Indigenous Worldview (Interview With the Elders):

 

When the child was being carried in the mother’s womb, she had to observe certain natural laws.  She could not view a dead person’s body at a funeral because that would impact upon the development of the child.  She could not eat certain foods or certain parts of the deer or moose or elk or prepare or cut up wild game.

 

There were also certain plants she could not introduce into her body, like ragroot or wheatgrass, because they could possibly cause the physical body of the woman to be affected, causing a great deal of hardship during childbirth.  She was not permitted to do any type of sewing or beading.  If she did it was believed that the umbilical cord would go around the neck of the unborn child and cause possible strangulation or difficult childbirth.

 

There were certain medicines that the mother could take to help assist in the development of the main organs of the child to ensure that the child was born healthy.  If complications arose during the trimester phases of pregnancy, there were certain medicines that the mother could drink that were powerful healing remedies.  Alcohol was not permitted during pregnancy so as to avoid brain damage and negative energy that is included in alcohol and which affects the unborn child.

 

It was tradition that the older ladies would come together with the expectant mother and lecture her.  The mother would be given the utmost attention and be catered to by all members of the community and family to ensure that she was always in an environment where there were good feelings.  There would not be any loud noises like shouting or any energy that had negativity.  So the mother was very much respected.  Indigenous people believe that the child was a gift from the Creator and that the child was very close to the Creator because they had just made the journey from there.  The child was also regarded as sacred.

 

Ceremonies and rituals also were created around childbirth.  Sometimes before the child was born, the elder would have a premonition or a vision that there should be a naming ceremony for the child.  Sometimes if there was some difficulty during the nine months or complications arose, they would give the child a name.  Around the name-giving ceremony, the spirits would be invited to come forward.  One of the elders would commit to naming the child, becoming its protector, and assisting the child in times of difficulty.

 

The mother was also directed by the elders to respect the feminine energy of Mother Earth and especially the role that the water plays as a gift to the Earth and a gift to the people.  During childbirth, a specific pole would be taken from the lodge with the mother to the place of birth so that she could lean on it.  For some tribes, a special birthing lodge was created. It would be supported by a couple of tripods.  At the time of birth she would crouch forward over the earth and birth her infant.  There would be a great deal of excitement.  The elderly ladies would come forward and speak to the unborn child and welcome him/her into this world.

 

As soon as the child was born, the midwife would be the first one to receive the child in her arms.  The midwife had to be a pure woman and thought of highly in the community by the other women.  Prayers would be said over the newborn and he/she was welcomed in a very loving manner.  Every child entering this world was put in a mixture of medicine made of sweetgrass because the scent of the child was considered very sacred and this would keep the sacredness alive around him.

 

Since the child was in the womb and surrounded by water, the women would surround the mother, representative of this because women are connected to the spirit of the water.  Water is a feminine essence.  It clears the passage from which the baby will exit and come forth into the world during this very sacred time.

 

Some elders recall being in the womb themselves and remember their births.  They say that sitting in their teepee and looking up at the poles; seeing how they come together reminds them of how it was in the womb before birth.  A lot of symbolism is involved with the birth of every Indian child.

 

As soon as the child was born and the cord severed, the placenta was gathered for a special burial because it, too, was considered very sacred.  It was buried in a very pristine place in Mother Earth so that the energy of Mother Earth could keep the purity.  It was believed that the mother and child remained connected to the placenta.  This placenta would never be destroyed or discarded by indigenous peoples.

 

Even the part of the umbilical cord still attached to the child, which hardens and eventually dries up and falls off, was regarded as sacred and kept as well.  It was carefully placed in a pouch and made into an amulet that could be worn around the neck.  Beadwork would be done on the pouch in the shape of a turtle or bear or buffalo or whatever animal would represent the child.  Also included in the pouch would be sage or sweetgrass or tobacco.  This precious amulet was kept near the child’s head as he slept.

 

The newborn stayed with the mother for the first moon – one whole cycle of the moon.  From then the child was put in a sling and carried next to the mother’s body where her warmth nurtured the baby and where he was readily able to be breast-fed.  In this way he knew he was safe.

 

After the first cycle of the moon, they would consider giving the child an Indian name.  This was determined by events or a particular phenomenon that occurred in the natural environment during the time the child was being brought into the world.  For example, if a streak of lightning went across the sky as the baby’s first cries were heard, then they would name the baby after that event.  It was considered a sign that this child was being acknowledged by the spirit world, that the thunderbird was welcoming him.

 

The newborn baby would always be close to the mother.  Through the breastfeeding there would be a great deal of bonding between the mother and child.  There were certain ways that they looked after the baby.  Whenever the baby did something significant, like saying his first word or taking his first step, it was considered special.  These were acts of thanksgiving and celebration and a time for feasting and ceremony to celebrate these moments of importance in the life of the child.

 

The child would also be protected by all members of the family and catered to by uncles and aunts who would view this child as an extension of themselves; as if he were their own.  In the Indian way, nephews and nieces are looked upon as one’s own children.  The concept of extended family is very strong.  So, extreme care surrounds the child by everyone.

