Whoever holds the talking stick has within his hands the power of words. Only he can speak while he holds the stick, and the other council members must remain silent. The eagle feather tied to the stick gives him the courage and wisdom to speak truthfully and wisely. The rabbit fur on the end of the stick, reminds him that his words must come from his heart. ” (Locust, 1998).

IThe Talking Stick can be considered as "the guardian of the Word" because the Word is Sacred!

This simple instrument, which can be about 20 inches long by 2 inches in diameter, is a wonderful invention of American Indians, whose origin goes back in time. The Talking Stick is used during their meetings and all those who have the age to participate in these meetings have their own personal Talking Stick. Meetings can be formal or informal, and they all sit in a circle (“The Talking Circle”) to discuss important issues, solve problems, etc. The leader of the meeting holds the talking stick and, only he has the right to speak aloud at that moment while, all present in silence and with their head bowed listen, because his contribution is considered important. Everyone's gaze is down and they listen in silence. It is a precious moment where respect is essential!

The speaker is never "interrupted" and only when he has finished speaking can one look into his eyes. Then the talking stick is passed around to all those present either to the right or to the left, it does not matter or, according to the rank occupied in the community until all those who wish to speak have had the opportunity to do so. And always in the same way ... Because the word is sacred, because peace is at the center of the talking circle, therefore it is more important to cooperate to find solutions to problems or, to clarify oneself, in truth and mutual respect. It is very important for American Indians to know how to listen. In fact, since the age of three (3) all their children (boys and girls) are taught that they must first listen and then, only when they have learned to have control of their words, can they respond by expressing their opinion. The talking stick is a pedagogical tool because it is also used to educate one's children and this educational value is always present in all their formal and informal ceremonies and meetings. It strengthen respect. The talking sticks are all different from one another and are a personal tool. The objects and decorations with which they are adorned have a high personal value.

Also the type of wood used and even the place where it was found is important, represents a value or virtue, for example: if built with cherry wood it means great emotions or new awakenings; with maple wood it means sweetness and kindness; with oak wood it represents strength; with that of the walnut it means to focus; with birch the truth and with that of the white pine peace. Even the decorations with animal skins and feathers have an important and personal meaning, for example: with wolf skin it means perseverance, intuition and success and with eagle feathers it means grace, power and great intellectual abilities. They are also painted and every color has its own meaning, for example: Blue indicates intuition and wisdom; Green nature and harmony and with yellow knowledge and courage. The combinations can be many, that's why there will never be two equal talking sticks. What is certain is that it is part of their tradition and for many nations it is attributable to the same Deganawidah, the Great Peace Maker, who helped learn to make a peace agreement among the five nations; the Mohawks, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca and some time later also the Tuscaroras. Before the arrival of Deganawidah these nations fought each other, having terrible wars. People died and were hungry. Deganawidah convinced the warriors of the five nations to bury their weapons of war in the ground. Then he planted the “Great Tree of Peace” over the weapons and sat the warriors in a circle to help the five nations find peace. The branches of the great white pine would protect the people and the "white roots of truth" would reach the four directions, bringing the news of peace.

This peace agreement was reached after many years but, eventually, after having listened to each other and, spoken and listened to each other many times, they formed the Haudenosaunee confederation or Iroquois confederation. The real first democracy!!! It was such an important agreement that inspired other agreements like the United States Constitution and the United Nations Charter. Deganawidah believed that it was very important for every person who wishes to speak to be listened to carefully because, everyone's ideas were valuable. When they listened carefully from their hearts and spoke sincerely from their hearts, people were able to make peace! To help people work together, Deganawidah brought powerful peace symbols. One tradition was to pass something important around the circle to indicate who was speaking from his or her heart. Some of them started passing a stick that later became the talking stick. Since then, they passed the talking stick around the circle when they had their meetings ... Other countries also use the "Talking Feather", which must be an eagle's feather (generally), and its use is the same as the talking stick ... Both tools are "guardians of the word" because the Word is Sacred!
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