06/21/86
LITTLE MOUSE
SEA HAWK
N S E W
Greetings, It is intresting the similiaritys between
your beliefs and mine. The symbols for the four directions
that I use are
North-wisdom-white-the buffalo
East-illumination-yellow-the eagle
South-innocence-green-the mouse
West-introspection-black-the bear
When you draw your circle is their a particular
direction where you start and end? and does it
matter which way you walk around the circle?
My gradfathers people taught me that each person
is born with a gift of a least one of the directions
(hence my name Little Mouse) and that a person
should strive to become complete by gaining over
the course of his/her life the gifts of the other
three directions, thus completeing the circle and
becoming whole. May you always walk in beauty.
Little Mouse
06/24/86
LITTLE MOUSE
SEA HAWK
Coyote
I to have heard coyote being used in the south, however
sense coyote is a very special being to me, I just invite him
into the circle. I find coyote to be very similiar in energy
to the Hindu deity Hanuman. (Are you fimilir with him) Both
seem to be trickster to some degree and one must be careful
of what one asks for when one ask either for assitance.
I have heard that you people pratice meditation, as
do those of my people who follow the old ways the west is
often refered to as the looks within place. But do you
have anything that is like the vision quest. (I am sure you
have some idea of what that involves). Use to be that only
men where allowed to go on a vision quest but things have
changed and women can also seek a vision. During this time,
one recieves (or makes contact with) ones totems (you might
call them quides). And what about the after life, I tend
to believe in reincarnation which doesn't quite fit in with
some of the beliefs of the elders, but from what I have seen,
remembered (Past life memeroys) and been told (by my guides)
not all of the anicient ways were accurate.
Well their are two questions for you. Hope I don't sound
to noisy, but I truely want to learn all that I can. And
your beliefs seem to fit so well with my own, that perhaps
I can merge the best of both at least in my life. May you
always walk in beauty. Little Mouse
06/24/86
SEA HAWK
LITTLE MOUSE
Vision quest, etc.
Well, traditional Wicca doesn't have a vision quest as such,
where one contacts spirit animals or totems, but there is
this thing called the "astral plane", which is close enough
to the spirit-world as to be indistinguishable. The main
difference that I can see between the astral plane and the
Native American otherworld is that things can be built in
the astral plane, such as temples. But as the shaman has
his/her tools which exist in the otherworld as in this one,
so the witch has astral tools. Many European traditions
(Celtic, for example) have otherworlds also, and of course,
as I mention in my article in the Native American file section,
shamanism is not solely an Amerindian tradition.
As for Reincarnation, yes we believe in it, although what
exactly happens between death and rebirth is a matter of
some speculation (as you might expect). One of my favourites
is that the Crone aspect of the Goddess washes the soul
in her cauldron to prepare it for rebirth, but people think
other things, too.
I think that if you see such similarities between our
beliefs it may be because I'm so eclectic. I've got bits
of everything in my personal system, so maybe I'm not quite
representative. But I do agree with your taking the best of
everything. I do it too! Bright blessings. --SeaHawk
06/24/86
SEA HAWK
LITTLE MOUSE
More on the Astral...
One other thing, there are spirits and such on the
astral plane whom one can contact and find out things
from, but they tend to be (in my experience) less
personal than a totem animal. What I mean by that is
that the guides and such on the astral guide lots of
people, not just you. I always feel as though my
Osprey, Bear, and others are my own partners, that other
folks who have, for example, a bear for their spirit
animal, have a different bear. And again, they may all
be parts of the same spirit-power. But that's the way
I've perceived it. Also, my astral guide has appeared
in different guises but always been the same basic
person -- the various animals I've met haven't been
(or haven't seemed to be) guises of the same spirit.
I get real fuzzy here, because the two worlds feel so
different to me. I get to them by different methods
(the astral by meditation, the spirit-otherworld by
trance-drumming), and do different things in them.
The astral always seems more ceremonial, more formal,
more "civilised", if you will. The otherworld feels
more "primitive", more earthy, more outdoors. By the
way, I don't feel like you're being nosy at all. I'm
really enjoying this exchange! B*B --SeaHawk
06/25/86
BARRY WOOD
LITTLE MOUSE
conversations
To Little Mouse and Co.
