"The earth is our relative and we learn to take care of her because we know that our survival depends on her."
"The Elders say "Acimaymo" - never give up. To reach a star is life's journey, the struggle in different stages of development, all the lessons learned, the pain the heartache and the love and joy."
"Before a child is brought into this world, the Elders say there is a council of ancestors that decide whether life will be granted and a spirit will be let down to earth to take its place as a new born baby."
"In ceremony we are given a spirit name to honour the life that we've been given, to recognize the power greater than ourselves and the spirit world that support us through life. Miyo wahcitowin ( we stand in good relationship to everything )."
Artist as Visionary
It was the 'holy man' or medicine keeper that was imbued with the gifts of the artist that we currently attribute to artists today. It was through the holy man that vision was given. As visionary, the 'holy man' would become initial artist, healer or dancer with respect to the vision. The vision of one became the healing for everyone. The vision would also become the dance, ceremony and ritual expression of the people. The realm of vision is the realm of the artist deeply connected with spirit in an interrelationship that serves to define the soul of a community. In essence the artist served to create a pathway to wholeness by interpreting vision and making metaphoric representations of music, song, images and dance.
The artist as visionary still holds true today, although the meaning and process have changed over time. Art today is as much intellectualization and interpretation as it is social commentary and commodity. Artistic expression today is rooted in traditional spiritual culture and this intrinsic understanding must never be forgotten. The visionary knows the power and value of art in ritualistic expression, its meaning and the role it plays in defining the collective spirit of a people. The meaning and intent reveals the ceremony of art. The role of visionary becomes interpreter of introspective journey wherein the creative realm is the doorway to wholeness.
To become familiar with First Nations spirituality is to become aware of the artist as visionary whose roots lie in traditional spiritual culture, ritual and ceremony. The artistic and spiritual realms are still interrelated and the song, dance and ceremony remain intact. Through the voice of the artist or art itself may you come to learn the integration of heart, spirit and creativity as the pathway to wholeness in First Nations Spirituality.