T

Tantra with the other beings that are generated within my body”
(16:42). The coeval Netra Tantra (12:11–12) assigns this
Tantra, a current of religious doctrine and practice found role to a class of female deities called the Mothers, who
mainly within Hinduism and Buddhism, emerged in India hold the world inside of themselves, in the form of seeds
in about the sixth century. It evolved greatly over the sub- that they will sow again at the beginning of a new world
sequent one thousand years, changing in form and con- age, in order that creatures might reappear. Vindhyavas-
tent as it spread outward into every Asian region into ini, the “Goddess Who Dwells in the Vindhya Mountains,”
which Buddhism was practiced including China, Japan, one of the earliest and most important Hindu Tantric god-
Tibet, Nepal, and Indonesia. While later forms of Tantra desses, is described in terms of her habitat, which is an
tend to be abstract soteriologies (understandings regard- extension of herself: a vast forest teeming with plant and
ing salvation) grounded in internal, meditative identifica- animal life. Similarly, the energy of the Hindu goddess
tion of the self with some form of the absolute, Tantra Kubjika is described in a twelfth-century Tantric text as
emerged in India out of the worship cults of local deities flowing outward through the transmission of her teach-
often identified with natural phenomena and the forces of ings, whose conduits are represented as living plants:
nature. In India, these Tantric deities were very often (but trees, creepers, roots and vines. A number of later Kubjika
not exclusively) female spirits of the land – mountains, texts depict her as a tree with orange or red-colored blos-
forests, rivers, and pools – and were often identified with soms – either a tamarind (ciñca), a kimsuka, or a kadamba.
or depicted as wild animals, birds, trees, and flowers. Fur- This identification, of the female principal, with a flower,
thermore, when Tantra was exported into other parts of is extended to the female consort in numerous Tantric
Asia, local deities of those countries were often trans- sexual rites, in which she is often called “Lotus Maiden,”
formed into the guardians of the mandalas of the Tantric and whose vulva is called “lotus” (padma).
high gods, and into semi-divine intermediaries between It would be a mistake, however, to qualify the Tantric
the worshipper and those gods. In Japan, for example, the view of nature, or indeed of the feminine, as a static and
sanrinjin (literally, “three bodies with discs”) theory, which passive source of life. In the early medieval Indian context,
divided the Buddha’s appearances in the phenomenal wild nature was, like feminine sexuality, threatening and
world into three types, allowed for the transformation and antinomian, the polar opposite of the security and order of
appropriation of the indigenous Japanese kami deities into male-dominated human society. Here, nature was not a
so many “propagators of Buddhism.” In this way, deified peaceable kingdom, but rather an alien wilderness, a place
aspects of the Japanese natural landscape became both of savage energy, at once alluring and terrifying, nurtur-
Buddhist and Tantric, even as they remained Japanese. ing and deadly to anyone who would venture into it, and
Parallel to this was the “translation” of certain Indian Tan- populated by ravening female entities in the form of
tric deities into their foreign homologues. So, for example, predatory animals and rapacious or carrion-feeding birds.
the dakinis of Indian Buddhist Tantra – who were at once In this context, the male practitioner of Tantra par excel-
semi-divine female intermediaries and human “witches,” lence was termed a “hero” (vira), because he alone dared to
and who were sometimes identified in India with jackals – confront and master wild feminine nature, energy, and
were qualified as “fox spirits” in Chinese and Japanese sexuality. So it was that on specific nights of the lunar
Tantric traditions. month, male Tantric practitioners would assemble on
Natural vegetation plays a prominent role in Tantra, lonely mountaintops (pithas) or in forest clearings (kset-
beginning with the use of the term “seed” (bija in Sanskrit) ras) to await the coming of Tantric yoginis or dakinis, who
for the most powerful class of mantras, the sound formulas would descend on them in the form of lionesses, she-
used in Tantric ritual: the practitioner actually generates jackals, she-wolves, vultures, crows, cobras, etc. The non-
the divinity with which he will identify himself by “plant- initiates who stumbled into these gatherings (melakas)
ing” its seed through his mantric utterance. This image is faced certain death: they would be torn apart by these
expanded in the circa tenth-century Kaulajñananiraya, a Tantric animal-goddesses or their human counterparts.
foundational Hindu Tantric text, in which Siva, the The Tantric hero, however, empowered by his controlling
supreme deity and creator god states that “Just as there is mantras and ritual knowledge, could control these dread
in an individual seed the origins of a tree possessed of feminine entities and, more than this, actually appropriate
flowers, roots, fruit, leaves, and branches, so it is as well their multiple energies – the forces of nature – for himself,
 Tantrism in the West 1619

in order to have a share in their supernatural powers. This Tantrism in the West
was, in fact, the principal aim of early Tantric practice: to
dominate nature by subjugating wild feminine sexuality Since at least the second half of the twentieth century, the
as a means to gaining supernatural powers. The most Asian tradition known as Tantra or Tantrism has had a
important of these was flight, a “natural” capacity for powerful impact on Western spirituality and on the rela-
bird-goddesses whose energy was said to come from their tionship between religion and nature in the West. A vast
consumption of human flesh. and complex body of traditions that spread throughout the
This Tantric goal lay at the foundation of the most Hindu, Buddhist and Jain religions since at least the fifth
important monumental edifices of early Hindu Tantra in century, Tantrism has long held a profoundly ambivalent
India. These were the Yogini temples, of which approxi- place in the Western imagination. When it was first dis-
mately 15 ruins remain extant today on lonely hilltops or covered by European orientalist scholars in the nineteenth
remote forest tracts, mainly in the Vindhya Mountain belt century, Tantrism was typically singled out as the very
of central India where Hindu Tantra emerged. These worst example of all the licentiousness and idolatry
temples were circular and roofless constructions: open to believed to have corrupted Indian religions in modern
the heavens, they served as landing fields and launching times. Yet in our own generation, Tantrism has often been
pads for the airborne Yoginis. Carved into niches on the celebrated as a much-needed affirmation of the human
inner wall of these temples and facing an image of Siva or body, sexuality and the sacrality of the natural environ-
Bhairava at the center were images of the Yoginis, whose ment itself.
near-naked, sexually alluring bodies were crowned by the Although it has been defined in a wide variety of differ-
heads of predatory birds, wild animals, or fanged, terrible ent ways, Tantrism might be said to center first and fore-
human “witches.” It was these dread man-eaters that the most around the concept of Shakti – the divine “power” or
heroic male Tantric practitioner called down and sought to “energy” that circulates through all levels of the universe,
bend to his will by transforming them into his lovers, in from the individual human body, to the social body, to the
imitation of the Siva or Bhairava at the center of their vast body of the cosmos itself. Typically identified with
mandalas. the great Goddess in her most aggressive forms, such as
Over the centuries that followed its South Asian ori- Kali or Durga, Shakti is the divine feminine power that
gins, Tantra was exported into Nepal, Tibet, China, Japan, creates, sustains and destroys all things. In practice, Tan-
and Mongolia; and in the past several decades it has made trism is essentially a complex body of spiritual techniques
its entrance into Europe and the United States. In certain that aim to harness and direct this power, both toward
of these export settings, and most particularly in the post- this-worldly goals of material enjoyment and toward
industrial societies of Japan and the West, Tantra has been the ultimate goal of spiritual liberation. In their spiritual
appropriated by a variety of New Age movements that practice, Tantrikas seek to awaken this power as it lies
have adapted the original tradition to respond to their own concealed in the most seemingly mundane, even profane,
concerns. Such is natural in these contexts, in which the natural acts and physical objects – including normally
world of nature is no longer threatening, but rather under impure substances and forbidden acts, such as meat, wine
threat. and sexual intercourse in violation of class laws.
Not surprisingly, the first Christian missionaries and
David Gordon White European scholars to come upon Tantrism during the
colonial era were quite horrified at this seeming confusion
Further Reading of religion and sensuality. As the Baptist missionary Wil-
Samuel, Geoffrey. Civilized Shamans, Buddhism in Tibetan liam Ward described it, Tantrism is “a most shocking mode
Societies. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution of worship” involving rites “too abominable to enter the
Press, 1993. ears of man and impossible to be revealed to a Christian
Slusser, Mary Sheperd. Nepal Mandala: A Cultural Study public.” However, toward the end of the nineteenth cen-
of the Kathmandu Valley, 2 vols. Princeton, NJ: Princ- tury, a few more courageous scholars such as Sir John
eton University Press, 1982. Woodroffe made a bold attempt to rescue and defend the
White, David Gordon. Kiss of the Yogini: Tantric Sex in its Tantric tradition. In Woodroffe’s view, Tantrism is not only
South Asian Contexts. Chicago: University of Chicago a sophisticated philosophical tradition, but also a pro-
Press, 2003. found vision of the physical cosmos that is basically in
White, David Gordon, ed. Tantra in Practice. Princeton, agreement with the findings of modern Western science.
NJ: Princeton University Press, 2000. While modern science had only recently discovered that
See also: Hinduism; India; New Age; Sexuality and Eco- all matter is simply a form of energy, the Tantrikas had long
spirituality; Sexuality and Green Consciousness; Tantrism known that the natural universe is simply a manifestation
in the West. of Shakti, the Goddess as power.
But it was not until the first decades of the twentieth
1620 Tantrism in the West

century that Tantrism began to enter the Western world in Spirituality, and various Wiccan and Pagan groups, Tan-
a significant way, with the foundation of the first “Tantrik trism is welcomed as a unifying vision that brings together
Order in America” in New York City by Dr. Pierre Arnold spirituality and physical nature. In contrast to the life-
Bernard in 1906. A contemporary of Sigmund Freud, denying, other-worldly and male-dominated Abrahamic
Bernard saw modern Western society as terribly repressed traditions, Tantrism represents for many a positive expres-
in its attitudes toward the human body, sexuality and the sion of human sexuality and spirituality, with the power to
natural environment. Tantrism, he believed, offered the unite people to the sacred energies of the Earth, even
most effective means to liberate these oppressed powers of empowering them for her defense. According to one popu-
sexuality and nature. lar Australian website,
Beginning in the 1960s, Tantrism entered in full force
into Western popular culture, first with the early Beat TANTRA is part of a broad evolutionary process in
movement, and then finding a welcome home among the consciousness, which is moving toward an integra-
sexual revolutions of the 1960s and 1970s. In the words of tion with the Natural World, the physical body and
Alan Watts – the ex-Anglican priest turned Zen master the many sexual expressions of human behavior. All
and psychedelic guru of the Beat generation – Tantrism is of Nature is then perceived as a sacred manifestation
“a marvelous and welcome corrective to certain excesses of the Divine, where there is no separation between
of Western civilization.” In contrast to Western society, Spirit and Nature (www.tantra.co.nz).
with its patriarchal domination of nature and its sepa-
ration of spirit from matter, Tantrism can bring us an For many neo-pagans, this discovery of Tantra by the
“understanding the creative power of the female” and an West is really only a rediscovery of the long-forgotten
appreciation of the inherent goodness of the natural divinity of nature that lies at the core of Western tradi-
world. Perhaps the first great high priest of “Neo- tions, as well. In the words of the one of the most promi-
Tantrism” was the infamous “Sex Guru” known in his nent figures in the early Wiccan revival, Doreen Valiente, it
early years as Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and in his later life is only fitting that modern Western witches should
as “Osho.” Redefining Tantra as a kind of “religionless rediscover Eastern Tantric techniques; this is simply the
religion” based on the rejection of all fixed institutions great spiral dance of Shakti, the Great Goddess Earth her-
and the celebration of sexuality and material nature, self, coming round full circle. It follows naturally,
Rajneesh offered a new ideal for human existence – the in accordance with the evolving trends of the Aquar-
ideal of “Zorba the Buddha,” who combines the sensuality ian Age, that modern witches should adapt the Tan-
of Zorba the Greek with the spiritual insight of the tric sexual magic for use in their own magic circles
Buddha. . . . Everything in this world is flowing. Nothing
By the 1980s and 1990s, Tantrism had become a basic stands still, nor does time go back upon itself; but it
part of the amorphous movement known as the “New proceeds in a spiral . . . The spiral has come round
Age,” and increasingly identified with a wide variety of again, to its ancient place (Valiente 1988: 151).
religious traditions believed to honor the forces of nature,
sexuality and femininity. Thus, as Tantra: The Magazine In the course of its transmission to the modern West,
defines it, Tantrism is no longer a tradition confined to Tantrism has undergone a profound transformation and
certain forms of Hinduism and Buddhism in Asia, but is reinterpretation. Once a highly esoteric tradition focused
in fact a universal tradition of nature-, goddess-, and on secret ritual and acquisition of power, Tantrism has
sex-worship followed by peoples of all cultures, from today become a popular form of spirituality focused on the
pre-historic shamans to modern neo-pagans: celebration of nature and the liberation of sensual pleas-
ure. There are various conflicting opinions as to how we
Tantra is life in balance . . . Tantra is practiced by ought to judge this transformation. More skeptical critics
Native Peoples the world over, through profound tend to view it as a tragic misinterpretation of an ancient
respect for All that Is. It is also practiced through the religious tradition, which has been mistakenly appropri-
respect of the divine feminine worshipped in her ated for modern Western interests and hopelessly confused
physical form through attending the needs of with Western sexual obsessions. More sympathetic obser-
Mother Earth as our own body (1991: 3). vers, conversely, see this as just one more example of the
changing nature of religious traditions in new historical
Now reconceived as an ancient global tradition center- contexts, as a much-needed corrective to the destructive
ing on the reverence of nature and sexuality, Tantrism has attitudes of modern Western society, and as a powerful
been increasingly embraced by many of the various affirmation of the inherent sacrality of the natural
“green” movements and other environmentalist groups environment.
that have emerged in the last three decades. As we see in a
wide array of movements such as GreenSpirit, Creation Hugh B. Urban
 Taoism 1621

Further Reading Target Earth

Anand, Margo. The Art of Sexual Ecstasy: The Path of
Sacred Sexuality for Western Lovers. Los Angeles: Target Earth is an international Christian Environmental
Jeremy P. Tarcher, Inc., 1989. organization founded in 1986 by Roy and D’Aun Goble,
Bernard, Pierre Arnold, ed. International Journal of the who were inspired to begin a retreat center after taking a
Tantrik Order 5:1 (1906). course together at Westmont College, a small Christian
Douglas, Nik. Spiritual Sex: Secrets of Tantra from the Ice College located in Santa Barbara, California. Target Earth
Age to the New Millennium. New York: Pocket Books, started simply as the Hidden Lakes Retreat Center in the
1997. Sierra Nevada Mountains of California and it remained the
Eliade, Mircea. Yoga: Immortality and Freedom. Princeton, Goble’s sole project for many years. In 1992 the Gobles
NJ: Princeton University Press, 1971. encountered a writer from Christianity Today magazine
Evola, Julius. The Yoga of Power: Tantra, Shakti and the and the result of that meeting and collaboration was
Secret Way, G. Stucco, tr. Rochester: Inner Traditions, Target Earth International, and the beginning of a global
1992. outreach program.
Feuerstein, Georg. Tantra: The Path of Ecstasy. Boston: Target Earth is a response to the biblical mandate found
Shambhala, 1998. in Genesis, which states that humans have dominion over
Garrison, Omar. Tantra: The Yoga of Sex. New York: Julian the Earth. Target Earth sees this not as encouragement to
Press, 1964. plunder the Earth, but as a call to be caring stewards of
Lysebeth, Andre van. Tantra: The Cult of the Feminine. God’s creation. It is a partner of the Evangelical Environ-
York Beach, ME: Samuel Weiser, 1995. mental Network and offers a Campus Programs Division,
Rajneesh, Bhagwan Shree. Tantra Spirituality and Sex. including 45 campus chapters across the United States,
Rajneeshpuram: Rajneesh Foundation International, which assists students with lobby training, student confer-
1983. ences and alternative spring breaks. It also publishes a
Rawson, Philip. Tantra: The Cult of Ecstasy. Greenwich, Magazine entitled Target Earth.
CT: New York Graphics Society, 1973. In addition to maintaining the Hidden Lakes Retreat
Tantra: The Magazine. Torreon, NM, Tara issue, no.1 Center, Target Earth offers numerous international edu-
(1991). cational opportunities. Students can participate in short
Tantra: The Supreme Understanding. Poona: Rajneesh seven- to fourteen-day missions or eight-week internships
Foundation, 1975. in Belize, Honduras, Mexico, Russia, and South Africa.
Taylor, Kathleen. Sir John Woodroffe, Tantra and Bengal: Target Earth offers a Global Stewardship Study Program at
“An Indian Soul in a European Body?” London: Cur- its Environmental Research and Education Center at Jag-
zon Press, 2001. uar Creek in Belize. It also works with conservation groups
Urban, Hugh B. Tantra: Sex, Secrecy, Politics and Power in to select areas of the rainforest for preservation. One such
the Study of Religion. Berkeley: University of Califor- property is the 8000-acre area of Jaguar Creek in Belize.
nia Press, 2003. Target Earth also maintains the Lasting Impressions Wil-
Valiente, Doreen. Witchcraft for Tomorrow. Blaine, WA: derness in Zimbabwe, Africa; and in North America, it has
Phoenix Publishing, 1988. focused on preserving land in the Soda Mountain Wilder-
Watts, Alan. “Tantra.” Loka: A Journal from Naropa Insti- ness in Oregon.
tute 1 (1976), 55–7. The Target Earth website expresses the mission of
White, David Gordon, ed. Tantra in Practice. Princeton, “Serving the Earth, Serving the Poor.” In this sense, Target
NJ: Princeton University Press, 2000. Earth is like many other Christian environmental organi-
Woodroffe, Sir John. Shakti and Shakta. New York: Dover, zations with a presence on the internet, which indicate
1978. that they are involved in human rights advocacy, spread-
Zimmer, Heinrich. Philosophies of India. New York: Merid- ing of the gospel, and preservation the environment. Such
ian Books, 1956. a multiple mission avoids elevating the Earth to a position
See also: Hinduism; India; New Age; Sexuality and Eco- of importance above humanity. The Earth is not preserved
spirituality; Sexuality and Green Consciousness; Tantra; for the Earth’s sake alone, but because it is God’s creation.
Yoga and Ecology. While sharing these views and attributes, Target Earth
International is noteworthy in part because, unlike some
other Christian environmental organizations, it is attract-
Taoism – See Chinese Traditional Concepts of Nature; ive to students and others who may not otherwise join a
Daoism. Christian group. Target Earth maintains a liberal and edu-
cational approach, offering a resources page outlining
environmental justice, recycling, simple lifestyles and bib-
lical references supporting each activity. This combination
1622 Tattoos

of practical projects and faith-based environmentalism In Middle Kingdom Egypt the tattoo functioned as a
makes Target Earth appealing to a wide variety of people. bridge between the physical body and the afterworld. In
order to activate their procreative powers after death and
Andrea A. Kresge assure their immortal salvation and resurrection into the
realm of Osiris, some women were incised with special
See also: Evangelical Environmental Network; Restoring lines and dots related to the Goddess Hathor. Also, Native
Eden; Sierra Treks. American Eskimo women traditionally tattooed their faces
and breasts in order to assure a happy afterlife.
Tattoos as marks of protection from evil forces and
Tattoos chaos were believed to make the wearer invisible or
unrecognizable to malignant spirits or forces (e.g., among
Tattooing (from the Tahitian word tatau) is an art form of the African Nuba and Butwa). Nineteenth-century
body modification that has been practiced throughout his- Alaskans utilized tattoos as protection from the spirits of
tory in many regions of the world. Modifying the body, animals and people that they had killed. Additionally, Thai
according to some anthropologists, is one of the simplest Buddhist monks inscribe Buddhist sayings and symbols
ways that human beings become social beings. The human onto the bodies of male lay practitioners for protection
body is the place where the natural world, social worlds, purposes and to create embodied mantras.
and personal experiences join. The practice of tattooing The Edo period in Japan saw a rise in the practice of
and body modification, which often has strict, gender- tattooing (called horimono – dug things) among urban
dependent rules, thus situates the human body within a lower-class social groups such as firemen and theater
particular visible context for community members. workers. Japanese tattooing utilizes figures from Bud-
Tattoos have often been used to construct identity: by dhism, mythology, and literature (such as the Suikoden, a
marking criminals, denoting social status and rank, translation of the fourteenth-century Chinese classic
symbolizing fighting ability, showing community mem- about tattooed bandits that fought against injustice). Add-
bership, and as symbols of successful initiation. Initiation itionally, many of the most important Japanese tattoo
tattoos symbolize the wearer’s willingness and ability to motifs are based on folk beliefs about the powers of flora
accept social responsibility and established socio-cultural and fauna of the Earth and sea. These motifs are important
values. Other, more voluntary, tattooing practices mark because of the belief that tattoos are able to transfer to the
the body for aesthetic or erotic purposes, in rebellion wearer the power inherent in the meaning of the symbol.
against societal norms, or as medical therapy. Tattoos have Personality traits such as loyalty and fierceness are
also been used as symbols of religious affiliation and embodied in the symbol of the lion-dog, strength and
community membership. Many Coptic, Syrian, and Rus- restraint (the dragon); religious elements such as devotion
sian Christians returning from the Holy Land often (Buddha, Kannon, and Fudo the Guardian), a Buddhist-
acquired “cross” tattoos on their hands, and even though inspired understanding of impermanence (cherry blos-
proscribed in the Qur’an, many Turkish Muslims returning soms); as well as material aims such as longevity (the
from the hajj to Mecca have received tattoos to com- tortoise) are common themes among Japanese tattoos.
memorate their completed pilgrimage. Almost all societies have seen traditional forms of body
In societies where spiritual forces are understood to be modification disappear. Only the West, especially in Amer-
present in the natural world, objects, and living creatures, ica where tattoos often function as markers for ideals of
the human body becomes an avenue for relations between individualism, is witnessing a growth in tattooing prac-
the spiritual and physical realms; the blood of the tattoo- tices at the beginning of the twenty-first century. Tattoos
ing process symbolizes manipulation of the life-force. For in America have begun to symbolize the ideals of self-
example, tattooing was performed to bring prosperity and actualization, spiritual growth, social and personal trans-
fertility to the wearer among many traditional African formation, and ecological awareness. The New Age
communities. Thus the physical body, having more than Movement, Women’s and Men’s movements, the ecology
functional meaning, can become a unique magical talis- movement, and the Paganism and Goddess movements of the
man that integrates the spiritual, physical, and social late twentieth century have promoted an understanding of
aspects of life. For example, the North American Cree not the body as sacred. Individuals within these movements
only had tattoos for luck, beauty, and protection of health, often understand tattooing as a means of decorating the
but men also received tattoos, derived from dream-images, sacred temple of their body.
to help them communicate with nature spirits. Also, the For some wearers, tattoos symbolize spiritual ideals, for
complex designs found among Polynesian tattoos repre- others the process itself is considered a spiritual trans-
sented aspects of their lives within the natural world (e.g., formation. For example, common tattoo narratives of
centipedes and water symbols), tribal status, strength of women relate themes of self-healing, empowerment, and
character, and esoteric religious teachings. reclaiming control of their lives and bodies. Additionally,
 Tawhid (Oneness of God) 1623

an emergent sub-set of Americans practice tattooing and monotheism’s Islamic manifestation in Tawhid. A single
body modification as a means of reconnecting their minds transcendent God is necessarily outside of nature, making
with their physical bodies and the natural world while the latter appear as a profane object, fit for human
aligning themselves with non-Western religious ideals manipulation and domination. The description of God in
thought to be more spiritually and ecologically aware than the Qur’an and its reception and development in the sub-
those provided by the consumer-driven Western society sequent Islamic tradition present a more complex picture.
(e.g., idealized visions of Irish Celtic Pagan and Native To begin with, the God of the Qur’an is both transcendent
American relationships with the spirits of nature, or Bud- and immanent. In the Islamic tradition, the proponents of
dhist and Daoist notions of the interconnectedness of all classical theology and jurisprudence typically emphasized
life). Valorizing non-Western ideals, these “modern primi- the former aspects of the divine due to their reliance on
tives” not only work to provide ecologically oriented eth- discursive reason and concern with the maintenance of
ics but they also promote awareness of the spiritual social order. The proponents of the sapiential and mystical
aspects of traditional forms of body modification and their traditions, on the other hand, often emphasized the latter
potential value in modern contexts. aspects of the divine because of their interest in inculcat-
ing a close personal relationship between God and the
Shawn Arthur human individual.
In short, Tawhid embraces divine transcendence from
Further Reading and incomparability with creation (tanzih), as well as
DeMello, Margo. Bodies of Inscription: A Cultural History divine immanence in and similarity to creation (tashbih).
of the Modern Tattoo Community. Durham, NC: Duke Consequently, the God of the Qur’an, while not identical
University Press, 2000. with nature in any simplistic or pantheistic way, is not far
Richie, Donald and Ian Buruma. The Japanese Tattoo. New removed or separate from it either. While the former per-
York, NY: Weatherhill Inc., 1980. spective opens up the possibility of legitimately making
Rubin, Arnold, ed. Marks of Civilization: Artistic Trans- use of nature, the latter perspective sets ethical limits on
formations of the Human Body. Los Angeles: Museum such use. In the vision of Tawhid, nature is anything but a
of Cultural History, University of California, 1988. profane object.
Taylor, Alan. Polynesian Tattooing. Laie, HI: Institute for The key Qur’anic term that must be emphasized in order
Polynesian Studies, 1981. to apprehend the relationship between God and nature is
Vale, V. and Andrea Juno. Modern Primitives: An Investi- ayah, or sign. The word appears in the Qur’an as referring
gation of Contemporary Adornment and Ritual. San to miracles of prophets, to the beings and phenomena of
Francisco, CA: RE/Search Publications, 1989. nature, to the realities found in the human soul, to major
See also: Feminist Spirituality Movement; Men’s Move- historical events, and to the verses of the Qur’an itself – all
ment; New Age; Polynesian Traditional Religions. of these are signs of God. The Qur’anic position seems to
be that even though there may not be any adequate
rational proof for the existence of God, there are more
SP Tawhid (Oneness of God) than enough signs that point or allude to the Ultimate
Reality. According to the vision of Tawhid, everything
Tawhid literally means “making one” or “unifying,” and other than God is a portent or pointer that signifies God. In
generally refers to the Islamic doctrine of the oneness of this context, the Qur’an puts particular emphasis on direct-
God. In the Qur’an, Tawhid implies both belief in God’s ing the reader’s attention to the innumerable and easily
unity as well as the corresponding conduct demanded by accessible beings and phenomena of nature as so many
such belief. Tawhid therefore has a doctrinal as well as an signs through which God may be known.
ethical dimension. By positing all existing things as signs of God, the
As the most basic premise of Islam, Tawhid finds its Qur’an brings sacredness back into nature. By using the
expression in the first half of the testimony of faith: “There same word for the verses of the scripture and the beings
is no god but God.” The meanings and implications of this and phenomena of nature, the Qur’an indicates that the
deceptively simple statement are far-reaching and mani- book of nature is as sacred as the scripture itself, each
fold. Tawhid can be seen as the very life-force of Islam, for representing a modality of divine speech. For those who
all aspects of Islamic belief, thought, and practice are forget God, both the Qur’an and nature can serve as
rooted in its unifying and integrating vision. In any epis- reminders. The supernatural revelation of the Qur’an and
temology based on Tawhid, for instance, knowledge of the natural phenomena of the universe disclose and unveil
nature cannot be divorced from knowledge of God’s the same truth, indicating the unity of Ultimate Reality.
oneness. The ordinary distinction between natural and supernatural
Lynn White’s critique of Christianity has been taken as becomes irrelevant in this context.
an indictment of the entire Abrahamic tradition, including How is the relationship between the signs and the Sig-
1624 Tawhid (Oneness of God)

nified understood? From one perspective, the beings and ethical norms, the Qur’an provides the outlines of a social
phenomena of nature point toward God just as a work of order through which these beliefs and norms can be actu-
music or painting indicates the qualities of the artist who alized in concrete human reality; the social order estab-
created it. From another perspective, God’s being forms lished by the Prophet Muhammad in seventh-century
the very essence or reality of everything that exists. Arabia constitutes a paradigmatic model for Muslims in
According to Indian philosopher-poet Muhammad Iqbal this regard. The Qur’an recognizes that human beings are
(1877–1938), the universe does not confront God as its rarely able to act in accordance with their professed beliefs
other; time, space, and matter are not independent realities and norms if these are not simultaneously supported by
but only interpretations or intellectual modes for social structures and institutions. Consequently, the actu-
apprehending the creative energy or life of God. What alization of Tawhid in a given community remains
mind perceives as a plurality of things in nature is actually incomplete and precarious if it is confined to the indi-
one continuous and dynamic divine act. Nature, in vidual’s consciousness as a doctrine but does not shape the
Qur’anic parlance, is the habit of God. By observing nature collective order.
in the Tawhidic frame of mind, human beings come in The present-day ecological situation in the Muslim
close contact with the behavior of Ultimate Reality, world is a forceful reminder that the chasm between ideal
thereby sharpening their inner perception for its more dir- and reality will exist whenever professed beliefs and
ect and deeper vision. norms are not embodied in the collective order. Tawhid is
The ethical attitude demanded by Tawhid may be no longer the central principle in the various social orders
understood in terms of cibadah and khilafah, two central prevailing in the Muslim world, where the role of Islam in
Qur’anic terms that define the consequences of accepting shaping public policy is itself a fiercely contested area.
the oneness of God. The first can be translated as servant- Moreover, any secularizing trend in the Muslim world fur-
hood, or the attitude of loving obedience and humility that ther weakens Islam’s ability to be ecologically relevant at a
human beings ought to display toward God. The second collective level. It is hardly surprising that the ecologically
may be translated as vicegerency, or the privileged ca- beneficial imperatives of Tawhid have only a limited
pacity for exercising God-like authority with respect to the impact in everyday reality. Tawhid’s great potential in this
world. In the Tawhidic framework, vicegerency presup- regard, however, may be tapped through Islam-based
poses servanthood; human beings cannot become partners environmental movements at the grassroots level.
in God’s creative work without first humbling themselves
before their Creator-Lord. While the ethic of dominion is Ahmed Afzaal
inherent in the notion of vicegerency, the Qur’an views the
exercise of human powers without genuine servanthood Further Reading
toward God as illegitimate. The Qur’anic notion of vice- Chittick, William C. “God Surrounds All Things: An
gerency includes the understanding that human powers Islamic Perspective on the Environment.” The World
are not their own but have been delegated to them from a and I (June 1986), 671–8.
higher authority, for a limited time and for a specific pur- Iqbal, Muhammad. The Reconstruction of Religious
pose. Human beings must exercise these powers within the Thought in Islam. Lahore, Pakistan: The Institute of
limits set by the Real Sovereign, or they will be seen as Islamic Culture, 1996.
criminals and rebels (taghut), no longer acting in accord- Manzoor, S. Parvez. “Environment and Values: The Islamic
ance with the demands of Tawhid. Perspective.” In Ziauddin Sardar, ed. The Touch of
Tawhid implies that everything in the universe belongs Midas: Science, Values and Environment in Islam and
to God – a frequently repeated Qur’anic theme. Con- the West. Manchester, UK: Manchester University
sequently, the idea of material possessions and natural Press, 1984, 150–69.
resources as constituting a sacred trust (amanah) from God Murata, Sachiko and William C. Chittick. The Vision of
is also built into the notion of vicegerency. Human beings Islam. St. Paul, MN: Paragon House, 1995.
have been temporarily bestowed with certain “posses- Nasr, Seyyed Hossein. Religion & the Order of Nature. New
sions” through which they are being tested; this is true of York: Oxford University Press. 1996.
individuals as well as communities and humankind as a See also: Islam; The Qur’an; Sufism.
whole. Ultimately, there is no such thing as human prop-
erty. This understanding calls for an attitude of careful and
vigilant restraint (taqwa) on the part of human beings vis- Technological Immortality
à-vis nature, which is divine property under temporary,
partial, and conditional human stewardship. Suffering death is the price that humans pay for their intel-
These ethical implications of Tawhid are not limited to ligence, yet through intelligence humans have long sought
individual morality but extend to the dynamics of the col- to overcome death, by means either of religion or technol-
lective order as well. In addition to religious beliefs and ogy. A single-celled animal such as the amoeba is in a
 Technological Immortality 1625

