NAFPS Forum

General => Frauds => Topic started by: educatedindian on March 11, 2006, 05:33:50 pm

Title: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: educatedindian on March 11, 2006, 05:33:50 pm
Once again, thanks to Ingeborg. She found this on a German website that puts out warnings on frauds. Be warned, it's gruesome reading.

-----
www.agpf.de/lightningbear.htm
The site is called AGPF - Action for Mental and Psychic Freedom which sounds a bit off, but it is maintained by one person by the name of Ingo Heinemann who does quite a lot of research re religious frauds and moneymakers, but shamans
are a bit out of his usual path - we get numerous others, persons, cults, sects, etc with which he has more than enough to do.

Here's what he published:

"Re: You Listing of Me!
Date Jan 17, 2002 11:50:26
From: pushican@t-online.de (Lightning Bear)
To: Ingo.Heinemann@t-online.de

Dear Sir,
I have just recently seen your listing of me on your site. I had it translated and must tell you there are many mistakes in the information. If you wish to
be fair and accurate, please feel free to contact me.
I also wish to thank you for thinking that I am worthy enough to be list [sic] on the same page as the Dalai Lama. I have just resently [sic[ return [sic] from a congress with his Holiness. It was a great honor for me to be chose [sic] as a delegate and to meet and work with this great man.
Respectfully
Lightning Bear

Source: Westfalenpost, Nov 6, 2000
by Helmit Ulrich Hagen in Herdecke
They were looking for healing and went through hell. Two women have been sadistically mistreated by an Indian who sometimes callshimself 'Pushican'
and 'Lightning Bear'. The Hagen court therefore sentenced him to one year and six months of prison on probation.
The leaflet at the court's door in factread 'Lightning bear', although the defendant's real name is John Cobbert. The 53-year-old Comanche appeared in
court with a trapper's hat to which he had fitted eagle feathers. Whenever a photographer came too close, he pulled his hat deep over his face.
The accusations against the esoterical shaman were dealt with behind closed doors. The public even was closed out by Judge Michael Braas when reading the accusations. Thus neither the many journalists nor the 'fan community' got to know the details regarding the unsavoury accusations.
As we reported, "Pushican" had whipped and tortured women during shamanic seminars. They were meant to "become one again with Creator". "Lightning Bear" has meanwhile left the esoteric terrain. In the next future, he will apply for social security benefits.

Source: Westfälische Rundschau, Nov 6, 2000
Bodily Injury: Shaman got off with probation
Hagen: A so-called shaman (53) has been sentenced to probation in a trial for dangerous bodily injury in a trial by the court of Hagen yesterday. The man, born as John Colbert in Texas and calling himself "Lightning Bear" or "Pushikan" works as a "spiritual teacher" according to his homepage, in accordance with his Indian descent, he leads workshops with "sweatlodges", on
"female wisdom", on "making shamanic masks" and offers "crystal treatment" and teaches "ways of healing".
Many women accepted the offers of theglobetrotter living in Germany. There were also female fans coming to the trial. Others had brought him there.
"Pushikan" is said to have mistreated them gravely both physically and mentally. This is at least what the judges found to be true in two cases who
closed out the public due to the traumatic nature of the experience for the women involved.
"Sexual motivations were not the subject of this trial and also have not been found", sayd Michael Brass, chief judge at the court. It was just the announcement of the sentence - one year and six months for dangerous bodily injury in two cases on probation - and the explanation of the verdict were allowed to be public. The judge also described the state of health of the man from whom several women hoped to receive healing: the court in Hagen saw a seriously ill man.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: educatedindian on March 11, 2006, 05:35:26 pm
Pt 2
Source: Westfälische Rundschau, Nov 7, 2000

Seriously ill man spared victims further pain
Hagen (joe.): No trace of a charisma - far more marked by his severe illness, the "shaman" Lightning Bear appeared in court. He was accused of severe bodily injury in seven cases, for two of them he received one year and six months on probation. The man aged 53 had been kept in detention awaiting trial two years ago.
During this time, doctors found him suffering from several diseases. He had an operation of both lobes of the lung, he has heart problems, and suffers from allergies against many food items. There were infarcts, stroke and breath problems mentioned in court, too.
The Texan, belonging to the Comanche tribe according to his own statement, did not say much. He confessed a great part of the accusations which the judge evaluated as lessening the sentence, because he spared the victims further pain. The public had been closed out right at the beginning of the trial, but even so it was a relief for the female witnesses who did not have to relive their experience once again.
For their experience must have been both extremely painful physically as mentally cruel. The judge mentioned that the court must not forget that the women had agreed to being treated that way by the "shaman" due to the alleged nature of healing that was ascribed to his acts. However, one of the witnesses was a minor at the time the crimes took place in September 1996, and the trust of the women had been abused vastly. Even though no details were revealed in order to protect the victims it was evident that at least one of the women received severe injuries in the genital region by the "healing" from which she is suffering still today.
[...]
The court could not, however, give much hope to the witnesses regarding a compensation, even if they took the defendant to court again. The "shaman" is divorced and has four children aged between 25 years and 13 months and also
according to his statement "does not do anything presently". He said he lived from savings. When these will be used up, he and his fiancee together with their infant must apply for social security benefits, he said. His lawyer immediately reacted to this with the petition to have his bill paid for under
the regulation of a public mandate.

Source: Westfälische Rundschau, Oct 18, 2000

"Shaman" said to have mistreated young woman: sexual motivation? by Dagmar Sticht
Hagen: A trial for bodily injury in several cases with a most unusual and sadistic sounding sexual components will take place at the court of Hagen. An alleged shaman and Comanche is accused of dangerous bodily injury in seven cases.
The man who claims the titles of a reverend and a Doctor is said to have sewed up the vagina of a woman in her early 20ies without anaesthitization. This treatment was said to aim at her being able to become a virgin again, to overcome pain and anguish, and to become a true tool of creator. This the young woman told WR three years ago when she made the case public. In another incident, the 53-year-old man is said to have whipped her in order for her to find herself and overcome pain. The alleged sites of the crime are the towns of Pinneberg [translator's note: about 15 kms from Hamburg] and an esoterica centre in the town of Herdecke, where the man lives in between trips to
Australia.
This centre has also been the site of the "Earth Days" in June 1997 where the 53-year-old shaman was invited to participate by a Working Circle on
Bio-regionalism situated in the town of Hagen for both of which he also did "sweatlodge seminars" for women especially. Still today, the organisation
"Earth Wisdom", for which the man continues to do "teaching events", offers sweatlodges.
[...]"

---     www.paradise-healingproject.com
(site from Germany) mentions an LB "from Hanau", another German town but situated in very good
distance from the towns of Hagen and Herdecke which are in the industrious Rhine region, whereas Hanau is in the south."
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: educatedindian on March 12, 2006, 02:42:10 am
More on Colbert. Some of this gets so bizarre, you just can't make this up. His yahoo profile.
http://profiles.yahoo.com/pushican
"Yahoo! ID: pushican Real Name: ?  Nickname: ?  Location: ?  Age: 56 Marital Status: No Answer Sex: Male Occupation: Director /Stunt Co-ordinator"

His profile from a nudist dating site:
http://64.233.179.104/search?q=cache:zacHOr1H2E0J:www.nudistfriends.com/user%3Fpushican+pushican&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=2
"Username pushican ?
Located in Geissen, NA, Germany
I am Man
I am looking for Friends and more
Prefer my match within United Kingdom
Annual income Please ask me
Last logged in ? visible to gold members only ?
A BRIEF SKETCH OF ME
Age 57
Height 6'5" (195.6 cm)
My ethnicity Native American
Marital status Divorced
Have children? Yes, they live away from home
Body type Average
My hair Black
My eyes Blue
Smoking? Regularly
Drinking? Drink Occasionally
Education PhD./Post Doctoral
My religious beliefs Other
About me I am interested in many of life's great things and making new friends, I am hopeing to make many new friends and exploreing all aspects of life. Though I live in Germany, I speak primarily English as my German is not to good. I have no hangups and I am very uninhibited. I will try anything at least once and if I like it will continue. To me there is nothing wrong between 2 or more people as long as there is no one being forced. There is nothing that can shock me.
MY MATCH/FRIEND - AN OUTLINE
Gender ? Woman
Age ? From 20 to 60 ?
Height ? From 4'5" (134.6 cm) to 6'5" (195.6 cm)"

