New Age v. North American Indian tradition

There seem to me to be great parallels between New Age thinking regarding initiations through the various dimensions to ascension and beyond, and that of the North American Indian tradition of the medicine wheel. The following excerpts are taken from Jamie Sams' book Dancing the Dream, coming mainly from the Seneca Indians' beliefs, and The Beginner's Guide to the Path of Ascension by Dr. Joshua Stone.

Obviously, in this blog, it is necessary for para-phrasing and an extreme precis of the two books. For each path/initiation, I have quoted the Medicine Wheel first, followed by the relevant initiation from Joshua Stone:

1A) EAST PATH
The first path of transformation on the medicine wheel is where we are awakened to the realisation that we have a purpose in life and that we choose to serve humanity.
1B) FIRST INITIATION
This is the official stepping of the soul onto the path of ascension. The act of gaining self-mastery is now an integral part of the person's very purpose. The soul begins to master the basic lower physical tendencies of the body.

2A) SOUTH PATH
The second path of transformation teaches us to eliminate any feelings, behaviours and ego-based activities that keep us from attaining humility. We learn to readopt the magic of childlike innocence, healing any desire for revenge-based behaviours. On the second path we begin to move beyond being controlled by envy, jealousy or bitterness.
2B) SECOND INITIATION
Here the initiate deals with the astral/emotional body and devotes time and energy to mastering the desire self. Selfish desires are gradually replaced by the desire to serve. The ultimate goal of the second initiation is to merge one's personal goals and desires with the whole.

3A) WEST PATH
The third path of transformation is where we learn to heal our bodies, our judgments, our relationships, our self-esteem and our unwanted habits. Here we begin to develop our intuition and our ability to listen and where we skilfully develop our personal effectiveness in life.
3B) THIRD INITIATION
Another name for the third initiation is the soul merge because here one becomes directly linked with the higher self or oversoul. Both the higher self and masters begin to work directly with the soul in incarnation. Here we become aware of the existence of our soul group. Mastery over thought must be a central focus here. We must be aware of and control negative thoughts and life conditioning.

4A) NORTH PATH
The fourth path teaches us to be compassionate and to share our wisdom with others, to live our lives with open hearts and to continue to learn. This is also the authentic beginning of the wisdom path where we acknowledge that every living thing is a messenger and that every life event is an initiation containing vital steps of transformation.
4B) FOURTH INITIATION
This has been dubbed the crucifixion because outer props, dependencies and supports have been removed and the soul must rely solely on his/her relationship to self, God and the masters. Any aspect of fear or loss disappears when the initiate learns to look at life as a series of lessons. The initiate has completely merged with the soul and becomes the higher self/oversoul.

5A) ABOVE PATH
On the fifth path of transformation we discover the wonders of the energetic parts of Creation and we explore the vast realms of consciousness available to us in our universe. We go beyond the physical aspects of life and journey into realms of awareness and other realities that exist simultaneously within the universe.
5B) FIFTH INITIATION
The fifth initiation is known as the monadic merger. The will to serve becomes of paramount importance as the vision of the 5th degree initiate includes both the many levels of the human kingdom and the spiritual kingdom, including the animal, vegetable and mineral kingdoms' roles in the evolution of Earth, as well as that of the angelic line.

6A) BELOW PATH
The sixth path teaches us to take the content of our personal empowerment, authentic abilities and intimate connections to the universe and bring those aspects of self into alignment with the Earth Mother and the Great Mystery simultaneously, using the physical body as the connecting link between the two. At the end of the sixth path we experience the Hunab K'u, the centre of the universe or VOID which exists simultaneously in all realms of awareness, where time does not exist and space is infinite. On the other side of this experience, the many parallel levels of consciousness we are operating in, at the same time as living in the material world, become crystal clear and we have conscious access to those alternate realities at will.
6B) SIXTH INITIATION
This is the start of the initiation of ascension which is concluded at the end of the seventh initiation. This occurs on the monadic plane of being and is a momentous occasion - the point at which the initiate and the monad merge directly. One sees through a lens of total unity, of complete and utter oneness, experiencing joy, unconditional love divine and peace.

7A) WITHIN PATH
The seventh path of transformation is where we develop the ability to be awake and aware in all situations and to be in command of our perceptions from the physical perspective as well as from the infinite spiritual perspective of the Spiritual Essence. The Cherokee Indians call the seventh path the NOW PATH where, having emerged from the Void, we reconstruct our lives to incorporate all that we have experienced, bringing those multi-dimensional viewpoints into wholeness inside the body and being fully present with all perceptions fully operational. We achieve mastery by keeping all of our wisdom, integrity and personal impeccability simultaneously in motion, applying these in the present moment without being drawn into past or future.
7B) SEVENTH INITIATION
This marks full ascension and takes place on the logoic plane. It is the full and complete liberation of which the yogis speak. It is the nirvana of the Buddhist. It is the highest stage of samadhi, the ultimate goal of the meditator.

Major differences or many similarities? You decide.

Namaste my fellow lightworkers