Meditation of the Day

[hiphop]

Blessings!

This is from my friend Shadow Viper again. It is the meditation of the day October 6th.

Every day, there is a meditation that is spread in all the world. That is why I am allowed to share it with you. Forgive if I can´t always find the time to post those.. especially when I am on other trails, walking all by myself.



October 6, 2005

Walk tall as the trees,
live strong as the mountains,
be gentle as the spring winds,
keep the warmth of the summer sun
in your heart, and the great spirit
will always be with you.
-Native American Proverb

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Morning Prayer:

Grandfather Great Spirit
Fill us with the Light.
Give us the strength to understand,
And the eyes to see.

Teach us to walk the soft Earth
as relatives to all that live.

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THINK on THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Why is it that the things we love so much can cause us so much pain, and perhaps without realizing it? Why is it that we find so much to worry about in all the "what ifs" that cross our minds with such persistence? What makes fatigue follow us through the hours and drain away precious strength that we need to help us in our daily routine?

All the things that plague us daily have one common cause -fear. To some, fear is a constant companion. We may call it by many other names such as necessity, time, busy-ness, demands, but all of these can be forms of fear.

Fear produces the most mental, physical, and spiritual fatigue that has ever overtaken humans. It rushes us so that we have accidents. It drains us of strength to resist illness. It tells us we cannot produce enough to meet the demands upon us. And it builds within our minds such dire images so that we cannot face the simplest.

Fear has one antidote. It is not to stop worrying and take it easy, but it is faith. Adverse conditions cannot break us in the face of faith. Faith allows us to look fear in the eyes with such confidence that it loses its power over us.

English divine, Fredrick William Robertson, wrote, "To believe is strong. Doubt cramps energy. Belief is power."

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October 6 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Living is a little like a wedding - to make a deal takes only a minute, but to live with it may take a lifetime. Many have not learned that life is not a quick trip down the aisle and if you don't find it to your liking you can start all over again. A good marriage is one of adjustments and then readjustment. It is sharing the hardships and the growing and sweetening that are in the middle of hardships. Little can compare with faith and looking out for others. It is giving and receiving, and we know it is not something outside ourselves that makes life worthwhile but what we have in our hearts.

~ I will keep my word until the stones melt. ~
DELSHAY - APACHE

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 6

"Lots of people hardly ever feel real soil under their feet, see plants grow except in flower pots, or get fare enough beyond the street light to catch the enchantment of a night sky studded with stars. When people live far from scenes of the Great Spirit's making, it's easy for them to forget His laws."
--Tatanga Mani (Walking Buffalo), STONEY

Nature is life's greatest teacher. The natural laws are hidden in nature. Hidden are solutions to everyday problems such as conflict resolution, how to forgive, lessons about differences, how to manage organizations, how to think. Hidden are feelings. You can look at something and you will feel it. At night, have you ever looked at the sky when there are no clouds? As you look at all the stars, your heart will become very joyful. You will walk away feeling joyful and peaceful. We need to visit nature so we can see and feel these things.

My Creator, let me learn nature's lessons.

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Native Wisdom:

This is what was spoken by my great-grandfather at the house he made for us ... And these are the words that were given him by the Master of Life : "At some time there shall come among you a stranger, speaking a language you do not understand. He will try to buy the land from you, but do not sell it; keep it for an inheritance to your children."

Aseenewub - Red Lake Ojibwe

 

[hiphop]

October 8, 2005

Silence is the cornerstone of character

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Morning Prayer:

Great Spirit,
return to us our freedom, our land,
and our lives. We are thankful for the
present from which to learn how to be
thankful for the past, and how to be
hopeful for the future.

--Barney Bush, Shawnee

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THINK ON THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

We have lived a long time with frustration as, a way of life. We have looked at its many faces and tried to get it out of our lives so that we can be happier and more fulfilled.

Others have overcome worse problems than we have had. But we suppose they were gifted and had more power to handle their problems. Can we admit they had no more power than we have at this very minute? They simply decided to know themselves better. To change what needed to be changed. They learned that joy is the seed of health and happiness. Fretting and frustration sets our feet in the other direction.

It is poetic justice to use past failures and hurts as stepping stones to greater happiness. When we stand on the shoulders of pain and humiliation that once ruled us, we can reach the sky. The view is worth the climb.

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October 8 -Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Mark Twain said he never let his schooling interfere with his education. Nor should we. Education s not a degree or a result of money. It comes from sifting experience for wisdom and knowledge. It shows in how we communicate it to other people. Sequoyah was an illiterate Cherokee genius. He learned the white man had ways of preserving his thoughts on paper, and from the depths of his own mind and spirit, he made a whole tribe literate by perfecting a syllabary - ti ga lo qua s to di - to help the Cherokee advance quickly. One man's love and wisdom gave him insight to open the minds of his people so they could write, read the Scriptures, and learn the marvels of Greek, Latin, and calculus. He called it the "talking leaf". But he gave us more than that - he gave us impetus to search our own minds for gems from the Great Spirit.

