The Red Road Discussions - Warrior Nation2024-03-28T19:00:38Zhttps://warriornation.ning.com/group/theredroad/forum?feed=yes&xn_auth=noSacred Teachings of the “Seven Grandfathers”tag:warriornation.ning.com,2012-09-12:6193495:Topic:2109662012-09-12T21:03:50.411ZLadyHawkღhttps://warriornation.ning.com/profile/LadyHawk
<p>Sacred Teachings of the “Seven Grandfathers” <br></br>The traditional concepts of respect and sharing that form the foundation of the Aboriginal way of life are built around the seven natural laws, or sacred teachings. Each teaching honours one of the basic virtues intrinsic to a full and healthy life. <br></br>Each law is embodied by an animal to underscore the point that all actions and decisions made by man are manifest on a physical plain. The animal world taught man how to live close to the…</p>
<p>Sacred Teachings of the “Seven Grandfathers” <br/>The traditional concepts of respect and sharing that form the foundation of the Aboriginal way of life are built around the seven natural laws, or sacred teachings. Each teaching honours one of the basic virtues intrinsic to a full and healthy life. <br/>Each law is embodied by an animal to underscore the point that all actions and decisions made by man are manifest on a physical plain. The animal world taught man how to live close to the earth, and the connection that has been established between the animal world and that of man has instilled a respect for all life in those who follow the traditional Aboriginal way.</p>
<p>1. Wisdom — Beaver <br/>The building of a community is entirely dependent on gifts given to each member by the creator and how these gifts are used. The Beaver’s example of using his sharp teeth for cutting trees and branches to build his dams and lodges expresses this teaching. If he did not use his teeth, the teeth would continue to grow until they became useless, ultimately making it impossible for him to sustain himself. The same can be said for human beings. One’s spirit will grow weak if it is not fulfilling its use. When used properly however, these gifts contribute to the development of a peaceful and healthy community. <br/>2. Love — Eagle <br/>To feel true love is to know the Creator. Therefore, it is expected that one’s first love is to be the Great Spirit. He is considered the father of all children, and the giver of human life. Love given to the Great Spirit is expressed through love of oneself, and it is understood that if one cannot love oneself, it is impossible to love anyone else. <br/>The Eagle was chosen by the Great Spirit to represent this law, as the Eagle can reach the highest out of all the creatures in bringing pure vision to the seeker. Though the purveyor of the greatest and most powerful medicine, love can also be the most elusive of the teachings, as it depends upon a world that acknowledges the importance of spirituality. <br/>3. Respect — Buffalo (Bison) <br/>The Buffalo, through giving it’s life and sharing every part of it’s being, showed the deep respect it had for the people. No animal was more important to the existence of Indigenous families than this animal, and it’s gift provided shelter, clothing and utensils for daily living. Native people believed themselves to be true caretakers of the great herds, and developed a sustainable relationship with the Buffalo resulting in a relationship that was a true expression of respect.. <br/>4. Courage (Bravery) — Bear <br/>The Bear provides many lessons in the way it lives, but courage is the most important teaching it offers. Though gentle by nature, the ferociousness of a mother Bear when one of her cubs is approached is the true definition of courage. To have the mental and moral strength to overcome fears that prevent us from living our true spirit as human beings is a great challenge that must be met with the same vigour and intensity as a mother Bear protecting her cub. Living of the heart and living of the spirit is difficult, but the Bear’s example shows us how to face any danger to achieve these goals. <br/>5. Honesty — Sabe <br/>Long ago, there was a giant called Kitch-Sabe. Kitch-sabe walked among the people to remind them to be honest to the laws of the creator and honest to each other. The highest honour that could be bestowed upon an individual was the saying “There walks an honest man. He can be trusted.” To be truly honest was to keep the promises one made to the Creator, to others and to oneself. The Elders would say, “Never try to be someone else; live true to your spirit, be honest to yourself and accept who you are the way the Creator made you.” <br/>6. Humility — Wolf <br/>Recognizing and acknowledging that there is a higher power than man and it is known as the Creator is to be deemed truly humble. To express deference or submission to the Creator through the acceptance that all beings are equal is to capture the spirit of humility. The expression of this humility is manifested through the consideration of others before ourselves. In this way, the Wolf became the teacher of this lesson. He bows his head in the presence of others out of deference, and once hunted, will not take of the food until it can be shared with the pack. His lack of arrogance and respect for his community is a hard lesson, but integral in the Aboriginal way. <br/>7. Truth — Turtle <br/>To know truth is to know and understand all of the original laws as given by the Creator- and to remain faithful to them. It is said that in the beginning, when the Creator made man and gave him the seven sacred laws, the Grandmother Turtle was present to ensure that the laws would never be lost or forgotten. On the back of a Turtle are the 13 moon, each representing the truth of one cycle of the Earth’s rotations around the sun. The 28 markings on her back represent the cycle of the moon an of a woman’s body. The shell of the Turtle represents the body real events as created by the Higher Power, and serves as a reminder of the Creator’s will and teachings</p> Strawberry Legendtag:warriornation.ning.com,2012-06-10:6193495:Topic:1864722012-06-10T10:55:29.091Zbridget ormanhttps://warriornation.ning.com/profile/bridgetotman
<p>Strawberry Legend<br></br> A Cherokee Legend</p>
<p>In the Beginning of the Cherokee World In the beginning, there were two worlds: The heavenly world called ga-lun-la-ti, which was placed high in the heavens, and the lower, dark world where the forces of evil lived. Ga-lun-la-ti was populated with beings in animal, human and plant forms. All creatures spoke the Cherokee language and lived together in harmony. The Earth was but a ball of water on which gigantic fish and reptiles lived. The…</p>
