Monday, November 27, 2006


Brushwood Studios

Driving along a hidden laneway near the Parknasilla Hotel and Sneem a sign guides you to Brushwood Studios home and gallery of the extended Muller family. Ann and Max Muller left their native South Africa after Soweto and came to Ireland, settling in this location 30 years ago. They built their own house, extending it as the family grew, and homeschooled the children according to Waldorf methods. Ann deveoped her style of painting following Steiner and Goethe colour indications, while Max developed his anthroposophical library and biodynamic garden. Ann authored a number of books (see website) over the years. Today she, her daughter, daughter-in-law, son and granddaughter exhibit their extremely beautiful art in their home/gallery and welcome viewers.

Friday, November 24, 2006


Rebuilding and Extending The Watergarden
The popular Watergarden café and shop in Thomastown is undergoing renovation and will reopen in late Spring. Shop and gardens will then be an even lovelier destination than they were before. Here is a bit of history:

The Watergarden has always provided a welcoming environment where people of all abilities can work and enjoy life together.

A local tailor, Bernard Walsh, spent most of his retirement developing the Watergarden as a hobby. As he grew older, the work became too much for him and he sold his house and gardens to his friends in Camphill. Bernard died in 1996. It now contains a coffee shop with small craft and gift section; a garden shop; ornamental streamside gardens; a pottery; and a canteen for those who work here. All activities create opportunities where local people on day placements can work alongside others on community employment schemes, paid staff and Camphill co-workers. Nearby is Camphill Jerpoint, a residential community with a small farm and gardens.
Dingle Study Group
Meets on Wednesdays 7 - 8:30 pm
Current discussion in relation to the book Spiritual Beings in the Heavenly Bodies and in the Kingdoms of Nature, R. Steiner

Contact: tfinbarr@eircom.net

Monday, November 20, 2006


Recommended Reading:The Interior of the Earth
An Esoteric Study of the Subterranean Spheres
Available from Rudolf Steiner Press, London, Price: £9.95

Paul V O'Leary who recently moved to Dingle has compiled a book containing the rare lectures and essays given by Rudolf Steiner on the influence of the subterranean spheres of our earth. This has the greatest relevance in these times and yet has hardly ever been discussed. Can we know what lies beneath our feet, how it affects us and how we can transform it? Rudolf Steiner's unique insight gives a picture of the nine layers of the earth that range from the familiar ‘mineral’ on which we live, to the innermost core. In between are layers such as the ‘Mirror Earth’, which represents qualities of extreme evil, and the ‘Fire Earth’, which is connected to natural catastrophes and also intimately related to and affected by human will. When the human will is chaotic and untutored, says Steiner, it acts magnetically on this layer and disrupts it, leading to volcanic eruptions. He also describes other natural catastrophes such as extreme weather and earthquakes - in connection to the interior of the earth and karma. These lectures make it clear that 'human evolution implies a transformation of the earth's interior' and we so well to become familiar with them.