Thunder Lodge

Thunder Lodge is the Brothers Lodge in the Circles of Empowerment
As always, we wish to acknowledge the strong and generous leadership that has carried this Lodge from one year to the next as well as the participation from our community Brothers who offer a great deal of service, both seen and unseen.

This constant commitment and evolution towards refinement and cultivating our practice has led us to the current leadership held by our beloved Grandfather and Clan Father. Additionally, our local leadership has been cultivated and these elders are passing on their teachings in a good way to these men.

This Lodge has historically, primarily been in a balancing energetic and ceremonial service to the annual women’s Long Dance ceremony in the fall, although the men regularly connect throughout the year in various other ceremony as well as through their volunteerism.

During the annual Long Dance, all Brothers, regardless of experience, are invited to the purification ceremony, the Inipi sweat lodge and all community events throughout Village Building as well as Take Down on Sunday morning after Long Dance. Our monthly planning meetings are open to all Lodges and are intended to cover the questions and preparations of the Lodge itself.

New to Ceremony? For the Brothers who are new to ceremony and ceremonial etiquette, we offer training and initiations in order to participate through the duration of the Long Dance ceremony: sunset to sunrise. This preparation and training requires advance planning and can easily be coordinated by working with Hua Anwa directly.

Experienced Brothers: For those Brothers who are called to hold Sentry during the Long Dance Ceremony itself, the prerequisites are to have had ceremonial experience as well as being present for the Thunder Lodge Purification inipi sweat lodge Saturday morning. We encourage and invite all Brothers, regardless of past ceremonial experience, to connect with the Lodge Leads to sign up for the mailing list specific to this Lodge. Please let us know more about your past experience so we can ensure a safe and enriching experience for you and those being held in your care.

If Thunder Lodge appeals to you, please contact Greg “Hawk” Palmer at info@circlesofempowerment.org and we can fill you in on opportunities, resources and connections.