Life doesn’t come with a manual… does it?
According to the Ojibwe people (and many, many other indigenous cultures around the world), the first people were given original instructions by the Creator to be passed down from generation to generation.
These instructions contained everything mankind needed to thrive because they contained the principles of the laws of the universe. They ensured people lived in harmony with the universe, the world, and each other.
These original instructions were the world's owner's manual, the Deep Magic.
They worked because they remembered the intention with which the world was created.
It's clear to me through my study of agriculture and theology that God created the world to work on paradoxes: seeming opposites that require faith to reconcile.
The best example is the Law of Sowing and Reaping (known in science as “every action has an equal and opposite reaction).
In order to receive the harvest you hope for, you first must give up the seeds you currently have: the bigger the harvest you want, the more seeds you must give up.
You can hoard your seeds, but keeping seeds safely in a bank will never get you the harvest.
Harvest comes only by sowing the seeds, planting them, giving up control of them to the field and God, and having faith that some of them will grow.
Modern man is so focused on getting AND keeping what we already have that there is no room for faith.
We have forgotten our instructions in our frantic rush to get money. Our relationships with each other, the animals, and the world suffer as a result.
When everything revolves around who has the most money, it’s easy to put aside other considerations in the pursuit of your main goal.
We are shocked that AI will cheat to win at chess, but make excuses when we cheat our Original Instructions to get more money. Truly the LOVE of money is the root of all evil.
According to Indigenous wisdom, the Original Instructions were passed down as a set of teachings, more moral than strategical.
The core of these Instructions has been preserved through an oral tradition known as the 7 Grandfather Teachings.
1. Humility
“Humility is to know that you are a sacred part of creation.”
Humility means seeing things as they really are - no more, no less.
Humility is the elimination of all the lies in which we usually live: seeing the world as an integrated, holistic whole. Everything is connected to everything else, and nothing is “better” or “higher class” than anything else.
I am only a small part of the world, but I am a part. So many other people have given time, money, effort, and knowledge to make me who I am; and I give my time, money, effort, and knowledge to help make others in return.
It is to approach the world open-handed, face first: nothing held back, no deceit or cross purposes. To be confident and honest in both your strengths and your weaknesses; without pretense, false modesty, or shame.
To the Ojibwe, humility is represented by the wolf: he lives his life in a pack, working as an essential part of a larger whole.
(Interesting note: this article specifically says to a wolf, the “ultimate shame is to be outcast” - and yet how many entrepreneurs are laboring under the impression that they are, and should be, a lone wolf?)
2. Bravery
“Courage is not the absence of fear, but the determination to do the right thing in spite of fear.”
The bravest individuals experience fear on a regular basis because they regularly do things that inspire fear: push the boundaries of their comfort zone, face challenges, and work through pain, mental fatigue, and apathy.
The goal is not to eliminate fear, but to develop the discipline to face it head-on; to acknowledge that this is hard and push through anyway.
For those of us living in relative comfort and safety - where daily traffic is the most dangerous thing we face on a regular basis - bravery is nurtured by facing our own internal fears.
If there's something I dread doing, that is where I need my courage the most.
When I want to skip writing all the emails during the writing phase of creating a product because I don’t know exactly how the process works yet, I need courage to stop and do it anyway.
I have to be brave to admit that there’s something I don’t know how to do, and have the humility to take time to learn. And since learning those new things is scary, I need courage to see it through.
To the Ojibwe, bravery is represented by the bear: a mother bear faces what she considers a death threat to protect her cubs.
This isn't reckless, purposeless bravery. It's not bravado.
She has courage to face the danger BECAUSE she is protecting something other than herself.
3. Honesty
With the foundation of humility (seeing things as they are) and bravery, we will have the ability to be completely and utterly honest.
“To walk through life with integrity is to know honesty. Recognize and accept who you are. Accept and use the gifts you have been given. Do not seek to deceive yourself or others.”
Maybe we're not as skilled, kind, successful, or advanced as we would like to be. Ok. So what? It is what it is.
Pretending anything different won't do anyone any good.
Have the courage to face the discomfort of the present truth in order to build what you hope for.
I'm scared that telling the truth about how my last campaign utterly failed will make you think less of me as a teacher.
But it DID fail, and you can probably learn more from my mistakes than from my successes.
In order to spin the story to reflect better on myself, I'd have to work really hard to deceive myself in order to be able to lie to you. I was there. I know what happened.
“Walk tall, like Raven. Raven accepts himself and knows how to use his gift. He does not seek the power, speed, or beauty of others. He uses what he has been given to survive and thrive. So must you.” The Seven Sacred Teachings of White Buffalo Calf Woman
4. Wisdom
“Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad."
