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Post by bewildered on Jun 4, 2013 2:44:16 GMT -6
You shared yours, my friend, so it is only fair that I share mine. My own vision quest was a long and grueling experience, stretched out over the span of four very long years. Like you, I felt it coming. I knew that I had to leave everything behind, and I spent many restless nights wrestling with the tremendous burden that was crushing me inside. I had a fiancée...a promising career in journalism and publishing...and it was all about to change, completely and irrevocably. I had seen something during the dark hours of my solitude; and having seen it, I was changed by the vision. Leaving everything behind was one of the most painful experiences of my life, but I simply couldn't deny the call. If I were true - and if I were brave - then I would cast myself against the breakers that litter the shore of this twilight sea people think of as "life" and shatter myself into countless pieces. I would do it, if only for a fleeting glimpse of the truth beneath the illusion.
She (my fiancée) knew what was going to happen the moment I started experiencing the "call." As I lay awake that first sleepless night, I turned to find that she was awake, too. She broke the silence of my pain when she said "I'm going to lose you, aren't I? I can hear it calling you, and I know you aren't going to deny it. You can't."
Some highly unusual things happened during the process of my breaking away. Before I left, I found myself gravitating to the worst possible parts of town. These were places where no "normal" person in their right mind would go - violent crime and drug dealing happened on every street there - but I was drawn to it because I felt their desperation like the heart beating in my own chest. It wasn't the crime, the drugs, nor the violence...it was the lies of the world surrounding them. I could feel it like a feverish disease, and it is only in those of honest countenance that you see the sickness manifest in plain sight. I brought meals to elderly people living on their own in absolute squalor, and I walked every street and alley that I could find. It never occurred to me to be afraid of them, and I think that these people knew it, too. Before my time there ended, I was approached by an inebriated man who had been sleeping in an alley. He was quite the sight to see: I think he had piercings everywhere on his body that I could see...his nose, eyebrows, lips, cheeks, and hands (this was the mid-1990s). He stumbled up to me, placed his hand on my shoulder, and blurted out the following: "Man, I can see your aura, dude. You're alright. You're one of them, ain't ya?" I really didn't know what to say to that, and before I had the chance to respond, he turned around and walked away.
I resigned my position at the newspaper, left everything to my fiancée (including my house), and departed a few days later. All I had were the clothes on my back, some more in my duffel bag, and an address in rural Tennessee that I was heading to. I spent the next four years living on an overgrown old farm in the middle of nowhere in a GP Small tent. I built my own fires, grew my own food, and eventually met an old man who taught me how to work not just with my mind, but also with my hands. He taught me about the trees and the way of growing and living things...of wood and how to build things that looked and felt alive...and while I was there, I arrived at the end of myself. He left me on my own for that because, as he said to me one night when I was in a great deal of pain, "all good sons must face this alone."
Each time I would strike out to build something, the winds and the storms would arrive to blow it all away. I was crushed over and over again until I thought I had nothing left to lose...only to discover that I in fact had plenty left within me to squander. That was when I began to realize that my vision quest was a breaking and a remaking; only I would not rise with my own power. I would rise because the stars in the sky would call me to come, and because the wind would whisper my name. I also discovered my animal brother during that time.
I learned a great deal during my time out there, wishmythos. I learned how my ancestors lived, and I started to see things through their eyes. I understood what it meant to live in a different, more vibrant world where creeks sing and the trees stand old and silent all around you. It was completely different from the dream world of artificial stone, glaring and blaring lights, and alien desolation that my other ancestors created for themselves to be imprisoned within. The cities were a terrible place, and it took me some time to tolerate living around them once I left that place where I both lost myself and found myself again. I returned because it was time for me to go back. People think they understand, but they kid themselves. They come armed with the answers they have been taught to believe, never realizing that if they really wish to learn the truth, all they have to do is live it. No one will have to tell them what's true and what's not true.
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Post by bewildered on Jun 4, 2013 3:04:19 GMT -6
wishmythos posted some powerful words - true words - and I just had to respond to them. I have no intention of hanging around beyond that.
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CitizenK
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I'm Back Guys!!! I've missed you so much!!!
