Today Turtle plays a big role for us to prepare for the days energy and people that revolve around us. Presented this morning in the place of the 7th card… it reminds us that sometimes it is best to pull back into our shells in order to protect what is ours… to keep us safe. Much of today will be a odd mixture of push/pull energy that will often keep us off balance. So rather than trying to figure it out, simply use what is ours to use and pull back to safety from it all.
Turtle says keep it low key today… be cautious and don’t interfere with the outside world, just stay within our own boundaries and we will remain in balance and get things done. So keep an even pace and don’t rush into things that may get us into trouble.
Turtle helps us to ground reminding us that slowing down and pacing each step will help us build confidence for as we walk at this pace, we will see more of what is being shared with us by the world around us… knowledge of the “Old Ones”. Slowing our pace, calming our breath, listening to our heartbeat, centering our spirit so that we are in balance and sync with the rest of our world.
Turtles remind us that what we need is provided for us, that we need to remember the beginning, the simple and honor all that is Sacred, for it is part of who we all are. Be humble, grateful and make the most of what we have and what we are offered.
Within the Seven Grandfather Teachings the Turtle was present to ensure that the laws would never be lost or forgotten. On the back of a Turtle are the 13 moon, each representing the truth of one cycle of the Earth’s rotations around the sun. The 28 markings on her back represent the cycle of the moon an of a woman’s body. The shell of the Turtle represents the body real events as created by the Higher Power, and serves as a reminder of the Creator’s will and teachings.
TRUTH is to know all of these things. Be true to yourself and your fellow man. Be able to speak the truth. This is considered the final and last teaching because to live this teaching, one must achieve and understand the first six teachings. By being honest with those around you with your feelings and behaviors; by loving yourself and others; by respecting others with what they say and do; by being humble – knowing that everyone around you deserves your respect as you theirs; by being brave when facing new challenges and by accepting your own and others wisdom.
“I am Dedicated to Educating and sharing Culture with the World. It is not enough merely to teach the ways of our Elders. We must honor those traditions by sharing and educating the World. Inspiring others …Inspiring our Youth. Through the Music… the Arts…the stories…” Many Blessings of the Day ~bear Medicinewalker
Earth Dance by Chris Ferree as part of the Wolf and the bear Network @ 2018 and is available at http://www.chrisferree.com
Today Dragonfly zooms in to remind us to listen to the little voice inside of us. Trust it, do not ignore it for it brings with it the answers needed for your day and week ahead. Tread lightly if you do not listen… for Spirit and the Ancestors are guiding us all from beyond the human helping us to avoid the pitfalls we can find ourselves in.
They are also sharing the whispers of encouragement and love as they are the bridge of the inbetween, zooming in and out. There is good that can come from all things even when we do not see it right away… and when it does show itself they wish for you to feel the magical healing energies of those truths. Be well this week…this day… and open your souls to listen to the rhythm of the world so it can assist you!
Dragonfly represents the link between All that is Sacred! So from this point forward… open your souls to feel, hear and understand the magical connections that we can have if we simply do not place limits on what is!
Dragonfly is all about transformation and adaptability. It is messenger of the in between, of here and there and everywhere at the same time. It is beyond time, before time. It is about darkness to light and back again.
Dragonfly tells us that everything is in a cycle, so remember and allow more joy to fill your soul. To help you understand that all things are as they should be, and that life itself is magical beyond belief. For our souls do not hold form, and our human self just helps them to experience our earth walks before continuing to the next part of our journeys.
Dragonflies begin their lives in water and then as they grow they move into the air learning to fly. It teaches us to balance the present time and accept it so we may once again move forward, listening as Spirit shares with us all the secrets of here and beyond.
