SteveTanham – writing, mysticism, photography, poetry, friends

Category: Photography

The greater force… What did they know of it! Anyone could see it in the fall of boulders in the mountains; in the crashing of the seas on the rocks, in the burning of the forests when the wildfires took hold; in the legends of the earth boiling and glowing when the ground ruptured… But only a few could see it at work in … Read More Keys of Heaven (6): the greater force

December 24, 2019 + #Silenti, Ancient Landscapes, Ancient Sacred Sites, Celtic Christianity, esoteric psychology, Photography, Spirituality

Keys of Heaven (5): the will of the king – gathering

by Steve Tanham

We climb the steps to the Abbey at Whitby, aware that something different is happening; that the curtain of time is being drawn back… for as long as we can keep the critical mind at bay The years pass away. From the present keepers back through years of being a rich man’s possession… As – in a mist – we see the year 1539 … Read More Keys of Heaven (5): the will of the king – gathering

December 19, 2019 + #Silenti, Ancient Landscapes, Ancient Sacred Sites, Celtic Christianity, esoteric psychology, Photography, Spirituality

Keys of Heaven (4): through the bones of the whale

by Steve Tanham

The pale winter sun lies – to our symbolic view – just beyond the East Cliff horizon. Its lowness and lateness in the cold sky speaks of the approach of the winter solstice, a time of maximum darkness and minimum light…. but also a time of turning. History is made from a series of turning-points. Changes – some of them completely unforeseen and incapable … Read More Keys of Heaven (4): through the bones of the whale

December 17, 2019 + #Silenti, Ancient Landscapes, Ancient Sacred Sites, Celtic Christianity, esoteric psychology, Photography, Spirituality

Keys of Heaven (3): the synchronicity of kindness

by Steve Tanham

There’s a certain ‘presence’ about kindness. Like the spiritual – or, more likely, as a part of it – the act of unexpected kindness drops into our lives like a messenger from the ‘Gods’. So it was with our visit to the ancient church of Lythe in the middle of the Friday afternoon of the Keys of Heaven workshop. The village of Lythe lies … Read More Keys of Heaven (3): the synchronicity of kindness

December 12, 2019 + #Silenti, Ancient Sacred Sites, Belief and Faith, Celtic Christianity, Christianity and modern mysticism, esoteric psychology, Gurdjieff, Mystical ritual drama, Photography, Spirituality

Keys of Heaven (2): a pocket left open for magic

by Steve Tanham

It’s a winter’s tale, so best told in warm snippets… With a weekend workshop carefully envisaged, there’s always a moment where that mental and emotional picture becomes ‘invested’ with life. These old English words contain a wealth of linguistic depth so easily passed over in modern usage. After months of refining the stages, and a preparatory visit, the latest of our ‘Landscape’ workshops was … Read More Keys of Heaven (2): a pocket left open for magic

December 10, 2019 + #Silenti, Ancient Landscapes, Ancient Sacred Sites, Celtic Christianity, Christianity and modern mysticism, Consciousness, Photography, Spirituality, Travel and Photography, Winter Solstice weekend

Keys of Heaven (1): Cod and Lobster

by Steve Tanham

Bright against the icy darkness, the Christmas lights of the Cod and Lobster pub greet the quiet sound of only two sets of winter boots, where, until a few hours ago, there were many… It’s quite a walk down from the car park above the lovely fishing village of Staithes – pronounced ‘Steas’ – just north of Whitby along the coast of Yorkshire’s beautiful … Read More Keys of Heaven (1): Cod and Lobster

November 5, 2019 + #ShortWrytz, #Silenti, landscapes, Photography, Spirituality

#ShortWrytz – Peel’s Silent Cross

by Steve Tanham

The beautiful coastal town of Peel, Isle of Man. The former church of St Peters sits, alone, in what is now its own square. There’s very little of it left – just the frontage above, the bell tower at the back and the horizontal cross of its interior space still carved on the ground, suddenly thrust into the lighted world when the church was … Read More #ShortWrytz – Peel’s Silent Cross

October 22, 2019 + #Silenti, Mystical poetry, nature, Photography, Poetry, Powers of the Mind, Silent Eye School, soul in body, Spirituality, Stream of Consciousness, Understanding Fear

The Opening

by Steve Tanham

I know the words The long-learned words With which this view is framed These slats of wood I crafted round The Opening… ➰ Yet there it lies, unshut before me The rawness of the world Behind my words I kneel, now Afraid to stop their flow’s intent In widening my wood ➰ One day the words will be unspeakable The splinters brushed aside By … Read More The Opening

October 15, 2019 + #ShortWrytz, #Silenti, landscapes, Photography, Spirituality

#ShortWrytz – Night moves: the big idea

by Steve Tanham

Since I was a child, I’ve been fascinated by the way the autumn darkness conveys a deeper sense of empathy than the late summer it leaves behind… What I mean is (for example in the picture above) the quietness that wraps – envelopes – two people when they gather under a seaside lamp awaiting the arrival (via spouses) of their fish and chips, following … Read More #ShortWrytz – Night moves: the big idea

September 29, 2019 + #ShortWrytz, #Silenti, landscapes, Photographic techniques, Photography, Spirituality

#ShortWrytz: vertical panaroma

by Steve Tanham

Some smart phones have a ‘Panorama’ feature within the photography options. This allows a left to right scan to be taken of the scene in front of you. You can make it as wide as you like, subject to a maximum of about 180 degrees. The trade-off is that the wider it is, the thinner the vertical slice of scenery, as below. It never … Read More #ShortWrytz: vertical panaroma

September 24, 2019 + #Silenti, Consciousness, Egregore, esoteric psychology, Mystical poetry, nature, Photography, Silent Eye School, Spirituality

Big Bubbles

by Steve Tanham

Once there was an ocean A bright blue ocean That shone shimmering gold As its waves crested and fell And the bubbles danced with joy ➰ Then a bubble grew bigger And gathered other big bubbles We’re not bubbles they cried We’re a cluster of bubbles And they rose to the top of the waves And flew off into the bright sky ➰ Higher … Read More Big Bubbles

September 19, 2019 + #Silenti, Ancient Landscapes, Ancient Sacred Sites, Bakewell, Consciousness, Esoteric Meaning of Myth, esoteric psychology, guided mystical walks, Higher Mind, landscapes, Life and Death, Love, meditation, mystery, Mystery Schools, myths and spirituality, Photography, Silent Eye School, soul in body, Spirituality

Fear and Love in the High Peak – part one

by Steve Tanham

It’s not the best of photo resolutions, but the above image says it all. Briony saluting the Derbyshire landscape in her own way at the end of three days of the Silent Eye’s Tideswell-based workshop: Sue and Stuart’s creation; and a wonderful experience for the group of souls who braved the provocative title for the weekend… Rites of Passage: Seeing beyond Fear …and decided … Read More Fear and Love in the High Peak – part one