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Post by CitizenK on Jun 4, 2013 12:54:26 GMT -6
sorry to hear that bewildered...was hoping you would
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Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2013 23:37:12 GMT -6
If you happen to see this, thank you Bewildered for sharing your story. It means a lot to know that someone else has felt it. It appears that in your experience, you were quite fortunate in a couple ways. The old man and a place to go... I had no idea what I was doing or where I should go. This is another reason why I can't stand this culture - there are no real traditions or rites of passage. I drove through the southwestern part of the United States looking for a place and not finding one. Everywhere there were signs and fences. I drove through the Mojave desert and Death Valley and all I did was get angry. There was no place to roam without being on government or personal property. So the Painted Desert is where I settled, but I had no idea what I was doing or why I was there. All I knew is that I felt like dying. I wanted a vision for my life and something more than a cardboard cut out of a life. Your Fiancé respected your decision and I find that amazing. As for myself, I couldn't just go anywhere I wanted to because my family back here, most notably my sister (Springfield) knew the state I was in and threatened to report me as "Missing" if I didn't call her within a certain length of time. Whatever happened to allowing people the right to live and choose on their own terms?
I plan to return soon. I feel like I left something unfinished there and I need to finish it. You have my deepest respect.
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Post by bewildered on Jun 9, 2013 0:03:52 GMT -6
There's more to it than that, wishmythos...she wasn't supportive, and the fellow I met simply "just happened." It was a chance meeting. I spent those four years completely isolated from the rest of the world, and I miss it sometimes.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 9, 2013 1:49:33 GMT -6
There's more to it than that, wishmythos...she wasn't supportive, and the fellow I met simply "just happened." It was a chance meeting. I spent those four years completely isolated from the rest of the world, and I miss it sometimes. Ah, I understand. It's like you said, if someone hasn't been through it, they wouldn't understand. I've tried explaining it to my sister since then and she still doesn't understand. It amazes me that someone who follows a "spiritual" path (my sister) doesn't understand it at all. I bought her the book, "Bury my heart at Wounded Knee" last year. She's began to have an interest in Native American history, but doesn't like to talk about the horrible massacres that happened.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 9, 2013 11:19:54 GMT -6
A lot of people don't want to see the uglier side of history. My (many greats ago) grandfather was a Sioux indian chief so naturally I'm interested in anything about/to do with Indians. The town I live in is rich in the spirit that the 'old ones' left behind (we have 5 tribes in the area) and this place is full of Oak trees that they valued for the acorns to make a mush with. There are lots of Indian spirits here and I grew up with that and I've actually come to take that for granted. In a way like driving through Albuquerque at night..you can feel the spirit there so strongly but..if you are not sensitive to it..you feel nothing. It's amusing to me that they are managing to get back at the white eyes pretty excellently. There are about 5 Indian cassino's in the area doing a wonderful business and every Indian get a check for a part in that every month..not to mention out of the goodness of their hearts they contribute thousands of dollars to white charities. Sometimes the very best pay back is to nice someone..
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Post by bewildered on Jun 16, 2013 9:25:35 GMT -6
There's more to it than that, wishmythos...she wasn't supportive, and the fellow I met simply "just happened." It was a chance meeting. I spent those four years completely isolated from the rest of the world, and I miss it sometimes. Ah, I understand. It's like you said, if someone hasn't been through it, they wouldn't understand. I've tried explaining it to my sister since then and she still doesn't understand. It amazes me that someone who follows a "spiritual" path (my sister) doesn't understand it at all. I bought her the book, "Bury my heart at Wounded Knee" last year. She's began to have an interest in Native American history, but doesn't like to talk about the horrible massacres that happened. That's one of the ironies of this life, wishmythos: those who say they are wise aren't, and those who think they know have learned absolutely nothing. We are meant to learn and grow organically in the rays of the Sun under the vault of the clouds and the stars. Some of our ancestors understood this, and they didn't require a book to know. We are a curious blend of two worlds: the natural and the synthetic, and all it takes are eyes to see in order to appreciate how the synthetic constantly seeks to annihilate the natural. We are embroiled in a war: a battle to reconcile the heart and the mind, and only those who are willing to fight can discover a unity of heart and mind.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 25, 2013 15:14:39 GMT -6
