We will normally begin to interact with our Medicine Wheel with the East Wind. The East Wind is sometimes called the Breath of Life. The East is where the sun rises each day; it is where life awakens, and actions begin. The East is the direction of birth and renewal. It is the place of children and youth, of fresh beginnings, spring and new life. It teaches us to see things in a new light - that we, too, can begin again as each new day rises.

The East wind brings us the growing warmth of uncompromising and unspoiled joy and hope. It brings us trust, innocence, and the simple joy experienced by children.

Here is where the journey of good mental health and the healing of mental ills begins. It leads to truth and understanding. Travel this Spirit Path for clarity, wisdom and illumination.

Visit the East Wind when you seek to clear your mind or when you seek to unravel complex mental issues. Ask the guidance of its Spirit Keeper, Wabun, when your mind is troubled.

If you need to think clearly, and see problems from a new perspective, visit the East Wind on the Wheel.

Visit the East Wind and gather its spirit when you need a new beginning. Just as the Creator brings a new day of light after the sun sets the night before, so can the spirit bring you a "new day" that allows a new beginning. The East Wind brings us the knowledge that light will triumph over darkness yet again. Come to the East wind for renewal, childhood, and enlightenment.

The crystal totem for the East Wind is Turquoise. This is also the color for the East on the Color Wheel of Life. Just as the dark landscapes of winter give way to the brightening spring hues, so Turquoise is the transition from the dark violets and blues to the lighter greens of spring and renewal.

 

Turquoise is a blending of the cold winter blue ray of Trust with the approaching warm green ray of Growth. It is the color of the earth as the new growth and life emerges at the first hints of spring.

It is a fresh color, a welcome color, and a color that moves us to serenity knowing that the cycle of life is progressing rapidly. It is the color of the natural birthstones of those born as spring begins (20 March to 19 April).

Turquoise is the Color Ray of Discovery and the Color Ray of Balance. Its vibrations help you find yourself and return to equilibrium in your life and feelings.

Excesses can be good. Hot passion, cool reason – both have their place. But when we need to re-center and find our true selves, Turquoise is the color ray of power that is best suited for such endeavors.

On some Medicine Wheels the colors of the East are Red, Gold or Yellow. The symbology is that of the rising sun. The choice seems to be a personal one.

The animal totem of the East Wind is that of its Spirit Keeper, Wabun: the Golden Eagle. The Eagle is the most powerful and most majestic of all the birds of the air. It flies free and soars to great heights.

A story might help you to relate to the Eagle.

It is said that taking power from an Eagle is a grave transgression. However, from time to time, a person’s destiny seems to demand it. In legend, a tribal member, who is given the spirit visions of the eagle, plucks a feather from an eagle four times in a single moon.

He fashions a headdress using the feathers and other elements such as beads and rocks. At the end of the month, the eagle he plucks the feathers from is sacrificed and becomes one with the chosen member. In return, if the eagle has young, the member takes care of them until they are capable of fending for themselves.

Once a particular eagle was to be bonded with a warrior and subsequently sacrificed at the end of the moon cycle. After plucking each feather, the warrior noticed it was delicately coated in gold. Wanting to defy the laws of the spirits, the tribe wished to preserve the life of this creature and avoid the ritual sacrifice. On the night of the sacrifice, the tribe pleaded a very persuasive case to the Great Spirit to allow this bird to keep soaring the skies forever. They presented the Great Spirit with many gifts consisting of crystals of various colors representing each moon of the year.

Pleased with the tribe’s compassion, the Great Spirit granted this eagle eternal life as the Creator’s messenger and the spirit totem of the east wind.

Many Native Americans now view the Eagle as the most sacred Animal totem, since he/she flies the closest to the Creator. This eagle is now known as the Golden Eagle – the totem that maintains the bonds between heaven and earth.

To bring the energy of the East Wind into your life – to focus on new beginnings and clearing your mind of difficulties, focus on the Turquoise colored stone at the East Wind position, call upon the Spirit Keeper of the Wind, Wabun, and let your mind fly free like the Eagle. You will find great clarity and peace of mind here on the Wheel.