The Medicine wheel is a scared tradition in Shamanism. There are wheels all over the world used for many different purposes, many of which we don’t know. We will likely never know. Stonehenge and the standing stones on the Orkney Islands north of Scotland are wheels with unknown purposes. Charting the heavens and the tides of the seasons are some thoughts on the purposes of wheels. In North America “Bear Butte Lodge” better known as “Devils Tower”, in Wyoming, is considered part of a giant wheel.
My heritage is Celtic, so a lot of my Shaman study is based on Celtic and Wiccan traditions. Yet, I also live in the Pacific Northwest where the land and air bleeds with First Nations Tradition. I respect and study both.
Wheels today are used for meditation, and learning about ourselves and the spirit world. The Wheel I am going to teach you will be useful for these and creating a scared space for ritual and Journeying. Each point represents different aspects for mediation and journeying. Each have many associations, just a few are listed here. Each point also has a Path to walk. Part Two will go into more detail about the paths of meditation.
The Wheel we will make has 9 points. To make it you will need a compass or a good sense of direction *Grin. You will need 9 objects to make your points. One will be the Center and will represent Yourself and The Creator. The 8 will mark the directions. You can randomly pick objects to be put in place later of choose with a specific place in mind.
Collect river rocks, or crystals, cavings of animals, or pieces of driftwood. You can use anything. Feathers and flowers make beautiful wheels, but outside the can blow away.
Think about how big you want it, and where it will live. Will it be inside or outside? Always standing or do you want to be able to put it away? Big heavy rocks in your garden or little pebbles you will keep in a special bag?
The first wheel I made was a large one out in my garden with my friend, Heather (HI!). We used river rocks. When we gathered the rocks, we gave the river an offering of cornmeal and seeds. (Always give, when you take.) We collected more stones than we needed so we would have variety.
The second wheel I made was smaller for my altar table and it is made with crystals. It is also still incomplete. I have not yet found the right crystal for The Center or for one of the directions. They will come in time.
