by Elaine Lunham
Virginia Graverette Pigeon, Tribal Elder of the Saginaw Chippewa
Tribe, member
of the Cedar Women's Society, Elder of the Mide Lodge.
With these credentials, I realized that Virginia holds a lot
of wisdom, guidance, and teachings.
For as long as I can remember, I had heard of the Anishinabe people
smudging
with sacred herbs such as tobacco, sweetgrass, sage, and cedar.
I always
wondered the meaning behind it (though I had my own ideas).
One day I went to Virginia, seeking answers to my questions, trying
to gain
insight and knowledge so that one day I could pass this on to my
children and
their children. Virginia began by saying that some people
follow the
Traditional Way and some follow the Christian Way and that one way
respects the
aspects of both ways. Both know one God.
Virginia said that there are a lot of stories and legends that have
been brought
down from generation to generation. She said that there are
a lot of reasons
why we should smudge and that it is a good thing to smudge, either
with one of
the sacred herbs or all of them together.
She said: In the first place, tobacco (a-say-ma) was a gift of the
Four Manido
(Spirits of the Four Directions). It was the father of Nanabush
who gave the
tobacco (ah-say-ma) and shared the custom of smoking with his son
after their
epic battle in war, as a symbol of peace. Nanabush in turn
passed on the custom
to the Anishnabe as a ceremony. Thereafter, the Anishnabe
smoked the Pipe of
Peace before great councils, after war, and before other ceremonies.
The
Anishnabe adopted the custom and made it part of their daily lives
to compose
their minds and spirits. It is said that it will chase away
feelings that are
bad or negative and bring on thoughts that are good or positive.
In the second place, tobacco (ah-say-ma) was in the nature of an
incense, sweet
to the taste and fragrant to smell. No other plant is endowed
with such
qualities. Cedar was offered to the fire to smudge the lodge
and people. It is
also used to waft the smoke to ward away sickness.
There are no absolutes with sage and sweetgrass.
In the above medicine wheel which we convey as the wheel of life,
there are Four
Directions. When we are born, life begins in the East.
The teenage years are
in the South. Then mid-life is in the West. When we
reach the North, we are
grandmas and grandpas and nearly ready to go to the Spirit World
as we have done
our many deeds on Mother Earth. The journey does not end in
the North because
we go to the Spirit World and then the cycle continues.
We gain knowledge with our tobacco (ah-say-ma) and we grow spiritually.
Our
hearts feel and our spiritual eyes have to see what our Creator
wants us to
learn. We feel the knowledge in our soul, and we know it comes
from our
Creator. When we pray, we get answers, then we are nurtured
and we grow spiritually.
Smudging helps us center ourselves with the four sacred herbs mentioned:
tobacco
(ah-say-ma), sweetgrass, sage, and cedar. We begin by using
a shell or bowl
with a fan or feather. We then smudge the room, slowly walking
clockwise around
the perimeter of the room, fanning the smudge pot, keeping it lit
and wafting
the smoke about. Smudge any medicine tool you will be using
such as pipe, jewelry, outfit, etc.
It is a good practice to smudge each person in a group, circle,
ceremony, and
lodge. Starting from the East and holding the smudge pot lit,
each person can
bathe themselves in the smoke. Many people smudge the heart
area first, next
the head area, and then the arms, then downward toward the legs.
This isn't the
only way you can smudge. It isn't wrong to smudge another
way. We can purify
and cleanse fairly regularly in this day and age with so much sickness
and bad feelings around.
For more information on legends and stories, a good book to read
would be Ojibwa
Heritage by Basil Johnson or ask an elder and offer tobacco.
Bay Mills Community College
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