The Children's Fire

Mac Macartney

Description

***SILVER AWARD WINNER, 2019 NAUTILUS BOOK AWARDS!***
The Children’s Fire forges a trail into Britain’s wild and ancient Celtic past. It locates the fragments of a story that still has resonance today; the pulse and surge of an older wisdom that cracks the mendacity of the shopping mall’s vacuous promise. It is a passionate evocation of a generous, inclusive, diverse and spiritually significant world – the world of our longing.
In the winter of 2009 Mac Macartney walked from his birthplace in England across Wales to the island of Anglesey, once the spiritual epicentre of Late Iron Age Britain,  navigating by the sun and the stars, with no map, compass, stove or tent, and in the coldest winter for many years. The Children’s Fire records that journey, and seeks to lay bare the aching loss of knowing and understanding sacredness as it applies to everything ordinary that brings joy to the human heart. It asserts the emergence of a new story; the story of a people coming home to a truth made all the more poignant having so painfully broken faith with nature, our deeper humanity, and the paradise we fouled with such casual disrespect. It is a love story and part of a larger narrative that is surfacing all around the world. It seeks to reclaim our future and name it, beautiful.

List of Maps

Biography

Foreword

An Invitation to the Reader

Preface

Chapter 1 The Children’s Fire

Chapter 2 The Land, Our Land

Chapter 3 The Journey, Our Journey

Chapter 4 The Netherworld

Chapter 5 The Far Shore

Chapter 6 Rekindling the Children’s Fire

Going Forward

Bibliography

Acknowledgements

Sujets

• Inspiration
• Leadership
• Body
• Coaching
• Mind
• Spirituality
• Travel
• Mindfulness (Buddhism)
• personal Growth
• Mindfulness

Informations

• Publié par: Practical Inspiration Publishing
• Date de parution: 31 octobre 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781788600460
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

