The Seven Fires Prophecy of the Aniishinabe (Ojibway, Ojibwe or Chippewa)

Hello everyone. I am an Ojibwe from wisconsin living on a native american reservation. I searched ATS for anything regarding the seven fires prophecies and came up with zero results, so I thought it would be a good idea to share. I have read many different versions but this one stuck out the most because of how I came across it and the details left out of many of the others I have read on the internet, but were included for the most part when I was taught this as a young boy. You can read it for yourself, but the only way to read it is highlight with your mouse. This is why it stuck out to me as unusual. It was only 20 minutes ago I happened to try the highlighting to read it. I've been to this site many times and it never occurred to me to try that until tonight. With all the strange things happening in our world today I am convinced this prophecy was meant for the times we are living in right now.


Remember to highlight the page with your mouse to read it.


www.wabanaki.com...

Very interesting read and a different perspective as well, which is good.
Go in peace, brother.

Thank you for sharing, I think I may have to read this a few times to fully grasp its full meaning. I find it amazing how so many prophecies from disconnected culture all point to similar events and similar times.

Thanks GardCanada. One thing I would like to point out is that we have 2 choices, not the one bad outcome with no way to change it that is embraced by all the doomsday people out there. We all must choose the slower spiritual path or there will be much suffering in the world. More than what is happening now.

reply to post by InfiniteTraveler


Very true, I have had the same thoughts myself. In our teachings about creation and the first people there are many similarities to other ancient texts and beliefs around the world. But then again there are many differences or what i think are just missing pieces to the story as a whole. What I was taught was that in the beginning the creator made the four races represented by the color wheel of my people(which by the way predates european contact), white for the white race, black for the black race, yellow for the asian race, and red for the red race. In all directions he sent the peoples he had created with instructions on how to live their lives and live in harmony with creation. He also gave them their task. Each race was to learn and master the four elements of life. Earth was given the red race, Wind was given to the yellow race, Water was given to the black race, and Fire was given to the white race. At the end of our journey we were to come together as brothers to share our knowledge with one another and live in paradise if each race stayed true to their purpose. You can see where this is true when you think about it. The white race mastered fire seen through metallurgy and various other technologies. The black race is credited by some as using advanced irrigation techniques in the ancient world so there's water mastery. The yellow race mastered air through martial arts and meditation through breathing techniques, there's air mastery. To the red race he gave earth. As everyone knows we are known for caring for the land. I think to an extent our ancient holy texts are all that has survived since the dawn of humanity. everyone can see just how fast a story can change in just a week. imagine centuries go by, how much would the story change? To me it seems obvious that most of the holy texts were changed on purpose. This is why organized religion does not seem to make any sense. They are using corrupted data and are doomed to fail.

reply to post by Rezwar


Very interesting, thank you for the link... Being both part Cherokee (by my Grandfather) and part Saxon I have always found it strange that my people (South Saxons) have a distinct lack of prophecies.

I guess that has a lot of do with the forced imposition of the Romano Christian religion over the existing Brythonic Christian religion, or they simply where not into making prophecies.

interesting, my great Grandmother was full blood we think Cherokee or Choctaw, lots of details missing regarding that history due to persecution and only have a photograph.. and very obvious I ain't all white, starting around spring it becomes spanishy indian-ish and by the end of many summers many times asked if black but not the case at all in fall/winter or a drive by moon anytime yet I don't think there's a race I'm not connected to in some way (who is'nt-Noah/Adam right??) including Russian?/Jewish by marriage with a very close direct link to Obama on his mothers side, we think Irish dad -blue eyes, some German through my mother etc.etc. and we think Italian due to my cooking skillz but what makes this especially intrigueing to me personally is her name was Mary-since I had seen an angel as a child in America, Texas more specifically at least a decade before finding this scripture below that uses lightning to describe just as I had been and seen but with wings.. anyway the four colors reminded me of this first one yet there are others

And the angel answered and said unto me, These are the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the LORD of all the earth.

In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow

Originally posted by Rezwar
With all the strange things happening in our world today I am convinced this prophecy was meant for the times we are living in right now.

Completely agree. As William Commanda is fond of saying "You can't eat money" and the production of FOOD is fast becoming a global issue.

We still seem fixated on the age-old idea of 'make-work' via war. The cycle of greed, destruction, weapons manufacture and re-building has us looking like ant colonies in a flood plain. Always busy.

Like it says in my 'mood'... it's time to make that choice. Either we kill each other off in a world war or we start making sure there's food for everyone. There IS no in-between.

reply to post by Rezwar


I did highlight the page, but still get nothing. I'm on a Mac - does that matter?

Can you give a brief summary of the info please?