“I am Dedicated to Educating and sharing the Native culture with the World. It is not enough merely to teach the ways of our Elders. We must honor those traditions by sharing and educating the World. Inspiring others …Inspiring our Youth. Through the Music… the Arts…the stories…”
Blessings to You All ~bear Medicinewalker
Music provided by Chris Ferree and available at http://www.chrisferree.com as part of the Wolf and the bear Network @2018
Today is about Snake Medicine and learning to balance it within our lives. So what does that mean to us as human? Well for today to speaks to making our way through the day by depending on all our senses and understanding that this movement is part of our human experience. To make sure we use our time wisely and not waste it on frivolous negativity. Things happen for a reason and it is up to each of us to decide how it impacts and imprints on our lives. So will you be bale to make lemonade out of lemons today, or instead will you taste the bitterness from it and allow it to sour your day? (Sorry no puns intended, lol don’t shoot the messenger. Spirit says what Spirit says) It is up to each of us to decide. Personally I prefer a good cold glass of lemonade… Cheers!
Snake Is a difficult teacher at times, and one that is not easy to master. Lessons that Snake brings with it are of life cycles and change, remembering as we grow we shed and transform into new energies and new experiences. Snake also teaches us about poison and that we need to be able to rid ourselves of the toxins can be placed within our Sacred Hoops. Don’t let the poisons kill us
Snake can be a hard teacher. His lessons involve a transmutation of the cycle of life, death and rebirth. Snake symbolizes this cycle with the shedding of his skin. We learn to the whole energy of life, the cosmic consciousness and have the willingness to experience anything without resistance. It is also about the poisons that we might take in. Those poisons can be eaten or ingested in some way but they also may be integrated into our lives. The goal is to not let the poisons taint our body or spirit.
Since Snakes can shed they teach us about the levels of our human, of our spirituality, our experiences. It is time to seek our inner knowledge before moving ahead with decisions. It is time to coil and go within to make sure we are well prepared before we strike out.
Snake also reminds us as it makes its way across the Great Mother Earth, to ground ourselves, to use our energy wisely and not to rely on primal instincts of lashing out. For at times it is more empowering to hold back and use that knowledge that energy in wise ways. At other times it is best to strike and seize the moment with a precision and quickness. Snakes often retreat long before biting defensively because they sense that it may cause consequences/damage to others and drain you of healing energy.
Snake is also very old and powerful healing medicine. Once harnessed, Snake will help you to position yourself carefully so that you will trust your gut when making important decisions.
“I am Dedicated to Educating and sharing culture with the World. It is not enough merely to teach the ways of our Elders. We must honor those traditions by sharing and educating the World. Inspiring others …Inspiring our Youth. Through the Music… the Arts…the stories…” Mitakuye O’yasin ~bear Medicinewalker
“Wake the Dragon” Dragon Ritual Drummers available at I tunes
Today some very strong medicine jumps out at us… the Medicine Wheel speaks to us about the keeping and care of the Sacred Hoop. Both our personal one and the one of the World that surrounds us all. It is a universal symbol, that shares with us the natural order of things, not only the cycles that we travel through as we walk the human, but the way all things change and evolve along side us.
Whether it be the Winged Ones, the Four Leggeds, the Plant People, the Crystal and Rock Keepers, the Swimmers or Creepers we all evolve together in the harmony that we were born to. The four lines in the Wheel speak to us of the four directions, the four colors to the cultures and the four parts of our human, the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual being. To understand the Medicine Wheel is to understand self.
This is what we need to understand, that the strengths, the creative, the spiritual, the faults, the imperfections all lie with in each of us. They are all part of who we are, constantly evolving. As a wheel is circular and continues in a constant state of birth to death constantly moving through change, so are we. To understand that about ourselves is how we are to attain balance.
To understand that we are All Connected, that we All Imprint on the world, the energy that we exist in is to understand the nature of how things co-exist. That there has to be opposites for balance…light and dark. rain and heat, night and day, birth and death… All a intricate part of the Human experience.
Ask yourself what is it that you need to day to add to the positives in your own life, what is it you need in order to set your mind to in order to keep the negative at bay? So today, look to yourself and think about how each word, each action, each breath you take is part of a bigger Hoop, then think what it is You need to do to put your own Sacred Hoop into a place of balance with all that is Sacred honoring who you are meant to be.
“I am Dedicated to Educating and sharing Culture with the World. It is not enough merely to teach the ways of our Elders. We must honor those traditions by sharing and educating the World. Inspiring others …Inspiring our Youth. Through the Music… the Arts…the stories…” Blessings ~bear Medicinewalker
“Join Me as I continue the Sacred Hoop Project into this Year 2016…the year of Truths!”
