How Odjiig’s Hunting Prowess gave summer season to the Anishinaabe

Staff Writer


Table of Contents

In Anishinaabe’s cosmology, legend has it that Odjiig, a hunter disguised as a fisher ascended to the sphere of Sky Fathers and gave his life to reclaim Niibin, the summer season from Kababoonka. In this writing, we will give a narration of this ancient Anishinaabe mythology.

Who are the Anishinaabe?

For clarity’s sake, we would like to explain the difference between ‘Anishinaabe’ and ‘Anishinaabeg’. ‘Anishinaabe’ is used to describe the people while ‘Anishinaabeg’, which is the plural form, is used to indicate membership and belonging to that group. The term ‘Anishinaabe’ describes linguistically and culturally related indigenous peoples residing in today’s United States and Canada. [i] They have for the past 1000 years lived in the North American Great Lakes area and the Canadian Shield. Memberships to this cultural group include the Ojibwe, the Odawa, Potawatomi, Saulteaux, Oji-Cree and Algonquin peoples. [ii]  

The belief systems of the Anishinaabe are clearly celestial; they are heavy believers in the heavenly bodies like the stars or Anangan in the Anishinaabe language. According to Lawrence William Gross:

In Anishinaabe cosmology, the celestial bodies of the upper sky are associated with physical and symbolic light, enlightenment, and wisdom. It is in the upper sky vault, too, that the Land of Peace is situated. It is a land of happiness reached within four days by the spirits of the deceased that travel djiibe-miikana, the trail of souls. A dazzling blue light in the northern skies the Anishinaabeg sometimes see at night illuminates this trail: the waasnode, or northern lights. The three principal stars are Ningaabi-Anang (the Evening Star of the west), Waaban-anang (the Morning Star of the east), and Odjiig-anang (the Fisher Star, or the constellation of the Big and Little Dipper). [iii]

We shall briefly examine these three main stars guiding the Anishinaabe.

Ningaabi-anang – The Evening Star of the West

Ningaabi-anang is not only regarded as the Evening Star of the west but also called “Star Sinking in Waters” or “Women’s Star”. The Ningaabi-anang is considered a powerful medicine man residing in the realm of Epangishimaag (the West) and the patron of all women and former tutor of the younger Waaban (Dawn). Regarded as sage and virtuous, he teaches healing, patience, and the need for self-restraint.   

Waaban-anang is not only known as the Morning Star but also has similar capabilities to Ningaabi-anang, as a powerful medicine man of the eastern skies who embodies youthfulness and knowledge. These qualities put him in eternal rivalry with his former teacher, the Evening Star. Such intense and unending rivalries between the two typify the perpetual conflicts and contrasts within human society.  

Odjiig-anang – The Fisher Star

Odjiig-anang is described as the constellation of many bright stars resembling an odjiig (which is a fisher), with an arrow sticking in its tail called Big and Little Dipper, or Bear by the Euro-Americans. A point to reckon here is that Odjiig is further described as a weasel. Perhaps, in the sense of a flurry mammal or a sneaky or sly person. But it may be for the former, hence Odjiig is considered an expert and lively hunter of the Northwoods, who represents the doodem of hunters among many bands of Anishinaabeg from the Great Lakes area.                                                                                                  

Reclaiming Summer from Kababoonka

According to Anishinaabe’s mythology, several moons ago the fearless Kababoonka covered the earth with snow and ice all year round, then the hunter, Odjiig took on the shape of the fisher and assisted by the wolverine, went up to the sphere of the Sky Fathers and wanted to take away summer. In his tussle to open the baskets filled with summer birds and fowls and set them free and allow warmth to descend to the cold earth, the heavenly bodies gave him some injuries with their magic arrows.  

As a result, while bearing the shape of a fisher, Odjiig died from loss of blood. However, his death was not in vain, because that brought completion to the sky organizations. His death brought the summer season and thanks to him, the Anishinaabe could enjoy eight to ten moons without snow.

