MIND AND SPIRIT

My energy spirit can travel through the sod of Mother Earth. I can send it in any one of the seven directions, but...know this.... the most important is one's Heart. That is only an organ but it can transfer from the Mind.

I light my medicines and do an ancient rift and send it forth through infinity....

ETERNITY

The Rock is like our Grandfather , millions of years old .
We are only babies on this earth , and our earthly stay is a short segment in comparison...like 100 years.
I can see, at times , the infinite world that is a journey past the universe.
Some times I am there as a snow flake....I float.... and then return, back to this sad Mother Earth.
I can remember Mother's wound and feeling the energy from the sum, and as I emerged I was fascinated by a light , as though under a lamp shade...

TRACKS OF OUR TEARS

Tears.

Sometimes we shed them in sorrow. At other times we cry with joy.

Our tears are the small creeks that run to the bigger streams, and then to the rivers , and on to the oceans of our reality.

These many tears make ripples that heal all the self consciousness , and lead us to being centered in balance with Mother Earth.

Pikto'l Sa'ke'j

LOST IDENTITY

Lost Identity

Once upon a time, there were an entire Nation of Aboriginal people roaming the Canadian Lands and North America. They searched for areas that were fertile and maintained a healthy living for their families, working long hours, clearing land, hunting, fishing, and building shelters for their survival.

These people were brave and courageous, confronting each new obstacle and hardship with pride and dignity. Their customs and traditions were passed on from generation to generation and only some strong spiritual women and men survived and grasped the oral traditional.

Suddenly, the white man came and the aboriginal people, who were not slaughtered were forcefully driven away from their homes and lands. Then so it begin the SAGA of Mi'kmaq people's dilemma of living with alien people trying desperately to adopt to the white man's traditions and laws, while their own identities got lost in their chaos.

Unity among the Mi'kmaq Nation was divided into seven districts. People that were not scattered found their lives were lived on different paths. They did not speak their native tongue anymore. Their traditions and ways of life were gone with each passing day.

These proud and noble people have fallen prey to a new people and culture. Somewhere along the way the Creator with his Messengers still hiding the difficult roads, an entire nation has lost it's indentity and have become aliens in their own land.

But wait! Just as an eagle flies high into the air a messenger started to teach her young how to fly. So did the leaders of the spiritual women and men of the Mi'kmaq groups take their stand and speak out, loudly to their young and teach them the customs and traditions that their ancestors have preserved for generations.

United as one great nation, a proud and courageous people, let no stone be left unturned. Attain your goals of keeping your identity, an identity your ancestors strived so hard to preserve. Let a new life begin and know that the Mi'kmaq people of Canada are a proud and dignified people, ready to reassume their identity?

TAHOE

..Pikto'l Sa'ke'j Muise…(Ancient Spirit of the White Wolf)

' SA'KE'J......MY INNER JOURNEY "

Within each of us there dwells a Shaman. There also lives a Teacher, a Healer, and a Warrior.
We each have to journey within, and indeed spend a duration in the Spirit World, to be able to connect with these separate aspects of Self.
When there is a merging of all facets, then we AWAKEN, and we are whole.
Until all aspects of personality merge, we may wander unfocused through life, forever seeking the missing pieces of ourselves.
Within the journey of all, one must encounter the inner being, in the spirit world and then drift back to the heart beat of Mother Earth . This I can do with an ancient teaching, with my drum and medicines.
The Mi'kmaq People are also on a Journey.....For years we have wandered in the lonely wilderness, with our culture and heritage shredded. Finally, we are finding our missing pieces.
The book, "SA'KE'J.....My Inner Journey" , which will be my BOOK 2 of a series, tells the story of my own Journey in prose, poetry, photos, and paintings.
It is hoped that in reading it , it will aid you in the awakening of your own Shaman within !

