Native Spirituality
Sacred Symbols
The Symbol of Native Spirituality

There is no official symbol of Native
Spirituality

This symbol is known as the Solar Cross


Circle – earth, time, days, seasons, lunar
cycles, circle of the teepee, ritual dances and
talking councils
Four points – movement of the sun (solstices
and equinoxes), four medicine herbs
(sweetgrass, sage, cedar, tobacco), four
elements (air, water, fire, earth) and four
colours and directions





black – west
white – north
red – south
yellow – east
Centre of circle – fifth direction, point of
balance
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.
Black Elk, 1863 -1950 Oglala Sioux Elder
Eagle Feather


The eagle is important
because it is closest to
heaven; because it’s farsighted; because of its great
beauty
Sometimes turkey feathers
are used; the turkey has
been described as “the eagle
of the ground”; the bald
eagle is the eagle of the sky
& the turkey is the eagle of
the ground.
Drum





Oldest instrument and sacred object
Round shape – circle of life
Rhythm of the drum is said to facilitate
healing and realignment of the four
realms of human existence (mental,
spiritual, emotional and physical) as well
as the voice of the Great Spirit.
Seen as a spiritual messenger that
transmits the prayers of the people to the
spirit world. The drum should never be
struck in an aggressive manner.
Drums are crafted as a response to a
visionary experience and are seen as
animate objects and should therefore be
treated and cared for with the utmost
respect and reverence.
Drum (cont’d)
The drum represents:
Person’s Heartbeat
Nation’s Heartbeat
Humanity’s Heartbeat
Nature’s Heartbeat
Earth’s Heartbeat
Universe’s Heartbeat
Divine’s Heartbeat

Cow Horn Rattle



Musical instrument that is used in
social dances and ceremonial songs to
call upon the ancestors/spirits.
Spirits from the four directions are
called upon to help people who are
seeking spiritual and physical
cleansing (often during sweat lodge
ceremony).
Materials used vary depending on
groups. Gourds, turtle shells, raw
hide, seeds, pebbles, buffalo horns
and deer hooves are all common
materials.
Pipe

Sacred pipes consist of two parts




Holding bowl - made out of bone, wood, stone or metal. Represents
Mother Earth, the feminine, creativity, birth/rebirth, the womb, the
heart, fertility and life.
Stem - made out of wood. Represents the sky, masculine, the spine, the
transcendent and energy.
Pipe is considered a living entity that offers harmony,
balance and wholeness to the smoker. It is never used as a
recreational tool.
The smokers intentions should be pure, peaceful and
positive. All negative or violent thoughts must be
dismissed. Smudging ceremony must be performed before
smoking in order to cleanse and purify the user.
Pipe (cont’d)
Pipe continued…



Bowl is held in left hand (closest to heart)
Tobacco and its smoke represents the seen and
unseen worlds. After smoking, pipe is passed
clockwise to the next person. One should never pick
up the pipe on his own.
The pipe belongs to the community
and is passed along to ‘custodians’
after cleansing rites have been
performed.
Pipe Ceremony
All the things of
the universe are
joined with you
who smoke the
pipe. All send their
voices to Wakan
Tanka, the Great
Spirit.
Black Elk
Pipe Ceremony
When you pray
with this pipe, you
pray for and with
everything.
Black Elk
Deerskin Medicine Pouch




Carries objects/substances that
have special meaning or
“medicine” for the owner.
Contains souvenirs from
important moments in one’s
life.
Pouches vary in sizes.
Contents are very personal and
private. Only the carrier knows
what is in it.
Carrying the medicine pouch is
comparable to carrying sacred
scriptures in other traditions.
Wooden Mask





False Face Society is one of the ‘curing’ societies among
the Iroquois of the Great Lakes.
They used these wood carved masks to portray different
mythical beings.
Each mask gives special curing powers to the society
member who wears it.
Wearing the mask while chanting sacred songs and
shaking rattles is believed to cure the sick.
Masks are also used when asking for a successful hunt,
abundant harvest and for the safe passage of deceased
loved ones.
Characteristics of the Mask






