Unlocking the Spiritual Power of the Plants - Book

 

Unlocking the Spiritual Power of the Plants

Our upcoming book

 2021

Our book, long in the writing, is taking its final shape, and we anticipate publishing it this year.  

The book is an in depth look into the spiritual powers of plants, understanding some of the most commonly used plants within our traditions, as well as a guide to unlocking the spiritual power of plants found in our "new" surroundings in the diaspora. 

We write from our perspective as Palo Kongo Taino, honoring our dual roots of Kongo and Taino (not negating European). We have combined 45 years of experience as initiated Paleros and elders of our Munanso. Spanning the Kalunga line, this book is both a dedication to our Ancestral Tree and to our Future Generations in the widest sense of the word "our" to also embrace "your".

The book also contains recipes for spiritual baths, incenses or smudges, Chamba, Wine, and more. We also discuss Nkisis or Zemi carved from plants.

We thank you for your patience.

Earth Changes

Our Yearly Divination begins on the Winter Solstice which leads into the solar New Year and soon into the Lunar New Year which is approaching.  Our Yearly Divination tells us a great deal on multiple levels, some are personal and others are communal and definitely global.  It is a year of the "Egg and the Snake" and a year of issues of Disrespect of Mother Earth coming to a head.  We will continue to witness an increasing response from the Misterios, Mpungos, Cemis, or Forces and Phenomenon of Life/ Death who are responding more and more strongly to the abuse and misuse of the Blessings of Mother Earth (Earth's Resources).  It is a year to seek Consciousness and Awareness rather than to live in the complacency of ignorance, denial or fantasy.  It is also a year to put into action those "plans of action" that have been collecting dust!  These plans of action do need to address the reality of Earth Changes and the reality of the breakdown between the relationship of the Living (Two-leggeds) with the Dead and the breakdown between the relationship of the Living (Two-leggeds) with the Living (Life, Earth).  Ceremonies and rituals need to be bringing forth real solutions and not to be blind repetitions of empty fantastical rituals.  It is a year to look into the mirror with truthfulness and take action.


Earth Changes are undeniably upon us, and as this arctic cold sweeps through our homes and lives, it serves as a serious reminder from the Misterios that the time for taking Mother Earth for granted has passed.  Simultaneously, extreme heat is scorching other places upon the Earth, such as Australia.  In our home we prefer the term "Earth Changes" rather than "global warming" as the actual experience of this phenomenon is of changes, extremes, unpredictable seasons and increasingly strong storms.  This particular deep freeze is termed an "arctic vortex" however how can we understand this on a more profound level and what message does it bring to those who are seeking a greater awareness and consciousness?

The interesting interview below addresses various issues, however the video in it showing the global jet stream as seen from beyond the Earth is of particular interest.

Weather Whiplash: As Polar Vortex Brings Deep Freeze, Is Extreme Weather Linked to Climate Change?

The jet stream is a current of high winds very high above our heads that encircles the Earth.  This current of winds is very strong and powerful and holds the weather patterns in balance so that we have fairly predictable weather patterns.  The video shows the movement of the jet stream and how it holds the cold weather in the poles, protecting us from experiencing extreme cold.  However the video also shows how the jet stream is becoming more and more erratic and is twisting and turning more deeply.  This arctic vortex is a deep twist in the jet stream's motion.  It is clear from the video that the jet stream can be seen as a SNAKE who is encircling the Earth.  The erratic movement of the Snake is like an angry snake whipping its tail around.  

We know that traditionally our people had many  powerful understandings of the snake and egg, and globally the snake is a powerful symbol of the force of Life.  The snake is particularly important to the Ayahuasquero and within Cohoba ritual.  

From our Divination we know that the snake is bringing a year of raw energy that will shake apart weak foundations,  destroy complacency and denial, reveal hidden truths and unlock energies that have been in potential forms to transform into kinetic forms.  This shaking and rocking will reverberate up and down the Ancestral Trees and be felt from the Physical World into the Ancestral World and from the Ancestral World into the Physical World.  

