One Drum

Richard Wagamese (2019).? One drum: Stories and ceremonies for a planet.? Douglas & McIntyre: BC

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15? In our Native way the medicines are sweetgrass, sage, cedar and tobacco

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20? Humility … Perhaps it is our greatest gift, because it is so difficult to return to and hold … Humility’s opposite is pride.? Pride’s foundation is built on fear

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22? in these times, we feel farther apart from each other than ever before … Our world draws out our differences … We have learned collectively that it is easier to push away than it is to bring closer.? So we allow our differences to keep us apart

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24? the most profound truth in the universe is this: we are all one drum and we need each other

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27? As a human family we need to work deliberately at harmony

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27? The Seven Grandfather Teachings – humility, courage, respect, love, honesty, truth and wisdom – are an ancient way of recognizing the principles required to live a good life in a good way

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28? There is a shaman in each of us and we are all teachers … In the world of the spirit there is no right or wrong way

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31-32? What begins in wonder is learned in earnest

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32? walk gently upon the Earth and do each other no harm

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40-41? first … “Humility is the foundation of everything.? To know yourself as a sacred part of Creation is to know Humility.”

second … “Courage is the foundation of faith.? To face a foe with integrity is to have Courage.”

third … “Humility in action is Respect.? To honour all of Creation is to have Respect.”

fourth … “The energy that heals all things is Love.? To know Love is to know Peace.? To extend Love is to create Peace.”

fifth … “To carry Honesty is to recognize Equality.? There is none lesser or greater. ?To treat all as your brother or your sister is to carry Honesty.”

sixth … “To know all of these things is to know Truth.”

seventh … “Every earnest search arrives here.? To cherish knowledge is to know Wisdom.”

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43? Anishinabeg … translates to “the people.” … “All My Relations” means everybody, everywhere, at all times.? It also refers to everything present in Creation

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47-62? the … Animal People … needed to choose a leader … a process for choosing … a race … Horse … Buffalo … Cougar … Wolverine … terrain is challenging … four times around that lake … anyone else …?? Waabooz the rabbit … “Don’t worry about me.? I’m here to enjoy the challenge … It is a noble pursuit and it asks everything I have ... It can never be a struggle to engage in a noble cause … your struggle itself is what traps you … barriers … are built of many parts … I learned to be patient … I am not certain … But Trust does not require certainty … You must sacrifice your doubt now to help your brother.”? “Are you sure?” … “No … But I am not the one who has to be … You discover much when you learn to look at things … There is no failure when judgment does not exist,” … They crossed the finish line together … “… I do not want to be the leader … I entered to learn what I did not know … I understood the meaning of leadership … But I did not understand the territory … I understand that when all our energies are directed toward the same goal there is no need for one to lead.? We all help each other complete the journey … there is much I have not seen or learned … It is in the journey that one comes to understand the territory.? It is in the journey that one becomes wise …”

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62? Everything begins with humility … the spiritual byproduct of humility is sharing … Sharing is not about goods or food or money.? Rather, its intention is the stuff of the spirit – understanding, empathy, compassion, love, kindness, honour

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64? Indigenous people have always said that the Earth is our university

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65? We are part of everything … Everything is joined.? Everything is connected

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67? we think we should be taking action to be and to do and to have … The whole of human history has been built on this thinking and it has caused great harm to the planet

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67? When we choose to be happy first, we can do anything, and we will have everything we need because we are already happy

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72? Within the realm of perfect love there is no judgment.? If there is no judgment then there can be no failure.? In turn, if failure does not exist, there is no unworthiness

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74-77? this first ceremony is called the Sacred Breath Ceremony … it is most useful first thing in the morning … Find a place where you can be alone … Relax … Breathe.? As you breathe, allow yourself to feel the process … allow one thought to be present … do not use music or chants … it is best to perform this ceremony in silence.? You can always choose differently, because that is your right, but it is most beneficial to do it in a silent way.? If you want to pray, do it after the ritual

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77-78? if there is one choice that empowers more than any other, it is finding time to walk to an open stretch of ground … So once a week at least, build a walk into your schedule and do the [Sacred Breath] ceremony outdoors

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78? The Sacred Breath Ceremony will let you feel humility.? You will feel a part of everything.? You will feel joined and connected and that feeling will change how you live your life and how you treat the planet … Do it together … eliminate separation and create harmony

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80-81 ?[Lorraine Sinclair] “This is how you change the world,” … do what was doable and to do it right now … we think we need to change it all at once … the opposite was true.? If I were to concentrate my energy on the things that were achievable right now within my circle of influence, change would happen … the smallest circles first

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85? The Planet is the epitome of a humble being … She shows us harmony, unity, loyalty, fidelity, trust, interdependence, forgiveness, compassion and empathy

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86? Humble beings exist as a matter of fact.? They do not draw attention to themselves.? They exist quietly.? They live simply and they simply live … Indigenous people around the world learned that humility is the most powerful force in Creation

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87-89? As civilizations developed on their various paths we learned to feel superior, we learned to control, we learned to use physical power, we learned to exercise our fear masked as progress – the wish for more power and control … We learned to exist for the grand illusion – that we can control things on the planet … technology … When those with technology encountered those without the need for it, the latter were called savages … The land had become a resource

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89? the Ojibway … learned that Sacrifice was the ultimate act of humility

