Lekhikàn · the sixth book

Òngùndëwakàn Lekhikàn

the book of the empowering intention

The Ceremonial Book of Mikumwakàn

How the book is used

The Ceremonial Book holds the standard forms of every ceremony of Mikumwakàn, so that the rites remain whole wherever the faith gathers. A facilitator leads from these forms, speaking from the heart within them, and never alters their core.

Every ceremony opens with the water purification and closes with òngùndëwakàn, the empowering intention spoken over the people, and wanishi.

Ceremony	Led by
The water purification	Any facilitator, from Pìlsit onward
The sunrise practice	Every member, alone or together
Naxa Kishku	Lapèmkwës or Welteh, with the Nuhàm Circle
The dark moon gathering of the women	A grandmother of the Nuhàm Circle
The eight stations of the sun	Welteh
Day One	The First Grandmother, with the Nuhàm Circle
The rites of the land	Lapèmkwës or Welteh
The rites of passage	Welteh
The sweat lodge	Lapèmkwës or Welteh trained in its safety

The water purification

The water purification is the foundation of every ceremony. Before the people stand together before the Great Knowing, each one is made clean, pìlsu, in body and in spirit.

What is needed. A vessel of well water from the sacred ground and a second, empty vessel to receive what is released.

The order

The facilitator holds the vessel of water and speaks: Mpi. Water, carrier of life, make us clean.
Each person comes forward in turn and holds out open hands.
The facilitator pours water over the hands, which release it into the empty vessel. As the water falls, the person releases whatever they carry that does not serve harmony.
The person touches wet fingers to the brow and speaks: Npìlsi. "I am clean."
When all are cleansed, the released water is returned to the earth, never poured onto a path where people walk.

The water purification may be done by any member alone at any time: hands, brow, npìlsi.

The sunrise practice

Each day opens in alignment. The sunrise practice is brief, so every member keeps it, and it deepens on the peak days of each moon.

The daily practice

At sunrise, stand on the earth facing east, barefoot when the season allows.
Breathe in slowly four times, once for each phase of the moon.
Speak the statement of Mikumwakàn, in Moabe or in English.
Name the day in the Kishux reckoning: Kishku ___, ___ Kishux.
Speak one intention for the day.
Close with wanishi.

On the peak days

On the day of each peak, the practice carries the intention of that peak:

Peak	After the statement, speak	Then
Isla	Isla. I carry peace into this day.	Name one person to bring peace to
Pèthakhòn	Pèthakhòn. I carry power into this day.	Name one bold step to take
Xàskwim	Xàskwim. I carry prosperity into this day.	Name one seed to plant, in the soil or in the work of your hands

On the peak day of Këkhitaholtëwakàn, the root of the three, speak after the statement: Këkhitaholtëwakàn. I carry love without measure into this day. Then name one person to love without condition.

What is named at sunrise is spoken again at the next Naxa Kishku.

Naxa Kishku, the full moon gathering

At every full moon, the whole circle gathers outdoors beneath the moon to honor the four peaks the moon carries: love without measure, the root, and the three fruits that grow from it, peace, power, and prosperity.

What is needed. Well water for purification, a fire or lantern at the center, and food from the land for sharing.

The order

The greeting. Isla, fa hu lan. The people answer: Nulamàlsi.
The purification. Each person is cleansed with water and speaks npìlsi.
The statement. The circle speaks the statement of Mikumwakàn, in Moabe and in English.
The naming of the moon. A grandmother of the Nuhàm Circle names the moon and its three peak days in the Kishux reckoning.
Këkhitaholtëwakàn. Each person who wishes speaks one act of love without measure given or received this moon. Love opens the honoring, for the three fruits grow from it.
Isla. Each person who wishes speaks one act of peace made or received on the peace day.
Pèthakhòn. Each person who wishes names one power claimed or one step taken with courage.
Xàskwim. The food is shared, and each person who wishes names one abundance received.
The people's voice. Any matter the Nuhàm Circle brings before the people is spoken, and every member may offer counsel.
The intentions. Each person sets an intention for the three peaks of the coming moon.
The closing. Òngùndëwakàn and wanishi.

