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I asked permission to share this article and I hope
it will answer some questions some of you have about
masculine and feminine issues in shamanism.
Enjoy!
Thankyou Jade, awesome brother!
Quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First are we all co-inhabitants of this planet: red, yellow, black or white peoples, and tribal cultures; only then are we distinguished as Man or Woman. References of relationship must begin with knowing whom we are before we can begin to accurately perceive our relationship with others. And this awareness of our point of reference is something that only we, individually, can determine. When we, as Men, adopt the perspectives of another, be it a culture or gender, we lose the autonomy of self-determination. And in order to be effective and harmonious with all beings of this planet, in order to bring value from our lives into the world, we must know where we stand.
Masculine and feminine are two terms that are very often confused with being synonymous with male and female. The masculine principle is commonly held to be that of the out-going, creative, active and motivational expression. Its spiritual nature is aligned with pure Spirit, knowledge and the perceiving function. The masculine principle, in relationship to life, family and community, is one of dedication. The feminine principle is that of introspection, magnetizing, receptivity and nurturing. Spiritually the essence of the feminine is the embodiment of life force. It is intuitive and of the feeling function. The keynote of the feminine expression relative to the sacredness of life force which it caretakes is that of surrender.
We each, Man and Woman alike, have a masculine principle and a feminine principle within our Souls. As Men we are masculine in embodiment. Therefore we, as Men, are comprised of two-thirds masculine and one third feminine, just as Woman is two-thirds feminine and one-third masculine.
When we Men seek to 'run our energy' at an equal balance of masculine and feminine, following the conventional wisdom of our contemporary culture, there is a sacrifice made, to a corresponding degree, of our masculinity. This denial of our own innate and natural balance in order to satisfy the expective demands of the culture results in a severe dysfunction in our lives, individually and culturally, akin to the degree of imbalance that resulted from a previous era's insistence on the subjugation of the feminine principle in a Man's life.
In a masculine-dominant culturally referenced mode of being we Men lost touch with the feeling function, having neither sense of compassion nor respect for life. As we have slowly shifted into a feminine-dominant cultural modality in the last 40 years (at least in the 'conscious community') Men have become reticent to acknowledge their own innate masculine expressions. The consequence of this sacrifice of the masculine, in order to meet the 50/50 masculine/feminine balance of our life force, is that Men, in particular Men involved in the consciousness movement, have now lost touch with a true experience of being male. Specifically, this shows up in a Man's life as an inability to assess a situation, discern the inherent truth in that circumstance, make a choice based upon discernment and commit his life in that choice. Simply put, these Men have become incapable of commitment!
In an attempt to meet the demands to be 'more feeling', rather than integrating the feeling capacity, Men traded in the masculine component of knowledge to make room for feeling. By knowledge I mean 'the knowingness of Spirit revealed'. This trade-off has confused Men by leaving them searching for self-reference in a framework that is not native to Man, i.e. emotional sensitivity in the manner of Woman. By trading-off knowledge for feeling many Men have lost touch with their own spirituality, or even the drive towards spiritual awakening. The model of spiritual growth that has been offered, presented by Women who had come into their own awakening, is through feeling/intuition. This Path is not necessarily one that works for Men. The spiritual quest of many Men in balance requires a path that is active, creative and knowledge oriented. He must know that his dedication in spiritual practices enables him to provide something of value, tangibly, to his family, community and the land. The spiritual offerings of the day, being heavily weighted in the feeling/intuition mode, leave many Men with no place to connect. As a result the attendance at spiritual workshops and events has a noticeable non-presence of Men. A typical proportion is two-thirds Women and one-third Men. This is the exact proportion of feminine/masculine relationship within a Woman!
The Warrior and the Man of Wisdom
There are two archetypal expressions of the masculine that are potently relevant to the rebalancing of Men. One is that of the Warrior, the other the Man of Wisdom. The first, the Warrior, is a precursor to the second, the Man of Wisdom, which is itself the outgrowth of the development of the first.
