Category: Solas Sites

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Solas Sites: Glendalough River

Glendalough River

While Glendalough (Gleann dá Locha) means the valley of two lakes, today’s mindful destination is the Glendalough river. The whole valley has been formed sincee the last ice age, by a glacier that left a trail making the soil more fertile. This is a place where we connect with the nature and the human history and we call our ancient wisdom to guide us. Quite, colourful and diverse, this river is the depiction of ourselves, when we try to balance between our challenges and aspirations.

The element of water is the foundation of our existence: our bodies are about 60% water, our planet is about 70% covered by water, everything around us get life by water, in one way or another. Starting from the uterus, water soothes and comforts us, as we identify with this element and often find great resonance with it. The freedom, the flow, the life it adds in everything it touches, water is a positive symbol, full of life and positivity.

No wonder why in many traditions the water identifies with emotions. As they become fierce and carry us away. In other occassions, water is the symbol of flexibility, of our inherent talent to find ways around, over and under obstacles in our path.

According to D.L. Marrin, “throughout history, water has been used as a symbol of wisdom, power, grace, music, and the undifferentiated chaos that gave rise to the material world. Many ancient cultures believed that everything in existence was birthed from, and ultimately returns to, the metaphoric “waters of chaos” through the substance of water. Whether portrayed as a shape‐shifting dragon, an omnipotent god, a three‐dimensional geometry, or a subterranean river, water has always been understood to play a fundamental role in the creation and maintenance of the physical world and, in particular, biological life. The post‐Renaissance view of water differed in many respects from ancient views, but water and its recognizable flow forms remained symbols of power, beauty, wisdom, and the essence of the natural world”.

Why do we need this explanation, one might wonder: Because when we meditate by the water, physically or via Solas VR, we get in touch with a part of ourselves that is strong and dynamic. Letting the water wash away what no longer serves us, purifying and restoring our thoughts and emotions is the cornestore of mindful living. Perhaps, the key to mindfulness is, after all, made by water.

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Solas sites: The Lake

Take a walk by the lake, let the nature embrace and soothe you. Symbolically speaking, lake is a feminine symbol, the giver of fertility, where female divinities select to live, bathe and relax. It is a place of calmness and relaxation, a getaway from everyday living. This peacefulness is illustrated lyrically in the Chinese book of changes:

“Lakes resting on the other,

The images of the joyous.

Thus the superior man joins

With his friends for discussion and practice.”

At the same time, the surface of the lake is a mirror, one we see the reflection of ourselves and of the sky above us. Interestingly enough, Narcissus died from looking into his reflection in a lake for too long, as a result of the lack of balance between the self and the surroundings. As the pathways to different worlds, the lakes also represent the transition of life, death and resurrection- the eternal circle of rebirth and evolution.

For our meditation, we have selected a lake where we are struck by the light. We see the elements of water, earth and stone alongside the trees. These are enhanced and transformed by the sunlight; a gentle and beautiful reminder of how working with our own light changes everything.

When we change the way we look at something we change the thing we look at.

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Solas Sites: The Waterfalls

16mIn this powerful place we feel the force of nature. There is the flowing power of water and the sturdy strength of the boulders. We see and experience the elements we can decide to identify with and draw on.

We feel the cleansing power of water washing away old habits and emotions that no longer serve us.

This site also serves as a reminder of the potential perils of trying to control nature for our won amusement. In August 1821, during the visit of King George IV to Ireland, Richard Wingfield, 5th Viscount Powerscourt dammed the waterfall so he could release a torrent while the two stood on a new bridge built for the occasion below the falls. For reasons unknown, the king did not leave the banquet at Powerscourt House to view the waterfall, which was fortunate as, when the water was finally released, the bridge was washed away.
habits and emotions that no longer serve us.

Find yourself there, right now. Download Solas VR meditation app.

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Ancient Irish Sites bringing stress relief in a Covid World

In these difficult times we are disconnected from family and friends, from work colleagues, from Nature, from the familiar and the certain.  SolasVR was developed to harness the power of Virtual Reality to deliver that connection; the connection to Nature, to ourselves and to certainty.

SolasVR combines the immersive new technology of Virtual Reality and the latest learning on Microbreaks, Mindfulness and the healing power of Nature to deliver virtual visits to ancient Irish Sites and landscapes.

Whether we are transported to Glendalough Cathedral or the Stone Circle at Athgreany we can access guided meditations, music drumming, Nature sounds or silence to reconnect with Nature and ourselves.

The app is available, from September 2020, for free download on Android and iOS mobile devices and Oculus and Pico headsets. Upon free sign up, the users immediately access one free meditation, that can be played unlimited times. The selected free meditation is ideal for a micro-break, this scientifically supported small pause during a busy day that refreshes the mind and boosts creativity and productivity. This aspect of VR meditation upgrades it to a powerful tool for corporate life too, especially for those organizations that realize the importance of investing in the wellbeing of their teams.

A paid subscription, starting from €8.25 in the annual plan, unlocks all the breathtaking locations, different voices, durations and themes. The real-life sceneries trigger the same mental reactions as the actual experience, restoring, to some extent, our connection to nature and allowing the mind to unwind. This is the simplest and most feasible way to wander by a lake or walk in the mountains while living the urban life.

When we, or our employees, are under pressure, when we are stressed or anxious, when we need a break but have no time we simply step into SolasVR transporting ourselves to the scared sites or the Waterfall, Forest or Lake and reemerge calmer, more centered and energised.

The Community page provides ongoing support with an active community of like-minded people, providing reflections, scientific findings, everyday wellness hacks and weekly wisdoms to initiate and support the discussion that will bring us closer to our fuller life. The new VR app builds a new setting for everyday wellbeing on the eternal wisdom of nature and the cutting-edge technology of virtual reality. A VR app that challenges everyone to be more.

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Solas Sites: The Glendalough Cathedral

There are places that beam with positive vibes even when their time has passed and the Glendalough Cathedral is one of them. Being the largest of the 7 churches of the area, the Cathedral took a lot of time to be built- nothing is built in a day! What is also very symbolic though is that stones for a smaller earlier church has been reused, like passing a message throughout the centuries. In the 13th century, when the Glendalough Cathedral was inaugurated, pilgrims found a safe place there, to pray, to share, to reflect.

When you visit the area, especially when you know that this was a place of calmness ans togetherness, you can still sense the positive vibes. The harmony between the nature and the remains, combined with past stories that we don’t really know, yet they are somehow familiar, create a unique setting for meditation. This is how we decided to include the Glendalough cathedral as a meditation site in the app. Just go to the in app menu and travel to this sacred place of Ireland.

Glendalough (Valley of the Two Rivers) has hosted religious settlements since at least the 7th Century. The Cathedral was build form the 10th -13th Century. This site has hosted prayer and pilgrimage for over a thousand years and so much devotion and goodwill is held within its walls.

Element – Stone

In many traditions the Stone people have memories that stretch back in time to the creation of the earth herself. As such they carry a huge store of wisdom that we can access if we approach them respectfully. They also remind us that there is a time to be strong and steady to withstand all the forces around us.