Pagans, Christians and Lakota: OH MYYyyyyy
Sorry about the silence: I am not good with regularity and updates. It interferes with my passion for reality, Science and small furry animals.
I do have a great topic to discuss considering the day and it's (historically recent) connotations: Sunday. Although this is considered the "Sabbath" it is actually not as Saturday is the "7th" day, the end of the week, therefore the "Sabbath", but I digress...
Lets talk about Pagans. This is an interesting topic that I was drawn into recently that I thought I would share some personal opinions and experience regarding the subject.
Before we can actually get into the discussion we need to think about what the word actually means. Most people use it (colloquially) as a term for non-christian religions and natural beliefs, however, it also used to be a technical term, shockingly enough, that specifically referred to "polytheistic religions and cultures". It is no longer used as a technical term.
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pagan
Once the spread of Abrahamic religions began, there were choice words for non-Abrahamic religions in use, be it " Hellene", "pagan", and "heathen", the latter term often used as a synonym of pagan. So for now lets talk about the specific use of the technical term applied to specific cases, like the Lakota.
The Lakota were often referred to as "pagan" and polytheistic, but that actually isn't the case. What I've seen is an intentional misrepresentation of the topic, even by those who were trying to understand, mostly due to the Abrahamic religion influence. We see some people honestly trying to understand the Lakota Culture but being caught up in the heavy religious influence of the day, like the author John G. Neihardt (Black Elk Speaks) or R. B. Hassrick (The Sioux: life and customs of a warrior). You can still see these influences on educational sites and in cultural studies to this day.
http://wiki.olc.edu/index.php/Lakota_Culture
Why is the Lakota not a pagan culture?
Most people don't know that the Lakota culture is actually Monotheistic. In their culture and religion there is only one "God" to rule everything: Wakan Tanka.
I know what you're thinking though: what about the other gods like the Wakinyan or Iktomi? First ask yourself to define the word "god", it's implications and powers, etc, and then consider the influences of the European settlers who were "translating" these entities. One particular heavy influence was the "black coats", also known as the Jesuits. How do you think they would interpret the powerful Wakinyan?
When people talk about "gods" [plural] among the Lakota culture (even historically) they talked about powerful spirits, some of which could be seen in the world, be they animals, phenomena they couldn't define or describe (like a tornado) or some of the more mundane (now) things like storms and lightning. They named some of them: Iktomi, Wakinyan.
How are these "gods" actually perceived in the culture though? Well, to understand this you must first know something about Catholicism or how Christians perceive Saints, Angels or their demonic antagonist, Satan. This is the best example I know of because it represents exactly the same situations and beliefs within the Lakota culture which also have powerful intercessors... they just don't call them "saints, demons or angels".
When you consider the implications of Catholicism and their beliefs in Saints, Angels, Demons, Satan or similar influences in their religion and compare them beside the Lakota culture you will see that there are striking similarities. The Lakota appeal to the physical known phenomenon they can see and feel, which they name and assume contains some cognitive awareness, and then they "pray" to said intercessors that are known well in the culture for strength or some intercession on their behalf. Over all of the "spirits" (or "gods", as they've been historically described) there is a singular most powerful "god", which is called Wakan Tanka.
Now consider the Catholic speaking of demons and praying to the Virgin Mary or some other Saint for intercession on their behalf, while accepting the "holy trinity" is God and believing there is a singular God to rule the universe.
what is the difference between the two? It all boils down to semantics, fear and the heavy influence of Christian and or Abrahamic religions in the US and the world.
This substitution of God for ignorance is prevalent for the time even in Science where Newton, confused by breakdown of his theory of gravity in certain situations (then body problem - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N-body_problem ) invoked God as the answer. This was a failure based upon limited technology and understanding, so when confronted with the limitations of his ability, Newton ascribed the orbits to "God" ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_of_the_gaps ). This ignorance (or the lack of knowledge leading to confusion) meant that the only conceivable answer was God, according to Newton. Of course, today we know that this is not the case.
This directly applies to the knowledge being gleaned from the Lakota about their culture. When you have a biased perspective based upon Christian beliefs and you hear prayers to Wakinyan for strength and power to fight off the enemy at your gates, you assume this "Wakinyan" is a god that has power in the physical world.
