Touchstone - No 054 - 2000 10

Magazine Overview

Title: Touchstone
Issue: No. 54
Date: October 2000
Publisher: Surrey Earth Mysteries Group
Country: United Kingdom
Language: English

This issue of Touchstone, a publication of the Surrey Earth Mysteries Group, delves into the fascinating world of ley lines and their potential connection to unexplained phenomena, particularly flying saucers. The main article, "Following A Ley To A Flying Saucer," details a personal investigation into a specific ley line.

Following A Ley To A Flying Saucer

The author recounts a journey undertaken in August to trace a ley line in West London, which he had previously noted on a map. This ley is described as passing through several significant locations, including Virginia Water Church, St. Anne's Hill hillfort, the site of Chertsey Abbey, a church in Hersham, Waynflete's Tower at Esher, Esher Church, Ewell Church, and the Bourne Hall library and museum, which the author notes resembles a flying saucer. The author cycled along this alignment to investigate.

Starting from Chertsey, the ley was found to run along Colonel's Lane, appearing to be twelve paces wide. It intersected with the Guildford Street ley at Abbey Green, identified as a ley centre with strong dowsing results. The author used a small, discreet dowsing rod suitable for cycling. Double trees were observed at the centre, and a visual alignment to St. Anne's Hill was noted along Colonel's Lane.

The ley crosses the Thames at Chertsey Lock, maintaining its twelve-pace width. The alignment was not detected again until Walton-on-Thames, after which the author crossed Walton Bridge.

The journey continued through New Zealand Avenue to Ashley Park, where the ley was picked up again. It crossed the Hersham Road obliquely and was found to be wider, approximately nineteen paces, on the road. The ley passed through Hersham Baptist Church.

A point of interest was Waynflete's Tower at Esher Place, which was visible across fields but appeared to be off the ley. The tower was built by William of Waynflete in 1475 and was occupied by Cardinal Wolsey. The author confirmed its location was off the ley but suggested the original palace might have encompassed the ley's path.

In Esher, the ley passes through the nineteenth-century parish church. The article mentions two other churches nearby and notes that Queen Victoria attended the church when visiting Princess Charlotte and Prince Leopold. The church features a Royal Gallery with the royal coat of arms. St. George's Church, an older thirteenth-century structure designed by Vanburgh, also had a royal gallery used by Victoria.

Crossing the main road to St. George's, the ley was found to narrowly miss the church, passing through a double tree nearby. The line also passes through the edge of another small church, identified as a former nonconformist church now housing 'Teddies Nurseries'.

Continuing to Claygate, an unmarked centre was found where the ley meets another line passing through the Victoria Monument, Chobham Common, and St. Augustine's Church, Addlestone. This centre was detected by the dowsing rod but had no visible significance.

The ley then proceeds through the twelfth-century parish church of St. Mary the Virgin at Chessington, passing through its east end. A tall Scots pine stands near the church. The line also touches an earthwork at Chessington called Castle Hill, believed to be the site of a medieval hunting lodge. It then reaches Bourne Hall, noted for its flying saucer-like architecture, with a library on the lower deck and a museum on the upper level.

The author, Jeremy Harte, curator of Bourne Hall, provided archival information suggesting the ley does not pass through Castle Hill but to its south. It does, however, pass through the old King William IV inn, which has reports of phantom activity, and near Roman ritual pits.

Further investigation at Virginia Water revealed the ley passing through Christ Church, a Victorian building, and along a road towards the Wheatsheaf Hotel. It skirts the edge of Virginia Water lake and passes near the remains of a Roman temple brought from Leptus Magna. A small stone circle was noted between the temple and the quayside.

The ley runs along the lake shore and through a headland with a Scots pine clump, described as a powerful spot with a sanctuary-like atmosphere. The path then twists away from the ley, but it is met again at the next headland, crossing into Berkshire. A small clump of trees by the water marks the spot.

Another ley was found to cross the main ley, passing through St. Augustine's Church, Addlestone. This ley is described as having tree effects and passing through part of the Leptus Magna temple.

The ley crosses the end of a bridge at Blacknest, with a view of a Scots pine clump. It continues to a point where the two lines cross, with a mound on the hillside.

A subsequent cycle along the St. Augustine's ley from Addlestone to Esher revealed tree effects near Weybridge, including a triple-trunked tree. It passed through a Scots pine clump near Weybridge Methodist Church and another on a private estate. A large triple oak was noted where it crossed a main road.

