In a maneuver of sheer brilliance, they masked their beliefs, hiding them in the language and customs that satisfied the Spanish. His ancestors had to conform to the religion of the explorers or lose everything. РІР‚СљThe choice was clear,РІР‚Сњ our guide continued. They forced us to accept what they believed.РІР‚Сњ РІР‚СљWe already had a religion,РІР‚Сњ our guide explained, РІР‚Сљbut it wasnРІР‚в„ўt what the Spanish were looking for. The early pueblo people practiced a powerful spirituality that allowed them to live in balance with the land for more than a millennium. Rather than the primitive tribes that theyРІР‚в„ўd expected, they found an advanced civilization already in place. When Spanish conquerors first arrived in the pristine wilderness of northern New Mexico, they werenРІР‚в„ўt prepared for what they found. Our guide opened the gate and motioned us into the courtyard. As we left the road and walked along the side of an ancient-looking wall, I found myself staring at what looked like a cross between the thick buttresses of an old frontier fort and the unmistakable bell towers of a chapel.

Pointing to our left, he began walking toward a building that was unlike anything IРІР‚в„ўd ever seen before. The old ways are all around you, everywhere.

When you understand who you are and your relationship to the land, you understand the medicine. РІР‚СљOur ways are the ways of the land, of the earth. РІР‚СљJust what does it mean to hide something РІР‚Вin plain sightРІР‚в„ў? How do you do that?РІР‚Сњ He was letting her know that while РІР‚СљofficiallyРІР‚Сњ the medicine people no longer practiced, their wisdom remained-safe, sound, and protected from the modern world. WeРІР‚в„ўre modern people living in the 20th century, with modern medicine.РІР‚Сњ Then, as he looked directly into the eyes of the woman who had asked the question, he repeated, РІР‚СљThe best way to hide something is to keep it in plain sight.РІР‚СњР”Р„s the words left his mouth, I could see the twinkle in his eye. РІР‚СљNo way!РІР‚Сњ he said, РІР‚СљWe donРІР‚в„ўt have medicine people here any longer. Today, however, our guide offered a cryptic reply. IРІР‚в„ўd quickly discovered that the spiritual practices of the local people are a sensitive topic, something that isnРІР‚в„ўt shared openly beyond close friends and tribal members. Five years earlier, I had walked into the same pueblo for the first time and had asked the very same question. РІР‚СљYou mean like old medicine? Are you asking if we still have a medicine man around here?РІР‚Сњ РІР‚СљDo you still practice the old ways here, or do you keep those things hidden from outsiders?РІР‚Сњ

While we were walking, a woman in the group asked the guide about the spiritual beliefs of the Tewa people (the name that the original Taos natives called themselves based on the red willows that grow along the river). I stepped closer to hear what the young guide was saying and quickly became part of the crowd. Across the road I saw a small tour group following a beautiful Native American man as he led them through the main plaza of the pueblo. I glanced in the direction of the voice to see where such a curious statement had come from. Lawrence and Jim Morrison (from the rock group the Doors), the mystique and beauty of the high deserts has changed the lives of many artists and their art. From Ansel Adams and Georgia OРІР‚в„ўKeeffe, to D. IРІР‚в„ўd set the day aside to explore the place that held such an attraction for some of the most inspirational creative figures of 20th century. Those were the words that drifted across the dusty road leading into the Taos Pueblo on a hot afternoon in August of 1991.

РІР‚СљThe best way to hide something is to keep it in plain sight.РІР‚Сњ

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