Chet Helms with friends on Haight Street

But it [ego] is also something that - and the ancients knew this very well - it outlives its utility. Any particular form of the ego outlives its utility.       -Chet Helms

 

S A N   F R A N C I S C O

 

The seven hills of San Francisco, part of the central-core power of Haight Street, are linked together and augment The City's unshakeable underpinnings. This network facilitates the mystical energy undercurrent that rolls in back of, behind, and underneath visual patches of geography inside Hashbury. Emotional atmosphere in The Haight has an ambiance akin to Columbus Circle in New York City, where a minimum of 13 water lines converge. The overwhelmingly powerful solar intersection @ Haight between Cole and Shrader ~ renown Straight Theatre site ~ is linked with the forces of truth, community, and wisdom as part of the Golden State.

Roughly sixteen square city blocks, Haight-Ashbury is technically bound on the north by Fulton Street with Jefferson Airplane's landmark black-gold mansion [now classic ivory-white.] The southern edge at Buena Vista Park and east area along Divisadero Street is connected to the ancient Temple of Saturn, similar in frequency and ambiance to the last scene of The Matrix Revolutions, a smoky quartz vibration. The entry park to Haight territory represents the treaty Neo established between The Architect and The Oracle. In alchemical terms, The Architect is lead ore and The Oracle is copper.

"But just as the work of transforming lead into gold was in many cases a chemical symbolism for a spiritual transformation of man himself, so the immortality to be conferred by the elixir was not always the literally everlasting life but rather the transportation of consciousness into a state beyond time." - Alan Watts

Several paranormal events have been verified in early Haight, south of Masonic, common within the traditional pre-quake Victorian blueprint. In many respects, the structure of the phenomena is usually akin to serial North Beach installments, fundamental to the Bohemian lifestyle of many Golden Gate poets, artists, and filmmakers. San Francisco landmark homes of Big Brother and the Holding Company [corner of Page & Broderick], the Grateful Dead, and The Charlatans, are exemplary of modern styles cultivated in the tradititonal, vibrant San Francisco ambiance. Stain glass door and window remnants, fireplaces, and traditional hand carved wood embellishments of classic pre-quake City life, still endure as examples of "real" San Francisco history.

A tone of the prevailing pilgrim mindset during America's search for El Dorado, Utopia, and Shangri La increased after the loss of Camelot. The Seven Ancient Temples of San Francisco [SF2 page] provide basic energy management maps of Northern California. During the time of alternative cultures in San Francisco, Pomo Indian excavations were underway by Golden Gate Bridge. The outstanding impression we pick up from all these digs emphasizes the early inhabitants of Northern California wanted to be 'invisible' - they left almost no trace there was a vast population in the area. It stands out. The energy field of Northern California seems to combine with any group of people drawn to the shores of the Pacific Ocean, around San Francisco harbor.

Built on seven ancient hills, in keeping with Le Plongeon's [and others] theory, the City energy grid corresponds with myths, prophecy, and rumors that re-surfaced in the well-known Edgar Cayce readings. Predictions include Atlantis rising, in sync with the 1968 Virgo planetary alignment, when the Hopi Indians in Flagstaff first invited 'white people' to their Autumn Equinox ceremony. The alignment may suggest San Francisco is a post-Lemurian, Mayan, or Atlantean site. Several points of evidence support the theory that the West Coast of the United States once belonged to a different land mass - especially the wide variety of plants and trees that are unique to the West Coast. Hopi and Havasupai believe the knowledge and inter-linking phenomenon is handed down from Anasazi, which means "people of the blue-green waters." These Native American legends are two thousand years old.

Descendents of the Anasazi [Ancient Ones] predicted an underground West Coast culture thread would be stimulated during the cultural changes that began in the 60s, prompting both physical and spiritual exchanges with the Hopi who live near the Grand Canyon.

Hollywood picked up on the influence and infused the high soul powers of Native Americans in some provocative movie scripts in the current millennium. See the super-fast pace suspense thriller NEXT, that stars Nicolas Cage - for a wonderful scene at the ancient waterfalls within the canyon. This scene ties into Strawberry Hill [San Francisco] as a combination of ancient Neptune/Poseidon and Jupiter as co-rulers of the twelfth zodiacal sign Pisces. The link/prophecy that binds Mt. Shasta in Northern California with The Sacred Mountain in Arizona is also evident in the Strawberry Hill locale, above the waterfalls, that oversees the Pacific Ocean. The power of the Strawberry Hill Deva [Temple dedicated to Neptune/Poseidon, the Earth Shaker] is transformative, an experience to be absorbed first hand. The event is both internal and objective. The environment feels like a place designed for earthquake prediction. Recognition of our interdependence with the nature world via second sight activates psyche ties with sacred animals known for sensitivity to land tremors, such as horses. The feeling strongly resembles the presence of the shaman in the caves at Lascaux, France.

