♥ OUR PATH WITH A HEART ♥
Carol Stewart
The Tarot and Tree of Life symbols has provided my life’s journey with a guiding map. My love for the Tarot started early in 1975 when I undertook an extensive training process in humanistic psychology at Cold Mountain Institute (now Hollyhock) on Cortes Island, British Columbia, Canada. I had come from a background in education and child and family therapy. Over the next ten years, I learned from many teachers in various fields. In 1978 I was introduced to the Tree of Life symbol as a template of the human journey, a way to see our personal and collective “growing up” process.
By 1980, I began to see that everything I was learning was embraced by and extended within the framework of the Tarot and Tree of Life symbols. I gained a deep respect for symbols being more effective than words for guiding the Soul home.
Since that time, through the experiences in my own wild life, and through my practice of sitting with and being inspired by many clients and workshop participants over the last 25 years, I have slow-grown an original and inspiring approach to these great works. In 1981, and again in 1998, I developed “The Mystery School” initiating students into the ever-renewable resources of their own creative hearts. This work I consider to be the “Gift of my Spirit” as it holds a vision for our lives in community as a Sacred Play. I am now interested in passing this inspiring work on to others who might use it in their own work and life.
My own life is an adventurous journey into Great Mystery. In 1987, at the age of 42 years, I traveled to Peru where I lived for the next five years exploring the mysteries of the Andes and its people. I discovered many new dimensions of myself along the way. This experience was the “Gift of my Soul” as it gave me a fuller meaning to my individuality. During those years, I trekked around holy mountains and led tour groups to sacred sites in Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia. I learned Andean spiritual practices from Juan Victor Nuñez del Prado.
When the 1998 to 2001 Mystery School cycle ended, both Jim and I have trained with Joanna Macy and traveled to India, which taught me deep lessons in the practice of “right relationship”. With our friend, Terence Buie, Jim and I often return to Peru to initiate groups in the Andean culture, in particular to meet an indigenous family of artists and musicians called Wiñay Taki, who are dedicated to reclaiming the life of their ancestors before the Conquest. We have been exploring more deeply in recent years, the traditional shamanic practices in both the Andes and Amazon of profound connection with Pacha Mama, the Earth mother.
During the 2009 to 2011 Mystery School cycle, I did some training with Barbara Marx Hubbard, became a Shift Network affiliate, and Jim and I traveled to Bali, Indonesia, where we explored the astounding culture of that little island. We culminated our Mystery School with a trip to Bali to begin exploring the world of co-creation we had opened with each other. I am currently writing a book about The Mystery School process with which I hope to inspire others to utilize these powerful archetypes of the Tarot and Tree of Life to nourish their lives and evolution. My dream is that mystery schools become a respected part of our cultural revolution, occurring at this time in our history.
Jim, my partner, joins me as co-leader in The Mystery School, along with others who offer their consciousness and skills as stimulation to various parts of our mystery school process.
Jim and I have learned that we all are creators and we are each others teachers and students. To the depth we are able, we live in our truth, and walk our talk. We are dedicated to the quickening in human consciousness that is occurring now on the planet. We hold a deep, abiding love and respect for the unique mystery, meaning and purpose each person carries into life. This quickens our intentions to show up for each student. We seek to cultivate the richness that a joyful embracing of our diversity offers to the whole of life.
Carol, Jim, Mandalas
Jim Quigley
I am Carol’s partner and assistant in The Mystery School. I am a painter, a poet. and I participate in many community circles and ceremonies. I have experienced many teachings throughout my life. Life has taken me from the magical community of Findhorn in the 1970’s, into a wide range of healing modalities in the 80’s through to The Mystery School (98-01). I have learned from many teachers in North America, the Amazon jungle and the Andes Mountains. I am committed to circles that nourish the birth of consciousness and well-being of all. I recently published my first book of poetry entitled “Glimpses”. It is available through Crystal Mountain Publishing.
