Past, Present, and Future
The Significance of American Indian Ceremonies:
Past, Present, and Future
Introduction
Every ceremony in the Native American culture plays a vital and significant role, especially with its people. Some individuals outside the culture often referred the ceremonies as a religion, however, most Native Americans considered their ceremonies as beliefs and practices. The beliefs and practices are part of their rich culture, an integral part of their being, and strongly influenced by their unique methods of living such as acquiring for food, hunting, and agriculture. Every Native American who practiced the tradition and culture believed that their ceremonies could help them surmount any obstacle in life, from birth until and even until death. The Great Spirit, as the Supreme or Creator of all, is the only way who can provide the divine power to the people. In return, the Natives must perform different ceremonies according to their needs and to worship the spirits as part of their culture. Particularly, the ceremonies demonstrated the blending of interest by preserving and promoting their farming, hunting, and survival with an utmost respect to the spirits. The Native American dance is a valuable tradition among the primary nation of North America and the different dances usually happen in family gatherings. There are many types of dances intended for marriage, birthdays, harvest, custom dance, and reserved for religious ceremonies. Considering the different tribal groups in the America and Canada, every group has a distinctly Native American dance with distinct songs, instruments, and body movements that set the differences. However, the arrival of the Europeans settlers has changed the Native American culture in major ways. Some of the early Europeans commented that the Native American spirituality practices are worthless superstition. On the other hand, the North America, United States, and Canadian government introduced policies to force the Natives to reservations affecting their ceremonies and encourage them to incorporate into the majority culture. Similar to other culture in the world, the Native Americans have their unique style of ceremonies accompanied by rituals.
Function
Dance ceremonies have always been important to the Native Americans for purposes of amusement and solemn duties. All the dance ceremonies play a vital role in their religious ceremonies while others practice the dance ceremonies to the success of giving thanks, hunts, harvests, and other celebrations. Basically, dances are held in open fields or large structures around with fire. The movements of the participants illustrated the purpose of the dance that expresses victory, thanks, prayer, and more. In particular, the leader or the medicine man of the tribe leads the dance ceremony using the instruments and their voices using their native language. Some dances solo or in groups, and private dances for healing, initiation, and courting.
Sun dance is one of the traditional ceremonies practiced by the Native Americans. Particularly, the Sun Dance ceremony is a distinct dance ceremony that focuses on the religious identity of the Indigenous people of the Great Plains. The sun dance ceremony spread to the Kiowas and Comanches and range the Southern Plains and Northern Plains. The term Sun Dance derived from the Sioux identification as Wiwanyang wacipi that means sun gazing dance. The ceremony performance connects the authoritative guidance of visions that established the relationship between the participants and the spirit. More specifically, the main meaning of the dance ceremony is the performance of acts of sacrifice in accordance with the spiritual power of the god of the family, friends, and the entire community. Moreover, the Blackfeet people perform the Okan or Sun Dance ceremony, a traditional practice than an ancient one. The reason why the Blackfeet people considered it as a traditional practice because an ancient term is interpreted as something that is left in the past and never existed at the present time. As a tradition, the ceremony is passed down to the next generation and the tradition remains for a lifetime. Every summer, in the reservation, the Blackfeet people practice the traditional sun dance. Though the dance is performed differently by different tribes, the Eagle serves as the main symbol of the dance ceremony. The Eagle symbol brings the body and spirit together to harmonize the purpose of the dance ceremony that is the important role in the Plain Indian clothing, food, and shelter.
Application
The Native American Sand paintings are traditional dry paintings created to heal an individual during the ceremony. Particularly, the Navajo Sand paintings are significant for the Navajo people and the paintings mean places where the gods come and go for the Navajo language. The Navajo people believed that the Sand paintings are effective in curing ceremonies wherein the gods will help them for harvests and healing. With respect to healing, during the ceremony, the type of image determines the illness of the person suffering from it. Commonly, the image of the sand painting is the image of the Holy people, the yeibicheii. Through the medicine man of the tribe, he will ask help from the yeibicheii to help or guide him paint the image and to heal the sick person. The figures in the sand painting represent the Navajo mythology that depicts the sacred mountains where the gods live with the legendary visions as illustrated in chants. Every distinct set of paintings belongs to a specific chant and the chanter selects the best images to heal the sick. In addition, the medicine man can check the sand painting for accuracy considering the symmetry of the image. The Natives believed that the more accurate the paintings are, the more healing it can give. The significance of the Sand paintings of the present time is beautiful, popular art form for the collectors or those outside the culture.
