Manifest Form: Sacred Geometry in Practice

Front door of Star House
Displaying the Fibonacci Sequence 

An Introduction

This post is for a class I'm taking called "Explorations in Mathematics" with Gary Stogsdill. He has assigned the class an experiential project of our choice that involves mathematics. I have chosen to do my project on a structure called "Star House," located in the mountains just west of Boulder, CO.

I have chosen this particular structure for two reasons: 

The first reason is that the Star House was designed and built with Sacred Geometry. Being one of the oldest mathematical practices, Sacred Geometry has been by far one of the most fascinating subjects that I have studied, and a perfect choice for this class.

The second reason I chose Star House is because I have a developed a deep personal connection over the last two years with this particular place. I have attended many workshops there that played crucial roles in many facets of my healing and spiritual development.

Credit Where Credit Is Due

It is important that I give credit to those that helped me exist as I am today; not just academically for this project, but mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. All of these things tie in to the Star House and my experiences there.

First and foremost, I must honor Dr. Melissa Michaels, Ed.D. She facilitates a summer camp at Star House every year called Surfing The Creative®. She has helped to completely change my life for the better (among many other youth), and was the first one to introduce me to the Star House back in 2010. For more information about her and her events, please see her website here.

Secondly, I would like to thank and honor the Star House residents and staff. If anyone is interested in the things discussed in this post, please visit their website here. One can find out more information, events happening, and other ways to become involved, if one feels called upon.

To gain a deeper understanding, I have interviewed three people that were either a part of its initial development or continue to be intimately involved. I have also taken pictures of the space and the space around it while discussing Star House with one of its stewards. The three people that I interviewed for this project are Valiant Villanueva, Roger "Jai" Klarl, and Jerry Geringer. They were kind enough to donate their time to me to learn more about this incredible place.

I also took a "Star House Keeper Training" last summer as part of my work-exchange for Surfing the Creative®, led by Valiant. Through these avenues I have begun to develop a better understanding of the place so dear to me, but still have only scratched the surface.

Facing West

A Highly Intentional Space

 

Constructed Harmony

On April 6th, 2012 I went to the Star House and met with Valiant Villanueva, the resident steward of the Star House. His myriad duties go from basic cleaning of the property and grounds keeping, to energetic cleansing and harmonizing alignment of the space. Among what was stated in our conversation, I have also been made aware of other amazing attributes of Star House through experience and the other interviews.

Jai told me that Boulder, the foothills and the flatirons that the city sits against are full of the sacred crystal Quartz. Quartz is well known for amplifying and conducting energy, and is thought to have its own mythical properties. Jai speculated that the quartz played a role in Boulder being one of the healthiest cities (see here) and rife with personal and spiritual growth. That is one of the many reasons the founders chose to build Star House on this land.

Jai was one of the first people contracted to develop and build the Star House, and you can see some of his contributions here.

The designers and constructors held in their actions and intentions to devote the Star House to "Divine Union." A crucial aspect aligned to this end was a vow that the entire project would be harmonious. Every piece of wood, pane of glass, electrical wiring, and mixture of concrete was sung to, prayed to, and made as an offering to the space.

Interior, Eastern Entrance

If there was a disagreement between any of them, they would halt construction and leave the land until it could be resolved. Valiant explained that once construction shut down for 6 months due to a disagreement.

Jai said that when working on his piece, he only played sacred music. One day his assistant asked if they could listen to "some rock'n'roll." Jai declined this request saying, "I like rock'n'roll too, but it is not appropriate for this construction. We are creating sacred space here."

Heavenly Intentions

Inside of Star House stand twelve trees. Each tree is in direct alignment with their respective zodiac symbol. Each tree was cut down from the surrounding land and before they were felled, people would pray to each tree and ask it they could sacrifice it for the construction of Star House. Some of them said no. The ones that offered themselves were carefully marked to denote their exact position in relation to the directions, so that when they were erected inside of Star House, they were placed in the same orientation they were growing. Again, this was done to create harmony.

