Manifesting Magic: Winter, Spring, Summer or Fall
Like many spiritual leaders, Madeleine Marentette came to her practice via finding healing through metaphysical experiences. The Toronto native had been in a series of health crises throughout most of her 20s, so sick that she almost skipped an invitation to a discourse from the Dalai Lama at the University of Toronto.
“But something just encouraged me, and I envisioned a miracle,” Marentette recalled. “Even though I couldn’t understand the concepts, I had an experience of peace of mind and heart where everything became very still, and the pain went away. When I walked out I knew something had shifted even though I couldn’t articulate it.”
Marentette immediately dove into investigating mindfulness and meditation, and has spent the ensuing three decades plus of her life and, eventually, career on a path of both self-healing and of helping others to be able to articulate their own issues and healing modalities through the body-mind-spirit connection. With several years, Marentette founded Grail Springs Retreat Centre for Wellbeing in 1993 as a way to get out of city life; it’s now Canada’s leading holistic wellness destination. The center is located on 100 acres rich in deposits of magnetite, marble, granite, sodalite and quartz crystal, and fed by water from springs bubbling up from the magnetically-charged rock bed. Grail Springs won Canada’s Best Wellness Retreat Award for 2019-2018-2017-2016 from the World Travel Spa Awards.
“It started with the vision to spread the word of spirituality, and how to embrace uniting spirit and science into our life,” she said. “Now it’s become a permanent sacred place for personal transformation.”
It was there that Marentette also developed what would become The Four Seasons of Super-Manifesting, after several years of international exploration with elders, shaman, thought-leaders and spiritual masters from California to Asia. The Law of Attraction-based workshop aims to create alignment with the natural world and harness human’s innate powers to accelerate dreams into reality.
Marentette, who teaches at home in Canada and around the world, is bringing the two-day seminar to Santa Barbara for the first time this weekend, via the invitation of Cynthia Jensen, a Montecito resident who has previously attended a longer workshop at Grail Springs. When Jensen discovered that a “refresher” talk last New Year’s Eve was so powerful that she actually began “over-manifesting” her visions into being, she decided to invite Jensen to give the workshop in town – another of her visions coming to fruition.
The event is meant to create a new vision for 2020 to live fully connected, and create with more ease and joy via being tuned in and making meaningful connections between all events and aspects of your life.
“It’s a combination of ancient wisdom plus the science of biology of our nervous system of how being in sync with nature and the ebb and flow of life can help us to flourish,” Marentette said over the phone from her home in Toronto, noting that much of the practice was drawn from the indigenous symbol of the medicine wheel used worldwide. “There’s an intuitive pattern when we tune into nature, we can move our lives in sync with its ebb and flow rather than in opposition. The four seasons are related to the electro-magnetic energy flow, perception and expression.”
Spring and summer are more electric – spring’s focus is mental, summer physical – while autumn and winter are more magnetic, a time for being with heart emotions and our spiritual life, she said.
“We need to embrace those connections as a culture,” Marentette said. “When those are in sync the power of visioning, action and expression can begin to profoundly move forward. Things just begin to happen in your life.”
The “full holistic picture workshop” includes lectures on the laws and models with open discussion, including aligning with individual core values, plus visioning, creating a “field of dreams,” and setting up related action steps to take throughout the year. It’s geared to provide intuitive “aha moments” through uniting innate wisdom with the understanding of the laws of nature, Marentette said.
This weekend’s event is meant to not only begin to educate members of the local community – Jensen’s friends and family are among those attending, although it’s open to all – but also serve as a seed for future implementation in the area.
“It’s the beginning of what we hope will become a teacher’s course, a model for training the trainer so that everyone can make use of these principles and practices and create incredible lives,” Marentette said.
(The Four Seasons of Super-Manifesting with Madeleine Marentette takes place Saturday-Sunday, November 23-24, at Casa Las Palmas, 323 East Cabrillo Boulevard. Admission is approximately $300 [$395 in Canadian dollars]. Visit www.grailsprings.com/the-four-seasons-of-super-manifesting.)
Raising Your Self-Esteem
Transitional minister Rev. Phil Smedstad has completed the half-year program in which he taught weekend workshops once a month to help re-engage and transform the Unity of Santa Barbara community following the unexpected departure of popular main minister Rev. Larry Schellink. But with the transition still in process, Smedstad is still returning to town for nine days every month, so he’s added another event that, like the others, is fully open to the larger community.
