Charlie "Red Hawk" Thom

 

I mourn the loss of Charles "Red Hawk" Thom, Sr., Northern California Native American Karuk medicine man and ceremonial leader, who passed away last Tuesday (Oct.8) at the age of 85.  He was one of the last traditional medicinemen (shaman) who had been trained in the old ways.  Known to many as the guardian of Mt. Shasta and the other ceremonial sites in Northern California and Oregon, he was also an esteemed elder to the Karuk, Kiowa and Hoopa tribes; faithfully serving his people for many years as the keeper of their culture, traditions and sacred knowledge.  He was instrumental in getting official federal recognition for his tribe and was a catalyst in the legalization of Native American ceremonies.  Grandpa Charlie was also involved in natural resource management and the protection of their sacred tribal grounds. 

 

Born in Fort Jones, California on April 4, 1928 and orphaned at a very young age, Charlie Thom was raised by the elders of his tribe in the ancient medicine ways of the Karuk Arara (Up River People), who have possibly lived in the same area since the Ice Age.  As a child, he was hidden from the authorities who required all the Native American children to be taken to boarding schools for assimilation, and was brought up instead to be a medicine man.  He was one of the remaining few who fluently spoke his ancestral Karuk language, and had vast knowledge on his people's history, ceremonies, stories, sacred songs and dances.  Grandpa Charlie was considered a "Living National Treasure" by his tribe.

Charlie leading a Sweat Lodge ceremony on Panther Meadows in Mt. Shasta

 

"Red Hawk Walking Backwards" was his ceremonial name, which signified his sacred path in retracing his people's cultural heritage.  40 years ago, he made his sacred sweat lodge ceremonies public, attracting people far and wide. In 1983, Charlie Thom addressed the UN Delegates in the United Nations at the Dag Hammarskjold Auditorium to plea for help in protecting their sacred ceremonial sites.  A ceremonial leader, environmental-social activist, teacher and spiritual guide, Grandpa Charlie has guided hundreds of people from all over the world to live in the wisdom of the ancient ways and to exist in harmony with nature, with each other and with themselves.

 

Known to his friends and family as a kind, humble, gentle, generous and light-hearted person, hundreds of people worldwide mourn the loss of Grandpa Charlie.  He was pre-deceased by 4 of his children; but survived by 14 others, as well as numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren, who will miss him.  We should all remember him in our hearts as an eternal teacher and guide who lived as he preached, and as a concrete example of how we can all live in harmony with all of creation.

A Little Humor...

...on Politics

...on Corporate Culture

...on growing up with the Internet

...on the monastic life

...on the secret to happiness

Eckhart Tolle: Modern-day Buddha?

I recently came across Eckhart Tolle's books, and I was immediately struck by the depth and scope of his spiritual insights. As a voracious reader, who has sampled quite a vast array of discourse on Religion, Spirituality, Philosophy, Metaphysics and Psychology, I find his books to be some of the most relevant and well expounded volumes on Buddhist thought and general Spirituality I have ever encountered.

Born Ulrich Leonard Tolle in Lünen, Germany in 1948, Eckhart (a name he chose) was perpetually troubled by depression, anxiety and fear until he was twenty-nine years old. One night in 1977, after having suffered from long periods of suicidal depression, he experienced spontaneous "Samadhi," awakening from the illusion of duality. Recounting the experience, he says "I couldn’t live with myself any longer. And in this a question arose without an answer: who is the ‘I’ that cannot live with the self? What is the self? I felt drawn into a void! I didn’t know at the time that what really happened was the mind-made self, with its heaviness, its problems, that lives between the unsatisfying past and the fearful future, collapsed. It dissolved. The next morning I woke up and everything was so peaceful. The peace was there because there was no self. Just a sense of presence or “beingness,” just observing and watching."  For a period of about two years, he wandered aimlessly like the Zen Buddhist Masters of old,  spending a lot of his time sitting in park benches, “in a state of deep bliss." Eckhart wandered around staying with friends and drifted about "watching the world go by." His family was worried that he had gone insane.

