, which are created from the substances of her body. Her body is in turn created from the bodies of exploding stars, her stellar ancestors which whisper their eternal stories of the dawn of existence itself through the vast reaches of the universe. Her offspring are given the optimum conditions for life, with fair climates, abundant food, fresh waters, sweet air to breathe, and are integral parts in the workings of her nature.

I recognise her not only as alive, but as having a personality and destiny of her own, understandable only in the context of the cosmic scheme of things. These matters I cannot hope to grasp with my intellect, yet I know that the collective experiences and evolutionary journey of the human race have an important role to play in the fruition of her destiny.

The human race has increased its knowledge of the material universe, the so-called 'apparent world', phenomenally during its brief span of existence on this planet. We are also technologically competent to implement changes which will improve the quality of life for all those at present incarnate on the Earth, and to prepare for all those who will come after.

Unfortunately this has not happened. In fact, so far we haven't done very well at all.

I also know that the answer lies within myself, and that I have the power to change the world.

I used to believe, and now know through my own observations and experience, that the problems outside myself will fade as I heal myself, for my perception of the outside world is a consequence of my individual energy level and state of awareness. I can only trust that, in turn, everyone else on this wonderful planet comes to their senses and decides to change. For the secret of a happy, healthy individual is directly proportional to the internal health of that person. Internal health, both physical and psychic, depends on our relationship with life, the sacred, and with our Selves.

I believe that the way we can contact the sacred in ourselves is by taking responsibility for our own lives. When we search for and then follow the individual star which illuminates our life's path, we will find our own answers, or enlightenment. When enough people do this, it becomes just a little easier for those following. Eventually a critical point will be reached, the 'hundredth monkey point', when the momentum created by all those incarnated self-realised beings is enough to change the balance of awareness on the entire planet. Everyone will then have the opportunity to experience the Truth, and the Life, in their lifetime.

This book shares the process of my own awakening. As I journey onward on my path, the sacred, manifesting through omens, situations and people, appears in increasing amounts in my life. As I experience my internal unfolding it is by no means always pleasant. I face my fears and suffering like every other human being. I have, however, a great gift which helps me carry on in joy, without ceasing: I know that the purpose of my life is to realise, or to bring into being, my true Self. I know that I must find out who I am, and then find the ways to empower myself to be. As I heal my Self, so will I heal the planet, and all existences. For potentially I am Spirit, as are all Beings. This may seem very self-centred, yet if you look at how things are, most people are desperately trying to make, or are expecting, everyone else to change, and avoiding the issues themselves (it's all their fault). Also, if I free myself, I free you too. Everyone wins!

This process of self-realisation hinges on each individual finding their own particular guiding star. I call this process Adventure. Adventure is Spirit inviting an individual to step into the Unknown. One can be sure that whatever happens in the Unknown will be totally unexpected, and exactly what that individual needs to come alive in their own, special, unique way. Adventures are always like that.

One can acquire a worldly skill by intellectual understanding and lots of practice. To temper one's spirit and discover the secrets and treasures of Adventure, one needs to journey through uncharted land and contact one's Magical Child within. Adventures are tailored to fit each individual's perfect needs: if you ride with one, you are bound to reach your goal! This book is about adventures, how to recognise them, dance with them, and become transformed by them.

When this realisation first came to me, I would spend as little time as possible in the 'normal world', just enough to earn the money for my needs. I would then settle up my affairs, pack my rucksack, and travel to the lands and special places to which I had been guided. There I would pick up the reins of my spirit life, and push through old barriers to the next level of understanding. It is only relatively recently that I realised that there is no need for this artificial division. Wherever we are, whatever our circumstances, Spirit and its challenges are always present. Adventure is always there, however normal or formal the situation appears to be. The most important thing is to remember this. Eventually this remembering will become a natural, body awareness, and at that point we will be living fully with Spirit. But for now, before I go to sleep every night, I pray. The prayer always starts: "Dear Great Spirit, thank you for what has happened today. Please help me always to remember...."

I have also learnt that whatever I think, say or do has consequences. This is becoming more and more apparent in my life. It is getting increasingly difficult to sweep things under the carpet! I am taking increasing responsibility for what I create in this world. If I forget, it simply returns like a rabid boomerang and bonks me over the head. It is usually quite complicated to extricate ourselves from situations we set up, too, because we can never go back to how it originally was. Something is always created by our thoughts, words and actions!

