The Great Spirit is the concept of a life force, a Supreme Being or

god In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...

known more specifically as

Wakan Tanka In Lakota spirituality, ''Wakan Tanka'' ( Standard Lakota Orthography: ''Wakȟáŋ Tȟáŋka'') is the term for the sacred or the divine. This is usually translated as the "Great Spirit" and occasionally as "Great Mystery". ''Wakȟáŋ Tȟáŋka ...

Lakota Lakota may refer to: *Lakota people, a confederation of seven related Native American tribes *Lakota language, the language of the Lakota peoples Place names In the United States: *Lakota, Iowa *Lakota, North Dakota, seat of Nelson County *Lakota ...

,Ostler, Jeffry. ''The Plains Sioux and U.S. Colonialism from Lewis and Clark to Wounded Knee''.

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII of England, King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press A university press is an academic publishing hou ...

, July 5, 2004. , pg 26.

Gitche Manitou Gitche Manitou (Gitchi Manitou, Kitchi Manitou, etc.) means "Great Spirit" in several Algonquian languages. Christian missionaries have translated ''God'' as ''Gitche Manitou'' in scriptures and prayers in the Algonquian languages. ''Manitou ...

in Algonquian, and by other, specific names in a number of Native American and

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

cultures.Thomas, Robert Murray. Manitou and God: North-American Indian Religions and Christian Culture.

Greenwood Publishing Group Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. (GPG), also known as ABC-Clio/Greenwood (stylized ABC-CLIO/Greenwood), is an educational and academic publisher (middle school through university level) which is today part of ABC-Clio. Established in 1967 as Gr ...

, 2007. pg 35. While the concept is common to a number of

indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

cultures in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, it is not shared by all cultures, or necessarily interpreted in the same way. According to

activist

Russell Means Russell Charles Means (November 10, 1939 – October 22, 2012) was an Oglala Lakota activist for the rights of Native Americans, libertarian political activist, actor, musician, and writer. He became a prominent member of the American Ind ...

, a more semantically accurate translation of Wakan Tanka is the Great Mystery.Means, Robert. ''Where White Men Fear to Tread: The Autobiography of Russell Means''. Macmillan, 1995. pg 241. Due to perceived similarities between the Great Spirit and the Christian concept of God, colonial European missionaries frequently used such existing beliefs as a means of introducing indigenous Americans to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

and encouraging

conversion Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series * "The Conversion" ...

Conceptualization

The Great Spirit has at times been conceptualized as an "

anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...

celestial deity,"Cave, Alfred A. ''Prophets of the Great Spirit: Native American Revitalization Movements in Eastern North America''. Lincoln: U of Nebraska, 2006. Google Books. 2006. p.3. a god of creation, history and eternity,Cave, Alfred A. ''Prophets of the Great Spirit: Native American Revitalization Movements in Eastern North America''. Lincoln:

University of Nebraska A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

, 2006. Google Books. 2006. Web. who also takes a personal interest in world affairs and might regularly intervene in the lives of human beings. Numerous individuals are held to have been "

speakers Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...

" for the Great Spirit; persons believed to serve as an earthly mediator responsible for facilitating communication between humans and the

supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

more generally. Such a speaker is generally considered to have an obligation to preserve the spiritual traditions of their respective lineage. The Great Spirit is looked to by spiritual leaders for guidance by individuals as well as communities at large. While belief in an entity or entities known as the Great Spirit exists across numerous indigenous American peoples, individual tribes often demonstrate varying degrees of cultural divergence. As such, a variety of stories, parables, fables, and messages exhibiting different, sometimes contradictory themes and plot elements have been attributed to the same figure by otherwise disparate cultures.

Wakan Tanka

'' Wakȟáŋ Tȟáŋka'' can be interpreted as the power or the sacredness that resides in everything, resembling some

animistic Animism (from Latin: ' meaning 'breath, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things—animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather systems, hum ...

and

pantheistic Pantheism is the belief that reality, the universe and the cosmos are identical with divinity and a supreme supernatural being or entity, pointing to the universe as being an immanent creator deity still expanding and creating, which has ex ...

beliefs. This term describes every creature and object as ''wakȟáŋ'' ("holy") or having aspects that are ''wakȟáŋ''. The element ''Tanka'' or ''Tȟáŋka'' corresponds to "Great" or "large". Prior to the

Christianization Christianization ( or Christianisation) is to make Christian; to imbue with Christian principles; to become Christian. It can apply to the conversion of an individual, a practice, a place or a whole society. It began in the Roman Empire, conti ...

of indigenous Americans by European settlers and missionaries, the Lakota used ''Wakȟáŋ Tȟáŋka'' to refer to an

organization An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose. The word is derived from ...

or group of sacred entities whose ways were considered mysterious and beyond human understanding. It was the elaboration on these beliefs that prompted scholarly debate suggesting that the term "Great Mystery" could be a more accurate translation of such a concept than "Great Spirit". Activist

also promoted the translation "Great Mystery" and the view that Lakota spirituality is not originally

monotheistic Monotheism is the belief that there is only one deity, an all-supreme being that is universally referred to as God. Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A., eds. (1974). "Monotheism". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxford ...

