Sacred Circle/ Medicine Wheel/ 4 Shields
Spirit, here I am All with one, one with all Circle returning
--Onandagan chant
The Earth, the Water, the Fire, the Air Return, return, return, return
--Chant
Introduction
Preparation for the Vision Quest takes place on many levels. The material presented
here is intended to add richness and depth to your understanding, supplementing
information found in the handbook. While it’s just a beginning, we hope that it will stir
you to begin dreaming, imagining, connecting the natural world to yourself and yourself
to the natural world. Remember that as you study the Sacred Circle, you are also
studying yourself and your own sacred mysteries. As you read through these pages, ask
yourself: Where would you place yourself on the Wheel? Which Direction or Shield
seems to be your natural home, and which seems the least accessible? Where would
you place yourself at this time? Which Powers speak to you? Which Shields are you
wearing at this moment? Where are you stuck on the Wheel? When you meet with your
guides, they will be pleased to help you to further understand these teachings and their
application to the quest.
The Circle of Self
Let us begin with the Circle, an ancient symbol of wholeness, unity, completeness, and
continuation, having no beginning and no end. This Circle goes by many different
names, including Mandala, Circle of Self, Medicine Wheel and Universe Wheel, and
appears in widely diverse cultures. The Circle teaches us of the unity and equality of all
things within Creation. As expressed by the fifth century B.C. Greek philosopher
Empedocles, “God is a Circle whose center is everywhere and whose circumference is
nowhere.”
"The Circle is our Way of Touching, and of experiencing Harmony with every other
thing around us, " writes Hyemeyosts Storm, a Native American who first brought these
teachings to Rites of Passage.
All the things of the Universe Wheel have spirit and life, including the rivers,
rocks, earth, sky, plants and animals. But it is only man, of all the beings on the Wheel,
who is a determiner. Our determining spirit can be made whole only through the
learning of our harmony with all our
brothers and sisters, and with all the other spirits of the Universe. To do this we must
learn to seek and to perceive. We must do this to find our place within the Medicine
Wheel....
The Vision Quest, or perceiving quest, is the way we must begin this search. We
must all follow our Vision Quest to discover ourselves, to learn how we perceive of
ourselves, and to find our relationship with the world around us.
The Four Directions
The Circle can be divided into four quadrants, in which representation—as a cross
within a circle--it is found within many cultures. The four directions of the compass can
serve as a good starting point for understanding the Wheel. Each direction carries
qualities of heart and mind that are rooted in the natural world, and which can be
expressed through such aspects as color, season, and animal totems (see the section
below on Four Shields for mapping more of these aspects). The essence of each
cardinal direction can be described in a few keywords:
South—Innocence and trust West—Looking within, introspection North—Give-away,
adulthood, wisdom East—Vision, inspiration, spirit
“Everything is my mirror,” states the old Vision Quest teaching. The Powers of the Four
Directions, which we find in stones and sky, wind and sun, are also within each of us.
The Direction of North, for example, becomes the North of me, reflecting those qualities
within myself that can be associated with this Direction: adulthood, rationality, work,
giving for the sake of the community.
Steven Foster and Meredith Little wrote the following for Rites of Passage, focusing on
the fundamental quality or essence of each direction. We will move around the Wheel
sunwise (clockwise), following the natural movement of the sun through the day,
beginning in the South.
South (color: Red or Green)
South is the place of summer. Remember your childhood, the green, growing
days, when you were filled with the warm, red sap building your bones, determining
your gifts and your path? South is the place of innocence and trust. The truth is that we
are always children, and the world we have been born into is filled with danger and
unknowing. We trust ourselves and continue, one step at a time, touching with our
hearts.
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In the South the quality of our heart is tried. We grow into our passions and
emotions. We learn by touching and being touched. Through the expression of our
feelings and emotions we begin to acquire the innate wisdom of our ancestors.
Like the little mouse we poke our noses among the roots of things and learn
what is and is not. One day we hear a roaring in our ears. We cannot be content until
we find out what is causing the roaring. We go to investigate. When we stand trembling
at the edge of the Sacred River our Vision Quest begins.
West (color: Black)
The sun sets in the West. Mother Earth veils her face. Radiance fades from the
horizon and we begin to steer by inner light. The moon arises and spreads our dreams
with quicksilver. The illumination of the day is transformed into the reflected
illumination of night. Look into an obsidian mirror. The darkness drinks in the light, yet
an image is seen "as in a glass darkly."
The West is woman, mother and Grandmother Earth. The owl, the bear, and the
rattlesnake live here. All living beings must come to the West, to the womb, to the
placenta of change, to wait in the stillness of the eye of the hurricane for manna, the
sign, the knowing--for the thing in the seed to break its cover of decay.
The West is the bitter-sweet of fall. The West is the maturing, the harvest, the
decaying. In the West we learn to introspect, to look within, with insight to fact the
monsters of our little sleeps, our little deaths. The West is our inwardness, our halfyearning to fall away from the flesh toward the gulf of spirit and eternity.
