Grandfather, Great Spirit…You have set the powers of the four quarters of the earth to cross each other.  You have made me cross the good road, the road of difficulties, and where they cross, the place is holy. 

Black Elk, Oglala Sioux (Nerburn, Native American Wisdom  )

Cynthia's Journal:

Wheel as TimeKeeper & Direction Finder

People want to know where they are in time as welll as space and the Wheels have served as clocks and compasses since ancient times. Today we'll look more closely at the lunar timekeeping function on the Wheel, and how that governs the monthly study cycle. Each time we circumnavigate the Wheel, we are visiting the same quadrants in the same sequence.

Study Schedule

When using the Wheel to carry a prayer or study a subject in depth like the Universal Laws, you spend approximately one week in each quadrant to focus on everything that Direction represents.

Full Moon for Eastern quadrant - Week One

Last Quarter Moon for Southern quadrant - Week Two

New Moon for Western quadrant - Week Three

First Quarter Moon for Northern quadrant - Week Four

Today, we are starting Week Two under the Last Quarter Moon. In another week, it will be New Moon time and Week Three will begin, and we'll move to the West side of the Wheel. Approximately one week later the moon will be half-full again, in the First Quarter of the waxing phase.  That marks stage four when we shift to the final quadrant of the Wheel, to spend a week in the North Direction, learning about the things represented there.

A week after that the first full rotation will be complete and the moon will be full again. Then we will take up the first Law of Balance to study for a month, carrying the same way, for four weeks, to make a full circuit of the Wheel, visiting each Direction again in turn so we can consider Balance in terms of the mind, heart, body and spirit. 

Here is a quick look at the next four Universal Laws. One anchors each of the Four Directions:

The East Direction (which you learned about last week) is anchored by Right Action

The South Direction (which you learn more about this week) is anchored by Trust

The West Direction (which you’ll cover next week) is anchored by Higher Purpose

The North Direction (which you’ll study during Week Four) is anchored by Integrity

Together they form a five point compass, with the Law of Balance in the center.

Each pair of Laws forms an axis. Right Action balances Higher Purpose.  Integrity balances Trust. Each Direction represents many things and they serve as counter-weights to what is symbolized by the opposite side of the Wheel.  For instance, if you feel informed by a sense of Higher Purpose, Right Action is easier to make because you know why you need to do what.  Likewise, on the North/South axis on the Wheel where we're reminded that in the absence of Integrity, there will be no Trust.

These five compass Laws are the non-negotiable fundamentals, the cornerstones.  Test them out.  Apply them to various situations as an experiment.  For example, next time you meet some one new, use the Laws to think of five questions as check points:

1. Re:Balance – Did the interaction seem fair?  Did each listen as much as talk?
2. Re:Right Action – What feels like the right next step, for me, with this person? 
3. Re:Trust – Is there a sense of mutual Trust here, or not?  Any warning signs?
4. Re:Higher Purpose – Why get back together?  Is there any particular reason?
5. Re:Integrity -  Does this person care about others as much as him/herself?

During the 1,000 Day Journey around the Wisdom Wheel, there is plenty of time to use this compasst and get used to it. Since there are 36 Laws to study, it takes 36 months to cover all of them. The first twelve Laws are covered in the first twelve months - those include he eight inner circle Laws and the Four Direction Laws you have already been introduced to. Year Two concerns the 12 outer circle Laws which you will learn about next. Year Three covers the stepping stone Laws, in each of the Four Directions.