Another ceremony that is practiced by the Native Americans is the Yaqui Easter Ceremony. The typical Yaqui people celebrate the Easter season and the entire village prepares to celebrate the Easter as it approaches. Most of the members of the families working from other places will return home to celebrate the Easter ceremony. The main venue of the ceremony is the plaza where a church stands with the bell tower and a wide entrance to accommodate the processions that flow in and out, during the ceremony. Evidently, the ceremony quite differs from other ceremonies of the Native American Culture. The Yaqui Easter ceremony is part of the very old tradition for the Yaqui people spanning about hundred of years since the very beginning. However, the ceremony presents the aspects of Christianity, particularly Catholicism. The ceremony blends both the cultural traditions of the Yaqui people and the other culture. Essentially, the Easter ceremony is the same in all Yaqui villages, handed down orally from generation to generation. The Yaqui Easter ceremony welcomes all visitors who come in the spirit of respect or worship that is appropriate to any religious beliefs or occasion. However, the Yaquis request the visitors that no taking of pictures allowed and nobody is allowed to enter the church unless permitted by them to avoid disturbances during the ceremony.
Scope
Sand Painting or Navajo Sand Painting
After the sanctification, the sick person sits on the images as the chanter performs a ritual. The ritual enhances the power of the healing and heals the sick. The person who needs healing believed that the sand painting is a portal for the spirits and he absorbed the healing energy from the spirits. Immediately, after the ritual, the sand painting should be taken outside, specifically in the north part of the area and must be destroyed that symbolizes the return of the gods to the earth. It is necessary to destroy the painting because it has absorbed the illness. Accordingly, the Navajo people believed that the sand paintings heal the sick because the images attract and exalt the Holy People. The Natives believed that the passageway between exchanges of sickness and healing is the Holy People and through the power of the Great Spirit who identifies the cause of illness who serve and create reality for healing. In addition, the sand painting is a living, dynamic, and sacred entity to connect, or transform the mental and physical state of the sick person with the power of the mythic symbols. The medicine man never wrote down everything needed in performing the healing ceremony and one way to inform to inform others is to pass the ritual methods orally down from generation to generation.
Yaqui Easter Ceremony
The interpretation of the Catholic tradition of the Easter season and the parts of Jesus and His followers and of Mary, the two significant features of the Yaqui Easter ceremony. The interpretation of the Catholic liturgy is performed by the reverence and devotion members of the church organization while the other church members carry and accompany the appropriate figures of the parts of the symbolism of Jesus with His followers and of Mary. In addition, those who impersonate the evil men who maltreated Christ are the Pharisee and Caballero members. On the Holy Saturday, the Gloria is the main event of the ceremony that unfolds the simultaneous ritual of the Yaquis. The fundamental understanding of the Yaqui tradition of the ceremony is the flowers or sewam. The sewam symbolizes the treasures in ancient times, and at present, the Yaquis associate it with Mary. It depicts that both the Yaqui’s old and new rituals have special significance in the ceremony. The flowers are spiritual blessings and a reward for fatigue, loss of sleep, harsh penance, and self-sacrifices during the ceremony. Moreover, the flowers are considered as the armors to fight against wickedness and throw the evils the moment they show aggression during the ceremony. Moreover, another significant way to celebrate the Yaqui Easter is the vow; it symbolizes the curing of the serious illness and during the ceremony, the parents represent their children. When they failed to do their obligation they will receive sufferings in life, the worst is death.
Conclusion
The spiritual practices and ceremonies of the Native Americans are significant to their beliefs and religion. The ceremonies varied widely of its culture and solely based on the individual tribes, respectively. It is described that the Native American tribes have their ways of religious practices and passed down orally from generation to generation. Every tribe has different dance ceremonies like the Sun dance ceremony with the distinct ways or practices. I would say that the North American Indians’ environmental wisdom and spirituality are legendary. Most Natives value and highly appreciates the beauty of nature. Though the religious beliefs varied between tribes, they all believed in the Great Spirit who created the earth and everything in this world. However, some blended in other traditions, for example, the Yaqui people who integrated their culture in Christianity. They strongly believed that their culture and traditions are the thresholds of their way of living. Indeed, the Native Americans have a rich culture that influenced the past generation, influencing the present, and can influence the next generation.
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