Where does the soul go when the body dies? This question has plagued philosophers and religious scholars for centuries. Among native tribes, however, there is an answer
Closely linked to the concept of death among indigenous societies is the idea of an afterlife—a world beyond what exists in the mortal realm. While beliefs do differ between the tribes, similar traits are found throughout North America which compels a decent understanding of the subject. Whether it is known as the spirit world, the land of the dead, or the land of shadows, the idea of an afterlife figures largely into the social and spiritual climate of indigenous society. For the most part, death is viewed as a bridge between life in the mortal world and the world beyond. While not living solely for the rewards of the next life, Native Americans do rely heavily on the assistance of those who have crossed over.
The Lakota tribe have outlined seven central religious rights that not only serve to bind the individual to the community, but also to celebrate the interconnectedness of these two worlds—life and the afterlife. At a time of crisis, or in the midst of an intense healing ritual, the Lakota community will focus its energy on an appeal to the spiritual realm; to the world where their ancestors can provide needed help. The spiritual realm is an ever-present facet of life within the Lakota tribe. While acknowledging death as the end of physical manifestation on the planet, the Lakota do not view death as the end of an individual’s presence in the community. Nor is it an end to their effectiveness. The soul passes on while the body dies. Reincarnation or passage into a more powerful stage of existence, where the soul can be of great help to the community, is at the heart of the Lakota (as well as other Plains societies) belief system.
Medicine men and women appeal to those who have gone before them, to their own deceased family members, and to the great spirits that guide the tribe in order to assist those in need of their care. When the entire tribe participates in a healing ritual they are appealing to their own ancestors to guide and give them the strength necessary to achieve their collective goal. In the instance where the sick person dies, they pass unto a different phase of existence. The Shadow World, as it is called among the Lakota, is the next plane of existence after passing from the mortal realm. The Crow refer to the afterlife as the Other Side Camps. When a member of Crow society dies, they are taken to this realm by an ancestor who has already crossed over.
On the other side of this belief is the concept of the malevolent spirit, one who returns to cause harm to those in the mortal world. In most cases, if the individual who has died did so feeling a sense of discontent with the world around him, his soul will manifest these feelings and may even visit them upon the world of the living. This is perhaps why those in the mortal realm strive to live in harmony with the spiritual realm—to maintain this balance between the positive and negative forces that can have an effect on their society. This is why the concept of life, death, and the afterlife is so interconnected within indigenous society.
David M Jones and Brian L Molyneaux, Mythology of the American Nations. (London: Hermes House, 2006).
Gilbert Legay, Atlas of Indians. (Hauppage: Barron’s Educational Services, Inc., 1995)
Peter Matthiessen, ed., George Catlin: North American Indians. (New York: Penguin Group, 1989).
Mark St. Pierre and Tilda Long Soldier, Walking in the Sacred Manner: Healers, Dreamers, and Pipe Carriers—Medicine Women of the Plains. (New York: Simon and Schuster,1995).
Carl Waldman, Atlas of the North American Indian. (New York: Checkmark Books, 2000).
Carl Waldman, Encyclopedia of Native American Tribes. (New York: Checkmark Books, 2006).
