Wednesday, March 30, 2011

MARCH 31st WATER BLESSING ... a call to all citizens of Mother Earth

Praying hands
Hi everyone,


Dr Masaru Emoto, the premiere Japanese scientist and water researcher,is asking all citizens of Mother Earth to focus with intent to transform the dangerous Nuclear problem that is continuing to develop in Japan.

High amounts of radiation has contaminated large amounts of water at one of the power plants and is starting to get into the environment.

Dr Emoto knows the power and ability of water to heal, transmute, transfigure, and purify toxins as demonstrated in his best selling series of books "The Hidden Messages in Water".

So on  March 31st, at Noon, in each time zone, he is requesting that as many of us as possible to perform the following simple prayer and invocation 3 times with our hands in the prayer position:



"The water at Fukushima Nuclear Plant,



we are sorry to make you suffer,


please forgive us,


we thank you and we love you."

The power of this simple prayer formula has been demonstrated many times, in particular by the Hawaiian psychologist and kahuna Dr Ihaleakala Hew Len, who used this prayer to successfully heal all the mental patients in the entire ward at the Hawaiian State Metal Hospital during his time working there, as described in the book "Zero Limits" by Joe Vitale.

Dr Hew Len never counseled or spoke to any of the patients.  He just studied the patients files and went within himself and did the prayer process.

I hope you can join us.

Spread the word.


see Dr Emoto's message at

http://www.emotopeaceproject.blogspot.com/

Thank you Madir, for this sharing!

Image Credit

Monday, March 28, 2011

Nana I Ke Kumu

Kaulana Mahina
Nana I Ke Kumu  "Look to the Source."  ... a Hawaiian proverb
and the title of kupuna Mary Pukui's texts for a life of pono

The 'Ole Moons of the Ho'emi Anahulu (the diminishing phase/week) are pau.  Pete and I have worked up the weeds in our personal gardens ... those beliefs, and attitudes that do not add to our well-being or weigh us down for the future we envision.  We have rested well, taking longer to rise from the futon.  I have issues of long-standing history rising up as I prepare to launch the wa'a, the canoe of criss-crossing cultures and translating our experiences of becoming pono (in harmony) through attention and practice with the 'Ole Moons of emptiness/nothing. 

Old history is replaced with new history in a gentle long-wave or cataclysm.  I have know both kinds in my life and as I age I wish the replacements were more gentle, but sometimes they aren't and I deal with them with as much patience as I have, and then I ask for some more ... patience.  Traditional cultures, First People have long sustaining practices that hold up over time.  The kupuna, the elders pass and some of those practices pass with them and we mourn that loss.  What I am seeing in my lifetime is a passing of values in new and broader, maybe even deeper ways as I witness na wai kanaka (the ways of the people) in the hands and hearts of our children.  I am a mother to one son, now nearly forty.  His life shines onto his ancestors and forward into the lives of his peers as his generation translate and carry the traditions forward.  I hear him on the cellphone describe the LomiLomi workshops he and his healing work partner are completing in France.  I listen to the ways one culture criss-crosses the other.  The story grows, the Source remains pono, the Source is big, big enough to embrace us all.

The version of sharing we offer, at any time on the continuum ... today, in a few minutes, tomorrow is what we know at the time.  Our foundation and our ancestors shore us for the process and the progress.  Our home, our planet, Papa Honua is sustained and loved by the Source ... Ke Kumu, and we are responsible for and to that Source as well.  We were born from the Source and our unique version of unfolding counts.  We lay the sticks out ... we pick up the one that serves and speaks to our need and our journey.  The sticks, the o'o of the makua on her/his way are always there to serve.  I notice how diverse the sticks are, how versatile the tools for making a good life are.  I look to the Source, and am happy to know I have a shovel, a rack, a wheel barrel and a rake.  I'm working the garden for planting ka me 'ai (good things to eat) today.  Lucky, I have so many tools.

Don't forget COUNT ON THE MOON On-Line Workshop and Study Group starts this Sunday, April 3rd.  Click to read a PREVIEW & register.

