Native American Medicine Wheel
West
~ | ~ Sacred Altar
~ | ~ East ~ | ~ South
~ | ~ West ~ | ~ North ~ | ~
2.3 West - Black - Autumn - Sunset
- Black, sun setting, darkness, mystery, night; Thunder Beings dwell there, send rain
- Black is the color; (and dark blue in my wheel)
- Fasting, sacrifice, perserverence, testing of the will, humility
- Fall of the year, adults; dreams and visions
- Respect, for elders, other people's belief systems, spiritual struggle of others
- Commitment: to the Creator, to self, to values; participation in ceremonies
2.3.1 Medicine Wheels
2.3.1.1 Wilson's Medicine Wheel (Wilson VFEM 51-56)
- Eagle - Spirit communication via air; Great Spirit indwelling
- Door of Service
- Eagle - "divinity incarnate"
- Butterfly - "transformation"
- Bat - "death and rebirth"
- Grouse - "spiral dance to center"
- Moons of the West
- Ducks Fly Moon, September 23 - October 23
- Freeze Up Moon, October 24 - November 21
- Long Snows Moon, November 22 - December 21
- Autumn Equinox - September 23, when night equals day
2.3.1.2 Sun Bear's Medicine Wheel
- Mudjekeewis, Spirit Keeper of the West
- Season is Autumn
- Time of Day is Sunset and Twilight
- Animal associatin is Grizzly Bear
- Colors are blue and black
- Moons of the West
- Ducks Fly Moon, September 23 - October 23
- Freeze Up Moon, October 24 - November 21
- Long Snows Moon, November 22 - December 21
2.3.2 Correlations for West
2.3.2.1 Direction of Death and Resurrection
- Waters of Life
- Prevailing rains, life-giving; without them, we would not survive
- "Creator God, today may Your waters of life flow freely through me to others."
- Cleansing and healing; sanctification
- "You were washed, you were sanctified." (1 Cor 6:11 RSV)
- Maturing
- Reminds of old age (Sunset); prayers of thanksgiving
- Become more aware of the spirit of the people's past, knowledge they have gained
- Darkness or Mystery
- The unknown; thinking or analyzing; being aware of out spirit nature
- Introspection, going within, meditation, deep inner thoughts
- Spiritual insight, contemplation, silence, being alone with one's self
2.3.2.2 Spirit-Who-Sees-Within
- Meditation as a Prayer Form:
- Not prayers of petition and thanksgiving; rather as prayers of meditation
- Prayers of true dialogue - give Great Spirit equal time
- Listen rather than vocalize; Vision Quest
- How would you feel if your children never listened?
- Or never asked for advise or council
- Hurt? angry? bewildered? despairing?
- Next time you pray with petition or in thanksgiving
- Spend equal time in silent prayer listening
2.3.2.3 The Age of Iron of Humankind
- c. 1,250-1,200 BCE onward
- The Father God, the Conquering Sun and the Warrior
2.3.2.5 Of the Eagle Totem for the West
- Same in all three visions: John, Ezekiel, Amerindian (Wilson)
- No understanding or interpretation in John or Ezekiel
- Birds fly freely in air: visualize the spirit world as freely occupying air
- Concept also in Bible: birds of the air represent spirits of spirit world
- Symbolic, therefore very real
- Eagle most powerful of birds, majestic
- Speaks of most powerful and majestic of spirits - the Great Spirit
- Center of medicine wheel - sacred altar
- Outer circle represents universe; humans in outer wheel, Creator at center
- Eagle represents Great Spirit in the realm of humans
- Incarnation of God in humankind
- God becomes flesh, indwells, the divine in all of us
- Meditation, introspection, looking within one's self
- Looking to discover the indwelling divinity
- Thunder and lightning from West, rains
- West is dwelling place of Thunder Beings, represent most powerful of spirit world
- Though many yet one (Trinitarian)
2.3.2.7 from the Cycle Teachings (Wilson MW 65-99)
- Adults of the Life Cycle