The Warrior is one who is honor bound to protect that and those which are inherently worthy of honor: Love, life, family and the land. A Warrior will do whatever it takes to protect these ones, even if it means the greatest of personal sacrifices. Do not confuse the Warrior with the Soldier or Mercenary. A Soldier is one who mindlessly follows the orders of a dominator hierarchy. A Mercenary is one who has corralled the talents of the Warrior and sells them off, as a commodity, to the highest bidder. The Soldier may be in the military or the 'Yes Man' of the corporate arena. A Mercenary may be a sniper in a foreign country's employ or a corporate exec who will stop at nothing to attain high position. A Warrior operates with dignity and a reverence for life. The immediate field of operations where a Warrior exerts his attention is within his own Soul. Finding therein beliefs and attitudes, assumptions and prejudices that inhibit the free expression of love and honor for life, his own and that of his family and environs, he sets his commitment to the elimination and transformation of those debilitations. The Warrior's greatest weapon is compassion. One who acts from other than compassionate love, i.e. hatred, vengeance or retribution, is no more than a Soldier/Mercenary, duty bound to defend positions and possessions. A Warrior meets his issues head-on, with courage and faith, and is willing to sacrifice these long-held emotionally invested conflicts for the greater good of himself and his family.
The Man of Wisdom usually awakens within a Man about the age of 52 (as recognized by Earth-based cultures worldwide). The work of the Warrior, earnestly engaged, has brought the Man to a place of self-acceptance. The issues that so acutely drew the attention of the younger Man now have been resolved, or at least forgiven. No longer do the questions of the youth have such preponderance of value as once they did. But neither does a Man of Wisdom dismiss that the younger people still have a right to these questions, and the knowing of their answers, and so endeavors to be of assistance to them, to assess the significance of behaviors, dreams, and choices that may arise in the lives of the Warrior and amongst the People, helping them to find understanding and comfort. The Man of Wisdom reflects upon his life, distills the essence of his experiences and offers something of value back into his community.
It has come time for Men to be willing to claim their dignity as Warriors, and earn their rightful place as Men of Wisdom, amongst the People. Men, go forth, seek a Path that avails dignity of the masculine and honor of the feminine. Find, if you can, the answers to those burning questions and needs of the Man. And when you have found what you are able, turn to the succeeding generations and tell the story of your Journey, your Quest for truth and understanding, that others may benefit from your sacrifices and fulfillments. Go, in blessed courage, go.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jade Wah'oo Grigori
February 2, 2003
Copyright 2003, Jade Wah'oo Grigori
Jade Wah'oo Grigori is the 'Caretaker of the Ways', an authentic Shamanic Lineage. He lives in Sedona, Arizona
Northernwolf:
thanks Cinn...this does give some answer and some explanation... but as always I would have wished taht it be more complete, more detailed. I know it's not you who wrote it anyhow. But it does raise some more questions. There is something that makes sense to me in this. When approaching men medicine there is something of a giving that needs to be done in order to receive something. I know this is mention also in general but even more so when approaching things from this perspective. Perhaps giving ins't the right word, maybe proving would be better, which leads one to sacrifice something. Probably that is why most of the time I complicate things because to me it's not as simple as just intuition , there is something more. I know this can be said of women medecine as it does occur as well just differently. Like it was mentionned there is a need of understanding the perspective first. It's not enough to just be air for exemple. It's not I am air and then I draw my conclusions. One must first understand what air is and what can be expected from air to be able to know what air brings. I know you teach a balance way but it's higly tainted with women medecine which is more then normal. But you can understand that when you say you just have to be ( for exemple ) there is something that doesn't compute there. Not that I cant make use of that as both approaches are necessery I beleive as they both serve their purpose. But yet sometimes I just cant wrap my brain around something because I looking for that sacrifice in a way that rite that makes it meaningful and jsut feeling it isn't enough... oh there is also the virgo self that goes with that .