Aloha,
Mokihana

Monday, March 21, 2011

Spring Equinox ... season of re-birth and ke alauna

Re-birth ... a favorite song of mine plays in my head, I hear the haunting nahenahe harmony of the Makaha Sons, see the beautiful faces of the Coco Brothers and Uncle Moon.  The song is "Ke Alauna" and somewhere I also remember hearing Uncle Moon describe the inspiration that urged him to compose the words.  It was the hope of a new day, a new dawn that fueled the beauty that is that song. The earthquake and tsunami in Japan sprang leaks in my emotional body, I felt the sorrow and the loss and have taken time to use the o'o, the tools  of the Makua to find my way through.  So often in the past I have tried to feel less, to be less sensitive to others.  It doesn't work to be something I am not, but there are things that help me retain my pono (my balance) while being a spiritually evolving human adult.  Crisis offers opportunity.  Throughout the week just passed, I have been reminded that Na o'o (the tools) and their use change as a makua (adult) changes.  Hope grows as a new dawn offers another day, a new day. 

A friend of ours forwarded a letter written by Anne Thomas from Sendai, just after the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.  Here is a clip of that letter, and this link to the entire letter which appears in Ode Magazine.

... I love this peeling away of non-essentials. Living fully on the level of instinct, of intuition, of caring, of what is needed for survival, not just of me, but of the entire group.


There are strange parallel universes happening. Houses a mess in some places, yet then a house with futons or laundry out drying in the sun. People lining up for water and food, and yet a few people out walking their dogs. All happening at the same time.

Other unexpected touches of beauty are first, the silence at night. No cars. No one out on the streets. And the heavens at night are scattered with stars. I usually can see about two, but now the whole sky is filled. The mountains are Sendai are solid and with the crisp air we can see them silhouetted against the sky magnificently. . .

And the Japanese themselves are so wonderful. I come back to my shack to check on it each day, now to send this e-mail since the electricity is on, and I find food and water left in my entranceway. I have no idea from whom, but it is there. Old men in green hats go from door to door checking to see if everyone is OK. People talk to complete strangers asking if they need help. I see no signs of fear. Resignation, yes, but fear or panic, no. . . "
"I see no signs of fear.  Resignation, yes, but fear or panic, no ..."  This is the line that wraps me in a kapa as strong as dawn itself. Change is inevitable and necessary, we are not static beings.  Chaos is not usually the change we wish for, but sometimes it is the only way to get our attention.  I considered the events of the week, and the signs of resilience returning to human nature, pared down to its essence.  I listen for messages that affirm the positive direction of our evolving nature and turn the radio on just in time to catch the end of  an interview with Daphne Rose Kingma.

From the Program Description on New Dimensions Media:
"This conversation helps us in recovering our sense of equanimity, spirit, and strength, when devastating events threaten to engulf us. . ."
Kingma spoke of Ten Things You Can Do When Your Life Falls Apart.  I took notes into my composition book, using my pencil and the high school note-hand Miss Powell taught us.  I missed some of the ten, but this is what I have scribbled in that book.

1.  Signature Strength(s). 
  • Not always something beautiful. 
  • It's something that gets us through life. 
  • Ask yourself:  "What else do I do, now that I cannot do what I always been/done/thought?  The example of a man who couldn't get a job, couldn't get a job; so we starts playing his guitar and eventually it's his love of the guitar that gets him through.
  • "Come to the altar of your strength"
2.  Persist

  • "Almost a mystical process"
  • We are honed and polished
  • It's the way we become something different
  • Persist in being the person that you are
3.  Live Simply
  • Pare down if you're going to get through
  • Density create stress
4. Integrate your losses
  • Take the full impact
  • When you live with the truth there is a possibility to become whole because you embraced the losses
5.  Go to where the love is
  • Reach out for help
  • Be with others (small efforts count!) smile at the people in line at the market
  • Crisis moves out of isolation
You can listen to the entire 1 hour interview until, March 30, 2011 by linking here:

http://www.newdimensions.org/flagship/3390/daphne-rose-kingma-receiving-the-fruits-that-crisis-can-offer/

The journey ... life, may or may not include catastrophic change, and deeply felt losses; if one lives long enough there are at least a few of these.  The evolving human adult will need to use the o'o many times and will find the tool serves her or him in different ways.  When moving a huge pohaku (boulder, stone) the long handled metal o'o will do the job, and you may need help to huli (move) it as well.  When making puka (holes) for planting seed a smaller stick will do.  When navigating rough water, an o'o fashioned as a paddle would keep your canoe from huli (over-turning). 

Blessings for a new season, and a time of re-birth.  How well do you use your o'o?

