Now is the Time--Earth Day April 22, 2010

Crying Indian | Viral/Other | SPIKE.com

I hope you understand what Earth Day is truly about. Once you do, you will appreciate the time and effort and human contributions in making our country a healthier environment. Behind every great movement there is a spirit of some type of injustice. The movement brings awareness to the injustice and to get people to take a stand against the injustice. In most cases the energy associated with both the movement and injustice proliferates as in the case of the Environmental Movement.

The environmental injustice in America didn’t just start in the 1970s, but in the early settling of this country. The movie, Avatar, is a perfect example of how the native’s belief of preserving and honoring the mineral, plant and animal life clashed with their suppressors, who believed in cultivating and using the land for power and procurement of money. Environmentalism is also rooted in the American Philosophical Thought of the 1830s and 1840s by such Transcendentalist as Henry David Thoreau. In his book, Maine Woods, he called for the conservation of and the respect for nature and the federal preservation of virgin forest. Those in power didn’t listen. They pushed for expansion toppling anything, place or person that got in the way. And that brings us to the 1970s.

By then, environmental groups had sprung up fighting against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife. I remember the commercial, “Keep American Beautiful-the Crying Indian.” It carried a powerful message: If people can start pollution, they can also stop it. See the video above.

On April 22, 1970, the Environmental Movement was born when the then U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, Gaylord Nelson, organized the first nationwide environment protest. Here’s the paradox: the Environmental Movement led to the establishment of United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Act. And that was a good thing; but it’s sad that we need laws to protect that which should be natural. We now have to pay for water, and I’m concerned that in the future we might have to pay for clean air. Sounds bizarre? But decades ago so did paying for water. The fight for a clean environment continues as one tear has turned into millions of global tears.

What can you do? Find out about going green in Wednesday’s blog.

Angels, Poetry and Prose

Thank you for being our guardian angel!
Having come to our rescue in our time of need.
Angels love people as parents love children,
Nor could we a better have found of the breed,
Knowing how hard such a one is to wangle!

Yet you, with your wings and your halo half-hidden,
On us have descended with glory unbidden,
Undoing the darkness our fate had decreed.

                                                       anonymous

One evening while doing my power walk at the track, I was asked by several children to retrieve a ball that one of them had kicked accidentally onto the grassy area of the track over a high wrought iron fence. Looking into their pleading faces, I decided to retrieve the ball. I had to step onto the grassy area that was overgrown with weeds and tall grass. A little apprehensive about stepping into this miniature jungle, I hurried to get the ball. Putting my keys into my pocket, I picked up the ball and tossed it toward the fence. It bounced off the fence. Laughing at my folly, I tried again and again. Finally, moving closer to the high fence, I managed to get the ball over it. 

As I turned to resume my walk, I put my hand into my jacket pocket and my keys were gone. I had dropped them somewhere in the grass.  I screamed out to the children, I had lost my keys. They tried to help me but there was little they could do standing on the other side of the fence.  I looked around the area and was unable to locate them.  I soon became frightened and worried, because both my car and house keys were on the same chain and dust was settling in. Soon a couple of adults on the other side of the fence offered to help. One went to get a flash light.  I stopped searching and called out, “Angels I need your help.”  I had no more uttered the words when I turned around and saw my keys lying in the grass a few feet away from me.  Elated I grabbed them, and the children, who never left the fence, screamed in delight. Indeed, angels do come to our rescue in time of need. Thank you angels, I love you….

Sarah Palin- Check Out Her Numbers, They Don't Lie

Sarah Palin is everywhere. The news media can’t get enough of her. You either hate or love her. What makes her so newsworthy? I decided to look at her birth date and her maiden name using the Pythagorean modern system of numerology to find out what Sarah Palin is really about. Numbers don’t lie. I also took into consideration the change in her vibration once she married.

