Ways of the Ojibwe

Grandfather Sun/Mother Earth

The Ojibwe People have always honored the physical world:
the sun, the earth, the moon, and the stars,
as well as other natural wonders,
such as lightning and thunder.
The most important of these are the sun and the earth.

The sun, which is often referred to as "Grandfather Sun,"
is typically associated with the male and fatherhood.
Similarly, the female and motherhood are associated with "Mother Earth."
Ojibwe traditional beliefs teach us that just as men
and women are very different, so are the sun and the earth.
To put it very simply, the sun puts life into all things
and the earth sustains all life. As always in the Ojibwe tradition,
all natural beings are intertwined,
so whether you are talking about the man and the woman,
or the sun and the earth, it is important to remember
that one cannot give or sustain life without the other.



The Ojibwe believe that the natural elements
and the human experience are also interconnected.
Take for example the daily occurrence of dawn and dusk.
Each day, with the rising of the sun,
a human being is given a new day just as the flowers open
and the animals stir with life. In the same way,
when the sun sets, all life rests: animals, plants
and humans go back to sleep.
The Ojibwe People thank the Great Creator every day
for giving them life.

Another connection between human experience
and nature is the concept of ownership.
Ojibwe tradition says that no man can own his mother,
and no man can own the earth. But, just as a mother grows old
and must be taken care of by her children,
so must Mother Earth be taken care
of by her inhabitants, or children.

As you can see, Ojibwe beliefs are rich
with explanations about the secrets of life.
These are just explanations - the Ojibwe People
do not believe that they have solved the mystery
of our universe or the Great Creator,
for it is that unsolved mystery which is the beauty of life.

AHO

The Role of Ojibwe Elders

The Role of Ojibwe Elders

People sometimes hear about Indian Elders and wonder,
what is the role of Elders in Ojibwe life?
A big part is teaching and giving advice.

Elders have been through life.
We know what it’s going to be.
We know what you have to do in order to survive.

One thing that is very important for Elders
to do is to teach the customs
that were taught to us by our grandparents.
From our ancestors comes wisdom.
The things my gramma told me are the things
my children and grandchildren need to learn, too.

Elders pass along information about
the Ojibwe culture, such as why we use tobacco
in our ceremonies, why we go to drum feasts,
or why we have naming ceremonies.

We teach our children and grandchildren
about the different ways our People have lived
and the things we do. For example, in the fall,
the Ojibwe traditionally go out to harvest wild rice.
I taught my daughters and my sons
what they’re supposed to do when they go ricing,
and hopefully they will pass that knowledge
on to their children.

Elders also teach about hunting,
fishing and berry picking. We teach that whatever you do,
you shouldn’t be greedy.
Take what you need and leave some for someone else
and for the Great Spirit as well,
so he can give us some more rice or game
or fish or berries next year.

It is also an Ojibwe custom to help others and take care of them.
When folks used to leave their homes
and go somewhere for a while,
they would leave a little food on the table
in case someone who was hungry came by.

All the old customs are what have kept
our People going over the years,
so Elders try to make sure those customs are carried on.
It’s knowing all these things that have kept me going,
and that will keep my children and grandchildren safe and strong.



We also give advice on how to live, how to get along,
and how to help those who are unable to help themselves.
I give advice to my children, my grandchildren,
and whoever else will listen.
I’ve got oodles and oodles of relatives – grandsons,
granddaughters, nieces and nephews.
I tell them don’t try to be better than someone else.
You’re just as good as anybody else,
but you’re not better than anyone else, either.

Most of us Elders are this way.
We want our People to have good lives after we go,
so we try to be a good role model
for them now so they will live right.

