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Cree
Indian 1903
G.E. Fleming Photo/National
Archives of Canada/PA-028983
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Shaking Tents and
Vision Quests: The Spiritual Life of the
Cree and Ojibway
Among both the Cree and the Ojibway of
the Lake Winnipeg region, a belief in the
ability of individuals and intermediaries
to contact the supernatural world was an
essential part of the collective consciousness.
Dreams were carefully analyzed for messages
and omens, and young people were encouraged
to embark on hunger-inspired "vision
quests." Alone in the wilderness, adolescents
challenged themselves to rigorous fasts
in hopes of summoning a lifetime guardian
spirit that would give them special powers
and protection.
| Honouring
the Bear
For the Cree, the black bear
was an object of special reverence.
Human-like qualities were often
attributed to it, and when it
was hunted and killed, great
care was taken to honour the
animal and treat it with reverential
respect. Hunting parties talked
or sang to the bear before they
lured it out of its den to club
it to death, acting swiftly
to place tobacco in it mouth
as it expired. As a freshly
killed bear was brought into
camp, women often wept in mourning
and unmarried girls covered
their faces. After the hunters
had gathered around the carcass
to smoke a ceremonial pipe,
the bear was laid on its back
on top of freshly cut boughs,
where an offering of tobacco
was placed on its chest in recognition
of the gift of its life. The
entrails and grease of the bear
were offered up in the fire,
and the skull was carefully
cleaned. Throughout the winter,
the head was kept safe from
harm. In spring, with further
offerings of tobacco in its
nose and chin, and its lower
lip adorned with beads, the
carefully preserved skull was
raised on a tall pole to be
publicly honoured one last time.
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Movers and Shakers: The practice of consulting
a "shaking tent" practitioner
was common. For those seeking answers to
a health question, a prediction about the
future, or a way to find lost articles,
a nocturnal appointment with the tent shaker
was in order. Bound hand and foot and placed
within a small, circular lodge, the conjuror
within called for the spirits, seeking contact
with the supernatural world. As he spoke
and sang, the tent would begin to shake
violently, and unfamiliar voices would surround
the tent.
Magical Medicine: Healing rituals, sometimes
associated with a secret society known as
Midewiwin, or the Grand Medicine Society,
were a particular feature of Ojibway culture.
The societies were said to consist of four
levels, representing ever more detailed
knowledge of healing herbs, medicine bundles,
sacred objects and hypnotic powers. Both
men and women participated in the Midewiwin,
enduring long periods of initiation involving
trance-like experiences. The great annual
ceremony of the Midewiwin society was one
of the Ojibway's few central gatherings,
and after European contact, became a symbol
of cultural identity.
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