We never know how our magic will be revealed to us….until the sacred moment it arrives.

My late Grandmother Jill always had a fascination with the history and culture of Mexico. In 1967, she journeyed to Monte Alban, the second largest ceremonial site in Mesoamerica.  Due to her husband’s connections, she was granted access to the large pre-Columbian archaeological dig site found in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca.

Here, she unearthed several interesting artifacts. These sacred items were gifted to me back in 2012. She had found a number of curious objects over the years from her travels. Each had been labeled and placed in a cardboard box, hidden away for over 4 decades.

I was instantly drawn to seven unique faces sculpted from earthen clay. Each one was hand-fashioned by a people who had a living co-creative relationship with the spirit of the land. I could feel the power inside them as I held each item in my hand.

I brought the artifacts to a local archaeology professor. He informed me that these pieces were most likely used in ritual, due to where they had been discovered. In addition, he mentioned that he felt the faces were representations of ancestral dead.

Beneath The Surface

I could feel the essence within these pieces awaken as I meditated and worked with them in a sacred way. There was a wisdom embodied within them. It was a mystery that was yet to be revealed.

These wise teachers slept for over a thousand years, covered beneath a blanket of soil. In stillness and silent power they remained untouched until one cycle was ending and another was about to begin.

As the dawn of a new age approached, my grandmother was summoned to the exact location where these treasures awaited. Here, she unearthed some of my magic…

Mysterious History

Founded in 500 B.C., Monte Alban was a Zapotec socio-political and economic center which thrived for close to 1,300 years. The holy city was home to 25,000 people. It was the center of power for the Zapotec nation. In approximately 750 AD, the Zapotec people suddenly abandoned the holy city for reasons unknown.

The site of Monte Alban is situated atop a leveled mountain ridge which has an elevation of 6,400 ft. It is surrounded by sky from nearly all vantage points. The etymology of Monte Alban’s present-day name means ‘white mountain’.

According to the popular tv show Ancient Aliens, Monte Alban is also said to have been an ancient ‘airport’ for extraterrestrial visitors…

The previous Mixtec name for the city is Sahandevul. This translates to ‘at the foot of the sky’ or ‘at the foot of heaven’. Tentative suggestions regarding its Zapotec origin range from a presumed corruption of the native Zapotec name Danibaan, which means ‘sacred mountain’ or ‘sacred hill.’

Sacred Objects

It was revealed through deep meditation how these objects had been created. Living memory and substance of the Earth were shaped with intention into the form of our ancient human ancestors. Through art and ritual, consciousness fused with form. As a result, the sacred objects became ensouled. For over a thousand years, these teachers slept, hidden beneath the soil.

The Zapotec people had a profound co-creative relationship with the spirits of the land. Legends tell stories of how the ancient ancestors of the Zapotec people emerged from caves.

The common people among the Zapotecs believed they were born from nature itself, directly from rocks, trees, and jaguars. Interestingly, jaguar happened to be my grandmother’s power animal…

When I held the artifacts in my hands for the first time, the phrase “cloud people” came through. Upon further research, I discovered the Zapotec’s governing elite knew that they descended from supernatural beings that lived among the clouds. Consequently, upon death they believed they would return to such status.

In fact, the name by which Zapotecs are known today results from this belief. The Zapotecs of the central valleys call themselves “Be’ena’ Za’a” – The Cloud People.

Full Moon Vision

On Capricorn Full Moon in 2015, I meditated with the artifacts in my hands and had a major revelation. As a result, I realized that with a profound vision that I sculpted these very pieces a millennia ago. In addition, I remembered that I had been a Zapotec holy man.

On the back of the sculpted pieces, you can barely make out my fingerprints. As I gazed upon the seven faces, I realized that these visages were in the likeness of my own human ancestors from another lifetime…

A second revelation rose powerfully within me. I realized that in another incarnation, I crafted these pieces. As a result, in this lifetime I summoned these items to return to me so I could remember my power and become fully actualized.

Individually, each object has a voice of its own. However, working with them I have quickly discovered they prefer to ‘speak’ as a collective. I am beginning to do oracular work with them. Above all, I am enjoying the process of remembering and cultivating relationships with these spirit guides I refer to as The Council Of Elders.

For an oracular reading with the Council of Elders, contact Jewels.