And oh what a view it is!!!
Santorini is a Greek island where we are currently vacationing. This island used to be round with a volcano in the center. But 3500 years ago the volcano erupted driving out all of the inhabitants and sinking the entire middle of the island into the sea. All that is left are two crescent shaped islands on either side if a huge lagoon with the top of the volcano peeking out from a small island in the middle.
Because of the force of the eruption, the sides of the islands facing the lagoon are 750 foot cliffs with spectacular views overlooking the water. The small towns clinging to the sides of the cliffs are composed of some of the most interesting and beautiful folk architecture I have ever seen. Without a doubt, Santorini is one of the most gorgeous places in the whole world.
But the view from Santorini is amazing in other ways too. It has an ancient timelessness that can be felt and seen everywhere. As I sit on our balcony overlooking the sea I can feel the energy of all the people through the ages who have loved this island and called it their home, even in fear of earthquakes and ever present threats from the volcano.
This view through time starts with the culture that flourished over 3500 years ago before the volcano blew up. That civilization was related to the Minoan civilization of Crete, and just as, if not more, technologically advanced. People lived in two and three story many-roomed houses with separate in-wall pipes for sewage, washing and drinking, complete with bathtubs and toilets. Waste-water was carried away through stone built drains laid under the streets.
Art was highly developed as well. Many houses contain murals that depict boats and ships sailing to far away places, and tropical flora and fauna not found on Santorini, thus suggesting a sophisticated people who traveled far beyond their own immediate environs. This ability probably saved them, since, unlike Pompeii, archeologists have found no bodies, skeletons or valuables among the ruins of their towns, implying that they had fore-knowledge of the impending disaster and took the opportunity to flee the island with all their loved ones and valuables.
Although millennia have passed since that time, the energy here still oozes continuity and timelessness. The sea is still the primary focus both economically and aesthetically. And many folk traditions from 3500 years ago still exist today, like pebble mosaic floors and streets and buildings of plaster or blocks made from volcanic ash.
Folk beliefs seem timeless here too, reflecting an awareness of the energy dimension that is often present in indigenous and folk cultures. For example, the most prominent and distinctive ornament on the island is a large or small blue bead made to look like an eye. According to folk tradition this symbol protects the person wearing it from the “evil eye”, that is, negative thoughts such as jealousy, ill will, anger or harsh judgment, generated by another person. This symbolic eye bead protects the wearer by reflecting this negativity back to the person who sent it.
Although we may think of this belief as simply superstition, it is really not so far from our own response when we begin to become aware of the energy of others.
The first kind of energy we generally notice coming from other people is negative energy. And once we begin to notice this negative energy, we almost inevitably conclude that it is directed at us in the form of judgment, jealousy, ill will or anger.
But 99% of the time, the negativity we are sensing has nothing to do with us. Our budding energy awareness has tuned into the feelings of anger generated by another person’s fight with a spouse, worry over a sick child, or anxiety about an impending medical diagnosis. This negative energy is not directed at us and will not hurt us. We do not need a blue eye bead. Instead we are being gifted with an opportunity to feel what others are feeling, and in the process learn empathy and compassion, both for them and for ourselves.
And so the view from Santorini has been awe-inspiringly beautiful, timelessly compelling, and deeply insightful. Perhaps this is why we yearn to travel.
You can learn more about the energy realm in my book, “It’s All About Energy: Adventures in Expanded Reality”, found on Amazon, and on my website, www.transformationalexpansion.com.