Quotes from "The Vision"
The beginning of Tom's spiritual oddesy into the unknown.
When I think of modern man entering the wilderness, I see a scenario much like an astronaut landing on the moon: Man as an alien, part of his environment but never one with it.
Grandfather taught us to follow our heart when we wandered in the wilderness, to go without time or destination, to abandon the grand goals and just appreciate everything along the way.
Grandfather said, "People and animals that stay on the same path in life will eventually wear themselves into ruts - a complacency to life born of the false security, comfort, and monotony of that path. Soon the ruts become so deep that they can no longer see over the sides. They see neither danger nor beauty, only the path before them, nor do they abandon that path so often traveled, for fear of losing their security and entering the land of the unknown."
Grandfather said, "You must learn to listen in purity so as not to pollute the teachings with your prejudices. You must forget you have a past, forget all you have ever learned, and who you are, then you will be empty and ready to listen purely. After the teaching is finished, then you can judge, but only after it is completely finished. This could take years. We must always remember: every person, every prophecy, and every religion is a teacher, but we must seek out all people and search for teachings, for some are buried deep. Nothing is bad or good, right or wrong; it all depends on how we judge with our prejudice. Listening in purity and empitness judges not, only learns."
Our ancestors' approach to Creation and the Native American consciousness of Earth Mother were extremely different. Where the native peoples viewed the earth with a sense of reverence and respect, the white man viewed the land as something frightening that had to be conquered.
For all the early years I had lived in the forests, we had merely thrown the weapon or set the trap that had been involved in the actual kill. We did not really know death because we were separated from that fateful moment where the animal and death became one. We understood as best we could, but we were still removed, somewhat, from it all. Our connection and the full impact of the hunt's responsibilities were not realized fully until we had experienced the kill firsthand. This would be my passage into manhood.
That day, I realized that all fear was of my own making, all events were of my own choosing, and my path was a series of choices. I knew then that I had to choose to live a spiritual life close to nature and nature's ruler, rather than the empty and dead-end-existence of fleshly society. I needed to choose a pure reality filled with excitement, adventure, and intensity - a life of rapture rather than a life of comfort, security, and boredom like everyone else was choosing. I knew exactly what I wanted and how to get there.
The more I live my Vision, the more I realize that the direst problem today is that people live with no Vision at all. Society provides some superficial experiences similar to the Vision that the masses follow to death, but no man can dictate to another the "right" content of a Vision.
New questions were never asked until the old answers were understood and lived fully.
Grandfather said, "Every day there are miracles for those who are aware through faith and believe. All men can become bridges, if they give up all else to learn."
Grandfather spoke for the first time since leaving the silence of camp, saying, "You must go beyond what the quests have been in the past and find the path to the 'healing force'. You must be pure in thoughts, spirit, and reason, to approach this path. You will never find it if your ego or greed go with ou. You must accept what that path teaches and resolve yourself to follow that path, even at the sacrifice of all things. If you choose to follow that path, you must dedicate yourself to its challenges, its pain, and its self-sacrifice. Once you decide to go, there can be no turning back, for a man who abandons his Vision is living death."