<p>Strawberry Legend<br/> A Cherokee Legend</p>
<p>In the Beginning of the Cherokee World In the beginning, there were two worlds: The heavenly world called ga-lun-la-ti, which was placed high in the heavens, and the lower, dark world where the forces of evil lived. Ga-lun-la-ti was populated with beings in animal, human and plant forms. All creatures spoke the Cherokee language and lived together in harmony. The Earth was but a ball of water on which gigantic fish and reptiles lived. The universe of the Cherokees depended on harmony and balance. Light was balanced by dark; things of goodness balanced by things that hid from the light of day in the shadows of the darkness.</p>
<p>In the beginning there was no sun, but a Great Tree of Life grew in the center of Ga-lun-la-ti. It lit the world so all could see and cast its light down on the dark waters below. So it was that the Creator lived by the Tree of Life where he tended the plants and cared for the animals. Sometimes, the waterfowl, the hawks, and eagles flew down in the darkness below; giant turtles and muskrats swam on the water's surface and bathed in the pale light of the heavenly tree. The Creator led a solitary existence. When his work was done, he sat by the Tree, admiring his world around him and below. Sometimes he became lonely and longed for a companion, perhaps a daughter who would sit beside him in the evening, watching his creation live and grow.</p>
<p>Then, the Creator made a young lady whose beauty and grace touched his soul. He knew that she, too, would long for someone to run and play with so he created a man in his likeness and taught his children the things that he knew.</p>
<p>The Creator found that his daughter laughed and sang too much; and she talked constantly. She asked too many questions. Why do the leaves of the Tree of Life shine? Who created the Upper World? Who named the plants? Creator still loved her, for this was his daughter, but this constant laughter and questions, what could he do? The Creator had told them many times to stay away from the Tree of Life and not to play around its trunk. But like all curious children she had to see why her father said these things. First Man would insist that she not go to the tree but every day First Woman would climb the tree to its highest limbs. One day she found a hole in the bottom of the trunk and started to go in. First Man was again insistent that she stay away from the tree but to no avail. She went in and fell out of the bottom of Ga-lun-la-ti.</p>
<p>Creator returned home to find First Woman was missing. He asked First Man "where is my daughter?" to which the young man replied "I told her not to go into the hole in the bottom of the tree, but she would not listen." Creator did not know what to do as he peered over the side of Ga-lun-la-ti and saw his daughter falling toward the awesome ball of water.</p>
<p>Creator summoned the birds of the sky, to catch his daughter that she might not drown. They created a great blanket with their wings on which they caught her. But, where should they put her? As they flew above the deep waters, the grandfather of all turtles surfaced. "Here, place her on my back," he said. The birds descended with the young woman, henceforth known as "Sky-Woman," and placed her on the surface of her new home. But it was not large enough, the Muskrat volunteered to find land and dove to the bottom of the waters and brought up mud, which he placed on the turtle's back. When she touched the Earth that Muskrat had brought, it grew in all directions, becoming the Earth that we know today as Turtle Island. The Creator knew that she would need more and so he sent down the plants and animals to take care of his daughter. He sent down the deer, buffalo, bear, rabbits, and squirrels to provide food and clothing. He sent the medicines of the plant people; cedar, sage, bloodroot, oak, and most importantly tobacco. Along with many others things, to provide for his future generation the Kituwah, the Cherokee.</p>
<p>When the First Woman, or Sky Woman, was happy with this world Creator sent First Man down to help take care of his creation. First man and First Woman were now husband and wife. They were happy and all things were good, but as in all good things bad will come and First Woman and First Man began to fight and argue.</p>
<p>Harsh words were said on both sides, and finally the wife said that she was leaving. Grabbing a few belongings, she began walking away from First Man. "I am going to find another place to live," she told her husband, "You are lazy and pay no attention to me." In a short time, the husband regretted his harsh words and tried to find his wife so he could apologize. Eventually, he realized that she was too far ahead, and he prayed to the Creator to help him. "Slow her down, Creator, so that I might tell her how much she means to me," he asked. "Is her soul one with yours?" Creator asked. First Man replied "We have been one since the beginning of our time. We have been one since you have breathed life into our souls and we shall remain one until the end of time itself."</p>
<p>Touched by the man's anguish, the Great Spirit intervened. Seeing the way First Woman was walking he began to make plants grow at her feet to slow her down. To one side grew the blackberries and to the other grew huckleberries, but still she walked on. Again he made the plants grow and to one side grew the gooseberries and to the other grew the service berries, but still she walked on. The Creator knew that this would have to slow her down and so he went to his garden and grabbed a handful of strawberry plants and threw them to the Earth.</p>
<p>When they landed at First Woman's feet they began to bloom and ripen, First Woman looked down to see the beautiful leaves and berries of the strawberry plant and stopped to taste just one small berry. As she plucked and ate the berries she forgot her anger. Finding a basket among her belongings, she quickly filled it, and longed for her husband once more. First Man, hurrying on his way, was surprised to see his wife returning, and oh! how his heart did soar. She was smiling! She dipped her hand into her basket, and got a berry and placed it in his mouth. He smiled foolishly, and gave thanks to the Creator. Taking his hand, his wife led him back down the path to their home, feeding him strawberries on the way.</p> The Native American Chanunpa, the Sacred Pipetag:warriornation.ning.com,2012-06-10:6193495:Topic:1865512012-06-10T10:46:02.092Zbridget ormanhttps://warriornation.ning.com/profile/bridgetotman
