What beliefs do the Ottawa have?

Answer 1

Native Spirituality

One of the most significant responsibilities an Ottawa must fulfill is to behave in ways that honor the pimadazin, or the , and moral collective life." In order to do this, the seven ways of the Ottawa must be sustained: purity in mind, purity in heart, purity in body, humility, honesty, love, and respect.

All Ottawas are given three things to guide them through life: totem, manitou, and Midewiwin. The totem is a powerful animal form that represents one's clan. Each individual is a descendent of their totem. Examples of totems include the,Bear,

Turtle,Crane and Otter.

Manitou:

The Manitou often relates to spirit. Each native pursues contact with manitou during vision quests and other rituals or ceremonies. The manitou is meant to provide guidance to the person on a vision quest and then stay with them throughout life. Ki-je Manitou, or the great power, is the supreme manitou, responsible for all creation.

Midewewin:

"Midewewin," loosely translated , could mean "the society of good-hearted ones." The Midewewin is a secret society of medicine men and women. Members of the society hold rituals and make special vision quests to contact, or commune with, the manitous. Their experiences are then shared with the rest of the community. This knowledge is extremely valuable as it is used to keep the tribe's members healthy and safe.

Vision quest:

Vision quests are often referred to as "going up on the hill." It is a ritual practiced to create a link with the manitous, or spirit powers. The vision quest is held at an out-of-the-way place significant to the person making the quest. Before one goes on a vision quest, one must already be upholding the seven ways of the Ottawa. Traditionally, vision quests were performed as a rite of passage for adolescent boys. Today, people of various ages and both genders engage in this spiritual custom.

Gi-be wiikonge (Feast of the Dead)

Gi-be wiikonge is a traditional ceremonial practice that took place in the spring and early summer. If someone died in the winter, the ground was often too hard for a proper burial. Instead, tribe members would wrap the corpse and place it in a shallow grave, or up on a tree platform. In the spring, when band members returned to their summer dwellings, the leader would call a gi-be wiikonge. All those who lost a loved one during the winter retrieved the corpses. The women would prepare the bodies for interment. The others would dig deep pits where the ceremony was to take place. The hole would be large enough to house all the bodies and accommodate the mourners. Copious amounts of food would be brought down into the pit where everyone feasted until sunrise. All through the night food and tobacco burned as an offering to the spirits who were present. At the end of the gi-be wiikonge, the natives would fill the pit and no longer talk of the dead.