Native American History, Culture, and Religion - Session Two Notes

Native American History, Culture, and Religion

Review of Session One

• Overview of Native American peoples:
  • At the time of European contact, there were approximately 80 to 120 million inhabitants in the Americas.
  • Significant ecological and cultural diversity across different regions.
  • Distinct social and political institutions, and cultures.
• Hypothetical origins of Native Americans:
  • Diffusion theory: Humans migrated out of Africa due to environmental and climatic changes.
  • Migrations into the American continent via the Bering Strait, especially during the Great Ice Age (40,000 years ago).
  • Pre-Columbian navigation theory: Some people crossed the oceans thousands of years ago, transplanting knowledge into the Americas.
• Stages of Development:
  • Native Americans were cut off from the rest of the world after the last Ice Age.
  • They adapted and survived by creating unique communities, tools, and cultures.
  • Parallels exist between Native American development and that of other peoples around the world.

The Stone Age (40,000 BC - 8,000 BC)

• A global era during which humans used tools made from stone, rocks, or wood.
• Survival depended on hunting animals (e.g., bison in North America, deer in Central and South America) and gathering edible plants (berries, seeds, fruits).
• Gender division of labor: Men were hunters, women were gatherers.
• Caves were used for shelter, residence, and rituals.
• Early religious beliefs and practices:
  • Animism: The belief that everything is animated by spirits.
  • Rituals and ceremonies were primarily related to hunting animals, which were considered sacred due to their role as a source of life and nourishment.
  • Belief in animal guides and guardians.
  • Shamans, or religious leaders, were believed to have the ability to shape-shift into animal forms.

Development of Religious Beliefs and Practices in the Stone Age

• Animal Cult:

  • The central religious focus during the Stone Age.

• Rise of Animal Totem Cults:

  • Totem: A term denoting the concept of ancestor.
  • Religious beliefs and practices in which animals were seen as ancestors and praised as founders of the group.
  • Animals were considered creators of humanity and founders/ancestors of specific groups or clans.
  • Lineage: Groups of families traced their ancestry to an animal.
  • Animal totems (e.g., deer, bear, wolf, eagle, hawk, beaver) became symbols of group identity, evoking emotions of group solidarity.
  • Animals appearing before them were thought to be ancestors.

• Formation of Clans:

  • Clans labeled after animals (e.g., deer clan, buffalo clan, bear clan).
  • The animal species significant to their survival was worshiped as their ancestor.
  • In some clans, hunting the totem animal was prohibited, while in others it was allowed under specific conditions.
  • Identity was deeply linked to the animal world; children were often named after animals.

• Animal Totem and Leadership:

  • Animals were thought to be the founders of those who were the leaders.
  • Chiefs in Middle America were often believed to be created by jaguars.
  • Warriors were thought to be descendants of warring animals like hawks.
  • Spiritual guides or shamans were believed to descend from wise animals like eagles and serpents.
  • A deep connection between the animal and human kingdoms permeated religious beliefs and societal identity.
  • Similar practices were observed worldwide, including in Australia, Africa, Europe, and Asia.

Animal Sacrifice and Land Claims in the Stone Age

• Animal spirit transfer to the land:
  • Native American groups developed rituals involving animal sacrifice to claim resource-rich territories.
  • Belief that the spirit of a sacred animal could be transferred onto the land and be bound to the territory.
  • Purpose: To claim the region for the group and make the animal spirit the owner/guardian of the forest on their behalf.
• Animal Sacrifice Rituals:
  • Involved sacrificing an animal, such as a deer, within the desired territory (e.g., a forest).
  • Belief that the animal's spirit was transferred to the land through the spilled blood.
  • Rituals and dances were performed to bind the spirit to that location.
  • Shrines were built to honor the animal spirit, which was now the guardian/owner of the space.
• Purpose of Rituals:
  • To feed animals' spirit (the guardian owner of the forest)
  • To fertilize the forest. The the animal spirit would inrease produce fertility and the production of life in the land.
  • To claim territoriality, affirming the group's entitlement to the territory and excluding others.
• Enchanted Forests:
  • The land has been granted property to the clan or group and no others.
    • Belief that the animal spirit would deter intruders by creating spells or causing sickness.

Stone Gods and Religious Expansion

• Animal Spirit Transfer to Figurines:

  • Native American groups believed the soul or spirit of an animal ancestor could be transferred onto figurines (statues made from wood, clay, or rock).
  • The figurine was not just an idol but an animated object of power with a spirit dwelling within it.

• Rituals and Sacrifices:

  • Animal sacrifices were performed where the blood of the animal was spilled onto the figurine, transferring the animal's spirit.
  • The object became empowered and enchanted, with a magical charge.

• Emergence of Stone Gods:

  • Figurines or stone gods emerged as people began to craft their gods.
  • These objects were used for rituals and were regarded as representations of power.

• Significance:

  • Signaled the increasing complexity and elaboration of religious beliefs.
  • Also indicated the beginning of hierarchy within societies.
  • Those who crafted, guarded, and possessed these objects with power were recognized as formal leaders.