Most of the Peoples Nations have stories about the ‘Sacred Pipe’, many of you may think of it as a Peace Pipe. Hollywood has glamorized the pipe through old western movies, yet those stories told an outside culture could not be farther from the truth. The Sacred Pipe is to the Native American People as the cross would be to Christian cultures.
The pipe, in varied forms is often prevalent in most tribal cultures all around the world. All Nations have used the pipe in some form of ritual and have passed the stories of where the pipe came from. One of the more well known Native American lore is the Lakota story of the White Buffalo Woman bringing and sharing the pipe and wisdom’s to them.
There are a lot of stories on just how the pipe first arrived, and who it was brought to first, yet what is most important is that the pipe is revered as a sacred item and was a gift handed to us by The Creator. The Sacred Pipe was brought to all people of this world, for we all must share this world, as one race …the Human race This story is the story I was told and it tells of the importance of the Pipe as means to Prayer, Balance and Heal. The following is a story that was shared with me, and of course it has a bear, “Yona” in it so it has always been remembered with fondness…
At a time when the world was new, a tribe of red skinned people came to live on the lands around The Blue Smoke Mountains. This is a time animals of the world still spoke to all of us teaching us how to live and care for the land. These people were called “Ani Yun Wiya” or the One True People. In this tribe lived a brave warrior woman.
She was called ‘Arrow Woman’. As a young woman she was taught to use the bow, the spear and the knife. Even though it was a man’s job to hunt and fight, Arrow Woman could shoot straighter with the bow than any man. She could throw the knife so as split a branch no bigger than your thumb and she could throw the spear into eye of a hawk in flight. Because of all this, no one would tell her to act like a woman should within the tribe.
One day while on a hunt, Arrow Woman came upon the tracks of “Yona” the bear. She saw blood on the ground and knew him to be wounded, so she followed his tracks high into the mountains. Soon she came to a place that she did not know. It was at this place, a place known only to the animals that she finally saw “Yona” the bear. He had a deep gash in his side. As she watched him, he bowed down in prayer. She saw him bowing toward a large field of tall grass and speaking words that she had not heard before. Suddenly, the grass shimmered and became a lake. Arrow Woman saw “Yona” the bear, dive into the water. After a time he emerged from the water, his side was completely healed.
“Yona” the bear looked up and saw Arrow Woman walking towards her he spoke, “This is the sacred lake of the animals. It is called, ‘Atagahi’ and it’s location is known only to the animals. It is where we come for healing and strength. You are the first human to see the Sacred Lake. You must never tell your kind of it’s location for it is the home of ‘The Great Uktena’. After speaking to her “Yona” the Bear turned and walked into the woods and disappeared.
Arrow Woman sat and contemplated all that had occurred. Yet she was tired from following “Yona” the Bear all day and needed to rest a while. So she built a small fire next to the lake, and sitting down she began to prepare a meal that she had brought with her. She reached over and took a drink of the water from the lake as she did Arrow Woman felt instantly refreshed. Amazed, she felt strong as Yan’si the Buffalo, and as if she could run faster than Coga the Raven could fly. The woods were quiet, the Sacred Winds where sleeping, Father Sun was shining bright, the surface upon the lake was completely calm, Arrow Woman began to get sleepy.
It was at this time that ‘Uktena’ appeared to her. As a child she had been told of him yet no one in her tribe ever claimed to have seen him. High above the water he raised his great serpent’s head, the jewel in his forehead glistening. He began to move toward her. Arrow Woman grabbed up her spear and stood up to face the great creature coming to her, standing proud, showing no fear, the way any warrior should. She raised her spear and prepared to strike the huge beast.
Uktena stopped a short distance from her. He smiled at her, showing his fierce rows of teeth he began speaking to the brave woman on the bank of his lake, “Put down your weapons for I mean you no harm. I come only to teach.” Arrow Woman laid down her spear and began to relax, somehow knowing Uktena spoke truly.
Uktena told her to sit and to listen. He then dipped his head below the surface and came back up a moment later. In his mouth he had a strangely crooked stick and a leather pouch. These things he laid on the ground in front of Arrow Woman. Then the teaching began.