. Chief

Luther Standing Bear Luther Standing Bear (Óta Kté or "Plenty Kill," also known as Matȟó Nážiŋ or "Standing Bear", 1868 - 1939) was a Sicangu and Oglala Lakota author, educator, philosopher, and actor. He worked to preserve Lakota culture and sovereignty, and ...

(1868-1939) of the Lakota Nation put it thus: :From Wakan Tanka, the Great Spirit, there came a great unifying life force that flowed in and through all things - the flowers of the plains, blowing winds, rocks, trees, birds, animals - and was the same force that had been breathed into the first man. Thus all things were kindred, and were brought together by the same Great Mystery.Nerburn, Kent ''The Wisdom of the Native Americans''. MJF Books, 1999. pg 15.

Manitou

Manitou, akin to the

Iroquois The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...

orenda Orenda is the Iroquois name for a certain spiritual energy inherent in people and their natural environment, environment. It is an "extraordinary invisible power believed by the Iroquois Native Americans to pervade in varying degrees in all ani ...

'', is perceived as the spiritual and fundamental life force by

Algonquian people The Algonquian are one of the most populous and widespread North American native language groups. Historically, the peoples were prominent along the Atlantic Coast and into the interior along the Saint Lawrence River and around the Great Lakes. T ...

s. It is believed by practitioners to be omnipresent; manifesting in all things, including

organism In biology, an organism () is any living system that functions as an individual entity. All organisms are composed of cells (cell theory). Organisms are classified by taxonomy into groups such as multicellular animals, plants, and ...

s, the environment, and events both human-induced and otherwise. Manifestations of Manitou are also believed to be dualistic, and such contrasting instances are known as ''aashaa monetoo'' ("good spirit") and ''otshee monetoo'' ("bad spirit") respectively. According to legend, when the world was created, the Great Spirit, ''Aasha Monetoo'', gave the land to the

indigenous peoples Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

, the

Shawnee The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...

in particular.

Gitche Manitou

The

Anishinaabe The Anishinaabeg (adjectival: Anishinaabe) are a group of culturally related Indigenous peoples present in the Great Lakes region of Canada and the United States. They include the Ojibwe (including Saulteaux and Oji-Cree), Odawa, Potawatomi, ...

culture, descended from the Algonquian-speaking

Abenaki The Abenaki (Abenaki: ''Wαpánahki'') are an Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands of Canada and the United States. They are an Algonquian-speaking people and part of the Wabanaki Confederacy. The Eastern Abenaki language was predom ...

and

Cree The Cree ( cr, néhinaw, script=Latn, , etc.; french: link=no, Cri) are a Indigenous peoples of the Americas, North American Indigenous people. They live primarily in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations in Canada ...

, inherited the Great Spirit tradition of their predecessors. ''

'' (also transliterated as ''Gichi-manidoo'') is an

Anishinaabe language Ojibwe , also known as Ojibwa , Ojibway, Otchipwe,R. R. Bishop Baraga, 1878''A Theoretical and Practical Grammar of the Otchipwe Language''/ref> Ojibwemowin, or Anishinaabemowin, is an indigenous language of North America of the Algonquian lan ...

word typically interpreted as Great Spirit, the Creator of all things and the Giver of Life, and is sometimes translated as the "Great Mystery". Historically, Anishinaabe people believed in a variety of spirits, whose images were placed near doorways for protection. According to

tradition, ''Michilimackinac'', later named by European settlers as

Mackinac Island Mackinac Island ( ; french: Île Mackinac; oj, Mishimikinaak ᒥᔑᒥᑭᓈᒃ; otw, Michilimackinac) is an island and resort area, covering in land area, in the U.S. state of Michigan. The name of the island in Odawa is Michilimackinac an ...

, in Michigan, was the home of Gitche Manitou, and some Anishinaabeg tribes would make pilgrimages there for rituals devoted to the spirit. Other Anishinaabe names for such a figure, incorporated through the process of

syncretism Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various school of thought, schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or religious assimilation, assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in t ...

, are ''Gizhe-manidoo'' ("venerable ''Manidoo''"), ''Wenizhishid-manidoo'' ("Fair ''Manidoo''") and ''Gichi-ojichaag'' ("Great Spirit"). While ''Gichi-manidoo'' and ''Gichi-ojichaag'' both mean "Great Spirit", ''Gichi-manidoo'' carried the idea of the greater spiritual connectivity while ''Gichi-ojichaag'' carried the idea of individual soul's connection to the ''Gichi-manidoo''. Consequently, Christian missionaries often used the term ''Gichi-ojichaag'' to refer to the Christian idea of a

Holy Spirit In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is the divine force, quality, and influence of God over the Universe or over his creatures. In Nicene Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is the third person of the Trinity. In Islam, the Holy Spirit acts as ...

Contemporary religious significance

The contemporary belief in the great spirit is generally associated with the

Native American Church The Native American Church (NAC), also known as Peyotism and Peyote Religion, is a Native American religion that teaches a combination of traditional Native American beliefs and Christianity, with sacramental use of the entheogen peyote. The re ...

. The doctrine regarding the great spirit within this modern tradition is quite varied and generally takes on

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

ideas of a monotheistic God alongside animistic conceptions. The number of adherents to these contemporary beliefs in the great spirit are unknown, but it is likely they number over a quarter million people.

References