As the fabric between the Living and the Dead continues to fall apart due to lack of respect and lack of nourishment and lack of alignment between the Living and the Dead, we continue to see a breakdown within our Spiritual Communities and we continue to see the dilution and prostitution of Ancestral practices.   This is nothing new, as this breakdown was introduced into our homelands 500 years ago, however it does continue to progress like a chronic disease.  Urbanization has had a devastating impact upon our peoples, and the disconnection from the Earth herself is creating a psychological alienation within the people and within the Spirituality and Spiritual Practices of the People.  Although there has been a "Resurgence" among the Taino, this has also created a great deal of inaccurate representations of our Traditions, especially through the internet by those who are uninterested in historical accuracy, who have no spiritual principles or integrity, and those who harbor dangerous fantasies concerning our Ancestors.  

One of the critical issues that are arising this year is "Death", the approach and handling of "Death" within our Families and Communities. While our Traditions are deeply rooted in the relationship with the Dead, and we are commonly termed "Muerteros", this relationship stops short when it comes to Death as experienced in the immediate Community and Family.  There is a greater comfortability in working with the bone than with the flesh becoming bone, and many of our people conduct themselves as if they are never going to face Death, and the Raw Justice of Death.  There are those mis-named "elders, leaders, healers" of our Communities who are consciously creating and distributing fantastical lies concerning our Ancestral Traditions that are taken by those who are ignorant as fact.  They are taking modern pop-psychology concepts and applying them to our Ancient Stories in disgusting perversions of our Traditions.  However the Life we Lead, leads directly to the Justice of Death, and the conscious propagation of fantasies and lies about our Ancestral Traditions can only lead to to a spiritual abyss at the moment of Death.  Our Traditions are not "games" or "play acting", our Traditions are serious, relevant and profound processes that ensure harmony and healthy relationships between the Living and Life and the Living and the Dead.  

Above all the reading of this year reminds us that there are consequences to every choice or path we take in life.  There are unescapable Ancestral consequences and then there are the consequences we create for ourselves and our Future Generations. In ignorance and under desperate conditions, many of these choices were forced upon us.  Through spiritual-mental warfare many of our Ancestors found themselves making harmful choices that have affected the generations into the future.  However, to consciously chose to follow and empower a fantasy and distortion is a disgusting betrayal of our Bakulu and Ancient Ancestors as well as a betrayal of the recently "departed." To use our Spiritual Traditions as an "ego trip", to obtain "power over", to utilize "fear tactics of control", to empower degenerate behavior, will create consequences that cannot be avoided or placated.  Emerging from this same principle, we see that to continue to abuse our Mother Earth, and to harbor fantasies, illusions, denial and endless rationalizations and excuses regarding the nature of our relationships to her, is bringing us consequences that do not have a cure that lies in the domain of "science" but that lies fully in the domain of Spirituality which then can utilize those techniques and practices that are biologically, ecologically and socially harmonious to adapt to the Earth Changes that are unavoidable.  

Nfinda Kalunga/ Sacred Burial Grounds

Urban Paleros are accustomed to large city cemeteries, where bodies line up in rows, double or triple deep.  These cemeteries have strict hours and access.  What is more common out here are many small rural graveyards, sometimes attached to a church, sometimes belonging to an old home or farm, some have as few as a half dozen graves, some have more like a hundred.  Many are overgrown with weeds and even become absorbed into the forest.  Others are mown by someone once in a while but many are neglected.  

We are fortunate that adjacent to our land there is a graveyard (shown in the first 4 photos), where many of the people who tended this whole area now rest.  This graveyard was connected to the local "Black Church" which later moved down the road a couple miles.  Once in a while we see a car full of people looking for it, but most of the time it is quiet.  Most of the bodies in the graveyard are a hundred plus years old.  The graveyard is surrounded by forest on 2 sides and unless you venture into the forest you would not realize the number of graves that are right inside the forest at this point and are totally overlooked by whoever is tending the graveyard.

