Medicine Wheel Creation Series 4 – Wake Up Ceremony

The Stone People are in place on the Medicine Wheel. They are individually holding the energy, the Medicine, of each of the 4 directions and the Universe. Each Stone Person is holding my intention for the Medicine Wheel. As I look on the Medicine Wheel, I feel the breeze, the warmth of the sun and I hear the wind flowing through the maple and pine trees that surround the Medicine Wheel. Life feels good.

Today is a special day. Today, we complete the Medicine Wheel’s creation through ceremony. The ceremony is a Waking Up Ceremony of the Spirit of the Medicine Wheel. Most Native Americans believe that there is life, Spirit, in All things. The ceremony is to Wake Up the Stone People to their Being in the Medicine Wheel as a whole rather than as individuals. The ceremony is for The Stone People to work, to Be, together as they hold the Medicine of the Wheel. The ceremony is to bring their Medicine’s together, to work in concert with each other, the land, and me. It is a precious and beautiful moment when All of Creations consciously comes together to support a specific intention.

On this special day, I woke up early in anticipation for the Waking Up ceremony. The preparation for the ceremony begins with my MerkaBa meditation which balances, cleanses and protects me. The meditation brings love to my heart and I meet my Soulself and my Inner Child in my heart. I ask to be shown the ceremony and what I am to do in this ceremony. I am shown my drum, dried cedar, my eagle feather and I hear drumming and a song. The song lyrics come to me in a soft simple way and build in intensity and happiness. The words I clearly hear are “Wake Up, Wake Up my friends, my relatives. Wake Up Stone People to fulfill your Being.”

At the Medicine Wheel, I am nudged by Spirit to walk counterclockwise around the outside of the Wheel 4 times. I am reminded of the Celtic tradition of walking counter-clockwise around their stone circles to undo the humanness of the day. This undoing action eases the busy human energy of the creation of the Medicine Wheel. I carry the cedar smudge and smudge the outside of the Wheel with my Eagle feather as I walk the outside of the Wheel. As I near the East Stone, I smudge myself and the area to the left of the stone, which is the door to the Medicine Wheel coming from the East. I put the burning cedar smudge on the stone altar at the eastside of the Medicine Wheel. Here on the stone altar I also have my drum, and my Eagle feather.

I use my drum to play a heart beat as I walk the inside of the Medicine Wheel clockwise 4x, holding the intention of the Medicine Wheel in my mind and heart. Then walk into the Center of the Wheel. I call to Ktthe Mne Do, Mauna, Creator of Things to join me in the Medicine Wheel, to bless the Medicine Wheel and fill it with Love, Light, Truth and Wisdom. I ask for Ktthe Mne Do to reside, to live, at the Center of this Medicine Wheel. I call to the Spirit of the East, the Spirit of Air to please come and be with me in the Medicine Wheel and to live within the East of the Medicine bringing balance of mental thoughts to the Wheel. I then call to the Spirit of the South. I call to the Spirit of Fire and Energy to come and be with me in the Medicine Wheel. I ask for the South to bring its Medicine to live in the South of Wheel and to bring the balance of Energy to the Wheel. I call to the Spirit of the West, the Spirit of Water and Emotion, to please join me in the Wheel. I ask for the Spirit of Water to live in the West of the Wheel bringing the balance of Emotion to the Wheel. I then call to the Spirit of the North, the Spirit of Mother Earth. I ask the Spirit of Mother Earth to come and be with me in the Wheel and to live in the North of the Wheel bringing Balance, Stability and Wisdom to the Wheel.

I also asked the Guardian of the Land to please come. I asked the Ancient Ones to please come to bear witness to the Waking Up Ceremony and to bless and support the Medicine Wheel. I am feeling quite emotional as I feel the presence of the Ancient Ones. I begin the Waking Up Ceremony with a Tobacco Ceremony. I give tobacco to ask that the Medicine Wheel to be blessed with the Ktthe Mne Do’s Love and that the Medicine Wheel be dedicated to Peace, Love, Harmony and Joy. I asked that Medicine Wheel be a teaching tool for the whole community so that we all can walk our Earth Walk in a Good Way. I place the tobacco on the Eastside of the Creator Stone in the Center of the Medicine Wheel.

I drum a heart beat and begin singing to the Stone People. I make my way to the East Stone. I sing Wake Up, Wake Up my friend, my Relatives. Wake up to working together. Wake Up Stones of the East and I drum the Stones of the East. I then move to the South Stone and sing the same lyrics asking the Stones of the South to Wake Up and work together with the Stone People of the East. I move to the West Stone and sing the same Wake Up to the South Stones and ask them to Wake Up to work with the Stone People of the East and the South. I work my way to the North Stone. I drum the North Stones and ask them to Wake Up to work with the Stone People of the East, South and the West.

I continue drumming as I walk back to the Center of the Medicine Wheel. I continue singing, Wake Up Stone People, my Relatives, Wake Up. My drumming slows down back to the heart beat and is very soft. As I drum, my eyes are closed as I feel the Stone People awake and vibrating together. In my mind’s eye, I see 8 Grandmothers, Nokmises, arise out of the stones in the 4 directions. Ancient Ones, the Ancient Grandmothers, standing together holding the Loving Energies of the Medicine Wheel. As I stop drumming, I can hear the echo of my drum through time/space and then all is quiet. I say Megwech, thank you, to the Ktthe Mne Do and to the 4 Directions; to Land Guardian; to the Ancient Ones and to the Ancient Grandmothers.

