Native spirituality is a way of life for Native Americans, with no set beliefs or dogmas. It focuses on the natural world, with shamanism and rituals being common practices. Many tribes have developed individual belief systems, and Christianity has often been forcibly imposed. New Age beliefs have attempted to adopt some indigenous spiritual beliefs, but the true native religion is the Native American Church.
When we talk about native spirituality, we are generally referring to the spirituality of Native Americans. This is very different from religions like Christianity, as there is no single set of beliefs or dogmas. It is not a religion as such, but rather a way of life that integrates widely different sets of beliefs into most aspects of a follower’s existence.
According to the vast majority of anthropologists, Native Americans first inhabited the North American continent between 30,000 and 60,000 years ago. Many of them are believed to have crossed over to the now submerged landmass in the Bering Strait. As populations spread and tribes formed, a large number of individual belief systems developed. While they are virtually all different, most are related to each other by commonalities often found among nomadic hunters and gatherers.
For example, native spirituality largely focused on the natural world; objects, animals, and even geographic locations located within a tribe’s home region were given supernatural significance. Shamanism was very common and almost all indigenous spiritual practices relied heavily on rituals, ceremonies, the concept of good and evil spirits, hunting, and cultural taboos. Other shared trends of native spirituality sometimes included a primary deity who created the Earth and an adversary or trickster who afflicted man to a greater or lesser degree. Such a conflicting relationship is also common to non-native beliefs, as in the Christian theology of a supreme God and an evil Satan.
Due to the diseases and near-genocidal practices that plagued Native Americans in the 18th and 19th centuries, issues of spirituality have often been diluted or extinguished. Christianity has often been forcibly imposed on Native American tribes, with the result that many now hold hybrid beliefs. In those days, doing missionary work among indigenous peoples was seen as a high calling. Converting Native Americans from what were considered pagan ways was of the highest priority for many.
In the late 20th and early 21st centuries those who have espoused New Age beliefs have attempted to take on some indigenous spiritual beliefs. Many aspects of New Age versions of native spirituality derive more from fiction and hearsay than from the actual rituals and practices of any tribe. The fiction of indigenous beliefs was almost inevitable, since many tribes relied on oral tradition and now have no record of early rituals.
There is a true native religion, although it is of 20th century creation. The Native American Church was founded in 20 and has about 1918 members. Church beliefs include numerous generic rites and ceremonies, Christian ideas, and the ingestion of the hallucinogenic plant peyote. Indigenous spirituality can therefore generally be seen as an extremely diverse set of beliefs and rituals revolving around a certain reverence for nature.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
