On Sweetgrass and The Spring Arrival of The Wakinyan (Thunderbeings)

Aho Matakuye O’yasin. Been a minute on the blog. Good thing the Lakota people unlike the good Vietnamese have no words for I’m sorry. When you see what we have upcoming, with regular sits, regular Ceremonies and an extended retreat weekend in June, you will be Happy. And I hope you consider coming out to visit. There are three or four or more stories to tell of recent travels, and so by April the 2019 Spring class and retreat season will commence. That said, Spring has indeed sprung, with the vernal equinox occurring Wednesday at 5:58 pm and confirmed by the arrival of the Wakinyan. The Thunder Beings Booming over the house recently and shaking the land to life.

There’s a scientific reason that lightning wakes up the natural world: the Earth’s atmosphere is nearly 80 percent nitrogen and the intense heat (about 50,000 degrees F.) generated by an abrupt, discontinuous natural electric discharge in the atmosphere aka lightning breaks the strong bonds of nitrogen molecules. This allows the freed nitrogen to combine with oxygen and rainwater to form nitric acid. When this falls to earth and combines with soil minerals, plant-fertilizing nitrates are produced. Scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado estimate that globally, thunderstorms can produce 30 to 175 billion pounds of nitrogen annually. Plants require nitrogen for healthy plant tissue and leaf growth, so grasses do turn noticeably greener after early spring thunderstorms.

There’s also the spiritual side to the whole happening. Imagine if you lived in nature, depending upon the natural world for your own survival. The most fearsome nature spirit or power you could face would that of lightning or the Thunderbirds. These powerful sky spirits of Lakota mythology take the form of a giant bird, with wings that make the sound of thunder and eyes that shoot lightning. No man has ever seen their lair. That first loud, explosive clap and subsequent deep, long, rolling rumble always send me into song. And if you come to Ceremony this Spring or Summer, you’re going to hear it. It’s a Good One. I was moved as I always am and that same day found this bit below on the lighting of sweetgrass and the healing of the people. Pilamaye (with thanks) to Šúŋkawakȟáŋ Tȟó (Blue Horse).

The elders tell us that it takes longer for us to heal today and the reason is because the old trails our ancestors used to use to find us have been destroyed. by colonialism, assimilation, manifest destiny, and ethnic cleansing, towns and cities where the old trails used to be...so now our ancestors are having a hard time finding us to help us Heal. So we must burn sweetgrass~ a kindness medicine...with a sweet gentle aroma when we light it. 21 strands to make a braid..the first 7 strands represent those 7 generations behind us~ Our parents, Our grandparents 7 generations behind us~who we are and what we are is because of them~they've brushed and made the trails we have been walking up til now...the trails have been destroyed. The time has come to heal and connect with our ancestors. They paid a tremendous price for us to be able to speak out against injustices, therefore we do not have the right to remain quiet.

The next 7 represent the 7 sacred teachings... Love, Respect, Honesty, Courage, Wisdom, Truth and Humility. The elders tell us how simple, powerful and beautiful the teaching are. Love: unconditional affection with no limits or conditions that starts with loving yourself. Respect: due regard for the feelings, wishes, rights or traditions of other, with consideration, thoughtfulness, attentiveness, politeness, courtesy, civility, deference. Humility freedom from pride or arrogance, being humble, when we truly understand the teaching of humility, that we are not any better then anyone else and you are not any better then me. that at the end of the day we are simply human beings, this is what makes this teaching powerful and beautiful. Courage:bravery, permitting one to face extreme dangers with boldness withstanding danger, fear or difficulty  Wisdom:the quality of having experience, knowledge and good judgment the quality of being wise. Truth: the face of the matter, veracity, sincere, candor and genuineness  a determined in principle entirely by how it relates to things Honestly:have a character of integrity, and honor be free from fraud or deception, legitimate, truthful.

The last 7 strands are those of the 7 generations in front of us~ Our children Our grandchildren as well as those children yet to be born. It is important because everything we do to Mother earth will one day effect them... We have lost our way, everything we do to Mother Earth gives us everything we need to heal ourselves and the earth. We must go back to our roots and bloom.  "We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children These teachings need to first start from within ourselves, respecting ourselves, they tell us that the teachings need to first start from the inside. So in the morning you /we burn Sweetgrass, we can get a white or yellow cloth (1 meter) with Tobacco: hang it on a tree facing the east direction.  This should be done in the morning and not at night. Lest us never forget we are the whispered prayer our ancestors prayed. They Are Waiting For Us.

Ele~Vated

Om Gam Ganapataye Namah ~ Removing obstacles & feeling Hmong~ous

Hey Now that’s me way up on an Elephant. And not just any Ele, but the Asian Elephant (Elephas Maximus), this awesome specimen known amongst his kin as Hmong, a nod to the Southeast Asian ethnic group of the Miao people of China, Vietnam and Laos. While now a world away but only weeks back, this was outside Luang Prabang, Laos, my Valentine this year offering tons of Love from the faraway land once known as Lan Xang - The Land of a Million Elephants. Learning only 1.600 now remain, I felt fortunate to experience the uplift, magic and majesty of interacting with such awesome agents of the animal kingdom, a rare and endangered species. In this pic. particularly, man and beast appearing to be moving in concert — while in truth being on Hmong unsettled me, eliciting many prayers and chants. I was scared!

