Hau Mitakuyepi

1994 declaration of war and the recent declaration of
some Sioux people may have repercussions that are not
intended. What does it mean to have a way of prayer
for all people that is then cut off from some of those
people? What does that say about the unity of all
people as all our relatives? What does the "sacred
hoop" mean? How can we continue to say "Mitakuye
oyasin" when we are saying that only people of certain
heritage can pray for all our relations (ie, such as,
in the sundance arbor)?

Maybe if our word is our 'connection to spirit', then
keeping the integrity of our word could help us to
maintain that connection?

If we hold the symbols of our 'connection to spirit' as
more important than the medicine of each individual
human, are we missing what each person may have to
share? What maintained our connection to spirit before
White Buffalo Calf Woman came to us? What did her way
of connecting to spirit take the place of? What about
all the people who connect to spirit in so many other
ways?

Truly prayer in our native language gives ways of
thinking that cannot be duplicated in English. But
does that mean that people without the Sioux language
cannot feel Spirit and offer heartfelt prayers for all
our relatives? Does that mean they should not pray
with a pipe or cannot feel enough compassion for their
relatives in a sweat lodge to be able to pour water
for them, if asked? Does that mean they cannot humble
themselves and cry out their deep desire to talk to
Creator in Hanbleciya? When our mothers and fathers
pass away, honoring their spirit in a soul-keeping
ceremony, is that first thought up by the Sioux
people, or, did the White Buffalo Calf Woman start
that ceremony for the Sioux people? What did we do
when our loved ones passed away before that? Did
people not go up to pray on high hills nor cleanse in
any sweat lodge before that? How did we appreciate our
connection to and dependence upon fire, water, earth,
and air before that?

Isn't it great to have all these questions and the
freedom to wander and ponder? ... the freedom to think
and to say about this person, that group, this family,
that medicine? ... the freedom to say, "we have a
right to..." this or that.... the right to pray, some
people say.... what gives us that right? Being Indian?
Being human? Or the government of the united states of
america? Who says that we can no longer pray this
way? The u.s. Government ? Orvil Looking Horse ?

The government is supposedly kept in a system of
checks and balances by the three branches of
government: Judicial, the Executive, and the
(congress). Orvil Looking Horse supposedly is kept in
balance by the three different entities that make up
human people: Our mother, our father, and our self.
When the government is out of balance and the checks
and balances are not in place, we have rules and
regulations, civil rights, erased with a stroke of a
pen, via such "laws" as the USAPATRIOT Act, and the
Homeland Security Act. I was told that when people are
out of balance with their mother (or feminine aspect)
and father (or masculine aspect), they are out of
balance with themselves, and they are only speaking
from their ego-self, not with the compassion of their
mother and father.... (just like our government, which
is not thinking about its people, without active
checks and balances in place at this time.It is only
one-sided).


The executive branch is controlling everything,
including writing laws, under the guise of "Executive
Orders" and such. The congress gave its power to
declare war (or not) to the executive branch. Since
the executive branch was given all that power, they
could lie to the people to convince them that their
intended war was really only a last resort, when in
fact it was the only course intended. If congress was
going to decide to declare war or not based on the
lies paraded out to the American people, those lies
could have been proven to be lies. Instead, as
congress had no power to stop the war, the propaganda
did not need to be based on truth. ...

If we give our power to connect with Spirit over to
another human being, wither it be a government, priest or the
carrier of the White Buffalo calf pipe, we are dis-empowering
our own 'connection to Spirit'.

Aho.

Anpeyoka