O is for October and Oneness
Dear Friends,
Welcome to fall weather
on the Gulf Coast, FINALLY. I hope you will take a moment amid the busyness of
Autumn…football, kids school lessons and sports, new projects…and take yourself
back to a time when holistic remedies from all parts of the world were passed
down from generation to generation: Traditional World Healing Wisdom. In these
pages, you will find Returning to our Healing Roots, Discovering the World of
Martial Arts (as more than 6 million people in the U.S. have already done) and
celebrating Indigenous Peoples’ Day on October 9.
I was fascinated to learn
that Indigenous Peoples in the Gulf Coast region are primarily Choctaw (also
known as Chahta Yakni). They were originally based in the Southeastern
Woodlands, in what is now Alabama and Mississippi. The Choctaw Indians once lay
claim to millions of acres of land and established some 50 towns in present-day
Mississippi and western Alabama. With a population of at least 15,000 by the
turn of the nineteenth century, the Choctaws were one of the largest Indian
groups in the South and played a significant role in shaping the politics,
economics and armed conflicts in the region.
Thousands of Choctaws
remained in the Southeast, even after the ‘Indian Removal.’ They are known
today as the federally recognized Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians and state
recognized MOWA Band of Choctaw Indians (so named for their location in Mobile
and Washington County) of Alabama.
As with most Native
American tribes, Choctaw Indians’ religious beliefs influenced many aspects of
their lives and culture, such as their understanding of health and wellness.
Within the Choctaw tribes, there existed a belief in the need to maintain
balance between oneself and the universe. This cosmological balance between a
person and those things around him was vital in maintaining a healthy life.
This is much like people view holistic medicine today. The Choctaw believed
that imbalance in the connections between a person and his surroundings could
lead to disease, so all ailments and cures carried a degree of spirituality
with them. While Choctaw alekchi
(medicine man) practices included a large degree of spirituality, their skills
were often of equal efficacy as the white
doctors who first observed them. It has been reported that during times of
early contact with settlers, the Choctaw’s medicinal knowledge was sought by
white doctors.
In this day of advanced
scientific methods and the quest for more natural remedies, there is growing
evidence that medical knowledge of early Native Americans is applicable to
today’s pharmacological research. The Choctaw alekchi’s most useful tool in
treating patients was their expansive knowledge of herbal remedies. They
possessed a depth of knowledge that is now understood by modern science.
Ancient healing modalities are now “new” again.
To Your Health,
Michelle Smith, Publisher