<p>The Native American Chanunpa, the Sacred Pipe</p>
<p>Eagle Claw Holding Mother Earth Globe<br></br> Symbolizes "He Holds The Whole World"<br></br> <a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2312014364?profile=original" target="_self"><img class="align-full" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2312014364?profile=original" width="598"></img></a></p>
<p>The sacred pipe and ceremony are at the heart of native people's culture, as they travel the Red Road, the native road of balance in a good way, their way, our way, the way of Wakan-Tanka, the Creator, the way of Tunkashila, the…</p>
<p>The Native American Chanunpa, the Sacred Pipe</p>
<p>Eagle Claw Holding Mother Earth Globe<br/> Symbolizes "He Holds The Whole World"<br/>
<a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2312014364?profile=original"><img class="align-full" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2312014364?profile=original" width="598"/></a></p>
<p>The sacred pipe and ceremony are at the heart of native people's culture, as they travel the Red Road, the native road of balance in a good way, their way, our way, the way of Wakan-Tanka, the Creator, the way of Tunkashila, the living breath of the Great Spirit Mystery, and the way of the Helpers, the way of love and freedom, here on the back of our Earth Mother. Simply put, the smoke coming from the mouth symbolizes the truth being spoken, and the plumes of smoke provide a path for prayers to reach the Great Spirit, and for the Great Spirit to travel down to Mother Earth.</p>
<p>The sacred pipe is a spiritual artifact, a religious altar, always to be treated with respect and care, and used only in a sacred manner. When it is put together with the stem it is sacred.</p>
<p>The ceremony is really very simple. The pipe a pinch at a time is loaded with tobacco, or a tobacco mixed with sweet smelling herbs, barks and roots such as bayberry, bearberry, mugwort, lovage, red willow inner bark, wild cherry bark, white willow bark, birch bark, and many others indigenous to a local area. The cultivation of the tobacco and the mixture preparation were the sacred responsibility of the "Tobacco Society" of the tribe, and practices varied in each area.</p>
<p>The ceremonial tobacco is usually very strong, the tobacco used in North America is nicotiana rustica, and usually the smoke is not inhaled, but puffed into, then out of the mouth in each of the four directions, acknowledging Father Sky, Mother Earth, and the Great Spirit as the pipe is smoked and passed from one person to the next around the circle.</p>
<p>A Typical Pipe Ceremony</p>
<p>The pipe holder stands holding the bowl of the pipe in his left hand, the stem in his right, pointing the stem to the East. He sprinkles a small amount of tobacco on the ground as an offering to Mother Earth and The East. As he loads a small pinch of tobacco into the pipe, he will say something like:</p>
<p>"The East is Red. The East is where the Morning Star rises, the Star of Knowledge. Red is for the Rising Sun which brings us a new day and another chance to learn. We thank the Great Spirit for each day we are allowed to live upon Mother Earth under Father Sky, Tunkashila. We pray for Knowledge, for from Knowledge comes Peace".</p>
<p>The pipe holder faces the South and again gives tobacco to Mother Earth, continues to load the pipe, saying something like:</p>
<p>"The South is Yellow. Yellow is for the color of Spring and the warm south wind, and the yellow hoop. While we load this pipe, we give thanks for our strength, growth, and healing that is brought forth from the south wind. We use this as a time of planting so that the seeds may grow into a new life."</p>
<p>The pipe holder faces the West and again gives tobacco to Mother Earth, continues to load the pipe, saying something like:</p>
<p>"West is Black. West is where the Sun sets. West is were the Spirit Helpers live and black stands for the Spirit World. We will all go to the Spirit World and we will all know one another and our deeds. We seek our spiritual wisdom in the West and pray for help from our Spirit Guides".</p>
<p>The same is done for the North:</p>
<p>"White is for the North. The White Giant covers Mother Earth with the white blanket of snow. White Buffalo Calf Woman, Ptecincala Ska Wakan Winan, came to us from the North. We stand here seeking endurance, and health from the North".</p>
<p>The pipe holder now touches the stem to the ground, saying something like:</p>
<p>"Green is the color of Mother Earth. We are all part of Mother Earth, each rock, each four legged, each two legged, all creatures, plants and minerals. We are all related. We respect our Mother Earth and protect her".</p>
<p>The pipe holder now holds pipe above his head with the stem up at an angle, perhaps at the Sun or Moon:</p>
<p>"Father Sky in union with Mother Earth are our true parents. Father Sky gives us energy for our lives and heats our bodies and our lodges. We are thankful for Father Sky".</p>
<p>The pipe holder now holds the stem straight up:</p>
<p>"Great Spirit, Creator of us all, Creator of all things, Creator of the four directions, Mother Earth, and Father Sky, we offer this pipe to you".</p>
<p>Now the pipe is lighted, and passed around the circle sunwise from east to south to west to north, returning to the east, each person free to offer a prayer or saying if they choose.</p>
<p>On completion of its journey around the sacred circle the pipe is capped with sage or bark, and separated, the stem from the pipe, set aside in its pouch until it is smoked again. The typical pipe pouch has separate compartments for the pipe and the stem so that they do not touch when not being used in ritual ceremony.</p>
<p>The Lakota Legend of the Chanunpa</p>
<p>One summer so long ago that nobody knows how long, the Oceti-Shakowin, the seven sacred council fires of the Lakota Oyate, the nation, came together and camped. The sun shone all the time, but there was no game and the people were starving. Every day they sent scouts to look for game, but the scouts found nothing.</p>
