The Animals

We gather our minds together to send greetings and thanks to all of the Animal life in the world. They have many things to teach us people. We see them near our homes and in the deep forests. We are glad they are still here and we hope that it will always be so. Now our minds are one.

Our Original Instructions:

Acknowledging the Importance of

The Animal Life

Respect Your Elders:

Turtles: 350 Million Years Old

Wolves: 50 Million Years Old

Respect for Life - Since Creation

Our original instructions as Haudenosaunee tell us that we must acknowledge, respect, and give thanks to the Animal Nations. It is only when we look to our culture that we can truly appreciate the importance of the Animal Life and understand our long relationship with them. If we go back to the very beginning, the Haudenosaunee Creation story tells us that animals are our ancestors. They were the first to inhabit the earth and were critical in preparing for the coming of human beings. In the Skyworld, they were acknowledged as people and for that reason, we continue to see them as such today. Raiatotahon, the leader of Skyworld, turned to all the people in his village, including the animals, when he had a dream that unsettled his mind. When the spiritual beings - the turtle, the water birds, the fur bearers, and others - could not guess the meaning of his dream, he sent them to the water world below. In this new world, they helped to prepare for the woman to fall from above. We see that these water animals have many of the same character­istics as humans. They are curious; they wonder about their existence and sometimes, they disagree with each other. We also see that they are compassionate. They readily agree to do all they can, even risk their lives, to help Skywoman. When we think about our elders, the Animals, we realize that from the start, we owe our very survival to their existence. If they had not helped Skywoman, the cycles of Creation would not have begun and the world as we know it to be would not exist.

The Creation Story points to the importance of several species. Waterfowl play a critical role in drawing attention to Skywoman as she fell. They were the first to meet her and soften her fall. The fur bearing animals are also important. Otter, muskrat, and beaver all played an important role in the Creation Story. Beaver offers to hold up the earth to support the woman and tries, but finds that it is too heavy for him. Muskrat attempts to get dirt from below the water and dies in the process. After three attempts, it is otter who is successful in bringing up dirt for Skywoman. In our Thanksgiving Address, a special acknowledgement is given to Otter as the leader of the water animals.

Turtle, of course, plays a crucial role Creation story. He is the one who offers to support Skywoman and the new world that is to come. To this day, we still call our lands “Turtle Island.” We know that turtle is very old, strong, and resilient and we are reminded of his role every time a turtle rattle is used in our ceremonies.

From the Creation story, we understand that water and the water life is sacred, since these beings - otter, muskrat, beaver, turtle, waterfowl, and fish - were the first to arrive here on earth. Later in the story as Skywoman’s daughter grows to womanhood, we see that different animals appear to her in human form to try to win her hand in marriage. Although the handsome appearance of raccoon and fox catch her attention, her mother decided that they are not appropriate suitors. It is turtle who is covered in mud and not particularly handsome, that her mother deems an appropriate husband. It is turtle who also determines the future of the twins, by placing the flint tipped and straight arrows next to his wife. Later in the story, we are again reminded of the importance of turtle. When Thoronhiawa:kon, the Right-handed Twin is rejected by his grandmother, he turns to his father, the turtle, in his time of need. He uses what his father has given him, his spirituality, as a foundation. It is the strength of his spirituality that allows him to overcome his difficulties. The Creation story repeatedly reminds us of our relationship with the water and the water animals, which we turn to in times of need, whether it be for food, to quench our thirst, cleanse our body and mind, or for spiritual strength.

Before humanity came into existence, it was Thoronhiawa:kon, the Right-handed twin, that created animals of many different sizes, shapes, and colors. He gave each of them different characteristics and personalities and instructed them to provide food for humans and other animal life, so that none of the creation would go hungry. Even in death, the bodies of animals provide food for plants, insects, and other animals. Although his twin brother, Kahnia, the Left-handed Twin, created carnivorous animals, diseases, flies, snakes, and other things with the intent of disrupting Creation, the Right-handed Twin did not destroy these things. It was not his nature to destroy things, even those that are disruptive. Instead, he found an important role for most of them and gave them special duties. He placed those that are so dangerous that they completely disrupted Creation under the earth. By finding roles for the others, he created a balance in the natural world. It is through the actions of the Right-handed Twin that we learn to value bio-diversity and appreciate all species of life. We are reminded not to destroy any species of animal, even those that are annoying or disruptive, because they are part of the delicate balance of life.

