Walking the Red Road
The Creator has given the First Nations people their own
way to stay in their health and become all that they can be. This way
assures all the best in life and the capacity to make dreams come true.
This path has been termed The Red Road. It is said that the Red Road is
the path to the inner self. This is true, because inside all human beings
lies the Red Road. The Red Road, like the three Principles, mind, consciousness
and thought are a way to walk in life. This path is a road, not a physical
road but a mental one.
An elder once said that, "The creator has given
each race a way to walk in harmony with life and all of Creation, to us
we were given the Red Road". I think he meant that we are all talking
about the same thing; we just have different ceremonies to achieve this.
All religions are talking about the same thing; it cannot be denied that
every religion is a way to achieve happiness and health. This is what
every human being on earth is looking for. Kitche-Manitou, God, Buddha
and any other names that are used to describe a higher power, are all
names for the same thing.
The Red Road is the easiest road to walk. Understanding
thought and its relationship to the Red Road is fundamental in walking
it. A teaching I received about the Red Road was about fact. We must see
that it is a fact that we are the creators of the way we see our world.
Knowing it is a fact and not just an idea could mean the difference between
walking the Red Road or becoming lost on the Black Road. I am starting
to see that the less I want things to happen the more chance that they
will. What I mean is that the more faith I have that as long as I stay
in a positive state of mind the more the chance that good things will
happen to me. Just like when you wake up and spill coffee on yourself
and then stub your toe on the coffee table. If you did not have the understanding
that it is a fact that we are the creators of our experiences you might
let that experience dictate the way your day will be.
The Red Road is
more than a way to walk in life it is way to feel in life. The Red Road
and love are the same thing. Jesus and the wise people from the East say
that the answer is love. When you get right down to it you will see that
the truth about all religion is love. Love is just a word that we use
to describe a beautiful feeling that is free of judgment and any hostile
or negative thoughts. This is the Red Road; this is the way that all religions
are talking about. This is the way that our ancestors lived and tried
to pass on; because words are so open to personal interpretations the
true meaning was lost. Do not get lost in the words.
Having faith was another teaching I received. I have the faith
that I know that the Red Road is always there. It is in my mind. Even
if I stray off the path I know that I will find my way back. The more
faith I have in this the faster I am able to return to the Red Road. This
means that the more aware I am of my thinking the easier it is to come
back to love or the Red Road.
I received a teaching about our sacred
sweet grass. This sacred medicine is used to cleanse us of negative thoughts
and energy. The teaching of the sweet grass is in the way it is braided.
It takes three strands of sweet grass to braid it into one piece. The
teaching is that each strand represents a different thing yet is the same
thing. One strand is mind, the next spirit and finally body. These are
braided together to form one. It is the same with mind, consciousness
and thought. Although in words they are three different things, they are
still all the same thing; they are one.
A teaching of the Sweat Lodge
is that when you enter the Sweat you become equal with everyone. This
is true because we are all human beings. People who have been enlightened
are just the same as you and me they are just trying to make you see that
you are them and they are you. Like the sweat lodge teaching we are all
equal and all have the gift of enlightenment or the Red Road or love.
The feeling of love or the Red Road comes from within you and is
the gift that all human beings were given at creation. It does not matter
what your circumstances are you have always had and will always have the
Red Road or love inside you.
The Red Road cannot be found in a
book it cannot even be found by what I have written. The Red Road can
only be found in a feeling. I am only using words to describe what I am
trying to explain. Please do not get caught in the words or you will lose
the true meaning of what I am trying to say. The truth is and can only
be found in love. This is where you will find the Red Road.
The
Red Road is the way that I choose to walk in life. Since I have been walking
the Red Road I have witnessed and experienced true beauty. My relationships
are better; my walk is becoming easier and more beautiful everyday. I
know who I am, and I am proud to be an Anishnabe Ogichidaa (Ojibway Warrior).
Meegwetch! Akina Nindinawe
Waabijayaa-myeengun Ginagaapi-omashkooz
(Thank
you! All my Relations)
Greywolf Laughingelk
Desi Lindstrom (Shebobman)
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