When the culture is described, how was the difference between Wakan Tanka and Wakinyan described?
When the Christian interpreter heard the terms, how did they interpret the words?
Lets talk about confusing explanations.
The term the Lakota have for the ruling God is called Wakan Tanka and this is often interpreted to mean "the Great Spirit", but the literal translation is "the Great Mystery" or "the Great Unknowable" ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wakan_Tanka ). This is considered by some to be the overall name for an organization of sacred entities but was used in a singular way, as in the original names used for "god" in the bible (the word 'ĕlôhı̂ym - GEN1:1; gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God ). So this is no different than the Christian biblical God words used. Wakan Tanka is also referred to as "Grandfather" much the same way Christians refer to God is "Father". The term Grandfather is due to the heavy influence of the Lakota Culture and it's morality and care for the tribe and elderly.
The complications of considering a word that describes multiple "entities" as singular is confusing to someone who is brought up to believe the word "God" is singular. The fact that the original terms used in the King James version of the bible is plural is often overlooked, but in this case it represents the exact same situation (and confusion). Studying the Lakota culture without the preconceived notions of personal religion allows one to see the similarities (and differences) to Christianity and it's beliefs and so many other cultures and religions.
Still to this day you can find many confusing and different definitions of "Wakan Tanka" mostly influenced by other religions or interpreted by people who aren't able to comprehend the culture because they're looking at the Lakota through the eyes of some other culture. You can find Lakota "tarot", or Lakota "numerology", Lakota "astrology" and "birth signs"... but this isn't Lakota anything. The Lakota culture, or any other culture for that matter, can only be understood and comprehended by one who interprets it without bias and interference from prejudice and beliefs.
Knowing that the original words used to interpret God in GEN1:1 and other parts of the bible were plural, one must then consider the implications of why the Lakota were considered "pagan" whereas the rest of Christianity and the Abrahamic religions were not considered thus?
Prejudice rears it's ugly head.
These are things that keep me awake at night.
....
So why is God still invoked today by so many when we find ourselves reaching the limits of our knowledge?
What heavy influence do we have that keeps religion in the forefront of our brains to explain what we don't know?
That is another story, so stay tuned.
I do have a great topic to discuss considering the day and it's (historically recent) connotations: Sunday. Although this is considered the "Sabbath" it is actually not as Saturday is the "7th" day, the end of the week, therefore the "Sabbath", but I digress...
Lets talk about Pagans. This is an interesting topic that I was drawn into recently that I thought I would share some personal opinions and experience regarding the subject.
Before we can actually get into the discussion we need to think about what the word actually means. Most people use it (colloquially) as a term for non-christian religions and natural beliefs, however, it also used to be a technical term, shockingly enough, that specifically referred to "polytheistic religions and cultures". It is no longer used as a technical term.
pagan
noun
1. (no longer in technical use) one of a people or community observing a polytheistic religion, as the ancient Romans and Greeks.
http://www.dictionary.com/browse/pagan
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pagan
Once the spread of Abrahamic religions began, there were choice words for non-Abrahamic religions in use, be it " Hellene", "pagan", and "heathen", the latter term often used as a synonym of pagan. So for now lets talk about the specific use of the technical term applied to specific cases, like the Lakota.
The Lakota were often referred to as "pagan" and polytheistic, but that actually isn't the case. What I've seen is an intentional misrepresentation of the topic, even by those who were trying to understand, mostly due to the Abrahamic religion influence. We see some people honestly trying to understand the Lakota Culture but being caught up in the heavy religious influence of the day, like the author John G. Neihardt (Black Elk Speaks) or R. B. Hassrick (The Sioux: life and customs of a warrior). You can still see these influences on educational sites and in cultural studies to this day.
http://wiki.olc.edu/index.php/Lakota_Culture
Why is the Lakota not a pagan culture?
Most people don't know that the Lakota culture is actually Monotheistic. In their culture and religion there is only one "God" to rule everything: Wakan Tanka.
I know what you're thinking though: what about the other gods like the Wakinyan or Iktomi? First ask yourself to define the word "god", it's implications and powers, etc, and then consider the influences of the European settlers who were "translating" these entities. One particular heavy influence was the "black coats", also known as the Jesuits. How do you think they would interpret the powerful Wakinyan?
