The Hopi Message of Peace and Prophecy to the United Nations General Assembly
Presentation by Hopi Leader, Mr Thomas Banyacya, the final speaker of the day, December 10th, 1992
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Hopi Spiritual leaders had an ancient prophecy that some day world leaders would gather in a Great House of Mica with rules and regulations to solve the world problems without war. I am amazed to see the prophecy has come true and you are here today to hear the Motee Sinom (Hopi for First People) from around the world who spoke here today. Greetings Distinguished Members of the UN, My name is Banyacya of the Wolf, Fox and Coyote Clan and I am a member of the Hopi sovereign nation. Hopi in our language means a peaceful, kind, gentle, truthful people. The traditional Hopi follows the spiritual path that was given to us by Massau'u the Great Spirit. We made a sacred covenant to follow his life plan at all times, which includes the responsibility of taking care of this land and life for his divine purpose. We have never made treaties with any foreign nation, including the United States, but for many centuries we have honored this sacred agreement. Our goals are not to gain political control, monetary wealth nor military power, but rather to pray and to promote the welfare of all iving beings and to preserve the world in a natural way. We still have our ancient sacred stone tablets and spiritual religious societies which are the foundations of the Hopi way of life. Our history says our white brother should have retained those same sacred objects and spiritual foundations. In 1948, all
traditional Hopi spiritual leaders met and spoke of things I felt strongly
were of great importance to all people. They elected four interpreters to
carry their message of which I am the only one still living today. At the
time, I was given a sacred prayer feather by the spiritual leaders. I made
a commitment to carry the Hopi message of peace and deliver warnings from
prophesies known since the time the previous world was destroyed by flood
and our ancestors came to this land. At the meeting in 1948, Hopi leaders 80, 90 and even 100 years old explained that the creator made the first world in perfect balance where humans spoke one language, but humans turned away from moral and spiritual principles. They misused their spiritual powers for selfish purposes. They did not follow natureUs rules. Eventually the world was destroyed by sinking of land and separation of land by what you would call major earthquakes. Many died and only a small handful survived. Then this handful of peaceful people came into the second world. They repeated their mistakes and the world was destroyed by freezing which you call the great Ice Age. The few survivors entered the third world. That world lasted a long time and as in previous worlds, the people spoke one language. The people invented many machines and conveniences of high technology, some of which have not yet been seen in this age. They even had spiritual powers that they used for good. They gradually turned away from natural laws and pursued only material things and finally only gambled while they ridiculed spiritual principles. No one stopped them from this course and the world was destroyed by the great flood that many nations still recall in their ancient history or in their religions. The Elders said again only a small groups escaped and came to this fourth world where we now live. Our world is in terrible shape again even though the Great Spirit gave us different languages and sent us to four corners of the world and told us to take care the the Earth and all that is in it. This Hopi ceremonial rattle represents Mother Earth. The line running around it is a time line and indicates that we are in the final days of the prophecy. What have you, as individuals, as nations and as the world body been doing to to take care of this Earth? In the Earth today, humans poison their own food, water and air with pollution.Many of us, including children, are left to starve. Many wars are still being fought. Greed and concern for material things is a common disease. In this western hemisphere, our homeland, many original native people are landless, homeless, starving and have no medical help The Hopi knew humans would develop many powerful technologies that would be abused. In this century, we have seen the First World War and the Second World War in which the predicted gourd of ashes, which you call the atomic bomb, fell from the sky with great destruction. Many thousands of people were destroyed in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. For many years there has been great fear and danger of World War Three. The Hopi believe the Persian Gulf War was the beginning of World War Three but it was stopped and the worst weapons of destruction were not used. This is now a time to weigh the choices for our future. We do have a choice. If you, the nations of this Earth, create another great war, the Hopi believe we humans will burn ourselves to death with ashes. That's why the spiritual Elders stress strongly that the United Nations fully open the door for native spiritual leaders as soon as possible. Nature itself does not speak with a voice that we can easily understand. Neither can the animals and birds we are threatening with extinction talk to us. Who in this world can speak for nature and the spiritual energy that creates and flows through all life? In every continent are human beings who are like you but who have not separated themselves from the land and from nature. It is through their voice that Nature can speak to us. You have heard those voices and many messages from the four corners of the world today. The native peoples of the world have seen and spoken to you about the destruction of their lives and homelands, the ruination of nature and the desecration of their sacred sites. It is time the United Nations used its rules to investigate these occurrences and stop them now. The Four Corners area of the Hopi is bordered by four sacred mountains. The spiritual center within is a sacred site our prophecies say will have special purpose in the future for mankind to survive and now should be left in its natural state. All nations must protect this spiritual center. The Hopi and all original native people hold the land in balance by prayer, fasting and performing ceremonies. Our spiritual Elders still hold the land in the Western Hemisphere in balance for all living beings, including humans. No one should be relocated from their sacred homelands in this Western Hemisphere or anywhere in the world. Acts of forced relocation, such as Public Law 93-531 in the United States, must be repealed. The United Nations stands on our native homeland. The United Nations talks about human rights, equality and justice and yet the native people have never had a real opportunity to speak to this assembly since its establishment until today. It should be the mission of your nations and this assembly to use your power and rules to examine and work to cure the damage people have done to this Earth and to each other. Hopi Elders know that