Soma
Sacred Earth => Native American: The Red Road [Public] => Topic started by: Jennifer- on December 02, 2007, 01:08:15 AM
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Ray often speaks of Grandmother Twylah.. a seneca elder he was lead to through a series of spirit whispers. There is a short chapter in his book that Ill type out sometime for sharing.
Ray has been in Vermont teaching a wilderness class with teens for a month.. Ive felt him there quite strong from time to time. Looking forward to sitting with him when he returns.
Ive been doing a book swap with a friend, random books picked by each other.. so we never know what's heading our way next.
I just started reading Dancing the Dream by Jamie Sams.
Excellent book...
Yesterday I got to a chapter that she mentions meeting a Grandmother Twylah. I instantly thought.. huh.. that name sounds familiar.. kept reading.. then it came to me.. Ray. Could this be the same woman?
So I went and got Ray's book out and read his writing about her again.. and sure enough it is indeed the same woman!
This seemed to touch me beyond the idea of it being a "small world"
So I decided to look her up on the net this morning... She has written a few books.. Im not very far in my search just yet.
For my own entertainment here is an interview with Grandmother Twylah.
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IT WAS THREE days after I met with her that I realized Grandmother Twylah Hurd Nitsch is a small woman. Her fathomless eyes, her great good humor, and the magnitude of the peace that effortlessly flows from her heart convey a physical presence that reaches far beyond her diminutive frame. She is warm beyond measure, mercurial, and deeply connected to the Earth.
Daughter of a Seneca mother and an Oneida/Scots father, Grandmother Twylah is a direct descendent of Chief Red Jacket, a renowned Seneca orator whose discourses are still studied by scholars today. The Seneca are one of the original members of the Five Nation Peace League known as the Iroquois Confederacy and are the acknowledged philosophers of the League. Seneca society is composed of various clans. Grandmother Twylah’s clan, the Wolf Clan, teaches the wisdom, philosophy, and prophecy of earth history, namely that all creatures — all creation — are members of the one family born of Mother Earth, and that our destiny is to reclaim that Oneness. Her family has been teaching the wisdom-traditions of the elders since the 1700’s.
Born in 1913 on the Cattaraugus Indian Reservation in upstate New York, Gram, as she is often called, was raised by her grandparents, Medicine Man Moses Shongo and his wife Alice, and trained to become the Lineage Holder of Seneca wisdom and leader of the Wolf Clan Teaching Lodge. This role was prophesied before her birth and assumed after her grandfather’s passing — when she was just nine years old.
As a young woman, Gram worked for a time as a jazz musician, singing and playing the drums, and was once invited to sing with Jimmy Dorsey’s band. She married and raised five children. When she began to teach, Gram brought students into her home to live with her family and learn the ancient ways firsthand. As her work grew, she formed the Seneca Indian Historical Society, a school without walls, and began disseminating her teachings through a home study correspondence course and holding semi-annual councils and workshops around the world. True to her Seneca name of Yeh-Weh-Node — “She Whose Voice Rides on the Four Winds” — she has single-handedly spread her ancestral teachings to Australia, Africa, Holland, Germany, Poland, Canada, Israel, Russia, Japan, the British Isles, Italy, and the United States. In April of 1999, she received the prestigious North American Living Treasures Award in recognition of her life’s work.
I first heard about Gram from a friend who is a great admirer of her teachings. I knew little about her then, but something about her beckoned me, stirred pristine images within me of walking barefoot on the loamy trails of an ancient Redwood forest. I had a hard time finding her for she had recently moved from her home on the reservation to live with her son Bob, the future Lineage Holder of the Wolf Clan Teaching Lodge and the current President of the Seneca Indian Historical Society. Eventually, I contacted her publisher who forwarded my invitation to participate in this project on to her. Several weeks later, Bob phoned. They were preparing to leave for a European lecture tour, but he offered me one brief window of time to meet with Gram and I jumped at the chance. I made my travel arrangements that day and one month later, met with Gram, Bob, and Lee Clark, Bob’s wife and the Society’s Program Coordinator, at their home in Jacksonville, Florida.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
... [ I ARRIVE AT Gram's front door after a long drive from the airport,] take a deep breath, then climb out of the car. Bob greets me with a firm handshake and ushers me inside, past a desk piled high with educational materials, into the simply furnished living room, a room pulled together by a man who has little interest in material things beyond the practical necessities. He introduces me to Lee who welcomes me warmly, then excuses herself to get Gram. For a moment I blanch, wondering if there’s some protocol I must follow when greeting a tribal elder, but my concern evaporates when Gram enters the room. Her long white hair is woven into two braids that sit on top of her head like a crown. Her face is weathered, etched by time. She wears a cardigan over a simple cotton dress and tennis shoes. Lee introduces us and Gram looks squarely at me with crystal-clear gray eyes. She opens her arms in an embrace, and I step inside. I feel as if I am a lost child come home.
We all chat for a few minutes about the tribulations of cross-country travel. Gram is surprised to learn that I came from California to talk with her. “I can not imagine why anyone would want to come all that way just to talk with me,” she says as she sits down on the couch. I settle in on the floor at her feet with my questions and recording equipment fanned out before me. Once I’m situated, I look up at her and smile. She returns my grin. Lee retreats into her office and Bob hunkers down at his desk nearby. Gram and I talk for a few minutes about the fact that we are wearing the same tennis shoes. Then we go from the mundane to the sublime as I ask my first question.
All the great religious teachings presuppose that the everyday world and our individual consciousness are manifestations of an underlying Divine reality. The Hindus call it Brahmin, the Buddhists call it One Mind, the Christians call it The Kingdom of Heaven. What do you call it?
“The Seneca call it Swen-i-o, The Great Mystery. Great Mystery is everywhere. It has no one particular form or manifestation, no criteria or rules that limit or define it. It is present in all creation and is beyond matter. It is spiritual energy, spiritual intelligence, the original source and the creator of all life forms, of all existence. It is the essence of all things.”
The word “mystery” intrigues me — the implications of complexity and secrecy — and I ask her to tell me more about this.
“When something is mysterious,” she says, “there is an energy, a magnetism about it that draws you to it, that makes you want to know more about it. It propels you to ask questions, to explore and, hopefully, to learn. Eventually you understand that you can not grasp the totality of Great Mystery, your Creator, with the small mind, with the logical, linear mind. Great Mystery can only be understood and remembered through the experience of Oneness.”
You said Great Mystery has no one specific form. Does It manifest to each person in the way that most appeals to them?
“It can. It’s very personal. Once Great Mystery nips you, you follow the way you are shown.”
What kind of a relationship do you have with Great Mystery?
“It’s an energy that lives within me constantly. It calls to me internally and prompts me to develop or expand specific information or insights for myself and for others. It talks to me through my mental processes, through my intuition and feelings, and through inner visions. Great Mystery both sends and receives — it’s a two-way street. I talk to Great Mystery all the time and Great Mystery responds.”
She is quiet for a moment, then adds, “I once asked Great Mystery for more understanding about this way of communication and the answer I received was, ‘We speak the universal language of love.’ Hail-lo-way-an is the word Great Mystery used to describe it.
“Everyone has experiences of being inwardly guided like this,” she says, “but most of us simply don’t honor the information we’re given. We say, ‘Not now,’ and let the guidance pass, because we do not want to take the time to enter the silence.”
What is “entering the silence”?
“It’s communion with your true nature in spirit, mind and body. When you enter the silence, you go through an inner portal into the unity of all life. The more you go into the silence, the more you learn about your true self and your capacity to function in society. But you can’t just say, ‘I want to go through the portal,’ and off you go. You have to become receptive; your purpose and intention must be pure. That’s why most of us don’t go there. Initially, it takes work.”
It sounds a little like meditation.
“Well, that depends on how you interpret meditation,” she replies. “Going into the silence is listening within. I have a feeling that when some people meditate, they are busy concentrating on a process or they are daydreaming. They are doing instead of listening. I sometimes sit in a chair in a comfortable position when I go into the silence, but that’s where any similarity to meditation ends.
“When I go into the silence, I have something specific I want to discuss with Great Mystery or with my Band Members, the friends and relatives in the spirit realm who serve as my teachers and guides. To go into the silence, you must first enter what the Seneca call your ‘Sacred Space.’”
What and where is your Sacred Space?
“Imagine a dot in the center of a circle that is located at the solar plexus. This dot represents what we call your Vibral Core, the home of your inner wisdom, balance and stability. A vertical line that starts just above the head and ends just below the feet dissects the Vibral Core. This is your Truth Line. Another line extends horizontally as far as the arms can reach on either side of the body and intersects the Truth Line also at the Vibral Core. This line represents your Earthpath. The endpoints of the Truth Line and the Earthpath rest on the circumference of a circle. Inside that circle is your Sacred Space.”
I close my eyes and visualize what Gram has just described. When I open my eyes again, she is smiling at me.
“In the North, at the twelve o’clock position of the circle, rests your wisdom; in the East, at the three o’clock position, rests your integrity; in the South, at the six o’clock position, rests your stability; and in the West, at the nine o’clock position, rests your dignity. When anything negative enters your Sacred Space — such as an inharmonious thought or a disagreeable person — it disrupts your peace and harmony. You become unbalanced and things begin to get difficult. The only way to restore harmony is to act with wisdom, integrity, stability, and dignity.”
