“If you are not a part of the solution, you are part of the problem.”
Chief Richard Grass (Oglala, Lakota, Sihasapa) Grand Chief of the LDN Nation, Blood line descendent of Chief Charging Bear – John Grass, Chief Two Strike, Chief Red Cloud, Chief White Swan, Chief Sitting Bull, Old Chief Frost, Chief White Bird, Chief Crazy Horse
Updated 12-23-12 – Posted and updated at this web site upon the release of his soul (which has been lovingly kept in the center of the Nation since 12-23-10 ) to mount the beautifully painted Spirit Horse prepared to carry him on his spirit journey…to respectfully acknowledge, honor and celebrate the life and work of Chief Richard Deo Grass (Charging Bear)on behalf of Mitakuye Oyasin, the LDN Oyate, and all our kinship relationships.
This web site is the giveaway to bless and grow this nation.
Our ancestral ways of kinship – and thus, unity – expressed our sovereignty by traditional spiritual practice in perfect balance within the natural laws of personal freedom and personal responsibility. This was demonstrated well and perhaps even taught to us by the ways of our cousins, our relatives, the great buffalo nation who roamed in unison and unity upon our mutually and harmoniously shared sacred lands. The natural world taught us unity in harmony, and the value of teamwork.
Then we walked in a sacred manner in which each step in our life experience was rich with wisdom towards always bringing us back to the center of our nations’ ways. Our ancestors taught us to thoughtfully watch the signs presented to us clearly from the natural world, heed the lessons, then courageously make our commitment, and then take the initiative to “walk” and use our gifts to benefit ourselves, our families, our Oyate.
When we walked straight in the ways of respect – by balancing our naturally life-gifted freedom with personal responsibility – the environmental degradation, resource scarcity, and land “ownership” we now see on Mother Earth was un-thought and unheard of. Our national sovereignty was expressed thoughtfully, peacefully and wisely, freely, through individual and family generosity, and nationally by the councils and governance of Oceti Sakowin (the Seven Council Fires) that nurtured and oversaw the life, health and wholeness with and upon the lands that the powers endowed us to to tenderly care for.
Materially, our traditional Chiefs and Headman were the “poorest” among us as they put the needs of the people before their own. Our nation did not require weapons, armies, jails, and lawyers for the endless ever changing definition and enforcement of man made laws with which to govern ourselves, because our society was built, not on fraud and deceit that needed constant monitoring in order to stand, but a lower maintenance way of life that was always loving in intent. Our daily activities naturally fostered a daily nurturance of kinship relationship. It reflected itself in practice as devout personal integrity within a deeply abiding respect and relationship for, and within, the constant flow of natural law.
With this knowledge deeply embedded in our DNA, from our ancestors’ vision, wisdom and understanding which still echoes from the center of our hearts, we have naturally understood the phrase and heard the deeper meaning of the words – “the Black Hills are NOT for sale!” .
We know the Black Hills have always meant life and health to our people. And as we grow to understand clearly the stark differences between the dominant cultures’ ways of divisiveness, greed, materialism, “ownership”, manipulation and deceit in contrast with the loving, truthful and generous ways of our ancestors, the more opportunity we hold to again become truly human BE-ings (not just humans “doing”); fully united within ourselves and thus again able to rise again into a richly blessed, traditionally healthy, united, effective and strong nationally Sovereign people.
We began to lose that abundance as we were forcibly assimilated into the Capitalistic culture overshadowing us which falsely taught us that only money and “possession” can buy happiness. The holding and selling of “private” property is the basic principle of Capitalism. It is also the practice of the philosophy of “use up and throw away” Capitalism upon our people and lands today that causes our Grandmothers and Grandchildren residing within our scattered nation to wake up every morning hungry and cold. That is the culture that teaches that freedom can only gained by a fight, instead of as a natural right of life in balance with Creator.
Unity of our nation and peoples served us well over a long time before. Our traditional spiritual culture and form of governance that proved so successful over centuries of time in practice and in good relationship with and upon our sacred lands proved more effective, compassionate, and noble than what the relentless TV commercials and propaganda of an unbalanced left brained dominant culture has tried to instill in our hearts since its arrival upon our lands, and into this present day.
We now must wake up and fully put away the corruption of the addictive, dysfunctional imbalance that the relentless, no holds barred, blind pursuit of money in the name of Capitalism has offered us. It is time to replace this corrupt system upon us, at first and at the very least in our hearts of underSTANDing. It is time to support our oyate in the ways we are walking which show we are directed by our traditional spiritual wisdom. It is time to revisit and practice our sovereign traditional, spiritual and natural ways of peace and unity which provided abundance for all.
