Is There a Healing Temple Hidden Under Ripon Cathedral?

Nothing raises the spirits like doing all things heathen and pissing off the ghost of a medieval Archbishop.

Which is one of the reasons I love to sing around trees and springs, a sacred pagan act that Archbishops forbade many hundreds of years ago. The main reason I sing though is to connect to nature and my ancient ancestry.

Magical things happen in my life when I sing around trees. Sometimes I hear melodies in my mind, as if from the trees themselves, singing as clearly as a song on the radio. It freaked me out a little when it first started to happen, but I turned many of these melodies into pieces of piano music which was the first time I had any experience of composition (you can find some of these in my earlier posts on Instagram). Other times I feel the energy of a tree move through me whilst I chant, and find the whole experience extremely healing. 

I’ve been wondering more and more if I need to be with a tree to have such experiences, especially since I’ve started singing around springs too and have found this to be very magical. Last week I put this to the test, and sang and chanted at Ripon Cathedral, which sits upon a ley-line...

I was lucky to be able to explore and experience this with my dear friend Shannon Wishon.

Shannon is an extremely talented artist and wellbeing practitioner who delivers incredible sessions in Wakefield (see link below to her social media pages!). To me she is an absolute oracle of wisdom, and was the first to teach me about the Gnostic Gospels and the forgotten story of Mary Magdalene, something I will be forever grateful for.

I always end up learning something new when I spend time with Shannon, even though I’ve known this amazing woman for some years. For example, as we were walking around the Cathedral, I found myself drawn to all the figures of men pointing two fingers to the sky and said “this must mean something,” in an overly sinister and dramatic tone. To which Shannon replied - 

“It does, it’s the symbol for as above so below.”

Many people probably already know this, but I didn’t, and so naturally feel pretty giddy that I finally do!

This was our second visit to Ripon Cathedral this year. We returned because we wanted to spend more time in the underground chapel known as the Anglo-Saxon Crypt, having recently found out that the Cathedral is built on the same ley-line as Thornborough Henge and the 7 Sisters (otherwise known as the Devil’s Arrows) which are all nearby. It’s the oldest part of any cathedral in England and was built in 672 AD by Saint Wilfrid.

Was Saint Wilfred a good egg? Not to a heathen like me. Likely seduced by offers of riches and power by the Romans, Wilfred would have played his part in taking over sacred pagan land to aid in the Christianisation of Britain. He was also a key figure in the Synod of Whitby in 664, where he successfully argued for the adoption of the Roman method of calculating Easter, rather than the Celtic one. This act unified the English Church and aligned it with the practices of Rome. 

Thanks Wilf.

Anyone sensitive to energies will be aware of a shift that happens as you enter the crypt. For some, it can feel a bit spooky, and we saw many look about and swiftly leave. Shannon and I were in there for about an hour, barefoot on stone, humming away and feeling pleasantly drowsy under the influence of the 432hz tuning fork I brought. 

As I do with trees and springs, I communicated with intention to the energies of the land, sharing that we worked for the highest good of all and that if it was able, to bestow any healing benefits. 

After we spent some time humming, Shannon looked at me with a serious expression and said - 

“This isn’t a crypt.” Her words rang true and she suggested that we call it a temple instead. That’s how I will refer to it from now on.

I got the sense that the energies of the land/temple could amplify anything we were already feeling. As we were in a state of joy and relaxation, once I started working with the tuning fork it almost felt like we’d been sedated. I was getting full body tingles and was so relaxed, I didn’t know how I was going to peel myself off the bench and walk up the stairs.

Below are a couple of clips of the sounds that came through as I connected to the space. The urge to do high pitch toning in there was SO STRONG. Be interested to know if anyone senses an energetical shift in their own body as they listen. At one point when I was toning, my whole mouth went crazy hot and tingly, a sensation that lasted well into the next day…(excuse the rocking back and forth, it's something I can't control when I feel energies moving!)

We did eventually find the motivation to leave, and Shannon kindly let me take some photos of her throughout the Cathedral whilst playing with the stunning light seeping in through the windows - which I just LOVE!

We then went relaxed on the Cathedral grounds in the shade of a beautiful Copper Beech tree, and I kept coming back to the thought that the energies of such a place could amplify whatever people were already feeling. If so, I guess that would have been a helpful aid for the Church in controlling the masses, especially if priests were spouting sermons about sin and hell, awakening a sensation of fear within those that were listening. After all, fearful people are easier to control.

With this in mind, it felt right to work with the Copper Beech and ask it to pull up Earth energies and help us amplify the emotions of gratitude and joy we were both feeling.

As I’ve got a bit obsessed with looking for springs, we did go in search of St Wilfred’s spring near the cathedral. We found it, but unfortunately it was all dried up and out of use. Was a shame, but still it felt relevant that a spring was so close to such sacred ground. 

Before heading home, we stopped off at the 7 Sisters, an ancient stone site not far from the Cathedral, and before that day I knew only as the Devil’s Arrows. Shannon went on to tell me that a friend of hers has mapped out Thornborough Henge and the 7 Sisters (there used to be 7 stones but now there’s only 3) in correlation with Orion’s Belt and the Pleiades in the sky. I mean talk about sacred ground.

Her friend is called Martin and has done a podcast about this research. I recommend giving it a watch because it has seriously blown my MIND. See link to Martin's podcast below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBPokM1nmYU 

Played around with the light of the setting sun and created some cool looking orbs - love the one over Shannon's hand!

I have felt so grounded and joyful since our visit to Ripon, with the discomfort in my womb space dissolving even more. I swear it gets less each time I visit and connect consciously with a site. Could it really be happening? Is the land helping me to heal? For the first time in six months, I genuinely feel like I don’t need another operation to remove endometriosis from around my womb (an operation I REALLY don't want to have). I’ve even started going to the gym and am able to do more exercise without having to stop due to pain. This really is getting more and more MAGICAL!

Since this trip, I can’t help but wonder: what if these sites, whether that be a Cathedral, a stone circle, a tree or spring, were always meant to amplify the spirit? What if our ancestors knew this all along? That the earth beneath us holds a resonance, a frequency, that can perhaps magnify whatever we carry inside, whether it be fear, or joy?

What if we’ve simply been singing the wrong songs?

I feel called now, more than ever, to return to these places and sing with the land, and to invite others to join me.

If you feel that same pull, to consciously connect with sacred land through sound and a open heart, I’d love to hear from you.

Just want to say a BIG thank you to Shannon, for letting me capture your radiance last Friday, for sharing your wisdom, and for patiently enduring all my strange noises and spontaneous singing!

You can find more about the amazing work of Shannon Wishon on her social media pages:

Facebook: Search Wish’s Art

Instagram: wishon_art