was your mission and they wait to see whether you will act on it now. Nature, the First People and the spirit of our ancestors are giving you loud warnings. Today, December 10, 1992, you see increasing floods, more damaging hurricanes, hail storms, climate changes and earthquakes as our prophesies said would come. Even animals and birds are warning us with strange change in their behavior such as the beaching of whales. Why do animals act like they know about the earth's problems and most humans act like they know nothing? If we humans do not wake up to the warnings, the great purification will come to destroy this world just as the previous worlds were destroyed. (Thomas and Oren Lyons held up a picture of a large rock drawing in Hopiland) This rock drawing shows part of the Hopi prophecy. There are two paths. The first with technology but separate from natural and spiritual law leads to these jagged lines representing chaos. The lower path is one that remains in harmony with natural law. Here we see a line that represents a choice like a bridge joining the paths. If we return to spiritual harmony and live from our hearts, we can experience a paradise in this world. If we continue only on this upper path, we will come to destruction.Its up to all of us, as children of Mother Earth, to clean up this mess before it's too late. The Elders request that during this International Year for the Worlds Indigenous Peoples, the United Nations keep that door open for spiritual leaders from the four corners of the world to come to speak to you for more than a few minutes as soon as possible. The Elders also request that eight investigative teams visit the native areas of the world to observe and tell the truth about what is being done and stop these nations from moving in this self- destructive direction. If any of you leaders want to learn more about the spiritual vision and power of the Elders, I invite you to come out to Hopiland and sit down with our real spiritual leaders in their sacred Kivas where they will reveal the ancient secrets of survival and balance. I hope that all members of this assembly that know the spiritual way will not just talk about it, but in order to have real peace and harmony, will follow what it says across the United Nations wall: "They will beat their swords into plowshares and study war no more." Lets, together, do that now! various sources on the internet - copyright Hopi Nation |
Introduction
The Kogi are an indigenous people
living in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains of northern Colombia, in
South America. They are the only civilisation to have survived the Spanish
conquests and to have kept there individuality. They are perhaps the only
indigenous people in the world who, because of the particular nature of their
surroundings, have been able to keep them selves apart and sustain their culture
inviolate.
And not only that. The one anthropologist who managed to study them in the 1940's and 50's concluded that though they are similar in some ways to the other Indian peoples around the Caribbean, northern Central America and south to the Andes, there are such profound differences that "in the end the Kogi stand alone".
They have survived to this day, keeping their traditions and relying upon, and looking after, the mountain environment. They believe it is their duty to look after the mountain which they call 'The Heart of the World'. They call themselves the Elder Brother and refer to the new-comers as the Younger Brother, who they believe is destroying the balance of the world.
In 1990 the Kogi decided they must speak out to the rest of the world. They had survived by keeping themselves isolated but they decided that it was time to send a message to the Younger Brother. They could see that something was wrong with their mountain, with the heart of the world.
The snows had stopped falling and the rivers were not so full. If their mountain was ill then the whole world was in trouble. The Mamas sent one of the Kogi who spoke Spanish to contact a British film maker who was in Colombia at that time - They asked the BBC to make a film to tell the Younger Brother about their concern.
It was called 'The Elder Brother's Warning 'or' The Message from the Heart of the World'. Alan Ereira, the producer, has also written a book about the Kogi called 'The Heart of the World'. It was this film and book which were the inspiration for this work in this pack.
Since the film ws released many changes have taken place. The film had a major impact on the Colombian Government and also on the grave robbers. The grave robbers felt that they should stop because they felt bad about disturbing their ancestors. There are now two Kogi members of parliament. The Tairona Heritage Trust was set up to support the Kogi and to buy back some of the original Kogi lands to give them a passage to the sea.
The Kogi Message
'From the beginning in Colombia everything, everything remained
as it was among us, the native people; the same belief, the same mask, the same
dance.
Everything well organised, in order, a terrace for every
animal.
'Younger Brother was permitted in other places, other countries. There was a dividing line, the sea. 'He said, 'Younger Brother that side, Elder Brother this side. You cannot cross it.' Because this Colombia was the heart of the world, of the whole universe. 'But Younger Brother came from another country and immediately saw gold and immediately began to rob. There were golden images, golden oracles. The Mama prophesied with golden bowls, he had a golden tuma, he had everything and Younger Brother took it all to another country.
'Now the Mama grows sad, he feels weak.
He says that
the earth is decaying.
The earth is losing its strength because they have
taken away much petrol, coal, many minerals. 'A human being has much liquid
inside. If the liquid dries up we fall with weakness. This same thing can happen
to the earth, weakness makes you fall, weakness. 'So the earth catches diseases
of all kinds.
The animals die.
The trees dry up.
People fall ill.
Many illnesses will appear and there will be no cure for them.
Why?
'Because the Younger Brother is among us,
Younger Brother is violating the basic foundation of the world's law.
A
total violation. Robbing. Ransacking. Building highways, extracting petrol,
minerals.
'We tell you, We the people of this place, Kogi, Asario, Arhuaco: that is a violation.
'So the Mamas say, 'Please BBC no one else should come here, no more ransacking because the earth wants to collapse, the earth grows weak, we must protect it, we must respect it, because he does not respect the earth, because he does not respect it.'
'Younger Brother thinks, 'Yes! Here I am! I know much about the universe!'
But this knowing is leaming to destroy the world, to
destroy everything, all humanity.
'The earth feels, they take out petrol, it
feels pain there. So the earth sends out sickness. There will be many medicines,
drugs, but in the end the drugs will not be of any use.
'The Mamas say that this tale must be learnt by the Younger Brother before it is too late.'
various sources on the internet - copyright Kogi Tribe
