Keepers Of The Circle

Friend foul by following this path, that is, whatever you do in life, do the best you can with both your heart and mind.

If you do it this way, the power of the universe will come to your assistance, if your heart and mind are united.

When one sits in the circle of people, must be 
responsible, because all of Creation is related.

And the pain of one is the pain of all, the honor of one is the honor of all.

And whatever we do has effects in the universe.

If you do it this way, which is to unite the heart and mind as if it were all one, whatever you ask for, it will make sense to be. 

(White Buffalo Calf Woman)

Teachings For Life

                                   

I am poor and naked, but I am the chief of the nation.  We do not
want riches but we do want to train our children right.  Riches
would do us no good.  We could not take them with us to the
other world. We do not want riches.  We want peace and love.

Red Cloud

It was our belief that the love of possessions is a weakness to be overcome.  Its appeal is to the material part, and if allowed its way, it will in time disturb one's spiritual balance.  Therefore, children must early learn the beauty of generosity. They are taught to give what they prize most, that they may taste the happiness of giving. Ohiyesa

MANY HAVE ASKED HOW DO YOU TELL AN AUTHENTIC SWEAT LODGE CEREMONY FROM A FAKE. THATS EASY............. OUR PEOPLE DO NOT CHARGE FOR IT.

Lakota Indians: Sweat lodge

While the sweat lodge benefits the participants directly, the rite also helps all the people. It is done as a purification ritual to prepare for the help of Wakan Tanka, either for themselves personally or on behalf of others. 

Sweat lodge is used for purification before other ceremony as well, such as a vision quest or the Sun dance. 

The lodges are generally constructed close to the home, so they can be used frequently and easily, even in bad weather.

The sweat lodge is made from willow poles, 12 to 20, bent in arcs over each other and stuck in the ground at either end to form a dome shape. The dome is then covered with blankets or hides. Representative of the universe, the lodge door usually faces west, where the clouds and rain come from.

Inside, a round fire pit is created at the center of the universe. Rocks are heated in a fire made outside the sweat lodge and bought in with forks. Sage is sprinkled over the entire floor inside, and a path that leads out from the door leads to a small mound of dirt where the sacred pipe is kept.

At the beginning of a sweat, the participants enter and offer a prayer to Wakan Tanka for all provided and help in the past, present and future. Everyone sits on the sage, in a circle, silently watching as the hot rocks are brought in and placed in the fire pit. Once the pit is filled, whoever is leading the ceremony offers the pipe to the four directions, to the sky and to the earth. The pipe is then lit and passed among those in the circle. When everyone has smoked, the pipe is placed in the outside altar with its stem facing west.

Then the flap is pulled shut, the inside darkens and the leader pours water on the hot rocks, filling the entire lodge with steam. The leader prays to the west, asking for the Great Spirit to look upon them all and offer help with all they need to live.

In awhile, the flap is lifted and water is passed around for everyone to drink. Then the pipe is brought in again. This is repeated until the leader has prayed to all four directions, which represent many things (see Four Directions). Each time the pipe is brought in for smoke, when put back in the outside altar its stem is placed in one of the other directions until the ceremony is finished.

After the prayers to the four directions are complete, the leader speaks about Wakan Tanka, how blessed the people are and how they depend on Wakan Tanka for all things.
Then the flap is opened and everyone prays once again to Wakan Tanka, this time in a spirit of thankfulness. As each person leaves the lodge, they say All my relatives.

Lakota Indians: Sweat lodge

While the sweat lodge benefits the participants directly, the rite also helps all the people. It is done as a purification ritual to prepare for the help of Wakan Tanka, either for themselves personally or on behalf of others. 

Sweat lodge is used for purification before other ceremony as well, such as a vision quest or the Sun dance. 

The lodges are generally constructed close to the home, so they can be used frequently and easily, even in bad weather.

The sweat lodge is made from willow poles, 12 to 20, bent in arcs over each other and stuck in the ground at either end to form a dome shape. The dome is then covered with blankets or hides. Representative of the universe, the lodge door usually faces west, where the clouds and rain come from.

Inside, a round fire pit is created at the center of the universe. Rocks are heated in a fire made outside the sweat lodge and bought in with forks. Sage is sprinkled over the entire floor inside, and a path that leads out from the door leads to a small mound of dirt where the sacred pipe is kept.