Wisdom. Integrity. Stability. Dignity. I take these words in each time I edit this piece, breathe them into me so that I can move them beyond the ideational realm and make them a part of how I operate in the world. I ask myself: What do these qualities now look like in my life? How can I develop them more fully? How do they relate to each other? To my needs and my desires? I see this questioning as being integral to living my life with more effectiveness and meaning. Gram explains why this is so.
“If you continue to avoid Truth Within, your difficulty lasts longer and hurts more because it also affects Love Within and Peace Within. Eventually, your pain compels you to grab hold of the Truth you tossed aside so you can integrate it into your life and remember the experience of Oneness with all creation that is locked inside your Vibral Core at birth. Hopefully, this experience will provide you with the understanding that prevents you from making the same mistake over again. But you will continue to learn through opposites until you remember that you are a part of the unity of all life.”
Learn through opposites?
“Yes. You confront the opposite of Truth so that you can learn Truth.” Oh, yes, I say, and roll my eyes, for I have ample experience of my opposites. I have learned to be more honest with myself, to be proactive, to take time for personal renewal — the list is endless — as a result of being in intimate communion with the silver-tongued converse of each of these behaviors.
Gram looks at me with a twinkle in her eye as I tell her this and chuckles.
In your book, Other Council Fires Were Here Before Ours, you wrote about the fallout that occurs when we lose that deeper connection to Truth and have to learn through opposites, how we “... unconsciously project our sense of separation from the unity of all life out onto the world and see it as broken.” In the heat of battle, most of us rail against the opposition — whomever or whatever is outside of us — rather than try to reconnect with our inner Truth.
“Yes. Once the bonds of Love Within are broken and you begin to operate outside of your Sacred Space, you forget that you and all of life are a part of Great Mystery and that Great Mystery loves all creatures equally and unconditionally. When you are no longer aware of your true nature, you feel threatened by anyone or anything that is different from you; so, in an attempt to restore your own balance, you make others wrong or the world broken.
“When something inside us needs work, most people generally don’t take the time to look at it honestly or deeply enough because, initially, it can be a painful exploration. So we hang onto false beliefs, false patterns of self-know-ledge because they keep us from making important inner changes or we try to ‘fix’ others rather than make things right within ourselves.
“Truth Within is sacred. It’s whole. It’s a positive energy that unifies and feeds the body and the mind. It helps you digest your food, digest your lessons, and move through your Earthwalk in a focused and positive manner.”
Truth Within is like soul food.
“That’s right. And when you live Truth Within, your challenges do not affect you as deeply.”
Is Truth Within the same for everyone?
“We each have an individual truth that relates to our gifts, to our willingness to develop our gifts, to the time and environment we’re born into, and so on. There’s also a Uniworld Truth, a Whole Truth, derived from our oneness with Great Mystery that is the same for everyone. We have to live in accordance with both aspects of Truth to maintain our inner balance. If we don’t, that imbalance becomes the part of you others will notice most.”
It’s also the part of myself I notice most. And, if I’m not living my Truth, I can’t be of real service to myself or to others. “If you really want to help others, be an example,” she counsels. “A good example is the best teacher. Others admire you and want to be like you. They sense your inner comfort and want that for themselves.”
She leans toward me and says, “It’s like this: If you wear a sharp outfit that makes you feel good, yet you can’t maintain that comfort and wholeness when you take off the outfit — or no matter what else you put on — you’ve got a problem. Your outside image doesn’t ring true. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of people today who feel whole.”
I think, these days, more people are working at it though. Sometimes we’ve got it together, and sometimes we don’t.
“That’s part of the growth process. We learn in increments because we can take in and hold just so much at one time. Attempting to remain in your truth is better than not trying at all. The main thing is to be open to learning and to learn with a humble attitude. Seek more than immediate or exterior comfort. Be true to yourself. When it’s time for you to learn more, Truth is there for the asking. It’s always with you. Unity is always with you. All you have to do is recognize it.”
What blocks our recognition of Truth and Unity?
“Not knowing Who you really are and not understanding your connection to Great Mystery. Not knowing limits you; it compels you to look to the small mind to sort things out. We know there’s ‘something more,’ we hunger for it, but we haven’t the remotest idea what ‘more’ really is! In our ignorance, we create exhaustion, fear or intentional busyness or we passively let others tell us what to do just so we can have something to use as an excuse for why we’re not happy. Once you get distracted and pulled off-center like this, you see only the periphery of Truth. The energy required to navigate through this illusion is immense, often more than we can muster. But the process can be simplified through prayer and willingness to follow Great Mystery’s guidance.”
She smiles at me and I get the sense that she knows that I am both fierce about my own growth and looking for answers to questions I have not yet named. I am not at all intimidated by this. She is so comfortable to be around, so safe, that I’m happy to let her in. She may see parts of me that aren’t particularly attractive, but I intuitively know this doesn’t matter to her. She looks out at me, out at the world, from some cavernous core not molded by theory or opinion — or judgment. I notice how internally quiet I have become just by sitting with her, and I rest for a moment in the Quiet.
Something else I read in her book floats up to the surface of my mind — her belief that all creatures are Relations, members of one planetary family. Humans, she wrote, are the only Relation unaware of this familial association. The animals, the trees, the stones, and so on, have all chosen to endure the harshness of mankind’s delusion of separate existence until we remember our unity with all life and can then, all return to Great Mystery together. I tell her how moved I am by the compassion, the patience, of creatures we consider to be “less than.”
“The sun and moon, the earth and sky are our family,” she says. “The Earth is our Mother, the sky is our Father. It’s Grandfather Sun, Grandmother Moon. White society doesn’t feel this connection the way Native people do. They walk the Earth, they eat Her food and drink Her water, they even love Her trees and mountains, but they don’t feel their natural bond with the Earth.
“Humans have become pushy and egocentric. We do not know that all life is interdependent. Our other Relations can wait until we remember this Truth because they know that within the challenge of separation, lies the promise of equality and unity.”
As I begin to grab hold of these words, Lee emerges from the inner sanctum of her office and suggests we break for lunch. I look at my watch and am surprised to see that three hours have passed. Ten minutes later, the four of us are sitting on stools around the breakfast counter holding hands, each offering Great Mystery our gratitude for something the day has brought. I listen to their effortless words of thanksgiving and when my turn comes, I give thanks for being able to share this day with them. I do not feel as if I am a guest in their home; rather I am a Relation, a member of the family.
The salad Lee prepares is delicious and we laugh and talk as we eat. Lee and Bob giggle as they try to piece together a wonderful story about Gram’s visit from the Dalai Lama. I get the full report several months later from a student of Gram’s who witnessed the event.
It goes like this: During the winter months of 1991, the Dalai Lama and an entourage of Buddhist monks visited Gram for two days at her home on the reservation. She often received guests, people from all walks of life, who came to learn more about her teachings and enjoy her warm hospitality. The two spiritual leaders spent many hours in deep conversation about the state of international affairs and exchanged thoughts on their shared desire for world peace. As was her custom, Gram also invited the Dalai Lama to visit the twelve-sided Wolf Clan Lodge located a short distance from her home.
The two elders walked slowly, arm-in-arm, along the ice and snow-covered path to the Lodge, with members of the Dalai Lama’s party and the Wolf Clan Teaching Lodge following at a respectful distance. Then, without warning, Gram and the Dalai Lama slid on a patch of ice, lost their balance and fell, in Gram’s words, “butt over tea kettle” on their backs into the snow. For a few brief moments, no one breathed. Horrified monks and Wolf Clan members engaged in a mad scramble to assist their leaders, but Gram and the Dalai Lama just turned to each other and burst out laughing. Then, like two mischievous school children, they each gathered a lump of snow in their hands and initiated a snowball fight. From the little I know of Gram, it is not at all difficult to picture this event in my head.
After lunch, Gram meanders back to the couch and I resume my place on the floor. The tape starts to roll as I ask her if there’s one precept, a sort of “Golden Rule” she follows, that guides or inspires her.
“My Grandfather taught me to follow the Twelve Cycles of Truth and the Pathways of Peace to preserve my wholeness and help me walk in balance and fulfill my life’s mission. They are: learn the Truth, honor the Truth, know the Truth, see the Truth, hear the Truth, speak the Truth, love the Truth, serve the Truth, live the Truth, work the Truth, share the Truth and be thankful for the Truth. The Pathway of Peace is living in harmony with this ancient philosophy.”
So, if you live in harmony with these cycles, you fulfill your life’s mission?
“You fulfill your Earthwalk, your Pathway to Peace, the personal pattern that guides you toward wholeness. Each person must develop their dreams and discipline themselves to achieve what they desire for their life in a way that satisfies Truth Within.”
What is your Earthwalk?
