Events List

Event: Day Workshop: Alchemical Symbolism and Archetypes:
Keys to Unlocking the Spiritual Meaning of Harry Potter.
Facilitator: Dr Geo Trevarthen.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Time: 9.30am for 10am-4.30pm.
Event Description: Alchemy is an ancient art and science, ancestor of modern chemistry, where changes to substances in a physical vessel were thought to reflect spiritual and psychological changes within the ‘vessel’ of the alchemist. Western alchemy probably came from Egypt, arriving in Spain via an Arabic translation of the Emerald Tablet, attributed to the great Egyptian adept the Greeks called Hermes Trismegistus. This is a primary document of both alchemy and ritual magic, grounding these disciplines in ancient Eastern traditions. JK Rowling brought alchemical symbolism into her novels from the first book, ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.’

In this workshop, Geo Trevarthen, author of The Seeker’s Guide to Harry Potter and Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Edinburgh, won’t try to read JK Rowling’s mind about everything she may have meant in her use of alchemical themes, but will read them as they appear, with some of the layers of meaning that they have traditionally held. For example, the matter in the vessel changed form and colour many times on its way to becoming the philosopher’s stone, and the alchemist went through many changes on their journey of transformation. One way the symbolism appears in the novels is in the names of Harry’s three mentors: Albus Dumbledore, Sirius Black and Rubeus Hagrid. They take their names from the three primary alchemical stages - the albus, purification or whitening, the niger or nigredo, the blackening, associated with the dark night of the soul, and the rubeus or reddening, a culminating stage. Through these processes, the alchemist revealed the pure gold of the human soul, and by exploring their symbolism through discussion and meditation we can consciously begin the alchemical process for ourselves.

Dr Geo Athena Trevarthen is a hereditary practitioner of Celtic Shamanism who also holds a PhD from the University of Edinburgh, where she taught a course on Harry Potter in Open Studies and is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow. Geo offers inspirational guidance with wisdom and humour, revealing how we can effectively apply ancient teachings to daily life. She brings her extensive study of literature, transpersonal psychology, anthropology and theology to unravelling the deeper layers of spiritual meaning that Harry’s story can give us. She’s taught widely in Britain, Ireland, Europe and America. Speaking engagements include chairing a roundtable on Pagan and Christian themes in Harry Potter at the Accio Harry Potter Conference, Magdalen College, Oxford, in July 2008. For more on Geo’s work, see www.celticshamanism.com
Cost: £20/£15 (Concessions). For a Registration Form:
http://www.eicsp.org/downloads-org/category/2-mesp-2009-registration-forms
Contact: Neill Walker, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , 0131 331 4469.