No it’s not about psilocybin mushrooms.
No, it’s not about peyote.
No… it’s not about ayahuasca….
I regret my chosen topic.
It’s their religion, or belief system, more accurately. Primarily written off as just stern people with high cheekbones who believe the blood of the eagle runs through their veins (not arteries mind you), the majority of native tribes and their corresponding beliefs take a much simpler approach to what has brought upon war since we’ve been able to record it. There are multiple different tribes currently present in Canada, so we’ll be taking a look at the Cree, the most prevalent within Canadian borders. Also I know more about them than the others. Also in the research I’ve done on the others, they all have the same baseline belief system anyway. Not to generalize, nitôtêm.
Their baseline worldview shows that of interconnectivity with both nature and those who live within it, where a happy and healthy life is achieved by an adequate balance of the two. Those who belong to the tribe maintain respect with one another by taking a non-interference approach to socialization, where each person is responsible of their actions, and possible consequences as a result. With that being said, in the earlier times food was the first priority, and was shared in times of hardship, or in times of surplus where a feast would be held, bringing the tribe together. They also have a very interesting take on luck and karma where trickster mythology is incorporated. These tricksters are a spiritual figure that exhibits great intellect, but uses it to get into trouble. The Cree believe one can learn important lessons about how to live, and not to live, good lives from the examples set by the tricksters
Despite being much before it’s time, this belief system is seen today within the political spectrum, where parties almost seem to have cherry picked certain aspects. Immediately coming to mind is the Libertarian party, a right sided group who believes one is free to do what they wish, so long as it does not impede on others. With a small government presence, it is to aid those who are unfortunate, and allow more opportunity for economic flourish with the free market system. We see this again in the Progressive Conservative party, where surplus is represented amenities such as health care, schooling and the like.
Hundreds of years before we saw the political world as we do today, this worldview was disregarded as foolish folklore, when today we bow our heads with hot cheeks under the realization we attempted to murder a system we eventually adopted ourselves.
Sources:
The Canadian Encyclopedia