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90? Sky Woman … turtle … Loon, Beaver and Muskrat

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91? Pride is the opposite of humility … In the rich soil of humility all things grow … the spiritual byproduct of living a principled life is gratitude

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91-92? In the Ojibway way of seeing, a gift is an empowerment … even difficulties are gifts, even hardship, even sorrow or the perception of loss are gifts because they … teach us something vital about ourselves … So the second ceremony is about gratitude

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93? THE SECOND CEREMONY:? The Tobacco Offering

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93? tobacco … in Ojibway life … is widely used as a sign of thankfulness

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100? share the story of your ceremony … because all ceremonies are only completed when they are shared

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100? have a relationship with the principle of gratitude

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103? Spirituality sees the highest expression of itself in community

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103-104? Within each of us is a shaman.? Within each of us is a teacher.? Within each of us is a storyteller

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122? With Humility as its guide, Courage becomes a powerful energy

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122-124? Courage means you can face a foe with integrity and the foe in our human experience is fear.? Fear is the absence of faith.? Courage is walking with faith

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125? I grew up feeling very much like a fence post in a field of snow – everything around me was white and I never felt like I belonged

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125-129? Lakota Sioux war chief Crazy Horse … “Today is a good day to die.” … Albert Lightning … “… If, in the end, he could not bring himself to pray for his foe and for the well-being of his foe’s people, he would not allow himself to fight … They are the words of one who has considered harmony and the honouring of a spiritual way.? So in the end, they are the words of a very brave person, because only when you can face the foe with integrity are you truly brave.”?

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130? fear and courage share a common trait: they both perpetuate themselves.? The difference is that courage is spiritual energy and fear is a spiritual lack.? Courage is humility in action and fear is the belief in separateness in action

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132? acronym … Faith … “Find an insight that heals.”

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134? THE THIRD CEREMONY: The Vision Quest

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135? This ceremony is all about Allowing ourselves to be brave … It asks us to move out of our comfort zone.? It asks us to return to the state of innocence that we were born in and to embrace it despite ourselves

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140? As a species we have lost touch with the planet.? We have allowed ourselves to feel secure and safe only when there are separations between us and the natural world

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141? Mother Earth is a benign and humble being conducive to life

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142? In this ceremony … You have sat alone and unprotected through an entire night … You have allowed yourself to be one with your surroundings and with the planet

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147? from this process … the ability to determine how little we actually need to survive … walk gently upon the Earth and do each other no harm

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148? One of the greatest fears we carry as a species is the fear of lack, of not having enough … we become so attached to protecting and enhancing our own little corner of the world that we allow ourselves to forget that we are all connected … and that everything we do or choose affects someone or something else … So, when we fear lack, we create it

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149? An empty mind is a full mind.? A human being has to have nothing to have everything

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151? THE FOURTH CEREMONY:? Acting Outwardly

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151? Acting Outwardly … is ongoing and it is meant to become the basis of living a good life

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151? By removing ourselves from things we come to lean on for security in our lives we realize that … we are never separate, never insecure or unsecured

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151-152? we make sacrifices every waking day of our lives.? It’s an essential part of existence and transformation … The purpose of this ceremony is to make ourselves aware of the sacrifice and the bravery in our lives … choosing to act as brave beings

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152-153? It’s all about need.? Look around your home and make a list of all the things you need … Do it mindfully … what it is that you truly and absolutely need … what you need to be happy and secure, will become the nature of your sacrifice … food … buy … food and donate it to a local food bank … clothing … find a meaningful way to donate clothing … taking care of others

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153? In traditional tribal times when hunters returned with game, the very first thing they did was make sure that everyone else in the community had food first … Then they took what was left for themselves.? In our world today we do the opposite

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155? The fear of not having enough drives us to hoard, to overspend and to protect those things we deem important to our security

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158? [Jack Kakakaway] “… it takes a heck of a lot of work to be that graceful.”

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160? Choice is a powerful teacher … each choice carries within it the power to choose again … When we make a choice that leads you astray but choose again in order to return to the path, that is an act of bravery, an act of faith

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162? There are no right or wrong choices because there is no judgment … There are only stronger and weaker choices.? We find ourselves through the power of choice

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165? Rueben [an inquisitive raven].? Everyone spoke fondly of him … they appreciated his quest for knowledge and his determination to understand things

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165-166? “Wonder is the glue that holds everything together.? It keeps you searching, eager for more.? Out of wonder comes awe and out of awe comes respect and that’s the most valuable gift of all.”

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170? If he could soar like Migizi [the eagle] maybe others would regard him like her

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177? “That was the most amazing thing I have ever seen … I’ve never seen anyone plummet before.”

“I was soaring,”

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177-178? Migizi has respect for you … She knows how powerful wonder and curiosity are.? She knows how great a thing it is to be sociable, part of a community, and to take the time to investigate the things and beings around you.? She knows how special it is to be able to celebrate knowledge and to be willing to share it with all who will hear you … You don’t need … to be someone other than who you were created to be … respect is not something you earn … It’s something you carry …”

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181? respect … it starts with the giving

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188? [Jack Kakakaway] “… We travel from where we began to where we are now and that journey is all we have …”

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188-190? “Are you breathing? … Then you’re qualified … When you know what you do not know, you have knowledge.”?