Keepers of the Earth

Native American Spirituality a Vedantic View 

Article by Devadatta Kali

"What is life? 

It is the flash of a firefly in the night. 

It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime. 

It is the little shadow which runs across the grass 

And loses itself in the sunset."

- by Chief Crowfoot, Blackfoot Tribe

Katsina dolls are religious icons made of cottonwood root and represent the spiritual essence of everything in the world. In the Hopi language the word "Kachina," or "Katsina," means "Life Bringer". The katsina religion dates from the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries, when people from the Four Corners region of the Colorado Plateau moved into the upper Colorado Valley and formed large aggregate settlements with the indigenous Mogollon or western Pueblo people. From its inception, the katsina religion helped create cultural equilibrium and cooperative behavior as immigrant and resident populations adapted to each other. To the Hopi, the katsina spirit was viewed as being responsible for the tribes survival. Without the katsinas help it was believed that water in the rivers would not flow and crops would not be abundant. The hand carved dolls were given to young girls to help them learn about their role as women in the Hopi community.  Read More

Katsina Dolls

Hawaiian Prayer of Forgiveness

Iolani Luahine - Kumu Hula 

(1915-1978) 

Watch Video

Ho'oponopono Pule Prayer

These beautiful words came to Morrnah Nalamaku Simeona, who was a teacher in the huna tradition. She got these words in meditation while in communication with the "I"or the oneness of all things. She told students to always share what they had learned. Summer Solstice is the perfect time to reflect on the divine immortal soul which inhabits all beings.

All Hawaiian prayer forms start with breathing, which is call Ha. One round of Ha is to breathe in for the count of 7, hold for the count of 7, and release for the count of 7. When you have emptied your lungs again then hold for the count of 7. Be relaxed and let the breath determine how long the count of 7 is. You can fit it to your own physiology.

Mana is the energy that belongs to you in this Life and is connected to you and all worlds in all spaces and at all times. We will be cleaning this Mana with the Ho'oponopono Pule.

Aka cords are what ties us, and all other things, beings, energies, and Karma, together, for this and for all times. When we say "Cut all Aka Cords," we are talking about cutting all the ties we have with all our friends, family, relatives, and ancestors. We will include all possessions, things we are attached to, places we have been, memories we hold, and so forth. This also is a very deep cleansing method.

When we talk about the Divine Creator: The Aumakua, the Uhane, and the Unihipili as One, we are talking about the totality of all that is and ever was or will be. This is what Christianity calls God as well as all of God's works, i.e., the Universe and every thing contained within it. When all of this is put together as One, then that is what we mean when we say the Divine Creator.

This we shall call the "I", because it is like the Roman numeral I representing the oneness of the Universe. The sound "I'' is likewise like the sound of "Eye" which can be thought of in the ancient way as the "Eyeball" of the Sun. This is the center of our solar system and represents an image of the One.

The Aumakua is the "Spiritual Self" and represents all of the Gods of all of the religions of Man since the beginning of time. It can be thought of as our own singular genetic past to the beginning of time as well. And in a very real sense, it is our consciousness backwards in time representing our knowledge of right and wrong, or our conscience.

The Uhane is the "Physical Self" and represents the caretaker of our body. It is our thinking mind and our physical function. We talk with the Uhane and we think with the Uhane. We have a drive for survival that is part of the function of the Uhane. When we are hungry or sleepy or when we want something, it is the Uhane that does this function of the body and brain.

The Unihipili is the "Emotional Self" and represents the feelings which are not really expressible in words. Often feelings have more impact on our activity than thoughts and words do. Feelings guide us to a knowledge of our "Inner Self", and are very important to an understanding of our wholeness. "U" means to grunt, and "Nihipili" means to move through the grass like a snake. Together these words describe the nature of the Unihipili. It is emotion without the ability of language. It is the "Inner child" which is so often spoken of in today's new age explanations of human integrity.

We are One within our selves, and we are One with the Oneness of all that is. We need to understand, however that the little Unihipili within us, is like a child has no language. The Unihipili however, holds all of our personal Mana. Mana is the spiritual energy that defines exactly who and what we are and why we have come into being at this time and place. The Mana is the menu of our Life, and our ticket for this lifetime! I cannot express how important this idea is. Most people could have a perfect Life existence if only they could learn to talk with their Unihipili.

Only through the Unihipili, can the Uhane (the individual mind/body) make contact with the "Aumakua". This means that if you loose contact with your Unihipili, you will be almost assuredly become lost on the path of your life. This is a very important idea, yet many if not most people have an Uhane that is not willing to recognize or respect the importance of the little inner child, the Unihipili. One must remember that even without language, the Unihipili has all of our memories from the time of conception onward, and is the only source of our personal Mana.

Kali

Kali made an appearance at the 2012 Santa Barbara Solstice Parade

Kali Puja Video

Who in this world
can understand what
Mother Kali really is?
The six systems of philosophy
remain powerless to describe Her.
She is the inmost awareness
of the sage who realizes
that Consciousness alone exists.
She is the life blossoming within
the creatures of the universe.
Both macrocosm and microcosm
are lost within Mother's Womb.
Now can you sense
how indescribable She is?

The yogi meditates upon Her
in the six subtle nerve centers
as She sports with delight
through the lotus wilderness
of the pristine human body,
playing with Her Consort,
Shiva, the Great Swan.

When anyone attempts to know Her,
the singer of this song laughs.
Can you swim across
a shoreless ocean?
Yet the child in me still
reaches out to touch the moon.