Aboriginal Spirituality HRT3M World Religions – Unit 1
Dec 24, 2015
Aboriginal Spirituality
HRT3M
World Religions – Unit 1
Aboriginal Populations - World
• Approximately 300 000 million Aboriginal Peoples inhabit the earth
• 1, 172,790 people identify themselves as Aboriginal in Canada (2006 census)
World Distribution of Indigenous People
Asia 80%
S. America 7%
N. America 6%
Africa 4%
Australia/Oceania 3%
Europe 0.1%
Aboriginal Populations - World
• Aboriginal spirituality is most common in Asia. The lowest population of aboriginal people is in Europe.
• The Inuit, located in Canada’s north (Nunavut) share their culture and traditions with Alaska and Greenland.
• There are 100 000 Inuit, but a lot of that population practices Christianity.
• There is a resurgence of Aboriginal culture throughout the world.
Aboriginal People – WorldCommon Beliefs
• Animism: my adherents of Aboriginal spirituality believe that everything in the world is alive. All things, human and non-human, have spirits or souls, and that the person or animal lives on after death through the presence of that spirit.
• Some observers claim aboriginal spirituality is polytheistic – many believe in a supreme Creator however, power in the universe is also given to other personified spirits who are less powerful. Examples: Inuit “Sea Woman”; Iroquois “Sky Woman”; and the Algonquin “Grandfather” (sky)
Aboriginal People – WorldCommon Beliefs and Practices
• Aboriginal people exercise their beliefs through storytelling, prayer, art and ritual. These may consist of drumming, chanting, carving, painting and dancing.
• Aboriginal Spirituality has no founder, or creator of the religion. During a crisis, an elder or significant person will rise and renew the faith.
• Canada declared June 21st to be National Aboriginal Day, in 1996
Aboriginal Peoples – Americas Origins• Indigenous People
believe they are the original inhabitants of an area “they came from that ground”
• Archeological evidence suggests the aboriginal inhabitants of the Americas migrated from Asia to the Americas by crossing a land bridge over the Bering Strait between 35 000 and 10 000 years ago.
Canada’s Aboriginal People
• Aboriginal Spirituality is logical – a cultural extension of survival interaction with their physical environment.
• The geographical environment in which they lived defined them
• Canada has 6 distinct cultural groups
Canada’s Aboriginal Cultural Groups
• 6 cultural groups in Canada –defined by how they developed in response to their distinct geography
• Arctic• Subarctic• The Plateau• The Northwest
Pacific Coast• Great Plains• Northeast
Woodlands
Creation • Most tribes have their own
unique creation story• Oral stories• Turtle Island• Raven and the Clamshell• Animals came from humans-
strong link• Creator controls humans, but
not other animals
Ceremonies• The Potlatch Ceremony
- Give away things to gain status• The Sweat Lodge
- like a sauna--> made of saplings- led by an elder- heals them spiritually and physically
• The Shaking Tent-used by many tribes-goal is to communicate to spirits
Totems• Represent their
animal/spirit guide• For a clan or individual• Same totem= close
relatives• Sometimes used to tell
stories about supernatural• Carved for Potlatch
Ceremony
Rituals• The Sun Dance
- circle = sun--> centre of life - cottonwood pole is called
“Tree of the Universe”- Piercing Dance
• Morning Dance- dance to give thanks - feast of fish and meat
Symbols/ Images• Traditional symbols and images are an essential
part of the Aboriginal culture.• Dream Catcher: If you hang a dream catcher over
your bed, your bad dreams will go through the web and into the Universe and your good dreams will be caught in the web.
• Eagle: Alerts the Aboriginals of what is to come.• Fire: Symbolizes the heart of The People and is
used to cleanse the spirit.
Symbols/ Images Continued• Inuksuk: Used for navigation, gives warnings for any
danger in open water, and it marks sacred space.• Medicine Shield: Made by warriors as a symbol of
protection and strength when hunting and battling.• Tree of Peace: In some Aboriginal religions, the tree
is believed to connect Earth to Heaven.
Number of Adherents in the World/ Influences in the 21st Century
• Just under 1.2 million Canadians reported having at least some Aboriginal ancestry in 2006, representing 4.4 % of the total population in Canada.
• Between 1996 and 2006, the Aboriginal population grew by 45%.