The Earthkeepers

When we come to the realization that we are evolving spiritually, we begin a great adventure. Whatever path we take, we truly must expect the unexpected. We face day to day the inner workings of our heart. We see the emptiness. We experience the thrill of discovery. We feel the uncertainty. But there is no day that is the same as the last. 

The EarthDance Way is such a path. Because it is not theological or dogmatic, it is a path of personal discovery. It is like a closet full of alternative realities which we can try on. Those that are in accordance with our spiritual mission will fit well. Those that don’t won’t. The decisions about which is which have always been between my creator and me. There have been those who would have it otherwise, but something always swept them out of my life.

My only task has been to not shirk from the adventure. To embrace the uncertain road with certainty. To look into the darkness and sense the goodness coming towards me. 

In this adventure knowledge is gained. Some of the knowledge helps me create beliefs that allow me to observe the miracles of life when they occur. This knowledge is like re-wiring a circuit so it can carry more current. 

Other knowledge adds to my knowing, my sense of life. Just this summer when an 8ft Grizzly was standing over me just 20 ft away growling, I understood the medicine of the Bear. I can describe it to you, but I cannot transmit that knowing through those words. What I can do is transmit that knowing through the way I live my life. In the same way, all the sunsets I have truly seen and allowed to touch me are in my eyes. All the sweet waters that I have bathed in, that I have allowed to caress my body and exercise their buoyancy on me are in my touch.

And so it is, in the process of learning about ourselves, we learn about the world around us. We often tempt the limits of our knowledge. When we enter into that empty space of not knowing, we are filled with the thrill of discovery. The Earth gives us thrills in abundance. We dare not challenge her power, for it is awesome. However, when one throws open the gates to life the secrets often come in out of the cold. Knowledge comes in its own time and of its own accord. Our job is to be willing participants…

…and so we sit by the fire. The smoky smell a sweet perfume in the night air. The Drum carries us into the dreamtime. We make our prayers. We smoke the Sacred Pipe together to seal our intent and honesty into them. We sing the sacred songs to carry them around the planet so all will hear and believe us. We dance in the sacred way, giving ourselves to the rhythm, giving ourselves to the people and the goodness of life. Our feet act out the completeness of our prayers so the spirit of the land will have no doubt about what it is we are requesting… And in this way we walk into the distant lands of our spiritual adventure. There is no way of knowing where it will lead us. It is the beauty of the Mystery of Life.

Essay written by White Deer of Autumn (Gabriel Horn)

Who are we? Where are we going? Why are we here? Imagine if more people searched the Mystery of their lives for the answers to these questions. Imagine if more people understood the passion of the Lakota war cry: “It’s a good day to die!” or the feelings of a man like Henry David Thoreau when he said that he would hate to face his death knowing that he had not lived. Imagine if the hearts of more people became like theirs… and the land became mother… and that which they share all things with became the Great Holy Mystery. Imagine… (more…)

We have interesting times ahead in 2009. Here’s what John wrote about the new year:

There are so many different ways to celebrate the New Year. It is a time of catharsis, of new beginnings, of rejuvenation and new starts. Yet many celebrate this very important time by trying to forget. May auld acquaintance be forgot…

But this can be an exciting time to remember. To remember all the very important parts of your life that you have enjoyed or that you have neglected. It doesn’t matter, because the promise of the New Year is that there are always new opportunities to enjoy even more deeply or to attend to those parts of your life that you have neglected, and in so doing, find resolution and perhaps even emancipation and joy in the process. Remember, when you are drumming and singing and praying that it is always about possibilities and promise. There are 364 days out of the year to worry about the details. Take this night to concentrate on the promise of freshness and newness in every new day and in every new breath..

There is a Cherokee song that we sing in the sweat lodge when things feel very hard. It basically says “the dew is on the grass.” But in saying that it is pointing to the freshness that is important in the spiritual experience. The dew is so delicate, so special, and it usually comes just before dawn in the “wolf tails ” time of the night. It is a cool, fresh, quiet time of the night. The song suggests that our experience of life when we are truly in tune with our Creator is very much like that. New Year’s Eve is a good time to affirm and celebrate this.

Tobacco has been abused in our culture. It is a powerful plant that drinks in the Sun. It has been used as a medicine in different forms.

When it is used in a ceremonial way, it is obvious why it has been used to make offerings and to convey the sincerity of our purpose. It is a very good energy receiver. As we hold the tobacco in our hands, it begins to take on the energy of our prayer. Our prayers combine with the energy of the sun to radiate out into the world. When we leave the tobacco, when we let it out of our hand, the energy departs and is magnified by everything around it. It is a very synergistic (sacred) act.

Tobacco is often left when something is taken such as wood or water. If game is killed or even if a beautiful moment is shared with the land around us.

Used in ceremony, the tobacco offering is made to the fire or to a container at the center of the circle. It allows everyone to become involved in the ceremony by bringing each of them in their own way and in their own turn to the center of the circle.

Nonviolent Communication

The Seven Fires Prophesy explains the history of the people in terms of the keeping of seven fires. During each of the fires the people faced different kinds of contraction and expansion. Each time the changing of the fire lead to a world which was different than the one of their ancestors. Each time some of the people would get stronger and their spirits would soar, while others found only sorrow and grief at the passing of the old and familiar. We live in the time of the seventh fire. It is a time when the history of the people will change forever. 

• It is said that a new people would come. They would be wise in many ways, but like children in the ways of the Earth. But, it is said, they would be willing and eager to learn just like the curious children of the Mystery that they represent.
• It is said that the keeping of the fire would be passed to them, because they would cherish and understand it in a way that had been lost to many of the people.
• The ways of the fire will change in their hands. It will be different, but it will be strong in a way that it has not been for many many generations.
• The fire will flare up suddenly and then will be understood. The new people will share it with all who come to them with the same respect and curiosity that they came to the fire.

And it will warm the hearts and souls of many.

-John Armbruster

 Peak Oil News: A Sign of the Times