Post by blackcrowheart on Oct 18, 2005 14:47:28 GMT -5
The purpose of this guide is to help gain an understanding of sacred
ceremonies practised and sacred items carried by many Native people
across Canada.
Please note: The ceremonial items presented in this guide were
originally offered by a Council of Elders for use in an educational
environment. While some Tribes do not approve of even writing down of
the details of such Spiritual issues and customs, it is offered as a
general guide for better respect and honor between the races and in
keeping with the Prophesy of the Seventh Fire.
It should be noted that the various spiritual beliefs and sacred
items and ceremonies portrayed in this guide may vary according to
different tribal groups across Canada and throughout the remainder of
the Americas. The reader is advised to use the local community as a
reference base as local Elders will be able to clarify their
traditional ceremonial practises as well as the significance of
individual sacred objects.
Thanks to Manitoba Native Elders Art Shofley, Angus Merrick, Charlie
Nelson and Velma Orvis for contributing material for this guide.
The Circle of Life
"You have noticed that everything an Indian does is in a circle, and
that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and
everything tries to be round. In the old days, when we were a strong
and happy people, all our power came to us from the sacred hoop of
the nation and so long as the hoop was unbroken, the people
flourished.
The flowering tree was the living centre of the hoop and the circle
of the four quarters nourished it. The East gave peace and light, the
South gave warmth, The West gave rain and the North, with its cold
and mighty wind gave strength and endurance. This knowledge came to
us from the outer world with our religion. Everything the Power of
the World does, is done in a circle. The sky is round and I have
heard the earth is round like a ball and so are the stars. The Wind,
in its greatest power whirls. Birds make their nests in circles, for
theirs is the same religion as ours. The sun comes forth and goes
down again in a circle. The moon does the same and both are round.
Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing and always
come back again to where they were. The life of man is a circle from
childhood to childhood and so it is in everything where power moves.
Our Teepees were round like the nests of birds and these were always
set in a circle, the nation 's hoop, a nest of many nests where the
Great Spirit meant for us to hatch our children. "
(Black Elk Speaks, pp. 198-200) Spiritual Advisor to the Oglala Sioux
in 1930.
Traditions
Native cultures in their traditional nature are authentic and
dynamic, fostering distinctive and sophisticated development. A sense
of identity, pride and self-esteem are rooted in established
spiritual principles.
Native spiritual life is founded on a belief in the fundamental inter-
connectedness of all natural things, all forms of life with primary
importance being attached to Mother Earth.
The Medicine Wheel
The symbol of the circle holds a place of special importance in
Native beliefs. For the North American Indian, whose culture is
traditional rather than literate, the significance of the circle has
always been expressed in ritual practise and in art. The lives of men
and women, as individual expressions of the Power of the World move
in and are nourished by an uninterrupted circular/spiral motion. This
circle is often referred to as the Medicine Wheel. Human beings live,
breathe and move, giving additional impetus to the circular movement,
provided they live harmoniously, according to the circle's vibratory
movement. Every seeker has a chance to eventually discover a
harmonious way of living with their environment according to these
precepts.
The Four Powers
Each of the four directions represents a particular way of perceiving
things, but none is considered superior or more significant than the
other. The emphasis is always placed on the need to seek and explore
each of the four great ways in order to gain a thorough understanding
of one's own nature in relation to the surrounding world.
The four cardinal points of the circle transcend the mere compass
directions. The directions themselves embody four powerful natural
forces representing seasonal influences associated with various other
powerful attributes.
North represents Wisdom. Its colour is white, its power animal is the
buffalo and its gift is strength and endurance. From the South comes
the gift of warmth and growth after winter is over, a place of
innocence and trust. Its colour is green (or sometimes red), its
power animal, the mouse. To the West is the place of introspection,
of looking within one's spirit. Its colour is black, its gift rain
and its power animal the bear. The East is marked by the sign of the
Eagle. Its colour is gold for the sun's illumination, the new dawning
sky and enlightenment. Its gift is peace and light.