But interesting. It's nice to see something written by a men. Although I love hanging around you fantastice woman, it's still a perspective that I miss sometimes.
earthwalker:
Northern,
I started out just opposite finding the teachings of the grandfather in Toms Brown Jr books. I believe I started with the book "Awakening Spirits". I loved it; but was still searching fo something else. Then I found "Medicine Women Speaks" by Cinnamon Moon.
In a completely different context "Iron John" (I the author was Bly(?) ) discusses men finding there paths.
Cinnamon:
You're welcome. I do understand what you mean and if I had the time I'd counter that article with a woman's perspective to compare it to for you. Maybe I'll get to that but not today.
I can share that a special Virgo in my life and I were talking about something the other day and he tossed me another nutshell saying: "It comes from the head. First the head and then the heart." (We were talking about how we think and feel.) My reply was "It comes from the heart, first the heart and then the head". Therein lies Men's and Women's Medicine!...and together we bring in the balance.
Remember in A Medicine Woman Speaks where I was describing the issue of the masculine and feminine energy cycle through unity? In through the male crown chakra down to the base chakra to the woman who takes it in through the base chakra and sends it out through the crown chakra to the man...clockwise to do, counterclockwise to undo...the heart filtering and motivating that flow. Aren't patterns so important? We overlook such simple presentations in life and they are all around us. Hope this helps a little. If you need more clarity let's tear things apart and see how they work!
I wish we had more men here for you Northernwolf, I will call for some and see what happens. In fact we can all call for some...."Spirit, We give thanks for the blessings of Men of Wisdom who will come visit Spirit Lodge and share with us. Aho!" Get ready to shake some hands. It may be interesting for you to see who shows up now. Who knows, maybe Ambrose will wander through here. He's one to stimulate your thinking, and he will certainly discuss things in depth, perhaps he has some spare time. I promise I won't email him either. Let's just see what happens through simplicity here and maybe you won't feel like such a minority, however....don't forget it only takes one stud to run with the herd. We think you're pretty fantastic too. *S*
That call seems to have worked! *S*
Thankyou Jade, awesome brother!
Quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First are we all co-inhabitants of this planet: red, yellow, black or white peoples, and tribal cultures; only then are we distinguished as Man or Woman. References of relationship must begin with knowing whom we are before we can begin to accurately perceive our relationship with others. And this awareness of our point of reference is something that only we, individually, can determine. When we, as Men, adopt the perspectives of another, be it a culture or gender, we lose the autonomy of self-determination. And in order to be effective and harmonious with all beings of this planet, in order to bring value from our lives into the world, we must know where we stand.
Masculine and feminine are two terms that are very often confused with being synonymous with male and female. The masculine principle is commonly held to be that of the out-going, creative, active and motivational expression. Its spiritual nature is aligned with pure Spirit, knowledge and the perceiving function. The masculine principle, in relationship to life, family and community, is one of dedication. The feminine principle is that of introspection, magnetizing, receptivity and nurturing. Spiritually the essence of the feminine is the embodiment of life force. It is intuitive and of the feeling function. The keynote of the feminine expression relative to the sacredness of life force which it caretakes is that of surrender.
We each, Man and Woman alike, have a masculine principle and a feminine principle within our Souls. As Men we are masculine in embodiment. Therefore we, as Men, are comprised of two-thirds masculine and one third feminine, just as Woman is two-thirds feminine and one-third masculine.
When we Men seek to 'run our energy' at an equal balance of masculine and feminine, following the conventional wisdom of our contemporary culture, there is a sacrifice made, to a corresponding degree, of our masculinity. This denial of our own innate and natural balance in order to satisfy the expective demands of the culture results in a severe dysfunction in our lives, individually and culturally, akin to the degree of imbalance that resulted from a previous era's insistence on the subjugation of the feminine principle in a Man's life.
