The Native American Medicine Man Essay Example for Free

The Native American Medicine Man Essay The Native American medicine man, also known as a shaman (modern term), priest, healer, and even a â€Å"Star Being† were known to be the spiritual leaders of Native American cultures. Each medicine man was unique in his own way simply because each Native American tribe had their own origin of spirituality and religious beliefs. Each medicine man had their own theory on how to rid people of their troubles and ease their pain when they were ill or in some sort of distress. In this research paper I will be examining different medicine man practices and beliefs from the Native American tribes of the Cheyenne, Iroquois, and the Sioux Indians. I will be discussing some of the most common illnesses that Native Americans faced among their tribes and what the medicine men or women did to help. I will also be discussing the different resources the medicine man used, including plants for herbal remedies and other objects, in his method of curing or helping a patient; and lastly I will be discussing how some techniques have been modernized and are still used today. To begin with our observation, let us start by understanding more about the medicine man himself and how the medicine man was perceived amongst his tribe. Even though each medicine man was unique in his practices, each medicine man shared a common adoration amongst their tribal members. In general, tribes have many similarities in regards to medical practices, but the actual methods used differ with the tribe and their locations, as well as with individual healers themselves. â€Å"Magic, prayers, songs, exhortation, suggestion, ceremonies, fetishes, and certain specifics and mechanical processes are employed only by the medicine-men or medicine-women; other specific remedies or procedures are proprietary, generally among a few old women in the tribe; while many vegetal remedies and simple manipulations are of common knowledge in a given locality. † The medicine man was not relied on to hunt and fish for food like other tribesmen were. The medicine man was more useful when he could be out spreading his tribes’ religious beliefs to others as well as bringing peace to those troubled or ill. The medicine man was much like our modern day doctor, priest, psychiatrist, and counselor all rolled up into one big package that was relied on to heal not only a person’s body but also a person’s spirit. He even sometimes served as a middle man to bring peace between humans troubled with other humans. The medicine man was like a virtual bridge between the natural world and the spiritual world for the benefit of his community. Practices and Beliefs As stated above, different techniques of healing were involved in a medicine man’smethods: Magic, prayers, songs and ceremonies were the most common. Magicwas used to oppose an alleged harmful influence, such as spirits of the dead, mythical animals, etc. Prayers in contrast, often addressed good spirits as the medicine man would try to call upon their aid while he was attending his patient. Healing songs consisted of prayers or exhortations and were sung. Loud ranting wasalso done to ward off evil spirits that wereknown to cause sickness; the loud noises was saidto frighten such evil spirits away. Ceremonies meant to cure a patient usually combined all or most of the techniques mentioned above. Some of them, as described about the Navaho Indians, were very complicated, drawn out, and tended to be costly. 3 â€Å"The fetishes used are peculiarly shaped stones or wooden objects, lightning-riven wood, feathers, claws, hair, figurines of mythic animals, representations of the sun, of lightning, etc, and are supposed to embody a mysterious power capable of preventing disease or of counteracting its effects. †3 Dieting and total self-restraint from food were also forms of treatment in some various localities. Cheyenne Indians. The Cheyenne Indians are known to be one of the most westerly tribes; at first they were located on the Cheyenne (obviously where they got their name), which is a branch of the Red River of the North. As they were driven by the Sioux Indians, they began to occupy beyond the Missouri, and eventually ending up near the Black Hills after being driven there near the end of the eighteenth century. The medicine man was a very important person for the Cheyenne. He was like a combination of a doctor, a priest, and a healer both of the body and of the spirit. He, like other medicine men not only knew about the proper use of native plants in his surrounding area that had medicinal properties, but he also knew various ceremonies, chants, and songs which were supposed to wield magical powers for the benefit of individuals or for the whole tribe. He, like other medicine men, accepted items for trade as a method of payment instead of U. S. currency. There are many types of religious beliefs and traditions passed on through generations that may influence the way the medicine man may aid those who are in need. The Cheyenne for example, believed in spirit beings which resided in our universe (which they called the universe to Hestanov) and their holiness was comparative to their relationship to their believed creator of all physical and spiritual life, Ma’heo’o. â€Å"In Cheyenne religious expressions, aspects of these spirit-beings or the spirit-beings themselves are entwined symbolically with plant and animal forms portrayed in Cheyenne ceremonies. Many