Understanding the meaning of the Medicine Wheel depends on the
concept that a person's life consists of"conquering the four hills:
Infancy, Youth, Maturity and Old Age. The four stages are celebrated
in ritual as the four prime moments in life corresponding to the
four directions.
The first hill is the South (innocence and trust) where the infant's
reception into life occurs. The second hill, that of introspection,
in the West, becomes the youth's solitary vigil and quest for vision.
This first quest seeks the revelation of the Great Spirit's
manifestation and continuing presence.
This is the time when a power animal attribute enters a Native
individual's soul becoming a part of his or her name. (Sitting Bull,
Black Elk, Crazy Horse and so on). It marks the beginning of the
dweller within, the dreaming soul that contacts the higher spiritual
planes bringing back visions that serve as fundamental guide posts in
life. The hill of maturity lies to the North and represents the
successful realization of ability and ambition. It is the place of
recognition in which the pursuit of wisdom underlies and nourishes
all action.
Sympathy with life itself grows in this quarter.
The final hill is that of old age situated in the East. It represents
a quiet, reflective and meditative segment where the old ones now can
pass on their knowledge to youth as they have mastered the meaning of
joy and sorrow and the many other trials and tribulations encountered
over the course of their existence.
Ceremonies
Ceremonies are the primary vehicles of religious expression. A
ceremonial leader or Elder assures authenticity and integrity of
religious observances. Nothing is written down, as the very writing
would negate the significance of the ceremony. Teachings are
therefore passed on from Elder to Elder in a strictly oral tradition.
Elders
Elders may be either men or women. Their most distinguishing
characteristic is wisdom which relates directly to experience and
age. There are exceptions. Elders need not be "old". Sometimes the
spirit of the Great Creator chooses to imbue a young native. Elders'
spiritual gifts differ. Some may interpret dreams. Others may be
skilful in herbal remedies or be healers during a sweat lodge
ceremony, and so on.
Prayers
Natives communicate with the Great Creator and spirit helpers through
prayers offered at individual or group ceremonies.
Pipes
Pipes are used during both private and group ceremonies, the prayer
itself being wafted through the smoke of the burning plant material.
Pipes are of no set length. Some stems may or may not be decorated
with beads or leather. Others may be elaborately carved with bowls
inlaid with silver. Bowls may be of wood, soapstone, inlaid or carved
in the form of various totemic power animals (an eagle with folded
wings) or another sacred animal.
From the top down: Natural Tobacco, Calamus root, Sweetgrass and
Tobacco, Tobacco seed. On the left: Sage; on the right: Red Willow
bark. Cloths; blue for the sky and then the four colours representing
humanity; the white, yellow, red and black races.
The pipe is disassembled into its component parts while being carried
from one place to another. The pipe is never a "personal possession".
It belongs to the community. The holder of the pipe is generally
considered its custodian. While every native has the right to hold
the pipe, in practise, the privilege must be earned in some religious
way. The pipe is usually passed on to another custodian under
specific fasting and cleansing rite regulations. There are pipes
exclusively used by either men or women. Men's pipes become unclean
if touched by women and vice-versa.
Pipe Ceremony
Pipe ceremonies constitute the primary group gatherings over which
Elders preside. Participants gather in a circle. A braid of
sweetgrass (one of four sacred plants) is lit and burnt as an incense
to purify worshippers, before the pipe is lit. Burning sweetgrass
also symbolizes unity, the coming together of many hearts and minds
as one person.
The Elder strikes a match, puts it to the end of the sweetgrass braid
and fans the smouldering grass with an eagle's feather, to encourage
smoke production. The Elder then goes from person to person in the
circle where the smoke is drawn four times by hand gestures toward
the head and down the body. The Elder must fan the glowing end to
keep it burning properly or the material loses its spark.
Sacred Plants: Red Willow Bark, Sage, Calamus Root, Sweetgrass braid,
Poplar leaves and Tobacco
The Elder then places tobacco in the pipe and offers it in the four
sacred directions of the compass. Some Western tribes begin by making
an offering to the West. Eastern Natives may propitiate the Spirit of
the East whence comes the light of the sun at daybreak, who also
gives guidance, direction and enlightenment. Then the Elder faces
South where the guardian spirit of growth presides after winter is
over. Next is West, the direction of the spirit gateway where reside
the souls of those who have left this plane of existence. The spirit
of the North concerned with healing and purification is then
addressed.
