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Post by treaclemine on May 3, 2009 11:05:23 GMT 1
Greetings,
I'm so glad I could make it to the Medicine Wheel ritual yesterday. I'm afraid I didn't catch everyone's names, but thank you for welcoming me.
Can anyone recommend a good source to learn more about First Nation beliefs?
I look forward to seeing people at the Great Western Moot ritual this coming Tuesday.
Thanks!
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Post by moonsmith on May 3, 2009 13:02:24 GMT 1
Hi :-) I'm an out on the edger so we haven't met. I too was drawn towards American Indian beliefs at first. The problem is that they are not remotely a single people - their beliefs are very widespread as is their culture. Also, like the Aboriginal beliefs of Australia - it is almost inconceivable to be of their belief without being on their land [whichever patch you choose]. Certainly the last Lacota that I corresponded with last month was very suspicious of my motives. May I recommend that you look for belief around the land on which YOU live. If you live in the city then even more so - I think that there is a lot of work to be done around Urban Paganism. The UK has a belief and culture just as ancient [maybe older] and just as picturesque as that of America. What I did get from the Indians was the beauty of their flutes - take a look at Walkingthunder.co.uk or Raymond Redfeather's site. and As a storyteller myself I respect them as consummate experts in that field. I will tell the story of Kokopelli and the flute at the drop of a note [which I do frequently] BTW if you talk to an Indian [in English language] you will find that they do not call themselves "Native American", "Indigenous American" or "First Nation People" in conversation. They call themselves Indians and with a smile on their face they will call you a Cowboy regardless of your sex. If you are determined upon that path then relax - your teacher will find you. That patience is the first discipline. Wherever you go - enjoy the journey and arrive only when you must. Pat.
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Post by eva on May 3, 2009 14:29:31 GMT 1
Pat I found the comment about native americans calling themselves 'Indian' interesting when it came up at the storytelling because it's not been my experience.
In Canada and Central and South America, I have found that the people I've met have preferred to call themselves by their tribal names and some don't like being called 'Indians' at all.
I guess it's a regional thing.
Eva
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Post by admin on May 5, 2009 8:05:26 GMT 1
Morning Treaclemine, Two resources which are an absolute must, are the Wikipedia entry on Plastic Shamans, and another website which www.newagefraud.org. (Very good forum though sometimes it is a little slow to launch.) They make for harsh reading, but will give you a good grounding in exactly why those people descended from indigenous Americans get very offended by people who spend a weekend 'studying' with someone who's Grandmother's aunt was a Cherokee and then pass themselves off as some great shamanic teacher. And believe me, there are hundreds of people in the UK who will offer to teach you all about First Nation culture! As with any pagan 'teacher', the main rule is Caveat Emptor, though avoiding anything to do with Glastonbury is probably a good rule too (unless you are one of those people who believes that it is possible to buy spirituality). Whilst making for uncomfortable reading, and possibly not what you think you would want to read in the above websites, there will be links and trains of thought that will be of help to you and help you to avoid the pitfalls of causing offence to the very people that you wish to show respect to. Another angle, which you may not have thought of, is druidry as practiced by Emma Restall Orr (known as Bobcat). Although not exactly the same as 'Native American Shamanism' (which is a misnomer as there are NO Native American Shamans!) there are strands of similarity running through, but her tradition is based on this country and this land. After all, this nation has enough spirituality embedded into it without the need for recourse to foreign imports Outsider, who occasionally pops up on this forum, is also a fount of knowledge, so it might be worth dropping him a PM. Rhiannon
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