But the most precious resource of all was the people. The same people who used their power to create a world predicated on love and harmony with nature were enslaved and had their power usurped and harnessed to create a “New World” world predicated on fear and material greed .

We are powerful beyond comprehension, all of mankind, endowed with the capacities of the creator, to bring forth worlds out of ourselves. Abracadabra.

For Christopher Columbus and the men who set sail for India, they had indeed missed the mark. Starving, desperate, and succumbing to madness, they found themselves on death’s doorstep before the winds of grace delivered them to solid ground.

What they encountered was astonishing, a tropical wonderland. Colors they had never seen, fruit they had never tasted, men and women adorned in gold, unashamed of their nakedness. They had their own language, their own customs, and their own gods.

For the native Tainos, every aspect of nature had a god and was honored. Etched in stone were gods of the sun and moon, gods of birth and death, and many other aspects of the natural world, all of whom were expressions of the one god, the Supreme Mother, Atabey.

Jesus was new to the Caribbean; he arrived with the priests who accompanied Columbus on his voyages. The priests were sent to spread the teachings of the bible and to civilize the “savages” who were already living and embodying the teachings of The Christ.

It’s estimated that over 7 million Taino died in the years following “The Discovery”. Most died from infection, but I contend that the virus that has been the most harmful to the human family is the notion that we are born into sin, wretches, who need to be redeemed by a judgmental god in the heavens. When I set my aim to live in harmony with natural law like the Tainos, I don’t need to fear punishment for my “sins”, only the natural consequences of missing the mark.

Footage from Crónicas del Caribe directed by Paco Lopez and Emilio Wantanabe

To unfold her vision, the Supreme Mother divided herself into two equally balanced expressions of love and power.

Yucajú was the beginning of the idea.

Guabanex was its completion.

And through their rhythmic, balanced interchange, the worlds were born, and the evolution of Atabeys’ idea of the cosmos unfolded over untold billions of years.

The Natural world emerged, fish in the sea, birds in the sky, animals roamed the land, and eventually, Locao: human beings, made in the image and likeness of their creator. The dual essences of Yucajú and Guabanex balanced them, and they were endowed with the Supreme Mother’s ability to create worlds out of themselves using magic words.

And mankind has been forging worlds in their image and likeness ever since.

The music is by Aura Surey titled Taino Prayer Song:

The music is by Aura Surey titled Taino Prayer Song:

Rico / Riches: In the Bible, "riches" refers to both material possessions and spiritual blessings, but emphasizes that true riches lie in spiritual wealth and a relationship with God, rather than earthly possessions which are temporary and can become obstacles to faith.