There is a light that shines in the darkness, a tiny spring of cool water hidden in
the desert. This is the secret mystery of the West.
North (color: White)
It is winter. All things are enveloped in snow. The wind blows cold, piling up the
snow in drifts. Here in the North there is a dance all things must learn. It is the dance
of the hammer of winter. Dancing in rhythm to the dance hammer we learn the steps of
survival. Here we learn how to give so our people may live.
What we give is flesh, sinew, bone, brain, will, love and wisdom. We nourish
others, by our lives and by our deaths. Whatever insights we attain, whatever gifts we
bear, we shape into a living force of mind and purpose. Whatever visions we see on the
sacred mountains of our Vision Quest are not for self alone, but for all the people.
North is the place of wisdom, rational thought and natural sense. The fruits of
the mind grow here: science, philosophy, metaphysics, language, mathematics. The soil
is nourished by discipline. The crop is grown by knowledge of natural law. North is a
shield with white feathers on which are painted symbols of the hunter, the planter and
the builder.
North is the adult in all of us. The buffalo and the bighorn sheep live here. They
gave themselves with courage and abandon to the flint arrow, dying and giving away so
that the people might live.
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East (color: Gold)
High in the East the golden eagle sheds a feather on the winds of dawn.
Something that was rigid and frozen in the seed breaks apart. It is the root. As the sun
feather drifts across the sky, the root takes hold. The name of the root is spring.
The spirit tugs at substance, saying "Come with me. Lift free from the black,
frozen earth." We are drawn toward the blue distance of the sky, where the eagle flies
high and sees far, where we can see into the obscured future. Aloft on the wings of
morning, we are illumined, inspired.
The East is the spark, the flame, lightning. It is the fire of creativity in all of us. It
is the artist, the poet, the visionary. In the East a little girl is born, a little girl with
golden hair, a mirror image of the dark woman of the West. Her name is Muse. The
song she sings goes: "Everything that dies is reborn."
The Four Shields
If we follow the Four Directions into the specific realm of the human being, we arrive at
the Four Shields. A shield serves dual purposes: to defend the bearer from harm, and to
express, through its design and themes, the individual who stands behind it—the
unique “medicine” of this person. The Four Shields represent the four archetypal
components of a human being: Body, Soul, Mind and Spirit. The Shields can serve as a
map of human development, reflected in the turning seasons: Childhood (the
South/Summer shield) gives way to Adolescence (West/Fall), which yields to Adulthood
(North/Winter), which gives birth to Elderhood (East/Spring). They can work as a
diagnostic tool: which of your Shields is overdeveloped, and which underdeveloped? Are
you stuck in one Shield, to the impoverishment of others? We need access to all four
Shields in order to discover and claim our wholeness within the Circle of Self.
The Shields allow inner being to be represented as mask or persona. Steven Foster and
Meredith Little write:
The four seasons, faces, personas, shields of human self-thus* correspond to and
consist of the four seasons, faces, personas—shields of the earth. In humans, the four
faces are: summer (the emotional, instinctive, physical, reactive body-child), fall (the
inward, self-conscious, psychological soul of transition), winter (the rational,
responsible, controlled, interdependent mind of maturity) and spring (the regenerating,
healing, creative spirit of that which is born from death). Body, psyche, mind, and spirit.
The same four faces are worn by all living forms of self- thus*: the physical, the
psychological, the rational, and the spiritual.
From The Four Shields: The Initiatory Seasons of Human Nature.
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(*Note: the term “self-thus” refers to essential nature, existing in/as each thing)
The following descriptions present images, concepts and metaphors for each Shield,
taking the universal archetypes further into the realm of the human. You’ll notice that
these descriptions contain aspects of the shadow/negative (stuck) capacity for each
direction: The innocence of the Child of the South includes a capacity for cruelty. The
introspection of the Adolescent of the West includes the capacity for extreme selfabsorption and depression. The rationality of the Adult of the North includes the
capacity for hyper-rationalism or workaholism. The illumination of the Elder of the East
includes the capacity for spacey, ungrounded “mysticism.”
South/Summer Shield
Trust in our physical connection with the world around us, and the direct experience of
it, are necessary for wholeness. This is the place of emotion. If we grow up in a family
where it is unsafe to feel or show emotions, we start to shut them down or mistrust
them. If we are to become whole, we will have to learn about them later. The
South/Summer Shield is about self-power, life force, abundance, and innate growth,
reflecting the qualities of Summer. “I want what I want,” says the child. The body’s
needs demand immediate gratification. It’s the place of erotic love, of hunger, of fear
and aggression. The playground bully lives here, and the scared child. Violence and war
are possible expressions of this Shield. The paradox is that, if we are to become whole,
the innate innocence and trust of the child must survive in a world that contains
violence. There are no feelings of guilt here. Following our curiosity like the mouse, we
learn by “poking our nose in.”