Tree aligned with the symbol "Taurus"
Though it is hard to read, there is a gold plate
with the Taurus symbol, and the word "Taurus"

The Star House is perfectly aligned with each direction. The south door is exactly due South, the West door exactly West, and so on. These coordinates helped greatly with the placement of the trees, and the surrounding rock circle.

South Entrance
The points at the top of the entrance and the top of the building
perfectly align with the North Star at night

 

Between a Rock and a Sacred Place

Encircling the Star House are the twelve "Guardian Stones." Each stone is also aligned with its respective zodiac symbol, and thus perfectly aligned with the trees. Buried beneath the stones and beneath the trees are the respective zodiac's sacred gem, and precious metal. To amplify the energy of the metals and stones, copper wiring is embedded all along the top of the structure, and buried deep below it as well. These stones are as far above the earth as they extend below it. This is to represent the relationship between Heaven and Earth. The four stones that are aligned perfectly with the four directions are also aligned with the zodiac that correlates to the solstices and equinoxes, respectively; Libra on the West corresponding to the Fall equinox, Capricorn at the North with the Winter solstice, etc.

West Entrance with Libra's Stone

The number nine is considered to be very sacred to geometers and represents new birth and regeneration. The position of each aspect of the Star House is aligned with the number nine reaching outward from its center. The center of the Star House has informed the placement of every single plank of wood, tree, shingle, rock, and the other sacred constructions in surrounding areas. The trees are exactly eighteen feet from the center, the stones are seventy-two; all being multiples of nine. Aligning the placement and construction of these things in this way is another method to harmonize and amplify energy.

Taurus' Stone

Beneath the Star House there is a cellar. They have designed this space as such so that during the sunrise of the Winter solstice, the sun would shine directly through a hole in the entrance illuminating that space. The rock for Taurus has less exposed above ground than the other rocks in the circle so as not to cast a shadow. Valiant assured me however that the rock is the same size as the other Guardian Stones, just buried deeper.

Center of the Star House
A crystal in the middle helps to visually
and energetically mark the center

Gemini's Stone, as seen to the left of the South entrance

Consecration by Design

The image above was taken from an informational pamphlet that the Star House offers upon entry. It depicts the Sacred Geometrical shapes and forms that the Star House was built upon. The plan of the Star House was developed based primarily on the Flower of Life, a powerful Sacred Geometric pattern (for more information on the Flower of Life, see this video). The diagram above only shows a small part of the whole pattern (that is also infinitely repeating inwards, and infinitely expanding outwards).

A crucial aspect of the Flower of Life in general is where any two circles overlap, but specifically in the bottom two of this diagram. The space between these two circles is called the Vesica Pisces (again, for more information see the aforementioned video). Physically, the outer edges of the two bottom circles extend as stone pathways outside of the Star House, and the bottom of the Vesica Pisces is the front door (Southern entrance) of the building. The room beyond is aptly called the "Vesica." So as one enters the stone circle, they are entering a sacred field, and as one enters the Star House itself, they are immediately imbued with ancient sacred forms that generate powerful energy.

This form represents both the masculine and the feminine. The Vesica Pisces can represent the female Yoni, with the outer circles representing the fallopian tubes and ovaries, symbolizing fertility. The lower circles can also represent the male testes, also representing fertility, with the Northern point representing the male's Lingam.

Front Entrance
 Doorway leading into the Vesica

South Entrance
Cancer's Stone Center, foreground
Feminine Circle, Left
Masculine Circle, Right
Circles overlap, Center (Vesica)

The Vesica, Facing North
Notice that the walls and benches are curved;
this is to display the Vesica Pisces where the
two outer circles overlap

Each of the lower circles represent the male and female, respectively. The bottom left circle represents the feminine, and the right the masculine. As I stated earlier, the Star House was made to represent Divine Union. Divine Union is the union of the Divine Masculine and Divine Feminine energies, which is represented with these two circles overlapping. Also depicted is the intertwining and interconnected aspects of masculine and feminine energies.

