Ancient Wisdom, Modern World

Few places on Earth remain untouched by modern society, and it’s difficult to find a corner that can’t be accessed by some mode of transportation. While the advance of Western medicine across the globe increasingly affects once-hidden communities on remote islands and in deep jungles, places still exist where elders and native healers from myriad cultures work to preserve ancient spiritual and healing traditions. Though often widely separated geographically, they nevertheless share common practices, including a reverence for the life forces present in nature and the healing power of botanicals and positive intention. And many of their lessons are as relevant today as they were generations ago.

What follows is a glimpse into three ancient healing traditions—spanning from a remote area in Maui to the sparse, yet beautiful desert landscape of Arizona along with a European Tuscan doctor who embodies the spirit of complementary medicine—as explained by the healers who use and teach them.

Kahu Kapi’ioho’okalani Lyons Naone

A respected healer and spiritual teacher, Hawaiian native Kapi’ioho’okalani Lyons Naone carries the title of Kahu, which translates to "keeper of wisdom." This practice is part of the Kapu healing system in which he was trained, where knowledge is handed down from elders to following generations. Passed to him by his late grandmother, also a highly revered healer, this wisdom includes a broad knowledge of the plants that comprise the Hawaiian pharmacopoeia, sacred chants, creation myths and spiritual traditions.

Naone lives in a remote region of Maui beyond the village of Hana, where he is instructing his young granddaughter in this knowledge in the hope that she will one day carry it on to her own grandchildren, thus ensuring that the flow of Kapu wisdom will continue for generations to come. Part of Naone’s work involves educating the growing number of native Hawaiians seeking to reconnect with their own culture, which includes the use of botanicals and ceremony for health and healing.

For many years, the practice of native spiritual ceremonies in Hawaii and even the use of the Hawaiian language was outlawed by the U.S. government. The ban resulted in generations of Hawaiians who were unaware of these traditions. Christian missionaries, too, played a powerful role in the loss of indigenous wisdom, replacing traditional Hawaiian beliefs and practices with their own world views and decreeing such practices as healing ceremonies and even the hula—originally a spiritual dance, not entertainment for tourists at hotel luaus—as being dangerous pagan rituals.

Adding to this cultural gap are the temptations of modern living, where, Naone says, it’s easier to choose a bottle of pills off a store shelf than it is to arrange a healing ceremony. While he manages to exist in both worlds without conflict, Naone acknowledges that it isn’t always easy, nor is it an attractive alternative to young people who are used to instant gratification.

Naone says Hawaiian culture teaches that the healing process always begins with seeking to balance the spirit, and that all aboriginal cultures recognize spirit as being the most essential part of the healing formula. This state of balance is known as Pono, or righteousness—in other words, a soul free of discord, anger, envy or other destructive emotions.

As a prelude to other healing measures, which may include the use of herbs or steam baths, a spiritual ceremony known as Ho’oponopono is often held. Ho’oponopono, which means "to make right," utilizes prayer and chanting, during which ancestors and guardian spirits are called upon to guide the healing process and help clear negativity.

It is strongly believed that clearing the patient’s environment of negativity is crucial to successful healing. When an herb is used as part of a healing ceremony, many factors contribute to the efficacy of its healing properties. The way in which it is harvested, the location where it grew, the time of year, whether it’s harvested at dawn or dusk, the protocol surrounding the way it’s dispensed and the intention of both the attending healer and the patient all become important factors.

Additionally, Naone cautions that a plant’s powers should not be judged by its appearance. "The healing plants most often are not the beautiful, fragrant plants you see in hotel flower arrangements," he laughs. "Most often the plants we call weeds are the ones capable of healing you on the inside," he says. "Often, if they are ugly, smell bad and taste horrible, they are probably the perfect medicine."

Most Kapu healers, Naone explains, depend on a few plants that are personal favorites to treat most common complaints. "These plants become the healer’s puna hili, the ones he knows he can call on," he says. "The noni plant is my puna hili. One of the most important things I use it for is internal cleansing of the digestive system. The noni plant’s fruit is green and lumpy on the outside; it has a truly hideous odor and tastes dreadful but is a very potent medicine when prepared properly and taken with the correct protocol."

Naone says Kapu teaches that it’s essential to acknowledge all forms of life with dignity and reverence. "One of the things the Kapu system does is help us to recognize and respect the balance of nature and life," he says. "It teaches us to understand our own human place in the greater world. We must learn to walk lightly, to understand who and what we are. And, more importantly, what we are not."

Serge Runningwolf Martel

Like Naone, Serge Runningwolf Martel works to preserve the traditions of his ancestors in an increasingly fast-paced and frantic world and within an indigenous group that has suffered many of the same persecutions as the Hawaiians. An ordained minister, elder and initiated shaman of Mohawk tribal lineage, Martel has been a practicing healer for more than a quarter of a century and holds a degree in psychology from San Francisco State University. Though he lives and works outside Phoenix, Ariz., a major metropolitan and decidedly modern city, he is able to maintain a perspective derived from the wisdom of his elders.