Spirits will be asked for assistance in the main prayer, which may be
specifically for one individual, a participant in the circle or for
someone far away or someone who has passed over. The pipe, passed
from person to person in the circle, might be offered to all
creation, to those invisible spirit helpers who are always there to
guide humanity. The last of the tobacco is offered to the Great
Creator.
Another version of the Pipe Ceremony is the Sacred Circle which
essentially follows the same procedures, but also allows a time
period for individual participants to address the assembly.
Fasting
Fasting is a time-honoured way of quickening spirituality in which a
growing number of Natives are partaking. An Elder provides the
necessary ceremonial setting and conditions to guide the fasting
member. Fasting means the total renunciation of food and drink for a
specified time period. Health considerations are evaluated by both
the Elder responsible and a physician prior to the fast.
Sweat Lodges
Used mainly for communal prayer purposes, the Sweat Lodge may also
provide necessary ceremonial settings for spiritual healing,
purification, as well as fasting. Most fasts require a sweat ceremony
before and after the event.
Lodge construction varies from tribe to tribe. Generally, it is an
igloo-shaped structure about five feet high, built in about one and a
half hours from bent willow branches tied together with twine. The
structure is then encased in blankets to preclude all light. A
maximum of eight participants gather in the dark.
In the centre, there is a holy, consecrated virginal section of
ground (untrampled by feet and untouched by waste material) blessed
by an Elder with tobacco and sweetgrass. There, red hot stones heated
in a fire outside the lodge are brought in and doused with water. A
doorkeeper on the outside opens the lodge door four times,
contributing four additional hot rocks (representing the four sacred
directions) to the centre. A prepared pipe is also brought in.
Sweat Lodges may be dismantled after the ceremony is over, but often,
they are left standing to accommodate the next ceremony.
Lodges may only be entered in the presence of an Elder.
Feasting
Some ceremonies such as "doctoring" sweat require the participant to
eat a meal. There are specific rituals requiring special foods.
Sacred food for the Ojibway for instance consist of wild rice, corn,
strawberries and deer meat. Typical feast foods for the Cree from the
prairies would be Bannock (Indian Bread), soup, wild game and fruit
(particularly Saskatoon berries or mashed choke cherries). For a West
Coast Indian, sacred foods might include fish prepared in a special
way. Although foods may differ, their symbolic importance remains the
same.
Rattles
Rattles are shaken to call up the spirit of life when someone is
sick. The Elder also uses a rattle to summon the spirits governing
the four directions to help participants who are seeking spiritual
and physical cleansing to start a "new" life during a sweat lodge
ceremony.
Drums
Drums represent the heartbeat of the nation, the pulse of the
universe. Different sizes are used depending on "doctoring" or
ceremonial purposes. Drums are sacred objects. Each drum has keeper
to ensure no-one approaches it under the influence of alcohol or
drugs. During ceremonies, no one may reach across it or place
extraneous objects on it.
Eagle Whistles
When a dancer approaches a drum and blows an eagle bone whistle, the
drum group responds by singing an appropriate song. The whistle is
blown four times to honour the drums, the dancers and the spirit of
the eagle. Four verses are sung, one for each time the whistle is
blown. Large pow-wows have strict rules around how often this may
occur during a pow-wow session.
Herbs / lncense
Sweetgrass, sage, cedar and tobacco encompass the four sacred plants.
Burning these is a sign of deep spirituality in Native practises.
Cedar and sage are burned to drive out negative forces when prayer is
offered. Sweetgrass, which signifies kindness, is burned to invite
good spirits to enter. Participants also use these purification
rituals to smudge regalia, drums and other articles before taking
part in a pow-wow.
The four plants are used in both individual and group ceremonies.
