May, 2006
Spiritual Frontiers Fellowship
Raleigh, NC
Issue 209

M. Temple Richmond

Harry Potter:
Herald of theNew Age
You have read and enjoyed the Harry Potter books, but have you considered why they have achieved the incredible popularity that they have?
 

Once upon a time not too long ago, the New Age movement was thought by some to be more than a little wacky for its belief that mind and word create reality. Then something magical happened. Enter J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter, and more than 250 million readers worldwide who enthusiastically embraced the thoroughly metaphysical nature of the Potterian universe, in which thought, word, and intention translate into immediate results.

Suddenly the same important truths always advocated by New Age spirituality became the mindstuff of literally millions worldwide who had never previously given such matters a moment’s consideration. These Potter readers are not all of tender age. Sales figures suggest that roughly 43% of Potter readers worldwide are adult. This, the vocabulary, and the intricacy of the plot all serve to indicate that the Harry Potter novels are not exclusively children’s literature, but rather literature which speaks to adults, and now, a broad cultural phenomenon defined as the greatest publishing success of all time, far outstripping Shakespearean or any other literature in popularity.

What is more, the Harry Potter novels are filled with allusions to the many streams of world spirituality which make up the New Age Movement. Highly notable among these are the classical components of Western Esotericism – astrology, alchemy, tarot, Celtic myth, Grail and Arthurian Legendry. Each of these in its own way speaks of a paradigm well known to New Age seekers – one in which coincidence, symbols, dreams and subjective impressions reveal the world of meaning. This is the world of Potter, who leads the plot with his psychic impressions received in dreams and states of trance. Further, certain elements of the Arthurian Legends are written large in Potter – the Silver Stag, for instance – suggesting that little Leo Harry is a veiled symbol for the once and future king himself, prophesied to return when most needed, the agent of harmony and order. This together with the widespread acceptance of the Potter novels argues that a newly cloaked King Arthur has indeed returned, bringing with him a closer relation of the physical and spiritual dimensions, and that a mainstream paradigm shift has indeed arrived, tipping the consciousness of our planet ever more firmly toward the values of the New or Aquarian Age.

Professional astrologer M. Temple Richmond has been an enthusiast of the Harry Potter books since the late 90s and has written and lectured on the elements of New Age spirituality found therein for academic and metaphysical audiences. She is also the author of Sirius, a scholarly study of that star according to Egyptian religion, classical antiquity, and 20th century metaphysical writer Alice Bailey. Written at the same time as J.K. Rowling’s first Potter novel, Richmond’s Sirius can be used as a key to the hidden implications of the character Sirius Black, godfather to Harry Potter and animagus who morphs into dog or canine form, just as Sirius the star is Alpha Canis Major, the brightest star in the Greater Dog constellation. Richmond’s Sirius is distributed by New Leaf and can be found in New Age bookstores.

About M. Temple Richmond
Astrologer, Writer, Speaker
M. Temple Richmond is a professional astrologer, metaphysical writer, and motivational speaker. She has been involved in the New Age consciousness movement since the early 1970s, beginning her spiritual search with Eastern Philosophy in the form of Buddhism and Hinduism, Western Esotericism in the form of Hermetic Occultism, and twentieth century metaphysics via the works of Alice Bailey and the Tibetan Master, Djwhal Khul. She holds a B.A. degree in English from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and is a member of Phi Kappa Phi, an international academic honor society.

Temple currently resides in Raleigh, where she manages an astrological practice serving English-speaking and English-reading clients around the world. Recent clients have hailed from India, the United Arab Emirates, Portugal, Spain, England, Canada, U.S., and Peru. Temple corresponds with and instructs students in England, the Americas, Scotland, Finland, Nigeria, New Zealand, and Australia. In this capacity, she is the founder and moderator for two internet discussion sites devoted to the study of the Alice Bailey writings.

Temple offers a full range of astrological services for all persons and seekers of all spiritual paths, with specialties in:

· discernment of life purpose via the astrological birth chart
· identification of key time periods for the present incarnation
· adjustment to conditioning energies
· the esoteric astrology of Alice Bailey and the Tibetan, or the astrology of the individual seeker’s initiatory tests on the path to Planetary Hierarchy
· outer planet cycles as indicators of global trends
· financial astrology
· relocational astrology
· business timing astrology (called electional astrology)
· horary astrology (or the science of answering any question based on the time and place it is posed).

For further information or to schedule a personal reading, contact Temple at templerichmond@earthlink.net or (919) 676 – 1709.

