12
Chapter 2 Indigenous Sacred Ways
Learning Objectives
2.1 Outline the challenges faced by scholars in understanding indigenous sacred ways.
2.3 Describe the circle of right relationships.
2.5 Summarize group and individual observances in indigenous sacred ways.
2.7 Discuss how development projects have affected indigenous peoples and how they
have responded.
Chapter Overview
Understanding indigenous sacred ways
Cultural diversity
The circle of right relationships
Relationships with spirit
Yoruba Teaching Story: Osun and the Power of Woman
Kinship with all creation
Relationships with Power
Spiritual Specialists
Storytellers and other sacred roles
Mystical intermediaries
Key Points
Introduction
Teaching Note: This chapter gives an overview of the sacred beliefs of indigenous
peoples, especially in light of the challenges posed to them by globalization and
the limitations of traditional Western scholarship. The goals of this chapter are to
Whereas a great many people have at least heard of some of the major global
13
religions, such as Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism, fewer
2.1 Understanding indigenous sacred ways
Indigenous sacred ways have traditionally been little understood by outsiders.
Many indigenous traditions have been practiced in secret, and until recently,
those who have attempted to comprehend them had little preparation or
background for doing so. For instance, anthropologists who tried to ferret out the
native sacred ways did so from a Western nonspiritual perspective.
Recognizing that such inquirers did not accept the truth of their beliefs and
To protect their beliefs, some indigenous peoples have used the tactic of giving
false information to outside inquirers.
Indigenous spirituality may be seen as a lifeway, or particular approach to all of
In most native cultures, spiritual lifeways are shared orally, without formal
sacred scriptures.
In addition, the practices and teachings of indigenous peoples are transmitted
Today there are encouraging indications that some common ground between
these religions and those on the outside is emerging.
o In particular, some traditional elders are beginning to share their core values
regarding reverence for the earth with others because of their concerns about
2.2 Cultural diversity
Teaching Note: Although the central sections of this chapter focus on common
characteristics of indigenous religions, it is equally important for students to see
14
As a whole, indigenous forms of spirituality exhibit traditions that developed
within a spectrum of cultural, religious, and material diversity.
Some indigenous cultures have been highly developed, whereas others still
embody a basic strategy of survival (e.g., Australian Aborigines).
Groups whose material culture is simple nonetheless may have highly complex
cosmogonies, or models of the origins of the universe and their purpose in it.
2.3 The circle of right relationships
Many indigenous religions hold that everything in the universe, all forms of
life, is interrelated and interdependent. This belief pervades all of the common
themes explained in the chapter.
Often, but not always, the symbol for this interrelationship or unity is the circle.
o Because this form has no beginning and no endpoint, it can symbolize the
Relationships with spirit
The cosmos is thought to contain and be affected by numerous divinities, spirits,
and also ancestors.
Many indigenous peoples worship Supreme Being, who is believed to have
created the cosmos. This Being may be found in aspects of nature and is
represented variously as male, female, or even androgynous.
Even though the Great Power is present in all places and things, the Power
remains transcendent, that is, unseen and mysterious.
Kinship with all creation
Although spiritual power may remain unseen, all aspects of the tangible world are
believed to be imbued with spirit.
Spiritual forces may be associated with venerable mountains or canyons, or they
may be seen as animal spirit helpers, or personified elemental forces, or deceased
ancestors who are still concerned about the lives of their relatives.
Relationships with power
Cultivating proper relations with spiritual energy or power is another common
aspect among these religions.
Sometimes a specific site is believed to concentrate spiritual power.
Another source of spiritual power can be special sacred practices.
relation to spiritual power.
2.4 Spiritual specialists
The indigenous worldview is that the Supreme Being is present in all places and
fills all things, and anyone can interact with it.
Spiritual specialists within these religions dedicate themselves through special
training and initiation to participate in activities involved with the world of the
16
Storytellers and other sacred roles
Storytellers play a central role in indigenous religions, for it is they who
memorize and transmit the sacred traditions.
Secret societies for men and women are also common among indigenous
religions.
Members are initiated into secret traditions that may involve donning ceremonial
dress as part of a ritual to establish contact with particular spirits.
ultimately refer to the eternal Dreaming, in which male and female are not
Mystical Intermediaries
Teaching Note: It should be interesting for students to learn that modern medicine
is beginning to adopt some of the approaches taken by these visionaries, who saw
the physiological health of the individual as an expression of his or her
psychological and sometime spiritual health.
