Takaji My Relatives

A wonderful group of friends, both Natives and non-Natives gathered this evening at 5:00 PM, at the Verona Pennsylvania Teaching Lodge of the CANEY INDIGENOUS SPIRITUAL CIRCLE , our family home, to observe our Taino…

Takaji My Relatives

Today is Wednesday Oct 30 2013, the day before Halloween. The U.S. holiday that draws children and adults alike out into the streets and parties dressed in garish and sometimes comical disguises.

Many of my friends, especially female friends have opted to dress as "witches". Interestingly, the majority of the witch costumes that I have encountered this year have tended to be a great deal more sympathetic of the witch identity than I have seen in the past.…

Takaji My Relatives

This publication contains history about Indigenous activism which was fundamental to the formation of the man that I am today and I was so glad to find it on the internet. Most importantly it makes lots of mentions of the Native American activist newspaper of the 1970's “INDIGENA” for which I drew many illustrations while I was still a young student in college at COLUMBUS COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN. In particular it was very…

Takaji,

Here in North Eastern Pa we will honor the relatives on Friday night. My family calls this ceremony Ghost Supper.

We will set up our alter and use fish also, doing what we can to follow the teachings of the Caney Circle. I will also have a gord with one of my relatives safely inside. I always have intense dreams after honoring our ancestors in this way.

Jan Jan Catu - Akitchitay Urayoel

Indigenous Rainforest Keepers need to hear from you, if you wish to write in support of the cultural wisdom of our indigenous peoples. Please visit the link for more information.

http://www.indigenous-rainforest-keepers.com/-light-warriors.html

Yesterday I gave a lecture at the college of Ana G. Mendez in Orlando, Florida. The lecture pointed out errors within the history and genealogy of Don Juan Ponce de Leon, the survival of the Indigenous people, the Taino and the Guanahatabey of the Caribbean Islands of Cuba, Isla Hispanola and Isla de San Juan de Puerto Rico survived and left maternal genetic descendants despite the destruction and abuse they suffered during the conquest of the aforementioned islands. 

At the end of…

Takaji My Relatives

I was honored this past Sunday September 22 to participate in the annual celebration of the Taino Indigenous Equinox Ceremony held by the Taino community YUKAYEKE GUAINIA at Broook Community Park in the South Bronx of New York City.…

Hi, I'm descended from a full blooded Arawak great grandmother. Everywhere I've researched tells the same story,

The Arawak Peoples are gone. I beg to differ, I am 1/16th and now have two grandchildren who are 1/32nd.

Other peoples can claim to be of their races with just one drop, so I'm taking advantage and doing the same, though I can do so for several other races/ethnicity's as well.

'm a true mutt 

If there are ANY other Arawak descendants out there, contact…

Takaji My Relatives

I was honored this last weekend August 31st to Sept 3rd  2013 by being invited to return for a second time to offer Taino ceremony, and workshops on aspects of Taino spirituality at this year's celebration of the…

Nuestra creencia espiritual…

Takaji My Relatives

It was such a blessing this past weekend August 10 and 11  2013, to participate in the ninth annual celebration of the JORNADA TAINA sponsored by CATTA COOP artisan collective in Jayuya Puerto Rico.

I arrived in Boriken early on Saturday morning on a flight into Aguadilla along with our Taino sister Tai Pelli who travelled out…

Takaji My Relatives

For some time now there has been a small but obnoxiously vocal element in the Taino Resurgence movement that has taken exception to the use of the word "Taino" based on the fact that there is a town in the country of Italy that bears a name with the exact same spelling and probably the exact same pronunciation.…

Takaji My Relatives

On the weekend of July 19, 20 and 21 of the year  2013 a group of our Taino people along with friends and relatives from other nations, gathered along a beautiful creek in the Pocono mountains of north-eastern Pennsylvania in order to observe three straight days of non-stop full day and full night fasting, praying, drumming and dancing in behalf of…

Takaji My Relatives

It was my honor to officiate the June FULL MOON CEREMONY on the 23rd of the month 2013 at the Verona/PennHills, Pennsylvania Teaching Lodge of the CANEY INDIGENOUS SPIRITUAL CIRCLE.

We gathered on the day after our Youngstown, Ohio Summer Solstice ceremony and therefore some of the participants of this gathering were the same as the ones who had joined us at the earlier event, especially several members of the family of our Ohio…

Exciting news! We just received a $1000 donation from an anonymous donor! Thank you whoever you are! We now have over $5000 counting both the online donations and the checks sent in to CID. We still need your help!  Help us reach the $6000 mark. Show your support here!

This Saturday, August 3, the Yurumein director Andrea Leland and…

It is with great Joy that I am able to report that on Saturday June 22 2013 we gathered to celebrate the ceremony of SUMMER SOLSTICE  on the grounds of the Youngstown Ohio Teaching Lodge of the CANEY INDIGENOUS SPIRITUAL CIRCLE, a sacred place guided by Dr Rosa Ana'O Quinones, Caney Circle behike and UCTP representative for the Ohio region.…

The paradox of Impromptu ceremonies

Or Creating rituals on the fly

Can there be an impromptu Ceremony? Hold up isn't a ceremony a traditional observance and the handing down of statements, beliefs, customs, from generation to generation a sacred…

Yurumein director/producer Andrea Leland will be discussing YURUMEIN tonight, June 20, on WHPK Chicago at 5pm Central Time. DJ Marta Nicolas will play some of the music from the YURUMEIN soundtrack and interview director/producer Andrea Leland. Music highlights include songs from Andy Palacio’s album WATINA, and Rhodel “Rhodee” Castillo’s album IN EXILE. You…

Award-winning filmmaker Andrea Leland (director of THE GARIFUNA JOURNEY) has just launched a crowdfunding campaign for her upcoming film YURUMEIN -- a documentary about the revival of Garifuna culture on the island of St. Vincent. Forced into hiding and exile by British colonial forces, Garifuna culture had been all but lost on the island of St. Vincent for the last two hundred years. While…

This is a form I use with my Beikes-in training ( IKENS) ,helping to understand what and why

Taino Ritual Worksheet

Type of Ritual:…