Image Credits:  http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

The image above is that of placed called Oo, France.  I thought ... hmmm, wisdom is found in many places, and words find themselves in many places, too.  Beautiful!

Friday, March 18, 2011

Healing Foods for Radiation Exposure

The impact of a global community wobbles any sense of separation when the reality of loss and toxic drift fill the pages of print, cyberscreen and radiowaves.  The devastation and costs generated by tsunami and earthquake in Japan are far-reaching, and those of us who live on the Pacific coast of the American continent prepare for the radiation drift.  I have no credentials to describe or predict the effects of the radiation, and do know that those like myself, who live with MCS need to be more conscious of chemical exposures at any level.

Julie Genser, Founder and Editor of the on-line community Planet Thrive is writing very helpful and practical recipes for healing foods to boost thyroid and over-all well-being.  Here is how Julie Genser begins the first of her articles addressing the radioactive plume

"  There is a lot of confusion, apprehension, and fear swirling around the Internet following Friday’s earthquake, aftershocks and tsunami in Japan, which may have caused nuclear power plant meltdowns in several locations. If this turns out to be the case, those on America’s west coast may be in the direct path of a radioactive plume in the coming days or weeks. Should we all stock up on potassium iodide (KI), a form of iodine that can be used to “fill up” the thyroid’s store and prevent the uptake of radioactive iodine from fallout? Is there anything else we can do to protect ourselves from the effects of radiation?

I looked into this myself over the past couple days since I live in Arizona and could potentially be in the path of any radioactive plume coming our way. What I found is that potassium iodide has a certain amount of risk involved in taking it ..."
Link to the entire article http://planetthrive.com/2011/03/anti-radiation-soup , and then search the site for other related posts.
 
Mahalo Julie!

Photo Credit:  http://www.allina.com/

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Kaulana Mahina ... How the Ancient Hawaiians Track Time... The Hawaiian Moon Calendar

Ethnoscience Educator Kalei Tsuha teaches the ancient and contemporary value of Kaulana Mahina, The Hawaiian Moon Calendar.  This 60 minute video presentation is precious wisdom wrapped into contemporary storytelling and education.  Kalei Tsuha's study and current-time knowledge of the Hawaiian's astute observation of time as a means of survival and sustaining life offers practical application for us on the Planet Earth today.

Click here to view this 2008 video Kaulana Mahina. *

This presentation will be part of our month-long on-line workshop 'OLE MAHALO ... Counting on The Moon. beginning Sunday, April 3, 2011.  Click here to read about the workshop, and register.

* This post is one of Makua o'o's most popular essays. This link has been updated (12/26/14) and will truly take you to the video "Kaulana Mahina" from the Kohala Center Puana Ka 'Ike Series.

Monday, March 14, 2011

Feel the heartbeart of the Culture ... Personal Retreats during the 'Ole Cycle of Mahina

The practice of Counting on the Moon

What is an 'Ole Cycle?

'Ole is the Hawaiian word, pronounced OH-LAY with the emphasis on the OH, meaning 'without or empty.' In the context of this article 'Ole Cycle' refers to the the 'empty cycles' of the moon's near thirty-day appearance and relationship with planet Earth. We see the moon appear smaller or larger in the sky because of her reflection of light from the Sun. Ancient peoples, as are the Kanaka Maoli, my ancestors the Hawaiians, have long been observant and in tune with the Moon, Mahina, and her affect on life on Earth and beings living on Earth. Mahina affects the tides, Mahina affects the tide and water both on our planet and in our bodies. Fisher folk and farmers tend to their lives with awareness of Mahina.

The 'Ole Cycle(s) are the non-productive times of planting and fishing times when the seas, and the soil are left to replenish and as well, the kanaka rests from new projects/work. Hawaiians like my ancestors and now, Hawaiians like myself, make time to s l o w down and reconnect with nature especially during the two 'Ole Cycles within a thirty-day cycle. There are two 'Ole Cycles, one cycle is four-days/nights long and happens seven nights after any New Moon. The other 'Ole Cycle is three-days/nights long and begins twenty-one days after any New Moon. The four-days/nights of 'Ole have just passed.

The wisdom that has grown from my personal practice of non-production during the 'Ole Cycle began that winter of 2007, when all possibilities of returning to the way things used to be went up in a toxic drift. My husband and I have suffered and survived loss upon loss since that pesticide poisoning in Ka`aawa. We are worn from the turn of tides that wiped friendships, family connection and pre-conceived entitlements. Life compressed, relief and then remedy came because we were called -- shouted at, to live intimately with the Earth. With nothing to count on, we came to count on the Moon. My son's focused remark "Do no new projects during the 'Ole," gave me a talisman of time upon which I could begin to 'be like nature.'

