Friends of Alewife Reservation (FAR)
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Evoking Devas and Spirits in the Forest
by Ellen Mass First Parish Unitarian friends of the forest circled late Sunday October 27, 2002, after church under a very old tree in the densely canopied silver maple forest at the edge of Cambridge that connects to the former Arthur D. Little properties off of Route 2 where Belmont, Arlington and Cambridge meet. As "trustees of the earth", they beckoned the devas and forest spirits with drums, horns, and shell rattlers with professional Healer, Gayle Kirk of Belmont. Spirits are evoked this time of year at the time of Samhain, Celtic New Year. All Souls Day is also celebrated. The Unitarian service was in the midst of a projected 7 story research development and parking complex plan which would remove the forest. Reverend Thomas Mikelson of Cambridge led the group in drumming, and conch shell, and shofar blowing with a large ram's horn, and brief sermon. Songs by attending poets, artists, environmentalists were sung, "For the Beauty of the Earth" and prayers from the United Nations. Stewarding words from Wendell Berry, and Barbara Deming were read. Richard Cambridge of Passims coffeehouse shared his poem written for the service, "Prayer of the Woods", "I am the heat of your hearth On the cold, winter nights; The friendly shade screening you From the summer sun. My fruit are refreshing draughts Quenching your thirst as you journey on. I am the beam that holds your house, The board of your table, The bed on which you lie, The timber that builds your boat. I am the handle of your hoe, The door of your homestead, The wood of your cradle, And the shell of your coffin. I am the bread of kindness And the flower of beauty. You who pass by- Listen to my prayer: Harm me not" In celebrating the "Web of Life" the lyrics, by Alicia Carpenter, were spoken, related to future existence of the special forest: "Of ancient dreams we are the sum; our bones link stone to star, and bind our future worlds to come with worlds that were and are. Respect the water, land and air which gave all creatures birth." Chants by the "trustees" rang out in the forest. "All over the earth, a sacred voice is calling me, All over the sky, a sacred voice is calling". At the end, participants spoke of the sun streaming through the trees, animal dens and burrows that surround them, river, stream and ponds that nourish the forest and spoke their awareness of where they stood as appointed trustees to the forest and its proximity to the surrounding Alewife Reservation, "Great spirit, go with us, now and always, And teach us to love and defend our mother the earth. Blessed Be." |