Indigenous Study of the American People - Essay Example

Introduction Modern day Toronto was once a meeting place for many groups of Anishaanabe peoples and their different sectors. The lakes and rivers were used to cross and travel in order for groups of people to meet with others. This culture was able to easily sustain their livelihood and adequately use the resources which were naturally present in their existing environment. This paper will focus on the indigenous people of North America, including Anishinaabe people that lived around the great lakes and other regions for centuries. They are a very spiritual culture and have passed on many ceremonies and beliefs, for instance spiritual dances, medicinal herbs and many other aspects of their daily lives. Thesis statement This paper will use stories and other teachings from the indigenous culture to present a detailed draft in terms of Anishinaabe creation story, animals and plants that will include information related to many aspects of indigenous culture. Anishinaabe Creation story Just like in every other culture; Anishinaabe people have their own creation story. Their cultural believes are deep rooted on the story they believe is exactly what happened and caused their existence. According to Johnston (2005), Anishinaabe or Anishinabe creation story is based on a vision by Kitche Manitou (The Great Spirit). In the vision, “He saw a vast sky filled with starts, sun, moon, and earth” (Johnson, 2005). In the vision, the earth was made of mountains, valleys, islands, lakes, plains and forests. The ground was covered by flowers, grass and vegetables. On the earth, there were crawling, walking, flying and swimming creatures. It was out of the vision that he created things out of nothing since he felt the vision had to be fulfilled (Johnson, 2005). In the creation story, creation unfolded in seven stages; this is relatable to Judeo Christian teachings, which believe that the world was created in 7 days. Kitche Manitou managed to create in seven days where; Day one he created rock, water, fire and wind and breathed life into them. Day two, he created the sun, stars and the moon. Day three, he formed mountains, valleys, plains, islands, lakes, and rivers. Day four he created plants. Day five and six, he created all kind of animals to live on the dry land and in the water. Day seven he created man who was given all the powers to control all the other creatures. After finishing the creation process, he made The Great Laws of Nature to govern all the creatures and enhance harmony among them which is what is practiced to this day (Holroyd, 1991). Animals Back in the old days all of our ancestors were native people somewhere on earth in spite of our ethnicities or traditional backgrounds. They lived on hunting and fishing in an area of more than 40 miles radius (Bruchac & Caduto, 1992). Their men had the responsibility of knowing where to get animals to hunt at every season. Since most of the animals they hunted were wild, they were mandated to know how each animal behaved when threatened to avoid high numbers of casualties as they hunt. In all their hunting ventures, they were not allowed to hunt animals whom they shared ancestors like monkeys (Kalman & Walker, 2003). One day they started arguing, fighting and killing one another over land (Tigerman, 2006). The lack of harmony in the earth where Kitche Manitou had created caused him to purify the earth with floods since water had the power to purify and renew. According to GCT3 (2008), only Nanaboozhoo, a few animals and a few birds managed to survive the floods. The survivors floated on a huge log searching for dry land to no avail. One day, Nanaboozhoo came up with the idea of swimming to the bottom of the water to collect a piece of earth hoping that it will grow by the help of the wind to accommodate all of them. Nanaboozhoo started them off but just like every other animal that tried came back frail, tired and less of breathe with a report that the water was too deep to get to the earth. Only one animal muskrat managed to collect some earth in his paw though he came back dead. The piece of earth was placed on turtles back after he volunteered to carry the weight of the earth. The earth kept on growing by the help of the winds and was able to accommodate all the flood survivors and their descendants just as Nanaboozhoo has wished. This stands as the reason why the Anishinaabe people hold special reverence for the “turtle since he sacrificed his life to make life possible for the earth’s second people” (GCT3, 2008). The turtle is just but one of the animals that bear special reverence with the Anishinaabe people. Among others are the wolf, the deer, and the dog. The wolf was considered a brother to the original man since he walked with the man, mate for life, lived in a clan with defined tribes, was endangered and had their land taken away from them (Callahan, 1998). The dog on the other hand being a relative to the wolf who parted ways with the original man is considered unclean. Ist uncleanliness rules that it should never be at sacred ceremonial places or near people since it might endanger people’s lives (Callahan, 1998). The deer is historical to Anishinabe peolpe since it provided clothing for them (Bruchac & Caduto, 1992). Plants The indigenous individuals of America consider plants to be a very important and sacred part of their culture and traditions. It is recorded that while men took care of animals and went to hunt, women and children took care of plants (Bruchac & Caduto, 1995). They planted corn among other plants and collected wild rice from the fields (Callahan, 1998). To them different plants served different purposes within their culture hence giving every plant a special meaning both physically and spiritually (Beaver, 2008). Their purposes included being used as medicine in ceremonies, colouring, weaving and decoration materials in arts (Broker, 1983). In Anishinabe’s traditions, tobacco, sweetgrass, sage and cedar were culturally considered sacred plants. Tobacco was used in ceremonial activities as an offering especially in the naming ceremony (Callahan, 1998). When shared among different tribes, it acted as a symbol for peace and healing in cultural setting of the participating tribes (Struther & Hodge, 2004). Sweetgrass that flower between June and August was used as medicine in purifying ceremonies, weaving materials for baskets and crafts work, and decoration materials for their houses (Richters Herbs, 1994). The greatest value in the grass was based on its fragrance and the strength since it did not break easily. Sage and Cedar also stood in the category of special plants to the Native Americans. They believed that the creator gave them to the Anishinabe as sacred medicines to be used every day and in every ceremony (Kade, 2012). While tobacco and sweetgrass were used as discussed above, sage and cedar were used as preparation medicines for purifying the people and the home before a ceremony. Conclusion The connection to nature we felt is a direct result of learning the ways of those indigenous to this land. In this culture the earth and its produce is very respected and seen as a mother and thus we all felt a sense of new found appreciation for the animals and wilderness surrounding us.  