I don't think about time.
You're here when you're here.
I think about today, staying in tune.

-John Lee Hooker

Golden Gate Park provides the western rim of San Francisco's mystic triangle. Children's Park & carousel [Summer of Love bands opened The Carousel Ballroom], Hippie Hill, and Strawberry Hill are in the golden triangle. Haight Street always attracts the shaman, elf, traveler-mage. During the cultural revolution, the extended community [Tolkien hobbits, dwarves, (orcs - AKA blue meanies) and others] migrated to the City by the Bay for unique, varied and sundry qualities we attribute to 'the land of the West.' Mystic-magus-author Ophiel penned and published books in regard to astral projection and creative visualization. Ophiel wrote at his hideaway between 1090 Page and Haight Street. True to his reclusive hermit style, he welcomed wayfarers who knocked on his door, but was seldom seen in public - classic Saturn-Jupiter behavior akin to Dr. Strange [Marvel].

 

         

The mystique that begins at Market Street, well known for various space-and-time warp phenomenon sites [an area that embraces Neal Cassady's Oak Street pad], stretches up the Haight Street hill. Haight Street connects with Divisadero, at the base of what is traditionally the beginning of 'The Haight,' the intersection near the Both/and (where you could just walk in anytime and hear Monk, John Lee Hooker, and John Handy in rehearsal for a show), Thelma's Soul Food [Rodney Albin next door neighbor], and other generally cool places.

Haight Street proceeds up past Buena Vista-Corona Heights Park. Cross Central and you see an instant karma Ziggy Marley mural on the corner. Continue on into the tractor beam of 1090 Page Street, home of Big Brother & The Holding Company. The structure no longer stands but the etheric energy remains within the zone, similar to an oversoul and guardian [see Trump XI] - continue through and straight into the heart of "the Haight." The corner of Haight and Masonic, once graced by The Psychedelic Shop [later the Holistic Center] is now known as the address of Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream shop. The B&J building has a history of make-overs. Originally, The Drug Store Cafe was the hottest meeting place at the first corner of Hashbury. The interior design was based on a standard apothecary with lunch service and a counter for the afternoon crowd in search of a perfect root beer float and ice cream sunday. The next incarnation was The Drog Store Cafe, the inevitable devolution as LSD became controversial and slipped to prohibition status.

Further on most head shops lined both sides of the street. On the right side people gathered in front of The Print Mint and Straight Theatre. Now there is a stone wall mural where the Straight Theatre once existed. Across the street, under a new name, new ownership, is the 1711 Haight Street store where I had a daytime job counseling and readings for tourists passing through Haight-Ashbury wonderland. It felt like the Middle-earth described by Tolkien in, The Lord of the Rings!

 

 

“It’s not a matter of fashion, long hair, short hair, what you do for a living, or any of those things, it’s what you believe. What things did you cling to as the polar beliefs in your life. What’s the important stuff to you.

For us, it was never a question of – there never was a debate. It was over from the very beginning. For us, the very first acid trips, the very first excursions into psychedelia was – whatever there is, there’s more than we’ve been allowed to believe. Whatever there is. We don’t know what it is, we can’t describe it, we just suspect its existence, but we know, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that there’s more than anybody ever let on. We know that."

LEGEND Jerry Garcia

On the road to Stanyon Street door to Golden Gate Park are more power sites listed below: the Sun [Straight Theatre between Cole & Shrader] Temple, nebulous Mercury Temple zoned near Quicksilver's rehearsal hall, and Digger's Free Store, an experience in creative commerce and trade. Free trade meant the store carried only free merchandise ... based on the theory of spontaneous requirement [like Hogwarts 'Room of Requirement' that provides for a specific need at the time.] If you want something, expect the store to have it - bring something you can give in exchange that matches the value of what you take. Sort of like, when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. When the answer is ready, the question will be asked, and so on.

          

On to Gabriel's Feed, near Sun and Mercury temples, where the infamous "international bust," happened during one of Gabriel's renown community dinners. He welcomed all in the community to regularly scheduled, public [same night each week] celebrations of his unequaled spaghetti repast. Although this location is marked on the 'must see' wayfarer map, it is not a sacred and ancient temple in a traditional sense of the word. The reminiscent scrapbook should honor this event nevertheless, since Gabriel's Feed nurtured so many of San Francisco's finest - as well as the culturally devout and brilliant international community.

 

The entrance of the recording industry into this phenomena, the San Francisco scene, if you will, people speak of it now as the rock n roll business or the music business, and at that time, it was not. People came to the ballrooms without knowing who was going to play, just that someone was going to play.

