|
The Lakota, as well as other Native
Nations, considered medicine on a par with spiritual things. A
medicine man, in the modern sense, could not be described as a
doctor, he was far more than just that. His medicine chest consisted of
bark, roots and leave of which he had spent many years learning of
their important properties. He could set broken bones with some
success, and manage wounds suffered in battle, although there is no
known record of a medicine man performing what would be considered
surgery. The medicine man, and in some Nations Medicine Woman, possessed a personal
magnetism and authority, and in his/her treatment often sought to re-establish the equilibrium of the patient through mental or
spiritual influences.
The Sioux word for the healing art is "wah-pee-yah,"
which literally means re-adjusting or making anew. "Pay-jee-hoo-tah,"
literally root, means medicine, and "wakan" signifies spirit or
mystery.
It is important to remember that these
medicine men/women received no financial reward for their services.
Instead those being treated, or seeking the advice of their medicine
man/woman would bestow upon them presents for services rendered.
Medicine Man
The primary function of "medicine elders" (remember they were not
always male) was to secure the help of the spirit world, including
the Great Spirit, Wakan
Tanka, for the benefit of the entire
community.
Medicine Bags
Sometimes the help being sought was for medicine to heal a disease,
sometimes it was for help with the inner body and mind. Where the
mind was concerned
the goal was to promote harmony between human groups or between
humans & nature. So the term "medicine man" is not entirely
inappropriate, but it greatly oversimplifies and also skews the
depiction of the people whose role in society complements that of
the chief. These people are not the Native American equivalent of
the Chinese "barefoot doctors", herbalists, nor of the emergency
medical technicians who ride rescue vehicles throughout the modern
world.
Medicine Ceremony
To
be recognized as the one who performs this function of bridging
between the natural world and the spiritual world for the benefit of
the community, an individual would have to be accepted by their community
and too have shown some ability that marked them out for such a path. Most medicine men and women studied their art either
through a medicine society such as the Navajo Blessingway, or the
Ani-Stohini/Unami Morning Song Way or apprentice themselves to a
teacher for 20-35 years or both. Some would follow a relation who
had distinguished themselves.
Medicine Ceremony
One
of the best sources of information on this subject is the story of a
Lakota Wicasa Wakan (spirit man) named John Fire, Lame Deer,
recorded with his cooperation in a book called Lame Deer, Seeker
of Visions, by Richard Erdoes.
Medicine Man in Prayer
For more reading try... Soul of the Indian
Charles Alexander Eastman (1858-1939), an educated and well known
Sioux, saw both sides of the great divide between Indians and
whites, and he wrote eleven books attempting to reconcile the two
cultures.
This book is his illumination of Indian spiritual beliefs and
practices. A convert to Christianity, Eastman never lost his sense
of the wholeness and beauty of the Indians relation to his existence
and to the natural world. Part history, part reminiscence, told in
very personal terms, and coupled with seven folk tales, this book
treats the listener to a good look at the ethics and morality of a
culture that so few people know about.
Spirituality
"The Indian loved to worship. From birth to death, he revered his
surroundings. He considered himself born in the luxurious lap of
Mother Earth, and no place was to him humble. There was nothing
between him and the Big Holy (Wakan Tanka). The contact was
immediate and personal, and the blessings of Wakan Tanka flowed over
the Indian like rain showered from the sky. Wakan Tanka was not
aloof, apart, and ever seeking to quell evil forces. He did not
punish the animals and the birds, and likewise, he did not punish
man. He was not a punishing god. For there was never a question as
to the supremacy of an evil power over and above the power of Good.
There was but one ruling power, and that was Good."
(Luther Standing Bear)
Different tribes call the
powers or mystic energies, by different names. The Iroquois
called it Orenda Power. The Algonquin tribes call it Manitou.
Inuit call the power, Sila. The Lakota, Nakota, Dakota call the
Great Spirit, Wakan Wanka where all life is Wakan. The Cherokee
say "Creator Being". The Great Mystery is the all powerful where
we ourselves are an extension of the Mystery. Everything that
the People saw as exhibiting power, whether in action or not,
like the winds and drifting clouds or th endurance of a boulder
was seen as part of the Great Mystery. Common sticks and stones
were thought to have a spiritual essence that had to be revered
as a manifestation of the all-pervading mysterious power that
filled their universe.
Time of Prayers
The main theme that
underscores the Native American belief system is the idea of
Mother Earth and the coexistence of life with nature and
animals. All of nature was intertwined and this each generation
was taught. The telling of legends and myths throughout time
were the only way to personify the mysterious workings of The
Great Spirit and was a way to keep the People educated on such
serious matters.
Oath Making
"We Indians think of the earth
and the whole universe as a never-ending circle, and in this
circle man is just another animal. We end our prayers with the
words "all my relations", which, includes everything that grows,
crawls, runs, creeps, leaps and flies."
(Jenny Leading Cloud)
Sun Dancers
Cheyenne Sun Dancers
Cheyenne Sun Dance
Piercing Ritual
Seven Rites of the Oglala Sioux
Please click the link
HERE and read the
declaration before reading any of the seven rites, thank you.
From The Sacred Pipe.
Black Elk's Account of the Seven Rites of the Oglala Sioux,
recorded and edited by Joseph Epes Brown
Nagi Gluhapi
(The Keeping
of the Soul)
Inipi
(Rite of Purification)
Hanblecheyapi (Crying for a Vision)
Wiwanyag Wachipi
(The Sun Dance)
Hunkapi (Making of Relatives)
Ishna Ta Awi Cha Lowan
(Preparing for Womanhood)
Tapa Wanka Yap
(Throwing of the
Ball)
Other ceremonies
|
