Anishinabe
Of The Water
The official website of the Sharbot Mishigama Anishinabe AlgonquinFirst
Nation Membership.
TOBACCO
The Selfless Spirit of Tobacco
This is the teaching of the Sacred Medicine of the selfless
Spirit of Tobacco and the acquisition of the knowledge of the Creator
and shows how all of the knowledge of the Universe is attainable by
using Tobacco in its' proper way.
This is a spiritual writing and is meant to be read a minimum of four
times. This is only a partial teaching about Tobacco and does not
include the Sacred Pipe Ceremony, Tobacco Medicines, Planting
Ceremonies for Tobacco, the Tobacco Bird teaching and more. Some of
these teachings are now available on the Tobacco Medicine Page.
Tobacco and the Acquisition
of Knowledge
Now that many of our people are returning to their spiritual beliefs
and choosing to walk a sacred path, they are quickly regaining respect
for the knowledge our people once held in regard to the sacred
medicines given to them by our Creator. Each Nation has their own
record of knowledge honouring the arrival of tobacco, its use and
purpose. Tobacco was given consciousness to gather in the spiritual
knowledge, that the Creator reigns throughout the Universe. Special was
the light of day, when the spiritual purpose of Tobacco was given to
our people, for the doors of all knowledge were opened and light was
given freely to all. The Elders of each Nation are obligated to know
and teach this knowledge to everyone, for all knowledge that comes from
the Creator, belongs to all of the Children of Earth.
Among many Native People the word poverty translated means "without
tobacco". Native people always lived in harmony with the Creator's
World, and shared all things with everyone, so we did not know poverty.
This concept was introduced to us through European Contact. The true
translation for poverty or "without tobacco" actually means "without
the means of acquiring Knowledge" making us "poor" indeed! In Native
ceremony Tobacco has always been used to acquire the knowledge of the
Creator.
Passing Tobacco
When you want to acquire a gift of knowledge from the Creator, you take
a small amount(we are careful never to waste or misuse God’s precious
gifts) of Tobacco with your right hand and place the Tobacco in the
palm of your left hand. Then we pray, allowing our thoughts from our
mind and our intent from our heart to enter into the spirit of Tobacco.
Thus allowing the Tobacco to fulfil its purpose of messenger for the
Creator God.
Tobacco is passed from heart to heart, from your left hand to the left
hand of the receiver. This rite symbolizes the sincerity and sanctity
of this act, for the passing of Tobacco signifies the seeking of truth.
As the Creator loves you, you in turn should love all of Creation. In
your heart is where the Creator placed the truth. It is with your heart
you know the truth and from your heart you should seek the truth. You
are a spirit of love and understanding, born from Earth, the Heart of
the Sun, the Mother of all Creation and the Song of the Universe.
Through the conscious act of selflessness, Tobacco absorbs the intent
of your thoughts and feelings, which emanate from your mind to your
heart, flowing out through your arm to your left hand. When the tobacco
is transferred to the left hand of your intended teacher, the teacher
first ‘grasps’ your thoughts in the palm of their hand, then ‘reads’
your intent using their three fingers(thumb-mind, pointer finger-soul,
and middle finger-heart, attached to their heart, mind and soul ). The
Tobacco then releases your thoughts, intent and request, transferring
them to the heart and mind of the chosen medicine person or spiritual
teacher. This route makes it necessary for the flow of thought to enter
the heart of your chosen teacher before entering his mind, allowing his
heart to assesses the content of your request before entering his mind.
This enables him assess your request through love before accepting or
rejecting your petition for knowledge through righteousness. By this
process any darkness in the desire of your request cannot by-pass his
heart, as they can without the use of this ritual.
This rite was given to mankind to filter evil intent and correct all
thought. When Tobacco is offered to a medicine person, or to one of a
host of natural teachers such as earth, wind, fire, water, plants,
rocks, rivers, trees, mountains, seas, and sky, it enables their
spirits to understand your request by reading the feeling of your
heart's intent. Tobacco is a Ki, a Spirit of Earth(Ashki,Ashki,Aski...)
and a key to Heaven’s door, your heart. The purpose given to Tobacco is
for the transference of thought from one being to another, and for the
true assessment of everyone’s intent, needs and desires. The ability to
maintain purity of thought and to correct all wrongs, are the
attributes given to Tobacco. To petition and acquire knowledge are the
uses of Tobacco. Only good and loving thoughts will cause Heaven to
appear on Earth. Heaven like Love and Truth, was placed in the Hearts
and Minds of All Mankind.
