ABSTRACT
It is a truism that Plains Indians life is infused with spirituality. Indian people are said to enjoy a sense of oneness with the natural world and its nonhuman inhabitants that gives them philosophical grounding and a serene outlook. They are further said to perceive no strict boundary between the natural and supernatural worlds, between the everyday and the mystic or holy. Although this image of Indian religiosity has been exaggerated in odd ways, it is basically accurate. It is also true that Indian religion places firm emphasis on people’s active involvement with the world around them and the acquisition of knowledge from personal experience. In its ideal form, Indian religion is lived each moment—a religious attitude is pervasive and not restricted to occasional instances of worship: “… for the Plains Indian supernaturalism was not the equivalent of churchgoing of a Sunday, but something that profoundly affected his daily life and offered an explanation of extraordinary occurrences” (Lowie 1982:157). Some of the most profound statements of Native belief are the simple, daily expressions of honor and respect, as when the Lakota medicine man Peter S. Catches, Sr. (1912–1993) was instructed as a child by his uncle to always make his bed in the morning, out of reverence, because the blankets kept him warm at night. More obvious and equally important are the rich mythologies and glorious rituals found throughout the region.
