Did our ancestors come from the Pleiades?
StarSeed Remembrance – Recalling Our Lineage in the Stars
In February of 2015, during the Hawaiian time of Makahiki Time of Lono (a time when wars were forbidden), the StarSeed Remembrance school will hold its first teaching session on the Big Island of Hawai’I with Kahuna Kalei’iliahi.
The Starseed Remembrance school started with the publication of the book of the same name by Maria Yraceburu, of the Quero Apache Tlish Diyan, in 2014. The book shares wisdom from her own lineage about the Star Nations, and in particular the Pleiades – the Seven Sisters. It sets out teachings and ceremonies that can help us align with the shifting nature of these times, and work towards a more peace-filled world.
The school is a co-creation between Maria and other facilitators, which goes deeper into teachings in the book. In order to give a flavor of the school, facilitator Kahuna Kalei-iliahi was asked to answer some questions about it.
Could you talk a little about what the phrase “StarSeed Remembrance” means to you?
It is a call to remember where we come from, our Star Lineage. We were seeded with our Divinity by our Spiritual Parents from the Star system called The Seven Sisters. We are their descendants. When we honor them we are remembering them. When we look up in the sky we can see all the Star Nations and know we are all related, all family.
Is there anything else you would like to share about the Star Nations, and in particular the Pleiades?
We Hawaiians (along with many other Polynesians) honor our Ancestors from the stars yearly in the “Makahiki Time of Lono”. It is a three month period beginning in late November that honors of Spirit (God)of Peace called Lono. It is more importantly, a time when the Pleiades is seen most clearly in our skies. We call them the “Makali’i”. It is how we remember and celebrate where we come from and where we believe we will return when we leave this world.
What connections are there between Hawai’i and the Star Nations?
I think I have just answered that question. But I would also like to add that we Polynesians are masters of celestial navigation. We were in ancient times as well as today, the Masters of Astronomy. We knew our interconnectedness then as we do today, to the stars … they are all ‘Ohana, Family. We knew that as family they would guide and protect us as the true family does.
The event includes time spent with Miracle – the 100 year old Banyan tree. Could you talk a little about why this is so special?
When my Ancestors told me it was time to go home to Hawai’i after living many years in California they sent me to the Big Island because it is where they are from and the royal lineage I am from came as well. But I grew up on O’ahu and did not know this island well. In searching for a home here I needed their guidance for it would be a temple space, a sanctuary – a “pu’uhonua”. After a long search of finding nothing with the spiritual energy I was seeking, I was led to this place. Only it wasn’t for sale. When my Ancestors came out of the west portal by the thousands and started chanting and telling me “Welcome home” I knew this was the place. The miracle is I made an offer that day and bought a house that was not for sale. This miracle could only have occurred through the love of the Ancestors.
Could you give a flavour of what you will be doing on the week?
We will honor the Ancestors, the Ancients, the gods and the Star Nations, especially the Makali’i. We will do this in sacred ceremony and in joy and in celebration for you will be here at the Makahiki Time of Lono. In ancient times all wars were forbidden during this time of peace. It was also a time of feasting and games and making love (fertility) and joy! We will do the same, we will honor this time the way the ancients did. And I will be guided to share their wisdom from time to time. It will be beautiful.
The title of the event is LifeWay Power Dreamers. Could you talk a little about the importance of Dreaming in life.
All the ancients from all the indigenous peoples understood the importance of dreaming. My Ancestors believed that the physical world was the dream world and the dream world was the world we come from…a world of mystery and of endless potentials. When we dream in life we are creating our potentials, whatever they may be.
Is there anything you would like to share about Evolution and Love?
Hmmmmm, I’m not sure what to say about evolution. In our creation story, the Kumulipo, it speaks of all these life forms evolving into yet another beautiful life form, each one more magnificent than the last. As humans we are evolving into becoming more in our Light bodies, or more accurately, developing the ability to carry more light. In this way we are evolving into our true selves, Light. We are becoming more and more magnificent.