Cheyenne today view the worlds ecological crisis as an end to Hestanov. † Disease came from both natural and supernatural causes for the Cheyenne. Curing techniques involved the use of herbal and root remedies, ritual purification, the sweat lodge, smoking, prayer, and sometimes surgery. Both men and women were healers. Treatment of sickness was designed to restore the patient not only biologically but spiritually as well. 8 Iroquois Indians The Iroquois Indians consisted of six tribes which were under one confederation: The Mohawk Indians, the Seneca, the Oneida, the Cayuga, the Onondaga, and the Tuscarora. The Iroquois tribes were spread throughout much of what we now call New York. The Iroquois Indians also believed in spirit-beings. They believed that plagues and diseases were caused by evil spirits; they attempted to cure the sick by holding a religious festival to ask for the aid of their great spirit to rid their people of the bad spirits. They also believe that disease can infect a person simply from not fulfilling their dreams or their desires. They believe that sometimes a person’s dreams can reveal what caused the disease, information which they used to cure the patient. To touch more on the basis of the Iroquois people’s belief in dreams (as this was a large part of their healing practices), they viewed dreams as â€Å"experiences of the soul in which we may travel outside the body, across time and space, and into other dimensionsor receive visitations from ancestors or spiritual guides†. They also believed that dreams revealed the wishes of one’s soul, which would dig deeper, beyond our own personal goals and those of others entwined with ours, to create a more spirited life. They believe that dreams also allow us to find â€Å"where our vital soul energy may have gone missingthrough pain or trauma or heartbreakand how to get it back. †7 Aside from their strong reliance from dreams, one of the most interesting objects that the Iroquois used during their healing rituals were wooden masks which were used to invoke spirits and the dream world. The healing ritual started off by telling the legendary history of how the mask came to be, the tribal members wearing the masks (known as the False Face Society members) would go through homes looking for anyone who is diseased or ill. If a sick person is found, they would perform the healing ritual which consisted of using rattles made out of turtle shells and blown ashes from tobacco. The ritual dancing continued throughout the ceremony and ended with a ceremonial ash blowing and finalized it with a feast. These rituals were known to be performed three main times during the year, and smaller ceremonies were held whenever an ill person requested or required it. 7 Navajo Indians The Navajo Indians were mainly located in the southwestern part of the United States, near Arizona and New Mexico. The medicine man of the Navajo culture was extremely important. The medicine man was not expected to just heal the ill and the injured, but he was also expected to hold the knowledge of their heritage, their traditions, and their beliefs of the Navajo culture. When the medicine man was called to perform a healing ceremony, he would come to heal and also come to tell the story of their people and how they emerged into this world. The medicine man of the Navajo Indians (as well as other medicine men) had a lot of knowledge he was expected to hold. He was expected to spend many hours learning different ceremonial procedures (usually a total of three). He was expected to learn songs and prayers, which none of the wording could be missed or only bad things could happen to the patient. He was expected to learn about many different types of herbs; as well as be expected to go out and gather the items he needed for his sacred medicine bag. He was also expected to purify himself by spending many hours with deep thoughts in a sweat hut. ; and he was also expected to have faith in the Great Spirit and in himself, all of which he needed to be able to successfully heal. The Navajo medicine man performed and learned several different ceremonies. Other than using the ceremonies to heal the ill, provide strength, and restore vitality to a patient; ceremonies were also held to celebrate a girls puberty called the Beauty Way ceremony and to celebrate a babys first laugh called the Hooghan Blessin Ceremony. Navajo ceremonies were basically held to restore ones beauty, harmony, balance, and ones health. There are said to be approximately fifty-eight to sixty sacred ceremonies. Most of them last four days or more; to be most effective, they require that relatives and friends attend and help out. Outsiders are often discouraged from participating in case they become a burden to others or violate a taboo. This could affect the turnout of the ceremony. The ceremony must be done in precisely the correct manner to heal the patient. This includes everyone that is involved. 