Tibetan Forgiveness Wisdom on Hopi

This entry is about the video located at:
http://culturecollective.org/html/Indigenous/palden.html

A few years ago, when Garchen Rinpoche established his residency in Arizona, we brought a Hopi elder from the Bear Clan to meet Garchen and have a corn-planting ceremony to welcome The Tibetan presence in the area. Garchen and our Hopi friend greeted each-other like old friends. The Hopi man knew and understood Tibetan words, which amazed us, he said that Hopi knew many languages and remembered them from their migrations all around the world...

In our talks, the issues of forgiveness were a focus. The Hopi have been facing great changes to their ancient culture, and The Tibetans are great role-models for maintaning culture in the face of extreme violence, genocide, and re-location. In addition, there are many cultural similarities between Hopi and Tibet. So bringing together elders from both cultures was a natural, and it is also part of the prophecies.

In the years after that first visit, we had many talks with our Hopi friend about the issues facing many indigenous people and on Hopi, and the importance of forgiveness during this time of great change on Mother Earth. When Linda Pearlman at Bodhi Tree in Phoenix brought Palden Gyatso to Arizona, our good friend, Muyamana contacted us and we set up a trip for him to Hopi.

The night before we left, Palden spoke at a local venue in Prescott, which is where the video was shot. The following morning, we headed up to the mesas. Palden was mostly quiet in the car, chanting and praying, while his translater, Darjay shared with us stories of young children walking over the Himalayas (many in bare feet through the snow) to escape the Chinese in Tibet.

When we arrived in Hopi, we were hoping to film, but The Hopi did not want any cameras. There was a translater for Palden, and a translator for The Hopi elder. The energy in the room was very powerful, yet gentle and peaceful. The 2 elders compared oral histories of their culture and their missions/instructions as keepers of these ancient cultures. After a few timeless hours, the 2 agreed that they must be ancient relatives based on their cultural similarities. They share a common desire to pray for all life, to help reduce suffering, respect the earth, and be representatives of peace. The Hopi elder expressed that Hopi has been welcoming home many of their ancient relatives at this time.

They spoke of their shared cultural struggles. There is a Hopi word "Oookywah" which is close to the word compassion. It means "I feel what you are feeling". Palden spoke of the importance of taking the suffering inside and healing it with compassion in the heart. His perspective on suffering as a medicine that can open the heart to deep love and compassion was profound. He gave a copy of his book, and we shared mutton stew with Hopi corn.

Cultural change can be very hard on a community. Often, when people are oppressed, they turn it back on their own people, or their children. When elders can have compassion for their young ones, and understand that children are growing up in a very different world than what existed just 50 years ago, the connection between generations gets stronger. When elders stay rigid, and pressure children to learn old ways, the kids often rebel, and ancient wisdom is lost. Humor, compassion, and forgiveness are tools to keep young ones interested in keeping their culture alive. As the world transitions, hopefully there will be a balance and equal respect for ancient wisdom as well as emerging wisdom. This balance can help both old and young integrate the information needed to birth a better world for future generations.