Love. The Ancients told me recently that many of us go around saying when we fall in love we want it to be forever. They said what we don’t realize, because we are too busy searching for that love or regretting having lost it, is that when we fall in love, even for a minute…it is an eternity. Love IS eternal because it is of God, of the Creator and what the Creator creates is eternal. We truly need to think more like the Ancients who thought more like the Creator because they knew the Creator was within them. We have forgotten, through eons of programming, that the Creator is outside us and in the sky. We must unlearn the things we have taught ourselves that do not hold the truth of our magnificence. Then we will know that love itself is eternal and so are we for WE ARE LOVE.
Is there anything else you would like to say?
Yes, I would like to bless the readers of this with the love and light of the Ancestors.
LifeWays of Power Dreamers Ah-Kine StarSeed Re-membrance School Session 1 with diiyin Maria Yraceburu, Kahuna Kalei’iliahi, Kahu Mark Saito & Joy Brugh
Big Island of Hawaii
February 15-19, 2015
10 am – 10 pm daily
Booking and further information at www.ah-kine.com, or contact [email protected].
Are You Pretending to Be Asleep?
By Keith Varnum
For the last year I’ve been haunted by a revealing Navajo
proverb that goes:
“You can’t wake a person who’s pretending to be asleep!”
I’m haunted in the sense that Ebenezer Scrooge is haunted by
the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future in Charles
Dickens’ beloved parable “A Christmas Carol.”
I’m haunted by the feeling that a profound realization is
floating all around me, calling out to me, hinting in the
phantom mist of an insight that will set us all free!
The Ghoul of Christmas Past
The “Ghost of Christmas Past” is a ghoul because its story is
creepy and disagreeable. It’s the sad story of our collective
level of awareness. The Ghoul of Christmas Past speaks to the
prevalent understanding of what it means to say a person is
asleep or unconscious.
This generally held view is a cosmic Catch 22 conundrum: We’re
asleep, but because we’re asleep, we’re not conscious that
we’re asleep. So, because we don’t know that we’re asleep, we
can’t wake ourselves up. We’re not even aware that there
exists another state of consciousness that we could wake up
to. Thus, we don’t wake up!
This commonly held view is that most people are sleepwalking
through their lives in a state of perpetual
unconsciousness—unable to do anything about it!
Married to this “victim” view is the belief that it takes an
outside force to wake someone up: An enlightened teacher.
Special techniques. Secret ceremonies. Esoteric rituals. The
right circumstances. Exact celestial timing. A miracle or an
act of God!
And as the popular perspective goes, even with this external
help, waking up is very difficult. Even with a Perfect Storm
of outside forces, it takes great effort, work, desire,
courage, stamina, perseverance, and raw luck to wake up!
And so, most people don’t make it. They don’t wake up. And
those people who do wake up, only awaken for a split second
for a mere glimpse of the Oneness. And, alas, then these rare
folks unintentionally fall asleep again—forgetting they’d ever
awakened for a brief moment. Not a cheery prospect expressed
by the Ghoul of Christmas Past!
The Gift of Christmas Present
But through the dark shroud of this dismal outlook of the
ghoul, I vaguely sense the liberating spirit of the “Ghost of
Christmas Present!”
The message of the “Ghost of Christmas Present” is the
present—gift—of the Present—the present moment. The gift of
the present moment is the gift of the opportunity to choose to
be fully awake in each successive moment of life! This
momentary freedom is always available to everyone—regardless
of past beliefs, wretched experiences and karmic inertia.
And the Gift of Christmas (Christ Mass) Present is the
realization that this momentary bliss is actually all there
is. And it is also everything one could ever pray for!
The Spirit of Christmas Present informs us that there is no
past—or future—only now, the present moment. And in the
present moment we can instantly awaken. And if we keep
choosing to be awake each moment, we can be permanently free!
Let’s Play “Pretend”
The Gift of Christmas Present also reminds us of what we know
in our heart and soul—that we never actually are asleep. We
simply pretend we’re asleep—unaware, unconscious—so that we
can play on earth as a victim, buying into the adventure of
being buffeted by the whims of the universe. We pretend to be
unaware of our true power and freedom, so that we can enjoy
the human excitement of drama, trauma and karma!