Like Nile, I too am enjoying watching the conversation flow
past. I am not yet sure of my beliefs (they keep growing and
changing), but I like to hear (see) different beliefs, myths
etc... This is stimulating!
To drastically change the subject (and the TO:)
I have asked before and did not receive and answer...
I see a large discrepancy between the recommended book
"The Spiral Dance" and a second book by the same (?) author
Starhawk. The philosophies seem totally different, and what
I have read of the second book, I don't particularly like (I
thoroughly enjoyed S.D.) Please help clear up or explain
this perplexing problem! <>
06/26/86
LITTLE MOUSE
SEA HAWK
Astral Plains
The astral plains..hum sounds intresting how do
I get there? I mediate regularly and somethimes leave
by body or a least become un aware of it. And at these
times I seem to traval to places that I love ie Mountains
valleys and sacard places that I have been before. The
only change is that is seems to be back in time and
these places are as they were before man/woman had a go
at them. (Wishful thinking perhaps)
Bits of everything you sound a lot like me. Sense
the only members of my family who had ties to the old
ways died when I was young, and I live in a modern house
with all the conviences etc. I have had to glean what I
could from childhood memorys, meditations and talking to
people like you.
I agree with you about totems being personal I have
connections with sevral beings, but my Hawk is like a
part of me. I believe totems are animals that represent
something deep within each persons soul. My name for
instance was chosen to remind me of a place within
me that I tend to forget exisits. Well I am running
out of space so will go for now. May the sun always
shine upon you. Little Mouse
06/26/86
LITTLE MOUSE
NILE ETLAND
Tltems
I am so glad you are enjoying this exchange.
You were wondering if the bird that (I forgot
what kind of bird you said SORRY) you identify with
is your totem. Only you can tell that for sure,
as you are the one who knows what this bird represents
to you. My totemss are animals that represent parts
of myself. The traditional way to find a totem is
to do a vision quest but that is not required a
smiple meditation will probaly do the trick. Set in
a quiet place and meditate and during the meditation
invite your animal friend to join you and then talk to
him/her you will know if there is a strong connection
between you. I Hope this answers your question. If
not I will talk to my friend and see if I can get a clearer
answer. I just reread you message and I would say that
your kestral is a totem. But only you can know for sure.
Totems can be physical as well as of the spirit world.
Don't witches have familiars or is that another Myth?
May the Mother Keep you ever safe,
Little Mouse
06/27/86
SEA HAWK
LITTLE MOUSE
Only Half-Astral
Yep, sounds like the astral to me. Again, as I said, the
distinctions are real fuzzy, but with me, the astral usually
has some kind of temple nearby, anything from a Parthenon-
esque or Moorish thing with huge dome and pillars and alabaster
and gold and all that glitz, to a stone circle. But always a
human-made structure. In the spirit-worlds, if there is a
temple at all, it is the entire world.
Probably they're just different parts of the same world, as
seen by different cultures with different ideas about what a
sacred otherworld should contain. I am a product of both
training and experimentation, and so I see both kinds of
things -- probably why the astral, which is a trained thing,
seems so much more formal and built-in to me, than the spirit-
world, which I've been visiting by guess.
Come to think of it, one of the things that traditional witches
have been doing for a long time is "building astral temples".
I think it never occured to native peoples to build things in
their otherworlds the way it did to Europeans (consistent with
the principle of living lightly wherever you are, leaving littl
sign of your passing and no scars, I would imagine). So I can
easily believe that the traditional Wiccan astral plane is
indeed cluttered with everybody's temples from years past.
Some shamanistic cultures where the shaman goes to the
otherworld to intercede with various gods/goddesses do have
structures, but they "were always there". For example, the
home of the Mother-of-Sea-Beasts at the bottom of the sea.
It's a house like an ordinary house (except roofless so that
She can see the doings of men from her place by the fire).
But when the Sea-Mother fell to the bottom of the sea, she
built it for Herself. (All that previous is Eskimo) Or
else the structures are natural features (ie, caves) of the
landscape. In both cases, they are not human-made. It
makes sense that the thing a human would build would be a
temple (since worship is a human thing) and the thing a
Goddess would build for Herself would be not a temple but
a house, a dwelling-place, a comfortable place. (Seems to
me that lots of those temples were drafty unpleasant things.