There is something special about the Anishinaabe’s cosmology. It is sacrificial like most primitive (by 'primitive' here, I meant something that is 'primordial') religions. A divinity sacrificing their lives so that humanity could live or enjoy the good life or a less harsh environment, or climate is found even in Christianity. In fact, it could be said that such sacrifice made by Odjiig is the basic teaching found in Bimaadiziwin. That is, the people should live to gain good fortune, health, and peace in this world and inherit the Land of Peace in the next. Therefore, every Anishinaabe is called to lead a good way of life which can be achieved through personal efforts or the help of medicine persons, grand-fathers or spirit-helpers. [iv]  

Further, the teachings of Midewiwin (that is, the Society of Medicine and Ethics) encourage each person to follow a path and this path is called ‘The True Path of Life’. Arguably, the path is strewn with thorns, and with natural twists and turns which are described as traveling over four hills: infancy, youth, adulthood, and old age. Thus, for anyone to depart from this true path of life and not come back is considered dead, hence, the need for help through prayers and vigil for guidance and constant examination of one’s life.  

The origin and development of the Anishinaabe’s world came from the skies and back onto it they shall return when their life on earth is complete. Accordingly, there is a constant battle waging between the Evening star of the west and the Morning star of the east. Such unending rivalry brings equilibrium to their world. The Anishinaabe’s traditional belief encourages the people to follow ‘The True Path of Life’ which requires serious personal efforts but can be assisted through petitions to medicine persons, grand-fathers, or spirit-helpers.

[i] Dakota & Anishinaabe Peoples: History, Culture & Daily Life. In Study.com. https://study.com/academy/lesson/dakota-anishinaabe-peoples-history-culture-daily-life.html - accessed 03 April 2021.

[ii] Who are the Anishinaabe People? In World Atlas. https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/who-are-the-anishinaabe-people.html - accessed 05 April 2021.

[iii] Gross. L.W. The Cosmic Vision of Anishinaabe Culture and Religion. The American Indian Quarterly. Vol. 26(3). December 23, 2002.

[iv] Raza. M. The Anishinaabe. 20 December 2012. Prezi Inc., https://prezi.com/favhzxslu57d/the-anishinaabe/ - accessed 05 April 2021.

  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Connection between a Personal Name and Name Groups in Shawnee Social Organisation

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Shawnee People The Divisions The Name Groups and Personal Names I’m always attracted to and interested in the culturally distinct and characteristic elements of different traditions or societies. Reading about the Shawnee people of Native American tribes is no different. I immediately fell in love with the linkage between Shawnee name groups and personal names. The name groups seem to present the Shawnee as a one-descent group with five major divisions. To examine this connection between a personal name and name group, a brief description of Shawnee will help in understanding the Shawnee social organisation. Shawnee People The term ‘Shawnee’ written in different forms ( Shaawanwaki, Shaawanowi lenaweeki, and Shawano ) is Algonquian like the archaic term ‘ shaawanwa ’ meaning ‘south.’ Thus, the term ‘Shawnee’ is (pronounced shaw-nee ) meaning the ‘southern people.’ The Shawnees are categorised as Algonquian-speaking North American Indian people whose pristine ho
Continue reading »

Early Contacts between Christianity and Islam

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Early Contacts between Christianity and Islam Monk Bahira The Migration to Axum Kingdom Christianity and Islam have always been two noxious bedfellows and yet always proclaim and wish peace on earth. It would not be a crass assumption to state that the two religions have over the centuries crossed paths and re-crossed paths many times. Crossing paths might have been in their ideologies, conflicts, doctrinal interpretations and even sharing some physical spaces. Therefore, in this brief writing, we will explore the early contacts between Christianity and Islam and see how they have influenced each other. Early Contacts between Christianity and Islam The early contacts between Christianity and Islam were not short of frames.  According to Kaufman et al., “frames are cognitive shortcuts that people use to help make sense of complex information.” They are means of interpreting our world and perhaps, the world of other people around us.  Such interpretations helped them to
Continue reading »