Because if we don’t play dumb (asleep), we’ll instantly
remember that, in truth, we’re creating our life experiences
deliberately, by choice and free will—just for the fun of it.
We choose to forget who we really are in order to explore,
learn, grow and expand. But mainly in order to simply enjoy
the exhilarating human ride on funky Planet Earth!
In other words, if we don’t consciously choose amnesia, we
will remember who we are … eternal, omnipotent and free beings
who can create whatever reality we want.
If we don’t pretend to be asleep, we’ll recall that we can get
out of any predicament or problem any time we choose.
We’ll notice that, in fact, we actually get ourselves into all
kinds of trouble on purpose—just so we can have the excitement
of getting ourselves out of trouble in new and inventive ways!
We’ll realize that if we don’t forget who’s writing the
script, we won’t be able to dive into the direness of the
drama, thrill at the terror of the trauma, or cringe through
the crisis of the karma! What fun is that?
We want to enjoy life as soap opera. So, what’s a divine being
to do, but pretend to be a victim! … pummeled by all the
tumultuous forces of fate, at the mercy of every the fickle
gods of fortune.
The Phantom of Christmas Yet to Come
The “Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come” is, in truth, a phantom,
a fiction. In other words, it need not come to pass. Just as
Ebenezer Scrooge decided to change his ways when he was shown
his future misery (and the prophetic death of Tiny Tim), we
too can change the way we live our lives.
The good news of the “Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come” is that
the future is not set or fixed. It’s not inevitable. The
future is born from each moment—from the choices we make in
each moment.
There is in reality only the Now, the gift of the Present. We
create our future—the next moment—with each decision we make
in the Present.
With each moment’s decision to pretend to be asleep
(unconscious and unaware), we enter the future moment as
victim. With each choice to be awake (conscious and aware), we
play in a world in which we are the source of our own fate and
joy!
Up until now, we’ve been pretending to be asleep as a strategy
to stay safe in what looks like a dangerous, precarious
world. Perhaps it’s time to realize that this strategy has
been brilliant and successful. Hey, you’re still alive and
reading this article!
But, my friend, is this pretending to be asleep really all
that enjoyable?
What future will you order right now from The “Ghost of
Christmas Yet to Come?”
A More Fun Alternative
Now that we’ve awaken enough to see through our own pretending
to be asleep, maybe it’s a good time to create a new more
nurturing life strategy for ourselves.
We could have our cake—and eat it too!
We could pretend to other people that we’re still asleep—but
not pretend to ourselves!
We could fully awaken to ourselves, but continue to
deliberately pretend to others that we’re unaware. As many
enlightened spiritual teachers do, we could “play dumb” in
order to move safely and freely incognito through human
affairs. We would appear to be asleep, our awakened state
undetectable to the ordinary citizen!
We could consciously play “unconscious” in order to mingle,
mend and mentor others.
We could keep up the public pretense as a conscious charade.
But in our own private universe, we could awaken to—and
enjoy—our natural power, wisdom and beauty.
Grab Your Freedom
This Spirit of Freedom resides in our hearts, whispering its
guidance to us to “let go and let God” … to release the
agenda, to let go of the “mental maintenance project.” If we
would simply go with the flow, we could allow the present
(gift) of the present moment to continue to unfold!
Which Story Do You Choose?
If you want to ride the rollercoaster of scarcity, sickness,
struggle, strife and sorrow, you must convince yourself of
your own story: I’m asleep and I can’t wake up!
(Just like the famous TV ad: “I’ve fallen and I can’t get
up!”)
I Get It!
Ah, now I get the message of these new Ghosts of Christmas
(Christ Mass). As the Navajo know: you can’t wake someone
who’s pretending to be asleep! You can’t wake someone who
really isn’t asleep!
Your Choice
So, now I bow to your divine choice to play a game—the human
game. Cops and robbers. Cat and mouse. Cause and effect.
