{"id":6817,"date":"2020-07-31T09:33:15","date_gmt":"2020-07-31T16:33:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.poetry-chaikhana.com\/blog\/?p=6817"},"modified":"2020-07-31T09:33:58","modified_gmt":"2020-07-31T16:33:58","slug":"navajo-prayer-may-it-be-beautiful","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.poetry-chaikhana.com\/blog\/2020\/07\/31\/navajo-prayer-may-it-be-beautiful\/","title":{"rendered":"Navajo Prayer – May it be beautiful"},"content":{"rendered":"

Navajo Prayer \u2013 May it be beautiful
\nby Navajo (Anonymous)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

English version by Gladys A. Reichard<\/font><\/p>\n

Dark young pine, at the center of the earth originating,
\nI have made your sacrifice.
\nWhiteshell, turquoise, abalone beautiful,
\nJet beautiful, fool\u2019s gold beautiful, blue pollen beautiful,
\nRed pollen, pollen beautiful, your sacrifice I have made.
\nThis day your child I have become, I say.<\/p>\n

Watch over me.
\nHold your hand before me in protection.
\nStand guard for me, speak in defense of me.
\nAs I speak for you, speak for me.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 May it be beautiful before me.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 May it be beautiful behind me.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 May it be beautiful below me.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 May it be beautiful above me.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 May it be beautiful all around me.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I am restored in beauty.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I am restored in beauty.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I am restored in beauty.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I am restored in beauty.<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/a> \u2014 from The Longing in Between: Sacred Poetry from Around the World (A Poetry Chaikhana Anthology)<\/a>, Edited by Ivan M. Granger<\/font><\/p>\n


\/ Image by Russ Seidel<\/a> \/<\/em><\/font><\/p>\n

I have come across several variations of this prayer-poem; they all manage to return me to my feet and bring me into quiet awe of the moment.<\/p>\n

This version, with its introductory offering to the pine tree is especially moving to me. According to ethnographic notes, this version of the prayer was evoked during healing ceremonies performed in front of a sacred pine tree. The pine tree here is the pillar of life that stands \u201cat the center of the earth,\u201d the world navel, the center of being. This pine is the mediator between heaven and earth, a bridge or doorway between the two realms. This is a healing ceremony performed at the point where the sacred and the mundane touch. And that is where we witness the beauty that heals.<\/p>\n

I love the evocation: \u201cThis day your child I have become, I say.\u201d Right relationship is restored. More than restored, it is recognized. The soul uncontracts when it remembers it is the child of something profound, alive, divine\u2026 and beautiful.
\nMay you be restored in beauty.<\/p>\n


\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/a>Recommended Books: Navajo (Anonymous)<\/font><\/b><\/p>\n\n

<\/p>\n

\n\n\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n

<\/center>
\n<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/td>\n<\/a><\/td>\n<\/a><\/td>\n<\/a><\/td>\n<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
The Longing in Between: Sacred Poetry from Around the World (A Poetry Chaikhana Anthology)<\/a><\/small><\/td>\nThe Essential Mystics: Selections from the World\u2019s Great Wisdom Traditions<\/a><\/small><\/td>\n<\/a><\/small><\/td>\n<\/a><\/small><\/td>\n<\/a><\/small><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n\n
\n<\/td>\n\nNavajo (Anonymous)<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

US (19th Century) Timeline<\/a>
\nPrimal\/Tribal\/Shamanic<\/a> : American Indian<\/a>
\n<\/a><\/a><\/em>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n

<\/p>\n

Attributing this to the 18th century is a guess. The source book did not estimate the date of composition.<\/p>\n

Traditionally, the Navajo live in northern Arizona, New Mexico, southern Colorado, and Utah.<\/p>\n

More poetry by Navajo (Anonymous)<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Navajo Prayer \u2013 May it be beautiful by Navajo (Anonymous) English version by Gladys A. Reichard Dark young pine, at the center of the earth originating, I have made your sacrifice. Whiteshell, turquoise, abalone beautiful, Jet beautiful, fool\u2019s gold beautiful, blue pollen beautiful, Red pollen, pollen beautiful, your sacrifice I have made. This day your […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[1324,2370,121,1322,579,2369,1326],"class_list":["post-6817","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-poetry","tag-beauty","tag-four-directions","tag-native-american-prayer","tag-navajo-prayer","tag-tree-of-life","tag-world-navel","tag-world-tree"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.poetry-chaikhana.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6817","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.poetry-chaikhana.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.poetry-chaikhana.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.poetry-chaikhana.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.poetry-chaikhana.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6817"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.poetry-chaikhana.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6817\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6818,"href":"https:\/\/www.poetry-chaikhana.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6817\/revisions\/6818"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.poetry-chaikhana.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6817"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.poetry-chaikhana.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6817"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.poetry-chaikhana.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6817"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}