<p>Among the bands assembled were the Itazipcho, the Without-Bows, who had their own camp circle under their chief, Standing Hollow Horn. Early one morning the chief sent two of his young men to hunt for game. They went on foot, because at that time the Sioux did not yet have horses. They searched everywhere but could find nothing. Seeing a high hill, they decided to climb it in order to look over the whole country. Halfway up, they saw something coming toward them from far off, but the figure was floating instead of walking. From this they knew that the person was waken, holy.</p>
<p>At first they could make out only a small moving speck and had to squint to see that it was a human form. But as it came nearer, they realized that it was a beautiful young woman, more beautiful than any they had ever seen, with two round, red dots of face paint on her cheeks. She wore a wonderful white buckskin outfit, tanned until it shone a long way in the sun. It was embroidered with sacred and marvelous designs of porcupine quill, in radiant colors no ordinary woman could have made. This wakan stranger was Ptesan-Wi, White Buffalo Woman, also called Ptecincala Ska Wakan Winan. In her hands she carried a large bundle and a fan of sage leaves. She wore her blue-black hair loose except for a strand at the left side, which was tied up with buffalo fur. Her eyes shone dark and sparkling, with great power in them.</p>
<p>The two young men looked at her open-mouthed. One was overawed, but the other desired her body and stretched his hand out to touch her. This woman was lila wakan, very sacred, and could not be treated with disrespect. Lightning instantly struck the brash young man and burned him up, so that only a small heap of blackened bones was left. Or as some say that he was suddenly covered by a cloud, and within it he was eaten up by snakes that left only his skeleton, just as a man can be eaten up by lust.</p>
<p>To the other scout who had behaved rightly, White Buffalo Woman said: "Good things I am bringing, something holy to your nation. A message I carry for your people from the buffalo nation. Go back to the camp and tell the people to prepare for my arrival. Tell your chief to put up a medicine lodge with twenty-four poles. Let it be made holy for my coming."</p>
<p>This young hunter returned to the camp. He told the chief, he told the people, what the sacred woman had commanded. The chief told the eyapaha, the crier, and the crier went through the camp circle calling:<br/> "Someone sacred is coming. A holy woman approaches. Make all things ready for her."</p>
<p>So the people put up the big medicine tipi and waited. After four days they saw the White Buffalo Woman approaching, carrying her bundle before her. Her wonderful white buckskin dress shone from afar. The chief, Standing Hollow Horn, invited her to enter the medicine lodge. She went in and circled the interior sunwise. The chief addressed her respectfully, saying:<br/> "Sister, we are glad you have come to instruct us."</p>
<p>She told him what she wanted done. In the center of the tipi they were to put up an owanka wakan, a sacred altar, made of red earth, with a buffalo skull and a three-stick rack for a holy thing she was bringing. They did what she directed, and she traced a design with her finger on the smoothed earth of the altar. She showed them how to do all this, then circled the lodge again sunwise. Halting before the chief, she now opened the bundle. the holy thing it contained was the chanunpa, the sacred pipe. She held it out to the people and let them look at it. She was grasping the stem with her right hand and the bowl with her left, and thus the pipe has been held ever since.</p>
<p>White Buffalo Pipe<br/> <a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2312015564?profile=original"><img class="align-full" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2312015564?profile=original" width="600"/></a></p>
<p>Again the chief spoke, saying:<br/> "Sister, we are glad. We have had no meat for some time. All we can give you is water."</p>
<p>They dipped some wacanga, sweet grass, into a skin bag of water and gave it to her, and to this day the people dip sweet grass or an eagle wing in water and sprinkle it on a person to be purified.</p>
<p>White Buffalo Woman showed the people how to use the pipe. She filled it with chan-shasha, red willow-bark tobacco. She walked around the lodge four times after the manner of Anpetu-Wi, the great sun. This represented the circle without end, the Sacred Hoop, the road of life. The woman placed a dry buffalo chip on the fire and lit the pipe with it. This was peta-owihankeshini, the fire without end, the flame to be passed on from generation to generation. She told them that the smoke rising from the pipe was Tunkashila's breath, the living breath of the great Grandfather Mystery.</p>
<p>White Buffalo Woman showed the people the right way to pray, the right words and the right gestures. She taught them how to sing the pipe-filling song and how to lift the pipe up to the Great Spirit, up toward Father Sky, and down toward Mother Earth, and then to the four directions of the universe.</p>
<p>"With this holy pipe," she said, "you will walk like a living prayer. With your feet resting upon the earth and the pipestem reaching into the sky, your body forms a living bridge between the Sacred Beneath and the Sacred Above. Wakan Tanka smiles upons us, because now we are as one: earth, sky, all living things, the two-legged, the four-legged, the winged ones, the trees, the grasses. Together with the people, they are all related, one family. The pipe holds them all together."</p>
<p>"Look at this pipe," said White Buffalo Woman. "Its stone represents the buffalo, but also the flesh and blood of the red man. The buffalo represents the universe and the four directions, because he stands on four legs, for the four ages of man. The buffalo was put in the west by Wakan Tanka at the making of the world, to hold back the waters. Every year he loses one hair, and in every one of the four ages he loses a leg. The Sacred Hoop will end when all the hair and legs of the great buffalo are gone, and the water comes back to cover the Earth.</p>