His profile/resume at a moviemaking site, including photo. My instinct is he's not NDN at all.
http://www.ukscreen.com/crew/pushican
"Lightning Bear ? Assistant Director, Director, Special Effects Co-Ordinator, Stunt Person ?
About: ? I have been in the Industry working on both sides of the Camera. I started doing Stunts on the Virginian and moved to stunt coordinating and then to 2nd Unit Directing. I have also worked as a 1st AD. I enjoy working in the Industry, with all the new innovations and techniques.
eMail: ? [Click to Contact] ?
Mobile: ? 49-175-663-1177 ?
Address: ? Steinheimer Str. 67
Hanau 63450 HessenGermany
Company: ? Freelance ?
Date of Birth: ? 1947-10-07 ?
Experience: ? 35 yrs ?
Languages: ? English, Japanese ?
Training and Skills ?
Formal Training: ? See Resume
Other Skills: ? See Resume ?
Credits ?
Type Production Name Company Role Year
Feature Film ? Search for Spock - Star Trek ? Paramount ? Stunts ? 1984 ?
Feature Film ? Black Rain ? Paramont Pictures ? Stunts ? 1989 ?
Feature Film ? Dust ? ENA Films ? SFX Supervisior-Stunt Double-Stunt Coordinator ? 2000 ?
TV ? Helicops ? Polyphon ? SFX Director-Stand By 2nd Unit Director ? 2000 ?
Feature Film ? Gebuetig ? Cult Films ? Actor ? 2001 ?
Feature Film ? The Pianist ? R.P. Productions ? Special Effects Advisor ? 2002 ?
Feature Film ? Bad Blood ? Small Acorn Productions ? Co-director/Stunt Co-ordinator ? 2003" ?

http://72.14.203.104/search?q=cache:0YAb6-DiOtsJ:www.wolfcrystalspirit.com/Aquietmeditation.pdf+pushican&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=29
His plans for a ceremony selling site in Mexico.
"QUIET MEDITATION CENTRE....TO PARTAKE IN A “VISION QUEST??? TO RELAX & ENJOY A VACATION AWAY FROM CIVILISATION....we can have spirit healing, crystal healing, herbal healing, soul healing, Reiki healing, and psychic guidance on our future path in life. Where we can go to a “sweat lodge??? if we want to and purify our mind, body and spirit....Francis “Grey Wolf??? Billington....THE GATHERING May New Moon 2005 First “sweat lodge??? ceremony. It is hoped to have two Native American Medicine men to perform the ceremonies. We will do four rounds for mind, body and soul purification. We will also have drumming and “Fire Dance??? followed by talking stick....situated near Puerto Escondido approximately 12 hours drive from Mexico City and can be reached by Air or Bus. Nearest airport is Puerto Escondido....I have been contacting friends who I know would share my vision. One such friend is Pushican (Lightning Bear) who is from the Comanche Nation.... THESE ARE LIGHTNING BEARS IDEAS ? (spelling is American English). CENTER for CULTURAL EXCHANGE and COMMUNITY....Living together includes all relationships, those between human beings (both polygamous and monogamous....there will be a forum of music, meditation and other forms of ceremonies and rituals....Solutions for aspect’s of today’s global and human crises are found with ecological research, in the ancient knowledge of all indigenous people, from parts of the New Age movement, from the work of many individual scientists, artists, alternative research project and research laboratories around the world....Teaching circles, workshops, lectures and discussion groups....SPIRIT OF YOUTH FESTIVAL Workshops will include Overtone Chanting, Drumming, Demonstrations of Clairvoyants, Dream Therapy, Complimentary Therapies, Campers and RV’s."

The message board about the center/
http://www.paradise-healingproject.com/2f/modules.php?name=News

And the most interesting find is that Pushican is a Shoshoni name.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: Barnaby_McEwan on March 12, 2006, 08:08:53 am
How did this sicko get away with 18 months' probation? In Britain, assuming he wasn't judged by the court to be insane, he'd have been looking at several years inside for sexual assault and grievous bodily harm, segregation from the other prisoners for his own safety, and being listed as a sex offender on release.

Quote
I am looking for Friends and more  
Prefer my match within United Kingdom


Stay away, scumbag!

Photos, including an alarming one of him with his arm around a teenage actress. (http://www.geocities.com/bbmoviephotos/gallery.htm)

Another , older, photo. Silly costume. (http://www.nerf-herders-anonymous.net/LightningBear.html)
Title: Pushican/Lightning Bear and a Plea to Native Americans
Post by: sylvia on September 27, 2007, 07:31:06 pm
Hi everyone,

I hope it's okay for me to post here, even though I'm not Native American. I'm a native German, now living in the US. I found this forum by googling Pushican/Lightning Bear and read about him in your "Frauds" segment (http://www.newagefraud.org/smf/index.php?topic=614.0 (http://www.newagefraud.org/smf/index.php?topic=614.0).

I know (or used to know) this man personally and thought you might be interested to learn about the viewpoint from the other side of the fence, from one of the people who believe(d) in him and other fraudulent NA "teachers."

Here's my personal experience with Lightning Bear aka John Colbert:

I met Lightning Bear first at a spiritual conference in Duesseldorf, Germany, where he gave a lecture on NA beliefs and spirituality. Among the other speakers was Craig Carpenter, who professes to be the "ambassador" of the Hopi (I don't know if that's true, but it lent the whole event definite credibility).

I was fascinated by Lightning Bear and his teachings and began attending workshops with him, in which he talked about traditional NA living, women's moontime traditions, etc.

At those workshops, I met some of his German "students"... he said he was a spiritual teacher who was taking on a limited number of students. "Applying" for this involved the traditional gift of tobacco; being a student wouldn't cost anything in itself, but students were expected to attend at least some of his workshops and lectures, which, of course, required a fee.

He handed out papers to his students, with exercises that were supposed to help us connect with nature and the Great Spirit -- e.g., finding your power spot, do a naked full moon walk, etc. He also offered "NA initiation rituals," among them healing ceremonies, a ceremony to make a commitment to serve the Great Spirit, a puberty ceremony, and so forth.

The "commitment ceremony" was the first one (I never got any further). I haven't talked about this with many people, but I figured you should know what was going on in these rituals. He didn't talk about what would be going on in the ceremony ahead of time; he said those ceremonies were sacred (and secret) and should never be divulged to "outsiders."

Per Lightning Bear's instructions, I had to shave off my pubic hair in advance of the ceremony and "purify" myself by fasting for a day and doing a ceremonial bath. When I got to his place, he led me into a room with candles, incense and a blanket on the floor. I had to undress and lie down on the blanket. He smudged the room and both of us with sage and asked the Great Spirit to approve of this ceremony. Then he said he would "mark" me with the marks of the Great Spirit -- which was done by lightly scratching my breasts with an eagle's talon and a bear claw. Thereby, he said, I would be initiated into the Bear Clan (which he supposedly was a part of), and whenever I needed help, I should touch the scratch and call on the bear, my new totem. It hurt a little, but he had talked so much about sacred NA rituals in his workshops (the Sun Dance, etc.), and it seemed many of them involved great pain, so I wasn't too worried about it. He made me speak after him, making a firm commitment to the Great Spirit to serve Him and His cause. And that was pretty much it.

On the way home, I felt strange. On the one hand, I felt elated about my commitment to the Creator, on the other -- due to past experiences with sexual harassment -- I was wondering if this had been a real NA ceremony or if he had just made it up. However, since the whole ritual hadn't felt like there was anything sexual to it (he didn't touch me, except with the talon and bear claw), I consoled myself thinking that it was probably OK. My notion was reinforced when only a few days later, I started receiving prophetic dreams and "messages from Spirit," often concerning total strangers, that proved correct every time.

The atrocities you read about in the German newspaper clippings were part of Lightning Bear's "puberty ceremony," by the way. He said in his teachings that -- unlike indigenous peoples -- white Westerners didn't have any rites of passage anymore, and thus women and men had lost their way, living their whole lives in confusion as to their identity and purpose. Through a puberty ritual, this rite of passage could be regained and positively influence one's life. He didn't say what that ceremony involved, though.

When I heard much later, after he'd been arrested, that he'd pierced his students genitals and sewn shut their vaginas, I was mortified. And that was pretty much the end of my "apprenticeship." End of story.

However, many of his female students actually stuck with him and defended him. They said the "white people" just didn't understand the NA ways, and that the "puberty ceremony" had liberated them and made them feel stronger than ever.

You're probably laughing your butts off about the naivety of the dumb Germans. And rightfully so, at least in part.