sense immortal. While it can die, every living amoeba is computation, information storage, and cognitive science
many millions of years old, because it reproduces by split- have provided both hope that this dream actually could be
ting, whereas multi-celled creatures such as ourselves die realized and some hint of how this could be done.
of old age after a short life. Many animals suffer when In his influential book, The Age of Spiritual Machines,
they die, but probably only humans are fully aware of the computer entrepreneur Ray Kurzweil predicted that
meaning of death and know from early childhood that human beings and their computers will gradually merge
they are mortal. From the time of the ancient Egyptians, over the next century, and that we will thereby become
some cultures and individuals have sought partially tech- god-like spirits inhabiting cyberspace as well as the
nological solutions, but only in recent decades have fully material universe. Specifically, Kurzweil suggests that
non-supernatural alternatives become plausible. magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or some even more
advanced technique could be used to read out the neural
Cryonics structure of a person’s brain, which then could be simu-
Probably inspired by science-fiction stories and the suc- lated inside a computer.
cess of the frozen food industry, in the 1960s, Robert C.W. A second approach is to videotape extensive inter-
Ettinger launched the cryonics movement to freeze dying views, then use computer graphics and artificial intelli-
human beings. The original idea was that cryopreservation gence technology to create a virtual human. A virtual
could halt death for years until medical science had copy of a person is called an avatar. This term traditionally
developed a remedy for the individual’s fatal illness, at refers to a manifestation of a Hindu deity, including incar-
which point he or she would be thawed out, cured, and nation in human form. But it is used currently in computer
restored to a normal life. engineering to refer to a software embodiment of a human
A number of organizations set up laboratories to personality.
develop methods of cryopreservation, and a few dozen The most impressive project to preserve interviews
bodies were actually frozen. Ettinger and some other digitally is Steven Spielberg’s Survivors of the Shoah Vis-
members of his movement began to think that future tech- ual History Foundation which has recorded interviews
nologies could not only restore life but also improve it, with over 52,000 survivors of the European Holocaust at a
giving people saved by cryonics a chance to become cost of $175,000,000. The same effort devoted to a single
superhuman and even possibly god-like. A number of individual could preserve enough to make a convincing
technical problems would need to be overcome, however, avatar, and the needed digital library and graphics
especially the extensive chemical and mechanical damage technology is progressing rapidly.
caused to large, slow-cooling human bodies by the A third approach is to employ the full range of psycho-
freezing process itself. logical tests and sociological questionnaires to archive
More recently, rapid progress in gene analysis and opinions, attitudes, beliefs, and other aspects of a person-
genetic engineering has led to the idea that much of an ality. Even a relatively simple computerized database per-
individual’s character might be preserved in a sample mits a kind of conversation with such a corpus of personal
of DNA. For example, the Center for Reproduction of data, querying it for information in the form of questions
Endangered Species at the San Diego Zoo has established a and answers. Existing scientific measures of personality
collection of cryopreserved animal cells. The Coriell Insti- are designed to compare individuals along a few standard
tute for Medical Research has established a research dimensions. Researchers working on personality preserva-
repository of cells from human beings with inherited dis- tion have recognized the need to develop new approaches
eases, and a sufficient sample is four teaspoons of blood. designed to capture an individual’s unique characteristics.
Frozen DNA samples can be stored indefinitely without Thus, several rapidly developing technologies are mak-
deterioration, and in future centuries they might be used ing it possible to record aspects of a person, and it seems
to create a clone of the deceased individual, or the indi- likely that the technology will permit recordings of
vidual’s genetic code could be employed in some other increasingly higher fidelity over the coming decades. The
method of technological resurrection. However, DNA does problem then becomes how to integrate the different kinds
not contain information about anything the person of data (genetic, neuro-structural, audio-visual, linguistic,
experienced or learned, so this approach would have to be and social-psychological), and there is much room for
combined with some method to preserve the individual’s debate whether even a highly advanced computer system
personality and memories. could accomplish this.

Cybersurvival Conclusion
In his 1953 novel, The City and the Stars, Arthur C. Clarke Death is a natural phase of human existence, but it is also
imagined that people could be archived inside an ad- part of our nature to seek solutions to problems, even the
vanced computer, for technological resurrection thousands most challenging ones. For thousands of years, the pre-
of years after their deaths. Many recent developments in ferred responses to mortality depended upon belief in a
1626 Tehri Dam

supernatural realm that transcended the limitations of the Tehri Dam Resistance Struggle Committee (Tehri
material existence. Science, the systematic quest for the Bandh Virodhi Sangharsh Samiti), stated Indian culture
secrets of nature, now offers the possibility of technical sees divinity in nature. He observes that to the rulers, the
solutions that conceivably could obviate the need for Ganges is megawatts of power and hectares of irrigated
religion. land. To the local people, she is a life-giving goddess. Sun-
It may prove difficult to develop the technology, either derlal Bahuguna, one of the most visible leaders of the
requiring many decades or ultimately succeeding only movement against the dam, recalls that the goddess Ganga
partially. If science can preserve and reanimate only por- (the Ganges river) answered the prayers of King Bagirathi
tions of the human personality, then future centuries may to descend to the Earth only after Lord Shiva permitted her
develop a hybrid approach to death that blends the tech- to descend into his matted locks, preventing her from
nical with the sacramental, thereby building a bridge becoming a destructive torrent. Bahuguna states that the
between the natural and the supernatural. locks of Shiva are the natural forests of the Himalayas
which protect the land from floods. But the catchment area
William Sims Bainbridge of the Bhagirathi River is the victim of massive deforesta-
tion by commercial forestry, and has turned the Ganges
Further Reading into the destructive force of which the ancient story told.
Bainbridge, William Sims. “Religious Ethnography on the For him, the dam is a further desecration of a sacred
World Wide Web.” In Jeffrey K. Hadden and Douglas E. environment.
Cowan, eds. Religion on the Internet (volume 8 of The religious significance of the Bhagirathi and Ganges
Religion and the Social Order). New York: Elsevier/JAI, rivers pertains to objections raised on grounds of ecology
2000, 55–80. and environmental justice. The Himalayan region is seis-
Chidester, David. Patterns of Transcendence: Religion, mically active, and the dam site is located only 15 kilo-
Death, and Dying. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 1990. meters from the boundary of two plates of the Earth’s
Ettinger, Robert C.W. Man into Superman. New York: St. crust. Local people, however, have worked this land pro-
Martin’s Press, 1972. ductively for many generations. Upstream from the dam
Kurzweil, Ray. The Age of Spiritual Machines: When Com- site is a scenic valley, the heart of an ancient village cul-
puters Exceed Human Intelligence. New York: Viking, ture. The proposed reservoir will fill this valley, with its 23
1999. villages, and their terraced fields, sculpted over centuries
Stark, Rodney and William Sims Bainbridge. A Theory of of painstaking work. In 1978, when officers of the Uttar
Religion. New York: Toronto/Lang, 1987. Pradesh government arrived to inaugurate construction
See also: Paganism and Technology. on the first diversion tunnel for the dam, thousands of
men, women, and children blocked their way and shouted:
“You love electricity, we love our soil.” J.P. Raturi has
Tehri Dam argued that while the project will provide electric power
and irrigation to the affluent, to the local people it will
Tehri Dam, a hydro-electric power project on the principal bring displacement and disaster. Bahuguna states that
upper tributary of the Ganges River, will, if completed, be when the Ganges flows in her natural course she benefits
the fifth highest in the world, and the highest in Asia. all, irrespective of caste, creed, color, poverty or wealth.
Located just below the confluence of the Bhagirathi and When she is dammed, she becomes the possession of the
the Bhilangana Rivers in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, privileged and powerful who can dispense her blessings on
the Earth and rockfill dam of 260.5 meters will flood 45 a partisan basis.
kilometers of the Bhagirathi Valley and 35 kilometers of Bahuguna argues that religion traditionally played a
the Bhilangana Valley, impounding 3.22 million cubic vital role in the regulation of natural resource use. As the
meters of water spread over 42.5 square kilometers. The industrial revolution began to see nature as a commodity,
reservoir will submerge the town of Tehri, and 5200 hec- this crucial feature of religion came to be covered over
tares of land. It will displace an estimated 70,000 to with rituals. When development was identified with eco-
100,000 people. Promising 2400 megawatts of electric nomic growth, a new religion was born: the temple of this
power to such cities as Allahabad and Kanpur, it is religion is the market, technocrats and experts are its
expected to irrigate 270,000 hectares in the western dis- priests, and the dollar is the new god. Our political leaders,
tricts of Uttar Pradesh, providing 500 cubic feet per second he says, are prepared to make the highest sacrifices to this
of drinking water to Delhi. god to bring it home. With his frail body, his white beard,
Since its inauguration, public protest against the pro- and his simple Kadi apparel, Bahuguna appears as a
ject has centered upon the interrelated issues of ecology, prophet standing against an idolatrous faith. The dam, he
economic and environmental justice, and religion. At a argues, is a project to realize a false hope. It is based on a
meeting in Brazil in 1997, J.P. Raturi, the representative of view of reality that equates progress with the affluence of
 Teilhard de Chardin, Pierre 1627

the few. We should not kill our sacred river, he says, on the 1899 he entered the Jesuit order where he launched into
promises of a false vision of reality. his lifelong effort to unify science and religion through the
Bahuguna’s idiom of resistance supports his credi- study of evolution and the role of the human as part of
bility. Personifying the traditional ideals of nonviolence evolutionary processes. Three years later the novitiate was
(ahimsa), renunciation of possessions (aparigraha), and moved to the island of Jersey in England due to anti-
devotion to God (Ishvar-pranidhana), Bahuguna states clericalism in France. It was also at this time that his eldest
that the method of satyagraha, or standing courageously brother died, his younger sister became seriously ill and
for the truth, is the only form of protest that can be two years later another sister passed away. These experi-
effective. In the course of this struggle, Bahuguna has ences had a profound effect on Teilhard who considered
undertaken several fasts that have received much media engaging only in theological studies and turning away
attention. Ranging from 11 to 74 days, they have repeat- from science.
edly brought him close to death. Early in 1996 the Tehri Instead he was sent to teach at the Jesuit College in
Hydroelectric Development Corporation ordered the Cairo from 1905–1908. It was here that he developed his
people and businesses to vacate the town of Tehri and naturalist’s inclinations by studying Egypt’s flora and
move to the New Tehri town located on a hillside above the fauna as well as the fossil record. Teilhard spent from
dam site. The town was to be submerged by the end of 1908–1912 in Hastings, England, where he continued his
June 1996. Local activists argued that the call was theological studies but also pursued his interest in evolu-
intended to convince the people that a review of the pro- tion. He encountered Henri Bergson’s newly published
ject was no longer possible. Again in June of 1999 all Creative Evolution. This had a profound effect on his ideas
government offices, educational institutions and busi- regarding the spirit and direction of the evolving universe.
nesses were asked to vacate the town by the end of the It was also during this period that the attack on modernism
month, but the plan was again postponed. If this plan is and evolution arose under the papacy of Pius X. From
finally undertaken, the Ganga Kuta, or hut, on the bank of 1912–1915 Teilhard studied geology and paleontology in
the river in which Sunderlal Bahuguna has been residing Paris eventually earning his doctorate in 1922 from the
in satyagraha for the past twenty years will be the first Sorbonne.
dwelling to be submerged. The war years interrupted his studies as Europe was
plunged into bloody trench warfare. Teilhard served as a
George A. James stretcher bearer and was awarded the Legion of Honor for
his heroic service. The experience of war had a profound
Further Reading effect on him as he wrote of his growing sense that even in
Bahadur, Jagdish. Environmental Hotspots: Tehri Hydro- the midst of such turmoil there emerges a feeling for a
Electric Project, Narmada Valley Project. New Delhi: purpose and direction to life more hidden and mysterious
Vigyan Prasar, 1998. than history generally reveals. It was shortly after the war
Pearce, Fred. “Building a Disaster: The Monumental Folly when he was recuperating in Jersey that he wrote his essay
of India’s Tehri Dam.” The Ecologist 21:3 (May/June on “The Spiritual Power of Matter.” For Teilhard all of
1991). matter has a psychic/spiritual component and it is this
Paranjpye, Vijay. Evaluating the Tehri Dam: An Extended interiority of matter that helps to move evolution toward
Cost-Benefit Appraisal. Studies in Ecology and Sus- greater complexity and consciousness.
tainable Development 1. New Delhi: INTACH, 1988. In 1923, at the invitation of the Jesuit Emile Licent,
Rigzin, Tinzen, ed. Firewood in the Heart, Firewood on the Teilhard sailed for China to undertake paleontological
Back: Writings on and by Himalayan Crusader Sunder- research. Together they traveled numerous times to the
lal Bahuguna. Tehri (UP), India: Parvatiya Navjeevan Ordos desert on the border with Inner Mongolia to study
Mandal, 1997. Paleolithic remains as well as the natural terrain. Teilhard
See also: Ahimsa; Bahuguna, Sunderlal; Hinduism; Hindu- returned to France a year later to resume teaching at the
ism and Pollution (and adjacent, River Ganga and the Institute Catholique, but the conservative climate perpetu-
Clean Ganga Campaign; Sarvodaya Shramadana Move- ated by the Vatican created a difficult atmosphere for him
ment (Sri Lanka). to develop his thinking on evolution. This conservative
climate was due in part to the anti-modernist movement
spearheaded by the Vatican before World War I. Rome
Teilhard de Chardin, Pierre (1881–1955) sought to thwart the efforts of Catholic intellectuals who
were interested in introducing broader elements of biblical
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin was born on 1 May 1881 to criticism as well as reconciling aspects of religion and sci-
Emmanuel and Berthe-Adele Teilhard de Chardin. His ence, especially around the theory of evolution. In
birthplace in Auvergne in southern France had a lasting response, Rome tried to preserve orthodox Catholic teach-
effect on his experiences of love for the natural world. In ing by requiring all clerics to take an anti-modernist oath.
1628 Teilhard de Chardin, Pierre

Teilhard returned to China and settled in Beijing where him all reality consists of simultaneously a within and a
he continued his scientific studies, interacted with a broad without. Matter and spirit are thus joined in this vast evo-
circle of intellectuals, and wrote The Divine Milieu. This lutionary unfolding toward a final Omega Point. The uni-
work eventually caused his Jesuit Superior General to verse in this context is a divine milieu, a center that has the
insist that Teilhard confine himself to his scientific work possibilities of uniting and drawing all things to itself. For
and not publish any of his theological writings. This was Teilhard the evolutionary process is characterized by
in large part because his vision of an immanental evolving increasing complexity and consciousness and the divine
cosmos appeared to more conservative minds to have pan- is seen as part of the process, not simply transcendent
theistic elements not in line with strict interpretations of to it.
the doctrine of creation. There were some who were con- Humans are the self-conscious mode of the universe in
cerned about Teilhard’s profound immanental sensibilities whom complexity and consciousness has come to its full-
regarding the infusion of the divine in nature. This was est expression. One of Teilhard’s greatest hopes was that
seen to be in contrast to the more orthodox position that this large perspective of a purposeful universe would help
God was transcendent or beyond nature. Teilhard was thus to inspire human action for building the human com-
encouraged to stay in China where he remained until after munity. In contrast to a resigned or fatalistic perspective,
World War II except for brief visits to France. he spoke of the need to reignite in the human community a
Teilhard engaged in several key research projects joy for action and a zest for life. Human suffering he saw
including the discovery of Peking Man in 1929–1930, the not as due to original sin but as a form of potential energy
Mongolian Expedition sponsored by the American which if transformed could change the face of the Earth in
Museum of Natural History, the Yellow Expedition spon- positive ways.
sored by Citroen, as well as expeditions to India, Burma, Teilhard’s optimistic perspective has led to critiques
and Java. In 1931 he traveled across the United States, from theologians who grapple with the problem of evil
which inspired him to write The Spirit of the Earth. This and feel that Teilhard may gloss over this pervasive reality
work situates the human within evolutionary emergence in the human community. It has also resulted in criticisms
and suggests that recognizing our deep embeddedness in from deep ecologists who view him as highly anthropo-
nature is crucial to the future of all life. Teilhard voices his centric and his vision of “building the Earth” as lacking in
concern that humans embrace their common destiny as awareness of the need for environmental restraints. Many
members of the Earth community and help to create a are thus wary of Teilhard’s apparent faith in technology
viable future by activating, not stifling, the larger spirit of and in progress. Moreover, Teilhard was a product of his
the Earth within each human. times in having a rather limited understanding of religions
It was in 1940 that he completed his most important outside of Christianity. His strong Christocentric approach
work, The Human Phenomenon (originally translated as and language infuse his writings.
The Phenomenon of Man). After the war when he was able Nonetheless, conscious of these critiques and aware of
to return to France his Jesuit superior would still not allow Teilhard’s limitations, Thomas Berry and Brian Swimme
this work to be published. He spent the last years of his life have drawn on Teilhard’s evolutionary perspective in
in New York City with a research position at the Wenner- developing their idea of The Universe Story as a com-
Gren Foundation. The Human Phenomenon was not pub- prehensive context for an expanded ecological sensibility.
lished until after his death in 1955. It was first translated Like Teilhard, they see cosmogenesis as critical to under-
into English in 1960 and a new, more accurate translation standing the role of humans as intrinsic to evolution and
by Sarah Weber was published in 1999. as responsible for its continuity. Teilhard’s ideas continue
In The Human Phenomenon Teilhard outlined the four- to inspire appreciation and critique in the search for
fold sequence of the evolution of galaxies, Earth, life, and sustaining human–Earth relations.
consciousness. Teilhard presented his vision of the emer-
gence of the human as the unifying dimension of the evo- Mary Evelyn Tucker
lutionary process. For Teilhard the awakening of humans
to the idea of evolution since Darwin is unique in history Further Reading
and he likens this to the moment when a child becomes Teilhard de Chardin, Pierre. The Human Phenomenon (New
aware of perspective. He felt that for humans to realize translation by Sarah Appleton Weber). Brighton: Sus-
that they participate in cosmogenesis, namely that they sex Academic Press, 1999.
are part of evolutionary developmental time, results in a Teilhard de Chardin, Pierre. Toward the Future. New York:
major change in knowledge and beliefs. Absorbing this Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich, 1975.
perspective, he felt, was a critical juncture for the growth Teilhard de Chardin, Pierre. Human Energy. New York:
of human awareness. Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich, 1971.
Teilhard sees consciousness as intrinsic to the process Teilhard de Chardin, Pierre. Hymn of the Universe. New
of evolution, not as an extrinsic addition to matter. For York: Harper’s, 1965.
 Thai Buddhist Monks 1629

Teilhard de Chardin, Pierre. The Divine Milieu. New York: Nevertheless, environmentalist monks maintain that
Harper’s, 1960. their actions follow the Buddhist invocation to end suffer-
See also: Berry, Thomas; Earth Charter; Environmental ing (Pali, dukkha). They are critical of changes wrought in
Ethics; Epic of Evolution; Religious Studies and Environ- Thai society as a result of the capitalist economic devel-
mental Concern; Roman Catholic Religious Orders; opment promoted by the government since the 1950s. The
Swimme, Brian; United Nations’ “Earth Summits”. consumerism that has swept across the nation and the
accompanying debt and environmental degradation, these
monks argue, are based on greed, one of the three root
Thai Buddhist Monks causes of suffering in Buddhist thought. They see it as
their responsibility as monks, therefore, to engage in
In 1986, the ecclesiastical council of the Thai Sangha, the changing people’s attitudes and behavior toward the natu-
order of Buddhist monks, recommended to the Thai gov- ral environment and the economy. By promoting
ernment that the Departments of Forestry and Religious environmental conservation and sustainable development
Affairs work together on conservation and rural develop- (by which they primarily mean growing one’s own food
ment projects. This recommendation foreshadowed the through organic agriculture), they aim to help people rec-
currently popular environmental movement in Thailand ognize their responsibilities toward nature and avoid the
and the growing number of projects throughout the nation desire that underlies capitalist development. Environ-
involving monks and the use of Buddhism in development mental degradation, economic development, and the
and conservation. In the face of severe problems of deforest- abandonment of religious principles and practice are all
ation and damaged watersheds across Thailand, several intertwined in environmentalist monks’ assessments of the
monks are advocating forest conservation, along with rural major problems Thailand faces today.
development schemes, based on their interpretations of In their efforts to deal with these problems, environ-
Buddhist notions of respect for and balance with nature. mentalist monks focus on three main types of activities:
The work of these self-proclaimed “environmentalist reinterpreting traditional rituals, education, and activism.
monks” (Thai, phra nak anuraksa thammachaat) raises The interplay between these approaches highlights the cul-
controversial issues concerning the relationship between tural creativity of these monks as they draw on local,
Buddhism and environmentalism. The debate goes beyond national and Theravada Buddhist beliefs and practices in
equating the religion with nature, a simplistic interpreta- response to the environmental crisis in Thailand. Their
tion often made by both these activist monks and more activist approach is supported by teachings of
environmentalists throughout the Buddhist world. (For prominent scholar monks such as Buddhadása Bhikkhu
example, the Buddha’s birth, enlightenment, teaching and and Phra Prayudh Payutto (current monastic title,
death all occurred in forests, providing evidence in this Dhammapitaka).
line of thinking for the importance of the forest for spir- Environmentalist monks reinterpret a range of tradi-
itual development and environmental conservation.) The tional rituals to promote conservation and engender lay-
Buddhist environmental movement, amorphous as it is in people’s participation in conservation projects. These rites
Thailand, raises questions about both the appropriateness include symbolically ordaining trees in endangered for-
of monks’ involvement in such “this-worldly” affairs as ests, drawing people’s attention to their mutual depend-
environmentalism and the philosophical grounding of ence on the forest. They also incorporate tree seedlings for
their interpretations of Theravada scriptures and ritual reforestation with the traditional lay donations of robes to
practices. monks. Some monks perform “long-life” ceremonies for
Although making up only a small percentage of the bodies of water, such as rivers and reservoirs, to highlight
total Sangha in Thailand, environmentalist monks became the urgency of protecting water supplies from drought
prominent in the 1990s. Controversies involving some (often caused by deforestation) and pollution. One monk
well-known monks, such as the arrest of Phra Prajak Khut- even modified the monks’ daily practice of alms-rounds to
tajitto for allegedly trespassing in a national park while ask people in his village to donate land to the temple,
documenting illegal logging, and a sex scandal surround- thereby gaining religious merit, to use in a model inte-
ing the environmental activist Phra Yantra (in which he grated agriculture farm. Through reinterpreting a familiar
was accused of fathering a child with one of his followers), practice, the monk aimed to get villagers to rethink how
heightened the debate and put all activist monks under they lived from the land.
increased public scrutiny. The controversies and public Education is a major component of environmentalist
image of environmentalist monks also tend to keep most monks’ activities. They teach both laity and the larger
“forest monks” – meditation masters who remove them- Sangha about ecology, appropriate technology and
selves from society to emphasize religious practice and organic agriculture to provide tools to live in an ecologi-
asceticism – away from involvement in environmental cally sensitive manner. The monks emphasize meditation
activities. and Buddhist teachings, seeing the religion as the basis for
1630 Theme Parks

positive change in society. They use principles such as Swearer, Donald K. “The Hermeneutics of Buddhist Ecol-
dependent origination or the interdependence of all things ogy in Contemporary Thailand: Buddhadasa and
(Pali, paticca-samuppada) to teach people responsibility Dhammapitaka.” In Mary Evelyn Tucker and Duncan
toward the natural environment. Ryuken Williams, eds. Buddhism and Ecology: The
The most controversial activity of some environmental- Interconnection of Dharma and Deeds. Cambridge,
ist monks is their activism. Many of these monks have MA: Harvard University Center for the Study of World
initiated local conservation projects or protested ecologi- Religions and Harvard University Press, 1997, 21–44.
cally harmful policies and actions by the government, Taylor, Jim. “ ‘Thamma-chaat’: Activist Monks and Com-
military and big business. Together with local people and peting Discourses of Nature and Nation in Northeast-
non-governmental organizations, monks have protested ern Thailand.” In Philip Hirsch, ed. Seeing Forests for
both the construction of a dam in northeast Thailand and a Trees: Environment and Environmentalism in
natural gas pipeline coming from Burma through a Thai Thailand. Chiang Mai: Silkworm Books, 1996, 37–52.
national park for both their negative ecological effects and See also: Buddhism – Engaged; Nhat Hanh, Thich; Payutto,
their impact on the livelihoods of local people. Monks Phra Dhammapitaka; Siam’s Forest Monasteries; South-
have established sanctified, protected community forests east Asia; Sivaraksa, Sulak.
and fish, bird and wildlife sanctuaries, and organized
Dhamma walks in which monks, environmentalists and
other lay people walk and meditate mindfully for several Theme Parks
days or weeks, engaging with local people to draw atten-
tion to endangered areas such as lakes and forests (see The term “Theme Park” has been used to describe every-
Bhikkhu 2000). In northern Thailand, one young monk thing from small amusement attractions, such as family
runs a model organic farm and provides seeds, seedlings entertainment centers with a few rides, to the massive
and knowledge to farmers as they shift from cash cropping Walt Disney World entertainment complex outside
to integrated, organic agricultural techniques. Orlando, Florida. Theme parks are not to be confused with
The actions and religious interpretations by environ- fairs, carnivals, or amusement parks. The relationship
mentalist monks are diverse and controversial. They are between theme parks and their predecessors – both medi-
also genuine efforts to make Buddhism relevant in a chan- eval carnivals, festivals and fairs, and nineteenth-century
ging society. Despite – or perhaps because of – the debates amusement parks and World’s Fairs – is well documented.
surrounding these monks, they are contributing to rethink- What is of interest here is the way the more than 225
ing the religion and religious practice in light of the major theme parks in the United States (as at the turn of
urgency of the environmental crisis. The result is a form of the 21st century), and unknown numbers of others around
cultural creativity that, while grounded in an ancient tradi- the world, have evolved to present a new cultural intersec-
tion, has the potential radically to change the way Thai tion of religion and nature. We can identify several prom-
Buddhists think about their religion and their natural inent religious possibilities for presentations of nature in
environment. contemporary theme parks.
In the 1950s, theme parks began to embody what has
Susan M. Darlington been called “civil religion” (Bellah 1967), central tenets of
which were: capitalism, nuclear family and domesticity,
Further Reading scientific and technological progress (leading to utopian
Bhikkhu, Santikaro. “Dhamma Walk around Songkla community living), wealth and leisure provided through
Lake.” In Stephanie Kaza and Kenneth Kraft, eds. national supremacy, and triumph over nature.
Dharma Rain: Sources of Buddhist Environmentalism. Themes of progress and domination of all things natu-
Boston: Shambhala Publications, Inc., 2000, 206–15. ral have also been prominent in a “frontier religion”
Darlington, Susan M. “Rethinking Buddhism and Devel- common in theme parks, including such places as Disney-
opment: The Emergence of Environmentalist Monks in land and Disney World, Southern California’s Knott’s
Thailand.” In Christopher S. Queen, Charles S. Prebish Berry Farm, and Silver Dollar City in the Missouri Ozarks.
and Damien V. Keown, eds. Action Dharma: New Stud- A prominent narrative in such locales as Disney’s Frontier-
ies in Engaged Buddhism. Surrey, UK: Curzon Press, land, Knott’s Berry’s Ghost Town, and Silver Dollar City in
2003. its entirety is the rejuvenating value of an anti-modern
Darlington, Susan M. “Practical Spirituality and Com- experience with a romanticized, simpler period of
munity Forests: Monks, Ritual and Radical Conserva- American exploration, conquest, and new settlement.
tism in Thailand.” In Anna L. Tsing and Paul Finally, what can be called a religion of “nature celebra-
Greenough, eds. Imagination and Distress in Southern tion” has been made possible by the more recent, steady
Environmental Projects. Raleigh, NC: Duke University increase in the use of natural themes in park design. What
Press, 2003. Disneyland started with exotic recreations of flora and
 Theme Parks 1631