Gram looks over at Bob, who is, by now, back at his desk, and chuckles. “Well, my Earthwalk is just about over,” she says. “At this time in my life, I’m happy to sit back and take it easy. But when I was a young girl, my elders told me I would carry on the work of my Grandfather Moses Shongo to spread our teachings and help others understand their connection to the earth. My Grandparents also told me I would experience certain disabilities when I grew older that would help me learn how to carry out the work and better understand others. This too, has been part of my Earthwalk. I was crippled to teach me about perseverance, positive thinking, and faith in Great Mystery’s plan. I was blind to learn to perceive more than what my outer eyes could see and be more sensitive to the energy of others. And I was deaf so I could become aware of a deeper vibration and rhythm of life that extends beyond my sense of hearing.”
I make a presumption and say, “Those must have been difficult times.” But Gram is on a totally different wave length.
“Actually, they were wonderful times! My elders also told me I would fully recover from these challenges, but I had to do my part and be willing to grow through them. I never lapsed into ‘Poor me.’”
Did you ever have periods of doubt?
“Never.”
Lack of faith?
“Never.”
No “dark night of the soul”?
“No. Never.”
That’s amazing! What do you attribute this to?
“To these teachings. Everything that happened to me was just like going to school. Even when I couldn’t hear or see, I didn’t feel disappointed. I felt like I was being gifted because of what I was learning through the experience.
“When I was a child my elders taught me it was up to me to make myself happy each day, and when I go to bed each night, I should thank Great Mystery for my happiness. Most people don’t take responsibility for their own happiness — it doesn’t even enter their heads to do this! And at the end of the day, they’re not grateful for the good things that happen to them.”
Were your Grandparents your mentors?
“They were my examples. My grandparents raised me before I went off to boarding school. My grandfather was a Seneca Indian Medicine Man. He was always in the woods looking for herbs, and I learned from him how to live in harmony with Nature. Our kitchen constantly smelled like a ‘medicine factory,’ as he called it. He was a brilliant man. All the doctors in the community were his friends. Sometimes they would send him patients who didn’t respond to their medicine. My grandmother was a very quiet person, but when she spoke, her words were packed with meaning.
“Our house was always full of people. My grandparents knew how to make everyone feel comfortable with who they were. I often heard them tell people, ‘You were born with these gifts so use them.’ They showed me how to listen and pay attention to others and to be aware of what was going on around me. They also taught me that I was worthy of having my own ideas and that the answers to my problems lay inside me.”
After your Grandfather died, you assumed the responsibility for carrying on his teachings. You were just a young girl at that time. Did you feel prepared for this?
“His passing was a devastating loss to me, but he had been preparing me for this role all my life — by his example, in everything we did together, and in the ancient stories he told me. In our tradition, wisdom is passed on orally. Those who tell the stories are called the Wisdom Keepers or the Storytellers. They are chosen for their ability to listen and speak, so that the people can be sure our wisdom is passed on correctly. That role, like the stories themselves, is passed on from generation to generation. When I die, my son Bob will become the Wisdom Keeper. I have prepared him in the same way my Grandfather prepared me.”
What advice, would you give to others seeking to live a more spiritual life?
“Be kind. Do nice things for others; speak kindly about others. If someone does something nice for you, be grateful. Say ‘Thank you.’ Be grateful for every day. Be grateful for waking up. Be grateful for being able to breathe.”
“You know,” she says, after a moment’s pause, “gratitude is actually based on love, and nothing is more powerful than love. It’s lack of love, or the misuse of love, that causes many of the problems we have today. People don’t appreciate what they have. They don’t love and respect themselves or each other. They take without giving anything back. They hide their elders — the ones who have the most life experience and can be most helpful in guiding them — in old folks’ homes to get them out of the way. No wonder people today are so confused! No wonder people are not happy!
“In order to be happy, you need to develop and share your inner love. That’s how it grows. If you’re not sharing what you have with others — your gifts and abilities as well as your material possessions — if you’re not helping others to grow, if you’re not a teacher or an example, you’re a user. Users don’t honor what they have. They don’t know how to take care of things so they can be perpetuated. Madison Avenue steps in and tells us to ‘Have it your way,’ so we push for more. Once we get what we want, we devour it until it’s gone. There’s no happiness in that,” Gram declares and shakes her head.
“Happiness — inner happiness — is the goal of life. Most people can’t even look at themselves in the mirror and smile! If someone comes to me and tells me they’re unhappy, I tell them to examine their feelings and figure out what their limitations are and deal with them! You may have a nice house, a nice car, a good job and make $100,000 a year, but if you have all that stuff and you’re still unhappy, you have to ask yourself, ‘What’s wrong with this picture?’”
She doesn’t mince words. The real question then, I say to her, is how do you foster self-love?
“You have to nourish self-love all the time. If your parents or husband didn’t give you the love you wanted, you have to give it to yourself. If something throws you into a slump, look at it right in the eye. Figure out what you didn’t see about yourself that allowed that slump to happen, then change it. After all, we live in a do-it-yourself world!” She chuckles once again.
Looking back over your lifetime, what do you think is your greatest accomplishment?
“I really don’t know how to answer that. If you were to ask me about my greatest experience, I would say being married and raising my five children. But ‘accomplishment’ ... I don’t know.”
She looks at Bob for a way into this question. They talk about this for a while and then she realizes why the question is so difficult for her to answer. “You see, Seneca people gauge accomplishment by where we are on our Earthwalk, how we’ve developed our natural potentials and shared our gifts. Our elders know we’re ready to move forward by the questions we ask. There is no criticism or praise, there is only movement through the labyrinth of experience until we remember Who we really are. A bear wakes up in the morning knowing who he is and what he must do each day. He doesn’t ‘accomplish,’ he just lives in harmony with Great Mystery. This is true for us as well.”
OK, I think to myself. Be bear-like: know who I am — part of the Oneness of all life — and live in harmony with Great Mystery. It’s a good thought to hold on to when I get sucked into the vortex of my To Do list.
When your Earthwalk ends, how would you like to be remembered?
“For greeting people with a smile and for spreading the Seneca Peacemakers’ message of ‘All for One and One for All.’ When you feel your oneness with all life, you carry that with you everywhere you go. You feel centered. Then whatever you do helps others; it unifies life. I believe in these words and honor them by how I live my life. It’s really as simple as that.”
I look at Gram and smile. Is there anything we didn’t cover? Anything else you want to add?
“No,” she says. “It’s been nice.”
It’s been nice for me, too. More than nice. I try to thank her but I cannot find the words.
Bob tells me, with an impish smile on his face, how someone once told him that when you don’t know what to say, you can always ask the other person if their shoes fit right. We all laugh.
Gram, do your shoes fit right?
“When my stockings don’t get all bunched up,” she says, and we howl. As I pack up my gear, Bob suggests I listen to the tapes I made of my conversation with Gram to see if anything needs clarification. He invites me to come back the next day to pull together any loose ends. I’ve so enjoyed being with them, it’s an offer I can’t refuse. Before I leave, Gram takes me into her room and gives me a “wish pouch” she knitted, a small apple green sack she tells me to fill with my wishes for my life. She walks with me to the door. Gram and Lee hug me good-bye and I drive off to a nearby hotel to spend the night.
That evening, I listen to the tapes and come up with a few questions to ask Gram — not really enough to warrant another visit, but I’m so glad to have the opportunity to sit at their table again, to hold hands and express my gratitude at being a part of their sweet family, that I return for a few hours the next morning. At noon, I pack up my gear, and Gram and Lee hug me good-bye for the last time. Though I know I can call up the comfort I have felt here whenever I think of her, I am reluctant to leave. Gram smiles at me and gives me one last gentle word of counsel: “Remember the Peacemakers’ message: All for One and One for All.” I nod and return her smile. My voice catches in my throat as I say good-bye, then I turn and walk out the door.
Excerpted with permission from In Sweet Company: Conversations with Extraordinary Women About Living a Spiritual Life by Margaret Wolff.
Copyright © 2005 by Margaret Wolff
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Digging a Hole Big Enough to Sit In
by Twylah Nitsch (New York, 1920 - )
I must have been under five when I spent one whole summer day digging a hole with a large spoon in the side of a bank near our house. I had to dig and dig because the ground was so full of roots and my goal was to make a hole big enough to sit in - like a cave. And that took a lot of hard work. Digging through all those roots was tough.
What I remember most about the experience is something my grandmother said. "When you take the dirt out, make sure you have a place for it," she cautioned me, "because the dirt is used to being in that particular place, and it is at home there. Don't take anything that is part of something and just scatter it around. Remember you are disturbing the home of the worms and the insects. You are moving them out of the place where they have been living, and you need to make sure that they are happy about where you are taking them." So I would scoop the dirt into a little basket I had and take it around to various spots. "Is this where you would like to be?" I'd ask. And if the answer was yes, I would leave it. Otherwise, I'd pick up my basket, go to another spot, and ask again.
When I had finally made the hold deep enough to sit in, I would crawl in there and listen. I could hear the earth talking.
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Author: Twylah Nitsch, Seneca
Look at your neighbor
and make him sparkle.
Your eyes
are the mirror of your soul.
When you sparkle your eyes,
whether you think
you are beautiful or not,
you are.