At the beginning of a sweat, the participants enter and offer a prayer to Wakan Tanka for all provided and help in the past, present and future. Everyone sits on the sage, in a circle, silently watching as the hot rocks are brought in and placed in the fire pit. Once the pit is filled, whoever is leading the ceremony offers the pipe to the four directions, to the sky and to the earth. The pipe is then lit and passed among those in the circle. When everyone has smoked, the pipe is placed in the outside altar with its stem facing west.

Then the flap is pulled shut, the inside darkens and the leader pours water on the hot rocks, filling the entire lodge with steam. The leader prays to the west, asking for the Great Spirit to look upon them all and offer help with all they need to live.

In awhile, the flap is lifted and water is passed around for everyone to drink. Then the pipe is brought in again. This is repeated until the leader has prayed to all four directions, which represent many things (see Four Directions). Each time the pipe is brought in for smoke, when put back in the outside altar its stem is placed in one of the other directions until the ceremony is finished.

After the prayers to the four directions are complete, the leader speaks about Wakan Tanka, how blessed the people are and how they depend on Wakan Tanka for all things.

Then the flap is opened and everyone prays once again to Wakan Tanka, this time in a spirit of thankfulness. As each person leaves the lodge, they say All my relatives.

Native Canadian women sold on U.S. ships, researcher says

CBC News August 21, 2013
An American researcher says First Nations women from Thunder Bay, Ont., have been sold on ships in the harbour at Duluth, Minn.

Christine Stark said the port at Duluth is notorious among First Nations people as a site for trafficking women.

The masters student at the University of Minnesota Duluth said she has anecdotal reports of women, teenage girls and boys, as well as babies being sold on ships for sex.

"The women and children — and I've even had women talk about a couple of babies brought onto the ships and sold to the men on ships — are being sold or are exchanging sex for alcohol, a place to stay, drugs, money and so forth.," Stark said. "It's quite shocking."
Stark said the sex trade on ships has been going on for generations, and includes Indigenous women from Canada.

"I have spoken with a woman who was brought down from Thunder Bay on the ships and talks about an excessive amount of trafficking between Canada and the Duluth-Superior harbor," Stark said. "There is a very strong link between Thunder Bay and Duluth."

Her current research is an offshoot of a 2007 report on prostitution in Minnesota, in conjunction with the Minnesota Indian Women's Sexual Assault Coalition. That report included interviews with 105 indigenous women in Minnesota who have been trafficked in the sex trade.

Stark said the stories that "women get brought out onto the boats and never come back" that she heard as part of that study begged further exploration. She's currently conducting interviews with 15 people to learn more about what happens on the ships.

The Ontario Native Women's Association (ONWA) said it also has anecdotal reports of women being trafficked across borders,or provincial boundaries, into the sex trade.

"We know that it's happening between Winnipeg and Thunder Bay, and there have been reports of it happening in southern Ontario across the U.S. border," said Kezia Picard, the director of policy and research with ONWA.

But Picard said more funding is needed for more formal research into how women are being spirited away.

"Another thing we're really trying to advocate for is additional research to understand what's happening and what sort of programs help women in this sort of situation to prevent it from happening," Picard said.

However, Picard said some of the reasons First Nations women are vulnerable to sex trafficking are all too familiar in indigenous communities.

"The reason that indigenous women and girls are sometimes trafficked has to do with all of these ongoing issues like poverty," she said. "Another one of the large risk factors for indigenous women and girls is the lack of housing ... women will sometimes engage in survival sex, not of their choice, in order to have somewhere to live."

Picard said the ONWA hopes to work with organizations in Minnesota and Manitoba to learn more about the cross-border sex trade, and explore ways of keeping indigenous women and their children safe.

Native Powwow Dancers

                               

 

  

Wisdom Of The Ages

Native American isn't blood. It is what is in the heart. The love for the land, the respect for it, those who inhabit it, and the respect and acknowledgement of the spirits and elders. That is what it is to be Indian.
White Feather, Navajo Medicine Man

Sacred Feathers...Feathers in hair for Native Americans had a spiritual meaning. They were worn by Native American Chiefs to symbolize their communication with the Spirit, and to show off their divine wisdom. 

Feathers also represented the power of the thunder gods, along with the power of air and wind. Sometime feathers were representative of courage during a battle or a successful hunt. — with Monica Colomar Sarrio.

There is an ancient Indian saying~ Something lives only as long as the last person who remembers it. My people have come to trust memory over history. 