I honor your freedom as a divine being—to choose to be a
prince or a pauper, or a damsel in distress or a dazzling
diva!
I leave you with the wisdom of the final words of “A Christmas
Story.” As Tiny Tim observed, “God Bless Us, Every One!”
***
A vibrant filmmaker in college, at the tender age of 19, Keith
Varnum went totally blind before he could launch out on his
own. The prognosis of Western doctors that Keith would be
blind for the rest of his life catapulted him into the
adventure of his life! On this journey he studied with
medicine men, shaman, Hawaii Kahuna and Eastern spiritual
masters, regained his eyesight, and discovered the secrets of
all healing, transformation and success. Keith has tested
these practical secrets in his 35-year career as an author,
Certified Matrix Energetics Practitioner, Life Coach, Vision
Quest guide, acupuncturist, sound healer, radio host, and
vice-president of a multi-million dollar company. When not
exploring consciousness in the canyons of Arizona, Keith
travels around the world assisting people to open to life’s
wonders and surprises in his Dream Workshops.
Keith Varnum has 30 years of practical success as an author,
accupuncturist, personal coach, filmmaker, vision quest guide
and international seminar leader, and is the owner of
http://www.TheDream.com and http://TheCareerDoctor.net.
Ancient Pottery Leads to Discovery of Peace-seeking Women
From the time of the Crusades to the modern day, war refugees have struggled to integrate into their new communities. They are often economically impoverished and socially isolated, which results in increased conflict, systematic violence and warfare, within and between communities as the new immigrants interact with and compete with the previously established inhabitants. Now, University of Missouri researcher Todd VanPool believes pottery found throughout the North American Southwest comes from a religion of peace-seeking women in the violent, 13th-century American Southwest. These women sought to find a way to integrate newly immigrating refugees and prevent the spread of warfare that decimated communities to the north.
First discovered in 1930’s Arizona, Salado pottery created a debate among archaeologists. According to VanPool, the Salado tradition is a grassroots movement against violence. The mystery of the pottery’s origin and significance was known as “the Salado problem.” This southwestern pottery was found among three major cultural areas of the ancient southwest: the ancestral Puebloan in northern Arizona and New Mexico, the Mogollon of southern New Mexico and the Hohokam of central and southern Arizona, all with different religious traditions. Even though the pottery was found in three different cultural areas, the pottery communicated the same, specific set of religious messages. It was buried with both the elite and non-elite and painted with complex, geometric motifs and animals, such as horned serpents. Instead of celebrating local elites, the symbols in Salado pottery emphasized fertility and cooperation.
“In my view, the fact that the new religion is reflected solely in pottery, a craft not usually practiced by men, suggests that it was a movement that helped bring women together and decreased competition among females,” said VanPool, who is an assistant professor of anthropology in the MU College of Arts and Science. “Women across the region may have been ethnically diverse, but their participation in the same religious system would have helped decrease conflict and provided a means of connecting different ethnic groups.”
Salado pottery dates from the 13th to 15th centuries in which there was major political and cultural conflict in the American Southwest. Brutal executions and possible cannibalism forced thousands of people to abandon their native regions and move to areas of Arizona and New Mexico. Another source of conflict appeared after the female refugees and their children arrived in their new homelands.
“Conflict was defused through the direct action of women who sought to decrease the tensions that threatened to destroy their communities,” VanPool said. “The rise of the Salado tradition allowed threatened communities to stabilize over much of modern-day Arizona and new Mexico, altering the course of Southwestern prehistory. Given that the Salado system lasted from 1275 to around 1450, it was most certainly successful.”
VanPool’s research has been published in Archaeology magazine. A more extended version has been published as a chapter in Innovations in Cultural Systems: Contributions from Evolutionary Anthropology, published by MIT Press (2010).
The Spirit World Meets Western Medicine
By Emy E. Johnston
Judy Hilzer, 63 year old elder of the Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians, has been a nurse for over 40 years. It wasn’t until 2007 that Judy was recognized by the University of Washington Medical Center (UWMC) on the hospital’s spiritual care list as a shaman. Two years away from retirement, Judy is only now able to practice traditional methods of tribal healing within the western world of medicine.