Do you make what others think of you more important than what you think of yourself? Do you have the thought, “If people really knew me, they wouldn’t like me?” Are you addicted to sacrificing or being needed? Do you believe that there is something missing in you or that there is something wrong with you? If these symptoms seem familiar, the three-hour “Raising Your Self-Esteem” workshop at 10 am Saturday, November 23, can support you in learning how to effectively drop the mask of self-defeating attitudes and beliefs that keep you locked into an unloving relationship with yourself. The seminar is formed as a day of self-discovery, healing and gratitude as the real you emerges.
These aren’t empty promises: Rev. Smedstad – a Certified Transition Ministry Consultant and thought leader for many decades – has successfully applied the principles taught in this workshop in his own life and brings the insights he’s gained from his experience as well as an atmosphere of love, safety, compassion, and a sense of humor. Admission is by a suggested love offering of $20. Visit www.santabarbaraunity.org/raising-your-self-esteem-workshop-rev-phil-smedstad.
Link to Larry
Meanwhile, former Unity spiritual director Rev. Schellink has launched a free new online community platform to engage in dialogue about what he calls “the most transformative journey we can take in this life: the inward way to awakening.” Drawing on his 20 years of spiritual guidance and leadership, Rev. Larry, as he was known in town, invites all to cultivate the mindset and heart knowing that it can accelerate spiritual awakening and bring the realization of the profound wellbeing that is available now. The journey was to have begun last Sunday, via a podcast on the topic “Call Off the Search, Awaken Now!”, but technical issues forced a postponement. Upcoming topics for the weekly podcast include “Growing in the Cracks of Life,” “A Life Beyond Belief,” and “Peace is Closer than You Think,” subjects similar to his weekly Sunday sermons that came to a close this past spring. To subscribe or for more details, inspirational articles and videos visit Inward Path of Wellbeing at larryschellink.com.
‘Heal Your Mind, Heal Your Body’
Long Island-born Sudama Mark Kennedy’s parents were American diplomats posted in Yemen and Beirut, Lebanon, Greece, Chile and Washington, D.C. So the Princeton graduate with a masters in Religious Studies from UCSB who studied Huna healing in Hawaii, shiatsu in Japan and Indian philosophy and yoga traditions in India knows a thing or two about relieving tensions. Sudama’s studies in mytho-poetic expression brings together energy medicine with art, music, and organic expressions of the subconscious.
Sudama, who has lived and practiced as an intuitive healer in town for nearly a quarter-century, leads a group healing seminar on the magic of energy medicine at the Summerland Center for the Arts, 2346 Lillie Avenue, at 4 pm on Sunday, November 24. The lecture will include information on possibilities in energy medicine as well as guided meditation and live demonstrations. He’ll ask attendees what they are experiencing in the moment and apply various modalities that he speaks about as he performs healings. No machines, drugs, hypnosis, exercise, physical manipulation or set of beliefs are necessary with this holistic health approach. Admission is $35, and reservations are required. Call (805) 770-3677 or visit www.summerlandcenterforthearts.com.
How to be Happy? Never Mind.
A student once asked the Indian philosopher/guru Jiddu Krishnamurti about his “secret” to well-being. The answer was simple: “I don’t mind what happens.” New Age empires – including, largely, Ekhart Tolle’s “The Power of Now” – have been built on that simple statement that posits that our pain, anxiety, heartbreak and stress are the result of putting meaning in what is happening, while the essence of inner freedom, as Krishnamurti put it, is to release attachment to outcomes.
Just as we seem to forget that spiritual truth, many of us also may not know that Krishnamurti was a resident of the area for more than half of his life, living seasonally in the Ojai Valley since 1922 before he passed away there in 1986. Krishnamurti’s private residence is now open to the general public, functioning as part of the Educational Center of the Krishnamurti Foundation of America (KFA), whose mission is to preserve and disseminate his teachings. To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the KFA and the 125th anniversary of Krishnamurti’s birth, the Ojai Valley Museum (130 West Ojai Avenue) is sponsoring a special exhibit about Krishnamurti’s life in Ojai and the far-reaching impacts his presence has had on the town and its residents. The exhibit will examine the many people and institutions who owe their Ojai origins in large part to Krishnamurti, and explore the fundamental ways in which the man and his teachings shaped the village geographically, spiritually, and philosophically. The museum hosts a free opening reception on Friday, November 15, from 5:30-7-30 pm; the exhibit continues through January 19.