Memory, like fire, is radiant & immutable while history serves only those who seek to control it, those who douse the flame of memory in order to put out the dangerous fire of truth. 

Beware these men for they are dangerous & 
unwise. Their false history is written in the blood of those who might remember & seek the truth.
Floyd 'Red Crow' Westerman

“Man’s law changes

with his understanding of man.

Only the laws of the spirit

remain always the same.”

“When you were born,

you cried and the world rejoiced.

Live your life so that when you die,

the world cries and you rejoice.”

Give thanks for unknown blessings already on their way

Great Spirit, help me always to speak the truth quietly, to listen with an open mind when others speak, and to remember the peace that may be found in silence.

Strength

We smudge to clear the air around us. We smudge to clean our minds so that we’ll have good thoughts of others. We smudge our eyes so that we’ll only see good things in others. We smudge our ears so that we’ll only listen to good things about others. We smudge our mouths so that we’ll only speak of good about others. 
We smudge our whole being so that we may portray the good 
part of ourselves through our actions. -Native tradition

“I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.”
 Michelangelo
This is what life does to us it keeps chipping away the unnecessary to reveal the essence.
Anger makes you smaller, while forgiveness forces you to grow beyond what you were.

The Creator seldom, gives me what I want
But gives me what I need.
I ask for wealth, He gives me health-
For love, He gives me seeds.
"Go sow the seeds",
He seems to say,
And love will grow for you,
And health will be the wealth you need
To share the love you grew."

And when I pray for worldly goods
And comforts of a king,
He fills my heart with little joys,
For simple, common things;

And when I beg for things I see-
Of envy to my mind-
He guides my steps to happy souls
Who are completely blind.

So, now, I just come unto
Him In simple, humble prayer
with a faithful heart I ask
"what can i do for you?"

Prayer To Creator

As I walk the trail of life in the fear of the wind and rain,
Grant O Great Spirit that I may always walk like a man.

"Please forgive us and forgive our forefathers. Help us to live in peace and harmony once again. Oh Creator of All Things, take the violence and anger from our hearts."

There is a road in the hearts of all of us, hidden and seldom traveled, which leads to an unknown, secret place.

The old people came literally to love the soil, and they sat or reclined on the ground with a feeling of being close to a mothering power.

Their teepees were built upon the earth and their altars were made of earth.
The soul was soothing, strengthening, cleansing and healing.

That is why the old Indian still sits upon the earth instead of propping himself up and away from its life giving forces.

For him, to sit or lie upon the ground is to be able to think more deeply and to feel more keenly. He can see more clearly into the mysteries of life and come closer in kinship to other lives about him.

~ Chief Luther Standing Bear ~

Unity

You can take one arrow and break it in half.But if you take twelve arrows in a bundle,it is almost impossible to break any of them.There is strength in UNITY.

When we are together we are very powerful.This is the way the ancestors told us we need to be. STRONG.We need to unite ourselves.This is why the Elders say,when we make decisions,we must first consider the good of the people. If every person in the community thinks this way,then we will always make strong decisions.

Creator, let my decisions have the strength of the bundle.
~Tecumseh,Shawnee~

Living Elements

"My grandfather is the fire
My grandmother is the wind
The Earth is my mother
The Great Spirit is my father
The World stopped at my birth
and laid itself at my feet
And I shall swallow the Earth whole
when I die and the Earth and I will be one

Hail The Great Spirit, my father without him no one could exist because there would be no will to live

Hail The Earth, my mother without which no food could be grown
and so cause the will to live to starve.

Hail the wind, my grandmother for she brings loving, life giving rain nourishing us as she nourishes our crops.

Hail the fire, my grandfather for the light, the warmth, the comfort he brings without which we be animals, not men

Hail my parent and grandparents without which not I, nor you, nor anyone else could have existed.

Life gives life which gives unto itself a promise of new life.

Hail the Great Spirit, The Earth, the wind, the fire
praise my parents loudly for they are your parents, too.

Oh, Great Spirit, giver of my life please accept this humble offering of prayer this offering of praise

This honest reverence of my love for you."

"Pray for us Grandfather we have forgotten the instructions of how to live on earth."

Meditation For The Day

“The day the child realizes that all adults are imperfect he becomes an adolescent; the day he forgives them, he becomes an adult; the day he forgives himself, he becomes wise.” Alden Nowlan

Doug Luzar
Take care of your Thoughts. Your Thoughts make paths in your Mind, and can lead you into dangerous areas. The thoughts we continually follow will eventually come out in words and actions, and become Habits. What do You want to be? Let Your thoughts lead you to the Paths that will take you there.

