Turning Knowledge into Wisdom
Visit the art of Cher Lyn at Mystic Art Medicine
Air
The Stars
Animal Kingdom
Crystal / Mountains
Winter / Midnight
White & Blue
Elder’s Lodge
Mind
White Buffalo & Snowy Owl
Philosophy & Science
Completion
The first quarter moon brings a quickening of the spirit like the Earth as she gathers together her energies for the creation of new life. The North is the place where knowledge is turned into wisdom through concentration, synthesis, and clarity of intent. It is the North that brings us the gifts of seeing how all things fit together.
Native People use the words “power” and “medicine” to mean to the same thing. When we act from our own personal power, which is “power in accordance with” rather than “power over,” we are expressing our “original medicine,” the gifts that we were given at our birth.
As you visit the North this week, spend time with your elders. Ask them about the changes that they have seen on the earth in their lifetime and take the time to listen to their answers. With the clarity of the crystal, the brilliant white of the snows, and the clean, crisp air of the mountains, reconsider your intention and how it has manifested so far.
Invocation & Songs for the North
The Ritual of the Give-Away
One of the most important aspects of Native American teachings is to complete the circle or cycle of giving by returning an offering in thanks for what has been received. To make this act a sacred one, it must be done with a joyful heart and a humble attitude.
Traditionally, gifts of tobacco, sage, cornmeal, or corn pollen are left as tokens of thanksgiving when we take something from nature. When you are given a gift from nature and you have no tobacco, sage or corn with you, leave a strand of hair or a bit of water in order to complete the circle — a grateful exchange of goods and energies.
The term “Indian Giver” is misunderstood by contemporary culture. A closer look reveals the true essence of the term. If a gift was given, and the receiver had no use for the gift or did not use it in an honorable way, the giver had the responsibility to take it back and give it to another who would use it and honor it properly. Consider the gift of living on the earth that we have been given. Perhaps our lack of caring for her properly is why we feel that she is being taken from us. Learning the lessons of the give-away helps us to restore “right relations” with Mother Earth.
Invocation & Songs for the North
Crystal Meditation
Take the crystal from the center of your Wheel. Cleanse it by smudging and take it outside with you at midnight. Dedicate it to the four directions, Mother Earth, and Father Sky. Hold it in front of your eyes and project into it the knowledge that you have gained on your journey, asking that it be transformed into understanding and wisdom. Close your eyes and imagine the energy of the crystal being drawn into you as you breathe in and radiate out to the world as you breathe out. Return the crystal to the center of your Wheel.
Storytelling Pouch Meditation
Spend some time with your Storytelling Pouch this week. Review the items that you have collected. Handle them, look at them carefully. What medicine do they have to share with you? What new information have you learned about them since you started your pouch? What stories do they carry with them that you’d like to share with others?
Winter Squash Soup
Native Americans were given four sacred plants; corn, beans, squash, and tobacco. If you have already made the cornbread and the bean soup, and have left tobacco when you took something from nature, squash is the last sacred plant to experience. If you can, make this soup in the late evening and enjoy with a hearty dark bread.
Mix squash, onion, carrot, and apple with milk and ginger and cook over moderate heat for about 10 minutes. Melt butter in a small pan, stir in flour, and cook several minutes until thick and smooth. Slowly pour soup into the butter mixture and blend. Serve with a sprinkling of pine nuts.
1 baked acorn or butternut squash
1 baked potato
(1 hour at 350°)
1 c. chopped onion
1 chopped carrot
1 chopped apple
3 T. butter
3 T. flour
1 1/2 c. milk
1/2 tsp. powdered ginger
4 T. toasted & ground pine nuts