The Way of Council |
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The tradition of Council is ancient. Iroquois, Plains Peoples, Pueblos and Greeks, Islamics, Quakers and twelve-step recovery programs all call Council. Those who embrace cultural differences and simple teachings gleaned from nature support the Council tradition. Many forms of Council belong to all people who gather in a circle to embrace the practice of listening and speaking from the heart.
Holding Council allows for the ritual of communicating, not just with language but with sensitivities developed only when listening and speaking can occur without interruption.
“The Way of Council” encourages dialogue with spirit: our own spirit, in a group setting. Written gently and with obvious experiential maturity, this book offers essential tools to foster that which we often speak of as “community.”
Encouraging appropriate interpersonal behaviors, “The Way of Council” is a template for hope. To question and to listen, to speak and be heard, to create an offering in a social context “for the benefit of all beings”: Council is a way to shoot through the bullshit of social stiflings and the breakdown of Democracy as we have known it by experiencing the conscious process of sharing one’s authentic self with others.
The book discusses connecting people, connecting with place, creating a ceremonial environment, legalities, integrity, trust, using a “talking piece,” the transition from the stressors of work and family life and even “small talk” to a deeper awareness of self and others. Most importantly, listening from the heart, speaking from the heart, being brief and being spontaneous are the four intentions that, when achieved, make a poetic council.
Attentive listening, without the option of interruption, somehow trains the one to “listen from the heart” and develops what Zimmerman calls “the practice of persistent self-witnessing.” Boredom and restlessness, when inescapable, as in Council, lead to curiosity about the boredom and restlessness (“Why am I uncomfortable?”), which leads to an insight (“They are telling an uncomfortable truth”), then a sense of peace. This process, when done in company, is the magic of Council: an engaging and energizing journey of self-discovery.
Startling insights, forceful confrontations, changes in eye contact or a person’s tone of voice can all change a relationship. Allowing for these changes to be acknowledged conscientiously, in Council, creates an “Interactive Field” or a heightened sense of awareness for those committed to a council. Bringing this awareness to personal relationships, family councils, councils in community, in business and in schools revolutionizes self-esteem and governances, encouraging authenticity and shared responsibility.
Embracing the rebels in the community; the saboteurs; racial, cultural and economic diversity; and encouraging listening to the silences in between the words with patience, perseverance and compassion will cast an empowered moon-rock she-spell over all who participate. Reteaching and practicing with discipline the basic communication skills of reflection, expression, discovery and consensus helps establish better understanding and balance to those suffering in relationship. To give voice to those without and ears for that which is said and left unsaid is the Way of Council.
In my opinion, the collapse of the U.S. Empire has already begun. To survive and thrive in this era, participation in Council of some form is essential to maintain the psycho-emotional well-being of humankind. Find one, create one, give thanks for the one in which you already participate. I do.
Brooke West is a peace activist who gardens and barteres eggs from her chickens with her neighbors. She doesn’t do email.