Before her breakthrough, patients could only access priests, ministers, rabbis and energy workers. According to Judy, if a patient requested a shaman, the hospital could do absolutely nothing for them. One patient, awaiting a heart transplant, knew of her background in shamanic healing and asked her for help during surgery. Judy went to the head nurse asking if this was possible, and she was turned down. It was then that she recognized her calling.
She was told that in order to do such work she had to become credentialed. This wasn’t an easy task. Judy went through a rigorous credentialing process through the Patient Care Services department at the hospital. The process involved 15 pages of paperwork, forms that needed to be filled out by former teachers, testimonials from clients and statements detailing the types of services she would be providing. Her request to become credentialed as a shaman was so rare that a new committee was formed to handle alternative practices.
Like many other Americans, Judy recognizes that there is more to wellness than just the physical. This is what compelled her to become credentialed. Having worked within the guidelines of western medicine for so many years, Judy was well aware of the misgivings about this type of healing, and knows how traumatic hospital stays can be for patients. “Anytime we cut the body, put a tube in someone’s throat, or give them a new heart, we are doing the patient a disservice by neglecting the patient’s emotional healing,” Judy said.
Judy describes trauma as losing a part of ourselves, also described as soul loss. If we neglect to heal spiritually/emotionally we develop an emptiness in the body. “There cannot be a void in the body. It must fill with something.” This something Judy discusses can take on many physical forms. Sandra Ingerman, Educational Director of The Foundation for Shamanic Studies, also one of Judy’s teachers and supporters, says that, “soul loss is the most common cause of both physical and emotional disease.” Possible symptoms of soul loss include depression, anxiety, addiction and a feeling of emptiness.
Judy grew up disconnected from Chippewa methods of traditional healing. Her grandmother, who was of Chippewa and French Canadian descent, was raised in a boarding school, her language and traditions replaced by western ways. For Judy, being able to practice shamanic healing at her workplace is a way for her to reclaim her lost heritage, making traditional forms healing accessible to all. As she discussed the struggles of her grandmother, her deep brown eyes looked directly into mine, “Honoring them [the ancestors] became one more reason to carry on the work,” Judy said.
Judy reconnected with shamanic forms of healing through The Foundation of Shamanic Studies (FSS). FSS is a non-profit incorporated educational organization that teaches shamanic healing methods that come from many different cultures. Judy has been studying these practices since 1992. Most recently she took a three year training course offered by the foundation through which she earned her Silver Certificate of Completion. She described this training as an initiation process. During her years of training with the FSS, Judy has learned how to do soul and power animal retrievals, extractions, and has learned to teach others how to journey to the spirit world on their own behalf.
A journey involves a person entering an altered state brought on “by ecstatic singing, dancing or drumming,” which enables “the shaman’s spirit leaves his or her body and enters the supernatural world.”[1] During a journey, the shaman will ask to be connected to spiritual guides and teachers on the behalf of the patient. In a soul retrieval, the shaman will ask of the location of lost soul parts that “disassociate” during trauma, bringing them back from the spirit world.
Since being formally added to the UWMCs spiritual care list, Judy has helped many people in the midst of crisis. She has aided several patients through surgeries, she has journeyed for patients in comas, helped people heal from past emotional wounds, and has even helped couples get and stay pregnant. Though, if you ask her, it isn’t her doing at all. “I consider myself a hollow bone, I do the work of spirit. It is a great honor.”
[1] Stutley, M. (2003). Shamanism an introduction. New York: Routledge.
Emy Johnston, Seattle native, is an active member of the artists for change community in the Pacific Northwest. She has performed theater, dance and spoken word internationally and locally. Emy’s art speaks to the power of reclaiming our identities. She recently discovered her passion for journalism, as she is currently a communications student at the University of Washington Tacoma. Emy is a board member of the Tribes Project, an organization that provides forums for high school age youth to produce and perform creative works that speak out against oppression. www.tribesproject.org