Indigenous Religions and the Hero's Journey

Vocabulary flashcards reviewing core terms, concepts, rituals, and definitions from the lecture notes on Indigenous Religions and The Hero's Journey.

The Hero's Journey

Ordinary Life, call to adventure,

The Dreaming

An Aboriginal creation concept in which creation was originally formless until Ancestors gave it shape and form, established tribal structures, and left behind symbols and spiritual essence.

Totems

Natural entities symbolically representing ancestors and the individual or tribes connected to them, providing a nourishing power that must be ritually tapped into.

Bangbo tribe

A tribe mentioned in connection with an initiation 'going tribal' experience involving symbolic death and rebirth.

Vision Quest

A Lakota ritual led by a medicine man/woman where an initiate seeks spiritual power through an encounter with a guardian spirit after undergoing purification in a sweat lodge, fasting, and solitude.

Sweat Lodge

A purification lodge representing the universe, constructed with sapling covered with animal skins or blankets with hot stones in the middle.

Sun Dance

A Lakota ceremony marking a special need of the tribe or celebrating the new year, led by a medicine man/woman around a Cottonwood tree surrounded by 28 poles, featuring sun-facing dancing, music, and tearing of skin.

Sacred Hoop - East

Associated with the color red, the symbols peace pipe and Morning state, and the power of enlightenment.

Sacred Hoop - West

Associated with the color blue, the symbols cup and bow, and the power to make or destroy life.

Sacred Hoop - North

Associated with the color white, the symbols white goose wing and herb, and the power of healing.

Sacred Hoop - South

Associated with the color yellow, the symbols flowering stick and sacred hoop, and the power of growth.

Road Road

A path that begins in the south and goes to the North, representing spiritual understanding.

Black Road

A path that begins in the East and goes towards the West, representing worldly difficulties and challenges.

Tree of Life

Emerge at the center intersection of the two paths of the Sacred Hoop, bringing blessings, protection, and the wisdom of life.

Bullroarer

A sound instrument categorized as a sacred object used in indigenous religious practices.

Wakan Tanka

The Lakota name for the supreme reality and the Great Spirit, meaning 'most sacred'.

Shaman

People who can access the spirit world (for good or evil) often through a trance at a ceremony or ritual, and who practice divinations and healing.

Axis Mundi

The center of the universe, considered the link between the earth and the heavens.

Animism

A belief system (root word meaning 'soul' or 'life') stating that plants, animals, places, and objects in the natural world possess a spiritual essence or consciousness.

American Indian Religious Freedom Act

A federal act passed in 1978 that reversed federal law prohibiting Native Americans from practicing their religious traditions, allowing them access to sacred sites and religious practices.