Greeting the Dawn
This is the long form of my morning song to the holy beings (in Blackfoot: aatsimoyihkaan (~atsimoitskaan)). I also have a short form which is similar but greatly abbreviated.
[ Confession ] [ Approach to the Tree I circle sunwise ]
Facing East, at the Eastern place: O beautiful White Shell Dawn and your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
Circling to South, at the Southern Place: O beautiful Blue Sky Horizon and your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
Circling to the West, at the Western Place: O beautiful Golden Twilight your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
Circling to the North, at the Northern Place: O beautiful Northern Darkness and your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
[ Continuing to circle the Tree ]
[ Male Spirit Singing ]
[ Continuing to circle the Tree ]
O beautiful Holy Beings and inner forms of the Holy beings, I greet you this day with love, reverence, joy, wonder, gratitude, respect, and awe. Thank you for the blessings and protections of this life, and the chance to walk and sing with you this day.
O beautiful Holy Beings of the First Garden, the place of Origin — All Father, All Mother, and Children of the First Place… O beautiful Fountain I remember and all your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful Sun, Old Man, Father of Lives and Worlds, Invincible One and your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful Moon, Mother of Waters and Dreaming, Mother of Time and your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful Morning Star, Awakener, Dweller in the Between, Teacher and Companion; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful Companion Star, Warrior, Receiver of Blows, Friend of the Morning Star; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful Dipper Stars, carriers of the Seven Protections, and inner forms of the Dipper Stars; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart. O beautiful Pleiades Stars, carriers of the Seven Paths, and inner forms of the Pleiades Stars; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart. O beautiful Children of the Sun, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Uranus and Pluto, and your inner forms and moons — and all of the dwellers in the Sun’s Home, tiny stones, comets, clouds and waters; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful Sky Beings; Star-birth places, world-birth places, Planets and Stars without number, galaxies, nebulae, quasars, pulsars, black holes, Timespace and the One Who Dwells in the Between; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful Earth, mother of my life and spirit, Changing Woman, Old Salt Woman, and all of your children, especially Slayer of Monsters and Little Water of the Moon and your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful holy beings of the upper worlds, teachers and guides, protectors, deities and angels; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful spirit-animals of the lower worlds; (name my animals here) allies and companions, protectors and friends; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful living places of Earth and your inner forms; Mountain places, valley places, forest places, plains and meadows, rivers and lakes, oceans and water places, frozen places and desert places; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful living creatures of Earth; all of the grasses and trees, shrubs and flowers, fruits and vegetables, fungi, lichens and mosses — tiny life and insects, spiders and worms, flies and beetles, ants, bees and wasps — O beautiful animal creatures of every form and kind, mice and rats, gophers, beavers, deer and antelope, bison and ox, bear and fox, badgers and weasels, cats and wolves… all of the beautiful creatures of the Earth and land. O beautiful creatures of the waters of every form and kind, fishes and clams, shrimp and crayfish, anemones and worms, jellyfish and sea-flowers… especially the dolphins and whales. O beautiful birds and creatures of the air… bluebird and owl, hawk and eagle, bluejay and magpie, hummingbird and sparrow… O beloved creatures of this world of every kind and your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful human beings; grandmother and grandfathers, mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, aunts and uncles and true relations of every kind and your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful ancestors of all forms and kinds, and your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart. O beautiful beings who have lived and died, and beautiful beings as yet unborn and your inner forms, I remember your conception, birth, and life phases. I remember your deaths, your dreams, your work, your suffering and your joy; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful four directions, powers of the four directions and your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful four winds, powers of the four winds and your inner forms; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful pollen beings and your inner forms; star pollens, time pollens, world pollens, flower pollens and pollens of knowledge and power — pollen boy and pollen girl; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O beautiful Long Life Boy and Happiness Girl and all your inner forms, good morning, I love you, I am your friend, you are my heart.
O beautiful beings who are rejected by humans as unwanted, evil, terrible or ugly. Hungry ghosts and demons, devils and beings of shadow and darkness, in my sight your are beautiful, in my sight you are redeemed; good morning, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
O holy beings, I greet you this day with love, reverence, wonder, gratitude, respect and awe. Thank you for the blessings and protections of life, and for the challenges I face which teach me to grow and learn. Now I walk in beauty with you as it was in the beginning, is now, and always shall be. Now your feet become my feet, your legs my legs, your torsos my torso, your shoulders my shoulders, your arms my arms, your hands my hands, your necks my neck, your heads my head. Now the web that connects you to all beings is my web of connection. Now your blood is my blood, your origins my origins, your spirit my spirit, your purposes my purposes. Now we are one as I walk in beauty with you. Now it is holy from the bottoms of my feet to the palms of my hands and the top of my head. Now I am cleansed, and that which is poisonous departs me, that which does harm becomes fine medicine, that which is unwanted is transforms. Now your powers surround me with impenetrable barriers, and as I walk in beauty I am endowed with your knowledge and protections.
Now I am invisible to enemies and obvious to friends and allies. Now, as we walk again in original beauty, it is holy beneath and above me, before and behind me, to my left and to my right. Now it is holy in all directions from within to without and without to within. Now the lightnings and thunders shield me from blows and arrows, now the pollens hide me from all harm, and form many layers of blessings, knowledge and protections all around me and within every moment of my thought, speech action and concern, this day and all my days. I give myself to your protections and companionship; make in me the beautiful instrument of your holy will this day and all my days, as you always have, as you always do.
O blessed ones, watch over the living places and creatures, granting them your protections and blessings, as you always have, as you always do, that they may know peace, health, healing, rest, and fulfillment of the promise and beauty of their birth and inner forms. Walk with them, o holy ones, in every moment of their lives, relations and activity. O blessed ones, walk with the human people, this day and all their days, in every aspect of their thought, speech action and concern. Teach them and remind them of the old agreements with the sky and the Earth. And let them know your presence in their lives and hearts that they may be encouraged. Grant them your blessings and protections, as you always have, as you always do, that they may know peace of mind, well-being, health, healing, insight, rest, wise dreams, true relations, long-life and happiness. O blessed ones please give your care and attention particularly to those who are broken, ill, injured, isolated, imprisoned, silenced and without hope or companions.
O holy ones, particularly watch over those I love and those who love me, those they love and those who love them (in this part I name specific persons for whom I hold care and concern).
O blessed holy beings, I ask that you confer your blessings and protections upon me this day and all my days, guiding and blessing me in every moment of my thought, speech, action and concern, as you always have, as you always do. Watch over me and let me know your presence in my life and heart that I may be encouraged, and kept from despair or dark thoughts and ways. O holy beings, I offer myself to you; make in me the beautiful instrument of your holy will, so that the spirit of my heart and birth may be fulfilled. Help me to awaken to true awareness and insight, and bring close to me those to whom I can be of aid. O blessed ones, grant me your blessings and protections, that I, too, may know peace of mind, well-being, health, rest, healing, insight, prosperity, true relations, long life and happiness.
Thank you, o holy beings for this chance to sing and walk, speak and dance with you once more. I am truly grateful for the gifts of life and beauty, I am humble, I love you, I am your friend — you are my heart.
( Female spirit singing )