Most distinctive among the spiritual specialists are the shamans.
Initiation typically involves a death and rebirth experience.
Archaeological research indicates that the practices of the shaman probably date
back twenty to thirty thousand years.
Native Americans speak of the mystical intermediary as a medicine person
whose medicine power derives from an outside source.
The shaman is often involved in physical, psychological, and social healing.
2.5 Group observances
Humans can help maintain the natural harmony of the world by practicing ritual
observances.
o These rituals are community-centered, as are indigenous ways in general.
o Specific rituals aid the community in perceiving the extraordinary
dimensions of the world within the realm of the ordinary.
Communities can also assemble for spiritual renewal and ritual purification.
Even pilgrimages to sacred sites are frequently communal.
An awareness of the place and community-centeredness of indigenous faiths and
of, or forcibly taken from, their native communities.
Such people lose not only their individual identity but also their relationship to a
tightly knit group and meaningful religious rituals.
o Such awareness also helps explain the reluctance of some groups to share
Indigenous groups whose communities are broken up by outside forces lose the
power of their group rituals.
Individual observances
Balancing the communal dimension of ritual observance is individual
observance.
o For native sacred ways, it is considered important for individuals to
experience a personal connection with the realm of the spirits.
o Such connections are open to all people.
Undergoing a vision quest (typically around the time of puberty) is a common
18
2.6 Globalization
Local spiritual traditions have suffered immensely from the onslaught of
globalization processes.
People are seeing land for which they are caretakers taken over by others who
2.7 Development issues
Contemporary issues involving indigenous religions revolve primarily around one
Barriers to understanding these faiths discussed in the earlier part of this chapter
demonstrate indigenous reactions to outside pressures and oppression.
The lands of these people have been seized, and development projects have often
displaced indigenous peoples.
Indigenous peoples have had their lands exploited by multinational companies for
An irony amid this tragedy is that the indigenous worldview, which reveres all
creation, recognizes the interdependence of all circles of life, and understands
Key Terms
cosmogony medicine person vision quest
Review Questions
1. Why are some indigenous ways practiced secretly? What challenges have scholars
faced in understanding and accurately representing indigenous sacred ways?
2. What do indigenous sacred ways in different parts of the world have in common?
3. How do indigenous sacred ways have an ecological perspective?
4. What types of spiritual specialists are there in indigenous sacred ways?
5. What effects do the rituals of indigenous sacred ways such as storytelling,
19
drumming, initiations, healing, self-sacrifice, and vision quests seem to have?
6. What are some of the effects of the clashes between indigenous and industrial
societies?
Discussion Questions
1. In what ways do indigenous approaches to the sacred differ from those of other
religions with which you are familiar?
2. What do you see as the benefits and disadvantages of non-indigenous people
attempting to adopt indigenous religious practices?
3. Can indigenous sacred ways be reconciled with modern industrial and commercial
pressures? Why, or why not?
4. In what ways may the processes of globalization affect indigenous sacred ways?
5. How have development projects affected indigenous peoples, and how have those
peoples responded?
Class Activities/Assignments
1. Ask students to research the history of their city, county, or state to discover whether
there has been, or still is, an indigenous religion there. If so, what native religion? What
are its major characteristics? Which of those characteristics are explained in this chapter?
2. Have each student envision that he or she is an outsider to his or her own religion, an
outsider with no understanding of its religious beliefs and practices. Have students single
out a specific religious practice with which they are familiar. Then, ask them to imagine
what this practice could look like to them as outsiders. What conclusions might they draw
about what is going on and why?
3. Stage a debate between two groups of students, one taking the view that it is
4. Ask students to carefully analyze two Walt Disney films that featured aspects of
indigenous sacred ways namely, The Lion King and Pocahontas. Which characteristics
Recommended Films
. BBC-TV, 1993. 49 minutes. Depicts initiation rituals that prepare young
women in Nigeria for marriage. Focuses on two young women, one of whom
enthusiastically participates and another who is uncomfortable with some aspects of the
rites.
The Priest and the Nganga: The Traditional Medicine of Douala. Princeton, NJ:
20
Additional Class Discussion/Essay Questions
1. What is an indigenous religion? What are some major obstacles to understanding these
religions?
2. How does the treatment of indigenous peoples by more dominant religions and cultures
illustrate the negative side of religions?