Through the study, we all felt a sense of belonging and a reason to why different animals and plants are used differently in the present cultural practises. Such an understanding has created a level of knowledge that was not there before hence bringing out history as part of the present. It also calls for urgency in nurturing all creatures entrusted to us as human beings. It is important to be conscious of our position in the creation and the mandate we have in nurturing all that is around us. References Beaver, R. (2008). Native Culture and Spirituality. ManyEaglesMan. Retrieved from: http://ronniebeaver.webs.com/cultureandspirituality.htm The author through evaluating native spirituality manages to bring out clearly Native teachings that describe laws of life. Though laws were given by the long gone grandfathers, the teachings through the article are felt alive and active by any reader who interacts with the article. Broker, I. (1983). Night Flying Woman: An Ojibway Narrative. Saint Paul, MN: Minnesota Historical Society Press. The narrative brings out clearly the daily living of the Anishinabe people. It encompasses all the spheres of an extended family and how they lived in the temporary camps. In the narrative, the roles of every member of the family are clearly defined from the grandparents to the children. The narrative manages to bring out the warm society the Anishinabe people lived in hence making it a perfect study guide for anybody interested in knowing more about the lives of Ojibway people. Bruchac, J. & Caduto, M., J. (1992). Native American Animal Stories. Golden, Colorado: Falcrum Publishing. The animal stories in the book have been presented in way to depict the native life in America. Their approach to problems creates similar scenarios to those of human being hence bringing a reader closer to the realities in history. The stories are rich in descriptions and are therefore fit to be used for a research based on Native American life and interaction of man and animals. Bruchac, J. & Caduto, M., J. (1995). Native Plants Stories. Golden, Colorado: Falcrum Publishing. The plants stories have been presented in clear and concise manner. Each plant explains how different situations were handled in the ancient days hence helping to create a link between man and plants. The relationship between the two is made clear hence bringing a reader closer to the realities in history. The stories are rich in descriptions on the tribal differences and how they came up therefore making them fit for research based on Native American life and interaction of plants and human beings. Callahan, K. L. (1998). An Introduction to Ojibway Cultue and History. UMN. Retrieved from: http://www.tc.umn.edu/~call0031/ojibwa.html The article is particular to the culture and history of the Anishinaabe people. It explains how culture came about, how it was practised and how it grew. Through the article, a reader gets to understand why not all things were culturally acceptable in Anishinaabe history. GCT3. (2008). The Creation Story- Turtle Island. GCT3.net. Retrieved from: http://www.gct3.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/creation_story.pdf The article explains the reason for Anishinaabe people to reverence the turtle. It brings out the role turtle played in restoring people back after the earth got destroyed by floods. Through the article, one gets to understand the origin and existence of the second people as well as recognizing why North America sits in the middle of water as an island. Holroyd, V. M. (1991). Foundations of Faith: Historical Religious Buildings of Ontario. Toronto, Ontario: Natural Heritage/ Natural History Inc. Explaining the foundation of faith in conjunction with Native Americans has made this book a good resource for getting meanings in some of religious signs we have in places of worship. This book brings out clearly why specific religious symbols carry more reverence than others. Johnson, B. (2005). The Anishinabe Creation story. Lynn Gehl. Retrieved from: http://www.ottawaalgonquins.com/index_files/Creation%20Story.pdf The article explains in details the creation story of the Anishinabe. It explains the origin of creation idea being a vision and breaks the creation processes into seven stages. This stages starts with creation of the rock, water fire and wind and ends with creation of man in the final stage of creation. The article is relevant to be used in research of the indigenous people and their culture. Kade, M. F. (2012). Four Sacred Medicines. Turtle Mountain Chippewa Heritage Centre. Retrieved from: http://www.chippewaheritage.com/1/post/2012/03/four-sacred-medicines-muskiiki.html The author discusses the four sacred medicine plants as a whole. He expounds on all of them in the view of where they were believed to originate from and their specific purposes in history. This approach helps a reader identify why all of them serve almost the same purpose and yet they are different in genetic values. Kalman, B. & Walker, N. (2003). Life in an Anishinabe Camp. New York, NY: Crabtree Publishing Company. The book explains how the Anishinabe people lived and survived in the temporary camps they set on the river banks. It explains the roles of different categories of people in the camp as well as highlight on the effects of European to Anishinabe peoples land. It is a good resource material in learning the early lives of the Native Americans. Richters Herbs. (1994). Native American Technology and Art. NativeTech. Retrieved from: http://www.nativetech.org/plants/sweetgrass.html The article explains what sweetgrass plant is, how it grows and its special features that make it special to the Native Americans. Through such an explanation, a researcher is bale to know why sweetgrass has remained a sacred plant to the Anishinabe people. Struthers, R. & Hodge, F., S. (2004). Sacred Tobacco Use in Ojibwe Communities. Journal of Holistic Nursing, 22(3), 209-225. The Journal discusses the ancient use of Tobacco among the Native Americans while trying to relate with the present times. The authors manage to bring out the difference between the ancient and the present reasons of using tobacco. The discussion exposes the reasons why present use of tobacco has so many effects on the users than it used to have in the ancient days. Tigerman, K. (2006). Wisconsin Indian Literature: Anthology of Native Voices. Monroe Street, Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press. The book presents a collection of literature on the Native Americans. Its approach is based on expounding the rich literature of the people with a non- native audience in mind. Through the book, rich traditions have been exposed hence making it easy for any non-native to understand history around North Americans. Read More