The Akamba – Concept of the Supreme Being & Totems

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Supreme Being (Worships and Venerations) Mulungu   Mumbi  Mwatuangi  Ngai  Asa  Ancestors Totems Here is a brief account of the religious beliefs of the Akamba. Spanning through Central Bantu, the Akamba ethnic group is estimated to be about 4.4 million people and occupies Southeastern Kenya in areas, such as Kangundo, Kibwezi, Kitui, Machakos, Makueni and Mwingi Districts and the Ukamba. A swathe of the Akamba population can also be found in the Mazeras and Kwale Districts of the Coast Province in Shiba Hills. The Akamba languages are Kikamba and Swahili. Globally, the Akamba are not exclusively a Kenyan or African tribe. They can be found in Uganda, Tanzania, and Paraguay, which makes it partly an indigenous group and partly an autochthonal group. Argument from migration theory suggests that Akamba came from Kilimanjaro (a word that means ‘mountain of whiteness’), basing their arguments on the similarity of certain cultural features with the Wachagga people of Kili
Continue reading »

Begrudging & Infightings: Aztec’s Theogony & Cosmogony

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Tezcatlipoca Quetzalcoatl Tlaloc Chalchiuhtlicue Nanauatzin Cosmic Order – The Balance Aztec is a name used to describe the Nahuatl-speaking people who thrived in central Mexico circa the 14 th  and 16 th  centuries as an empire and dominated large parts of Mesoamerica. Variously, the Aztecs had different names. They are known as Aztlan (which means ‘White Land’), the Tenochca (a name adopted from one of their ancestors called Tenoch), and the Mexica, which was a derivative from Metzliapan (which stands for ‘Moon Lake’). Ancient Aztec religious beliefs and practices were tied to their understanding of the world; the people were deeply amazed by the thought of the unknown, the universe and the end of time. These thoughts arouse some curiosity and awareness to understand better their world and how it came about. I used the term ‘theogony’ to describe the Aztecs’ generations of gods however, not in the context of Greek mythology where the ‘primordial deities’ were the fi
Continue reading »

President Biden’s Age is now the problem! Where’s the ADA?

Staff Writer
After the first US presidential debate, and the slow start of the incumbent, President Joe Biden, the democrats lost their minds. The democrats started to play with the acronym “SCAMPER.” They wanted a ‘substitute.’ They felt like ‘combining’ forces. They sort to make some ‘adaptations’ in their campaign strategy. They ‘modify’ the President’s schedules and so on. They wanted to ‘put into another use’ some tactics and styles. They outrightly wanted to ‘eliminate’ the President’s candidacy in the bid to ‘rearrange’ the campaign strategy to win the election come November 2024. Are you sure about that? Why all these jostles, sniffing and gossips? His crime is that he is 81 years old. They fear that he will lose them the presidency to an opponent whom the law has christened felon, the supreme court anointed a king through their presidential immunity verdict, and most Americans consider a venal potentate should he be re-elected as the president. I believe the people who criticize Mr. Bi
Continue reading »

The creator god, Tirawa - the Pawnee of the Native American Tribe

Staff Writer
Table of Contents The Pawnee The Holy Corn Tirawa and the Stars Culture of the Stars The religious beliefs of the Pawnee Native American tribe stand out as practices that are primarily Astro-theological and astronomical. As such they use or interpret the laws or culture of the stars to determine when it was safe to plant corn. Accurate calculation of these laws or cultures means a better harvest for the people. They were possible because Tirawa was their causer, teacher, and sustainer.   Corn is an essential crop that is not only a means of subsistence living for the Pawnee, but it is also a symbolic mother through her, and with her, the sun goddess, Shakuru blesses the people. The Pawnee The Pawnee are a North American Indian tribe who originally lived in Nebraska and northern Kansas before finally settling in today’s Oklahoma. Linguistically, they belong to the Caddoan family and call themselves the Chatiks si chatiks , meaning “Men of Men.” As with many Native American India
Continue reading »