People were curious, so they began talking to him about his perspective on life. Amazed at his thoughts on spirituality, people began to be drawn to him. This led to a five year stint as a Spiritual councilor and teacher. In 1995, he migrated to Vancouver, Canada where he began to write. His first three books, "The Power of Now," "Stillness Speaks" and "A New Earth," have sold millions of copies and  have been consistently on the "New York Times Best-Sellers List." Spurred by his books' successes, Eckhart partnered with Oprah Winfrey to produce webinar sessions in 2008 and launched Eckhart Tolle TV in 2009.

The current commercial tone of his enterprise is not exactly to my taste (maybe it is the best way to reach the most number of people), but I fully support his message and goal. Eckhart speaks clearly about our "collective delusions," and how our "Egos" have created the destructive path we are currently facing. We should all awaken from our "state of insanity," and realize the divinity of life, in all its forms. I highly recommend "The Power of Now" and "A New Earth" to everyone seeking genuine spiritual insight. Eckhart is the real thing, and he is showing us a viable way out of Māyā (Sanskrit माया ), our collective illusion of duality and separateness.

Here is an excerpt from "A New Earth:"

Most ancient religions and spiritual traditions share the common insight-- that our "normal" state of mind is marred by a fundamental defect... In Hindu teachings (and sometimes in Buddhism also), this transformation is called enlightenment. In the teachings of Jesus, it is salvation, in Buddhism, it is the end of suffering. Liberation and awakening are other terms used to describe this transformation. The greatest achievement of humanity is not its works of art, science or technology, but the recognition of its own dysfunction, its own madness.

--Quote taken from "A New Earth" by Eckhart Tolle 

The Music We Are

By Jelaluddin Rumi (1207 - 1273)

Did you hear that winter's over?  The basil

and the carnations cannot control their

laughter.  The nightingale, back from his

wandering, has been made singing master

over the birds.  The trees reach out their

congratulations.  The soul goes dancing

through the king's doorway.  Anemones blush

because they have seen the rose naked.

Spring, the only fair judge, walks in the

courtroom, and several December thieves steal

away.  Last year's miracles will soon be

forgotten.  New creatures whirl in from non-

existence, galaxies scattered around their

feet.  Have you met them?  Do you hear the

bud of Jesus crooning in the cradle?  A single

narcissus flower has been appointed Inspector

of Kingdoms.  A feast is set.  Listen: the

wind is pouring wine!  Love used to hide

inside images: no more!  The orchard hangs

out its lanterns.  The dead come stumbling by

in shrouds.  Nothing can stay bound or be

imprisoned.  You say, "End this poem here,

and wait for what's next."  I will.  Poems

are rough notations for the music we are.

--translation by Coleman Barks

Divine Meditation

Meditation has many forms as there are styles.  Praying, contemplating, concentrating, reflecting, observing, pondering, introspection, going into a trance, reciting a mantra, repeating affirmations, journeying through guided or solo visualizations, gazing at a mandala, and even deep sleep all fall under the general definition of Meditation.  But for our purpose here, I am referring to the form of meditation universally considered to be its highest expression, I call it Divine Meditation --contemplation and union with the Divine, within and without.

You know it by different names:   bhāvanā or dhyāna (Buddhism/Hinduism), Contemplative Prayer (Christian), hitbodedut (Judaism), Zazen (Japanese Buddhism), hesychasm (Greek Orthodox), Dhikr (Islam), Yoga Nidra (Hinduism), Tamarkoz (Sufi), Preksha (Jainism), simran (Sikhism), Neidan (Daoism), Trancendental Meditation, Silva Mind Control, and a few others.  Although the individual styles and approaches (not to mention the theology) of these meditation techniques differ from one another, they all seek 'oneness' with the Divine.  As they say, there are many roads but there is only one destination (as there is only one God).

Divine Meditation, no matter what method or style you prefer, aligns your spirit/energy body to its highest configuration and gives you access to the resources of the Cosmos.  The benefits you gain from constantly communing with the Divine are immeasurable.  Physical and Mental well-being are just the tip of the iceberg.  Spiritual Oneness and intimacy with God (the Infinite) are the real blessings you will reap.  I cannot even put into words what wonders you will gain.  Divine Meditation is the essence of real prayer.  Practice Divine Meditation in any form and you will be healthy-- in body, in mind, in spirit and in Soul.