But I want to give you an idea how something like this can happen. It is true that Germans (and many white Americans, too) seem to have a strong liking for the Native American belief system, and I'm certainly one of them.

Some posters here seem very frustrated that their faith "is being taken away from them." They suggest that European paganism provides its own versatile belief systems, and people should adhere to one of those instead of NA beliefs.

Frankly, that saddens me. I do understand the bitterness of many NAs due to the past (and ongoing) injustices committed by white people. And I completely agree that NA beliefs have been "adopted" and warped beyond recognition by self-appointed New Age gurus and fraudulent "Native American shamans."

On the other hand, shouldn't everyone be able to choose their own beliefs? Anyone, for example, can convert to Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, and so forth. Why shouldn't that be possible with the Native American ways?

Personally, for me European paganism doesn't hold much interest. There are too many gods and goddesses, elaborate rituals with dozens of props (candles, herbs, chalices, cauldrons, ritual knives, etc, etc), and lots of what I would call "ceremonial hocus pocus." In comparison, the Native American way is beautifully simple and straight-forward.

Another thing is that European paganism was almost wiped out through the Inquisition. What you see today in the pagan cults is at the most a couple of hundred years old, and often the invention of "modern people." For example, the principles of Wicca were put down by Gerald Gardner in 1954, and no one has been able to prove that what he established are really traditional teachings. In contrast, again, Native Americans have had their knowledge and ceremonies for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. And even though much of it was suppressed and rooted out by the white settlers, it seems that some or much of the old wisdom is still there.

I think in these times of political and economic unrest and uncertainty, Peak Oil, earth changes, pollution, etc., millions of people are waking up to the fact that our materialistic, capitalist lifestyle is not sustainable in the long run. And they're looking for something better, something that reconnects them with Mother Earth and the simpler life of the ancestors.

I know how you guys feel about this, but when you hear those stories of simpler times, when women were revered as sacred and elders were respected and listened to, when a woman's moontime was viewed as a time of great power instead of a "curse" (as it has been in much of the Western world), when the connection with nature and the Creator were not just reserved for church on Sundays, but an integral part of daily life,  you can't help being intrigued. And I know many, many people who feel the same way.

The only people alive today who still represent this kind of life are the Amish and indigenous peoples. So that's where people look to, to find a new (or old, if you will) identity. And they ARE willing to be taught. Unfortunately, there are so many quacks and charlatans out there, and so little known about the true NA ways, that it's very easy to fall prey to someone like Grey Wolf and Pushican.

I do hope that there might come a time where Native Americans will be able to take the lead and start teaching white people in the old ways -- how to live in community instead of competing in the modern rat race, how to peacefully coexist with nature instead of raping and pillaging her, and how to make the world a better place.

I'm telling you, the time is near, and so many people are ready; they're just confused and don't know whom to believe and whom to listen to. What's lacking is authentic teachings. You NAFPS people could do great things for mankind, if you would only set your pain aside and step up to the plate. The world is ready for you.
Title: Re: Pushican/Lightning Bear and a Plea to Native Americans
Post by: debbieredbear on September 27, 2007, 10:09:33 pm
Sylvia,

You cannot convert to Native American religions because you have to be a part of the culture to practice them. They are cultural specific. Unlike Wicca and Chrisitianity which can be seperated from culture. Not to hurt nyour feelings but I doubt anyone hear wants to be a grand guru to a bunch of European pagans. Further, I think many, if not most,  Indian  people would find the notion of teaching a bunch of non-Indian people Native spiritual ways offensive. Without the cultural connection, the ceremonies lose much of their meaning.
Title: Re: Pushican/Lightning Bear and a Plea to Native Americans
Post by: sylvia on September 27, 2007, 11:26:45 pm
Thanks for your reply, Debbie.

I don't know, maybe there's a misunderstanding what I meant, or maybe I just don't get it. I think most people who are looking to Native American traditions are not just interested in the spiritual teachings, but also in the culture and the way of living.

In fact, I think the culture -- even without the spiritual aspects -- is just as fascinating. From what I've heard (correct me if I'm wrong), Natives used to live in very close-knit communities where sharing duties and helping each other was important. An Abenaki woman I know -- Nanatasis Bluto-Delventhal -- mentioned once that such a thing as battered women or child molestation would have been unthinkable in the old days; she said word would have gotten around really fast, and the perp would have been cast out of the tribe or even killed.

I think we need these (cultural) teachings as much as the spiritual ones. IMO, the global economic crash that's in the making, as well as the soon-to-come energy crisis, among other things, will eventually make it necessary that we start living in small "tribes" again, growing vegetables locally and hunting our own meat. And I'm pretty convinced that those natives who still know how to live in the traditional way, will be much better off than the rest of us. I just think that Native Americans could be our greatest teachers, and maybe, in the end when civilization as we know it goes down the drain (I did read the Hopi prophecies), our only salvation. How can they refuse to help? Wouldn't the Creator wish for ALL people to "get back on track" and live in harmony with nature, like they were supposed to?
Title: Re: Pushican/Lightning Bear and a Plea to Native Americans
Post by: Kaylee on September 27, 2007, 11:40:06 pm
Hi Sylvia,

Wow.  It sounds like a lot has happened to you recently.  Congratulations on having the courage to leave when you saw that the leader was a fraud and a criminal.  I've been thinking recently that we could use a separate survivor's forum.  I'll let you know if I actually go through with that.  There's a real and predictable pattern to how we heal as survivors of this kind of mind f@#$.  Its a lot more complex than just recognizing the lie.  Really, I think being ready to take action around stopping these scams is the last step for many people.  I've found this to be true for myself.

I also joined my sham-shaman group/cult because I had a sincere desire for more authentic spirituality.  Like you, I was pre-programed to believe that European religion only had hierarchy and fabrications to offer me.  I was also exposed to images of Native folks being very different than that, so I was cognitively set up to believe that my cult leader was pure in intention and somehow more connected to the earth.

This was/is the hardest part for me:  Through my work with Jasmine, I devoted my life to a Feminine form of God, which I call Mother.  (Mother, BTW is derived from an old German word, maude.  So is earth- from eard.  So these are purely European words.  NA folks have their own words for God.  A lot of these are nearly impossible for us Europeans to pronounce.  I think maybe Mom did that on purpose.  The Christian tradition that I was raised in calls God Father or Abba, which means Daddy.  So calling a feminine God Mother is also from my own European tradition.)  Jasmine was false, but my devotion to Mother was sincere.  Here's the rub.  Although my faith is sincere, everything that I learned about how to express that faith is based in lies.  It was really hard for me to separate those lies from the truth that is my deeper faith.  I was confusing faith with dependancy on false religion.

It is absolutely possible for us to reclaim our rightful heritage as Indigenous Europeans. One of the things that we can learn from our Native American neighbors is how to recognize that real faith can be woven into the fabric of how we live our lives and recognize our heritage.  I agree that Wiccan, an other new-aged-BS-peagan religions, are too full of sh!t to satisfy our need for community.  Modern Christianity is a result of what the rape of our own ancient traditions and is also too patriartical to ring true to me.  But our European traditions never disappeared completely.  A lot of them can be found hiding in Christian disguises. 

Look at how we treat people when they come into our homes.  My family always offered friends "a drink" when they came in the door.  Even if someone was an uneasy friend, offering a drink was my parents way of declaring their intentions to make them welcome.  It was their ritual.  Now its mine, although I tend to offer tea instead of alcohol.  This tradition didn't come from no-where.  It is our heritage, even if no-one talks about it this way.  We don't need to reclaim it because it is already here.

Look at the traditions around how we prepare meals with each other.  In my community, we all know that if we are allowed to help in chopping vegetables or preparing salad at someone else's party, that we are being honored as special friend.  Its an honor to be allowed to complete these menial tasks at a party because it allows us to take part in the ritual of meal preparation.  The only thing keeping this tradition from being sacred is our ability to be intentional in it.  To rephrase, if we recognized that this is our sacred euro-american tradition, we can rediscover our own sacred heritage.

When I take time in nature, and re-discover my own sense of interconnectedness, I am living my faith.  When I take action to right wrongs in my community, even small actions like picking up a piece of litter, I'm living my faith.  I have a deep spiritual life because I recognize my everyday actions to be sacred.

We Europeans buy into the big lie when we think that we have to look outside of our own lives to find spirit.  Our lives are filled with spirit, just as much as those of NA or asian Buddists.  We don't need to borrow from the beliefs of other peoples.  We have our own.