 

Elders often took their grandchildren and hummed sacred songs to them, acknowledging the sacredness of the child with specific sounds.

 

A cradleboard was made for each child.  The child was wrapped around the board so that the child felt snuggled and cared for.  Often they would place a board between a child’s legs so that while the legs were being formed, they would grow very straight so that the child could become a long distance runner.  Also, the cradleboard had further significance and served many purposes. 

 

When the mother was busy working on the land or at home, the cradleboard would be secured to a tree or a pole so that from this early age, the child could view the world from an upright position.  To be placed on their back and in a crib was very boring for them, so the wonder of the world around them was enhanced by the upright position from which they could best view their surroundings.  

 

When a baby was wrapped, the women would collect a certain type of moss, which had a purifying component to it as well as serving as absorption of the child’s waste.  It was a substance that would naturally purify the skin because it had a cleansing agent in it.  The third importance of it was for the child to be close to nature.  This moss was very soft next to the infant.

 

The special beaded amulet pouch containing the part of the child’s umbilical cord was also tied to this cradleboard.  Protective wood was wrapped around it in case the child happened to tilt sideways or frontward.  A medicine wheel with an eagle plume was also attached.

 

The mother wore the plume but it was also there to protect the child.  These special plumes were taken from the part of the eagle’s body closest to the heart.  It was believed that there was a loving energy in that plume coming from the heart.  It represented gentleness and the delicacy of the newborn baby and resonated the gentleness of the heart of the eagle, having that presence near the child.

 

Commentary by Almine:

 

Since the suppression of the goddess traditions in western cultures, through the witch burnings of the Middle Ages and the genocide that took place of an estimated 9 million to 11 million women, much of the dignity of western life has been lost – dignities, which the indigenous people still remember.  Portions of the goddess aspects govern birth and death and the celebrations of life that come in between.

 

Ancient societies of all races knew the significance of having a pure heart and pure hands in delivering a newborn.  During the first five minutes after a baby was born, it was taught that the hands that touched an infant’s different body parts programmed wisdom into the child.  The same is true even today. 

 

For example:  if a doctor, who disowns his own feminine side, delivers a baby’s head as it emerges, his hands will program the same disrespect for the intuitive into the newborn.  Similarly, if a nurse holds a baby’s bottom in her hand and is ashamed of her own sexuality, this will be programmed into the child.

 

Because of this, the midwife had a most respected position in community life, until a time came when women were forbidden from receiving any education.  The practicing of medicine without education was strictly prohibited and punishable by death.  This placed the medical profession and the sacred goddess traditions around birthing firmly in the hands of the males for hundreds of years.

 

Even the sacred rituals and dances of the indigenous peoples, as they awakened the earth with bells on their feet or sang the land to sleep before the first snow, became a caricature and were translated into male-oriented folk dances.  The disempowerment of the feminine was almost complete, and the sacred in western society languished.

 

In tribal societies these things were honored and expressed, and the people lived in dignity and harmony with the land.  We must remember that where there is separation, the environment dies, but where there is inclusiveness, all life thrives.

 

In an attempt to reclaim powers that were lost, women in the western world once again stepped to the front, finding this time that they had to compete with men as equals.  Through this act, they lost their identity a second time.  Even in Victorian times, when women were seen as generally weaker, at least their identity was honored.  Until the 1950’s, many British Commonwealth countries gave women three days sick leave a month to assist them during their moon time.

 

The vibration that went into making a newborn’s clothes was of vital importance and was acknowledged as well.  Only two generations ago, all baby clothes were hand-produced in great anticipation by all the women of the family.  The materials used to make a baby’s clothes were earth-resonant, being made of silk or hand-spun cotton or the softest lamb’s wool.  Especially for indigenous people, placing earth-resonant materials next to the skin of a newborn was of utmost importance in keeping the connection of the child tied to the earth.

 

The importance of keeping this connection with Mother Earth by burying the placenta or disposing of any hair that had been cut, is that she is the greatest of all healers.  Scientists have found that there is a particular frequency of 7.8 that sometimes comes from the hands of people when they are in a state of fearlessness.  To a large extent this frequency also comes from the hands of healers, and Mother Earth continually resonates this frequency.  It is the same that has been shown in laboratories to heal cancer in rats caused by other frequencies of shorter or longer waveforms.

 

Many elders believe in the telepathic communication of certain body fluids – blood, semen, the placenta that, when treated with chemicals and disposed of in a hospital setting, can cause toxicity and breast cancer in women.  These elders also believe that this practice affects the essence of a woman as a life-bearing and life-sustaining being. 

 

For this reason, telepathic communication of body fluids should be taken seriously.  A partner who has lower impulses and imbalances in his or her life can affect the other partner by polluting the other’s energies.  It is believed that the telepathic communication causing this pollution continues from between four to six hours after the body fluids have mixed.