The Great Law of Peace and Sacred Lands. -

The Watertown Post

Watertown NY- By SOS – Serpentine Omega S(Centauri)

Some of you may remember from your History or Social Studies that where we live is sacred ground. The traditional people of this region and their government is the inspiration and model upon which the United States Constitution is crafted. The Iroquois, officially the Haudenosaunee (meaning “people who are building the longhouse”) are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast Turtle Island (Canada and Upstate New York). They were known during the colonial years to the French as the Iroquois League, and later as the Iroquois Confederacy. The English called them the Five Nations, comprising the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca (listed geographically from east to west). After 1722, the Iroquoian-speaking Tuscarora from the southeast (North Carolina and Virginia) were accepted into the confederacy, which then became known as the Six Nations.

The Confederacy came about as a result of the Great Law of Peace, said to have been composed by Deganawidah (the name is sacred and seldom spoken), therefore, “the Great Peacemaker” is used, Hiawatha, and Jigonsaseh the Mother of Nations. For nearly 200 years, the Six Nations/Haudenosaunee Confederacy were a powerful factor in North American colonial policy. At its peak around 1700, Iroquois power extended from what is today New York State, north into present-day Ontario and Quebec along the lower Great Lakes–upper St. Lawrence, and south on both sides of the Allegheny mountains into present-day Virginia and Kentucky and into the Ohio Valley.

The St. Lawrence Iroquoians, Wendat (Huron), Erie, and Susquehannock, all independent peoples known to the European colonists, also spoke Iroquoian languages. They are considered Iroquoian in a larger cultural sense, all being descended from the Proto-Iroquoian people and language. Historically, however, they were competitors and enemies of the Iroquois League nations.

The Great Law of Peace and the symbols of the Haudenosaunee including the Great Tree of Peace use symbolism and incorporate many concepts in their art and law. Often depicted As a symbol of peace are all of the Chiefs standing around The Great Tree of Peace in a circle, arms linked, to support it and prevent it from falling over. Atop the tree sits an eagle to see far and wide and warn of danger. The Eagle represents The Great Peacemaker. A real man.

Now to go further…further on up the road..🤍💜🤍 Syracuse..The Onondaga Nation lies in the middle of the Haudenosaunee territory and is also known as the Central Fire. The Central Fire is a term used to describe Onondaga as a place where the Hoyá•neh (Chiefs) meet in a Grand Council. Because of this, the Onondaga Nation is also referred to as Ganakdagweñni•yo’geh, or the Capital.

Onondaga is still governed by traditional government. Making Onondaga one of the oldest continuous democratic government on Turtle Island. The tenants of the Great Law have kept the fourteen Onondaga Chiefs and their Clan Mothers caretakers of our land, ceremonies, and governmental relations with other nations. Because Onondaga has resisted all attempts by the United States to change Onondaga into a “tribal elective system”, the Onondaga Nation continues to maintain its sovereignty. Nai:wen Nai:wen Nai:wen ko

The Onondaga Nation is also referred to as the ‘Wampum Keepers’. For the Haudenosaunee, wampum is a very integral part of society. The purple and white shell beads have been woven into strings and belts for ceremonies, to carry messages, to record historical events, and to ratify treaties. Onondaga is home to ‘national’ belts such as the Hiawatha Belt, the Tadodaho Belt, the Dust Fan Belt, and the George Washington Belt. In 1890, New York State STOLE the belts from Onondaga. The Onondaga worked hard to have the belts returned and in 1989, the belts finally returned home. Since that time, the Onondaga use the belts as they were intended, during Grand Council meetings.

So the next time you are traveling the old paths, for which are the basis of many of today’s paved roads. Remember you are on sacred ground and the Great Peacemaker will bless you with an eagle sighting, if you are lucky.