~ It is my wish and the wishes of my people to live peaceably and quietly with you and yours. ~
CORNPLANTER

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 8

"I think there was a big mistake made (when) people separated religion and the government. That was one of the big mistakes that was made, because when they did that, then they removed the Creator from their life - or at least from half to three-quarters of their life."
--Tom Porter, MOHAWK

The Elders tell us that every thing the Creator made is interconnected. Nothing can be separated. The Elders say we should pray before we do anything. We should ask the Creator, what do You want us to do? We are put on the Earth to do the will of God. If we run our governments, communities, families or ourselves without the spiritual we are doomed to failure.


My Creator, guide my life to include the spiritual in everything I do.

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Native Wisdom:

I am but one man. I am the voice of my people. Whatever their hearts are, that I talk.

--KINTPUASH - MODOC

 

[Carek1230]

Thank you for sharing these wisdoms and meditations. It was nice to read during my afternoon work break.

 

[hiphop]

October 9, 2005

The more you know, the more you will trust and the less you will fear.

--Ojibway

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Morning Prayer:

Thank you Great Spirit for my life,
Thank you Great Spirit for my family ,
Thank you Great Spirit for everything that is given and ungiven,
Thank you Great Spirit for the day.
May you recieve everything you need and nothing you dont.
May you take the path less traveled, and keep a blues sky in
your mind even if it is not in your eyes.

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THINK ON THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Why are we inclined to wait in groups to be herded this way or that even when we know it is wrong? How many times we have gone along with something because everyone else was doing it. Can we not stand to be different?

As conditioned and organized as we are to stampede toward experiences that are not to our benefit, we still have the power to think and save ourselves. Sometimes a simple thing like looking up at the sky can give us a hint of how unlimited we are. If we never look up, our eyes are fixed on current circumstances and what others are doing.

We can use our own innate wisdom to avoid what seems inevitable. If we can think even a little, we can move away from going downhill. Cattle stampede. People think. And with it comes the knowledge that we can also move in the right direction.

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October 9 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Hope is our most constant companion. We hope the pattern of things will change for the better. Even in dire circumstances hope remains when all else seems to abandon us. But even then it is a thread strong enough to hold life together. Like a cork on a net, hope keeps is from sinking in our own fears. It helps us picture the way things ought to be so we can bring them about. We cannot say anything is hopeless when so much depends on our seeing beyond barriers. Hope is part of our natural existence. With it the door is always open. Without it, even dreams tend to perish.

~ Now I can eat well, sleep well, and be glad. I can go everywhere with good feeling. ~
GERONIMO

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 9

"That spiritual power I wear is much more beautiful and much greater. We call it wisdom, knowledge, power and gift or love. There are these four parts to that spiritual power. So I wear those. When you wear that power it will beautify your mind and spirit. You become beautiful. Everything that Tunkashila creates is beautiful."
--Wallace Black Elk, LAKOTA

When I was young, I asked my grandfather, "What should I pray for?" He thought for a long time and then he said, "Pray only for wisdom and for the knowledge of love." This makes a lot of sense. No matter what happens I ask the Creator to show me the lessons I should be learning. I pray for Him to help me learn the lessons. By doing this everyday we become beautiful human beings.


Great Spirit,
grant me Your wisdom.

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Native Wisdom:

The people were put upon this world to learn of themselves and of their brothers and sisters. We are these people. We are the fallen stars. Our laws of men change with our understanding of them. Only the laws of the spirit remain always the same.
--White Wolf, Crow

 

[hiphop]

Thank you for sharing these wisdoms and meditations. It was nice to read during my afternoon work break.

Good if the meditations provide some insight. They are meant to be shared.

 

[hiphop]

October 10, 2005

If an innocent man doesn't get angry, he will live a long while. A guilty man will get sick because of bad thoughts, a bad conscience.

--Traditional Hopi teaching

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Morning Prayer:

"The Great Spirit is in all things,
is in the air we breathe. The Great Spirit
is our Father, but the Earth is our Mother.
She nourishes us; that which we put into
the ground, She returns to us...."

--Big Thunder (Bedagi), late 19th century Algonquin

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THINK ON THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Get quiet, not only the physical body but in the mind and spirit. If it's possible, go for a walk and look for something beautiful, look at the sky and touch the earth.

Every part of this soil is sacred in the estimation of Indian people. They touch it with reverence and find healing in its rhythm. Every hillside has some event that reminds them of an important time. Every bit of water or stream means the Spirit. It washes away pain and gives the mind and body rest.

Chief Seattle said that even the rocks that seem solid and without feeling thrill with the memory of stirring events. We can stop being so clever that we cannot know the spiritual. It is the life of life and works when we break down.

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October 10 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Jealousy is never hidden. It seeps into conversation, shows in the turn of the head, lives on the tip of the tongue. Unbearable in any situation, jealousy wrings the noses of so-called competition and wreaks havoc in relationships. It is totally ignorant of the fact that we have to go within ourselves for the things that lift or lower us. What belongs to each of us has nothing to do with anyone else. To be a dv yu go di, jealous, is to be miserable. If we can't hold our own, we can go home and get ready and come back. But to have animosity toward everyone who threatens cannot cultivate good in anything.