A Ley From Royston

This section details a ley discovered running from Royston, a known ley centre. The ley passes close to Wolfson College, Cambridge, and along two coincident road stretches. It also runs through the church at Grantchester, famous for its clock set at ten to three in Rupert Brooke's poem.

The ley was picked up along a coincident stretch of main road, approximately twelve paces wide. A triple-trunked tree was noted at a junction, and a row of almshouses with stone heads was observed across the road.

The road to Grantchester was entered near the Blue Ball pub. The church in Grantchester had more Rupert Brooke booklets and featured multiple trees in its churchyard, one large and impressive, and another smaller one leaning towards the ley. A mound was noted on the opposite side of the road.

The riverside footpath back to Cambridge was followed, running beside the Cam, which was coincident with the ley. The church was visible in alignment with this stretch.

Returning to Cambridge, the ley was found to coincide with Eltisley Avenue. A large triple-trunked tree was at one end, and a garden jutted out into the alignment at the other. A huge double tree, identified as a Chinese 'Tree of Heaven', was also noted.

The Silchester Ley

This ley was originally found by Alfred Watkins in the Roman city of Calleva Atrebatum (Silchester), Hampshire. It passes through the parish church, a Roman temple, and the foundations of an early Christian church. A TEMS field trip in 1994 investigated sites along this ley.

The author picked up the ley on a track across Bushy Park and through Hampton Hill United Reformed Church. It continues along Broad Lane, Hampton, and to Sunbury Cross, a significant ley centre.

The ley crosses Laleham Burway, where an ancient enclosure was visited. It skims the ancient church of St. Mary, Thorpe, at an oblique angle. The map symbol for the church appears to miss it, but the ley is believed to pass through it.

Sunningdale church is mentioned as a point visited in 1994, along with a nearby 'forest sanctuary' with a powerful atmosphere. The church is nineteenth century and seems subconsciously sited on a multijunction where the ley was strongly detected.

The ley runs the length of Nine Mile Ride, Wokingham, and passes through the northern tip of Caesar's Camp, a hillfort in Swinley Forest. This alignment is described as spectacular and potentially the Roman road from Silchester to London, though the actual Roman road runs further south. The ley passes just north of Silchester.

The ley passes through The Leas and Fair Cross before entering the Silchester city site. The parish church and the site of a small square Roman temple are mentioned. A larger temple encroaches on the north edge of the churchyard. Another ley runs through the amphitheatre outside the walls.

In 1994, the church was visited, and the site of an earlier Roman church was dowsed. The Bishop of Oxford had spoken at the site in 1994 during a Palm Sunday procession involving Roman re-enactors.

Alfred Watkins' plan of Silchester shows four leys, and he noted that the early church's site seemed to be mathematically determined by the intersection of lines joining the city's corners and gates.

Book Review: Shamanism and the Mystery Lines by Paul Devereux

The review discusses Paul Devereux's book, highlighting his research into leys, holy hills, and ley centres. It criticizes his 'exclusionist attitude' and his tendency to dismiss other researchers' work. Devereux's theories include associations between alignments and earth stress, fault lines, death rituals, and shamanic spirit flight. The reviewer notes that the book contains fascinating information on alignments worldwide but is marred by Devereux's approach.

Other Sections

The Hidden Unity and Beginnings: This section discusses the phenomenon of subconscious siting of ley points, particularly at places of worship, and explores the environmental and philosophical implications. It examines two ley centres: the Shah Jehan Mosque in Woking and the Guru Nanak Sikh Temple in Scunthorpe. An appendix by Eileen Grimshaw on the significance of the Pagan religion is also mentioned.

Earth People, Space People: This refers to a manuscript by Tony Wedd detailing claims of extraterrestrial contact, the history of the STAR Fellowship, and evidence for life in the Solar System. It was prepared as a booklet due to the original manuscript's loss.

The Legacy of Tony Wedd: This is a CD-ROM of Tony Wedd's travelling exhibition on flying saucers, landscape energies, and lost technology.

Touchstone Subscription: Information is provided for subscribing to the newsletter of the Surrey Earth Mysteries Group.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The recurring themes in this issue are ley lines, earth energies, and their potential connection to unexplained phenomena like UFOs. The magazine appears to adopt an investigative and open-minded stance, presenting personal research and historical accounts of these subjects. There is a strong emphasis on dowsing and the identification of ley centres and alignments. The articles also touch upon ancient sites, Roman roads, and the subconscious siting of buildings on energy lines, suggesting a holistic approach to understanding landscape mysteries. The editorial stance seems to be one of exploration and documentation of these phenomena, encouraging readers to engage with the subject matter.