Yes, there are a lot of white folks out there studying Buddhism and Hinduism,  etc...  The truth is that American Yoga is nothing like the Indian practice of Yoga and American meditation is barely similar to Buddism, which is a highly complex religion.  These religions have also been bastardized by American practitioners and people who practice these faiths as part of their heritage are not happy about it.  Look up the Dali Lama's perspective on the issue.  He clearly instructs Americans to follow our own faith practices, not adapt his. 

One thing you cannot ignore is that religions like Buddism and Hinduism have home lands were they are practiced by millions of people.  Because of this, they are not very threatened by us white folks playing make-believe with them.  Its not a threat and they don't need to react defensively.  They have the luxury of allowing things to be as they are and not risking that their faith will be wiped from the face of the earth.  That's not an paranoid statement.  There are dozens, if not hundreds of faith practices that are completely lost today.  That's really sad.

I do hope that we, as Euro-Americans, can learn from the Native folks in our communities, but first we need to lift the veil of thousands of years of hierarchy and SEE clearly the frame from which we view the world.  Then we can have a real conversation.

If you are interested in learning more about this, I would like to suggest reading about the sociological theory behind racism and feminism.  Its really cool stuff.  Also, if you are looking for a safe place to discover a woman's spirituality, I can very enthusiastically suggest the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival or other woman's festivals.  Its a great place to go to heal as a woman and raise your consciousness at the same time.


Edited to add:  I see you posted again while I was writing this.  You should also be aware that fear about the "end of the world" is a very normal part of coming out of cult-think.  I went through it.  My friends went through it.  We are all OK and you will be, too.  I believe this system will let you privet message me if you need to.  Just start to educate yourself about how cults work.  Its all about power and control.
Title: Re: Pushican/Lightning Bear and a Plea to Native Americans
Post by: frederica on September 28, 2007, 02:30:02 am
Debbie is correct in all she posted. You cannot just pick up NDN Spirituality in bits and pieces. no more than you can read Hopi Prophecies and apply it to the rest of the world. The Hopi say this only applies to them. But it has been commericalized and sold on coffee mugs by charlatans, All NDN Nations are different and the beliefs shouldn't be mixed. I think the Dali Lama has a good point. That is for people to follow their own faith practices. I dont't see it as threatening, but rather us trying to preserve what we have left. Every culture has its problems. Even the Amish. If everybody worked on their own, maybe there were be no need for frauds, charlatans or cults.
Title: Re: Pushican/Lightning Bear and a Plea to Native Americans
Post by: Barnaby_McEwan on September 28, 2007, 01:10:05 pm
Hello Sylvia: welcome to the forum.

I'm really sorry that you got involved with that sicko. If you have any information about his current whereabouts, please share it: people need to be warned about him. If I remember correctly he got 18 months' probation (!) in early 2006, so is probably free to move around now.

I'm somewhat disturbed by the tone of much of your post: your desire for the "old wisdom" you believe exists out there somewhere led you into the hands of a pervert who assaulted you, yet you continue to chase will o' wisps into the marsh.

Reading between the lines I see naked primitivism, an idea with a long European history. There's a French phrase for it: nostalgie pour la boue, literally "yearning for the mud" which means "the romanticization of the faraway primitive which is also the equivalent of the lower class close to home. (http://www.mesoweb.com/pari/publications/journal/03/mud.html)" It is a disease of the privileged. The Roman historian Tacitus described German "barbarian" tribes as morally superior to the empire he lived in, believing it had "gone soft". The Greek Herodotus similarly admired the Scythians. Both these writers' opinions had much more to do with contemporary Roman and Greek politics than what German or Scythian society was really like. How ironic that a German projects the same fantasies onto Indians that were once projected onto Germans.

Since you freely dispense advice to us about our "pain", I'm going to give you some advice: forget everything you think you know about Western and non-Western societies. At the moment you seem to be mired in essentially racist ideas about Indians and Westerners alike.

...I can very enthusiastically suggest the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival...Its a great place to go to heal as a woman and raise your consciousness at the same time.

Unless you're an Indian woman: a group of Anishinaabeg women from Michigan, the Red Road Collective (http://www.geocities.com/redroadcollective/), were thrown out of that festival a few years ago for protesting about the abuse of Indian spirituality they saw there. It seems there are some things the 'womyn' didn't want to be conscious of.


I have merged this topic with the original one about Colbert posted last year.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: educatedindian on September 28, 2007, 03:00:36 pm
Sylvia, I'd also like to thank you for having the courage to tell us about your experience. We always welcome firsthand accounts when trying to figure out if someone is a fraud or an exploiter or not.

Craig Carpenter is also a fraud. The Hopi Nation had warnings on their website about him.

What I told Europeans when I spoke there a few years ago was simple: The fact that alleged Native "shamans" are in Europe looking for followers should be clearest sign that they are frauds.

Why would an alleged Native spiritual leader be in Europe instead of with their own people where they are most needed, unless they were looking for vulnerable people who didn't know any better that they could take advantage of? Not just financially, but also spiritually, and often sexually.

There are some threads under Non Frauds that talk about sources and options and the issues for white pagans.

Also, in much of your posts you speak of A Native culture instead of many Native cultureS. I think like many who've been drawn into Nuage, you probably are fascinated by the image of Native peoples that Europeans/whites have, rather than the cultures themselves.

A final point: It's perfectly possible to learn from a culture its best points without needing to convert to the faith. The Dalai Lama was mentioned. I can admire and learn from Buddhists in their human rights struggles without ever having to go to some self proclaimed guru. 
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: sylvia on September 28, 2007, 04:21:19 pm
You guys are right. I really thought I was over my "nuage" gullibility, but then I found the info about Dhyani Ywahoo (and then some, googling her name together with "fraud"). Considering that I went to the Sunray's annual "Elder Gathering" for the last three years, I guess I haven't changed that much. *LOL* What a disappointment.

What I don't understand is that Native Americans -- and other indigenous people -- who seemed to be very sincere to me, can associate with that woman.

At the Elders Gathering, for example, there's always one Abenaki GM, Nanatasis Bluto-Delventhal, who seems very traditional; she usually does moontime teachings for women there. No fancy New Age content... only oral teachings, nothing written down... she says she doesn't take any money for teachings, ever... only asks that participants help to pay her expenses if she has to travel so that she at least doesn't LOSE money.

And I understand what you're saying, in terms of "you have to LIVE the culture to understand the spirituality," but I have to say that N's. moontime teachings have positively affected me, even though I haven't grown up in a tribe. So there definitely ARE some things that can be taught, even if they're just a fragment of the big picture.

Anyway, among the other "regulars" at the Elders Gathering are Mayan elders from Guatemala; a very quirky and childlike GM from Mexico who is just wonderful; Mike Bastine (Iroquois), who spent some time traveling with the late Mad Bear, and GF Warren Ramey (forget what nation he was from).

Both Mike and Warren are very interested in "nuage" stuff as well -- from earth mysteries and earth changes to ascension of consciousness, 2012, etc. Then again, they have never claimed that what they're talking about are pure, traditional Native American teachings, nor have they ever claimed that they are in any way or shape representing their tribes, and I think as long as they don't, it's totally fine. After all, why shouldn't native people have other interests as well; from what I understand, there are many that are also Christians.

Dhyani, on the other hand, is apparently lying about her heritage as well as her Cherokee "Peacekeeper" and pipe bearer status. And that's just disgusting. I'm wondering how these other people got mixed in with her... maybe they don't know of her bad rep with the Cherokee.

Well, I can't make myself stop believing in the basics of Native American spirituality. I guess I'm just gonna call my worldview "pantheistic," and that's that. Still love Native American teachings, but since you're saying that basically everyone who takes money to teach those is and has to be a fraud, I'll definitely be better prepared from now on.