~ While the Indians received us as friends, and listened with kind attention to our propositions, we were painfully aware of their lack of confidence in the pledge of the Government. ~
PRESIDENTIAL COMMISSION

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 10

"I think that's what unity is - knowing one another and coming together and working with no conflict."
--Chief Alan Wilson, HAIDA

When we are aligned with spiritual values, we cannot be in fear or conflict. When we are aligned to spiritual values, we have the Creator whispering solutions in our ears. Unity is one of the spiritual values. When we value unity we value solutions. If we think this way, then we have no conflict within ourselves.


Great Spirit,
let me see through Your eyes.

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Native Wisdom:

The Creator made it to be this way.
An old woman shall be as a child again
and her grandchildren shall care for her
For only because she is, they are.

--Handsome Lake, Seneca

 

[hiphop]

I like the part about the flowers



October 11, 2005

Even when we lay down, we lay down on our own path of life.

(Pawnee)

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Morning Prayer:

May the Warm Winds of Heaven
Blow softly upon your house.
May the Great Spirit
Bless All who enter there.
May your Mocassins
Make Happy Tracks in many snows,
and may the Rainbow
Always Touch your shoulder

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THINK ON THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

We are at a point where we are very near the surface -- ready to burst into some kind of action even if it is not right. Be careful of those testy emotions, those feelings that start thought on the wrong road. Erase radical behavior because in the end it is morose and stupid and without reason or purpose.

We do not walk alone. Great Holy One walks beside us and for this we can be so grateful. Test every thought and word with the question, Is this necessary? So much we do is not. Don't waste energy on hate. Hate is evil's tool and we haveno business putting our hand to it. Walk softly and carry a big stick if we must -- but make it a medicine stick that reminds us to bless and heal and protect all that is sacred to us. Disconnect with foolishness and raise the voice in praise and thanksgiving -- for this is honest and steady and without weakness.

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October 11 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Flowers and people have many similarities. The shy violets that take to the shadows to bloom in dewy quietness are so different from the bright yellow jonquils that dance in the sunlight. And then there's the beauty of the rose. It blooms in lovely colors, di ka no di, and has a fragrance all its own. But it must be handled gingerly or its thorns will snag like crazy. And the petunia. It grows anywhere, in any kind of weather, with very little attention. It is prolific, coming in many colors and scents the evening air with happy memories. Where do we see ourselves? Sometimes we are simply weeds - but even weed flower and give us insight into our own natures.

~ My people resemble the scattering trees of a storm-swept plain...~
SEATTLE

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 11

"Men and women have an equal responsibility to restore the strength of the family, which is the foundation of all cultures."
--Haida Gwaii Traditional Circle of Elders

The family is the heartbeat of strength of the culture. The grandfathers and grandmothers taught their children; they in turn had children who taught their children. If the family isn't taught the culture, then the children become adults and the adults become the grandfathers and grandmothers and the result is the culture becomes lost. This is how language is lost; this is how dances are lost; this is how knowledge is lost. We need to listen to our Elders, today, before it's too late.

Great Spirit, teach me the culture so I can teach the children.

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Native Wisdom:

We start small like an acorn, with a limited education. Then we grow roots and our knowledge develops over time. As graduates, we are ready to spread our knowledge."

--laina and Nisha Supahan, Nez Perce

 

[hiphop]

October 12, 2005

Do not take up the warpath without a just cause and honest purpose.

--Pushmataha, Choctaw Leader

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Morning Prayer:

May the Great Spirit watch over you
as long as the grass grows, and the
water flows


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THINK ON THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Thomas Carlyle said that doing the duty nearest us makes the next one easier. This is true for duty but it is also true for the things we should not do.

Subtle suggestions lie below the surface of our minds to make doing something seem harmless when it is really the fishhook that will not back out. This is the way we are drawn into doing what we would never consider when we are in our right minds.

This time won't count has been the excuse to go on doing what we should not do. But it does count. Every time counts. It always has and it always will. Even when the fishhook is removed the scar remains to remind us of our foolishness. It pays to never take the bait in the first place because the price is too high and life is too precious to gamble when it is not necessary.

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October 12 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

We have heard the unforgettable cries of snow geese on their way to warmer places. Long check marks in the sky that turn and glint in the sun like silver flecks, thrill us with their ancient ritual. When the season begins to change, nature gives us a new view of creation - a creation in which we are not alien. We were never an afterthought. This was prepared for us the same way we provide everything a newborn needs before it arrives. Our seasons can be renewed as well. But it is our decision, because we have freedom of choice. We are not programmed by nature. The Great Spirit gave us life and the wisdom to maintain it - and to enjoy it as well.

~ Each man is good in his sight. It is not neccesary for eagles to be crows. ~
SITTING BULL

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 12

"The obstacle to the internal nature is the mind. If it relies on logic such as the white man's mind, the domain of the inner nature is inaccessible. The simple fact is a man does not challenge the wisdom of the Holy Mystery."
--Turtleheart, TETON SIOUX

Why is it we need to analyze and understand everything? The Great Mystery has designed certain areas of creation to be a mystery because humans usually miss-use it. We use the Great Mystery and see It unfold only under the direction of the Great Spirit. The Creator is in charge.


Great Spirit, let me realize You are in charge. I'm to do what You want.

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Native Wisdom:

The language, the whole culture of the Lakota, comes from the song of our heartbeat. It's not something that can quickly be put into words. It's a feeling, it's a prayer, it's a thought, it's an emotion - all of these things are in the language.