<p>The wooden stem of this chanunpa stands for all that grows on the earth. Twelve feathers hanging from where the stem- the backbone- joins the bowl- the skull- are from Wanblee Galeshka, the spotted eagle, the very sacred, who is the Great Spirit's messenger and the wisest of all who cry out to Tunkashila. Look at the bowl. Engraved in it are seven circles of various sizes. They stand for the seven ceremonies you will practice with this pipe, and for the Ocheti Shakowin, the seven sacred campfires of our Lakota nation."</p>
<p>The White Buffalo Woman then spoke to the women, telling them that it was the work of their hands and the fruit of their bodies which kept the people alive. "You are from the Earth Mother," she told them. "What you are doing is as great as what warriors do."</p>
<p>And therefore the sacred pipe is also something that binds men and women together in a circle of love. It is the one holy object in the making of which both men and women have a hand. The men carve the bowl and make the stem; the women decorate it with bands of colored porcupine quills. When a man takes a wife, they both hold the pipe at the same time and red cloth is wound around their hands, thus tying them together for life.</p>
<p>And so it is . . .<br/> Ho! Mitakuye oyasin. Hecetu welo !! . . . All my relatives, it is indeed so..!!</p>
<p>A ho!<br/> Love and Peace,<br/>
Barefoot Windwalker</p> WORLD INSIDE MY HEARTtag:warriornation.ning.com,2012-06-10:6193495:Topic:1864652012-06-10T10:32:12.316Zbridget ormanhttps://warriornation.ning.com/profile/bridgetotman
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<object height="315" width="420"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/iH8zfkI-ets?version=3&hl=en_GB"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="false"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="never"></param><embed wmode="opaque" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/iH8zfkI-ets?version=3&hl=en_GB" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="never" allowfullscreen="false" height="315" width="420"></embed> <param name="wmode" value="opaque"></param></object> turtle island storyteller - Zona loans arrowtag:warriornation.ning.com,2012-02-01:6193495:Topic:1571952012-02-01T12:30:19.260Zbridget ormanhttps://warriornation.ning.com/profile/bridgetotman
<p>Turtle Island Storyteller Zona Loans Arrow<br></br> Home<br></br> > North Dakota > the transcript<br></br>
Zona Loans Arrow<br></br>
Every Tree Has Its Own Name</p>
<p>My name is Zona Loans Arrow now.</p>
<p>Everybody roamed this country. It was theirs. Tunkasina, Wakan Tanka created us and put us on this Turtle Island to take care of this Earth, so that it'll replenish and we would benefit.</p>
<p>They were to follow the herds of buffalo, deer, antelope, whatever. They were meat-eating people and…</p>
<p>Turtle Island Storyteller Zona Loans Arrow<br/> Home<br/>
> North Dakota > the transcript<br/>
Zona Loans Arrow<br/>
Every Tree Has Its Own Name</p>
<p>My name is Zona Loans Arrow now.</p>
<p>Everybody roamed this country. It was theirs. Tunkasina, Wakan Tanka created us and put us on this Turtle Island to take care of this Earth, so that it'll replenish and we would benefit.</p>
<p>They were to follow the herds of buffalo, deer, antelope, whatever. They were meat-eating people and then herbs, too. They used the herbs as medicine.</p>
<p>We'd go off and hunt and in the fall about August, September and October they go hunting. They bring all the meat they can. They use everything on the buffalo. They make the robes and leave the hair on one side. They scrape the fur off and they make tipis out of them for the winter. That's what they go out hunting for. They use it for meat and they cook them because there's always a famine in the wintertime.</p>
<p>And if you're not a good worker as a woman your people are going to go hungry. You've got to learn to store. Dry it and store. They dry the meat and they dry everything. Why? Because we are a people that travels. We don't just stay in one place.</p>
<p>We had to learn to preserve our food and preserve the animal hides because that's going to be your tent, your living quarters. Some of it's going to be your clothing and your footwear, your moccasins, your gloves. Indians made gloves too. An Indian made parka hoods, and everything. They're made out of buckskin. The skins of the hides of little creatures like beavers and muskrats and things. The mothers used to teach them and you had to learn these things to survive.</p>
<p>They were Isanti women. We're taught to raise our children in a nice way; to learn all the things, how to sew, how to tan, how to cut things, and make things for their family, and their clothing and their shoes. They taught them how to tan hides and how to make robes and tipis out of hides. They taught them how to pick the wood. Every tree has its own name. They taught them that. Sometimes you cut a tree down or you get some wood from that tree and it won't burn right away. Some burn for a long time. They use that for the winter to keep it warm. They taught them how to make a tipi, how to warm it and keep the warmth inside of the tipi, how to stake them down and how to bank them.</p>
<p>The men knew how and when to go out and scout for animals like buffaloes, elk, moose and different animals. They would bring it back to feed the people. It was always to feed the whole band not just you and your family, but the whole band. They would know how much in the tiospayes there are. How many people that they have to go hunting for.<br/> On the sides for the wintertime they put ground or earth around. Then the, the snow covers it up and then it's warm in there. There's no air coming out.</p>
<p>Zona Loans Arrow</p>
<p>Zona Loans Arrow</p>
<p>It is with sadness we report that Zona Loans Arrow passed away in July of 2007. She is greatly missed.</p>
<p>Zona Loans Arrow was Teton Sioux (Lakota), Santee Sioux (Dakotah), and Yanktonnai (Nakota). She was born in the Porcupine District on Standing Rock Indian Reservation in North Dakota, located in the northern part of the reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota. Zona served as President for the Board of Education for Standing Rock Indian Reservation and as Vice President on the Board of Trustees for Standing Rock Community College when it became Sitting Bull College in the 1990's. Zona is survived by eight children of her own, and was Unci (Grandmother) to many adopted children. She was a very spiritual person and eloquently encouraged native youth to pursue their education to the highest degree possible and to be good examples to their families. Zona wanted her people to go back to their own ways of respect and honor, learn their language, and practice their arts and crafts. For that reason she worked tirelessly to make sure that stories of her ancestors' lives would be passed on, so they can serve as role models for younger generations.</p>