As I take time to dream and receive my unfolding vision, or truth, I take on the spiritual obligation to actually embody it. The American Indians have a good expression for this: walking one's talk. Thinking and talking about one's dreams is useful to get clear about them, but not worth a toss unless one strives to change and actually embodies them. Walking them, acting them, being them into manifestation is not easy, but gives so much more meaning to life!

This is especially valid in the world of feelings. There is another expression that expresses so much: to stand in one's truth. To be in one's truth. If I walk my talk, then I must stand in my truth. Wow. How many of us do that? Most so-called primitive cultures of the world know that this practice is the only true way to live at one with nature and be fully in contact with the Divine. From the moment a child is born, it will be exposed to the truth in a loving and nurturing way. Is this taught in our kindergartens and primary schools? No way! And what does this expression mean anyway?

To stand in one's truth implies knowing oneself, standing firm in one's principles, and being proud of that person one calls one's Self. It suggests standing tall, constantly radiating oneself out for the eyes of all Beings, constantly. It means being ready and willing to express what one's truth is at any time, whatever the situation (even the nasty and uncomfortable bits!). I am what I am, and I love myself! I am a sacred Being and an emissary of Spirit. It is my gift to you, and to the planet!

To stand in one's truth implies that one accepts that everything one feels, thinks, says or does has very real consequences, and that one takes responsibility for one's creations in everyday life. Dependant on our mood, state of health, energy, wealth, or whim, so will our truth tend to be. This is the human condition. That truth will create a vibration which will bring into existence whatever resonates with it. What a responsibility that is! We are creators every instant of our lives whether we like it or not. That poses more questions: how do our creations affect the world we live in? Are they true children of our spirits, and are we proud of them?

Another gem, for those who want to explore further: we are creating the world we live in every second of the day by constantly describing it in our thoughts. If it were possible to let go of our thoughts for a short while, a more magical and vital reality would begin to manifest.

How did the Crystal Journey fit into all of this? Well, committing myself to the Adventure had landed three instructions into my lap. At that time I could only remember one, but there were two others. Despite forgetting what they were, they still affected me at the deepest levels and I started to act in unaccustomed ways. I had committed myself to complete and realise the Crystal Journey to the best of my ability, whatever happened. A commitment is a highly potent magical action, a statement of intent. It meant that my life would be inexorably connected with the crystals, for better or for worse, until completion, however long it took.

Spirit had manifested in my life. I thought I was to going to escape it all by leaving the world. Instead, I had been thrown back on myself, and had irrevocably committed myself to face and sort out all those things which are incomplete both in my life and on this planet. On reflection, I was not completely sure how it all had happened. I found that, if I didn't think about it, I was both sure and confident in my actions. I found that all there was to do was trust. And I did.

The first of the three instructions I received at Chandratal, the only one I could at that time remember, bade me plant the crystals at sacred places in the British Isles, and a certain smaller proportion around the world. Why? I would have performed my task on pure trust, yet being the person I was, I wanted some sort of explanation. Anyway, I suspected that a rudimentary understanding of these matters would help me in achieving my objective. I realised I had to research and understand a whole new field of study: one that bridged the perilous abyss between traditional science and the realms of 'energies' and the unknown.

Why quartz crystals, anyway? I learnt that quartz is composed of silicon dioxide, the most common material on the planet. In other forms, or levels of energy, silicon dioxide is granite, flint, agate, obsidian and sand. Quartz has a crystalline structure which means that, given the right conditions, it forms natural crystals. This particular type of crystal is six-sided, ideally with points on each end. Six carries an archetypal property of balance and union, and is associated with the heart.

All modern communication equipment uses quartz, for it has some extraordinary properties. It is not only transparent but crystal clear. It receives, stores and transmits information (telephone, radio, computers). A 'chip' of quartz of a certain dimension vibrates at the same frequency as a chip of identical dimensions (radio control, radio, etc).