14 Aside from the ceremonies (which seems to be the most popular form of healing for the Navajo), the medicine man would use several different methods to find out what the diagnoses is on a patient. He used objects such as crystal rocks or used a chanting prayer while he shook his hands over the patients body, reciting healing chants for whatever ailment he suspected the patient to have, sometimes the chant would last a few hours. Common Ailments/Diseases Some possible causes of ailments could be the result of violating taboos believed by their Native American cultures. Contact with lightning-struck objects for example, or being exposed to animals such as snakes which were considered to be a taboo animal, or even being in contact with the dead were some of reasons that required healing and chants. Warriors often suffered spiritual and psychological damage from taking part in warfare. They would come back and a ceremony called the Enemy Way Ceremony would be performed in order to help restore the harmony back to the person, both mentally and emotionally. Curses were other reasons the medicine man would need to attend a patient. It wasnt until the European colonizations arrived that diseases the Native Americans could not control began to take hold of thousands upon thousands of lives. Before the Europeans arrived, the most common ailments were common colds, injuries, violating local taboos, psychological injuries, and those which were believed to be invoked by both good and bad spirits. After the Europeans arrived, the Native Americans had no immunity towards the most deadly disease, smallpox. Smallpox seemed to have come in waves, even destroying entire villages, not only because Native Americans had no immunity, but because they did not know how to treat the disease either. Other common diseases at that time were scarlet fever, cholera, influenza, whooping cough, and many more. Resources Used for Curing Many plants were used for herbal remedies to cure those who were ill. Some plants were used as remedies without any thought as to what they actually did for the patient. Every tribe were aware of what the poisonous plants were in their surrounding areas, as well as their antidotes. Roots, occasionally twigs, leaves, bark, flowers and seeds were the most common plant parts used. The plants could be either fresh or dry, and most commonly the medicine man would extract the main ingredient he needed out of the plant. Generally only a single plant would need to be used, but among some Indians as many as four plants would be combined for a single medicine. 2 Animal and mineral substances were also occasionally used as remedies. Among Southwestern tribes the bite of a snake was often treated by applying to the wound a portion of the ventral surface of the body of the same snake. 2 Other animals used for remedies include: crickets, lizards, and spiders eggs. Navajo Indians as well as some other Indian tribes used reddish-orange earthy iron oxide combined with fat to apply externally to prevent sunburn. The red, barren clay from beneath a campfire was used by White Mountain Apache women to induce sterility; the Hopi blow charcoal, ashes, or other products of fire on an inflamed surface to counteract the supposed fire which causes the ailment. 2 Objects were also used to help cure ailments. One object, for example, was used in Blackfeet Indians ceremonies was called a sacred medicine bundle, which the medicine man used and was expected to sing four hundred lengthy chants without missing a word or getting a stanza out of place. 2 Rattles were also used to aid with chants, as well as other miscellaneous objects that the medicine man felt would help call the Great Spirits for aid. Related Methods Used Today Presently, most Native Americans use modern medicine to cure afflictions, but native healers are still used by many people today. There are hospitals located on Indian reservations where modern day Native American doctors still perform healing chants to their patients. Other methods of healing, such as aromatherapy, is said to derive from Native Americans because with aromatherapy, candles, oils, and different things which produce a scent can alter ones mood as well as enhance the body, the mind, and the spirit. Many of the herbs used by Native Americans are the ones you can actually find in aspirin and other medications today. Many ingredients used in various modern medications are actually derived from Native American cultures. 17 Several over- the counter and prescription drugs contain ingredients such as taxol, ergot, and vincristine, which were derived from Native American medicinal herbs. The OAM reported that cough drops that contain menthol, mint, horehound, or lemons are herbal preparations; chamomile and mint teas taken for digestion or a nervous stomach are time- honored herbal remedies; and many simple but effective OTC ache- and pain- relieving preparations on every druggists or grocers shelf contain oils of camphor, menthol, or eucalyptus. Millions of Americans greet the morning with their favorite herbal stimulant coffee. 17 Conclusion Native American medicine men have played a huge role in my mind when it comes to our modern day medical treatments. Without their knowledge of our natural plant and animal resources, I believe it would have taken us quite a few more years before we would have discovered vaccinations for smallpox and treatments for other illnesses. I think we, decedents of our European ancestors, still greatly underestimate the knowledge of Native Americans†¦ even to this day. Native Americans kept themselves healthy and free of major epidemics of disease until the Europeans settled on their land. Before medical technology became available, doctors relied on the Native American knowledge of nature and natural resources to cure a persons illnesses. People started to depend heavily on the modern medical technology; forgetting about their roots in their Native American cultures. 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