"Meditation has been laid stress upon by all religions. The meditative state of mind is declared by the Yogis to be the highest state in which the mind exists. When the mind is studying the external object, it gets identified with it, loses itself. To use the simile of the old Indian philosopher: the soul of man is like a piece of crystal, but it takes the colour of whatever is near it. Whatever the soul touches ... it has to take its colour. That is the difficulty. That constitutes the bondage." -- Swami Vivekananda

Einstein's View On Religion

Albert Einstein is one of the greatest thinkers in the history of humanity.  He is generally known for his thoughts on theoretical Physics.  But since Physics is concerned about the nature of  (physical) "reality," its greatest thinkers cannot avoid pondering on metaphysical questions in their quest to seek answers to explain Nature and the Universe.  I think, Einstein's views on Religion and God are just as facinating and as relevant as his thoughts on Space and Time.  Here is a brief excerpt of an article he wrote for the New York Times Magazine on November 9, 1930.

"The Jewish scriptures admirably illustrate the development from the religion of fear to moral religion, a development continued in the New Testament. The religions of all civilized peoples, especially the peoples of the Orient, are primarily moral religions. The development from a religion of fear to moral religion is a great step in peoples' lives. And yet, that primitive religions are based entirely on fear and the religions of civilized peoples purely on morality is a prejudice against which we must be on our guard. The truth is that all religions are a varying blend of both types, with this differentiation: that on the higher levels of social life the religion of morality predominates.

Common to all these types is the anthropomorphic character of their conception of God. In general, only individuals of exceptional endowments, and exceptionally high-minded communities, rise to any considerable extent above this level. But there is a third stage of religious experience which belongs to all of them, even though it is rarely found in a pure form: I shall call it cosmic religious feeling. It is very difficult to elucidate this feeling to anyone who is entirely without it, especially as there is no anthropomorphic conception of God corresponding to it.

The individual feels the futility of human desires and aims and the sublimity and marvelous order which reveal themselves both in nature and in the world of thought. Individual existence impresses him as a sort of prison and he wants to experience the universe as a single significant whole. The beginnings of cosmic religious feeling already appear at an early stage of development, e.g., in many of the Psalms of David and in some of the Prophets. Buddhism, as we have learned especially from the wonderful writings of Schopenhauer, contains a much stronger element of this.

The religious geniuses of all ages have been distinguished by this kind of religious feeling, which knows no dogma and no God conceived in man's image; so that there can be no church whose central teachings are based on it. Hence it is precisely among the heretics of every age that we find men who were filled with this highest kind of religious feeling and were in many cases regarded by their contemporaries as atheists, sometimes also as saints. Looked at in this light, men like Democritus, Francis of Assisi, and Spinoza are closely akin to one another.

How can cosmic religious feeling be communicated from one person to another, if it can give rise to no definite notion of a God and no theology? In my view, it is the most important function of art and science to awaken this feeling and keep it alive in those who are receptive to it."

The Virtue of Humility

A medieval Catholic Saint and a native American Holy Man in supplication

Humility has a negative connotation in the modern world.  In our current 'celebrity oriented' consciousness, it is often perceived as a weakness.  We often confuse 'greatness' with a hyperinflated sense of 'Self.'  We revel in the importance of our individuality and we indulge on the cult of our personality.  We all proudly wear our accomplishments as badges of pride for people to admire or fawn over, believing that we are somehow larger than life.  Thinly disguised as confidence, we constantly feed our egos to show the whole world how great we are.  But at what cost?

If we look closely at the human suffering that surrounds us... If we examine the misery that envelops all of us... If we dig deep into our collective history and analyze the causes of all the wars, famine, killings and destruction we have all suffered, we will find the titanic ego of a so-called great man or woman behind every one of them.  We greatly admire the glorious accomplishments of these titans, both good and bad, and we model ourselves after them.  We easily dismiss their abuses and excesses as unfortunate byproducts of the progress and civilization they help create, because we covet and envy their successes (e.g. Alexander, Ceasar and Napoleon are still widely exalted as godlike-heros).  After all who does not want to be admired and venerated like a god -- immortal and divine?