Watch Your Thoughts. Love Travels between the Worlds, like Sweetgrass and Music. Deepen Your Laugh and Smile lines, they are Beauty. Drink Deeply. 
Keep Dancin!!!

Doug Luzar
The Circle is a Wonderful symbol to represent the Great Mystery. Its' form represents One-ness and Whole-ness. It is the Path We walk, no beginning and no end...it holds everything in beginning and ending, Complete-ness...it is 
the Seed, the Bud, the Bloom....The Moon is a Circle, and it travels a Circle around the Earth... the Earth is a Circle traveling a Circle around the Sun, which is a Circle, traveling a Circle, a Spiral...an Eagles nest and an Ant Hill, a drop of Water, and a Rainbow...the Dancers in the Arbor Dance a Circle around the circular Drum...The opening in the Pipe that we 
fill with Prayer, the hole in the Stem we smoke Our Prayers thru...the Forms,Cycles and Seasons of Ceremonies...Nature LOVES a Circle....Love Travels, in Circles, between the Worlds, like Sweetgrass and Music. Deepen Your Laugh and Smile lines, they are Beauty. Drink Deeply. Keep Dancin!!!

Doug Luzar
Today is a new Adventure. Give Yourself Fully to this Day. You may have a plan for today, or an idea of what the day may bring, yet, however well we make our plans, things still happen that are not a part of our plans. We need to stay Attentive to a new direction, to the Voice of the Wind calling us, or the Scent of a Flower, or to the Child asking for our attention. Try to not be too busy, or rushed to take a side trail instead of the "main" road. 

Both will "get"us there, yet if we Slow down enough to notice what is trying to get our attention we may Learn more on one road than the other. 

Love Travels between the Worlds, like Sweetgrass and Music. Deepen Your Laugh and Smile lines, they are Beauty. Drink Deeply. Keep Dancin!!!!

Yancy Webb
Elder's Meditation of the Day
"Everyone has to find the right path. You can't see it so it's hard to find. 
No one can show you. Each person has to find the path by himself." 
--Charlie Knight, UTE

There are certain times in our lives when a voice whispers to us. The voice doesn't always talk. Usually we hear it best when we are sick and tired of being sick and tired. Inside every person is the knowledge that a Supreme Being exists. Sometimes a restlessness occurs and it makes me feel I need to be doing something or I need to be going somewhere or maybe I start 
wondering who am I? Often when this happens, I feel lost. Inside of everyone is the natural, built-in desire to be walking the Red Road, or to be seeking a relationship with the Creator. No one can force us to make this journey. 

We must make this journey because we want to. This journey is not on the outside. The path is inside of ourselves. It is inside that we must begin our search.

Oh Great Spirit, help me this day to look within myself. If trouble arises, let me realize that it's not what is going on but how I am looking at what is going on. Give me Your power this day to conduct myself according to Your way of life.

Yancy Webb
Elder's Meditation of the Day 
Look behind you. See your sons and your daughters. They are your future. 
Look farther and see your sons' and your daughters' children and their children's children even unto the Seventh Generation. That's the way we were taught. Think about it: you yourself are a Seventh Generation." 
--Leon Shenandoah, ONONDAGA

The Creator designed us with a free will. That means we function from choices and consequences. It is important that we practice thinking about consequences before we make decisions about choices. Every choice I make is 
like setting up dominos one after the other that produce consequences. Not just for me but also for my children and for the children that are unborn. 

My choices and decision today will have consequences for seven generations. 
For example, if I work on my own spiritual development and I walk the Red Road, the odds are that my children will. They will marry and their children will follow the Red Road and so will my grandchildren even up to the seventh 
generation. This will happen because of the choices and decisions that I make today.

Great Spirit, grant that the choices and decisions that I make today will honor Your laws and values. May I live in peace today that will ripple into the seventh generation.

Yancy Webb
Elder's Meditation of the Day 
"You want to know who's a real medicine man? He's the one who doesn't say 'I'm a medicine man.' He doesn't ask you to come to him. You've got to go and ask him. And you'll find he's always there among his own people." 
--Louis Farmer, ONONDAGA

The Medicine Man is a role model of what it is like to live in harmony and balance with the Creator. It takes a long time, a lot of sacrifice and discipline to become a Medicine Man. A Medicine Man is humble and never crass about anything. He knows he lives to do the will of the Great Spirit. 