Thanks for this, Rezwar. I know of a lot of prophecies from my native ancestors (I am Miami primarily ) and, though I had heard of the Seven Fires prophecy, I had never been able to find it. So I am grateful that you posted it here.

Within the past few weeks, my family and I have felt "called" or "pressed" to get back to our traditional roots, of a kind. Find a plot of land somewhere and start growing food via aquaponics, etc. Where to go has been the tough part... everything else, we are more than ready for.

I cannot say for sure if we're getting some kind of message from the Creator or if we're just feeling it for ourselves, but it's an odd turnabout for all involved... some of the members would have never considered such a move, yet came to us (after we had already been talking about it to each other) and said they were feeling called to do something similar.

Odd situation, but I've never been one to ignore my intuition.

reply to post by ns9504


I'm on a mac and had the same issue so I copied and pasted it on textedit
here is the text

The Mountain



Home Up


Teachings of the Seven Prophets: The Seven Fires

Note: The following was asked to be read by Elder William Commanda at the Aboriginal Learning Network Constituency Meeting of Elders, policy makers, and academics on April 16th and 17th, 1997 in Aylner, Quebec.

The source for this story is The Mishomis book : the voice of the Ojibway by Edward Benton-Banai. Printed in St. Paul, Minn. Published by Indian Country Press, copyright 1979.

Seven prophets came to the Anishinabe. They came at a time when the people were living a full and peaceful life on the North Eastern coast of North America. These prophets left the people with seven predictions of what the future would bring. Each of the prophecies was called a fire and each fire referred to a particular era of time that would come in the future. Thus, the teachings of the seven prophets are now called the "Seven Fires".

The first prophet said to the people,

"In the time of the First Fire, the Anishinabe nation will rise up and follow the sacred shell of the Midewiwin Lodge. The Midewiwin Lodge will serve as a rallying point for the people and its traditional ways will be the source of much strength. The Sacred Megis will lead the way to the chosen ground of the Anishinabe. You are to look for a turtle shaped island that is linked to the purification of the earth. You will find such an island at the beginning and end of your journey. There will be seven stopping places along the way. You will know the chosen ground has been reached when you come to a land where food grows on water. If you do not move you will be destroyed."

The second prophet told the people,

"You will know the Second Fire because at this time the nation will be camped by a large body of water. In this time the direction of the Sacred Shell will be lost. The Midewiwin will diminish in strength. A boy will be born to point the way back to the traditional ways. He will show the direction to the stepping stones to the future of the Anishinabe people."

The third prophet said to the people,

"In the Third Fire the Anishinabe will find the path to their chosen ground, a land in the west to which they must move their families. This will be the land where food grounds on water."

The Fourth Fire was originally given to the people by two prophets. They come as one. They told of the coming of the light skinned race.

One of the prophets said,

"You will know the future of out people by the face of the light skinned race wears. If they come wearing the face of brotherhood then there will come a time of wonderful change for generations to come. They will bring new knowledge and articles that can be joined with the knowledge of this country. In this way, two nations will join to make a mighty nation. This new nation will be joined by two more so that four will for the mightiest nation of all. You will know the face of the brotherhood if the light skinned race comes carrying no weapons, if they come bearing only their knowledge and a hand shake."

The other prophet said,

"Beware if the light skinned race comes wearing the face of death. You must be careful because the face of brotherhood and the face of death look very much alike. If they come carrying a weapon ... beware. If they come in suffering ... They could fool you. Their hearts may be filled with greed for the riches of this land. If they are indeed your brothers, let them prove it. Do not accept then in total trust. You shall know that the face they wear is one of death if the rivers run with poison and fish become unfit to eat. You shall know them by these many things."

The fifth prophet said,

"In the time of the Fifth Fire there will come a time of great struggle that will grip the lives of all native people. At the waring of this Fire there will come among the people one who holds a promise of great joy and salvation. If the people accept this promise of a new way and abandon the old teachings, then the struggle of the Fifth Fire will be will be with the people for many generations. The promise that comes will prove to be a false promise. All those who accept this promise will cause the near destruction of the people."

The prophet of the Sixth Fire said,

"In the time of the Sixth Fire it will be evident that the promise of the First Fire cam in in a false way. Those deceived by this promise will take their children aways from the teachings of the Elders. Grandsons and granddaughters will turn against the Elders. In this way the Elders will lose their reason for living ... they will lose their purpose in life. At this time a new sickness will come among the people. The balance of may people will be disturbed. The cup of life will almost become the cup of grief."

At the time of these predictions, many people scoffed at the prophets. They then had medicines to keep away sickness. They were then healthy and happy as a people. These were the people who chose to stay behind in the great migration of the Anishinabe. These people were the first to have contact with the light skinned race. They would suffer most.

