The Vows we Apache Share... proof we are not so different

There are a lot of misconception about we Native Americans, our lives or traditions our beliefs..
well to show that we are not so different after all let me share the vow the blessing bestowed on our wedding day

Now you will feel no rain,
for each of you will be shelter for the other.
Now you will feel no cold,
for each of you will be warmth to the other.
Now there will be no loneliness,
for each of you will be companion to the other.
Now you are two persons,
but there is only one life before you.
May beauty surround you both in the
journey ahead and through all the years,
May happiness be your companion and
your days together be good and long upon the earth.

Treat yourselves and each other with respect, and
remind yourselves often of what brought you together.
Give the highest priority to the tenderness,
gentleness and kindness that your connection deserves.
When frustration, difficulties and fear assail your relationship,
as they threaten all relationships at one time or another,
remember to focus on what is right between you,
not only the part which seems wrong.
In this way, you can ride out the storms when
clouds hide the face of the sun in your lives - remembering that
even if you lose sight of it for a moment, the sun is still there.
And if each of you takes responsibility for the quality of your
life together, it will be marked by abundance and delight

I always had respect for the ideas of native Americans, even if they might have been behind in technology back in the days, spiritually they we're way more advanced then Europeans. I always feel sad about what happen to them and it gives me chills about us exploring the universe.
What's stopping us to do the same to aliens on an other planet that are less advanced technologically then us?

Respect for nature is something to be proud of.

"All things share the same breath - the beast, the tree,
the man, the air shares its spirit with all the life it supports."

reply to post by DaddyBare
I would be interested in any other little tidbits of lore, if you were willing to share.
A pagan and a heathen are two different things.
Pagans have their own, homegrown religion.
Heathen have no religious reverence for God.
The Native Americans were mislabelled by people who wanted to make war on them to steal their land and resources.
I agree with the above poster, that they were spiritually more advanced, since the Europeans had been locked into a system that substituted for true spirituality.

reply to post by jmdewey60


I am no expert on Native religions... I would be very wary of anyone on the Internet who claims to be... but there are a few books I like on the subject written by people better versed on the subject than I

God is Red: A Native View of Religion: Book by respected Lakota author Vine Deloria, Jr. comparing Christianity and native religions. It's a controversial book, requires critical thinking skills. I recommend it for adult readers.

Encyclopedia of Native American Religions: This is really the book you want if you're trying to write an essay about Native American beliefs, or just curious about world religions. Lots of accurate information here.

Native Religions and Cultures of North America: Collection of in-depth anthropological essays on a dozen different Native American religions.

The Sacred: An interesting book on Native American spirituality by three Indian women from different tribal traditions. South and Meso-American Native Spirituality: An overview of Indian religions in countries other than the US and Canada.

Native and Christian: A series of essays by Native American authors on their experiences blending Christianity and Indian spirituality.

American Indian Myths and Legends: Well-attributed collection of many diverse traditional stories of Native America. (Like any other body of mythology, some of the stories involve adultery, rape, or sexual situations, so be sensible about which ones you share with young children.)

I bet you can find these on Amazon or maybe your library can order them for you

reply to post by DaddyBare
I have this really huge book called The Mystic Warriors of the Plains.
I have read a lot of other books in the past, from the library, as you suggest.
I had to study the history of the local Indians when I was studying Archeology.
That was in California, and the story was the fertile land was cleared to make great Spanish land grants for raising cattle. As I have brought up in the Cryptozoology forum there was a vacuum after that era and before the American influx, where bigfoot took over certain parts that were previously inhabited by the Indians.
Thanks for the reading suggestion list and I will look into that.

reply to post by DaddyBare


I have never met a Native American who was not an honorable character, but I'm sure there are a few.. When I was young and stupid, I stood my ground against this one cat (Little Soldier...and he was anything but little, we all called him Bear) who was quite drunk at the time. He pummeled me and it only stopped when I put a barstool over his head, the metal kind, not Hollywood. I was scared that he would kill me.

I'm a small, but stout guy. My nickname was Troll, before it became a bad name on the interwebs.

However, afterwards, Little Soldier always had my back. Said that I was one of the few that wouldn't allow myself to be bullied. A good friend. And actually quite mellow once you got to know him.

He never did lick his alcohol problem and was killed by a hit and run on the back roads. I miss him.

reply to post by TDawgRex
Where I lived, the Indians had their own school for the lower grades. I was shocked when I was a high school freshmen when confronted by these towering (to me) Indians I had no clue about. Sadly, I think all the ones I knew met a similar demise (to the Bear in your story). I knew one girl in my classes who was phenomenal with her Indian crafts that was very surprising to me. I think she must have learned it from early childhood.

reply to post by jmdewey60


As a heathen I have reverence for Gods and Goddesses many of them, why do you believe that heathens have no reverence for the divine?

reply to post by DarkStormCrow


I mean in the sense that the white Europeans who came to America used it to stigmatize the native Americans, to dehumanize them, in preparation for genocidal policies against them.
If you are a heathen in a modern sense of the word, you are not included in this explanation I was giving about a historical event.

reply to post by jmdewey60


A while back my niece was doing American Indian studies in College and her Professor wanted a one paragraph summery on the effects of the Europeans on the Native Americans.

I sent her a MP3 with the following.

"We are the Borg. You will be assimilated. Your biological and technological distinctiveness will be added to our own. Resistance is futile."

She got an “A”.

I find it ironic.