adding things from visions,dreams to your rituals

[HOLMES]

two days ago I went to a funeral and watched as my uncle did his rituals for the funeral ceremony.

we talked over the years about dancers adding things to their outfits for they had dreams, or a vision. also about sometimes doing sweat lodges for he had a dream about it.
i know a singer who sometimes get up and talks about a song he just sang at the pow, or funerals on his traditional drum. he talks about the song coming to him in a dream or vision.
so as I watched the funeral I noticed something i didnt' see at my own brother funeral 2 years ago,, or other funerals before that.

my uncle pulled out a multi colour braid and smudge it and my mind i saw it like when a priest pulls out his purple cloth that you see on movies, (I haven't been around priests that much so movies is all i see) and I saw him put it around his head.
after the funeral as I caught a ride to the funeral with him,, i had the luxury of asking him about it on the way home.

there is a subculture or hidden ojbiwe traditional cutlure called mandowin (i really don't know it is spelt, that is how it sounds to me) where they put the red cloth around their heads while they do their work.
So I asked him if he got it from that.. he said no,, he had it come to him . (which means in a vision or dream) when he was doing ceromony about six months ago.
i got the sense that, was all i was going to be told so i let it dropped.

one thing to keep in mind here,, is he been at this for years, doing funerals, sweat lodges, as well as talking to older teachers when he was younger (so these older teachers passed on as well ). he didn't just adhere to ojibwe but when he was in 50s he traveled to the states and other places to witiness some cermonies . the point I am making is he just didnt' arbitartily add it to his ritual without some deep thought and checking with his spirit helpers.

so as I got up to get a drink of ice tea,, I had the thought perhaps that is why some of the old traditions was lost in the past so we can begin adding new things to keep with the new era.

I know in my own rituals, my tarot reading style changed from throwing down the soul message at the beginning to the ending, yet when it came to cutting the cards to 4 times like i wanted for the 4 direction i just found it worked better for me to keep to 3 times for the past, present and future. one thing that occured naturally about a year and half ago was the cleint praying with the tarot in their hands for guidance, to have the creator bless the cards, and giving thanks for the guidance, that just occured natural it seemed to me.
and my own sitting in power, charging up/vibration excerises has added and simplifed over the years, but that has come from knowledge, and not dreams or visions.

i guess if it was to apply to the tarot perhaps a reader had a mental insight flash that could be a quick clairavision, or a dream about perhaps the moon card.

at some point,, these rituals must of come from visions, or dream (at least the ones i am talking about where it comes to the native traditions and what people call shamanism ).
i don't know about wicca but some of it must of came from a dream or vision or perhaps channeling back in the day.

I suspect this is true for wiccans , and other people who do some sort of rituals ? that they after praticing some years get a dream, or vision and add to the ritual. which would make more personal and stronger for them come to think of it.

 

[Saker]

Thanks for sharing this personal story. I think you're right, sometimes we just get a feeling or we "know" that we need to add something to our ritual practice. From the first time I worked with Isis, I just "knew" that I was supposed to wear a head covering during ritual. Not a hood. I just happened to have a beaded/net head covering that I "knew" was what I was supposed to wear. It's quite beautiful, black with black beads. I've never had any other occasion to wear it but I've always loved it so have kept it. Now I know why.

 

[Milfoil]

Are you talking about Midewiwin HOLMES?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midewiwin

There is a free book on Project Gutenburg about it which may give you some insight.

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/19368/19368-h.htm

What your Uncle describes is how many if not all 'medicine' people are taught by Spirit. Some information is passed down via Elders or culture (Midewiwin society in your case) and some comes from Spirit. Personally speaking, I believe this is the way that culture and practice retain historical heritage whilst adapting to and moving with the times and needs of the society they form part of. It's how and why shamanism has been able to remain essentially the same yet adapt over the years to each different culture, place and need of the people without loosing the essentials.

 

[HOLMES]

that could be

that midewiiwin seems to be the most likely suspect though i didnt' hear pronoucned as that mid but mad.
one little point here is that this society isn't that strong in this area, although about 6 hours away in manitoba in 1996ish perhaps 7ish i was sitting in the medicine lodge big long structure made of trees but it was the skelton no hides or canvas was put on it..
it reminded me of the structure of a sweat lodge before the canvas was put on it.

it wasn't the midewin society in my case specifically though my uncle probaly seen some praticioners over his years, the headband rainbow coloured braid he had, he said it didn't come from that when i asked about the mandowin/midewiwin society and what i seen of it.

_
this one time there was a person who invented his own healing modality , called angel fire,, he attunes others so i said it was a reiki and he said no,, why does everyone say it has to be reiki for it wasn't nothing to do with reiki,, and i said but you attune others right ?. he left the chat room. during a time when doreen virtue actually used to have a chat room on her forum.

so for us here it isnt' called shamanism but traditional as that is how it was taught and the key point "TAUGHT" so a problem there is some of the teachings are getting stuck in the tradition, especially when taught by an old elder which most likely be the way he was taught. it is good that my uncle is a little open minded in that regard.

another key point that i talked about in other threads but it is good to bring up here as well is the langauge, at the cermony my uncle does he has to do it in ojibwe and so the person he teaches has to have the language so the prayers will work.
which to those who pray in english with their shamanism may see it as not even a obstacle ,, but here it is a big obstacle in northwestern ontario where it comes to native traditions, and powwows.
which is i guess a block between the traditions/the way it was taught by old elders, language, and shamanism, where it is in english and taught by workshops.

i do suspect in 60 to 100 years if the language is not kept up and more and more native peeps are educated, that the traditions may die, and people will embrace the universality of shamanism, as the culture barriers break down.

already there is the difference between the tradiitional drum,, and the contempory drum, as those who have the contempory drums can drink, and such, while on the traditional drum you have to walk the sober path, and live a clean lifestyle as much as possible.