Thanks!
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: debbieredbear on September 28, 2007, 05:13:44 pm
Sylvia,

Glad to see you are catching on. One thiong that stood out on Diane Fisher (Ywahoo) was she calls herself a Cherokee Pipekeeper. Ain't no such thing. The Cherokee People's usee of pipes was much different than the plains peoples use of pipes. That is why I refer to Native "religionS" with an s. There are so many different beliefs involved and fruads tend to mix and match like they were at a buffet. Kinda like they are saying "Oh, let's see, I will have a little Lakota here, and maybe some Cherokee there, and gee, how about some Chippewa there..." and so on. But in real life, while some tribal people will participate in anothers ceremonies, they don't mix in their own ways. The reason frauds get away woth so  much is that most non-Indians are very ignorant about Indians. I will give you an example from the brochure of a local fraud. The brochure was broken into sections and one was headed "Pipe Ceremony".  This is what it said "To get a pipe ceremony, the seeker must first potlatch the pipekeeper." Now to you, that could sound reasonable. To all the Indians I know, they are sitting there going "HUH?" and "WHAT?" Or laughingf. Maybe all three. You see, a potlatch is Northwest Coast. It is a huge doings that people save for years to put on. They have a huge feast, they give away piles of things. Maybe spend 100's of dollars on up to 1000's of dollars. So to potlatch someone for  a pipe ceremony is a bit overdone. But this fraud knows nothing of the culture he claims to be from. Because if he did, he wouldn't suggest a potlatch for a pipe ceremony. In addition to the fact that he wouldn't have a pipe as he's coastal.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: earthw7 on September 29, 2007, 01:21:20 am
WOW, I am so sorry for what happened to you Sylvia.
As a native person it angrier me to see this happened.
People make up things like the moon time thing. These
people make claims to be from a tribe but in fact they
are not. I would ask for a Tribal ID and the number
of their Tribal nations government. Check out
people before you attend.

Now we as Native people get very offended the
non-indian are in our ceremonies. It is abuse.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: frederica on September 29, 2007, 02:25:24 am
Earth is right, I checked earlier and can only find that Nanatasis Bluto is Abenaki, claims Turtle Clan Mother. But they are only recognized in Canada, as were part of a Confederacy and very few still speak the language, mostly French now. Her background is Massage Therapy, Reiki, Therepeutic Touch, mostly Nuage. Plus she is working with a known fraud. Granted she may have helped. But it is best to be careful if she is passing of nuage theory as Traditiion Abenaki Medicine. It really shouldn't be mixed with Nuage or anything else for that matter.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: V Hawkins on September 30, 2007, 08:07:29 pm
Colbert is a very prominent Chickasaw surname. They are neighbors to the Comanche in Oklahoma. Did yall say what part of Texas he was from? hat guy is sick.

vh
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: sylvia on October 01, 2007, 07:01:45 pm
frederica wrote:

Quote
I checked earlier and can only find that Nanatasis Bluto is Abenaki, claims Turtle Clan Mother. But they are only recognized in Canada, as were part of a Confederacy and very few still speak the language, mostly French now. Her background is Massage Therapy, Reiki, Therepeutic Touch, mostly Nuage. Plus she is working with a known fraud. Granted she may have helped. But it is best to be careful if she is passing of nuage theory as Traditiion Abenaki Medicine.

But she isn't. That she ALSO does massage therapy, Reiki, etc. doesn't mean she's mixing everything and "selling" it as Native American tradition. I'm a Reiki practitioner myself, and I wouldn't try to claim it was a, say, ancestral Buddhist tradition. I don't think there's anything wrong with being versatile. Sorry, I was never a big fan of Dhyani, but Nanatasis is a different matter. She's as real as it gets.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: frederica on October 02, 2007, 12:08:30 am
To my knowledge she cannot be a Clan Mother if she is not Traditional. Traditionals have a Nation's land base, speak the language, and are knowledable of the culture. Traditionals do not teach Holistic Medicine. No disrespect, just an opinion.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: sylvia on October 02, 2007, 01:24:40 pm
Whatever. I do know, though, that she's an fervent activist against non-Natives exploiting native spirituality, i.e. non-Natives holding sweat lodges and doing "Native American teachings."
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: Moma_porcupine on October 02, 2007, 06:07:56 pm
Reply #4
sylvia
Quote
I know how you guys feel about this, but when you hear those stories of simpler times, when women were revered as sacred and elders were respected and listened to, when a woman's moontime was viewed as a time of great power instead of a "curse" (as it has been in much of the Western world), when the connection with nature and the Creator were not just reserved for church on Sundays, but an integral part of daily life,  you can't help being intrigued. And I know many, many people who feel the same way.

Reply #11
sylvia
Quote
At the Elders Gathering, for example, there's always one Abenaki GM, Nanatasis Bluto-Delventhal, who seems very traditional; she usually does moontime teachings for women there. No fancy New Age content... only oral teachings, nothing written down... she says she doesn't take any money for teachings, ever... only asks that participants help to pay her expenses if she has to travel so that she at least doesn't LOSE money.

And I understand what you're saying, in terms of "you have to LIVE the culture to understand the spirituality," but I have to say that N's. moontime teachings have positively affected me, even though I haven't grown up in a tribe. So there definitely ARE some things that can be taught, even if they're just a fragment of the big picture.
-------------
Sylvia , I know it can be really confusing because there is often real traditions that get mixed with stuff people make up , and good experiences often gets mixed with other stuff that isn't so good.

When people attend an event looking to find something special , often they do , just because they are looking . 

If Nanatasi was truly traditional , I don't think she would have been comfortable attending Dhyani's gatherings . Just the charge to attend would have got most traditional people at least asking some probing questions about who these people were . I doubt any person who respects traditions would want to support someone like Dhyani who makes claims about herself which appear to be wholly fictional . But as you can see , Nanatasis has done this by giving workshops at these gatherings .

http://www.sunray.org/20th_Native_American_Elders__G/20th_native_american_elders__g.html (http://www.sunray.org/20th_Native_American_Elders__G/20th_native_american_elders__g.html)
Elder & Workshop Presenter Bios

NANATASIS BLUTO-DELVENTAL, ABENAKI

Turtle Clan Mother/ Abenaki

    * Sits as Elder on several Councils in Vermont & Nationally
    * Shares Abenaki Turtle Clan Moontime Teachings with women
    * Healer who works with herbs, massage therapy, Reiki, & Therapeutic Touch
    * Involved with Ceremonies & Counsels people
--------------

Gathering Registration Fees:

(Registration fee does not include camping.)

$155 - Adults 18 to 65, (all 3 days) Friday-Sunday

--------
We respectfully care-take the teachings and ceremonies shared during the Elders’ Gathering.   THESE TEACHINGS AND CEREMONIES CANNOT BE BOUGHT OR SOLD.  Modest registration fees help cover the travel, food, and accommodations for the Elders, their caretakers and families, and other administrative and promotional expense for the Gathering.  The Gathering is a “not for profit??? event run entirely by volunteers.
------------
Workshop Program Fees:

Half Day Workshops $40 per session
Full Day Workshops $80 per day

------------
Despite the words saying otherwise , there is a charge to attend . 

If Nanatasis is so concerned about people making stuff up and warping Native culture , it seems strange she would support someone who is doing this . And not only is she supporting someone who is doing this , she is actively participating by separating the "desireable" parts of the culture from the communities and context it belongs in , and  trimming this down to fit non native culture, by selling  "workshops" . This isn't in any way 'traditional', and I have doubts about how "real" this is  .

Tribes that had traditions around a womans moontime generally practiced some sort of total seclusion or exclusion from certain activities , for a few days every month . As woman who live together generally have their moontime about the same time , these woman would not be solitary but a part of the communities life and rythm .

So for one thing , I really doubt there is "traditional teachings " that can be seperated from the communitty and actual activities that woman traditionally participated in , or didn't participate in , during their moon time .

Though I have heard some woman talk of "moontime teachings", I've always wondered how much of these "moontime teachings" is really something traditional and how much is something some more modren women invented to make sense of traditions that seemed unfair, which they didn't understand . The reason I wonder this is because none of the older elders I have known , ever said anything about this , except in terms of what women should not do on their moontime , and they all seemed uncomfortable to say much at all .  My guess is , though Native cultures are generally deeply respectful of women , this is a part of many aspects of the culture , not just the moontime . As far as I have seen , most Native people are modest about these things , and probably wouldn't be going around doing workshops on "moontime teachings" - especially if the actual practices of seclusion and exclusion that went with these traditions, are discarded as "impractical' .   

That is one big thing I notice that happens when non native people start wanting to learn what they think is Native 'wisdom' . Non native people try and imitate this , by going for  the ideas , the imaginary , but there is no basis in the real and the practical. 

Sorry , but I think that is mostly about escapism .   
   
Sorry if this reply is getting way off topic of John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear. I thought of starting another thread but so much is being talked about in this one i am not sure what to call it ...
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: crazyeagle on October 02, 2007, 08:43:37 pm
Mr Pushican appeared in the good company of Mr & Mrs Billington at the Bison Farm Pow Wow in the UK at the beginning of September this year.Mr & Mrs Billington who if you remember presumed to conduct a stomp dance at a Pagan Ceremony in the UK in February this year. Mr & Mrs Billington are now appearing at UK Pow Wows with the Cherokee Flag though nothing has been seen as conclusive evidence with regards to Mrs Billingtons "cherokee" heritage.     

