When I think of the Native American elder I walked with for so many years, I often see an Eagle. On many levels, he reminded me of this magnificient bird. I have a picture of him holding an eagle. When I first looked at the picture I was stunned at the resemblance between the two of them. It must have shown on my face because he smiled and said “My brother”. Other times, when thinking of him, I see the Sacred Pipe. Both of these images are symbols of Power.
If asked which of these images, Eagle and Pipe, represent power, modern man would often say “the eagle”. He knows that the eagle has flown before many powerful armies. It is the symbol of power on earth and in the skies. In the Pipe he may see an image of a culture conquered and almost destroyed by the eagle.
They are flip sides of the same power. The pipe is a way to bring self, the earth and the Great Mystery together. The Pipe is a way of life. A road to take. Much the same way these two images imply different sides of power, so do the male and female sides of humanity depict different sides of the same power.
We have lost our way, as a culture, in the understanding of power. Wehave confused brute strength with power. To be female is to be weak. Women are listed as minorities, entitled to special benefits by the government. Even though the census shows there are more women than men in this country. Even though stats show women out live men. Even though these and other facts are in place, the mind set the government reflects that of the nation. Women are the weaker sex.
Would you think a dime wasn’t worth ten cents if, when you put it on the table, tails came up instead of heads? It’s the same purchasing power no matter how it falls. We, as women, are the flip side of the same power. Or they are, depending how you see the dime.
Moon Time, or the Menses has been distorted through the ages of male oriented power. There is actually a pill now to enable women to have only 4 periods a year. It seems as if everything that makes us female needs be erased, hidden or shamed. Ceremony and ritual were invented, so to speak, to connect men to the Natural World. Women, by their nature, are already connected. The tides, the moon, the planets, the sun, the seasons are reflected in the body and mind of women. Men, without ceremony, would be robots. Women on their Moon Time are forbidden to attend any ceremony in which the Sacred Pipe is used. Because the ancients understood the true power of this time in the women. It can overcome the greatest ceremonial leader almost every time. Traditional women understood this power. I’ve witnessed Sun Dancers dropping like flies because women misunderstood their own power. They were insulted and angered by the fact that they could not attend ceremony, using the mind set of the day to assume they were being dubbed “lesser than”, when in fact, their power was being acknowledge and honored. So they thought no one would know and attended anyway. They were always found out and asked to leave. Sometimes escorted out.
The time of woman is the Dark Moon, or what we call now the “New Moon”. How frightening are nights of no moonlight to the men? Even Julius Caesar spoke of the fear of a moonless night. It has been known for ages and feared. Why, is the question. Why is a moonless night so frightening? It is the absence of the Female. To the untrained eye, the absence of the Whole. Imbalance. Men see this as un-natural. Women understand the time of going inward, reflection: metamorphosis. A time of renewal and understanding of past events and a strengthening to go forward toward new events with a more understanding eye, mind and heart. It is a time for women to gather power. Women Power.
The time of Woman is returning. It is the subtle prophesy of 2012. Whether you follow the Mayan prophesy, the newly discovered papers of Nostradamus, or the Hopi or the Ghost Dance, you should be able to see the Time of Female Power is about to commence. It will be the time of change and renewal. We are ushering in the time of the true Global Family and it is the time of perfected woman. (Not to be confused with Hollywood and Madison Avenue’s depiction of perfection) Perfected Woman knows Power and Prayer are what keep her family safe and fed and in Peace. She knows both sides of the coin and honors the difference. She honors her sons and her daughters as equals in her eyes and in her heart. She understands that their differences are what makes the world go round, keeps the race going and brings balance to Earth as it is in Heaven.
Women are, by their very nature, vehicles of renewal and change. The Earth is being renewed. It will be a difficult time but also a necessary time. Who knows better than woman that it is the trials of labor that brings forth new life and after suffering those trials often goes back and does it again. The hope and promise of new life are powerful motivators.
Women, I won’t presume to tell you what your roll will be in this new Era. I will only ask that you begin now to respect and truly understand who you are and of what you are capable. Begin to understand and respect this Moon Time gift, whether you are just coming into it, are living through it, or have come years away from it. Try, in the days ahead, to understand what woman is. Think of the “ages” of women. Reflect on all this power mystery. It lives in you and is the basis of the new Era.
Power and Prayer.
The Eagle and The Pipe.
Two sides of the same coin.