In a masculine-dominant culturally referenced mode of being we Men lost touch with the feeling function, having neither sense of compassion nor respect for life. As we have slowly shifted into a feminine-dominant cultural modality in the last 40 years (at least in the 'conscious community') Men have become reticent to acknowledge their own innate masculine expressions. The consequence of this sacrifice of the masculine, in order to meet the 50/50 masculine/feminine balance of our life force, is that Men, in particular Men involved in the consciousness movement, have now lost touch with a true experience of being male. Specifically, this shows up in a Man's life as an inability to assess a situation, discern the inherent truth in that circumstance, make a choice based upon discernment and commit his life in that choice. Simply put, these Men have become incapable of commitment!
In an attempt to meet the demands to be 'more feeling', rather than integrating the feeling capacity, Men traded in the masculine component of knowledge to make room for feeling. By knowledge I mean 'the knowingness of Spirit revealed'. This trade-off has confused Men by leaving them searching for self-reference in a framework that is not native to Man, i.e. emotional sensitivity in the manner of Woman. By trading-off knowledge for feeling many Men have lost touch with their own spirituality, or even the drive towards spiritual awakening. The model of spiritual growth that has been offered, presented by Women who had come into their own awakening, is through feeling/intuition. This Path is not necessarily one that works for Men. The spiritual quest of many Men in balance requires a path that is active, creative and knowledge oriented. He must know that his dedication in spiritual practices enables him to provide something of value, tangibly, to his family, community and the land. The spiritual offerings of the day, being heavily weighted in the feeling/intuition mode, leave many Men with no place to connect. As a result the attendance at spiritual workshops and events has a noticeable non-presence of Men. A typical proportion is two-thirds Women and one-third Men. This is the exact proportion of feminine/masculine relationship within a Woman!
The Warrior and the Man of Wisdom
There are two archetypal expressions of the masculine that are potently relevant to the rebalancing of Men. One is that of the Warrior, the other the Man of Wisdom. The first, the Warrior, is a precursor to the second, the Man of Wisdom, which is itself the outgrowth of the development of the first.
The Warrior is one who is honor bound to protect that and those which are inherently worthy of honor: Love, life, family and the land. A Warrior will do whatever it takes to protect these ones, even if it means the greatest of personal sacrifices. Do not confuse the Warrior with the Soldier or Mercenary. A Soldier is one who mindlessly follows the orders of a dominator hierarchy. A Mercenary is one who has corralled the talents of the Warrior and sells them off, as a commodity, to the highest bidder. The Soldier may be in the military or the 'Yes Man' of the corporate arena. A Mercenary may be a sniper in a foreign country's employ or a corporate exec who will stop at nothing to attain high position. A Warrior operates with dignity and a reverence for life. The immediate field of operations where a Warrior exerts his attention is within his own Soul. Finding therein beliefs and attitudes, assumptions and prejudices that inhibit the free expression of love and honor for life, his own and that of his family and environs, he sets his commitment to the elimination and transformation of those debilitations. The Warrior's greatest weapon is compassion. One who acts from other than compassionate love, i.e. hatred, vengeance or retribution, is no more than a Soldier/Mercenary, duty bound to defend positions and possessions. A Warrior meets his issues head-on, with courage and faith, and is willing to sacrifice these long-held emotionally invested conflicts for the greater good of himself and his family.
The Man of Wisdom usually awakens within a Man about the age of 52 (as recognized by Earth-based cultures worldwide). The work of the Warrior, earnestly engaged, has brought the Man to a place of self-acceptance. The issues that so acutely drew the attention of the younger Man now have been resolved, or at least forgiven. No longer do the questions of the youth have such preponderance of value as once they did. But neither does a Man of Wisdom dismiss that the younger people still have a right to these questions, and the knowing of their answers, and so endeavors to be of assistance to them, to assess the significance of behaviors, dreams, and choices that may arise in the lives of the Warrior and amongst the People, helping them to find understanding and comfort. The Man of Wisdom reflects upon his life, distills the essence of his experiences and offers something of value back into his community.