We see the importance of the animal life again when Thoronhiawa:kon and his grandmother play the peachstone game to determine who will have control over creation. It is the unity of all creation saying in their loudest voices “let us live” that enables Thoronhiawa:kon to defeat his grandmother. It is voice of all Creation -the very essence of life itself - that allows Thoronhiawa:kon to triumph over those who wished to destroy Creation. Every time we play the Peachstone game, we are reminded of the Creation story and the sadness and grief we must feel when a single species is missing from Creation. As animals, insects, plants, birds, and Indigenous Peoples decline in number and as species and culture after culture disappear from the face of the earth, our voices become weakened as we cry out “let us live.” We worry that there will come a time when our voices will be so few in number and weak that we will no longer be able to defeat the Left-handed Twin and his Grandmother, and life as we know it to be will cease to exist.

Our Dependency on the Animal Life

In many ways, we are very much dependent on the Animal Life. From a practical aspect, we are dependent upon them for our food, clothing, shelter, and medicines. They have taught us about medicines. We have learned how to hunt, store food, and survive from them. We also rely on them for our emotional and spiritual strength. In many ways, animals remind us of our humanity. They teach us to share, to take care of our children, to protect our land, to look out for others and to love our families. As Onkwehon:we, we are constantly reminded of the need to show our compassion, respect, gratitude and love to our more distant relatives in the natural world. This helps us to remember to express these same emotions to our much closer human relatives.

Our oral history tells us that there was a time when humans and animals interacted at a different level than today. Certain individuals could speak directly with animals. Sometimes humans and animals even intermarried. Some stories speak of a time when certain individuals became transformed into different species of animals or birds. These oral traditions remind us of the direct relationship between animals and humans. Our kinship with the natural world is a very real thing. Animals are relatives and as such, they deserve to be treated with respect.

Our traditions require that we work to maintain good relationships with animals. We have been told that we have no reason to fear them. When we know them well, we understand that animals will not harm us unless we provoke them or we threaten their young. We understand that all beings have been given instructions from the Creator. Paramount to showing respect, we clearly understand that we are not to interfere with the ability of other species to carry out their original instructions which include being able to reproduce and live freely in our shared territory. When humans were created, we too were given instructions including the task of constantly acknowledging the importance of creation. We were told that the one thing that Creation desires more than anything else is to be appreciated and we have many reasons to be thankful for our animal relatives. Because humans were the last to be created, we are the most dependent of all species. Unlike plants, we cannot directly use the energy of the sun to make food and must rely on other plant and animal species for our survival. Unlike all of the other beings on this planet, we humans quickly forget our original instructions and become lost. We are very lucky that our Animal relatives, like the Creator and Mother Earth, have been very patient with us when we have forgotten our original instructions. There have been times when humans have thought they knew more about the natural world than the Creator. Like the Left-handed Twin, we have become manipu­lative, trying to make the Creation suit our needs, wants, and desires, instead of trusting in the wisdom of the Creator. We have seen times in history when humans have intentionally tried to destroy animals that they did not like or understand. We have also seen times when humans were willing to trade the lives of their animal and human relatives for material possessions and wealth. We are truly fortunate that the natural world has been forgiving and that our Creator has given us so many reminders to encourage us to fulfill our responsibil­ities as Onkwehon:we.

When we were given the Ohenton Karihwatehkwen, our opening address, we were once again reminded to give thanks to the natural world and the Creator. The opening address also enables us to under­stand the interconnectedness of all of life. It reminds us of our dependence on the natural world and gives us a way to express our gratitude. We are better able to under­stand the importance of all of Creation -even the insects and little creatures who play a critical role in the balance of ecosystems. It is because of oral traditions such as this that we continue to have a positive relationship with the natural world and the Animal Life. As we look to the future, we find that our traditional way of life, which is based on respect and expres­sions of gratitude, is as relevant today as it has always been.

Continued next week