From my perspective, all creation is a sacred expression of Wakan Tanka, the Great Mystery. The diversity of colors found in nature—across our mineral, plant, animal, and human relatives—is not by accident but by divine design. This diversity is a reflection of the sacred harmony that exists in the natural order.
Mitákuye Oyás’iŋ – All My Relations
All life is interconnected. The four sacred colors—red, yellow, black, and white—represent the fullness of humanity, the sacred directions, and the unity of all peoples. They are not meant to divide but to complete the sacred hoop of life.
Čhaŋgléska Wakan. As a garden flourishes with many different flowers, our human family becomes more beautiful and whole when its diversity is embraced.
Observing Mother Earth’s Teachings
When we look at the natural world, we see that the rivers do not refuse to flow together, nor do the winds separate themselves based on direction. The sky does not say to Mother Earth, "You are different, and therefore we cannot be one."
Instead, all elements of creation move together in a sacred dance, honoring their purpose and complementing one another. The animal peoples, who act according to their original instructions, do not divide themselves by the colors of their fur, feathers, or scales. They simply live in balance with the natural order, accepting all as they are.
But we, the human family, who have been given čhaŋté wíyowaža—hearts capable of deep feeling—and wówaŋyaŋke—the gift of vision—sometimes fail to recognize this harmony. Instead of seeing our diversity as a sacred adornment, we allow fear and ignorance to turn it into division.
This is not the way of Wakan Tanka. This is not the way of the Sacred Hoop.
The Wisdom of the Sacred Hoop
In the teachings of our ancestors, when the hoop of our nations is broken—when we divide ourselves by color, creed, or land—the world falls out of balance. But when we remember Mitákuye Oyás’iŋ, that all beings are related, we restore the harmony of the hoop. Just as a single note does not create a song, and a single color does not make a sunset, humanity needs all its colors to fulfill its purpose.
We must learn from our Mother Earth, from the wind that touches all without distinction, and from the trees that grow side by side, no matter the color of their leaves.
Let us return to this wisdom and walk together as one. When the Sacred Hoop is mended, when all peoples recognize their shared belonging, the garden of life will bloom in its fullest beauty.
This is the way of the Red Road. This is the way of the future.
"Míčhiŋ Čhaŋnúpa Sápa na wačhíŋič’upi k’eyá Wakháŋ Tháŋka tókhečha oyákihiŋ na oúŋ kte!"