fauna has increasingly developed into a more overt role at ing them from the outside world (e.g., private highways,
such parks as Busch Gardens: Africa: The Dark Continent, toll booths, parking lots, and ticket counters). Like
the Sea World parks, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Now traditional pilgrimage centers, theme parks evoke the
nature is no longer presented as mere backdrop for enter- supernatural (with its emphasis on magic, fantasy and
tainment and practical landscape manipulation. It is the make-believe), or at least a mytho-heroic past. Moore dis-
point (and source) of the experience. cusses the cultic and symbolic dimensions of the park,
Critics have called these parks to task in recent years for arguing that going to theme parks is not only about play-
encouraging visitors to feel that their attendance amounts ing but bearing witness to the metaphors they evoke and
to environmental action since their messages are often pay homage to. Increasingly, those metaphors highlight
intensely scientific and environmentally sound, focusing nature and its religious significance. He concludes that the
upon the veterinary and conservationist activities that social and spatial order of a place like Disney World is the
may go on there. The parks are often built on fragile habi- genuflection – ritual motion – of mass industrial society.
tats and clearly encourage unsustainable consumption. Much more research is needed to explore the roles of
Some critical scholars portray the success of nature- religious experience of nature presentations in theme
focused theme parks as especially problematic for their parks, but that audiences have transcendent experiences
influence on American tourist culture in general. There is in theme parks is unquestioned. For example, a 33-year-
concern that zoos, museums, and even national parks old father in New Hampshire wrote to The Unofficial Guide
will be remodeled to mimic theme parks (Davis 1997; to Walt Disney World,
Wilson 1991).
It is one thing to say that theme parks present visitors It was on this trip that I experienced what can only
with a particular view of nature, to worry, for instance, be described as . . . an epiphany. I was on the ferry
that Sea World’s oceans, Busch Garden’s African land- boat that runs between the Magic Kingdom and the
scape, and Disney’s multiple geographies narrate a par- TTC, waiting for it to fill up and cast off. The rain
ticular version of nature as exhibited by each corporate had cooled things off comfortably, and a rainbow
interest. It is quite another thing to consider what people had formed behind the Contemporary Resort, disap-
are doing with those presentations of nature. Scholars pearing over the rooftops of the Wilderness Lodge
need to ask why Sea World attendees have been known to that poked from behind the treeline. It was beautiful,
strip off their clothes and jump into the dolphin tank (an and I just felt so relaxed, peaceful and happy. I also
unsanctioned activity). Do they seek only to cool off? Do felt a little silly – here I am, a 33-year-old guy, alone
they simply find swimming with dolphins entertaining? Or in Walt Disney World, and I’m feeling like there’s not
is there a more fundamental desire for an authentic a problem in the world. But that’s the effect this
experience that has a religious dimension? place can have on you. Sure it can be hot, crowded,
Some have argued that theme park visitors desire a par- muggy, and it’ll suck your wallet dry . . . but that’s a
ticular set of experiences that in many ways can be con- small price to pay for those moments when the
sidered sacred. Margaret J. King (1981) joined a growing “Disney Magic” takes over and all seems right with
scholarly focus on Disney parks, calling them the “popular the world.
culture capitals” of the country, noting that more so than
Washington, D.C., families are motivated to go on a double In the passage we see references to human creation: the
pilgrimage to Disneyland and Walt Disney World – first as ferry boat, the Magic Kingdom, the crowds, etc. But we see
children and later with children. For King, this notion references to nature: the rain, a rainbow, the treeline. As
evokes community, communal experience, shared values, Van Maanen (1992) pointed out, there are important cul-
ritual motion, and perhaps additional traditionally tural contrasts that intensify the meaning potential of
religious language and imagery. This is not to say that theme park nature. Mugginess, crowds, waiting, and
theme parks have become traditionally religious for their spending money are offset by beauty, relaxation, peace,
visitors. Instead, visitors value community and the feeling happiness, and contentment. Religion sociologist Wade
of shared, ritual experience on a broad cultural level – Clark Roof (1993) has argued that, increasingly, late mod-
rituals of a civil religion (King 1981). ern Americans engage in similar quests to seek new sym-
Anthropologist Alexander Moore (1980) compared bols and meanings – incorporating such experiences with
theme parks with traditional baroque pilgrimage centers. prior beliefs to cobble together their own belief systems. Is
Though he argues that Walt Disney World’s form replicates it possible that such popular cultural (and for profit!) cor-
that of a pilgrimage center, behavior in the Magic porate creations as theme parks provide at least some of
Kingdom, he says, is not traditionally religious. Instead, the meaningful material? Are the creators and operators of
ritualized play seems to be gaining importance over both these parks able successfully to present a crafted “nature”
organized religion and obligatory rituals. Theme parks are that transforms their commercial endeavors into pro-
isolated and enclosed. There are ritualized barriers separat- foundly moving, even religious, experiences for paying
1632 Theosophy

customers? And is it worth the cost? By positioning theme and theology. Theosophy represented, they believed, a
park nature as entertainment, information, and even tran- path based on the profounder perspective of the “ancient
scendent inspiration, are we denying our own threat to its wisdom,” the vision of nature and humanity held by pre-
authenticity? moderns who, to judge from those most often cited in the
We can only be certain that theme parks will continue literature, tended broadly to be in the tradition of
to draw visitors, providing an experience that will Vedantins, Mahayana Buddhists, and Platonists together
undoubtedly carry on a contribution to the ongoing evolu- with their neo-Platonic, Gnostic and Cabalistic progeny.
tion of the story of transcendent nature. In respect to nature, nineteenth- and twentieth-century
Theosophy has contributed to nature spirituality insofar as
Joseph G. Champ it: a) presented quasi-religious images and concepts to
Rebecca Self Hill embody the romantic view of nature as vibrant with life
and meaning, both visible and invisible; b) popularized in
Further Reading the West monistic and pantheistic Eastern experiences of
Bellah, R. “Civil Religion in America.” Daedalus 96(1) nature, humanity, and the divine; and c) expanded evolu-
(1967), 1–21. tion (known best in its controversial Darwinian form at the
Davis, Susan. Spectacular Nature: Corporate Culture and time of the Society’s founding) to embrace all of nature,
the Sea World Experience. Berkeley: University of together with humanity, in immense cosmic evolutionary
California Press, 1997. schemes. Such ideas are certainly not unique to The-
Isozaki, Arata. “Theme Park.” South Atlantic Quarterly osophy, but in the late nineteenth and early twentieth cen-
92:1 (1993), 175–82. turies Theosophists were pioneers in presenting them in
Johnson, David M. “Disney World as Structure and Sym- popular as well as academic and literary venues. In lodge
bol: Re-Creation of the American Experience.” Journal meetings, publications, and such centers as the Pt. Loma
of Popular Culture 15:1 (1981), 157–65. community in San Diego, started by Katherine Tingley in
Kasson, John F. Amusing the Millions: Coney Island at the 1897, or Krotona, established in Hollywood in 1912 and
Turn of the Century. New York: Hill and Wang, 1978. moved to Ojai, California, in 1924, the idea of evolution-
King, Margaret J. “The Audience in the Wilderness: The ary kinship with nature deeply felt by many Theosophists
Disney Nature Films.” Journal of Popular Film and took such concrete forms as vegetarianism, humanitarian-
Television 24:2 (1996), 60–8. ism toward animals, progressive farming, and appreci-
King, Margaret J. “The New American Muse: Notes on the ation of the salutary spiritual effect of an inspiring natural
Amusement/Theme Park.” Journal of Popular Culture environment.
15:1 (1981), 56–75. The core Theosophical idea is usually said to be one-
Moore, Alexander. “Walt Disney World: Bounded Ritual ness: that the unity of all being is more fundamental than
Space And the Playful Pilgrimage Center.” Anthropo- any apparent separateness and diversity. Oneness there-
logical Quarterly (1980), 207–17. fore overrides all dualism, whether of the One and the
Roof, Wade Clark. A Generation of Seekers: The Spiritual many, the human and the divine, consciousness and mat-
Journeys of the Baby Boom Generation. New York: ter, or humanity and nature. A corollary of this perspective
HarperCollins, 1993. is the assumption that consciousness, though perhaps in
Van Maanen, John. “Displacing Disney: Some Notes on rudimentary or radically nonhuman form, is found con-
the Flow of Culture.” Qualitative Sociology 13:1 sistently throughout all levels of the universe. Some mod-
(1992), 5–35. ern Theosophists (as well as some scientists) have seen
Wilson, Alexander. The Culture of Nature: North American evidence of universal consciousness underlying matter in
Landscape from Disney to the Exxon Valdez. Toronto: the phenomena described in quantum theory.
Between the Lines, 1991. Recent Theosophical writers and teachers like Joy Mills,
See also: Disney; Disney Worlds at War. Shirley Nicholson, Amit Goswami, and Ravi Ravindra
have emphasized the congruity of the Theosophical
worldview with what seems to be emerging on the fron-
Theosophy tiers of physics and cosmology, especially as interpreted
by such sympathetic writers as David Bohm, Rupert Shel-
The modern Theosophical movement, which commenced drake, Ken Wilber, and Gary Zukov. The Theosophical
in 1875 with the founding of the Theosophical Society by stress on oneness, the consistent interaction of conscious-
Helena P. Blavatsky, Henry Steel Olcott, and others, has ness and matter, and the coexistence of many planes or
had a role in the emergence of recent spiritualities of dimensions are particularly mentioned. Out of such con-
nature and ecology. The new movement was viewed by its ceptions has come a recent Theosophical environmental
founders as a middle way between what they perceived as ethic like that of Shirley Nicholson in Ancient Wisdom,
the twin dogmatisms of the nineteenth century, science Modern Insight, particularly Chapter 3, “Holism and
 Theosophy and Ecofeminism 1633

Hierarchy.” Nicholson here views nature as a series of Theosophy and Ecofeminism

increasingly large “interlocking wholes,” in which a prime
imperative in any ethical choice involving nature – as do The international Theosophical movement founded by
nearly all choices, ultimately – is taking into account its Helena Petrovna Blavatsky in the 1870s has kept alive in
“reverberations” up and down the interlinked system. the West the ancient belief that meaningful relationships
Theosophy regards nature as alive, conscious on vari- can occur between human beings and other animals and
ous levels, continuous with humanity both immanently plants. Some ecofeminisms posit a special bond between
and in evolutionary process, and so legitimately entitled to women and nature other than that based on shared or
personification. Theosophical writers like Blavatsky, interdependent patriarchal oppression; while many
Annie Besant, C.W. Leadbeater, and Geoffrey Hodson, ecofeminists celebrate the special connections between
have not hesitated to personify powers of nature with women and nonhuman nature. Ecofeminism and feminist
names generally derived from venerable mythologies spirituality have, however, lacked compelling cosmolo-
regarded as vehicles of the Ancient Wisdom. Out of the- gies, whereas the core Theosophical idea is of a cosmos
osophy’s classic texts emerge creative Dhyan Chohans permeated by energetic relations that manifest themselves
(cosmic buddhas or, in Western parlance, archangels), as different forms of consciousness. Theosophy, on the
Sanat Kumara the world-spirit and Kwanyin or Mary as other hand, has not been interested in the question of
world-mother, devas who serve as guardians of particular under what conditions one gender is better able than
places or phenomena of nature, on down to “elementals” another to have special relationships with animals or
and the elves or dryads of garden and field. Some of these plants or places. Ecofeminism and feminist spirituality,
identifications have become more and more commonplace however, have had this concern.
as part of the New Age attempt at reenchantment of the Connecting Theosophy and ecofeminism is the pioneer-
world through recovery of enlivening perceptions of ing work done by women Theosophical leaders to restore
nature recalled from childhood or folklore. As Leadbeater ecological health to the movement’s various communities.
put it, “It is one of the most beautiful characteristics of Madame Blavatsky’s famous garden in England; what his-
Theosophy that it gives back to people in a more rational torian Emmett Greenwalt has called Katherine Tingley’s
form everything which was really useful and helpful “agricultural Eden” at Point Loma, California; and the
to them in the religions which they have outgrown” grounds at the Theosophical Society’s international head-
(Leadbeater 1928: 1). quarters at Adyar, India in which Annie Besant took con-
In both the personification of natural entities and its siderable interest, were all early twentieth-century efforts
efforts toward reconciling science and spirituality, to infuse ecology with concepts from Theosophy’s cos-
Theosophy’s distinctive attitude toward nature has had an mology. Findhorn, Scotland, and Perelandra, Virginia, are
impact on recent nature spirituality generally. related recent examples of communities sustained largely,
although not exclusively, by communication between
Robert Ellwood women and nonhuman nature (by Eileen Caddy and
Dorothy Maclean and by Machaelle Small Wright,
Further Reading respectively).
Goswami, Amit. The Self-Aware Universe. New York:
Tarcher/Putnam, 1995. Jan C. Dawson
Greenwalt, Emmett A. California Utopia: Point Loma,
1897–1942. San Diego: Point Loma Publications, Further Reading
1978 (2nd rev. edn). Gaard, Greta, ed. Ecofeminism: Women, Animals, Nature.
Hodson, Geoffrey. The Kingdom of the Gods. Adyar, Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1993.
Madras, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972. Nicholson, Shirley and Brenda Rosen, eds. Gaia’s Hidden
Leadbeater C.W. Invisible Helpers. Madras, India: Theo- Life: The Unseen Intelligence of Nature. Wheaton, IL:
sophical Publishing House, 1928. Quest Books, 1992.
Nicholson, Shirley. Ancient Wisdom, Modern Insight. Tompkins, Peter and Christopher Bird. The Secret Life of
Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1985. Plants. New York: Harper & Row, 1973.
See also: Blavatsky, Helena Patrovna; Bohm, David; Hin- See also: Ecofeminism (various); Findhorn Foundation/
duism; Krishnamurti, Jiddhu; Sheldrake, Rupert; Swimme, Community (Scotland); Krishnamurti, Jiddhu; Theosophy.
Brian; Theosophy and Ecofeminism; Wilber, Ken.
1634 Thoreau, Henry David

Thoreau, Henry David (1817–1862) contemplation. All of these practices were understood to
be means of cultivating the self and, more particularly,
Henry David Thoreau was an author, naturalist and lead- “Reason” (knowledge through intuition) and imagination.
ing member of the nineteenth-century literary, social and In addition, Thoreau (like other Transcendentalists)
religious movement that came to be known as Transcen- assumed that nature had particular lessons to teach and
dentalism. Thoreau is best remembered for his two-year that simple, “natural” ways of living would help to culti-
venture in “living deliberately” on the shores of Walden vate his moral sense. The spiritual practice of “self-
Pond in his hometown of Concord, Massachusetts from 4 culture” (which began when the young Thoreau changed
July 1845 to 6 September 1847, an experiment which led his name from David Henry to Henry David) was an essen-
to the publication of Walden in 1854. Though few of his tial aspect of the retreat to Walden.
writings were widely known at mid-century, his work The experiment at Walden was also intended to reso-
became increasingly sought after in the late nineteenth nate symbolically, both in Concord and beyond. While liv-
and twentieth centuries. His other well-known published ing at Walden enabled Thoreau to develop inwardly (to
writings include: A Week on the Concord and Merrimack learn about himself in a natural context, to practice his
Rivers (1849), Cape Cod (1865) and The Maine Woods craft as a writer, and also to grieve the early death of his
(1864). brother), his life at Walden was also intended to be an
Even in his own time, local responses to Thoreau’s outwardly directed comment about (and against) prevail-
experiment at Walden helped to shape two competing por- ing social norms. While he farmed beans for part of his
traits of Thoreau that have persisted into the present: livelihood, he denigrated the commercial aspects of farm-
Thoreau as “wilderness man” par excellence, living self- ing and praised instead the educational and spiritual
sufficiently in the wild woods and, to a lesser extent, benefits of tilling the soil. While he made trips to the vil-
Thoreau as hypocritical crank, grinding his literary ax to lage almost daily, Thoreau constantly criticized village
chop at society and its conventions, while regularly going life, particularly the idle conversation and status-seeking
into town and dipping into the maternal cookie jar. While mores he felt dominated the town.
both of these portraits contain some truths, they are cari- Although he cultivated a sometimes biting and misan-
catures of a man and his work that often miss the complex- thropic persona in his texts, Thoreau’s reputation as a mis-
ity of his vision and the multifaceted dimensions of his anthrope is inaccurate. Thoreau was no hermit. He enjoyed
legacy. frequent visitors from among family, friends and laborers
Thoreau’s sojourn at Walden was never intended to be near the pond and went into town frequently, especially in
an attempt at perfect self-sufficiency or wilderness living. the winter months when he supported himself with odd
In terms of setting alone, Thoreau’s retreat to Walden can- jobs as a handyman and surveyor. During his time at Wal-
not be considered a wilderness venture, as Concord in the den, he maintained an active correspondence, regularly
mid-nineteenth century had been a settled village for two attended lectures and often appeared at gatherings at the
centuries. Thoreau’s purpose in going to Walden should be homes of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Bronson Alcott and other
understood as practical, spiritual and symbolic, none Concord friends. Through the symbolic act of withdrawing
of which demanded a lifelong retreat to the woods or to the woods, Thoreau intended not to recommend such a
absolute purity in his practice of self-reliance. withdrawal for everyone, but rather to symbolize through
Practically, Thoreau sought a means of making a living deed (and then word) the virtues of independent thought
which would preserve the time he desired in order to culti- and action, rather than behaving in line with social
vate his craft as a writer, while maintaining a mode of life convention.
that permitted generous swaths of time for outdoor walks, Walden (1854) is Thoreau’s most celebrated text, a care-
leisure and meticulous nature study. The retreat to Walden fully crafted manuscript that went through eight drafts
was, at a fundamental level, a first step in solving the before publication. Thoreau’s ambitious reworking of the
practical problem of livelihood that all writers face. material from his journals included the adoption of a sea-
The spiritual dimensions of Thoreau’s decision were sonal structure (summer to spring) and the collapsing of
tied to the practical impetus behind his choice, but also two actual years into a single narrative one, a model
went beyond them. While Thoreau sought to reduce his nature writers have followed to this day. The text stands
needs (of food, clothing, shelter and leisure) to a minimum as the most complex fusion of his post-Christian, Tran-
in order to maximize time to write, this pursuit of sim- scendentalist religious orientation with his detailed and
plicity was itself a form of spiritual practice. With Emerson scientifically informed observation of a particular natural
and other New England Transcendentalists, Thoreau surround. A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers
subscribed to principles of plain living: a simple, often (1849), which preceded Walden (and was a publishing
vegetarian diet; avoidance of tea, coffee and alcohol; failure) is more obviously metaphorical. While a travel
regular excursions in the fresh air, frequent intellectual narrative in some respects, it is interspersed with philo-
interchange and a complementary pursuit of solitary sophical departures, essays, poems and fragments from
 Thoreau, Henry David 1635

Thoreau’s reading, while also intending to serve as an typical Transcendentalist and post-Christian preoccupa-
elegy to his brother, John. Throughout the text, attention tion with purity: nature in her ideal, good and “higher”
to natural detail appears and recedes, but ultimately takes aspect. His writings of travels in the Maine woods also
a back seat to Transcendentalist philosophy and the work- display an unexpected fear of the wilderness in its
ings of Thoreau’s young literary and religious imagina- most rugged form. Overall, however, nature is a source of
tion. Thoreau’s late writings lean in the other direction, goodness and a model for humanity in Thoreau’s view.
his unpublished manuscripts on seed dispersion and the Nature occupied a space in Thoreau’s imagination that
development of flora in Concord (recently collected and his Christian neighbors reserved for God. Thoreau enjoyed
published posthumously as Faith in a Seed [1993] and needling others with this unorthodox, but increasingly
Wild Fruits [1999]) contain still accurate and scientific popular, approach, commenting toward the end of his life
useful documentation of the growth, development and that “a snowstorm was more to him than Christ” (Harding
distribution of plants in New England. 1965: 464). Thoreau was also influenced by the newly (and
When traced through the corpus of his writing, sometimes inaccurately) translated Eastern religious and
Thoreau’s view of nature is clearly a dynamic one, shifting philosophical texts becoming available in America, which
and changing in response to Thoreau’s own growth as a gave testimony to the sacredness of particular aspects of
writer and his synthesis of naturalistic observations the physical world (mountains, rivers, etc.) Thoreau wel-
accumulated over the years. In general terms, Thoreau’s comed the Vedas, The Laws of Manu and purported say-
interpretive stance toward nature is a view shaped by his ings of the Buddha into his literary repertoire (using them
European and New England, Protestant heritage, yet defy- often to support his own Transcendentalist assertions) and
ing easy categorization. It is neither Christian, nor secular; argued for the equal legitimacy of the religions of the
neither wholly scientific, nor traditionally religious. With world. In addition, he drew deeply – though perhaps less
the European Romantics, and older Transcendentalists, consciously – on a broader legacy of Christian and espe-
Thoreau saw nature as something other than simply God’s cially Protestant, New England interpretations of nature as
creation (the traditional Christian view and one that was a book to be read, the so-called “Book of Nature.” While
itself comparatively neglected by Christians of his day, leaving Christian theology behind, Thoreau retained the
who placed more emphasis on personal salvation). Christian – and particularly, American – legacy of finding
Thoreau was a lifelong critic of the Church, even the in nature lessons and morals for leading an ethical life.
liberal Unitarian church attended by the majority of his While rejecting traditional Christian typology, Thoreau
family. His vision of nature was pursued outside the maintained a “typological stance” toward nature, seeing
boundaries of both Christian orthodoxy and liberalism lessons for humanity in battles between ants, the lure of
and his contemporaries therefore often criticized his writ- the woodchuck and the play of the loon.
ing (or expurgated it) because of its “paganistic” tenden- Thoreau’s daily practice of attentiveness toward nature,
cies. Even Thoreau’s Aunt Maria worried that portions of however, enabled him to go beyond a “reading” of nature
A Week sounded like “blasphemy” both because of only for moral and spiritual guidance. His daily walks
Thoreau’s approving nods toward Buddhism and Hindu- became a means for gathering precise naturalistic data
ism, as well as his claims that the divine could be found within the limited boundaries of a particular watershed
within both nature and humanity. While Walden was a over several decades, an invaluable contribution – before
comparative success, the same kinds of criticisms came its time – that leaves us with a thick ecological portrait of a
from more theologically conservative circles, who praised particular bioregion. His “amateur” conclusions regarding
the examples of detailed “nature study” in the text, but not the succession of trees, his identification of rare plants and
the more radical philosophical and religious themes. his innovations in everything from pencil-making to pre-
Thoreau’s approach to the natural world was particu- dicting ways to lengthen the cranberry harvest were all
larly informed by his reading of the Romantics, who saw discoveries that were independently supported or
nature as the ultimate source of insight and a means of produced by professionals in later years.
return to childhood innocence untainted by “civiliza- While Thoreau’s Transcendentalism always led him to
tion’s” expectations and failings. Thoreau’s sense of ethics see “more” in nature than a scientist would discern, his
and aesthetics emerged from the Romantic (and later, unflagging curiosity and rigorous record-keeping also
Transcendentalist) presumption that nature is the ideal helped him to become a self-taught naturalist and to estab-
teacher. His purpose was to cultivate himself, in return, as lish literary naturalism as an American genre. More than
an ideal pupil. Yet such an embrace of nature was not any other Transcendentalist, Thoreau wove together con-
wholly positive, nor was his construction of nature temporary scientific knowledge and liberal, post-Christian
exclusively beneficent, though it was prevailingly so. The interpretations of nature’s symbolic capacity. On the other
“Higher Laws” section of Walden show a Thoreau who is hand, Thoreau’s criticism of Christian institutions, his
sometimes ill at ease with the unseemly, violent, or lowly insistence on seeing the divine in nature (and in the self)
aspects of nature (including his own body) and reveal a and his respect for other religious traditions of the world
1636 Tibet and Central Asia

opened his writing up to charges of paganism and panthe- Tibet and Central Asia
ism that persist in conservative, evangelical circles. Yet a
close reading of Thoreau’s work clearly reveals its intel- The Tibetan form of Buddhism is the dominant religious
lectual and spiritual debt to New England Protestantism. system throughout the Tibetan plateau, and is also wide-
His thinking and writing is “post-Christian” more than it is spread in surrounding areas, particularly Mongolia, north-
anti-Christian, pantheistic or pagan. Like Emerson, but ern Nepal, Bhutan, areas of Central Asia and Russia, and
going beyond him, Thoreau knitted together a Protestant the northern Indian regions of Sikkim and Ladakh.
heritage, a philosophical interest in idealism and a passion Buddhism was first introduced to Tibet during the early
for observation and study of natural phenomena in the dynastic period from the seventh to ninth centuries. Fol-
field. lowing the demise of the Yarlung dynasty (so called
Today, Thoreau’s legacy is less felt in religious circles because its power base was the Yarlung Valley of central
than it is in environmental ones. Hand in hand with the Tibet), Buddhism’s influence declined until it was
growth of the environmental movement from the 1960s reintroduced in the twelfth century. In the following cen-
forward has been an ever-increasing enthusiasm for turies it became increasingly popular throughout the
Thoreau’s work, though few read more than portions of Tibetan plateau as well as neighboring states.
Walden. Thoreau’s relative self-sufficiency, his concerns The main sources of Tibetan Buddhism were the great
about the marketplace and emerging capitalism, and his north Indian monastic universities and charismatic Tantric
view of nature as a beneficent source of spiritual lineages that were centered in Bengal and Bihar. The
transformation all contributed to the dominant themes of Buddhism of the monastic universities emphasized scho-
contemporary environmentalism: a growing interest in lasticism along with meditative practice, and the Tantric
simple, sustainable living, a critique of consumer culture lineages taught a more meditation-oriented form of prac-
and a view of nature as the source for personal (often tice based on visualization and ritual practices. The pres-
spiritual) renewal. ent-day forms of Tibetan Buddhism are mainly derived
Though prone to misrepresentation, Thoreau’s writing from these two sources.
and his example continue to speak to both religious and From the mid-seventeenth century until 1959, Tibet
non-religious audiences, to scientists and to humanists, to was ruled by the Dalai Lamas or their regents. The Dalai
those who read nature symbolically and to those who sim- Lamas are believed to be physical manifestations of the
ply admire the vast records of this “self-appointed Buddha AvalokiteŸvara (Tibetan: Chenrezi), and the pres-
inspector” of snowstorms. ent one, Tenzin Gyatso (b. 1935), is the fourteenth incarna-
tion. In 1950 China invaded and annexed Tibet, and in
Rebecca Kneale Gould 1959, following an abortive popular uprising against Chi-
nese rule, he fled to India, where he established a govern-
Further Reading ment-in-exile headquartered in Dharamsala in the north
Buell, Lawrence. The Environmental Imagination: Indian state of Himachal Predesh.
Thoreau, Nature Writing and American Culture. Cam- In many ways, Buddhism might seem to be an
bridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University unpromising religion for someone seeking conceptual
Press, 1995. resources for an environmental ethic. According to Bud-
Cameron, Sharon. Writing Nature: Henry Thoreau’s dhist doctrine, all sentient beings are reborn over and over
“Journal.” New York: Oxford University Press, 1985. as a result of their actions (karma), and the world is con-
Cavell, Stanley. The Senses of Walden. New York: Viking, ceived as a place of suffering. The ultimate goal of Bud-
1972. dhist practice is liberation from the world and the cycle of
Harding, Walter. The Days of Henry Thoreau: A Biography. rebirth, and cyclic existence is conceived as irredeemably
New York: Knopf, 1965. unsatisfactory. There is no way to fix it up and make it
Peck, Daniel. Thoreau’s Morning Work. New Haven: Yale bearable, but despite these attitudes, Buddhists have tradi-
University Press, 1990. tionally asserted the importance of avoiding harm to the
Richardson, Robert D., Jr. Henry David Thoreau: A Life of environment. In the Indian text Dhammapada, for
the Mind. Berkeley: University of California Press, example, one of the distinguishing features of an
1986. awakened being (buddha) is that he or she avoids harming
Shanley, James Lyndon. The Making of Walden. Chicago: plants and animals and lives in harmony with the
University of Chicago Press, 1957. surrounding environment.
See also: Back to the Land Movements; Book of Nature; In recent decades, a number of Tibetan Buddhist
Emerson, Ralph Waldo; Radical Environmentalism; Tran- thinkers have developed a Buddhist approach to environ-
scendentalism; Unitarianism. mentalism based on the doctrine of interdependence (pra-
titya-samutpada), which holds that all things come into
being in dependence upon causes and conditions and
 Tibet and Central Asia 1637

