Human ReUnion Ceremony in the Magpie Wheel Stone Circle 2016
Woman’s story – by Joanna Watters
The Men’s story – is told by Jay Jacoby
On Thursday April 21st, Pat McCabe, otherwise known as Woman Stands Shining,
visited Embercombe for the 3rd time – this time bringing 5 guests with her –
women from other indigenous nations across the world.
Over 100 women gathered, with a small circle of men in support.
This was the Opening Ceremony of the 4 days of Human Re-Union ceremonies in
the UK, part of the 4 week journey across Europe which Pat and these women
were undertaking.
On her first visit to Embercombe, in Autumn 2014, Pat spoke to a filled Centre
Fire on “Thriving Life: the Feminine Design and Sustainability” (a similar talk was given at Schumacher). Her talk touched both men and women deeply – there was no shaming of either gender, and a deep optimistic, powerful call for us to listen to and find ways to return to our original design.
Her second talk had a similar reception.
Before she spoke that first time, we brought Pat to meet the Stone Circle, which was a very powerful experience for her. She tells of hearing encouragement to us, that what we are doing on this land is good and to keep going. And she held a small spontaneous pipe ceremony in the Medicine Garden in response.
Over the last year, Pat has had vivid visions describing how the “archetypal
wounding of humanity” can be healed through a series of reconciliation and remembering ceremonies, to take place in Europe.
In Pat’s words: “this is an opportunity for Reunion between the Masculine and
the Feminine, between Men’s Nation and Women’s Nation, and between the artificial separation between Indigenous and European descended”.
In this photo, taken at Embercombe are, from Left to Right:
Pamela Joyce White (Dinnewhan), Aborigine, Australia
K. Parameswari Kanniah (Mukti), Malaysia
Pat McCabe, Dine, USA
Maria Ines Huenunir Antihuala, Mapuche, Chile
Ati Quigua, Arhuaca, Columbia
Ana Luisa Solis Gil, Mayan/Toltec, Mexico
Also with them (but not in the photo) were
Evangeline (Sunny) Dooley, Dine, USA
And Pat’s’ firekeeper Nathan Jesse Rose (USA)
A core group of women from Devon were involved in organising Pat’s visit this time.
Pat asked to come to Embercombe. We were able to arrange that the Opening Ceremony took place there, slipping in between programmes in Embercombe’s busy schedule.
The following 2 days took place in Dartington, supported by Schumacher College, with a beautiful closing ceremony on Robin Bowman and Annie Watson’s land at Morebarton (near Moretonhampstead).
It was a privilege to be able to offer our guests this Welcome at Embercombe, lead beautifully by Carolyn Hillyer, who with words and songs and drums wove a beautiful ritual in which each of us present marked a piece of cloth with symbolic blood (red pigment) representing our cycles, our essential nature, which we tied to a handmade basket, (representing a coracle, symbolising the precarious passage taken by some of our ancestors fleeing oppression to islands of safety).
We invited Carolyn Hillyer to lead the welcome, because of the deep connections Carolyn has with our land and our lineage. She sang her song “The Witched Wombe” which tells of the persecution of our own indigenous wisdom and how the wisdom has found ways to live on. http://ow.ly/vLDK301hfcB
Pat’s recurrent message is that Life wants Life: that natural balance is already the case. If we just listen, the people who thrive in their communities, and whose customs allow them to live in balance with their surroundings, have something to tell those of us who experience ourselves or our culture as out of balance, or dislocated.
The first persecution of indigenous culture, the first instances of ‘power over’ happened here, over centuries, so that it is here, in Europe that we now need to heal this rift.
You can read Pat’s Letter written before her visit to Europe, on the Schumacher
website. And you can keep track of Pat’s work, by visiting http://thrivinglife.weebly.com
Do send in photos from this beautiful day!