virus: Fwd: [mindrec] Native Medicine Wheel

B. Lane Robertson (metaphy@hotmail.com)
Thu, 20 Aug 1998 07:12:13 PDT

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>From: "B. Lane Robertson" <metaphy@hotmail.com>
>To: mindrec@makelist.com
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>Date: Sun, 16 Aug 1998 23:28:12 PDT
>Subject: [mindrec] Native Medicine Wheel
>
>I had asked (originally about "magic", but seeing
>your interest in native spirituality...): What is
>"practical" about spirituality that might someday
>allow it to be taught in schools?
>
>Also, since you might be interested:
>
>The native "medicine wheel" is a developmental
>milestone in the evolution of civilization!
>Probably you have heard of the hunter-gatherer
>civilization giving way to the agrarian
>civilization? Well, there is a predictable
>evolution of ideas. Medicine is one stage in this
>evolution.
>
>Like genetics studies how traits are selected
>against through chance combination (which adds to
>zero-sum... that is, *mutation* has to be proposed
>for how things actually evolve); memetics shows
>how ORDERED combinations produce a stable
>pattern... these patterns, when worked out to a
>cooperative ideal, balance... and then "replicate"
>(change their pattern to a potentially more
>adaptable one which incorporates whatever
>information was not accommodated by the less
>evolved meme).
>
>The meme of "object permanence" (written <object
>permanence>) ordered all information according to
>how the hunters and gatherers might-- after
>securing <possessions>-- evolve to handle *safety*
>needs (since, after having possessions, one must
>find a way to safeguard them... most simply).
>
>There was a need for nomads to find <object
>permanence> and so the elements of their
>environment became organized according to the
>"hunter" quality of government and the "gather"
>quality of religion-- thus forming a "tribe". In
>this state of civilization, governmental "rules"
>and religious "magic" sought to keep and promote
>the permanence of what they had.
>
>Now comes "medicine" (and the "medicine wheel"...
>which, if you can picture the way hunter divides
>from gatherer to balance with "keep" and "rules"
>on the one hand and "promote" and "magic" on the
>other-- you will also see that this balanced,
>*memetic*, configuration looks like a WHEEL!).
>Anyway, <object permanence> gives way to
><medicine> when the tribe develops a "technology"
>as to how they will maintain the permanency of
>objects, given their tendency to de-evolve again
>from a position of tribal safety to one of having
>to hunt and gather again.
>
>The split which was between government and
>religion became a split between security and
>health. The four balanced "corners" of this
>configuration become "body" and "matter" on the
>side of security (handled by the government) and
>"spirit" and "mind" on the side of health (handled
>through religious magic). The native <medicine>
>wheel is thus the tribal technology by which
>matter, body, spirit, and mind are balanced such
>that a tribal-- or *family*-- organization can
>remain safe (so that they can believe in the
>permanence of their possessions).
>
>The central position <medicine> (which indicates
>an understanding of how to balance the above
>characteristics) is held by the shaman, who is
>balanced himself according to these qualities.
>The shaman should therefore neither be aligned
>with the governmental rules or the religious magic
>but should still represents the <object
>permanence> and especially the <society> of the
>tribe (<society> being the next order of
>development to appear).
>
>
>B. Lane Robertson
>Indiana, USA
>http://www.window.to/mindrec
>Bio: http://members.theglobe.com/bretthay
>See who's chatting about this topic:
>http://www.talkcity.com/chat.cgi?room=MindRec
>
>
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