-- Larry Swalley, Lakota

 

[BonosSaint]

I read and enjoy these. Thank you.

 

[For Honor]

A lot of goodies in there....

Silence is the cornerstone of character

Heh heh heh....

Grandfather Great Spirit
Fill us with the Light.
Give us the strength to understand,
And the eyes to see.

Teach us to walk the soft Earth
as relatives to all that live.

 

[hiphop]

Hi, BonosSaint and For Honor!

I´m glad you like them

 

[hiphop]

October 13, 2005

The rain falls on the just and the unjust.
Hopi

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Morning Prayer:

In harmony may I walk.
With harmony before me may I walk.
With harmony behind me may I walk.
With harmony above me may I walk.
With harmony underneath my feet, may I walk.
With harmony all around me may I walk.
It is done in harmony.

--A Navajo Prayer

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THINK on THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Everyone must have a way of life. The home, the position, the social level, the health of the body and of the emotions are all a part of daily living. But beyond that there must be a reason, a way of life. We must believe in something, live by something, and have a shelter within ourselves where there are no pretenses.

Life cannot be one carefree round of living on the surface. It is a thing of depth and width and height, and full of avenues never investigated. Like the body, it is made up of many parts. Beneath the skin there must beat a heart, a network of nerves, the strength of muscles, and much we cannot begin to explain.

As the body depends upon the heart we must have in oue lives something to depend upon, something with which to identify ourselves. There must be a central point, a hitching post to keep all of life running smoothly.

We need something to help us retreat as well as to go forward. We must have something to live by, as well as something for which we would willing die. We need divine wisdom to see, and the strength to break away, those almost invisible fingers of possessivness that grip our lives.

We do not simply live, we live because. We live because of others, because of beautiful things and times and places. We live because God gave us life, to be happy in, and to find a special way.

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October 13 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Luther, a Tsalagi, explained his creative God by saying, "God take Himself and make the fish, God take Himself and make the tsisdu [rabbit]; He take Himself and make the waya [wolf]; He take Himself and make the squirrel, and He take Himself and make me. These things my brothers." But, Luther, what do you do when you want to go squirrel hunting? Merriment danced in his black eyes and he added, "I just say, Squirrel-Brother, God made you for me!"

~ I traveled thousands of miles along our winding trails, through unbroken solitudes of the wild forest, listening to the songs of the woodland birds. ~
POKOGON - POTAWTOMI CHIEF, 1833

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 13

"So unbelievable things like that happen. But you have to believe it first. Not wait until you see it first, then touch it, then believe it... You have to say it from the heart."
--Wallace Black Elk, LAKOTA

The power of our belief system is incredible. The power of faith is a very natural power. How do we have faith? Inside of our minds we form a mental picture with our self talk. Self talk is recorded in our minds in three dimensions - words that trigger a picture, which has a feeling or an emotion attached to it. Once we get the words and the picture, it is the emotion that makes the idea turn into a belief. You get the right emotion by saying things from the heart. The heart is the source of emotions which can cause unbelievable things to happen.


Great Spirit, with You everything is possible.

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Native Wisdom:

Our ancestors have been trying to protect our Sacred Site called the Sacred Black Hills in South Dakota, "Heart of Everything That Is," from continued violations. Our ancestors never saw a satellite view of this site, but now that those pictures are available, we see that it is in the shape of a heart and, when fast-forwarded, it looks like a heart pumping....

--Arvol Looking Horse: Keeper of Original Lakota Sacred Pipe

 

[MsGiggles]

These are pretty good - I can face the day now

 

[Maggie1]

Very insightful and calming. Thanks for posting and I look forward to more.

 

[hiphop]

Hi, MsGiggles and Maggie1!
I like them too

Thanks again to Shadow Viper.

 

[hiphop]

October 14, 2005

To touch the earth is to have harmony with nature.

--Oglala Sioux

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Morning Prayer:

Oh Great Spirit, Creator of all things;
Human Beings, trees, grass, berries.
Help us, be kind to us.
Let us be happy on earth.
Let us lead our children
To a good life and old age.
These our people; give them good minds
To love one another.
Oh Great Spirit,
Be kind to us
Give these people the favor
To see green trees,
Green grass, flowers, and berries
This next spring;
So we all meet again
Oh Great Spirit,
We ask of you.

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THINK on THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

When there's thinking to be done a person does well to have a little private retreat.....a place where there's no worry that any minute someone will interrupt. And the very ease of knowing that here is a little time to do nothing but just think.

Except that I must carefully direct those thoughts so never to let them roam to things that serve only to disturb. But where does one find a place these days that affords a time alone?

It doesn't take much room to think. Some have little special places hidden from view.....a hillside maybe.....a sunny spot along a path.....a closet not so large.....a park bench.....or they may even take a drive.

But that place that is always available to us is that place within our own selves. This is the secret place within the heart where desires are stored. And no matter what we do, where we go, thoughts are productive.

Here is where thankfulness is stored.....here is where love is born.....here is where the very life of life is built and rebuilt. This is our retreat when there's thinking to be done.

