Animals

Respect for animals.

Aboriginal Americans believe that human-animal relationships are deep and complex. Many peoples believed that animals were their direct descendants or, at least, were related to animals. As a result, they have the same rights and deserve the same respect as other human beings. Firstly, their willingness to sacrifice their lives to ensure the survival of humanity must be honoured.

Alaska's koyukons are aware that humans hunt them to survive and don't hurt them. However, they claim that, whether persecuted or not, they must be treated with humanity at all times. Every day it must be fed to a hungry dwarf that has been trapped in the snow until it recovers the necessary forces to come out on its own foot and get away. The koyukones believe that the animal and its soul are one. The spirit is peculiar to the animal in question, but it is also part of the collective spirit of the species, which means that all members of the kind can move away from the hunter if an individual is offended.

The fate of the hunter is influenced by hundreds of rules and taboos related to the proper treatment of animal spirits. They consider luck to be a powerful link between humanity and animal spirits. The koyukons honor the animals by respecting the rules because, otherwise, luck could abandon them, at the risk of the people not surviving. Boasting about something that hasn't happened yet can have the opposite effect; for example, by claiming that you will catch many castors, you suddenly realize that you can't catch a single specimen. The person who exaggerates his skills during the "bear hunt" may be devoured by this animal.

The white castor ritual of the chawi group of the pawnees honored the animals at an important moment in their lives: when they came out of hibernation. They believed that after winter, the gods gave life to animals. In the event that the corresponding ritual was carried out, a part of the divine power was granted to the doctors, who used it for the benefit of the population. Doctors were primarily responsible for carrying out the ritual, making them the third category of pawnees, after chiefs and priests.

The conservative of the white castor prepared the altar and chimney in his shelter when the animals began to move in January. In the company of another doctor, they set fire to the sacred pipe and exhaled in tribute to the animals. During a secret ceremony to purify the castor, they asked their closest relatives to bring meat to the shelter.

After a four-day period, a complex ceremony began in which doctors instilled life into the animals smoking in their honor. Each individual said, “Father, my current situation is of poverty.” Have compassion on me. I need your help to heal sick people. It takes the disease away from our community, it offers valuable gifts and a long life.

Origin of animal qualities

Animals are often the main characters in American stories and sometimes appear as invented cosmic agents. The animals had leaders and counselors and lived in cabins or shops like the tribes. Animals interact with people and speak their language frequently.

Each animal embodies specific traits and characteristics. Almost always, the rabbit is cunning and cunning. The turtle symbolizes slowness, while the fox, deer and rabbit symbolize speed.

In many tribes, competition between two species is common, and the victory is usually the most patient individual and not the fast trusted.