During our visits to the graveyard we noticed the various plants growing and noticed that they had obviously been consciously planted and placed, specifically the YUCCA plant.  The YUCCA plant is a native plant, it has spiky evergreen leaves and sends up a tall flowering stalk in the summer which flowers white edible flowers.  The leaves can be used to make twine and baskets and more.  In some places the gravestone had become swallowed up by the Yucca plants.  There are also a number of evergreen trees, especially cedar and native pine, which we know symbolize immortality or everlasting life!

Yucca was used much more in the past in this region by those of African descent and tradition to give protection and grounding to the Spirit of the person in the grave.  You see Yucca often planted by specific graves and often at the entrance of the graveyard.  You do not see the Yucca typically on graves of those of western religious traditions.  

These photos show other graveyards in the area that we have visited which also have patches of Yucca surrounding certain graves.  The graveyard adjacent to us has far more Yucca because of course it is connected to the "Black Church".  If you drive down the back rural roads and look carefully for old graveyards, there is a strong possibility that you will see graves with Yucca.  

For Paleros and those who practice other traditions of African roots, the Yucca tells a story about the tenacity of African Traditions in this country.  

As Paleros who have worked with Yucca, we know how it expands greatly from its original planting and forms a large mound that grows larger and larger.  It is difficult to remove once it is rooted, especially because its leaves are spiky and not easily grasped.

Yucca is not the edible tuber (Casava or Yuca), apparently it received its name because of confusion of the Spanish (who were confused about basically everything pertaining to Indigenous culture).  

We have seen Yucca in literally 50 graveyards within an hours drive of our home.  Once you start to look for it, you will see it everywhere.  We bring forth this brief post in order to educate those who may be seeing this, and perhaps not know of its significance.  For us it is a powerful statement of the resilience and adaptability of our traditions and holds within it many lessons that we can benefit from.  By its very presence it is a voice that arises from the graves speaking to those who have the ears to listen!

Ancient Wisdom, Modern Solutions (Part 3): Dancing with Ntoto, Earth Changes

It is mid-summer and scorching heat, devastating wild fires, and storms are again threatening the conventional farming ways, and threatening a rise in grain cost yet again, and unfortunately the whole world is heavily dependent on conventionally farmed food for basic sustenance.  Our Ancestral Wisdom knew better than to create monocultures and to restrict the diet to a handful of crops (corn, soybeans, wheat and rice).  However, even though the failures are recorded in history (ex. Irish Potato Famine) it seems that the days of convenience stores and mega super markets have lulled us into a denial and a complacency, and banished even a discussion of this critical situation to the fringes of human conversation.  


However, evolution takes place at the fringes, those edges where diversity of ecology creates micro-climates and micro-conditions that allows different and new ways of living to emerge.  One of our Elders used to say "The Majority is not always Right!"  In this case the majority is utterly rooted in the narrow minded way of living that has been set out by those who are only interested in profit and power, and by a entity who is only interested in power over, gluttonous consumption of life, and which thrives on the destruction and disempowerment of life; a entity who is "trying to play god".  


In addition to the moronic agricultural practices that have been developed, there is other threatening practices of mining, including the mining of radioactive substances that should never have been taken out of our Mother Earth.  The day these radioactive substances began to be removed and refined from the Earth was the day a Spirit was set loose that cannot be controlled by human beings.  This Spirit that was contained by Mother Earth, now has the power and ability to poison all of humanity.  Indigenous People here in this continent are constantly fighting this evil.  See the blog post below concerning the uranium mining out west and the Indigenous People's battle against it.
http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2012/05/halt-uranium-mine-that-will-poison.html


We have to remember that we were "driven off" our many Lands, through outright conquest and genocide, through kidnapping and slavery, through economic manipulation, and through promises of a "better life" (meaning an "easier, softer way" life, which is also an empty life).   We have to confront the myopic mentality that considers gardening and farming to be lowly "professions", and consider that we have been forcibly taken away from our Mother, or we have been tricked away from our Mother, or we have been seduced away from our Mother, and we have forgotten how to live in harmony with all our Sisters and Brothers of Life, the birds, insects, bacteria, fungi, plants, animals, and fish.  We have misplaced the ability to find food and medicines for ourselves in the forests and meadows and by the rivers.  