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(http://www.wolfclanteachinglodge.org/Images/Twylah2.jpg)
The guiding light behind the Wolf Clan Teaching Lodge is Grandmother Twylah, Elder and founder of the Seneca Indian Historical Society. Many decades ago, Grandmother was designated to preserve the Wolf Clan teachings by her maternal grandfather, Moses Shongo, one of the last of the practicing Seneca Medicine Men. Grandmother Twylah, an advocate of the need to preserve the traditions and wisdom of Native people, has been the subject of numerous articles, both here and abroad. She is a world renowned author and teacher, dedicated with a passion that truly befits her name: Yehwehnode, She whose voice rides on the Wind.
On August 21st 2007 at 7:12 am our beloved Grandmother Twylah Hurd Nitsch sang her song and made her Skywalk back to the world beyond the Skydome. The way made clear by Skywoman for all human kind to follow. Her spirit is very much alive and we send her all the gratitude and love that our hearts can engender. She was our Guiding Light, our Mentor, our Teacher, our Friend, our Star, our Grandmother, our Sister, our Beloved One, Mother, Counselor, Advisor, Wisdom Keeper, Sacred Elder of the Wolf Clan of the Seneca Nation
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Tenth Anniversary of Harmonic Convergence
by Beth Bontley
On August 17 and 18, 1987, people all over Earthmother gathered to celebrate the Harmonic Convergence. According to the Mayan calendar, a very long passage of time was coming to an end on these dates. The Harmonic Convergence honored the knowledge of the ancient Mayans, long considered to be master timekeepers.
This time shift has been called by many names: the Aquarian Age, The New Age, or simply the new Millennium. Peoples from many backgrounds as well as recent and ancient prophecies foretold this pivotal shift.
In the Wolf Clan language of Grandmother Twylah Nitsch, we speak of the History of the Earth. Grandmother Twylah is a Seneca Elder, author, and founder of the Wolf Clan Teaching Lodge. Her grandfather, Moses Shonqo, was what we would call a medicine man. He, however, did not call himself that and preferred to say only that he was here to use whatever gifts the Mystery had given him, as we all are.
Before Twylah was born, Grandfather Moses had received a prophecy that he would one day have a granddaughter and that she would face many physical challenges in life. From these challenges she would learn many things and become a teacher to all races. In the honoring of this prophecy, Twylah was taught by both her parents and grandparents.
And so Grandmother Twylah learned about the history of the earth. Grandmother explains to us that the earth has seven worlds or eras that she passes through in her growth and development as a living being. According to the elders, we have just completed the 4th World of Separation and Control. This has been a very long period of time with extremely difficult lessons. We became separate from ourselves, the earth, and each other; and the history of mankind is full of examples of one group trying to control another.
On August 17, 1987, the 4th World came to an end. We are now in the transitional period into the 5th World of Illumination and Unity. Many changes are happening with ourselves and in the world around us. The dismantling of the Berlin Wall was one of the first incredibly visible events that resonated that "Separation and Control" are no longer working. We are going through a time of cleansing. Grandmother says the earth is changing her clothes; and as she cleanses and shifts, so do we. We have heard the axiom "As above, so below." The converse is also true, "As below, so above." These are times of change. We are moving into Illumination and Unity.
Grandmother offers us nuggets about survival in changing times. Over and over again, she emphasizes to us to speak our truth, love our truth, and to be in our truth. She asks us to learn to be centered, to listen within. She tells us to look at the word "fear" to see what other word is in it. When we say "ear," she says "Yes, fear is an opportunity to hear." So what is its message for you?
The Wolf Clan Teachings come in the form of charts and wheels and various classes. They are all designed to illuminate our truth, our mission, and our centering skills. They also teach us the Wisdom Wheel and its language of wholeness, guidance, and direction. Grandmother Twylah and Jamie Sams co-authored Other Council Fires Were Here Before Ours. This book reveals the story and prophecy of all of the seven worlds.
To celebrate the 5th World and its time of unity, Center for Change, Discovery and Support or CCDS is sponsoring a 10th Year Celebration of the Harmonic Convergence in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Our intention is multifaceted. We desire to build community and come together in unity. We also wish to weave the holistic tapestry of body, mind, and spirit for practitioners and businesses.
We consider this event "a benefit for everyone’s benefit." We are creating a special commemorative program to provide an opportunity for holistic businesses and professionals to advertise and to meet others in the community. We will have speakers, booths, food, activities for kids and grown-ups, and entertainment. One of our planned activities is "Pagemos a la Tierra," a ceremony to give thanks and to give back to the Earthmother the foods that have nourished us this year. Drumming circles, poetry readings, and even scavenger hunts are also on the activity list.
We wish to come together in joy and celebrate this passage of our Earthmother and this gift of life we have been given. The time of separation is over. Wherever you are, and however you do it, the great web of life is strengthened when we come together in unity. Whether you join us or celebrate in your own way, have a wonderful illumination time of unity on August 17. Give gratitude to Earth-mother and be kind to her as she births a new era for all our relations.
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(http://www.saintfrancissanctuary.org/images/both_grandmothers.jpg)
" My first hands-on experience with a wolf was White Tornado, in 1976. She was a white wolf living with Grandmother Twylah Nitsch of the Seneca -Wolf Clan-Nation, my friend, and a mentor who has blessed my life.
White Tornado was an amazing animal, full of energy and love. She showed me the gentleness of her kind and the love and spiritual learning that they can give to us.
I have always been fascinated with the Indian lore of the Wolf and their mysticism and feel myself privileged to be able to experience it first hand."
Grandmother Jean
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The Fourth World - Creation Story
from "The Medicine Stone Speaks From the Past to Our Future- Other Council Fires Were Here Before Ours: a classic Native American creation story as retold by a Seneca elder, Twylah Nitsch and her granddaughter Jamie Sams.
"All life took hold and new generations of humans and Creature-beings were born, the new order was set in motion. This new order of learning how to see differences and uniqueness would later deteriorate and become known as the Fourth World of Separation. The members of Planetary Family were beginning to understand their separate missions, their distinct species, and how each spoke on the Great Medicine Wheel could interact with all others and still retain its identity. Special talents or Medicine in one given area could create a support system and yet the memory of the destruction of the formerly unified Turtle Island loomed in the shadows as a grim reminder of how Medicine for a select few could create disharmony and pain.
The remnants of Turtle Island floated above the blue seas of seeming contentment as the new generations refused to look deeply into the watery past, which had left them with the legacy of separateness. Each emerging continent was filled with different trtaditions, cultures, and ways of speech. Hail-lo-way-an, which had been the unified Language of Love, was all but forgotten. New languages were taking the place of the primordial tongue, just as all races of the Two-leggeds were segregating themselves in order to learn more aobut thier individual makeups. I could see the value of separation, but I dreaded the future wars that could be fought in the name on only one philosophy being holy or correct.
The individual races of humankind began to form religions based on limiting beliefs, each religion being controlled by Wanna-be Chiefs who basked in the seeming knowledge of the new belief systems. Throughout the passing centuries, spirituality as a way of life and a way of being was replaced with sets of laws based on fear of angry gods.The Stone Tribe dutifully recorded each passing change as the various civilizations peaked out and then collapsed when their lack of equality finally created division from within. As the Great Mystery was forgotten by most of the Two-leggeds, many gods were created to take the place of the Original Source. Thsi final and ultimate form of separation from the Original Source was frightening to the Faithful among the Planetary Family.
The Medicine Stones remembered teh Council Fire of the Third World and the prophecies that had spoken of these times in the Fourth World when the idea of many gods would lead the Human Tribe through many difficult lessons.We imparted our memories of these prophecies to those who sought our counsel in order to relieve the troubled hearts of the loyal and trusting Two-leggeds. The Fourth World was the longest of all the seven worlds and being the middle world would be the turning point in the spirirual evolution of mankind.
In order to evolve with the Two-leggeds and to support their painful growth cycles, the rest of the Planetary Family would need to endure the harsh lessons taught by ideas of separation. It was not easy in those times of uncertainty and change.At some points in the cyucle of change, the Creatures of the Earth were worshiped as sacred gods by certain religions and then later those same Creature beings were defiled.Some factions chose female humans as gods and other schose male humans, while others still named parts of nature as images of their gods. Each new ruling culture learned from the failures or successes of former civilizations, but in the end, allWould-be Rulers were eventually ruled by their own greed and their lust for power and control.
As time moved like the rolling rivers past the curbes and bends of experience, the attitudes of humankind were shaped by their fears and loss of Earth connection. many of the emerging philosophies and religions were kept busy degrading the natural actions and functions of being human. Humans felt it was unsafe to use creativity and self-expression because they feared being too different. The limiting thoughts of separation cast doubt on those who heard a different drummer, making fear and hesitations victory over the two- leggeds complete.
The sacredness of sexual union was defiled with polarizing ideas that created rules concerning how each human, depending upon gender, was allowed to express sensuality or desire. The stricter the rules of various Clans and Tribes became the more often sexual crimes were committed. Dogma and morals replaced the inner knowing hta had been present among humankind in the former worlds. The fear of being labeled as bad or wanton kept the Two-legged females from expression the natural body rhythms that maintained their connection to the Earth Mother.
The male humans began to seek companionship with women who were pure, in the judgmental estimation of their newfound religions. Then these men found that many times, the woman was not able to respond in a natural way due to her fear of her own hidden or suppressed sensuality. The fire medicine of passion and spontaneity was being separated by the ice that flowed through the veins of all humans who feared their feelings or their natural states of physicality. On the other side of that lesson were those who had lost all connection to the spiritual and were controlled by their own lusts and jaded needs for sexual domination.