Since becoming a professional astrologer in the early 1980s, Temple has presented lectures for numerous astrological organizations, including the American Federation of Astrologers, the National Council for Geocosmic Research, the Astrological Association of Northern Virginia, The Memphis Astrological Association, the Aquarian Astrologers of Kansas City, and the Network of Triangle Astrologers (Triangle, NC). She has also lectured on metaphysical topics from the work of Alice Bailey for the University of the Seven Rays, Meditation Mount (Ojai, CA), the former Center for World Servers of Asheville, NC, and in many other small group settings. A member of Mensa in the 80s and 90s, Temple edited a newsletter on financial astrology for the high IQ society and lectured on the mechanics of astrology for its regional membership convention. She is a specialist in long term outer planet cycles as they correlate to global financial trends, with accurate predictions made regarding key economic conditions in the 20th and 21st centuries.

Known to many as a scholar of the Alice Bailey works, Temple has presented papers in academic venues, interpreting New Age metaphysics to college and university instructors of religion and philosophy. She is the first to have presented a scholarly paper on the work of Alice Bailey and its roots in H.P. Blavatsky’s Theosophical teachings for the American Academy of Religion, the prestigious professional organization for college and university level instructors in religious studies and related fields (Boston, November 1999). She is also the first to articulate the New Age themes embedded in the Harry Potter novels of J.K. Rowling, as demonstrated in her paper entitled “Elements of New Age Spirituality in the Harry Potter Novels of J.K. Rowling,” which was published by several journals and heard by the Society for the Study of Metaphysical Religion (Tampa, 2003).

Temple has also frequently represented astrology, metaphysics, and the Bailey teachings in popular formats, including radio talk shows in Raleigh and Los Angeles. In the Triangle Area, Temple leads classes in positive thinking, goal achievement, and the science of manifestation. Unique among these are the New Moon Prosperity Gatherings, which combine astrological impetus with the power of thought to move the seeker more rapidly toward the accomplishment of intentions. Look for the NMPG in a new and larger venue soon.

Temple believes that all astrological influences are energies with which the individual can work to create a positive life expression. She believes that the same is true for the collective of Humanity, which has great creative potential to become a station of spiritual light energy for Earth, the solar system, and beyond.

Within this context, Temple feels that the current astrological age plays an important role. This is the Age of Aquarius, or the approximately 2000 year period during which the vernal equinox point (as seen from Earth) passes between the Earth and the constellation Aquarius. According to the Alice Bailey literature, this astronomical arrangement came into force in June of 1945, which date therefore signifies the onset of the New Age or the Age of Aquarius.

The resulting general Aquarian radiation affects all persons. This influence of higher light frequencies instills the energies of the Aquarian archetype within human consciousness. The general Aquarian radiation stimulates an awareness of the larger context within which human life occurs. It therefore cultivates heart- centered sensitivity and an intention to receive and distribute love. In this way, the Aquarian archetype activates a recognition that Divinity resides within all forms, times, and places. This archetype therefore represents a new paradigm in consciousness which requires that the individual think through great cosmic questions on his or her own, independently, with far less reliance upon theological authority, as was the case during the previous astrological age, or the Age of Pisces.

According to the Tibetan Master who spoke through Alice Bailey, the present Age of Aquarius represents a shift from the dominance of the Sixth Ray, or the ray of Devotion and Aspiration, to that of the Seventh Ray, or the Ray of Ceremonial Order and Group Endeavor. The conflict between the psychology of the outmoded Sixth Ray energies and that of the incoming Seventh Ray energies forms the basis of the major global conflicts of the day. Attunement of the individual to the Seventh Ray can therefore assist in the general planetary shift to a paradigm conditioned by this ray frequency, which inclines towards cooperative pursuit of the greatest good for all. Temple’s astrological readings, classes, and published writings are devoted to this objective.

In addition, Temple’s counseling work takes into account the many influences pouring into the consciousness and energy field of the individual seeker via his or her personal astrological situation. These influences include the seven ray energies, which flow through the constellations, signs, and planets to the individual life expression. All of these call the individual to develop a flexibility in responding to the energies of creation. Temple’s astrological guidance is designed to assist the individual in clearly perceiving what type of energy he or she is receiving at any given time, and to help in developing a strategy for implementing that energy in personal growth and spiritual service to the evolution of our planet.

Attunement to the higher star energies pouring into consciousness led Temple in the mid 1990s to conceptualize and write a 420 page scholarly treatment on the star Sirius and its spiritual influence as hinted in the Alice Bailey books. Entitled simply Sirius, Temple’s book has been embraced by the worldwide Alice Bailey community and is included on the booklist of Lucis Publishing in New York, the official headquarters of the Alice Bailey tradition. In its second edition, Sirius is currently distributed by New Leaf in Atlanta, Lucis Publishing in New York, Lucis Ltd. in London, and Sydney Goodwill of Australia.