Given all the uncontrollable events, choices and outcomes of our nomadic life, there were seven days and nights in any thirty days and nights when we could tap into the energy of something more powerful than loss. Four times following an empty sky (New Moon) we became 'ole, emptied of fear, emptied of deciding, emptied of trying to make things different. Again later in the journey of the Moon on her way to becoming empty, we had three times (day and night) when we became 'ole, emptied of fear, emptied of deciding, emptied of trying to make things different. This three 'ole cycle was also an especially auspicious time, and a time to offer pule (prayers) to the Akua of planting and nourishment. I began to be more conscious of these prayer times, and called particularly on those Akua. At first, I forgot to pray, and lost track of Mahina. She minded not. Next cycle she was there, wherever we were parked, the Moon was present. Slowly, month by month the cycles became more a part of us. We noticed. I felt the cycles, and knew when it was time to empty and be with the 'ole.

The practice now

Personal Retreat, Powerful Emptying

This four-days and nights of 'Ole just passed were a powerful time of emptying. Conscious and compassionate, I made time for Retreating, drawing in to listen intuitively and quieted the clamber of external shouts and demands.

Rest

Life with MCS is difficult. With time and attending the symptoms of this illness calm and improve, but my experience is the symptoms persist or change. Much like life itself, this illness changes and because we live on the fringe of society in nearly every definition, our well-being is not guaranteed by a health care provider or insurance co-payment. We have long since been able to pay for or use the services of doctor or dentist. Instead, our well-being is most dependent upon our being able to rest and sleep deeply, encouraging body-mind and spirit to restore itself natively. It is more difficult for my husband, who continues to enter and return from society earning money and recognition as a dependable and skillful worker. His work involves contact with contaminated sources: fragranced environments and people. He is affected, and the scents then need to be washed off using eight cups of hot water at a time. The process is intentive, and the steps multiple.

During the 'Ole Cycle our bodies empty, and we rest deeply, and heal a little bit more.

Restoration

My life is compressed if one looks at it from the outside. I travel little, walk from our vardo to this Quonset, take walks in the woods and see few people. On the inside, my life is immense, my connection with the Divine intimate and the avenues of expression grow from that internal life. Writing, as I am now, is the exchange of energy that comes from my daily practices: prayers, reading of Al-Anon literature, astrology and the casting of Runes. All these make for a full day. Life Navigation is an art, the course set last week may well require correction because of course, I sail not alone. I tune in, ask for clarification an during 'Ole I write less, make even fewer contacts than my minimal usual, and I listen more.

Review

Plant and fish, weed and mend nets


'Ole Cycles happen regularly, twice in a calendar month and with that natural structure I live my life in smaller chunks. The years of living on the road, presented us with the gift of wisdom wrapped with the moon. Time has offered us opportunities to become fisher folk and farmers of our personal sea, our personal garden. In no some way with no hold or ownership of sea or land, we plant seeds or fish where we are. Today, as the clocks jump ahead an hour in Northwestern USA, we plant ourselves lightly on portable homes no bigger than a closet. We share ourselves and our resources with two kind women and their animals. They share space in exchange for a minimal rent and our survival skills. We nurture this relationship, and restore the value of being together.

What, how and when I write changes and during 'Ole I stop writing on the blogs, and tend to the writing already begun editing and listening to the melody of stories written to hear them again. My decisions to close down access to the blogs written during the years of diaspora and building our vardo home are the right ones for me. The 'Ole time confirmed that choice, new energy comes when weeding is efficient and timely. There is room for the unexpected and the unknown. The newly created writers group rested this past long weekend, and soon we will come together to find what is next.

Relationships

The Earth is experiencing huge changes. To deny that is a choice that will bring with it consequences unique to the chooser. Just as this planet and her inhabitants experience the changing relationship between humankind and place, we will experience changes in our personal relationships. I am aware of the change in me, as I recognize and am affirmed that "This is not a rehearsal. This is IT!" The sky is falling, and we are all affected. 

