Pangea's Garden » spirituality http://pangeasgarden.com The Sensual Retreat for the Earthbound Soul Tue, 07 Sep 2010 23:00:54 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 Considering the Sensual and Spiritual Side of Hunting http://pangeasgarden.com/makeda-musings/considering-the-sensual-and-spiritual-side-of-hunting/ http://pangeasgarden.com/makeda-musings/considering-the-sensual-and-spiritual-side-of-hunting/#comments Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:27:42 +0000 vincent http://pangeasgarden.com/?p=912 By Makeda Voletta

“Fecundity-defined as fruitful in offspring or vegetation- is generally interchangeable with fertility. It is used to illustrate those concepts that apply to the natural world beyond human societies. This is of course, an artificial distinction because indigenous peoples concerns with fertility were inextricably linked with the fecundity of the earth, plants ans animals. Many cultures perceived a connection between human sexuality and plant plant and animal fertility, and through sympathetic magic and rituals related to sex, they invoked supernatural power in guaranteeing fruitfulness of the earth.
Abundance of animals has been associated with human sexuality by hunting cultures around the world. In their myths, humanity often descended from animals, which are also the source of power and knowledge needed by humans to survive. These gifts from the animal ancestors were often granted by sexual means-giving the idea of the hunt as an identity as a form of sexual or mystical union. These notions may be expressed in the petrogylphs at Inscription Point, Arizona”
-Dennis Slifer in the book “Kokopelli: The Magic, Mirth and Mischief of an Ancient SymboLl”
I am a serious student of ancient, “traditional” and indigenous practices from all over the world but specifically those from Africa and the Americas (since that is most of my ancestory). While I do think it is very important to study the ways of your people and your ancestors, it is also important to look across the world and see things from a global view. There are too many people who claim to be interested in the ways of their ancestors but they do not take the time to look at the world through their eyes. They do not take the time to try to understand the deep meanings behind the things they did in order to live so harmoniously with the Earth. I do not believe that we are wiser or stronger than they our recent or ancient ancestors. Thus, I think we can learn a lot from studying their ways and that includes nutrition.
The fact is, there is no history of any VEGAN population anywhere in the history of civilizations until very recently. All indigenous people hunted. Hunting was considered a from of shamanism. There was ritual before they hunted and afterward. They understood that they were taking a life and they did so with respect. They only killed animals as they needed them and they used the entire animal. The same is true when they took the life of trees and plants. Both animals and plants were recognized as having life force energy. When they picked healing herbs or plants for food they always did so with respect. They asked permission first, they sang songs, played music and left offerings.
Drums are found in every corner of the Earth and all of them are made from skin from the animal Queendom and wood from the plant Queendom. The drums call the spirits and they have animal skin. Indigenous people would not have killed an animal just to make a drum, nor would they have cut down a tree just to make a drum. If you think about it, you will realize that it takes a high level of intelligence to find a use for every single part of the animal.
Thus, if we want to learn the old ways of our ancestors, the ways that worked, then we must begin to try to understand. We must learn to shape-shift and learn from nature. Truly. Many people just take bits and pieces of the picture and try to create a collage…which is cool but not if you are trying to get a sharp image of one situation. If hunting was not spiritual then why are there Gods and Goddesses in every culture who hunt? And why would our recent and ancient ancestors (all over the world) hunt for hundreds of thousands of years. Were they evil bad people because they hunted? Have we figured out something new that they did not know in terms of diet, health and ways of life? If so, then why are we not as strong or amazing as them?
There are many Goddesses (and Gods) associated with hunting. Thus, if there was not a spiritual component of hunting then why do we find it in the realm of the spirits, Goddesses and Gods? It is known that spirituality and sexuality are one in the same…two aspects of the same continuum.
It should also be known that vulva petroglyphs are scattered around North Africa; at Taouz and Adar Metgourine in Morcocco, They are outlined with layers of curved lines. A rock wall at Tiout in the Algerian Sahara shows a woman lifting her arms in ceremonial stance; a line drawn from her vulva to a hunter raising a bow & arrow.
Just ponder on that for a second…with an open mind and critical thinking skills.

“Fecundity-defined as fruitful in offspring or vegetation- is generally interchangeable with fertility. It is used to illustrate those concepts that apply to the natural world beyond human societies. This is of course, an artificial distinction because indigenous peoples concerns with fertility were inextricably linked with the fecundity of the earth, plants ans animals. Many cultures perceived a connection between human sexuality and plant plant and animal fertility, and through sympathetic magic and rituals related to sex, they invoked supernatural power in guaranteeing fruitfulness of the earth.

Abundance of animals has been associated with human sexuality by hunting cultures around the world. In their myths, humanity often descended from animals, which are also the source of power and knowledge needed by humans to survive. These gifts from the animal ancestors were often granted by sexual means-giving the idea of the hunt as an identity as a form of sexual or mystical union. These notions may be expressed in the petrogylphs at Inscription Point, Arizona”

-Dennis Slifer in the book “Kokopelli: The Magic, Mirth and Mischief of an Ancient SymboLl“

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