

Thanks to an invitation from The Celebration of Santa Fe, I had an opportunity earlier this month to offer a 20-minute talk about the Odyssey of the 8th Fire. It’s the first public talk I’ve offered in many a year, and it felt just right. As captured in the podcast recording linked below, I began with a classical invocation, then commenced to sing the song of this epic true tale–an ongoing saga involving all of us.
FROM THE PROGRAM –
My bio and talk description:
A delayed reaction to sweetly stinking clouds of Raid ant bomb, along with a pitiful pile of peony petals, set me on the spiraling path of my soul mission. Having kissed a chip of the Blarney Stone, I became engaged with The Gab. Visions arising from summit fasts added focus and passion. Elders offered keys. With patience, steadfastness, and spousal support, I’ve been able to weave ancient teachings, present realities, and future knowings into a shelf of non-fiction books on farming, food, and the core, enduring, illuminating knowings and mythologies of North America. My works include Legend of the Rainbow Warriors, Odyssey of the 8th Fire, Farms of Tomorrow, Deep Agroecology, and more than a dozen other titles.
About 30 years ago I was part of a group of pilgrims who walked from the Atlantic to the Pacific to Save the Planet. As you know from your own life, we were highly successful. The world has not ended…yet. No need to thank me. Survival is its own reward. Still, I can’t shake the feeling that there may be more to do. At any rate, I’d like to begin telling the story of that epic journey.
My small-treasure gift book, Native Knowings, has earned high praise from The Reading Bud. Here’s the text of the review:
“Native Knowings: Wisdom Keys for One and All by Steven McFadden is a profound and soul-stirring journey into the heart of North American indigenous wisdom. This concise book, though just 84 pages, is a treasure trove of timeless teachings that are more relevant today than ever. As I delved into its pages, I found myself deeply moved by the words of wisdom that have been passed down through generations.
“McFadden’s writing is both eloquent and accessible, making the profound teachings of the Native American elders resonate with a contemporary audience. The book masterfully weaves together teachings from various tribes, offering a rich tapestry of wisdom that speaks to the heart as well as the mind. The quotations and teachings from elders like Frank Decontie are particularly impactful, urging the reader to listen not just with their minds, but with their hearts. This approach brings a deeper, more intuitive understanding of the messages conveyed.
“One of the most compelling aspects of Native Knowings is its relevance to our current era of transition and uncertainty. The book highlights how these ancient teachings can guide us in creating a more harmonious and sustainable future. It’s a call to integrate these insights into our daily lives, for the sake of ourselves and future generations. The sense of urgency in the words of contemporary elders adds a poignant note, underscoring the importance of heeding these teachings now.
“In conclusion, Native Knowings: Wisdom Keys for One and All is a must-read for anyone seeking wisdom, guidance, or a deeper connection to the Earth and its history. McFadden has created a powerful compilation that not only educates but also inspires. It’s a book that I will undoubtedly return to, as its messages are timeless and its wisdom, inexhaustible.”
I’m pleased to announce that as of February 2023 Soul*Sparks Press has published Keys for Adept Aging. This compact volume—a true Soul*Spark—is an ideal gift for elders, as well as for all who are growing older.
Throughout history most successful and long-lived civilizations have held a place of respect for elders, and have benefited from their life wisdom. Sages are elders who have gracefully accepted the passage of time, integrated their life experience with understanding, and made the fruit of their long experience available to others.
But how does one do this? How does one grow wiser as one grows older?
By drawing from the wisdom of the ages, Keys for Adept Aging opens up a range of thoughtful pathways for cultivating soul maturity. Readers will be enriched.
“As tens of thousands of baby boomers enter their 60’s each day, this little gem is a timely addition to books on aging…it makes a great gift for the elders in your life. Highly recommended.” – Amazon reader
“This book is a real soul-searching piece of writing…this would make a fantastic gift to any older family members.” – Lesley Jones for Readers’ Favorite
This book was originally published under the title “Teach Us to Number Our Days,” That title suggested a specific religious orientation. As readers shall discover, in this small treasure the keys for adept aging are drawn from many of the world’s wisdom traditions. This little book—a true Soul*Spark—strives to faithfully acknowledge and embrace that reality.
If you do purchase a copy for yourself or as a gift, please consider rating and reviewing it on amazon. Stars and reviews make a big difference.
In this season so busy—things changing so fast—I happened upon this dark passage: the cautioning utterance of a spirit long departed:
~ Thus Spake Zarathustrua (Nietzsche)
Stark words. From one vantage as we head into 2022, it’s as if this ancient cautionary couplet were engraved in ominous foul-tempered clouds looming over our moment in history. Dangerous rumbling darkness. People in need of light. Woe indeed.
