A HEALING CEREMONY
FOR
PLANET EARTH
"In healing yourself,This is a second-generation computer image of a painting I created several years ago. one day, a kachina manifested in my inner vision so strongly that I was compelled to create an outer image of it. This was only a week after a hundred and twenty people had joined me for my annual Earth Healing Ceremony. That ceremony had taken place on Powderface Ridge, high on a mountain west of Bragg Creek, Alberta. Thus the name of the painting: Powderface Kachina.
Kachinas are spiritual mediators working for the benefit of Humanity and are invoked through ceremony and prayer. The Hopi native people have developed this form of invocation to a high degree. Men within the community are charged with the responsibility of keeping the channels open to the particular kachina with which they are related.
I feel honored to have been touched by this spiritual presence and have realized that I am being called to, myself, keep the spirit of it alive through facilitation of an annual Healing Ceremony for Planet Earth.
In 1998, I found myself on a river raft, floating through the Grand Canyon at the designated time of the Healing Ceremony. It is timed to occur at the Full Moon, each year, when the Sun is in the astrological sign of Gemini.
We had arrived at a point deep within the canyon and had set up camp on a small sandy beach at water's edge. Across the river and high up above a high foothill, was a huge rock face, very evocative of a human-like figure. To me, it was a kachina, much the same in spirit to the Powederface Kachina.
Empowered by
this encounter, I scouted the area for an appropriate site to
conduct the ceremony. Much to my delight, I found a small canyon
nearby filled with incredible rock formations and cactuses of
all sizes. Ascending the canyon, I encountered a natural enclave
of stones surrounding a central rock that would serve nicely
as an altar. I dubbed the area "Cactus Kiva".
Later that evening, as the luminescent glow of the Full Moon bathed the clouds overhead, my companions and I smudged with sage and cedar, then silently entered the canyon, where it was much darker than before. I was in the lead and was becoming increasingly aware that people were tired from a long day on the river. With this in mind, and not too far up the canyon, we entered an area that suddenly seemed more appropriate for the ceremony than the spot I had originally chosen. Not so! Just as I was about to announce it as the place of choice, a Grand Canyon Pink Rattlesnake made its presence known to us by sounding its rattle! We all jumped to attention and stood absolutely still as the snake proceeded to curl itself up in a small opening in the rocks. We all came to the agreement that we should bypass this particular spot and should push on to the intended location. This we did, having felt blessed by the rarity of our encounter with such a wild creature in its native habitat.
Arriving at the original site of choice, we formed a circle around the central stone. I shared a medicine pipe I had created for such ceremonial times. The bowl of the pipe (signifying the Eternal Feminine principle) was filled by passing it around to each participant and having them place a prayer in the bowl, along with a pinch of tobacco. Once all our prayers had been offered in this way, the stem of the pipe (signifying the Eternal Male principle) was connected to the bowl, thus signifying the Eternal Marriage of these two fundamental principles.
The pipe was smoked and passed from person to person. Stories and more prayers were shared and when all our prayers had drifted up to the heavens, the pipe was emptied of its ash and we gave our last thank-yous to Spirit. Then down the trail we went, back to camp, careful not to disturb our neighbour along the way....
"Together with all nations,
we protect both land and life
and hold the world in balance."
Hopi prayer
INDEX DWAYNE