Humanity seems to stand on a precipice. In many ways the future seems uncertain. Engulfed in confusion, crisis, conflict and despair, many are questioning the reason to live. We are in great and urgent need of wise agency, of clarity and true wisdom. We need answers that can lead us through these tumultuous times. Most of all, we need reason to hope.
Perhaps we don’t need to look too far to find it.
Beneath all the chaos lies the same spirit that guided, empowered and impelled our lives from the beginnings of time. A spirit of vision, of creation, of intelligence and meaning. Held, nurtured and honoured as sacred by all Indigenous peoples the world over, these visions enabled our ancestors to live in harmony with nature and all her cycles for tens of thousands of years.
Being of Indigenous heritage, I recognise the wisdom of my elders and ancestors. I have dug deep into my roots and recognised the profound intelligence, love and spirit that guided our people to live sustainably for more than 60,000 years. I recognise the same threads of wisdom running through all Indigenous culture. And I see that, if we look deeply enough, we will recognise this wisdom runs through the DNA of all humans. We are all of Earth.
There are four fundamental pillars of principles and lore that run through all ancient cultures: connection with earth, with all beings, with spirit and the creation laws. These four pillars all rest on the central tenet of interconnectedness: the recognition that all existence is interconnected and interdependent – that all life thrives through a loving and sacred honouring of oneness. Yet over a very short period, in some instances only 200 years, these sacred pillars have been greatly shaken and dismantled.
Indigenous people from all over the world have prophesised these times. Each culture has its stories of a time of destruction and chaos – and of how to prevent it. This is what we should pay closest attention to. Our Indigenous Wisdom Keepers and Elders clearly hold answers. They are probably the most qualified people on the planet to guide us from degeneration to regeneration.
One of the strongest social principles for Indigenous people is co-operation and unity. They know that without it we perish. We have great resources of wisdom immediately available to us. We just need to come together. Be together, listen, learn and grow together.
We all share the same hopes of a life free of suffering, a life filled with love and wellness. But it is only when we are willing to co-operate that these hopes can be grounded, that life can be breathed into a new vision and a new story – one we can write together. This is a story both ancient and new. In restoring our shared heritage of sacred principles, we will find ways in our modern lives to make the shift from degeneration to regeneration – to build a new world of love, hope and well-being for all.
Can you hear that call of hope? It’s our Indigenous people saying “Come, sit with us, we have some answers.”
© Isira Sananda 2020 All rights reserved
Isira is an Indigenous woman of Aboriginal, Welsh, Celtic, Germanic, and Spanish heritage. She is initiated with her bloodline as a Mirning Adnyamathanha woman with kin ties to Yankuntatjara Pitjantjatjara in central Australia. As a woman of Indigenous heritage, Isira is a recognised Wisdom Keeper and Ngankari, a woman of spiritual power.
To learn more about the Four Pillars of Lore click here.