change in every moment as a result of causes and condi- extract resources was effectively robbing the “lords of the
tions. The world is conceived as an infinitely complex Earth,” who would inflict punishment on the offenders.
causal network in which each individual part acts on all Similarly, polluting water causes the lu to harm
other parts while simultaneously being influenced by its offenders, and prior to the Chinese takeover, Tibet’s rivers
surrounding environment. These notions are connected and lakes had some of the most unpolluted water in the
with the Buddhist doctrine of no-self (anatman), which world. In addition, exile Tibetans often point with pride to
holds that there is no enduring “self” or “soul” and that the fact that hunting was outlawed by the fifth Dalai Lama
living beings are instead individual continuums composed in 1642. According to his official decree, all birds, fish, and
of various constituent elements that are changing with non-predatory animals were protected by law. Since at
every moment. This process operates in intimate connec- least that time, Tibetans have generally avoided killing
tion with the surrounding environment, and there is said wild animals and fishing for sport, and travelers in Tibet
to be no real dividing line between oneself and the world. prior to the Chinese invasion often remarked at the large
Thus, concern for oneself naturally extends to concern for herds of grazing antelopes, wild ass, and deer that were
the environment. The fourteenth Dalai Lama has become found throughout the region. Moreover, because Tibetans
one of the leading proponents of this idea, and he claims generally avoided cutting down trees there were extensive
that prior to the Chinese invasion Tibetans did in fact live old-growth forests in the lower regions of the Tibetan
in harmony with the environment. plateau.
Some contemporary commentators dismiss this idea, Although environmental concern has become an
claiming that prior to the mid-twentieth century Tibet was important theme in publications by the Tibetan govern-
an agrarian society in which most people subsisted on ment-in-exile, there is little evidence of this concern prior
low-technology agriculture and animal husbandry. Prior to the mid-1980s, when the Dalai Lama first began
to the Chinese invasion, the utilization of biomass was articulating the notion that Tibetans have for centuries
closely related to the physical conditions of Tibet, which consciously protected the environment. The first exile
had a stable population and little change in agricultural or government statements on the environment followed the
animal husbandry techniques for centuries. Furthermore, publication of reports of widespread environmental dam-
in vast areas of the Tibetan plateau the poor soil and age to the Tibetan plateau by the Chinese, and the exiles’
sparse vegetation required that people avoid overgrazing environmental awakening was at least partly reflexive and
and overfarming. Most of what people consumed came political. Particularly during the chaotic period of the Cul-
directly from the Earth, and their waste products were tural Revolution (1966–1976), when marginal land was
mainly biodegradable and were returned to the environ- taken over for agriculture and forests were clear-cut, many
ment. Thus the fact that they maintained a sustainable animal species were hunted to extinction, and significant
approach to the environment was non-reflective and – and in many cases probably irreversible – damage was
merely a direct result of their technological backwardness done to Tibet’s fragile ecosystem. Thus the exile govern-
and the physical limitations of their environment. ment’s newly pro-environment stance was part of a larger
There is some merit to this idea, and it is doubtful that polemical attack on China’s annexation of their country
most Tibetans had (or have) a consciously articulated and its subsequent record in administering it.
environmental ethic that guided their approach to the Several commentators have also noted that even the
environment, but there were also significant conceptual language used in Tibetan publications on the environment
factors influencing the Tibetan approach to the natural indicates that conscious concern with environmental
world. In addition to Buddhist doctrines of nonviolence issues is part of the discourse of modernism, in which
and interdependence, there were also pre-Buddhist ani- Tibetans and other indigenous people have been con-
mistic ideas about the Tibetan plateau, which was seen as structed as “naturally green” by Westerners seeking to
the abode of innumerable forces that owned the land. construct an idealized primitive “other” whose practices
Among these were the sadak (“lords of the Earth”), and lu implicitly critique those of technologically advanced soci-
(water spirits), which respectively guarded the soil and eties. It should also be noted that much of the vocabulary
water. Ethnographic studies of contemporary Tibetans used in Tibetan exile publications on the environment is
have demonstrated that belief in these natural forces is derived not from Buddhist doctrine but instead employs
widespread and that Tibetans commonly assert that people contemporary Western notions and language. The “green-
who cause harm to the environment draw the wrath of ing” of Tibet and Tibetan Buddhism is also connected with
these beings, who can cause great harm to humans. Any the discourse of Buddhist modernism, which portrays
building or construction is commonly preceded by a cere- Buddhism as essentially “rational” and “scientific” and
mony that asks their permission, and great care is taken to represents Buddhism as the conceptual basis of
avoid angering them by causing unnecessary damage social movements like environmentalism, human rights
to the Earth. In addition, mining was almost unknown in activism, social reform, and feminism.
Tibet, because it was thought that digging up the Earth to There is no reason to believe that the widespread
1638 Tikkun Olam – A Jewish Imperative

influence of Buddhism contributed significantly to the P Tikkun Olam – A Jewish Imperative

general practice of sustainable agriculture and animal
husbandry in Tibet, nor that the exile government’s pro- At a time when there are almost daily reports about dis-
nouncements and publications on the environment have turbing developments – global climate change; the
significantly affected either attitudes or practices toward destruction of tropical rainforests, coral reefs, and other
the environment. These publications are the work of a habitats; soil erosion and depletion; air, water, and land
small, educated elite, and the massive accumulation of pollution; desertification; droughts, severe storms; widen-
garbage along the roadways of Dharamsala – along with ing water shortages; and other threats – it is essential that
the common practices of spitting, urinating, and defecat- Jews engage in tikkun olam, the mandate to repair, heal,
ing into public water supplies – is ample demonstration of and transform the world.
this. It should be noted, however, that although Tibetans One of the main reasons that the world faces so many
have only recently begun to articulate environmental con- critical problems is that there are sharp deviations between
cerns, and the leading figures are a small elite group, there its values and methods and basic Jewish teachings.
is some evidence that their message is gaining ground at Among the many Jewish teachings that should be applied
least among the Tibetan exile community, and there have as part of tikkun olam are the following:
been several grassroots campaigns to clean up their
environment in recent years. • “The Earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof ” (Ps.
24:1) – we are to be partners and co-workers with
John Powers God in protecting the environment (Talmud: Shabbat
10a).
Further Reading • Bal tashchit – based on a torah teaching that we are not
Atisha, Tenzin P. “The Tibetan Approach to Ecology.” to destroy fruit-bearing trees, even in times of war
Tibetan Review 25:2 (1991), 9–14. (Deut. 20:19–20), the talmudic sages made a general
Clarke, Graham E. “Tradition, Modernity, and Environ- ruling that we are not to waste or unnecessarily destroy
mental Change in Tibet.” In Thierry Dodin and Heinz anything of value.
Räther, eds. Imagining Tibet: Perceptions, Projections, •We are to imitate God in his attributes of compassion,
and Fantasies. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 2001, justice, and mercy (Talmud: Sotah 14a) – since God is
339–56. concerned about the Earth and its creatures, we should
Geshe Damdul Namgyal. “Buddhist Ecology – Its Theor- be as well.
etical Base.” In Tibet Environment and Development • We are to “work the land and to guard it” (Gen. 2:15)
News. Dharamsala: Department of Information and This Torah teaching indicates that the dominion that
International Relations, 1994, 27–30. people are given is not one of domination, but rather of
Gyatso, Tenzin (Dalai Lama XIV). “His Holiness the XIV responsible stewardship.
Dalai Lama on the Environment: Collected State- • “Justice, justice shall you pursue” (Deut. 16:20) The
ments.” Dharamsala: Department of Information and repetition of the word “justice” indicates that we are to
International Relations Publications, 1994. practice justice, whether to our profit or loss, in word
Huber, Toni. “Green Tibetans: A Brief Social History.” In and action, and to Jew and non-Jew (Hertz 1957: 820).
Frank J. Korom, ed. Tibetan Culture in the Diaspora.
Wien: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der As co-workers with God, charged with the task of being
Wissenschaften, 1997, 103–19. a light unto the nations and accomplishing tikkun olam, it
Räther, Heinz. “Views on Ecology among Tibetan is essential that Jews apply these and other teachings to
Intellectuals.” In Per Kvaerne, ed. Tibetan Studies. Pro- the struggles to reduce pollution and the wasteful use of
ceedings of the 6th Seminar of the International natural resources. We must proclaim that it is contrary to
Association for Tibetan Studies. Fagernes 1992, vol. 2. religious values to pollute the air and water, to slash and
Oslo: Institute for Comparative Research in Human burn forests, and to wantonly destroy the abundant
Culture, 1994, 670–5. resources that God has so generously provided.
Schmithausen, Lambert. Buddhism and Nature. Tokyo: To reduce potential threats to the world, we must adopt
International Institute for Buddhist Studies, 1991. simpler lifestyles. Religious institutions, schools, and pri-
Tucker, Mary Evelyn and Duncan Williams, eds. Buddhism vate and governmental organizations must all play a role.
and Ecology: The Interconnection of Dharma and We must redirect some of our industrial capacity toward
Deeds. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Center for recycling, solar energy, and mass transit. We must design
the Study of World Religions, 1997. products for long-term durability and ease of repair. We
See also: Bon (Tibet); Buddhism – Tibetan; Dalai Lama; must revise our agricultural and industrial methods so that
Nepal; Sacred Mountains; Yunnan Region (Southwest they are less wasteful of resources and energy. Perhaps
China and Montane Mainland Southeast Asia). there should be a Presidential Commission appointed
 Toland, John 1639

solely to consider how we can stop being such a wasteful tion, and made it hard to earn a living. Toland penned
society. political pamphlets and biographies for aristocratic pat-
We should make tikkun olam a major focus of our syna- rons. He wrote prolifically on a wide range of subjects,
gogues, Jewish schools, and other Jewish groups and including religious tolerance and civil liberty.
institutions in order to help move our precious planet to a A large bibliography lists almost two hundred works
path that is more just, humane, and sustainable. Changing authored or ascribed to him. He claimed to know ten lan-
will not be easy, since our society and economy are based guages and often published anonymously or in a foreign
on consumption and convenience, using and discarding. tongue to keep critics at bay. An important early book,
But it is essential that we make supreme efforts, for the Christianity Not Mysterious, provoked controversy
survival of humanity may be at stake. because it claimed that human reason could explain bib-
lical mysteries. Clerics burned the book and one official
Richard Schwartz requested, “that Mr. Toland himself should be burnt” (in
Berman 1997: 226). But Toland’s work garnered fame as
Further Reading well as fusillades. He discussed philosophy with notables
Amsel, Nachum. The Jewish Encyclopedia of Moral and like the German thinker Wilhelm von Leibniz, and the
Ethical Issues. Northvale, NJ: Jason Aronson, 1996. Queen of Prussia, Sophia Charlotte.
Hertz, J.H. The Pentateuch and Haftorahs. London: Son- Despite ill health and financial woes, Toland remained
cino, 1957. productive to the end of his life. He wrote Physic without
Regenstein, Lewis. Replenish the Earth: The Teachings of Physicians shortly before he died, decrying his doctor’s
the World’s Religions on Protecting Animals and the inept treatment: “They learn their Art at the hazard of our
Environment. New York: Crossroads, 1991. lives, and make experiments by our deaths” (Toland in
Rose, Aubrey, ed. Judaism and Ecology. New York and Mossner 1967: 141). Toland’s self-written epitaph con-
London: Cassell, 1992. cluded, “If you would know more of him Search his
Schwartz, Richard H. Judaism and Global Survival. New Writings” (in Berman 1997: 229).
York: Lantern, 2002. A book Toland wrote in 1705 entitled Socinianism truly
Shatz, H., Chaim I. Waxman and Nathan J. Diament, eds. stated . . . recommended by a Pantheist to an orthodox
Tikkun Olam: Social Responsibility in Jewish Thought friend contains the first known use of the term “pantheist”
and Law. Northvale, NJ: Jason Aronson, 1997. in an English-language publication. (Earlier, in 1697,
Waskow, Arthur I., ed. Torah of the Earth: Exploring 4,000 Cambridge mathematician Joseph Raphson coined the
Years of Ecology in Jewish Thought. Woodstock, VT: words “pantheist” and “pantheism” in a theological work
Jewish Lights, 2000 (2 vols). written in Latin; Toland had read and commented upon
See also: Eco-kabbalah; Hasidism and Nature Mysticism; Raphson’s book). In 1709, a Toland critic named J. Fay
Hebrew Bible; Israel and Environmentalism; Jewish used the term “pantheism” in English, and both terms
Environmentalism in North America; Judaism; Kabbalah quickly became common. Toland’s use of the term appears
and Eco-theology; Vegetarianism and Judaism; Waskow, to derive from the pantheization of his religious outlook,
Rabbi Arthur. as reflected in his later works, although some scholars
question his committal to any particular religion.
Toland had previously expressed pantheistic theory in
Toland, John (1670–1722) Clito (1700) and in Letters to Serena (1704), but had not
employed the term. He thought “All things were full of
Historians describe John Toland as a multifaceted man – a God,” and pronounced that “The sun is my father, the
philosopher, a writer, a linguist, a polemicist, a diplomat, a Earth my mother, the world is my brother and all men are
biblical scholar, a deist, and ultimately a proponent of my family” (members.aol.com/pantheism0/toland.htm).
pantheism. Lexicographers credit Toland with the first The Roman materialist Lucritius and especially the Ital-
English-language usage of the term pantheist. ian philosopher Giordano Bruno (martyred for his pan-
Born near Londonderry, Ireland on 30 November 1670, theistic beliefs in 1600) greatly influenced Toland’s
and christened in the Catholic Church, Toland converted to perspective.
Protestantism around age 15. Subsequent higher educa- Toland detailed his own pantheism in Pantheisticon:
tion and an inquiring mind led him to extensive question- sive Formula celebrandae Sodalitatis Socraticae/
ing of accepted religious doctrines. Toland acquired a Pantheisticon: or, the Form of Celebrating the Socratic
degree from the University of Edinburgh in 1690, and Society (1720, anonymous English translation, 1751). He
studied further in England, Germany, and Holland. believed in a boundless universe. He visualized the unity
A friend described Toland as “a free-spirited, ingenious of all matter and the ceaseless motion of atoms. He
man” (in Berman 1997: 223). But his unorthodox views spurned personal immortality yet averred that “Nothing
forced him to move from place to place to avoid prosecu- dies totally, the death of one thing brings the birth of
1640 Tolstoy Farm

another, by a universally reciprocal exchange, and with dozens of residents trying to eke out survival with
everything contributes necessarily to the preservation and antiquated farm equipment and a cash income of only a
welfare of the Whole” (members.aol.com/pantheism0/ few dollars per person per month. Over time, however, the
toland.htm). community managed to acquire 240 acres of land in two
John Toland had a significant impact on his generation tracts and, as the counterculture became more popular and
during the Age of Enlightenment. And he brought the Tolstoy’s reputation spread, it attracted large numbers of
concept of pantheism as well as the word “pantheist” into visitors, some of whom stayed and built their own houses.
wider circulation, a term now commonly used by phil- The farm’s lack of rules meant that social life tended to
osophers, theologians, and nature religionists throughout consist of a rather freewheeling anarchy. Williams, who
the world. eventually married and had children, finally left and later
founded another organic, self-sufficient farming com-
Gary Suttle munity, Earth Cycle Farm, 25 miles away. Tolstoy endured,
however, becoming more stable as the permanent residents
Further Reading improved their homes (some have installed off-the-grid
(Most of John Toland’s works remain out of print and are power systems) and continued to strive for rural self-
available only in rare library collections.) sufficiency. In recent years, many members have
Berman, David. “The Irish Freethinker.” In Philip McGuin- embraced Earth-centered religions, holding an annual all-
ness, Alan Harrison and Richard Kearney, eds. John night Corn Dance, full moon rituals, and community
Toland’s Christianity Not Mysterious: Text, Associated sweats. In 2000, Tolstoy reported about fifty members.
Works and Critical Essays. Dublin, Ireland: The Lilliput
Press, 1997. Timothy Miller
Berman, David. “John Toland.” In Gordon Stein, ed. The
Encyclopedia of Unbelief. Buffalo: Prometheus Press, Further Reading
1985, 668–70. Davidson, Sara. “Open Land: Getting Back to the Com-
Daniel, Stephen H. “Toland’s Semantic Pantheism.” In munal Garden.” Harper’s (June 1970).
Philip McGuinnes, Alan Harrison and Richard Kear- Fairfield, Richard. Communes USA: A Personal Tour.
ney, eds. John Toland’s Christianity Not Mysterious: Baltimore: Penguin, 1972.
Text, Associated Works and Critical Essays. Dublin: Miller, Timothy. The 60s Communes. Syracuse: Syracuse
The Lilliput Press, 1997, 303–12. University Press, 1999.
Daniel, Stephen H. John Toland: His Method, Manners, See also: Anarchism; Back to the Land Movements;
and Mind. Kingston and Montreal: McGill-Queen’s Hippies; New Religious Movements.
University Press, 1984.
Mossner, Ernest Campbell. “John Toland.” In Paul
Edwards, ed. The Encyclopedia of Philosophy. New Torres Strait Islanders (Australia)
York: Macmillan Publishing Company Inc. and The
Free Press, 1967. Torres Strait Islanders, who are, with Aborigines, one of
Oxford English Dictionary. Second Edition, 1989. two peoples indigenous to Australia, are grounded in con-
See also: Corrington, Robert S.; Pantheism; Raphson, tinuous exchanges between people, kin groups, and the
Joseph; Spinoza, Baruch. natural and numinous worlds. Of the 100 or so islands
strewn over the 150km-wide, 10–15-meter-deep seas that
lie between the Western Province of Papua New Guinea
Tolstoy Farm and the Cape York tip of the Australian mainland, 16 sup-
port communities. The current geography of Torres Strait
Huw “Piper” Williams was a peace activist who founded has been in existence since approximately 6500 BP.
an open-land community on some of his family’s farm Islander society is generally regarded as Melanesian, par-
property in eastern Washington State in 1963, seeking to ticularly on the northern islands, although those living in
promote a Christian lifestyle of simplicity, self-reliance, the southwest of the Strait share cultural characteristics
and cooperation. His inspiration came from some of the with Cape York Aborigines. While Torres Strait Islanders
religious essays of Tolstoy and from the nonviolent originate in the Strait, over 80 percent of people who iden-
philosophy and activism of Gandhi. Friends from the tify as Islanders in Australia (around 29,000), are resident
peace movement and the Catholic Worker movement soon on the Australian mainland where they cherish their island
joined him. The sole rule at Tolstoy Farm was that no one of origin, family history, totemic, wind and star affili-
could be asked to leave, which meant that all differences ations. The enduring attachment of Islanders to their land
would have to be worked out directly and peacefully. was made evident in the historical Murray Island Land
The poverty at Tolstoy in its early years was striking, Case of 1992, the most significant legal acknowledgement
 Torres Strait Islanders 1641

of indigenous rights and interests in Australia. The High half of the twentieth century as Torres Strait Islanders
Court of Australia recognized the Meriam peoples owner- gathered harvests and piled them for show on important
ship, occupation and possession of their Mer (Murray days of yearly church commemoration. Harvests are no
Island) land, overturning the concept of terra nullius (land longer publicly displayed through the religious calendar,
belonging to no one) that had guided Australian courts but prestige is still accorded to men who provide turtle,
and governments on questions of indigenous rights to dugong and ceremonial yams of long length and succu-
their lands since settlement in 1788. lence, and to women who provide crabs and fish for
Torres Strait Islanders were traditionally a maritime church-based feasts. Also, the migration of many Islanders
people who combined small-scale agriculture (growing away from their traditional places of residence in the last
yams, taro, cassava, sweet potato, bananas and coconuts) half-century has led to the development of new relation-
with marine and land foraging to meet their subsistence ships of care that transcend the inability to be present and
needs. By the turn of the twentieth century colonization active at particular places. Islanders maintain these con-
had impacted on the elaborate horticultural and marine nections by reciting memories, creating songs and dances
rituals that ensured the continuation of the seasonal cal- that evoke significant associations to land and sea,
endar and increased the produce of the sea and land. Des- and writing genealogies, seasonal and cosmological
pite colonization a great deal of the worldview that information, and agricultural and marine practices in
encompassed these rituals continues to inform the experi- family-owned manuscripts. These compositions sustain
ence of Islanders today. Religious rituals were transitional relationships to place by recording and making available
points that substantiated relations of responsibility and the intricate connections between people, place and the
care between Islanders, the natural and the numinous. numinous to family members physically separated from
Thus, the ceremonial display and feasting of harvested their terrestrial and marine territories.
yams publicly expressed appropriate uses of land through The sea and landscapes of Torres Strait are permeated
an exchange of energies between gardeners and soil result- with individual, collective and cosmological histories in
ing in the yield and the recognition of various social rela- which personal experience and movement has constant
tionships by sharing the produce through a feast. The reference to Ancestral activities and totemic affiliations.
numinous dimension resided in a complex interaction The mythical narratives in which Ancestral Beings con-
between moral behavior, environmental care, and struct the sacred geography of the region (adhiad) provide
environmental behavior. In a worldview that understands an important schema for relating individual identity, rela-
the environment to express the actions of the people to tionships to place and relationships between peoples and
which it is related, including Ancestors, uses of land groups. Alongside mythical narratives of Ancestors who
through gardening and the sea through fishing or marine rarely participate in daily affairs exist active family-
hunting (turtle and dugong [sea cow]) are relationships of oriented Ancestral Beings that share responsibility for the
nurturance and responsibility. nurturance of territories particular to their family or clan
On the island of Mabuiag, it is said that a person is group. On the island of Saibai the identification of people
constantly connected to key sites in their family and clan with their terrestrial territories is given fullest expression
lands through an imperceptible umbilical link. The smell through relationships with family Ancestral Beings called
of a person who has tended a food garden is recognized by muruyg, who take the shape of snakes. Muruyg are recog-
plants in that garden and quickens their growth. Prosper- nized as being high-status Ancestors who have gardened
ous gardeners, healthy bodies and the plentiful provision at a particular area as humans and have over a long period
of foodstuffs reflect a mutually constituting exchange and of time transformed into snakes with special powers. Their
resource ceremonies gave regular public expression to presence around garden beds that they were associated
these relationships. In contrast a person who does not care with in human life is propitious for cultivated crops and if
for the places they attain responsibility for, which can a fire has devastated a garden they help bring it back to
simultaneously include reefs, foreshores, cays, rivers, good health. They also act in a protective manner for their
waterholes, stars, winds and lands, either through lack of descendants’ lands and sometimes extend the range of
visitation and resource use or morally objectionable their activities to include monitoring other lands within a
behavior, can have an adverse effect on these locations clan estate.
and social relationships that are integral to relationships At present, Islanders in the Strait face significant issues
of place. of environmental care. High levels of trace metals in
While colonialism has had great impact on Islander marine biota, some of which may originate in the Ok Tedi
society, the rich cultural meanings and beliefs that outflow (located in the headwaters of the Ok Tedi, a tribu-
inspired lapsed horticultural and marine ceremonies con- tary of the Fly River) may render some marine foods ined-
tinued or transformed to emerge in new forms. The display ible for Islanders. Also, Islanders are unable to support
of garden produce found a place in the church calendar of the high cost of licenses and infrastructure needed to
the Anglican (Episcopalian) church for roughly the first take advantage of lucrative local commercial fisheries.
1642 Totemic Practices in Borgu

Accessing the wealth from this industry would help estab- The most prominent animal totems were the leopard
lish independent economic security, resource management and the red antelope but others included the weaverbird,
and sustainability and continue long-established affinities monitor lizard, rabbit, and crab. Reptiles, such as the
to the marine environment. python and cobra were also revered. Mostly, the sacred
animals and birds were from non-domestic species
Richard Davis because as hunters the people related more to animals in
the bush than domestic ones.
Further Reading The leopard, known as musuku or musu, was a royal
Beckett, Jeremy. Torres Strait Islanders: Custom and Colo- animal totem of Mora and Kenu clans. Members of the
nialism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, Mako, Sawe, Yari-Ateuwa, and Yo clans, who were mostly
1989. farmers and hunters, adopted the leopard as a totem. The
Lawrie, Margaret. Myths and Legends of Torres Strait. St. spiritual relationship has been explained in the tradition,
Lucia, Queensland: University of Queensland Press, which claims that the leopard embodied the soul of their
1970. ancestors. A live leopard was accorded respect in human
Mosby, Tom and Brian Robinson. Ilan Pasin (This is Our fashion, but if found dead, members of the clans would
Way): Torres Strait Art. Cairns: Cairns Regional Gal- bury it with two cowries and mourn it seven days. Sacri-
lery, 1988. fices of appeasement were often offered and the adherents
Sharp, Nonie. No Ordinary Judgement: Mabo, The Murray of the totem believed that the leopard usually ate up the
Islanders Land Case. Canberra: Aboriginal Studies food that was put at a shrine located within the courtyard
Press, 1996. of the palaces.
Sharp, Nonie. Stars of Tagai: The Torres Strait Islanders. As hunters, the people believed that if they were lost in
Canberra: Aboriginal Studies Press, 1993. the bush, the leopard would lead them back to the town
See also: Australia; Pacific Islands. safely. If somebody accidentally killed a leopard, a propiti-
atory sacrifice would be offered. Failure to perform the
sacrifice would evoke the leopard’s wrath in form of wide-
Totemic Practices in Borgu (West Africa) spread sickness among the clan members. The Mako clan
referred to the leopard as “father,” which accentuates the
Borgu straddles present-day Republic of Benin and Nigeria close relationship between the animal and the people. A
in West Africa. Before its partition by the British and the surviving oral tradition indicated that a leopard protected
French in 1898, Borgu covered a vast expanse of land, the clan ancestors by attacking and killing their enemies
stretching from the Atakora mountains in the west to the during a battle. Hence, in appreciation of the animal, the
River Niger in the east, with three main kingdoms (Bussa, ancestors gave great respect to the leopard and preserved
Illo, and Nikki) and several chiefdoms. The major towns the act of revering it in their clan tradition and history.
included Bussa, Illo, Kaiama, and Nikki. The Borgu people The veneration of the leopard in Borgu was closely
spoke several languages, but the major ones were Batonu related to that of the Jukun (Kwararafa) and the Nupe in
and Boko. In spite of the partition and linguistic differ- central Nigeria. The Kisra legend, which was popular
ences, the people practised similar religious belief systems. among many West African societies, referred to Kisra as
Before the penetration of Islam and Christianity, the Borgu the founder of the dynasties of the Borgu, Hausa, Jukun,
people associated religion with nature by worshipping the Nupe, and Yoruba polities. The familial relationship has
sun, moon, rocks, and rivers. They demonstrated the inter- been supported by the similarity in the treatment of dead
section of nature and religion by venerating animal, rep- leopards among the Jukun and Borgu peoples. If a Wukari
tile, bird, and plant totems. Thus, the forces of nature Jukun killed a leopard, he would parade the dead animal
brought spiritual attraction. around the town mounted on a mat. The people would
A British colonial officer described Borgu religion as “a salute the animal with uplifted arms as they would a chief.
fumble of superstitions, with strong indications of totem- However, the slayer was required to perform propitiatory
ism,” but this religious belief system was not unique to the rites and three days’ solitude in the bush. To kill a leopard
Borgu society because the veneration of natural phenom- among the Igara of Nupe was tantamount to committing
ena was a common concept in West Africa. A mystic rela- an offence against the living and dead chiefs. A dead leop-
tionship existed between an individual or clan and an ard was often brought to the chief, dressed up in white,
animal, bird, or plant totem whereby the totem could not and carried around the town with singing and beating of
be killed or eaten. This practice was common among indi- drums. The royal mausoleum of the Ata (the king) of Nupe
viduals of both sexes and clans. The people believed in the was known as “The Grave of the Leopard.”
existence of spirits who were invoked or appeased by par- The gbero (red antelope) was the animal totem of sev-
ticular rites. In the Batonu language, totems are referred to eral clans, such as the Bare, Kabo, Kpai, Kpasi, Mako,
as shesheru. Mora, Mori, Sawe, Yari-Ateuwa, and Yo clans. These clans
 Totemic Practices in Borgu 1643

may have had a common ancestry or they migrated from and its chief priest was called the Bamaso. Another rocky
the same place. While on a hunting expedition, an ances- hill, Kuroboko, served a natural barrier against external
tor of the Mora clan entered the warren of an animal to military attacks, but it was also a symbol of religious prac-
rest, but he could not find his way out. Fortuitously, a tice. A newly installed chief of Okuta would visit the
gbero made a hole through which the ancestor came out. Kuroboko hill for prayers and to offer a sacrifice for a
As an expression of gratitude, the ancestor declared the peaceful and prosperous reign. Before and after a war, sac-
gbero a totem for members of his clan. rifices were offered at the Kuroboko hill. The Ozera hill in
Reptiles constituted another form of totem in the Borgu Kaiama served both political and religious functions. Dur-
society. The Tosu royal clan of Okuta revered the python, ing the annual Gani festival, the traditional shaving of the
which inhabited the Kuroboko hill. Pythons (mleda in the royal family took place at the Ozera hill. The people of
Boko language) lived in two shrines located at Kabami Ilesha chiefdom used to offer sacrifices to Tutuku hill,
rocky hill in Gurai town. Bare, Kabo, Wanro, and Yari especially during epidemics.
Wanro clans also revered shurokoru (cobra). The reverence The River Niger with its tributaries, including Alibori,
of pythons and cobras might have developed from snake Makrou, Minni, Moshi, Oli, and Teshi were worshipped
worship, which was commonplace in pre-colonial West and sacrificed to for successful fishing and peace. Daraku
Africa. People kept serpents in their homes and allowed was the only river that the people of Okuta worshipped.
them to wander about the village without being attacked The spirits of the river inhabited a hole in a big tree and the
by members of the community. Among the Mako, Kenu, chief priest was called Shina Wosho.
Sawe, and Yo clans, both gunusemu (rabbit) and shekuro The centrality of nature and religion cannot be under-
(weaverbird) were accorded human burial. One cowry mined in the Borgu society. As deeply religious, farming,
would be buried with it and mourning would last only hunting, and fishing communities, the Borgu people
a day. placed high emphasis on the interplay of nature and
Animal totems were more common than plant totems religion. Whether adopted as primary or secondary totems,
but spirits lived in sacred trees. The Lesaworu clan at Ile- animals, birds, rocks, and rivers have been employed as
sha revered the Besigondo tree but Baatoko tree was the instruments of religion to consolidate socio-cultural cohe-
plant totem of the Yari at Okuta. The Laru-speaking people sion and cross-clan relations. They served as symbols of
of Lashibe in Wawa District regarded Kanya tree as the unity within the society. The breaking of a totemic prac-
abode of Zarami, an important spirit who provided secur- tice could imperil the unity of the clan. Determined to
ity for members of the community in times of sickness or remain traditionalists and nature worshippers, the Borgu
epidemics. The chief priest of Lashi, an important Earth people did not adopt Islam or Christianity until the
spirit represented by a stone in a hut, could not be circum- colonial period. Traditional religion still exists, an
cised, and was not allowed to farm. The chief of Sabon example of which is Bionkuro, whose shrine is repre-
Gari could not eat new yam until he made a sacrifice of a sented by a collection of fine stones in Kenu and the
sheep and corn to Lashi. The Kani spirit lived in Kawo tree priest attends to patrons who come to ask for improved
and often accepted a sacrifice of a white cock, a libation of health, wealth, or childbirth. Although Islam and Chris-
honey, milk, and flour for appeasement. Antsa, repre- tianity are gaining ground in contemporary times, they
sented by a small piece of iron, could be invoked in case of have not completely obliterated the practice of totemism
sterility. The spirit of Fu lived in a Rimi tree. In addition, and nature worship.
the spirit of Dauda at Kagogi near Bussa lived in Duki tree.
Furthermore, the spirit of Doguwa Fara in Illo lived in the Julius O. Adekunle
sacred tamarind tree.
Unlike the others, the Dandawa (Muslim) clans, such as Further Reading
the Taruwere, Ture, Mane, and the Wangara merchants, Adekunle, Julius O. “On Oral Tradition and History: Stud-
did not adopt any animal totem. But like other clans, the ies on Nigerian Borgu.”Anthropos 89 (1994), 543–51.
Muslims observed food taboos, which do not fall within Frazer, J.G. Totemism and Exogamy: A Treatise on Certain
the category of totemism. For a long time, the Borgu Early Forms of Superstition and Society, 4 vols.
people refused to be Islamized and the veneration of ani- London: Macmillan, 1910.
mal and plant totems could be seen as one of the devices of Meek, C.K. The Northern Tribes of Nigeria, vol. 1. London:
resisting the Islamic religion. Mohammed Bello, the Sultan Frank Cass, 1971.
of Sokoto, once described the Borgu people as “devils Stewart, Marjorie Helen. Borgu and Its Kingdoms: A
and of stubborn nature” because of their refusal to Reconstruction of a Western Sudanese Polity. Lewis-
accept Islam. ton: The Edwin Mellen Press, 1993.
The people of Borgu worshipped other natural phenom- Weissenborn, Johannes. “Animal-worship in Africa.”
ena, such as rocks, hills, and rivers. Jekanna, a rocky hill in African Affairs: Journal of the Royal African Society 5
Bussa, was invoked for childbirth, sickness, and wealth, (1905–1906).
1644 Totemism

