My hands were sculpting the sand beneath the hot Sonoran Desert Sun.
Since early morning a group of us had bent our backs, stretched our bodies, and and with mindful attention to detail, were sculpting the continents, rivers, mountains, valleys, islands, and countries of our Earth home. We sprayed these shapes with washable paints and our multi-colored planet blossomed there in the sand. As evening approached, we created the blue-green waves of the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans—the great Waters of the World. Our work completed, we allowed MotherEarth time just to breathe and to be.

Over the next two days, people of this shamanic village brought objects from their homelands and prayersticks they had created to be placed in this sandpainting. On the night of our Earth Tending Ceremony, the only border visible was a large necklace of candles encircling the landmasses and inland waters. I shall always remember the power of our collective tending, of the ceremony that night, of lingering long into the darkness—prayers whispered, sung, and the silence of Awe. Reflected in our souls our inseparability—the necessity of tending together Her and all beings.

Sunrise next morning we dismembered this sandpainting with the same love and grace attending its creation. While dismembering the shapes of countries, of mountains, of rivers, of plains, the sand sifting through my fingers became thousands of prayers.

These experiences in April remain as fresh as the first rains of Spring, nourishing soul seeds that will come forth in their own time of flowering.

My hands still remember sculpting this world beneath the hot Desert Sun. They also hold visions taking shape within the landscape of my being. During those five days and nights of prayer, I saw more clearly the importance of Circling together in different lands. We were an international village tending the world together in Oracle, Arizona. Kneeling in prayer before this sandpainting, I had a vision of us walking out of North America and Circling together in other lands.

In a recent dream, Ancestral Spirits across the world were calling to us, seeking our attention. They desire the return of the people so They can share of their wisdom ways—both for our own prospering and for future descendants. I have journeyed and reflected on this vision from the desert and on this dream. The message from both is congruent with what I’ve been discovering during my pilgrimages in other lands these last few years.
We are being called to Circle together in our ancestral lands of this world. Called to discover what the Ancestors and Spirits of these Places wish to share with us from the great distant past—beyond our usual concept of ancestors that may only extend one to two generations. Just as certain Spirits have their own homes in the invisible realms, there are places in the physical world where Power, Teachers, and Wisdom abide. When we travel with sacred intention to other lands, we develop relationships with different Spirits, different Powers. Our shaman’s web becomes enlarged and extended.

We are being called to walk the BlessingWay. The BlessingWay is one of the ancient words for the practice of shamanism. It is predicated on the understanding that whatever is blessed increases and prospers. We are being called to increase, through our BlessingWay walk, the health of all beings and the health of the planet. We are being called to be Walking PeaceMakers and Restorers of Harmony.

To accept this Call does not involve an inflated sense of self-importance but rather to acknowledge a simple requirement upon our souls for our collective tending at this time in our world. I invite each of us to enlarge our shamanic web of relationships, and commitment to this path, by participating in Circles in different lands whenever possible. It is in response to this Call, that I will be teaching in Holland this October and in Israel in March 2001.

After the retreats in Israel, I am taking a year’s Sabbatical. I have been teaching for eleven years during which Spirit has guided every step of the way. For several months I have felt a deep yearning to arrange such a Sabbatical and go questing with Spirit. I am not presupposing what this year will entail—I trust that what I need to know and to do will be revealed in the right time.

I send this letter in a time of great joy. I fee laden with blessings to be shared. I look forward to learning in various Circles and different Places in the months ahead. In closing, I wish to share with you the lines of a song from the Ancestors. We sang this during our Earth Tending Ceremony and the song continues to enliven my spirit and my walking.

Ancestors:
You’ve been sent to Earth, To be a WalkingStar
Hear the prayers we made for you, Please receive them all
You’ve been sent to Earth, to be a Walking Star
Feel the love we sent with you, please receive it all
You’ve been sent to Earth, to be a Walking Star
Walk your Light across the World—Be a Walking Star

Circle Response:
We’ve been sent to Earth, to be WalkingStars
We hear the prayers you made for us and We will Pray for All
We’ve been sent to Earth, to be WalkingStars
We feel the Love you sent with us and we will share it all
We’ve been sent to Earth, to be WalkingStars
We’ll walk our light across the world, with other WalkingStars

I wish you the joy of walking with others in the BlessingWay.
Love,

(Please note the revisions in my calendar from the brochure I sent earlier this year. Dates of the Ancestral Shamanism in July have been changed; a five-day workshop at Esalen Institute has been added. Complete information about these workshops can be obtained from the Sponsors and at our ShamanicVisions website)

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July 15 –16
Ancestral Shamanism
Los Angeles, California

Ancestors are those beings who have ‘come before,’ left their tracings in this world, and prepared the way for future generations. Whether of human, animal, mineral or some other form, shamanic peoples know that the Ancestors are sources of great wisdom, to be honored, and available for help when called upon. Ancestral Shamanism involves learning ways to reconnect with the Old Ones, to find the gifts they left for us, to know and embrace our spiritual inheritance. In this weekend, we shall do journeys and shamanic explorations connecting us with our spiritual, biological, and ecological Ancestors. (See additional page.)