It amplifies signals, and it converts energy into other forms. For instance, if you rub or knock two pieces of quartz together in the dark, they will both glow with an inner light. They will also release thousands of volts of electricity (electronic cigarette lighters that spark). Don't worry, the power is tiny and won't hurt! Quartz resolves energy into clear, stable frequencies, too. The scientists recognise quartz as a material of many extraordinary physical properties. How many more esoteric qualities in its make-up are still to be discovered?

During the time I have lived and worked with crystals, I have grown to love and respect them. I treat them as if they are an advanced life-form, only really needing the energy of humans to move themselves around the place. I usually let them get on with whatever they need to do without disturbing them too much, as I feel they are far more tuned in to the Divine Will than I am. Books which give exercises and 'methods of working' with crystals I usually give a miss, with the occasional exception. Bringing alive my personal crystal at Chandratal was one of these.

I am alert to their guidance which can come at any time, and often I find myself doing strange and wonderfully spontaneous things with them, much to the bemusement of whomever I find myself with!

Each person will experience crystals differently. When someone is chosen to work with them, the crystals will reveal themselves in their own time. If two people touch the same crystal, each one will usually receive a very different feeling or experience. One person will be bowled over with their encounter, another may be completely untouched, or even become violently anti-crystal. What is incredible is that both are right!

Every person will have their own unique way of working with crystals. Whoever is drawn to them must spend time with their new charges, and prepare themselves to receive guidance. This is not as horribly esoterically advanced as it at first sounds. It means, basically, that you need to do only what feels right. Trust yourself. Take risks, but don't go against your feelings. Go with the flow.

I had no doubt that the Himalayan crystals were programmed by Spirit to function in a predetermined way. When returned into the earth in one sacred space or another, I felt they would be 'activated' to influence the earth energies according to some evolutionary plan. As more and more crystals entered the Earth, a growing, glowing network would start to cover the land and eventually the planet. My job was to choose, or be guided to, each 'crystal home', and ensure that each of my charges found the optimum place from which to do its work. In this way the crystal network would as balanced and effective as humanly possible.

Very aware that the crystals were programmed in accordance with Spirit and trusting my intuition, I handled my charges with respect and in a conscious, positive way. If I felt out of harmony I would leave them well alone unless instructed differently.

The clay afterbirth still covered most of the crystals and I left them uncleaned. I felt that this would somehow protect them from unwelcome influences. When one was ready to be placed into the ground, I would clean its pointed end with saliva, wish it and the Earth well, and plant it. No complex ceremony, no big deal.

My task was to carry them as Crystal Bearer, wait until I was completely sure I had found a home for one or more of them, and do my job without fuss or distraction. I also made a conscious decision to give myself as much time as was needed, and not to make it a race to the finish. I trusted that I would be at the right place at the right time for each stage of the journey, and that the appropriate guidance would appear. I knew that any pressure to complete within a rigid time scale would ruin everything.

If the planet is a living, integrated Being in her own right, there must be channels that act as conduits for her life-force, eventually touching and nourishing every last cell of her body. I had an effective picture in my mind's eye of the acupuncture points on a human body connected by meridians and governed by the major chakras. I could see the same image in light surging across the planet's surface, glowing and pulsing in incandescent life. There in front of my eyes was the Earth, enveloped by a luminous aura, with light beams of varying intensity criss-crossing her surface. The intersections would be her acupuncture points, which varied from the faintest glow to pulsing little stars shining brilliantly through her energy body.

Each intersection or nodal point would correspond to a specific physical spot on her surface, identifiable by a feeling of heightened energy, or a sense that something special was going on there. These places I call 'sacred spaces', or 'power points', and depending on what sort of meridians they are on, they radiate a certain quality of energy, or atmosphere. One would find there maybe open land, a special tree, a crossroads, a stone circle, a well, a spring, a cathedral, a castle, a military base or even a prison.

As specific acupuncture points on a human body are stimulated to balance the organism and to allow vital energy to flow more efficiently, I likened the crystals to needles that would enter the earth's skin and cause changes in her flow of life-force. Again, when someone undergoes a course of acupuncture, the practitioner diagnoses a particular imbalance, plans the treatment, then stimulates certain points. Not every possible point on the body is manipulated, only those relevant for the return to health and harmony of the organism.