TEACHINGS FROM MOTHER EARTH

TEACHINGS FROM MOTHER EARTH

Think of a PINE TREE, standing so proud in the forest. He does not bend easily with the four winds. He is fresh and has a dry scent to help us breath. Other trees bend when snow piles on them in winter. Not the pine. He will crack off from hard North West winds. Even when the top cracks off he still stands proud and strong.

Think of the buds. Before they fall back to the earth, the winds scatter their seeds among the forest, and the rest of the forest stands beside them, to nourish the seedlings to growth.

Then the cycle of one tree SHARES it’s strength with others in the cycle.

We are the same as the pine tree, and other NATIONS help our growth and journey in the circle of life, NOT forgetting our core values from our forefathers and ELDERLY and the seven grandfather teachings.

BECAUSE CULTURE IS NOT A SCIENCE

Therefore it should not be Definitive.

Victor James Muise ,,Pikto'l Sa'ke'j Muise..VJM

SHARING

Across from my wigwam (Mi’kmaq Home) there was a beaver dam, in the cold heart of winter. The beaver gathered food all summer and fall, to last until spring.

Along came a mink. His family had disappeared after the first fall of snow. The mink had hurt his paw sliding on the snow and was very weak, and could not survive by himself in the forest.

The beaver now saw the mink on the bank near his dam, and started walking toward the mink. They soon became friends. The mink told the beaver what had happened and started to cry.

Then the beaver realized what he had to do. He told the mink that he could stay with him for the winter.

Now the beaver was worried about having enough food to last the winter. (The amount of wood beavers cut in the fall, will let people know what kind of winter we are going to have).

The beaver felt good about helping the mink.

All the animals in the forest had seen what the beaver had done, and visited the beaver and the mink. Every animal who came brought them gifts and food.

Now they would have enough food to last until spring.

Bring children to a beaver dam, to tell them the story. Victor James Muise ..Ancient Spirit of the White Wolf

Pikto'l Sa'ke'j Muise…VJM

THE INVISIBLE PEOPLE

Recently I painted a picture. (See painting at top right.)

I could sense our people, the People of the Dawn , in it, but I was unable to capture them in my painitng. They remained invisible to me. This saddened me.

And so it is in our modern society.

The M'kmaq people have almost disappeared. They have become almost invisible, and inaudible as well...having no substance and no voice. Both have been taken.

Our people have been absorbed into modern socity, sucked into it, assimilated, and we have been spit out again...almost carbon copies of everybody else.

We exist , but are losing ourselves, as we relinquish hold upon our heritage and traditions.

With the loss of our ways and our cultural traditions , we become invisible...and it will be as if we never existed. Our essence will be destroyed.

It is with joy that I notice that the last two decades have shown a rebirth among our people.

With the revival of our culture, our heritage, language, and traditions we are again finding ourselves.

My painting, "The Invisible People" symbolizes the journey of the People of the Dawn.

It represents the time that we were a Great Nation, the time when we almost disappeared, and the time when we reclaimed our right to again become visible in this world.

Our downward spiral has been reversed as we are reborn into our transformation.

We are back...We never left....We are visible.

RESPECT FOR ALL

KWE!!!

Walk gently, slowly on the sacred grass of Mother Earth.

The turtle life span of three hundred years or more , doesn't run.

They have thirteen lines on their back, representing the eleven mother moons that orbit the Mother Earth.

The first teaching of Turtle is to keep the our water pure, fresh , and clean. It is our life source.

To appreciate water try to stop drinking for four hours.

We have to respect the mothers of the earth . as they are stronger than man in spirit .

We also have to respect every living thing that exists,even a branch of a tree if we have no need for it.

We have to respect each other ,in the cycle of women and man. No one should be greater than the other. We are all here together.

Most of my teachings came from Mother Earth, similar to the way animals act and teach us a lot of things.

The birds, like the eagle , have hundred of teachings.

I would't have enough time in my life to know all the teachings. But, while I have breath I will try .

CREATION

KWE!!!

(First)... In the beginning Mother Earth was barren. Our Grand Fathers, the rocks, were the only thing on earth. Then one blade of grass began to appear, and the whole forest kingdom started to form.