However, that Ancient Wisdom is flowing right under the surface and on the fringes and edges where it was never forgotten.  Worldwide (especially now with the internet) there is an abundance of sharing that is going on concerning the many ways that we can reconcile with Mother Earth and once again live in harmony and abundance with her and honor and work with her natural rhythms, rather than wage this ongoing war against her with the pesticides, herbicides, and endless plowing and sawing.  People everywhere are bringing back diversity and common sense into gardens and farms and homes and are producing with Mother Earth and her whole Family (our whole Family), the best, most nutritious, most life sustaining foods in abundance, in conditions which also sustain wildlife, birds, insects and micro-organisms. 


In parts 1 and 2 of this article we shared the progression of our garden, and now it is shown in its height of growth.  At this point the cycle subtly shifts and we begin to see the browns and yellows of autumn creep in and the cycle of Great Harvest begins.  In the Fall, when everything begins to die back with the shorter day lengths and cooler nights we have the time of greatest harvest, but here we are having the time of Greatest Green which of course still gives us a very full harvest.

What now is termed "permaculture" but what we know as Indigenous Gardening Techniques utilizes a diversity of plant life that forms various layers within the Garden, like a micro forest.  Small plants are shaded by big ones, vines climb up tall plants, all the plants require different nutrients so do not deplete any one nutrient and the root systems are just as diverse from light surface roots to deep tap roots accessing all levels of the soil below and bringing various nutrients up into the leaves that will later be eaten or composted to create new top soil.  The insects that eat certain crops are confused by the diversity, and the beneficial insects and birds are attracted by the diversity.  Micro climates are created to allow things to grow that would not thrive in a monoculture at this time of year, such as lettuces which do not like the heat.  In the photo above our daughter picks herbs for cooking.  She also gets the opportunity to learn from the garden's diversity and because she is young, learning the various plants and their uses comes much more easily to her!

As Taino -Paleros we have also come to appreciate the diversity of plant life and their corresponding "root life" for use within our bilongos and medicines.  We strive to study the whole plant to understand the "part" of it that we generally use (the palo or the leaf or what have you).    Above we have a basket of heirloom tomatoes that we have harvested, around them are chives, oregano, thyme, a sunflower stalk, nasturtiums (yellow flowers and leaves that we eat in salads), and a red hibiscus flower.  You need to know what the plants really look like to know what you are harvesting in this garden!  

Chives above surrounded by oregano, a well harvested chard plant, and a plantain plant that most consider a "weed".  For a number of years we did a lot of "weeding" and could never keep up with it.  Then a moment of understanding came and we stopped considering them "weeds" and simply planted our beds very fully restricting the space the "weeds" could occupy and transforming the weeds into the medicinal plants they truly are.  Plantain is a great remedy for bee stings among other uses.  Now we rarely weed any more, we just plant and harvest.  Once in a while we weed and throw the weeds down as a mulch right where we pull them out.  We share this for those who resist gardening due to the requirement of weeding.  We did have to come to terms with our expectations of how a garden should look, and break the shackles of the image of neat rows of veggies and flowers.  We essentially let Mother Earth take the lead and simply plant our "requests" right within her ecosystem, instead of forcing a fake and devolved system on to her.

Tomatoes ripening.  These tomatoes will continue to fruit until the frosts come.  We will gather all the green tomatoes left on the vine right before the first frost and let them ripen inside over the next month and eat them also as fried green tomatoes!

