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Again and again Gaia shows us the ways in which we are all teachers,
responsible for our affects on the larger living world.
But at the same time, she doesn’t mean for us to downplay
the importance of human mentors and animal inspiriteurs.
There are no true “solitaries,” only those unaware of
their teachers, or who have yet to meet and align with
their allies on this path. If the fact of ecology and
the dynamics of magic tells us anything, it is that
we are inextricably interconnected and fully interdependent,
and that none of us can “get it on our own.”
Every insight, every correct conclusion or healthy
choice benefited from the wisdom or example of others.
Even our instincts are handed down, paw to hand, from
our distant primal ancestors. They’re the result of
thousands of years of challenge and mistake, opportunity
and fear, elation and pain, persistence and reward.
And when we hear truth from our heart, it is speaking
from and for the needs and will of the entire sacred
planet.
Any problem lies not with the fact and necessity
of teachers, but with the epidemic insecurities that
often lead even the most gifted among us to covet rather
than engender and disseminate power. Those who insist
they have privileged access to truth, seek to distinguish
themselves in contrast to and at the expense of their
students. They fear they will lose their following,
and thus their self image, if they teach that everyone
has the capacity for magic... that everyone has the
responsibility to interact directly with Spirit, and
then dance to its tune. They can bleed away our energy
and focus, or we can learn not only from the truths
they tell but also from that which is tweaked or withheld.
If we are worthy it is not only because we try.... grow,
live, love and die. It is because we have learned, if
nothing else, to give thanks. Indeed, we should be grateful
to every teacher flawed or not, to every mistake we
learn from, and to every poignant test. And to the inspirited,
instructive Earth more, not less. From the time I ran
away from military school as a young pup, I searched
high and low for those individuals who might be able
to teach me, or inspire me by example, in the ways of
being real and purposeful in a culture of artifice and
distraction. Some, like the revered philosopher Alan
Watts, did indeed offer words that were like brilliant
stars to navigate my life by. I was encouraged by the
audacious authenticity of Ken Kesey and the ability
of Rolling Thunder to gather a tribe. The primary author
of The Great Cosmic Mother, Barbara Mor, provoked me
to go beyond the simplicity of black and white and into
the world of layers and twists. Experience with others,
revisionist shamans and control-freak gurus alike, taught
me about the human failings of even the most brilliant
of our kind. And between every notable meeting, I was
learning from the faultless natural world, and learning
to listen.
The Canyon Testaments seen in this Earth & Spirit
column from time to time are a result of that great
listening. They are essentially Gaian Sutras, passed
from the all knowing whole to this humble wordsmith
in moments of confusion or need. They’re insights and
aphorisms that cut to the chase scene, Earthen tools
for clarification and choice that beg to be embodied,
implemented and lived. As they were given to me, I give
them to you. They are not mine, and you do not need
me to tell you how to put them to use. I am here to
help awaken and embolden the teacher within you. Every
session I hold, every line I write, is meant to be a
full class from which you the seeker or reader graduate.
The work of this ministry is to aid others in the honest
realization of their individual medicine ways... and
help lead them to the lessons, the perfection and balance
of Nature- to the altar of Gaia, where truth and purpose
reign.
_The Canyon Testaments: Teachers & Seekers_
Spirit is the first directive. And this inspirited
Earth— Gaia— our original Teacher. Thus the first step
in becoming a Teacher, is to become a lifelong student
of the Earth.
Every exchange of information is an alliance of purpose,
between that which expresses, and that which hears.
That purpose is not only the education of the individual,
but also the informing of the Earthen whole.... to our
mutual and collective benefit.
All things have something to teach us. All things
capable of learning, are students. All students of life,
have learned lessons they can then offer to the world.
Seek what is true, and then honor what is sought.
It is always as close and connected as our hand, as
expansive and complete as this godly universe.
A Seeker becomes a Teacher whenever she or he shares
the truths they’ve found with others. At the same time,
no viable Teacher ever quits being a Seeker.
The purpose of the contemporary Teacher is to point
to phenomena, reveal connection, heighten awareness,
and encourage engagement and depth. To nurture the Seeker’s
compassion, and affirm their intrinsic beauty, practiced
skills and developing love. To instigate response, and
foster fulfillment.
Even the most conscious of human teachers are vehicles
for practical and spiritual truths... and never their
source.
One doesn’t explain mysteries, so much as acknowledge
and honor them.
Anything we learn from, is a Teacher. Thus to resist
the idea of Teachers, is to deny we have anything to
learn.
The problem is not so much that we have a hard time
trusting the sources of truth, but that we are unwilling
to give up those things we wish were true.
Teaching is a joint accomplishment— in the same way
that art must have a viewer, and music is incomplete
without the partnership of audience.
A Teacher who gives up on a student, has herself
surrendered. If a Seeker feels that they have failed,
the teacher has failed them.
For a Seeker to fully “own” his abilities, accomplishments
and purpose, he must personally pay the price. And learn
to take credit for doing so.
Once we know that everything we are and do affects
those around us, we become partly responsible for what
affects we have.
For ideas to effect the world, they must first be
translated into action. For these reasons, a good Teacher
makes sure the Seeker is in touch with her feelings—
and that she feels empowered to act on them.
Likewise, a Teacher will strive to be a catalyst—
and never a surrogate for the Seeker’s direct experience
or personal revelations. It is a Teacher’s duty to direct
focus away from themselves, and in the direction of
that which they’ve been fortunate to see. Rather than
imposing definition or interpretation, a Teacher leads
us in the direction of meaning.
The Teacher’s purpose is not to criticize or judge,
but to awaken, inform, inspire, correct and applaud.
At the same time, it’s as important for a Teacher to
point out illusions and lies, as it is for them to point
to the truth.
Not all lessons or gifts are accepted, fewer are
understood, and fewer still are really put to use. Thus
a Seeker must open to new lessons without any expectations.
And a Teacher must share her vital lessons, without
expecting anything in return.
The Teacher plants the seeds of awareness and empowerment
that he was himself given. With no certainty of results,
he waters them with his tears. Feeds them with his hopes.
Christens them with his heartfelt prayers. And emboldens
them with his cheer.
*Jesse Wolf Hardin* is a teacher
of Earth-centered spirituality and nature magick, living
seven river crossings from a road in an ancient place
of power. His latest effort is _Gaia Eros: Reconnecting
With The Magic & Spirit Of Nature_ (New Page 2004),
a book acclaimed by Starhawk as "a must-read for
those who want to worship nature not as an abstraction
but in ways sensual, practical, and transformative.”
When not presenting at conferences and festivals he
can be found hosting seekers for retreats, quests, events,
workshops and resident internships at their enchanted
wilderness sanctuary: Animá Center PO Box 688, Reserve, NM 87830 email: mail@animacenter.org. Visit Jesse's website by going here http://www.animacenter.org/
©Jesse Wolf Hardin 2005 Reproduction
in any form is prohibited without express written permission
from the author.
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