First published in Great Britain by Practical Inspiration Publishing, 2018
Mac Macartney, 2018
The moral rights of the author have been asserted
ISBN 978-1-78860-045-3
All rights reserved. This book, or any portion thereof, may not be reproduced without the express written permission of the author.
Every effort has been made to trace copyright holders and to obtain their permission for the use of copyright material. The publisher apologises for any errors or omissions and would be grateful if notified of any corrections that should be incorporated in future reprints or editions of this book.
Praise for The Children s Fire
Few amongst us have both the integrity of spirit to undertake a genuine earth-walk and the poetry of soul to write about it afterwards in such passionate, powerful terms. Mac Macartney is one who has both. In this time of great turning, when we each must examine our heartfelt relationship to the earth and the more-than-human world around us, Mac s journey is a guiding light and an inspiration, a paean to the possible, to the best that we can be. With strength in the vulnerability, spanning the wide, wide spectrum of what it is to be human on this earth at this time, there could not be a more important - or timely - work.
Manda Scott, author of the Boudica: Dreaming series
Mac Macartney is a prophet of cultural renewal, an interrupter of the Western egocentric-consumer worldview, a wild man, an elder, a humble pilgrim, perhaps a present-day druid, and an enchanting storyteller. In The Children s Fire , he recounts his three-week solo journey on foot, without map or compass, through the scarred but still-sacred lands of his native Britain to a mythic, real, holy isle - a dreamtime pilgrimage to reclaim his/our original human wildness and belonging to the land, undertaken on behalf of the children of all species seven generations hence. You won t want to be left behind. Join him.
Bill Plotkin, author of Soulcraft and Wild Mind
A haunting paean to an indigenous culture that has been misrepresented for centuries, and a call for a new dedication to the Earth and all its children.
Richard Louv, author of The Nature Principle and Last Child in the Woods
At a time when England wrestles with identity, Mac Macartney explores some origins of traumatic violence, reaching back to Roman times. Here is a pilgrim quest through geography, history and spirituality. Captivating, haunting and at times disquieting, yet: walking into a death landscape I knew that I was walking into life.
Alastair Mcintosh, author of Soil and Soul and Poacher s Pilgrimage
When Mac Macartney speaks, you listen. His is a true and, sadly, rare voice of wisdom in our times. His words come from a place of embodied knowing, rather than the all-too-common preachings of the conceptual mind. His written words resonate with the same depth of wisdom and, if you let them in, will nourish your very core. Our minds may have become adept at dismissing wisdom, but our hearts know what really makes sense. Mac writes to your heart - listen to him and to it.
Bruce Parry, documentary maker
If, like me, you are baffled by how it s possible for humanity to throw itself headlong, in the face of overwhelming evidence, down a path that is impoverishing our environment then this book hints at an intriguing possibility. Honest and soul-bearing, The Children s Fire is an account of one man s journey, unaided and on foot, following an ancient path through landscape and history to reveal a rich vein of British indigenous culture. Like so many indigenous cultures around the world, the tribes of Britain lived in concert with, and at the mercy of, nature s rhythms. And, like so many indigenous cultures, their demise was marked by a brutal invasion that left a deep collective trauma and disconnect. The Children s Fire makes the bold suggestion that this trauma more than ripples on today - it is firmly in the driving seat of our dysfunctional relationship with the natural world. A fascinating re-framing of Britain s ancient history that offers a fresh perspective to a very modern question of whether it s possible to live our twenty-first-century lives in harmony with the natural world.
Gillian Burke, biologist and broadcaster
Do not be deceived by the beautiful lyricism of The Children s Fire . Beneath the evocative and multi-layered description of Mac s wintertime pilgrimage from Malvern to Anglesey lies a hard-hitting commentary on contemporary society, emphasising the existential threat inherent in our present direction, and the vital need to shift from dominion over to relationship with . Highly recommended.
Roz Savage, author, speaker, ocean rower
I have often lamented the seeming European lack of in-touchness with indigenous traditions - but this book forcefully erases that lament. Operating from a dictate by a Native American elder to make contact with the seemingly lost indigenous soul of his own land, the author moves courageously in both theory and practice to heal the soul loss. Theoretically, he makes a strong case for the imperial conquest of Rome having not only wiped out the ancient wisdom and cultures, but even the appreciation of these cultures, and he sees that same imperial energy operating during 2000 years of Western history. In practice, he dares to undergo his own rite of passage by embarking on an adventurous pilgrimage on ancient trails in the depths of a severe winter to arrive at a holy place of his Celtic ancestors. The result is a magical, spiritual, political tour de force - a trumpet blast that pierces the spiritual somnolence of ages, that England is back and it is the ancient respect for the sacredness of creation that will retire human anthropocentrism and its accompanying imperialism and will awaken Europe again. Creation spirituality indeed!
Matthew Fox, author of Original Blessing
The Children s Fire is a roadmap for our species. Charted by a remarkable explorer who has made this journey himself, it takes us deep into forests and places of wildness, and into the heart of incorruptible sanity . It steers us back from the brink of planetary extinction.
Richard Reoch, former President of Shambhala, the global community based on the Buddha s teachings on Enlightened Society
Mac Macartney inspires me. He is an important guide for our time. In The Children s Fire , he invites us into a deepening of life and love of life. He describes a sacred purpose we can all share and take part in - to mend what is broken - contributing to the recovery of our world and ourselves.
Chris Johnstone, co-author of Active Hope - how to face the mess we re in without going crazy
I love Mac s book. Here s a glimpse of a journey of a man choosing the high road - as he treks, he travels deep into his innermost being and steps out of his comfort zone. And what an odyssey - one that had me living and breathing with Mac, every step he takes. The Children s Fire shall burn deeply into all our hearts.
Polly Higgins, Ecocide law pioneer, award-winning author and barrister
To my wife, Wandia, and my two sons, Kevo and Cai, for giving me a home.
In testimony to all indigenous peoples who have stood in dignified truth against the harsh disinterest of a system that counts nothing of value which does not fit inside an accountant s ledger.
Contents
List of Maps
Biography
Acknowledgements
Foreword
An Invitation to the Reader
Preface
Chapter 1 The Children s Fire
Chapter 2 The Land, Our Land
Chapter 3 The Journey, Our Journey
Chapter 4 The Netherworld
Chapter 5 The Far Shore
Chapter 6 Rekindling the Children s Fire
Going Forward
Bibliography
Maps
Map 1
Map 2
Map 3
Map 4
Map 5
Biography
M AC M ACARTNEY IS the founder of Embercombe, a social enterprise dedicated to deepening our connection with nature and inspiring people from all walks of life to bravely contribute towards a world that honours the Children s Fire. He was also the founder and CEO of a leadership consultancy for corporate executives, operating internationally between 1989 and 2005.
Over a period of twenty years, Mac was mentored and coached by a group of Native American teachers. During this training and ever since, he has attempted to bring two worlds together - an ancient worldview that emphasises relationship, interdependence and reverence for life with the huge challenges and equally huge opportunities of the twenty-first century.
Mac is an international speaker on topics such as responsible leadership, sustainability, spirituality and indigenous wisdom. Presentations to business organisations include the Mars Corporation, Unilever and BP. He also sits on the advisory board for Danone North America. Mac speaks regularly at many festivals, including Glastonbury, Wilderness, Buddhafield, Shambala, Port Elliot, and numerous conferences and events both in the UK and abroad. He has spoken at four TEDx events.
Mac holds a Bachelor s degree in Education and a Master s degree in Human Resource Development, and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Plymouth in 2015. In 2013 he was awarded the Enlightened Society Award by Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche.
Mac lives in Devon with his wife and two sons. You can find out more at www.macmacartney.com .
Acknowledgements
T HE JOURNEY AROUND which this book twines itself was often difficult and often joyful, as indeed was the writing of it, but far more challenging has been the process of bringing it to publication. To hold faith in the work and in my ability as a writer would not have been possible without the friendship, expertise and unqualified support of some ver