Native American Spirituality

[Spirit Dancer]

Originally Posted by TROOPER

Thank you for sharing.

Native American Code Of Ethics

1. Rise with the sun to pray. Pray alone. Pray often. The Great Spirit will listen, if you only speak.

2. Be tolerant of those who are lost on their path. Ignorance, conceit, anger, jealousy and greed stem from a lost soul. Pray that they will find guidance.

3. Search for yourself, by yourself. Do not allow others to make your path for you. It is your road, and yours alone. Others may walk it with you, but no one can walk it for you.

4. Treat the guests in your home with much consideration. Serve them the best food, give them the best bed and treat them with respect and honor.

5. Do not take what is not yours whether from a person, a community, the wilderness or from a culture. It was not earned nor given. It is not yours.

6. Respect all things that are placed upon this earth - whether it be people or plant.

7. Honor other people's thoughts, wishes and words. Never interrupt another or mock or rudely mimic them. Allow each person the right to personal expression.

8. Never speak of others in a bad way. The negative energy that you put out into the universe will multiply when it returns to you.

9. All persons make mistakes. And all mistakes can be forgiven.

10. Bad thoughts cause illness of the mind, body and spirit. Practice optimism.

11. Nature is not FOR us, it is a PART of us. They are part of your worldly family.

12. Children are the seeds of our future. Plant love in their hearts and water them with wisdom and life's lessons. When they are grown, give them space to grow.

13. Avoid hurting the hearts of others. The poison of your pain will return to you.

14. Be truthful at all times. Honesty is the test of ones will within this universe.

15. Keep yourself balanced. Your Mental self, Spiritual self, Emotional self, and Physical self - all need to be strong, pure and healthy. Work out the body to strengthen the mind. Grow rich in spirit to cure emotional ails.

16. Make conscious decisions as to who you will be and how you will react. Be responsible for your own actions.

17. Respect the privacy and personal space of others. Do not touch the personal property of others - especially sacred and religious objects. This is forbidden.

18. Be true to yourself first. You cannot nurture and help others if you cannot nurture and help yourself first.

19. Respect others religious beliefs. Do not force your belief on others.

20. Share your good fortune with others. Participate in charity.

This originally appeared in the "Inter-Tribal Times," October, 1994

[Spirit Dancer]

"We all come from the same root, but the leaves are all different."
--John Fire Lame Deer, LAKOTA
We all come from one Great Spirit but we are all different and unique. Nothing in the Great Creation has a twin that is identical. Even children that are twins are different. Every single person is extremely special and unique. Each person has a purpose and reason why they are on the Earth. Just like every leaf on a tree is different, each one is needed to make the tree look like it does. No leaf is better or worse than the other � all leaves are of equal worth and belong on the tree. It is the same with human beings. We each belong here and do things that will affect the great whole.

Great Spirit, today, let me see myself as a valuable contributor to the whole

[Tommi]

Originally Posted by Spirit Dancer

"We all come from the same root, but the leaves are all different."
--John Fire Lame Deer, LAKOTA
We all come from one Great Spirit but we are all different and unique. Nothing in the Great Creation has a twin that is identical. Even children that are twins are different. Every single person is extremely special and unique. Each person has a purpose and reason why they are on the Earth. Just like every leaf on a tree is different, each one is needed to make the tree look like it does. No leaf is better or worse than the other � all leaves are of equal worth and belong on the tree. It is the same with human beings. We each belong here and do things that will affect the great whole.

Great Spirit, today, let me see myself as a valuable contributor to the whole

It's true... It's true then.. Variety IS the spice of life like my Gramma said.

[Spirit Dancer]

"You must be prepared and know the reason why you dance."
--Thomas Yellowtail, CROW
Inside every human being is a need to dance. We dance to music. Have you even wondered why people are moved when they hear an Indian Drum? The drum is the heartbeat of the Mother Earth. Every Indian dance is for a purpose and a reason. Every Song is for a reason. The beat of the drum makes our bodies, minds, and spirits join together in harmony. It allows us to connect to Mother Earth and to each other. The dance aligns our minds to think spiritual thoughts. Dancing to the drum is healthy.

