What does it all mean? Vittiti

Here we continue on our Camino of Chola Wengue.  Looking carefully at all the photos below we see layer upon layer of Spirit manifestation, in the waters, trees, stones, in the play between them all, within the Spider web.  These manifestations remind us of cosmic images, of images from wombs, of various animals, and of many human Spirits.  Depending on which layer we focus on, we can see multiple manifestations layered upon one another from the river bed to the surface of the water, like many layered veils.  As we come to realize and develop our eyes to have the Vittiti (spiritual eye) to see these Spirits, not only in photos but when we are right in front of them, the question arises "what does it all mean?"  

The language of words, especially written words, has come to dominate our minds.  Starting early in our (mis)educational process we are taught that there is a right answer and that it is desirable and we will be praised if we get this "right answer".  The educational system is dominated by a very intellectual and quasi-rational approach to the Spiritual Phenomenon which is life.  While this system prides itself on its "objectivity" it has many blind spots because of its inherent "subjectivity".  As a child we are guided away from seeing and understanding the subtle symbols and energies that are all around us.  The subtle energies of life are dismissed, pushed aside, and we are led further and further away from our natural understanding of the language of the Spirit, who always speaks in symbols.  Our minds become increasingly calcified into superficial thinking, and our minds have meltdowns when confronted with anything complex or profound.  


Even within systems of Divination, there are many practitioners who approach Divination under the influence of this mis-education, and therefore who can only Divine the superficial, acting more as "psychic readers" who will let you know if your spouse is being faithful or your boss is going to fire you and then prescribe various "brujerias/ travajos" to counter these issues.  A true Diviner will be able to understand the Divine Message she or he is receiving  within the shells, or within the waters of the River, the Ashes of the Fire, the Stones of the Mountain and so on.  The Misterios are always sending us messages, it is our ability to first recognize and then understand these messages that is stunted.

Our daughter heard us discussing Vittiti (spiritual sight) and came in on our conversation to add "Vittiti is not only seeing from your Eye but from your Heart".  Vittiti is only possible through the eye of the heart that reaches out to connect with the Misterios around it.  Understanding the symbols we see in these images in the water requires that we suspend our intellectual habit that constantly wants to categorize and qualify whatever it perceives.  By immediately interpreting and categorizing what we see, we block out the more profound messages that it is bringing.  Vittiti allows to us suspend this mental behavior to allow the symbol we are witnessing to speak to us in the heart, and from that place our minds can interpret what our heart is recognizing.  

When we look at Taino Petroglyphs or a Patipemba, we are seeing symbols that have multiple dimensions, multiple meanings and multiple trails within them.  We will understand them to the depth that our minds can go at the particular time we look upon them.  We could be told what they "mean" and we can then parade around with this intellectual knowledge, but to truly understand them we need to recognize them internally, in our hearts, and allow our "definition and knowledge" of them to come from the heart, not from an external "expert".  It has been external "experts" that greatly contributed to the mental enslavement that we suffer from and greatly contributed to our miseducation and our subsequent "lazy minds" that want to entertain themselves constantly in the "superficial".  Becoming a "Palero", or waking up to being "Taino" initiates a process of re-education where our minds recover from their calcification and become agile and flexible once again, and are able to return to their higher function of serving the Spirit's voice rather than serving the voice of the oppressors of life.

The spider weaves her web and waits patiently for the prey to become caught in her web, where it exhausts itself struggling to disentangle itself.  When we see the spider by the river, we need to ask ourselves, are we the spider or her prey?  Are we struggling in someone else's web, or are we a spider in the web of life creating connections between all the Misterios of the Universe?  In the photo above the web appears to have stars in it like a night sky, and the stars are connected by the web fibers as if someone is drawing the connections between stars to illustrate the meaning of the constellations within the cycles of life.  If we are not a "spider" within the web of our life (especially as a Palero, a Bruja, Brujo) then we are the prey getting caught up in the orchestrated chaotic energies of society going from one drama to the next.  Note that the Spider is often referred to as a female entity (Grandmother) and as a Creator/Generator of Life, the matriarchal deity if you will.   The Spider is a Ngangulera weaving the threads of her world rather than being the debris caught in the threads.  Here she sits in the center of the web, as if in the eye of the Hurricane, where she is the mover and shaker of her world.  

