Abstract
“Iyiniw sawêyihtâkosiwin” are Cree words meaning “‘the peoples’ sacred gifts.”’ That’s what the land, animals, and knowledge were to Indigenous peoples—that’s what it still is. Indigenous peoples were put on this land, in North America, as children of the Creator (Cardinal and Hildebrandt, 3 and 10). They were given laws to abide by: respect each other, this land, and the animals/all other living things; pass down this knowledge and respect it and who it came from. The people lived in harmony and balance practicing their new was of life that emerged from these laws. One day the Europeans came, and the Indigenous peoples were to share their sacred knowledge from the Creator, and their ways of life with these people (Cardinal and Hildebrandt, 7). Unfortunately, it didn’t work out as planned. The Europeans destroyed the land, eliminated their food supply, and brought in diseases. They destroyed their ways of life.
This paper focuses on how Indigenous peoples lived before their ways of life were ruined by the Europeans. Indigenous relationships with the land, the animals, each other, the knowledge passed down from elders, and all of creation is a part of their ways of living—they’re so strong and crucial, that Indigenous individuals valued them in the past, practice them today, and will signify their importance for eternity.
Indigenous Interactions with Land and Life
From the time when the Creator put his children on Earth, to this moment and 70 years from now, Indigenous people have always, and will always, have a special connection with the land and everything that the Creator gave them. They have passed on knowledge from thousands and thousands of years that have taught them spiritual traditions of their political, social, educational, and cultural ideologies that they base their ways of life off of today (Cardinal and Hildebrandt, 11).
The land teaches that Anishinaabe life, and life overall, is continual, reciprocal, and reflective. It gives the people the chance to communicate and engage with the ancestors who walked this very same land, the people they currently share the land with, and people who have not entered this Earth yet (Simpson). Simpson states that her “ancestors woke up each morning and created an Anishnaabe world.” They did this by practicing the beliefs of their people who valued each other, the land, the animals and life that existed amongst them, and the knowledge they gained from their elders. Indigenous peoples’ ways of living—that the Creator had gifted them to revolve around and create a way of life—is known to be valued, trusted, and sacred. This way to live is abided by all Indigenous peoples; if any laws of the Creator are broken, the breaker will carry this sin on their shoulders for the rest of their life and beyond (Cardinal and Hildebrandt, 8). The laws of the Creator had shown the people how to live with respect for others, the land, and all Creation. For that reason, but not only, Indigenous peoples are forever “living with the purpose of generating continual life” (Simpson). In other words, this way of living will generate a peaceful and fulfilled life for yourself and the others around you—it must never be lost, but rather passed down through time and carried on for eternity.
Indigenous peoples and their beliefs recognize that fish, and all animals overall, are not resources to us, but rather our relatives (Lyons). The people don’t take away the life of a fish when fishing, or moose when hunting for their advantage—that’s not how it works. The animal gives its life for the nourishment and benefit of the people. Thinking in this way makes one more appreciative of the life that was given up for them.
In Simpsons podcast episode, “The Brilliance of the Beaver: Learning from an Anishnaabe World,” she talks about how beavers today are seen as nothing but a nuisance. They chop down trees, flood land, or dry out land. However, “no one has had more impact on the environment than the beavers, except for humans” (Simpson). Humans may see beavers as a pest for cutting down tress, but is what humans do any different? Around 15 billion trees are cut down each year by humans alone (Ehrenberg). In 1975, beavers became the national emblem of Canada (Simpson). Simpson describes how beavers were not made into this symbolic figure, for beavers represent wisdom and should be a respected relative, but because of their capability to make income for the country. Beaver hats were a popular demand during the late sixteenth to mid nineteenth century in Canada (Hudsons Bay Company). Because of this, beavers went nearly extinct around 200 years later (Simpson). Europeans did not acknowledge what the beaver relative did for them—all they cared about was the resource they could use from them to provide them with money. That was where their mindset was at. The money. Indigenous people in the past, and still today, recognize(d) that beavers are so much more than the income they could bring in. They had to be respected for the wisdom that they carried with them. Simpson explains how the Indigenous people value what the beaver does for its relatives. They build dams which create a pool of water rather than ice in the winter—this enables their fish relatives to survive. They create channels that protect the land from drought for the people; their dams also create ponds/pools for moose, elk, and deer so they can cool off in the summer, keep flies off them, and to hide (Simpson). What beavers do is knowledgeable, and out of respect for their other relatives. The Indigenous peoples respected this, and admired the life and wisdom of the beaver. The European peoples only had the beavers use for income in mind, and were unfortunately never interested to learn about their deeper value and benefit for all living beings. Even after their near extinction, the beaver still lives on to spread its knowledge today.