                        Sarah       Louise         Heath

                        11918    363915     85128

                        20=2         27=9 24=6      17=8 Destiny number

                                                        Palin

                                                        71395                                                                                              25=7      18=9 Destiny number   

With an 8 destiny number, Sarah is all about the money, fame and power. Do not underestimate her ability to overcome obstacle in her climb to the top. What she lacks in experience and political knowledge, she has great inner strength and drive. In the tarot deck, the symbol for 8 is strength and courage. She will wait patiently for her plans to unfold. To many it might look as if she doesn’t have a plan and is all fluff, but they are so wrong and in time, as time is on her side, she will prove it. Unless, she succumbs to greed.  With an 8 destiny, money will be very important to her and she will feel as if she never has enough. Her pursuit of money will derail her quest for power. Also stubbornness, being ruled by her ego, relying on others to do the work for her and the lack of paying attention to details will either slow down her power and money quest or seriously hinder it. The name Palin vibrates to the compound number 25 and the single number 7, added to her first and second name makes her destiny change to a 9 vibration.  The 9 gives her the world as her platform, but being vulnerable to her enemies. Whether she is vibrating as an 8 or 9, Sarah Palin will get what she wants by catching others by surprise—like her resignation from being the Governor of Alaska to assume a more profitable and visible position as a bestselling author and media Consultant. 9 vibrations are known as the “big brother” or “big sister” of humanity.

Life Path

February   11      1964

2            11      20     =33/6                        

33/6 Life path

11/2 Birth number

The master number 33 is not an easy life path. It requires that the soul put others first by demonstrating love and compassion for all.  Those born under this master number should be devoted to service and not money and power. It is no surprise that Sarah Palin has a special needs child.  Her inner spirit is one of a teacher and healer. Her family is very important to her. Her goal should be to become a citizen of the universe for the people and by the people and not just for money, power, or a political party.

Sarah’s birth number, 11, is also a master number. The 11 will test her honesty and sincerity, especially as she pursues her political career. Her house will fall if it is not built on truth.  There will be hidden trials and treachery surrounding her. Her question will be, “Who can I trust?” In Sarah’s case as one door closes another will always open, because her birth number is the cycle of new beginnings. Eventually, Sarah will have to ultimately choose between the high road or the low road.

A Colorless Society: a Parody

I asked myself what would happen if we lived in a colorless society. We wouldn’t have to check a box on the census form to determine who we are. The president wouldn’t have to pretend he is solely African American based on the one drop of black blood rule created during slavery, denying the existence of his mother’s family.  In a colorless society, we wouldn’t’ be judged by the color of our skin when applying for a job and housing. There wouldn’t be any racial profiling or racial crimes as seen in Spike Lee’s movie, Do the Right Thing,  that came out in 1989, but speaks volumes about what is happening in our society today.  

 I just finished reading the book, Don’t Bring Home a White Boy: and Other Notions that Keep Black Women from Dating Out, by one of my favorite authors, Karyn Langhorne Folan.  Just the title of this book should have you curious about the content. It is the subtitle that says it all. There are old beliefs or notions that keep some black women from interracial dating, and especially in today’s racial charged climate. But in a colorless society we don’t have that problem. You can date whomever you want to because we are all the same---spirits made in the image of the Creator. The body is our space suit to inhabit this planet. We change it every time we visit this planet; sometimes we wear a black, brown, white or yellow one. But the spirit always remains the same. I heard through the spiritual grapevine, that the Creator is thinking about changing all those old ones for a new one---it’s colorless.

Oh no, I hear a ringing. It’s my alarm clock. Looking at my brown arms, I realized I was back into my color space suit and have to check the race box on the census. I’m not into politics, so I can check several of these boxes. I’m not leaving out any of my ancestors.   

National Poetry Month and Timeless poetry

In celebration of National Poetry Month enjoy the timeless poetry of Rumi and other enlightened poets.

