Triad Leap 2/3 - Knowledge Gatherers Part II

Values.

Values are the foundation stone of all great cultures. Values define our principles, our raison d’etre, our way of being, the what and the why of human existence. Values can give our lives a clearly defined structure and meaning. Values vary from culture to culture but good values always respect nature, each one of us and our fellow species. For all our relations, (Mitakuye Oyasin) the Lakota say, highlighting that the real values in life are not money and objects, but our relationships with each other.

Being truthful and straight forward, considering others, helping those in need, respecting family and community and elders, working for the common good, respecting our agreements, safeguarding indigenous wisdoms, protecting sacred sites—these are all essential values, among others. Sharing values becomes the underlying reason we can build strong communities together.

ON Spiritual Activism

I play an antara, an ancient string instrument that resembles a flat harp that sits snugly on my lap or on the ground. I tune my antara so that all 24 strings are on the same pitch -- a G sharp--which I have been told is the sound of our planet rotating on its axis. (Pythagoras used the antara to create the mathematical chord progressions known in Western music today.) 

IV TOLTEC PRINCIPLEs

The Nagual masters who transmitted and embodied this knowledge were Toltecs, ancestors of the ancient Aztec city of pyramids in Mexico.

To maintain true personal integrity, four important guidelines were essential for positive relationships in community. When we relate to each other, there are 4 principles of agreement. 

OPEN HEART & DISCERNING MIND

How we see the world determines who we are. What we think has the power to change the world around us. Our minds can master matter and we can live with the sublime consciousness of our own existence. This is the ongoing process of creation. It never stands still. Astrophysicist Stephen Hawking has said…

POWERFUL TOOLS FOR INNER WORK

It’s about sharing, solidarity, standing up for nature and humans in distress. How we relate to our family, neighbors, and our planet. How we resolve problems and find peaceful solutions to our conflicts. Why we have to reduce consumption and share what we have. Why we have to stop taxing our planet…