Each plant was originally given to a specific tribe. Now they are
used together or singly as incense which is generally ignited in an
abalone shell or another type of container to be passed from person
to person in the circle.
ceremonies practised and sacred items carried by many Native people
across Canada.
Please note: The ceremonial items presented in this guide were
originally offered by a Council of Elders for use in an educational
environment. While some Tribes do not approve of even writing down of
the details of such Spiritual issues and customs, it is offered as a
general guide for better respect and honor between the races and in
keeping with the Prophesy of the Seventh Fire.
It should be noted that the various spiritual beliefs and sacred
items and ceremonies portrayed in this guide may vary according to
different tribal groups across Canada and throughout the remainder of
the Americas. The reader is advised to use the local community as a
reference base as local Elders will be able to clarify their
traditional ceremonial practises as well as the significance of
individual sacred objects.
Thanks to Manitoba Native Elders Art Shofley, Angus Merrick, Charlie
Nelson and Velma Orvis for contributing material for this guide.
The Circle of Life
"You have noticed that everything an Indian does is in a circle, and
that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and
everything tries to be round. In the old days, when we were a strong
and happy people, all our power came to us from the sacred hoop of
the nation and so long as the hoop was unbroken, the people
flourished.
The flowering tree was the living centre of the hoop and the circle
of the four quarters nourished it. The East gave peace and light, the
South gave warmth, The West gave rain and the North, with its cold
and mighty wind gave strength and endurance. This knowledge came to
us from the outer world with our religion. Everything the Power of
the World does, is done in a circle. The sky is round and I have
heard the earth is round like a ball and so are the stars. The Wind,
in its greatest power whirls. Birds make their nests in circles, for
theirs is the same religion as ours. The sun comes forth and goes
down again in a circle. The moon does the same and both are round.
Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing and always
come back again to where they were. The life of man is a circle from
childhood to childhood and so it is in everything where power moves.
Our Teepees were round like the nests of birds and these were always
set in a circle, the nation 's hoop, a nest of many nests where the
Great Spirit meant for us to hatch our children. "
(Black Elk Speaks, pp. 198-200) Spiritual Advisor to the Oglala Sioux
in 1930.
Traditions
Native cultures in their traditional nature are authentic and
dynamic, fostering distinctive and sophisticated development. A sense
of identity, pride and self-esteem are rooted in established
spiritual principles.
Native spiritual life is founded on a belief in the fundamental inter-
connectedness of all natural things, all forms of life with primary
importance being attached to Mother Earth.
The Medicine Wheel
The symbol of the circle holds a place of special importance in
Native beliefs. For the North American Indian, whose culture is
traditional rather than literate, the significance of the circle has
always been expressed in ritual practise and in art. The lives of men
and women, as individual expressions of the Power of the World move
in and are nourished by an uninterrupted circular/spiral motion. This
circle is often referred to as the Medicine Wheel. Human beings live,
breathe and move, giving additional impetus to the circular movement,
provided they live harmoniously, according to the circle's vibratory
movement. Every seeker has a chance to eventually discover a
harmonious way of living with their environment according to these
precepts.
The Four Powers
Each of the four directions represents a particular way of perceiving
things, but none is considered superior or more significant than the
other. The emphasis is always placed on the need to seek and explore
each of the four great ways in order to gain a thorough understanding
of one's own nature in relation to the surrounding world.
The four cardinal points of the circle transcend the mere compass
directions. The directions themselves embody four powerful natural
forces representing seasonal influences associated with various other
powerful attributes.
North represents Wisdom. Its colour is white, its power animal is the
buffalo and its gift is strength and endurance. From the South comes
the gift of warmth and growth after winter is over, a place of
innocence and trust. Its colour is green (or sometimes red), its
power animal, the mouse. To the West is the place of introspection,
of looking within one's spirit. Its colour is black, its gift rain
and its power animal the bear. The East is marked by the sign of the
Eagle. Its colour is gold for the sun's illumination, the new dawning
sky and enlightenment. Its gift is peace and light.
Understanding the meaning of the Medicine Wheel depends on the
concept that a person's life consists of"conquering the four hills:
Infancy, Youth, Maturity and Old Age. The four stages are celebrated
in ritual as the four prime moments in life corresponding to the
four directions.