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October 14 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Contentment happens when our emotions give place to common things that in other times can draw little attention. It is releasing a deep inner peace that heals sadness and lifts a sagging spirit. Contentment is an intensely personal thing, adjusting to different people in its most effective way. It rides a shaft of sunlight to poot on the gray bark of a tree, or it rises from laughter, deep and kind. It is nearly always unexpected and settles as softly as a bird lights on a limb. It is a remarkable fact that we simply let contentment happen. Socrates called it a natural wealth, but most have called it a miracle.

~ Kinship with all creatures of the earth, sky and water was a real and active principle. ~
CHIEF STANDING BEAR - SIOUX, 1800s

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 14

"Each soul must meet the morning sun, the new sweet earth and the Great Silence alone!"
--Ohiyesa (Dr. Charles A. Eastman), SANTEE SIOUX

The most important thing we can do during the course of the day is pray in the morning. There is a special time in the morning that has great power. This is the exact time the sun is rising. During the rising of the sun, everything on the Earth is waking up. Animals, plants, birds and humans will be blessed at the rising of the sun. This is a special time to help us prepare for the day. During this time we ask the Creator to bless our day. We ask Him to guide us, to protect us and to give us courage to overcome the day's obstacles. Doing this everyday will give us knowledge of God's will for us.


Grandfather, Grandmother,
guide my path. Let my thinking be guided by You.

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Native Wisdom:

In my opinion, it was chiefly owing to their deep contemplation in their silent retreats in the days of youth that the old Indian orators acquired the habit of carefully arranging their thoughts.

They listened to the warbling of birds and noted the grandeur and the beauties of the forest. The majestic clouds - which appear like mountains of granite floating in the air - the golden tints of a summer evening sky, and all the changes of nature, possessed a mysterious significance.

All this combined to furnish ample matter for reflection to the contemplating youth.

---Francis Assikinack (Blackbird) Ottawa

 

[hiphop]

October 15, 2005

Don't let yesterday use up too much of today.

--Cherokee

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Morning Prayer:

Grandfather, Great Spirit,
once more behold me on earth
and lean to hear my feeble voice.
You lived first, and You are older
than all need, older than all prayer...
You are the life of all things

--Black Elk, Oglala Sioux

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THINK ON THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Laughter can lift the saddest heart and mend a broken one. The very sound of it sends a message that life is still worth living and no matter how sensitive we are to pain and grief, something humorous can lighten the load.

Being able to laugh gives us hope and with hope comes grace. Grace is the favor we haven't earned, a gift we cannot hope to equal. It can never be hilarious laughter around us but the inner tender feeling that we know we are going to live, we are going to make it.

Even though we may still hurt we never sink to the same low and we never let grief take over on a continual basis. Remember old joys and look for new ones. When life throws dirt, get a good footing and step up.

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October 15 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Down in the edge of the woods a grapevine swings back and forth in the dappled sunlight. Two squirrels, young ones, spend time swinging on the vine, chasing each other up and down and crossing from tree to tree. Their obvious joy in simply being alive is good to watch. We seldom do anything with great joy. Most of us are animated only when it serves a purpose - not a genuine enthusiasm. We are too full of ifs and oughts to find reasons to rejoice. Sometimes a change can jar us into an awareness of life, and that life is intended to be much simpler than what we make it. Now we are in a season of mellow breezes and a slower pace. If only we can move out of fear and be able to enjoy life minute by minute.

~ Your children wish to refresh your memory. They think you have forgotten the promises made them. ~
CHIEFS AND WARRIORS, OTTAWAN AND CHIPPEWAS

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 15

"All of us begin to rethink what is good about ourselves - put the past where it belongs - and get on with the possibilities of the present!"
--Howard Rainer, TAOS PUEBLO-CREEK

There is a saying, you move toward and become that which you think about. So the question for today is, what are you thinking about? Are you thinking bad things about yourself or are you thinking good things about yourself? Are you thinking about a worldly life? Are you thinking good things about people or are you gossiping about people? Are you focusing on past things or are you living in the future? We need to bring our thoughts into the NOW, right here.


Great Spirit, let me experience living in the present moment.

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Native Wisdom:

"We are called hollow bones for our people and for anyone else we can help, and we are not supposed to seek power for our personal use and honor."

--Frank Fools Crow, Lakota

 

[hiphop]

I have signed the psrt that I like best today..


October 16, 2005

When a fox walks lame, the old rabbit jumps.
Oklahoma

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Morning Prayer:

Creator, grant me the strength of eagles wings,
the faith and courage to fly to new heights,
and the wisdom to rely on his spirit to carry me there.

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THINK ON THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Someone said we cannot go home again. Yes, we can. If we loved it one time, we love it again. Even when weather and time has changed some of the way it looks, the familiar and the dear is there the same as it always was.

Part of the garden fence still remains, the well, the persimmon trees, and the hill to the east. Part of what made it so special was family that was there in the early days and there when we went back. We saw the creek that seems to have narrowed its banks some and the bridge that we once walked across to get to the creek.

This is Indian land and we Indians went back to walk and remember and grow closer because we had something dear that still lives and will always live.

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October 16 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

There is a certain degree of sameness in your life and mine.....a sameness that says no matter how different we are.....we can still identify with each other's daily problems and hopes and aspirations. You may have that basic quality of serenity and quiet confidence.. and I of frivolity and eagerness....but we can still communicate through our basic sameness and through friendship, or o li i, as we Cherokee call it. If there is any greatness to strength in either of us, it will be from the standpoint of our consideration for each other and our understanding of unspoken concerns and the need for support.... for the thread of sameness is from the Great Spirit that touches not only us but all with whom we are in contact....a silent bond that makes us one in courage.