By Beatrice Taylor
(Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe)

Ojibway Culture - Part 3

Ojibway Culture

Most Ojibwe lived in the northern Great Lakes
with a short growing season and poor soil.
They were hunter-gatherers who harvested wild rice
and maple sugar. Woodland Ojibwe had no salt to preserve food
and generally mixed everything with maple syrup as seasoning.
They were skilled hunters and trappers
(useful skills in war and the fur trade). Fishing,
especially for sturgeon, provided much of their diet
and became progressively more important in the northernmost bands.
As a rule, Woodland Ojibwe rarely used horses or hunted buffalo.
Dogs were the only domestic animal and a favorite dish
served at their feasts. The Ojibwe used birchbark
for almost everything: utensils, storage containers, and,
most importantly, canoes. Coming in a variety of sizes
depending on purpose, the birchbark canoe was lighter
than the dugouts used by the Dakota (Sioux)
and other tribes. Birchbark was also used to cover their elliptical,
dome-shaped wigwams. When a family moved,
the covering of the wigwam was rolled up and taken along
leaving only the framework.


(Birchbark Canoe)

Summer clothing was buckskin with fur outer garments added for winter.
The men wore breechcloths, but both sexes wore leggings.
Moccasins were the distinctive puffed seamed style
that gave Ojibwe their name. These were often colored with red,
yellow, blue, and green, dyes made by the women. Long,
cold winters were spent confined inside their wigwams
also allowed time to add intricate quill and moose-hair designs.
The Ojibwe often passed these times and entertained
each other with stories, an art for which they are still renown.
Generally, men and women wore their hair long and braided.
In times of war, men might change to a scalplock. Ojibwe scalped,
but as a rule they killed and did not torture.
Like other Great Lakes warriors, there was ritual cannibalism
of their dead enemies. Polygamy was rare.
Their social organization was based on approximately
15-20 patrilineal clans which extended across band lines
and provided their initial sense of tribal unity.


(Ojibway beads)

According to their tradition,
and from recordings in birch bark scrolls,
they came from the eastern areas of North America,
or Turtle Island, and from along the east coast.
According to the oral history, seven great miigis (radiant)
beings appeared to the peoples in the Waabanakiing
(Land of the Dawn, or Eastern Land) to teach the peoples
of the mide way of life. However, the one of the seven great miigis
beings was too spiritually powerful and killed the peoples
in the Waabanakiing whenever the people were in its presence.
The six great miigis beings remained to teach while
the one returned into the ocean. The six great miigis
beings then established doodem (clans)
for the peoples in the east.


(Turtle island)

Of these doodem, the five original Anishinaabe doodem
were the Wawaazisii (Bullhead), Baswenaazhi (Echo-maker, or Crane),
Aan'aawenh (Pintail Duck), Nooke (Tender, or Bear)
and Moozoonsii (Little Moose), then these six miigis
beings returned into the ocean as well.
If the seventh miigis being stayed,
it would have established the Thunderbird doodem.


(Crest of the Anishinaabe people)

Most Ojibwa, except for the Plains bands,
lived a sedentary lifestyle, engaging in fishing, hunting,
the farming of maize and squash, and the harvesting
of Manoomin (wild rice). Their typical dwelling
was the wiigiwaam (wigwam), built either as a waaginogaan (domed-lodge)
or as a nasawa'ogaan (pointed-lodge), made of birch bark,
juniper bark and willow saplings. They also developed
a form of pictorial writing used in religious rites
of the Midewiwin and recorded on birch bark scrolls
and possibly on rock. The sacred scrolls are complicated
with a lot of historical, geometrical, and mathematical
knowledge communicated through the many complex pictures.
The miigis shell (cowry shell) was also used in ceremonies,
and this shell can only be found from far away coastal areas,
indicating a vast trade network at some time across the continent.
The use and trade of copper across the continent
is also proof of a very large area of trading
that took place thousands of years ago,
as far back as the Hopewell culture.
Certain types of rock used for spear and arrow heads
were also traded over large distances. The use of petroforms,
petroglyphs, and pictographs was common throughout
their traditional territories. Petroforms
and medicine wheels were a way to teach
the important concepts of four directions,
astronomical observations about the seasons,
and as a memorizing tool for certain stories and beliefs.