Indigenous peoples were put on this Earth by the Creator to share the ways of life with people of their kind, and non-Indigenous peoples as well. Everyday they practice self-determination, consent, kindness, and freedom in relationships (Simpson). They practice these things to renew their relationships not only with others, but with the land, animals, and the Creator and all of his creation. They also had mutual respect for everything amongst them due to the pipe (Cardinal and Hildebrandt, 6). Individuals would go to sweat lodges to purify themselves and pray. They would also, according to Treaty 4 Assiniboine Elder Kay Thompson in Treaty Elders of Saskatchewan, “‘go and fast on a hill, the highest hill they could find…. They would fast and pray out there, and they prayed for everything, for the knowledge they had.’” They would continue to pray until they got their answer from the Great Spirit; they would do this by communicating through visions and dreams. (Cardinal and Hildebrandt, 6).
The Indigenous peoples wanted to share this knowledge with everyone. They wanted everyone to purify themselves and live with peace and harmony with others and the Creator. Oren Lyons expresses the importance of sharing in “Oren Lyons on the Indigenous View of the World.” Before the Europeans came to North America, when Indigenous peoples thrived and could freely embrace their culture, Indigenous individuals acknowledged that they belong to the land just as much as the land belongs them—if not more (Lyons). There was no fighting over land, or possession over certain territory; the land belonged to everyone, and everyone belonged to the land. There was no such thing as owning land (Lyons). There was also no such thing as buying water from the store. These were essential necessities that everyone had access to. You didn’t purchase these things because it belongs to you. You belong to them.
Looking at how Indigenous peoples lived makes you question how we are living today. There are people in third world countries that don’t have access to clean water; if they want water, it comes with a price (the water is dirty, you have to travel miles to access it, or in most cases… both).
Lyons states in his interview how people who are rich with currency pointed everyone in the direction that this is what you want—this is the goal in life. I, along with Lyons, disagree with this. You could have all the money in the world, but still be unhappy with who you are, unsatisfied with what you have, and potentially without love or a family.
As long as Indigenous peoples continue to hold ceremonies, there is hope. As long as there are people to share the knowledge, there is hope. As long as there are people to listen, there is hope. As long as there is hope, we will survive (Lyons).
Works Cited
Cardinal, H., & Hildebrand, W. (2000). Treaty elders of Saskatchewan our dream is that our peoples will one day be clearly recognized as nations. University of Calgary Press.
Ehrenberg, R. (2015, September 2). Global forest survey FINDS trillions of trees. Nature News. Retrieved September 23, 2021, from https://www.nature.com/articles/nature.2015.18287.
Hudson’s Bay Company. (n.d.). Beaver Hats. HBC heritage – beaver hats. Retrieved September 23, 2021, from https://www.hbcheritage.ca/things/fashion-pop/beaver-hats.
Oren Lyons on the Indigenous View of the World – YouTube. (2016). YouTube. Retrieved September 23, 2021, from https://youtu.be/kbwSwUMNyPU.
Simpson, L. B. (2020, September 2). The brilliance of the Beaver: Learning from an Anishnaabe World | CBC Radio. CBCnews. Retrieved September 24, 2021, from https://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/the-brilliance-of-the-beaver-learning-from-an-anishnaabe-world-1.5534706.