Seekers are welcome at every Naxa Kishku. Here, too, members enter the covenant, as set forth in the Covenant of Alignment.

The dark moon gathering of the women

At every dark moon, Samp-oo-somow, the women of the faith gather apart, honoring the rhythm the womb shares with the moon. The dark moon is the season of the fertile dark, where every new beginning is held before it is born.

A grandmother of the Nuhàm Circle holds the gathering. Girls who reach the age of their first moon cycle are welcomed into it.

The order

The purification. Each woman is cleansed with water and speaks npìlsi.
The stillness. The circle sits in darkness and silence, with no light but a single small flame, and breathes together.
The release. Each woman who wishes speaks what she releases from the moon now ending.
The intentions. Each woman who wishes speaks what she carries into the new moon, as a seed placed in the dark soil.
The knowing of the grandmothers. The grandmother shares a teaching, a story, or a medicine of the land.
The closing. Òngùndëwakàn and wanishi.

What is spoken in the circle remains in the circle. During the same dark moon, the men of the faith keep their own gathering of stillness and intention, held by a Welteh.

The eight stations of the sun

At each of the eight stations, the community gathers at sunrise to honor the sun's place in its journey. Each station carries its own color, worn or placed at the center, and its own act.

Station	Moabe	Color	The ceremony's act
Spring equinox	Kweti Kishku	Green, àskàskw	Day One: the birth of the year and the renewal of the covenant, set forth below
Midpoint to summer	Àskàskw	Green, àskàskw	Flowers are gathered and laid at the center; each person names what is blossoming in their life
Summer solstice	Wisaw	Yellow, wisaw	The circle greets the sun at full strength and speaks gratitude for the power of light
Midpoint to autumn	Pìlkësh	Yellow, wisaw	The first fruits rite, set forth in the rites of the land
Autumn equinox	Màxk	Red, màxk	The harvest rite, set forth in the rites of the land; day and night stand in balance
Midpoint to winter	Nëmuxumës	Red, màxk	The ancestors are honored: each person speaks the names of those who walk beyond, and the Circle holds the names of grandmothers who cross over
Winter solstice	Sëk	Black, sëk	The circle keeps vigil through the longest night and greets the reborn sun at dawn
Midpoint to spring	Òp	White, òp	The whole community keeps the water purification together; seeds for the coming year are cleansed and set apart

Each station opens with the water purification and the statement, and closes with òngùndëwakàn and wanishi.

Day One: the birth of the year

Kweti Kishku, Day One, is the greatest gathering of the year. The sun enters Aries, day and night stand in balance, and the year is born.

The order

The greeting of the sun. The whole community stands facing east before sunrise and greets the rising sun in silence.
The purification. Each person is cleansed with water and speaks npìlsi.
The naming of the year. The First Grandmother names the new year: ___ Aquechque, and names the moons it holds, twelve or thirteen.
The statement. The circle speaks the statement of Mikumwakàn, in Moabe and in English.
The twelve ways. The First Grandmother speaks each of the twelve ways, and the people speak each one back.
The renewal of the covenant. Every member speaks: Nuwatun. I renew the Covenant of Alignment for this year.
The renewal of the vow. Each facilitator steps forward and speaks before the Circle: Gata lapèmkwësi.
The anointings. Any Rite of Anointing for the year takes place here.
The seating. Any grandmother newly called to the Nuhàm Circle takes her seat.
The record of the harvest. The Nuhàm Circle speaks the year's record of every gift and every use.
The first planting. Each person plants a seed in the sacred ground with an intention for the year.
The closing. Òngùndëwakàn, wanishi, and a shared feast from the land.

The rites of the land

The land feeds, and the land teaches. Three rites honor the turning of the growing year.

The seed rite. Held at the first dark moon of Òtaès Kishux, the Flower Moon, when corn and beans go into the ground.

The seeds set apart at the midpoint to spring are carried to the field.
Each person holds a seed and speaks an intention into it.
The seeds are planted in rows that follow the path of the sun, east to west.
The Lapèmkwës pours well water over the planting and speaks: What is planted with intention grows.

