Messages from the Spirits of Manitou Springs

Natural healing waters are everywhere, waiting for us to use them — we need only learn where to find them and how to listen. Dr. Joy Dunkin listened, and the wisdom of water spoke to her, leading to insights and discoveries that resulted in a book and a far-reaching vision.

Author of Healing Waters, Sacred Wells, Dr. Dunkin's vision, through her Water Wisdom educational program, is to share the messages of water with children, "the advanced souls who are coming here now."

"The Indigos," she told me, "are waiting for their water."

Paula: What first inspired you to explore healing waters and to write your book?

Joy: I was participating in a group ceremony in New Mexico, when suddenly I felt a strong urge to leave the gathering and make the long drive to Manitou Springs, Colorado. There, I attended a Native American Pipe Ceremony at the Medicine Wheel in the Garden of the Gods.

It was my first time, and I did not know what to expect. I sat in the circle with the others and the Pipe Carrier began the teaching of the Sacred Pipe. The pipe was then passed from person to person as prayers were offered to Great Spirit.

When the pipe made its way to me, I suddenly felt myself engulfed in a playful, light energy that was also very old and wise. Its message still rings in my heart: "We are the Spirits of the Healing Waters and Sacred Springs. We want you to tell our medicine stories. We want you to write them." I agreed.

So I listened to the waters, collected the stories, and put them together into a book for those who seek the health and wholeness that these living waters can provide.

Paula: I sense that this experience was very moving for you.

Joy: The presence of these water spirits was an experience of ultimate, pure Love. Speaking with the direct source of that Love was almost more than my physical body could contain.

Paula: Where are these healing water springs and what did you learn about them?

Joy: The springs at Manitou are not far from Colorado Springs, at the foot of Pike's Peak. They have been here for a very long time.

The Ute Indians are the original earth keepers of these springs. I have a friend who is the spiritual leader of the Ute Nation, and he traces their tribal lineage back eight thousand years.

It's interesting, by the way, that he divides their history in half — before and after the appearance of the horse. Before the horse, a matriarchal society existed: a lineage where the children took the name of the mother, and the matriarch had an important position in the tribe. After the appearance of the horse, a patriarchal society emerged.

Paula: What do the Utes say about the healing power of the waters at Manitou?

Joy: The Utes were not able to explain in scientific, left-brained terms how these waters worked. They simply knew that they did, and called them the Medicine Waters.

The entire Garden of the Gods at Manitou Springs is holy and sacred, so no one has ever lived here. The Ute people came here to spend time with the healing waters and make their prayers, but then they would leave.

And although it was Ute territory, it was neutral. When other tribes came to the springs, in other words, it was understood that there would be no fighting and no war. The tribes would come to commune with Great Spirit and partake of the healing waters. And then they, too, would leave.

Paula: I understand that the water from these springs is called "primary water." Can you explain what this means?

Joy: First of all, "secondary water" is a term used to describe water that comes from the oceans, seas, lakes, and rivers, and recycles itself through the element of air — Father Sky.

Primary water describes water that recycles itself through the element of Earth — the Earth Mother. It is characterized by high mineral content and a constant flow and temperature.

Primary water, like the healing water at Manitou Springs, is formed over thousands of years from rain and melted snow that seeps into mountain rock fractures. It collects deep within the earth, where it becomes heated and mineralized. It makes its way toward the surface in the form of a natural spring or a drilled well. Primary water is alive with the elements of the Earth Mother's living body.

Paula: What makes the water come to the surface?

Joy: Natural gases deep within the earth cause these living waters to ascend. In Manitou Springs, the mineral waters flow up the Ute Pass fault zone over limestone deposits, which cool and carbonate them. For some of these living waters at Manitou Springs, this cycle is over a hundred thousand years old!

These are medicine waters for healing spiritual, mental, and emotional states as well as physical ones.

Paula: Is Manitou Springs a bathing spa, or are these waters primarily for drinking?

Joy: I have bathed in them, but they are primarily for drinking. These ancient medicine waters are cold and carbonated and are intended to be consumed for cleansing and detoxifying purposes. They are an elixir of life for the evolving consciousness of humanity in the new millennium.

Paula: What kind of mineral properties are found at Manitou Springs?

Joy: There are actually several different springs, each one with a mineral content that varies somewhat from the others. Different types of minerals are found in different quantities in each spring.

Overall, these waters contain calcium chloride, copper, chromium, fluoride, hydrogen sulfide, iron, lithium, magnesium, manganese, potassium, silica, sodium, sulfate, and zinc. The alkalinity of these waters is extremely high.

Paula: Silica seems to be a very important mineral? Is it found in all of the waters at Manitou?

Joy: Yes, in varying proportions.

That's really good, by the way, that you recognize silica, because my understanding is that life on earth — including our bodies — is going through a transformation moving from a carbon-based existence to a silica-based existence.

Paula: What is important about silica?

Joy: We know from electromagnetics that silica has the ability to rotate the polarization plane of light. But what science will eventually discover is what the indigenous peoples — the Earth Keepers — have known all along: Silica also has the ability to rotate the polarization plane of consciousness.

So the silica in these waters has a definite impact on our ability to make a transformational shift — to rotate the polarization plane of our consciousness.

Paula: You spoke of medicine stories from the water spirits. Can you relate these stories to us?