~ Friend and brother: It was the will of the Great Spirit that we should meet together this day. ~
RED JACKET

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 16

"Many religions have been brought to this land. And the way my religion is, they teach me, and they taught me, and told me to resect all religions. And I still do that."
--Horace Axtell, NEZ PERCE

The Creator put on this Earth many different religions which represent different roads to walk to God. All religions are right and good if the path is the path to God. Should we be judging which road is better or worse than the other? When we accept each other's way we can stand in a circle, hold hands and listen to each other as we pray to God. Let us be more accepting of the religions of others.


Great Spirit - God, Grandfather, Grandmother, Lord - let me know peace.

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Native Wisdom:

Freedom is for everyone, whatever lifestyle they choose, as long as it's peaceful and honest.
—Russell Means

 

[foray]

Very cool, hiphop. "We do not inherit the earth from our parents. We borrow it from our children." - Native American saying

foray

 

[hiphop]

Very cool, hiphop. "We do not inherit the earth from our parents. We borrow it from our children." - Native American saying

foray

You´re welcome, foray

 

[Sherry Darling]

I am really enjoying these, Stephan, thanks!

 

[hiphop]

I am really enjoying these, Stephan, thanks!

I didn´t know you read them too...

 

[hiphop]

October 17, 2005

Speak truth in humility to all people.
Only then can you be a true man.

(Sioux)

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Morning Prayer:

Grandfather...
Let us know peace.
For as long as the moon shall rise,
For as long as the rivers shall flow,
For as long as the sun shall shine,
For as long as the grass shall grow,
Let us know peace


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THINK ON THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Our neighbor bought a new car when we were children. We were so excited as we watched it come down the road and turn into the gate. Even though we expected it to be a blue streak, it was not, and the engine sounded unusually high and stressed. He finally told us that he had driven it all the way home in second gear because when he shifted into high it went too fast.

Human nature doesn't always grow up to its dreams. To dream is good, but when it begins to come true we want to slow it down. Not unlike a little boy that jumped off his bunk bed holding a plastic sack for a parachute over his head. His mother told him that she had warned him that it wouldn't work but he answered, "It worked. It just worked faster than I thought it would."

Are we really prepared for success or do our dreams take on more facets than we recognize? Like wrestling a bear, we might get an arm around his neck but what happens after that?

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October 17 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

No one is so destined to lose that he cannot turn the tide - if he wants to change. Overcoming requires us to put our shoulder to the wheel in ways we would not have considered in earlier times. We are greatly influenced by our beliefs about ourselves and whether we are supposed to win or lose. The Great Spirit always wants us to win. It is our indecisiveness that keeps things wavering. There is nothing wrong with winning - and believing we can is a good thing. The question, a dv dv hv s gi, is not of the Spirit-Creator, but of us. Love wraps us around with peace and healing, with eagerness to do great things. But we have to free ourselves to do it.

~ Brothers, you say there is one way to worship and serve the Great Spirit. If there is but one Religion, why do you....differ so much about it? ~
AS-GO-YE-WAT-HA


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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 17

"Peace... comes within the souls of men when they realize their relationship, their oneness, with the universe and all its powers, and when they realize that at the center of the Universe dwells Wakan-Tanka, and that this center is really everywhere, it is within each of us."
--Black Elk (Hehaka Sapa) OGLALA SIOUX

If we are to know peace we must look within ourselves. In order to do this, we must learn to be still. We must quiet the mind. We must learn to meditate. Meditation helps us locate and find the center that is within ourselves. The center is where the Great One resides. When we start to look for peace, we need to realize where it is within ourselves. When we experience conflict we need to pause for a moment and ask the Power within ourselves, "How do you want me to handle this? What would you suggest I do in this situation?" By asking the Higher Power for help we find peace.


Creator, help me to find peace.

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Native Wisdom:

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 shining pool - his, in the mind of the unlettered sage, is the ideal attitude and conduct of life ..... Silence is the cornerstone of character.

Charles Alexander Eastman (Ohiyesa)

 

[AcrobatMan]

you know me..hip-hop

myself and prayers/medidations dont go together

 

[hiphop]

you know me..hip-hop

myself and prayers/medidations dont go together

Yep we know anyway you´re such an essentially spiritual person that it doesn´t make a difference whether you meditate or not

you see, I don´t think you need anything to calm you..

 

[AcrobatMan]

Yep we know anyway you´re such an essentially spiritual person that it doesn´t make a difference whether you meditate or not

you see, I don´t think you need anything to calm you..

ha ha ha

 

[hiphop]

October 18, 2005

With all things and in all things, we are relatives.

(Sioux)

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Morning Prayer:

Thank you Great Spirit for my life,
Thank you Great Spirit for my family ,
Thank you Great Spirit for everything
that is given and ungiven,
Thank you Great Spirit for the day.
May you recieve everything you need
and nothing you dont. May you take the
path less traveled, and keep a blues sky
in your mind even if it is not in your eyes.