See also: African Religions and Nature Conservation; phor in the negotiation of identity. From that moment on,
Totemism; West Africa; Yoruba Culture (West Africa). Aboriginal and other tribal people’s use of totemic
emblems became no more remarkable than Americans
Totemism identifying with the bald eagle, an army regiment identify-
ing with its mascot, or the American prisoner Robert
The word totem comes from the Algonquin language of Stroud becoming “the Birdman of Alcatraz.” Recent
the Chippewa (or Ojibwe) people of the American mid- attempts to enlist ostensibly tribal forms of totemism to
West. It first came to prominence in the late eighteenth environmentalist or New Age agendas, so that pandas,
century, when trader James Long wrote: dolphins, salmon, or wolves, for example, come to symbol-
ize particular human identities, such as conservation
The religious superstition of the Savages consists in organizations or neo-tribal shamans, build on firm tradi-
each of them having his totam, or favourite spirit, tions long embedded in modern as well as pre-modern
which he believes watches over him. This totam thought.
they conceive assumes the shape of some beast or The extensibility of totemism is a key question in its
other, and therefore they never kill, hunt or eat the ethnographic definition. For example, W.E.H. Stanner
animal whose form they think this totam bears (Long once described the local selection of Australian Aboriginal
1791: 86). totems as “irreducibly arbitrary” (1979: 130). His account
is worth quoting more fully.
Long also told the story of a Chippewa man whose “totam”
was bear. The man one day killed a bear, thereby angering A totem is in the first place a thing; an entity, an
the Master of Life. So he was punished by a second bear, event, or a condition – what I have called an exist-
who admonished him and struck his face. As it turned out, ent. Virtually anything perceivable can serve: plants
Long had confused the Chippewa’s idea of a personal and animals of all kinds – anything in the entire
guardian spirit (or manitoo) with their idea of a collective floral and faunal realms; wind, rain, storms, thun-
clan spirit (or totam), but the words “totem,” “totemic,” der, lightning, stars, sun, moon and clouds – any-
and “totemism” developed and gelled in the English thing of the heaven; tools and weapons, food and
language from that time on. cosmetics, fire and smoke, mist and spume, fresh
Totems are usually defined as objects or beings that are water and salt – anything of the Earth; the human
emblematic of individual or group identities. Typically, the exuviae and genitals – almost anything of the body
totem is an animal; less typically a plant or some other . . . Sexual desire, cold weather, sweethearts, vomit-
natural feature (like fire, rain, the sun, or the moon). In ing, runaway wives, mother’s milk and innumerable
Long’s time, and for more than a hundred years after- pests have all been recorded as totems. A part of an
wards, anthropologists usually interpreted totemism as the object can serve – the handle of a spear-thrower, or
classical type of “primitive” religion – religion that the bowels of an animal; so can a disease – diar-
belonged to such a low level of human social development rhoea or colds; so can flood-wrack swirling down a
that it was inextricably tied to nature, whose forces were river, or tide marks on a beach. Living persons evi-
seen to dominate primitive worlds. Some even argued that dently cannot be totems, but a mythical person can
it was a kind of “pre-religion” or magic found among be – for example, the Warramunga “laughing boy”
people who had yet to take any significant steps toward (1979: 129–30).
civilization and the rational control of natural forces. Spir-
itual beliefs from throughout the Americas, Australia, the The totemic impulse is similarly protean in Western soci-
Pacific Islands, and Africa, as well as large parts of Asia, all eties, where, for example, sports teams have totems that
came to be lumped together under the category “totemism.” include not only animals, but also colors, peoples, profes-
These speculations more or less came to a definitive end sions, mythical beings and abstract energies, to name but
when Claude Lévi-Strauss published Le Totémisme Aujo- a few. Such versatility is found in totemic systems world-
urd’hui in 1962. Lévi-Strauss drew attention to the incred- wide, both modern and pre-modern.
ible variation that existed in the ethnographic record, sug- Yet totemic systems do tend to be dominated by ani-
gesting that no single form of totemism could be identified mals, probably because humans are also animals – hence a
as characteristic of the phenomenon as a whole. Totems strongly perceived similarity between “us” and “them.”
could symbolize individual, lineage, or sexual identities, But at the same time humans are more diverse within the
to name only a few, and have been found in all kinds of species, so that differences between nonhuman animals
combinations in a single society. However, Lévi-Strauss are readily employed to symbolize differences between
did make one positive observation about this variety, say- people. Paradoxically, totemic species then appear closer
ing that each type of totemism had to be understood as an to their equivalent groups of people than other humans
example of a universal human propensity to utilize meta- and, in common parlance, the totemic species often comes
 Totemism 1645

to be referred to as a friend or relative. Indeed, “totem” is “civilize” us into rigid roles has muffled the deep,
actually taken from the Algonquin expression ototeman, life-giving messages of our own souls (1992: 1).
which translates as “he is a relative of mine.” In societies
similar to that of the Chippewa, it is common to call Hence, loss of kinship with the wolf, which is lack of con-
totemic species “brother,” “mother,” “grandfather,” and so tact with nature, is also detachment from one’s own nature
on, so that totems, or any of the objects or spirit beings – one’s true self. Neo-totemism preaching this kind of
which instance them, are fully regarded as kin or exten- “back-to-nature” scenario inevitably establishes links
sions of the self. Totemic relationships, be they religious or with tribal regimes.
secular, are invariably marked by familiarity and special The reference to the Wild Woman/wolf as “endangered
intimacy. species” is telling, for in recent years the “originators” of
In recent centuries the contrast between humans and totemism, the Chippewa people, have organized with other
other animals has been heavily compromised by the idea Native American groups (Nez Perce and Dakota Sioux) to
that humans are somehow beyond animality, or cultural protect wolves in their local areas. Chippewa spokespeople
rather than natural. Hence totemism has come to be per- have stated in relation to their campaign that they are
ceived as “kinship with nature,” “nature worship” or “ana- “concerned citizens that are worried for the protection of
logy between nature and culture” – this even though the the wolf” and they have claimed the right to participate in
Chippewa and other classically totemic societies did not “decisions that will affect our brother the wolf.” They back
originally possess a concept of nature in opposition to a their claims with mythological precedent, saying that, at
concept of human society. Neo-totemic characterizations the beginning of time, Anishinable (the first Chippewa
are usually strongly wedded to the romantic critique of man) walked the Earth alone “naming all creation, lands
civilization, which tends to claim that the West has lost and waters.” Because he was alone, the wolf was created to
touch with nature and needs to reinstate a reciprocal rela- walk with him and share his fate. What would happen to
tionship with it. In this mindset, totemism tends to take on one would also happen to the other. And this is how the
a distinctly New Age feel in terms of the ability of people Chippewa see their dispossession in the modern world.
to communicate with nature and comes to be strongly Just as they have had their lands taken, and been hunted
connected with the wisdom of “primitive peoples,” particu- and pushed to near extinction, so too has the wolf become
larly insofar as they are exponents of shamanism and spir- endangered. If, as the Chippewa and others intend, the
itual journeys to commune with other species. The extent wolf returns in numbers to the land and gains in strength,
to which this romantic vision accurately reflects past then this will show how Chippewa life, culture and spiritu-
ethnographic reality remains problematic, but it is cer- ality will also return and gain strength in those places
tainly now part of the contemporary ethnographic where they were once destroyed. And perhaps, they say,
landscape. “the wolf will lead the way to a more natural living” and
Take, for example, the contemporary image of the teach the new Americans to respect “Mother Earth” (Bob
wolf. This creature has a long history in the totemic folk- Shimek and Jean Brave Heart. “Native Americans Enter
lore of a large part of the Northern Hemisphere. In Wolf Controversy.” http://nnic.com/mnwolves/nap.html,
Europe, the wolf is most famously associated with the visited 3 July 2001).
stories of Little Red Riding Hood and the Three Little These ideas are at once old and new, a recasting of
Pigs, where he is the personification of the forest and a totemic traditions in hypermodern circumstances. They
symbol of the potential destruction and transformation also mark a tense conjunction of interests expressed by
of childhood. He also appears in a related unkindly guise indigenous peoples, environmentalist groups and New
as the werewolf. But the wolf also figures in the totemic Age spiritualists. These interests often help to form strong
mythology of Native North America, where the associ- alliances, but they also often lead to accusations of neo-
ated symbolism, often more benign, is rapidly hybrid- colonialism and the wrongful appropriation of indigenous
izing with the ongoing romantic backlash against the knowledge. Some ethnographers have argued that clas-
modern world. For example, Jungian works like Clarissa sical totemic systems, in effecting ritual control of human
Pinkola Estes’ Women Who Run with the Wolves invert movement and foraging, have long played a part in
classical European imagery to make a statement about environmental resource management in pre-modern soci-
modernity. eties. In turn, successful environmental management is
reflected in spiritual beliefs about maintaining harmony
Within every woman there lives a powerful force, and balance in the cosmos. Yet violent hunting practices
filled with good instincts, passionate creativity, and and other pragmatic issues in indigenous communities do
ageless knowing. She is the Wild Woman, who rep- not always sit easily with contemporary environmentalist
resents the instinctual nature of women. But she is or New Age sensibilities. Consequently, neo-totemic
an endangered species. For though the gifts of wild- solidarity across the indigenous/non-indigenous divide
ish nature belong to us at birth, society’s attempt to cannot be taken for granted, but is rather a matter for
1646 Traditional Ecological Knowledge

negotiation. In recent decades, environmentalists and New Traditional Ecological Knowledge

Age spiritualists have been on steep learning curves in
relation to totemic sensibilities in indigenous com- The theme of traditional ecological knowledge is import-
munities; but, equally, indigenous peoples have been keen ant for the consideration of a broad range of questions
to discover what the West’s disenchanted have to offer in related to nature–human relations. Different groups of
their struggle against neo-colonial domination. people in various parts of the world perceive and interact
When Lévi-Strauss penned Le Totémisme Aujourd’hui with nature differently, and have different traditions of
his intention was to dissolve the phenomenon into some- environmental knowledge. Their perceptions and know-
thing different and far broader. While his intention has ledge are in part shaped by their values, worldviews, and
been supported by examination of the fuller content of environmental ethics – religion in the broader sense. In the
totemic systems, the core problematic relationships exploration of environmental ethics and religion toward
between “nature” and “culture” (animality and humanity, an ecologically sustainable society, indigenous peoples
“primitive thought” and “modern thought”) have and traditional ecological knowledge have attracted con-
remained ideologically to the fore. Indeed, the British siderable attention from both scholars and popular move-
anthropologist Roy Willis recently observed that, thanks ments. Traditional ecological knowledge may be defined
to the ongoing twinning of primitivism and ecological as “a cumulative body of knowledge, practice and belief,
concern, the period after Le Totémisme Aujourd’hui has evolving by adaptive processes and handed down through
been marked by a kind of “totemic revival” (1990: 5). The generations by cultural transmission, about the relation-
Chippewa situation described above can be taken as symp- ship of living beings (including humans) with one another
tomatic of this neo-totemic environment in which the con- and with their environment.” As a knowledge-practice-
trast between indigenous and non-indigenous peoples has belief complex, traditional ecological knowledge includes
become synonymous with the opposition between human the worldview or religious traditions of a society. It is both
nature (“the soul”) and its corruption by technocratic cumulative and dynamic, building on experience and
rationality. But Lévi-Strauss’s words still strike a note of adapting to change, as societies constantly redefine what
caution; totemic emblems have never been restricted to is considered “traditional.” It is an attribute of societies
natural species, any more than they have been exclusively with historical continuity in making a living in a particu-
religious in the conventional sense. We live in a world lar place.
dense with personal and corporate emblems, only some of Many discussions of traditional ecological knowledge
which resonate with the juxtaposition of religion and and indigenous knowledge focus on North American
nature. Indian peoples. However, there are traditions of ecological
knowledge in various indigenous societies in South
John Morton America, Australia, and parts of Africa and Asia. Cultur-
Further Reading ally transmitted, cumulative, multigenerational know-
Estés, Clarissa Pinkola. Women Who Run with the Wolves: ledge is held also by some groups that have European
Contacting the Power of the Wild Woman. London: backgrounds, such as Newfoundland fishers and Swiss
Rider, 1992. Alpine people.
House, Freeman. Totem Salmon. Boston: Beacon Press,
1999.
Knudtson, Peter and David Suzuki. Wisdom of the Elders.
London: Allen and Unwin, 1992.
Lévi-Strauss, Claude. Le Totémisme Aujourd’hui. Paris: TEK in Our Common Future
Presses Universitaires de France, 1962. Tribal and indigenous peoples’ . . . lifestyles can
Long, James. Voyages and Travels of an Indian Interpreter offer modern societies many lessons in the man-
agement of resources in complex forest, mountain
and Trader, Describing the Manners and Customs of the
and dryland ecosystems . . . These communities
North American Indians. Toronto: Coles, 1791.
are the repositories of vast accumulations of trad-
Stanner, W.E.H. White Man Got No Dreaming: Essays
itional knowledge and experience that link
1938–1973. Canberra: ANU Press, 1979.
humanity with its ancient origins. Their disap-
Willis, Roy, ed. Signifying Animals: Human Meaning in pearance is a loss for the larger society, which
the Natural World. London: Routledge, 1990. could learn a great deal from their traditional
Willis, Roy. Man and Beast. St. Albans: Paladin, 1975. skills in sustainably managing very complex eco-
See also: Anthropology as a Source of Nature Religion; logical systems (Our Common Future 1987: 12,
Ecology and Religion; Estés, Clarissa Pinkola; Indigenous 114–15).
Religions and Cultural Borrowing; Religious Environ-
mentalist Paradigm; Totemic Practices in Borgu (West Fikret Berkes
Africa).
 Traditional Ecological Knowledge 1647

Traditional ecological knowledge may be considered as isms, gave rise to the field of traditional ecological
a sub-set of indigenous knowledge, defined as local know- knowledge. The field borrows from the cultural ecology
ledge held by indigenous peoples or local knowledge tradition of the anthropologist Julian Steward who
unique to a given culture or society. There is controversy emphasized the study of adaptive processes, and argued
over the term, traditional. Some scholars consider that the that social organization itself may be considered an eco-
term implies backwardness, and instead favor “indige- logical adaptation of a group to its local environment. This
nous” or “local.” Others point out that many indigenous emphasis on adaptive processes in human–nature rela-
peoples themselves see “tradition” in a positive light. They tions may be seen in some of the key volumes on tradi-
do not take it to mean inflexible adherence to the past but tional ecological knowledge. As defined in this literature,
rather to mean time-tested and wise. traditional ecological literature overlaps with cultural
These considerations make it difficult to generalize ecology, ecological anthropology or anthropological ecol-
about traditional ecological knowledge. But in any case, ogy but is not a sub-set of these fields because it often goes
one cannot generalize about “the Amerindian (or African) beyond the discipline of anthropology.
view of nature.” Every cultural group has within it a range The rapid development of traditional ecological know-
of environmental values and ethics, and a range of prac- ledge as a field in its own right started with the documen-
tices. Environmental relations of a group are not uniform; tation of a tremendously rich body of environmental
they are shaped by the day-to-day contingencies, as well knowledge, not just of species but also their ecological
as their worldview and ethics. Environmental ethics do not relations, among a diversity of groups outside the main-
describe how people actually behave, but indicate how stream Western world. These included studies of shifting
they ought to behave. Human–nature relations tend to be cultivation and biodiversity conservation in tropical eco-
ambivalent; there often is a discrepancy between belief systems, and traditional knowledge and management sys-
and practice. tems in coastal fisheries and lagoons, semi-arid areas, and
the Arctic. These studies showed that a variety of tradi-
Origins of Traditional Ecological Knowledge and its tional peoples, in diverse geographical areas from the
Development as a Field Arctic to the Amazon, had their own understandings of
The intellectual roots of traditional ecological knowledge ecological relationships and distinct traditions of resource
are in ethnoscience (mainly ethnobotany) and human management.
ecology. The field started with the documentation of lists By the mid-1980s, the rapidly growing literature on
of species used by different indigenous groups, and elabo- traditional ecological knowledge led to a recognition in
rated a science of folk taxonomies of plants and animals, the international arena of its potential applications to con-
and later, of other environmental features such as soils. temporary resource and environmental problems. This
Early ethnobotany goes back at least to Barrows’ 1900 recognition is reflected in Our Common Future, the 1987
work on Coahuila Indians of southern California who report of the World Commission on Environment and
made a living in a seemingly barren desert environment Development. The report pointed out that indigenous
by harvesting no less than 60 kinds of edible plants and 28 peoples hold a wealth of knowledge based on thousands of
kinds of medicinal plants. The science of folk taxonomies years of experience, and that their practices can offer
is often associated with the name of Harold Conklin who modern societies lessons in the management of resources
documented in the 1950s the extensive plant knowledge in complex forest, mountain and arid land ecosystems.
and classification systems of traditional groups such as the
Hanunoo of the Philippines. Traditional Ecological Knowledge and Science
There is a technical literature on various kinds of Even though the importance of traditional ecological
indigenous environmental knowledge. For example, tradi- knowledge is recognized in the international arena and the
tional agricultural practice is a major field of indigenous number of publications has grown rapidly since the 1980s,
knowledge; others include traditional medicine and archi- the relationship between Western science and traditional
tecture. Much of the indigenous knowledge literature knowledge has remained controversial. There are both
is not about ecological relationships but about other kinds similarities and differences between traditional science
of ethnoscience, including agriculture, ethnobiology, and Western science. Both kinds of knowledge are ulti-
ethnopharmacology, ethnoveterinary medicine, and mately based on observations of the environment, and both
ethnopedology (soils). Some of these areas, for example, result from the same intellectual process of creating order
traditional practices of water conservation and erosion out of disorder. But they are different in a number of sub-
control, are directly related to ecological knowledge, but stantive ways. Traditional ecological knowledge is often
others (e.g., ethnoastronomy) are less so. an integral part of a culture, and tends to have a large
The shift of emphasis from the documentation of spe- social context. Different kinds of traditional knowledge
cies used by indigenous groups and their taxonomy, to a have their own rules, but they are different from science
consideration of functional relationships and mechan- regarding rules of evidence and repeatability.
1648 Traditional Ecological Knowledge

Some of the conflict between science and traditional with traditional ecological knowledge has become politi-
knowledge is related to claims of authority over know- cally volatile. In many indigenous areas, researchers no
ledge. In the modernist tradition, Western science is seen longer have a free hand to conduct their work independ-
as having a monopoly on truth. Hence, knowledge and ently from the people themselves.
insights that originate outside institutionalized Western Politically organized groups of indigenous peoples are
science are not easily accepted. Scientists tend to dismiss beginning to assert control over their knowledge systems
understandings that do not fit their own (and this often for at least two reasons. First, some indigenous groups
includes understandings of other scientists using different have seen their knowledge and biological resources (for
paradigms). Scientists tend to be skeptical, demanding example, medicinal plants) turned by others into profit-
evidence when confronted with traditional knowledge making commodities. Thus, they have started to ask the
that may not easily lend itself to scientific verification. question of who benefits from the recording of their know-
Some traditional knowledge may include elements, ledge, and to investigate how they themselves can control
such as the religious dimensions of the environment, their knowledge and products.
which do not make sense to science. For example, many of Second, indigenous knowledge has become a symbol
the Dene (Athapascan) peoples of the North American for many groups to regain control over their cultural
subarctic consider that some non-living parts of the information. Reclaiming their indigenous knowledge has
environment (including rivers and mountains), as well as become a major strategy in many parts of the world for
all living beings, have spirit. Science has no tools for the movements of cultural revitalization. For example, many
study of the spiritual dimensions of the environment, but of the Aboriginal groups in Alaska and Northern Canada
nevertheless such beliefs are important for understanding have been carrying out their own traditional knowledge
Dene traditional ecological knowledge. studies as part of an effort to strengthen their culture, edu-
For their own part, traditional knowledge holders are cate their young people, prepare land and resource claims,
skeptical of book learning, and tend to dismiss scientists and assert their rights. Such revitalization is not merely a
who do not have extensive first-hand knowledge of a cultural exercise; it is about empowerment and political
specific land area. As well, they are often baffled by the control.
preoccupation of scientists to measure and quantify every- The need for indigenous groups to control their know-
thing. Power relations become an issue when Western ledge has to be balanced against the importance of tradi-
experts and Aboriginal experts have different political tional ecological knowledge as the common heritage of
agendas. Traditional ecological knowledge has frequently humankind. There are tangible and practical reasons why
been used to assert indigenous land and resource rights traditional ecological knowledge is important for the rest
and to fight government-imposed development projects of the world’s people. I have identified seven areas in
on native land. In turn, science may be used to justify the which traditional ecological knowledge is significant.
very same projects. First, it is a source of biological knowledge and ecological
Hence the issue is complex, even if one agrees with insights. Second, indigenous knowledge is important for
postmodern philosophers of science that Western scientific the sustainability of difficult-to-manage ecosystems such
methodology is merely one way, and not the only way, to as tropical forests. Third, it is important for community-
acquire knowledge. However, it is the one that happens to based conservation by connecting human values with
be the dominant knowledge system by far, and the one conservation values. Fourth, some traditional systems are
used as the basis of environmental decision-making by of special interest for biodiversity conservation because
centralized bureaucracies throughout the world. they are based on multiple-use principles that distribute
resource-use pressures in space and time. Fifth, in-depth
Significance of Traditional Ecological Knowledge local environmental knowledge and trends over time for a
Traditional knowledge and Western science need not be given site are important for environmental assessment.
thought of as opposites. Rather, it may be useful to Sixth, traditional knowledge is essential for development,
emphasize the potential complementarities of the two, and especially for “bottom-up” (as opposed to top-down)
to look for points of agreement rather than disagreement. development planning with people.
The use of traditional knowledge contributes to con- Finally, traditional ecological wisdom is a source of
ceptual pluralism, and expands the range of approaches inspiration for environmental ethics. Belief systems of
and information needed to solve environmental problems. many indigenous groups incorporate the idea that humans
The explosion of interest in traditional ecological are part of the natural environment, and their relationship
knowledge since the 1980s is in part related to its practical with nature may be characterized as peaceful co-
significance. However, the interests of different parties are existence. Callicott points out that some traditional ecol-
quite different. For many indigenous groups, the broader ogy sees humans and nature in a symbiotic relationship,
social and cultural aspects of traditional knowledge are with mutual obligations leading to “respect,” a central idea
very significant, and this is one of the reasons why dealing in the relations of many Amerindian groups with nature.
 Traditional Ecological Knowledge in Canada 1649

These observations are significant. The explosion of inter- ations and practices of indigenous and local com-
est in traditional ecological knowledge in recent years munities embodying traditional lifestyles relevant
reflects in part the need to derive ecological insights from for the conservation and sustainable use of biological
indigenous practice, and the need to develop a new diversity and promote their wider application with
ecological ethic based in part on indigenous wisdom. the approval and involvement of the holders of such
knowledge, innovations and practices and encour-
Fikret Berkes age the equitable sharing of the benefits arising
from the utilization of such knowledge innovations
Further Reading and practices (from www.biodiv.org – the Conven-
Berkes, Fikret. Sacred Ecology: Traditional Ecological tion on Biological Diversity’s website).
Knowledge and Resource Management. Philadelphia:
Taylor & Francis, 1999. For generations, indigenous peoples in what is now
Callicott, J.Baird. Earth’s Insights. A Multicultural Survey known as Canada have been using their own knowledge
of Ecological Ethics from the Mediterranean Basin to systems to live sustainably with the land. Indigenous
the Australian Outback. Berkeley: University of knowledge systems are unique systems of generating, stor-
California Press, 1994. ing and transmitting knowledge completely separate and
Ford, Jesse and Dennis Martinez, eds. “Traditional Eco- independent from Western science and Western epis-
logical Knowledge, Ecosystem Science and Environ- temologies. Rooted in relations with the spirit-world,
mental Management.” (Special issue) Ecological indigenous knowledge continues to provide Aboriginal
Applications 10:5 (2000). peoples with unique worldviews, languages that are con-
Posey, Darrell A. and Graham Dutfield. Beyond Intellectual structed to reflect those worldviews, systems of govern-
Property: Towards Traditional Resource Rights for ance, values, and processes and ways of knowing and
Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities. Ottawa: interacting with the land. Aboriginal philosophies and
International Development Research Centre, 1996. values reflect worldviews that are based on inter-
Posey, Darrell A. and William L. Balee, eds. Resource Man- relationships and interdependency with the natural world
agement in Amazonia: Indigenous and Folk Strategies. and all other elements of the cosmos. Traditional teach-
New York: New York Botanical Gardens, 1989. ings, stories, songs, dances and ceremonies reinforce the
Warren, D. Michael, Jan Slikkerveer and David Brokensha, importance of relationships and process in the lives of
eds. The Cultural Dimension of Development: individuals, communities and nations. Indigenous know-
Indigenous Knowledge Systems. London: Intermediate ledge is dynamic and creative and, although it varies from
Technology Publications, 1995. nation to nation, has certain common elements and
Williams, Nancy M. and Graham Baines, eds. Traditional themes. Indigenous knowledge is at once ancient and con-
Ecological Knowledge: Wisdom for Sustainable Devel- temporary knowledge, recording through the oral trad-
opment. Canberra: Centre for Resource and Environ- ition the collective knowledge of a people in addition to
mental Studies, Australian National University, 1993. documenting the impacts of colonization, colonialism and
See also: American Indians as “First Ecologists”; Domesti- environmental destruction. Experts in indigenous know-
cation; Ecological Anthropology; Ecology and Religion; ledge are not academics or researchers who study TEK, but
Environmental Ethics; Ethnobotany; Ethnoecology; Evo- they are the Elders and knowledge-holders who not only
lutionary Biology, Religion, and Stewardship; Harris, hold the knowledge, but who have lived the knowledge
Marvin; Indigenous Environmental Network; Native and the teachings over the course of their lives. It is these
American Languages (North America); Rappaport, Roy A. experts who are best equipped to provide leadership
(“Skip”); Religious Environmentalist Paradigm; A Religio- around this topic, and it is these experts that need to be
Ecological Perspective on Religion and Nature; Traditional included in an effective way in discussions regarding the
Ecological Knowledge among Aboriginal Peoples in Can- many potential applications of Traditional Ecological
ada; Water Spirits and Indigenous Ecological Management Knowledge (TEK).
(South Africa); Yunnan Region (Southwest China and During the initial stages of colonization, Europeans
Montane Mainland Southeast Asia). were dependent upon indigenous peoples and their know-
ledge for their survival. The colonizers relied upon tech-
nology in the areas of transportation, hunting, fishing,
Traditional Ecological Knowledge among food gathering, nutrition, healthcare and navigation. They
Aboriginal Peoples in Canada relied upon Aboriginal peoples for their most basic needs
and in turn had great respect for indigenous knowledge.
Each contracting Party shall, as far as possible and However, as the settler economy developed and the infra-
as appropriate: Subject to national legislation, structure needed to support the colonizers way of life was
respect, preserve and maintain knowledge, innov- realized, they no longer relied on Aboriginal peoples and
1650 Traditional Ecological Knowledge in Canada