I felt like a magical child roaming the body of his Great Mother who was sick and in need of healing. At the same time I saw her as bursting with vital energy and waiting for the power points on her body to be stimulated by the tiny crystal points that would help her attain the next level of energy on her spiralling journey of evolution. I carried with me a collection of crystal acupuncture needles, and was doing my best to stay receptive to the whispered instructions of the Great Acupuncturist in the Sky. I would travel from one acupuncture point to another along her meridians, inserting them as it felt right.

There were journeys within journeys here. In addition to staying alert for guidance and finding the correct crystal homes, I would take this opportunity to get to know and explore the Earth, walk her paths of beauty, dance with her energy body and find out how it all works. What an adventure!

After some extensive research I was satisfied that I had all the background understanding I needed, and it was time to start in earnest. Theories and understandings aside, my task boiled down to remaining receptive to the whispers of Spirit, and following its guidance.

A couple of days after my arrival at Ashburton, Carol and I made our first trip together into Dartmoor. I have a long history with this magical area of the British Isles, and love it dearly. We drove through the winding lanes of those blessed moors, trees overhanging as if to stroke our passage through dark green natural tunnels. Myriad spirits of nature peered sedately from the rocks, trees and shadows around us. I greeted them silently, pleased they were out in force that day, and in that mood arrived at Newbridge, a narrow stone bridge spanning the river Dart.

I made ready to conduct my usual immersion ceremony at this ancient crossing point into the moor proper. It was a popular scenic spot but as it was a sunny day there were hoards of tourists milling about waving ice creams and video cameras. I reluctantly decided to go for my dip elsewhere, at a place with more privacy and stillness. I dropped a crystal from the bridge into the Dart before we left.

Soon afterwards, I was sitting in a clear pool under a small solitary waterfall a couple of miles further into the moor. I kicked my legs in the water, splashing and whooping like a child. Carol appreciated the view, sporting a slightly alarmed look on her face at a discreet distance. Rainbows scintillated noisily through the air, an expression of my happiness to have returned to one of my special nature homes again.

I greeted the spirit of the land, and whispered my hope and intent of deepening our relationship. The tumbling, sparkling water enclosed me in a bubble of sound and I felt deeply cleansed, ready to start afresh. I left another crystal behind the waterfall and we drove on. We journeyed past tors and valleys which I knew well, and had played amongst as a child. I inserted another crystal in a small stone circle on a hill overlooking the river Swincombe. We then visited a favourite haunt of my father's, the Forest Inn, and left a crystal under the celtic cross at the centre of the village called Hexworthy.

Then we arrived at Merrivale, one of the most impressive stone temples of Dartmoor. Two double stone avenues stand like frozen battle lines on a rocky plain between hills on three sides and a deep valley on the other. Each avenue is about one hundred and fifty yards long with a little tinkling stream running along the the northern one. Fifty yards away to the south is a small and enchanting stone circle. Fifty yards beyond that is an impressive needle-like standing stone pointing like an arrow towards the stars, reaching nine feet or so above the sheep-shorn grass. Within and around the complex are various interesting mounds and hollows, and half a mile away to the west is an active granite quarry.

Merrivale is Carol's power place on Dartmoor. It lies at a major convergence of energy pathways and is well known for inexplicable phenomena and extraordinary experiences. She comes there when drawn, and probably knows its moods and personalities as well as anyone. We spent a long time there, touching stones and wandering around the site in silence. On our way we left crystals in various spots, and I felt really happy with how things were unfolding.

That first trip of ours was bathed in simplicity and innocence. Both of us felt a little nervous with one another, self-conscious like two children who have just met. We slipped through shyness, to joy, to concentration and seriousness, back to shyness again, and it was wonderful! We were relieved, after a while, that the ways in which we worked seemed compatible, and I looked forward to exploring the Earth with her in increasing depth. On the way home, tired and satisfied, we were both aware that something important was happening.

The next day I bought a large scale Ordnance Survey map of the Dartmoor area, and having studied it awhile, decided to plot all of the spots on the land that had received crystals. With a sense of excitement and history in the making, I marked a dot with a small ring around it for every crystal planted. As I drew the last marker, I froze. I scrabbled about for something with a straight edge and eventually I found a long ruler.

