By Mac Macartney – Founder of Embercombe
The origins of The Journey and its follow up programme The Descent emerged from one of the many challenging experiences I received at the hands of my Native American mentors. It went something like this.
“To discover the spirit that moves in all things and seek to align with this power is a courageous act. To become adept in the physical embodied nature of this life is a great power. When the two come together, the spiritual and the physical, then all kinds of beauty flourish and sustain.”
So often these two facets of our world are strangers to each other, even antagonists. The spiritually orientated person only valuing the unseen and intangible, the physically orientated person only valuing the active and productive. Now, more than ever, we need to bring these two great powers together. When joined, balanced, and further strengthened by the emotional and intellectual, we dance with the four powers of the human self. The Journey and The Descent, and many other similar programmes and initiatives at Embercombe and around the world, seek to assist us in becoming whole –active, compassionate, engaged, discerning, open-hearted, life-affirming, courageous, kind, informed and empowered citizens.
As the consequences of our society’s belligerent ignorance reveals itself ever more clearly in environmental, political, economic and societal trauma, we are all called to become the peacemakers, the healers, the activists, and the builders. I am forever grateful to be alive at this time.