The teachings of the Native Americans also incorporate a cyclical cosmology. "A most striking feature of the North American branch of the Primordial Sanatana Dharma is the doctrine of the four years: the sacred animal of the Plains-Indians, the buffalo, symbolizes the Mahayuga, each of its legs representing a Yuga. At the beginning of this Mahayuga a buffalo was placed by the Great Spirit at the West in order to hold back the waters which menace the earth. Every year this bison loses an ear, and in very Yuga it loses a foot. When it will have lost all its hair, and its feet, the water will overwhelm the earth and the Mahayuga will be finished. The analogy with the bull of Dharma in Hinduism is very remarkable; at every Yuga, this bill withdraws a foot, and spirituality loses its strength; and now we are near the end of the kali-yuga. Like the orthodox Hindus, the traditional Red Indians have this conviction, which is obviously true in spite of all the mundane optimism of the modern world; but let us add that the compensation of our very dark age is the Mercy of the Holy Name, as it is emphasized in the Maneuver Dharma Shasta and the Trimmed Bhagavata and other holy scriptures" (His Holiness and the Red Indian).

According to Yellowtail, this cosmology makes provisions for avataric or angelic descents after the end of the Golden Age:

"Finally it was necessary for Acbadadea to send messages to the Indians and to show them how to pray and how to treat each others. These messages were often given to the Indian through the animal and different Medicine Fathers, and many of the great warriors and medicine men received visions that were important to the entire tribe" (Yellowtail, 102).

It is with this cyclical cosmology in mind that the consequences of the destruction of Native American Tradition by the white people must be understood. This launched the whole humankind in the last stages of the Dark Age (Kali-Yuga).

As for the crisis of the modern world, Yellowtail's analysis reminds us of those of Guénon in the Reign of the Quantity. They also echo Schuon's prescription to renew a regular practice of prayer, the only path to the Heart:

"Only God knows when the end of the world will come, and when and how it comes will certainly depend on sincere prayers that are offered to Him in the correct way. Each man will pass from this earth in his own time. Some of the prophecies talk only about the end of time; others speak about the break-up of the modern world as we know it and a return to the traditional ways of our ancestors. I can’t say what will happen and whether we will find the spiritual ways of our ancestors in this world or another, but I do know that in either case we still have to make a choice; each one of us must choose at this present moment which path to follow. Each person’s prayers can help everyone. The person who prays and remembers God will receive the greatest benefit for himself and for others" (Yellowtail, 197).

- Language of the Self, 1959, Revised Edition, World Wisdom Books, 1999

- Light on the Ancient Worlds, 1966, World Wisdom Books, 1984

- Logic and Transcendence, 1975, Perennial Books, 1984

- Esoterism as Principle and as Way, Perennial Books, 1981, 1990

- The Feathered Sun: Plain Indians in Art & Philosophy, World Wisdom Books, 1990

- Images of Primordial & Mystic Beauty: Paintings by Frithjof Schuon, Abodes, 1992

- Light on the Indian World, 2002 World Wisdom Books, 2002

Chief Thomas Yellowtail is a pivotal figure in Crow tribal life. In this chapter from Yellowtail, Crow Medicine Man and Sun Dance Chief, An autobiography as told to Michael Oren Fitzgerald(Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, 1991), Yellowtail exposes the path of spiritual realization according to the Plain Indians…

One of the main rites of the Sun Dance religion is the vision quest. It is a period set for solitary prayer at a remote place. A person will usually spend three or four days of fasting on the vision quest, saying his prayers during all that time. He goes away up in the hills, gets away from people, and goes off by himself, and there fast and prays for either the three- or four-day period he selected before he began his quest.

There are many intentions that a person may have when he prepares to make a vision quest. He may want medicine, some kind of power to help him in battle or in all of his life. Strong medicine powers would protect the man so that he would not be wounded and could not be hit by an enemy’s arrow. That kind of medicine would make a man successful in battle with the enemy. A lot of men seek those kinds of powers, and that is what they have in mind when they start out on the vision quest. [1]

Some men might seek different kind of medicine power or understanding. They may to be able to heal or doctor people. They may seek the answer to a question or a problem that is bothering them or the family or tribe. And above all, a man may want to pray in this way because this is a way to come closer to Acbadadea. In this rite each man may awaken in his heart the knowledge of the Maker of All Things Above. A man may pray for any of those things because they would be helpful to him, his family, and his tribe, but a man also must pray for virtue and the correct understanding with which to face life.

