A
HEALING
CEREMONY
FOR
PLANET
EARTH
INTERVIEW
(1996)
by Danielle Rania Rourke
It
brings me great joy to conduct and produce my very first interview
with someone as special as my own father.
Dwayne Edward Rourke has, for twenty years, been dedicated
to facilitation of an annual healing ceremony called A
Healing Ceremony For Planet Earth. The Healing Ceremony For
Planet Earth is a Hopi Indian ceremony, that
has been co-created in many places, by many different people
throughout the world. This interview with my dad, will hopefully
give you an understanding of what this sacred ceremony is, why
it is important, and how you may participate in the upcoming
Healing Ceremony For Planet Earth, June 1st , 1996.
DANIELLE I know you have been promoting the annual
Healing Ceremony For Planet Earth, since its roots of creation
in 1976. Please provide some background
on the creation of this sacred ceremony, and reveal to us the
significance of your initial participation.
DWAYNE In 1975, I received in the mail, a networked
invitation from Hopi Indian spiritual leaders. The same invitation
had been sent to people all over the world. It invited them to
co-create with Hopi, a healing ceremony for planet Earth. It
was very moving for me personally to experience such an offer.
I saw immediately that was an opportunity to act decisively to
create something that would, in fact, help to heal the Earth.
Although I had never done anything like it before in my life,
I knew that within me there was a being who could act simply
and straight forwardly to honour the Earth. I went into meditation,
and allowed myself to imagine what was possible. Immediately,
a favourite mountain of mine, west of my home town of Calgary,
came to mind. I experienced the mountain inviting me to come
to its top for the ceremony. I followed through with this inspiration
and by the time of the event, I was joined on that mountain top
by eighteen other people, all inspired by the same vision, and
many of whom I had never met before. In bringing ourselves together
in this very special way, we not only came closer to each other,
we came closer to the Earth. This is the vital link in all of
the Earth Healing initiative: the bonding to the Earth and to
each other. We all knew that at exactly 9:15, the exact time
of the full moon, people all over the world would be doing something
with the same purpose in mind. It was a global simultaneous link-up.
Most of us found that by taking on a journey such as this one,
a depth of passion was called for. Many people had never climbed
a mountain before, but the radiant idea of a profound spiritual
experience carried us quickly up that mountain. By the time we
reached a point very near the top, we were truly ready to receive.
And receive we did! We had gathered on that mountain top, with
the wind blowing strongly, awaiting the exact moment of convergence.
Now imagine how it felt when, at exactly 9:15, the wind stopped,
and a profound Silence filled the space. It was a moment of incredible
Grace, and in that moment, there was a descent of spiritual energy
into the group felt by everyone. The experience I had, literally
changed my life. Shortly after the initial moment of empowerment,
I made a commitment to myself, to facilitate the ceremony on
an annual basis. That was twenty years ago. Until last year,
I had always held the Healing Ceremony For Planet Earth in the
Calgary area. In 1995, I moved to the West Coast, and I was delighted
to conduct the ceremony at the original Hopi site in Vancouver,
at Jericho Beach where a small fire pit and a few rocks remain
as a reminder of the original ceremony.
DANIELLE Would you tell us the importance of the
Hopi vision, and reflect on why this is so important in today's
world?
DWAYNE Hopi is offering us a way through the incredibIy
complex times we live in, and I believe the message centres on
simplicity. The Healing Ceremony For Planet Earth initiative
emanates from a very pure, simple, and accessible source within
Hopi tradition. It is one that consistently honours the Creator,
and honours the Earth. By aligning our hearts with the Hopi initiative,
we are able to align ourselves with a spiritual impulse moving
in the direction of wholeness and completion. On the day of the
Earth Healing Ceremony, we are able to co-create a simultaneous,
heart-felt experience of expanding global consciousness. We do
that best by holding in our hearts, an image of the whole Earth
and its healing, knowing that each one of us plays a very important
part in the process, and that each one of us has a direct line
to the centre of the Earth. The love and gratitude that is in
our hearts, can truly be transmitted back to the Earth at such
a sacred time.
DANIELLE From your own personal experience of leadership
in past ceremonies, describe the impact it has had on its participants,
and how someone can personally prepare for the event?