Five out of the six sites that had received crystals on Dartmoor, the house at Ashburton, Newbridge, the waterfall, the stone circle and Merrivale all lay exactly on a straight line. The crystal under the cross at Hexworthy was about two hundred yards from the imaginary line, but as a friend of mine once irreverently stated, Christians are lousy shots, anyway!

I checked and rechecked to make sure there were no mistakes. Except for Hexworthy, each dot lay no further than a millimetre from the pencil line. I rechecked it again, then rushed downstairs to show Carol. To say we were excited was an understatement. We had discovered that magic was no longer a trick: the rabbit really did materialise in the magicians hat! After the dust had settled, and the realisation of what had happened sank in, we rather more soberly realised that something very special and not a little frightening was happening.

Our intent to help heal the planet was no longer a fantastic, hopeful dream. It had started: now it was for real.

On the day of the full moon I left Ashburton on a pilgrimage to my spiritual home in Britain, Glastonbury. Every time I return from journeying abroad, I visit this star on the landscape as soon as I can, and renew my contact with the magical spirit of the Summer Lands. The weather was foul and I soon became soaked under the lashing black clouds. Perversely, my spirits soared the closer I approached. Accompanied by my yew staff, I knew that I had an appointment on the Tor for sunset, and although it was already quite late I was confident of fulfilling my part.

An old lady in a mini gave me a lift from the motorway, and soon we were nattering away. I have a policy of telling the truth to whomever I meet on my travels, and soon she was fired by my enthusiasm and energy. Although it was out of her way, she offered to give me a lift to the base of the Tor to help me with my task.

There is a spot on the road, maybe ten miles from Glastonbury, where one drives up over a rise and sees the Tor for the first time. I eagerly await that first glimpse of the place I love, and as we crested the ridge it came into view like a huge nourishing breast. The sky had cleared over the plain and a bright rainbow arced out of the sacred hill into the heavens. I scared my companion out of her wits by whooping uncontrollably-luckily she had a sense of humour! The extraordinary spectacle affected her deeply, too.

The memory of that wonderful omen stays with me, another strand in the my magical dreamscape. It is yet another confirmation of my relationship with the land, the crystals, and with life itself. One's passion for life is always reciprocated. As the rainbow and the Tor flashed strobe-like through the tall hedge lining the road, I remembered the time when Nature first opened herself up like a velvety, scarlet rose, and became my lover.

I walk alone by the shores of my love, naked under the sun. The Earth supports and welcomes my passage over the soft, warm sand which envelopes and soothes my feet. I am a child, a lover, a warrior, a wise man celebrating life as it unfolds in the eternal moment that stretches unfettered in all directions. I am at the centre of a living paradise and my spirit thrills in a completeness that is the result of being filled to the brim with Life itself. My skin glows in communion with the sun. The desertscape surrounds me in warm golds, shot through with swirling, cooling azures and silver reflections.

Mirages ripple through the liquid air and connect Earth with Heaven, a continually open gateway between the worlds. Darkly bronzed, my body ripples and moves in the joy of total freedom. I perceive with both the innocence of a trusting child, and with the eagle eye of a warrior who moves and acts to the dictates of his innermost being.

I am the first and the last. I am alone except for my partner the Earth herself. She is all I desire, for she fulfils and satisfies the need of every particle of my being in her infinite moods and guises. Today I am full of natural power and I radiate overflowing joy in all directions. As I walk along the shoreline I spy a little protected bay and investigate. It pulls me and I respond. I dive into the gently rippling turquoise water which sparkles like molten electrum under the sun. The cool water shocks my system and tightens my skin until it feels taut like a drum. I vibrate with the rhythm of my overflowing heart.

At length I return to the shallows and lie on my back. The sun warms the upper part of my torso while the cool water plays over my lower body. I feel so alive, and I experience the Mother, now my Lover, envelop me with a liquid crystal embrace which softly strokes, caresses and soothes. All impressions save that of the moment dissolve into the past and future: I am enveloped in a timeless, rocking, rhythmical world of sensuousness and love.

I am fully relaxed, arms stretched out at my sides, open to receive the gifts that my lover has to offer. She is all around me, above and below, and gives every part of my body equal attention, stroking in swirls and vortices that play over my skin. She lingers, rushes, presses, sucks, tickles, rasps, glides and produces every possible variation of sensual sensation. I enter the bliss of belonging, fully loved by the universe. I am an empty being filled with the ecstasy of union with my Love the Divine.