“This that I have laid before you is the Sacred Pipe of The Creator. Pick up the pipe. The bowl is of the same red clay The Creator used to make your kind. The red clay is Woman kind and is from the Earth. Just as a woman bears the children and brings forth life, the bowl bears the sacred tobacco and brings forth smoke. The stem is Man. Rigid and strong the stem is from the plant kingdom and like a man it supports the bowl just as man supports his family.”
He then showed Arrow Woman how to join the bowl to the stem saying, ” Just as a man and a woman remain separate until joined in marriage so too are the bowl and stem separate. Never to be joined unless the pipe is used.” Uktena then showed her how place the sacred tobacco into the pipe and with an ember from the fire lit it so it burned slightly. He then spoke these words, “The smoke is the breath of The Creator, When you draw the smoke into your body, you will be cleansed and made whole. When the smoke leaves your mouth, it will rise to The Creator. Your prayers, your dreams, your hopes and desires will be taken to Him in the smoke. Also the truth in your soul will be shown to Him when you smoke the pipe. If you are not true, do not smoke the pipe. If your spirit is bad and you seek to deceive, do not smoke the pipe.”
Uktena continued his lesson well into the night teaching Arrow Woman all of the prayers used with the pipe and all of the reasons for using the pipe. He finished just as the moon was beginning her nightly journey across the sky in search of her true love. He told Arrow Woman to wrap the pipe in cloth, keeping the parts separate. With this done He told her that she would never again be able to find this place but to remember all that she had learned. Uktena then returned to depths of the lake. Arrow Woman saw the water shimmer and become again the field of grass. She left, taking with her the pipe and her lessons and a wondrous tale. Ever since that time, The Peoples have used the sacred pipe and never again has any man seen the sacred lake of Uktena.
The Sacred Pipe is not a symbol of things that are sacred, but it is the Pipe itself that is sacred. Not everyone is called upon to be a pipe bearer. The person who carries the pipe and practices the pipe ceremonies and traditions has a great responsibility to his brothers and sisters, his land and country and to the Great Earth Mother. They, the pipe bearer, does not ‘own’ the pipe that they carry. They simply carry the pipe until the time comes for them to pass it to the next bearer. The pipe bearer is given certain powers of sight from the pipe as well as an ability to heal and purify. Should the bearer fall from grace and become a liar, thief, neglected their duties when asked, or become deceitful, the pipe will repossess these gifts and then the possibility of misfortune for the former bearer may exist.
One should be ready to accept the responsibility of the pipe for it may make demands upon you. It will become your teacher and guide. It can also be your worst enemy if used wrongly. It is an honor for the person to be chosen as a Pipe Holder…it is to be respected and revered. If you are not called to be a Pipe Carrier, the pipe remains sacred, and for many of us we still use it on ceremony and prayer…Honoring those Sacred Traditions.
“I am Dedicated to Educating and sharing the Native culture with the World. It is not enough merely to teach the ways of our Elders. We must honor those traditions by sharing and educating the World. Inspiring others …Inspiring our Youth. Through the Music… the Arts…the stories…” Mitakuye O’yasin ~bear Medicinewalker
“Join Me as I continue the Sacred Hoop Project into this Year 2016…the year of Truths!”
Although Spring has arrived on the calendar it has not quite arrived everywhere on the planet. But none the less, it is time to begin to stick our noses out of our proverbial caves and begin the process of living again, having rested all winter in order to rebirth our physical, mental and spiritual beings for the next part of our journeys. So step into the light of the new day … shake the fog from your minds and the sleep from your eyes… and lets continue the journeys to experience life and the many positives it has to offer!
Today we will need to be like the Polar Bear teaches us, dive into the waters, maneuver the waves and ice flows and adapt to life around us. The air is filled with changes and everything frustrating that life can throw at us today, but that is okay because we have what it takes to breathe deep and roll with it all. We simply have to be aware that not everything is cooperative 100% if the time, and sometimes we are tested to make us stronger, smarter and wiser as to how to handle different things that may happen in our day to day lives. We can do this… we have got this…
The Polar Bear shares that it is time to dig deep within your self and balance your Sacred Hoop. Discard what is no longer needed so that you may move ahead on your path in a positive way. Polar Bears are all about the Winter which relates to nurturing self, taking time to feed your soul and examine what is needed for us to take steps forward to survive and flourish in a healthy manner.