Mr Billington is conducting physic reading in various towns in the UK dressed in native "regaila" along side Mrs Billington as a crystal therapist. The Mind Boggles.

The fact theat they are seen actively supporting a known convicted peodophile is condemning in itself. Especially at Pow Wow. It is well known that according to Pow Wow Etiquette no known Peodophile is accepted at Pow Wow.

Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: earthw7 on October 03, 2007, 02:20:19 pm
Reply #4
sylvia
Quote
I know how you guys feel about this, but when you hear those stories of simpler times, when women were revered as sacred and elders were respected and listened to, when a woman's moontime was viewed as a time of great power instead of a "curse" (as it has been in much of the Western world), when the connection with nature and the Creator were not just reserved for church on Sundays, but an integral part of daily life,  you can't help being intrigued. And I know many, many people who feel the same way.

Reply #11
sylvia
Quote
At the Elders Gathering, for example, there's always one Abenaki GM, Nanatasis Bluto-Delventhal, who seems very traditional; she usually does moontime teachings for women there. No fancy New Age content... only oral teachings, nothing written down... she says she doesn't take any money for teachings, ever... only asks that participants help to pay her expenses if she has to travel so that she at least doesn't LOSE money.

And I understand what you're saying, in terms of "you have to LIVE the culture to understand the spirituality," but I have to say that N's. moontime teachings have positively affected me, even though I haven't grown up in a tribe. So there definitely ARE some things that can be taught, even if they're just a fragment of the big picture.
-------------
Sylvia , I know it can be really confusing because there is often real traditions that get mixed with stuff people make up , and good experiences often gets mixed with other stuff that isn't so good.

When people attend an event looking to find something special , often they do , just because they are looking . 

If Nanatasi was truly traditional , I don't think she would have been comfortable attending Dhyani's gatherings . Just the charge to attend would have got most traditional people at least asking some probing questions about who these people were . I doubt any person who respects traditions would want to support someone like Dhyani who makes claims about herself which appear to be wholly fictional . But as you can see , Nanatasis has done this by giving workshops at these gatherings .

http://www.sunray.org/20th_Native_American_Elders__G/20th_native_american_elders__g.html (http://www.sunray.org/20th_Native_American_Elders__G/20th_native_american_elders__g.html)
Elder & Workshop Presenter Bios

NANATASIS BLUTO-DELVENTAL, ABENAKI

Turtle Clan Mother/ Abenaki

    * Sits as Elder on several Councils in Vermont & Nationally
    * Shares Abenaki Turtle Clan Moontime Teachings with women
    * Healer who works with herbs, massage therapy, Reiki, & Therapeutic Touch
    * Involved with Ceremonies & Counsels people
--------------

Gathering Registration Fees:

(Registration fee does not include camping.)

$155 - Adults 18 to 65, (all 3 days) Friday-Sunday

--------
We respectfully care-take the teachings and ceremonies shared during the Elders’ Gathering.   THESE TEACHINGS AND CEREMONIES CANNOT BE BOUGHT OR SOLD.  Modest registration fees help cover the travel, food, and accommodations for the Elders, their caretakers and families, and other administrative and promotional expense for the Gathering.  The Gathering is a “not for profit??? event run entirely by volunteers.
------------
Workshop Program Fees:

Half Day Workshops $40 per session
Full Day Workshops $80 per day

------------
Despite the words saying otherwise , there is a charge to attend . 

If Nanatasis is so concerned about people making stuff up and warping Native culture , it seems strange she would support someone who is doing this . And not only is she supporting someone who is doing this , she is actively participating by separating the "desireable" parts of the culture from the communities and context it belongs in , and  trimming this down to fit non native culture, by selling  "workshops" . This isn't in any way 'traditional', and I have doubts about how "real" this is  .

Tribes that had traditions around a womans moontime generally practiced some sort of total seclusion or exclusion from certain activities , for a few days every month . As woman who live together generally have their moontime about the same time , these woman would not be solitary but a part of the communities life and rythm .

So for one thing , I really doubt there is "traditional teachings " that can be seperated from the communitty and actual activities that woman traditionally participated in , or didn't participate in , during their moon time .

Though I have heard some woman talk of "moontime teachings", I've always wondered how much of these "moontime teachings" is really something traditional and how much is something some more modren women invented to make sense of traditions that seemed unfair, which they didn't understand . The reason I wonder this is because none of the older elders I have known , ever said anything about this , except in terms of what women should not do on their moontime , and they all seemed uncomfortable to say much at all .  My guess is , though Native cultures are generally deeply respectful of women , this is a part of many aspects of the culture , not just the moontime . As far as I have seen , most Native people are modest about these things , and probably wouldn't be going around doing workshops on "moontime teachings" - especially if the actual practices of seclusion and exclusion that went with these traditions, are discarded as "impractical' .   

That is one big thing I notice that happens when non native people start wanting to learn what they think is Native 'wisdom' . Non native people try and imitate this , by going for  the ideas , the imaginary , but there is no basis in the real and the practical. 

Sorry , but I think that is mostly about escapism .   
   
Sorry if this reply is getting way off topic of John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear. I thought of starting another thread but so much is being talked about in this one i am not sure what to call it ...


Moma thank you for this.
I had to laugh at the Moon Time Teaching and then I had to ask what is that???
I have been going to our ceremonies for many years and never heard of this. we do have
unwritten laws concerning women's moon time but it is not spoken except among women.
The woman can not attend ceremonies on their moon time.
I also heard of moon camps at ceremonies WHAT!!!!!!
Stay away from the ground don't even go there! How hard is that. These people make up things
that get under my skin.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: debbieredbear on October 03, 2007, 04:27:49 pm
I have heard of "moontime ceremonies" being promoted by many Wiccans and white nuagers. There is a book, I think it is called "Indian SPirit Healing but I can't remember the author (she's English and I doubt has ever met real Indians), that has a 'channeled moon ceremony" promoted as a "Native ceremony." I have been asked to go to this more than once. I went one time out of curiosoty. It was absolutely bizaar. Basically, a guided meditation where everybody is told things like "imagine a golden drop of elixer falling from the moon onto your head" and "now put your hands on your heart chakra.." Oh, and the book it comes from tells the "correct way" to smudge. I, apparently do it wron g and had all eyes on me. LOL! Then everyone is supposed to share what they got from the "ceremony." Anyway, I have had more than one white woman tell me about the wonderful Inian moon ceremony they have been to and when I ask about it, it is this thing. Some tell, me that there teacher was given this ceremony and are truly surprised that it came from a book.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: frederica on October 03, 2007, 07:53:29 pm
I was wondering where the idea of public "moon-time teaching" came from. If someone of these people channeled it, that to me is the same as make it up, then write a book. Sounds definately Nuage to me, know nothing of Wiccans. And just being old doesn't make a person an Tribal Elder. There's too much wrong with the whole picture.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: sylvia on October 03, 2007, 08:18:09 pm
Okay, I didn't want to go into THAT much detail about the moontime teachings, but here's some of it in short.

Woman is the oldest ceremony in the world because Creator gave us our moontime. The second-oldest ceremony is the sweat lodge because we crawl back into the womb of the Earth Mother to purify ourselves.

Women are sacred because all of mankind comes from the womb. The first thing a Native American girl learns from her mother and grandmother is than "women are born complete," they're born with a ceremony that was given by Creator. Our blood is sacred; it's the only blood that is shed without violence.

She talked about the old traditions: During moontime, a woman was not allowed to participate in any ceremonies, incl. sweat lodges, because the special power she has at that time can disrupt ceremony and can be dangerous to the other participants. Women in her tribe were staying in a "moon lodge" during their moons, to be able to rest, focus on visions (which are supposedly stronger than normal during that time) and do easy needlework and such. Men were not allowed in the moon lodge, and the other, non-menstruating women would take care of the children and bring the "moon mamas" food and drink. During their moontime, a woman shouldn't have sex, but focus on herself, her dreams and visions.

When a woman reaches menopause, she should be allowed (and allow herself) a period of grief, a "crying time." In the old times, women got together for "crying circles," to listen to each other's stories, grieve together and support each other. If a woman doesn't grieve properly, the underlying anger and grief can get stuck and manifest in disease.