Temple’s book demonstrates that there exist great cosmic chakras which function for the life of space just as do those in the human body for the individual. Of these great cosmic chakras, the star Sirius is said by the Alice Bailey writings to form a cosmic heart center. It is therefore a center of vastly expanded consciousness and of intuitive guidance. Temple’s book examines the correlates for these ideas in ancient Egyptian religion (which greatly revered Sirius), the classical mysteries of antiquity, and the deeply mysterious Masonic Tradition. It continues from there to explore the claims made regarding the influence of Sirius by the Tibetan Master who spoke through 20th century metaphysical writer Alice Bailey. These claims center around the initiatory process said by the Tibetan Master to be the ultimate destiny of all spiritual seekers who tread the Path with earnest desire to be instruments of the good.

These are the foundational ideas which stand behind Temple’s work with individuals and groups in astrological counseling, metaphysical instruction, and inspirational talks. From this perspective, Temple seeks to empower individuals to fulfill their uniquely destined roles within the emergence of the New Age civilization. In keeping with this, Temple has received guidance concerning the role to be played by the state of North Carolina and the Triangle Area. She shares this revelation in lectures and all day workshops entitled “The Secret Tradition of Raleigh,” which highlight the role of Sir Walter Raleigh in facilitating the transfer of initiatory and inspirational energy from Hierarchy and Baconian secret societies to the coast of what would become North Carolina.




For more information, please contact Temple Richmond at
templerichmond@earthlink.net or at (919) 676 – 1709.

 
 


 
Calendar of Events

June, 2006 - Lee Stone
Opening Your Psychic Ability
**********

July, 2006 - No Meeting
SFF Annual Break
**********
August, 2006
Psychic Fair
**********
September, 2006 - Diadra Price
Grace Awakening Essence
**********
 
 

 
 
Thursday,
May 4, 2006
 
Doors Open: 6:30 PM
Lecture: 7:15 - 9:30 PM
Cost: $10
Early Meditation: 6:30 PM
Cost: FREE
 
 
Our meetings are held in the lower level of the newly re-modeled and expanded
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Raleigh
at 3313 Wade Avenue in Raleigh.
 

Healing Meditation
with
Suzette Foster Anacetti
(See Below)

Time: 6:30 - 7:00 PM

Cost: Free

An open guided meditation will be held at 6:30 PM in the Ralph Waldo Emerson room (the upper building, lower level) at the UUFR

The lectures begins at 7:15 PM following the meditation. We look forward to seeing you!

 

 
This Month's Angel Door Prize
Sirius
by
M. Temple Richmond



Healing Meditation
with
Suzette Foster Anacetti
Time: 6:30 - 7:00 PM

Cost: Free

Come early for the Healing Meditation
Besides the wonderful opportunity to get centered and release stress individually, we will also start each month's meditation with a group intention for healing the Earth and her inhabitants. We will create a beautiful gridwork of Light and through guided meditation, Love will be directed in many directions for the highest good of all. Come experience the Wow! Acts of self-love and selfless acts of giving to others.

Gifted Energetic/Sound Healer, Spiritual Medium and Life Coach/Mentor Suzette Foster Anicetti will lead this meditation.


Gifted Energetic/Sound Healer, Spiritual
Medium and Life Coach/Mentor Suzette Foster Anicetti will lead this meditation.

You may learn more about Suzette and her work at her website www.suzettefoster.com
or by emailing her at sanicetti@aol.com.

The early meditation is held in the Ralph Waldo Emerson room of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Raleigh.

This is in the same building (Peace Hall) as the Clara Barton room, but the Emerson room is on the lower level.

If coming from the front parking lot, go down the steps between the two buildings. There's an entry door on the right side of Peace Hall. Go in this door and down the hall, and the Ralph Waldo Emerson room is on the left at the end.

If coming from the back parking lot, go up the steps between the main building, which houses the sanctuary in front and Fellowship Hall in the rear, and Peace Hall, the building to the left. Entry door will be on the left a short distance up the stairs.

Please arrive on time to optimize the energetics of the group dynamic.

Back to Top of Page

2006 Lectures by M. Temple Richmond in the Triangle Area

April 5 (Wednesday) Rhine Research Center Durham The Parapsychological Angle in the Harry Potter Novels
12 – 1 PM Free


May 4 (Thursday) Spiritual Frontiers Fellowship Raleigh
Harry Potter: Herald of the New Age
7:30 – 9:30 PM $10


May 12 (Friday) Stonehenge Raleigh
The Secret Tradition of Raleigh
7:30 – 9:30 PM $10


June 10 (Saturday) Stonehenge Raleigh
Signs of the Times: 2006 and Beyond
7:30 – 9:30 PM $10

August 12 (Saturday) Stonehenge Raleigh
The Astrology of the Harry Potter Phenomenon
7:30 – 9:30 PM $10


September 17 (Sunday) Stonehenge Raleigh
2012 in Context: Doomsday Debunked
7:30 – 9:30 PM $10


October 22 (Sunday) Stonehenge Raleigh
The Secret Tradition of Raleigh
10 AM – 6 PM $40