ABSTRACT
This chapter demonstrates that contemporary scholars must use the term 'evil' very precisely, only to describe certain types of actions or the results of those actions, in the contexts of traditional indigenous religions. The religions practiced by indigenous peoples vary tremendously. In many parts of the world, large numbers of them practice various forms of Christianity, Islam, and other religions introduced by nonindigenous colonizers. Those things, beings, or activities in indigenous cultures, which do not facilitate positive reciprocity – 'good' – or who do not typically act in consciously reciprocal ways do not have unique ontological statuses. Often, traditional indigenous people seek mutually beneficial relationships with those other-than-human persons who can aid them because of their strengths. Conversely, if the term 'evil' is used carefully, accompanied by a thorough explanation of how indigenous identities are tied to behavior and how that behavior is always understood to affect other beings and persons, it might serve an important interpretive purpose.