When people talk about "gods" [plural] among the Lakota culture (even historically) they talked about powerful spirits, some of which could be seen in the world, be they animals, phenomena they couldn't define or describe (like a tornado) or some of the more mundane (now) things like storms and lightning. They named some of them: Iktomi, Wakinyan.
How are these "gods" actually perceived in the culture though? Well, to understand this you must first know something about Catholicism or how Christians perceive Saints, Angels or their demonic antagonist, Satan. This is the best example I know of because it represents exactly the same situations and beliefs within the Lakota culture which also have powerful intercessors... they just don't call them "saints, demons or angels".
When you consider the implications of Catholicism and their beliefs in Saints, Angels, Demons, Satan or similar influences in their religion and compare them beside the Lakota culture you will see that there are striking similarities. The Lakota appeal to the physical known phenomenon they can see and feel, which they name and assume contains some cognitive awareness, and then they "pray" to said intercessors that are known well in the culture for strength or some intercession on their behalf. Over all of the "spirits" (or "gods", as they've been historically described) there is a singular most powerful "god", which is called Wakan Tanka.
Now consider the Catholic speaking of demons and praying to the Virgin Mary or some other Saint for intercession on their behalf, while accepting the "holy trinity" is God and believing there is a singular God to rule the universe.
what is the difference between the two? It all boils down to semantics, fear and the heavy influence of Christian and or Abrahamic religions in the US and the world.
This substitution of God for ignorance is prevalent for the time even in Science where Newton, confused by breakdown of his theory of gravity in certain situations (then body problem - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N-body_problem ) invoked God as the answer. This was a failure based upon limited technology and understanding, so when confronted with the limitations of his ability, Newton ascribed the orbits to "God" ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_of_the_gaps ). This ignorance (or the lack of knowledge leading to confusion) meant that the only conceivable answer was God, according to Newton. Of course, today we know that this is not the case.
This directly applies to the knowledge being gleaned from the Lakota about their culture. When you have a biased perspective based upon Christian beliefs and you hear prayers to Wakinyan for strength and power to fight off the enemy at your gates, you assume this "Wakinyan" is a god that has power in the physical world.
When the culture is described, how was the difference between Wakan Tanka and Wakinyan described?
When the Christian interpreter heard the terms, how did they interpret the words?
Lets talk about confusing explanations.
The term the Lakota have for the ruling God is called Wakan Tanka and this is often interpreted to mean "the Great Spirit", but the literal translation is "the Great Mystery" or "the Great Unknowable" ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wakan_Tanka ). This is considered by some to be the overall name for an organization of sacred entities but was used in a singular way, as in the original names used for "god" in the bible (the word 'ĕlôhı̂ym - GEN1:1; gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God ). So this is no different than the Christian biblical God words used. Wakan Tanka is also referred to as "Grandfather" much the same way Christians refer to God is "Father". The term Grandfather is due to the heavy influence of the Lakota Culture and it's morality and care for the tribe and elderly.
The complications of considering a word that describes multiple "entities" as singular is confusing to someone who is brought up to believe the word "God" is singular. The fact that the original terms used in the King James version of the bible is plural is often overlooked, but in this case it represents the exact same situation (and confusion). Studying the Lakota culture without the preconceived notions of personal religion allows one to see the similarities (and differences) to Christianity and it's beliefs and so many other cultures and religions.
Still to this day you can find many confusing and different definitions of "Wakan Tanka" mostly influenced by other religions or interpreted by people who aren't able to comprehend the culture because they're looking at the Lakota through the eyes of some other culture. You can find Lakota "tarot", or Lakota "numerology", Lakota "astrology" and "birth signs"... but this isn't Lakota anything. The Lakota culture, or any other culture for that matter, can only be understood and comprehended by one who interprets it without bias and interference from prejudice and beliefs.
Knowing that the original words used to interpret God in GEN1:1 and other parts of the bible were plural, one must then consider the implications of why the Lakota were considered "pagan" whereas the rest of Christianity and the Abrahamic religions were not considered thus?
Prejudice rears it's ugly head.
These are things that keep me awake at night.
....
So why is God still invoked today by so many when we find ourselves reaching the limits of our knowledge?
What heavy influence do we have that keeps religion in the forefront of our brains to explain what we don't know?
That is another story, so stay tuned.
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