I am hollow, empty. Sensations fill me in explosions of pleasure that erupt and fountain soundlessly within the shell once called Ivan. I am at present nameless, thoughtless, without identity, for the worlds of sensation that fill me are my only reality. I am alive, so alive: I rock gently to the pulse of the warm sea. My skin tightens with sensation and relaxed arousal. Every tiny area on its surface thrills with the sentient, caring, continual caress that is carrying me towards my final destiny.

My eyes are closed. My legs are open, my arms are open, my heart is open. My connection to Life Itself is open. My voluptuous lover holds me, embraces me, and her moon-moved currents bring me alive to my very core.

Little fires ignite inside me in different places and draw together, uniting and spreading like wildfire. A pressure, a swelling like ripening fruits fills me with a thousand sensual swirlings as the energy rises and the fires spread. I start to make gentle moaning sounds which merge with the sound of the waves and the whispering of displaced sand. I am pure pleasure and the breeze sighs with me. Through slitted eyelids I am aware of the sun-beings dancing and flickering all around me on the surface of the water.

An urgency fills me and there can be no stopping now. My whole being strains and vibrates at a greatly heightened level. I sob and feel my body spiral one way and then another as surges of sensation rush through me with almost unbearable intensity. All the time I am fully relaxed, a plaything of the Goddess within whom I am nourished and have my Being. My ecstasy grows in proportion to my trust. My limbs wave with the waves. I lie spreadeagled in her liquid essence, my skin burning and freezing at the same time, my soul spiralling ever higher towards the sun.

Then, in a gradual merging that has no beginning or ending, I unite with Her. At One. The fires of the Sun, of the Son, explode soundlessly from my Centre. Flaring, enveloping, incandescent, the bundle of ecstatic feelings once called Ivan unites with the Goddess in a silent scream of rapturous release. Timelessness. It lasts for hours, days, months. In interstellar spaces a new star is born which will be a beacon for all who strive for love and the manifestation of the Sacred. In a state of impossibly high vibration I dissolve and cease to exist. All there is is love.

My awareness returned, with difficulty, to the mission at hand. I thought of my relationship with Glastonbury and the SummerLands and was soon lost in a reverie. My first introduction to Glastonbury was at the tender age of nine when I entered boarding school. For four years I studied at Edgarley Hall, at the base of the Tor on the road leading out of town towards West Pennard and the next four years I spent at the senior school based in Street. The boarding students all lived in residential houses within a fifteen mile or so radius of the central school. Mine was Tor House, a horribly oppressive grey building, formerly a nunnery, which stood directly below the Tor.

Although I had grave problems at both the school and Tor House (some would say vice-versa), I loved the countryside. I explored it by bicycle and on foot, walking, climbing, fishing, hunting and climbing trees. For a lonely boy this beautiful landscape gave solace and joy. Rich in flora and fauna, trees and secret places, there was always something to discover, a new pathway to explore.

Perhaps my greatest gift from the spirit of Glastonbury was spending three years of my youth living in what are now the Chalice Well gardens. Chalice Well is one of the main active sacred sites in the British Isles and although Tor House was stern and ugly, it stood next to these hallowed, healing waters. The gardens and spring generate an aura of peace which reached into the house and soothed away my hurt. I was able to relax, cleanse and renew myself whenever things got too bad.

We had free access to the gardens, and I have precious memories of long summer evenings sitting by the swimming pool fed by the white healing spring, watching the stars brightening and glimmering through the dark overhanging yew trees. I believe that I bonded then with those otherworldly gardens and faery waters. The spirit of the spring stayed with me when I left, and accompanied me on my subsequent journeying around the world. Some time after I left, Tor House was thankfully demolished and the square of tarmac which was a drive and carpark lifted. Now all that remains is the tall grey wall which blocks out the noisy street traffic, a happy waterfall, butterfly-covered lavender bushes and a beautiful green lawn to relax upon.

