Wilton Windmill, near Wilton, Wiltshire.
c.100 feet (30.48 m) wide, c. 200 feet (60.96) overall length.
image © StonehengeDronescapesPhotography
Dear Friends,
O dear, what happens to the time? It has an unfortunate tendency to go too fast - impossibly difficult to try and keep up with it at times. My profound apologies.
The Mayans had quite a different view on the subject and one to which I prescribe at times. Their concept is as follows.
They have an interesting belief that there is no such time as the present. It just does not exist. They recognise the past which is in front of them because they know about it and can thus ‘see’ it. The future is behind them because they cannot ‘see’ it. It is still to come and they don’t know anything about what it will bring. Once the future arrives they know all about it and then they can ‘see’ it; it is before them and immediately becomes the past.
What has happened this summer? To be honest, very little indeed. We have had a small sprinkling - a mere seven circles, plus an addition to an existing event.
What is the reason for this, people keep asking? I suspect we all have our own views on the subject - from a shortfall of rutting hedgehogs to an abandonment of UFOs.
I would love to hear from you and how you account for the shortage.
For what it is worth, my personal view is based on the premise that the circles were given to us as a form of spiritual advancement or education/understanding. They never force themselves on anyone; they talk to some but remain silent and uninteresting to others.
They started as simple circles, and over the past 30 plus years have steadily advanced in size and complexity - just as we evolve from childhood to adults - expanding our knowledge as we increase in age. How far we take this learning, and in which direction, is up to us.
We all know that many formations are man-made but there are others that have proved to be beyond the wit of man, either due to eye witness accounts or scientifically proven experiments. As retired chartered engineer James Lyons wrote, regarding the eye witness account of the enormous 1996 Julia Set fractal circle opposite Stonehenge: “However the more complex patterns have additional information contained in the sphere and who or what presses the button to make these is not within our present knowledge or understanding."
Some people are frightened by this phenomenon. For their comfort and self-preservation, they then pretend that all are man-made and join the ranks of similar people. Indeed they become quite vociferous and the more noise they make the safer they feel. Safety in numbers. I have met several such people who have made a ‘volte-face’ when it hits their ‘boggle threshold’, and they have to accept that not all are man-made. I believe that this troubled reaction is more common than we realise. Clearly there are certain ‘no go’ areas in deeply rooted belief systems and if these are threatened, they endanger the whole core of the person’s fundamental being.
When searching through some papers the other day I found notes I had made many years ago after chatting to a delightful and erudite old lady. I visited her regularly and we had endless fascinating discussions.
Discussing the troubled reaction of a certain young man to particular circles, she suggested “Maybe he could not accept this phenomenon is within the Mind of God? God is beyond all religion, and theology is like a library of religious beliefs and dogmas placed for the comfort and security of its readers.”
I am now going to give you a brief run through of this year’s happenings.
April came and went - the fields of oil seed rape (canola) remained untouched. May also swept by virtually un-noticed. June came and lo and behold, on the 12th, there was great rejoicing as a circle, similar to those of years gone by, was found at Wilton Windmill, near Wilton, Wiltshire.
I was asked to be one of several contributors to a programme filmed in the below circle. It was pouring with rain at the time and we kept shooting in between showers. https://www.bbc.com/mediacentre/2024/charlie-cooper-local-legends-new-series-bbc-three I am told that the series is currently being edited and the hope is for it to broadcast at the start of October. The dates haven't been confirmed yet by the BBC, but they will confirm when they know.
image © Hugh Newman
Next to grace the fields was a delightfully simple circle in young wheat
Oakley, near Clapham, Bedfordshire. Reported 30th June 2024
Wheat. c.60 foot (18m) diameter.
image © Kevin Constant 2024
And on the 30th June 2024, adjacent to the Stonehenge Visitor’s Car Park. Wiltshire.
Barley. 165 feet (50.29m) overall diameter.
image left © 2024 Stonehenge Dronescapes Photography
image right © Hugh Newman
July greeted us with a bordered square formation with circles at the centre of each side. A few more circles followed.
Normanton Down Barrows, near Stonehenge, Wiltshire.
Barley. c.90 feet (27.5m) overall.
Reported 14th July 2024.
image © StonehengeDronescapesPhotography
Side images © Sonya Julia
Roman Road, near Marten, Wiltshire.
23rd July 2024. c.90 feet (27.5m) Wheat.
Stoke Charity, near Sutton Scotney, Hampshire.
Reported 28th July 2024, Wheat. c.140 feet (c 43m) diameter
And lastly August arrived:
Lion’s Gate, Etchilhampton, near Devizes, Wiltshire
8th August 2024 Winter wheat c.210 feet (64m) diameter
When looking at this formation, a friend immediately saw ‘sixes and nines’. On closer inspection, his thoughts were:
“A Kabbalistic reading of the circle might follow that great divine grammar, The Tree of Life. Made up of 10 sephirot, often thought of as divine lights, the Tree of Life represents the manifestation of the divine. Each sephirah is a divine aspect including wisdom, understanding, strength and mercy. The crop circle seemed to me to speak of sixes and nines. The sixth sephirah on the tree is divine beauty. The ninth sephirah on the tree is divine foundation, the meta-physical structures prior to the physically manifest. The sephirot of beauty and foundation both lie on the pillar of equilibrium, divine balance and harmony. All this suggests to me the creative energies of balance, beauty and foundation which lie at the heart of an understanding of sacred geometry.”
One final event arrived on the 29th August 2024 sporting additions to the original Lyon’s Gate circle of the 8th August 2024:
Lion's Gate, Etchilhampton, near Devizes, Wiltshire.
29th August 2024
Wheat. c.115 feet (35.052 m) overall diameter
image © Hugh Newman
In the past there have been years where a common theme has followed - such as in 2004 when there appeared to be an organic influence. Can you find one for this year?
Sadly, this has been a year of disappointment for many, especially for those you came from abroad in June to see the circles.
It seems that as always the circles can never run to plan, but those who venture further afield can find that the area around the wonderful Stone Complex at Avebury to be full of unexpected treasures. This whole sacred part of the ancient Isle of Albion, is now a World Heritage site.
For those who are energetic, I commend the
https://www.nationaltrail.co.uk/en_GB/trails/the-ridgeway/ which will take you to many sacred places on the way.
I took my usual popular tours, one ending with the additional extra of the unique private entry to Stonehenge, allowing access to the inner circle and permission to go right up to the giant megaliths.
I plan to do a similar tour next year, but have not yet decided on the date. For those who are interested, the tour is normally towards the end of July.
At the beginning of August, I will take an equally popular day, ending with an optional extra of a flight over the circles and sacred places such as Silbury Hill, Avebury Stone Complex, West Kennet Long Barrow etc.
The smiles of people after they have landed, stretch from ear to ear!
The third tour I took was with a special group of people of all ages from the Munro Institute in America. They were people mainly from the US, but included others from Norway, China, Japan, Romania, Panama, the Virgin Islands, Colombia and a few from the UK. A delightful day shared with people of enquiring minds.
I am hoping that my beautiful 2025 Classic Crop Circle will be ready soon after the middle of October. Please place your order early so that there are no postal delays. Nobody believed what this horse did at night, until…
Pam Gregory