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Smudging
has been used since ancient times by many people as a ceremony
of purification--among pre-Christian pagans as well as Catholic and Eastern
Orthodox churches, among Hindus and Buddhists as well as Cherokee and
Lakota. Called "incense" in some traditions, it can be made of a variety of
fragrant plant materials. Native Americans have used their local plants of
obtained more exotic materials through trade with tribes of other regions.
Among the plants used for smudge are tobacco, sweetgrass, calamus, red
willow bark, red osier dogwood, cedar needles and sage. (This is not
culinary sage of the genus Salvia, but is one of the species of the genus
Artemisia, which includes the landscape perennials, silver mound and silver
king, as well as sagebrush and mugwort.) I have gathered my favorite sage in the
Rocky Mountains of Utah, Nevada, and northeastern California. Its fragrance
is wonderful before and during the smudging.
 The
chosen plant material should be dried and tied into bundles with cotton
string or any other natural plant fiber. We wrap bundles as thick as our
hands can hold. Four colors of string is combined to honor the four
directions--red for the east, yellow for the south, black for the west, and
white for the north. Or the material can be crumbled, cut or coarsely ground
and stored in a container that prevents the loss of the aromatic oils that
give sage its characteristic fragrance.
A natural container is needed to hold the mixture as it burns or smolders.
Some prefer a large shell (although some people believe that a shell has
water energy which impairs the fire energy of the smudge), others use an
earthenware bowl or a hollowed rock.
 You
will need a way to fan the embers to keep them burning. In some
traditions, it is considered disrespectful to blow upon the smudge with
one's breath. You can use your hand to sweep air into the embers, but a
feather, feather fan, or wing are much more effective. To keep smudge
burning you will also need matches or perhaps a lighter.
You can use this ceremony to purify and cleanse people, places and things.
Smudging brings an awareness of the sacred and should be performed with
sensitivity and respect. As you add each pinch of the smudge mixture to
the shell or pot, offer thanks to the Grandmothers and Grandfathers of
each of the four directions, The order of honoring may differ from nation
to nation. Some start with the east, others from the north or east. Always
the rotation is sunwise, following the path of the sun
(east-south-west-north, for example). Then to Mother Earth (down), Grandfather
Sun (up) and finally to the Great Mystery within all things (brought to
your heart).
Bring all of the smudge together in a mound in the center of the
container. After igniting the mixture, fan it until it is burning well.
Continue to fan the embers as needed to keep them smoldering. Once again
offer the smoke to the seven directions--East, South, West, North, Mother
Earth, Father Sun, and the Great Mystery. Cleanse yourself by drawing the
smoke over your head, over each shoulder, and over your heart. With the
help of another, you can be cleansed under each foot, along your legs and
across your back. Sacred space is smudged before it is entered by others
or at the beginning of the ceremony. Pass through the smoke whatever
ceremonial instrument you wish to use--the fan, the pipe, your hands, a
dream catcher. This is a useful way to cleanse your dream catcher to make
it ready for use.
When the ceremony is complete, the ashes should be totally burned (avoid
using more than you will need) and respectfully returned to Mother Earth,
perhaps at the base of a tree, a shrub, or rock. Never dump the ashes into
the garbage or trash. The purpose of the medicine path is to always walk
in beauty, in balance between ego and heart, honoring the Great Mystery
within you and All That Is, and respecting all other beings in the Web of
Life. Ah hau!
Our large, fat sage bundles when available are $7.00 each.
White Eagle Soaring: Dream Dancer of the 7th Fire
This is a crazy world. What can be
done? Amazingly, we have been mislead. We have been taught that we can
control government by voting. The founder of the Rothschild dynasty, Mayer
Amschel Bauer, told the secret of controlling the government of a nation
over 200 years ago. He said, "Permit me to issue and control the money of
a nation and I care not who makes its laws." Get the picture? Your freedom
hinges first on the nation's banks and money system. That's why we
advocate using the
Liberty Dollar, to understand the
monetary and banking system. Freedom is connected with
Debt Elimination for each individual. Not
only does this end personal debt, it places the people first in line as
creditors to the National Debt ahead of the banks. They don't wish for you
to know this. It has to do with recognizing WHO you really are in
A New Beginning: A Practical Course in Miracles.
You CAN
take
back your power and
stop volunteering to pay taxes to the collection
agency for the BEAST. You can take back that which is yours,
always has been yours and use it to pay off your debts. And you can send
others to these pages to discover what you are discovering.
Disclaimer: The
statements on www.real-dream-catchers.com have not been evaluated by the FDA.
These dream catchers are not intended to diagnose nor treat nor cure any
disease or illness
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© 2007, Allen Aslan Heart / White Eagle Soaring
of the Little Shell Pembina Band,
a Treaty
Tribe of the Ojibwe Nation.
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