This is why our sweetgrass ceremony is so important.

We braid the sweetgrass to signify the Body ,Mind , and Spirit.

We smudge our five main senses: the Eyes, Touch, Nose, Ears,Speech. When one of our senses is weak, the cleansing of our body will strengthen the other senses.

KWE!!!

(Second)....Then came the oceans and tides, and rivers. They are the leaders on mother earth,the sun and moon having been already set for all creation.

... KWE!!!!

(Third)...Then came the animal and flocks of bird's,the eagle that flies the highest in the air to watch over the creator kingdom.

KWE!!!

(Fourth)... Then came Woman and Man. We, as a people, are only fourth to be here to form all our relations.

VJM, Pikto'l Sa'ke'j Muise,(Ancient Spirit or the White Wolf)

ODE TO THE TRAILS

Long before the great world wars, Old Mose Muise and many more, came upon this rock. They struggled through the two, and left a mighty flock.
Our parties grew in seasons after our arrival, Over the seas, rivers, and snowcap mountains, with levels of natural fruits, nourishing our survival. Redman, once and still, only claiming medicine from those mother roots, Now lay to rest alongside!
Other countries searching for whales, cod or fame came , and left again and again and again. Upon the rocks, called mounds, no one could ever claim, left a mark in life, now nothing remains the same.
On the land so pure and free, the forest of white and black bears. The hopping of the artic hare, The cycle of the caribou, then sometimes rare, We ate salmon, beaver, eels and seal with our natural tea you see, oh! Our health so fine, Tis, to multiply our kind, the ancient ones canoed here for a long, long time!
Fore Freedom we had before, Here In NEWFOUNDLALD.
Landlocked down from all else, He gave us this all free, Now after wandering these centuries, we cannot survive, by the sea, or our pulp and paper drives, Our marble, and oil won’t fail this time... it is the end, Not just for me! But for the young and old we sent back out to sea.
In all life we only own, What elders leave behind. When poverty struck beneath this dome, It changed our course in time!
Those darkest days are long but gone, Now modern ways we call upon, No stones are left beneath the earth, that could ever tell all the tales, Still, all that death and all that healing, we.
Fore Freedom we had before, Here in NEWFOUNDLAND.
Composed (Remembrance Day) Nov.11, 2005
Victor James Muise Jr. III (Pikto'l Sa'ke'j Muise)

GIVE ME SEPTEMBER

Some folk I know prefer the spring .
Others like it when song birds sing.
Some look at the winter glee.
But give me September.
Then gone is every insect pest,
Moskitos, mints and all the rest.
Those days I love the best,
But, give me September.
I noted one day on a gravel way ,
A sample of grit that was rare,
A bold seedling pine,
With needles so fine ,
It's life span strived to be there.
And the Parry Osprey on it south leading wings ,
Breast the air in tooting and talking .
It's affairs worked hard all summer long.
The ant like the bee ,
In industry ,
Does labour the whole summer long .
With respect sincere and ,
The winter severe ,
It's life span, too ,
It strives to prolong.
In this life of woe every thing likes to hang on,
And those healed dear ,
While passing down here,
You're not forgotten soon after your gone.
VJM/Nina Se'ke'j (Spirit of the White Wolf)

PRAYER FOR SURVIVAL

KWE

PRAYER ROR SURVIVAL:

Oh, Great Spirit of the Eastern Door, as the sun rises each day and we think of our ancestors and our sisters and brotherly nations across Mother Earth, this we are grateful for.

All creation will help us sustain our existence and guide and put forth our Spiritual, Emotional and Physical expression throughout each day.

As we seek we will send a message of hope to our Indian people across our sacred land (Turtle Island)Mother Earth and help them to enter into the society of today....

We, as people, cannot give up what we have NOW.

But we can restore and incorporate the culture of our Ancient ancestors and teach our youth the past, now in the present, and accept things we cannot see in the endless tomorrow.