The first hill is the South (innocence and trust) where the infant's
reception into life occurs. The second hill, that of introspection,
in the West, becomes the youth's solitary vigil and quest for vision.
This first quest seeks the revelation of the Great Spirit's
manifestation and continuing presence.
This is the time when a power animal attribute enters a Native
individual's soul becoming a part of his or her name. (Sitting Bull,
Black Elk, Crazy Horse and so on). It marks the beginning of the
dweller within, the dreaming soul that contacts the higher spiritual
planes bringing back visions that serve as fundamental guide posts in
life. The hill of maturity lies to the North and represents the
successful realization of ability and ambition. It is the place of
recognition in which the pursuit of wisdom underlies and nourishes
all action.
Sympathy with life itself grows in this quarter.
The final hill is that of old age situated in the East. It represents
a quiet, reflective and meditative segment where the old ones now can
pass on their knowledge to youth as they have mastered the meaning of
joy and sorrow and the many other trials and tribulations encountered
over the course of their existence.
Ceremonies
Ceremonies are the primary vehicles of religious expression. A
ceremonial leader or Elder assures authenticity and integrity of
religious observances. Nothing is written down, as the very writing
would negate the significance of the ceremony. Teachings are
therefore passed on from Elder to Elder in a strictly oral tradition.
Elders
Elders may be either men or women. Their most distinguishing
characteristic is wisdom which relates directly to experience and
age. There are exceptions. Elders need not be "old". Sometimes the
spirit of the Great Creator chooses to imbue a young native. Elders'
spiritual gifts differ. Some may interpret dreams. Others may be
skilful in herbal remedies or be healers during a sweat lodge
ceremony, and so on.
Prayers
Natives communicate with the Great Creator and spirit helpers through
prayers offered at individual or group ceremonies.
Pipes
Pipes are used during both private and group ceremonies, the prayer
itself being wafted through the smoke of the burning plant material.
Pipes are of no set length. Some stems may or may not be decorated
with beads or leather. Others may be elaborately carved with bowls
inlaid with silver. Bowls may be of wood, soapstone, inlaid or carved
in the form of various totemic power animals (an eagle with folded
wings) or another sacred animal.
From the top down: Natural Tobacco, Calamus root, Sweetgrass and
Tobacco, Tobacco seed. On the left: Sage; on the right: Red Willow
bark. Cloths; blue for the sky and then the four colours representing
humanity; the white, yellow, red and black races.
The pipe is disassembled into its component parts while being carried
from one place to another. The pipe is never a "personal possession".
It belongs to the community. The holder of the pipe is generally
considered its custodian. While every native has the right to hold
the pipe, in practise, the privilege must be earned in some religious
way. The pipe is usually passed on to another custodian under
specific fasting and cleansing rite regulations. There are pipes
exclusively used by either men or women. Men's pipes become unclean
if touched by women and vice-versa.
Pipe Ceremony
Pipe ceremonies constitute the primary group gatherings over which
Elders preside. Participants gather in a circle. A braid of
sweetgrass (one of four sacred plants) is lit and burnt as an incense
to purify worshippers, before the pipe is lit. Burning sweetgrass
also symbolizes unity, the coming together of many hearts and minds
as one person.
The Elder strikes a match, puts it to the end of the sweetgrass braid
and fans the smouldering grass with an eagle's feather, to encourage
smoke production. The Elder then goes from person to person in the
circle where the smoke is drawn four times by hand gestures toward
the head and down the body. The Elder must fan the glowing end to
keep it burning properly or the material loses its spark.
Sacred Plants: Red Willow Bark, Sage, Calamus Root, Sweetgrass braid,
Poplar leaves and Tobacco
The Elder then places tobacco in the pipe and offers it in the four
sacred directions of the compass. Some Western tribes begin by making
an offering to the West. Eastern Natives may propitiate the Spirit of
the East whence comes the light of the sun at daybreak, who also
gives guidance, direction and enlightenment. Then the Elder faces
South where the guardian spirit of growth presides after winter is
over. Next is West, the direction of the spirit gateway where reside
the souls of those who have left this plane of existence. The spirit
of the North concerned with healing and purification is then
addressed.