Our wise healers have said one cannot successfully mix, blend and sell ceremony, for one cancels out the other, leaving one nowhere. So too, one cannot buy into and/or blend the greedy self gratifying culture of Capitalism with the loving, caring and giving ways of unity still alive within our traditional spiritual Oyate. Though some who believe they are real Indians may have succumbed to the belief that money has all the power, albeit temporary and shallow, real Indians know a profound truth taught to us from the natural world; that there are always unforeseen consequences when one attempts to live in two worlds, or in an unbalanced way with no clear vision, commitment, or understanding of the traditional spiritual tree of sovereignty. This tree which took root in our nation and was established long ago as a nurturing and supportive LIVING system still lives! It’s deep root and aged trunk is thick with the teachings, ways, negotiations and prayers of our ancestor Chiefs who saw 7 generations into our times. This tree may yet feed and protect us if allowed space in each of our hearts to grow and to blossom.
The ancient ways of the unity demonstrated in kinship relationships have such great sustaining power and such enormous real intrinsic value, there can be no fair monetary “price” nor enough “gold” or adequate “fair price” offered in material goods to balance or “purchase” with which to justify our giving it up. And, thus, as such, the Black Hills remains our cherished relative, although she has been built upon, parts of her trashed, stripped, mined and divided, shipped away, and so many of her beautiful gifts have been and continue to be stolen and traded off for “profit” by those best versed in the highly competitive game of Capitalism. This is also why , today, as always within our homeland territories we can never usurp, sell, diminish or undervalue our unity within this traditional spiritual framework for this is the way, the successful practice of honoring the gift of LIFE!
Our most basic virtues of unity, civility, responsibility, justice and integrity make life satisfying, successful, beautiful and worthwhile and keep us grounded in the sovereignty of ourselves and as a nation. These virtues are rebuilt and strengthened in true power when we continue to grow with each step in our journey, re-awaken to these truths and make the necessary changes and adjustments in our lives to solidly reflect them today, and for future generations.
As we encourage and teach our language and culture to our young ones, and they begin to be influenced deeply by these bountiful treasures of wisdom, our stories, priceless cultural traditions shared and demonstrated by wise teachers, nurturing and loving Grandmothers and Grandfathers, supportive and caring Tiospayes, in a nation that works in unity towards and honors functionally effective and healthy life-ways, we can begin to regain the priceless ethics derived from personal commitment, spiritual meaning and social purpose.
We are happy to see and celebrate these things flowering again in our Oyate in many ways. Domestically we of all nations know very well what does, and definitely does not work towards unity in effectual peaceful Sovereignty for the life and health of ourselves and our nation. For eons the Oyate prospered abundantly, without the relentless and unrewarding hording of “things” and we can see past the darkness of the present system of things over us to that way again.
As now we continue to face into the wind feeling the illness of spirit that has spread across our lands as result of what one of our elders warned would come from wealth without work, commerce without morality, pleasure without conscience, education without character, science without humanity, and worship without sacrifice, the truth of the differences between our ancient life honoring ways and the imposed Capitalistic culture upon us is now clearly and fully recognizable.
Today on the evening news we may watch in horror as the lines of race, ethnicity, class, gender, religion, culture, tribal differences and “ownership” of lands relentlessly degrades, divides, and destroys the homelands of the descendents of the many related peoples of the tribes residing within nations of the Middle East. So, also, now, of all times, we need to wake up and be aware of any and all of these negative influences that may yet reside in our hearts, homes and nation, and not allow our Oyate to be further divided in the constant greedy pursuits based on the doctrine of fear, insecurity and lack, preached by a Capitalistic culture.
Respectful kinship and unity in the ways of our traditional spiritual Elders have, and always will remain, key to our natural life ways of Sovereignty and our survival – and the world is watching.
“Upon suffering beyond suffering: the Red Nation shall rise again and it shall be a blessing for a sick world. A world filled with broken promises, selfishness and separations. A world longing for light again. I see a time of Seven Generations when all the colors of mankind will gather under the Sacred Tree of Life and the whole Earth will become one circle again. In that day, there will be those among the Lakota who will carry knowledge and understanding of unity among all living things and the young white ones will come to those of my people and ask for this wisdom. I salute the light within your eyes where the whole Universe dwells. For when you are at that center within you and I am that place within me, we shall be one.” – Chief Crazy Horse
So, the true Oyate has waited, endured, longing to transcend from the dying system imposed upon us. Our Great, Great Grandfather, Chief John Grass (Charging Bear) and a good many others of our wise ancestor-leaders prayed fervently, discussed at length, negotiated relentlessly, and thought long and hard towards benefiting seven generations into their future, and eventually, resolutely, signed the only viable option at the time, the 1868 treaty. It was signed with full knowledge that those of the Capitalistic nation would, due to the nature of that greedy culture, more than likely quickly betray that trust.