DWAYNE I have seen people spontaneously open
to a depth of spiritual insight and expression that had been
previously unavailable to them. I have seen, and experienced
personally, the formation of life-long friendships during the
ceremony. And I have seen people redirect their whole lives along
a more spiritual path as a result of encountering the energy
made available. One woman I know, set out on a two-year spiritual
journey around the world, as a direct result of what she experienced
in the ceremony that year. Another woman used it as a symbolic
starting-point for a similar journey that took her to sacred
sites all over the planet. For everyone participating, some form
of purification is appropriate in the days and weeks preceding
the event. This could mean fasting, a sweat lodge, abstinence
from drugs or alcohol, eating better, or whatever. It is really
up to each individual to decide. Everyone has his or her own
way of dealing with this opportunity. There is no right or wrong
way, simply do what is in your heart. Each one of us has an inner
knowing about what is appropriate. The ceremony supports your
true individuality in the sense that it acknowledges the unique
spiritual nature of each of us. Each one of us, as a human being,
is a member of a single species. As a result, we have both a
unity, and a diversity, within us. The Healing Ceremony For Planet
Earth honours both.
DANIELLE he creation of the ceremony itself is
up to each person. Where you choose to hold the ceremony has
a special importance. How does the choice of location affect
our experience, and make us more aware of honouring the earth?
DWAYNE Much of the quality of the experience
depends on where we are because the spirit of place means a lot.
The mountain I spoke of has its own particular spirit of place.
Jericho Beach has its own spirit of place, different from any
other place. The individual in us can respond precisely here,
by remembering places in our experience that have touched us
deeply. It is places like that, that we can go to and really
create a profound ceremony. The process begins the moment we
remember and appreciate the spot. In this way, we become increasingly
aware of the cycles of nature. Hopi understand the cycles of
nature. They understand that if we destroy the Earth, we are
destroying ourselves, and that what we destroy, will eventually
come back to haunt us. Hopi remind us that it is important for
us to get back to taking responsibility for our actions, in the
moment. We have to address each and every momentary action and
assess whether or not, in the overall scheme of things, it is
in balance and harmony with the rest of Creation. In terms of
environmental concerns, such an awareness cannot but help us
to look more deeply into the environment, as ourselves, and to
see what we are doing to ourselves. Industrialisation has created
so many layers of insulation between us and the natural energies,
that we've lost a very vital connection. We spend endless hours,
days, even years, caught inside a web of human activity that
is not necessarily in harmony with other species or with the
planet as a whole. To the extent that we can regain the sacred
view and embody it in our daily lives, to that extent will we
begin to correct some of the environmental imbalances we have
created on the planet.
DANIELLE Would you briefly give an outline of ways
in which people can participate?
DWAYNE The opportunity to simultaneously join
with people all over the world in sacred ceremony is a great
gift. It is a gift from Mother Earth to each of us. I encourage
everyone to receive this gift by creating something that honours
their individuality and their own unique way of honouring this
sacred Earth. As we have said, deciding where you would like
to have your ceremony is important. Have a basic sense of the
form you would like to engage in. For example, will it be a walking
pilgrimage to the site, will it involve sharing in a talking
circle, or will it be a time spent alone? Will you express yourself
and celebrate, through music,dance,prose or poetry? This is up
to you as the initiator. Be clear as to what your intent is,
formulate an expression of this, and release it. Move with it.
Follow your heart. Its your heart that guides you in the process.
If you are being true to yourself, you are being true to all
of us. On June 1st , 1996 do something that will connect you
more deeply with the Earth and with all of Humanity. Let the
life force of the Earth flow through you. The rewards are life-long
and rich. You will not be disappointed.
DANIELLE Please share your plans for the future
event this June.
DWAYNE At this point I'm not sure whether I'll
return to Jericho Beach and the original site, or whether I'll
work closer to our home here in West Vancouver. There is a very
beautiful and appropriate spot a couple of blocks from our home
that has really spoken to me. So right now, I'm simply allowing
myself to be led to the right place. I know that what Spirit
wants to bring me will come through if I simply allow myself
to receive. I do know that I will be aiming to converge at the
exact time of the full moon once again, which will be 1:47 PM
PST.
DANIELLE The inter-connectedness we all share between
us here on Earth, is beginning to become apparent at an ever-increasing
rate. By gaining further understanding of the ancient wisdom
teachings of native peoples, we gain insight into our future.
On June 1st, 1996, I hope people everywhere will be moved to
participate in this global, simultaneous link up, that will further
Humanity's connection with our sacred Mother Earth.
DWAYNE Ho!
"Together
with all nations,
we protect both land and life
and hold the world in balance."
Hopi
prayer