The ‘Devil’s Chair’ can be found by following a narrow rocky path up a hill in an enchanting forest, in the French village of Rennes-les-Bains. It had rained that morning which makes my way up rather slippery. The trees, bushes and smaller plants are all glistening with happiness as their roots soak in the much-awaited water from the heavens, this dry summer. To express its gratitude, the magnificent greenery offers in  return its most wonderful scent, and the trail is filled with the deep magic of nature.

The Devil’s Chair is a megalithic stone in the shape of an armchair. Some refer to it as Isis’ Chair, Isis being the Egyptian name for the Mother Goddess,  which shows how far back the worshipping at this spot goes. According to tradition, this throne was used thousands of years ago to connect with the Divine Feminine, the primordial Force of Creation.

The Celts and the Romans
Before the Romans arrived in 70 BC, the Celts had lived at Rennes-les-Bains since about 3,000 BC. The Celtic people were deeply connected to the magical powers of nature and to Mother Earth. The throne was part of their spiritual practice when the Romans came and took over the use of the rocky armchair.

The Romans were influenced by their colony of Egypt and seen Isis was one of the most important deities there, they had started to idolise her too. The Roman conquest of Europe made this supreme Goddess an important figure in this part of the world. Rome, Sicily, Pompei, Palermo and even London had Isis-temples. France had them in Marseilles, Nîmes, Arles and Lyon.

The Egyptian Goddess Isis was known as the Goddess of the Moon, the archetype of a good wife and mother, a patron of nature and magic, a curer of the sick, and a protector of women and their families. She was one of the most embraced deities, and her cult was so open that almost every person could find a reason to follow her. Isis was associated with virtually every aspect of human life and, in time, became elevated to the position of supreme deity, ‘Mother of the Gods’, who cared for her fellow deities as she did for human beings.

Mary Magdalene
Scientific research has shown that places where pre-Christian Goddesses such as Isis were worshipped, later became chapels or churches dedicated to the worship of Mother Mary or Mary Magdalene. Many black Isis statues, like the ones found in Nîmes and Soissons, were converted into black Madonnas.

According to oral history, Mary Magdalene fled with other refugees on boats across the Mediterranean after Jesus’ crucifixion, arriving in the south of France around 40 AD. A few of the beehive like huts they built in the hills in the area of Rennes le Chateau have survived two millennia and farmers now use them as little sheds. When Mary Magdalene started to share her teachings, many people began worshipping her instead of Isis. Local history tells that Rennes-les-Bains is one of the places where ‘Sainte Madeleine’ stayed. She baptized people in La Fontaine des Amours, a little pond in the river Sals, only a few kilometres away from the Devil’s Chair. As representative of the Divine Feminine on Earth, it is most likely that she visited Isis’ Chair.

Here on the hill in the forest of Rennes-les-Bains, the primordial Force of Creation is still  and easy to tap into. The fear of the dark as night feminine power of creation, which became so common during the development of Christianity, but has nothing to do with black magic, led to the throne being renamed the Devil’s Chair. 

The footstone
As I arrive at the Devil’s Chair, my eyes are immediately drawn to the footstone in front of it. It looks like a step to climb  onto the throne, but I cannot bring myself to put my foot on it. It seems too holy to be stepped on. The footstone seems to be calling for my full attention and I feel an inner urge to touch it. I kneel down and place my right hand on top of it. To my surprise, I burst into tears and when I close my eyes, I am spontaneously taken on a journey through time. Countless landscapes appear in my third eye, moving so fast there is no time to observe them properly. I am being drawn back into time.

I am then invited to receive a vibration from the footstone, and I hear the sentence ‘This is the Individuation Essence’ repeated again and again, as if the words are being hammered into me.

Next, I am invited to take place on the throne to connect with Mother Earth, the Divine Feminine and once more I embark on a time journey through history.

Suddenly the right half of my body becomes more present, my bosom in particular. My right breast has always been quite sensitive since my early twenties when I had an operation on the nipple. My right breast now informs me that she is my ‘giving breast’ and that she has a huge mothering urge to pour love into the world. Her energetic ability to pour love through the nipple had been blocked by the operation and this is now being reversed. I feel all kinds of healing energies rising and coursing through my bosom. When the healing is finished, I open my eyes and rise from the chair. I have received the most unexpected gift from the Mother. Now it is the turn of the friend accompanying me, to take place and receive.

About individuation
‘This is the Individuation Essence.’ Now, what does individuation mean? Individuation is a concept from Carl Jung’s psychoanalysis and should not be confused with individualism.

According to Jung, individuation is the process by which the consciousness of a person is individualized and differentiated from other persons. In other words, it is a process of growth, of maturing, whereby we become aware of our uniqueness vis a vis others. It is the process through which we can fulfil our potential, and become all that we can be.

The concept of individualism on the other hand, contains a certain selfishness, a self-centeredness, that stresses how different one is from everybody else, rather than how we are all related to other beings and to the collective consciousness.

Individuation is not about fulfilment at ego level, such as having a respectable professional career, a successful marriage, financial success etcetera could be, but a complete actualisation of the potential of the unconscious, which goes beyond the limits of social life, towards spiritual fulfilment.

The goal of individuation is to get to know oneself, which leads to self-realisation or ‘coming to selfhood.’ It can be described as the expansion of consciousness. Individuation is the optimum realisation of all we have within. For Jung it is the most important goal in our lives.

According to Jung, the individuation process corresponds to the natural course of life, ‘in which the individual becomes that which it always was.’ For him, it encompasses the conscious and the subconscious (mystical, spiritual) areas of the human being. It is the journey of embracing and integrating the subconscious components of one’s personality. It is the path to achieving wholeness.

Throat Chakra Cleanser
The essence vibration called Individuation supports you in in your process of self-realisation and becoming whole. Its main focus lies in clearing the Throat Chakra, your centre of communication. This chakra holds the key to unlocking your authentic voice and ability to speak your truth.

The most important aspect of the Throat Chakra’s function is not how you speak, but what you speak, and how truthful your words are. In other words, this chakra holds your ability to fearlessly communicate your authentic self. A healthy Throat Chakra will allow you to express yourself and speak the truth from a place of integrity. When this chakra is blocked, it is difficult to develop your own, independent opinions, or in other words, to develop autonomy.

May the essence of Individuation, this precious gift from the primordial Divine Feminine support you in your self-realisation at all levels of your being, in becoming whole and in attaining inner peace.

With my heartfelt love,

Harriët Kroon