No wonder people had to go through so much rigamarole to
get the god/dess of their choice to visit and listen to them.
).
Anyway, enough rambling. You can tell it's late and I'm
sleepy!
Bright blessings,
SeaHawk
06/27/86
NILE ETLAND
SEA HAWK
Danke
My thanks to you and Little Mouse for your
thoughts on totems. I think that my kestrel and also
the barn and burrowing owl must be like this for me.
The little sparrowhawk always appears when I need hope
or reassurance and is such a friendly presence.
I had never thought of seeking him out (he always has
come to me) but I think I'll give it a try.
Witches and familiars have been a traditional
pairing though I'm not sure of the reality. Some folks
I know of speak of their own familiars...I guess I've
shunned the term because it seems like part of the
"black-garbed hag in pointy hat" picture. I avoid what
has been the usual idea of magic (i.e. spells for love etc)
..no familiars for me there. But I have, like many,
a great affinity for my feline housemates...and there is
my kestrel and my love for owls. If a familiar is a
real good buddy, sharer of emotions, companion in play...
then THIS witch has 'em I suppose!
Blessed Be
<<<<>>>>
07/04/86
LITTLE MOUSE
SEA HAWK
Stewards of the earth
Well by your diffinition I may already be a Witch,
I have always felt and taken resposiblity for the Earth
and her children (Espcially the plant and animal peoples).
As for being a preistess and teaching others well I still
have a lot to learn first. I share what I have when I can and
if it is approiate, ie I never push myself and or beliefs on
anyone.
What about healing? I have a question but it is vague at
the moment. Healing has always intrested me and I have
been studying herbs for a while now. But some how I feel
like there is more, but I am not sure what. I often
meditate and do self healings and sometimes attempt to
extend the healing energys to others. Comments PLEASE!!
I will be away for a few days, I need to go practice some
of that self healing. I watched the liberty celebration
last night and the speaches, talk of how this country
welcomed all the imigrants. I know that many were good
people and that they contributed much to the good of all
mankind. But I also remember how some raped the land
and imprisoned her people on tracks of useless land, until
they discovered oil on that land and then started kicking
them off agian. Sorry I Got carryed away. I am going into
the Mts. for a few days to try to heal or aleast bandage
my heart. May you walk in Beauty Little Mouse
07/04/86
LITTLE MOUSE
SEA HAWK
Cont,
I just wanted to add that I do not want to return
to the old days before the pilgrams as some of my
people do. It's just that I am very sensitive to
the pain that has been inflicted on the Earth and
her children (any of her children not just the native
peoples of this land) I guess I am just to sensitve.
I pray daily that The Great Spirit and The Earth Mother
will teach us all to live as brothers and sisters and
that all people will learn to respect and honor The Earth
who nourishes and supports us all.
May you always be blessed with happiness
Little Mouse
07/05/86
SEA HAWK
LITTLE MOUSE
Healing the Earth
Well, when I think of immigrants, I think mostly of people who
were escaping from conditions in their country of origin
(poverty, oppression, whatever), and came here full of hope
only to find nothing different. Dirty, low-paying work, more
often no work at all ("No Irish/Chinese/Jews/what-have-you need
apply..."), discrimination and other nastiness. The aboriginal
peoples of this country are far from being the only ones ever
oppressed in America. My husband, whose grandparents fled
Russia before WWII, does mention that of the refugees he's met
and talked to, nearly all say that they do have a better life
here... (granted, often they were tools as much as Earth was)
But it sort of comes down to the infuriating habit of mankind
since Bacon (or was it Newton)'s time, to try and exploit
Earth's resources to beyond Earth's capacity -- the idea that
Earth is mankind's subject, mankind's tool, whose sole reason
for existance is to serve mankind (in it's day, that was a
surprising idea, since it says in the Bible that God set Adam
to take care of the earth, not to abuse it). So, on the topic
of healing, many of the magical workings I've been involved
with lately have been to give energy back to the earth for a
change rather than taking from her. Healing the Earth involves
things like tree-planting, reclaiming and renewing mined-out
lands, and other such maintainance. Healing of people next...
