The Children’s Fire was first brought to England by Tim Mac McCartney after his time spent in America with the indigenous people. As one of our Founding Partners Mac has passed on the wisdom of the fire to BrightSky and we have adopted it as the central principle for our community. But what is the Children’s Fire? We shall tell you a version of the story that was told to Mac himself to help you understand its importance to all of us living on planet earth.
The Story of the Children’s Fire
The Chiefs, both women and men sat in council and considered, "how do we govern our people?" They desired to do good in the world but realised that a problem existed; that over time this virtuous ideal to put the community first, morphed into something else- their judgements that
were supposed to be of benefit to the people were not so any longer. Often they ended up being what was best for the chiefs, thus leading to abuses of power and position. The chiefs pondered this problem and realised that the solution lay in the realms of spirit. A vision quest could give them the guidance they needed, so all the chiefs went away and meditated and fasted and thought and felt how best fix the problem.
During their quests they were told that the answer to all of their troubles is found in nature and one day, maybe days, maybe years later, one of the chiefs came back and shared her vision.
She said: "Every time we come together as chiefs let us build a fire and call it the Children’s Fire. We shall sit around it in a circle and hold our meetings. We shall decree that no decision, law or action that goes out from this circle shall harm a child, be it human, animal or plant. We shall ensure that every declaration made from now on is for the benefit of the next seven generations."
And so the Children’s Fire came into being, a way to ensure that communities don’t just focus on what is good for now, but what is good, for all beings, in the years to come. It is a pledge to life, a vehicle for us to be in service to life and a way of ensuring the ongoing health of our planet. It reminds us to be grateful and helps us reclaim the sense of reverence that is generally lost in this day and age. The Children’s Fire is our key to survival