<p>She was a gifted storyteller and oral historian with a number of exemplary grandparents and great grandparents who taught her well of their 19th Century traditional ways and cultural arts, and who shared important oral histories and stories with her. She could remember some of these word for word. Her Great Grandfather was Chief Red Hail, an Uncle to Sitting Bull. Another Great Grandfather was Joseph No Two Horns, Yanktonnai medicine man and artist. Two of Zona Loans Arrow's stories have been on Wisdom of the Elders radio at <a href="http://www.wisdomoftheelders.org">www.wisdomoftheelders.org</a> (Series One - Program Four - Elder Wisdom and Series Two - Program Three - Turtle Island Storytellers).<br/> Unci Zona Loans Arrow shared oral history, storytelling, and cultural arts with all audiences. She shared the life story of Joseph No Two Horns for educational materials being published</p> The Invitationtag:warriornation.ning.com,2011-11-11:6193495:Topic:1433262011-11-11T17:03:36.286ZLadyHawkღhttps://warriornation.ning.com/profile/LadyHawk
<p>It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting in your heart's longing.</p>
<p>It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dreams, for the adventure of being alive.</p>
<p>It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon. I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have become…</p>
<p>It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting in your heart's longing.</p>
<p>It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dreams, for the adventure of being alive.</p>
<p>It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon. I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain.</p>
<p>I want to know if you can sit in pain, mine or your own, without moving to hide it or fade it or fix it.</p>
<p>I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own,if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tip of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, be realistic, or to remember the limitations of being human.</p>
<p>It doesn't interest me if the story you're telling me is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself; if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul.</p>
<p>I want to know if you can be faithful and therefore be trustworthy.</p>
<p>I want to know if you can see beauty even when it is not pretty every day, and if you can source your life from God's presence.</p>
<p>I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine, and still stand on the edge of a lake and shout to the silver of the full moon, "Yes!"</p>
<p>It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have.</p>
<p>I want to know if you can get up after the night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone, and do what needs to be done for the children.</p>
<p>It doesn't interest me who you are, how you came to be here.</p>
<p>I want to know if you will stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back.</p>
<p>It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied.</p>
<p>I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away.</p>
<p>I want to know if you can be alone with yourself, and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.</p>
<p>The Invitation <br/>By Oriah Mountain Dreamer</p>
<p>(A Native American Elder)</p> The medicine wheeltag:warriornation.ning.com,2011-11-03:6193495:Topic:1420352011-11-03T20:28:12.325Zbridget ormanhttps://warriornation.ning.com/profile/bridgetotman
<p>The medicine wheel</p>
<p>Vijali, Medicine Wheel</p>
<p>Welcome to The Path of the Feather, if this is the first page you have come to by searching "medicine Wheel", we are a site about medicine wheels, spirit animals and your own life as a shamanic vision quest.</p>
<p>This page describes our medicine wheel. We go into much more detail in the rest of the site. To find out how to make your own medicine wheel go to How to make an instant medicine wheel.</p>
<p>The medicine wheel is a sacred…</p>
<p>The medicine wheel</p>
<p>Vijali, Medicine Wheel</p>
<p>Welcome to The Path of the Feather, if this is the first page you have come to by searching "medicine Wheel", we are a site about medicine wheels, spirit animals and your own life as a shamanic vision quest.</p>
<p>This page describes our medicine wheel. We go into much more detail in the rest of the site. To find out how to make your own medicine wheel go to How to make an instant medicine wheel.</p>
<p>The medicine wheel is a sacred living object and a teaching tool. The one I describe below is mine, the animals and meanings are mine, if you want to, you can find and make yours. All native peoples have different animals and meanings of the directions, so don't feel funny about choosing your own. I put the medicine wheel here so you can see it, and be familiar with it, and make one if you feel connected to this type of work. I am not trying to get anyone to use shamanic or medicine wheel imagery who is uncomfortable with it. If it is not your metaphor, consider it a way of looking at the world that is an earth driven spirituality.</p>
<p>My medicine wheel has four or six directions, it includes:<br/> the direction<br/>
an animal or force<br/>
a meaning or life pattern,<br/>
an element,<br/>
and a theme<br/>
Mine are:<br/>
West,<br/>
the bear<br/>
the unconscious<br/>
water,<br/>
healing</p>
<p>this is the direction of the medicine bear, the traditional animal of healing, it is where the imagery comes from, it is the depths of our visionary space, it is the place of power, the controller of the wheel</p>
<p>North,<br/> the turtle,<br/>
grounding,<br/>
earth,<br/>
embeddedness<br/>
this is the direction of grounding in your job, family, home, children, the earth as your mother, here you are in her body, and in your life at once, it is home and your deep home<br/>
East,<br/>
the owl, eagle, or hawk,<br/>
change,<br/>
air,<br/>
spiritual flight<br/>
this is the direction of change in our lives, cancer, the diagnosis, our new life to come, and flying into her heart, into the visionary space to see the images<br/>