She also talked about how everyone walks around asking "What's my purpose in life? What's my mission?" She says sometimes it's just to be a good human being, and that we shouldn't envy others for their life path.

She talked about how Native American children used to grow up, i.e. boys stayed with their mothers, grannies and aunties until they were about six, and then the fathers would start taking them out to do "man things." Community and family life is very important to raise children, as are rites of passage to make the shift from child to adult. The rite of passage for a girl was usually when she got her first period, the rite for a boy was usually a vision quest. She said that, since non-natives forgot about their own rites of passage and don't practice them anymore, more and more men stay boys all their lives and want the women they marry to be their surrogate mothers. (That is certainly true, I know a lot of those men.)

You know, things like that. It may sound totally trivial to you, but don't forget, many white people have drifted so far away from their roots and are so overcivilized -- and I'm sure many natives as well -- that it feels like coming home when you hear this simple stuff. Traditional or not, I really don't care... it makes total sense to me, and it's uplifting, especially when you come from a patriarchal culture where women are often diminished and treated like second-class citizens. BTW, Nanatasis' moontime teachings were always free (and only for women), even though I know that she did do some workshops following the Elders Gathering.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: Moma_porcupine on October 03, 2007, 10:34:59 pm
Many cultures around the world have segregated woman on their moontime .

Not all American Indians did this ,  but for those that did , it was a practice , not just an idea . 

Is anyone who attends those workshops going to start a moonlodge in their community , or build a menstrual hut in the back yard, where they will stay for the duration of every moontime ? Or are these "traditional teachings " just invented out of selected pieces of the original traditions , because they sound nice , like the idea a womans moontime is a ceremony  - but it's OK to ignore all the parts that might be unpleasant or hard work  ?

The mandatory community tradition of some tribes , where ALL woman were EXPECTED to go and sit for a few days EVERY month , whether they felt like it or not , whether they have other important plans or not , whether they liked the other woman they were with or not, with no TV or computers or books to distract anyone from themselves or each other , would have a profound affect on any community . But as something you hear about in a workshop, what use is it ? So you come away
with some fuzzy notion about the profound power of woman , and that somehow the the moontime in some cultures is  a important part of this .  So what ?

It's like going to a workshop teaching biodynamic pineapple growing , when you live in Northern Montana . It's a dream ... Whats the point ?

A deep respect for women is a good idea , but that is something that needs to be practiced in a whole culture  . What is the point in a bunch of woman paying to go to a workshop where someone tells them if they lived in a totally different culture they would have been treated with more respect , been considered more important , more powerful ?

And I bet these same woman who attend these workshops and dream about how much better and more Spiritual these cultures that had moon time traditions were , would quickly change their tune and begin bitterly complaining , when they discovered they weren't free to do whatever they liked , when they liked , and they were actually EXPECTED to spend their moontime in a moonlodge , or abide by other moontime restrictions and rules . You do realize that in the cultures that practice these traditions of seclusion and exclusion , it is women's duty to respect these restrictions . Whether she feels like it or not . 

I notice the whole concept of doing your duty , whether you like it or not , doesn't get brought up in these New Age workshops very often . Did Nanatasis explain that part to you as well ? Sorry if this sounds really cynical , but what I see, is these workshops are almost always about fantasy and a quick way to "self improvement" and a sense of greater "self importance' . There is nothing "traditional" about that.   

In my opinion a workshop organizing real ways to create an interconnected , supportive
community , would be a lot more interesting and useful than a bunch of people fantasizing about a culture somewhere else , that probably never existed as they imagine it, and which they can never be part of, no matter how many workshops they go to .
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: earthw7 on October 05, 2007, 12:52:20 am
When a woman reaches menopause, she should be allowed (and allow herself) a period of grief, a "crying time." In the old times, women got together for "crying circles," to listen to each other's stories, grieve together and support each other. If a woman doesn't grieve properly, the underlying anger and grief can get stuck and manifest in disease.

I had to laugh at this one , Where is the common sense?? For the Lakota people they were moving all the time no one is going to stop for women! I understand what the white culture has done to their women but in my part of the world women are the ones that are in charge.
We know that during our moon we stay away from things like the drum/pipe/ceremonies/, but we still have families to care for. We all just have a place outside our homes to keep sacred things. NO woman in my tribe can be a medicine woman untuil they are passed their moon. It is a happy time because you can do so much more. I have lived among my people all my life and never heard of any of this stuff.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: frederica on October 05, 2007, 02:55:19 am
Well the Abenaki were Algonquin, but aside from the vague history lesson, I think this is more the root. http://www.abenaki-reiki.com/sacredmoon.htm
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: Moma_porcupine on October 05, 2007, 04:12:49 am
From sources on line it sounds like the Abenaki did practice the seclusion of women on their time .

http://www.everyculture.com/North-America/Abenaki-Marriage-and-Family.html  (http://www.everyculture.com/North-America/Abenaki-Marriage-and-Family.html)
Women were isolated during menstruation.

http://books.google.com/books?id=SRiFrTZCGvQC&pg=PA184&lpg=PA184&dq=abenaki+
menstruation&source=web&ots=WiR4upJGTb&sig=0-p8QvW3I_MExaJeSjdXyQMWx3s (http://books.google.com/books?id=SRiFrTZCGvQC&pg=PA184&lpg=PA184&dq=abenaki+
menstruation&source=web&ots=WiR4upJGTb&sig=0-p8QvW3I_MExaJeSjdXyQMWx3s)

The Original Vermonters: Native Inhabitants, Past and Present
 By William A. Haviland, Marjory W. Power
Girls went into seclusion at first menstruation , for women in such a state were considered poison to men .


http://www.multiculturalcanada.ca/ecp/content/aboriginals_algonquians_eastern_woodlands.html (http://www.multiculturalcanada.ca/ecp/content/aboriginals_algonquians_eastern_woodlands.html)

A girl’s first menses often met with some sort of ceremonial rite. Women sought seclusion at this time and for each succeeding menses thereafter.

Many other tribes did this too - for instance ;

http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:38NHT186hRsJ:www.city.davis.ca.us/target/deir/
vol2/Appendix_G.pdf+%22menstrual+hut%22&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=91&gl=ca (http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:38NHT186hRsJ:www.city.davis.ca.us/target/deir/
vol2/Appendix_G.pdf+%22menstrual+hut%22&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=91&gl=ca)

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3687/is_200301/ai_n9183485/pg_1 (http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3687/is_200301/ai_n9183485/pg_1)

http://www.chickasaw.net/site06/heritage/250_971.htm (http://www.chickasaw.net/site06/heritage/250_971.htm)

The thing is , these traditions are some of the first things that got discouraged by missionaries and I really doubt any Abenaki have practiced seclusion of menstruating women for hundreds of years .

I know some younger Native women who seem to accept the idea of "moon time teachings" , but like i said this seems to be something getting reinvented by the younger generation and it isn't the same as what I heard from the older generation  .

By all accounts when tribes did this , it was serious business and if women didn't do this , all sorts of things were thought to go wrong because of them . These restrictions weren't optional . I don't see how a woman who didn't grow up with these strict rules could learn any type of moon time teachings . It seems like taking the wet out of water . 
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: frederica on October 05, 2007, 04:30:55 am
Yes, I agree, I think she was speaking of what happen in the very distant past. I spoke with a friend in Maine and he said no one is sure what happen to them, either disease, assimulation by Tribes or intermarriage. There are still people of heritage in the area but most of their culture has been lost or has to be reinvented. Only one dialect is still spoken, and that is only by a very few Elders in Canada. It is unfortunate it is being mixed with Nuage practices.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: EagleVision on January 02, 2009, 02:48:23 am
I think the information on this thread is fascinating, but the subject of Pushican (aka Lightning Bear, aka John Colbert) needs to be addressed.
I write from Australia, where Pushican came to about fifteen years ago, and later left in disgrace. We even had a current affairs TV program dedicate a series to his misuse and abuse of women.

Whilst I understand he "taught" Moontime traditions, surely it is clear that no male person would teach women about womens' powers and mysteries?

Pushican basically "initiated" women by urging them to have sexual intercourse with him. He claimed this was a Native American Indian practice. Surely any level headed woman would realise it was merely a scam for a rather unattractive middle-aged man to seduce them. Needless to say, most of these women were young and pretty.

I think it is very important to stick to the issue of "plastic shaman"s like Pushican and there abuse of women, they are after all, the ultimate Mysogonist !!!