"Healing," Martel says, "means to be in a state of total balance and harmony. When we suffer ailments, it is because we are out of balance. Everything in nature is reciprocal. The key to maintaining health and balance is to connect with the Earth; to be with it, to be with the energy of the sunshine and the plants. Combined with our own energy, these sources produce a powerful momentum and harmony."

Echoing Naone, Martel believes while Western medical practices often concentrate on the relief of symptoms, the indigenous healing response is to determine the root origin of the imbalance—whether it’s suppressed anger, unresolved grief, poor nutrition or some other, less obvious source. Though symptoms of illness can be relieved through the use of pharmaceuticals, Martel points out that this relief is, at best, a temporary solution. Unless patients change their ways, he warns, they will continue to suffer from the same ailments.

It’s necessary to go to the source and determine exactly what is causing the imbalance. For true healing to occur in the world, Martel believes we must first let go of our egos and arrogance and recognize that we are surrounded by a world filled with living, intelligent entities that, like us, are sentient beings. Among them is the rich world of botanical life from which we draw so many of our remedies.

"We are indeed all one; or, as the Lakota say, we are all relatives," Martel says. "So often we underestimate the power of the Earth and its tremendous healing energy. If you’re out hiking and grow tired, align your spine against the trunk of a pine tree, and 10 minutes later you will be reenergized. If you feel pain, lean against the trunk of a willow tree. It’s no coincidence that aspirin is derived from willow bark."

It’s also important, Martel says, to recognize the innate wisdom of our own body and the healing power of a positive attitude. "The shaman or medicine man or doctor is not the healer," he says. "The mind of the patient is the healer. It is essential to let go of fear, of anger, of all the harmful emotions that stress the system—this can be accomplished by always appreciating what we do have and actively being in a state of gratitude for these things, regardless of how simple they are.

Do you have food to eat, a bed to rest in, a roof over your head, perhaps a few coins in the change jar at home? Be thankful for these things; remember, always, to walk in gratitude. This brings more blessings and keeps you in a state of harmony, a state of grace."

Physician Thomas Platzer

Not all proponents of ancient healing traditions come from an indigenous background. Thomas Platzer hails from a long line of European medical doctors, biologists and biochemists. While studying medicine at the Technical University of Munich, one of Europe’s top-ranking universities, Platzer held a job with an airline that enabled him to travel extensively. His travels nourished his interest in alternative medicine and allowed him to explore the healing traditions of many other cultures.

Today Platzer practices his brand of complementary traditional medicine at Adler Thermae, a resort and health spa located in Tuscany, Italy, where the majority of guests are from Italy and other European countries. There he treats them with a wide range of alternative therapies, including herbal medicine, homeopathy, Bach flower essence therapy and other energy-based treatments.

Like Naone and Martel and other holistic practitioners, Platzer sees balance as the key to health—no separation between body, mind and soul. This view of medicine, he says, requires that we strive to live in balance. "Balanced," he says, "means all the important components recognized by nutritional science, as well as exercise, lifestyle, attitude and disposition, which are all closely linked with overall health and well-being. Negative dispositions such as anxiety, impatience, exasperation and hopelessness are often precursors to sicknesses that again feed back to those dispositions.

At their best, Platzer says, classical drugs can cure symptoms, but the negative state of mind remains the same. This is where more holistic therapies set forth to interrupt this vicious circle by seeking to rebalance the body, mind and soul.

"In Latin, the language of the ancient Romans, the word anima translates into both ‘soul�?and ‘life,�?as if the old Romans had a greater understanding of the indisputable fact that body, mind and soul belong together inseparably, and if one single part of it limps, the whole system limps," he says. "If our soul, our anima, is out of balance, it is also our life being out of balance."

The Power of Intention Blessing

We can each help to create our own personal reality of wellness by positively affecting [what] we ingest. We do this by putting love and healing into those things," says Native American healer and elder Serge Runningwolf Martel. "This is the power of intention." Perhaps the simplest and most familiar form of this concept is in asking our food to be blessed before a meal.

But Martel says this principle applies equally when taking an herbal remedy, supplements or anything that we hope will have a positive influence on our health. "If I go to buy a bottle of flower essences, I ask a blessing before taking it," he says.

"Herbal products, essences—even the most natural medicines—are produced somewhere. It’s someone’s job to measure and weigh and bottle and seal the ingredients. There may be no love that’s part of this process, a factor that can negate the very viability of the medicine. It becomes a product of manufacturing, rather than a tool for healing. That’s why it’s so important to add the element of love and intention yourself. It’s the same way with food. Perhaps the most basic element of health is what we put into our bodies to nourish them. Take a moment to give gratitude to the food. Connect with it, establish a harmony between the food and yourself. Bless it with love," Martel says. Before you drink an herbal tincture, sip a cup of tea or enjoy a meal, Martel suggests you take a moment to contemplate the source of the ingredients.

Remember that the herbs and plants were living, breathing, intelligent beings. Give thanks for their sacrifice, which will serve to nourish your body and mind. You don’t need to say anything aloud, and your efforts don’t have to be elaborate or poetic. The important point is the simple intention with which you give your thanks, your sincerity and the love you project toward the tea or herb or food. Instead of the old term "saying grace," perhaps think of this action as entering a place of grace.
 

Courtesy of Alternative Medicine http://www.alternativemedicine.com