Joy: These are actually messages more than stories. Each of these several springs has a different "message" related to the particular purpose that the water serves.

The message from the Ute Chief Spring is: "Natural mineral water is an especially powerful healing agent, because it replenishes elements that are vital to healthy functions of the cells. Cells of the body, heart, mind, and spirit all share the same DNA. This cellular structure is a ONENESS, a wholeness, and these cells all function together as one complete whole sharing one complete DNA structure."

The message from the Iron Spring says: "Iron is the largest amount of minerals in the blood, and it is essential to a healthy immune system and the production of energy."

From the Twin Spring, the message is: "Blocked energy creates depression, which is sustained by thoughts in the mental body. These thoughts are in motion throughout the mind in every cell of the body. Depression is translated into the physical body as a depletion of magnesium, which is one of the most important chemical regulators of the immune system. Chronic fatigue and pain, cardiac arrest, fatal cardiac arrhythmia, hypertension, and epilepsy are among the physical symptoms when the flow of magnesium is deficient."

The Shoshone Spring says: "The voices of Spirit are many, as many as there are sources of nature from which to come. The voice of Spirit can be heard from a burning bush, and the voice of Spirit can be heard from wells and springs. This rhythmic flow of life energy is a creation of nature. It is our connectedness with God — — with Great Spirit."

From the Cheyenne Spring, the message is: "Human consciousness is again remembering that mineral waters are living waters and contain the transformative essence. They are the matrix of life. The Celts knew it, the Utes knew it. The Earth Keepers KNOW IT."

Paula: Do people have to come to Manitou Springs to partake of the waters? Can't they be made commercially available?

Joy: There's a packaging problem in bottling these waters for consumers. Even though the waters appear at first to be crystal clear, in about twenty-four hours minerals begin to collect at the bottom of the glass. The minerals don't make the water look muddy or murky, but they are visible. So buyers would think they were purchasing dirty water.

Three different attempts have been made to bottle these waters, and all failed after a year or two. First one thing and then another caused the bottling procedures to shut down. I believe that the most recent closure was in the 1950s.

I know it's an effort to go to the springs, draw your own water, and make your prayers. But a large portion of the healing that takes place is in going there.

Paula: I understand that you also have knowledge of other drinking waters that are here for our healing. Since many of our readers will not be in a position to travel to Manitou Springs, could you talk about some of the alternatives?

Joy: First of all, we need to understand something about the water supply we have in our homes, and why it should not be consumed.

Municipalities process water in order to kill harmful bacteria and furnish "safe" water to society, and it's true that most of our water has become so polluted and contaminated that this processing needs to be done.

However, it's important to realize that in killing the harmful bacteria and other contaminants, this processing also strips out important minerals and electrolytes. Tapwater is dead. And it's seriously deficient in magnesium, and without magnesium, heart problems and serious depression can result, as well as other imbalances. Also, chlorine and other harmful chemicals like fluoride are added to this water.

Healing waters and sacred geothermal springs are all over the Earth Mother's body — in every country and in every land. We are particularly blessed with them in the United States. They're all over the place.

I advise people to contact the US Geological service by phone or do a search on the Internet. Request information on where the nearest natural springs are in your area. They are all mapped out and designated. Some of them are on private property. But the springs that are on public property are the ones you will have access to.

Paula: Do you know anything about Trinity Water from Idaho? I purchase it from the market, and when I drink it, I feel better.

Joy: Yes, I do know about Trinity. The company bottles its water right at the source, meaning that they do not extract the mineral content in order to bottle it. Because of its high mineral content, Trinity water is marketed not as drinking water but as a supplement.

And this takes us back to our discussion about silica. I spoke with Dr. Roy Johnson, Trinity's scientist and chief engineer, and he told me that one of the significant factors of Trinity water is its high silica content.

The place where the Trinity waters come up from deep in the earth is surrounded by giant quartz crystals, and of course quartz is pure silica. Also, these crystals are certainly generating energy — not just into the waters bubbling up from the spring but throughout the whole bottling process.

Paula: What is so different about Trinity water? It always looks clear.

Joy: Although its mineral content is high, Trinity doesn't have the mineral content that Manitou waters have, or the Manitou waters' exceptional blend and proportional balance of these minerals.

Paula: Would you say something about your work with children and the wisdom of water?

Joy: I have started a Water Wisdom educational program. It is operating on a volunteer basis, and we seek funding in order to introduce wisdom about water into public and private schools. We want to reach approximately 25,000 students a year.

Paula: That is a beautiful vision. Is there anything else you would like us to know in closing?

Joy: Water is the life flow of the Earth and the primal healing energy for all life. Healing waters rich in mineral content are treasures waiting to be rediscovered. The geothermal springs are special, sacred places where health and healing can be restored.

Listen to the healing waters and sacred springs, for they will tell us their stories.

Joy Dunkin, Ph.D, has degrees in industrial relations, philosophy, and holistic health sciences, and is president and executive director of Water Wisdom, Inc.

To learn more about the Water Wisdom educational program, or to order Dr. Dunkin's book, please go to HealingWatersSacredSprings.com or email her at LTBLinc@HealingWatersSacredSprings.com. You also can write to Dr. Dunkin at Water Wisdom, Inc., P. O. Box 346, Manitou Springs, CO 80829.