After some long continuous travel days we arrived in the Province of Alberta. We are encamped in a peaceful coulee, a wide ravine with a river running through it here in the city of Medicine Hat. It has been warm and, now with the low humidity of the interior, it is a reminder of the summers where I grew up.
The name Medicine Hat has a very interesting origin. The Blackfoot nation tells of an event that happened a long time ago. It was a bitter winter with starvation howling at the door. The Council of Elders gathered to discuss the matter. They decided a brave young man should be sent to a special place known as the “breathing hole;” an opening in the ice of the Saskachewan River where the Great Spirit was known to be present. After many days of arduous travel the young man finally arrived here. He made camp and settled into fasting and prayer in order to summon the spirits. After intense prayer the Great Spirit appeared as a serpent. The serpent told the young man to spend the night on a small island (Strathcona). He was told, “In the morning when the sun lights the cut-banks, go to the base of the great cliffs and there you will find a bag containing medicines and a saamis (holy bohnet).” It was a hat to be worn only during battle and it would ensure victory. Aided by the saamis the young man found food to save his starving people–he became a great Medicine Man.
This story has many interesting symbols and I see in it a tale that contains tremendous inner meaning for the mystic. For the seeker of truth the dark winter and starvation is the darkness of ignorance–not having joy and enlightenment which feeds the soul. The Council of Elders is inner direction, and the young warrior represents a newly formed intention. The breathing hole is pranayama, or a breathing exercise done in prayer and meditation. Pranayam kriya breaths and deepened meditation awaken the Great Spirit in the form of a serpent, the transformational kundalini force in the spine. The arising of the serpent force makes it possible to see the morning light–the great light seen in the ajna or point between the eyebrows. The “bag of medicines” are the powerful spiritual uplifting energies coursing through the body and healing it of spiritual sickness–ignnorance. The bonnet of feathers or a hat is the consicousness lifted up to the top of the head, or what in yoga is called the sahaswara, the thousand petalled lotus (such “hats” are used to symbolize uplited consciousness such as the tall hat of the pope or the crown worn by a king). This medicine hat given by the serpent assures the warrior victory, the spiritual aspirant power to overcome ignorance of separation from the Great Spirit in the “battle” of spiritual practice. All the people are then fed by the continuous flow of dynamic spiritual energy and consciousness flowing throughout the entire system–feeding all the people. Thus, I find encoded in this ancient story a clear trail leading to spiritual illumination for a Medicine Man or a spiritual adept.
Truth is universal, and is it fascinating and inspiring to know that it is, and has been available to those who sincerely seek it in all parts of the world. Stories around the globe are adapted to the physical and social environment of the aspirant, but truth is one.
A Ram Nam Note: as we have circumambulated this remarkable North American Continent we have chanted God’s Name as part of this spiritual pilgrimage. While moving down the road I feel the spiritual aura radiating out through the power of the name (Nam) as a gift from the Infinite–awakening and resonating with the Divine vibration underliying all creation. God alone knows the full purpose in our pilgrimage, but the power of God’s Name is definitely a part of it. Since my earliest days with Mother, in fact the first time I met her, she instilled in me the holy mantra “Om Sri Ram Jai Ram Jai Jai Ram.” She received this chant directly from Papa Ramdas and it is embued with an all-powerful uplifting Grace. Not only did Papa use the chant to gain full realization of God, but others have done so before and after him with God’s name ever being chanted. The transformed consciousness of those who attain spiritual heights through the Nam further surcharges it with ever greater and greater power to help others do the same. Imagine the vibration of so many devotees chanting this holy mantra in full devotion for the Infinite–helping to raise the consciousness of this world and all its inhabitants. The Lord knows this world is in need of upliftment, and though we may be in disparate places, we are all in union with our infinite Beloved through chanting and harmonizing with His Holy Nam.