Ah, I understand. It's like you said, if someone hasn't been through it, they wouldn't understand. I've tried explaining it to my sister since then and she still doesn't understand. It amazes me that someone who follows a "spiritual" path (my sister) doesn't understand it at all. I bought her the book, "Bury my heart at Wounded Knee" last year. ~~She's began to have an interest in Native American history, but doesn't like to talk about the horrible massacres that happened.~~ That's one of the ironies of this life, wishmythos: those who say they are wise aren't, and those who think they know have learned absolutely nothing. We are meant to learn and grow organically in the rays of the Sun under the vault of the clouds and the stars. Some of our ancestors understood this, and they didn't require a book to know. We are a curious blend of two worlds: the natural and the synthetic, and all it takes are eyes to see in order to appreciate how the synthetic constantly seeks to annihilate the natural. We are embroiled in a war: a battle to reconcile the heart and the mind, and only those who are willing to fight can discover a unity of heart and mind. I emphasized in this quote about the part of Native American history that I am very uncomfortable with. I don't even know how to begin to apologize for my previous comments on this thread, and I am still very afraid that I will come across poorly. If this thread was intended to bring thoughts on the atrocities against our Native People, then I can not participate, and I feel that should be spoken as the intention if it is. To clarify part of my statements, if it is possible. I was born in Kansas and raised and always lived in Missouri, USA. Kansas is a very flat, plains like atmosphere across most of the state, and someone driving across it on the main thoroughfare from Mo. to Colorado could easily call it "boring", if they have done it 10 times. It is still beautiful country, and if there were herds of buffalo, and the occasional mustangs, it would be all the better. Kansas is a great place for farming and laying in the tall grass just looking at the clouds, among other things. Kansas also has intricate creek beds, and lone places to discover, but nothing like Missouri. Kansas City, Mo., where I live, is basically on the border of Mo. and Kansas, and is the "busier" of the twin cities, Kansas City, Mo. and Kansas City, Ks.. I digress. Southeast Missouri has a portion of the Trail of Tears. Throughout my life I have met and been accepted by many Native Peoples, though I am a "white woman". Just this past Friday in a doctor's office with my daughter, an Indian woman who hailed from Oklahoma wished to speak with me about her history. I knew she was "Indian" the moment she confronted me, but she also wanted me to know that she was considered African-American; I don't know why. Anyway, she asked me where (Tribe) I came from, and I had to admit I was unsure. She chastised me for this, but what can I do? My very white daughter and traditional-Swedish-looking former spouse were witness to this nice, but awkward conversation. I will put this as simple as I can. As far as I can tell, I would have never made it on the Trail of Tears. I know I would have caused myself to be shot, or hung, or killed in some fashion. Or I would have starved to death or been near exhaustion, to where when I collapsed "they" would have killed me instead of leaving me behind. I can in no way fathom what it took for my People to decide that life was worth living, that somehow this Trail would give life to future generations. _______________________________________________________________________________________________- Thank You, auntym, for another article that includes "the ways". . . from another thread: thebiggeststudy.blogspot.com/2013/08/ha-a-ho-o-ho-o-sasquatch-for-youll.html The Big Study Tuesday, August 20, 2013 HA-A-A!!! HO-O!! HO-O!! { Sasquatch for: You'll Never Track Me to my Home Sweet Home!!}. Posted by The Professor Read more: theedgeofreality.proboards.com/thread/14/bigfoot?page=9#ixzz2d0z9TBFPThis is the kind of "Native History" that keeps me going. . . .
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Post by skywalker on Aug 25, 2013 20:43:39 GMT -6
This thread is about all aspects of native American history, both good and bad. Nobody should be afraid to participate in it.
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Post by bewildered on Aug 26, 2013 22:39:59 GMT -6
Sky stated it clearly enough, but I should point out that no meaningful discussion regarding Native Americans in history is complete or honest without exploring the atrocities committed against the individual tribes and entire nations in the Western hemisphere. It is a prominent part of our history, and to ignore it is to re-write history itself. You of course may choose to avoid reading posts or participating in discussions that you don't like, jcurio.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2013 18:34:04 GMT -6
I think the ways of the Native Peoples are meaningful all on their own. However, I understand your point when you use the word "history". I understand, and thanks.
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Post by bewildered on Aug 28, 2013 11:53:49 GMT -6
I also don't think that you owe any apologies, jcurio. As I might have stated in a previous post, no one alive today is responsible for the mistreatment of the original dwellers of this continent. Learning of the atrocities is not a pleasant experience, but if we walk away feeling guilt over what was done, I feel that we are not learning the lesson our history presents to us. What can we possibly do with that guilt? What purpose does it serve? Guilt over the sorrowful tale of the original Americans is qualitatively no different than denial of the decimation of their peoples.
When we open our eyes and see something, we are irrevocably changed by it. Anger - regardless of the motive that falls prey to it - achieves nothing. That is where I erred in this thread, and it's something that I want to avoid in the future. Our European ancestors were saddled with ethnocentrism - the belief that their way of life was superior to all others - and it was this that led to the senseless and barbaric death of thousands on the Trail of Tears. Despite the conventions of their day, some of their descendants - American settlers by that point in time - did whatever they could to help a band of the Tsalagi (Cherokee) escape the state and federal militias deployed by President Andrew Jackson. They sheltered this group and allowed them to escape into the mountainous foothills. Even in the face of such a horrible tragedy, a glimmer of hope can be seen.