Let me quickly back up here, in Asian Elephant talk: “Doun” as in move backward - one of a crazy slew of commands I learned at Elephant Village - a private elephant camp and tour destination approved by Laos’ government for the protection & rehabilitation of elephants. Along with “Pai” - go forward, “Kwah” - turn right. “Sai” - turn left, “Hao!” - stop and of course “Kaup Jai” - Thank you (!), the mighty Hmong and I obviously struck up quite the conversation over our one plus kilometer together. Letting me bare-neck wrangle him along with mahout training courses is easier work and a real career path for guys like Hmong, allowing them to earn a living apart from the harsh environment of the logging industry.

Who knew how I was boosting his self-esteem, making him financially and emotionally more self-sufficient as he carted me about the grounds and across the river — all the while hanging on for dear life and forging one of my life’s better memories. This is the experience Elephant Village gives tourists like myself, the chance to know these very special animals, observe them and spend some amazing time with them. Going across that river with his trunk swirling wildly about will forever light up my mental logbooks. And witnessing first-hand the camp’s commitment to allowing elephants to roam the jungle freely, group together in herds, and start new families, seeing the them cut loose to lumber off together, was awesome to behold.

This was all in the afterglow, as finding my spot on an elephant’s neck was quite the challenge. But this bare-necked approach is ultimately better for elephants, doing away with traditional howdahs, or elephant seats. In 2016, Elephant Village went completely howdah-free, striving to set the standard for ethical elephant tourism in Luang Prabang. No howdah means less Ele stress, but also allows for a much more intimate experience on the bare neck, of which I can attest. E. Village also touts a cool museum that assists guests in coming away with a new understanding of the relationship between Laos, their elephants, and their elephants plight. As to the mission of caring deeply for elephants — and all the world’s wildlife — responsible tourism and contributing to local communities, this be not the end of the story. More on recent nows in Laos, India(!) cobra wrangling(!), etc. to come.

Laos (WOW!)

Me & Hmoung emerge from the Healing Waters of the Elephant Village Sanctuary

The working title for this post was Laos WoW Holy Cow Kapow which is just a nod to how much fun I had visiting the Southeast Asian country to the West of Vietnam, traversed by the Mekong River and known for mountainous terrain, French colonial architecture, hill tribe settlements and Buddhist monasteries. I’ve also been sharing some ridiculously personal aspects of my life on this blog, and thought to ratchet that vibe down a bit. I get it - as a teacher, open-hearted transparency is a good thing. But long-winded posts about my personal pain as well as my healing weigh on me, weigh on me like a baby elephant, so let’s toggle over to some recent happenings that I think we’ll all enjoy in a lighter, airier sort of way.

Back to Laos, and more specifically the north central city of Luang Prabang, just a hour plane ride from Hà Nōi, VN, the name literally translating to Royal Buddha Image and the entire town an UNESCO World Heritage Site. WOW WOW WOW WOW. Actually the whole Laos pronunciation thing is a funny subject. I caught a back and white clip of a John F. Kennedy speech from 1961 at the UXO Laos visitor center - a local shop fostering awareness of Unexploded Ordnances, Laos being the most heavily bombed country, per capita, in history. - in which Kennedy, sounding like a Massachusetts hillbilly, pronounces it “Lay-Ose” . Much to discuss about Laos then, from its name to its Elephant Sanctuaries, amazing nature, awesome temples, history in South East Asia, etc. I also have to reconnect with my guide there Somphone Inthasone to confirm a few questions. When I met him at the airport, he said, “My name Pon.”. “OK, Pon, how do you spell it?,” I asked. Very slowly he said, “P-O-R-N…” I looked at him, he looked at me, and then I said, “You know, in our language…” to which he quickly cut me off, saying, “I know, I know, I know…” Language translation can be very funny, as the Vietnamese call the lizard a word that sounds like a guttural “Kentucky”. I know how to say it, but every time I see a lizard I ask Phuc, “How do you say lizard?” because I find it so funny. So there was much laughter and amazing experiences in the 4 days I spent exploring Luang Prabang, from the Wat Nong and Wat Xiengthong (Golden) Temple, to the Peace Pagoda to the neck of an elephant named Hmoung. There was even a Temple called Wat Mano which translates to “Broken Head” which I found hilarious. With Phuc and Porn guiding the way, we are definitely on a roll here people.

Let’s just call him Pon for translations sake. Pon was super cool. He would get excited when I asked him questions and respond: “Sho-war, sho-war”, his version of “sure, sure” and always touch my arm when conveying information. Just when I had a little Vietnamese down, he taught me a whole new language, from Sabaidee (Hello) to Kobchai Lai Lai (Thank you very much) to Bor Pen Yang (No worries). He also says “Hello beautiful girl” in the most mellifluous voice, I can’t find it in my notes right now but it’s a heart melter. At one point he mentioned “The Witch Doctor” the Mordu in their language. If this was a movie, I’d turn and speak directly into the camera, asking “OK there’s a Witch Doctor? . We are definitely going to see the Mordu.” We tried to meet with Mrs. Keo and Mrs. Sengha, who will supposedly smoke 10 cigarettes at a time to tap into The Zone, but neither were around. That’s the introduction to amazing Laos, a country of remarkable nature, people, architecture, and religious and cultural heritage, with a few more cool articles soon to come.