Huge sunflowers grow at a tremendous rate pulling nutrients out of the Earth.  They grow so fast because they have a special relationship with the Sun.  They "follow" the sun to be able to gather more energy from the rays. When they are pollinated the drop their heads bowing down so that their seeds are protected from too much solar radiation!  What a magnificent design and example of respect for the Sun!  Sunflowers are Indigenous to this continent and provide us and the birds with edible seeds, as well as providing a trellis for beans or other vines, and flower heads (which are actually 1000-2000 single flowers clustered together) which light up the garden and are also favored by the Misterio!  We love them and plant them everywhere.  The seeds are also a herbicide which is why under bird feeders nothing grows! 

Winter squash (developed by Mother Earth and the Indigenous Ancestors of this continent) sends its vines in all directions.  Its huge leaves shade out any competitors and it quickly grows in the raised beds that we created.  

This is another crop that we grow everywhere.  We take the seeds and put them in wherever there is space because we know that in the Fall when they are ready for harvest that we will be able to eat them all through the winter!  We specifically grow winter squash that are not your common supermarket variety, we chose heirloom and Indigenous varieties which have the best flavor.  No Palero needs reminding of the uses of the winter squash or pumpkin in working with the Nkisi and Mpungos!!!

Again with the squash, "weeds" are really not an issue since they quickly come to dominate the area they are growing in.  

Our Potatoes are now ready to harvest as we need them (see future blog post).  The Earth will store them perfectly until we need them up until hard frosts in late Fall.  Again, Potatoes are the result of the genius of the Ancestral Elders of this Continent!!!

And Tomatoes as well- developed by our Indigenous Ancestors!!!  The little violet in the bottom right corner is also edible in salads.

Here rhubarb sticks out between tomato plants, we continue to be able to eat its stalks in pies and sauces.

Our daughter harvesting.  

Beautiful basil!

Horse radish with a datura "weed" behind it and arugula.

Our squash spills wildly over our wall, already forming small fruits that will grow into big squash!

What an architect and garden designer Mother Earth is!

We took the posts that had supported the cold frame lids and put a wire fence on them to support green beans.

Bush beans (dry beans) are growing within the diversity.  In the past when we had grown beans in rows, every year insects would come and destroy them, eat them completely, leaving a barren stalk.  This year we put them in with all other plants and they are lush with perfect leaves, not a bite in sight.  This truly shows the benefits of polycultures.  We look forward to a great bean harvest.

A view of our garden, the various layers are visible, what you cannot experience in the photo is the sounds and scents of the garden, the movements of the birds, butterflies and bees, the aromas of the various plants and the tastes of them.  This you have to imagine.  There are a multitude of insects both in the air and soil that are actively "working" with us in this garden!  We do not garden alone, we have our whole "Family" of Life gardening with us, including the Bakulu who inspire and bring forth ideas and understandings for the garden.  Our own Ancestors and the Ancestors that lived upon this Land all bring their contribution from the wealth of knowledge they gathered in their lives.


At the time of Great Harvest we will gather from all the various plants to awaken an Agricultural Nkisi to further empower our Gardens!

Wild Ageratum (native) will burst into a purple blossom providing an important late season blossom for the butterflies.  

Harvesting black raspberries.  These prickly vines give us easy picking for nutrient rich berries.  

Although we also grow red and yellow raspberries, these are easier to grow and more nutritious.

These ended up in black raspberry crumble with homemade maple whipped cream.

Our chickens with their protective rooster, Papo.  He graciously gives them the best food from his own beak and chases away threats.  

Our chicken eggs are the best!!!

Scrambled eggs in the making.

Having a diversity of crops encourages us to create meals that are very unusual and extremely rich in vegetables (and therefore nutrients).  We eat far more than the "recommended suggested daily servings" of vegetables.  

Here all these vegetables are going into one meal.  They include salad greens (lettuce, chard, arugula, nasturtium leaf), greens for stir fry scrambled eggs (rainbow chard, beet greens, turnip greens, a garlic, and roots for the stir fry scrambled eggs (turnips, beets and parsnip).

