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Dreamways of the Iroquois: Honoring the Secret Wishes of the Soul

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Last night after finishing Robert Moss's new book, Dreamways of the Iroquois: Honoring the Secret Wishes of the Soul, I fell asleep with the intention of finding a dream to prepare me for writing this review. I woke in the wee hours having dreamed of a computer screen of sorts, but with the feeling of a map, dotted with symbols representing various dream locales. The symbols reminded me of hyperlink buttons; I could focus my attention on one and instantly be in that dream locale. My night's task was to travel between two dream situations ensuring that events there were unfolding properly toward completion.

Although my dream takes its structure from today's technology, Robert Moss has reached into history, into the dreamways of the native peoples of North America, to reclaim for modern men and women the techniques and understandings of the ancients. To some, it would appear that he is sticking his white head into things that are none of his business. Nevertheless, he bravely shares his dream journeys so that those who still travel the ancient paths can recognize him as coming with the blessing of the wise ones of the past.

Dreamways is a book in four parts, and in four voices. Part One reads like an autobiography. Moss discloses more of himself than he has in his earlier dream books, with stories that may fascinate, amaze, or even shock or frighten the reader, as he shares his journey toward the day when Island Woman introduced herself in a dream.

In Part Two, he narrates the Iroquois stories of beginnings, in a voice quite distinct from the rest of the book, drawing the reader into tales of how duality entered the world, and how we must not forget that all that is dark holds a little light in it, and all that is light carries some dark. The story of Hiawatha is in itself a healing journey for those who allow themselves to enter into that dream.

Part Three carries the reader forward to the time of Island Woman. Moss has previously written about her under the guise of historical fiction, but in Dreamways of the Iroquois we hear her own voice urging each of us to return to the ways of dreaming, to recover our souls and save our world.

Finally, in Part Four, Moss speaks in the familiar teaching voice of his previous books, such as in Conscious Dreaming, and Dreamgates, outlining a path that any of us can take, to become "shamans of the breakfast table". What is new here is an emphasis on the soul loss, how bits and pieces of ourselves get left behind because of life's hurts. Our dreams carry messages from those lost parts. Moss shows us how to follow the dream clues back to our selves, so we can become whole and healthy again.

If you are interested simply in astonishing and vivid storytelling, the originality of Robert Moss's remarkable personal story is given in all its splendour in this new book. Characters he has met in both dreaming and waking life are brought to life with vibrance and dynamism, as are the startling series of occurrences in Moss' life, and the retelling of ancient Iroquois legends.

If you are interested in this particular area of study - of aboriginal or Iroquois dreaming practices - the scholarship is excellent, and the bibliography alone worth the price of admission.

In Moss' work, dreams are a rich world of not only imagery, but communication of knowledge - far far beyond the limited set of Freudian symbols, or the mere scumble of detritus dreams are commonly considered to be.

As a teacher of techniques to encourage dream awareness, Moss is accessible, fun, and thoroughly helpful. While I've kept a dream journal for some 10 or 15 years, it is only from working with Moss' suggestions, developed through years of workshops, that I've begun to really get some sense of more constructive things I could be doing with the riches of insights and communications at my disposal every night.

I know already this will be one of those lifetime companion books.

"We will bring you our best words," Hazel Dean-John, Seneca linguist, told Robert Moss on his quest for the meaning of the energy and power surging through his personal dreams of the Iroquois - and in particular of Island Woman - who were nightly testing him, bringing him ancient words and a vision for a greater quest of spirit and soul.

In DREAMWAYS OF THE IROQUOIS Robert Moss reaches deep into the dreams that eventually led him to the New York frontier and then into the ancient dreamways of the first people, back again and again to their own story of Sky Woman and the warring twins and to the powerful story of Hiawatha. In re-telling these stories - through his own vision and narrative genius - Robert brings through the poetry and refines it for all audiences. He unravels the real magic of these ancient stories - a path for teaching the connection between dreaming and soul remembering.

Like the Speaker who must put his or her head into the Sky World and look into the mirror with Hiawatha to see the radiant face of the guide in order to understand the story, each reader - each dreamer - must make the ancient stories their own and find their own sacred story in the inner meaning and in their own de-coding of the words. Robert repeats the admonition of a Yaminahua shaman - that if you try to fly in nonordinary reality with only ordinary words, you'll crash; you need fresh words - your own words - to make a story live inside you and reveal its message.

Then - in the manner of the best story-teller with his own fresh words - Robert brings the dreamer tools pulled from the mythic stories and from the teachings of Island Woman, whose wisdom permeates her dreambook/soulbook. These tools - if used properly - bring each of us into a deeper connection between dreaming and healing and recall us to the memory of our own soul's origin and destiny. We, too, can, like the mythic hero, survive our own conflicts and use their lessons to reach out to cleanse and heal those whose minds have become darkened and confused. "The Peacemaker's mission," Robert reminds us, "is for all people" - for now as well as then. The "good word" is that "we all are related, and we must treat everyone and everything as our kin."

Robert gives us some simple tools for working with a lightning dream technique - the Shaman at the Breakfast Table -to get at the guts of a dream. Then he gives us direction for finding our own dream-path for entertaining and honoring the spirits, for navigating waking and sleeping dreams, for bringing dreams to those who need them and for having fun with dreams in order to get at their meaning - turning them into poems, songs, stories, and theater - all devices for exploring, honoring, and requickening the energy and life of a dream.

Ultimately Robert Moss would like to see each of us find our personal myth in his marvelous re-telling of the ancient Iroquois stories of creation, soul loss, and soul remembering and join him in a world-dream where we are all part of a society of dreamers where dreams are valued and celebrated. In this world, we use the real world of dreams as tools for living, for finding soul and spirit in our daily lives, and for finding greater tools for healing ourselves and our planet. Then and only then do we find the origin and purpose of our lives.