Polar Bear steps in to show us all how strong we can be as we face life’s challenges that are thrown at us from time to time. It is time to stand up and show that strength in the dark corners of our life and take ownership of the light that needs to shine from within. Helping to guide us between our human walk and our connections to spirit.
Polar Bear tells us to clean out our dens of unwanted and unneeded energies that are no longer healthy for us. creating for us in that process a renewal of Spirit and thought and putting us back to balancing our Sacred Hoops. We need to remember we are responsible for self and are the only ones that can set ourselves to that place of balance and positives. In a sense we are the masters of our own Universe… so own that …empower yourself …. and love yourself… if we can understand and attain that we will allow other positives into our life with that alignment.
“I am Dedicated to Educating and sharing the Native culture with the World. It is not enough merely to teach the ways of our Elders. We must honor those traditions by sharing and educating the World. Inspiring others …Inspiring our Youth. Through the Music… the Arts…the stories…” Mitakuye O’yasin ~bear Medicinewalker
“Join Me as I continue the Sacred Hoop Project into this Year 2016…the year of Truths!”
So schooled again by Spirit and the Ancestors while in Dreamwalk last evening! And yes even a bear can be schooled. Over the past week the Eagle has been physically and in reality near me. Whether stopping in to sit on a tree limb while I am taping Sunday Morning Ramblings with a bear…or flying overhead while I am driving, or over the lake, they have been telling …no screaming at me to wake up and open to what they were trying to tell me. but make no never mind about it… my Guides and Ancestors made sure I got the message loud and clear last evening! Telling me loud that I have to listen, have to share what is heard and said…
Today the Eagle brings us questions… Are We Honoring Our Spiritual…Our Sacredness…Our Ritual… our Ceremony? Apparently not as we need to be! We are setting it aside to feed ourselves with the negatives that are easily around us in our days. We need to stop and breathe in what it is we need to be and do in order to walk as better humans, better soul beings. When I sit at my lakes edge and watch the Eagle soar out above me…the beauty of that moment and message is simple, we have everything we need to survive and be in this world, but it is up to each of us to determine how we do that. Negatives are easy, for we are surrounded by them constantly. Yet if we disregard them and look at the opposite view of things we can bring change and positive growth to not only ourselves but to those around us.
Eagle speaks to us of our spiritual paths. I have been taught that the Eagle can fly to the heavens, that its wings can be touched by God Creator. When in it’s presence I feel the Grace of the Creator and All that is Sacred. The Eagle humbles me.
Teaching us to reflect and pause, to rejoice and reconnect to our spirits. To honor our paths, the ethics we have been taught. To Pray, to honor to live in a sacred manner. To listen to our Ancestors that have walked before us and in doing so listen to the wisdoms that have been shared so that we can walk more positive paths. Eagles the symbol of Courage and strength, to do … to walk… the right manner. To take that courage and step into what you re meant to step to in a positive way, and allowing our spirits to soar to the heights to share in God Creator’s extended grace.
Eagles with their sharp eyesight take us to the heights to observe situations in a manner that is more beneficial for us to make clear decisions. To become that visionary and push ourselves to discover and accept self, to accept truths, adapting , changing and growing along the way.
The medicine Eagle shares is, the ability to connect to the Divine, a power of God Creator. Being able to place one foot into the spirit realm and yet remain connected and balanced with Mother Earth.
So Honor your Spirit today and everyday by connecting with the Sacredness around you!
“I am Dedicated to Educating and sharing the Native culture with the World. It is not enough merely to teach the ways of our Elders. We must honor those traditions by sharing and educating the World. Inspiring others …Inspiring our Youth. Through the Music… the Arts…the stories…” Mitakuye O’yasin ~bear Medicinewalker
“Join Me as I continue the Sacred Hoop Project into this Year 2016…the year of Truths!”