Astrology and faith reinforce the course of my life. With each loss and resurrection, I am learning to know all my 'cards' so to speak. With each loss I find out who this person is, and who I am not. The relationships I have whittle the facades I have worn, and I learn to deal more squarely with my real self. The self that wears a mask because toxic drift is real. The self that loves, yet knows their are limits. The self that knows some (or all) of my choices might end a friendship, relationship. And then, there are the 'Ole cycles when unexpected reconnections lead me to kindle a passion thought lost. Storytelling is that passion. Oh yes, the story told through words stretching across the page continues to flow, and change, as here I write. But it is the telling story that I love that has been left to seed. Yesterday I reconnected with a friend and master of the tale who did re-ignite my love for the oral tradition. To him, I end this winding tale, with a smile as broad as bowls. Emptied, there was room for Jeff Gere, and what a genie, showing up across the waves.

The Makana (the give-away)

An MCS Gypsy Remedy: Personal Retreat during the 'Ole Cycle of the Moon


First, a couple definitions.

This remedy is not a cure, but may aid, assist or support your personal well-being and health related choices; and it will surely do you no harm.

Gypsy. In all respects and manner, I humbly acknowledge the Romani Nation, the people who are called 'Gypsy' in countries across Planet Earth. To these ancient and respected travellers I mean no disrespect as I link myself as "MCS Gypsy." I experienced a life without settlement, and diaspora and know the Roma or Romani history with diaspora. Only with the highest regard for "Gypsies" do I call myself a wanderer and traveller.

Undeniably those who live with chronic illnesses like I do with Multiple Chemical Sensitivities benefit from the support of understanding people and practices for well-being as unique as each of us. My experiences with loss and recovery, hope and resilience has benefited from my relationship with nature and in particular my relationship to Mahina. Whatever your personal well-ness practices are here is one that is portable, practical and inexpensive. The Moon is there wherever you are. The practice of Personal Retreat during the 'Ole Cycle of the Moon" as adaptable as you find yourself, and inexpensive for it only costs you willingness and seven-days in a calendar month.

Try this:

  • NOTE THE NEW MOON
Look at a calendar, or go on-line and find out when the New Moon is for the up-coming month.

  • COUNT TO SEVEN
Once you know when the New Moon is, count it as "1" and then go forward counting to "7". Day "7" is the first 'OLE DAY/NIGHT. There will be FOUR 'Ole days and nights in this cycle, "7",8", "9" and "10."

Days and Nights "7" through "10" are 'OLE.


  • DO NO NEW PROJECTS During the 'Ole
This may take some practice, some of us will find rest, weed and restore difficult. Start with awareness, and let the practice happen with time. Be easy.

  • There's a second set of 'Ole Days later in the month
COUNT FORWARD FROM THE NEW MOON TO "21"
Days and Nights counted "21" through "23" are the second cycle of 'Ole.

Three days and nights of the moon are 'Ole, a second time for resting and DO NO NEW PROJECTS within any calendar month.

I live a Gypsy-like life and know first-hand the harshness, and the wisdom that can come from a life of wandering. I suspect there will be more of us on this road, due the physical and economic shifts that are happening throughout the Planet.  We will need to draw on courage we have never known before, and may find our dreams, our homes and the life you know lost like sandcastles at a high tide.  If there are times when you can not count on a thing, try counting on the Moon.

Do you take time for personal retreats?

If you would like to learn more about the 'Ole Cycle, or consult with Mokihana e-mail me at ssvardoATgmailDOTcom.

Imagine Credit:  Copyright, Mokihana Calizar and Pete Little

Friday, March 11, 2011

'OLE Days and Nights of the Hawaiian Moon Calendar March 10th-13th, 2011

These are the 'ole times.  Click here to read the traditional names and descriptions of this four days-nights of rest, review, weeding and mending.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Ano ano

One of my favorite books is called Ano Ano.  Like so many lessons, the book was the teacher I needed at the time.  Beautifully illustrated and written in lyrical language I was ripe for learning.  Spring approaches in the forest where we live, and evidence of new life makes itself known: pollens, spores and changes in the atmosphere, and slowly warming temperatures.

The seed re-inspires me to look within and find the seed of being that always knows who I am, who I was when I began and who I promised to become. 

The ano reminds me to allow for remembering, and attend to what is most important.  My life has changed tme and time again since I first opened that beautiful book Ano Ano in 1994.  I grieve the losses, appreciate the gifts, and close some doors so the ano can be born again.

Image credit:  http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/