Sa'qewei-wjijaqamijl wape'k paqt-sm

(Ancient Spirit of the White Wolf)

Pikto'l Sa'ke'j Muise/

A SACRED PRAYER

Creator,  Kwe..

Look upon your children as protecters of Mother Earth.......That the sod and water of Mother Earth  will remain pure for the next seven generations that follow. AND as a people   may we follow the foot steps of our forefathers and only take from her  what we need to survive.

In Honour and Respect we ask the blessing to embrace our courage and strength,  to undo any wrong doing ,

 As Mi'kmaq people we have to find a way to bring back our Language that is hidden under every leaf and rock,  and  also all our core values that are within  the tongues  of all Creation.

For this is  our duty ,  our sacred burden to  our CHILDREN....

Pikto'l Sa'ke'j Muise..VJM..(Ancient Spirit of the White Wolf )

THE SHAMAN

    Grandfather Prayer

According to Mi'kmaq Tradition we pray to give thanks to the seven directions.

 Daily we give thanks for our blessings. The GREAT SPIRIT is always blessing us and at times will put a lesson in our path; this lesson is also a blessing...and...so... we... also... give thanks for this

Living in thankfulness and following our spiritual path of HUMILITY, HONESTY, RESPECT, COURAGE, WISDOM, TRUTH and LOVE gives us a life that is precious and beautiful ; the way KJI'niskam intended it to be.

Pikto'l Sa'ke'j Muise./Sa'qewei-wjijaqamijl wipe's paqt-sm(Ancient Spirit of the White Wolf) 

(RESEARCH)

SPIRITUAL WARRIOR

                  Water Prayer for Survival

Where once the Red Man frequented hard by the water ways,

Now our warrior saga remains the same, as our ways are  entrenched in the Spiritual Being.

O Great Spirit, who is well in the Spirit Land known as the Universe, look down upon your people the Mi'kmaq Nation. We live here on Mother Earth.  Hear our words. Because CREATOR we have learned to  believe with the Highest Respect.

The law you have set forth. We ask that you bring to us this day, good spirit from the Four Directions: East, South, West,  and North.... So that  we can put blend our minds , and   our lives  will be one heart before we leave.

Bless us with understanding, strength,  and compassion,  and may we always walk in beauty, the path that you made for us..

.Pikto'l...(Ancient Spirit of the White Wolf )

THE HEALER

         'Healing One's Life'

Healing one's mind over twenty five years:

With the use of your hands,

With the breath of Silence,

With the imagery at present.

Spiritual protection to beat the drum in four Directions.

Which means to return to the Spirit World.

Don't stay there.... return  to the path you're most comfortable with.

 (Matnakkewinu)... Fighter to preserve life to the fullest...

( Ancient Spirit of the White Wolf) 

MOTHER EARTH

• 
  

  
  NAQMIKAWE'SKU- Mother Earth:
  

  My sisters and brothers hear me and generations of healing that I'm about to speak.

  Our language and customs of our people have not been forgotten.
  The path that leads from our Mother's at birth , like stories of ancient times and our healing ,customs and language now are even OLDER.

  Healing, like language , comes from energy such as sounds of our land, the winds  and the waterfalls.

  This has been diverted from thee Mother Earth through out tongue and has a distant openness that has not been found only through the blood or our ancestors.

  To heal mental, physical, spiritual sickness one must encounter experience of living off the land and going  through life.

  But through stories and ancient ceremonies the plants, animals, forest and streams must be all our relation's.

  We have to toned down our emotions and send our thoughts into a meadow of natural smells, sounds, sight, touch and we speak the word's of our ancestors.
  
  Pikto'l Sa'ke'j Muise..vjm..

THE VISION

I sat,  singing a slow chant, and  whispered:

"All that I see will come together,
as if it was united.
 They are  my Brothers'  and Sisters' Mother Earth".

 I was awakened  to the voice of the echo of the Call of the Wild,  a loon.....

.Pikto'l Sa'ke'j Muise.… VJM.