He knows he is to help the people. He lives very low key - the more low key he lives, the more people seek him out - and such is life. The more one serves the people and is quiet about it, the more he is sought out. The quieter he is, the more powerful is his medicine.

Great Spirit, allow me this day to be humble. Allow me this day not to seek attention, but to live quietly and keep my focus and attention on serving You.

Yancy Webb
Elder's Meditation of the Day 
"A good heart and a good mind - those are what you need to be a chief." 

--Louis Farmer, ONONDAGA 
The combination of heart and mind is very powerful. The Medicine Wheel teaches that two worlds exist - the seen and the unseen. The seen world is the physical and the unseen is the spiritual world. Both of the worlds are necessary to discover true reality. The seen world is easiest seen by the 
male side. The unseen is easiest seen by the female side. The heart is the unseen and the mind is the seen. Blessed is the leader or person who has developed the heart and the mind. Truly, the person is of tremendous value to the Creator and the people. 

My Great Spirit, help me this day to develop both my female side and my male side. Let me know all the feelings of each, let me develop and grow my intuition and my mind. Let my development only serve You.

Yancy Webb
Elder's Meditation of the Day
"Let us put our minds together as one." 
--Irving Powless, Sr., ONONDAGA 

If we sat in a circle and put an object in the center of the circle and we all described what we saw, everyone would see different points of view from each other. Some would even see opposites because they would be sitting on opposite sides of the circle. In other words, you don't have to see what I see for you to be right. 

In fact, everyone in the circle is right based on 
their own point of view. If we are willing to listen to everyone's point of view, then we can get a more accurate description of the object in the center. This is one way to put our minds together. When we get the clarity from each other, we should give thanks and be grateful to each other. 

Grandfathers from the four directions, guide me today with Your wisdom from the east, from the south, from the west and from the north

Doug Luzar
Praying is all about Living. It is not only a prescribed Ritual of Words or Actions. It is how you Walk in this World, the things you Do. It is how you relate to the World, when you are Happy, or Sad, or Angry, or Overwhelmed. 
It is how you feel inside, how your Heart connects to the Heart of Spirit. 

Praying is Love. As you go into the World today...remember...remember the Joy and Awe and Wonder you felt with each new day as a child. Remember the pieces of the puzzle that you have forgotten. Love Travels between the 
Worlds, like Sweetgrass and Music. Deepen Your Laugh and Smile lines, they are Beauty! Drink Deeply of Life. Keep Dancin!!!

Yancy Webb
Elder's Meditation of the Day
"These are our times and our responsibilities. Every human being has a sacred duty to protect the welfare of our Mother Earth, from whom all life comes. In order to do this, we must recognize the enemy - the one within us. 
We must begin with ourselves..." 

--Leon Shenandoah, ONONDAGA
The outside is merely a reflection of our insides. My mind is designed to tell me that I'm not crazy for thinking what I am thinking. Even if I have angry thought, my mind is giving me excuses and reasons why it is OK to think what I'm thinking. I need to be knowledgeable about the laws of harmony and balance. I cannot twist the laws to serve me, but I can adjust 
my life to serve the laws. This is the law - I am here to serve the Earth. 
The Earth is not here for me to misuse and abuse.

Oh Great Spirit, allow me the insight and knowledge of how to live in harmony and balance with my surroundings. Grant me change from within.

Doug Luzar
Inside each of us, we know. We know how we should Live, there is a small voice that will tell us if we listen. When we choose not to listen, we do things not in our best interests, nor the best interests of our fellow creatures on this Earth. We, in the words of the song "follow the wrong gods home", and become selfish, and dishonest, which leads to frustrations and anger, and a lack of responsibility, and accountability, which is a downward 
leading spiral to more of what we don't want. However, if we do
listen to that inner voice, the quiet one, our own Heart Voice, it can lead us past the other voices, all loudly crying for more of what is on the other side of the hill. It can lead us to deeper places within our selves, where We can draw Water from Deep places, which lead to self-respect, Respect for Others, 
and All of Earths many Creatures, and Responsibility and Accountability. 
Love Travels between the Worlds, like Sweetgrass and Music. Deepen Your Laugh and Smile lines, they are Beauty. Drink Deeply from the Deep Waters. 
Keep Dancin!!!