Not really a new sensation. Same as it ever was, going back through our long global history of tragedy, enslavement, rioting, rebellion, fascism, war, and staggering natural disasters. We’ve been here before. Most of us have learned that when we honestly face the inner wastelands, we can create ways to regenerate. These are matters of will and intention. Inner and outer landscapes can be seeded with flowers, fruits, and light.
Observations about light remind me of something the late Grandfather Martin M. Martinez said one day in 2004, another time when seasons were changing. We were sitting with Navajo elder Leon Secatero at the time. We were talking, drinking hot coffee and eating berry pie. Leon translated Grandfather’s words from Navajo to English as he shared something about the medicine songs he had mastered as Hataa’lii, a traditional chanter in the Navajo way.
“Many of the songs are keys to repositioning and setting right vibrations,” he said. “These are what we call the notes of the holy ones, such as the Song of the Mother Earth. Our ancestors have always told us, this is the way…It is known throughout the indigenous world that light and vibration directly connect all living beings to our environment. This first light from the stars and their vibrations are explained in our Blessingway songs.”
For me, this first light serves as a reminder of what we human beings have learned through the millennia about how we can best generate light in times of darkness. We do it through the verities, or eternal verities as they are sometimes called. Basic stuff. Honesty, caring, sharing, respect, and that ineffable attribute which some possess and which all may cultivate—grace.
When we embody and express these virtues, when we sing or chant in beauty, we add light to the world. When we add light we are traveling upon what Grandfathers Martinez and Secatero spoke of as hózhó jí, the blessingway. This is good. Very good.
In 2022 and beyond, with the seasons so busy and things changing so fast, may we all find ways to keep our hearts, minds, and feet traveling forward in beauty on the blessingway. May it be so. ~ Thus spake Steven.
Reviewed by Steve Leshin for Readers’ Favorite
Classical Considerations by Steven McFadden brings focus to the ancient Greek philosophers and culture that have influenced our modern society in the arts, mathematics, politics, and philosophy. This is accomplished by introducing the reader to the lectures of Harvard professor John H. Finley, Jr., a popular classicist who taught a generation of men at Harvard how to live through his courses, none more popular than Humanities 103 – the Great Age of Athens.
McFadden picks a good sample of Finley’s lectures beginning with a short discourse on Diogenes, the ancient Greek who wandered the streets of Athens carrying a lighted lamp in daylight. When asked why, most people assumed it was to look for an “honest man”. It was really to look for a “human being.” What this means is explained by the late professor in clear and engaging language.
Classical Considerations gives a good sampling of Professor Finley’s lectures and the reader will learn as well as appreciate his knowledge and how the study of ancient Greece is very relevant in our world of the present day. Steven McFadden gives his personal insight and how he formed a friendship with John H. Finley, Jr. after he retired in the 1970s.
I, for one, hope to look at Finley’s study of the Odyssey by Homer. I recommend this book to anyone with an appreciation of Professor Finley and to those who seek knowledge of how to be a human being through the Greek classics.
Photo of author Steven McFadden by Justin Wan, Lincoln Journal Star
I’m pleased to report that my nonfiction saga Odyssey of the 8th Fire is getting some publicity this week, in both formats: online journal and the work in progress slide-show of memes. Both of those formats for engaging the tale are currently live and freely available for readers around the world.
Columnist Cindy Lange-Kubick at our local daily newspaper, The Lincoln Journal Star, wrote and published about me and the long journey that is at the heart of the epic, nonfiction saga in our era of profound change.
“The simple reason for the walk ” as the story reports, was to find teachings that had long ago been left by the side of the trail — and to bring them forward into the present so they can be applied as we go into the future..
Part 4 of the Odyssey of the 8th Fire Memes – Days 120-160 slide show is now live and freely available on my Youtube channel. The memes at this link tell a shorthand version of the longer true, epic saga available at 8thFire.net.
In invite you to undertake this adventure, to check out the tale, and through the tale to vicariously journey from the Eastern Door at the Atlantic toward the Western Gate at the Pacific, meeting and learning from insightful elders. As the tale of true adventure unfolds, the elders freely share a wealth of wisdom teachings. I recommend viewing the slide shows on a large screen.
To give a sense of how the story is told by memes over the 230 days of travel, I’ve posted three of the memes below as a sample: Days 63, 145 and 159. If you click on the images you’ll go directly to my Youtube channel. There you can access Parts I, II, III, and IV. I’ll post the concluding Parts V and VI as they are completed in the months ahead.
To commemorate the 25th anniversary of the epic Sunbow 5 long walk from the Eastern Door at the Atlantic Ocean, to the Western Gate at the Pacific, I’m creating memes that suggest some of the teachings that were found along the side of the trail.
To make the memes more coherent, since they are part of an overall pattern, I created a 6-minute Youtube slide show, sequencing the memes and hinting at some of the experiences and teachings of the first 40 days.