I shared the records of the Fourth World's prophecy "The time has come for me to share with you the prophecies that were shared at the Council Fire of the Stone Tribe at the end of the Third World", I began. "We are nearing the time when either the Fourth World of Separation will mark a change in the human consciousness on our Mother Planet or once again, the EArth Mother will rid herself of those who forget to give praise and thanksgiving for the gifts they recieve. The First World was destroyed by Fire, the Second World by Ice, and the Third World by water, and the Fourth World will be destroyed by polar shift or rotation if neccessary.
"The purpose of the potential polar shift would be to mark the end of this middle world with a new turning point htat would represent the return cycle leading to completion. This shift does not have to occur in our physical world if enough of the members of the Faithful come into alignment and harmony. Each of the Planetary Family is awaiting the decision of those in the Human Tribe. The center of every life-form has great Mystery in it. These Vibral Cores send out rhythms of harmony or discord. If the Human Tribe can muster enough of its population who will come into alignment with the rest of the Planetary Family the polar shift will be avoided."
Each cycle of the seasons brought further proof that different groups among the two-leggeds were joining the faithful who sought world peace through celebration and gratitude. After a time we were told by the Mother Earth that the Planetary FAmily had avoided the polar shift through coming together as one.
The medicine stones know that we are to expereince the transition of the Fourth World and that we will not experience the dawning of the Fifth World until around the year 2013 as the Two leggeds reckon time on their calenders. It is during thise time that the Earth Mother will begin to wobbleand send cataclysms to any areas where the two-leggeds have chosen war, inequality, wrong action, or disharmony. The human decisions for peace have aligned with the Earth Mother's heart.
The Stone Tribe sees the cycles move once again as every member of the Planetary Family feels the wobble that can manifest as life's challenges or difficult lessons. Those who were the Ancestor Guardians of the Earth Tribe knew that the conflict was never outside of themselves but was always within. The fear of having to look at their own inner conflict led many to try and save others who they thought were in peril of losing the only way to enlightenment. This is one of the lies of the World of Separation, for nothin is ever apart, all paths are sacred. All life dwells within the Eternal Flame of Great Mystery and forever lives within all life forms.
The present Guardians of the Sacred Hoop realize that the exciting adventure now unfolding is one of discovery. The task at hand takes further development of every Relation's talents. Each Relation is being given the opportunity to seek out any conflict within the Self and heal it in order to stabilize the wobble that keeps us from personal balance and world harmony.We must still pass through our personal fires or tests of stregth and the planetary changes that will perpare us for the Fifth World of Illumination. Every member of the Planetary Family will be writing that history, and we of the Stone Tribe will be recording it for the future. Now it is time to look at the prophecy of that future and align ourselves with our common vision of peace in order to fulfill the promises of worlds to come. And so we stand on the last days of the Fourth World.
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Gram Twy once shared, "If you want to help others be an example. For this you must learn your truth and live your truth-no excuses. It is only then you can live your connection with Great Mystery and find the unity of Oneness. This is not always easy or convenient, but it is our life's mission."
(http://www.insweetcompany.com/sweetimages/women/nitsch2.jpg)
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Jen,
This is so beautiful! Thank you :) :-* :-*
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Thankyou for all this, Jenn. Finally snowing here. t
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Wow Jen! For an elder she looks quite youthful in this picture - definitely a bright light of spirit with this one! I have very good feelings about this woman - what a blessing! She has a childlike innocence about her, yet rays of wisdom intertwined, child of spirit, maybe would be a better description.
(http://www.wolfclanteachinglodge.org/Images/Twylah2.jpg)
The guiding light behind the Wolf Clan Teaching Lodge is Grandmother Twylah, Elder and founder of the Seneca Indian Historical Society. Many decades ago, Grandmother was designated to preserve the Wolf Clan teachings by her maternal grandfather, Moses Shongo, one of the last of the practicing Seneca Medicine Men. Grandmother Twylah, an advocate of the need to preserve the traditions and wisdom of Native people, has been the subject of numerous articles, both here and abroad. She is a world renowned author and teacher, dedicated with a passion that truly befits her name: Yehwehnode, She whose voice rides on the Wind.
On August 21st 2007 at 7:12 am our beloved Grandmother Twylah Hurd Nitsch sang her song and made her Skywalk back to the world beyond the Skydome. The way made clear by Skywoman for all human kind to follow. Her spirit is very much alive and we send her all the gratitude and love that our hearts can engender. She was our Guiding Light, our Mentor, our Teacher, our Friend, our Star, our Grandmother, our Sister, our Beloved One, Mother, Counselor, Advisor, Wisdom Keeper, Sacred Elder of the Wolf Clan of the Seneca Nation
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Great information, Jenn.
“You see, Seneca people gauge accomplishment by where we are on our Earthwalk, how we’ve developed our natural potentials and shared our gifts. Our elders know we’re ready to move forward by the questions we ask. There is no criticism or praise, there is only movement through the labyrinth of experience until we remember Who we really are. A bear wakes up in the morning knowing who he is and what he must do each day. He doesn’t ‘accomplish,’ he just lives in harmony with Great Mystery. This is true for us as well.”
The questions we ask.
This assists me in what I've been working on lately.
My questions have come from the 'small mind' and not flowing from the Great Mystery.
Again, thank you.
Zam
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Just a bit more I found here: http://www.lynnabbott.com/Tribute_to_Twylah.html
She was taught by her grandparents and parents. One of her grandfather’s often quoted statements is:
Self-knowledge is the key.
Self-understanding is the desire.
Self-control is the way.
Self-realization is the goal.
These four simple sentences outline the Seneca path to self-fulfillment. Twy never told anyone that they were fooling themselves, or that they lacked self-control. She simply exercised control over herself so we could see how it was done. She knew herself well enough though, to know that she didn’t always feel that way.
In this way, Twy taught a timeless observation…"it’s not the magnitude of the moment but the quality of it". Her gift was in creating individual moments with each person who sought her council. She never allowed any schedule to run her. She was on Indian time not to be stubborn, but because time doesn’t become Sacred Time if one doesn’t slow down and give time its opportunity.
Life is so much richer when we allow ourselves to share the points of view of others. If we stay stuck in our own minds we never learn; never share and never change. When we listen and place ourselves in the moccasins of another, we find an infinite wealth of experience that we never knew existed. We aren’t here to experience everything selfishly in this lifetime. When we share our lives and our dreams, we share the feelings as well. Twy’s lessons always had a humorous side. One of her favorite comments when someone was not listening was to simply say: “Thank you for giving me the opportunity to hear your point of view.” What a great exit line!
The Seneca consider that there are actually seven Senses: The usual: Sound, Sight, Smell, Taste, and Touch are augmented by Feeling and Awareness. When we learn to listen with all of these senses, we step into our own Sacred Space. The Seneca call it Entering into the Silence. When we allow time to become Sacred as well, we create a moment. If our energy is harmonious with that of another, it becomes A Moment. It is the tone of our energy that ignites Sacred Time and Sacred Space to create A Moment.
When we think back to our own Moments, they do seem to take place out of time and space. As we become adept at allowing time to develop an opportunity, we create Moments effortlessly. Twy recommended focusing on one's strongest sense. Most people immediately think of Sight, but others often affect us more for unusual reasons. For example, our sense of smell goes directly to the amygdala, in a part of the nervous system called the limbic brain. This is also where we store our memories... in both the amygdala and the hippocampus. Thus different smells trigger specific memories with their attendant emotions.
As we focus on our strongest sense, we are able to fathom information about the person to whom we are speaking: Knowledge we simply hadn’t paid attention to before. This creates a vibration within us that will then be in harmony with those of the other person. We have communicated. A Moment has been created.
When we fail to communicate, we are left feeling empty. Our vibration alone is not enough to lift us into a plateau of Sacred Time and Sacred Space. It is often through painful experience that we discover the truth of many Seneca concepts. The truth of this concept is: Tthe one we best teach by example is ourselves!
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Thank you for sharing some good reading and the wisdom of an elder.
"What is “entering the silence”?
“It’s communion with your true nature in spirit, mind and body. When you enter the silence, you go through an inner portal into the unity of all life. The more you go into the silence, the more you learn about your true self and your capacity to function in society. But you can’t just say, ‘I want to go through the portal,’ and off you go. You have to become receptive; your purpose and intention must be pure. That’s why most of us don’t go there. Initially, it takes work.”
It sounds a little like meditation.
“Well, that depends on how you interpret meditation,” she replies. “Going into the silence is listening within. I have a feeling that when some people meditate, they are busy concentrating on a process or they are daydreaming. They are doing instead of listening. I sometimes sit in a chair in a comfortable position when I go into the silence, but that’s where any similarity to meditation ends.
“When I go into the silence, I have something specific I want to discuss with Great Mystery or with my Band Members, the friends and relatives in the spirit realm who serve as my teachers and guides. To go into the silence, you must first enter what the Seneca call your ‘Sacred Space.’”[/i]
What she describes is what Toltecs call the Inner nagual. The Inner nagual can give us knowingness regarding certain things and in the end of the quote she says that: I have something specific I want to discuss with Great Mystery. When she also refers to friends and relatives in the spirit realm who serve as teachers and guides she refer to another part of guidance that are part of the same coin.