(Ojibway wigwam)

The Ojibwe people and culture are alive and growing today.
During the summer months, the people attend jiingotamog
for the spiritual and niimi'idimaa for a social gathering (pow-wows)
at various reservations in the Anishinaabe-Aki (Anishinaabe Country).
Many people still follow the traditional ways of harvesting wild rice,
picking berries, hunting, making medicines, and making maple sugar.
Many of the Ojibwa take part in sun dance ceremonies
across the continent. The sacred scrolls are also kept
hidden away until those that are worthy
and respect them are given permission to see them
and then to interpret them properly.

The Ojibwa would bury their dead in a burial mound;
many erect a jiibegamig or a "spirit-house" over each mound.
Instead of a headstone with the deceased's name
inscribed upon it, a traditional burial mound would typically
have a wooden marker, inscribed with the deceased's doodem.
Due to the distinct features of these burials,
Ojibwa graves have been often looted by grave robbers.
In the United States, many Ojibwa communities safe-guard
their burial mounds through the enforcement
of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.

Several Ojibwa bands in the United States cooperate
in the Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission,
which manages their treaty hunting and fishing rights
in the Lake Superior-Lake Michigan areas.
The commission follows the directives of U.S. agencies
to run several wilderness areas. Some Minnesota Ojibwa
tribal councils cooperate in the 1854 Authority,
which manages their treaty hunting
and fishing rights in the Arrowhead Region.

~Whitewolfe~

The Ojibway Indians - Part 2

The Ojibway Indians - Part 2

The Ojibway tribe is scattered throughout the Dominion
and embraces several branches, including the Ojibways proper,
Missisaugas and Saulteaux.

The name of the tribe has been spelled in various ways,
as Achipoes, Outchepoues, Otchipwes, Ojibways,
Ojibwas, Chippewas and Chippeways. The term Ojibway,
signifies "pucker", derived from the peculiar pucker of the moccasin,
or to "roast till puckered up",
reffering to the inhuman method employed by this tribe,
as well as others, of burning the captives taken in war.
Some writers have sought the origin of the Ojibway,
and indeed of numerous Indian tribes,
from the lost tribes of Jewish history,
a solution more satisfactory to their own minds
than to those of their readers.
When the white people first came in contact with the Ojibways,
early in the seventeenth century,
they found them inhabiting the south-eastern
shores of Lake Superior, especially in the vicinity
of Sault Ste. Marie. This does not, however,
appear to have been their original home,
as their traditions assert that,
long before the advent of the white race,
they were living as the salt water in the east,
probably on the St. Lawrence.



Henry Warren, a native Ojibway,
relates a tradition which he heard in a speech
delivered by one of the native priests
wherein their religion is symbolized
in the figure of a sea-shell,
and the migrations of the people recorded.
(from A.F. Chamberlain, "The Mississaugas")

"Our forefathers were living on the great salt water
toward the rising sun, the great Megis (sea shell)
showed itself above the surface of the great water,
and the rays of the sun for a long period
were reflected from its glossy back.
It gave warmth and light to the An-ish-in-aub-ag (red race).
All at once it sank into the deep,
and for a time our ancestors were not blessed with its light.
It rose to the surface and appeared again on the great river,
which drains the water of the Great Lakes,
and again for a long time it gave life to our forefathers
and reflected back the rays of the sun.
Again it dissappeared from sight,
and it rose not till it appeared to the eyes
of the An-ish-in-aub-ag on the shores of the first great lake.
Again it sank from sight, and death daily visited
the wigwams of our forefathers,
till it showed its back and reflected
the rays of the sun once more at Bow-e-ting (Sault Ste Marie).
Here is remained for a long time, but once more,
and for the last time, it disappeared,
and the An-ish-in-aub-ag was left in darkness and misery,
till it floated and once more showed its bright back
at Mo-ning-wun-a-kaun-ing (La Pointe Island),
where it has ever since reflected back the rays of the sun
and blessed our ancestors with life, light and wisdom.
Its rays reach the remotest village of the wide-spread Ojibways.