The KFA – which houses his teachings of more than 20,000,000 words published in more than 75 books, 700 audiocassettes, and 1,200 videocassettes – also continues to hold public programs, including a weekly Saturday Dialogue from 4-6 pm, and weekend retreats with upcoming topics including “Learning about Ourselves in Observation,” “What is Love?” and “Change That Cannot Be Sought.” The KFA is located at 1130 McAndrew Road in Ojai. Call (805) 646-4773 or visit https://kfa.org.
Other Outings to Ojai
Certified Body-Mind Centering instructor David Hurwith, who recently relocated to Ojai in the most recent transition of a study of the body’s natural expression and health that supplanted his long career as a dancer and performer, offers an Introduction to BMC class 1-4 pm on Saturday, November 23, at the Somatic Sanctuary, 410 West Ojai Avenue. Hurwith, who has also been teaching Anatomy and Kinesiology and Authentic Movement, will explore the relationship between the lungs as the center for enduring emotions and upper body stability and the arms, the primary means of doing and touching, with a class tone that is safe, light and clear. Admission is $35-$55. Visit www.somaticsanctuary.com or call (805) 633-9230…
The new SOUL-AR System Meetup is a weekly healing session conducted by professional and personal Life Coach Krista Kim where participants will learn spiritual psychology tools in an experiential environment to more joyfully navigate real life challenges. The group’s debut is 11 am to 12:30 pm this Thursday, November 21, at Kim’s house, 902 Mercer Avenue, in Ojai. Visit www.meetup.com/SOUL-AR-SYSTEM for details.
Sips of Soup
November 432 Hz Sound Healing with Shane Thunder featuring alchemical gemstone and tibetan singing bowls, chimes, drums, aromatherapy and guided meditation takes place 7:30-9 pm Saturday, November 23 at Yoga Soup. Admission is $25 in advance, $30 day-of… Yoga Dance Magic’s monthly Silent Disco Ecstatic Dance – featuring an optional 50-minute all levels yoga class followed by a dance party all led via silent disco headphones – takes place 7-9:30 pm ($15)… Former Santa Barbara resident Kamala-Kimmy Fleck returns to town for her first Breathwork group session at Yoga Soup since 2016 at 2 pm on Sunday, November 24, with participants being gently guided into a safe, relaxed and meditative state that will help release stress from the mind, body and life. ($30/$35)… Sunday also brings the first session of a new eight-week series of Open Tending, FireTenders’ open men’s circle to build community, connection, self-awareness, and emotional skills open to all on a drop-in basis. Founder Timothy Tillman, and fellow FireTenders Jordan Santoni and Damian Gallagher co-lead the weekly 3-5 pm gathering that costs $10. (See next week’s issue for an interview with Tillman.)
Yoga Soup is located at 28 Parker Way. Call (805) 965-8811 or visit www.yogasoup.com/category/events.
Meetups Moments
The new Awaken the Divinity Within group – founded by “beings on a journey to help empower and awaken others through collective gatherings to open the portal to our divinity within” – hosts its second gathering on Tuesday, November 26. The group is for those looking for a deeper connection to our souls, to the spiritual world, to the unknown and to the divine inner essence that lives within. The New Moon Sound Bath & Reiki Ceremony aims to collectively bring forth love and healing into the hearts of all who resonate to be in the space via a sound bath, Reiki blessings, sharing circle, and more, including serving of grounding herbal tea. Bring a cushion, yoga mat or small blanket to the 6:30-9 pm donation-based ($20 suggested) gathering at 1512 1/2 Santa Rosa Avenue. Info and RSVP at www.meetup.com/Awaken-the-Divinity-Within…
The Santa Barbara Buddhist Meditation hosts a San Ysidro Trail Meditation Hike 8 am-12 noon on Saturday, November 23, a four-mile loop featuring a practice of Noble Silence — talking only when necessary so as to concentrate on present moment awareness — save for a guided meditation during a mid-hike respite. Visit www.meetup.com/Santa-Barbara-Buddhist-Meditation/events/266035391.