It was possible to bury the band entirely in the light show, so that no individual was recognizable, and the audience loved it, and the band loved it.
                                        -Chet Helms

Mimi Farina and Elizabeth Cotton
click pic for heartwarmers

 

The Festival Spirit

"Let Tellus, fertile in fruits and herds, present Ceres with a crown of wheat stalks; let the healthy
waters and breezes of Jupiter nourish the offspring."
- Horace, Carm. Saec. 29- 32

Tones of the festival atmosphere were supported by master poster, mural, and silkscreen artists. Rick Griffin, one of many famous L.A. surfers who decided to migrate north, eventually traded his Southern California surfboard for a day-glo paint set, and made history during the psychedelic era. [Check The Unknown Museum and my interview with Mickey McGowen for other LA contributors.] Psychedelic era dance-concert posters represent the emerging community celebrations of the monad and global collective consciousness.

Earlier we enjoyed, Notes From Underground, Herb "Mr. San Francisco" Caen, and Charles "Peanuts" Schultz. They helped inspire a North Beach literary link with current events related to Haight-Ashbury origins. Still, long before Caen coined the term "beatnik" in 1958, Bohemians were "in" around town. During the 40s and early 50s, the bohemian first wave was out and about long before the 'rent a beatnik' notice appeared in the 'party-up' want ads. Anais Ninn gave lectures in downtown art galleries followed by her parade of "groupies," now known as the entourage. Dali set up his first San Francisco exhibit featuring, 'bread' and spoke of nothing but Gali. "Everyone" met in their own or neighborhood galleries. Later, as people migrated like wood elves to the Grey Havens of San Francisco, they were sustained by store fronts, bookstores, and coffee shops. The "I and Thou" near the Straight Theatre on Haight Street, carried over this North Beach aroma of espresso, fresh breakfast, and Italian soda that seemed to flourish during the Summer of Love.

 

Mr. Peabody and I hop into The Way Back Machine and transport to the sixties
for a taste of a most extraordinary, classic Avalon Ballroom treat

San Francisco


Home Made Pear Ice Cream

Pear Ice Cream Ingredients

Makes 1 quart
· 2 cups milk
· 2 cups heavy cream br> · 1 cinnamon stick
· 6 Bartlett or Anjou pears, peeled and cored
· 6 large egg yolks
· 1/2 cup sugar
· 2 tablespoons brandy, (optional)

Directions

1. Combine milk, cream, and cinnamon stick in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Heat until small bubbles appear around the edge. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep for 30 minutes.

2. In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, cook pears for 45 minutes, or until they make a thick sauce. Let cool a bit, then puree in a food processor or blender.

3. Beat together egg yolks and sugar in a small bowl. Bring milk mixture back to a simmer, and whisk about 1 cup hot milk into egg mixture. Return to pan, and cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until thick enough to coat the spoon, about 5 minutes.

4. Stir puree into ice-cream base. Chill, then stir in brandy, if desired. Freeze in an ice-cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Store in an airtight plastic container up to 2 weeks.

The Magic Pitcher, a short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne

 

Grateful Dead on stage during 1969 Haight Street Faire
see Digger Space and the Panhandle

 

THE ONLY DANCE THERE IS

"I merely see this as a logical progression of my own evolving consciousness. And I see the way it’s happening to me is quite Western. I am making use of Eastern methods. I am not Hindu. I am a Western, Jewish boy from Boston who has studied Hinduism. I also find the same thing in the Greek Orthodox Christians, and in the Hasidic movement in Judaism. I find it in all mystical traditions: in the Sufi, in the Egyptians, and certainly in St. Teresa and St. John and so on. So that, I find that it is in a way the amalgam of all this stuff that is allowing me to be what I am doing right at this moment.

It seems to me that there was a point where my "attachment" to my Western training stood in my way. I didn't have to give up my Western training, what I had to give up was my "attachment" to my Western training. That's the critical difference. I didn't lose my Western training. As I said last night, Jung said in a eulogy of Richard Wilhelm, "He is a gnostic intermediary, in that he was willing to give up a Western predisposition in order to experience another system at the being-level, in order to bring it back."

-Ram Dass, THE ONLY DANCE THERE IS

 

Frodo Lives!

So, what was the Haight-Ashbury really like? Perhaps it was described as the cutting edge, convergence point where multiple global collective feeds continually streamed to meld in a tight, hip community.

The festival atmosphere at the Haight-Stanyan entry to Golden Gate Park felt like the Baggins party in The Lord of the Rings. People had buttons, signs, and stickers that said, "Vote for Bilbo," "Frodo Lives," and "Welcome to Middle-earth."

J. R. R. Tolkien included many ancient mystery symbols in Bilbo's party scenario that were happily embraced by Hashbury residents. Just about everyone was invited to the party tree to celebrate Bilbo's amazing one hundred eleven years. Frodo [who shared the same birthday] played drums in the folk band for hobbits dancing in a free moving circle.