I am glad I live in this time,knowledge is so accessible. For me this book is a gem of insight and information on how the Iroquois ( and really many other Native tribes) dreamed, how it was incorporated into their daily lives and how this is relevant to us now~whatever culture we are in. Robert Moss presents this all in a manner that is fitting of a master storyteller, with humor laced throughout. This is not a dry esoteric read,it is quick and lively and it kept my attention well. While reading the ancient story of Hiawatha I lost track of time. Did I read for 1 hour, or 1000 years...this book carries with it a transportive quality. I have strong dreams, including dreams of Native people and their stories. I have ancestors that are Native, and I would love to see more of us learning how to use the gifts and tools that our ancestors used. It is vital we reclaim what has always been true and only recently forgotten. At this point in my life I do not need to read from another 'expert' on how to live and what is truth. I do need to learn and share with others what is true to them, experientially, and Robert Moss accomplishes this in Dreamways of the Iroquois. He opens his heart and shares his extra ordinary experiences. So many books are a slightly different version of things popular at the time, I get bored. This truly is a book of fresh words...perfect for Spring!

Robert Moss's deep experience in the dreamscape is unlike any other shaman-writer in the West. As in all his books, this one shows the mark of a real shaman. In Dreamways of the Iroquois, Moss is more revealing about himself even than in his previous books. In spite of this personal tone, the book is scholarly at times. Interspersed with a retelling of the ancient myths of the Iroquois and Huron people, the children of Aataensic, is Moss'initiation by Island Woman, an Iroquois guide who leads him into the wisdom of her ancient people. One of the book's most potent message is that dreams reveal the real desires of the soul and should be honoured. There's little instruction here on how to work with dreams (one chapter does it) as the book is more of an exposé and a manifesto for the rebuilding of a dreaming society. I recommend all Moss's books to people interested in dreamwork as they are all very deep and rewarding.

The Iroquois believed that dreams are the language of the soul. Dreams express the soul's desires. They honored and cherished their dreams.

In this remarkable book, Robert Moss creates a rich tapestry of Iroquois history and his own dreaming experiences. He opens those ancient dreamways to contemporary dreamers and invites us to honor and cherish our own dreams.

He includes practical guidance and steps for exploring dreams, using lightning dreamwork, dream re-entry and dream theater. There is guidance for bringing a helpful dream to someone in need. Like the Iroquois scout, we can scout possible futures or locate and reclaim lost vital soul energy that has gone missing because of trauma or heartache.

Wonderful personal stories are shared to illustrate teachings and to open the ways so that we might re-member the truth the Iroquois knew, "The dreamworld is the Real World."

I thoroughly enjoyed "Dreaming with the Iroquois". I learned so much, the history component and the bibliography were amazing. It really felt like a labor of love for Robert Moss as he weaved the tapestry of his life into the book. It truly was an adventure, I felt immersed in the Native Culture.

I had the opportunity to be at the workshop when the woman from the turtle clan came. I was not new to dreaming but I was new to working with my dreams in this way. So innocently I did not realize the full extent of this experience until I read this book. I knew my life and dream life had shifted after that workshop and now I know why. The ancient dreamways seemed to open for me and my own dream life became more lucid and colorful.
I finished this book with a new level of understanding of the Native American Dream Life and the ways in which I can work with my own dreams. I will refer to it often.

I truly enjoyed this book! Island Woman brings through ancient teachings that are so right for today."The Dreaming" is strong & straight forward with the techniques that are provided in the book. "The Dreaming" is a way of healing ourselves to soul wholeness, it's what we come to learn by reading this book. There is much for those new to dream work as well as for seasoned dreamers. The honoring that is given to the Native First Peoples is beautiful to see. I trust we will hear more from Island Woman. A must read for dreamers & earthkeepers. Karen Silverstein

This wonderful book can be read by different readers in many different ways: as an advanced guide for those on an path of integrating active dreamwork into their everyday lives, as an inspiration to tap deeper into the wellsprings of the heart and the wisdom of the soul, and (most especially to this reader) as a thrilling re-telling of the marvelous, mysterious ancient Iroquois myths. As Moss recounts these stories, "Falling Woman Creates a World," "The Battle of the Twins," and "Hiawatha's Mirror" are classics among cross-cultural myths and folktales from around the world.

Robert Moss writes with energy, passion, and from the depths of his personal experiences. In his writing and teaching, Moss has explored, developed and expanded new ways to apply the spiritual teachings of many different cultures to the practice of dreamwork in contemporary life. DREAMWAYS OF THE IROQUOIS moves Moss's work to a new level of understanding, awareness and synthesis.

In this delightful book Robert Moss recounts how he began dreaming in a language which turned out to be an earlier form of Mohawk Iroquois, and how he was led, through further dreams and a series of synchronicities, to learn more about the central importance of dreaming in their native culture. Robert shares with the reader how through painstaking work, he learnt to read Mohawk texts, and how with the help of `Island Woman', he was encouraged to birth these dreaming skills in our modern society.

With biographical excerpts from his extraordinary life combined with the knowledge inherent in the Mohawk Iroquois tradition and legends, it is bursting with spiritual life and energy.

This book has never been more relevant to this day and this time, when we have lost our ability to dream true. It reveals how we can become reacquainted with our inner life by honouring our dreams and allowing then to inform, inspire and guide us, and reconnect us to our soul purpose and heart's desire.

Robert brings us many ways to kick-start the dreaming process, and discover our inner passion. Highly recommended!