However, today, seven generations later, I continue to watch out for and pray for all those who still remain who work from the heart towards re-establishing the practice of our traditional spiritual sovereignty in good relationship in and upon our sacred lands.
They are here, with us still, those few honest, wise, unselfish respectful and courageous traditional spiritual wise Grandmothers, Elders, Headmen and Chiefs (some whom have worked for many years with no “star power” except that from the Plaides) to retain and maintain the treasures of our culture and sacred relationships with all our relations upon our homelands and instill these values in our youth. These look into the dark night of this past century, continue watching the horizons ahead, and persevere behind the scenes in positive ways, looking for just the right and most opportune time to peacefully bring, speak, sing, dance and practice the healing ways of truth and justice forward; to shift the reality of the injustices we have borne this past century into a dignified way of life; to see in our homes and nation again, the practice of balance, harmony, abundance and peace for and with all our relations, all around the world.
Pe’Sla joined a few more hands and hearts together from the Capitalists
In this season when those who fight in shopping malls for the best deals believe that “purchasing” and owning “things” bought with money trumps respectful patience and diplomacy, neighborliness, and sharing; when many who are dazzled by the thought that many millions of dollars, the attention of national media and support by Hollywood has been raised to “purchase” Pe’Sla and this, somehow gives our sacred lands and culture more worth; we realize that this small sacred centerpiece in the the heart of our homelands that was guaranteed to us in the 1868 treaty was not all that was stolen from us. Nor can it ever be returned to us by “purchase”.
Albeit with the “purchase” of Pe’Sla within the ways of Capitalism, one more notable and well publicized attempt to preserve a small portion of our sacred heritage contained in the lands which give our nation heart and life, has joined a few more hands and hearts together. While many outside our territories adopted the “cause” to “save Pe’Sla” with money, our true Oyate endures still with small pockets (pun intended) of unity within our traditional spiritual values.
Yet we can endure beyond Capitalism.
Money – BIG money – so highly esteemed in a Capitalistic culture – comes along with media attention.
Yet, too, we can endure beyond what the media and social media recognizes and reports.
For a time, due to all the “education” and propaganda of a capitalistic and media-driven culture over us, we may have nearly forgotten, and felt we had been robbed of, the most intrinsically valuable, effective, and powerful allay and “asset” we hold. It lies in each of our hearts. This treasure we may yet use to rebirth our strong and sacred nation. This treasure we may yet employ daily to best effect, rebirth and heal our nation. This treasure is the truth we may now remember with fondness and resolve. It is the treasure our ancestors knew and prayed one day we would once again awaken to, understand and express in wisdom and practice.
Yuwitaya – UNITY of heart, mind, spirit, within the respectful practice of our traditional spiritual kinship relationships, may yet serve as our most valuable of all treasures. Yuwitaya is what we each and togehter hold to most effectively rebirth and remind us we are and can be again a spiritual traditional sovereign nation – all, which money, social and popular media,
and the ways of Capitalism, cannot buy.
Mitakuye Oyasin, Bunny Sings Wolf
Dreamer, Singer-Songwriter, Webmaster
www.LakotaDakotaNakotaNation.org
and Hunka (traditional spiritual adopted) Sister to Charging Bear -(Oglala, Lakota, Sihasapa) Grand Chief of the LDN Nation, Richard Deo Grass (who passed December 23, 2010) Blood line descendent of Chief Charging Bear – John Grass, Chief Two Strike, Chief Red Cloud, Chief White Swan, Chief Sitting Bull, Old Chief Frost, Chief White Bird, Chief Crazy Horse
PLEASE read Chief Richard Grass words “IS THERE ANYONE LEFT TO TRUST?” released and published in 2013 by clicking HERE.
So – JUST HOW do we, as a unified, sovereign nation RECLAIM THE BLACK HILLS NOW? It is fairly simple…
Please read the following:
Read 2013 wise words from Chief Charging Bear Grass on this subject – click HERE
then please read, print and distribute:
Open Letter to authentic traditional spiritual ELDERS CHIEFS WHO REMAIN of OCETI SACOWIN
Mitakuye Oyasin