The Responsibility in Receiving Tobacco
There is greater responsibility in the receiving of Tobacco, than in
the giving of Tobacco. The offering of Tobacco is a petition made by
younger spirits to older spirits, requesting their services as
spiritual guides and teachers. Students request the power of knowledge
to bring forth their dreams to reality or to share in the wisdom sent
through older spirits, asking for their guidance and their knowledge
for the protection of all life. When the Tobacco is accepted by the
older spirit, they accept the responsibilities, of becoming a mentor to
the younger spirit.
When being offered a gift of Tobacco, it is the duty of the older
spirits as whole beings to remember, all knowledge they were given, is
the knowledge of the Creator God. This knowledge is to be given freely
to all the Children of Earth, whatever their race, colour or creed. In
the eyes of God, All Children are His Children. Accept in humility all
gifts of the Creator, for true humility is knowing the Creator God is
the Soul/Sol of the Universe, the Source of all knowledge, and Source
of all life. The only being who is an entity unto Himself is the
Creator. There is no other, for the entire Universe is the light of His
Great Spirit made real(matter). Remember also, there will always be
greater spirits than yourself to guide and protect you, throughout all
of your lifetimes.
When presenting a gift of tobacco to a chosen mentor, it is important
for the student, the questor of knowledge, to hold in their heart and
maintain in their thoughts, the well being of all Creation. Take into
account the protection of all living things and the harmony of the
Universe. Only when the needs and desires of a student fall within
these guidelines, is a teacher to accept a petition for their services,
as mentor. When the offering of Tobacco is accepted, the student will
understand their thoughts, words, deeds, and request were deemed
acceptable to the Creator God. Whatever exists in your heart, is that
which you love and through your love, becomes your world. Your world is
everyone’s world. Therefore be pure in thought, for your thoughts
become Mankind’s future and the future of every living thing. Even
darkness is a labor of love to those who love darkness. You are a Child
of God, a Child of Love; therefore love light, live in light, be light,
for God is Light and as His Child you are to be like Him.
When your Tobacco is accepted you will be granted the power of
knowledge, to make your aspirations matter and be made a part of our
world. Knowledge is the power to make things matter. When thought
matters to your heart, matters to your mind, and matters to your soul,
the thought is made whole and becomes matter. When your offering is
acceptable to the Creator God, your thoughts are founded on a true
desire for the good of all life and the oneness of all things. What
exists in your heart and mind, becomes your soul. When you love light,
light is your world and light is your burden on your path of life. When
adversity is in your life, know that you are being told to get back on
the path of light. Troubles are just markers to tell you that you walk
the wrong path. Change direction and learn to walk a sacred path once
more.
When the medicine person or spiritual teacher accepts your offering of
Tobacco, they in turn show their humility by offering your gift of
Tobacco along with their prayers on your behalf, to the Greater
Spirits. Humbling themselves to honour the greater spirits, the
medicine person will place the Tobacco in fire, on water or on the
earth, requesting that knowledge be sent through them, to make the
thoughts, words and deeds of their students whole. This act notifies
the greater spirits of the chosen teachers adherence to the natural
order of the flow of knowledge throughout the Universe. It also
notifies the Spirits of their grateful acceptance of responsibility in
teaching lesser or younger spirits than themselves. Through teaching
younger spirits, one finds gratification and fulfillment.
This act also notifies the greater spirits of the willingness of the
lesser or younger spirits to accept their chosen teacher as their
spiritual guide and channel for knowledge, sent to them by greater
spirits than their chosen mentor.
Adults like children need
guidance. When you correct someone you show
everyone you care. When you correct a child out of love, you keep them
from harms way, protecting them through guidance. Empowering them with
correct thoughts of love, helping them grow in strength, guiding them
to become greater beings through truth. Failing to correct them, shows
them and others, that you as a being, have no concern for their future,
nor do you love them enough to protect them from the future of their
thoughts, words, deeds and the actions they bring forth. When you
correct someone, you also protect yourself from a potentially fatal
future. Correct one and other. Empower one and other. Show how much you
care and love one and other. What one Child of God knows, all others
were given to know. We are everyone’s future. We should be worthy of
the future we desire to cause. Peace is the path of life, harmony the
joy, love its bounty and life its reward.
