I wanted to say "It's about time!!"
Friday, Nov 06, 2009 - 12:18:43 am PST
Tribe denounces ceremonies
By MAUREEN DOLAN
Staff writer
http://www.cdapress.com/articles/2009/11/06/news/news02.txtImproper use of structure in Arizona resulted in deaths of three people
PLUMMER -- Ernie Stensgar was a boy when he learned about the sweat lodge ceremony.
Born
and raised on the Coeur d'Alene Indian Reservation, Stensgar was taught
by his grand-uncle that all aspects of the rite are sacred, from the
construction of the lodge to the building of the fire.
Stensgar,
tribal council vice chairman, said that as children they learn that
there are traditions and protocol that must be followed to uphold the
sacred nature of the ceremony.
That's why Stensgar and other
members of the Coeur d'Alene Tribal Council took a stand last week,
formally denouncing simulated sweat lodge ceremonies like the one held
in October at the Angel Valley Retreat Center, near Sedona, Ariz., that
resulted in the deaths of three people.
"As I read that story, I
thought about my grand-uncle, who is a medicine man, and some of the
other people that taught us the way of the sweat, those people would
have turned over in their grave if they heard that the sweat lodge
ceremony was being exploited and being commercialized," Stensgar said.
The
Arizona tragedy occurred at a new age retreat center where more than 60
people gathered for more than two hours in a sweat lodge. The ceremony
was conducted by self-help expert James Arthur Ray, and offered as part
of a "Spiritual Warrior" program that cost participants up to $9,000
each.
"That's what offended me and probably a lot of people here
on the reservation, that people would go out and try to make money off
of that ceremony that has been so helpful to so many people," Stensgar
said.
The tribal council adopted a resolution last week
condemning "the purveyors of these new age programs that exploit Native
American religious traditions without any knowledge, experience or
understanding of the meaning of these traditions and market Native
American ceremonies and tradition for their own personal gain."
A
sweat lodge is an enclosed structure with a small pit inside. Rocks are
heated in a fire outside and then brought into the lodge where they are
placed in the pit and water is poured over them, causing steam to rise
in the lodge.
For many, it is a spiritual refuge, a place of healing used for prayer, meditation or relaxation, Stensgar said.
Young
people on the reservation, especially those who are recovering from
drug or alcohol addictions, have embraced the rite, he said.
"They
have time to go in with an Elder and maybe talk about those hurts and
pains and really deal with that negative part of their life, and
they're able to reach out to a higher power and maybe meditate," he
said.
For anyone in the lodge, Stensgar said, it is a very private experience.
"The songs that they probably sing in there have been handed down from generations and those songs are sacred," Stensgar said.
Most sweat lodges on the Coeur d'Alene Reservation are private, constructed on the properties of those who tend them.
Glen
Lambert, a Vietnam veteran with a lodge in his yard in Plummer, said
the practice helps him deal with depression and post-traumatic stress.
The son of a Colville Tribal member, Lambert's wife, Marlene, belongs to the Coeur d'Alene Tribe.
He said folks who come to pray at the lodge in his yard are an even mix of tribal members and those who are not.
"Being close to the Creator, that's probably the main reason. Everybody feels better whenever we come out here," Lambert said.
There is never a charge or fee of any kind.
"Whoever wants to is welcome, if they want to come in a good way and pray," Lambert said.