Nigeria’s Pledge Vs the President’s Mandate: An Antithesis of Patriotism

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Nigeria’s Pledge The President’s Mandate Loyalty to the President or the Constitution? In recent years, the Nigerian polity has been bedeviled by one general term, ‘mandate.’ As years passed, the term mandate gained more ground and replaced the allegiance or any public or private declaration of loyalty to Nigeria, as a country. The contract the people signed with the country was gradually torn into bits by the politicians (or leaders) and by extension, the citizens, (and foreigners living in Nigeria). The current political and economic climate of Nigeria is the main reason for this article. The people have openly rejected Nigeria’s Pledge and have taken recourse to different political mandates of some politicians. The aim here is to bring to the fore the salient points of Nigeria’s Pledge against the mandate of the president. Nigeria’s Pledge The clear and concise words of Professor Felicia Adebola Adedoyin in 1976 describing the terms of the Nigerian oath of
Continue reading »

The Gi-ant of Africa and the goddess, Nemesis

Staff Writer
Image
Overview Nigeria is popularly known as the giant of Africa perhaps because of its population estimated at over 250 million people. It is a country with the largest concentration of black people in the entire world. In her halcyon days, the oil boom of the 1970s, with an unparallel rapid revenue expansion, peace and happiness, Nigeria began to enjoy the reputation as epitomized in the statement by the erstwhile Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon: “Money is not Nigeria’s problem. But how to spend it.” Such a statement was reflected in their leaders’ behaviours and thinking. From the 1970s to 2024, Nigeria’s leaders have not shifted from such mindsets. Both her military and civilian leaders continue to entertain careless, unaccountable, and foolish behaviours that brought a jinx upon the nation. The oil boom became a curse to the people by the Nigerian goddess called Gi-ant .   Gi-ant stands for “government issues – accountability, nepotism, thievery.” These are the three manifes
Continue reading »

The Weyekin in Nez Percé Tribe and Catholic Angels

Staff Writer
Table of Contents The Nez Percé People Catholic Teachings on Angels The Spirit, Weyekin in Nez Percé Tribe This writing is to briefly identify and recognize some cultural values of the Nez Percé tribe, especially their belief in Weyekin, often described as a personal guiding angel. The concept of a guiding angel provokes Catholic teachings about angels and comparison with the Nez Percé Weyekin, as the guiding spirit. But that will be a new piece of writing for the future. There can be a cross-cultural gleaning of ideas from nature, beliefs, and interactions.     The Nez Percé People The term Nez Percé, meaning “pierced nose” is the French coinage to describe the Nimiipuu tribe. The term Nimiipuu, meaning “we, the people” is a name the tribe used for themselves and their language, a part of the Sahaptin family. Early contacts with the Europeans, especially French explorers made the name Nez Percé popular because they unfairly adopted the name Nez Percé and used it for the Nimiipuu and n
Continue reading »

The Conflict between the Deities (Igwe and Amadioha) in Igbo Mythology over a Heat Wave

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Introduction The Deity – Igwe The Deity – Amadioha The Conflict between Igwe and Amadioha Introduction The current heat wave reminds me of the conflict between two Igbo deities, namely: Igwe and Amadioha. Just as it was noted somewhere in this blog: Nigeria's Diversity and the South-East/South-South Peripheral Inclusions: Biafra's Raison d'etre , November 15, 2021, the Igbo people are the third-largest ethnic group who live in southeastern Nigeria. They have a very rich culture and tradition among which is their concept of God which varies from one community to another but essentially, they believe that the gods guide and control their life and affairs in many ways. The Igbo concept of God stems from the idea of a chief god who creates everything. This god is supreme. The Igbo variously call this god Olisa bu uwa (the god who carries the world), Olisa bini Igwe , (the god who lives in the sky), Chukwu (the great god), or Chineke (the god who creates
Continue reading »