The World We Used to Live In by Vine Deloria Jr

Author:Vine Deloria Jr.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Fulcrum Publishing
Published: 2015-12-07T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Four

Interspecies Relations

Interspecies Communication—Birds

Some people have described the role of other creatures as that of intercessor on behalf of the human in both dreams and visions. Some birds and animals may indeed play that role. One thing seems certain: dreams, daytime encounters, and visions all consist of communications from higher powers who already know much about us and who have a specific purpose in revealing themselves to us and, at least for American Indians, appear in the form of birds and animals. Higher spirits may appear as a specific bird or animal with a specific purpose for bestowing powers. Quite frequently, within dream and vision experiences, we observe a change of bodily form so that birds become animals, animals become birds, and human persons take on other shapes. The Spider, lktomi in the Sioux tradition, is noted for moving back and forth in various shapes during the course of these events. Sometimes, this phenomenon occurs to teach the human that in spite of different shapes and talents, the universe is a unified tapestry and not a collection of isolated, unrelated entities.

For much of the recorded material that we have, however, it seems as if the other creatures are waiting for humans to make an overture to the higher spirits, and once the quest for a relationship is set in motion, they join in, bringing their knowledge to add to our understanding and enabling us to receive special roles in life and powers to fulfill the roles. Often, it appears that certain birds or animals have been watching particular individuals, and, detecting an attitude of respect, they then initiated communications with them, either by dreams or during a vision experience. When plants and animals come to us in dreams, they take the first step in establishing a relationship with us.

The memory of talking with other creatures goes back far into the mists of early planetary time. Karl L. Schlesier, writing about the Cheyennes’ understanding of interspecies communication, said: “in Tsistsistas [Cheyenne] memories, animals talked with humans, took pity on them, protected and taught them, gave to them special power and knowledge, healed them from wounds and sicknesses, kept them alive with self-sacrifice, and, finally, became human themselves to help them in great need.”1 For many tribes, this phenomenon of interspecies communication has always been present, and hearing a voice generally involves hearing a specific voice from a particular bird or animal.

When we begin to gather the stories of talking with other creatures, we find that three kinds of communication are involved. The first instance is when another creature appears in an encounter with the sacred and plays a vital role in the unfolding scenario. We can call this phenomenon a vehicle for the sacred to manifest itself through the medium of other creatures. The second kind are those instances where the bird or animal appears in circumstances in which the human is extremely vulnerable and the bird or animal assists with information or powers that will resolve a particular situation, such

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