I walk out of the Medicine Wheel to the altar where I give thanks to my Guides, Guardians, Teachers, Angels, Allies and Power Animals for the assistance in the creation of the Medicine Wheel and for today’s ceremony assistance. I close the ceremony by blowing out the candle on the altar and saying, It is done, It is done, It is done, Megwech, Aho.

This is the final article in the Medicine Wheel Creation Series. I hope you enjoyed the experience and reading the information. I will be writing about the Sacred Hoop in other ways such as how to use a Medicine Wheel in modern day life. So come back and visit again. In the mean time, good reading.

 

All Rights Reserved. Copyright, Yvette Neshi Lokotz, September 2011.

Medicine Wheel Creation Part 3 – Stone Selection and Positioning

Selecting stones to build the Medicine Wheel is the next important step. I like to use indigenous rocks, but you can also use crystals. I use different crystals for their qualities (The Crystal Bible) and how those qualities can be used to hold the Medicine of the directions.

To create the large outdoor Earth Medicine Wheel, I used primarily indigenous rocks (in Wisconsin we have quartzite). A few of the stones were given to me by my parents and other stones came from other states we have lived in. There are a total of 49 stones of large, medium and small sizes. Each stone was asked if it was willing to participate in the Medicine Wheel and if it was willing to hold the intention of the Wheel. Each stone was also asked which energies of the direction they would lie in. The questions are asked individually to each stone. Place your hands on the individual stone to ask them the question. Then, wait for the response, you will feel the yes or the no. If you receive a no response, honor the stones decision and ask the next stone.

I purchased the largest stones from a local landscaping business (if you know someone with field stones you may not have to purchase large stones). Paul and I were very busy during this time. I knew the Medicine Wheel was to be completed at the Summer Solstice, June 21. Paul, volunteered to help.  For me, it was a lesson in letting go of control and to be open to receiving. I also remembered this Medicine Wheel is for All of us. So, I asked Paul to assist with the selection and buying of the large stones. I texted him the questions to ask each of the stones that attracted him. Paul came home with 5 stones. He said one of the stones had a very strong pull and loud/strong yes even though it was the fifth stone. He listened to his intuition and bought the fifth stone.

I smudged each stone with cedar (cedar is used by the Potawatomi people much like white sage is used for the Great Plains tribal Nations). Prior to placing the stone in its positions they agreed to hold. I also placed tobacco down where the stone would sit. The tobacco held prayers for the stone to hold the energy of that particular direction and also gratefulness for the stone’s assistance. The placement of the stones takes some time and it is not to be rushed through. So take your time and enjoy the communion with the Stone People.

The 5th stone had a special energy and was meant to hold the energy of the center of the Medicine Wheel. I generally leave the center open or place a fire there for certain ceremonies. After I placed the stone in the center, I was reminded of how the Peruvian Medicine People place a stone in the center called Pachumama. Also, recently the Mayan Council of Elders released a statement that we, Native People, now have 5 elements. This change is a part of the new energy, the New Earth, and the beginning of the New Cycle. This fifth element is Spirit. As I knelt with my hands on this center stone, I felt completeness of laying of stones ceremony.

Here is the layout of the Earth Medicine Wheel Stones. (Remember each stone agreed to hold the Medicine of that particular place on the Wheel):

4 large stones to hold the energies of the 4 cardinal directions on the outside ring of the Medicine Wheel.

4 smaller stones holding the energies on the inner circle of the Medicine Wheel.

1 stone for the Center.

24 small stones (black dots) – 4 placed between the large stone holding the East Medicine on the outside ring and the smaller stone hold the East Medicine on the inside ring; 4 placed between the large stone holding the South Medicine on the outside ring and the smaller stone holding the South Medicine on the inside ring; 4 placed between the large stone holding the West Medicine on the outside ring and the smaller stone holding the West Medicine on the inside circle; 4 placed between the large stone holding the North Medicine on the outside ring and the smaller stone holding the North Medicine on the inside ring.

4 smaller stones for the crosswinds (yellow dots). Place 1 stone halfway between the East and South and half way to the center; place 1 stone halfway between the South and West and half way to the center; place 1 stone halfway between the West and North and half way to the center; place 1 stone halfway between the North and East and half way to the center.

8 small stones – 2 placed on the outer ring between the East and South; 2 placed between South and West; 2 placed between West and North; 2 placed between North and East.

4 small stones for the inner circle – 1 placed between the East and South; 1 placed between South and West; 1 placed between West and North; and 1 placed between North and South.

Once all the stones are in the place, take a deep breath and look at the Medicine Wheel. You can feel the stableness of the stones. The next step is to wake up the stones. This waking up process is activating the altar. The activation or waking up is done through ceremony.

In the next blog for Creating a Medicine Wheel, I will share with you the Waking Up Ceremony. Until then…good reading.

All Rights Reserved. Copyright, Yvette Neshi Lokotz, Sept 2011