Rituals, Symbols and Festivals
Native Spirituality: Definitions
Animism: The attribution of a living soul, plants, animals, inanimate objects and natural
phenomenon.
Explain animism in the following sentence:
“Some believed they should walk on soft shoes or no shoes at all during the
spring because Mother Earth is pregnant and they must not harm her body”
Reincarnation: The belief in the rebirth of a soul in a new body form
Elder: A person (male or female) venerated for age and wisdom
Shaman – Medicine man or spiritual leader, mentor for rituals
While reading the following keep in mind:
 The four characteristics of Primal Religions
 Physical death and spiritual rebirth
 Criteria of a ritual: evidence of mentoring, a challenge, new personal, social and
spiritual identity, evidence of how a ritual has moved a person from one stage to
another (maturity and new responsibilities).
The Morning Dance
 Every spring also known as the Wabeno
 The dance pays homage to the ‘tree of the universe’
 All participants fast and cleanse themselves beforehand
 Male elder plays the drums and leads the dance around the selected tree
 Dancing takes place from dawn to noon
 Each participant, as they dance touches the tree to give thanks
 The festival ends with a huge feast of meat and fish
Potlatch Ceremony
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Made illegal in 1884 and then the ban was lifted in 1951
Feasting, distributing wealth and sharing songs and dances are part of the Potlatch
The host gives a feast to celebrate an important event such as a marriage,
renaming of an heir or to atone for a humiliation
The more wealth the host gives away, the more that person gains in status and
greatness – consider the paradox of modern consumerism in terms of wealth
The hosting clan therefore, grows in prestige
Songs and dances are performed to honor the Great Spirit
These ceremonies continue today
The Shaking Tent
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Represents the beliefs and values of Aboriginal beliefs and values about the
supernatural world and its close relationship to the living
Through the shaking tent one can communicate with the spirits
Construction consists of four to eight poles, which are placed deep in the soil to
form a circle about a meter in diameter
A wooden hoop encircles the poles at the top and sometimes at the bottom
The cylindrical shape which is wrapped in birch bark or hide is left open to the
sky to permit the spirits to enter
Individuals who have requested the ceremony make a trade with the shaman –
who enters the tent and intercedes with the spirits
He asks the spirits to solve problems such as finding a lost object, communicating
with an ancestor, locating a missing person or predicting the outcome of an event
The ceremony always takes place at night
Powwow
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A gathering of Aboriginal people with rituals, drumming and chanting
A pow-wow (also powwow or pow wow or pau wau) is a gathering of North
America's Native people. The word derives from the Narragansett word powwaw,
meaning "spiritual leader".
A modern pow-wow is a specific type of event where both Native American and
non-Native American people meet to dance, sing, socialize, and honor American
Indian culture. There is generally a dancing competition, often with significant
prize money awarded. Pow-wows vary in length from one day session of 5 to 6
hours to three days. Major pow-wows or pow-wows called for a special occasion
can be up to one week long.
Sweatlodge
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Renews the soul and helps to regain focus
Cleanses both they physical and the spiritual body
Under the direction of the shaman, who is both the medicine man and the spiritual
leader
the participants make a sauna like construction called a sweal lodge
It is a dome shape made of saplings covered with animal skins, cedar or tarpaulin
rendering it air tight and dark
Heated stones are placed in the centre of the interior and water is sprinkled on the
stones
The participants crouch and crowd around the stones in the confined space
Usually prayers and a sacred pipe are shared
What is spoken together within the sweat is not to be shared outside
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The intense heat and steam cause them to perspire profusely, thus cleansing the
participant both physically and spiritually – makes room for a clear vision
Usually prayers and a sacred pipe are shared
An elder or a shaman assists by coordinating the ceremony
It prepares the participant for the vision quest
Vision Quest
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Rite of passage to adulthood often ritualized with a coming-of-age ceremony
It includes a dream the participant will receive
The seeker is first purified which involves the sweatlodge, a confession or a desire
to atone
The medicine man then instructs the youth to go to a place far from the camp
The youth prays, fasts, from food and water and endures the elements for several
days while awaiting a vision
At the end of fasting and prayer, the seeker of the vision hopes to receive a
message from a guardian spirit, who may appear in an animal, object or the
natural form
If not, the person undergoes the process again
When the participant returns, the medicine man interprets the vision and its
message
The participant is then given a new role as an adult and a communal welcoming
ceremony takes place
Usually the participant’s name changes to signify maturation and succes of the
ritual and a new role in society
See page 44 for a description of a partipant’s vision quest
Smudging Ceremony
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Burning of sweet grass and tobacco in a smudge pot and drawing the smoke
ritually over one’s face, head, ears, arms and body and inhaling the smoke
The smoke is spiritually symbolic to clear one’s thoughts, to wash away one’s
impurities to help focus on the task with freshness and renewed
Summary of Rolly’s presentation as follows:
Smudge over eyes – look clearly, over ears - listen and be all present to the
experience, mouth – remind one to control one’s words, head – connect and be in
the moment, smudge over the body – heart – be here in good spirit while
performing the ritual, smudge feet where they connect to the earth
If one stands out, they require additional smudge and purification
Refrain from any metal present – reminder of the harmful weapons brought by the
Europeans
Importance of the circle – unites us with the one spirit, cohesive community
Importance of the medicine wheel, the sacred #4, Mother Earth, gifting
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Why ritual? – celebrate together, communal, cohesiveness, link to ancestors - to
our origins thereby defining who we are, connect to a spiritual plane, connect to
what has come before us, consider the setting of a ritual, a ritual triggers senses,
our physiology changes to experience peace, joy calmness that which we cannot
comprehend intellectually – there is no separation between the human person as
intellectually, physically, emotionally and spiritually, ritual practices remind us
how we bring them into our daily lives – confirm our roles in life.
The Sun Dance
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See power point handout