Within these particular photos many of the Misterios visible are remarkably "feminine" in energy.  Now, if we were to come to the River in a different moment we may see primarily masculine energies.  To us, it is significant that these were the Misterios who showed us their faces on this day, and we had to allow our minds to become active and open up the Eye of the Heart to see the symbols and images and to Divine the meaning of them.  We ask the question "what does it all mean" and we know immediately that it means a great deal, but that being mentally lazy will never allow us to get beyond the "what does it all mean?" stage of the experience.

We also understand that the Misterio has a mastery of language that make us look like babies in our immature abilities to communicate.  The same River can communicate simultaneously two different stories and messages to two different people who look upon her waters.  The River can communicate multiple different messages to one person that looks upon her waters.  We are fortunate that we have photos that "capture" these images and many can enjoy these photos from the computer.  However our presence at the River and the eye of our Spirit, the eyes of our Ancestors walking with us, are the most important aspect of this Divination, because as we walk along the River, overwhelmed in a way by the sensations, sounds, energies, and millions of images, our Ancestors are communicating, divining and understanding the messages of the Misterio of the River, Stones, Sun....  Their presence in those moments (through our physical presence, our body, our DNA) is what truly allows us to Divine what we see in these photos.  


The photo below clearly shows a primordial human entity, the image reminding us of two things immediately, a fetus in the dark of the womb (almost like an ultrasound image) and also of the Taino Cohoba Cemis (very skeletal).  This entity clearly is busy doing something, taking ACTION, digging, fishing, plowing... This is a profound communication coming from the world of the Misterio and requires our ongoing contemplation to fully appreciate the depths of it.  Cohoba Ceremony has everything to do with standing on the crossroads of Life and Death and communicating with the world of the Ancestors directly.  The fetus is making the transition from the world of the Ancestors to the world of the Living.  In fact there are many images within these photos of Skeletons, and Kiumbas.

We always take into consideration the context of the Camino.  We never isolate the Camino from its context, historical and contemporary.  This park had been heavily logged to feed the iron furnace nearby for hundreds of years, then it became a presidential retreat, trees were planted and its recovery process began.  It is a space that has been raped and abused, and today it is a space that many come to enjoy the forest, river and mountain, but with what "consciousness"?  Is it with the consciousness of Reconciliation, or is it with the consciousness of exploitation?  Or is this place a battle ground of these two opposing Cultures?

Within these images we also see the bear appear, both within the waters and in the stone.  Of course bears were once in this area, and once in a while they reappear briefly.  Bears are natural medicine animals and utilize herbs to enhance and protect their health.  Great respect is given to bears among those cultures who live in "bear country", from the Indigenous People of this continent, to the Indigenous People of what is now called Russia, Siberia, Asia and Europe.  In fact tracing the bear we find that there was an Ancient Bear Goddess in Europe who was the Goddess of Nature, connected with "shamanism".  Bears are associated with Medicine and Medicine People all over their territories.  This Bear Goddess was of course the target of  christianity, and was shunned and pushed to the side.  We see more recent manifestations of this behavior in the witch hunts of Europe and in this country both in the witch hunts of caucasian witches in "new england" and the witch hunts of our Indigenous Ancestors all over this continent who were barred from speaking our Ancient Language, and who were barred from practicing the Spirituality of our Culture.  This bear is speaking about this oppression, and connecting this oppression globally and across time, across thousands of years and thousands of miles.  It is the oppression of our cultures and the denigration and destruction of the Mothers of Life (women) and pushing aside of the Feminine Divinities, replacing them with a singular male divinity.  

Although our cultures have sustained much damage, records and books were destroyed, Cemis destroyed or stolen, Carvings decimated, Cemeteries robbed, Sacred Grounds polluted, and our memories distorted, the voice of the Spirit remains clear and vibrant.  We may have had our language taken, so much that there are Paleros out there who claim that if one does not speak spanish, one is not a real Palero...!  However, the language of Mother Earth, the language of the Misterios is something that cannot be destroyed or stolen, it is too complex, too profound, too multidimensional and too relentless to be silenced.  Here the River is telling us that she has stored all the stories, she has not forgotten one of them, and that at any given moment she will begin to share their secrets with the Diviner.

