The Way of the Wise Woman: A Deeper Dive into the Awakening of the Mother Spirit (Red Hawk)

One must leave the mind and all of its knowledge at the gate of the Mother Spirit, which dwells in the present only and is a still field of vibratory awareness. We then enter into completely unknown territory. Awareness of the breath is an objective feedback mechanism that lets us know when we are present and awake in the body. The most fundamental, primal, and ancient of all longings is to return to the Mother, which is stillness. Active stillness is a masculine move that involves the active movement of attention from the head-brain into the body that allows the inner feminine energy to emerge. When one engages active stillness, thoughts begin to lose some of their power over us. There are gaps between thoughts that we can then begin to investigate. Two secret keys to awakening the feminine are forgiveness and apologies. In embracing the practice of active stillness, we embrace life and death as one and the same. One returns to the breath over and over, as one returns to the mother. The feminization of inner work is considered through Red Hawk’s poetry. Red Hawk is the author of 12 books, including The Way of the Wise Woman, Self Remembering, Self Observation, and Return to the Mother. He held the Alfred Hodder Fellowship in the Humanities at Princeton University in 1991-1992. He was a finalist for the Walt Whitman award of the Academy of American Poets and a runner-up for the Paterson Poetry Prize.