What and where is your Sacred Space?
“Imagine a dot in the center of a circle that is located at the solar plexus. This dot represents what we call your Vibral Core, the home of your inner wisdom, balance and stability. A vertical line that starts just above the head and ends just below the feet dissects the Vibral Core. This is your Truth Line. Another line extends horizontally as far as the arms can reach on either side of the body and intersects the Truth Line also at the Vibral Core. This line represents your Earthpath. The endpoints of the Truth Line and the Earthpath rest on the circumference of a circle. Inside that circle is your Sacred Space.”[/i]
It is towards this Vibral core that we send back or take back the energy that we have spent on activities and relations.
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Doncha just wanna give her a big hug! What a sweet, beautiful woman.
Jen,
This is so beautiful! Thank you :) :-* :-*
:-*
Thankyou for all this, Jenn. Finally snowing here. t
:-* Ive just returned home with supplies and am snuggled in warm waiting for a storm expected to move in tonight, leaving 9+ inches.
Stay warm!
Wood heat?
Wow Jen! For an elder she looks quite youthful in this picture - definitely a bright light of spirit with this one! I have very good feelings about this woman - what a blessing! She has a childlike innocence about her, yet rays of wisdom intertwined, child of spirit, maybe would be a better description.
Isnt she beautiful :)
Arnt we all child of spirit.. I like that. :-*
Just a bit more I found here: http://www.lynnabbott.com/Tribute_to_Twylah.html
She was taught by her grandparents and parents. One of her grandfather’s often quoted statements is:
Self-knowledge is the key.
Self-understanding is the desire.
Self-control is the way.
Self-realization is the goal.
These four simple sentences outline the Seneca path to self-fulfillment. Twy never told anyone that they were fooling themselves, or that they lacked self-control. She simply exercised control over herself so we could see how it was done. She knew herself well enough though, to know that she didn’t always feel that way.
In this way, Twy taught a timeless observation…"it’s not the magnitude of the moment but the quality of it". Her gift was in creating individual moments with each person who sought her council. She never allowed any schedule to run her. She was on Indian time not to be stubborn, but because time doesn’t become Sacred Time if one doesn’t slow down and give time its opportunity.
Life is so much richer when we allow ourselves to share the points of view of others. If we stay stuck in our own minds we never learn; never share and never change. When we listen and place ourselves in the moccasins of another, we find an infinite wealth of experience that we never knew existed. We aren’t here to experience everything selfishly in this lifetime. When we share our lives and our dreams, we share the feelings as well. Twy’s lessons always had a humorous side. One of her favorite comments when someone was not listening was to simply say: “Thank you for giving me the opportunity to hear your point of view.” What a great exit line!
The Seneca consider that there are actually seven Senses: The usual: Sound, Sight, Smell, Taste, and Touch are augmented by Feeling and Awareness. When we learn to listen with all of these senses, we step into our own Sacred Space. The Seneca call it Entering into the Silence. When we allow time to become Sacred as well, we create a moment. If our energy is harmonious with that of another, it becomes A Moment. It is the tone of our energy that ignites Sacred Time and Sacred Space to create A Moment.
When we think back to our own Moments, they do seem to take place out of time and space. As we become adept at allowing time to develop an opportunity, we create Moments effortlessly. Twy recommended focusing on one's strongest sense. Most people immediately think of Sight, but others often affect us more for unusual reasons. For example, our sense of smell goes directly to the amygdala, in a part of the nervous system called the limbic brain. This is also where we store our memories... in both the amygdala and the hippocampus. Thus different smells trigger specific memories with their attendant emotions.
As we focus on our strongest sense, we are able to fathom information about the person to whom we are speaking: Knowledge we simply hadn’t paid attention to before. This creates a vibration within us that will then be in harmony with those of the other person. We have communicated. A Moment has been created.
When we fail to communicate, we are left feeling empty. Our vibration alone is not enough to lift us into a plateau of Sacred Time and Sacred Space. It is often through painful experience that we discover the truth of many Seneca concepts. The truth of this concept is: Tthe one we best teach by example is ourselves!
:) :) Thanks for an addition.. I hope to find her books soon!
Zam:This assists me in what I've been working on lately.
:) :-*
Jahn:Thank you for sharing some good reading and the wisdom of an elder.
:) :-*
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So many things spin through my head as I read this. My personal life has been quite a whirlwind lately, much of my own doing :P So as it is I have not felt drawn to read this yet, Jen and I have hardly even spoke of it (which is quite unusual of us considering the topic) and with in less than a half of a page I am in awe.
She opens her arms in an embrace, and I step inside. I feel as if I am a lost child come home.
I have felt this before, just reading about it brings back the warmth that such a hug can bring.
“Everyone has experiences of being inwardly guided like this,” she says, “but most of us simply don’t honor the information we’re given. We say, ‘Not now,’ and let the guidance pass, because we do not want to take the time to enter the silence.”
I am guilty of this to a degree. It's a needed reminder for it truely is a way of life and sometimes other responsiblities just don't leave time for sitting and watching the eagle soar above as I hurry off for work................
“That’s part of the growth process. We learn in increments because we can take in and hold just so much at one time. Attempting to remain in your truth is better than not trying at all. The main thing is to be open to learning and to learn with a humble attitude. Seek more than immediate or exterior comfort. Be true to yourself. When it’s time for you to learn more, Truth is there for the asking. It’s always with you. Unity is always with you. All you have to do is recognize it.”
“When I was a child my elders taught me it was up to me to make myself happy each day, and when I go to bed each night, I should thank Great Mystery for my happiness. Most people don’t take responsibility for their own happiness — it doesn’t even enter their heads to do this! And at the end of the day, they’re not grateful for the good things that happen to them.”
What a beautiful thing to have been taught!
“You have to nourish self-love all the time. If your parents or husband didn’t give you the love you wanted, you have to give it to yourself. If something throws you into a slump, look at it right in the eye. Figure out what you didn’t see about yourself that allowed that slump to happen, then change it. After all, we live in a do-it-yourself world!” She chuckles once again.
Jen, I could just copy this entire piece back to you......................LOL So much of it resenates with me, reminding me of so many chats that we have had. It also makes me think of Ray and the type of energy that surrounds him. Thoughts of another visit to him sparkle within~~~
Thank you!
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:-* Good to see you here Fade, pleased you got to read this also.. isnt she beautiful :)
Im also called to go see Ray very soon.. snowshoes will be required for our next visit to the teaching lodge!
I agree.. he feels like her.
Love
Peace
Light
Balanced
Yep.. I miss the old turtle.
May the Northern winds embrace you kindly dear one.
Love you, jen
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I think we also could use a sweatlodge ceremony soon...
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Seneca are a group of indigenous people native to North America. They are the westernmost Nation within the Six Nations or Iroquois League. While unknown for sure, approximately 15,000 to 25,000 Seneca live in the United States and Canada, on and off reservations around Buffalo, in Oklahoma and near Brantford, Ontario.
The Seneca nation's own name is Onödowága', meaning "People of the Great Hill", and is identical to the endonym used by the Onondagas. With the formation of the Haudenosaunee ("People of the Long House") or the Iroquois Confederation in 1142,[1] the Seneca became known as the "Keepers of the Western Door" because they settled and lived the farthest west of all the Nations within the Haudenosaunee. Their name "Seneca" was designated by other nations, after the Seneca nation's principle village of Osininka. However, since "Osininka" sounds like the Anishinaabe word Asinikaa(n), meaning "[Those at the Place] Full of Stones", this gave rise to the confusion to non-Haudenosaunee nations in the Seneca nation's name with that of the Oneida nation's endonym Onyota'a:ka, meaning "People of the Standing Stone."
The Seneca traditionally lived in what is now New York between the Genesee River and Canandaigua Lake, with some recent archaeological evidence indicating that they lived all the way down to the Allegheny River into what is now upper North Western Pennsylvania. The Senecas were by far the most populous of the Haudenosaunee Nations, with the ability to raise over ten thousand warriors by the seventeenth century.[2]
Traditionally, the Seneca Nation economy was based on the cultivation of corn, beans, and squash. These vegetables were the staple of the Haudenosaunee diet and were called "the three sisters". Seneca women generally grew and harvested the three sisters, as well as gathered medicinal plants, roots, berries, nuts, and fruit. Seneca women held sole ownership of all the land and the homes, thus the women also tended to any domesticated animals like deer, dogs, turkeys, etc. Women were in charge of the kinship groups called clans. The woman in charge of a clan was called the "clan mother." Despite the prominent position of women in Iroquois society, their influence on the diplomacy of the nation was limited. Although older women could lobby and pull some strings behind closed doors, the official decisions were made by the men (hence they were not matriarchical).