Spirits will be asked for assistance in the main prayer, which may be
specifically for one individual, a participant in the circle or for
someone far away or someone who has passed over. The pipe, passed
from person to person in the circle, might be offered to all
creation, to those invisible spirit helpers who are always there to
guide humanity. The last of the tobacco is offered to the Great
Creator.
Another version of the Pipe Ceremony is the Sacred Circle which
essentially follows the same procedures, but also allows a time
period for individual participants to address the assembly.
Fasting
Fasting is a time-honoured way of quickening spirituality in which a
growing number of Natives are partaking. An Elder provides the
necessary ceremonial setting and conditions to guide the fasting
member. Fasting means the total renunciation of food and drink for a
specified time period. Health considerations are evaluated by both
the Elder responsible and a physician prior to the fast.
Sweat Lodges
Used mainly for communal prayer purposes, the Sweat Lodge may also
provide necessary ceremonial settings for spiritual healing,
purification, as well as fasting. Most fasts require a sweat ceremony
before and after the event.
Lodge construction varies from tribe to tribe. Generally, it is an
igloo-shaped structure about five feet high, built in about one and a
half hours from bent willow branches tied together with twine. The
structure is then encased in blankets to preclude all light. A
maximum of eight participants gather in the dark.
In the centre, there is a holy, consecrated virginal section of
ground (untrampled by feet and untouched by waste material) blessed
by an Elder with tobacco and sweetgrass. There, red hot stones heated
in a fire outside the lodge are brought in and doused with water. A
doorkeeper on the outside opens the lodge door four times,
contributing four additional hot rocks (representing the four sacred
directions) to the centre. A prepared pipe is also brought in.
Sweat Lodges may be dismantled after the ceremony is over, but often,
they are left standing to accommodate the next ceremony.
Lodges may only be entered in the presence of an Elder.
Feasting
Some ceremonies such as "doctoring" sweat require the participant to
eat a meal. There are specific rituals requiring special foods.
Sacred food for the Ojibway for instance consist of wild rice, corn,
strawberries and deer meat. Typical feast foods for the Cree from the
prairies would be Bannock (Indian Bread), soup, wild game and fruit
(particularly Saskatoon berries or mashed choke cherries). For a West
Coast Indian, sacred foods might include fish prepared in a special
way. Although foods may differ, their symbolic importance remains the
same.
Rattles
Rattles are shaken to call up the spirit of life when someone is
sick. The Elder also uses a rattle to summon the spirits governing
the four directions to help participants who are seeking spiritual
and physical cleansing to start a "new" life during a sweat lodge
ceremony.
Drums
Drums represent the heartbeat of the nation, the pulse of the
universe. Different sizes are used depending on "doctoring" or
ceremonial purposes. Drums are sacred objects. Each drum has keeper
to ensure no-one approaches it under the influence of alcohol or
drugs. During ceremonies, no one may reach across it or place
extraneous objects on it.
Eagle Whistles
When a dancer approaches a drum and blows an eagle bone whistle, the
drum group responds by singing an appropriate song. The whistle is
blown four times to honour the drums, the dancers and the spirit of
the eagle. Four verses are sung, one for each time the whistle is
blown. Large pow-wows have strict rules around how often this may
occur during a pow-wow session.
Herbs / lncense
Sweetgrass, sage, cedar and tobacco encompass the four sacred plants.
Burning these is a sign of deep spirituality in Native practises.
Cedar and sage are burned to drive out negative forces when prayer is
offered. Sweetgrass, which signifies kindness, is burned to invite
good spirits to enter. Participants also use these purification
rituals to smudge regalia, drums and other articles before taking
part in a pow-wow.
The four plants are used in both individual and group ceremonies.
Each plant was originally given to a specific tribe. Now they are
used together or singly as incense which is generally ignited in an
abalone shell or another type of container to be passed from person
to person in the circle.