Aboriginal knowledge for their continuance and survival. knowledge-holders are making their way into the aca-
Subsequently, over that next five centuries, indigenous demic literature articulated by indigenous scholars such as
knowledge was disrespected, undermined and assimilated Marie Battiste, James Sa’ke’j Youngblood Henderson,
into Canadian society with no recognition or acknow- Leanne Simpson and Deborah McGregor.
ledgement for Aboriginal peoples. Many of the modern Aboriginal peoples have approached these outside
symbols of Canadian culture, such as maple syrup, canoes, interests with caution, concerned that their knowledge
kayaks, snow shoes, wild rice and wild meat, represent could be taken out of context, misused and appropriated.
appropriated Aboriginal knowledge. The systemic dispos- Indeed, there have been several examples of this kind of
session of Aboriginal nations from their territories along exploitation increasingly occurring, and indigenous
with the assimilative policies of the Canadian government peoples continue to take special precautions when sharing
through the Indian Act would have come close to destroy- knowledge with people from outside their communities
ing indigenous knowledge if it were not for the resistance and nations. Many communities have developed informa-
and commitment of past generations of Aboriginal tion-sharing policies and guidelines for researchers
peoples. entering their territories in addition to their traditional
In recent times, non-Aboriginal researchers, academics, protocols for sharing and transmitting knowledge. Some
environmentalists, industry and government personnel communities and organizations, like the Pauktuutit Inuit
have once again become interested in what has become Women’s Organization are investigating the possibility of
known as Traditional Ecological Knowledge. Many using Canadian Intellectual Property law to protect
environmentalists believe that TEK holds answers to the aspects of their knowledge, despite current deficiencies in
pending ecological crises and provides Euro-Canadian the laws in terms of indigenous knowledge.
society with a blueprint toward sustainable living. The Internationally, TEK has most recently been recognized
pharmaceutical and natural health products industries are in the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity.
interested in the Aboriginal knowledge and use of tradi- Article 8j (see the epigraph) of the Convention outlines the
tional medicines and medicinal plants so that these might importance of indigenous knowledge and indigenous
be commercially exploited for profit. Natural resource peoples in the protection of biodiversity. Canada, as a sig-
managers at the federal and provincial levels are inter- natory to the Convention, is slowly working toward
ested in TEK in hopes that it can contribute to the man- implementing Article 8j in its domestic legislation. As
agement of renewable and non-renewable resources in a a result, environmental impact assessments, co-
positive way. These interests in the knowledge of Abo- management agreements, and certain pieces of legislation
riginal peoples have unfortunately caused researchers to such as the proposed Species at Risk Act are beginning to
separate out “ecological” or “environmental” knowledge include certain aspects of indigenous knowledge within
from other kinds of knowledge, because it is the compon- them. Despite these initiatives, there are many barriers to
ent of the knowledge system that outside researchers are including TEK in environmental management in ways that
currently most interested in learning. Existing academic respect Aboriginal peoples and bring about meaningful
literature regarding TEK continues along this line of think- change to these processes. Scientists and resource man-
ing, privileging the components of indigenous knowledge agers have little opportunity to learn about Aboriginal
that conform well to Western ideals over the spiritual basis peoples and their TEK first-hand. This can create mis-
of indigenous knowledge. Aboriginal spiritual traditions, understandings regarding the nature of TEK. Governments
beliefs and values form the foundation of traditional often require their bureaucrats to include TEK in policy
knowledge, and are completely integrated into every and legislation without proper consultation with Abo-
aspect of TEK and indigenous thought. Much of the TEK riginal peoples, in unrealistic timeframes, and without
literature published in applied scientific journals and pub- appropriate financial support. Governments also regularly
lications is written by non-Aboriginal scientists and aca- require TEK to be written down or documented before it is
demics and has focused on introducing TEK to scientists. considered useful. Documented TEK is then integrated into
Works written by Fikret Berkes, for instance, attempt to processes and frameworks that remain strongly rooted in
gain acceptance for TEK and Aboriginal peoples in discip- Western science, and much of the transformative potential
lines that have traditionally ignored the contribution and of indigenous knowledge is assimilated in the process.
knowledge of indigenous peoples. Publications in scien- Many Elders are concerned that once their knowledge is
tific journals generally ignore contemporary impacts of removed from the oral tradition and the knowledge-
colonization and colonialism on indigenous peoples, the holders, translated into English and textualized, it is
land, and their knowledge, marginalize indigenous elders removed from its context and all of the relationships that
and knowledge-holders, and undermine the oral tradition, give the knowledge its meaning. Aboriginal advocates
thereby constructing “TEK” in a manner that is often not have challenged this approach and Aboriginal peoples are
meaningful to the very people who hold the knowledge. monitoring these initiatives with concern. It is critical that
These criticisms, long observed by indigenous elders and Aboriginal people, not just isolated components of their
 Transcendental Meditation 1651

knowledge, are included in a meaningful and respectful Empowering Aboriginal Thought. In Marie Battiste, ed.
way in environmental management in Canada, and it is Reclaiming Indigenous Voice and Vision. Vancouver,
important to realize that including the knowledge of BC: UBC Press, 2000, 248–79.
Aboriginal peoples in environmental decision making See also: American Indians as “First Ecologists”; Eco-
ultimately means that different decisions will be made. logical Anthropology; Ecology and Religion; Ethno-
Contemporary Aboriginal peoples in Canada are con- botany; Ethnoecology; Evolutionary Biology, Religion,
cerned about protecting their territories from environ- and Stewardship; Indigenous Environmental Network;
mental destruction not only as a way of protecting their Native American Languages (North America); Religious
relations with the natural world, the health of their com- Environmentalist Paradigm; Traditional Ecological
munities and their cultures, but also as a way of protecting Knowledge; Water Spirits and Indigenous Ecological
their knowledge systems. Indigenous knowledge comes Management (South Africa).
from the land. Without these relationships, it is difficult to
strengthen, promote and preserve the knowledge of Abo-
riginal peoples for the coming generations and it is dif- Transcendental Meditation
ficult to envision healthy, sustainable Aboriginal nations
in the future. TEK has much to offer Aboriginal and non- Transcendental Meditation is a spiritual movement organ-
Aboriginal societies if it is accessed and used in a way that ized by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, an Indian who came to
is respectful and fair from the perspective of the people the U.S. in 1959 to utilize modern media and communica-
who hold the knowledge. As interest in TEK grows, and tions to spread his teachings. These teachings are based on
Aboriginal voices are listened to, so does the potential for monistic Advaita-Vedanta, a Hindu tradition that
using both indigenous and Western forms of knowledge describes the universe as diverse manifestations of a sin-
together to address some of the many local, national and gle, underlying Absolute, called Brahman. The goal of
global environmental issues facing the world. meditation is personally to experience direct knowledge of
Brahman, and realize that the essence of one’s own self is
Leanne Simpson (Anishnaabe Kwe) this same Brahman. In the 1970s, Maharishi rephrased his
teachings to use Western scientific terminology and
Further Reading described his meditation program as the Science of Cre-
Battiste, Marie and James (Sa’ke’j) Youngblood Hender- ative Intelligence (SCI) with Creative Intelligence being the
son. Protecting Indigenous Knowledge and Heritage: A all-pervasive, organizing principle of the universe. Nature
Global Challenge. Saskatoon, SK: Purich Publishing, appears in two areas of SCI, first as Brahman and second
2000. in the context of environmentalism.
Good Striker, Duane. “The TEK Wars.” In J. Weaver, ed. In writings from the 1980s, Maharishi often used
Defending Mother Earth: Native American Perspective “Nature” instead of “Brahman” when describing the under-
on Environmental Justice. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, lying foundation of the cosmos. In this context, nature is
1997, 144–53. described as the basis of all order and the goal of medita-
LaDuke, Winona. “Voices from White Earth.” In H. Han- tion is to become aware of it. TM uses the language of
num, ed. People, Land and Community: Collected E.F. physics, mathematics, and chemistry to explain the order
Schumacher Society Lectures. Barrington, MA: E.F. of the universe and show that modern science is describing
Schumacher Society, 1997, 22–37. a unified cosmos that coincides with the ancient Indian
LaDuke, Winona. “Traditional Ecological Knowledge and scriptures, the Vedas. Maharishi makes effective use of the
Environmental Futures.” Colorado Journal of Inter- Grand Unification Theories of physics to communicate the
national Environmental Law and Policy 5 (1994), idea of the basic unity of all material existence to a West-
127–48. ern audience. This emphasis on science also allows TM to
McGregor, Deborah. “Indigenous Knowledge in Canada: define itself as a practical technique for improving modern
Shifting Paradigms and the Influence of First Nation life rather than a religion with a creed. Referring to the
Advocates.” Conference Proceedings of Science and Absolute as “nature” rather than God or Brahman
Practice: Sustaining the Boreal Forest. Edmonton, AB: facilitates the movement’s non-religious identity.
Sustainable Forest Management Network, 14–17 Nature is not, however, completely passive. It is the
February 1999, 192–8. Creative Intelligence that organizes the cosmos and is said
Simpson, Leanne, R. “Decolonizing Our Processes: to have “moved Maharishi” to begin his life of teaching.
Indigenous Knowledge and Ways of Knowing.” Cana- This teaching is necessary for “nature to work out its
dian Journal of Native Studies 21 (2001), 137–48. divine plan for the spiritual regeneration of mankind”
Thorpe, D., ed. People of the Seventh Fire. Ithaca, NY: (Maharishi 1986: 2). From such statements, it is clear that
Akwekon Press, 1996. nature is an active, conscious force in Maharishi’s phil-
Youngblood Henderson, James. Sa’k’ej Ayukpachi: osophy. And the divine plan requires that people learn to
1652 Transcendentalism

meditate so that they can realize their inherent oneness Rothstein, Mikael. Belief Transformations. Aarhus,
with the cosmos and be brought into harmony with the Denmark: Aarhus University Press, 1996.
natural order of the universe. This, in turn, transforms See also: Hundredth Monkey; Natural Law Party; New Age.
one’s life and leads to the full realization of “human poten-
tial.” A person who is attuned to nature will be confident
and content, able to handle the pace of modern life with- Transcendentalism
out succumbing to stress. Such a person is in harmony
with the cosmic order. Maharishi attributes his success and Transcendentalism refers to the intellectual and social
his movement’s growth to “the natural expression of the movement that emerged primarily in Boston and sur-
force of evolution, silently reshaping the destiny of the rounding areas during the mid-nineteenth century and
world through the thought and action of one moving in included such familiar figures as Henry David Thoreau,
perfect attunement with the infinite intelligence of nature” Ralph Waldo Emerson and Margaret Fuller, as well as Fre-
(Maharishi 1986: 1). If his followers meditate, they too will dric Henry Hedge, George Ripley, James Clark, Orestes
be successful at life because they are in accord with the Brownson, Bronson Alcott, Elizabeth Peabody, and Theo-
natural order. dore Parker, among others. Already known to each other
TM’s description of nature concerns the cosmic whole, through intellectual and social circles, the Transcendental-
not specific phenomena such as the sun or mountains. The ists formalized their relationship (to the extent that they
same is true of the movement’s approach to the earthly ever did so) through a regular symposium – sometimes
environment. One of TM’s stated goals is “To maximize the dubbed “the Transcendental Club” – that gathered at parti-
intelligent use of the environment” (Forem 1974: 10). cipants’ homes from 1836 to 1840. The group analyzed
However, TM writings do not have specific aims such as such topics as “the essence of religion as distinct from
stopping global warming or requiring that all members be morality,” “American Genius,” “Pantheism” and “the
vegetarian. Rather, there is a general belief that those who nature of Poetry.” As these titles indicate, the preoccupa-
practice TM will find themselves naturally living a more tions of this group were flexible and wide-ranging (as was
harmonious life. This will include better human relation- its informal membership).
ships, reduced stress, greater clarity of thought, and better Participants in the club were interested in expanding
choices about how to live. Among these will be environ- the latest trends in German philosophy, developing ori-
mental awareness, because polluting the world is selfish ginal – recognizably American – literary contributions
and places short-sighted gratification before long-term and experimenting with new forms of religious life and
well-being. thought. Often, they were referred to as the “New School”
Although TM does not champion specific causes, by their critics and even the term “Transcendentalist” was
Maharishi describes two ways in which it can have an more often a term of criticism leveled by opponents than a
effect on the world beyond its membership. First, he sug- term used by its participants. While regular meetings of
gests that the “custodians of this knowledge” should serve the club waned after 1840, the Transcendentalists con-
in governments where they will create “problem-free” tinued to communicate and exert their influence through
nations and raise life to the level of a “Heaven on Earth.” their publication, The Dial (1840–1844), which was edited
Second is the “Maharishi Effect,” the theory that the men- first by Fuller and then by Emerson.
tal states of a few people can influence the behavior of The Transcendentalists were highly individualistic in
others at a distance. According to TM, if the square root of both character and philosophical outlook, resisting any
one percent of a population meditates regularly, the higher common doctrinal or intellectual stance. They shared,
consciousness of the meditators will affect the whole area however, a highly optimistic vision of humanity and a
and social problems will be alleviated. Thus, their efforts confidence in the future of American intellectual life and
will bring the society into harmony with nature. thought, freed from the bonds of intellectual precedent or
religious superstition. These young writers also shared an
Cybelle Shattuck intellectual affection for various forms of idealism, from
neo-Platonic thought to the increasingly influential work
Further Reading of Immanuel Kant, whose use of the term “transcendental”
Forem, Jack. Transcendental Meditation. New York: E.P. – mediated through the writings of Samuel Taylor Col-
Dutton, 1974. eridge – these thinkers both borrowed and transformed for
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. The Science of Being and Art of their own purposes. What was “transcendental” for the
Living: Transcendental Meditation. New York: New Transcendentalists was a preference for spiritual (or “intu-
America Library, 1988 (1963). itional”) over material (sense-based) forms of knowledge.
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Thirty Years Around the World – Similarly, they expressed a commitment to shaping life
Dawn of the Age of Enlightenment, vol. 1, 1957–1964. according to individually discerned aesthetic and spiritual
Vlodrop, The Netherlands: MVU Press, 1986. priorities, rather than those of social convention or the
 Transcendentalism 1653

marketplace. Their intellectual stance was the starting described above. As with particular philosophical, literary
place from which they developed their ideas of nature, as and political preferences, the Transcendentalists’ reading
well as their moral and religious views. of nature also varied among individuals. In general, how-
The intellectual agenda of the Transcendentalists was ever, the Transcendentalists borrowed from the European
broad, eclectic and not always consistent, consistency Romantics the notion that a regular contact with nature
itself not being an ideal toward which the Transcendental- (by which was generally meant: living in or visiting rural
ists strove. In the most general sense, however, the Tran- and pastoral settings) was essential for regaining human
scendentalists embraced a new theory of knowledge. This innocence and originality that was corrupted by civiliza-
theory refuted the, then prevailing, Lockean view of the tion. Intimacy with nature could return the individual
process of human knowing. At the same time, the Tran- (especially the writer) to a state of childlike openness and
scendentalists put forward new theories of morality that wonder. Such a state was crucial to developing what
countered more conservative religious approaches, while Emerson famously termed an “original response to the
also opposing the skepticism of David Hume and other universe.”
Enlightenment figures. In a general sense, the Transcend- The quest for originality and authenticity both in spir-
entalists can be said to have welcomed the Enlightenment itual experience and in literary expression was a central
critique of religion, while resisting recourse to forms of preoccupation of the Transcendentalists. While the foun-
rationalism that overlooked human emotions and dis- dations of their ideas were, belatedly, shaped in response
enchanted the natural world. to European Romanticism, the Transcendentalists worked
In terms of epistemology, the Transcendentalists to create literature, educational theory and, more broadly,
resisted Locke’s empiricist approach, which proposed that “culture” that was distinctly American. Because such work
knowledge comes from sense experiences which are was dependent on the experience of and response to a
impressed on the waiting mind just as words are written particular natural landscape (primarily, pastoral New
on a blank slate. While Locke’s own view was more com- England), it is no surprise that much Transcendentalist
plex than that of his followers, Lockean psychology was literature concerns itself with “nature” both as an abstract
generally accepted by the intellectuals of the eighteenth concept and as a particular physical context for spiritual
and early nineteenth century, particularly the New Eng- experience.
land Unitarians. Taking cues from the writings of Kant and When considering the Transcendentalists’ views of
Coleridge, the Transcendentalists responded against Locke nature, it is important to recognize the complexity of what
by articulating a distinction between “understanding” the term “nature” could signify. In its broadest sense, it
(rational reflection on sense experience) and Reason (the represented what was not the self. “Nature” then was
use of intuition and one’s innate, divinely created capaci- equivalent to the Kantian “not-Me.” More particularly,
ties to discern the good, the true and the beautiful). While nature might refer to a particular biophysical context for
accepting Locke’s confidence in the rational capacities of the experiences of insight and intuition that were sought
humanity, the Transcendentalists argued that Reason was after by the Transcendentalists: the “bare common” upon
also an innate human gift which each individual should which Emerson experienced himself as a “Transparent
cultivate. Eyeball,” Thoreau’s Walden or the communal Brook Farm
The Transcendentalist’s view of the moral life followed in West Roxbury. Even in these instances, however, the
from this epistemological premise. While rejecting ortho- reading of nature offered by the Transcendentalists was
dox religion and even the comparatively liberal Christian not one of appreciating nature for what today we might
Unitarianism that was culturally dominant in nineteenth- call its “intrinsic value.” While theologically departing
century Boston, the Transcendentalists also rejected firmly from their Puritan heritage, the Transcendentalists
Hume’s skepticism with respect to religion and morality. continued, while altering, the Puritan view of nature as a
Most Transcendentalists affirmed their belief in a divine “book” to be read for spiritual lessons. They also carried
Creator, while rejecting the notion of divine revelation of forward Unitarian interests in natural theology, particu-
miracles. Many also became increasingly interested in the larly the study of nature to comprehend the character of
religions of China and India as these became available to the divine. The Transcendentalists reworked and re-
them through newly available European translations of imagined these Puritan and Unitarian legacies, ultimately
Eastern texts. Moreover, Transcendentalists’ vision of asserting the presence of the divine in nature (as well as in
human nature was indefatigably optimistic, resting on the humanity), while also not limiting their understanding of
assumption that all individuals carry the divine within the divine to the Christian tradition. They incorporated
them and must dedicate their lives to nurturing this divine spiritualism, Emmanuel Swedenborg’s theory of cor-
potential, particularly through education and artistic respondences and Eastern concepts of sacred geography
expression. into their cultural repertoire.
The Transcendentalists’ view of nature rests on the Nevertheless, nature remained in what we might call a
important epistemological and moral assumptions “spiritually utilitarian” position. Nature was most often
1654 Transpersonal Psychology

understood to be something which was “read” by the indi- Transpersonal Psychology

vidual artist (the Poet, as Emerson conceived him), whose
job it was to decipher and interpret the moral lessons hid- Transpersonal psychology is the branch of psychology
den in nature. Nature was valued, then, for what it could which integrates psychological concepts, theories, and
teach the attentive student and its function was that of methods with the subject matter and practices of the spir-
moral formation. The ultimate emphasis remained on the itual disciplines. Its interests include spiritual and mystical
ideal Transcendentalist (which each Transcendentalist saw experiences, meditative practices, ritual, shamanism, and
latent within) whose practice of self-cultivation would the connections between spiritual experiences with dis-
enable him or her to “read” nature correctly and to share turbed states such as psychosis, mania, and depression.
that reading with a wider audience. Nature, in the Tran- Transpersonal psychologists apply their work in clinical
scendentalists’ view, was primarily symbolic, representing and counseling psychology, spiritual guidance and
moral truths and aesthetic insights that lay “behind” or pastoral counseling, organizational and community
“inside” external, natural phenomena. The pursuit of development, healthcare and healing, the transpersonal
nature was most often a pursuit of the self, or of know- dimensions of interpersonal relationships, cultural diver-
ledge of the divine, without and within. sity, gender studies, business, ecopsychology, and other
At the same time, pastoral and wilderness environments areas.
remained vital as the ideal contexts for Transcendentalist The root of the term transpersonal, or literally “beyond
self-cultivation, as was the case in Thoreau’s experiment the mask,” refers to self-transcendence, the development
at Walden. Thus, paying close attention to the natural of the self from a sense of identity which is exclusively
world as a symbolic “book” for spiritual insight also led individual to one that is deeper, broader, more inclusive,
many Transcendentalists to acquire a large body of scien- and more unified with the whole. The core concept in
tific knowledge of their surroundings. Many kept detailed transpersonal psychology is nonduality, the recognition
records of flora, fauna, weather patterns and natural that each part or person is fundamentally and ultimately a
events in the places where they lived or traveled. Emerson, part of a larger, more comprehensive whole. From this
for instance, was an amateur orchardist and early conser- insight come two other central insights: the intrinsic
vationist of threatened woodlands, while Thoreau’s work health and basic goodness of the whole and each of its
in natural history and studies of plant succession were parts, and the validity of self-transcendence.
consulted by professional scientists of his day. Transpersonal psychology is phenomenological, inclu-
sive, and optimistic. It values and integrates the personal
Rebecca Kneale Gould with the transpersonal, the psychological with the spir-
itual, exceptional mental health with psychological dis-
Further Reading turbance, and analytical intellect with contemplative ways
Buell, Lawrence. The Environmental Imagination: of knowing. It finds wisdom in Western psychology and
Thoreau, Nature Writing and American Culture. Cam- philosophy, Eastern spirituality, postmodern insights,
bridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University and worldviews of indigenous traditions. Such overlaps
Press, 1995. between psychology and spirituality have been present in
Buell, Lawrence. Literary Transcendentalism: Style and both psychology (e.g., the work of William James, Carl
Vision in the American Renaissance. Ithaca: Cornell Jung, and Abraham Maslow) and in the spiritual traditions
University Press, 1973. (which have their own rich views of development, cogni-
Howe, Daniel Walker. Making the American Self. tion, social interactions, emotional and behavioral suffer-
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1997. ing, and methods of healing). The work of Ken Wilber
Miller, Perry, ed. The Transcendentalists: An Anthology. (Integral Psychology) and Stanislav Grof are at the fore-
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1950. front of transpersonal psychology today. Among its
Myerson, Joel, ed. Transcendentalism: A Reader. Oxford: important projects are describing the stages and processes
Oxford University Press, 2000. of transpersonal development, researching the psycho-
Myerson, Joel, ed. The Transcendentalists: A Review of logical effects of meditation, exploring spiritual emergen-
Research and Criticism. New York: Modern Language cies (those mystical or spiritual experiences which also
Association of America, 1984. create acute debilitating psychological suffering), and
See also: Adams, Ansel; Emerson, Ralph Waldo; Muir, identifying the transpersonal dimensions of nature
John; Pantheism; Romanticism in European Literature; experiences.
Romanticism – American; Swedenborg, Emmanuel; Transpersonal psychology is a field of inquiry which
Thoreau, Henry David; Unitarianism. includes theory, research, and practice, offering insights
and applications based on research and experience and
methods for evaluating and confirming or disconfirming
its findings. It is scientific in the broad sense of the
 Transpersonal Psychology 1655

phenomenological or “human” sciences. Research in may deal with spiritual crises or other explicitly trans-
transpersonal psychology uses both qualitative- personal content, or they may bring a transpersonal con-
phenomenological methods and quantitative methods text and processes to a broader range of psychological
such as experimental designs. In recent years, the Journal issues such as addictions, emotional distress, relationships,
of Transpersonal Psychology has published reviews of and life transitions. Art therapists, music therapists, dance
research on psychospiritual problems, mystical experi- therapists, and body-centered psychotherapists often use
ences, meditation, and measures of transpersonal transpersonal principles in their work as well.
development. Still, most of the work and practice of Transpersonal studies are arising in a number of fields,
transpersonal psychology concerns psychotherapy and including medicine, education, anthropology, and organi-
self-development. zational development. There are also strong connections
Meditation, contemplative prayer, and similar forms of between transpersonal psychology, ecopsychology, and
open-ended phenomenological inquiry are core practices deep ecology. Many people find transpersonal experiences
for transpersonal psychology. These practices lead to an in contact with nature, and many nature-based personal
expanded awareness, a greater sense of presence, and a growth practices such as wilderness retreats, rites of pas-
greater degree of self-integration or self-transcendence. sage, and other Earth-centered rituals have transpersonal
While such practices have been successfully used for self- dimensions. Similarly, some environmental activists bring
regulation, relaxation, and pain control and for self- a transpersonal perspective into their work. Deep ecolo-
exploration and psychotherapy, they have traditionally gists such as Arne Naess, Warwick Fox, and John Seed and
been used for self-transcendence and self-liberation. Des- ecopsychologists such as Theodore Roszak and Ralph
pite their many surface forms, meditation and contempla- Metzner have promoted a kind of self-transcendence or
tive practices can be a means of disidentifying from our transpersonal identity as a basis for environmental action.
“masks” or personalities and realizing our fundamental They argue that when one’s identity expands or deepens
nonduality. beyond the individual self to include the Earth (i.e., a kind
Ritual is another core practice for transpersonal psych- of self-transcendence), environmental action is more
ology. For many individuals and in many cultures and likely to be based on love, joy, and caring than on fear,
spiritual systems, ritual is the central means of discovering shame, or sacrifice and that such a transpersonal attitude
connections with each other, with communities, with the leads to action which is more effective and more
Earth, and with the cosmos. Other practices that are sustainable.
associated with transpersonal psychology include sham- Transpersonal psychology proponents believe that the
anism, lucid dreaming, visualization, chanting, trans- practices they are developing benefit both psychology and
personal uses of music and art, and religious uses of the spiritual disciplines. Psychology can expand toward a
psychedelic drugs. fuller and richer accounting of the full range of human
Transpersonal psychology arose in the 1960s out of experience and potential and incorporate practices that
work by Abraham Maslow, Stanislav Grof, Anthony develop this potential. The spiritual disciplines can
Sutich, and others in humanistic psychology. The work of incorporate insights and skills related to human develop-
William James on mysticism, Carl Jung on the collective ment and healing to deal more skillfully with the psycho-
unconscious, and Roberto Assagioli on psychosynthesis logical issues that arise with spiritual development. They
anticipated the development of transpersonal psychology. can more effectively use these issues as gateways, rather
Interest in the psychological implications of Buddhism, than obstacles, to self-realization and authentic service.
Yoga, shamanism, psychedelic states, and holistic medicine
fueled its development. At the present time, transpersonal John Davis
psychology is gaining acceptance by many psychologists,
and a number of professional organizations have been Further Reading
established worldwide. The Association for Transpersonal Cortright, Brant. Psychotherapy and Spirit: Theory and
Psychology has published the Journal of Transpersonal Practice in Transpersonal Psychotherapy. Albany, NY:
Psychology since 1969. Its influences are found in a num- State University of New York Press, 1997.
ber of other psychological and psychiatric journals and Davis, John V. “The Transpersonal Dimensions of Ecopsy-
books, both scientific and popular. Conferences and train- chology: Nature, Nonduality, and Spiritual Practice.”
ing programs sponsored by professional organizations The Humanistic Psychologist 26:1–3 (Spring/Summer/
such as the Association for Transpersonal Psychology and Autumn 1998), 69–100.
the International Transpersonal Association also provide Grof, Stanislav. Psychology of the Future: Lessons from
training in transpersonal psychology and contribute to Modern Consciousness Research. Albany, NY: State
developments in the field. University of New York Press, 2000.
Most transpersonal psychologists are involved in coun- Roszak, Theodore. The Voice of the Earth: An Exploration
seling and psychotherapy. Transpersonal psychotherapists of Ecopsychology. New York: Touchstone, 1992.
1656 Tree Music

Roszak, Theodore, Mary E. Gomes and Allen D. Kanner, mis were riveted, holding on to every note, every word. I
eds. Ecopsychology: Restoring the Earth, Healing the felt honored that they would care so much about this song.
Mind. San Francisco: Sierra Club, 1995. Afterwards I spoke with the chief and several elders. I
Scotton, Bruce W., Allan B. Chinen and John R. Battista, told them the story of spending four days with the old
eds. Textbook of Transpersonal Psychiatry and Douglas Fir tree by the Quinalt River and how I had always
Psychology. New York: Basic Books, 1996. thought it was the Tree’s song.
Walsh, Roger and Francis Vaughn, eds. Paths Beyond Ego: “It is,” said the chief, “I recognize the tune. It is a song
The Transpersonal Vision. New York: Putnam, 1993. from a tree in our region. In Lummi tradition, and for
Wilber, Ken. Integral Psychology: Consciousness, Spirit, many of the peoples of this region, we get our music from
Psychology, Therapy. Boston: Shambhala, 2000. trees. Each tree has its own song. We go out and spend
See also: Deep Ecology; Depth Ecology; Ecopsychology; three or four days next to a tree where we fast and pray
Esalen Institute; Jung, Carl Gustav; Naess, Arne; Naropa and listen for that tree’s song. We take the song and sing it
University; Re-Earthing; Seed, John; Wilber, Ken; or play it on the flute. In this era when so many of our
Wilderness Rites of Passage. ancient trees are being cut down, we go out and learn their
songs before they die, as a way of honoring the great trees.
We are working to save the last remaining ancient groves
Tree Music on our territory.”
I have never looked at a tree in the same way since
When I was 26, needing to rest after injuring my back then. I have never looked at any creature in the same way
while landscaping, I realized that I would much rather since then.
relax in the forest of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula
than in Seattle. So I drove out to Graves Creek Camp- Dana Lyons
ground on the Quinalt River, and spent four days reading
and playing my guitar next to a giant Douglas Fir tree. At Further Reading
the end of the four days, right before I left to return home, Lyons, Dana. The Tree. Bellevue, WA: Illumination Arts,
the song “The Tree” came flowing out. I looked up at the 2002.
big Douglas Fir and said “I bet this is your song.” See also: Animism (various); Earth First! and the Earth
For years after that I’d sing “The Tree” and mention that Liberation Front; Heathenry – Ásatrú; Music; Music and
I thought it was the big Douglas Fir’s song. It seemed like a Eco-activism in America; Music of Resistance; Pagan
nice thought, and as the concept of a tree having “a song” Music.
had never come up in my scientifically oriented Western
education, I only light-heartedly believed it.
A few years later I was invited to a celebration on Orcas Trees – as Religious Architecture
Island, where the Lummi Indians and their allies had suc-
ceeded in saving a place called Madrona Point, where a It goes without saying that trees are essential to many
developer had hoped to build condominiums on top of a architectural creations. Not only do they serve structural
Lummi Indian burial ground. After a 10-year battle, the functions, but they are often also imbued with symbolic
United States Congress appropriated money to buy the meaning as well. This is seen quite clearly in religious
land and give it back to the Lummi people. contexts. Examples are found around the world from
The celebration was held at the Oddfellows hall on ancient to present times. Shinto shrines, Egyptian and
Madrona Point near Eastsound. Several hundred people Greek temples, Celtic groves, the Lakota Sun Dance,
gathered from the Lummi Reservation and Orcas Island. Pacific Northwest coast totem poles, Buddhist stupas, and
There was a huge potluck feast with salmon and berry pies Christian churches – along with associated “Green Man”
and salads and fried bread. Spirits were high and children imagery – are briefly examined here as a sample of the
ran around everywhere. great variety of places that exist.
The man who invited me to the celebration then told me We begin with Japan and Shinto beliefs. Some of the
that the chief wanted me to sing “The Tree.” I expressed oldest Shinto shrines sites are groves or forested hillsides
reluctance, however, unsure whether this quiet song could where rituals were performed in relation to kami. The idea,
be heard over the clanking dishes and spirited children. and thus the definition, of kami has changed over the mil-
My friend simply restated, “The chief would like to hear lennia as influences from China, Korea, and India, among
‘The Tree.’ ” other places, participated in the shaping of Japanese
After I was introduced, the place quieted down and I thought on the subject. In general, however, kami can per-
began to sing, noticing immediately something that had haps be best understood within a polytheistic context,
never happened before at one of my concerts. While where powerful spiritual forces are conceived as embodied
everyone seemed to be enjoying the tune, the elder Lum- through human, animal, tree, river, rock, wind, sun, or
 Trees – as Religious Architecture 1657

