“On Holy Ground: Commitment and Devotion to Sacred Land”

With Yeye Luisah Teish and Kahuna Leilani Birely

ASWM Conference ~ March 27-29, 2025

Join us for a discussion regarding Land, Sacred Sites, and our Responsibility to Land and Life. In this presentation the audience is invited to experience the magic inherent in the mythology of Hawaiian and African diasporic culture. We will discuss the Oath to Mother Earth and how we can become more respectful and devoted to the land and Her people. Here, the audience will meet such figures as Yemaya, the Goddess of the Sea, and Earth Mother Papa-Haumea. They are among the many spirits that inhabit the Natural world. Kahuna Leilani and Yeye Teish will share the stories of their childhoods, families, and communities and demonstrate how myths and storytelling shaped their character and guided their lives.

The history of the colonial period, which sought to demonize, exoticize, and disempower these cultures is examined briefly. We will share the concept of Conquistadors on Tour and how not to continue the devastation of colonialism through modern day travel. We will learn how the myths and stories inspired resilience in the people.

 We will also honor the ancestors whose dedication and persistence preserved the myths and enabled us to inherit their wisdom. We will share guidelines for reclaiming the primal messages in the myths, reinterpreting their meaning, and applying them to today’s Concerns. Both Yeye Teish and Kahuna Leilani grew up within spiritual cultures that survived centuries of oppression while maintaining reverence for and centering the sacredness of Land within  their cosmology and rituals. They will share their wisdom around healing our relationship to Sacred Land and each other in these times of ecological crisis and the clear  manifestation and impact of the disregard for Earth, her gifts, and her children.

Chief Iyanifa Fajembola Fatunmise also known as Yeye Luisah Teish is a writer, performance artist and Yoruba priestess. An American author of African and African-diaspora spiritual cultures, also is an affluent ritualist, keynote speaker, and spiritual advisor on a global scale. Primarily known for Jambalaya: The Natural Woman’s Book of Personal Charms and Practical Rituals, a women’s spirituality classic that has been translated into German, Spanish, and Dutch. She has co-authored has co-authored On Holy Ground: Commitment and Devotion to Sacred Lands with Leilani Birely. She has contributed to 40 anthologies, and her essays, artwork and poetry appear in such publications as Essence, Ms, and Coreopsis: Journal of Myth and Theater. As an Oshun priestess (Yoruba Goddess of Love and Sensuality), Yeye continues to officiate over spiritual retreats, rituals, and workshops that span over forty years since her introduction into the Ifa spiritual practice.  Teish has said, “My tradition is very celebratory – there’s always music, dance, song, and food in our services – as well as a sense of reverence for the children. It’s joyful as well as meditative.”

Leilani Birely is a Native Hawaiian Kahuna and Dianic High Priestess who brings ancient Hawaiian healing and Goddess wisdom to the community. Kahuna Leilani brings forth teachings of the Aloha Spirit through Hula, Ceremony, Performance, Writing and Ritual. She is the founder/ritual director of Daughters of the Goddess Women’s Temple in the San Francisco Bay Area an international community of women dedicated to She of 10,000 names and Multicultural Women’s Mysteries. She has her Master’s in Women’s Spirituality from New College of San Francisco.  She has lectured at the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, Dominican University and the California Institute of Integral Studies. Leilani has co-authored the book, On Holy Ground: Commitment and Devotion to Sacred Lands with Luisah Teish. She is included in anthologies Shades of Faith: Minority Voices in Paganism and Stepping into Ourselves: An Anthology of Writings on Priestesses.

 Leilani gives thanks and honor to her teachers: Yeye Luisah Teish, Iyanifa Yoruban Chiefess and author of Jambalaya; Kahuna Auntie Pahia; Vicki Noble, author and co-creator of the Motherpeace Tarot; and Kumu Hula Patrick Makuakane and Mahea Uchiyama, and Uncle Butch of Ka’ala Farms, O’ahu.