Mr. Warren relates another tradition reffering to the same matter,
only in another form: "There is another tradition told
by the old men of the Ojibway village of Fond du Lac (Lake Superior)
which tells of their former residence
on the shores of the great salt water. It is, however,
so similar in character to the one I have related
that is introduction here would only occupy unnecessary space.
The only difference between the two traditions is that the otter,
which is emblematical of one of the four Medicine Spirits
who are believed to preside over the Midawe rites,
is used in one in the same figurative manner
as the sea shell is used in the other,
first appearing to the ancient An-ish-in-aub-ag
from the depths of the great salt water:
again on the River St.Lawrence: then on Lake Huron at Sault Ste.Marie:
again at La Pointe: but lasly at Fond du Lac,
or end of Lake Superior, where it is said,
to have forced the sandbank at the mouth of the St.Louis River.
The place is still pointed out by the Indians
where they believe the great otter broke through"



According to tradition,
the Ojibways separated into different bands,
some traveling toward the south and others westward
and northward on the shores of Lake Superior,
while the main body remained in the vicinity of the Sault.
It is evident that a large band of them must have entered Pigeon River,
on the north shore of Lake Superior,
and traveling westward become scattered widely throughout Algoma,
locating at various points in the Thunder Bay
and Rainy River districts, where their descendants still remain.
As they became known as the Bois Forts, the "Hardwood or Timber People",
they must have lived for quite a long period in these districts,
having entered Manitoba and the North-West Territory.

(From the book, Canadian savage folk the native tribes of Canada)

~Whitewolfe~

The Ojibwa or Chippewa - part 1

The Ojibwa or Chippewa
(also Ojibwe, Ojibway, Chippeway) - Part 1

@ first, a little about the Name Ojibway.

The autonym for this group of Anishinaabeg is "Ojibwe".
This name is commonly anglicized as "Ojibwa."
The name "Chippewa" is an anglicized corruption of "Ojibwa."
Although many variations exist in literature,
"Chippewa" is more common in the United States
and "Ojibwa" predominates in Canada,
but both terms do exist in both countries.
The exact meaning of the name "Ojibwe" is not known; however,
three most common explanations on the name derivations are:

* from "ojiibwabwe" meaning
"Those who cook\roast until it puckers,"
referring to their fire-curing of moccasin
seams to make them water-proof,
though some sources instead say this was a method
of torture the Ojibwe implemented upon their enemies.

* from "ozhibii'iwe" meaning
"Those who keep records (of a Vision),"
referring to their form of pictorial writing,
and pictographs used in Midewiwin rites

* from "ojiibwe" meaning
"Those who speak-stiffly" referring to how
the Ojibwe sounded to the Cree.



However,
across many Ojibwa communities across Canada and the U.S.,
the more generalized name of "Anishinaabe(-g)"
is becoming more common.

Their major divisions

10 major divisions of the Ojibwa in the United States,
omitting the Ojibwa located in Michigan,
western Minnesota and westward, and all of Canada;
if major historical bands located in Michigan
and Ontario are added, the count becomes 14:

*Saulteaux (Baawitigowininiwag)
about Sault Ste. Marie

*Boreder Sitters (Biitan-akiing-enabijig)
northern Wisconsin

*Lake Superior Band (Gichi-gamiwininiwag)
south shore of Lake Superior

*Mississippi River Band (Gichi-ziibiwininiwag)
upper Mississippi River in Minnesota

*Rainy Lake Band (Goojiijwininiwag)
Rainy Lake and River, northern Minn.

*Ricing-Rails (Manoomininikeshiinyag)
along headwaters of St.Croix River, Wisc.

*Pillagers (Mekamaadweshiinyag)
Leech Lake, Minnesota

*Mississaugas (Misi-zaagiwininiwag)
north of Lake Erie

*Algonquins (Odishkwaagamiig)
Quebec-Ontario Border, about Lake Nipissing

*Doki`s Band ( ?)
along French River, region Ontario, near Lake Nipissing

*Ottawa Lake or Lac Courte Oreilles Band
(Odaawaa-zaaga`iganiwininwag)
Lac Courte Oreilles, Wisconsin