UPON THE WINDS A VOICE WAS CAST,
WITH PRAYER A VOICE CRIED OUT,
VOICE SENT WITH SACRED SMOKE ,
FORGIVENESS IS ALL IT ASK.
EAGLE CAME FLYING VERY NEAR ,
HE SAW AND HEARD ,
UPON HIS WINGS CARRIED THIS PRAYER,
SOON CREATOR HEARD,
EAGLE COME FLYING AND CARRY OUR PRAYERS,
TO EAR'S OF CREATOR THAT HE MAY HEAR ,
WE HIS CHILDREN FOR HIS PITY ARE SENDING PRAYERS.

Prayer by Wanbli Nagi

Doug Luzar
While the Times change, Principles and Values do not. Living the Old Ways, doesn't mean we have to do away the things we have gained...electricity,
(convert from fossil fuels to alterNative sources), our homes, running water, it means to Live by the old Values...the Spirituality of our Ancestors, 

Respect for Each Other, the other Life on this Earth, and the Earth its self.

 Everything in Life is connected. To each other, to everything else and to the Unseen. This is what was known and Lived. This is what We need to Live, and Teach our Children to Live. The same Spirituality lived by our Ancestors 
is the same Spirituality that we need in todays World. Respect doesn't change. Accountability doesn't change. Responsibility doesn't change. Love Travels between the Worlds, like Sweetgrass and Music. Deepen Your Laugh and 
Smile lines, they are Beautiful. Drink Deeply. Keep Dancin!!!!

Doug Luzar
The Plants and Animals do not need us, we need them. Without us, the Earth would return to balance. All our Ancestors had this knowledge. It is time to return to Old Age Wisdom. Love is the not only the best, it is the only Medicine to heal the Earth today. Love Travels between the Worlds, like Sweetgrass and Music. Deepen Your Laugh and Smile lines, they are Beauty. 
Drink Deeply. Keep Dancin!!!

Doug Luzar
Look to your past, understand how it has shaped your present. Come to terms with the things that have hurt you in your own way...then let them go. Look then for the things in your life that build you up, and make you feel good about yourself. Spend your time doing those things, and in the company of people who like you you and enjoy you for who you are. As you are. Love 
Travels between the Worlds, like Sweetgrass and Music. Deepen Your Laugh and Smile lines, they are Beauty. Drink Deeply. Keep Dancin!!!

Doug Luzar
We must each of us take care with Our Words. Our Words carry Our Breath, and Our Intent. Words do have a Power. If we tell ourselves we can't do a thing, chances are we can't. If we tell ourselves we are ugly or no good, we will begin to believe it. If we tell Our Children negative things, they will believe them about themselves, and their self talk will reflect that. 
We should always build them and each other up, to Their, and Our best Potential. 

If We give them criticism they will reflect that, if We give them Love, they will reflect that, and Our future will reflect that. Our future will reflect what We feed the Young Ones today. Love Travels between the Worlds, like Sweetgrass and Music. Deepen Your Laugh and Smile lines, they are Love. Drink Deeply of the Beauty of Life. Keep Dancin!!!

The Breath

Oh Great Spirit, holder and giver of the breath of all that lives. The 
two-leggeds who walk the Turtle's back. The four-legged ones who share this 
place and teach us to walk gently, taking only what we need. The 
belly-crawlers who know every blade of grass and grain of sand. The winged 
ones who give us the ability to see above the clouds. 

The standing trees, the stone lodge people that can teach us of the history of the sacred earth beneath our feet. The water that nourishes and cleanses the body. The sun that warms our flesh. The moon that lights our way and controls the tides.

Great Spirit, all these things you have given to us ... and yet we still 
stumble and fall. And yet you continue to be as a gentle parent, always 
forgiving and always loving. You have always been and will always be ...

The four winds sing to us and touch us with the breath, that we may know our 
past and learn from the old ones.

Great Spirit, I stand before you as a child, one just learning how to crawl. 
Teach me the way to walk a path of balance, joy and may my eyes only know 
the beauty that resides in all things made by you. Aho.

Wanda S. Ruffner, Sacred Breath

Elder's Meditation of the Day August 14

"It's time Indians tell the world what we know... about nature and about God.
 So I'm going to tell you what I know and who I am. You guys better listen. 
You have a lot to learn. 
Mathew King, LAKOTA

A long time ago the Creator came to Turtle Island and said to the Red People, 
 "You will be the keepers of the Mother Earth. Among you I will give the wisdom about nature, about the interconnectedness of all things, about balance and about living in harmony. You, Red People will see the secrets of 
nature. You will live in hardship and the blessing of this is you will stay close to the Creator. The day will come when you will need to share the secrets with the other people of the earth because they will stray from their spiritual ways. The time to start sharing is today."