In olden days, all young men had those kinds of feelings, and that was only why they would go on the vision quests. Sometimes a few of them would go out together. Maybe four or five of them would take a sweat bath together and start out together. When they go out to the hills, each one would go on his solitary way. Each one had to face the medicine powers alone. One would take that pointed hill over there; another one would take the next hill. They would scatter, each by himself, putting in his days. Some would stay four days, some less. Some of them might have received something by the time they came back; some may have come back without anything. Some of them would have been successful and might have had a vision, have been visited by an animal, or have had a dream or something to bring back, and that is good – that meant something. Another would come back and say that he did not receive anything. It means that he would have to try again later, and usually he would. He would try again later on and try again and again. Many of them ended their days by saying, "I tried not once, but a number of times, and finally I was visited by a bird or animal that gave me medicine, and I finally have some medicine, some kind of power or understanding." And that was the way in those days.

They would have kept trying until they got something. Some of the most sincere ones would probably receive something the first time they went on a vision quest. It depended on the sincerity of the person. It they have a good, strong intention, then they may have been the ones who were successful in their dream or vision right away. They would have been told afterwards what to do to preserve the medicine power given by the bird or the animal, and they would have done what they were told. Perhaps they might have been told to make a medicine bundle or carry part of the animal with tem when they went on their raiding party against the enemy or when they needed to make the medicine.

Before a man would go on a vision quest, he would first consult with a medicine man. It was the duty of the people who asked for instruction to bring a pipe or a smoke to the instructor. If the medicine man accepted the responsibility to instruct the younger man, then they would first offer the smoke with a prayer. Then the medicine man would tell the young man what to do to prepare – how to go through purification before going up and all the other necessary information. He would explain to the young man how to seek war medicine. Some would have had a different purpose. The instructions for the prayer depended on the young man’s intention.

In those days when people wanted to go fasting, they first prepared themselves by taking a sweat bath to purify themselves. This is still my practice because it is very important to undergo a purification before and after every major undertaking. Right after he was through with the sweat bath, the vision seeker would get up to where he wanted to spend three or four days upon the hill and high mountains. According to his own choosing, he would select a place where he wanted to fast. Many would sacrifice a finger when they got up there. They would chop off the top of their finger and offer it to the Great Spirit or to an animal. If a bird came and took that piece of finger, then thee bird would probably come back after a while and adopt that person, give him medicine, and tell him to go home. This could happen in one or two days’ time, although the person’s intention may have been to spend four days. If he was visited by an animal of some kind who felt sorry for him sitting there torturing himself, then the medicine power would say, "I have come to see you; you are torturing yourself; you had better stop that and go back home, and I will give you some kind of power and tell you what to do." After the man would get home, that bird or animal – it might be a hawk, or a crow, or a meadowlark, or any kind of bird or animal – would come to visit that person and tell him what to do. The person would end the fast right then and there and go home; he would have received something already.

People on the Crow reservation today still use the vision quest. Young men and women go out on vision quests. Some come to me, and we pray, and then I take them into a sweat bath. I have to go to work and cut some wood and build a fire and heat up some rocks and sweat with them in there and pray for them; then they purify themselves and set out afterwards. We take the sweat bath during the day so that they will still have daylight to go up to the place of the fast, right after they are through with the sweat bath. If they don’t have a place in mind, then I recommend a good place, take them there, and I say, "Now this is where you should stay for the fast," and then I go away. The person should then stay in exactly the same place. We carry wood along with us which we gather as we go to the spot. They do not have fire all the time, just in the morning and evening. One in the morning, just as the sun rises, and one as it sets in the evening. They build little fires and put some sweet cedar or sweet grass on the fire to purify themselves and their pipe. They will carry a pipe or some cigarettes. For such an important rite an Indian pipe is better than cigarettes. They say their prayers, and they retire when the dark comes. Even when the vision seeker sleeps, he or she would face the east. [This seems universal.]

In the olden days, the man going out to seek his vision would wear a buffalo robe, moccasins, and sometimes a loincloth. When he reached the area of the retreat, he removed all of his clothing and almost always was exposed to Nature unless he covered himself with his robe while he slept. I instruct those who ask my advice to follow the traditional way of the old timers. Plenty-Coups and all the great Absaroke warriors sometimes went into battle without clothing, and so it is also in spiritual warfare. We will speak again of the different clothing for each of all the rites of the Sun dance religion, and you will see that in almost all cases the person participating in the ceremony must first humble himself before Creation, both outwardly and inwardly, before he can receive something of value.

