This is not the first time that I read this book, nor is it
likely to be the last – which is as high a compliment as probably can be given
to a book by any reader!
It is not a new book, either. In fact, it was published
before the writer of this particular piece was even born! But that said, there
is a timeless quality to the words and pictures here.
In the introduction, T.C. McLuhan notes that the wisdom of
the Indian has been available for a very long time, but was very often ignored.
But increasingly, as we inhabit a world that seems completely absorbed in the
process of destroying itself and destroying whatever open spaces still exist,
and consuming every last untapped natural resource remaining and draining
everything that we can so that we can live it up at this very moment, even at
the expense of future generations, these words and thinking of the old Indians
and their way of viewing the world overall begins to ring true, as do many of the
projections about the ultimate direction of the conquerors, the white men or,
nowadays, the society at large. We are in need of a different direction, a new
way of thinking, and perhaps we should look towards the past to give us a new
direction for a better future. "Perhaps now," McLuhan states,
"after hundreds of years of ignoring their wisdom, we may learn from the
Indians."
The book is split up into four parts, and I will review
each individual section.
Part One: The Morning Sun, the New Sweet Earth and the
Great Silence
The first section focuses on the Indian attachment to the
land – in many cases, literally. Chief Luther Standing Bear of the Lakota
describes how the land itself was the source of life, both past and present, as
well as for the future, and illustrates the physical attachment that Indians
had to the land:
"That is why the old Indian still sits upon the earth
instead of propping himself up and away from its life-giving forces. For him,
to sit or lie upon the ground is to be able to think more deeply and to feel
more keenly; he can see more clearly the mysteries of life and come closer in
kinship to other lives about him…"
He concludes by explaining the wisdom of the old Lakota,
saying that he "knew that man's heart away from nature becomes hard; he
knew that lack of respect for growing, living things soon led to lack of
respect for humans, too." (6)
There is much about how Indians consumed what they needed,
and not more. When they killed a beast they got sustenance in terms of food
from it, and they got clothing to keep them warm. They lived in a much greater
balance with nature than the modern society that displaced them did. The white
men who came and conquered essentially destroyed whatever lay in their path of
progress, in order to get at what could be properly utilized.
This destruction was widespread and touched everything,
weakening the traditional Indian way of life, including diet and even water
sources. In the early twentieth century, Okute (Shooter) said that Indians
"have less freedom and and they fall an easy prey to disease. In the old
days they were rugged and healthy, drinking pure water and eating the meat of
the buffalo, which had the wide range, not being shut up like cattle of the
present day. The water of the Missouri River
is not pure, as it used to be, and many of the creeks are no longer good for us
to drink." He concludes in the last paragraph of the passage, saying,
"A man ought to desire that which is genuine instead of that which is
artificial." 19
Mentioned in this section is not only the attachment to the
land, but also the notion that life had to be in spiritual accordance, that Man
and nature, as it were, are not separate, let alone opposing, entities. That
being enemies with nature is ridiculous. Everything is tied into with
traditional spirituality of the Indian. Bedagi (Big Thunder) says, "The
Great Spirit is our Father, but the Earth is our mother. She nourishes us; that
which we put into the ground she returns to us, and healing plants she gives us
likewise. If we are wounded, we go to our mother and seek to lay the wounded
part against her, to be healed. Animals too, do thus, they lay their wounds to
the earth." (22)
*Tatanga Mani points the accusing finger at the whites who
displaced the Indian from his land, explaining, "We were lawless people,
but we were on pretty good terms with the Great Spirit, creator and ruler of
all. You whites assumed we were savages. You didn't understand our prayers. You
didn't try to understand….Without understanding, you condemned us as lost souls
just because our form of worship was different from yours." 23
There are some truly poetic and wonderful parts included,
such as the funeral speech reported by Jonathan Carver, which is truly a
beautiful and eloquent praise for a recently departed member of the tribe.
"But whither is that breath flown, which a few hours
ago sent up breath to the Great Spirit? Why are those lips silent, that lately
delivered to us expressive and pleasing language?" (31)
The reader gets a glimpse into the Indian attachment to the
land itself, and being a part of it. Far from the Christian religion being
offered to them by the invading army, which promised a wonderful Heaven beyond
this world, the Indians believed that you make your own Heaven or Hell right
here on Earth. William Warren, the mixed son of an white man and an Ojibway
woman, explains that while camping, "the soul arrives in the land of
spirits, where he finds his relatives accumulated since mankind was first
created; all is rejoicing, singing and dancing; they live in a country
interspersed with clear lakes and streams; forests and prairies, and abounding
in fruit and game to repletion – in a word, abounding in all that the red man
most covets in this life, and which conduces most to his happiness. It is that
kind of paradise which he only by his manner of life on this earth, is fitted
to enjoy." (33)
We hear more about Indian life as well, including the way
an Indian would typically wake up, walking to the water and splashing water on
himself or herself, then facing the rising sun in the East, and coming to terms
with one's own spirituality on their own, without any company, since everyone
had to come to this on their own. I enjoyed this part about traditional
spirituality, and was particularly impressed with the lack of need to have all
the answers, something that Western religions tend to need. An example is
provided by Mato-Kuwapi (Chased-By-Bears), who mentions that it was "the
general belief of the Indians that after a man dies his spirit is somewhere on
the earth or in the sky, we do not know exactly where but we are sure that his
spirit still lives." 39
The reader also learns about the importance of circles in
the Indian tradition by vivid descriptions from Hehaka Sapa (Black Elk) and
Tatanka-Ptecila (Short Bull). Everything in the world worked in circles, and
life was a series of cycles – an idea not altogether foreign to us in the
modern day.
Hehaka Sapa says, "The Sky is round and I have heard
that the earth is round like a ball and so are all the stars. The Wind, in its
greatest power, whirls. Birds make their nests in circles, for theirs is the same religion as
ours. The sun comes forth and goes down again in a circle. The moon does the
same, and both are round."
The season also seemed cyclical, and thus, circular, and so
did life itself, from childhood to old age. So the Indian also built his tipis
in circles, as well.
No comments:
Post a Comment