If those who died on the long march at gunpoint to the reservations out West were standing before us now, I think I know what they would tell us. The land belongs to no one: not the Tsalagi nor the white man. We do not own the land, but the land owns us. The earth beneath our feet is our mother, and the sky above is our father. This makes us one family, and when the rivers run red with the blood of any of their children, the land and the sky weep. There was room for us alongside the Cherokee, and the ones who remained until the soldiers came didn't understand why they had to leave. Was there not plenty for all?
If we are to learn anything from their death, it is this: never let something like that happen again.
We really are one family, and that's something science tells us as well. The only race is the human race, and our differences are only skin-deep.
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Post by skywalker on Aug 28, 2013 14:55:14 GMT -6
I also don't think that you owe any apologies, jcurio. As I might have stated in a previous post, no one alive today is responsible for the mistreatment of the original dwellers of this continent. Learning of the atrocities is not a pleasant experience, but if we walk away feeling guilt over what was done, I feel that we are not learning the lesson our history presents to us. What can we possibly do with that guilt? What purpose does it serve? Guilt over the sorrowful tale of the original Americans is qualitatively no different than denial of the decimation of their peoples. When we open our eyes and see something, we are irrevocably changed by it. Anger - regardless of the motive that falls prey to it - achieves nothing. That is where I erred in this thread, and it's something that I want to avoid in the future. Our European ancestors were saddled with ethnocentrism - the belief that their way of life was superior to all others - and it was this that led to the senseless and barbaric death of thousands on the Trail of Tears. Despite the conventions of their day, some of their descendants - American settlers by that point in time - did whatever they could to help a band of the Tsalagi (Cherokee) escape the state and federal militias deployed by President Andrew Jackson. They sheltered this group and allowed them to escape into the mountainous foothills. Even in the face of such a horrible tragedy, a glimmer of hope can be seen. If those who died on the long march at gunpoint to the reservations out West were standing before us now, I think I know what they would tell us. The land belongs to no one: not the Tsalagi nor the white man. We do not own the land, but the land owns us. The earth beneath our feet is our mother, and the sky above is our father. This makes us one family, and when the rivers run red with the blood of any of their children, the land and the sky weep. There was room for us alongside the Cherokee, and the ones who remained until the soldiers came didn't understand why they had to leave. Was there not plenty for all? If we are to learn anything from their death, it is this: never let something like that happen again. We really are one family, and that's something science tells us as well. The only race is the human race, and our differences are only skin-deep. That is an excellent post, BW. You are a very gifted writer and you have a wonderful ability to influence people's ideas and beliefs with your words. This is what I wish you would have done when randy was still here. You might have opened a lot of people's minds.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 28, 2013 17:10:41 GMT -6
Despite the conventions of their day, some of their descendants - American settlers by that point in time - did whatever they could to help a band of the Tsalagi (Cherokee) escape the state and federal militias deployed by President Andrew Jackson. They sheltered this group and allowed them to escape into the mountainous foothills. Even in the face of such a horrible tragedy, a glimmer of hope can be seen. Thank You so much for this! I want more! Of course some managed to escape, but I have never heard of the "white man" hiding them. As for "guilt", it's more of a great sadness. It was so mindless and it didn't have to happen. If there are souls walking among us here, that usually are not seen, but sometimes heard, they are whispering in our ears to "listen". Listen to the Bird. Listen to the Creek flowing over Rocks. Listen to the Wind rattling your window, instead of hearing it move through a Gully. . . . . the "voices" are sad There is great pleasure in honoring the Great Spirit. I too, believe the Earth is our Mother; thus the symbolism that we (man) are born of dust, and to dust we someday return. I have had the gift of seeing Native Peoples happy, and productive in this season. Talking about the past brings in the sadness. It will not be forgotten
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Post by bewildered on Aug 29, 2013 8:28:05 GMT -6