other natural forms. In early Shintoism trees themselves Trees are important in Native American beliefs, and
were shrines to kami. Later, human-built shrines were there are many circumstances where trees serve as archi-
erected. The natural and the built overlapped in meaning. tecture. It is not romantic to say that participation in
The same characters that today are interpreted as jinga, or traditional ceremonies helps root contemporary native
shrine, were understood in ancient texts as kamu-tsu- peoples in their heritage. Trees can play very important
yahshiro, or mori, two terms meaning “kami grove.” Close roles. Lakota Sun Dance ceremonies, for instance, revolve
relationships between trees and architecture are visible in around a central pole that is understood to be a sacred tree.
the torii gates and in the cylindrical wooden columns sup- It is ceremonially harvested from the forest and erected in
porting shrine floors and ridge poles. At Ise Shrine, unique the center of a Sun Dance site. Dancers attach themselves
in that it is rebuilt every twenty years, rituals pertaining to to the pole with long cords as they pray and engage in acts
the protection, burial, re-use, and adornment of the heart- of self-sacrifice. As symbol, the sacred tree links the elem-
pillar (shin no mihashira) hearken back to early Shintoism. ents of the larger universe with the dancers, and through
Similarly, trees played functional and symbolic roles in them to the entire community gathered for the ritual.
Egyptian temples. Columns were shaped to reflect lotus, Totem poles are associated with native peoples of the
papyrus, and palms. These were intentionally suggestive Pacific Northwest, and are especially common in the
of the connections between religious beliefs, the fertility of coastal regions of British Columbia and southeastern
the land, and the well-being of people. Other columns Alaska. Coast Salish, Nuu-chah-nulth, Kwakiutl, Nuxalk,
were shaped to represent Osiris. In addition to vegetative Tsimshian, Haida, and Tlingit are representative groups.
abundance, the myths and rituals associated with him Great diversity of language and religious practices exists
revolve around themes of death and resurrection. A link among them. Diversity is found in the poles as well. Some
between religious belief and trees is also indicated by the serve memorial purposes, while others have mortuary
story of how he was murdered, set adrift down the Nile in a uses. There are also frontal poles and house posts; both are
sarcophagus, incorporated into a growing tree along the incorporated into the structure of traditional homes. All
river’s banks, and installed within a temple as a pillar. poles are made of red cedar. Preferences for one or another
Greek temples also manifest relationships between type vary among groups. Carvings are not actually totems.
trees, architecture, and belief. Doric columns are remin- Rather, they symbolize crests and signs of a given family
iscent of organic forms. Their girth, taper, and overall or clan. Pole-raisings were, and today typically are,
appearance is quite tree-like. Architectural historians attended by the narration of stories, prayer, singing,
point out that logs could have been easily sculpted into a drumming, dancing, feasting, and the gift exchange
series of planar surfaces amenable to fluting. Peg features, known as potlatching. In contemporary times a fifth type
triglyphs at the end of what would have been beams, and of pole – the commercial pole – is often carved for non-
mutules imitative of rafters all support claims of the col- natives and erected in non-traditional settings. More
umn’s wooden derivation. A number of Doric traits were important than merely generating revenue, these inten-
replicated in Ionic and Corinthian forms. Greek temple tionally communicate the vitality of indigenous groups
architecture also suggests the physical appearance of sac- and indicate that their ties to the land remain.
red groves. The manner in which temple space was divided Buddhist architecture, such as that found in stupas, also
into spaces was intended to mimic the sense of multiple features a central pole with strong tree associations. Ori-
spaces within groves. ginally a type of pre-Buddhist Indian burial mound, stupas
Sacred groves were also central to Celtic traditions, were tumuli with a wooden post in their center. The pole
found across a vast area spreading from Asia Minor may have symbolized Aryan traditions where community
through continental Western Europe and into Britain and leaders met under a tree for discussions, and it may have
Ireland. While beech and various conifers figured promi- symbolized their beliefs about sacred or cosmic trees. In
nently in the rituals and beliefs of some groups, oak appears Hindu contexts, the tree and umbrellas under which roy-
to have the most widespread symbolic significance. The alty were shaded, and ideas of Mt. Meru, were all com-
word “Druid,” in fact, is closely associated with a Celtic bined in stupa architecture. Buddhists adopted and
term for oak. In some cases altars were constructed for use embedded these notions into places like Sanchi, where a
in these groves. Tree motifs are commonly carved upon central axle-pole at the top of the stupa symbolizes the
them. Additionally, trees themselves served as religious process of enlightenment. The vertically arranged series of
architecture. Miranda Green, author of Symbol & Image disks on the pole represent levels of enlightenment; they
in Celtic Religious Art, speaks of archeological finds in are in essence stylized branches of the cosmic tree.
Germany at places like the Goloring and the Goldberg Tree motifs, some of which refer to a cosmic tree, are
where a large tree-like pillar was set in the center of an integral to the architecture of churches and cathedrals. Not
enclosure. There are many instances in the archeological only are representations of the Tree of Knowledge and the
record where Celtic groups dug pits and left offerings in Fall highly significant, but in many places carved foliage
association with living trees and pillars. and even the Green Man is seen. The Green Man appears in
1658 Trees – as Religious Architecture

church architecture as a male face encompassed by leaves. in settlements of escaped slaves from diverse African
Sometimes leaves are shown sprouting from his mouth. ethnic groups in the colony (which became the
Common across much of Western Europe, the Green Man independent Republic of Haiti in 1804), since its incep-
evidently predates the spread of Christianity, and very well tion the religion has demonstrated significant variety.
may have Celtic associations with fertility. The Church Certain traditions are primarily ancestor cults, while
incorporated the Green Man as an expression of death and others focus on particular spirits brought from West
resurrection. In a similar way the cross, symbolizing resur- Africa or others revealed in the New World. Because of
rection and the promise of salvation, is often understood the clandestine and variegated nature of colonial-era
to be a tree or tree-like. One example is found in the archi- Vodou, moreover, the religion has no founder, no unify-
tecture of St. Andrews in Ellensburg, Washington. On the ing doctrine, and no formal organizational network.
interior wall behind the altar hangs a large wooden cross. Neither any of these, nor a Vodou scripture, has ever
Behind it a series of tightly clustered beams stretch toward developed.
the ceiling, spreading ever-further apart as they go. The Slaves brought to the colony were baptized Catholic
overall effect is that of a tree emerging from the cross. upon arrival and given minimal religious instruction by
In the sites described here, as in many more from all Dominicans, Capuchins, and Jesuits. Syncretism thus
around the world – Africa, Oceania, Australia, Europe, immediately resulted, as slaves identified Catholic saints
Asia, and the Americas – trees are a significant element of as new manifestations of African spirits, and adopted
religious architecture. While the particular symbolic crosses, holy water, and incense as powerful religious trin-
meaning of a tree or trees may differ from one culture to kets to be used in conjunction with the amulets that they
another, they are all reminders of the organic connection reconstructed from African religious memory. The Cath-
between humans and the world they inhabit. olic “pantheon” – with its single high creator God, Virgin
Mary, and host of dead individuals (the saints) who inter-
Joel Geffen vene in the world of the living – lent itself quite fluently to
assimilation with the traditional African community of
Further Reading spiritual beings, which likewise has a single distant creator
Green, Miranda. Symbol & Image in Celtic Religious Art. God (called Bondyè in Vodou) and numerous spirits and
London: Routledge, 1989. ancestors, who, much like the Catholic saints, are per-
Minoru, Sonoda. “Shinto and the Natural Environment.” ceived of as accessible and with whom the greatest
In John Breen and Mark Teeuwen, eds. Shinto in His- amount of human/divine commerce transpires.
tory: Ways of the Kami. Richmond, Surrey: Curzon Spirit possession and divination are the main forms of
Press, 2000, 32–46. communication with the dead (lemò) and the spirits (lwa
Norberg-Schulz. Meaning in Western Architecture. New yo) in Vodou, and together form its ritual focus. Put sim-
York: Rizzoli International Publications, Inc., 1980. ply, when our relationship with lemo and/or lwa yo is in
Stewart, Hilary. Looking At Totem Poles. Vancouver: Uni- harmony, life is full and pleasurable, whereas when this
versity of Washington Press, 1993. relationship is discordant, sickness, some other hardship,
Stover, Dale. “Postcolonial Sun Dancing at Wakpimni or even death may result. Upon the occurrence of such
Lake.” Journal of the American Academy of Religion misfortune, ritual specialists (female: manbo; male: oun-
69:4 (December 2001), 815–36. gan) are consulted. Either through divination or the
Volwahsen, Andreas. Living Architecture: Indian. New orchestration of ceremonies aiming to provoke spirit pos-
York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1969. session (which most often take place either in temples
See also: Cathedral Forests and the Felling of Sacred [ounfò], family burial compounds, or public cemeteries),
Groves; Druids and Druidry; Heathenry – Ásatrú; India’s the manbo or oungan effects communication with the lemò
Sacred Groves; Japanese Religions; Lakota Sun Dance; or lwa yo in order to discover the cause of the illness or
Sacred Groves of Africa; Tree Music; Trees in Haitian discord and to determine a means of reestablishing har-
Vodou; Trees (Northern & Middle Europe); Trees – Sacred; mony or effecting healing. Both the maintenance and the
Wenger, Susan, Yoruba Art & the Oshogbo Sacred Grove. reconstitution of this harmony rely primarily on sacrifice
in various forms, while healing often involves herbalism
and ritual baths.
Trees in Haitian Vodou Haitian Vodou thus combines a variety of traditional
African (e.g., Fon, Yoruba, and Kongo) and Catholic elem-
Vodou crystallized as a religion among African and Afri- ents. While decidedly more akin in ritual and belief to
can-descended slaves in the French colony of Saint- African traditional religion than to Catholicism, Vodou is
Domingue (1697–1804), whose massive sugar production not an African religion but a product of the Haitian
made it Europe’s most lucrative colonial enterprise. With experience of and response to the social and natural
the most dynamic early Vodou communities springing up worlds. Its understanding of nature is thus more rooted in
 Trees in Haitian Vodou 1659

West African spirit and ancestor cults than in Catholic crossroads, any tree standing near the intersection of
theology, which is especially reflected in the religion’s paths or roads may be a site of devotion to Legba.
great reverence for trees and forests. In Vodou, spirits and The most venerated tree in Haitian Vodou is the mapou
the ancestors abide in nature. Together they are spoken of (alt.: mapou africain; mapou zonbi), or ceiba pentenda,
as the mysteries (myste yo), and, as in Africa, trees (called one of the most majestic trees in the Caribbean. In West
in Haitian Creole pyè bwa; lit.: “wood foot”) are among Africa, especially in Benin, the homeland of an important
their most cherished homes. segment of Saint-Domingue’s slave population, the spirits
Vodou is deeply rooted in and sensitive to nature, with of the ancestors are believed to reside in ceiba pentenda.
many lwas being associated with natural phenomenon. The mapou, which appears in many Haitian proverbs and
The serpent-rainbow lwa Dambalah Wedo, for example, is revered in other parts of the Afro-Caribbean, is the pre-
lives in waterfalls, while other spirits are embodied by ferred home of the Gede family of spirits, the lwas of death
natural forces, such as Ogun, the lwa of the iron. The dead and the dead (and, dialectically, of life and the living) who
are likewise deeply enmeshed in nature and conceived of collectively represent Vodou’s trickster spirit. Being the
as residing either under the ground, across the water, or in moments when the veil between the living and the dead is
the forest. Trees and the forest, though increasingly scarce most permeable, noon and midnight are times when the
in the impoverished nation, have thus always featured mapou is reserved for the Gede, hence Vodou practitioners
prominently in Haitian Vodou’s rich symbolism and know to stay clear of mapous at 12:00 a.m. or p.m. Given
mythology. the power of the mapou at noon and midnight, on occa-
Trees gain their great religious significance in Vodou sion secret religious societies in Haiti have been known to
for a number of reasons, such as being the source of sacred hold ceremonies then and there.
drums and the gourd out of which is made the Vodou The lwa who is most associated with trees generally is
priest’s sacred rattle (asson). The most important reason is Loko, the spirit of vegetation and the life-force within all
that trees are believed to be the residence and the “pre- plants and trees. As such, Loko provides the healing power
ferred avenue of divine approach,” in Maya Deren’s terms, manifest in Vodou’s rich herbalism and is thus the patron
of the lwas. Because of this, certain species of trees con- lwa of the religion’s “leaf doctors” (medsin fey). There is
sidered especially sacred are planted around Vodou consequently a tradition in Haitian Vodou reminiscent of
temples, or temple sites are determined by the presence of many Native American ritual preparations for the hunt,
such trees. These trees, called in French arbres-reposoirs wherein the Vodou practitioner makes offerings to Loko to
(lit.: resting-place trees; altar trees), are recognizable by secure his blessing before cutting down any tree.
the straw sacks and strips of cloth that often hang on their However pervasive is this spirit of reverence for trees in
branches. Since the lwas are thus considered to live in Haiti, it has been overwhelmed by the nation’s grueling
these trees, the arbres-reposoirs are themselves rendered poverty and overpopulation, which has resulted in, among
cult in Vodou, and thus the straw sacks sometimes contain many other catastrophes, Haiti’s almost total deforesta-
offerings for these trees and/or the spirits who reside in tion: 95 percent of the country’s forest has been lost, and
them, candles are lighted at their trunks, and pottery is each year 15,000 acres of fertile topsoil is washed away as
broken against them. As the home of the lwas, these sacred a result. With an annual per capita income of roughly
trees are also addressed by candidates during initiation $250, Haitian peasants cut trees for charcoal as a means of
rituals in rural Haiti. income, while electricity-deprived urban Haitians also rely
Whereas virtually all of the lwas may live in trees, and on charcoal for cooking. The result is desertification and a
most lwas prefer certain species of trees, four lwas in litany of related ecological problems. Thanks to Vodou, at
particular are most closely associated with trees: Legba, least, in some of the countries most desertified regions
Gede, Gran Bwa (Great Forest) and Loko. As the guardian there are at least a few mapou trees and arbres-reposoirs
of the crossroads where intersect the sacred and the pro- that remain standing.
fane, and as the gatekeeper who holds the keys to the
doors of communication between spirits and humans, Terry Rey
Legba is in a true sense the most important member of the
lwa pantheon. Every Vodou temple has a post at its center Further Reading
that runs from the floor to the roof, down which are Deren, Maya. Divine Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti.
believed to arrive the lwas during communal ceremonies. New York: McPherson, 1991 (1953).
Commonly known as the poto-mitan (center post), this Métraux, Alfred. Voodoo in Haiti. New York: Schoken,
essential feature is also called the poto-Legba, reflective of 1972 (1959).
Legba’s authority over all use of the pole by spirits or See also: Caribbean Cultures; West Africa; Yoruba Culture
humans. As the gatekeeper, moreover, Legba’s sacred tree (West Africa).
is the most important in or around the temple yard, and it
invariably stands near the entryway. And as the lwa of the
1660 Trees (Northern and Middle Europe)

Trees (Northern and Middle Europe) third root ranges over hot-spring Hvergelmir, filled with
snakes. Yggdrasill constantly suffers a great hardship, as
Apart from the arctic prairies and deserts on the northern four stags bite the trunk from above, and below the snakes
fringes, Europe is a continent of trees. The dark, evergreen gnaw its root. The Fates wash the tree every day with white
conifers of spruce and fir characterize the northernmost clay, which keeps Yggdrasill green, in this balance of
part, the light conifers with its larches and pines are to be destruction and preservation, until the day of doom.
found where the sunlight is more generous the year The hanging of Odin may bear shamanistic traits of
around. The forests reign in Middle Europe where the sea- connections with and travel to the underworld and point
sons are even and the rainfall bountiful. The deciduous to an influence from the Finnish-Ugrians on the Teutonics.
forests, with their oaks and beeches, show much more Kalevala (the epic poem of the Finns, collected in 1835–
diversity of trees than the boreal conifers. 1849), tells the story of Väinämöinen, who goes to the
The Teutonic, Celtic, Baltic and Slavic tribes who underworld in search of a magic formula which he needs
inhabited Northern and Middle Europe from at least 900 to finish his oak-boat. He walks for three weeks, through a
B.C.E. were of Indo-European origin, akin to tribes in stand of saplings, bird-cherry and, at last, through juni-
Southern Europe. Their languages were and are related, pers (Poem 16). In the end he meets the giant Vipunen
and many of the surviving myths and legends are similar. (Poem 17), who is fast asleep under the ground. An aspen
The Finnish-Ugrians who inhabited the northeast of grows on his shoulders, birch from the brows, alders
Europe form a special group within the family of European spread from the jaws, willows from the beard, firs from the
cultures. The religious history of the continent is multilay- forehead, and the pines from the teeth. Väinämöinen is
ered and complex, because the settlements of the ancient swallowed by Vipunen, but the former tortures the tree-
tribes were scattered or they were nomadic, and their ideas monster from within the belly until Vipunen sings the
diverse. Moreover, the extant sources of information are magic rhyme of the creation of the world.
often colored by the worldviews of the commentators. Bonaventure (1217–1274) was a Franciscan teacher at
Julius Caesar described the religious, sacrificial prac- the University of Paris. His book, The Tree of Life, is an
tices of the Druids, the religious class of the Celts, in his important Christian source on trees and spirituality in
Gallic Wars (VI.13, composed ca. 50 B.C.E.). Caesar pic- medieval Europe. The Tree of Life is based on tree meta-
tured the Druids weaving immense figures out of twigs, phors in the Bible, framed by the trees of the first and the
which were filled with living people and set on fire. The last books of the Bible, the trees of knowledge and life in
funeral rites, according to Caesar, were also connected Eden and Revelation 22. The tree of Revelation bears
with great bonfires. A century later, Pliny the Elder spoke twelve kinds of fruits and the leaves of the trees are for the
in his Natural History about the Druids as the “people of healing of the nations. For Bonaventure the twelve fruits
the oak,” a name derived from the Greek “drouios” which are symbols of twelve virtues, which all show aspects of
means “oaken” or “from the oak,” and stated that their the life and ministry of Jesus as described in the gospels.
magic potions consisted primarily of oak-bark (XVI). Pliny According to Bonaventure, one can avoid the fallacy of
also described the sacredness of the mistletoe for the Adam, who chose the tree of knowledge instead of the tree
Druids. According to Pliny, mistletoe grows rarely on a of life, by meditating on the fruits of the tree of life in
hard oak, and when it occurs, it is collected with a great Revelation, each of which symbolizes the life of Jesus from
ceremony, which takes place around the oak tree. his conception in eternity to resurrection. The goal of
According to Edda (a collection of poetry from ca. 300– meditating on the tree and its fruit is to be one with the
800 and preserved in fourteenth-century Icelandic manu- body of Christ in ecstatic unity.
scripts), the mythical tree of Nordic mythology is the Ash The popularity of The Tree of Life, miracle plays, and
of Yggdrasill, the largest tree in the world, stretching its old Roman traditions of using evergreens as decorations,
branches over the skies. Yggdrasill has three roots and may have inspired the Christmas tree. This tradition
each is stretched over a well. The first root is in heaven, became popular in Germany after the Reformation, espe-
over a well where the gods have their sanctuary. Three cially at the end of the eighteenth century. It was
Fates who represent past, present, and future guard the expanded to Britain, America, and throughout the world
well and decide the fate of humans. Human ancestry is in the nineteenth century, under the strong influence of
thought to have come from the twigs of Ash and Elm that Victorian family values, where the tree became the center
floated to shore and were given spirit, breath, and life. The of family and home rituals during Christmas. The tradition
second root reaches over a well filled with water of wis- of celebrating spring with a dance around the maypole
dom, where the primal, yawning void of the Nordic crea- in Northern Europe is another example of a European
tion story used to be. In exchange for the water in the tree ritual.
well, Odin had to be hanged on the tree for nine nights.
The name of the tree means “the stallion of Odin” (one of Sigridur Gudmarsdottir
Odin’s names is Ygg) and is derived from this ordeal. The
 Trees – Sacred 1661

Further Reading dendron giganteum) in the Pacific coast forests of the

Bonaventure, Saint. The Soul’s Journey into God; The Tree northwest United States; maple sugar (Acer spp.) in New
of Life; The Life of St. Francis. Evert Cousins, ed., tr. England; rubber trees (Hevea brasiliensis) in the Amazon
New York: Paulist Press, 1978. and rubber tree plantations in South and Southeast Asia;
Bonnefoy, Yves. Mythologies. A restructured translation of mulberry (Morus alba) for the cultivation of silk worms in
Dictionnaire des Mytho-logies et des Religions des Soc- China; olive (Olea europea) in the Mediterranean and Mid-
iétés Traditionelles et du Monde Antique. Prepared dle East; and coconut (Cocos nucifera) in the Pacific
under the direction of Wendy Doniger. Gerald Honigs- islands and other tropical areas. In addition, special arts
blum, tr. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1981. have developed around trees like topiary, tree sculpturing
Caesar, Julius. The Gallic War. H.J. Edwards, tr. Cam- in eighteenth-century England, and bonsai, the cultiva-
bridge, MA: Cambridge University Press, 1958. tion of miniature or dwarf trees in Japan. Trees can have
The Elder Edda: A Selection. P. Taylor and W.H. Auden, trs. physiological and psychological impacts on individual
New York: Vintage, 1967. humans as well, such as relaxing heart rate, blood pres-
The Kalevala or Poems of the Kaleva District. Elias sure, and brain waves. Research has shown that hospital
Lönnrot, comp. Francis Peabody Magoun Jr., tr. patients recover faster than otherwise if they can see a tree
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1963. outside their window.
Pliny, the Elder. Natural History IV. H. Rackman, tr. From observations such as the above it is little wonder
Cambridge, MA/London: Harvard University Press/W. that trees may also be considered sacred. The common
Heinemann, 1962. characteristics of sacred trees are described by Nathaniel
See also: Cathedral Forests and the Felling of Sacred Altman:
Groves; Druids and Druidry; Heathenry – Ásatrú; Odinism;
Sacred Groves of Africa; Trees as Religious Architecture; A tree becomes sacred through recognition of the
Trees – Sacred. power that it expresses. This power may be mani-
fested as the food, shelter, fuel, materials used to
build boats, or medicine that the tree provides. How
Trees – Sacred a tree is used will vary according to geography, spe-
cies of tree, and the particular needs (and ingenuity)
A tree is a tall, single-stemmed, woody plant which bears of the human culture involved. Sacred trees have
branches some distance from the ground. Trees are the also provided beauty, hope, comfort, and inspira-
oldest and largest living organisms on planet Earth. The tion, nurturing and healing the mental, emotional,
bristle cone pine (Pinus longaeva) in the White Mountains and spiritual levels of our being. They are symbols of
of California can live to be over 4000 years old. The spe- life, abundance, creativity, generosity, permanence,
cies with the largest individual trees is the giant sequoia energy, and strength (1994: 9).
(Sequoiadendron giganteum), averaging at maturity 300
feet tall and 15 feet in diameter. I first discovered the existence of sacred trees while
In many ways trees are a primary source for life on our conducting field research in Thailand. From Bangkok to
apparently unique planet Earth. A leaf is a miniature food- the remotest rural villages, one often sees colorful cloth
making factory – sunlight, air, and water interact with wrapped around the lower trunk of a tree. A small spirit
chlorophyll cells in the leaf through photosynthesis and house with offerings such as candles, incense, food, and
with nutrients from the soil to produce food which allows water may be placed near the base of the tree. Local people
the tree to grow. In turn, the tree produces food and shelter believe that the tree is the residence of a spirit. Anyone
for other plants (epiphytes), animals, fungi, and microor- who harms such a tree might experience misfortune,
ganisms that visit or reside somewhere on it. Trees influ- sickness, or even death as the spirit takes revenge. Con-
ence other life far more than any other kind of plant by sequently, because of their special status sacred trees are
their wood, leaves, and fruit, as well as by the special kinds usually protected in effect.
of environments they create (shelter, shade, microclimatic Sacred trees are usually extraordinary in age, size,
zones). shape, or some other attribute. For example, in one village
For humans, trees provide oxygen, food, fuel, building in Thailand that I visited, a giant ironwood tree or Malacca
and craft materials, paper products, shade, and soil- teak (Afzelia bakeri) is considered sacred. Its secretions
erosion and flood control. The monetary value of the resemble blood. Also residents in the area mentioned that
environmental services provided by a single tree that lives twice lightning struck and burned other trees nearby, but
for fifty years has been calculated at nearly $200,000. did not touch this tree because of its extraordinary power.
There are also whole cultures, sub-cultures, industries, In addition, some residents have seen an unusual light
and occupations focused on trees of a particular kind such near the tree in the early evening.
as logging redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens and Sequoia- Certain species of trees are sacred because of their
1662 Trees – Sacred

relation to a religion. The banyan (Ficus bengalensis) and cies in the surrounding environment. Such animals may
bodhi (F. religiosa) have been associated with Buddhism eat fruit from the tree and disperse the seeds elsewhere,
since its inception. The Buddha is believed to have been thereby stimulating growth of other individuals of that
previously incarnated as a tree spirit and later during his species. In such ways, diverse animals link individual trees
reincarnation in human form he reached enlightenment of the same species into wider networks of reproduction
under a bodhi. Also in Hinduism the bodhi is supposed to and production.
be the home of the gods Krishna, Brahma, Vishnu, and A large tree also creates microclimates and microenvi-
Shiva. Thus, the bodhi is the most sacred of trees for both ronments for plants, mosses, fungi, and other organisms
Hindus and Buddhists, and this is reflected in its species which grow on its leaves, branches, trunk, and roots
name. The banyan tree is also considered sacred by Hin- as well as on the adjacent ground. The leaf-fall and
dus. Moreover, in the Buddhist country of Bhutan, it is other litter from the tree yields nutrients for plants and
actually illegal to cut down any living tree. animals below on the ground through decomposition by
In many Asian countries, some monks wander in for- decomposer species. A large tree may also act like a water
ests where they shelter and meditate under trees, emulat- pump, its deeper tap roots pulling water toward the sur-
ing the life and teachings of the Buddha. Furthermore, in face. Some of this water may become available for sur-
Thailand, a number of monks have symbolically ordained rounding plants as well. The roots of the tree may pump
trees by ceremonially wrapping the saffron robes around nutrients to the surface too. Acting something like a
giants in the forest to protect them from loggers. By mere sponge, the tree captures and slowly releases some rain-
association, the surrounding trees may also be protected. water which might otherwise contribute to more soil ero-
Tree ordination as a conservation technique has usually sion. Thus, trees are a very important component of the
proven successful in Thailand. composition, structure, and function of many ecosystems.
Throughout the world, diverse cultures recognize sac- From this systems perspective a single tree can contrib-
red trees. For instance, the Celts, Druids and many other ute to environmental and biodiversity conservation. When
tribes in ancient Europe venerated single trees, groves, and a large tree is considered sacred, and thus afforded special
forests, especially of oak (Quercus spp.). Oaks seem more protection from harm, it may help conserve a multitude of
prone to being struck by lightning than other tree species, other species and their symbiotic relationships as well as
and this may have contributed to their sacred status. Oak specific microclimates, microenvironments, soil, and
and spruce (Picea spp.) were of special significance in water resources. Of course, these manifold ecological func-
ancient Germanic rituals, and this is the origin of the mod- tions of a single tree are multiplied many times over in
ern tradition of the Christmas tree. Yew trees (Taxus spp.) groves and forests which are even more important for
were especially important in ancient Britain, and church- conservation.
yards were built around or close to them. To this day there If more people appreciated the numerous diverse
are several hundred shrines throughout Europe associated meanings and significances of trees, then they might
with individual trees. appreciate even more the groves and forests, and con-
In the United States, the Mormon religious faith was sequently be more concerned about their wise use and
born near the town of Palmyra in New York. There today conservation.
it is still possible to visit the Sacred Grove where the
Mormon prophet Joseph Smith first had divine visions. Leslie E. Sponsel
Also in the United States and elsewhere, some families
plant trees as a living memorial when a relative or friend Further Reading
dies. A tree that survived the bombing of the federal build- Altman, Nathaniel. Sacred Trees. San Francisco, CA: Sierra
ing in Oklahoma City became a symbol of renewal and a Club Books, 1994.
sacred tree of sorts. Darlington, Susan M. “The Ordination of a Tree: The Bud-
At first glance a single sacred tree may not appear to dhist Ecology Movement in Thailand.” Ethnology 37:1
have much if any significance for environmental and bio- (1998), 1–15.
diversity conservation. However, a single tree is part of a Guha, Gita. “A Culture of Trees.” Resurgence 168 (1995),
hierarchy of progressively larger ecological systems. A 31–5.
large tree can host dozens or more of other species such as Jones, Owain and Paul Cloke. Tree Cultures: The Place of
lianas (vines), epiphytes, mosses, and fungi. In turn there Trees and Trees in Their Place. New York, NY: Berg,
may be dozens to hundreds of species of resident and tran- 2002.
sient animals. Millions of microorganisms may also Kaza, Stephanie. The Attentive Heart: Conversations with
inhabit a single tree. Interacting with these species are Trees. Boston, MA: Shambhala Press, 1996.
others as predators, parasites, competitors, and so on. In Perlman, Michael. The Power of Trees: The Reforesting of
addition, birds, bats, insects, and other animals pollinate the Soul. Dallas, TX: Spring Publications, 1994.
flowers of the tree and those of other members of its spe- Rival, Laura, ed. The Social Life of Trees: Anthropological
 The Trickster 1663