Contact: Dan Jordinelli,
6048 Hayes Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90042,
phone (323) 258-0982; email: jordinelli@earthlink.net

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September 6—13
BearMedicine—Women’s Ways of Knowing and Practicing Shamanism
Advanced Shamanism—8 Days & 7 Nights
Blacktail Ranch, Wolf Creek, Montana

This workshop builds on eight years of intensive research, explorations, and workshops in Bear medicine practices of the Northern Hemisphere. Special focus is given to healing practices, visionary and artistic expression, connecting with Ancestral Spirits within the Cave on this land. We work with the tutelary Powers that govern the feminine principles of birth, death, and rebirth. Our Circle gathers on 8000 acres of land nestled on the eastern side of the great Rocky Mountains.
Description and details of this intensive workshop can be obtained from Pirkko Miller who coordinates the Bear Medicine retreats and workshops. You may also explore the bear Medicine material posted here.

Contact: Pirkko Miller,
P.O. Box 1465, Warsaw, Indiana 46581;
phone: (219) 834-3460, email: Pirkkobear@AOL.com

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Oct 23—27
Holland
Shamanism and Soul Remembering
(A workshop in shamanic initiation and healing ceremonies)

This workshop will focus on the many shamanic methods for renewing the Soul. These include finding and building the shaman’s web of power, working with Ancestral spirits, being initiated into soul healing methods, and tending the soul’s coextensive relationship with others beings in the natural world. We will be meeting in a beautiful retreat center nestled in woodlands. (see additional material)

If you are traveling from the United States, please contact Pirkko Miller. All other individuals should contact Mathilde Geraets who is coordinating this workshop.

Coordinator: Mathilde Geraets
Bies 12, 1273 CH, Huizen, The Netherlands
phone: 31-355-24-0241; fax: 31 35 525 0444, email: geraets@xs4all.nl

US contact: Pirkko Miller
P.O. Box 1465, Warsaw, Indiana 46581;
phone: (219) 834-3460 email: Pirkkobear@AOL.com

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Dec. 10—15
Ancestral Shamanism
Esalen Institute
Big Sur, California

(See special page. A description is also available in the Esalen Catalogue).

Contact Esalen Institute
Highway 1, Big Sur, California 93920-9616
phone: (831) 667-3005, fax: (831) 667-2724
Website: http://www.esalen.org

March 15—March 17
Spiraling Between Worlds-Ancestral Spirits—Ancestral Lands
Dead Sea Area

In the Desert around the Dead Sea, we join Ancient Voices; explore Caves where mystics once gathered; and experience why this is a primary place for shamanic visioning. We spiral from our places of departure and begin our journeys in the deepest Kiva of the world.

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March 21—March 24
Spiritual Awakening—Spring Equinox
Galilee Area

The forces of light and of dark, of yin and yang, are in equal balance at the Spring Equinox—soon to be followed by increasing light. Amidst the Healing Powers of the Galilee, we will mend that which is torn, further the increase of light in our lives, and create sustainable bridges between cultures and people.
We will be lodging in the Ein Gedi kibbutz by the Dead Sea, and the kibbutz Kadarim in Galilee. These are lovely and very affordable places, providing participants with lodging located in sacred places within this Land. In addition, tours to other sacred sites will be arranged between the two retreats for those interested. The Israeli women coordinating these workshops have studied shamanism extensively and wish to support its growth in their homeland.

Ziva Garbi, M.A, Tel Aviv, Israel; International Affiliate, Tending Sacred Circles
Ruth Horodi, M.A., ATR, Asseret, Israel
Lenore Steinhardt, M.A., ATR, Ramat Hasharon, Israel
& Tending Sacred Circles
(a nonprofit organization committed to the development of global shamanic community)

Registration and information:
To reserve a place and/or for more information, please contact one of the following:

Ziva Garbi
14 Lean St., Ramat-Gan 52492 Israel
phone: 011-9972-3672 1473,
email: drorg@actcom.co.il

Pirkko Miller
P.O. Box 1465, Warsaw, Indiana 46581
phone: (219) 834-3460;
email: Pirkkobear@aol.com

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"I call your attention to the opportunities for shamanic pilgrimage in Israel, March 2001. I do not plan to be sending out another brochure but you can check our website periodically for material, photos, and information relevant to these retreats. Further information can also be gotten from those who are coordinating these retreats."