The Way of the Heartbeat, part 15: As Your Heart Beats
- zhaawano
- Jun 4, 2024
- 3 min read
Updated: Mar 22
Namebine-giizis (Suckerfish Moon)/Zaagibagaa-giizis (Budding Moon) - June 4, 2024
AS YOUR HEART BEATS
Listen to your heart
And your heart
Alone, my child.
As your heart beats
So will you be
So will you be, my child
As you are
So will your people
Remember you, my child
As you were
So will your ancestors
Welcome you, my child
Listen to your heart
And your heart
Alone, my child.
Ah, the language of the heart. It is both the simplest and the most challenging language to master – simple, because all it requires is a heart to express it; challenging, because the prevailing society – now referred to as settler society – has conditioned us to self-dislike. The heart communicates in only one way. Although our spoken words may be numerous and even deceptive, the heart resists rhetoric; it is always truthful.
Follow only your own heart. This is among the initial lessons we need to impart to gidabinoojiininaanig – our children. We must educate them about the gift of the Heart, as it is the most formidable and potent gift of all.
We need to focus on our children and demonstrate to them that to receive unconditional love from others, they must first nurture their own spiritual heart. It's important to teach our children that their self-worth – or the quality of their lives – should not be determined by how poorly they are treated by family or society. It must originate from within themselves.
Anishinaabe gete-ayaa, the ancestors, understood the power of self-reflection. They realized that acquiring knowledge leads to wisdom and that understanding love connects one to the Universe. This essential teaching was imparted to us by Migizi, the white-headed eagle spirit that lives in the East, who originally shared it with them.
I refer to this teaching as Inde'mowin, which literally means "Language of My Heart."
Inde'mowin, the language of the heart, is a spiritual language and thus the most significant of all languages. It requires bravery to heed the messages from our heart. It guides us to love and respect ourselves and to live by the spiritual teachings handed down by our ancestors. It also advises us, for instance, not to judge or criticize one another based on blood quantum, skin color, language fluency, or knowledge of our cultural ceremonies and practices. We each come from diverse backgrounds, and we are all unique in our capabilities, limitations, gifts, and talents.
So, let's breathe life into gidizhide’wewininaanin, the language of our hearts, and educate our children properly. Ultimately, we all possess a beating heart, its rhythm a part of the universal beat that connects us all.
Ishkwaaj gakina-awiiya: In the end, we are all related.
One final thought. Judgment, guilt, and rules are concepts imposed by dominant society and religion, but they have never been part of the Anishinaabe tradition. Understanding this helps us see how the ancestors lived and viewed life. The Anishinaabe way is unique and beautiful because it involves not judging others or intruding into someone else's spiritual space. This is what I believe. Mii i'iw.
Weweni, miigwech bizindawiyeg niingom; Sincerely, thank you all for listening to me today.
>Episodes of The Way of the Heartbeat series published thus far:
Maravillosas historias y las imágenes las embellecen aún más. Definitivamente, hoy al encontrarlo, me ha hecho feliz. Gracias