Facing West
Feminine Circle Stone Path
Vesica, Top Right

Facing North
Masculine Stone Path
Eastern Entrance, Top Center

Sacred Chakras

There are two chakra systems built into the Star House: one system is on a vertical axis, and the other one is on the horizontal axis (for more information on the chakra system in humans, click here).

The "mound," as they call it, outside of the Southern door represents the first chakra (Root/Base chakra) on the horizontal axis.

"The Mound"
Located in between Cancer's Stone and the Southern Entrance

As part of preparation for any ceremony or event at Star House, this mound will often have sacred symbols etched into it, with the crystals and stones shown above placed intentionally within.

The second (Sacral) chakra is located at the door to the Vesica, the third (Solar Plexus) chakra is just inside the main room, the fourth (Heart) chakra is the crystal in the center, the fifth (Throat) chakra is just inside the Hearth (northern most room, interior), the sixth (Third Eye) chakra is located at the northern most part of the building, and the final (Crown) chakra is represented as Capricorn's rock, located directly north of the structure.

On the vertical axis, the Root chakra is represented by a massive precious stone buried beneath the cellar. The Sacral chakra is just inside the cellar, and the Solar Plexus is the crystal in the center. One of the most beautiful and intentional aspects of the Star House that I have found is that there is not a physical representation of the Heart chakra in the vertical axis in the structure of the building itself. The Heart chakra is actually missing unless a human being stands in the center of the room. Positioned here, the Heart chakra of the person acts then as the heart chakra of the Star House. I was astounded when I discovered this.

The Throat chakra is represented as the globe hanging from the ceiling, the Third Eye chakra is located just above the globe, and the Crown chakra is represented in the same point on the roof that is aligned with the North Star.

Facing North
Globe, Above; Center Crystal, Below;
Valiant, Left; Hearth, Back Ground

Globe

Facing East

A Sacred Tour

Upon entering the Star House, as I stated before, there is a welcome pamphlet that outlines various aspects of the Star House and the land surrounding it. It also comes complete with a legend of each sacred structure or site on the land.

Each page is listed here (Click to enlarge):

Star House Property Legend

As you can see on item number twelve, there is a labyrinth on the land, constructed of various rocks that were placed by someone every time they walked it.

Labyrinth Center

Labyrinth Suggestions Cover
Located at the entrance of the
clearing to the Labyrinth

Labyrinth Suggestions
Guidance for walking the Labyrinth

Labyrinth, Facing North

Labyrinth, Facing West
Star House, Back Ground

During my interview with Jerry Geringer, he mentioned to me that every time a person walks the labyrinth, it helps to harmonize the energy in the field of Star House, but also helps to stabilize the chaotic energy coming up from the City of Boulder.

It was also indicated through my studies of Star House that the structure directly correlates to the exact center of the city.

Blessings, In Conclusion

As I stated before, I feel blessed to have been introduced to such an incredible space, and to have spent over 200 hours there. In many ways it has changed my life forever, and will continue to assist in that process.

I intend to continue studying Sacred Geometry and Star House alike. I created this blog as an easy way to display the information I gathered and the pictures I took, but I plan to continue writing in it the more illuminated my life becomes.

I hope that one day each of you is able to experience this place as I have, and feel its power!

Assorted Pictures

Eastern Entrance, Exterior
Stained glass window depicting an eagle in flight,
to represent the East's elemental symbol of "Air"

Eastern Entrance

Vista, Facing East from Star House

Facing West
With Valiant and the globe

Facing East

Facing Southwest

Peering through the Vesica to the South

In the VesicaAdornments for the entrance to Star House

Eastern Entrance

Western Entrance
Shown above the entrance is a stained glass picture
depicting a whale in a wave, to represent the West's
elemental symbol of "Water"