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The
Shuwish, a tribe related to the coastal California Indians, painted
Dream World sequences in caves and on cliffs as far inland as the
Colorado River. The figures represent "shu-shu" or the
spirits of ancestors and spirit homes, the star like figures. It
was believed that such shamanic portrayals honored the ancient spirits
and enlisted them in helping humankind. |
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| I was touching that many traditions need to be brought back and included in ritual celebrations today. The ritual portrayal of the ancestors of the Chumash through shamanic art needsto be continued to preserve our awareness of our interconnectedness with the ancestors and our responsibility to creation as participants in creation. | |
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Like
most American Indians, the Chumash believed that their response to
creation did have an effect; they were not helpless victims of a
capricious universe. By
creating rituals and keeping the traditions, the people affirm their
sense of belonging to and participating in all of creation.
Even quantum physics recognizes that the observer becomes the
participant in scientific experiments. |
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