Perspectives on Tree Symbolism. New York, NY: Berg, clearly delineated North American trickster being is Coy-
1998. ote. His African counterpart, Jackal, is a trickster figure
Thomas, Peter. Trees: Their Natural History. New York, also in southern Africa, along with /Kaggen (Mantis), as
NY: Cambridge University Press, 2000. well as numerous others. For Hare, too, we find an African
See also: Animism (various); Buddha; Cathedral Forests counterpart, in the folklore of a number of Bantu-speaking
and the Felling of Sacred Groves; Donga Tribe; Druids and peoples. Spider – Ananse and Tore, among the Ashanti and
Druidry; Earth First! and the Earth Liberation Front; Hea- Azande – and the “Pale Fox” – Ogo (Yurugu, among the
thenry – Ásatrú; India’s Sacred Groves; Japanese Reli- Dogon) – are two of Western and central Africa’s better-
gions; Lakota Sun Dance; Middle Earth; Odinism; Sacred known tricksters. West Africa’s most complex trickster
Groves of Africa; Tree Music; Trees in Haitian Vodou; figure is the messenger god and god of divination Elegba
Trees as Religious Architecture; Trees (Northern and (or Eshu, or, as he is known among the Fon and Aflateke, a
Middle Europe); Wenger, Susan, Yoruba Art & the Oshogbo name meaning “I have tricked you”), who is prominent
Sacred Grove. also in the folklore and belief systems of New World
Afro-Americans in Surinam, Brazil, Trinidad and Cuba.
He is reminiscent of the Greek figure of Hermes,
The Trickster another messenger god, as well as god of thieves, for
which role he is suited through his qualities of cunning,
The trickster is a virtually universal figure in world myth- fraud and perjury. Another European trickster god was
ology, especially that of hunter-gatherers, on whose Loki of Nordic mythology, the enfant terrible of the teu-
mythological landscape he holds center stage. Trickery tonic pantheon who was a comic trickster and transformer
and deceit, frequently exercised in the form of coarse and in the early myths, but who became progressively evil and
hurtful practical jokes on a duped party, and excessive destructive in the later cycles, having been the chief force
biological drives, are the trickster’s characteristic traits. He to bring about the Raganrök – the twilight of the gods –
is usually a solitary figure who roams the landscape, play- and the end of their realm and world. Other European
ing pranks and getting into scrapes, as his deceit and cun- tricksters are the medieval figures of Renart (Reynard) the
ning (due to the stupidity with which they are usually fox and Till Eulenspiegel, both anti-establishment figures
performed) may backfire on him. In the context of his whose dupes were the temporal and clerical power holders
prankish and foolish antics, he may, more or less inadvert- of the day, as well as the towns’ burghers. Finally, there is
ently and haphazardly, find himself in the role of culture the figure of Robin Goodfellow (alias Puck, of “Midsum-
hero and transformer, bringing such things as fire, cook- mer Night’s Dream”), the mischievous fairy being of English
ing, curing, weapons, carnal knowledge, conception by folklore, a trickster par excellence. As a shape-shifter –
sex and painful childbirth, death to humans, setting the “sometimes a horse, sometimes a hound, a hog, a headless
sun in the sky, or pulling the fished-up islands of Poly- bear, or sometimes a fire” – who played a seductive pipe,
nesia into the ocean. He may transform food plants into this “shrewd and knavish sprite” lured forest travelers into
stars, mud into the Earth, clay into humans, ogres into swamps, “laughing at their harm.” He delighted in watch-
animals or, in the manner very much of the trickster, cre- ing the follies of humans and – as is the trickster’s wont –
ate the waterholes and river-beds of the Kalahari with his in “frightening the maidens of the villagery.”
hugely swollen testicles that he drags behind him through As is evident from this brief and quite incomplete sur-
a hitherto featureless landscape, or, with one mighty, cos- vey of the world’s rogues’ gallery of tricksters, we have
mic fart, scatter all living creatures to the various places here a figure of great diversity and complexity. In his role
on the Earth (as did the Nharo Bushman Pate and the Win- and being, the trickster is an ambiguous blend of things:
nebago trickster Wakdjunkaga, respectively). His exploits prankster-protagonist, culture hero and transformer and,
and misadventures are the stuff of many tales, or tale in some instances, also god. Ambiguity is evident also in
cycles, that provide entertainment to an audience both of his ontological make-up, which is that either of an animal
children and adults, as well as act as cultural mechanisms – usually one sly, agile and elusive – or of a human.
for venting social frustration and for reaffirming social However, neither guise is unequivocally “animalian” or
values and beliefs. humanoid. As animal – Coyote, Spider, Mantis, Hare,
Trickster figures are particularly prominent in the folk- Raven – trickster, the storytellers insist, is also “a person.”
lore of America and Africa. They appear in the former As for the humanoid tricksters, these figures may be of
continent in such personas as Raven (along the northwest misshapen bizarre appearance, such as the Nharo Bush-
coast), the stealer of the sun and bringer of light to the men’s Pate, a one-legged manikin who was covered with
world, or as Hare, Beaver or the anthropomorphic Nana- cocoon fibers and had big toes sticking out from all over
busho or Wiseakjak (both variously spelled) among the his body, or the Canadian Micmac’s Kuloscap, who was a
Algonkians and Athapaskans, who are variously trick- giant. Humanoid tricksters may have trouble with their
sters, teachers and transformers. The most widespread and limbs and body parts, which may work at cross-purposes
1664 The Trickster

with each other or may become unfastened from their enter the historic and recent past; thus, we find the
owner’s body, running off on their own. The body parts Khoisan tricksters Heiseb or Jackal roaming the farms of
that are especially active in the trickster are those that the pioneer trek Boers and working for, and duping the
contain orifices, especially those of the alimentary canal baas, or the Zande Tore, who was arrested by the British
and nether regions; they – anus, penis, along with but- colonists who, among other things, taught him to drive an
tocks, testicles, and entrails – may sever themselves, to fly automobile. Life and death are poles that the trickster con-
off on some mischievous pranks that blend scatology with founds as well. Many a tale tells of his death or murder,
lasciviousness (two examples of tricksters with such errant sometimes in a gruesome manner, through burning,
body parts are Wakdjunkaga and Kauha, of Winnebago drowning, dismembering, being devoured and swallowed
and !Kung folklore). In refastening themselves to his body, up, only to be revivified anew (or revivifying himself). He
the trickster’s parts may be haphazardly reordered, such may do so by healing himself, as did the !Kung trickster
that his head may be fastened to his bottom or his penis to Kauha (introducing thereby the trance curing dance to
his back. His anatomy is thus quite fluid and unstable; its humankind).
inconstancy is heightened whenever he undergoes one of The fact that this being, of deceit, moral turpitude and
his shape-shifting transformations to animal, tree, rock, or stupidity, may also be a being that is god-like in his power
water body. The trickster delights in transformation, both and acts, and the reverential attitudes he may invoke in
of himself and of beings and states around him; as a result, the people, who, at other times, would laugh at his antics
he and the world around him are a-quiver with inchoate, and express outrage at his moral perversities, is perhaps
liminal ambiguity. the most striking manifestation of the ambiguity that
Ambiguity also marks the trickster’s sexual and social envelop the trickster figure. Among the Navaho, Coyote
disposition. While usually male – with often voracious was both a holy being and a buffoon, and to the Bushmen,
heterosexual appetites – he may also assume a female the tricksters /Kaggen or //Gãuwa were, in addition to
guise, usually in the context of some sexual escapade. pranksters and vulgarian, both also gods, who protected
While generally solitary, the trickster may wander with a game animals and were a numinous presence at initiation
companion, who may be the butt of his pranks, or who and curing rites. Among some of the Bushman groups, the
may turn tables on the trickster and outwit him; the classic curing shaman had to seek out the help of trickster god,
example is Coyote and Wolf (or, in the southern African who was a bit of a curer himself, when he went on his
variant, Jackal and Hyena). In Amazonia, the trickster may trance-induced outer-body, spirit journeys. As among the
be one of a pair of mythical twins, while the Chippewan North American Indians, there is a similarity between
Wenebojo’s sibling companion was Nekajiweizik – one of some of a trickster’s exploits and adventures and shamans’
his two younger brothers (after he had killed the second journeys to the spirit world.
brother). Some tricksters – such as the /Xam and !Kung Combining in his being the traits of animal, human and
Bushmen’s /Kaggen and Kaoxa (or Kauha) – have wives god, the trickster points out the unity of such universally
and live in extended families, permanently or for a while. separated realms as culture and nature, sacred and pro-
The family members provide a foil to the trickster’s moral fane, natural and supernatural. Among hunter-gatherers,
and social failings, of food greed, failure to share or pro- whose trickster figure is especially prominent, well
vide properly, sexual lusts and jealousies (frequently delineated and universal, and whose guise is usually ani-
incestuous in bent), which all conspire against the malian – yet, at the same time also human – the insepar-
trickster’s ever being a solid family man. ableness of nature and culture is perhaps the main symbolic
While the moral qualities of this vindictive and destruc- message of the trickster. That humans and animals are
tive prankster and boaster, vulgarian and libertine, may kindred beings, that the ontological and conceptual
seem to be unequivocal, once again we note ambiguity. boundaries that separate them are fluid or even illusory, is
The trickster may also be seen in the role of Heilbringer, a message that resonates with the lifeways and worldviews
extending help, generosity, compassion and protection to of hunter-gatherers, which are embedded within nature.
those he deals with, especially weak or oppressed beings Among other societies, with states and food production
who are threatened by danger or monsters. An example is and complex pantheons and charter myths, the trickster is
the Athapaskan-speaking Tagish people’s “Smart Beaver” more likely to be a god – such as Loki, Hermes, Legba, or
who, in a cycle of myths that chronicle his heroic voyage Maui, respectively of the Scandinavians, Greeks, West
down what is probably the Yukon river, “cleaned out” all Africans and Polynesians – with his own divine profile
the giants and animals (and scaled down the latter to their and purpose, as creator or destroyer, demiurge, messenger,
current size, as well as changing their diet to foods that translator, diviner, protector or fertility god. Through the
excluded human flesh). constraints of his human and animal side, such a trickster-
The ambiguity that surrounds the trickster also has a god displays a sacred quality that is different from that of
temporal dimension. While his world is usually the incho- other gods. It is a sacrality that is both more and less
ate, mythic age back in the mythological past, he may also accessible than that of the other divine mortals. Through
 Tucker, Mary Evelyn 1665

his foolishness and carnality, his lies and moral failings, he Tucker, Mary Evelyn – See Religious Studies and
is akin to mortals and their own follies and failings. Yet the Environmental Concern.
trickster-god is capable also of dumbfounding the gods, of
stealing from them, outsmarting and out-talking them,
through witty double-talk that contains depth of wisdom
Tu B’Shvat – See Jewish Environmentalism in North
that may surpass their own divine understanding.
America; Waskow, Rabbi Arthur.
As a wanderer, an outsider, a “marginal man,” the trick-
ster, in each of the places and domains he enters, causes
both havoc and consternation. The reason is that he
shocks its inhabitants – humans, animals, gods – into rec- Tukanoan Indians (Northwest Amazonia)
ognizing the relativity and fragility of the world of order
and structure they have created for themselves and live by The Tukanoan Indians form a linguistic macro-unit
unself-consciously. Puck’s exclamation – “Lord, what divided into two geographically separated populations in
fools these mortals be” – is the message of the trickster Northwest Amazonia, the Western and Eastern Tukanoans.
everywhere, presented by the outsider looking in on the Straddling the borders between Colombia, Ecuador and
insiders’ ways of doing things, living their lives, thinking Peru, the Western Tukanoans (including principally the
their thoughts, which to him, the outsider, seem antic and Secoya, May Huna, Siona and the Koreguaje ethnic
contestable. In upsetting and challenging them, he groups) comprise some 1500 individuals living on the
reminds humans – or gods, or animal-humans of the upper Putumayo and Caquetá rivers and the lower Napo
mythic age – of the arbitrariness and limitations of a set river. The considerably larger population of Eastern
and seemingly given cultural, sacral and biological order. Tukanoans, amounting to some 20,000 people, inhabit the
As such, the trickster becomes an agent of creativity who Vaupés and Apaporis drainages in the Colombian Amazon
challenges a culture’s monocultural ways and univocal and the upper Rio Negro region of Eastern Brazil. Though
thoughts; he brings a “more than this” dimensionality to related closely linguistically, the two populations are
existence, alerting humans to the “unquenchable fecund- socially and culturally distinct.
ity of all that truly is and can be” (Hynes 1993: 212, 216). The habitat of the Eastern Tukanoan Indians (hence-
forth Tukanoans) is interfluvial (terra firme) tropical low-
land forest. The Vaupés region is ecologically described as
Mathias Guenther
a blackwater ecosystem with nutrient poor soils and rivers
(Moran 1993). Biological diversity is high while the pro-
Further Reading ductivity of terrestrial and riverine fauna is low, even by
Evans-Pritchard, E.E. The Zande Trickster. Oxford: Oxford Amazonian standards. In these harsh surroundings the
University Press, 1967. native populations make a satisfying living by means of
Guenther, Mathias. Tricksters and Trancers: Bushman shifting cultivation (bitter manioc being the staple), fish-
Religion and Society. Bloomington: Indiana University ing, hunting and gathering. Population density is low, and
Press, 1999. settlements widely dispersed along rivers and streams. The
Hynes, William J. “Inconclusive Conclusions: Tricksters – traditional settlement is the multifamily longhouse or
Metaplayers and Revealers.” In W.J. Hynes and W.G. maloca comprising a patrilineally extended family. Today
Doty, eds. Mythical Trickster Figures. Tuscaloosa: The settlements are increasingly concentrated around schools,
University of Alabama Press, 1993, 202–17. shops and other facilities, and the traditional maloca is
Pelton, Robert D. The Trickster in West Africa: A Study of largely replaced by smaller, single-family houses grouped
Mythic Irony and Sacred Delight. Berkeley: University into villages. Though the traditional livelihood system still
of California Press, 1980. provides the basis for sustenance, petty trade, mining and
Lopez, Barry H. Giving Birth to Thunder, Sleeping with his contract labor are increasingly important in the local
Daughter: Coyote Builds North America. New York: economy.
Avon, 1977. The Tukanoan social universe is composed of some
Norman, Howard, ed. Northern Tales. New York: Pantheon twenty named exogamous groups (including the Tukano
Books, 2000, 101–40. proper, the Desana, Cubeo, Wananao, Bara, Barasana and
Radin, Paul. The Trickster. New York: Schocken Books, Makuna), each identified with a distinct language and a
1956 (1972). proper river territory. Each group reckons descent in the
Sullivan, Lawrence E., Robert D. Pelton and Marc Linscott male line from a putative, mythical ancestor, conceived of
Ricketts. “Tricksters.” In Mircea Eliade, ed. The as an Anaconda. The exogamous group also holds what
Encyclopedia of Religion, vol. 15. New York: MacMil- may be described as corporate sacred property, including
lan Publishing Company, 1997, 45–53. tangible ritual goods (musical instruments and dance
See also: West Africa. ornaments), sacred substances (blessed coca, tobacco, red
1666 Tukanoan Indians

paint and beeswax), and intangible, spiritual wealth, such is the dominant mode of religious practice among the
as chants, songs and a specific set of personal names Tukanoan Indians.
which circulate among its members in alternate genera-
tions. The most important material symbol of the group is The Yurupary Cult
the set of sacred palm-wood flutes, the Yurupary instru- The Yurupary cult is the fullest expression of (Eastern)
ments, which are said to embody the ancestors. This sacred Tukanoan religious life. Misunderstood as a “devil’s cult”
property is described as the “weapons” and “defenses” of by early missionaries, the Yurupary complex involves the
the group. ritual use and display of sacred palm-wood flutes and
Different exogamous groups relate to each other as trumpets (the Yurupary instruments) representing the
putative kin (between which marriage is avoided) or deified ancestors of the clan and exogamous group. The
affines (between which marriage is prescribed). Tukanoan cult, which is common to the Tukanoan and Arrawakan
society is economically undifferentiated, and there is little groups of the Vaupes-Icana region of Northwest Amazo-
evidence of political cohesion beyond the local group of nia, has therefore been described as an ancestor cult with
adjacent settlements. Leadership is confined to settlement features of a male secret cult. The Yurupary instruments
headmen and occasional charismatic local leaders. How- are handled by adult men only, and the ritual display of
ever, this equality in the economic and political field goes the most sacred instruments is the key event in the pro-
with a conspicuous differentiation in the religious and ri- cess of male initiation. The Yurupary complex is thus
tual domain. Shamans and other ritual specialists (dancers intimately connected to the patrilineal descent system –
and chanters) of varying and complementary skills play an the establishment of gender difference and the formation
important role in society. Large-scale public rituals are of male personhood and collective identity. However,
frequent and considered essential for survival and beyond their patrilineal connotations, the sacred instru-
prosperity. ments are associated with the fertility of nature and the
Tukanoan religion is conveniently described under regeneration of life at large. The ancestors, embodied in
three general headings: the Yurupary cult, animism and the Yurupary instruments, are the generative source of all
shamanism. Of these, the Yurupary cult does not (and life.
probably never did) form part of the Western Tukanoan There are two types of Yurupary rituals: the principal
religious universe, while the essential features of animism ritual, involving the display of the most ancient and sac-
and shamanism appear to apply to both the Eastern and red instruments, and the Tree Fruit ritual. The latter is a
Western groups. weaker version of the main ritual, involving less sacred
Environmental understanding is constitutive of instruments and the ritual redistribution of forest fruits.
Tukanoan religion. Social and religious imagery draws The main ritual, which does not feature any ritual redistri-
on, and is fundamentally inspired by, indigenous know- bution of fruits, is held at the beginning of the rainy sea-
ledge of biological and ecological processes. The son, which is also the season of the ripening of the wild
Tukanoan environmental understanding is encoded in an forest fruits. In Tukanoan thinking, this is the beginning of
animistic ontology-cosmology. Animism, as understood the annual cycle. The Yurupary ritual heralds the new
here, implies a fundamentally monistic, participatory year, and is seen as instrumental in bringing about the
orientation to the world, transcending the Western onto- renewal of nature and the spiritual revitalization of the
logical divide between nature and culture, the animate community.
and the inanimate. The human–environment relationship Just as it inaugurates the annual cycle, the Yurupary
is one of relatedness, inter-subjectivity and inter- ritual initiates male adulthood and conveys full member-
agentivity; it is fundamentally social and dialogical in ship in the descent group. As the key event in the male
nature. This is the ontological basis for Tukanoan initiation process, it marks a new stage in the life cycle of
shamanism. men. Indeed, the annual ritual cycle, beginning with the
It can be argued that such a participatory stance is con- Yurupary ritual and ending with the Peach Palm festival, a
ducive to environmental sustainability and the conserva- food feast celebrating the peach palm harvest and the final
tion biological diversity. The traditional Tukanoan notion departure of the recently dead, symbolically reproduces
of reciprocity, which guides their interaction with the the male life cycle from initiation to death. Also pubescent
environment, and the mythologically grounded ritual women are ritually initiated. However, in contrast to the
regulation of resource use, provide strong behavioral sanc- male ritual, which is a collective and public affair, female
tions against the overexploitation of forest and river initiation is a private and discrete event following upon
resources. In the Tukanoan view, human life is ultimately first menstruation.
geared toward the overall goal of sustaining the cosmos. At male initiation, a group of pubescent boys are made
This life-sustaining responsibility is epitomized in the role to see the Yurupary instruments. Under the effect of hal-
of the shaman. Fundamentally concerned with human lucinogenic yagé (Banisteriopsis sp.), and supervised by
survival and the continuous fertility of nature, shamanism elders and the officiating shaman, the initiates are brought
 Tukanoan Indians 1667

into direct contact with the ancestors (in the form of the and plants have houses, are organized into communities,
sacred instruments). Women and children are excluded have headmen and ritual specialists. Game animals, in par-
from the central events of the ritual. The ritual sequence ticular, are said to live like human beings: they cultivate
follows the familiar pattern of a passage ritual: the initi- the land, harvest their crop and prepare their food, make
ates are symbolically killed (immersed in a cold forest their proper ritual dances and drink their beer. They have
stream) at the eve of the ritual, and brought back to life as their own ritual attire and, most significantly, their proper
new-born beings at the end (as they are again made to Yurupary instruments. Like all people, they have “culture.”
immerse themselves in the river, now together with the Humanity, the human life form, is the model for all living
instruments, and subsequently led back into the house). At kinds. Culture is what all mortal beings, human and
the height of the ritual, the initiates sit in fetal position non-human, have in common.
inside the house, as the instruments are played over their What distinguish different species or “peoples” from
heads and motionless bodies. Thus, they are impregnated one another are their distinctive “bodies,” their shape, col-
with the vital force of the living ancestors. The boys are oring, sound and corporeal habits which are all associated
then whipped to become hard and strong. The Yurupary with their different mythical origins and the specific
instruments are imaged as fierce predators (jaguars and metaphysical roles assigned to them in the cosmic scheme
anacondas), swallowing and regurgitating the initiates of things. In the case of animal species, difference is con-
and thereby reconstituting them as full social and spiritual ceived of in “cultural” terms – as distinctive “clothing,”
beings. Infused with regenerative, patrilineal essence, the body paint, language, food habits and ritual property
pubescent boys are reborn as fertile, adult men. (“weapons” and “defenses”). Natural differences are, as it
were, culturalized. Conversely, in the case of humans,
Animism cultural difference is essentialized and naturalized: differ-
Tukanoans inhabit an animated landscape where every- ences in language, food habits and ritual goods are per-
thing created has the capacity to become alive and to ceived as natural – innate and corporeal, constitutive of
actively intervene in the course of events. Hills, moun- group identity. To Tukanoans, culture is nature – timeless
tains, rocks and rivers are infused with the forces of crea- and unchanging, created along with the rest of nature and
tion; they are seen as consubstantial with the creators handed down to present generations from the first
and incorporate their powers. Every place and feature of ancestors.
the landscape has a name and tells a story about the deeds A wholly socialized or humanized cosmos such as that
of the ancestors. These mythical events, encoded in names of the Tukanoans, in which the Western nature–culture
and places, confer particular powers to the local land- divide is abolished and where all beings and things are
scape. The beings – plants, fishes, land animals and construed as actual or potential subjects-persons, is con-
humans – inhabiting this empowered landscape share in veniently called animistic. Animism, in this precise (and
its potency; they are charged with creative as well as revised) sense, refers to a participatory (monistic) type of
destructive powers which must be ritually handled to ontology which is extremely widespread among indig-
ensure human survival and well-being. Everything made enous peoples around the world, and one which is funda-
and crafted from natural materials is also believed to con- mentally distinct from, or opposed to, the naturalistic
tain this ancestral potency; baskets, tools and weapons, (dualistic) ontology characteristic of Western modernity.
houses and canoes situationally obtain agency and
become alive. Objects are fundamentally subjects; subject- Shamanism
ivity is their natural condition. Crafted things are thus Tukanoan social and religious practice is situated in this
doubly potent; they contain not only the powers of the ontological-cosmological space. Survival, reproduction
materials from which they were made but also the agency and the pursuit of well-being take place in a perceived
and creative intentionality of their makers. reality where every life form (species) is seen as a “people,”
In Tukanoan metaphysical discourse, nonhuman ani- and every being a person – a sentient, intelligent subject.
mals and plants are generally described as “people” or Natural objects, artifacts and features of the landscape
“humans.” The term, which in ordinary discourse is used to have a subjective side and, thus, a potential for intention-
denote an (unspecified) exogamous group and to dis- ality and agency. What is generally referred to as
tinguish human beings from other living kinds, is thus shamanism should be understood against this animistic
contextually expanded to include all living kinds. In the background. Tukanoan shamans, invariably male, are
religious ontology of Tukanoan peoples there is no abso- part-time ritual specialists possessing expert knowledge of
lute distinction between human and nonhuman beings. the ultimate powers. Their function is to mediate between
Social groups and natural species are categorically fused; humanity and the nonhuman agencies that surround them
exogamous groups are natural kinds, and different species in order to make human life possible and to oversee the
are “distinct peoples.” Nonhuman animals and plants are proper working of the cosmos.
attributed with human agency, will and intention. Animals Shamanic knowledge is essential for making a living in
1668 Tukanoan Indians

this animated world, made possible by the creative and with the supervision of the annual Yurupary ritual, when
destructive powers of the ancestral beings. By shamanic the ancestors come alive and enter into direct contact with
means – incantations, spells and blessings – the world is the living community members. At this ritual, the officiat-
made safe, food is blessed and human beings protected ing shaman turn into a primordial being himself; he
from spiritual dangers. Shamans are, quite literally, gods embodies the Yurupary, the omnipotent Ancestor-Creator.
on Earth; they cure and prevent disease, but may also send Among the Makuna, one of the Tukanoan groups in the
sickness and death; they supervise and metaphysically Pirá-Paraná region of the Colombian Amazon, the princi-
control the events at birth, initiation and death, literally pal Yurupary is identified as the Ancestral Bumble-Bee,
constructing, deconstructing and reconstructing human the Primordial Pollinator. The imagery is revealing: feed-
persons; they ensure, by ritual means, the continuing fer- ing on flowery plants, the Pollinator enables the plants
tility of nature and, thus, the availability of game and fish to reproduce and multiply. Impersonating the Primordial
for human consumption; and they transform beings of Pollinator, the shaman fecundates nature and renews
nature (game, fish and forest fruits) from potentially the world.
perilous subjects and vehicles of death and disease to life- In the 1970s and 1980s, the indigenous population in
giving and strengthening food (Arhem 1996). the Vaupés region was heavily affected, in close succes-
Tukanoans distinguish between two kinds of shamans, sion, by the booming Colombian coca trade and the Ama-
one intimately associated with curing but also with caus- zonian gold rush. Both events implied dramatic upheavals
ing death and disease, the other associated with protective, in the regional economy. For many indigenous com-
preventive and life-sustaining shamanism in connection munities they provided much needed cash income but also
with life-cycle rituals and public rituals more generally caused social disruptions and local environmental deple-
(Hugh-Jones 1996). The former, usually referred to as payé tion. Nevertheless, the Eastern Tukanoan homeland has,
in the literature, is feared and perceived as a morally on the whole, been spared large-scale forest destruction
ambiguous figure of comparatively low social status. The and settler penetration. In 1982, the main part of the
source of his power is highly inspirational and idio- Colombian Vaupés (some 3.5 million hectares) was
syncratic. As curer and sorcerer, he operates as an indi- declared Protected Indigenous Land (resguardo). Within
vidual, often at the margins of society. In many respects he this legal framework, Tukanoan Indians have largely been
is the prototypical shaman. successful in defending their heritage and homeland
The other, life-sustaining and protective shaman, by against external intrusion. Indigenous interests have been
contrast, has attributes usually associated with priesthood: effectively promoted by the Regional Indigenous Organi-
his role is entirely benevolent and thoroughly social. zation (CRIVA), founded in 1973, and by its several local
Directed toward the good of the community, the life- offshoots.
sustaining shaman is morally unambiguous. Con- Missionary influence is strong along major waterways
sequently, his social standing is high, usually merging and in the vicinity of frontier towns and trading settle-
secular and ritual authority. The source of his authority is ments. In more remote areas, however, indigenous beliefs
his knowledge of the mythical canon of the group. The and practices remain strong. Partly in response to the
office tends to be inherited from a senior patrilineal rela- threats posed by the cocaine boom and the subsequent
tive and invariably involves many years of apprenticeship, gold rush, partly as a result of the activities of the regional
from initiation to mature age. Recognition as a true life- indigenous movement, there are today signs of indigenous
sustaining shaman comes only with advanced age and cultural revival in the region (Arhem 1998b). Traditional
demonstrated expertise. rituals are performed with renewed vigor, and shamans
All initiated, mature men are attributed with some and other local authorities are assuming a new role in the
amount of shamanic knowledge. All men know how to emerging Tukanoan leadership, now efficiently interact-
bless food and, thus, to render it safe for consumption, and ing with state institutions, the church, and pro-indigenous
all men are capable of sustaining themselves in the local international organizations.
environment: they know the spiritual dangers and assets
of their territory and the ritual acts that necessarily Kaj Århem
accompany the everyday chores in the forest and on the
river. However, only the curing shaman is capable of Further Reading
treating the seriously ill, and only the life-sustaining Arhem, Kaj. Makuna: Portrait of an Amazonian People.
shaman possesses the expertise to direct the major life- Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press,
cycle rituals and the public ritual events aimed at ensuring 1998a.
the fecundity in nature. Arhem, Kaj. “Powers of Place: Landscape, Territory and
Yet, even among the shamans, knowledge and skills are Local Belonging in Northwest Amazonia.” In N. Lovell,
differentiated and graded. Thus, only the most reputed and ed. Locality and Belonging. London: Routledge, 1998b,
knowledgeable of life-sustaining shamans are entrusted 78–102.
 Tukanoan Indians 1669

Arhem, Kaj. “The Cosmic Food-web: Human–nature Religion and Medicine.” In E.J. Matteson Langdon and
Relatedness in the Northwest Amazon.” In P. Descola G. Baer, eds. Portals of Power: Shamanism in South
and G. Pálsson, eds. Nature and Society: Anthropo- America. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico
logical Perspectives. London: Routledge, 1996, 185– Press, 1992, 41–62.
204. Moran, Emilio. Through Amazonian Eyes: The Human
Bird-David, Nurit. “ ‘Animism’ Revisited: Personhood, Ecology of Amazonian Populations. Iowa: University
Environment, and Relational Epistemology.” Current of Iowa Press, 1993.
Anthropology 40 (Supplement 1999), 67–91. Reichel-Dolmatoff, Gerardo. “Cosmology as Ecological
Descola, Philippe. “Constructing Natures: Symbolic Ecol- Analysis: A View from the Rain Forest.” Man 11 (NS
ogy and Social Practice.” In P. Descola and G. Pálsson, 1976), 307–18.
eds. Nature and Society: Anthropological Perspectives. Reichel-Dolmatoff, Gerardo. Amazonian Cosmos: The
London: Routledge, 1996, 82–102. Sexual and Religious Symbolism of the Tukano Indi-
Goldman, Irvin. The Cubeo: Indians of the Northwest ans. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1971.
Amazon. Urbana: The University of Illinois Press, 1963. Viveiros de Castro, Eduardo. “Cosmological Deixis and
Hugh-Jones, Stephen. “Shamans, Prophets, Priests and Amerindian Perspectivism.” The Journal of the Royal
Pastors.” In N. Thomas and C. Humphrey, eds. Shaman- Anthropological Institute 4 (NS 1998), 469–88.
ism, History, and the State. Ann Arbor: The University See also: Amazonia; Animism (various); Ethnobotany;
of Michigan Press, 1996, 32–75. Ethnoecology; Rainforests (Central and South America);
Hugh-Jones, Stephen. The Palm and the Pleiades: Initiation Reichel-Dolmatoff, Gerardo – and Ethnoecology in
and Cosmology in Northwest Amazonia. Cambridge: Colombia; Rubber Tappers; Shamanism – Traditional;
Cambridge University Press, 1979. Traditional Ecological Knowledge; U’wa Indians (Colom-
Langdon, E. Jean Matteson. “Shamanic Power in Siona bia); Yanomami.