True teachers understand immortality and that their students live
forever and have been taught the knowledge of the Creator, throughout
their many lifetimes. A teacher merely triggers memories, that their
students have continually flowing through them. It is this knowledge
that gives them purpose. The reason it must be recalled, is so the
student may become who they are. A true teacher recognizes that he or
she merely triggers the memories of past lifetimes, causing their
student to recall the knowledge that continually and inherently flows
through them, knowledge the Creator taught them so they might live in
harmony with the Universe. Like all the Spirits of the Creator, the
spirit of knowledge lives forever and exists throughout all time and is
part of you.
God gives His knowledge freely with equality to all of His children.
Interfering with the flow of spiritual knowledge to gain power over
others or to acquire material wealth, is a direct assault against the
Word, Power and Glory of God. By limiting the spiritual growth of His
Children and growth of His pride in them causes the darkness of this
world. When the Creator God sends His spirit of knowledge through you,
He is saying, "You are an older spirit responsible for the guidance and
growth of all lesser or younger spirits than yourself". Choosing not to
carry out His will freely and without favour is Evil and is likened
unto casting away all children given to you as your own flesh and
blood. When you as an elder, choose not to love the Greater Family of
God, you become incapable of caring for the family He gave to you as
your own. Through your choice, they lack conviction and are easily
stolen from you by your enemies or taken from you through your neglect.
The welfare of your family, like all life, depends upon the love and
well being of the Creator’s Greater Family. All families are one,
inter-dependent and inter-related, so much so they are One family under
God. To cause a separation between them, of any kind or for any reason
is a sin, punishable by the loss of ones life, family or soul. Do not
divide the Family of God.
When Your Tobacco is Rejected
When your intended teacher sifts the Tobacco between the
heart finger, index or directional finger and thumb, they grasp your
thoughts, inherently knowing and understanding the spirit of your
intent. These are the digits through which your thoughts enter their
body, enabling them to decide whether to accept or reject your request.
When your gift of Tobacco is rejected, it contains an unwholesome or
incomplete thought, which holds an element of destructive behavior,
harmful to one or more of the Creators living Spirits. All thoughts,
ideals or concepts outside of love and respect for all life are alien
to the Word of God and destructive to all forms of life. The knowledge
of the Creator can not be given to anyone who wishes to carry out a
wantonly destructive or unholy act. No one was given the right to
wantonly destroy a leaf nor a blade of grass. Everyone choosing to
ignore and not correct the destructive thoughts and acts of others, is
guilty of participating in the wholesale destruction of life. The
thoughts, words and deeds of everyone, become the future of all living
things.
Your petition will be rejected, when it contains the slightest
intention of causing wastefulness, vengeance, division, greed,
aggression, death or destruction or any concept contrary to the Word of
God. Upon rejection, your gift of Tobacco, will be returned to you with
instructions to offer it to the Creator along with a prayer for God’s
forgiveness and healing. It is the Creator who ultimately decides
whether your petition is worthy of acceptance or rejection. The justice
you receive is the intent you hold in your mind and heart for others.
If you consider something just for another, then reasonably, it will be
equally just for you. You bring justice upon yourself in all things and
it is God who sends all gifts and exacts all vengeance. Your entended
teacher, out of love for God, will offer prayers on your behalf. Your
chosen teacher is obligated to give you corrective instructions and to
offer assistance in the rewording and rethinking of your petition.
Do not despise them for by making you aware of the darkness your
desires will cause or the penalties they carry, as they guide and try
to protect you, but they must carry out the Will of God. What God
wills, they must do. When your petition is corrected, it may be
presented again in a more wholesome manner and with the correct light,
to benefit all that live.
Placing Tobacco on Water
The Sol/Soul of the Creator dwells in the sun, which rises in the east
and sets in the west, giving direction to all the children of earth, by
raining fire and light throughout the Universe. Fire is the Spirit of
Faith and Light is the Spirit of Knowledge. The heat of the Sun,
sol/soul of the fire of faith, which lifts water from the sea and earth
and raises it into the sky, to be purified by the Spirits in the sky.
