The Sacred Circle reminds us that we are all one people, that there are four nations in each of us. Living and working in the Sacred Circle reminds us to honour the life times we have spent in different cultures and to be guided by the wisdom of our grandmothers and grandfathers in each of those cultures. The circle offers protection and can be placed in your home or workspace, and outside around your property. Work from the heart, from the place of unconditional love and let the Creator's energy flow through you.
Materials
As you gather your materials, keep your intention focussed on honouring the plants. 1. Coloured cotton cloth cut in long, about 8 inch (20 cm) strips. (yellow, red, black, white, blue, purple, green, peach.) 2. Fresh cedar branches (the green tips).. 3. Tobacco. Strip the spines from the leaf if you are using leaf tobacco.
Technique
As you make the ties, keep your intention focussed on connecting to the Creator. Pick up the yellow cloth, and drape it, centered, over the thumb edge of your left hand (if you are right handed). Rotate your hand so that it is palm up. One edge of the cloth will be longer than the other. Pick up a few tips of cedar and a few pieces of tobacco, and place them on the cloth in your palm. Fold over the narrow edges over the pile, and twist into a knot about 2 inches (5cm) around. Take the longer end of the cloth, and pull into a loop around the cedar and tobacco knot. Pull the knot though the loop and tie off. Continue with the other colours, in the order given in the Materials section above.
Placement
As you place the ties, keep your intention focussed on creating a sacred circle of protection and unity. Place the ties in the following order:
Direction Colour Symbolism
East: yellow - Oriental grandmothers and grandfathers, sunrise, spring, rebirthing, sacred yellow eagle
South: red - Native grandmothers and grandfathers, noon, summer, sacred red eagle
West: black - Black grandmothers and grandfathers, afternoon, fall, harvest, sacred black eagle
North: white - White grandmothers and grandfathers, evening, winter, sacred white eagle, sacred white buffalo
South-east: blue - Father Sky, water, rain, Thunder Beings, healing energy
South-west: purple - Grandfather, Old Ancient Ones
North-west: green - Mother Earth, All creations, plants, creatures, four seasons
North-east: peach - Grandmother, Old Ancient Ones
The ties should be placed so that there is a sightline between them. (In other words, yellow can "see" both red and white.)
The Sacred Hoop symbolizes the Circle of Life and the power of the circle matrix that is the creative foundation of the universe. The sky, the planet, the sun, the stars, the moon, the whirling wind, the nests of birds, the tepees, the seasons, and life cycles follow this circle round pattern.
The Four Powers nourish the blossoming World Tree at the center of the Circle of Life. For the people to thrive and blossom, the Sacred Hoop must be whole and unbroken.
There are four equally important ways of perceiving things in life and of pursuing knowledge. These are also known as the Four Directions, the Four Powers, and the Four Quarters.
They are the four cardinal points of the circle, each of which represent different power essences of nature, seasonal rhythms, and stages of life.
Native American Sacred Hoop Medicine Wheel with Prayer Ties
These four directions are North (Wisdom, White, Buffalo, Maturity, Strength and Stamina); East (Peace, Gold, Eagle, Elder, Clarity and Illumination; South (Expansion, Green, Mouse, Infancy, Wholesomeness and Expectation); and West (Nourishment, Black, Bear, Youth, Introspection and Authenticity).
The Medicine Wheel is circle that symbolizes all of life and the lives of individual beings as they express the power of the world through harmonious movements, and, as they are nourished by the spiral of constant circular motion of the wheel of Spirit.
Medicine Wheel traditions vary from tribe to tribe. An example of a medicine wheel is one where the center of the wheel is bisected by two paths.
The path from North to South is the road everyone travells in life; while, the path from East to West is the road individuals travel as they learn lessons, growing in Spirit...
Although there are many Cosmology concepts about the Earth and its dance in Creation among the various tribes, one common theme is that the universe is comprised of multiple planes linked to a World Tree with the natural world being in the middle sphere.
This tree's roots go far underground and reach upwards into the sky. Most creation myths were part of the oral tradition and feature a Master Spirit who assumes many diverse forms, including both the masculine and feminine.
There are also many spirits who control the weather and act as guides and caretakers of humanity. Besides the oral tradition, some tribes preserved their spiritual beliefs in sacred texts.
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