Developing our Connection with the Directions
By Peggy Diane Ischy

The Sacred Seven Directions


We all know the directions from a certain perspective. The Sun rises in the East and sets in the West. Almost all of us can look at the night sky and locate the North Star. And we can watch the weather on our television to know that we can find warmer climates in the Southern parts of our world. We can study and predict what type of weather we will have by the direction the wind is blowing or the direction that the clouds are moving in. Living in the United States, we all know that if we want to go to Mexico, we travel south. If we want to go to Canada we will need to head north, the Pacific Ocean is west and the Atlantic Ocean is east - but the directions are so much more than this. They are living energies that work with us continuously to guide and aid us on our journey we call life. Learning what each of the directions mean to us and opening the door of self-discovery we can begin to develop our own relationship with each of these wonderful living forces.

Each direction has within it, many different energies combining to create a specific alchemy that gives a specific tone or feeling for that direction. As we learn what energies each direction has creating its alchemy we will begin to learn where each direction touches our lives. We will learn how to use these energies, when we are at our strongest and when we may need to retreat and renew. We may be able to discern where geographically we feel most at home.

We all know the pull of the moon has an effect on our planet and on our bodies, as do the seasons. These are periods of time that have a direct effect on us. They are real to us because we experience them in our ability to see and feel them. The same is true for the directions but in a more subliminal and subtle way. We have to seek out their energy to be able to discern when they are in motion and are effecting our lives. In learning their current effect we can begin to broaden our perspective and view them in a new and completely different way. We can learn to work with them to promote our own healing and that of our world.

Each direction has its own color, element and season. It has a specific animal/spiritual guide, medicinal field and very broad Spiritual belief system. What we will be looking at is but one of many diverse perspectives of the wheel of the Directions. There are many indigenous tribes of people that work with this as a part of their culture and each one is very different. The one thing they all have in common is that these are very real forces that do effect our lives.

Throughout the course of our lives, we travel the wheel of the Directions many times. Once we have aligned our self with the energy of each of the directions we will be able to discern where, at any given point, we are on the wheel. Thus, enabling our self to use the energies or attributes of the direction we are standing in to assist us with whatever we are dealing with at that moment.

Each year of our lives has a dominant direction for that year. Within each year we travel the seasons, which has a corresponding direction. Within each season we pass through several moon phases each having a corresponding direction. Even on a daily basis we travel the wheel of the directions. So at any moment of our life we may have the energies of three or more directions effecting us. Is it any wonder that some mornings we wake up in a state of chaos and confusion? Learning to work with each direction, we have the opportunity to bring these forces into balance within our lives.

All of this accumulating to the knowledge that there are many, many diverse and unseen forces affecting our lives each moment of each day, whether we are consciously aware of them or not. The key here is in developing our awareness. It is in taking all of the knowledge that we have accumulated and turning that into taking action with wisdom to achieve balance and harmony within our bodies, our lives and our world.

Below is an overview of some of the energies that create the essence of each of the directions. This perception is only a foundation on which we each can begin to build our own experiences and understandings. As we begin to consciously work with the directions in our own way we may discover for our self that the energies listed below are not the energies that we perceive to be in each direction. This is a journey of self-discovery. Discovering for our self what is true for our self through our own perceptions, experiences and interpretations. The overview is just a beginning, a place for us to start and a foundation on which to build. As we grow and change in our understanding so will our perceptions and beliefs. But we all must have a foundation, a point of reference with which to begin our journey.


The Sacred Four Cardinal Directions

EAST

Color: yellow
Season: spring
Element: fire
Animal Guide: eagle
Medicine: Chinese and Japanese Medicine
Moon Phase: full moon
Location within the Body: heart

Sun, Spirit, the Human World, the Yellow Humans, Art, Writing, Determines Energy, Tobacco, Winged Ones, Crystals, Pipe, Sword, Staff, Moving out into the World, Masculine, Birth of the physical body, Death of the physical body.

The East is the home of the rising sun that marks the beginning of a new day. It is also the home for all new beginnings. When we begin to travel an East year we will almost certainly begin a new phase of our life. Some aspect of our life will evolve and change. We may start a new relationship, or move to a new location, or begin a new career. Or simply begin to look at life in a new way, with new experiences. The direction of the east is change and new beginnings.