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THINK ON THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

English writer John Dryden wrote about a person whose imagination resembled the wings of an ostrich. He said, "It enabled him to run, though not to soar." The vivid pictures in our minds see us running from more things than running to our good.

We grow tired of those experiences that try our strength -- though often small in comparison to what we imagine. Why do we use our minds to see negative pictures rather than seeing the good that is available? Usually because running downhill is easier than running uphill.

Many of us are afraid we can't ever be happy and successful and we wait and use only what we have. It takes practice to be happy the same as we practice how to be sad. A good imagination that is allowed to build only good things can change the whole picture -- if we support it.

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October 18 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Friends are those who forgive you - they have to if there are goingto be friends. It is there somewhere among all the unwritten laws that a friend is someone you can rely on when there's no word, no kept promise, no outward sign of ali i, which is friendship to the Cherokee. We can forget a friend's birthday - and we can't say that about anyone else. We can tell them our deepest, darkest thoughts and they will take us to lunch. We may mistake them as our keeper - but we never mistake them for someone ordinary. The hardest lesson we have to learn is that everyone is not a friend. Not everyone sees us as a child at times, needing support and comfort. But a friend sees all and says nothing - until the right time. And even then we are forgiven.

~ Waupaypay and I in those days called each other brother-friend. It was a life and death vow; what one does the other must do.... ~
RAIN-IN-THE-FACE

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 18

"But we have to stick by the wisdom of our ancestors..."
--Paula Weasel Head, BLOOD

A long time ago the Elders and our ancestors learned to walk on the Earth and to live in harmony. They were taught the Laws which govern everything, and they were taught traditional values. This wisdom should be made available to the younger generations. We need to speak to the Elders and learn from them. We need to do this so we can pass the knowledge on to our children.


My Creator,
help me learn the wisdom of my ancestors.

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Native Wisdom:

We are thankful for the present from which to learn how to be thankful for the past, and how to be hopeful for the future.

--Barney Bush, Shawnee

 

[hiphop]

Blessings and good morning to you!


October 19, 2005

Work awhile, endure awhile, believe always,
and never turn back. The best is yet to come.

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Morning Prayer:

Grandfather, Great Spirit,
once more behold me on earth
and lean to hear my feeble voice.

You have made me cross the good
road and road of difficulties, and
where they cross, the place is holy.
Day in, day out, forevermore, you
are the life of things

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THINK ON THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

As clever as it may seem to secretly malign someone, it will surely backfire. When we want status and respect, we cannot look for someone to blame for everything. We may set a trap for someone else but our foot will get in it every time.

We don't get away with anything meant to be mean. A gloomy cloud hovers above us if we turn malicious. We can't break laws -- written or unwritten -- and get away with it.

If someone does us wrong, we can bless them and walk away. We all have an account that must be settled. We cannot escape what we put into motion by our words and actions because it is our responsibility for good or bad. We pay or get paid for all we do and say, it is as simple as that.

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October 19 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Today may be a turning point. It happens that way - not with flashing lights and fanfare, but quietly. In the past we searched for reasons, for something we could pinpoint as the catalyst for change. We could never decide what it was, though we said many things. Something in us, something about our awareness, gives us reason to suddenly be conscious of new circumstances and new ideas. We are able to think outside the limits of our usual methods. Life, for no apparent reason, begins to fit together as though we found a piece of the puzzle that completes the picture. As turning points go, some are not particularly great to see, but are often hidden in such small, ordinary events as to go undetected. Our part is to be aware of the change and make the most of it while it is at its strongest.

~ The land..... belongs to the first how sits down on his blanket... which he has thrown down on the ground, and till he leaves it, no other has a right. ~
TECUMSEH


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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 19

"The teachings are for all, not just for Indians... The white people never wanted to learn before. They thought we were savages. Now they have a different understanding, and they do want to learn. We are all children of God. The tradition is open to anyone who wants to learn."
--Don Jose Matusuwa, HUICHOL

In the summer of 1994, a white buffalo calf was born. This means that now is the time for all races to come together. The Elders say that at this time a voice from within will speak to everyone. It will say now is the time to forgive, now is the time to come together. Are we willing to do this? Are we willing to quit judging other people? The Elders say, He will be talking through people of all races and gender. We need to open our hearts and welcome our brothers and sisters.


Great Spirit, let my ears be open as I walk the path You have chosen for me.

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Native Wisdom:

Telling our lives is important for those who come after as, for those who will see our experience as part of their own historical struggle.
--Linda Hogan, CHICKASAW

 

[hiphop]

October 20, 2005

A danger foreseen is half-avoided.

--Cheyenne

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Morning Prayer:

Great Spirit, Great Spirit, my Grandfather,
all over the Earth the faces of living things are all alike.
With tenderness have these come up out of the ground.
Look upon these faces of children without number
and with children in their arms
that they may face the winds
and walk the good road to the day of quiet.

--Black Elk (1863-1950)

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THINK on THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Why is it that we require so much scientific proof for the most ordinary things these days, when the very fact that we lie down and close our eyes at night is the highest proof that God's world is in order. Though perhaps our personal world may not know such sequence. There comes a time when our human limitations insist that we lay down our questions and accept by faith the only way to survive ourselves.

