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Spirituality
by Dr. Mark
Pitstick
Numerous
spirituality teachers from all cultures support the
existence of an afterlife and our eternal soul
natures. Native or indigenous cultures had
well developed and quite sensible cosmologies.
Missionaries from orthodox religions considered them
pagan savages and tried to convert them, frequently
with disastrous results. Perhaps more people are
ready to respect and understand sacred wisdom of
other cultures.
For example,
shamanism is an ancient aspect of indigenous
tribal spirituality. Throughout history, shamans
have existed on every continent. Anthropologist
Michael Harner, Ph.D., in The Way of the Shaman,
states, “Shamans—whom we in the ‘civilized’ world
have called ‘medicine men’ and ‘witch doctors’—are
the keepers of a remarkable body of ancient
techniques . . . A shaman is a man or woman who
enters an altered state of consciousness—at will—to
contact and utilize an ordinarily hidden reality in
order to acquire knowledge, power, and to help other
persons.”
Numerous
validated shamanic events occur in the
anthropological literature. Empirical cases that
emphasize experience are also common.
Native American
spirituality has contributed mightily to collective
wisdom sources. Some of their language is enjoying
more common usage, for example, ‘Great Spirit’ and
‘changing words’, which I prefer over ‘God’ and
‘dying’. Tribal elders can now share ancient wisdom
with all people and provide another perspective that
is beautifully aligned with the perennial
philosophy. My friend Rainbow Eagle of the Okla-Choctaw
tribe has learned from elders and shares their
teachings in his classes and A Walk in the Woods
and other books.
One example of
the simple but profound spiritual wisdom is evident
in the words of Black Elk, a shaman of the Oglala
Sioux, who in his later years often crawled on all
fours to play with toddlers. “We have much in
common,” he said. “They have just come from the
Great Mysterious and I am about to return to it.”
Before Europeans influences, Native Americans had no
word for the concept of fear. They completely
trusted Spirit as they traveled through eternity and
experienced life’s changes.
One benefit of
spirituality versus religion is that the former is
usually not so weighed down by doctrines and
rituals. Many spirituality sources are connected to
the rhythms of the earth and thus flow like the
changes of seasons and other cycles. Spirituality
is more fluid and dynamic, important qualities when
dealing with the richness and myriad facets of the
soul.
Huston Smith,
Ph.D., discusses the concretization process in
religious institutions that tends to freeze, dilute,
or distort the truth: “Lincoln Steffens has a fable
of a man who climbed to the top of a mountain and,
standing on tiptoe, seized hold of the Truth.
Satan, suspecting mischief from this upstart, had
directed one of his underlings to tail him; but when
the demon reported with alarm the man’s success—that
he had seized hold of the Truth—Satan was
unperturbed. ‘Don’t worry,’ he yawned. ‘I’ll tempt
him to institutionalize it.’”
Smith notes that
religious institutions are the product of imperfect
people and, as such, consist of vices as well as
virtues. He recommends sifting religious
institutions for their truths that reflect their
value as the world’s wisdom traditions.
I am not
criticizing organized religions, but it’s a
historical fact that significant change and blending
in them has occurred over time. As such, I
encourage people to trust their inner voices and
evaluate other sources of spiritual wisdom. We can
then perhaps benefit even more from the strengths of
established religions.
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