Into The Wings


I never dreamed the Great Spirit

would answer my prayer.

I am free from the bonds

of darkness forever

in the wings of the eagle.

Excerpt from "Into the Wings" by Lawrence T.
Copyright Lawrence T. 2002
http://theonewhowalks.homestead.com/TheOneWhoWalks.html

All Rights Reserved

The Spirit Wind

Every breath we take brings God within us.
God is ever present within our being.
We don't have to look for God outside, God is within us.
Kauila Clark, Hawaiian Healer (below right)



Gen 2:7 And Jehovah God formed the man out of dust from the ground,
and blew into his nostrils the breath of life;
and man became a living soul. (LITV)

MY INDIAN HEART

take away what is rightfully mine,
what I was born for, what I’ll die for,
take away my language, my dress,
my way of life, not owning the land,
take away my brothers and sisters,
leave us no place to stand,
but you can’t take away my heart,
my Indian heart....
for it shall always hear,
the wolves singing at night,
the eagle welcoming dawn’s early light,
and it shall always see,
the people with so many needs,
the trapped hearts crying to be free,
and it shall always smell,
wood smoke keeping us warm,
wood smoke kissing a chilly morn,
and it shall always taste,
the bitter tears of what is lost,
our way of life so carelessly tossed - aside,
and it shall always feel,
our ancestors crying to our souls,
singing of a time, when we were whole,
so you see - you have already lost,
so before you even start,
remember this - you cannot take away,
my Indian heart...

Melody Jackson mjackson@gci.net

Juneau, AK 99801United States

TODAY

Today, I am more native than yesterday,
I didn't hurry so fast, running from my past,
I sat real still when I was alone,
didn't have to call someone on the phone,
listening to the silence until my head heard,
my heart speaking to me....
And my heart spoke of purpose in my life,
of seeking integrity in myself,
of walking a solitary path of peace,
seeking harmony instead of wealth,
of seeing the strength in a prayer,
sharing with my children the power there,
of honoring everything that is alive,
being one with nature, not strife....
On this journey I walk,
my heart continues to talk,
turning me into what I was born this day,
for I am more Native than yesterday....

Melody Jackson

mjackson@gci.net

Juneau, AK 99801United States

Silence

The Wise Man believes profoundly in silence - the sign of a perfect equilibrium. Silence is the absolute poise or balance of body, mind and spirit. The man who preserves his selfhood ever calm and unshaken by the storms of existence - not a leaf, as it were, astir on the tree, not a ripple upon the surface of the shinning pool - his, in the mind of the unlettered sage, is the ideal attitude and conduct of life. Silence is the cornerstone of character.

Ohiyesa (Charles Alexander Eastman) - Santee Sioux

Sun Dancer Christ

God must be at the center
of the affairs of men
on this earth.
Without Him,
we cannot walk in harmony.

from One Church Many Tribes by Richard Twiss

Native American Jesus

http://mattstone.blogs.com/

God has prepared the way for the First Nations
to go into all the world as ambassadors
of the gospel.

from One Church Many Tribes by Richard Twiss


Lakota Trinity

http://www.rapidcitydiocese.org/Ministries/

The Book of Life

The Earth is the original Holy Book.
It was written by our Creator in a language called 'Nature.'
We must be careful that this ancient language is not lost.


Ahriana Platten

The Tree of Knowledge

Once the tree of Knowledge is alive in our mind, we hear the fallen angel talking very loudly. That voice never stops judging. It tells us what is right and what is wrong, what is beautiful and what is ugly. The storyteller is born inside our head, and survives inside our head because we feed it with our faith.

from "The Voice of Knowledge", a Toltec Wisdom Book by Miguel Ruiz

Bird Songs

Bird songs are ancient gifts from the Creator to the indigenous peoples of Southern California, Arizona and Mexico. The Creator sent these allegorical songs to teach the people how to walk in the world in a good way, so the people would behave like “true human beings” and be respectful of all life, including other humans, animals, plants, trees, rocks and waters. While the songs often relate creation stories, the diverse tribes who sing these songs, such as the Cahuilla, Mojave, Tohono O’odham (Papago), Akimel O’odham (Pima) and Kumeyyay have different creation stories – even though they all sing bird songs.

from Indian Country Today, May 5, 2009

For more information, e-mail info@hilopowwow.com.