We sometimes forget that our peculiar way of life hasn't been around very long. I changed my major to physical (biological) anthropology - it was the logical decision, really - and the more I ponder our history, the more I realize how new our mode of living really is. Modern humans like us have been around for approximately 80,000 years or so (we first appeared in Africa). For 65,000 of those years, we made and used stone, bone, and wooden tools. Agriculture starts appearing in isolated areas around the globe about 13,000 years ago. We find evidence of written language 4,500 years ago. We harnessed electricity as a power source a few hundred years ago. We split the atom about seventy years ago and escaped the orbit of this planet less than 60 years ago. ARPANET, the predecessor of the internet, came into being forty years ago...and personal computers hit the market when I was a pre-teen in the early 1980s. To couch this in a way that better demonstrates what I mean, our way of life has essentially existed for less than sixty years. While most scientists agree that humans have existed in North America for at least 13,000 years, there's evidence that pushes that time back to 20,000 years or more. The original Americans lived here for 12,400 years before our European ancestors arrived from across the sea. They were here on the cusp of the agricultural revolution before written language, before advanced metallurgy, and before steam or electrical power. They built tremendous enigmatic mounds out of earth, constructed pyramids of stone, domesticated corn, and crafted one of the world's most unique calendars. They possessed an advanced understanding of astronomy and engineering. They existed for 12,800 years without many of the things that we take for granted. That's nothing compared to the ones who existed before the first Americans arrived here. How about this: humans and our human-like ancestors were making the hand axe for at least 800,000 years before the invention of stainless steel. Here's an image of the venerable, trusty hand axe: If you think something like that hand axe is simple to make, you're sadly mistaken! A great deal of skill and an intimate understanding of stone is required to make a stone tool like that. I'm what you might call a neophyte stone knapper, and the best thing I can make right now is a rock with a sharp edge. It's very difficult.
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Post by bewildered on Aug 29, 2013 13:50:28 GMT -6
The Mound BuildersOne of the most fascinating features of prehistoric America are the tremendous mound structures scattered across the northern portion of the continent. When they were first discovered, it was believed that people other than Native Americans built them. Over time, this ethnocentric bias - the persistent belief that Native Americans were too "primitive" to do such things - crumbled under the weight of scientific analysis and archaeological evidence. The mounds are essentially earthen pyramidal structures with a flat summit. Their size and scope are breathtaking to say the least, and are quite an achievement to complete. It is now known that Native American people did in fact build these mounds, and continuing archaeological investigation is revealing much, much more about the ancient humans who made them. I'll post snippets from an excellent Wikipedia article I found about the mound-builders, and a link so you can view the article for yourself. A great deal of myth, legend, and folklore - most of it decidedly non-Native American in origin - surrounds these structures, and it can be difficult to tell the difference between fact or fiction. I was pleased to note the lack of such things in this Wiki article, and the sources they use appear to be academic and peer-reviewed (which is definitely a good thing). In keeping with solid academic writing, the article also delves into the myths and conspiracies about the mounds and those who made them, so you can place things in the proper historical context. Is there really anything "wrong" with those alternative explanations? No, not at all. They represent the best efforts of people at the time to explain some very mysterious colossal structures. What we know now is merely the accumulation of the work of numerous archaeologists over time, and I imagine that as time continues to pass by, we'll learn even more, thereby making current hypotheses about the mound builders outdated. The Watson Brake mounds are some of the oldest man-made structures in North America, dated to approximately 5,400 years ago. From the article: "The discovery and dating of Watson Brake as a Middle Archaic site demonstrate that the pre-agricultural, pre-ceramic, indigenous cultures within the territory of the present-day United States were much more complex than previously thought. While primarily hunter-gatherers, they were able to plan and organize large work forces over centuries to accomplish the complex mound and ridge constructions. Monumental constructions has marked the rise of social complexity world-wide. The earthen mounds of Eastern North America are linked to mankind's monument tradition." Read more at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watson_BrakeAbout the mounds and the mound-builders themselves: "The varying cultures collectively called Mound Builders were Pre-Columbian inhabitants of North America who, during a 5,000-year period, constructed various styles of earthen mounds for religious and ceremonial, burial, and elite residential purposes. These included the Pre-Columbian cultures of the Archaic period; Woodland period (Adena and Hopewell cultures); and Mississippian period; dating from roughly 3400 BCE to the 16th century CE, and living in regions of the Great Lakes, the Ohio River valley, and the Mississippi River valley and its tributaries. Beginning with the construction of Watson Brake about 3400 BCE in present-day Louisiana, nomadic indigenous peoples started building earthwork mounds in North America nearly 1000 years before the pyramids were constructed in Egypt."