The greens not only taste great but they all have different strengths in terms of nutrients, and the various textures and colors are a joy to look at.

Our daughter's favorite salad is Tomato, Basil and Mozzarella.  Here we have purple basil as well as green.  Color, taste, texture, smell- we have become too used to the market varieties which are selected only for their ease of growing, harvesting and transporting and storing and not for their taste.  Home grown produce is a totally different product than its supermarket imposter.  When we can give the Misterios offerings that we ourselves have grown, it means so much more because the offerings themselves hold more vitality and our sweat and love is embodied by them.   

The garlic harvest!  This year our garlic is better than ever with our new raised beds.  Wow!  We have garlic for the whole year, for eating, for replanting for next year and for trabajos!

Our wonderful goat herd.  Here our daughter is the "goat whisperer" who does a great job in taming the goats.  They are all easily handled and the females will be no problem to milk.  We are building our goat herd.  We have two varieties of African goats, the Pygmy and the Boer.  Both are meat goats, however the Boers are much bigger.

This is our Boer billy, Nkongo, who is still a baby but growing fast.  

This is our Pygmy billy "Chife" who is already full grown and whose is the father of the kids that we are expecting this year.  

In front is our Milking goat we added to the herd.  She is a Alpine, and still a baby.  We will breed her to Nkongo to produce goats that can be milkers and meat goats.  Behind her is Nana, our pygmy nanny who is our daughter's goat.  She is expecting kids and we will milk her and use the billy kids for personal consumption and Misterio.  We also have two Boer nannies that we will breed primarily for meat.  As Paleros it is always good for us to learn about the various goats and their behaviors so that we can gain a greater appreciation of what the Mystery receives.  

Our goat herd is let loose from time to time but must be carefully monitored because they will devastate the garden and trees.  We have another nanny goat that we are adding to our herd once she is old enough to leave her mother.  She is a Kiko Boer cross.  The Kiko is a breed of feral goat from (Aotearoa) New Zealand.  They have a resistance to parasites and since parasites are a health issue for goats, this resistance is very good for our goat herd.

Our new compost corner for our chickens.  This allows us to contain our chickens when we feel predators are around.  Here we have problems with hawk kills, not so much at this time with foxes or raccoons.  We are finding the balance between free ranging our chickens and having a place to contain them and give them kitchen scraps so that the predators do not pick them off one by one.  

One of our hens has gone broody and we are considering letting her sit on the eggs to hatch them.  To a great extent broodiness has been bred out of chickens and most chickens are hatched in incubators.  When we have a chicken that is truly broody she becomes very valuable to us.  We will be building a separate broody hen house so we can have a place for our broody hens to be undisturbed.  Since our goal is sustainability, we do not want to rely on incubators or purchased chicks, ideally we want several broody hens who will raise their chicks naturally.  

As Paleros it is a blessing to see the various breeds of chickens and get to know which are more in tune with their natural instincts and which have had the instincts bred out of them and become extremely dumbed down.  We are seeking intelligent chickens because we want to consume intelligent eggs and meat and we want to use intelligent gallos for the Misterio.  

At the risk of being repetitive, we continue to share our way of living with our Mother Earth and our Misterios and Ancestors within our Spiritual Practices.  For us, all of life is within the space of the Munanso or Bohio, meaning that we approach the Spirit in a holistic way and do not keep the Spirit as a part time aspect of our lives.  We have taken our Tratos seriously and have followed the Ancestral Spirits in transforming our lives, and we continue to transform and radically change our lives as we learn and discover.  Through a long and difficult process we have come to learn that we do not need to chain our Misterios down.  Chaining comes from the process of colonialism which has brought us nothing but tears and poverty and menticize.  We have learned not to enslave our Misterios because we are not slave masters of our Misterios.  We are the Children of Mother Earth and we work hand in hand, with love and willingness with her and our Ancestors and the many Ancestors of our Munanso and Bohio to continue the process of Reconciliation and Thriving with Mother Earth.