Part 5 Religions of the World Native American Religions Glenn Rogers, Ph.D.

Native American Religions… Introduction The challenges of studying: Absence of formal organization structure Wide variety under one heading Time span--15,000 to 20,000 year legacy Geographic distance--all of North America Numerous social and economic structures Lack of formal/reliable sources Literary sources for only past 400 years with best sources for only past 100 years Syncretism with European beliefs

Native American Religions… Introduction The focus: Nature, personal religious experience The importance: A resurgence in interest, importance for American history Basic Beliefs A blend of Polytheism, Monotheism and Monism (i.e., the idea that everything in universe can be reduced to one basic thing--God, mind, matter, energy, etc.) Animistic in nature: spirits everywhere and active in material world: egs. spirit of trees, hills, sky, water, various animals… eagle, hawk, buffalo, elk Sometimes emphasis on One Great Spirit with other lesser spirits active in nature

Native American Religions… Basic Beliefs Mother Earth is an often recurring theme… oneness with nature, respect for nature, harmony If monotheistic, God often uninvolved (as in African beliefs) The lesser spirits are the active ones that must be respected and approached Some conceive of personal God, others of an impersonal sacred power

Native American Religions… Animism, the Spirit World, and Nature Native Americans see themselves as part of the world of nature, part of a larger system They reverence nature more than Europeans They not only depend on it, but are very much part of it To abuse nature is to abuse oneself Wasting resources is wrong, irreligious The earth is the body of Mother Nature that brings forth fruit. The earth, as the Mother’s body, must be respected Animals can be hunted, but only in respectful ways (Last of Mohicans clip)

Native American Religions… Animism, the Spirit World, and Nature The presence of the High God in nature leads to view that nature is not simply an object to be used (the typical European view) but something humans are part of, with which we must live in harmony Part of the antagonism between Native Americans and European settlers in 1700s and 1800s was this basic worldview difference Interacting with the spirit world… Maintaining good relations with nature was key Harmony rather than control… egs. Europeans would dam up rivers and cut irrigation canals. Native Americans would never dream of such

Native American Religions… Animism, the Spirit World, and Nature Interacting with the spirit world… Sacrifice: Generally not human or animal Though Aztecs and other South and Central American tribes did occasionally engage in human sacrifice Most tribes in North America did not Gifts (items valued by individuals) would be offered to spirits in exchange for favors Taboos: Things that must be avoided to avoid insulting and angering spirit

Native American Religions… Animism, the Spirit World, and Nature Interacting with the spirit world…con’t Taboos… Two important taboos Menstruating women Dead bodies Special burial customs designed to minimize contact with dead Burial grounds as sacred places to be avoided Ceremonies and Rituals In animistic contexts always an attempt to control by gaining favor of spirits

Native American Religions… Animism, the Spirit World, and Nature Interacting with the spirit world…con’t Ceremonies and Rituals Dances: as form of honor and request Pre-hunting rituals as prayers for good hunt Vision Quest Rite of passage to adulthood, initiation into group by temporary exile and communion with spirits, sometimes to gain special power Often preparation for major events: battles, hunts, marriage, crises

Totemism A totem is an object that represents the ancestor of a group or a people. A totem might be an animal, in which case the people will avoid hunting and eating that creature and will revere it. North American totem poles depict ancestors and the spirits associated with them. Native American Religions… Animism, the Spirit World, and Nature Interacting with the spirit world…con’t

Native American Religions… Animism, the Spirit World, and Nature Interacting with the spirit world…con’t Reconstructed Tlingit longhouse with totem poles; in the Totem Bight State Park, Ketchikan, Alaska

Native American Religions… Animism, the Spirit World, and Nature Interacting with the spirit world…con’t Religious leadership Shamanistic… medicine man or woman, healer, perhaps seer Qualifications: personal experience with spirit world Vehicles for enhanced interaction with spirit world: tobacco, peyote, other hallucinogens

Native American Religions… Animism, the Spirit World, and Nature Death and Life in Spirit World Wide range of beliefs among various tribes Over 200 years of exposure to Christian ideas has impacted beliefs General points of agreement between most Taboos associated with corpses Overall lack of fear of death General belief in two souls or two kinds of souls One soul associated with life force. When body dies and decays, this soul does as well

Native American Religions… Animism, the Spirit World, and Nature Death and Life in Spirit World con’t Two souls…con’t The second can be described as a free soul that can leave the body during dreams, visions etc. and travel to other places and return to body This is common belief in basic religions, is ancient, and is still part of African traditional religious beliefs At death, this free soul…

Native American Religions… Animism, the Spirit World, and Nature Death and Life in Spirit World At death the free soul…con’t Goes to the land of the dead, which is an earth-like place that can be happy or sad, no ideas about heaven/hell, reward or punishment In land of dead, souls live as long as the still living remember them, similar to ATR The living can assist the soul on its journey -- food and drink sometimes “buried” with dead No ideas about reincarnation

Native American Religions… Today… Most Native Americans today who are religious are Christians Most of the animistic, polytheistic beliefs have been erased or replaced Some NAR (or aspects of them) have been retained and Christianized and remain as part of a syncretized (blended) belief system Medicine men and women still practice in some blended NAR contexts Some Native Americans have been receptive to Mormonism There is a revived interest in NAR in general

Key Points… The challenges of studying Basic Beliefs A blend of Polytheism, Monotheism and Monism (i.e., the idea that everything in universe can be reduced to one basic thing--God, mind, matter, energy, etc.) Animistic in nature: spirits everywhere and active in material world: egs. spirit of trees, hills, sky, water, various animals… eagle, hawk, buffalo, elk Sometimes emphasis on One Great Spirit with other lesser spirits active in nature

Key Points… Mother Earth is an often recurring theme… oneness with nature, respect for nature, harmony If monotheistic, God often uninvolved (as in African beliefs) The lesser spirits are the active ones that must be respected and approached Some conceive of personal God, others of an impersonal sacred power Native Americans see themselves as part of the world of nature, part of a larger system They reverence nature more than Europeans

Key Points… They not only depend on it, but are very much part of it To abuse nature is to abuse oneself Wasting resources is wrong, irreligious The earth is the body of Mother Nature that brings forth fruit. The earth, as the Mother’s body, must be respected

Works Cited Presentation based on: Hopfe, Lewis M. and Mark R. Woodward. Religions of the World. Tenth Edition. Upper Saddle River: Pearson, (adapted and augmented by Glenn Rogers, Ph.D.)