..."At one time, the term "mound builder" was applied to the people believed to have constructed these earthworks. In the 16th–19th centuries, Europeans and Americans generally thought that a people other than one related to the historic Native Americans had built the mounds.The namesake cultural trait of the mound builders was the building of mounds and other earthworks. These burial and ceremonial structures were typically flat-topped pyramids or platform mounds, flat-topped or rounded cones, elongated ridges, and sometimes a variety of other forms. They were generally built as part of complex villages that arose from more dense populations, with a specialization of skills and knowledge. The early earthworks built in Louisiana c. 3400 BCE are the only ones known to be built by a hunter-gatherer culture.The best-known flat-topped pyramidal structure, which at over 100 feet (30 m) tall is the largest pre-Columbian earthwork north of Mexico, is Monks Mound at Cahokia Indian Mounds in present-day Collinsville, Illinois. At its peak about 1150 CE, Cahokia was an urban settlement with 20,000-30,000 people; this population was not exceeded by North American European settlements until after 1800.Some effigy mounds were constructed in the shapes or outlines of culturally significant animals. The most famous effigy mound, Serpent Mound in southern Ohio, is 5 feet (1.5 m) tall, 20 feet (6 m) wide, over 1,330 feet (405 m) long, and shaped as an undulating serpent.Many different tribal groups and chiefdoms, involving an array of beliefs and unique cultures over thousands of years, built mounds as expressions of their cultures. The general term, "mound builder," covered their shared architectural practice of earthwork mound construction. This practice, believed to be associated with a cosmology that had a cross-cultural appeal, may indicate common cultural antecedents. The first mound building was an early marker of political and social complexity among the cultures in the Eastern United States. Watson Brake in Louisiana, constructed about 3500 BCE during the Middle Archaic period, is the oldest dated mound complex in North America and the present-day United States. It is one of eleven mound complexes from this period found in the Lower Mississippi Valley."A link to the mound-builder article: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mound_builder_(people)[/font]
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Post by skywalker on Aug 29, 2013 16:55:42 GMT -6
I've visited many of the mound-building sites across the country. They have them scattered all over the eastern part of the US from Florida to Ohio and Texas to Wisconsin. Most of them are in low lying areas close to rivers and wetlands. The Ohioans were one of the largest and most advanced cultures in North America. Personally I think they built the mounds to stay above the water when the rivers flooded which they do every spring. That's just my opinion though.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 30, 2013 5:41:32 GMT -6
The Mound BuildersOne of the most fascinating features of prehistoric America are the tremendous mound structures scattered across the northern portion of the continent. When they were first discovered, it was believed that people other than Native Americans built them. Over time, this ethnocentric bias - the persistent belief that Native Americans were too "primitive" to do such things - crumbled under the weight of scientific analysis and archaeological evidence. The mounds are essentially earthen pyramidal structures with a flat summit. Their size and scope are breathtaking to say the least, and are quite an achievement to complete. It is now known that Native American people did in fact build these mounds, and continuing archaeological investigation is revealing much, much more about the ancient humans who made them. I'll post snippets from an excellent Wikipedia article I found about the mound-builders, and a link so you can view the article for yourself. A great deal of myth, legend, and folklore - most of it decidedly non-Native American in origin - surrounds these structures, and it can be difficult to tell the difference between fact or fiction. I was pleased to note the lack of such things in this Wiki article, and the sources they use appear to be academic and peer-reviewed (which is definitely a good thing). In keeping with solid academic writing, the article also delves into the myths and conspiracies about the mounds and those who made them, so you can place things in the proper historical context. Is there really anything "wrong" with those alternative explanations? No, not at all. They represent the best efforts of people at the time to explain some very mysterious colossal structures. What we know now is merely the accumulation of the work of numerous archaeologists over time, and I imagine that as time continues to pass by, we'll learn even more, thereby making current hypotheses about the mound builders outdated. The Watson Brake mounds are some of the oldest man-made structures in North America, dated to approximately 5,400 years ago. From the article: "The discovery and dating of Watson Brake as a Middle Archaic site demonstrate that the pre-agricultural, pre-ceramic, indigenous cultures within the territory of the present-day United States were much more complex than previously thought. While primarily hunter-gatherers, they were able to plan and organize large work forces over centuries to accomplish the complex mound and ridge constructions. Monumental constructions has marked the rise of social complexity world-wide. The earthen mounds of Eastern North America are linked to mankind's monument tradition." Read more at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watson_BrakeAbout the mounds and the mound-builders themselves: "The varying cultures collectively called Mound Builders were Pre-Columbian inhabitants of North America who, during a 5,000-year period, constructed various styles of earthen mounds for religious and ceremonial, burial, and elite residential purposes. These included the Pre-Columbian cultures of the Archaic period; Woodland period (Adena and Hopewell cultures); and Mississippian period; dating from roughly 3400 BCE to the 16th century CE, and living in regions of the Great Lakes, the Ohio River valley, and the Mississippi River valley and its tributaries. Beginning with the construction of Watson Brake about 3400 BCE in present-day Louisiana, nomadic indigenous peoples started building earthwork mounds in North America nearly 1000 years before the pyramids were constructed in Egypt."