Gathering in consciousness to form drops of rain, whose purpose is to
cleanse and nourish the Spirits of Earth. All plants are spirits of
earth, and their seeds are keys of knowledge giving them purpose.
Placing one of the keys/kis, the Spirit Tobacco, upon purified water
(rain), enables everyone to acquire the spiritual knowledge of faith,
wisdom, truth, love, and light with which the Creator reigns throughout
the Universe.
Rain is Holy Water, purified by the dome minions/dominions of God, or
Spirits of the Sky, blessed by God. Rain gathers in the consciousness
of the fire and light of the Creator. Tobacco absorbs the consciousness
which the rain has gathered. Tobacco when placed upon rainwater forms a
conscious image, of the knowledge acquired by the rain, from the fire
and light of the Creator, forming images upon the surface of the
purified water which can be read, by the chosen mediator. These
formations are the answers to the questions placed in the Tobacco by
the heart and mind of the petitioner.
The Burning of Tobacco as an Offering for
Knowledge
When you burn Tobacco you are releasing thoughts and
feelings, absorbed by the Tobacco from your mind and heart. Smoke
signifies the Spirit of Tobacco being released into the sky. When the
smoke dissipates, the thoughts and feelings absorbed by the Tobacco,
are released into the spirit world so they may be answered and
corrected. Tobacco is the body, the smoke is the lesser form of the
body, and the thoughts and feelings are the spirit released, for which
you will receive the answers of any petition made directly to the
Creator or any of His Great Spirits.
Tobacco is used as an incense whose aroma reminds people of the
sacredness of the area in which it is being used, as an offering. We
smudge or use Tobacco in the form of smoke, to cleanse participants in
sacred ceremonies and to cleanse the areas in which the ceremonies are
being held. A sign for both physical and spiritual entities made known
to them through the recognition of its power and purpose. The smell of
Tobacco delights our physical form, the spirit placed in Tobacco
uplifts and enhances our spiritual being(makes us aware of our
spiritual being), bringing us closer to a positive place where truth
dwells. The smell of Tobacco reminds us all, that life is sacred and
Truth is the knowledge of the Creator, made accessible to all.
Tobacco is sacred only when you wholly accept it for its purpose. If
you use Tobacco with respect and in accordance to its
purpose(ceremonial), you can acquire the knowledge of healing, the
knowledge of love, the knowledge of respect, the knowledge of harmony,
the knowledge of spiritual behavior, and the knowledge of everything.
This is why Tobacco is so sacred.
Tobacco is a Ki/Key Spirit of Earth which gives everyone access to the
knowledge which the Creator rains throughout the Universe, in the
elemental forms of fire and light. A Ki/Key that opens the doors to
wisdom and the knowledge needed to maintain the order and harmony of
the Universe. A Ki/Key to Knowledge which enables everyone to correct
all that has gone wrong, to rebuild all that has been destroyed and to
restore to virtue, all that was compromised. No one can steal any
convictions or take away any rites given to you by the Creator God,
they can only share in them. It is you who neglect them and cast them
away through compromise. Compromise was never a virtue given to you by
God, but a weakness devised and made sacred by men to defeat other men.
The reason Tobacco is held so sacred and valued so greatly is, with it,
God and everyone is given access to all knowledge empowering them to
perpetuate life through all that is good and right. Special was the
light of day, the day the Creator gave His children the gift of
Tobacco. He gave them access to all knowledge, the freedom of their own
lives and the means to maintain all virtues and powers of life. Choose
to walk freely on the Sacred Path of Life. Choose to walk out of love
and respect for the Kindness and Power of God. Do not walk it out of
the fear of His retribution for He has the power to force you but He
wants you to choose freely to walk His Sacred Path, showing the Love
you hold for Him and showing the Love you have for all of His Creation.
You cannot acquire darkness through the use of Tobacco because the
Universe is defined by light. There is no darkness in the Universe.
Darkness only exists in the hearts and minds of Mankind. Tobacco is a
tool of light. Respect this sacred medicine, Tobacco and choose to use
it in a good way.
Medicine Teachings
