The Circle Widens

Voices from the July New Moon and an invitation to gather for the August 12 New Moon Solar Eclipse.

July 21, 2026

Aloha Kākou,

Every new moon, from my home office here on Kauaʻi, I open Zoom and watch little squares begin appearing on the screen. Some of the people I know will be there. Others I simply hope will make it.

Before sunrise, messages have already begun arriving from Elders around the world. Some are deep in ceremony, some are traveling, and some are where the internet, or even the electricity, is uncertain. Whether we see their faces or simply carry their blessings into the circle, they're with us.

Then, one by one, the gathering begins.

Last Monday morning, Elder Tarekegn Shado Shano, Executive Director of the Forum for Wisdom, Peace and Development, joined us from Ethiopia. The power had gone out and his room was dark. But there he was.

Families gathered together, children curled beside their parents and grandparents. Unangan Elder Ilarion 'Kuuyux' Merculieff joined us from Alaska, and Mamo Lorenzo Izquierdo Arroyo, Arhuaco Elder, from his home in the mountains of Colombia. Friends returned from Germany, Canada, South Africa, and across North and South America. Almost without noticing, we'd become a circle.

Then Aunty Puna began to speak. Kumu Hula Puna Kalama Dawson reflected on the span of a life:

"Not so long ago, I sat on the lap of my father. Not so long ago, I sat in the arms of my grandmother. Not so long ago, I was in the womb of my mother. All of us can relate to what I'm saying because we've all been there."

A little later she reminded us:

"We were brought to our Earth with these gifts, and these gifts are meant to be shared. Please don't think you have nothing to offer. Know that every moment that you breathe in the air, you're sharing your breath with all the trees."

It didn't feel like watching a teaching. I found myself enveloped in so much love that I felt like I'd climbed into my grandmother's lap, which is often how I feel when I have the gift of being in Aunty Puna's presence. I carried that feeling with me long after we closed the circle, and as the day unfolded I found myself returning to it again and again.

Her full teaching is eleven minutes. Click the video above and sit with her.

If you'd like to join us next month, we'd be honored to welcome you into the circle. Our next New Moon gathering falls on the New Moon Solar Eclipse, August 12. You'll find the Zoom details below.

That same thread appeared throughout the morning.

From Alaska, Ilarion reminded us to let the heart lead:

"We have to go to the heart, the transrational place that is the only place that is connected to the divine, and the only place where we get what we need."

From the mountains of Colombia, Mamo Lorenzo prayed to the new moon while his birds and animals sang around him:

"We say unto the moon that it may help us cleanse our minds and our hearts, that it may help us take out the weeds that we have planted within our own selves." (carried into English by Lawrence, who translates for our circle month after month)

From Arizona, Grandmother Mona Polacca of the International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers reflected on the prayers of our ancestors and the path they prepared long before we arrived:

"I feel like us coming together across all the distance in this way is part of fulfilling that path that was made for us through the prayers of our ancestors."

And from that dark room in Ethiopia, Elder Tarekegn simply said:

"Really, we can work together to build peace, to build unity all over the world."

Simple words. After everything that had unfolded that morning, they felt quietly true.

Moon after moon, people return. Relationships deepen, familiar faces become dear friends, children grow, new voices arrive, and the circle widens.

This month our community gathered from Hawaiʻi, Alaska, Arizona, Montana, Vermont, Colorado, New Mexico, California, Washington, Canada, Scotland, the Isle of Wight, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Germany, South Africa, Colombia, Ethiopia, and beyond.

To everyone who keeps returning, new moon after new moon: thank you. Together, we're weaving a blanket of peace around the world.

If you feel drawn to spend more time with these Elders, the Ancestral Wisdom Collective gathers weekly through the full rhythm of the moon. This Tuesday, July 21, Unangan Elder Ilarion 'Kuuyux' Merculieff leads his first First Quarter Moon gathering.

Thank you for helping tend this field with us.

These monthly gatherings are freely offered to everyone. If you feel moved to support this work, gifts from this community are what make it possible. You can make a contribution here.

🌑 August New Moon Ceremony

Our next gathering falls on the August 12 New Moon Solar Eclipse. We would be honored to welcome you into the circle.

These monthly ceremonies were born from a call by the Council of Indigenous Sages of Colombia to synchronize ceremony across the world. Each New Moon, Elders and wisdom keepers from across continents gather to cleanse, attune, and renew together. All are welcome in this growing Community of Practice.

Date: Wednesday, August 12, 2026

Time: 7:30 AM Hawaiʻi | 10:30 AM Pacific | 12:30 PM Colombia | 1:30 PM Eastern | 7:30 PM CEST

Join Zoom Meeting:

Meeting ID: 829 1391 4758

Passcode: Love

You are warmly welcome in this circle.

If this speaks to someone you love, we would be grateful if you shared it with them. And if it was shared with you, you can subscribe here to receive the next one.

Me ke aloha pumehana,

Prajna, Greg, Jared, Lawrence, Patricia, Puna & Kaiāulu's Council

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