..."At one time, the term "mound builder" was applied to the people believed to have constructed these earthworks. In the 16th–19th centuries, Europeans and Americans generally thought that a people other than one related to the historic Native Americans had built the mounds.The namesake cultural trait of the mound builders was the building of mounds and other earthworks. These burial and ceremonial structures were typically flat-topped pyramids or platform mounds, flat-topped or rounded cones, elongated ridges, and sometimes a variety of other forms. They were generally built as part of complex villages that arose from more dense populations, with a specialization of skills and knowledge. The early earthworks built in Louisiana c. 3400 BCE are the only ones known to be built by a hunter-gatherer culture.The best-known flat-topped pyramidal structure, which at over 100 feet (30 m) tall is the largest pre-Columbian earthwork north of Mexico, is Monks Mound at Cahokia Indian Mounds in present-day Collinsville, Illinois. At its peak about 1150 CE, Cahokia was an urban settlement with 20,000-30,000 people; this population was not exceeded by North American European settlements until after 1800.Some effigy mounds were constructed in the shapes or outlines of culturally significant animals. The most famous effigy mound, Serpent Mound in southern Ohio, is 5 feet (1.5 m) tall, 20 feet (6 m) wide, over 1,330 feet (405 m) long, and shaped as an undulating serpent.Many different tribal groups and chiefdoms, involving an array of beliefs and unique cultures over thousands of years, built mounds as expressions of their cultures. The general term, "mound builder," covered their shared architectural practice of earthwork mound construction. This practice, believed to be associated with a cosmology that had a cross-cultural appeal, may indicate common cultural antecedents. The first mound building was an early marker of political and social complexity among the cultures in the Eastern United States. Watson Brake in Louisiana, constructed about 3500 BCE during the Middle Archaic period, is the oldest dated mound complex in North America and the present-day United States. It is one of eleven mound complexes from this period found in the Lower Mississippi Valley."A link to the mound-builder article: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mound_builder_(people) [/font][/quote] I live about 20 minutes from Collinsville. The Mounds are a favorite place to visit and was the first thing I saw when I first came to Illinois.
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Post by bewildered on Sept 2, 2013 23:21:21 GMT -6
I'll have plenty of opportunities to dive into dig sites next year, so I'm pretty excited by the prospect. While my primary interest lies in bones, artifacts are nevertheless fascinating. I prefer bones and human biology partially because it's more of an empirical endeavor - it more closely resembles "hard science" than the other fields of anthropology - and also because I seem to have a knack for pattern recognition. That helps when you are analyzing bones, and should be a tremendous boon should I decide to become involved in Forensic Anthropology. Think "Bones." The reality isn't as glamorous or hip - it's a television show, after all - but the science is the same. There's a wealth of ancient Native American artifacts and Ice Age-era animal remains scattered all over the region where I live - a nearly-intact mammoth skeleton was unearthed at a construction site a few years ago - so a number of private businesses as well as public domain outfits like universities and museums are needed to dig things up, figure them out, then commit them to collections and storage. If I'm lucky, I might be fortunate enough to slog through the mud and the dirt with a shovel and help extract them from the ground.
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Post by skywalker on Sept 5, 2013 19:09:13 GMT -6
Sounds like fun, BW. I didn't know you were studying anthropology. I took a few courses in it also although my major was actually history. I've always been fascinated by archaeology and paleontology. I've taken part in a few digs myself over the years and I really enjoyed it. It may not seem very glamorous but it is exciting to find things. You never know what's going to turn up.
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Post by lois on Nov 16, 2013 23:45:04 GMT -6
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Post by Deleted on May 21, 2014 22:01:18 GMT -6
Finally! I came across a very thick book on "sacred symbols" that I've had for a couple of years, and it has a section of about eighty pages on Native Americans (book is 791 pages total) ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ I thought of Skywalker when I read the following passage because I have never heard a "good" story about Sharks! " The Subarctic Tahltan tell the story of a fisherman's wife who accidently kills a killer whale. The other whales then pull her under the water and take her to be their slave. Only with the help of a shark is the fisherman able to rescue his wife."