When the Fifth Fire came to pass, a great struggle did indeed grip the lives of all native people. The light skinned race launched a military attack on the Indian people throughout the country aimed at taking away their land and their independence as a free and sovereign people. It is now felt that the false promise that came at the end of the Fifth Fire was the materials and riches embodied in the way of life of the light skinned race. Those who abandoned the ancient ways and accepted this new promise were a big factor in causing the near destruction of the native people of this land.

When the Sixth Fire came to be, the words of the prophet rang true as children were taken away from the teachings of the Elders. The boarding school era of "civilizing" Indian children had begun. The Indian language and religion were taken from the children. The people started dying at a early age ... they had lost their will to live and their purpose in living.

In the confusing times of the Sixth Fire, it is said that a group of visionaries came among the Anishinabe. They gathered all the priests of the Midewiwin Lodge. They told the priests of the Midewiwin Way was in danger of being destroyed. They gathered all the sacred bundles. They gathered all the scrolls that recorded the ceremonies. All these things were placed in a hollowed out log from the Ironwood tree. Men were lowered over a cliff by long ropes. They dug a hole in the cliff and buried the log where no one could find it. Thus the teachings of the Elders were hidden out of sight but not out of memory. It is said that when the time came that the Indian people could practice their religion without fear a line boy would dream where the Ironwood log, full of sacred bundles and scrolls, was buried. He would lead his people to the place.

The seventh prophet that came to the people long ago said to be different from the other prophets. He was young and had a strange light in his eyes. He said,

"In the time of the Seventh Fire New People will emerge. They will retrace their steps to find what was left by the trail. Their steps will take them to the Elders who they will ask to guide them on their journey. But many of the Elders will have fallen asleep. They will awaken to this new time with nothing to offer. Some of the Elders will be silent because no one will ask anything of them. The New People will have to be careful in how they approach the Elders. The task of the New People will not be easy.

"If the New People will remain strong in their quest the Water Drum of the Midewiwin Lodge will again sound its voice. There will be a rebirth of the Anishinabe Nation and a rekindling of old flames. The Sacred Fire will again be lit.

"It is this time that the light skinned race will be given a choice between two roads. If they choose the right road, then the Seventh Fire will light the Eighth and final Fire, an eternal fire of peace, love brotherhood and sisterhood. If the light skinned race makes the wrong choice of the roads, then the destruction which they brought with then in coming to this country will come back at them and cause much suffering and death to all the Earth's people."

Traditional Mide people of Ojibway and people from other nations have interpreted the "two roads" that face the light skinned race as the road to technology and the other road to spiritualism. They feel that the road to technology represents a continuation of headlong rush to technological development. This is the road that has led to modern society, to a damaged a seared Earth. Could it be that the road to technology represents a rush to destruction? The road to spirituality represents the slower path that traditional native people have traveled and are now seeking again. This Earth is not scorched on this trail. The grass is still growing there.

The prophet of the Fourth Fire spoke of a time when

"two nations will join to make a mighty nation."

He was speaking of the coming of the light skinned race and the face of brotherhood that the light skinned Brother could be wearing. It is obvious from the history of this country that this was not the face worn by the light skinned race as a whole. That might nation spoken of in the Fourth Fire has never been formed.

If the Natural people of the Earth could just wear the face of brotherhood, we might be able to deliver our society from the road to destruction. Could we make the two roads that today represent two clashing world views come together to form a mighty nation? Could a Nation be formed that is guided by respect for all living things? Are we the people of the Seventh Fire?
Copyright © 2003 Passamaquoddy Tribe at Pleasant Point

Originally posted by masqua

Originally posted by Rezwar
With all the strange things happening in our world today I am convinced this prophecy was meant for the times we are living in right now.

Completely agree. As William Commanda is fond of saying "You can't eat money" and the production of FOOD is fast becoming a global issue.

We still seem fixated on the age-old idea of 'make-work' via war. The cycle of greed, destruction, weapons manufacture and re-building has us looking like ant colonies in a flood plain. Always busy.

Like it says in my 'mood'... it's time to make that choice. Either we kill each other off in a world war or we start making sure there's food for everyone. There IS no in-between.

Sadly I think we're on a path to kill each other off... my part of England has been a food producer for a long time, and yet now we are no more than a pretty park for the rich to swan around in, with no work for those who would be working in harmony with the land, the rivers and sea

I fear we face some incredibly sad times..

Originally posted by thoughtsfull

Sadly I think we're on a path to kill each other off... my part of England has been a food producer for a long time, and yet now we are no more than a pretty park for the rich to swan around in, with no work for those who would be working in harmony with the land, the rivers and sea

I fear we face some incredibly sad times..

