Arvol’s address at the Thanksgiving Service, St. John The Divine, NYC November 2001

Here on Turtle Island we have many Nations. I, in my own spiritual way as a keeper of a Sacred Bundle have recognized Nations of the world, many Nations upon Mother Earth. We are at the crossroads. A prophecy that was handed down through generation, through generation, it was told among the people that some day we would see and hear, because the things that hold people together and a way of life through ceremonies and stories was not handed down properly. 1996 we came out with the statement called, ” We are at the crossroads”. Either be faced with global disasters, chaos, sickness, tears from our relatives eyes or to unite spiritually, as Nations upon Mother Earth. Because as we come into this new millennium, today coming here we think about forgiveness, we think about unity, world peace, global healing, to pray for healing, to pray for peace. I think about all those people who have gone before us, great leaders that , some of them are recognized and some of the great leaders that are not recognized. All in all we believe in our dreams, we believe in our visions. I would like to share with you a story of The Creation. It was told among the people that the first people came from the Sacred Black Hills, the bloodline that I have come from, the Buffalo People. In the Black Hills, a place where we have the star knowledge in the sky and the Sacred Sites in the Black Hills. Around the Sacred Sites was a great race track where the Animal Nation had a great race. It was told that the two legged won over the four legged. The very next day a great council took place among the Animal Nation about how things would be on Mother Earth. It was then that the Buffalo People came to the people and said, ” I will help you, I will walk with you, but you must offer me tobacco, prayers, songs” . So the people said, “So be it”. From then on the people said ” We will call ourselves The Buffalo People”. The Eagle came forward to the people and said, ” I too will help you, help you with ceremonies like the Buffalo Nation, but I too will need prayers, songs, offerings. The day you have stopped doing this upon Mother Earth, your prayers are short, then you are going to lower me and lower me, because I have come from the Eagle Nation and my words that I speak the truth that I would fly upon Mother Earth, I would fly the highest and bless Mother Earth. But there will be a day, a time coming when you are going to lower me and lower me because your prayers are short, your offerings. Then someday I would go into places where I have never gone before. During that time I would lose my boundaries and you shall lose your boundaries too”. And today we will witness that, we have lost our boundaries because we have seen the Eagles in trash pits and dump sites. Today we see things that we have never seen before, we hear things that we have never heard before, the misuse and abuse of our spiritual ways, Mother Earth. The great council of Animal Nations told us stories how things should be. The birds would fly their patterns, the fish would swim and there everything that is, all the Animal Nations sharing their life upon Mother Earth. So we say, “Mitakuye Oyasin”, that means everything is all related upon Mother Earth. And today we are at the crossroads because we have witnessed, we have seen, and from the Sacred Alters the message that people must unite because when I was very young at the age of 12 when I took on the Sacred Bundle as a Keeper I was told about a story about White Buffalo Calf that would someday stand upon Mother Earth, when these changes would come. Today I have seen this White Buffalo Calf, the first one was born 1994 with black eyes, black nose, black hooves, a White Buffalo Calf was born. Since then every year a White Buffalo Calf has been born and this last August another White Buffalo Calf has been born. Today the four seasons in the Black Hills, we do a ceremony to welcome the Thunder People and the last few years the Thunder People came back year round. We are seeing Earth changes, climate changes, it’s not only through our sacred ways but by scientific findings. So today as we come here to pray for peace and harmony, to give thanks to The Creator, my prayers, I know that each and ever one of you will be traveling throughout the world and I too will travel and I know that as we left from back home from our Sacred Ceremonies, we bring a message here tonight. Today we speak about war, there’s so much tension, we live in fear. As Spiritual Leaders, when I was very young my Grandmother said to me that ” You will walk upon Mother Earth in this way” she said, ” My Grandson, don’t ever use foul language because you’ll be going to ceremonies. Don’t ever use or carry a weapon”. Up to this day I listen to my Grandmother. Yet, like the Elders said, every morning we get up we have negative attitude, people using foul language, we live in fear, and today as we think about the Creation stories and the prophecies, visions and dreams of many Nations, we too want to unite with Nations of the world. In this global community we can unite spiritually and create an energy shift upon Mother Earth like we can heal person in our ceremonies. May peace be with each and every one of you, my name is Horse Man. Aho.