Photo by elkay at WunderPhotos
THE BRIDGE
(Native American Legend)
According to Native American legend,
passed on from the ancients through the centuries,
when a human dies,
there is a bridge
he or she must cross
in order to enter Heaven.
At the head of this bridge
waits every animal spirit
that the individual encountered
during his or her lifetime.
Based upon what the animal spirits
know of and have experienced
from this person,
the animals spirits will collectively decide
which humans may cross the bridge
and which will be turned away.
~~~
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Reblogged this on Family Survival Protocol.
So incredible…thanks so much for sharing.
~Blessings~
That’s a wonderful lesson: it says not only that any action we take will have consequences for us later, but that we’re not the most important creatures in the universe. I like that.
If you like that, then . . . I like you! 🙂 Thank you for your comment and for your presence on this site. Check us out on facebook too at: http://www.facebook.com/TheAnimalSpirits
Many Blessings!
~Gerean
I sent this to some pals and one very formal religious guy replied ” but didn’t native americans hunt and kill animals?” … what is the answer to that please.
Excellent question. Your friend is correct, that Native Americans, as part of their survival, hunted and killed animals for meat. However, many of the Native Americans were vegetarian, living off of very little or no meat. This is because they considered themselves the caretakers of the land. There was a time when Native Americans were considered heathens because they regarded the land as Mother. They believe that not only nonhuman animals but also rocks and trees had spirit. (I personally believe this too) Native Americans noted the Earth’s messages when they made decisions. They took their direction from nature. They killed a nonhuman animal only to stay alive. Many of the tribes of the past were also known for their compassion toward The Animal Spirits, seeing the nonhuman animals as their spirit guides. Animal cruelty and causing suffering was taboo. The legend as posted above, speaks to the intentional cause of suffering, rather than man’s original hunting and killing of meat to survive.
In modern days, we now know that for most of the world’s population, animal products are NOT necessary to survival and plant based foods are prevalent, plentiful and sustainable. Whereas, the merciless “production” of nonhuman animals “processed” as consumer goods, including food, is not only grossly inhumane, but is a completely unsustainable practice …..and is the largest threat to the demise of The Earth’s ecosystem. The indigenous tribes, worldwide are recognizing this, increasingly opposed to the killing of animals as mass products and there is an ongoing outpouring of Native Americans who are protesting animal processing industies, while returning to vegetarian/vegan lifestyles.
A quote by Chief Seattle: “The beasts are our brothers, and we kill only to stay alive. If all the beasts were gone, men would die from great loneliness of spirit, for whatever happens to the beasts happens to man, for we are all of one breath. All things are connected. Whatever befalls the Earth, befalls the sons and daughters of the Earth. Man did not weave the web of life; he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself.”
Some people of different religious belief systems believe that God gave man dominion over all of the animals, as if they can use them and treat them however man pleases. There are many arguments that the original languages of the biblical texts direct man to be the “caretaker” of the animals and that this is the correct translation of the English word “dominion.” Regardless, in the garden of Eden, God made it clear that it was the plants (with the exception of the Tree of Knowledge), that were provided for man’s nourishment. It was not until “the fall of man” that man began to eat the flesh of other sentient beings. God made covenants with both man and animals as his sentient creations and references to these can be found throughout the biblical texts, including the story of Noah and the floods.
I personally do not condone taking the life of a nonhuman animal by a human animal. I believe that nonhuman animals are not only their own species with rights to live by their own purposes, but that they are their own nations and worthy of great respect. Yet, I understand the mindset of humans of generations past, especially in the light of the lack of knowledge about consuming animals. In today’s day and age, there is NO justifiable reason for any human to cause harm to a nonhuman animal and the bulk of the population has absolutely no need for animal products as part of their diet. In fact, just the opposite is true. Animal products in the human diet are directly related to the promotion of disease and the decline of human health.
The post “The Bridge” above, is legend, and is not accepted as law, but refers to EVERY animal that has crossed a man’s path, being present at an individual mans crossing over to the other side. It seems to me that if we were ever to face the animals that have been slaughtered to appease our taste for flesh, the 70+ billion per year, that are mercilessly slaughtered in the hell-holes of despair ~ The Slaughter Houses and the billions more who are imprisoned, enslaved, tortured and brutally killed in the leather, fur, wool, pharmaceutical and product testing facilities, combined with those who are so inhumanely treated by hunters, in religious ceremonies, in circuses, ocean theme parks, zoos and other entertainment facilities, humans would be condemned for eternity.
Two excellent, thought provoking videos on the subject of man’s indifference to nonhuman animals and how this indifference is affecting our physical, psychological, emotional, spiritual and environmental health are posted as links below. While I cannot provide pat answers to all questions about Native American, nor any man’s choices of the past. I can most certainly speak to the consequences of man’s choices today.
VIDEO LINKS:
Philip Wollen’s speech at Australian debate “Animals Should Be Off the Menu” ~ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQCe4qEexjc
Earthlings: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibuQ-J04eLQ
Many Blessings!
Gerean/The Animal Spirits