South,<br/>
the lion,<br/>
love and passion,<br/>
fire,<br/>
meaningfulness<br/>
this is the direction of why we wake up in the morning, falling in love, passion for anything we want to do, meaningfulness,<br/>
Up ,<br/>
the eagle or the angel,<br/>
spiritual ascendancy,<br/>
goddess realms,<br/>
peace<br/>
this is the direction of going to she who gardens us from above to rest in peace and be totally loved<br/>
Down,<br/>
the sea goddess,<br/>
whales,<br/>
going deep,<br/>
birth realms,<br/>
dreaming</p> How to make an instant medicine wheeltag:warriornation.ning.com,2011-11-03:6193495:Topic:1419872011-11-03T20:26:33.334Zbridget ormanhttps://warriornation.ning.com/profile/bridgetotman
<p>How to make an instant medicine wheel</p>
<p>Making a medicine wheel in Chaco Canyon</p>
<p>You can make your first medicine wheel immediately. Your first medicine wheel is the beginning and your doorway to making your life a sacred vision quest. We will make a simple five animal wheel with one animal in each direction and one in the center.</p>
<p>Pick a place that is special to you to set up your first medicine wheel. Choose a place that is protected, it can be a table, or dresser, or even…</p>
<p>How to make an instant medicine wheel</p>
<p>Making a medicine wheel in Chaco Canyon</p>
<p>You can make your first medicine wheel immediately. Your first medicine wheel is the beginning and your doorway to making your life a sacred vision quest. We will make a simple five animal wheel with one animal in each direction and one in the center.</p>
<p>Pick a place that is special to you to set up your first medicine wheel. Choose a place that is protected, it can be a table, or dresser, or even on the floor.</p>
<p>Stop for a moment and say a prayer for the medicine wheel to change your life, to heal, to protect you and to create sacred space.</p>
<p>Get a compass and find the directions. On our medicine wheel, North is grounding, East is change, South is passion, west is power and healing, and the center is spirit.</p>
<p>Find little animal carvings, animal fetishes, animal toys, stuffed animals or feathers, stones, jewelry, or things that are sacred to you in your life. You can do the guided imagery exercise to help you find the animal who chooses you and its direction or you can simple let an animal call to you or attract you when you look in a direction. Or you can put your animals on the ground and pick one withthout seeing them. For this first medicine wheel, do not worry about which animal starts out. They will change later.</p>
<p>Put your hand down in the east. Think about change, the wind, air, and let an animal call you and put it in the east. It can be an animal you have had or a new one.</p>
<p>Now move your hand to the south. Think about passion, falling in love, energy, fire, and let an animal call you and put it in the south. It can be an animal you have had or a new one.</p>
<p>Now move your hand to the west. Think about healing, power, water, deep dreams, inner spaces, and let an animal call you and put it in the west. It can be an animal you have had or a new one.</p>
<p>Now move your hand to the north. Think about grounding, about family, work, what makes you feel safe, the earth, and let an animal call you and put it in the north. It can be an animal you have had or a new one.</p>
<p>Now put your hand in the center of the circle. The center is your life. Think about your spiritual center, who helps you and guides you, and let an figure or an animal call you and put it in the center. It can be an guide or animal you have had or a new one.</p>
<p>If you wish you can ask the animals what they do for you and how they will help you in your life.</p>
<p>You have now made your first medicine wheel Close your eyes, bless the medicine wheel, ask it to change your life. Say you will make a medicine wheel again and leave in peace</p> The ancient stone circle in Avebury, England.tag:warriornation.ning.com,2011-11-03:6193495:Topic:1420322011-11-03T20:24:22.479Zbridget ormanhttps://warriornation.ning.com/profile/bridgetotman
<p>The ancient stone circle in Avebury, England.</p>
<p>The Path of the Feather is not about you rigidly following the path of any one shamanic tradition. The reason for this is that in the present time, we live all over the earth. The traditional teachings were taught for each specific people in each place. Now we believe that you can hear the voices of the ancient ones for yourself from wherever you are on earth. Then you create your own personal vision quest for your own life.</p>
<p>The…</p>
<p>The ancient stone circle in Avebury, England.</p>
<p>The Path of the Feather is not about you rigidly following the path of any one shamanic tradition. The reason for this is that in the present time, we live all over the earth. The traditional teachings were taught for each specific people in each place. Now we believe that you can hear the voices of the ancient ones for yourself from wherever you are on earth. Then you create your own personal vision quest for your own life.</p>
<p>The spirit animals were different in almost every group of peoples. One group had a bear, another an eagle etc. Each group had the animals in different directions, had a different color, and different meanings and stories. It is now time to get in contact with your own animals and your own meaning. That is what The Path of the Feather is about. Now as people living on earth we need to hear a new shamanic voice from the earth herself, more applicable to us today. This empowers each of us by allowing us to see the illumination of our own spiritual path. We can do that through our own lives.</p>
<p>The place of power that exists for us comes from within us and from being able to hear the living earth speak to us. It has to be applicable and meaningful to each of us in our own communities. For us and others on this path all we have to do is go to sacred places of power on the earth around us and listen to Her voices and live Her visions. Now each of us can become our own shaman.</p>
<p>The Path of the Feather is based on a very ancient tradition rediscovering itself in its manifestation. For the ancient peoples, their whole world was The Path of the Feather. They were born with the animals and had the experience of animals everyday. They were the ones who lived on the land and loved it and knew its animals. They dressed as bear, as eagle, used feathers as offerings to speak to gods. We are reconnecting to that ancient tradition.</p>