Our instincts are correct, but our approach is all wrong. Our yearning for immortality and divinity comes from the deepest core of our being.  But our mortality and our human limitations drives us to transcend these very limitations in the most bizarre ways.  Since we readily identify with our bodies and our 'ego' as 'me' or 'I,' and because it is clearly separated from the 'other' (other creatures and our environment), we mistakenly believe that this 'Self' comprises the extent of our Being.  So we strive to be more than what we are, if not through the magnitude of our accomplishments and status, then through the alteration of our consciousness.  The instinct that creates empires and dynasties, are the same instincts that drive hard-core junkies into drug use.  In the culture of 'I,' it is always the survival of the fittest.  It is 'me' against the world and others be damned.  If 'I' cannot achieve success righteously, then 'I' will get it by any means necessary.  Since the yearning for immortality and divinity are programmed into our Souls, there is no alternative.  Both winners and losers suffer from this unquenchable transcendental thirst.  Kings die wanting more kingdoms to conquer, and failures find alternatives (e.g. gambling, liquor, drugs), because our sense of 'Self' (ego) is an illusion.

Most Religions and spiritual traditions teach us about the Divine, but they reserved the 'inner teachings' to a chosen few.  These initiates were taught about our true nature and our immortality since ancient times.  So I have often wondered why these priests and priestesses of sacred knowledge never fully revealed these 'truths' plainly, instead of veiling them in riddles.  I guess they were afraid that some people would distort the teachings to serve their own 'selfish' agendas.  But I believe in the power and simplicity of these teachings, and I am confident that they cannot be easily distorted to serve 'selfish' ends.  Because in order to harness its full power, we have to align ourselves with our highest spiritual potential.  I other words, anyone who diligently embodies these 'truths' cannot help but be transformed from their ignorant and selfish ways.

The truths I am speaking of, are simply this:  "Our Soul/Mind is immortal and divine."  "We are all connected (one) in God."  "Our minds are infinite."  "True humility and love are the keys that will unlock our communion with God."

Jesus said:

"Whosoever … shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 18:1, 4).

"For he that is least among you all, the same shall be great" (Luke 9:48).

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 5:3)

The Buddha said:

"Whenever I interact with someone, May I view myself as the lowest amongst all, And, from the very depths of my heart, Respectfully hold others as superior."

Lao-Tzu said:

"ALL things in Nature work silently. They come into being and possess nothing. They fulfil their functions and make no claim."

"Follow diligently the Way in your own heart, but make no display of it to the world."

"Keep behind, and you shall be put in front; keep out, and you shall be kept in."

"Goodness strives not, and therefore it is not rebuked."

Self-importance and pride isolates us from the world (and everything beyond).  How can we be receptive to the infinite wonders of existence when we are only focused on our 'Selves?'  We must remember that we are just a tiny part of a Whole, and should act accordingly.  When we behave as an integral part of this universal reality, we might finally attain our 'true nature'-- unbound by time and space.  Besides, humility fosters harmony and community, as naturally as 'egotism' promotes competition and conflict.  Just remember to be honest with yourself, because false humility will never be good enough.           

Knowing God

How can we know God/the Divine?  Here are some clues...

O my God, how does it happen in this poor old world that Thou art so great and yet nobody finds Thee, that Thou callest so loudly and nobody hears Thee, that Thou art so near and nobody feels Thee, that Thou givest Thyself to everybody and nobody knows Thy name? Men flee from Thee and say they cannot find Thee; they turn their backs and say they cannot see Thee; they stop their ears and say they cannot hear Thee.

Hans Denk, 16th Century German Theologian

Disease is not cured by pronouncing the name of medicine, but by taking medicine.  Deliverance is not achieved by repeating the word "Brahman," but by directly experiencing Brahman...

Shankara, 8th Century Indian Mystic and guru

The seed of God is in us.  Given an intelligent and hardworking farmer, it will thrive and grow up to God, whose seed it is; and accordingly its fruits will be God-natured.  Pear seeds grow into pear trees, nut seeds into nut trees, and God seed into God.

Meister Eckhart, 14th Century German Mystic, Philospher and theologian

The astrolabe of the mysteries of God is love.

Jalal-uddin Rumi, 13th Century Persian Mystic, Poet and theologian

We make an idol of truth itself; for truth apart from charity (Love) is not God, but his image and idol, which we must never love nor worship.

Blaise Pascal, 17th Century French Mathematician, Physicist and philosopher

He who knows does not speak;  He who speaks does not know.