Stage Childhood Season Summer Animal Mouse Color Red (for blood, emotion), or
Green (for growth in summer) Element Water 4 Aspects Body, Fear, Ego, Eros Activity
Play Love Erotic Identity Ego, the “I” Indicators Automatic reaction
Survival instinct Fear, fight or flight reaction Flow of emotions Athletic prowess Instant
gratification Sensuality Body focus
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Inner image Little boy (for a man), little girl (for a woman); child of same
gender Function Sensation Archetype The Child; the Lover Stuck in
South Caught in the whirl of emotions; helpless; immature; egotistical
West/Fall Shield
The innocence of South/Summer must be lost if we are to grow up. Here we enter the
labyrinth of dark interiority, to discover ourselves and our relations to others. The “fall
from childhood” is mirrored by the season of Fall. Depression—as grief, as memory, as
entering our depths—is necessary for growth. The father/mother, the opposite of our
own gender, is the first teacher of how we feel about ourselves. This Shield holds the
power to look within, to find oneself, resulting in the ability to accept and love oneself.
Here we learn to steer by our inner light, intuition or inner feeling. This is the shield we
must pass through to enter into adulthood. Here we ask for a vision for our life, praying
for the strength to make it through the long dark night. Despite the darkness, this is
where the personal treasure, the priceless gift, lies. This is also where inner strength
and tenacity come from.
Stage Adolescence Season Fall Animal Rattlesnake, Bear, Owl Color Black Element Earth
4 Aspects Death, Memory, Soul, Dream Activity Rest Love Of self Identity Soul, psyche,
“I am” Indicators Becoming aware of, and taking in, emotions and sensations;
becoming aware of oneself and others; relating to others; passing on myths and values;
introspection; presence of unconscious urges; “poor me” / victim attitude. Inner image
Woman (for a man), man (for a woman); parent of opposite
gender Function Feeling Archetype Shadow (unaccepted parts of
ourselves) Stuck in West Victim mentality; anxiety; chronic depression; addictions
North/Winter Shield
We express ourselves by bringing our abilities—the gifts we found in the West/Fall
Shield—into the North/Winter. Here we bring them forth. Having gone through the rite
of passage, we bring forth the vision that was obtained for all to see, for the benefit of
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the people. This is the place of the initiated ones, those adults that recognize their
responsibility in loving and nourishing the whole community. Community life is rooted in
interdependence, and cannot be sustained when individuals carry the illusion of
separation from the whole.
Stage Adulthood Season Winter Animal Buffalo, bighorn sheep, tule elk Color White
Element Air 4 Aspects Work, Discipline, Mind, Community Activity Work Love Of others
Identity Mind, “We are” Indicators Self-discipline, self-control, ability to take
responsibility; ability to do, to act, to plan, to prepare, to get ready; mind power, ability
to organize rational thought; delay of gratification; personal value system; diplomacy,
peacemaking. Inner image Man (for a man), Woman (for a woman); parent of same
gender Function Thinking Archetype King; Queen; Emperor Stuck in North Workaholic,
lack of emotions, difficulty being playful, aloofness, hyper-rational, brilliant mind but
self-centered, lacking soul or psychological depth
East/Spring Shield
We have learned about ourselves, and about life, by direct experience of each of the
Shields. Now we are ready to pass on that information, to share the wisdom we have
found. We are able to step back, to step outside of ourselves and see the bigger
picture, to look with “eagle eyes.” As a result, we begin to think in bigger, more
visionary ways, considering the impact of actions not only on ourselves and our
immediate family/community/country/nation, but also on a global level and on future
generations.
Stage Elderhood, infancy Season Spring Animal Eagle, hawk Color Gold Element Fire 4
Aspects Birth, Inspiration, Spirit, Vision Activity Prayer
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Love Of Spirit, or God Identity Spirit, “Thou art” Indicators Illumination, mystical
experience, spirituality, connection
with things, transformation, creativity, rebirth Inner image
Little boy (for a woman), little girl (for a man) Function Intuition Archetype Spirit; the
Muse; Angels Stuck in East Airy fairy, wanting to stay in the light, no shadow, magical
thinking, “flying boy/girl” (puer aeternus)
Two further directions: Above and Below
We are surrounded by six directions: the four cardinal points, the Sky above, and
the Earth below. The Skyward direction touches the heavens, the realm of Spirit, spirit
guides and sacred ancestors. The Earthward direction touches the the ground, the
source of all life (everything is made from the body of the Mother Earth), the bones of
our ancestors, and our own bodies. The sacred center of our Medicine Wheel is always
here, just where we are standing/sitting/walking. We are like a gyroscope, surrounded
by a living sphere represented by the six directions.
When you claim your circle, you symbolically take your place at the center of the total
universe, at the center of your purpose. You acknowledge the ancient truth: “I am what
I perceive, and I am what perceives me.”
--Steven Foster and Meredith Little
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