As we continue to follow the bear we see a cosmic connection...  the Bear Goddess in Europe and the Bear Spirit on this continent is associated with the constellation "the Big Bear" (the Big Dipper, the Big Dog).  This constellation is see by our Ancient Taino Ancestors as a constellation connected to the arrival of the Hurakan (Hurricane Season) and the story of Guahayona, Anacacuya and Guabonita (Medicine Teacher).  The Bear is the messenger between the world of the Dead and the world of the Living, just as the Taino Dog (or South American Dog) travels between these two worlds.  The Bear's message of Feminine Medicine, Feminine Power and the Power of the Natural World (Mpungos) connects cosmically to the story of Guabonita, powerful Taino Medicine Woman Teacher through this particular constellation (BIG BEAR).  The Misterio is bringing up a primordial root to our Ancient Cultures globally.  They are not all diverse, independent, non-connected "cultures" they are evolutions of an Ancient common Spiritual Root (which has nothing to do with what is spoken about in new age circles as Lemuria, Atlantis and the like (pure fantasy)).  

Below we see a dog or bear moving through the water, connecting again to Taino- Opiel Guabiron- the Cemis that travels between the world of the Living and the world of the Dead.  

What a Camino of Chola Wengue, and how much more profoundly do we understand her now!  We understand more about this particular River, and more about the Misterio herself.  This understanding takes time, it takes focus and concentration and it also take heart, because it is the heart that understands the value of this exploration which has nothing to do with the usual needs and greeds of life.  It is this exploration that truly empowers us and allows us evolve and develop as Paleros, Tainos, Indigenous People, People with Trato, with Initiation, and to develop and evolve as the "Walking Sticks" of our Ancestral Trees!

Mama Chola's whispered Stories

Water is the Mother of Life upon this Planet, and our evolutionary process rises out from the Primordial Oceans to then walk upon the Land.  Although we left our watery "homeland" (in terms of the Evolutionary Process and in terms of our Birthing from our Mother's Womb), we continue to submerge ourselves in water on a daily basis.  We have the ability to swim, dive, and float upon the waters, in both River and Ocean, and when we do this we are entering a more Ancient World in terms of our Story.  

In the terms of our Mother's Womb, we need to understand that this Womb is much more than a simple sack of fluid in our Mother's Uterus.  Womb is a manifestation on a microcosmic level of the Macrocosmic Maternal Womb of all life.  Our Mother's Womb is a doorway from that Cosmic World to this particular experience upon and within Mother Earth.  Our Mother's Womb holds the power to carry us through a whole process of evolution from a tiny embryo, through stages where we appear like Ocean Creatures, to the formation of the Fetus and recognizable human features.  Our Mother's protective Medicine Pouch (Placenta) is a defense and a nurturer for our process of incarnation, coming from the World of the Ancestors to the World of the so called "Living".  In Taino Understanding the Lagoon is the entry way/ passage way to the World of the Ancestors.  We also place clear containers of Water for the Fundamento, we go through much effort to make Spiritual Baths which are primarily Water, and we utilize water to refreshen all kinds of situations.  


To us in this Munanso we find it offensive when some Paleros describe the Woman's Menstrual Cycle as a weakness, and describe Yayis as weak because of this.  We have also heard Tainos say that women cannot be "Medicine People" and cannot be involved with the Medicine at all.  In terms of Taino this ignorant statement contradicts one of the powerful Taino Myths regarding a powerful Medicine Woman named "Guabonita" who taught the Casike "Guahayona"  the secrets of the Medicine.  In terms of Life itself these ignorant misconceptions contradict the evidence that Life herself continually gives us, demonstrating the power of the Woman's Menstrual Cycle and the Power of Woman's ability to Nurture and Give Birth to new Life.

When entering any body of water, whether it be Ocean, Lake, River, Waterfall, Lagoon, we need to recognize that we are entering manifestations of our Mother's Womb and that we are entering manifestations of Mother Earth's Womb that has given birth to Life in all the diversity that we enjoy from her.  Waters should never have become dumping grounds either physically or spiritually, yet today they have become both.  When we walked to this (relatively) pristine River, we were immediately struck by her Golden Color and how her Waters were the texture and color of Honey.  The Waters were clear and we could see to the bottom where many Misterios looked back at us.  We were able to submerge ourselves in her cool waters, refreshening in ways that are never possible using indoor plumbing.  In some parts we saw many tiny fish.

In all these photos many Spirits are easily visible, some fierce, some ancient, some beyond what we may even recognize.  And it is important to note that it is the currents of the River that has moulded the expressions of the Spirits that become visible upon the stones.  She has "revealed" them, if you will.  Our Ancient Taino Ancestors carved Cemis from Stones, revealing the Spirit that had been "hidden" in the Stone or piece of Wood.  In this sense Mama Chola is the carver of the Cemis that are found within her.  The photo below clearly shows the face of a Spirit looking directly at us.  In giving this some contemplation, we realize that Mama Chola, the Spirit of the River, is creating "Medicine".  

