The Four Worlds International Institute

Medicine Wheel




http://users.ap.net/~chenae/spirit.html

The Medicine Wheel is representative of American Indian Spirituality.
The Medicine Wheel symbolizes the individual journey we each must take
to find our own path. Within the Medicine Wheel are The Four Cardinal
Directions and the Four Sacred Colors. The Circle represents the Circle
of Life and the Center of the Circle, the Eternal Fire. The Eagle,
flying toward the East, is a symbol of strength, endurance and vision.
East signifies the renewal of life and the rebirth of Cherokee unity.




East = Red = success; triumph




North = Blue = defeat; trouble

West = Black = death

South = White = peace; happiness



There are three additional sacred directions:

Up Above = Yellow

Down Below = Brown

Here in the Center = Green



Winter=go-la

The color for North is Blue which represents sadness, defeat.
It is a season of survival and waiting.
The Cherokee word for North means "cold" u-yv-tlv.



Spring=gi-la-go-ge

The color for East is Red which represents victory, power.
Spring is the re-awakening after a long sleep,
victory over winter; the power of new life.
The Cherokee word for East is ka-lv-gv



Summer=go-ga

The color for South is White for peace, happiness & serenity.
Summer is a time of plenty.
The Cherokee word for South means "warm" u-ga-no-wa.



Autumn=u-la-go-hv-s-di

The color for West is Black which represents death.
Autumn is the final harvest; the end of Life's Cycle.
The Cherokee word for West is wu-de-li-gv.



RED was symbolic of success. It was the color of the war club used to
strike an enemy in battle as well as the other club used by the warrior
to shield himself. Red beads were used to conjure the red spirit to
insure long life, recovery from sickness, success in love and ball play
or any other undertaking where the benefit of the magic spell was
wrought.



BLACK was always typical of death. The soul of the enemy was
continually beaten about by black war clubs and enveloped in a black
fog. In conjuring to destroy an enemy, the priest used black beads and
invoked the black spirits-which always lived in the West,-bidding them
to tear out the man's soul and carry it to the West, and put it into
the black coffin deep in the black mud, with a black serpent coiled
above it.



BLUE symbolized failure, disappointment, or unsatisfied desire. To say
"they shall never become blue" expressed the belief that they would
never fail in anything they undertook. In love charms, the lover
figuratively covered himself with red and prayed that his rival would
become entirely blue and walk in a blue path. "He is entirely blue, "
approximates meaning of the common English phrase, "He feels blue. "The
blue spirits lived in the North.



WHITE denoted peace and happiness. In ceremonial addresses, as the
Green Corn Dance and ball play, the people symbolically partook of
white food and, after the dance or game, returned along the white trail
to their white houses. In love charms, the man, to induce the woman to
cast her lost with his, boasted, "I am a white man," implying that all
was happiness where he was. White beads had the same meaning in bead
conjuring, and white was the color of the stone pipe anciently used in
ratifying peace treaties. The White spirits lived in the South.



Two numbers are sacred to the Cherokee. Four is one number, it
represented the four primary directions. At the center of their paths
lays the sacred fire. Seven is the other and most sacred number. Seven
is represented in the seven directions: north, south, east, west,
above, bellow, and "here in the center" the place of the sacred fire.
Seven also represented the seven ancient ceremonies that formed the
yearly Cherokee religious cycle.




The medicine wheel is a symbol for the wheel of life which is forever
evolving and bringing new lessons and truths to the walking of the
path. The Earthwalk is based on the understanding that each one of us
must stand on every spoke, on the great wheel of life many times, and
that every direction is to be honored. Until you have walked in others'
moccasins, or stood on their spokes of the wheel, you will never truly
know their hearts.



The medicine wheel teaches us that all lessons are equal, as are all
talents and abilities. Every living creature will one day see and
experience each spoke of the wheel, and know those truths. It is a
pathway to truth, peace and harmony. The circle is never ending, life
without end.



In experiencing the Good Red Road, one learns the lessons of physical
life, or of being human. This road runs South to North in the circle of
the medicine wheel. After the graduation experience of death, one
enters the Blue or Black Road, that is the world of the grandfathers
and grandmothers. In spirit, one will continue to learn by counseling
those remaining on the Good Red Road. The Blue Road of the spirit runs
East to West. The medicine wheel is life, afterlife, rebirth and the
honoring of each step along the way.

End of the Trail
An end to the old ways of life,
Freedom to hunt and fish,
Nomad, migrating with the season.
Eagle feathers represent:
Four directions on Mother Earth,
Four seasons of the year,
Four age groups.





Medicine Shield



The medicine shield is an expression of the unique gifts that it's
maker wishes to impart about his or her current life journey. This can
be a new level of personal growth, or illustrate the next mountain a
person wishes to climb.



Every shield carries medicine through it's art and self-expression.
Each shield is the essence of a time and space that carries certain
aspects of knowledge. All persons carry shields of the lessons they
learned from the four directions on the medicine wheel.



They are the healing tools we give ourselves to sooth the spirit and
empower the will. The truth needs no explanation,, just reflection.
This allows intuition to guide the heart so that humankind may
celebrate more than it mourns.

Sun who looks to four winds on
Mother Earth: North, South, East,West.
Enriching one's health,
Bring good luck, fortune,
Healing the sick.
Buffalo horns for strength, protection
Eagle feathers for wisdom, honesty, happiness.





Medicine Wheel - Circle of Life



The medicine wheel is sacred, the native people believe, because the
Great Spirit caused everything in nature to be round. The Sun, Sky,
Earth and Moon are round. Thus, man should look upon the Medicine Wheel
(circle of life) as sacred. It is the symbol of the circle that marks
the edge of the world and therefore, the Four Winds that travel there.
It is also the symbol of the year. The Sky, the Night, and the Moon go
in a circle above the Sky, therefore, the Circle is a symbol of these
divisions of time. It is the symbol of all times throughout creation.

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