Painted red or black and ‘fed’
tobacco to keep their spirit alive.
Deep set eyes, sometimes with
metal eye plats
Large, bent nose
Deeply wrinkled arched eyebrows
Various mouth expression
dependant on mood, function and
locality
Long hair, cut from horses tails,
frame the face. Before the
introduction of horses, corn husk
braids or buffalo mane was used.
False Faces
Pacific Northwest
Native Masks
Wooden Mask Carving





The carver goes into the
woods and ‘listens’ for a tree
whose spirit calls to him.
The carver explains the intent
to the tree and offers tobacco
to the tree’s spirit.
The tree relays his spirit to
the carver determining what
kind of face will be carved.
The bark is stripped and the
face roughly carved then cut.
If cut in the morning the
mask would be painted red.
If cut in the afternoon then it
would be painted black.
Cornhusk Mask





Also known as Bushy Heads
These masks are believed to be inhabited by
spirits associated with the corn harvest
Full size masks are worn by dancers during
rites of the Mid-winter Ceremony (January)
and the Green Corn Ceremony (Spring).
They can be made to represent male or female
spirits
Smaller, medium-size masks are used for
asking the spirits for favours.
Miniature masks are used to calm spirits who
disturb a person’s dream.
Sacred Plants/Medicines
Native spirituality has four
sacred plants or medicines.
 Burning these is deeply spiritual
and used as a way to purify the
spirit.

Tobacco
Represent the east. Used
to ‘sign’ a contract, for
luck, and to show
respect to ancestors and
the Great Spirit.
Tobacco should be held
in the left hand and
offered to the four
directions before being
scattered.
Cedar
Represents the south.
When burned, it acts as
a purifier, cleansing the
surrounding area.
Sweetgrass




Represents the north,
signifying kindness and invites
good spirits to enter.
Aromatic fragrance enhanced
when the grass is wet or
burned.
Braid signifies Mother Earththree sections represent mind,
body and spirit.
When sweetgrass is picked an
offering of tobacco is made in
return for its generosity.
Sage



Represents the west
Burned as a purifier
and has a spicy smell
Has the power of
spiritual healing.
Aboriginals believe
that when inhaled the
sage fills the holes in
one’s spirit with good
thoughts and positive
attitudes.
Smudging Ceremony
Important Items





Smudge pot
Smudge Fan
Four sacred plants
(tobacco, sage,
sweetgrass and cedar)
Drums
Pipes
Smudging Items
Smudging Ceremony




Burning of one of the four sacred plants for
prayer or purification.
Small amount of medicine is place in smudge
pot, lit with a match and fanned with a feather
to disperse the smoke.
Smoke is offered to the four directions and
goes into the world where the spirits live.
People can be purified by wafting the smoke
over their body, starting at the feet.
Smudging
Smudging Ceremony



Feathers are symbols of prayers and
marks of honour, bringing joy,
happiness and spiritual
understanding.
Beadwork shows that they belong to
a particular tribe or nation.
Ceremony involves the four
elements:




Earth (herbs and ashes)
Air (smoke)
Fire (burning the herbs)
Water (shell).
Dream Catcher
Two versions:

Hung over a bed so that bad
dreams can be filtered through
the web and evaporate. Good
dreams stay caught in the web.

Bad dreams are caught and
good ones fly free. The
sunlight in the morning
evaporates the bad dreams.
Medicine Wheel


Life is interconnected
Represents…





East – rising sun, birth, eagle, yellow
South – warmth/growth after winter,
childhood, intellectual growth, moose
West – setting sun, night, adulthood,
introspection and looking within one’s spirit,
black, rain, bear
North – wisdom, elder, white, buffalo,
strength and endurance
Centre - Mother Earth and the Creator and
their role in the beginning and continuation of
life.