07/05/86
SEA HAWK
LITTLE MOUSE
Healing People
Lots of ways to do this. Herbal remedies, crystals, chakra/
aura cleaning, visualisation, shamanism, the list is nearly
endless (mainly because every people that ever existed tried
to invent ways to make people feel better). I'll talk about
the ones I know about.
1) Visualisation. This is the one I do most often, both solo
and in groups. It involves picturing the sickness in the
person while building up energy to send them, picturing the
person's body marshalling to defend itself against the disease
(antibodies, white blood cells, etc), and then sending the
focussed energy to the person (either in person, or through
someone close). Such energy can also be put into a talisman
of some kind, a crystal, a medicine bag, etc.
2) Cleaning out. This involves visualisation also, but in
this case you look at the person with your inner eye and see
where in their various systems they have problems. Then,
carefully closing yourself off from picking up their bad
energies, you pull off and throw away the bad stuff by stroking
your hands through the "tangles".
3) Shamanism. This is like cleaning out, in that illness is
removed from the body rather than energy being sent to the
body (sometimes, there are other aspects too). Sickness is
in this system, symptomatic of two possible things: presence of
a foreign spirit, or absence of a piece of the person's soul.
Diagnosis is done with the help of one's spirit helper, through
trance. If it is a foreign thing (whether malign or just
confused), that thing is either sucked out (the physical action
shadowing the spiritual action -- you can either have a piece
of physical evidence, as old-style shamans used to, or just let
the action do the work), coaxed out, or otherwise told to shove
off. (Recently, I helped a nasty sunburn of mine get better by
telling the fire spirits, "This small mortal home is not worthy
of you. Go home to your home in the sky, with the sun, spirits
of fire, go home to your expansive, airy home, your grand,
large home, go up home..." I might note that this was on the
verge of a troubled sleep, and I half-dreamed a spirit-shaman
standing over me with his rattle, chanting that chant. Worked
pretty good!) If it is a missing piece of soul, the shaman has
to go after it in the spirit world, rather in the same fashion
I described getting a spirit animal. And as with the spirit
animal, the soul (sometimes even in the shape of an animal) is
blown into the chest or the crown of the head. Pacific North-
west Coast shamans use carven ivory soul-catchers for this
very use.
I'm sure the other folks on this board can tell you more, and
probably better than I. May the Earth Mother soothe you and
bring you peace. B*B-SeaHawk
07/07/86
LITTLE MOUSE
SEA HAWK
Bitter Tears
If I had a dime for every bitter tear that my heart
has shed because of broken promises, raped lands and
peoples who have lost their heritage, etc etc I would
be a rich woman. I try not to dwell on the past wrongs
but it is so hard at times because they keep happening
at this very moment the US goverment is taking land
from the Hopi and Navajo peoples because of a supposed
dispute between the people. There was/is no dispute
There is minerals and oil on the land that the goverment
wants. One thing that I have noticed/renoticed in looking
for books to assit Sky Dancer is that the native peoples of
this land held themselves to be equals with all life, and
the Europeans hold themselves to be above/and more important
then all things. I am not sure where the European belief
comes from. The Bible maybe? In the book Lords of the Earth
that I just recommend to Sky Dancer it talks about a yung
warrior killing a deer, and he says to the deer your life is
just a precious as mine, but come to me so that I may eat
and you may live on through me. Maybe this is barbaric
but if it is I am a barbarian because I have always felt
this way, perhaps these feelings are what has prompted my
search for my roots. (My parnets think I am nuts they
told me the old ways are dead, but sense I have found this
BBS and meet other people like you I am allowing myself
to hope that the old ways are still alive. It
dosen't seem to matter what you call yourself be
It Witch, Wizard, Durid, or Native American, as long
as the love of The Mother and Her Mate is there and
a respect for all living growing things. The
names can change but the essance is the same. (AH me
I think I have borrowed someones soap box)
Well enough for now, the sun is shining and the Mts are
calling I am going to go for a long walk. May the Great
Ones Smile on You Always
Little Mouse
