The Medicine of the East

I will be taking 4 Shamanic trips into the desert over the next year to work with the 4 cardinal points on the medicine wheel: North, South, East and West. My shamanic focus for the first southwest quest was working with the medicine of the East. The animal is the eagle and the element is Air. The attributes are inspirational, far-sighted, fiercely protective, clarity.

This is as much a poem or prayer of that journey as it is an essay. It is an integration. It is a destination. It is the clearing of space for essence to just be. And there are some beautiful prayers/poems at the end.

As I drive out of the city of Santa Fe, home to so many earthly, human creations (it is the third largest art capital in the US), the skies open up, the landscape extends limitlessly and so does my heart. The peace and stillness of the landscape entrain my mental state to complete calm. At this moment, I always tip my hat to Georgia O’Keefe, as this was her country.

I ask Eagle and the medicine of the East for clarity, for information, and for insight. My vision is that I am connecting to source. Filling up from the deep well available to me in the high desert, clay earth stillness. And that is the whole journey: My intention. Nature. Spirit. The tools of my voice and my flute—and it was full.

Interestingly, in an unplanned visit to the San Ildefonso Pueblo, I saw a buffalo dance. The buffalo is the guardian of the north and has the medicine of grounding and protection.   So I will consider that I had a bit of a Northeast retreat (which is where I am from, the northeast) and give thanks for the grounding to anchor the flight.

Here I share the prayers to source that I wrote. It is a blend of me, Terry Patten’s integral heart approach to prayer, and mysticism a la Rumi.

Prayer #1:

You, who has spread the table with such abundance,
Who has spread my table with such abundance.
Support me, as I AM LOVE.
Support this love to its highest expression.
Support this vessel to its highest vibration.
That I may do the work.
My piece of the work.

You, creator of majestic snow capped mountain peaks.
Cloud cities in the sky.
Miraculous lakes and rivers.
Spectacular life forms of all manner.
Giant galaxies and brilliant rainbows.
The glory of the sunlight and the trees.
The ultimate beauty, peace and joy of love.

Thank you for these gifts.

Support the unfolding of this flower,
This success,
This beam of crystal light
and heavenly vibration.
I give thanks and joy.

Prayer #2:

You who I adore,
Who I dedicate my life to.
I praise you,
I sing your praises,
I write your praises,
I feel your heart,
I open my heart to you!

I open my heart to you,
And thank you for
The gift of trust
This engenders in me.

Prayer #3

Please let me not live
without love.
Please let me enter down the
Intricate veins and arteries
To the truth.
To you.

Sparkling brighter than
Any light I can see.
Any earthly light we know.
Please let me not live without
Your rays that feed my soul.

Prayer #4:

You,
The way I love you
I will follow you anywhere.
Through my hunger and fear and discomfort.
I will be all eyes on you,
As you whisper humorously
About the ironies of your creations.
Nothing pleases me more
Than to listen to your stories with fascination.
Taking the long road home, slowly.

All the while blossoming
In your sun and fields and flowers.
And before I know it
I am joy.
I am love.
I am we.
I am.

Meditation:

So much would I change,
So much have I changed.