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Blog #14–“Rings” Layered Upon The Circle
Blog #14--RingsLayered Upon The Circle
September 25, 2022/by Vern CrawfordBlog #13–On Ceremonial Circles
Blog #13—On Ceremonial Circles
Here’s the scoop on Tefist Ceremonial Circles, as I understand them and use them. Ritual Circles are common among human cultures, so my use of them in Tefistry is not novel. Over the last 30 years, I have designed and used Circles that have borrowed liberally from the Circle traditions and festivals of Neodruidry (retaining traditional Gaelic names for four of the eight festivals). But I have also modified and transcended Neodruidry, so as to better reflect…
September 8, 2022/by Vern CrawfordHere’s the scoop on Tefist Ceremonial Circles, as I understand them and use them. Ritual Circles are common among human cultures, so my use of them in Tefistry is not novel. Over the last 30 years, I have designed and used Circles that have borrowed liberally from the Circle traditions and festivals of Neodruidry (retaining traditional Gaelic names for four of the eight festivals). But I have also modified and transcended Neodruidry, so as to better reflect…
Blog 12: Tiny Words And Big Meanings
Blog #12- Tiny Words And Big Meanings
April 7, 2022/by Vern CrawfordBlog #11: Spring Thoughts
Blog # 11-Spring Thoughts-pdf
March 31, 2022/by Vern CrawfordNew eBook: Five Essays In Tefistry
New eBook: Five Essays In Tefistry
Download the PDF Here
March 25, 2022/by David GordonDownload the PDF Here
Blog #10: Themes Of The Vernal Equinox
Blog #10: Themes Of The Vernal Equinox
Download the PDF Here
March 20, 2022/by Vern CrawfordDownload the PDF Here
Blog #9: When Do Seasons Start?
Bog #9-When Do Seasons Start?-pdf
February 23, 2022/by Vern CrawfordBlog #8: Livestreaming
Blog #8-Livestreaming-pdf
February 16, 2022/by Vern CrawfordBlog #7: Crossroads Creed and an Equinox Joke
"I come ever to the crossroads of my life.
I am ever choosing and ever being chosen.
This is my journey: engaged and affirmed.
This is my life: mysterious, exhilarating, taxing, joyous...."
Try saying or thinking this Tefist statement about life. Does it truly reflect your own life? If not, choose some different adjectives, ones that really do match your own experience. This Crossroads Creed can be spoken at many places: at the crisscrossing of hiking paths, or where busy hallways cross,…
March 15, 2018/by Vern CrawfordI am ever choosing and ever being chosen.
This is my journey: engaged and affirmed.
This is my life: mysterious, exhilarating, taxing, joyous...."
Try saying or thinking this Tefist statement about life. Does it truly reflect your own life? If not, choose some different adjectives, ones that really do match your own experience. This Crossroads Creed can be spoken at many places: at the crisscrossing of hiking paths, or where busy hallways cross,…
Blog #6: Another Trick, plus 3 Q&A’s
In Blog #5: We Humans, I offered a "trick" to help us confront our anthropocentrism. I suggested, when you see or hear the words "we" and "us", mentally tack on the word "humans". If you do this, it becomes starkly clear that most of our attention, most of the time, is locked onto us--us humans--not onto the multitude of other Gaian species or onto the sustaining universe at large. I expressed my hope that this trick could help us expand our circle of love and lessen our anthropocentrism.
I…
February 20, 2018/by Vern CrawfordI…
Blog #5: We Humans
Way back in 1806 the English poet William Wordsworth observed, in part:
"The world is too much with us; late and soon,
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers:
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!"
Let me tell you, Bill, nothing has changed! Two centuries later, the world is still too much with us. Although we now have a fancy term for our malady--anthropocentrism--still, by whatever name, the problem persists: We are stuck on ourselves,…
February 14, 2018/by Vern Crawford"The world is too much with us; late and soon,
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers:
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!"
Let me tell you, Bill, nothing has changed! Two centuries later, the world is still too much with us. Although we now have a fancy term for our malady--anthropocentrism--still, by whatever name, the problem persists: We are stuck on ourselves,…
Blog #4: Imbolc and The Annual Round
If you observe an annual round of festivals--say, as a Christian, or Jew, or Moslem--you already know the value of this practice. If not, and if you want to try out such an annual round, check out the eight festivals that I observe as part of Tefistry. These are based on Celtic and other European traditions (quite appropriate for me, since my ancestry is European and I have studied modern Druidism for several years). To some degree, these festivals can be added to, or merged with, the ones…
January 28, 2018/by Vern CrawfordBlog #3: Why Tef?
Why employ the central idea of Tefistry: the Total Experiential Field? Does its use bring us more of life's good things: love, joy, security, beauty, poise, hope, wisdom, etc.?
People live their lives--more or less successfully--in various ways. I, too, use various strategies for living, at various times, day in and day out:
We can just cope, going with the flow, not seeking to understand or explain or predict life. This is a kind of stimulus/response approach to life.
We can follow…
January 25, 2018/by Vern CrawfordPeople live their lives--more or less successfully--in various ways. I, too, use various strategies for living, at various times, day in and day out:
We can just cope, going with the flow, not seeking to understand or explain or predict life. This is a kind of stimulus/response approach to life.
We can follow…
Blog #2: Orthoreality and Metareality
(The first part of this Blogpost is rather heavy stuff. Skip to the end of this post, if you prefer something lighter.)
When I look at life from a detached or elevated Standpoint--which is what philosophers do, after all--I can divide (analyze) the totality of my experience (aka Tef) into a seemingly unlimited number of humongous dyads. Thus, I can find in Tef a host of Major Dyads (or dualisms, binaries, pairs, couplets--call them what you will). For example, there is the Outer Experience/Inner…
January 10, 2018/by Vern CrawfordWhen I look at life from a detached or elevated Standpoint--which is what philosophers do, after all--I can divide (analyze) the totality of my experience (aka Tef) into a seemingly unlimited number of humongous dyads. Thus, I can find in Tef a host of Major Dyads (or dualisms, binaries, pairs, couplets--call them what you will). For example, there is the Outer Experience/Inner…
Blog #1: Welcome to Tefistry.com!
Tefistry.com offers you a map of reality, as well as wisdom for living a more harmonious life. I call my map Tef Theory, and I call this wisdom Tefistry. Tefistry.com also offers you a selection of my poems, photographs, and other creations.
I hope you don't actually need any of the above--if you already have an effective map of reality, and you already live a very harmonious life! But if you choose to use what you find here, I will be pleased. And if you care to share comments, questions,…
January 3, 2018/by Vern CrawfordI hope you don't actually need any of the above--if you already have an effective map of reality, and you already live a very harmonious life! But if you choose to use what you find here, I will be pleased. And if you care to share comments, questions,…