It is also the place of integrating all of our accumulated knowledge into wisdom and finding the correct path for us to begin sharing it with the world. Whether it be teaching, speaking, opening a new health care practice or writing, the point is that we take what we have learned and share it for the Highest Good of All Concerned.


SOUTH

Color: red
Season: summer
Element: water
Animal Guide: mouse
Medicine: Native American Medicine
Moon Phase: waning moon
Location within the Body: pelvis
Emotions, Childhood, Little People, Plant World, Gives Energy, Red Humans, Sands, Rattles, Trust, Innocence, Moon, Music, Sage.

The direction south has a unique quality of being able to experience the world through the emotions and heart of a child, the innocence and trust that a child holds so easily and gives so freely. This is the place where we can find the purity of love that only a child can give. The place of magic and miracles as we open our eyes and hearts to remembering.


WEST

Color: black
Season: fall or autumn
Element: earth
Animal Guide: black bear
Medicine: African Medicine
Moon Phase: new moon
Location within the Body: solar plexus

Body, Holds Energy, Going Within, Night, Darkness, Feminine, Introspection, Intuition, Mineral World, Stone world, Crawlers, Dreams, the Dreamtime, Hibernation, Black Humans, Magic, Death Change, Shamanic Death, Adult, Warrior, Cedar, Drums, Owl

The west is the home of the setting sun, the end of the day and the beginning of darkness. It is the direction for sleeping and dreaming. Characteristically, west is the place of letting go of that which no longer serves us to our highest good. It is a death point as we let go of something in order to make room within our life for something new to come in. West is the counter balance of the energy of the east. Whereas, east is change and new beginnings, west is change and letting go thus the feeling of death. It is death of an aspect not of our physical bodies.
 

NORTH

Color: white
Season: winter
Element: air
Animal Guide: buffalo
Medicine: Western Medicine
Moon Phase: waxing moon
Location within the Body: throat

Wind, Mind, Knowledge, Wisdom, Receives Energy, Animal World, White Humans, Logic, Stars, Science, Math, Philosophy, Old Age, Fans, Feathers, Sweetgrass, White Buffalo Calf Woman

As west holds the balance of the east, north holds the balance of south. North is the home of Old age and wisdom. We once again have the opportunity to look at the world through the eyes and heart of a child with the wisdom that having lived our life has brought. It is the place that we experience the transformation of knowledge being turned into wisdom.


The Sacred Three Spiritual Directions

AS ABOVE, SO BELOW, FROM WITHIN

These directions are more that just looking up to the sky or down to the earth. From the Spiritual aspect three directions invite us to bring heaven to earth within our own hearts, minds and bodies. These directions are very real. Each one also has its own tone or feeling. The alchemy of each one is made of accumulated energy, as are the other directions. The difference here is that, each person will need to discern for them selves what exists there from their own core belief system. Our own core beliefs are found deep within our own self. They are what determine how we perceive and interpret our experiences. It is from our core beliefs that we find the ability to accept or reject the experiences that we have as truth or imagination.

As Above, refers to the Higher Realm of existence. The positive, loving quality of all things. It is a state of being that we, as humans, do not often see or experience and at times we may wonder if it truly exists. Maybe through out our life time we will be blessed with glimpses of what we believe is there. It is the place of connection with that which is much greater than ourselves. It is the place of connection with our Creator.

So Below, is the place of the Lower Realm of existence. It is also a state of being that we may or may not see depending on our core beliefs. Living as we do in a world of duality we have to experience the dark to know what light is. It is the place that holds the counter balance of As Above. Just as real and just as fleeting. It is also the place of connection with our Mother Earth.

From Within, this is the direction where everything comes together deep within our selves, our own bodies. How we perceive and interpret our experiences and our life, is here within our own body through our hearts and our minds. It is the point of integration, the home of our core belief system. It is the direction that we must all go to find balance and peace for our self.

These three directions are pulled together into one because it is only through learning about our selves that we can truly know and experience the alchemy of these unique and separate directions. It is through our perceptions, our truths, our emotions, our reasoning abilities, our hearts and our minds that we may come to know what each of these directions mean to us.