<p>The medicine wheel stories in The Path of the Feather predate the stories of present day peoples. They come from the earth. They come from a place where the story had less cultural context. There was a time when we were all one, when we were all one race. In the evolution of our cultural context we became many peoples with many stories. But first, we were all one. We were not Indians or white men, we were simply human. The medicine wheel brings us back to the time where we can stand as one, where we were all connected. Then, there were not enough of us to be disconnected. We were one with the air, the animals, with the land. Before the stories were culturally embedded, there were no stories of separateness.</p>
<p>The medicine wheel is the way to reconnect to the ancient ways of being, to reconnect to a consciousness where we are the earth, we are the voice of the earth. Once, the animals were the voice of the earth. This is meaningful in our lives today because it helps us remember the essence of who we are. We are the essence of the earth. That is why this is so important. All sacred sites predated the contemporary native peoples by thousands of years. All sites predate modern stories and ways. They take us to our deep past when we were all one and listened to the voices of the living earth.</p> THE PATH OF THE FEATHERtag:warriornation.ning.com,2011-11-03:6193495:Topic:1423012011-11-03T20:22:06.975Zbridget ormanhttps://warriornation.ning.com/profile/bridgetotman
<p>The Path of the Feather: A shamanic journey, medicine wheels and spirit animals</p>
<p>The Path of the Feather is about becoming a shaman through your own life as a vision quest.</p>
<p>The Path of the Feather as a teaching, is about becoming a contemporary shaman by seeing and hearing the voices of the living earth. It is about finding out who you are by making medicine wheels and listening to the voices of the spirit animals and ancient ones. It is about you living your ordinary life as…</p>
<p>The Path of the Feather: A shamanic journey, medicine wheels and spirit animals</p>
<p>The Path of the Feather is about becoming a shaman through your own life as a vision quest.</p>
<p>The Path of the Feather as a teaching, is about becoming a contemporary shaman by seeing and hearing the voices of the living earth. It is about finding out who you are by making medicine wheels and listening to the voices of the spirit animals and ancient ones. It is about you living your ordinary life as your vision quest, as your shamanic journey. It is about you becoming one who sees and one who heals the earth with intent</p>
<p>This shamanic journey is your personal story of transformation, empowerment, and healing. The Path of the Feather is about your journey right now, embodying the sacred in the simplest ways. Here, the shaman's journey is not presented as something that is unusual or foreign, it is about seeing the earth as sacred, and living your life as sacred, from where you are now. It is about seeing yourself as a shaman, about seeing who you are on earth and what you are about to do. It is about personal transformation, about opening your eyes and awakening.</p>
<p>What is a shaman and how does the concept apply to art and healing ?The shaman in tribal cultures is the person who sees into the sacred world and shares the visions with the people. The shaman brings their sacred visions out as art, music, dance, and storytelling. By this ritual art process, the shaman heals themselves, others, and the earth. By having visions of healing and doing sacred ritual the shaman makes the visions come true. This is ancient magic, ancient healing. The shaman manifests reality in the outer world, from the visionary world. That is the someway the world was created from God's vision. We are all her vision on earth, we are.</p>
<p>The Path of the Feather is about you going inward to your source of power. It does not need a teacher, or a trip to India, it only needs you where you are now, and the earth around you. The Path of the Feather has three simple steps. The first step is the making of the shaman, which involves surrender to the earth. It involves your reframing your whole life as sacred and healing. The second step is seeing the earth as sacred, which involves hearing the ancient spirits sing, and seeing out of the eyes of the spirit animals in order to understand the earth's story. The third step is the healing, the making of the living medicine wheel, which involves doing rituals to heal yourself , others, and the earth. In the moments that you do this, you will be found, and know who you are, because the living earth gives you the gifts of who you are and what you are to do. This will lead you to the place on the earth where you will know that you are perfectly loved. It will bring out your inner artist and healer. It will let you be yourself. For all we are is her most beautiful aspect, her artist and healer, her visionary dreamer.</p>
<p>In our work with healing artists, we have found that they can work better if they see themselves as doing sacred or shamanic work. This is because the first artist and the first healer were one, the shaman, so the concept itself is deeply rooted in history.</p>
<p>We call this site The Path of the Feather because out of all the traces of the animals, feathers are the easiest to find. It takes a special moment, a sacred space, to see the beauty of the feather, and if you have paused long enough to notice, and stopped long enough to pick it up, you can be assured you are already on this path. If you have never stopped long enough to pick up a feather it is now time for you to begin. Birds leave their feathers as their traces all around us. You won't find other traces from animals around you as easily. Unless you are lucky enough to live in a wild place, bears or lions don't leave traces near your home except in your visions. But right in front of you in the parking lot of the market is a feather taking you on this journey. It will take you to the sacred sites, it will sing to you of the legends, it will make you alive. It will take you to the sacred places near you, and give you gifts to tell you who you are and what you are to do. Each time you pick up a feather it is a reminder that you are on the right path and that your life is sacred again.</p>