On the particular day that we came to this River, we had been hearing a Palero, who will remain unnamed, speaking on the internet about how Yayis are weak because their menstrual cycle, and talk too much, and that Yayis are not even allowed in some Munansos.  In our walk to the River, the River herself spoke to us, not through the internet, but through her Waters, her Stones, and the glimpses that she gave us into her world.  We need to consider the historical facts of colonialism of our Matri-focal cultures by paternalistic aggressive western mentalities.  These onslaughts of colonialism with its genocide and enslavement of our Peoples, left its scars that we are still struggling to heal from.  The most dangerous of those scars are the ones that we do not even realize are scars because of the scar tissue of ignorance that covers them.  The degrading of women and the describing of the Powerful Cycle that allows our Human Experience (the Menstrual Cycle) as weak is  one of the scars of colonialism and genocide that still haunts us.  

Other schools of thought blur the line of the Menstrual Cycle and try to attempt to give it a function with the Man, which is yet another scar from colonialism.  Some Tainos (who will remain unnamed) depict "Guakar", a female Misterio relating to the Menstrual Cycle of Women, as a masculine force.  This is another psychological scar that still seeks to undermine the Power of Mother, the Power of the Menstrual, the Power of the Mother giving Birth!


For those who have never read Willie Lynch's speech to his fellow slave owners,  we suggest reading it for a better understanding of the psychic attack that we as a Culture, as a People, as Communities and as Families, as Women and as Children and as Men endured and continue to endure.   Note that the individual "Willie Lynch" is described as a slave owner in the West Indies giving a speech to slave owners in Virginia on how to keep control and power over their 'slaves'.   We also suggest reading "The Dark Side of Christian History" by Helen Ellerbe for a deeper understanding of the energies within Christianity, the same Christianity that was forced upon our Indigenous ways through violence and psychic attacks.  It is important not to turn a blind eye to the story of the past, because it is only through facing the stories of the past that we can detoxify our mental bodies in the present and break free from our mental enslavement.  

Many within our Traditions come to the River to address "love issues", issues between Women and Men, issues of Marriage, and issues of fertility.  This is of course very appropriate.  We come bringing the River honey to sweeten these relationships in our lives, to open up energies of healthy relationships and love, and this is wonderful and good.  The River will take us as deeply into these trails as we are willing to "dive", and when we dive below the surface of our "apparent" need, we find the stories of our Ancestors vibrating within her waters, taking us to much more profound levels concerning our "issue with love, relationship and fertility".  We have seen the River enable Children to be Born to so called "infertile" parents, we have seen the River heal tumultuous relationships, we have seen the River open up doorways for relationships of love.  We have also seen how the River always has a deeper story to tell to us, if we are willing to listen, because these issues are never just a phenomenon of the present, they are trails linking to the Ancient Past, and the trails are not often nearly as beautiful as the River appears on this day.  

With all her beauty when flowing through a bright, clear summer's day, we have to also remember the tumultuous, debris ridden raging aspect of her that appears from rains from storms, and recognize that we are not dealing with a split personality, where we can relate to one without relating to the other, we are interrelating with a whole Mpungo, a whole Entity, and we offend that Mpungo when we look at her from limited perspectives, just as we offend the Mother of Life when we look at her daughters from limited perspectives, calling Yayis weak and indicating Yayis lack discipline.  Rape is rampant upon this Earth and is used as a weapon of war, globally.  In terms of the "homeland" of our tradition, Kongo, we see that every day hundreds of Women, Girls and Babies are raped, and this is certainly not the only place Women are being raped on daily basis.  Violence is used against the Mother's of Life and on a minute, yet significant, level when Tata's find themselves speaking down about Yayis, this violence is perpetuated further, and when women are sidelined and told they cannot "learn the Medicine" again this violence continues.  Some claim it is "tradition" but that has to be examined closely and the legacy of colonialism and its christianity, both on the African continent prior to the Atlantic slave trade, and on this continent, needs to be factored in as a real pollutant of our "Traditions".   Once we recognize it as the pollutant that it is, we can break our  enslavement in the most important place, and that is within our Spirituality.