Great Spirit, today, I dance to honor you.

[Spirit Dancer]

"With children we always have to think about seven generations to come but yet unborn."
--Janice Sundown Hattet, SENECA
What we do today will effect the children seven generations form now. How we treat the Mother Earth will affect the children yet to be born. If we poison the water today, our children's children will be affected by the decision we made. Our children are the gateway to the future. Let us conscientiously think about the children and the seven generations to come.

My Creator, I thank you for my ancestors, seven generations ago.

[Spirit Dancer]

"We know that in all creation/Only the human family/Has strayed from the Sacred Way."
--OJIBWA Prayer
How have we gotten so far off track? What has happened to us? What is happening to our family? How did it happen so quickly? Every individual needs to answer these questions for themselves. What do we need to do to start living the Sacred Way again? Pray! Today I will start praying. I pray the Creator will lead all Native People to a great healing. I pray we'll be free from alcohol and drugs. I pray we will return to the culture, to spirituality and to unity.

My Mother, help us to heal ourselves. Make us strong again

[Spirit Dancer]

"You can pray for whatever you want, but it is always best to pray for others, not for yourself."
--John Fire Lame Deer, LAKOTA
When you are selfish and you pray, you are requesting things to flow only to you. When you are selfless, you are praying for things to flow to others. The old ones say this is the highest form of prayer. Praying this way is according to the Natural Laws.

Great Spirit, today, let my thoughts be about others.

[Spirit Dancer]

Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing,
and always come back again to where they were.
The life of a person is a circle from childhood to childhood,
and so it is in everything where power moves.

Black Elk

[Spirit Dancer]

Love is something you and I must have. We must have it because
our spirit feeds upon it. We must have it because without it we
become weak and faint. Without love our self-esteem weakens.
Without it our courage fails. Without love we can no longer look
confidently at the world. We turn inward and begin to feed upon
our own personalities, and little by little we destroy ourselves.
With it we are creative. With it we march tirelessly. With it, and
with it alone, we are able to sacrifice for others.

Chief Dan George

[Spirit Dancer]

"As we plunge ahead to build empires and race for supremacy we should stop and listen to [the female] song of life. For without the female there is no life."
--Oren R. Lyons, Spokesman, Traditional Circle of Elders
Women are created with the ability to produce life. Women have a special tie to the Earth Mother. They have something in common. They are the source of life. The Earth Mother gives songs to the Woman to sing. These songs are about life, about beauty, about children, about love, about family, about strength, about caring, about nurturing, about forgiveness, about God. The World needs to pay attention and listen to Her. She knows.

Great Spirit, let me listen to Her songs.

[Spirit Dancer]

"Everybody should pray together, cheer along, root along. That brings the circle together. Everything is together."
--Wallace Black Elk, LAKOTA
Life on the Earth can sometimes be very complicated. Sometimes we think we are alone in our problems. Sometime we even withdraw. Then the problems become even more difficult. We need to watch out for one another, to care for one another, to pray together, to encourage one another; and we need to support one another. Behaving in this manner will bring the circle together.

Great Spirit, today, let me support my brothers and sisters.

[Spirit Dancer]

"Women. They have the power of generations. Women have the power to have children and not to have children."
--Cecilia Mitchell, MOHAWK
The Woman is not only the key to life; she is also the key to future generations. An Elder once joked that the Woman only needs the man for one night. We need to look at and respect the power of the Woman. She is special and we need to treat her that way.

Great Spirit, today, let me show the greatest respect to our Women.

[Spirit Dancer]

"The very dust under your feet responds more lovingly to our footsteps than to yours, because it is the ashes of our ancestors, and our bare feet are conscious of the sympathetic touch, for the soil is rich with the life of our kindred."
--Chief Seattle, SUQUAMISH
If you respect something, it will respect you back. If your ancestors respected something, the future generations will be respected back. The Indian ancestors always showed great respect for the Earth. That's why the Earth is so respectful to Indians today. Every Indian naturally feels connectedness to the Earth. We know the Earth holds our ancestors. If we continue to respect Mother Earth, our children will benefit and so will our grand- children. Today, we should think about and pray for our Mother Earth.

