February 23, 2023. Medicine Wheels are to teach four directions and include the sky, the earth, and the center. For Ojibwa people, the colors are yellow (east), red (south), black (west), white (north), Father Sky (blue), Mother Earth (green) and the self (Center, purple). The medicine wheel reminds us that everything comes in fours – the four seasons, the four stages of life, the four races of humanity, four cardinal directions.
The seven stages of life and the seven living teachings are represented by seven directions.
The Seven Grandfather Teachings are also located on this Medicine Wheel. They begin in the Northern direction and move down to the center of the Wheel. These gifts are the teachings of Honesty, Humility, Courage, Wisdom, Respect, Generosity and Love.
As explained by Elder LILLIAN PITAWANAKWAT
“All parts of the wheel are important and depend on each other in the cycle of life; what affects one affects all, and the world cannot continue with missing parts. For this reason, the Medicine Wheel teaches that harmony, balance, and respect for all parts are needed to sustain life”
Teachings in part from "2016 Teaching by the Medicine Wheel | Association canadienne d’éducation.