I tell them all these things, and many more: "Watch out if you are visited by an eagle; watch him; he may talk to you and drop a feather to you. If so, go and get that feather; it was given to you by the bird; it means something great."

Yes, I have been consulted by certain people who want to go on vision quests; they come to me, and I take a sweat bath with them, and then they start out. If they don’t know where to go, I go with them and get them to the right place. I sometimes give them special advice on what they might say in their prayers. All of his keeps me busy, but that is what I am supposed to do if an Indian youth comes wanting to go on a vision quest. I give them some sweet cedar for incense to be put on the fire, and on the way to the place where they will fast we stop and gather quite a bit of sweet sage for bedding. When we arrive, we lay sweet sage in a circle over the entire area where they will fast. This includes the place where they will sleep. At the edge of the bed of sweet grass we make the area where they build the fire in the morning and evening. This is done toward the east. Light and knowledge come from the east, and this is the main orientation of the prayer.

When a person is on a vision quest, he must have certain attitudes and intentions for his prayers to be sincere, and then he must carry these over into his daily life. It is easy to forget what you learned during the trial; unless you remember to carry on your prayer continually during every day of your life, you will not have learned one of the most purposes of the vision quest. Each time we talk about one of our sacred rites, you will hear me talk about the spiritual attitudes which a person must possess as that person participates in any rite. It is possible to learn the outer steps that must be accomplished in a rite without learning the inner meanings that they are the keys in thee sacred traditions. Each seeker must therefore open his heart to the Great Mystery as he tries to follow thee sacred way, because the perfect accomplishment of thee outer steps of a rite will be worth noting without the knowledge of the inner meanings. If the intention of a person is to achieve outward glory and superiority over other people, then that person will never be given great medicine, because that person’s intention and attitudes are not in harmony with the correct spiritual purpose. If the reason you participate in a rite is wrong, then you will receive no reward. If you participate because you know the purpose of the rites and you want to express your gratitude and love to the sacred ways, then you may eventually received a great reward.

It will not be the extent of the outward achievement that determines spiritual rewards. Those individuals who possess great physical strength may be asked to give much more in order to show their sincerity. All men are not given the same physical gifts, and when you remember that it is the interior values that make the real worth of a man woman, you can see that some individuals must sacrifice much more in order to express the same degree of sincerity than another person who has less to give. Everyone should keep these thoughts in mind as they try to understand the Sun Dance way and the meaning of the spiritual tradition that it represents.

For those who have been sincere in the solitary invocation, Acbadadea will send a reward in the form of some medicine power. There are many different medicines a person can receive in different ways: different animals, different birds, maybe the little people, or one of the powers of the universe. When a person returns to the world after a vision quest, he does these things: first, when he gets home, he takes care to say prayers; he must take a sweat bath using sage, and so forth, to purify himself again before he gets back among his people. Then the meaning of the vision must be explained by the medicine men at home. After the instructor hears the whole story of the vision, he can help explain things to the young man which may not be clear. The medicine knows what must be done by the recipient of the medicine in order for the recipient to protect the medicine. So after the young man tells his story, we take a smoke and say prayers; then the medicine man tells the young man what he has been given and what he must do. The recipient of the medicine usually is instructed to make a medicine bundle that will preserve and protect the medicine power. I have spoken of the bundle which protects the medicine rock of Chief Medicine Crow and the great care which is exercised to protect the medicine in a sacred manner. In the same way, many men and women will make medicine bundles for their own medicines in accordance with the instructions of a vision or a medicine man. These bundles serve as a constant reminder of the spiritual gifts we have been given and the corresponding attitudes which must always be present in order to safeguard our spiritual blessings. The medicine man will instruct the young people in both the outward procedures and the inward attitudes to be remembered by the successful vision seeker.

Young people may think they know enough, that they don’t need help or instruction, but that is not so. It is necessary to consult a man who has had experience in the sacred ways in order to help a younger man follow the straight path. Some men may need less help than others, and some men are given great gifts without great effort. You can never tell, because some men will work hard for years and years and they may never receive great rewards that we can see. But all men should seek the help of a man who has learned the spiritual ways before they try to do something by themselves. You can better understand spiritual matters after years of following a sacred path. There is always more than can be done, and you cannot keep your power or understanding unless you continue your walk trough life in accordance with the rules regarding spiritual matters. A man must be humble before the great mysteries will grant him anything. A humble man will ask for guidance from a spiritual man.