It has come time for Men to be willing to claim their dignity as Warriors, and earn their rightful place as Men of Wisdom, amongst the People. Men, go forth, seek a Path that avails dignity of the masculine and honor of the feminine. Find, if you can, the answers to those burning questions and needs of the Man. And when you have found what you are able, turn to the succeeding generations and tell the story of your Journey, your Quest for truth and understanding, that others may benefit from your sacrifices and fulfillments. Go, in blessed courage, go.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jade Wah'oo Grigori
February 2, 2003
Copyright 2003, Jade Wah'oo Grigori
Jade Wah'oo Grigori is the 'Caretaker of the Ways', an authentic Shamanic Lineage. He lives in Sedona, Arizona
Northernwolf:
thanks Cinn...this does give some answer and some explanation... but as always I would have wished taht it be more complete, more detailed. I know it's not you who wrote it anyhow. But it does raise some more questions. There is something that makes sense to me in this. When approaching men medicine there is something of a giving that needs to be done in order to receive something. I know this is mention also in general but even more so when approaching things from this perspective. Perhaps giving ins't the right word, maybe proving would be better, which leads one to sacrifice something. Probably that is why most of the time I complicate things because to me it's not as simple as just intuition , there is something more. I know this can be said of women medecine as it does occur as well just differently. Like it was mentionned there is a need of understanding the perspective first. It's not enough to just be air for exemple. It's not I am air and then I draw my conclusions. One must first understand what air is and what can be expected from air to be able to know what air brings. I know you teach a balance way but it's higly tainted with women medecine which is more then normal. But you can understand that when you say you just have to be ( for exemple ) there is something that doesn't compute there. Not that I cant make use of that as both approaches are necessery I beleive as they both serve their purpose. But yet sometimes I just cant wrap my brain around something because I looking for that sacrifice in a way that rite that makes it meaningful and jsut feeling it isn't enough... oh there is also the virgo self that goes with that .
But interesting. It's nice to see something written by a men. Although I love hanging around you fantastice woman, it's still a perspective that I miss sometimes.
earthwalker:
Northern,
I started out just opposite finding the teachings of the grandfather in Toms Brown Jr books. I believe I started with the book "Awakening Spirits". I loved it; but was still searching fo something else. Then I found "Medicine Women Speaks" by Cinnamon Moon.
In a completely different context "Iron John" (I the author was Bly(?) ) discusses men finding there paths.
Cinnamon:
You're welcome. I do understand what you mean and if I had the time I'd counter that article with a woman's perspective to compare it to for you. Maybe I'll get to that but not today.
I can share that a special Virgo in my life and I were talking about something the other day and he tossed me another nutshell saying: "It comes from the head. First the head and then the heart." (We were talking about how we think and feel.) My reply was "It comes from the heart, first the heart and then the head". Therein lies Men's and Women's Medicine!...and together we bring in the balance.
Remember in A Medicine Woman Speaks where I was describing the issue of the masculine and feminine energy cycle through unity? In through the male crown chakra down to the base chakra to the woman who takes it in through the base chakra and sends it out through the crown chakra to the man...clockwise to do, counterclockwise to undo...the heart filtering and motivating that flow. Aren't patterns so important? We overlook such simple presentations in life and they are all around us. Hope this helps a little. If you need more clarity let's tear things apart and see how they work!
I wish we had more men here for you Northernwolf, I will call for some and see what happens. In fact we can all call for some...."Spirit, We give thanks for the blessings of Men of Wisdom who will come visit Spirit Lodge and share with us. Aho!" Get ready to shake some hands. It may be interesting for you to see who shows up now. Who knows, maybe Ambrose will wander through here. He's one to stimulate your thinking, and he will certainly discuss things in depth, perhaps he has some spare time. I promise I won't email him either. Let's just see what happens through simplicity here and maybe you won't feel like such a minority, however....don't forget it only takes one stud to run with the herd. We think you're pretty fantastic too. *S*
That call seems to have worked! *S*