There's an awful lot of book learning in the world these days, but precious little wisdom.
Wisdom is both practical and intuitive, coming from both instruction and experience. Failure is the most effective instructor, but we can also learn from watching how more experienced others do things.
When we are guided by wisdom, our actions are efficient, effective, and beneficial for ourselves and the entire ecosystem.
The beaver uses his inherent gift to create a safe haven for himself and for his entire family - and also every other family that lives in the pond he creates.
He respects his gifts and his limitations. He's not trying to become a woodland landlord, but his industriousness spills over and above his original goal, providing for many others.
5. Truth
Truth is the underpinning of all things; the point of balance; the narrow way that leads to life.
It exists in the middle of extremes.
Truth does not hurry, it is not worried. It never defends itself because it cannot be threatened.
There is both personal truth (what is true for me in this instance) and absolute Truth (principles and laws of the universe that are true regardless of time and space.)
Truth is no respecter of persons. It is the final authority. We all must judge ourselves based on Truth: not what we wish truth was, but the way it actually is.
When we have a foundation of humility, bravery, and wisdom, we will be able to face Truth without fear. Sometimes it is uncomfortable, yes. But we don’t have to be afraid.
“Truth is represented by the turtle as he was here during the creation of Earth and carries the teachings of life on his back. The turtle lives life in a slow and meticulous manner because he understands the importance of both the journey and the destination. Truth is to know all of these things. Apply faith and trust in your teachings. Show honor and sincerity in all that you say and do. Understand your place in this life and apply that understanding in the way that you walk. Be true to yourself and all other things.”
6. Respect
To respect something is to allow it to fulfill its original purpose.
It means not putting our own expectations, judgements, or interpretations on another, but allowing them to exist the way they were created to be without interference.
It also means supporting others to be who they were meant to be, even at personal cost to yourself: to go above and beyond, go the extra mile, make sacrifices.
“Respect is represented by the buffalo. The buffalo gives every part of his being to sustain the human way of living, not because he is of less value, but because he respects the balance and needs of others. To honor all creation is to have respect. Live honorably in teachings and in your actions towards all things. Do not waste and be mindful of the balance of all living things. Share and give away what you do not need. Treat others the way you would like to be treated. Do not be hurtful to yourself or others.”
Respecting another person will look different than respecting an animal or an ecosystem, but every entity in creation deserves respect.
We show respect by speaking with grace, considering another’s needs, being mindful of their situation and how we can help them achieve what they were meant to do, and (at the very least) not interfering or subjecting them to our own desires.
7. Love
“The greatest of these is love.”
All the previous values provide the environment that makes love possible, but even all combined they don’t quite attain the level of love itself.
Love is through all and in all. It is the necessary ingredient to continue practicing the other virtues even when we’re tired and hurting.
Not only does love see others as they are, it appreciates them for being that way and is rooting for them to grow and heal and become better.
Love is not only brave, it provides a reason to be brave. We will face greater dangers for someone we love than someone we merely like or are acquainted with.
Honesty without love is cruel: love covers guilt and removes shame, allowing us to put weaknesses behind us.
Love provides a direction for wisdom; ensuring it doesn’t fall to the level of mere cunning. I may know that a certain marketing style is extremely effective, but because of love I don’t utilize it because it relies on emotional manipulation.
Love is to truth like yin is to yang. It provides balance, helping us to interpret Truth in a way that is beneficial rather than condemning.
True respect is impossible without love. Respect would at least make us leave each other alone: love makes us help.
“The eagle represents love because he has the strength to carry all the teachings. The eagle has the ability to fly highest and closest to the Creator and also has the sight to see all the ways of being from great distances. The eagle’s teaching of love can be found in the core of all teachings, therefore an eagle feather is considered the highest honor and a sacred gift. To know love is to know peace. View your inner-self from the perspective of all teachings. This is to know love and to love yourself truly. Then you will be at peace with yourself, the balance of life, all things, and the Creator.”
Seventh Generation Principle
The Seven Grandfather Teachings are put into practice with the Seventh Generation Principle.
The Seventh Generation Principle is an Indigenous concept: to think of the seventh generation coming after you in your words, work, and actions, and to remember the seventh generation who came before you.
Everything is connected, everything we do will ripple through the generations in ways we can’t possibly foresee. (See also Butterfly Principle).
Rather than do whatever we want and hope the seventh generation will figure their own stuff out, we do the best we can to protect and preserve the goodness in this world for them and work to eliminate the bad so they can have a better life.
It’s natural to think of our children, but what about your great-great-great-great-great grandchildren?
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