This is the explanation of one of the four major rites of the Sun dance way. The sweat bath, The Sun dance, and the use of the pipe or smoke with prayer are the other main rites. There are many other rites which were important in the sacred lifeway of the olden days, and some of these other rites are even carried on to some extend today. While these other rites should not be neglected, it is important to remember that the four main rites make up the center of our spiritual heritage, and without them we would be lost. In our modern world today, we may seem like drowning men because of the loss of much of our spiritual tradition. As drowning men we should cling to these four rites as our lifeline and never let go, because this lifeline can save us.

The representation of the Medicine Man as a nude figure is not a mere fancy…for in many of thee religious rites the priest appeared in such manner. This nudity is not without its significance, it typifies thee utter helplessness of man, when his strength is contrasted with the power of the Great Spirit. With his best intelligence and greatest skill in the use of his hands, man is powerless to bring into existence even so much as the tiniest flower, while out of thee force of the will of the Mysterious One, all things in the heavens and the earth have come into existence with beauty, grandeur and majesty. [2] Francis LaFlesche, Omaha

[1] Among all Plain Indians, each member of the tribe may receive his own revelation, creating a collective prophethood which is strictly regulated within the framework of the tradition in general. This widespread prophethood has many different degrees and does not prevent major tribal revelations such as the Sun Dance, sweat lodge and Indian pipe. The apparent "individualism" of the Indian is partly a product of fidelity to one’s own vision, or "medicine", a personal relationship with a particular theophany which is supported by the relationship between the individual and the tribe with a reciprocity of virtues, gifts, and duty.

[2] Francis LaFleshe, Who was the Medicine man? (Hampton: Hampton Institute Press, 1905)

Where a people's vision speaks of life, sacrificial means for recurrent renewal of all life, and suffering for the identity with the source of life, such vision can neither be destroyed, denied nor ignored.

Native Americans practiced sacrifice in many forms, from the simple giving of oneself, spiritually, in the Lakota Vision Quest, to the elaborate rituals of the Incas and Aztecs. As a sacred path, the sacrifice has always existed among the tribes of the Americas. These traditions required of their adherents both sacrifice and death; the two aspects are intricately intertwined. The foremost theme of sacrifice and death is the giving up of yourself, whether in an inward or outward sense.

The outward sacrifice is the ritual performed, the surrender of earthly goods or of life itself, for the renewal of that life, for all things are interconnected.

The inward sacrifice is the capitulation of the ego, the death of the lower self, to attain the higher. Rather than loss, as it would first appear to be, the sacrificant gains all; unity with the Creator. That which is ephemeral is abandoned and the imperishable is all that remains. Sacrifice and death, then, are positive affirmations of the truth of existence; that we must lose in order to gain.

American Indian belief is that this life is a gift from the gods and a sacrificial attitude acknowledges this gift, returning thanks from deep within ourselves. This path is the only way to a wholesome existence for the Native American. With this inner pathway and the outward ritual comes access to the Divine storehouse, without this, the door is closed. It is believed by the Lakota that if the affirmation of sacrifice is not made then the, "·very energy of the world·will run out." The sacrificial rites of the Sweat Lodge, the Sun Dance and the Crying for a Vision are all a giving of oneself to renew creation.

O Grandfather Wakan-Tanka, bend down and look upon me as I raise my hand to you. You have beheld this sacred centre which we have fixed, where we shall suffer. I offer all this suffering to You on behalf of the people. It is Your Light which comes with the dawn of the day, and which passes through the heavens. Be merciful to us, O Great Spirit, that the people may live.

The first tribes received gifts from their Creator, such as the Sacred Pipe, the Sun Dance and the Keeping of the Soul. The rites associated with these gifts were part of their obligation to revere all life, as well as a way of showing gratitude. The earth was their Mother and she cared for them and sustained them. They, in turn, cared for her, for they knew that all things and all peoples are related, that we all exist in a mutual and beneficial relationship.

Such knowledge was not confined to the Lakota but was almost universal throughout the Americas. The Quiche Maya knew that sacrifice was essential to the life of the land and its peoples. This is evident in their sacred book, "The Popol Vuh." The heroic brothers Hun-Hunahpu and Vucub-Hunahpu were sacrificed by Priestly Gods Hun-Came and Vucub-Came. The head of Hun-Hunahpu was placed in a tree that had never before produced fruit; instantly the tree bore fruit. This fruit, miraculously born, in turn gives rise to the birth of the Mayan people. The Hunahpu brothers had undergone purificatory rituals before they were sacrificed so that their offering was acceptable and caused a renewal of all life. Life is given through a sacrifice of the gods so that the people must return sacrifice in acknowledgement of the gift of creation. The melding of Hun-Hunahpu with the tree symbolizes the relatedness of life on earth with the gods; the birth of the Mayans from the tree illustrates the interconnectedness of earthly creation.

