Oracular Circles are opportunities to have a direct experience of the consciousness of spirit people, learn more about them and life from their perspectives, and better understand the place of humanity within the greater scope of world wisdom. These circles are ways of de-conditioning our human-centric ways of thinking and perceiving, and help us be right-sized in relationship to our other-than-human kin. In these circles we show up and perceive the communications from spirit people, giving them a voice – the meaning of “oracle” – within the human community. The Oracular Circle method teaches us how to connect and communicate in the interest of fostering right-relationship with other forms of consciousness.
The Oracular Circle also helps sitters develop their clair-senses and work with the imaginal realm to enhance personal intuitive practice. As we sit in the presence of spirit we have the opportunity to receive healing and blessing transmissions and attune to resonances of wisdom, compassion, sovereignty, and other qualities of consciousness the spirit people reflect to us – qualities that reflect our True Self.
In this form of sitting, all of the sitters in a circle give voice to their perceptions, creating tapestries of wisdom made from different threads. While it is a group process, we maintain personal boundaries within a group synergistic field. Further instructions on the process are given at the beginning of each class.
In these classes we invite only the most compassionate and wise aspects of spirit in the interest of developing wisdom, broader perspective, and engaging the cosmic dynamic of reciprocity between the realms. Some degree of confidence with imaginal perception is useful, though the Oracular Circle can also support those newer to imaginal perception and provide opportunities for (indirect) feedback and practice. All levels are welcome, and those newer to it are encouraged to read my articles on intuitive perception in advance and have expectations according to their level of experience.
The descriptions of the classes only refer to possible guests to provide a frame of reference for the focal topic. A class can engage deity figures, elder beings, animal spirits, plant spirits, magical/mythical beings, and cosmic beings and places as they relate to the focal topic. To allow the ritual space to go beyond what I know or can plan, the spirits will be determining the final rosters, and we will enter the flow of ritual time and follow what is coalescing in the moment.
For those new to the Oracular Circle method, or those who would benefit from a review, an instructional video is provided to be viewed in advance.
They’re in every natural environment – we pass them on hiking trails, co-habitat with them on parcels of land, visit them when we visit bodies of water. When we develop land we impact them. When we visit parks or nature preserves we may overlook their boundaries. They are spirits of place – trolls, mountain dwellers, ladies of the lakes and springs, brownies, plant devas, dryads, the hidden folk. Our ancestors gave them names and made them offerings. Those raised in modern mainstream culture may have little to no awareness of them, or know about them conceptually but not experientially.
In this circle we will be exploring connection and communication with the Spirits of Place – engaging in the oracular circle method to connect and communicate with them and experience their consciousness directly, and then between circles spending time as individuals in natural environments exploring that connection more in situ.
*This course is not appropriate for anyone experiencing unstable mental health conditions or especially poor boundary conditions. If you have a question about eligibility email me the relevant information and we can discuss.
Logistics:
This course is held in real-time, online via Zoom. The Zoom link will be provided after the registration deadline with a link to an instructional video on the oracular circle process. As this class is small and experiential it requires presence and engagement. Participants are asked to prioritize attendance and avoid missing whenever possible. Recordings (no downloads) will be provided to compensate for missed classes but are not intended to replace regular attendance and engagement.
Dates:
July 26, August 9, August 23
From 1:00pm – 4:00pm PDT
A private online platform space will be provided for creative sharing and posting of the sitting notes.
Rate: $225 USD
Circle Limit: About 9 participants.
Registration deadline: July 10, 2025. Payments are non-refundable or transferable after this date. The class may be cancelled or rescheduled if a minimum registration has not been met. Registrations are still accepted after this date up to the class limit.
The Mantles of Mary
Mother Mary is associated with Christianity but her divine aspect has roots in much older goddesses, other “Queens of Heaven” and “Virgin” creator goddesses, all versions of the Magna Mater, the Great Mother whose symbols and epithets Mother Mary would assume as veneration of those older goddesses diminished over time. As Christianity spread, representations of Mary would also replace those of the local goddesses associated with the rivers, forests, mountains, lakes, and healing springs. But the presences of those goddesses remained, and devotions to Mary – both Mother Mary and Mary Magdalene – provided a way for those connections to continue in the form of the veneration of “Our Ladies” of place. In this class we will be using the Oracular Circle method to have a direct experience of connection with some of the divine aspects of Mary which can include: the Black Madonna, the Queen of Heaven, Parthenos, Star of the Sea, Mary Untier of Knots, Our Lady of Guadalupe, and the various other Our Ladies.
This section is more for iterations of this class that extend over a few weeks but the information is available for the weekend course for those who wish to engage it: An additional element of this course will include a framework based on the book The Way of the Rose by Clark Strand and Perdita Finn. Reading this book is highly recommended for a fuller context of this component of the course, but not required. One of Mary’s titles is Our Lady of the Rosary. The rosary is an extension of the custom of making flower garlands for a goddess. Participants can opt to make or purchase rosaries, and work with that framework of prayer. Participants can modify traditional forms of prayers to create versions most suitable for them.
*This course is not appropriate for anyone experiencing unstable mental health conditions or especially poor boundary conditions. If you have a question about eligibility email me the relevant information and we can discuss.
Location: Online via Zoom
Schedule: September 6 – 7, 2025, from 10:00am – 4:00/4:30pm PDT
Rate: $225 USD
Registration deadline: August 8, 2025. Payments are non-refundable or transferable after the registration deadline. The class may be cancelled or rescheduled if a minimum registration has not been met by this date. If the class is cancelled payments will be refunded in full. Registrations are still accepted after this date up to a class limit of about 12 participants.
Note on registration: The registration button below will take you to my scheduler. Choose your time zone and the first date of class and then follow the prompts. (The other dates will not show up, and the “hours” are also not the compete hours of the class. This is an artifact of my using the scheduler differently than how it is set up.) You will be sent a Zoom link a few days before the first class. This link will be used for all meetings. At that time you will also receive instructions for accessing the private online platform.
This class is great for those of us who are ‘decidedly not Christian’ but have grown up within the indoctrination of the dominant religion of Christianity. Meeting the “Christian powers” on their own terms and in their own voices, outside of the projections of the patriarchal structures this religion now is, opens up a pantheon of deities that are surprising fascinating, and brings to light the amazingly powerful spirit allies and helpers we can connect with directly. This class is also a wonderful reconciliation for those of us who have Christian ancestors, especially when when doing any ancestral lineage repair work, both as clients and as practitioners. Maris is a gifted and generous teacher and holder of space, and I would recommend this class …even if you, like me, do major eye rolls at the mention of JC and anything ‘Christian’.