A Comparison of Native American Thought anf Witchcraft

Black Elk was a holy man of the Lakota people of the Sioux tribe. He writes of rituals and beliefs of his people in his book The Sacred Pipe. The sacred pipe is very important symbol to his people. It symbolizes the medicine wheel, all four directions living in the same space. Pinches of tobacco are placed in the pipe along with grains and seeds for all relatives and the pipe takes on new meaning. It also symbolizes how everything in the universe is unified. The pipe is very important in the lamenting process, which is discussed in Black Elk’s writings. He goes into great detail about la

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Act upon your beliefs, but only if you have a complete understanding of them. This belief can be applied with the issue of stealing. This persecution was aimed at women. According to Starhawk, “Of an estimated 9 million Witches executed, 80 percent were women, including children and young girls, who were believed to inherit the ‘evil’ from their mothers. 354)

The most important belief in Witchcraft is that of how everything is connected, everything in the universe is one. By sharing the sacred pipe in a circle, each person is taking the universe within himself or herself, experiencing the sacred relationship.

Starhawk takes an Ecofeminist approach in her writings about Witchcraft. This belief originates with Inyan and Skan. It is to be expressed freely, but only for love. She says that rape is intolerable because it is violent, and when hurting someone else – it is hurting the Goddess. ” The ideology behind the Inquisition was hatred of women, which was a trend of medieval Christianity, and it was thought that if you punish the evil doers you would gain favor with God. Both Starhawk and Black Elk emphasize the importance of an understanding before practice.

Common topics in this essay:
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Approximate Word count = 1179
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

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