- Fall of the Annual Cycle
- The Black Race (Africans)
- Water of the Elements
- Two-leggeds of Things that Breathe
- Moon above the Earth
- Leaves of Green Things
- Night in Divisions of Time
2.3.2.8 from the Sets of Four
- Luke of the Gospels (Ox)
- Reason of John Wesley's Quadrilateral test
- The Via Negativa of Matthew Fox's Four Paths:
- Path Two, Befriending Darkness, Letting Go and Letting Be
- Black Horseman of the Apocalypse
- Rider given a balance; grains sell high, oil and wine left alone
- Sociological Area of Life
- Eastern Spiritual Philosophies, dealing with the spirit within
- "Rain" - second leaf in four-leaf clover
- Brown of Petra's Coloring Song:
- Brown is the color of the autumn leaves when the winter comes to the barren trees
- There is birth, there is death, there is a plan
- And there's just one God and there's just one Man
- That can give us life, that can make us grow, that can make our sins as white as snow
- The Dharma of the Four Philosophies of India:
- Duty, virtue in introspection, "looking within"
2.3.3 Symbology of the Animals of the West (Wilson VFEM)
2.3.3.1 Eagle (Wilson VFEM 26)
- Most powerful and most majestic of all birds
- Highest flying of all birds
- Eagle people
- Are in close contact with the most powerful and most majestic of all the spirits
- Great Spirit or Creator God
- They fly the highest spiritually and philosophically
- Amerindians recognize them as shamen, the medicine people
- The true priests and ministers in our world
- Who fly the highest and come closest to the deity
- We all need to have an eagle person in our lives
2.3.3.2 Butterfly (Wilson VFEM 21)
- Makes transistion from egg to larvae stage
Then to cocoon stage, and finally to butterfly stage
- The air dancer, it represents balance, ever changing, ever moving
- It represents the element of air
- Butterfly people
- Are experiencing an incarnation of the Great Spirit within them
- Their air dance is delightful and beautiful
- Bring a sense of grace and balance to our lives
- bring to us the medicine power of self-transformation
2.3.3.3 Bat (Wilson VFEM 20)
- Hangs upside down in cave
- Flies out into open
- Hibernates during extra cold seasons
- Revived when their environment warms up again
- Bat people
- Easily experience death sociologially, spiritually, philosophically
- To family or any other group
- To concepts, etc.
- Discover birth/rebirth or new life in new ways
- Seem to be indifferent to sociological surroundings
- If they feel people are cold towards them
- But will come alive around people who are warm towards them
- Theirs is the medicine power of rebirth
2.3.3.4 Grouse (Wilson VFEM 28)
- Has dull feathers
- Grows to about the size of a large chicken
- Feathers hid nostrils
- These birds usually live in high or northern places
- Feathers cover legs of most species to keep them from freezing
- Build nests on ground in well hidden places
- They dance the spiral dance
- Grouse people will teach you the spiral dance
- The dance of birth and rebirth
- The sacred whirlwind dance which will take you to the center of your spiritual life
- Here you will transcend to higher stages of awareness of the God that is within you
- This is their medicine power
2.3.4 Other Associations
- Native American Associations:
- Wilson: Eagle, Autumn
- Sun Bear: Mudjekeewis, Bear
Introduction: Page One
~ | ~ Page Two
~ | ~ Page Three
~ | ~ Page Four
~ | ~ Page Five ~ | ~
~ | ~ Sacred Altar
~ | ~ East
~ | ~ South
~ | ~ West
~ | ~ North ~ | ~
Inner Circle:
Owl ~ | ~ Cougar
~ | ~ Hawk ~ | ~ Coyote
~ | ~ Wolf ~ | ~ Bear
~ | ~ Raven ~ | ~
Outer Circle:
Snow Goose ~ | ~
Otter ~ | ~
Cougar ~ | ~
Hawk ~ | ~
Beaver ~ | ~
Deer ~ | ~
~ | ~ Flicker ~ | ~
Sturgeon ~ | ~
Bear ~ | ~
Raven ~ | ~
Snake ~ | ~
Elk ~ | ~
Blue ~ | ~
