O-HEY-O Genero, This
springtime we will be holding two Susquehannock
Tribal Sweatlodges.
Following on from last
years Wolf and Bear Medicine Lodges we will
complete the Susquehannock tribal medicine wheel
by honouring the totem’s of Deer and Eagle.
Totem medicine lodges are meant to connect us
directly to the spirits of the totems and enable
us to have a one-to-one experience, with a totem
animal that creates a lifelong friendship and
source of knowledge.
I'm looking forward to meeting and welcoming you
to the Susquehannock tribal ceremonies at Anam
Cara.
We Are All Related Friends!
Chief Dancing Thunder
The teachings of Chief Dancing Thunder
O-HEY-O Friends,
For the first time in Scotland (2011) I brought the teachings and sweat
lodges of the Susquehannock tribal ceremonies to Anam Cara.
So I would like everyone to get acquainted with these Ancient Teachings
and Ceremonies of the Ancestors. It is the spiritual purpose of the North
American Indian to share our knowledge openly with all the people of the
earth. I am the keeper of many ancient rituals and ceremonies and the
Susquehannock peoples are particularly open and friendly.
This year I opened the teachings at Anam Cara with the Susquehannock
tribal medicine wheel and sweat lodge ceremonies and teachings. The
Susquehannock tribal medicine wheel looks like this:
In the north there is a grandfather and totem spirit of the deer, the
medicine color of the wind direction is White
In the East there is also a grandfather and the totem spirit is the
Spotted Eagle, the medicine color of the wind direction is Red
In the South there is also a grandfather and the totem spirit is the
Running Wolf, the medicine color of the wind direction is Green
In the West there is Grandmother Laughing Moon and the totem spirit is the
Black Bear, the medicine color of the wind direction is Black. West is the
healing direction of most medicine wheels.
The setup of our tribal medicine wheel of three grandfathers and one
grandmother is rather typical for Eastern Indian tribes in the US.
So this is the reason when we meet for the first time that it is the
custom to share with you our tribal medicine wheel first and this is why
the first two sweat lodges that were celebrated at Anam Cara, were the
Susquehannock tribal Wolf and Bear Medicine Lodges and this is why the
next two sweat lodges will be the Deer and the Eagle Medicine Sweat
Lodges.
So I will give you a rundown of how the tribal sweat lodges are related to
one another, and you should see it this way that all North American
rituals are closely related to one another.
We start learning through the Deer, the Eagle, Running Wolf, and the Bear
Medicine Lodges. In the fall we traditionally have the Thunder Medicine
Lodges.
After this we go into advanced medicine lodges the first three are the
12 Eagles Medicine Lodge, the Red Horse Medicine Lodge, and the White
Spirit Wolf Moon Lodge. The Red Horse Medicine Lodge is the first of the
painted lodges where we wear body paint.
After this we go to the famous Crow Medicine Lodge them from the Crow we
go to the just as famous Bear Crow Medicine Lodge. From here we go to the
Otter Medicine Lodge and then we start with the dream lodges of which the
first one is the Eagles Dream Lodge. How these lodges are related is that
all these totems are in a special 12 spoke medicine wheel. And they are
called the 12 creator totems.
The way most of the ceremonies go is that each sweat lodge has four doors
or rounds. Each door has two overlapping parts in a ceremony. This changes
somewhat in the more advanced sweat lodge Ceremonies.
The Susquehannock sweat lodges are known for their friendliness and humor
and have an easy-going tempo with plenty of rest in between the rounds.
Chief Dancing Thunder has been teaching Native American ceremonies and
rituals for 40 years worldwide. And he has been an active traditional
Native American healer for 54 years.
We Are All Related AHO!