Grandmother, let me have strong feelings for our Earth today.

[Spirit Dancer]

Receiving and giving are opposite energies that are inextricably linked together in the natural flow of life, like inhaling and exhaling. If one aspect of that cycle doesn't function, the entire cycle ceases to function and the life force cannot move freely. If you can't inhale, you will soon have nothing to exhale,
and before long, your body will be unable to continue living.

Shakti Gawain



Generosity has a flip side that few of us tend to notice--it's the side of us that accepts gifts and caring and other people's generosity with graciousness and appreciation. It doesn't reject what others wish to give us out of a false sense of modesty or a desire to seem humble to others; it allows others to give to us, and thus feel the great feeling that comes from doing something for us.

Somehow we've come to believe that it's okay to refuse gifts or help from other people. We have to do things on our own, completely alone, and it may even be a sign of weakness to accept someone else's help. But ask yourself this: how does it make you feel to help someone else out? It makes you feel pretty good, doesn't it? Well, if you don't accept help from others, aren't you robbing them of the chance to have this great feeling for themselves? Aren't you depriving them of the chance to learn what it means to give selflessly and to help another human being?

When we see a movie in which some character looks at a gift from someone else and criticizes it, we cringe and we start to despise that character, for we can see how damaging the behavior is. We know just how great it would be for that other person to have the gift accepted gracefully and gratefully. We see how selfish it is to think only of their own attitude towards the gift, and not the attitude of the gift-giver.

Inadvertently, perhaps, we all do the same thing when we turn down help, when we turn down gifts, when we disregard advice. As Shakti says, though, we can't exhale if we never inhale; our giving will be weak if we never learn to take. One of the most generous things we can do for others is to learn how to accept their generosity towards us.

[Spirit Dancer]

The idea of full dress is preparation for a battle comes not from a belief that it will add
to the fighting ability. The preparation is for death, in case that should be the result
of the conflict. Every Indian wants to look his or her best when they go to meet
the Great Spirit, so the dressing up is done whether an imminent danger is an oncoming battle or a sickness or injury at times of peace.
Wooden Leg (Cheyenne)

[Spirit Dancer]

"Everything really is equal. The Creator doesn't look at me any better than He looks at the trees. We're all the same."
--Janice Sundown Hattet, SENECA
Sometimes humans think we are the center of the Universe. Sometimes we think we are above or better than other people or things. The Great Spirit made a set of Laws and Principles by which all things should live. Everybody and everything lives by the same Laws. We are all made of atoms just like the trees. The life force in the middle of the atom is the life force of the Great Mystery. It is the same for everything. We are all equal in the eyes of the Creator.

Great Spirit, today, I will respect your handiwork.

[Spirit Dancer]

"Together we can end the Holocaust against the environment."
--Haida Gwaii, Traditional Circle of Elders
We are all familiar with the Holocaust against the people. When this happens we feel bad and we vow never to let it happen again. We need to seriously examine what human beings are doing to the Earth and the environment. Many species are extinct and many more will become extinct during the next 10 years. We are methodically eliminating life that will never return again. Today, we should take time to pray real hard so we wake up before it is too late.

Great Spirit, today, I pray for us to awaken to what we are doing.

[Spirit Dancer]

Today, look at the blue sky, hear the grass growing beneath your feet,
inhale the scent of spring, let the fruits of the earth linger on your tongue,
reach out and embrace those you love. Ask Spirit to awaken your awareness
to the sacredness of your sensory perceptions.
Sarah Ban Breathnach

[Tommi]

Let the good pass through and the web do it's job. Renew as needed.




Rolling Thunder

[Fancy]

“I think the most important issue we have as a people is what we started, and that is to begin to trust our own thinking again and believe in ourselves enough to think that we can articulate our own vision of the future and then work to make sure that that vision becomes a reality.”

This affected me last week...rest in peace Wilma Mankiller.