Compass of the Heart: Embodying Medicine Wheel Teachings

A deeply spiritual guide to the Native American way of connecting with the ancient wisdom of the Universe. Insightful, respectful and gentle in her approach, Ms. Cruden takes us along the path walked by many but which also can only be walked alone, in the depths of one's being.

Loren Cruden, a midwife and herbal healer, spent many years with a Native American medicine man, studying the medicine wheel and developing her spiritual practice. The author of three previous books, she wrote Compass of the Heart: Embodying Medicine Wheel Teachings for "those who are presently living a life dedicated to sacred alignment and want to open to further possibilities." The medicine wheel is simply one way of orienting oneself spiritually. It may be interpreted and used in more than one way. The directions, East, South, West, and North, have many associations. Cruden divides her book into parts, devoting several chapters to each of the directions. For example, East is linked with air, and includes chapters on breath, prayer, and meditation, among others. Other names for East include Spring, Morning, Mind, Child, Perception, Beginning, I Ching, and Awareness. In addition to the cardinal directions, there is also Earth, Sky, and Center. She discusses the meanings and rituals associated with these as well. The section on Earth includes complete instructions for building and using a sweat lodge, and the Sky discussion explains vision quest ceremonies. Center represents God, or what Cruden calls Mystery. Each chapter includes her observations about all the spiritual aspects of that direction, as well as suggestions for rituals and exercises. She also includes information on using medicine wheels in conjunction with chakras and totems. Some exercises aid in understanding and working with your beliefs about yourself and your role in the world. Cruden says "daily spiritual practices are steps that help guide choice and action by facilitating alignment with Spirit," adding that "any daily actions thoughtfully made can be considered spiritual practice." Compass of the Heart uses medicine wheel practices to teach readers how to achieve "spiritual awareness [that] is not an intermittent inspiration but is life itself."

This book's prose is very lyrical and flows over the mind very easily. As psychology, philosophy, religion, and a bit of Indian history, it is often simple and clear. At other times there is a plumbing of the depths of our human and spiritual psyches that is so complex that it is vexing to understand. The one chapter that is so different, in that it truly reveals the authoresses thoughts and feelings in a powerful fashion, is the description of preparing for and holding a "sweat". It is totally connected to ancient ritual, and Loren's painstaking detail of the event place you inside her makeshift tent or perhaps inside her own mind and body in what seems an extra effort to communicate something of deep value. Some of her descriptions of nature, and the solitude and connection that we associate to it in our best moments, are striking, beautiful, and memorable. As I read this book over a few evenings, I'm certain the spirit of Loren and her life's perspective penetrated my own dream world in a very unsettling, but somehow natural way. Her message challenges us all to continue love's journey with eyes, ears, and spirit agape.