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Post by auntym on Jul 16, 2017 16:30:35 GMT -6
www.history.com/news/history-lists/7-things-you-may-not-know-about-the-trail-of-tears?cmpid=TWITTER_TWITTER__20170716&linkId=39780970 At Least 3,000 Native Americans Died on the Trail of TearsAugust 12, 2016 By Elizabeth Nix / www.history.com/news/history-lists/author/elizabethnix
Andrew Jackson's Controversial Decisions Find out how Andrew Jackson's controversial Indian Removal Act paved the way for The Trail of Tears.In 1830, at President Andrew Jackson’s urging, Congress passed the Indian Removal Act in order to free up land for the nation’s expanding white population. The act granted the president the power to negotiate treaties with Native American tribes to relinquish their lands east of the Mississippi River in exchange for unsettled lands west of the river. While some Indians complied peacefully, the Cherokee, among other tribes, resisted. In 1838, U.S. troops rounded up the Cherokees from their traditional lands in the southern Appalachians, held them in camps then forced them to relocate to Indian Territory, in present-day Oklahoma. An estimated 15,000 to 16,000 Cherokee people made the grueling journey west, following one of several routes that collectively became known as the Trail of Tears. Along the way, some 3,000 to 4,000 of them died from disease, malnutrition and exposure. Check out seven facts about this infamous chapter in American history. Davy Crockett objected to Indian removal.Frontiersman Davy Crockett, whose grandparents were killed by Creeks and Cherokees, was a scout for Andrew Jackson during the Creek War (1813-14). However, while serving as a U.S. congressman from Tennessee, Crockett broke with President Jackson over the Indian Removal Act, calling it unjust. Despite warnings that his opposition to Indian removal would cost him his seat in Congress, where he’d served since 1827, Crockett said, “I would sooner be honestly and politically *bleep* than hypocritically immortalized.” The year after the act’s 1830 passage, Crockett lost his bid for reelection. After being voted back into office in 1833, he continued to express his opposition to Jackson’s policy and wrote that he would leave the U.S. for the “wildes of Texas” if Martin Van Buren, Jackson’s vice president, succeeded him in the White House. After Crockett was again defeated for reelection, in 1835, he did go to Texas, where he died fighting at the Alamo in March 1836. Renegade Cherokees signed a treaty selling all tribal lands.John Ross, who was of Scottish and Cherokee ancestry and became the tribe’s principal chief in 1828, was strongly opposed to giving up the Cherokees’ ancestral lands, as were the majority of the Cherokee people. However, a small group within the tribe believed it was inevitable that white settlers would keep encroaching on their lands and therefore the only way to preserve Cherokee culture and survive as a tribe was to move west. In 1835, while Ross was away, this minority faction signed a treaty at New Echota, the Cherokee Nation capital (located in Georgia), agreeing to sell the U.S. government all tribal lands in the East in exchange for $5 million and new land in the West. As part of the agreement, the government was supposed help cover the Cherokees’ moving costs and pay to support them during their first year in Indian Territory. When Ross found out about the treaty, he argued it had been made illegally. Nevertheless, in 1836 it was ratified by a single vote in the U.S. Senate and signed by President Jackson. The treaty gave the Cherokees two years to vacate their lands. In June 1839, after the Cherokees had been forced to relocate to Indian Territory, several leaders of the so-called Treaty Party, who’d advocated for the New Echota agreement, were assassinated by tribe members who’d opposed removal to the west. Martin Van Buren ordered the roundup of the Cherokees.During his two terms in the White House, from 1829 to 1837, Andrew Jackson was responsible for putting Indian removal policies in place; however, he left office before the 1838 deadline for the Cherokees to surrender their lands in the East. It was Jackson’s presidential successor, Martin Van Buren, who ordered General Winfield Scott to forcibly evict the Cherokees. Scott’s troops rounded up thousands of Cherokees and then imprisoned them in forts in Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina and Alabama. During these roundups, the Indians weren’t given time to pack and family members, including children, sometimes got left behind if they weren’t home when the soldiers showed up. The Indians were transferred from the forts to detention camps, most of them in Tennessee, to await deportation. At both the forts and camps, living conditions were bleak and diseases rampant, and an unknown number of Cherokees died. CONTINUE READING: www.history.com/news/history-lists/7-things-you-may-not-know-about-the-trail-of-tears?cmpid=TWITTER_TWITTER__20170716&linkId=39780970
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