Two Minds

"Each one of us human beings has two minds. One is totally ours, and it is like a faint voice that always brings us order, directness, purpose. The other mind is a foreign installation. It brings us conflict, self-assertion, doubts, hopelessness."

from "The Active Side of Infinity" by Carlos Castaneda

Survival of Respect

"I must somehow share this message with others: that we should treat ourselves, each other, and our world with respect. Mother Nature will not allow anything less than this mutual interconnection of respect to survive on earth," Amos said quietly.

from "The Seed Remembers" by Albert Mark Toops and Dana Gail Aston,
www.oldmp.com,

Praise, Flattery, and Exaggerated Manners

Praise, flattery, exaggerated manners and fine high-sounding words were not part of Lakota politeness. Excessive manners were put down as insincere, and the constant talker was considered rude and thoughtless. Conversation was never begun at once, or in a hurried manner. No one was quick with a question, no matter how important, and no one was pressed for an answer. A pause giving time for thought was the truly courteous way of beginning and conducting a conversation.

-Chief Luther Standing Bear (Ota Kte, Mochunozhin) , 1868-1939

Cornerstone of Character

The Wise Man believes profoundly in silence - the sign of a perfect equilibrium. Silence is the absolute poise or balance of body, mind and spirit. The man who preserves his selfhood ever calm and unshaken by the storms of existence - not a leaf, as it were, astir on the tree, not a ripple upon the surface of the shinning pool - his, in the mind of the unlettered sage, is the ideal attitude and conduct of life. Silence is the cornerstone of character.

Ohiyesa (Charles Alexander Eastman) - Santee Sioux

We Need to Love

"My friends, how desperately do we need to be loved and to love.
When Christ said that man does not live by bread alone, he spoke of a hunger.
This hunger was not the hunger of the body.
It was not the hunger for bread.
He spoke of a hunger that begins deep down in the very depths of our being.
He spoke of a need as vital as breath.
He spoke of our hunger for love."

Chief Dan George

The Grass is Still Growing There

"Traditional people of Indian nations have interpreted the two roads that face the light-skinned race as the road to technology and the road to spirituality. We feel that the road to technology.... has led modern society to a damaged and seared earth. Could it be that the road to technology represents a rush to destruction, and that the road to spirituality represents the slower path that the traditional native people have traveled and are now seeking again? The earth is not scorched on this trail. The grass is still growing there."

Mending the Sacred Hoop

.

As Natives, we believe that each race was entrusted with special roles and responsibilities during the creation to complete the great "Sacred Hoop" of life.Unfortunately, over time, each race forgot that their knowledge was incomplete - only a fraction of the whole truth, and the races began to quarrel with one another, each believing that their knowledge was the whole truth.

In order to mend the "Sacred Hoop", we must remember what is important - family, children, and community. It is our goal to bring families of different races together, to bring down the walls of misunderstanding to share a little of our heritage, through music and dance, and to understand that we are all not that different.

.

Ralph Moisa, Jr.

The Sound of Love

"It is ... the sound of love that at times aches to reach across the barriers of people's strong denial of their better selves. These barriers are stronger than steel and built from generations of fear and doubt, formed and shaped by traditions, and the machinery of powerful political and economic systems."

-- from "Pillars of Fire in a Darkening World" by Paul Lucero

Time for Thought

Praise, flattery, exaggerated manners and fine high-sounding words were not part of Lakota politeness. Excessive manners were put down as insincere, and the constant talker was considered rude and thoughtless. Conversation was never begun at once, or in a hurried manner. No one was quick with a question, no matter how important, and no one was pressed for an answer. A pause giving time for thought was the truly courteous way of beginning and conducting a conversation.

-Chief Luther Standing Bear (Ota Kte, Mochunozhin) , 1868-1939

Speak the Truth

"It does not require

many words

to speak the truth."

Chief Joseph

Respect

Gerald Sitting Eagle
of the Siksika Nation near Calgary, Canada,
said Blackfoot spirituality
could be summed up in one word;
respect.

Respect for one's elders,
respect for all two leggeds,
respect for the four leggeds,
the winged,
and the swimming people.
Respect for Mother Earth and
All Our Relations.

Alison Parry and Gerald Sitting Eagle of Siksika examine some Blackfoot material.

The Library of Life

"Knowledge was inherent in all things. The world was a library and its books were the stones, leaves, grass, brooks and the birds and animals that shared, alike with us, the storms and blessings of the earth. We learn to do what only the student of nature ever learns, and that is to feel beauty. We never rail at the storms, the furious winds, the biting frosts and snows. To do so intensifies human futility, so whatever comes we should adjust ourselves by more effort and energy if necessary, but without complaint. Bright days and dark days are both expressions of the Great Mystery, and the Indian reveled in being close to the Great Holiness."

-Chief Luther Standing Bear