Introduction......................................................................................9
Don’t................................................................................................14
Prologue..........................................................................................17
Buddhism........................................................................................23
Native Teaching..................................................................................27
Wicca................................................................................................32
Spiritualism......................................................................................38
Who Really Is Out There?...............................................................44
Who I am.........................................................................................55
“That House on the Block”................................................................60
Raphael and Me..................................................................................64
On Being a Spiritualist.......................................................................71
Basic Majick: Thought.....................................................................76
Be Determined To Be Determined.....................................................81
The Lost Art of “Being”......................................................................87
Speech.............................................................................................92
Now What?......................................................................................99
The Ethics......................................................................................106
Tools..............................................................................................111
Charging.......................................................................................121
Recipes.............................................................................................128
Color and Uncluttering...................................................................134
Gifts of the Spirit............................................................................139
Daily Vesper......................................................................................148
Epilogue........................................................................................150
Glossary..........................................................................................152
Eclectic Resources..........................................................................158
Creator made everything in order and created an order to everything. There is not one thing of his making that is not full of joy and positivity. Creator has also never created a single ugly thing. “Ugly” is a man made word used to discriminate and judge others. To accept the word ugly is to give in to negativity. Denial of the concept “ugly” is to surrender to the beauty of Creator. It is the same with the connotation many people have about the color black.
To many, the color black is negative and associated with evil. Think for a moment what this perception has created! If black is a negative thing, then all things not white are bad. Here is an illustration as to how prejudice can come about as a result of a perception. What would some people do if Creator came down tomorrow and turned out to be black? In the many cultures where the color black is positive and good, discovering a black Creator would not be devastating because they are not limited in how they view things. This example is to demonstrate how we have put Creator aside and allowed man to control us by fears, words and judgments.
This is not “the walk” as Native Tradition teaches. Spiritualists and Medicine People learn there is a reason for everything and things happen for a reason. But People become blocked spirits because of the times we live in and as a result of what we are taught as early as our childhood. These blockages become first a part us until they eventually define and become us completely. They take root from the within that is created from these teachings. One of these teachings is fear. I say fear not fear but rather the one who feeds you fear and how they feed it to you. This modern time is perfect for teachings about fear.
Everyone feels vulnerable and insecure for one reason or another so it is easy to believe there is a reason to be afraid. The fears of today take us off Creator’s path. Creator only asks us to walk a straight path that acknowledges all of the things in creation. Since Creator did not make fear; to walk on Creator’s path is to walk on a path that has nothing to be afraid of because he will always meet your needs. That is Creator’s great order. In these times we have forgotten Creator and tend to think we walk alone on our spiritual path but we are never alone. Creator is always with us as are our spirit guides and protections.
As everything man has touched turned into a profit to be gained, Creator’s order has been altered. This order includes caring for another and stopping to pick up someone if he or she has fallen or is in need. People are now realizing the emptiness they feel from deep within and are beginning to search for spiritual solace. They will often ask for prayers or blessings. I have been asked for such prayers and blessings and my response is that I am no more qualified to bless someone or pray for someone than they are themselves for how can I put words to another man’s need or heart? Creator would rather hear your own heart. If you can’t find the words, ask for the words to be given to you and the minute you take that breath and ask Creator will give you the words you need to ask for yourself. Our asking Creator for help or for what we need must come from our spirit and the words will follow. If we are struggling spiritually and our spirit is distracted and cannot find words or connect with Creator, it is perfectly fine to say a prayer that expresses our heart until we can hear the words Creator will give us.
Ultimately, spirituality is learning your own truth, which is within you, not within me. Many have asked me about someone else’s theories or ideas or books and I have told them “You ask me about another man’s truth. How can I put words to a truth that comes not from within me? Go to the source. Ask that teacher or author to explain further.” I can only show someone a different outlook, perspective and way but in the end it is that person who chooses what can be used at that moment and what will be left behind. When I work with people whose spirits are troubled or lost, I work with them to help them find their own truth, not my truth. That is the way it should be in order for each person to reach his own individual potential. My goal for that person is to not to need my help anymore and for him to now know his own way by walking in his own truth.
A person who has found his truth has no need to ask anyone for a blessing or prayer. He can connect with Creator any place and anytime. Ask Creator’s blessing before any petition or work you do to meet your needs and as you are ready to receive, it will be given it to you.
Most people, when they begin to look at earth based belief systems, especially Native Tradition, want to begin at the top with say Buffalo or Eagle spirit when the same wisdom can be learned from a squirrel or an insect. The same truths of Buffalo and Eagle are within the smallest animal as well but this is a difficult concept because people think size and beauty are power. Creator’s wisdom took into consideration the climate and geographic locations of all animals and simply made knowledge available in everything created wherever it lived. Knowledge also exists in non-animal spirits. If one stops long enough to notice and to broaden the mind one can listen to how the wind speaks. It tells us it is going to rain by how the trees react when it touches them! Yet, to most people they only see a tree bending in the wind. A common spiritual mistake is to confuse size, ‘beauty’ and animation with importance. The Creator’s handiwork made all things equal- animals, insects, trees, dirt, rock, water and the winds. As we were given spirit, so were all these other things. The “lowest” of humans and anything else in creation is not “low” at all for they each have something to teach us and their spirits all have something to tell us. We just need to listen in order to learn that language and the lessons that come only from the spirit of all things.
When we are looking for answers, sometimes they do not come in words but through nature and, as you compare and look, you can find the answer. This is a premise of Native Teaching as well as other Earth religions. But many people think it is best to start with larger animals that represent more power or strength. These people are preventing themselves from receiving their answers because they do not consider that an answer could come from an insect, toad, squirrel, plant or even a stone. The smallest of animals can offer answers as great as the largest and sometimes, as I said, answers come not from animals at all! Remember, everything has a spirit.
By necessity, many people live in the city and are in an environment where certain animals and spirits no longer reside. After dedicated and careful training, you can have your mind go to these places in spirit so that you can still learn the teachings of animals and nature.
Many people, as something begins to ring true, become impatient and reach for a level of spiritual experiences beyond their potential at that time. A person can be weighted down by trying to absorb too much too soon and the person who tries to keep what he is learning within himself can become saturated and unable to achieve higher levels later as he clings to his first sense of spirit for security. This is why we must even share what we learn.
Even how we look at color tells us something about our spiritual values. Colors play an important role in many belief systems and in healing. Look at how colors you wear change the mood within you and the feeling around you. I do not concern myself with style, especially concerning the matching of color, for style is nothing but a competition among people. It is a keeping up with those that have and do not share. Wearing colors known to bring joy to your spirit will automatically bring joy to others. Creator made all colors from the rainbow, which is why I call it the staircase to heaven. Wearing these colors made by the Creator on the body lifts the spirit upward. Your lifted spirit brings joy not only to you but also to others.
Try wearing all of the colors at the same time. Certainly someone will laugh and the one that laughs at someone because of color, design or style has surrendered to the creators of fashion and style. (These ‘creators’ and their styles give no real meaning to life.) If I am laughed at because of the colors I wore and for my style, I see this as a positive thing. Because I was able to make them smile, their smile reflects MY truth, which is that my chosen colors will bring joy to people on some level, and they won’t even know it. My truth is rather ‘unique’, wouldn’t you say?
No more unique that yours could be discovered to be once you find it. As “Gifts of the Spirit” explores the unique perceptions of a cross section of belief systems, the spirit that is ready to open itself up to a broad and different awareness will be encouraged to further investigate individual truth, empowerment and spirituality.
Ceremonial Chief WhiteEagle President Sacred Circle of Stones, Ltd Livingston Manor, NY