The first fruits rite. Held at Pìlkësh, the midpoint to autumn, when the first fruits ripen.

The first fruits of the year, green corn and the fruits of the season, are gathered.
The first portion is returned to the earth in gratitude before anyone eats.
The rest is shared among the people, the elders and children served first.

The harvest rite. Held at Màxk, the autumn equinox, at the great corn harvest.

The harvest is gathered and laid at the center of the circle.
A portion is set apart as seed for the coming year.
A portion is set apart for those in need, within the community and beyond it.
The rest is shared in a feast, and each person names one abundance of the year.
The circle speaks: Xàskwim. Wanishi.

The rites of passage

Five rites mark the great thresholds of a life. A Welteh leads each one, and every rite opens with the water purification and closes with òngùndëwakàn and wanishi.

The naming. Held at the first full moon after a child's birth.

The mother holds the child facing the moon; the family stands around them.
The mother, or the grandmother she chooses, speaks the child's name for the first time before the circle: Nteluwensi ___, spoken on the child's behalf.
A drop of well water touches the child's brow, and the circle speaks: Kilùna, "We, including you."
The child's name enters the Record, with the day of birth in the Kishux reckoning.

The coming of age. For a girl, held at the dark moon after her first moon cycle, within the women's gathering. For a boy, held at Day One in his thirteenth year, within the men's gathering.

The young one receives the teachings of their new season from the grandmothers or the Welteh.
They speak the statement of Mikumwakàn alone before the circle for the first time.
They plant a tree on the sacred ground that grows alongside them.

The union. Held at the full moon of the couple's choosing.

The two stand facing each other at the center, with their families around them.
Each pours well water over the other's hands and speaks: Npìlsi. I come to you clean.
Each speaks their own words of Këkhitaholtëwakàn, love without measure.
They plant seed together in the sacred ground as the first act of their shared life.
Where the law of the land requires a license for marriage, the couple obtains it so their union is honored in every realm.

The eldership. Held at the midpoint to winter, Nëmuxumës, for those entering the season of elders.

The elder speaks the knowing they carry: a lesson, a story, or a skill.
The young of the community receive it and speak it back.
The circle speaks: Wanishi, nuhàm, or Wanishi, nëmuxumës, "Thank you, grandmother; thank you, grandfather."

The crossing over. Held when a member walks beyond to the ancestors.

The family and circle gather around the one who crosses over, or around their memory.
Each person speaks one gift the one crossing over gives to their life.
Their name is spoken at the next Nëmuxumës and every one after, among those who walk beyond.
Where the body is laid to rest in the earth, the circle plants a tree or seed at the place, so life continues from life.

The sweat lodge

The sweat lodge on the sacred ground is a womb of the earth: the people enter the warm dark, release through heat and water, and emerge renewed. It serves Tuhwepia Kikehwakàn, the healing of the body, and is held with the greatest care.

The order

The purification. Each person is cleansed with water and speaks npìlsi.
The entering. The people enter one by one, moving in the path of the sun, and sit in a circle.
The four rounds. The facilitator pours water on the heated stones in four rounds, one for each phase of the moon: release, intention, gratitude, and the people's prayers for one another. The door opens fully between every round.
The emerging. The people emerge into the open air, drink water, and rest on the earth.
The closing. Òngùndëwakàn and wanishi.

The safety of every lodge

Before	During	After
Every participant is asked about heart conditions, pregnancy, blood pressure, recent illness, medications, and alcohol or drug use, and those at risk do not enter	Water is offered at every opening of the door	Every participant drinks water and rests until steady
Each participant drinks water before entering and eats lightly	The door opens fully between every round, and anyone may leave at any time without question	The facilitator checks on every participant before they depart
A second facilitator or trained helper stays outside the lodge at all times	Rounds remain short; heat stays moderate	Anyone who feels unwell receives care at once
First aid and a phone stand ready	Anyone who feels faint, confused, nauseous, or unwell is helped out at once	Emergency services are called without delay for confusion, fainting, chest pain, or a person who cannot cool down

No one is ever pressured to stay. The lodge is a place of release, never of endurance for its own sake; the circle honors the one who leaves early as fully as the one who remains.