These objects used in the practice of Native American and Pagan spiritual practices represent our UU shared value of pluralism, whereby “We are all sacred beings, diverse in culture, experience, and theology.”
Drums and rattles are used in ceremonies for rain, planting and hunting and as a means to communicate to the spiritual world.
A Drum is made from wood and an animal hide like elk, buffalo or deer. Most drums today use cowhide. Rattles are made from dried, hollowed-out gourds or clay. They are filled with seeds, small pebbles, corn, or beans to create their unique sound.
Ladders are both functional and have spiritual symbolism representing the ancestral emergence from the underworld.
The Nineteen Pueblos along the Rio Grande valley in New Mexico are ancestral to land of New Mexico. The pueblos are:
Acoma, Cochiti, Isleta, Jemez, Kewa (formerly Santo Domingo), Laguna, Nambé, Ohkay Owingeh, Picuris, Pojoaque, Sandia, San Felipe, San Ildefonso, Santa Ana, Santa Clara, Taos, Tesuque, Zia, and Zuni.
Traditional Pottery (left) by Acoma artist Claude Garcia
Painted by Laguna artist Theda Delores
Three Sisters
The Pueblo “Three Sisters” (corn, beans, squash) are a sustainable agricultural system representing cultural identity.
Corn is one of the crops that provide stable food source and ground corn is used in daily prayers, rituals and blessings. Pueblo farmers developed techniques to grow corn, beans and squash in arid climates for a sustainable food source.
Ojo de Dias
Ojos de Dios Symbolize God’s Eyes
“Ojos de Dios” translates to “Eyes of God” in English. They are ritual objects made by the Huichol (wet-chol) indigenous people of Mexico.
The Huichol symbolism of the god’s eyes is primarily associated with the prayers for their children – prayers for a good long life, protection and to insure abundant crops.
God’s eyes are woven on sticks that are crisscrossed. The ends of the sticks represent the basic elements – earth, water, wind, and fire, and the four cardinal directions – north, south, east and west. The center of the eye symbolizes the power of seeing and understanding things we normally cannot see.
Huichol people weave a pupil of black yarn or place a mirrored disk in the center of the God’s eye where the sticks cross to enhance the vision of the god’s eyes.
Each eye represents a different aspect of life, such as love, health, and protection. They are often created during significant life events, like births or weddings. The weaving process symbolizes the connection between the creator and the spiritual world.
