So on this last night of the year, where we are all making plans and promises, filled with hope as we bury the old and make way for the new, I am remembering the Knights Templar.

I wanted to share a vow they inspired and wrote for them, appropriate for beginning this new year, a Dragon year, which is the noblest of symbols in the Chinese horoscope and my own, but also a key Templar symbol as the serpent uncoils and gifts us with the wings of enlightenment.

The aim of this talk is to take a moment to remember and honour and the Knights Templar and does discuss the main charges the order was accused of following the arrests of 1307, the proceedings, their fate after and much more. But I did wish to connect it with something much overlooked, important to Cathars and Templars; the knowledge of the heart.

The Pentland Firth, a treacherous stretch of water, serves as a backdrop to their story. The Sinclair family, often associated with the Knights Templar & Freemasonry, built their castles here, and their presence still haunts these shores.

Watch the trailer!

WAIS is one big international network whose aim is to promote peace across cultural, religious, and political boundaries. --Ronald Hilton

Delighted to say I've finally received an email from prof. John Eipper, the WAIS editor, telling me my candidacy has been approved! So I'm now an official Corresponding Fellow ("WAISer"), and perhaps a little wiser too 😉 I hope…

Their mission statement is very much in line with my own and that of the "Knights Templar", so proud to join this community of professionals.

During the Middle Ages, Hypatia was co-opted as a symbol of Christian virtue and scholars believe she was part of the basis for the legend of Saint Catherine of Alexandria who was a key saint for the Knights Templar who devoted many chapels to her and who was with them in their tragic end, as can be seen in the medieval graffiti in the Guard House in Domme (Catherine Wheel). During the Age of Enlightenment, she became a symbol of opposition to Catholicism, which is another clue as to the true beliefs of the Knights Templar who were Gnostics and never Catholic.

Curiously, the idea that Hypatia and Catherine of Alexandria were one person has also emerged too many times to be ignored (see article below), although personally, I would agree as above that she was part of the basis for the legend.

The Rose is not just a divine feminine symbol, but we find it in architecture and is relevant to the architecture/symbolism of the Knights Templar, such as for example the rose in the middle of the labyrinth in Chartres Cathedral (the labyrinth symbolising many things but mostly resurrection and in this case, our journey through life and resurrection provided by the feminine life force creation side of God as the Shekinah, the dove, the flame.

Note that labyrinths and circles were already used in antiquity and the world's first hospital, the sanatorium at the Temple of Apollo & Asklepius in Epidavros, Greece already featured these as part of treatment within the Tholos where surgery would be performed in "dreams" through incubation.

“A San Andrés de Teixido vai de morto o que non foi de vivo”.
Old Galician saying regarding the pilgrimage to San Andres de Teixido which must be visited if not while alive, then following our departure from this world, in death.

This place was important to the Knights Templar and houses a Templar “Baphomet”. Read my full post to find out more.

So today, I was in downtown Waterford, Ireland’s oldest city founded in 914 AD, the Viking City of Vadrarfjord (windy fjord, one of few fjords in Europe and where I spend a lot of time). I always like to go into the “Cathedral of the Holy Trinity Within”, Ireland’s oldest Catholic Cathedral. Here I met St. Anthony of Padua, a possible relative of Godfrey of Bouillon; “defender” of Jerusalem who founded there the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre (1098) and the Order of the Abbey of our Lady of Mount Sion (1099). Everything always seems to lead me to the Templars, read on to find out more…

Read the feature on me and my work in history and the paranormal in the December issue for 2023 of American Paranormal Magazine.

Would you like to drink the elixir of life and get a taste of a medieval wine I resurrected, made by Templars then and now following the same recipe/method and ingredients as in medieval times, and drunk by Templars as in the grail romances?

You can still place an order all winter long for St. Helena, Pimen Medieval Spiced Wine, a unique and true historical relic you can drink. Order now at Dos Templarios Belgium.

Series of lectures and interviews available on YouTube on Wine & the Knights Templar, also relevant to the resurrection of a Templar wine I just launched, made by modern Knights Templar with wine from vineyards of Tomar, Portugal once belonging to the Templars and using the same medieval recipe/method and ingredients.

Spend this evening with me on Friday the 13th of October by candlelight, in remembrance of the Knights Templar and revisit their tragic end.

The paperback version of my book on Ireland’s most haunted house, Loftus Hall, AMAZON Best-seller in Freemasonry, Occultism, Secret Societies and Haunted Travel FREE ONLY THIS WEEKEND (13-15 October 2023).

Check out the upcoming US and International editions in November for my interview on my work with history and the paranormal!

History and the mysteries, what we now call the "Occult" or "Esoteric Knowledge" speak to my soul. As their humble daughter, through my work as an author and historian, I want to share my journey with all of you, for it is the story of mankind and YOUR STORY.

Loftus The Hall of Dreams, paperback and ebook release coming soon!

I really appreciate the support of all who cross my path, especially my students so as a thank you, I am offering a loyalty card programme. If you have attended some of my events, your next one may be on me, as workshops/courses qualify for a free 1 day workshop!