Seneca men were generally in charge of locating and developing the town sites including clearing the forest for the production of fields. Seneca men also spent a great deal of time hunting and fishing. This activity took them away from the towns or villages to well known and productive hunting and fishing grounds for extended amounts of time. These hunting and fishing locations were well maintained and not simply left to grow as "wild" lands.[3] Seneca men maintained the traditional title of War Sachems within the Haudenosaunee. A Seneca war sachem was in charge of gathering the warriors of the Haudenosaunee and leading them into battle.
In historical time, Seneca people lived in villages and towns. Archaeological records indicate that some of these villages were surrounded by palisades due to warfare[citation needed]. These towns were relocated every ten to twenty years as soil, game and other resources were depleted. During the ninteenth century, many Seneca adopted customs of their immediate American neighbors[citation needed] by building log cabins, practicing Christianity and participating in the local agricultural economy[citation needed].
Notable Senecas in history include Deerfoot, Red Jacket, Sayenqueraghta, Cornplanter, Guyasuta, Handsome Lake, Ely S. Parker, Governor Blacksnake, Halftown, Half-King, Little Beard, Skunny Wundy, Mary Jemison, Arthur Parker, Isaac Newton Parker, Robert Hoag, Willam C. Hoag, Frank Patterson, Cornelius Seneca, George Heron, Lionel R. John, Martin Seneca Sr., Duwayne 'Duce' Bowen, Solomon McLane, Barry Snyder Sr., William Seneca, and Catherine Montour.
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Bumping this up for my own reflecting.
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I just started reading Dancing the Dream by Jamie Sams.
Excellent book...
I've been reading a lot lately and this has become one of my favorites :) So much so, that i keeping returning to Amazon.com books to order for gifts ;D
The author speaks to All in such an straight forward fashion ... I Love it!
Thanks Jenn ... :-* :) :-*
Ang
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You are very welcome!
So pleased youve read this Ang. It is an excellent book ;) :-*
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Gram Twy once shared, "If you want to help others be an example. For this you must learn your truth and live your truth-no excuses. It is only then you can live your connection with Great Mystery and find the unity of Oneness. This is not always easy or convenient, but it is our life's mission."
(http://www.insweetcompany.com/sweetimages/women/nitsch2.jpg)
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The Fourth World - Creation Story
from "The Medicine Stone Speaks From the Past to Our Future- Other Council Fires Were Here Before Ours: a classic Native American creation story as retold by a Seneca elder, Twylah Nitsch and her granddaughter Jamie Sams.
"All life took hold and new generations of humans and Creature-beings were born, the new order was set in motion. This new order of learning how to see differences and uniqueness would later deteriorate and become known as the Fourth World of Separation. The members of Planetary Family were beginning to understand their separate missions, their distinct species, and how each spoke on the Great Medicine Wheel could interact with all others and still retain its identity. Special talents or Medicine in one given area could create a support system and yet the memory of the destruction of the formerly unified Turtle Island loomed in the shadows as a grim reminder of how Medicine for a select few could create disharmony and pain.
The remnants of Turtle Island floated above the blue seas of seeming contentment as the new generations refused to look deeply into the watery past, which had left them with the legacy of separateness. Each emerging continent was filled with different trtaditions, cultures, and ways of speech. Hail-lo-way-an, which had been the unified Language of Love, was all but forgotten. New languages were taking the place of the primordial tongue, just as all races of the Two-leggeds were segregating themselves in order to learn more aobut thier individual makeups. I could see the value of separation, but I dreaded the future wars that could be fought in the name on only one philosophy being holy or correct.
The individual races of humankind began to form religions based on limiting beliefs, each religion being controlled by Wanna-be Chiefs who basked in the seeming knowledge of the new belief systems. Throughout the passing centuries, spirituality as a way of life and a way of being was replaced with sets of laws based on fear of angry gods.The Stone Tribe dutifully recorded each passing change as the various civilizations peaked out and then collapsed when their lack of equality finally created division from within. As the Great Mystery was forgotten by most of the Two-leggeds, many gods were created to take the place of the Original Source. Thsi final and ultimate form of separation from the Original Source was frightening to the Faithful among the Planetary Family.
The Medicine Stones remembered teh Council Fire of the Third World and the prophecies that had spoken of these times in the Fourth World when the idea of many gods would lead the Human Tribe through many difficult lessons.We imparted our memories of these prophecies to those who sought our counsel in order to relieve the troubled hearts of the loyal and trusting Two-leggeds. The Fourth World was the longest of all the seven worlds and being the middle world would be the turning point in the spirirual evolution of mankind.
In order to evolve with the Two-leggeds and to support their painful growth cycles, the rest of the Planetary Family would need to endure the harsh lessons taught by ideas of separation. It was not easy in those times of uncertainty and change.At some points in the cyucle of change, the Creatures of the Earth were worshiped as sacred gods by certain religions and then later those same Creature beings were defiled.Some factions chose female humans as gods and other schose male humans, while others still named parts of nature as images of their gods. Each new ruling culture learned from the failures or successes of former civilizations, but in the end, allWould-be Rulers were eventually ruled by their own greed and their lust for power and control.
As time moved like the rolling rivers past the curbes and bends of experience, the attitudes of humankind were shaped by their fears and loss of Earth connection. many of the emerging philosophies and religions were kept busy degrading the natural actions and functions of being human. Humans felt it was unsafe to use creativity and self-expression because they feared being too different. The limiting thoughts of separation cast doubt on those who heard a different drummer, making fear and hesitations victory over the two- leggeds complete.
The sacredness of sexual union was defiled with polarizing ideas that created rules concerning how each human, depending upon gender, was allowed to express sensuality or desire. The stricter the rules of various Clans and Tribes became the more often sexual crimes were committed. Dogma and morals replaced the inner knowing hta had been present among humankind in the former worlds. The fear of being labeled as bad or wanton kept the Two-legged females from expression the natural body rhythms that maintained their connection to the Earth Mother.
The male humans began to seek companionship with women who were pure, in the judgmental estimation of their newfound religions. Then these men found that many times, the woman was not able to respond in a natural way due to her fear of her own hidden or suppressed sensuality. The fire medicine of passion and spontaneity was being separated by the ice that flowed through the veins of all humans who feared their feelings or their natural states of physicality. On the other side of that lesson were those who had lost all connection to the spiritual and were controlled by their own lusts and jaded needs for sexual domination.
I shared the records of the Fourth World's prophecy "The time has come for me to share with you the prophecies that were shared at the Council Fire of the Stone Tribe at the end of the Third World", I began. "We are nearing the time when either the Fourth World of Separation will mark a change in the human consciousness on our Mother Planet or once again, the EArth Mother will rid herself of those who forget to give praise and thanksgiving for the gifts they recieve. The First World was destroyed by Fire, the Second World by Ice, and the Third World by water, and the Fourth World will be destroyed by polar shift or rotation if neccessary.
"The purpose of the potential polar shift would be to mark the end of this middle world with a new turning point htat would represent the return cycle leading to completion. This shift does not have to occur in our physical world if enough of the members of the Faithful come into alignment and harmony. Each of the Planetary Family is awaiting the decision of those in the Human Tribe. The center of every life-form has great Mystery in it. These Vibral Cores send out rhythms of harmony or discord. If the Human Tribe can muster enough of its population who will come into alignment with the rest of the Planetary Family the polar shift will be avoided."
Each cycle of the seasons brought further proof that different groups among the two-leggeds were joining the faithful who sought world peace through celebration and gratitude. After a time we were told by the Mother Earth that the Planetary FAmily had avoided the polar shift through coming together as one.
The medicine stones know that we are to expereince the transition of the Fourth World and that we will not experience the dawning of the Fifth World until around the year 2013 as the Two leggeds reckon time on their calenders. It is during thise time that the Earth Mother will begin to wobbleand send cataclysms to any areas where the two-leggeds have chosen war, inequality, wrong action, or disharmony. The human decisions for peace have aligned with the Earth Mother's heart.
The Stone Tribe sees the cycles move once again as every member of the Planetary Family feels the wobble that can manifest as life's challenges or difficult lessons. Those who were the Ancestor Guardians of the Earth Tribe knew that the conflict was never outside of themselves but was always within. The fear of having to look at their own inner conflict led many to try and save others who they thought were in peril of losing the only way to enlightenment. This is one of the lies of the World of Separation, for nothin is ever apart, all paths are sacred. All life dwells within the Eternal Flame of Great Mystery and forever lives within all life forms.
The present Guardians of the Sacred Hoop realize that the exciting adventure now unfolding is one of discovery. The task at hand takes further development of every Relation's talents. Each Relation is being given the opportunity to seek out any conflict within the Self and heal it in order to stabilize the wobble that keeps us from personal balance and world harmony.We must still pass through our personal fires or tests of stregth and the planetary changes that will perpare us for the Fifth World of Illumination. Every member of the Planetary Family will be writing that history, and we of the Stone Tribe will be recording it for the future. Now it is time to look at the prophecy of that future and align ourselves with our common vision of peace in order to fulfill the promises of worlds to come. And so we stand on the last days of the Fourth World.
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I listen and hear the Silence
I listen and see the Silence
I listen and taste the Silence
I listen and smell the Silence
I listen and embrace the Silence.
— Twylah Nitsch quoted in The Mystic Vision by Andrew Harvey and Anne Baring
To Practice This Thought: Give your senses a sauna in the silence.