*Bois Forte Band (Zagaakwaandagowininiwag)
north of Lake Superior

*Torch or Flambeau Band
(Waaswaaganiwininiwag)
head of Wisconsin River

*Muskrat Portage Band
(Wazhashk-Onigaminiwag)
northwest side of Lake Superior



Their country

The extent of territory occupied by the Ojibway nation,
is the largest of any Indian possessions
of which there is any definite knowledge.
When the Champlain traders met them in 1610,
its eastern boundary was marked by the waters
of Lakes Huron and Michigan. The mountain ridge,
lying between Lake Superior and the frozen Bay,
was its northern barrier. On the west, a forest,
beyond which an almost boundless prairie.
On the south, a valley, by Lake Superior,
thence to the southern part of Michigan.
The land within these boundaries has always
been known as the country of the Ojibways.
It comprises some of the most romantic and beautiful scenery.
There are crystal waters flowing over rocky beds,
reflecting the mighty trees that for centuries
have reared their stout branches above them.
There are dense forests which no man has entered,
which have never waked an echo to the woodman`s axe,
or sounded with the sharp report of a sportman`s rifle.
Here are miles of wild flowers whose sweet fragrance,
is borne on every southern breeze,
and which form a carpet of colors as bright and beautiful
as the rainbow that arches Niagara.
The woodland is composed of a great variety of trees,
mostly pine, hemlock, oak, cedar, and maple.
As the traveller approaches the north,
he will meet birch tamarach, spruce, and evergreen.



In going from east to west, along the borders of the lakes,
the scenery is so changing and of such kaleidescope variety
and beauty that description is impossible.
There is room and opportunity for adventure among the bold,
broken, rugged rocks, piled up one upon another
in "charming confusion," on the shores,
along the borders of the silent waters,
or beneath the solid cliffs against which the waters
of Superior break with a force which has polished their rocky surface.
The mountains, rivers, lakes, cliffs, and caverns
of the Ojibway country, impress one with the thought
that Nature has there built a home for Nature`s children.

Tomorrow part 2, about their Lakes and more

AHO

Ojibway spirit

Aaniin ("hello")

Today a post about the Ojibway spirit



Nanabooshoo
(also Nanabush, The Great Hare, Manaboju, The Great Trickster):
This prominent figure in Chippewa oral tradition supposedly taught the
Native Peoples all their chief social functions, including hunting, fishing,
canoe building and face painting.



Kitchi Manito (also Gitchee Manito):
The Supreme Being; the Creator; the Great Spirit.

Matchi Manito:
The Evil Spirit,
who takes the form of a great fish or two-tailed merman,
the Great Lynx or something evil that lives in the lake.

The Winds:
The other four spirits
(four is an important number among the Chippewa)
are the East, West, North and South winds.



THE ORIGINS OF NANABUSH



In the beginning, as the Ojibwa story tellers say,
the world in which we live did not exist.
Kitchi Manitou, the Great Spirit,
had a dream in which he saw a world made of mountains
and valleys, lakes and streams, plants and animals,
and people. In his wisdom Kitchi Manitou realized
that he was to bring these things into being.
He created a world made of four primary elements;
rock, water, fire and wind:

To the sun he gave the power
to heat and light the earth,
To the earth he gave the power
of growth and healing,
To the water he gave purity and renewal,
To the wind he gave music
and the breath of life itself,
After these things Kitchi Manitou
created human kind.
To them he gave the power of dream.

As the world was new,
the Ojibwa people had much to learn
and Kitchi Manitou took pity on them
and sent them a teacher, Nanabush.
Nanabush was the son of a human mother
and the West Wind spirit father.
He was sent to earth to teach his people
about the healing plants, about kindness,
generosity, and honesty.
One of Nanabush's first tasks was to name the trees,
the waters, the mountains, the animals,
the birds and the plants.



Nanabush had powerful magic to give special powers
or attributes to the animals and plants.
Nanabush was also a Trickster,
bent on making humans look silly
(although his own jokes often backfired on him).
As a Trickster, he could change form
and take the shape of an animal.
The one distinguishing feature of Nanabush
when he was in human form, as drawn on rocks
and carved in stone by the Ojibwa,
was his rabbit-like ears.

Miigweech ("thanks")
~U-ne-ga-wa-ya~