• Stone Gods and Leadership:

  • Possession and guardianship of animal gods implied specialized knowledge, ritualistic power, and the ability to communicate with the stone god.
  • Those who inherited the object also inherited the position of authority.
  • This emergence of stone gods and leaders occurred in the later stages of the Stone Age.

• Examples of Stone Gods:

  • Wolf ancestor stone gods found in North America.
  • Jaguar ancestor figurines found in Middle America (Mexico), often worshiped by the ruling class and considered totems of rulers.

• The Stone Age set the stage for the very first sacred ideas, like sacred symbols, spaces, that Native Americans would carry on for generations
  *Cave, Mountains, and Animals

The Horticultural Age (8,000 BC - 3,500 BC)

• A global era characterized by the development of early farming practices or gardening (horticulture).

• Shift from nomadic lifestyle to settled communities.

• Horticulture as Early Farming:

  • The early domestication of wild plants and trees.
  • Hunter-gatherers developed knowledge about plant reproduction.

• Global Drought and Transition:

  • A severe global drought led to the decline in large animals.
  • Forced humans to develop alternative survival strategies, focusing on knowledge of the plant kingdom.

• Women and Plant Knowledge:

  • Women played a crucial role in this transition due to their existing knowledge of plants.
  • They experimented with different parts of plants and discovered the role of seeds in plant reproduction.
  • Accumulated specialized knowledge about soil types, timing, and required sustenance for plant growth.

• Domestication of Plants:

  • Corn, beans, and squash were initially domesticated in Central America.
  • Other plants like tomatoes, onions, and chilis were also domesticated.
  • Fruit-bearing trees were also cultivated.

• Emergence of Villages:

  • Horticulture led to the creation of sedentary societies and village life.
  • Villages were often established near water sources and forests.
  • Clans from the Stone Age adapted to this new setting.

• Language and Thought:

  • The village setting facilitated the development of structured language for communication.
  • People began to think about time, strategies, and organization, leading to more complex societies.
  • They observed cycles of time, like moon cycles, to time their activities.

• Religion in the Horticultural Age:

  • Religion became more abstract, focusing on the land itself as the nurturer and creator (Earth Mother).
  • Earth Mother was considered feminine because she gives birth, just like women.
  • Most rituals were fertility rituals, aimed at enhancing the fertility of the Earth Mother.

• Goddess Religion:

  • Divinity shifted to where goddess was a creator of everything
  • The religion became feminine, with the goddess as the central figure.

• Women and Leadership:

  • Women, due to their knowledge of gardening, became leaders in various aspects of life.
  • Female shamans and priestesses led religious practices and fertility rituals.
  • Women were considered leaders of the family and village, making important decisions and providing guidance.
  • They also served as doctors and midwives, with fertility being central to their thinking.

Sacred Spaces of the Horticultural Age: Tree of Life

• Earthly Mother has become recognized during this time.
• That is, not just sacred temples, but also sacred trees, or the Tree of Life, world tree
• This era now saw the new symbols formulated
• The Horticultural Age brought recognition to, and retained importance of the sacred Earth, which in time would be considered the Mother to all
• Difficult for people to picture Earth Mother by the way, to have a symbol or representation that will tell the whole story about the Earth Mother
• Symbol was easier to see, to visualize, to conceptualize for Native Americans that they consider to be also central to this new religion, the Goddess religion. Central to this new age was centered on the idea of the sacred tree or the tree of life or the world tree
  *In other words, the tree itself was seen as the actual representation of life itself as sacred.
  *Tree provided life sources
• People really saw the tree as one of the most sacred extensions of Mother Earth, by the way.
  *They believed their was a connection between the earth and tree
• Trees, therefore provided nourishment to society
  *New stories were born out of religion, and humanity
  All connected with each other
  *Tree provides human existnece and sustains the circle of life, and therefore, it is sacred and holy within society

Tree of Life: Connections from Earth to Sky

*Sacred Tree/ tree of life
*Connection of earth (The roots of the tree)
*Then connect it to all parts of the world. (Natural World)
*Trees as extending up to the heavens (Sky)
So people believe that connecting with the tree is a connection to the heavens

***Tree with three layers that extend into the sky.

1.Underworld: Begins with roots where all life begins and is grounded in earth. Souls of Humans/Animal go into this part of the world
2.Natural World: The world we see today. World of animals, plants, and trees living and communicating

3. Sky/Heavens: Extends out from leaves of trees into open space where god and spirits reside. This is where special people extend out to

*Concept of traveling to heaven again
*Journey of Humans
*Moving from different parts of life

• Burial practices were important during this time because it was important to bury the body so you can return the soul of that person back to the earth. To a cavity in earth as a ritual and ceremony for dead of the Earth to the underworld so the person can sleep or rest in the underworld for a future time to be born again.
  *Important as cyclical time is also observed, and burial becomes more of practice

Cyclical Time Symbol and Rebirth

*Idea as to cycle of time/life
*Reicarnation in many religions

1.Born in spring

2. Blosson in summer
3. Wither during fall
4. Die during winter time

A cycle repeats endlessly; therefore humans/trees must be in these cycles and reincarnate