My Sacred Path Of Native American Spirituality

I was not brought up in any of the Native American tribal traditions. My father's family would talk about being of Native decent but only when it was a gathering of family and even then it was almost whispered. When I was little I kept getting these mixed messages. In one sense, my father seemed proud of our heritage but then I also felt that it was something to be ashamed of because it was only talked about at home. Dad used to call me his "Little Indian Princess" when we were alone but in public he would tell people I was his "Little Princess". How confusing for a little kid!

The story in our family is that my Great-Grandfather ran away from the reservation that he grew up on. We don't know where that reservation was, nor what tribe our people came from. Grandpa Ferguson (not his real name...he made it up) would only talk about running away when he was under the influence of whiskey. If anyone tried to question him on his background, he would stop talking and tell the family that it was better if they didn't know. He was so fearful of having to return to the conditions that he ran away from that, as far as I know, he never revealed to anyone in the family who our people were. He would have ran away sometime around the early 1900s and this was a time when, if a person escaped the reservation life, they would not have been proud to claim their real heritage. How very sad!

I can't remember a time that I wasn't curious about this part of my ancestry. I spent years reading everything that I could and taking it all in. It has only been in the last twenty years or so that I began to embrace the spiritual teachings and about the last ten years that I began to tell people my beliefs. Through my research and my self examination, I realized that this is so much a part of my soul and who I am that there is nothing to be ashamed of. It is a way of life that I have embraced and try really hard to follow every day.

The picture at the right, is not my Great-Grandfather Ferguson. He looks a lot like him, though. I wonder if this handsome man with the soulful eyes could be one of my people.

Image Credit: U. S. Geological Survey from pictures in the public domain taken from the late 1800s and early 1900s Dakota Territories

White Buffalo Calf Woman came to Mother Earth to teach the Lakota (Sioux) a better way to live. While on Earth she taught them the "Seven Sacred Rituals" and gave them the holiest of worship symbols...the sacred pipe. She promised to return to Earth one day and that the People would know she was coming when a while buffalo calf was born.

Legend Of The Pipe by Singletree3
at Zazzle.

Perhaps she will come to us soon, a white buffalo calf was born in Wisconsin in 1994 and several others have been born since then.

The history books, movies, and many books give many the impression that the Native Americans were a savage and heathenish race of people. They were portrayed as less than human in many instances. Some people think that Natives are all about making pottery, styles of jewelry, or carving totem poles. There is so much more to learn from the ancient wisdom of the Indigenous People of North America.

• The respect and reverence given to the Elders
  
• Family responsibility that goes beyond the nuclear family and embraces the entire community
  
• Respect for the environment and all living things
  
• A strong willingness to share as shown in the "Give Away Ceremony"
  
• The message of the Lakota...Mitakuye Oyasin which translates "We Are All Related"
  

Certainly there are more areas to learn from but if everyone could just learn from the above; our world would be a much better place. Having been brought up in the Christian Religion, I find that these are the same messages that I was taught as a child...I like the Native American choice of words better though.

My birth totems provide lessons for me to live by along with Messenger totems that enter and exit my life when there is an area that I need to grow in. You can find out what your birth totems are by visiting Your Birth Totem, it will give you your Moon Sign that corresponds with your Sun Sign. Along with the animal totem of your birth, you will find out what plant and mineral offers you "medicines" or lessons throughout your sacred path journey.