Oh Great Spirit, today I am ready for You to use me as a channel of Your peace. Let my walk today be visible so the people will say "There goes a Man of God." I want to know what He knows. If they ask, I will tell them to go out into the wilderness and pray for You to guide them.

We must take the lessons of life that are written upon the Whispers of the wind, and learn from them so that we may walk and grow in harmony with the Great One. We must learn to love all things, deny ourselves, and serve others so the Master will hear the greatness of our humbleness, as He walks in the Garden of Life. We must love our Earth partners, not in words, but in deeds and show that our spirit desires to be likened upon the Great Spirit. We must gain the courage to pray through all things and worship even when we feel that we have nothing to offer. 

Through trials, we will find our Wind Spirit will grow and either rise upon the currents or sink into the valleys if left unfed....we must learn the lessons of life through all things and then pass the gifts of life to those that follow in our footsteps, for they will need them even more, as Mother Earth and Father Sky continues to be darkened by the progress of the Nothing. So goes the Circle Of Life and in it's simplicity, contains all the vastness of the Universe.
 ONEIA (forever) 
Chief Dan George


Sacred Laughter

Sweet fragrance of the land, herbs and roots and medicines long lost to the 
general populace, are nonetheless as present as they always have been. We 
have been so taken with miracle cures, these things have been put away as 
folklore and not dependable. 

The simple people at one time had no other alternative - so runs the 
present-day popular notion. Hard-fought battles over who is to pay for the 
miracle medicines - and we are grateful for most of them - may turn a 
venturesome soul back to the soil and back to those things that heal a mind 
and body without being asked for proof of insurance. But one other thing far 
too ignored is the power of prayer. No Indian is remiss in blessing his body 
and soul and spirit because he knows they work together. His prayer is not 
now and again but regular and potent. 

~ The lack of respect for growing, living things soon led to lack of respect 
for humans too. ~ 
LUTHER STANDING BEAR - LAKOTA

It is imperative that President Obama and his Administration, the Congress, all Native Americans, and the Public at large read James Anaya’s Investigative Report pertaining to Conditions of Native Americans in the United States.http://unsr.jamesanaya.org/statements/usa-indigenous-peoples-new-measures-needed-for-reconciliation-and-to-address-historical-wrongs Mr. Anaya is The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. As part of his research and information gathering he spent time among Native People and his report speaks to their deep concerns and the wrongs that have been perpetrated against them. 

This is a superbly written document. This report will be presented to the United Nations in Geneva on September 18, 2012. http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/HRBodies/HRCouncil/RegularSession/Session21/A-HRC-21-47-Add1_en.pdf

OF SPECIAL NOTE >>>>>>>>>>

*****THE CASE OF LEONARD PELTIER IS AMONG INJUSTICES PRESENTED AND RECONSIDERATION FOR CLEMENCY IS URGED!! 

*****The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was adopted by President Barack Obama in 2010; making it in essence a part of both Domestic and Foreign Policy. (Former President George Bush refused to adopt the Declaration which was enacted by the United Nations in 2007). Although this has been adopted, clearly the United States is not taking to heart or acknowledging the Rights inherent in the Declaration! http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/documents/DRIPS_en.pdf 

*****In 2010 the Congress of the United States of America adopted a Resolution of Apology to the Native People. This apology somehow was not given much media attention and very few are aware of it.
*****InJustices against Native Peoples both past and present are well documented. (The FBI is not named specifically as an agency that has caused severe damage, but the Dept. of Justice and others have been called to task).

*****There are laws, policies, programs, agencies that have been enacted for the betterment of Native Conditions…However they have been misused and underused. Grievances done to Native Peoples are well documented. (Mr. Anaya does not go into the blatant corruption within agencies such as the BIA-Bureau of Indian Affairs, but it is alluded to).

The InJustices made against the Indigenous Peoples of America must be acknowledged, and honest efforts must be made to Right past and present wrongs that can be corrected if they as a People and the whole of America hopes to begin to heal!! CLEMENCY FOR LEONARD PELTIER…NOW!! In The Spirit of Crazy Horse. Thank You!