Pushican is unable to return to Australia, and I would suggest that clear thinking women in Germany and the U.K. should also inform their government of this very sick individual.

Many blessings
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: educatedindian on January 02, 2009, 03:11:59 am
Do you have any links you can point us to about him being exposed in Australia? Since he seems to be a danger to women and young girls in Europe also, these kinds of warnings are badly needed.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: EagleVision on January 02, 2009, 11:49:58 am
Hi EducatedIndian,

Pushican came to Australia close on 16 years ago. He married a German woman, called Regina who was around 26yrs old at the time. She gave birth to a baby called Amber in Germany around '92. Pushican and Regina came over here several times until their relationship broke up (very bitterly, apparently). Then around the mid 90s he impregnated another Australian woman who had a baby boy. Around that time he began to form friendships with Australian Aboriginal people. They took part in his "ceremonies" and some young women were coersed into removing their underwear and sitting crossed-legged in his ceremonies.

This all came to a head when a Channel 9 (Melbourne based) newsprogram did an interview with some of these women. Pushican left on the very next plane back to Germany. The aboriginal people then informed the Australian Government, who still have a warrant out for his arrest, should he ever try to return (which is highly unlikely).

This isn't speculation but fact.

I have spoken personally with the Federal Police officer on the case, and the Aboriginal woman whose child was "initiated" by Pushican. As far as I know there are no websites in Australia dedicated to this information because it is believed he will never return here. The Aboriginal people feel very embarrassed about the whole incident and have asked me not to use their names. People here are very bitter and rather embarrassed about being duped by this con-artist, and want to forget the whole incident, which is understandable.

In the end, after so many years, I think it is important to remember that we only have the "word" of this man that he is a Comanche and that he trained in traditional Medicine Ways. We also have to question why he has lived in Germany/Europe for so many years and never returned to his homeland. It seems Pushican leaves a trail of distruction everywhere he goes, with woman after woman reporting the same kind of sexual interferance.

If I do uncover any other evidence, I will post it here, but I do want to assure anyone reading that I have met Pushican (in the early 90s) here in Australia. I have witnesses his "ceremonies" I have interviewed many woman who all report the same sexual indiscretions, and I have seen his advertising materials, here in Australia, offering "Secret Moon Lodge" teachings just for women.

I am not Comanche, so I really cannot comment on whether it is traditional for Comanche people to incorporate sex into their ceremonies, so I would welcome any feedback from the Comanche nation.

I offer this information as a warning to all women to be very careful of this man. He is around 61 years old now, but if you read his Myspace page, he is still looking for a relationship (casual sex!?) Be very careful....

many blessings to you all!!
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: Ingeborg on July 16, 2011, 03:50:15 pm

There are several websites - e.g.: http://westernboothill.blogspot.com/2011/06/rip-lightning-bear.html - which say Colbert died in Germany on June 11, 2011.


Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: educatedindian on July 16, 2011, 05:26:33 pm
We should probably move this to Archives then. But with one exception. If there's no sign of any people still holding him up as an authentic teacher as they do with Castaneda, Franzone/Ghostwolf, etc.

Found this link. Apparently Star Wars fans tracked down that he lied about being in the films. One even went to the trouble of calling up Comanche enrollment and they never heard of him. So he may not have been Comanche as well.
http://forums.thebothanspy.com/index.php?threads/some-are-doubting-lightning-bear-was-in-sw.13451/page-2

There's also what claims to be a statement from him where he mentions problems with both his heart and cancer. Notably he doesn't bother to deny anything. Instead he ducks all questions. It saddens me to think that even the approach of dying couldn't reform him or get him to do something decent such as apologize for all the harm he did.

I don't know if his death will give any comfort to any of his many victims, but at least he can't harm anyone else.
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: Ingeborg on July 17, 2011, 03:55:23 pm
We should probably move this to Archives then. But with one exception. If there's no sign of any people still holding him up as an authentic teacher as they do with Castaneda, Franzone/Ghostwolf, etc.

Several sites with ads/promotional articles/reports on nuage congresses he took part in are still
online, as e.g.:

http://www.eso-garden.com/index.php?/weblog/random/=puuurelgdsp/P900/

In these ads etc, Colbert of course gets presented as the real deal, along a few more fakes and frauds like Katchinas Kutenai, Devalon Small Legs, etc.


One person claims to have done a vision quest with "Pushican":

http://www.lutz-pickardt.de/vita.htm

Quote
1996  "Vision Quest" - with Pushican (Traditional Healer and Chief of the Comanches)


The link you provided was interesting, as it links to two other forums where Colbert has been discussed. One of them has this little gem:

http://threads.rebelscum.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=3216480&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=93&fpart=1#3216480

User swsigsuk, contribution # 3216731, dd Dec 05, 2008, 06:18 am:

Quote
... Flash forward to 2003 when I got a call out of the blue from him saying that he was over in London for a week or two, he remembered my letters (I'm a fencer and very interested in stunts in general) and would I like to meet up for coffee. Of course I said yes and went over to Staines where he was staying with his 'brother' (this is a native American term, not a biological relation) Frank Billington-Marks, who built the x-wing cockpits on ESB (he is legit, he gets a credit) and is now known as Grey Wolf. ...

So this is our old friend Francis Billington now earning a living as a clairvoyant...

And Billington even went out of his way to defend his old buddy writing a letter on Jan, 15, 2010, see reply 4134235 dd 03/16/10 01:44 pm:

http://threads.rebelscum.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=3216480&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=93&fpart=3&vc=1

Billington even wrote this letter using his 'professional' stationery with a header saying he was "Francis Grey Wolf Billington D.D - Psychic Counsellor and Writer", claiming

Quote
"... My professional name is Frank Billington-Marks ...
During my time in the industry I worked as a Prop Maker and Set Dresser first on the Star Wars film "The Empire Strikes Back" followed by "Return of the Jedi" as a prop maker ..."

The footer of Billington's stationery reads:

"Fellow of the association of professional Clairvoyants
Doctor of Divinity, Trinity College UIC Delaware
Honorary Member of the Blackwater Tribe of Lower Muskokee, Florida, USA
Fellow of the Psychic Circle
Honoured Signatory of the Sal Foundation Book of World Peace
Member of the British Association of Telephone Psychics and Astrologers"
 
Title: Re: John Colbert AKA Pushican AKA Lightning Bear
Post by: educatedindian on June 11, 2018, 07:51:29 pm
Added this bio on him on IMDB. We'll see if they accept it. The film stuff is from his own autobiography.

----------
John Colbert AKA Lightning Bear was born in Houston, Texas in 1947 and from there moved to California. His first work in film was with a production company doing commercials and travel logs for the Mexican government. He spent 6 months traveling through Mexico, him working as an actor, precision driver, diver and boat handler. In 1965 after leaving the company, a Scottish friend and him, decided to go to Hollywood. He met Spanky McFarland who was once on the "Little Rascals". He was producing and directing at Universal Studios at the time. Colbert pretended he was American Indian and told McFarland that his name was "Lighting Bear." Spanky offered to help him and got him into SAG. Spanky said that the best position was in stunts.

After returning from Vietnam in the 70s he had the chance to work with Richard Harris on the film "A Man Called Horse" which later helped get him on Star Wars. It was during preproduction and production of the "Return of a Man Called Horse" that he traveled to England. A friend from England was working as a model maker on Star Wars at Elstree Studios. He took Colbert with him and helped get him work as a Stormtrooper and Biker Scout.

Colbert also had a company in film and television doing work as the Executive Production Co-coordinator. He produced a show for the Tropicana Hotel called "After Midnight" and worked as a Stunt Co-coordinator and 2nd Unit Director. Colbert also did acting in summer stock, one of which was "West Side Story", playing one of the Sharks, and was able to work with Sean Connery on "Diamond are Forever" in Las Vegas.

In 1993, Colbert went to Germany and impersonated being an American Indian shaman. In 2002, Colbert was sentenced to 15 months probation on seven charges of dangerous bodily injury. Colbert had passed off whippings and mutilations in the genital area of women as "shamanic ceremony and healing." Several of the victims came forward and posted public accounts of what they went through.

In 2003, a warrant was issued for Colbert's arrest in Australia for similar abuse after being exposed by Channel 9 in Melbourne. Colbert fled the country.

He returned to Germany and continued to sell what he claimed was shamanic healing. In 2005, Colbert directed an independent film called "Bad Blood". In 2011, Colbert died in Hanau, Germany. New Age sites in German still often list him as American Indian and a shaman.