After leaving school, my relationship with Glastonbury grew. I returned again and again, drawn by a yearning to renew contact with the place I had grown to love. My home while visiting Glastonbury was a barn on the side of the Tor, having received permission to stay there by the farmer who owned it. It was a perfect base for me, filled with soft hay and open on one side. It offered protection from the elements, a wonderful view during the day, and it allowed in the starlight at night. At that time I avoided people. The Silence that hovered over the land was strong, the nature there vibrant and exciting.

On the Tor one stormy afternoon I realised my true relationship with the Land.

I am standing alone on the Tor with the wind howling and pulling at my clothes. I revel in the fierce elemental dance of the moment, and lean unconsciously into the supporting airy currents. I become aware of a presence near to me. It stands to my right, a cowled figure in a dark, rusty coloured robe that I can see out of the corner of my eye. It disappears if I look directly at it. Then my body swivels of its own volition towards the West, and I look over the marshes towards the sea. A voice speaks to me from over my shoulder. It is gentle, clear, and imbued with the sort of authority one does not question.

"This is your kingdom", it states, "it waits for you: recognise and get to know it. Walk the land, love the land, take care of the land, and it will love and care for you. Remember always, for it is yours. Walk well".

As the voice fades, my back straightens, I feel like a king, and I hold my head tall. I survey my kingdom.

"YES!", I state with conviction.

From that time onwards I took my power and became an integral part of these wonderful, magical lands. No walls, fences or artificial barriers prevented me from travelling where I had to go. I had no fear of trespassing and felt completely protected. I had found my true home. The land recognised me, and I recognised the land. That was all there was to the matter.

I returned from my reverie as the car came to a halt by the top entrance to the Tor. Thanking my kind companion and guardian of passage, I extricated myself from the confines of the mini with considerable difficulty. I started to ascend. Over-energetic, I left the gentle spiral path and pounded directly up the steep slope; soon I was at the top. The world burst into view, and it was sublime. Remnants of the black cloud hung broken and scattered over the refreshed land like a defeated army. At the horizon, clear sky promised a wonderful sunset.

Suddenly, a feeling of panic swept over me, leaving me breathless and frantic. In my eagerness to get to the top of the Tor, I had forgotten all about the Chalice Well. It was due to close soon, and a crystal needed to be planted there, at sunset, on the day of the full moon! The sun was now in view underneath the clouds bathing the small group of people gathered on top of the hill in an orange glow. There were only a few minutes left.

Leaving my rucksack and staff on the ground, I hurled myself down the steep slippery pathway towards the Chalice Well. I arrived breathless to find it had closed for the night. Seeing a woman tidying up in the entrance kiosk, I begged her permission to enter for five minutes. Surprised yet accepting, she smiled and waved me in.

At the well itself I took out the crystal I had saved for the occasion, the most beautiful of those I had cleaned so far. It was a rainbow-filled cluster that told me without any doubt that it was destined for the Goddess of the red spring. I lifted the well cover which was shaped into the sacred geometrical shape known as the vesica piscis. With a prayer I let the crystal go. It entered the moss- and fern-lined shaft and glided to its resting place through the clear water.

Remaining a few seconds for decency's sake, I tore back out of the gardens and ran up the hill. I reached the tower just as the sun touched the Earth, a spiralling crimson fireball on its way to give life and hope to those lost in the underworld. I slipped a needle-shaped crystal into the earth near the ruined tower, and, expelling a sigh of relief mixed with release, I settled back to watch and enjoy.

I took in the scene. A small crowd had gathered to watch the sunset. As the orange-red star became absorbed into the earth a beautiful light-show took place over the horizon. I watched in silence as a dragon, glowing blood red, flew slowly north-south over the sea, regal and plain for all to see. Although I am often on the look-out for dragons after my experiences at Chandratal, they are a rare sight and on this evening my heart sang. I wanted to share my joy, and leant over the shoulder of a smartly dressed, middle-aged woman in front of me.

"Can you see the dragon on the horizon? Flying from right to left?", I said, pointing.

She looked, stiffened, and underwent quite a process. She saw it alright, and yet dragons don't exist! Quite a dilemma, but she was very courageous. In slow motion she turned back to me, her expression reflecting conflict between disbelief and the joy of dreams realised.

"Yes!" she whispered simply, her eyes suddenly glowing with inner fire. She turned back to drink in the sight while it lasted.