Some people work and become wealthy.
Others do the same and remain poor.
Marriage fills one with energy.
Another it drains.
Don't trust ways, they change.
A means flails about like a donkey's tail.
Always add the gratitude clause
To any sentence, if God wills,
Then go...
                                          Rumi

Living

Oh, what a beautiful thing.
I didn’t know how blessed I was until I woke hearing the birds chirp,
Seeing the sun rising and smelling the lilies blooming.
Oh, what a beautiful thing
I didn’t know how blessed I was until I felt the warm heart beats of the
Ones I love and walked in the shoes of my neighbors and friends.
Oh, what a beautiful thing.
I didn’t know how blessed I was until I stretched my mind
To see beyond the ordinary and reach out for the unattainable.
Oh, what a beautiful thing,
I didn’t know how blessed I was until I released the shuckles
That bound my mind that kept my body in bondage.
Oh, what a beautiful thing----Life

                                             Anonymous

---

I asked God to take away my habit.
God said, No.
It is not for me to take away,
but for you to give it up.
I asked God to make my handicapped child whole.
God said, No.
His spirit is whole, his body is only temporary
I asked God to grant me patience.
God said, No.
Patience is a byproduct of tribulations;
it isn't granted, it is learned.
I asked God to give me happiness.
God said, No.
I give you blessings; Happiness is up to you.
I asked God to spare me pain.
God said, No.
Suffering draws you apart from worldly cares and brings you closer to me.
I asked God to make my spirit grow.
God said, No.
You must grow on your own!
But I will prune you to make you fruitful.
I asked God for all things that I might enjoy life.
God said, No.
I give you life, so that you may enjoy all things.
I ask God to help me LOVE others, as much as He loves me.
God said...Ahhhh, finally you have the idea.

                                                              Anonymous

Part 11 of the Interview with Rev. Anthony Farmer, a Shaman

1. How did you become become involved in shamanism and become a shaman?

 Somewhere on my journey, I was told,  “you do not call yourself a shaman, your community calls you a shaman.”  I became involved in shamanism, or as I understand it, began walking the path of a shaman years ago after an experience of deep meditation and seeing myself as an eagle flying out and over the land. That meditation was followed by a dream, and I later realized I had undergone the first part of shamanic  initiation.  A whole new world opened up to me or opened within me, after I learned of the shamanic journey.  Since then, I have learned much from several teachers, in the physical world and spiritual world; have experienced several more initiations; and have learned through teaching others about themselves through shamanism, shamanic technology and ritual.

The pathway to becoming a shaman varies from culture to culture, and sometimes within a culture.  One shaman recounts that to become a shaman in his culture requires a transmission that comes from lightening, from a master shaman who determines you are ready or from a feeling deep within that calls one to the path.  This shaman tells that all three paths are strange and difficult.  I can say my journey on the path of a shaman continues to be strange, joyful and challenging.

2. Can you briefly tell the reader about any unusual occurrence you have had?

There have many, many so many.  The one that comes to mind other than the eagle meditation is an experience I had almost two years ago.  I was in the hospital, and it was not pleasant.  At one point a friend who was visiting me thought I was dying and ran down the hall to get help. That's how serious it was. Then one day, I had a conversation with Spirit about leaving my body and being ready to go…home.  Either that night or about two in the morning, I woke up and felt as if something was about to happen.  I opened my eyes and saw this ball of fire coming out of the universe.  It went right into my abdomen.  I remember saying “oh-o, something just happened.”  I went back to sleep.  A few days later I was getting out of the hospital.

3. What hidden worlds do shamans journey to?

 Again, it depends on their culture or the tradition they have been initiated into.  My guidance takes me into the three types of Otherworlds: upper world, the lower world and the middle world.  The upper world journey is like crossing into the Otherworld through a portal into the sky.  An example of such is like the movie The Wizard of Oz.  The lower world journey is traveling through a portal into the earth.  And example of such is like the story of Alice in Wonderland.  The middle world journey is a journey to the spiritual realm of the ordinary physical world we live in.  In each of the journey types, my power animal or another spiritual friend usually escorts me.  We never do anything alone. 