The Tupi tribes of Brazil practiced ritual sacrifice and cannibalism which, despite its apparent savagery, was a holy act and ensured the survival of these prolific peoples. There were distinct rituals involved in the killing of the sacrificial victim which demonstrate the awareness of the Tupi to the inter-relatedness of all life. The executioner did not eat of the victim but retired to his hammock to recover from the event. This is a direct result of his connection to the victim, an intimate relationship caused by the giving and taking of life. There is a real sense of renewal in these rites. The victim, by the giving of his flesh for the people to consume, gives life to the tribe. The victim, in a sense, continues his life by giving strength to the people.

Far north of the Tupi, the Eskimo have a myth which tells of Sedna, a goddess, who cut off her fingers to give birth to seals, whales and other marine life. She herself, is half human, half fish, symbolic of the unity of all things. This myth again demonstrates the relation of the gods to the tribes and the animals to each other.

The act of sacrifice is the perpetuation of unity. It is the rite for the renewal of life in almost all of the tribal groups of the Americas. The people return offerings in acknowledgement of that which they have been granted, and believe that in so doing they reunite themselves with the Great Spirit. That these rites and beliefs were more or less universal throughout the continent preserved the purity of the environment, for these tribes respected the earth as a sacred gift. They were aware that the earth, their Mother, sustained them and that they should not abuse her. Native Americans did not take the fertility of the earth for granted. Creation was not an object to be used or cast aside but a living being who nourished them. They were one with Her. If the Indian did ignore his sacred duty then Mother earth Herself would extract the price.

The sacrifice must, and will, be paid. Natural disasters are, in reality, nature in the process of re-establishing the equilibrium, should we take the view outlined above. The modern spirit is often in disharmony with its environment, misunderstanding or ignoring the sacred web of all life. We are not here to control nature and exploit Her, but to live in harmony with Her and with the Great Spirit. The Native American stepped lightly on the earth for he trod on sacred ground. "My relatives, Wakan-Tanka has been kind to us and has placed us upon a sacred earth; upon Her we are now sitting." They dealt gently with nature for She is alive. She is no less than the Great Spirit. In Her manifestation on earth, She is a gift from the Great Mysterious, the Creator, and was revered as such. All creation was sacred and it was a great crime to harm it.

American Indians were always aware of their sacred origin. They lived daily in the presence of the sacred. There existed nothing that was not sacred. "My paw is sacred. All things are sacred."

Black Elk of the Oglala Sioux speaks of what is in the world,

All of the things in the world are related to each other and in this sense rely upon each other for their continued well-being.

What is almost unique in the Indians attitude is that their reverence for nature and for life is central to their religion: each form in the world around them bears such a host of precise values and meanings that taken all together they constitute what one would call their "doctrine."

If one of the links in this "doctrine" or sacred chain of existence should neglect or abuse its position then the consequences affect all life. For like the spiders web, these values and meanings, nature and life, are intricately spun together to form the beauty of Creation.

It is evident that the link has been broken when we view the modern environmental crisis. Although one could analyze the problem and apportion blame in many areas, this would serve little purpose. Our aim should be to understand, within ourselves, where we went wrong and attempt, first to change ourselves and from there we may be able to progress to a solution. It is in the ancient wisdom of the still living Native American Tradition that healing and forgiveness lie. This is not a matter of adopting the faith of the Indian peoples but of learning from them, and other still vital Traditions, to revere life as a whole, understanding that we are all related, the peoples of the earth, the animals, the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, even the grasses and the trees. With such an attitude it would be difficult to abuse our earth for we would know that in so doing we abuse ourselves.

A sense of the sacredness of life would quite naturally change the perspective of society in that it would no longer feel that it could exploit the earth with impunity. There would be awareness that there is a need for care to be taken in our habitation of the world. Sustainability is only possible in the realm of the sacred; for it is the sacred that sustains the world.

To return to the words of Black Elk,

To know who we are and where we come from are keys to successful living. It is only in modern times that people have asked for the 'meaning of life.' Countless spiritually oriented cultures and societies have lived with the secure knowledge of these facts about humankind's origins. Black Elk may have doubted himself at times but he never doubted to whom he owed his existence, to whom he owed his service.