PJILI'TAWG  JI'JAQAMIJ  MI'KMAQEWEK!
 WELCOME  TO  MI'KMAW  SPIRIT!

 

WHAT IS THIS SITE, AND WHY IS IT HERE?
 

Simply stated, this site was created in order to give people a reliable place to find accurate information about the Mi'kmaw people and their culture, their history, and their spirituality.

In our experience, there are many misconceptions about First Nations people in general, and about the Mi'kmaq in particular. Many people today are seeking answers to their spiritual questions, or looking for something to fill a void in their lives, and are turning to Aboriginal beliefs and practices in an attempt to find these things. This has led to a romanticized view of the "noble savage" living an idyllic existence in peace and harmony with nature and communing regularly with the spirits. There is also a tendency for people to think that what applies to one Aboriginal culture applies to all, even if those cultures developed on different continents!

In actuality, each First Nation developed its own culture and traditions, and was given its own unique spiritual practices to suit its own circumstances and needs. Special ceremonies that were done by one Nation were not necessarily done by any other Nation, or if they were, they may not have been done in quite the same way. Even on an individual level, the members of these Aboriginal cultures did not necessarily all regularly practice their spiritual traditions. Each person was an individual, and found their way through life in the way that seemed best to them, much as we do today.

Of course, these people really DID live in harmony with the earth - they had no choice, since to do otherwise was to sign your own death warrant. First and foremost, Aboriginal people were pragmatic, and did what was necessary for survival. It was under these harsh realities that they developed the traditions that enabled them to live in harmony with the land.

The information that you find on this site pertains only to the Mi'kmaw people. While there are indeed many common threads in First Nations culture, beliefs and spirituality, please do not try to apply what you learn here to any other Nation. At the same time, do not try to apply things that you have learned about other Nations to the Mi'kmaq. In particular, do not apply what you may have learned from Hollywood to the Mi'kmaq, or to any other Nation - any resemblance between the Hollywood First Nation and reality is purely coincidental.

Our pledge to you is that this site contains only facts, and is accurate to the very best of our ability to make it so. We sincerely hope that you will find the information useful, and that you will leave this site feeling that you have learned something of value.
 

WHERE TO FROM HERE?
 

This site is divided into the following sections:

Section Topic
Culture This section deals with the culture of the Mi'kmaq, particularly prior to contact with Europeans. The topics dealt with include:
    Daily Life discusses what daily life was like prior to contact
    Spirituality discusses the spiritual beliefs and practices of the Mi'kmaq
    Oral Tradition discusses the importance of storytelling in the Mi'kmaw culture, and recounts some of the legends that formed the cultural background of the Mi'kmaq as a people
    Mi'kmaw writing discusses the original Mi'kmaw writing form, and current orthographies that have been adopted to put the Mi'kmaw language into print
    Mi'kmaw Songs Provides the lyrics to a few common Mi'kmaw traditional songs, as sung today, and includes translations and phonetic equivalents
History This section deals with the history of the Mi'kmaq people, and includes timelines of pre-contact and post-contact events, as well as a section dedicated to Kejimkujik, an area of special importance to the Mi'kmaq.
Links This page is a fairly comprehensive collection of links to other web-sites related to the Mi'kmaq, as well as to other First-Nations related sites. 
Talking Stick This section is where we share our viewpoints about current issues with you, our cyberspace friends. 

It is also a place where you can have your say - after all, a Talking Stick gets passed around the circle!
The Authors This section deals with us, the authors of this website. The topics dealt with include:
    About the authors Just in case you're curious
    Muin'iskw's Legacy This section contains a number of articles that contain the wisdom and teachings of Muin'iskw, from Facebook posts to presentations from her time as a Parks Canada interpreter of the culture and history of the Mi'kmaq.
    Spiritual events In this section we provide information about the spiritual events that we organize, including our mid-winter Storytellers' Gathering, and the annual Kejimkujik Spiritual Gathering.
Facebook Group An interactive discussion of spirituality, Mi'kmaw or otherwise, through the private Facebook group "Mi'kmaw Spirit."
   
   
Latest Update: 20 October 2023: Updated links and basic maintenance

For a list of all recent changes, see "What's New"

 
 
Updated: 20 Oct 2023 Print Page