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The images, stories and exercises in this book create a blending of ideas and activities inspired by the Wisdom Wheel of Grandmother Twylah Nitsch, the Taino creation stories and Spider's own teachings to guide the reader in connecting with life.
Excerpt from the book;
(http://www.healing-arts.org/spider/images/spidergalaxy.jpg)
When the Universe was still so dark that not even shadows could be seen in the night, Grandmother Spider sat in her web in the Sky World, waiting and watching. No one knows how old Grandmother Spider is, or how long she sat waiting for the Universal Mind to awaken. But, every Creature Being who has ever lived knows her song and dance as the weaver of the Web of Life.
From her web, Grandmother Spider observed the first thoughts as the Universal Mind awakened from the dream. Seven energy beings floated out from the shining light in the center of the Universal Mind and solidified into bright, shining stars who went out to take their places in the Sky World. Grandmother Spider took a very deep breath and softly began to sing her weaving song while she danced across the Sky. As she spun her thread, Grandmother Spider envisioned the Web of Life. Within moments, she had woven her web connecting the seven stars and creating the Spirit Doorway through which all of the rest of life would enter.
The seven stars reflected the spectrum of all colors within their glow. Dancing with the colored light, shadows came into being as the darkness took form. More thoughts flowed from the Universal Mind, entered through the Doorway of the Seven Stars, and took their places in the Sky World. These became more stars, suns and planets. Then, many other thoughts entered the Universe, each one taking a specific place according to the universal dream of harmony. Each thought was a spirit essence who dreamed an individual dream for manifesting life. Grandmother Spider spun her web around each new energy being and the Universal Web of Life shimmered in the reflection of Great Mystery's light.
Singing her song and weaving the Web of Life, Grandmother Spider continued with her work. The Sky World filled with light and life as her creative process unfolded. As the stars, suns and planets prepared to give birth to their children, Grandmother Spider spun her cord even longer, so that all of the newly born could be included in the Web of Life. Grandmother Spider continues to weave the Web of Life throughout every cycle of creation.
All life everywhere in the Universe is connected by the Web of Life. We are not separate beings. We are each a part of the Great Mystery, manifesting as an individual awareness in a separate physical body, but sharing the same energy as all other life. The energy web is anchored within our center and is our connection to the Great Mystery.
Along with Grandmother Spider's web cord, we carry within our center our dream for living that includes a promise and a purpose. Before we came into the Earthwalk, we chose the gifts and talents that help us create the reality that we envisioned. We also chose the lessons and challenges that motivate our learning and growth. Our dream for living carries a specific vibration of sound and color that guides our spirit essence in it's flight from the Universal Mind, through the Sacred Cave, and into the womb of our physical mother. During our Earthwalk, we live our choices and lessons, and develop our talents and gifts, as we meet each situation and challenge of our growth. We must remember our purpose and promise and focus our life in this direction if we are to be happy and fulfilled.
Grandmother Spider weaves the Web of Life around us when our spirit essence enters its physical body inside the womb of our mother. From feet to head, our spirit essence is woven together with our physical body as Grandmother Spider sings her weaving song to us. When she completes her weaving, Grandmother Spider does not cut the cord, but leaves an energy trail with her weft thread that goes out from our center to connect with the next Creature Being that will enter the Web of Life.
The gift of Grandmother Spider is the personal energy web that we walk with throughout our entire life. This energy web allows our spirit essence to experience our senses, emotional feelings and physical pain and pleasures. This connection also allows our physical body to develop an intuitive perception of Universal Wisdom. Through the web, we can work with energy for creativity and healing. Our personal energy web maintains our connection to the Web of Life and the Great Mystery. This gift of Grandmother Spider insures that we are never alone, for through it we always share the love of All Our Relations.
Our energy web surrounds our physical body, enveloping it with a vibrating energy that is our personal rhythm. Our energy web is connected to our physical body through energy centers that are the communication channels between our physical body and spirit essence. Our mind is the link between body and spirit essence, interpreting and directing the flow of energy back and fourth. Breathing and movement enables our body to direct energy and our thoughts to affect our physical health. To live in comfort, we need to maintain a balance of body, mind and spirit within our personal energy web.
Grandmother Spider is always busy with her work, as the creation of life is happening at every moment. After connecting each Creature Being within her vibrating threads, Grandmother Spider goes on to the next, spinning out a continuous cord in her never ending dance. A Creature Being enters the Earthwalk, then a Plant Person, a Stone Person, a Water Person, a Four-Legged, a Two-Legged, and on and on. For each of these, Grandmother Spider weaves a personal energy web and extends her cord out from this Creature's center to continue on with the weaving of the Web of Life.
The Web of Life is a beautiful braid that holds the energy of all life together. Grandmother Spider's dance of spinning and weaving continues indefinitely, as new patterns within the web are being woven every moment when each new life enters the Earthwalk. At the other end of Grandmother Spider's tapestry, the web is always unraveling, as every spirit essence travels back through the doorway of the Sacred Cave to the Spirit World when life is complete.
All life shares an equal place within the Web of Life. The gifts and contributions of each and every Creature Being are very important for the survival of MotherEarth. Each Creature Being, in following through with the performance of their specific life task, affects the welfare of all the other Creature Beings in the web. Without the benefit of even one Creature's work, the Web of Life would lack the energy of wholeness necessary for the circle of life's cycles to continue on with their rhythm.
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Song Of Each New Sun
by Spider
(http://www.healing-arts.org/spider/images/newsun.jpg)
With honor I greet this new day
Great Mystery, I thank you for all of my gifts
MotherEarth, I thank you for the honor of sleeping and walking on your breast
Brother Sun, I thank you for returning your warmth and light this day
Sister of the South, I thank you for the beauty and laughter you bring today
Sister of the West, I thank you for the dreams and visions of the night
Sister of the North, I thank you for the lessons and teachings you bring today
Sister of the East, I thank you for the inspiration of my being here today
Grandmothers, I thank you for your guidance as you speak through my womb cycle today
All My Relations, I honor your presence in this world we share together
I give only kindness and love to all that I meet today
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;D
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Grandmother Spider weaves the Web of Life around us when our spirit essence enters its physical body inside the womb of our mother. From feet to head, our spirit essence is woven together with our physical body as Grandmother Spider sings her weaving song to us. When she completes her weaving, Grandmother Spider does not cut the cord, but leaves an energy trail with her weft thread that goes out from our center to connect with the next Creature Being that will enter the Web of Life.
The gift of Grandmother Spider is the personal energy web that we walk with throughout our entire life. This energy web allows our spirit essence to experience our senses, emotional feelings and physical pain and pleasures. This connection also allows our physical body to develop an intuitive perception of Universal Wisdom. Through the web, we can work with energy for creativity and healing. Our personal energy web maintains our connection to the Web of Life and the Great Mystery. This gift of Grandmother Spider insures that we are never alone, for through it we always share the love of All Our Relations.
Old Norse do not say Grandmother Spider but Norna.
" Snorre Sturlasson förklarar i sin Edda att det förutom dessa tre även finns ett otal mindre nornor som följer varje människa ifrån födelsen till döden och formar dennes öde "
My translation:
Snorre Sturlasson explains in his book Edda that it beyond the three original Nornas [the three Nornas, that was three old ladies that spun the World ...] also where a great number of lesser (or smaller) Nornas that follow each human from the birth to the death and forge their destiny.
Compare with the three Moiries in Greek Mythology
(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/The_Triumph_of_Death%2C_or_The_Three_Fates.jpg/250px-The_Triumph_of_Death%2C_or_The_Three_Fates.jpg)
Klotho, Lakesis och Atropos.
Their decision could not be changed (not even by the gods). They where weavers, spinning each humans life thread.
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Their decision could not be changed (not even by the gods). They where weavers, spinning each humans life thread.
Well, half true that their decision could not be changed. Odin could make them change the spin, as the only one. But he is not a god in the normal sense, he is one of the creators.
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“…If something happens, then we look at that particular thing and say
"There's a lesson for us."
"Everything that happens to us has a purpose. If we run around and stub our toe, ouch! It means, watch where we are going. If we stumble over a stone, we should pick it up and look at it. It has taught us a lesson. Look at the markings on the stone. Things talk to us. This is the way native people have always lived. All the things around us are speaking.”
Twylah Hurd Nitsch, Primary Point Press, Healing the Mind & Spirit, Pg 7, paragraph 7, February 1987
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“…If something happens, then we look at that particular thing and say
"There's a lesson for us."
"Everything that happens to us has a purpose. If we run around and stub our toe, ouch! It means, watch where we are going. If we stumble over a stone, we should pick it up and look at it. It has taught us a lesson. Look at the markings on the stone. Things talk to us. This is the way native people have always lived. All the things around us are speaking.”
Twylah Hurd Nitsch, Primary Point Press, Healing the Mind & Spirit, Pg 7, paragraph 7, February 1987
Love this!
Jennifer, just re-reading through this thread and I see that I had begun reading Dancing the Dream in Dec of 2007. I had completely forgotten taking it out of the library at that time. So much going on in my life. Everything is so much calmer now -- would be the perfect time to pick it up again. And especially since I know for sure that our library has it. ;D
Thanks for all of these beautiful words and energy!