4. Are medicine men and women considered Shamans?

 The simple answer is yes.  However, you would need to understand the techniques, tools and technologies of the culture or tradition of that medicine men or medicine women.  It may be that in their tradition, they were the shamans.  Or they also have shamans in their community whose duties are separate from the medicine woman or medicine man.  Sometimes in our attempts to understand another’s culture, we over simplify it.

5. What is Soul healing and retrieval?

Soul retrieval is a technology a shaman, or shaman practitioner, uses to support a client in healing his or her soul, or restoring the split soul.  We all have life experiences that result in feeling “not all together” “mentally, physically or emotionally out of balance or out of sorts.” Like its impossible to move forward after a breakup or you feel numb, apathetic or deadened.  A person may experience soul loss where part of her vital essence separates in order to survive the experience.  It is like a part of us escapes to avoid the pain of the experience.  As we grow older, we realize that it is time to feel, connect and realize our wholeness.  The soul healing and soul retrieval are sacred rituals that support the client to this consciousness of wholeness.

Visit Rev. Anthony Farmer's  website at www.visionsoftheheart.org, or he can be contacted via revanthony@visionsoftheheart.org

Reverend Anthony Farmer Walks the Path of a Shaman

Reverend Anthony Farmer, OUnI, is an ordained Interfaith Minister (The New Seminary, New York) and an ordained Interfaith Cleric and Wisdom Keeper (The Order of Universal Interfaith, Washington, DC).  He walks the path of a shaman.  Reverend Farmer~BlackEagle is a spiritual teacher and guide, published author. “My spiritual journey began, consciously, in a deep meditation where my spirit shape-shifted into an eagle and soared out the window into the air.  Life has been an eventful ride on the rapids ever since.”  His website is www.visionsoftheheart.org and he can be contacted via revanthony@visionsoftheheart.org

1. What is a shaman?

There are so many definitions to this one word.  Shaman, from a word of the Tungus people of Asia, is one who enters into an ecstatic trance or shamanic journey to the spirit world to receive knowledge, ritual, or guidance to use in the healing of a patient.  The shaman is a bridge or intermediary between the physical world and the spirit world.  The shaman is one “who knows.”

2. What does a shaman do?

 The shaman is the one who holds a body of ancient techniques and knowledge that are used to restore and maintain “balance” through the healing of themselves, others and the community.  The shaman works with Spirit and spirit allies to achieve this energetic balance.  The shaman does nothing alone.  The word shaman has come to apply to those who may be understood as medicine men and women, witch doctors, herbalists, seers and visionaries, mystics, healers and numerous other people of spiritual depth, depending on the tradition and culture.

3. What are the principles of shamanism?

 The principles of shamanism are based on the tradition and culture.  The shaman is subject to the principles and understandings of his people.  The shaman also operates within the guidelines as dictated by her teachers through her training.  In my various readings and experiences, one thing is very true--shamans understand on a deep, intimate level the relationship of all things in the universe, in the physical and spiritual worlds and beyond.  Everything is connected.

4. Is shamanism a religion or what is it?

Shamanism is not a religion.  Shamans are not only  keepers of knowledge and techniques used in service to others, they are also the embodiment of this knowledge and power.  Some people will embrace the path of shamanism, using the various tools and techniques, without becoming a shaman.  To some people, shamanism is more than a philosophy or a way of being; it is who they are.  Alberto Villoldo, Ph.D. states in Shaman, Healer, Sage that, “a shaman is a self-realized person who discovers the way of Spirit through her inner awakening.

5. Do Shamans believe everything has a spirit?

 My understanding is everything has a spirit.  Everything is from the Great Spirit, or Mother/Father God.  And everything is connected, and that connection is spirit.  I understand that and I am still learning it.

Find out in the next blog how Rev. Tony became a shaman. His website is www.visionsoftheheart.org and he can be contacted via revanthony@visionsoftheheart.org