You may be right, but I would suggest that you try to do something new to counter it.

I have a "belief" about protests, for instance. I think that protesting is a waste of time and energy and only feeds that which you protest against.

Instead of protesting, use that energy and time to create something new, some new way or thing, to counteract what you are against.

For instance, those that protest at nuclear plants. We all know that nuclear energy is not the safest or best way to do things, but because it is "easy" and the "only viable solution", it is used.

Instead of 100s of people standing in front of a nuclear plant protesting its existence, why not gather all of those intelligent and obviously driven people, with their resources and energy, into a place to create a new type of viable energy source?

There's the difference between protesting and truly standing up for your beliefs.


I think that the Seven Fires prophecy relates to that kind of thinking, to be honest.

hey Rez
Im in Wendat land on Georgian bay in Ontario..between Christian Island/ Moosedeer point
I am Metis: Huron, Ojibway, Cree...a mutt
the food floats on the water here

cool thread
I would like to add Deganawidah's prophecy to this page
www.dreamscape.com...

note the three great shakings and then the
dragons
they are the colours of Kali ma
and the bloodlins that survived the flood with noah

the red rothschilds - communist/fscist devine right of kings
the white the rank and file everyman - constituitionalist- equal rights for the in group
the black oriental....- confucian

the western hills under an elm tree limits the end location of the flight to safety

I was givin a self sharpening stone skin scraper to bring attention to this prophesy

reply to post by thoughtsfull


Got myself sidetracked a little bit, but wanted to say that, in the example of the farmland turned to parkland, why not gather some people that think the same as you, buy land somewhere, and use the modern methods of fast production of food to make up for the loss that has been done by the rich swans?

In that way, you have made a difference. Especially if you teach others how to do it, to spread it elsewhere.

Plant the seeds of knowledge in how to do things better, instead of bleeding your energy on to things that you cannot do anything about, by being sad for their loss. Change happens,; respond to that change by doing something new.

Create, don't destroy.


By the way, this is not necessarily directed at you, but more as a shout to the universe lol. Please don't take offense thinking that you are a target

reply to post by Jomina


recapture the wisdom of the elders while we can
how to eat shelter and clothe, how to heal
how to survive with only what is avaliable

the prophesies indicate the bankers will ride their horse into the ground and there is nothing that will stop that momentum


used to be a good hatchet was all you needed
now one has to work harder

we were eaters of bark

I've read about that before and was always curious, what is the true path of the white man to fire? As Asians follow the path of air (martial arts/meditation) what would fire be?

reply to post by Jomina


No offence taken what so ever I do understand where you are coming from, and appreciate your comments..

Without making excuses as to where we stand today, we, the people do fight for our land and rights, that fight is a long one and has been running the best part of 1,000 years with little end in sight...

reply to post by ns9504



You can google the seven fires prophecy. Look for the one with the most info, it's not as thorough as the link I posted but you can get the main idea. It is probably because you are using a MAC. Like they say MACs are cool but the world runs on PC and most web pages are meant for PC.

reply to post by OneLife


They have already mastered fire as I stated in this thread. Metallurgy is the main one in my opinion, the white race has mastered fire. But they have forgotten the original instructions, they were not meant to use the fruits of this task for war and subjugation of their brothers and sisters of the other races. I was having a conversation with a friend about why the white race acted they way they did. The conclusion I came up with sounds very plausible. If you look at the history of the europeans in the Roman era, they were very much like native americans at the time. They lived in harmony with nature, wore their hair long, and made small tracks on the planet(meaning they only took what was needed to maintain balance with nature. They were living according to the creators wishes. That is until the roman empire subjugated them and separated them nature. No longer do our european brothers wear their hair long or respect nature. Basically the white race tried to do the same thing to the native peoples of the americas during the boarding school era. With the roman empire gone the white race embodied their corrupt lifestyles and materialism and continued this way of life right up to today. We are told by mainstream society that to wear your hair long is not socially acceptable. Our hair is our connection to nature and the creator. Cut it off and it's like you are trying to remove yourself from the creator and nature. We can see this is true because of the idea embodied by many that they are above nature and can do with it as they please. Now people cut their hair on a regular basis with no thought to why. This is one of the reasons why it is so easy for the white race to continue this reckless way of thinking. They have not only cut themselves off spiritually but physically separated their connection of spirit to the spirit world by cutting their hair. When will people wake up and realize they are only killing their not yet born descendants who will have to live on our Mother Earth if they continue to poison and corrupt mother earth. Something has to happen regarding a major change. Without it, mother earth will not survive in her current state. She will still be here, we might not be.