The sense of it all rings true to mystery play rituals that opened the door to the 'other world.' In fact, wherever you were in the Haight, if you were within a few blocks of Golden Gate Park, the tall African drums were heard. The beat would go on calling people to the park throughout the daylight and starshine hours. We all knew the Bridge of Kinvat, the etheric bridge that joins all Terrans with the energy of the star Sirius, connects with Earth near the Golden Gate Bridge - even if the knowledge be purely intuitive.

The party day, September 22, is one we call the Autumn Equinox, though the Shire calendar reckons time a bit differently. The song remains the same though, and so does the dance style that was popular at the Fillmore, Carousel, and Avalon Ballroom. The circle dance is celebrated around the world at the May Pole, as a mainstay for agricultural festivals, and for the Solstices.

Interview with Chet Helms coming here soon!

 

Middle-earth Inn
Rudolph Schaeffer The Need for Beauty

 

Concerning Dowsers
Dowsing has been popular in England since at least the time of King Henry VIII. The 1-inch grid I used to dowse Raglan Castle and surrounding land is the standard model, easy to create with a ruler, pen, and large piece of paper. Colin Wilson writes about theories developed by two British dowsers, Captain Robert Boothby and Reginald Smith of the British Museum.

"Boothby asserted that barrows and other prehistoric sites were crossed underground streams, and that long barrows had a stream running along their full length; Smith stated that at the centre of every prehistoric site a spot be found from which a number of streams radiated; he called these ‘blind springs.’ When he retired, at the end of the war, Underwood decided to devote his days exploring prehistoric sites with a dowsing rod.

He quickly reached the conclusion that Boothby and Smith were both correct about underground streams and blind springs; his rod detected these without difficulty. He found that they responded ‘negatively’ – that is to say, the left hand seemed to take most of the ‘pull.’ And then, to his surprise, he found another type of force that caused a pull on the right hand. This did not seem to be water, but some magnetic force under the earth.

In fact, there seemed to be two types of magnetic force, one at least twice as wide as the other. Underwood called the narrower type ‘track lines’; they seemed to consist of two parallel lines of magnetic force, between one and two feel apart. He called the other, more powerful type ‘aquastats’; these consisted of two sets of parallel lines, like two railway tracks running parallel. Sometimes, the ‘negative’ water lines and the positive aquastats ran along the same course. These he found particularly significant because they seemed to explain why certain sites were chosen as holy. Because he found so many of these ‘double lines’ on sacred sites, he named them ‘holy lines.’"

-Colin Wilson, MYSTERIES

Sacred Space

 

 

We Are All On The Bus

in memory of Ken Kesey - November 10, 2001

Waking down Pearl St. in Oakland
a curled brown oak leaf flutters
and floats down to the sidewalk.
I think of Kesey's great soul
ripped like a giant redwood
from the earth floating upward
fluttering around us laughing
urging us to an openness that
humanity has forgotten
in the midst of yet another
war of fear and hatred.

He joins the great cabal
of our generation -
our beat-hippie ancestors
urging future generations to move
toward freedom-real freedom
that has its roots in the open heart
and the truthful mind.

They are greeting him there
in the land of the ancestors
Kerouac, Ginsberg, Leary
Garcia, Cassidy, Parker,
Coltrane, Janis , Hendrix
Miles, Corso, Micheline.

They are there smiling
at the wonder of the cycles of life
at the humor of being and not being
at the playfullness of the illusions
we build our empires upon.

They will dance there forever
and we can dance with them as we have
in the great exploration that opened
up the unity we discovered together
hidden in the depths of the mind.

This is the real graduation,
the alignment with the light
toward which we are forever traveling.

-Allen Cohen

 

         

 

Hazelnut Espresso Cookies

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon sea salt
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup packed light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
3 tablespoons instant espresso powder
2 cups (about 10 ounces) hazelnuts, skins removed, coarsely chopped

Directions

1. Preheat over to 375. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. 2. With an electric mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in espresso powder.
3. With mixer on low speed, beat in flour mixture until incorporated. With a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon, mix in hazelnuts.
4. Drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto three baking sheets. 1 ½ inches apart. Bake, first two sheets together, until golden, about 12 minutes, rotating sheets front to back and from top to bottom halfway through. Repeat with remaining sheet. Cool cookies on sheets 2 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve, or store in an airtight container up to 3 days.

How to remove hazelnut skins

Preheat oven to 275. Place raw (shelled) hazelnuts in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet; bake until skins crack, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a clean kitchen towel and roll up. Let steam 5 minutes. Rub the nuts in the towel between your hands until most skins have come off.