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SPIRIT
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LIBRARY
Main
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The 37 pages in this Main Information section are below.
Power
© Cinnamon Moon
Power is an interesting word, it
can be a potent capability, energy source, or an authority...it
can also be a corruptive term when it is abused. As knowledge,
power becomes a strong capability in the hands of an individual.
As a source of energy it is an expression of the motion and
force behind it. As authority it becomes critical that the person
holding that authority exercises it wisely to avoid the corruption
of character and spirit that becomes one of many temptations
along the way.
Power can also reside in things
and events that take place. How many times have you heard others
(or perhaps used the term yourself) say that something was a
powerfully moving experience? Or pick up a power tool to craft
something? Think of all the ways we use this word to describe
strength. It can mean capability, endowment, potency, skill,
stamina, strength, control, influence, mastery, or superiority.
But what "is" power? Where do you find it? How do
you wield it? What do you do with it?
As you can see there are many ways
of expressing it but by working with it or acting on it we test
our character. It's easy to let power go to our heads and swell
them if we become arrogant or overconfident in our ability to
utilize it. Spiritually speaking power takes on these same meanings
and more, and it can corrupt just as easily as it might in the
mundane sense. All power belongs to Spirit. This gives all credit
where credit is due and it humbles the pathwalker or practitioner
to borrow it, or to tap into it.
Every source of energy we apply
to our work contains a measure of power and we will find it
rising up in many places. In the tools of the practitioner there
is power. Not only do they build up reserves of energy through
their ritual use, but there are ceremonies that will summon
power in the form of a resident spirit that dwells within the
object. Examples of a power tool might be the staff, drum, shield,
pipe, etc. All of these objects are imbued with life through
ceremonial means and invocation. Tools that are imbued with
a spirit (or several spirits in the case of attachments) tend
to take on a life of their own at times. You can pick one up
and feel the charge of energy just handling it. For this reason
it is always best not to handle the tools of others without
their permission. The work they do may not be known to you and
it's possible to either contaminate it with your own energy
or be contaminated by it. Be wise; not everyone or everything
we see is as it seems.
I have a Prayer Staff. Now to the
average person it looks like a stick with stuff hanging on it,
engraved with symbols, it may seem "interesting" and
it's very tempting to pick it up and handle it. Of course, like
any of my tools it's kept out of reach, but not everyone does
this. In reality it's a very powerful tool, imbued with the
essence (power) of several different creatures, my Totem Animals,
my life force, and a residing spirit. I have another Staff that
contains the power of the elemental forces, my life force, and
it is attuned to me and the work I do. I have a Drum and a Rattle,
each with their own spirit and power to bring about change in
spiritual consciousness, in the physical reality, to call in
the Spirit Helpers, and much more. I have Shields that hold
power...to protect, to defend, to work with me as portals and
places where other spirits reside. I have feathers that contain
the essence (power) of the creature they came from, some used
to
journey and shapeshift, others as
tools for smudging and adding their enhancement to my work.
Power objects are sacred and they are treated as such to maintain
the purity of the work they are to do respectably.
Ceremony contains power because
it summons it. Through ritual acts we can call upon the powerful
energies of the elemental forces, of the spirit worlds, of the
creative force of Spirit and bring that into a vortex within
sacred space. In this process we might call upon our power tools
to assist us (a common act) and then focus that summoned energy
as a source in itself. It is raw, chaotic, and volatile when
it arrives but it becomes a focused harmony when the summoner
knows what they are doing. This gives the power over to those
hands and what is done with it depends on the integrity, intent,
and impeccability of the practitioner. It is a neutral force,
mighty and limitless, that is directed through intent for good
or ill. The character of the practitioner determines this.
Shamanic Journeys bring us power
too. We practice our skills and abilities to master this art
and through it in essence we come into our own power. We may
be gifted with knowledge, enlightenment, and the ability to
do things others can't...not everyone is able to perceive other
worlds, learn things which would otherwise be hidden, or see
into the past, present, and future. In our journeys we meet
other entities, we create working relationships with them, and
have communion with them that lends a sense of power to the
capabilities that result. Here the ability to see into matters
becomes a form of power; the ability to project the inner spirit
and travel through cosmic regions lends a form of power; the
power to summon our Guides, creature-teachers, and Spirit Helpers
lends more power as we gather unto us a group of powerful beings
in their own right. This creates a working force that can be
set into motion to bring about changes, events, alter outcomes,
or otherwise create the manifestation of one's will.
People are by nature a mixture of
many things and when power is placed into their hands either
by use of tools or station, by tapping energies or applying
their knowledge, those actions bring about reactions and the
intent behind them is critical. We are responsible for the results.
But is that power "ours"? No. It belongs to Spirit
and through Spirit we are given permission to utilize it. This
keeps us humble, respectful, and discerning in that use. If
we assume the power is ours, and you will hear people refer
to "their power", we place ourself in jeopardy of
becoming corrupt or tainted by that illusion. All power comes
from the same source and is divided into sub-categories according
to its use and purpose. For this reason I call it Source Energy...that
of Spirit, the Creator, and it is imbued in all forms of life
making it an interconnected flowing link that ties all of life
together.
Places can hold power as well. Not
only in their life force of the growing things, the inhabitants
of that environment, but in the lines of energy that cross the
terrain or lay of the land. These are the Ley Lines that will
cross and create vortexes of power that in turn can be tapped
and utilized for personal or ceremonial purposes, and other
reasons. In these places of power there are often resident spirits
that are called the "Spirit of Place". These are Guardians
of the location and they too have a power of their own. They
can embrace those who enter the area or drive them off; they
can create phenomenal events, enhance work done, or hinder it.
Those who know how to work with them are often perceived as
having that same power for it is accessible to them in the sense
that they know how to work with those conditions and resident
spirits.
As you can see there are many ways
in which a spiritual practitioner has access to power and can
in that sense wield it as their own. In truth their knowledge
and abilities are their source of power over others. This can
be intimidating to anyone who does not understand these things
and it can be abused. Those who abuse it begin to walk a Dark
Path of corruption and those who honor it walk a Light Path
with Spirit. True power belongs to Spirit and stands on its
own. As a practitioner we can step in and out of energy flows,
summon, invoke, evoke, and project that energy which will respond
to our intentions and bring about some amazing results. It takes
a practiced hand to wield it. In the end, a honed and well educated
path will be one of service to others, not self-service.
While it is perfectly acceptable
to fulfill one's needs with this type of ability, it is not
acceptable to use it to attain wealth and status, nor for power
over others. This power is meant to be used as a source of evolutionary
growth, healing, service and enlightenment. It is part of life,
and thus it is present everywhere. It deserves respect, and
our awareness of what it can do when set in motion. By remaining
humble and maintaining a proper intent to serve others as well
as Spirit we shield ourselves from the corruption of thinking
we own it or command it or have exclusive rights to it. Be wise.
See power for what it is and you will guide your own path well.
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Libraries
are on this row
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INDEX
Page 3
(Main Section, Medicine Wheel, Native Languages &
Nations, Symbology)
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INDEX
Page 5
(Sacred Feminine & Masculine, Stones & Minerals)
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©
Copyright: Cinnamon Moon & River WildFire Moon (Founders.)
2000-date
All rights reserved.
Site
constructed by Dragonfly
Dezignz 1998-date
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