Mystical France:
Grail Wisdom and 2012 Prophecies

By Phillip and Ana Jones

You have been telling the people that this is the eleventh hour. Now you must go back and tell them this is the hour.
                                                                                                                    —Hopi Elders

We live in exciting and transformative times. Richard Tarnas, in The Passion of the Western Mind, says that we are in the midst of a great awakening of the soul, one that could bring the "marriage" of the masculine and feminine principles. In recent years, the Elders of many cultures have foreseen a coming era of transformation. And now, 2012 is here! The galactic alignment event predicted for December 21, 2012 represents a 'Return of the Great Mother' (Our Galactic Center) to a balanced and sacred union with the Great Father (Our Sun.)

Hopi elders have gone to the United Nations to report on a 'fork in the road' occurring during the time in which we live. The Maya people left their Long Count calendar which, after 5,125 years, completes its cycle this year and counts down the beginning of a major new cycle. Each group of Elders has also delivered their messages of a new transformational Golden Age arising within, and coming out of this prophetic time.

As we look around the world for further signs and wisdom to help us gain insight for these special times, a particular country and time period have started to reappear: medieval France. Why France? From the High Middle Ages to the present day, unseen beneath the bustle of everyday European life, the mystical French landscape reveals to inquisitive seekers universal teachings of Love and Sacred Union which can help us to usher in a new and Golden Age. The sacred teachings of Mystical France are infused into sacred story, sacred art/architecture, and sacred land.

SACRED STORY: The legends and myths of the 'Holy Grail' describe it as having the power to restore the soul and the planet to Wholeness. Grail legends arose most prominently in France. The Story of the Grail, by Chrétien de Troyes, a French poet of the 12th century, is considered by many to be one of the greatest literary works of all time, and a catalyst to the romantic and spiritual explosion of medieval Grail literature and teachings in Northern Europe. Stories of the Grail Quest speak deeply to our hearts about our highest spiritual pursuits and have stirred the souls of countless pilgrims over the centuries.

There are many perspectives on the Grail and what it truly is—all of which have inspired thousands of people over the centuries. The Grail has long been thought to be one or more of the following:

(1) The inner, psychological and spiritual journey of personal enlightenment
(2) A sacred power object, i.e., The Chalice or The Philosophers Stone
(3) The bloodline of Christ and Mary Magdalene

SACRED ART: 'The Grail' represents an inner state of spiritual wholeness. French sacred art and architecture evokes a level of consciousness which allows us to envision what Divine Love, Union, and Wholeness look and feel like - especially the cathedral in Chartres France, considered by many to be the most beautiful and mystical cathedral in the world. Chartres has played a special role to those who understand its true purpose. The masters of the ancient Chartres Cathedral school taught students through the 'book of the cathedral' whose 'pages' were the magnificent sculptures, stained glass windows, and other sacred art. The 'book of metaphysical wisdom' which is Chartres Cathedral is still open to seekers in our times.
Many of the cathedrals in France are said to have been built on sacred sites which had been places of pilgrimage and healing long before the time of Christ. Chartres itself is said to be situated over a holy well sacred to the pre-Christian Druids, which was dedicated to 'a virgin who would give birth.'

SACRED LAND: There arose in 12th century southern France a powerful spiritual movement known as Catharism. The Cathars were part of a High Middle Ages Renaissance, who sought to bring back into the world a simple, mystical life of brotherhood, sisterhood and Divine Love. The Cathars have been called the 'Mahatma Gandhis of the Middle Ages'—they were simple in their lives (weavers like Gandhi) and their diet (vegetarian like Gandhi), and professed non-violence. The very land of their area in the south of France, called the Languedoc region, has begun once again to draw thousands of seekers and pilgrims from around the world. This land, which is now filled with black madonnas and medieval castles is abundant with ancient neolithic caves, caverns, and megaliths, including caves thought to be the living and teaching quarters of Mary Magdalene. The land of the Languedoc is infused with spiritual power and ancient wisdom needed for our modern day renaissance and new Golden Age. Indeed, one or more of the most important Cathar castles situated on sacred hillsides have even been identified by some to be the Grail castle of the Arthurian legends.

So what are the Neolithic cave paintings, the masters of Chartres, the Cathar prefects and other ancient voices trying to tell us as we move deeper into the great alignment of 2012 and beyond? Let us each quest to find the Grail of wisdom and love within our own hearts and make the shift in consciousness that will help us and our planet to thrive for ages to come. Sacred sites of pilgrimage and transformation such as Chartres, Notre Dame, and the many sites in the Languedoc region of Southern France have played a significant role in the evolution of humanity by reminding us to be true seekers. All of these places and those who have created them are whispering: you are all questing spirits, here on a human pilgrimage. Mystical France calls us to awaken, and to remember who we are and why we are here.

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