There are those who say they must have tangible evidence that the world and all its wonders be displayed before their eyes to see in wisdom the way things really are. And yet who said the human eyes could see or ears could hear more than one tiny bit of the wonder. Who could be so bold as to believe their senses were strong enough to know, except through faith.

Who could see with the visible eye the hand that changes the seasons, or hear Job's stars that sang together at dawn. Who set the day at rest and brings the morning in all its newness.

Only so far.....then explanations know no more.....and though we try to disbelieve when all goes wrong, there comes a time when we want no more explanation than that God's world is in order - and we cannot change it.

Surely if someone took our hand and asked us to walk along the world and view the wonders so magnificently displayed....If by some miracle we could see the vastness of it all at once, and still bear up under the beauty of it....

If we can see the rolling rise and fall of the land - the purple, pink, and golden hues of shadows hung along the mountain sides....If our ears could hear the music of the rippling streams, the rushing waters, the graceful falls.

If by some mere chance we could sense the ebb and flow, the push and relaxing of the tides, the rise and set of the sun, the glittering stars and soft-faced moon that ignores the fact that other worlds encircle ours.....

And as the seasons sprinkle rain and flowers, golden leaves and snowfall.....On this continuous circle.....always new.....always beautiful.....

If we can see al this, how then, can we doubt that the earth that God created and saw as good is good. This is our land, and only our own forgetfulness of its source can make it different.

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October 20 -Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Every person's privilege is to stand on tiptoe and take a look over the edge. What is the edge? A place where fear lurks and no one dares to get too close. Many a dream has taken us up to the edge and with quaking knees to look over the immense distance between what could be and what is reality. Most people end it right there and refuse to be scared any longer. Change is here. We can fall over the edge or we can believe in something greater than the tangible. Let go of the weak and impossible and stand in the Light that never goes out.

~ Let him be just and deal kindly with my people. ~
DEATTLE - DWAMISH CHIEF

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 20

"As Elders, it is our place to show respect to our young people in order to gain respect."
--Grace Azak, NISGA'A

The attitude of our leaders will be the attitude of the people. The attitude of the parents will be the attitude of the children. If respect is shown from above, respect will be developed below. If the Elders show respect, the younger people will be respectful. As above, so below. This happens because of interconnectedness. The heart of the Elders is connected to the heart of the youth.


Great Spirit, in the fall season let me respect both the Elders and the youth.

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Native Wisdom:

Language is a living being. We (use it to) communicate
with other nations, the coyote nation, the eagle and bear.
-- Albert White Hat, Rosebud Sioux

 

[hiphop]

October 21, 2005

Sit in the limelight of your own
spirit and see what is good, see
what makes you happy. Steal away
the negative power and make it your
own happiness

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Morning Prayer:

Creator , Thank you for another day
of life and all that you have given me,
thank you for the opportunity to know
you and to serve you and our people .
Continue to make me a responsible
person and to add to the good things
in life that you have given us .

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THINK on THESE THINGS
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

There is an old Arabian proverb that if you pitch a lucky man in the Nile he will come up with a fish in his mouth. Just to come up would be enough for most of us, but still we do so many things - perhaps half in jest - that we have hopes will throw off the evil spirits and bring good luck to the rescue.

The tokens we carry we've carried from childhood, when we were careful never to step on a crack in the walk, or pick up a pin - the silly poems that fascinate children, and sometimes follow them into adulthood when the laughter is gone.

Who are the wise? Those who can rise with the sun letting yesterday go.....and feel within their hearts the gratitude of being alive.....to have the opportunity to glean from their mistakes something that will take them far over that place if ever they pass it again. They know that luck must have a "P" before it to keep them from waiting, to help them turn up something rather than waiting for something to turn up.

And yes, they are lucky who have love to give and the ability to receive it. They have faith in good. And no small amount of peace when they think not how lucky they are, but how blessed!

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October 21 - Cherokee Feast of Days
by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Don't condemn yourself. Who of us have not made mistakes? No one is perfect, but we are too quick to call ourselves stupid. We have condemned ourselves for eating - even though that is what we have to do. It's just that we eat because it is convenient, we see it, we eat it. If we can get it without having to cook it - all the better. And all the worse - because it doesn't have in it the nutrients we need and it is gone too quickly and we are not satisfied. Laziness has overtaken our good sense. We let ourselves fall into making it easy on ourselves - and in turn we open the door to making it hard. It is a matter of choices, but not solved by self-criticism.

~ The ground says, "The Great Spirit has placed me here to produce all the grows on me, trees and fruit. ~
YOUNG CHIEF - CAYUSE

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - October 21

"There is one God looking down on us all. We are children of the one God. God is listening to me. The sun, the darkness, the winds are all listening to what we now say."
--Geronimo, APACHE

The Old Ones before us knew things. Many of them were so spiritual that the Creator told them things through visions, ceremonies and prayer. The Creator taught them about interconnectedness, balance and respect. The Old Ones experienced these things and told us we are all children of the same God. We all live under the same natural laws. Every human being, every animal, every plant, every insect, every bird, we are all the same in the eyes of God.


Great Mystery,
teach me to respect all the things You have created.

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Native Wisdom:

Our people don't come in parts. Either you are Indian, or you are not.

--Nippawanock, ARAPAHOE