Lao Tzu, 5th Century BC Chinese Mystic and Philosopher

It is only when you hunt for it that you lose it; You cannot take hold of it, but equally you cannot get rid of it, And while you can do neither, it goes on its own way.  You remain silent and it speaks; you speak, and it is dumb; The great gate of charity is wide open, with no obstacles before it.

Yung Chia, 7th Century Chinese Ch'an/Zen Master and Poet

James Arthur Ray's Mistake

James Arthur Ray was found guilty of 'Negligent Homicide' on the sweatlodge deaths of three of his "Spiritual Warrior" participants.  In October 2009, about 60 of Ray's followers crammed into a 415-square-foot hut heated with red-hot rocks. Ray, a charismatic guru, told his followers it would be a "rebirthing" but it instead turned into a fatal experience for three people.  According to prosecutors, one witness said, "20 people got sick. Overheated and throwing up."(http://abcnews.go.com/US/james-ray-found-guilty-negligent-homicide-arizona-sweat/story?id=13908037) 

Native American Elders and Medicine People have been warning the public of this danger for years.  The Inipi, what non-natives refer to as a sweatlodge, is a spiritual ceremony that should be treated and respected as such.  It must be conducted by a "real" Medicine Person, who was initiated into its sacred and ancient teachings.  Have you heard of a Mass being conducted by a lay person?  I'm sure most Christians will be shocked at this comparison, but God did not give Native Americans an inferior form of worship.  All of our Spiritual traditions around the world (the ones that espouse Love, Kindness and Oneness) are as valid as the other.  The Native American spiritual traditions are just as sacred as any Religious ceremony, and should be conducted as they have always been, lead by the valid and initiated priesthood (Medicineman) of that faith.    

I am actually shocked at how people readily adopt alternative spiritual ceremonies as if they are hosting a 'clam bake.'  I understand that most people do not really want to change Religions readily, because such descisions are hard to make.  But no one really needs to change their Religious affiliations.  Whatever Faith you were born with is actually adequate, if you just take the time and effort to dig deeper into its inner teachings.  Adapting the teachings (philosophy) of other Religions and spiritual beliefs to augment your own, is also acceptable (for we are still evolving towards a unified Faith).  But performing a mock ritual, immitating something we saw, read or heard can be dangerous.

Spiritual rituals and ceremonies are not only sacred because of their esoteric meaning and symbolism.  In some Faiths, particularly the shamanic kind, these rites also are charged with energies (or Spirits), both constructive and destructive.  These sacred ceremonies must therefore be conducted by people who were trained to handle these invisible and supernatural powers.  These qualifications cannot be earned by a diploma or a seminar, no matter how many you earn.  It takes years of training and acceptance, not only by a traditional practitioner, but also by the energies that you have to work with. 

James Arthur Ray's Spiritual Retreat in Arizon

James Arthur Ray may have had good intentions for starting out his Self-Help business, but Spirituality is never for sale.  Human Spirituality is the most sacred thing in our lives.  It is our connection to the Divine and it was meant to be freely shared -- just like breathing.  Charging people for salvation and peace in any way shape of form is his second mistake.  No one should make a business out of spiritual salvation, because profit taking is aligned to our lowest mental vibrations.  Having that mental state in a spiritual space attracts unwanted lower vibratory energies (Spirits).  Jesus was vehemently opposed to it, Buddha was a beggar and Lao Tzu was a hermit for a purpose.  My elders always warned me to never seek the guidance of anyone who charges for their services, because this was the most obvious sign that the person is not what they claim to be.

I have attended dozens of Inipi sessions, both secular (healing ceremonies) and initiatory, but since I have not specifically trained (as well as fasted and sacrificed) for the Inipi, I will never attempt to conduct one-- copy or imitate what I have seen or heard.  Spiritual training and the gifts they come with, must be approached properly (usually traditionally).  Spiritual energy is like electricity, it has a positive and negative charge.  The negative charge is always present, but to conduct the alternate positive current, you body, mind, soul and spirit must be a strong enough to withstand the shock.  Any blockages of any kind, will kill or maim you.   

"Seek and you shall be guided."  It does not say enroll or sign-up.  Seek spiritual truths inward, not outward.  Keep learning.  Keep praying.  Keep Meditating.  But always be humble.  Humility is the truest bench mark to Spiritual growth and maturity (and the truest conductor for positive energy).  When you are ready, the teacher or teachers will come, because your very own spiritual vibration will attract them to you.