soch111 history of healing · o derived method of leaching toxins from acorn pulp to make flour o...

SOCH111 – History of Healing

www.endeavour.edu.au

Session 7

Traditional Medicine in the

Americas

Department of Social

Sciences

© Endeavour College of Natural Health www.endeavour.edu.au 2

Session Aims

o To describe the historical and cultural context

of North American Native Medicine

o To describe the historical and cultural context

of Native Medicine in Central and South

America

o To define North, Central and South American

worldviews

o To describe Native American Medicine

practices


The Americas

By CIA, original

political map

from Perry-

Castañeda

Library Map

Collection;

University of

Texas Library

Online - Public

Domain,

https://common

s.wikimedia.org/

w/index.php?cu

rid=1839902

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1839902


Ancient Americaso 12,000 years ago North

America and Asia were

connected

o Migrations appear to have

occurred around 9,500 BCE

o 1,000 BCE – shift toward

horticulture and

domestication

o Maize grown in Mexico

since 5,000 BCE, appeared

in N. America about 1,200

BCE

By Sam Fentress, CC BY-SA 2.0,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/i

ndex.php?curid=348910



European Exploration of the

Americaso 1492 – Columbus sailed from

Spain to the Americas

o 1497 – first English explorer

o 1604 – Nova Scotia found by

the French

o 1531 & 1532 – Spanish

expedition to Mexico and Peru

o 17th Century – English began

to establish settlements

o 1718 – French settled New

OrleansBy Sebastiano del Piombo - Metropolitan

Museum of Art, online collection, Public Domain,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curi

d=27554267



Indigenous Peoples of the

Americas

Two broad groupings:

o Arctic

• Alaska and arctic

Canada

o American Indians

• Northern America (US

and Canada)

• Middle America (Mexico

and Central America)

• South AmericaBy not indicated - http://www.old-

picture.com/mathew-brady-studio/Indians-

Group-of.htm Public Domain,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.ph

p?curid=1650818



The Arctic

o The Arctic Circle –

Alaska and Canada

o Eskimo (Inuit and

Yupik/Yupiit) and Aleut

o Harsh winters, long

summer hours

o Formed bands based

on kinship and

marriage By Edward S. Curtis - from Inupiat Family from Noatak,

Alaska, 1929 Public Domain,


53870



Inuit

o Spirituality is grounded in the belief that anua

(soul) exists in all people and animals

o Families, individuals and bands follow a

complex system of taboos to assure that

animals continue to make themselves available

to hunters

o Rituals and ceremonies are performed before

and after hunting to assure hunting success


Inuit

o The Angakut is the

spiritual leader of the

band

o He interprets the

causes of sickness or

lack of hunting

success

o Enters trance through

drumming and

chanting

By Nicolas M. Perrault - Own work, CC0,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.p

hp?curid=12706731



North American Nation Regions

South East

o Cherokee, Choctaw,

Chickasaw, Creek,

Seminole

o Area predominately

agricultural with

chiefdoms and hereditary

classes

o Grew corn, beans,

squash, tobacco

o Hunted deer and fished

The Plains

o Sioux, Blackfoot,

Cheyenne,

Comanche, Arapaho

and Kiowa

o Had similar material

items such as tepee,

tailored leather

clothing, headdresses

and other battle

regalia, and drums



Southwest

o Agricultural products: corn, beans, squash, cotton, wild

game and fishing

o Pueblo (Zuni/Hopi) – apartment-like cliff dwellings, dances

and dolls, fine pottery, textiles and sand paintings

o Navajo – complex clan

systems, healing rituals, fine

textiles and jewellery

o Apache, Yuman, Pima and

Papago focused on

expression culture through

oral traditions

By Lorax - Own work CC BY-SA 3.0,





The Great Basin

o Mono, Paiute,

Bannock, Shoshone,

Ute, Gosiute, Washoe

o Mobile kin-based

bands

o Agriculture & Products:

seeds, small game,

bison, basketry, nets,

rock art and grinding

stones

The Plateau

o Salishan, Flathead, Nez

Perce, Yakama,

Kutenal, Modoc and

Klamath

o Excelled in material

innovation and

adapting other

technologies for their

own purposes



Northwest coast

o Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian,

Kwakiutl, Bella Coola,

Chinook

o Abundant and reliable

supplies of salmon, sea

mammals, fish, variety of

plants

o Known for fine wood and

stone carvings, large

watercraft, memorial/totem

poles and basketry

California

o Hupa, Yurok, Pomo,

Yuki, Wintun, Maidu,

Yana

o Derived method of

leaching toxins from

acorn pulp to make

flour

o Known for basketry

and ritualised trade

fairs


Revision Questions

o How did climate and ecosystem play a role in the

indigenous cultures of North America and the

Arctic?

o List some of the similarities and differences

between the regional cultures of Native North

American tribes.

Other food for thought:o Based upon what you know from past lectures,

what do you expect the effects of colonisation were

on indigenous health?


o A system of belief

in which humans

are said to have a

relationship with a

spirit-being

o Usually an animal

o The totem serves

as a symbol

Totemism

By Paul Downey CC BY 2.0

(http://creativecommons.org/license

s/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons


Native American Healing Practices

Health and wellbeing:

o Linked to spirituality

o Requires a close

connection to the

earth and living in

harmony with

nature/environment

o Recovering

wholenessBy Snežana Trifunović - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0,




The Red Path

o Path to harmony

and wholeness in

nature

o Characterised by

cultural values

o Healers follow the

Red Path/Road

o It is the path of

goodBy Museum Expedition 1908, Museum Collection

Fund - Brooklyn Museum, No restrictions,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid

=34317957



Lakota Sioux Virtues

o Humility - Unsiiciyapi

o Perseverance -

Wowacintanka

o Respect - Wawoohola

o Honour - Wayuonihan

o Love - Cantognake

o Sacrifice – Icicupi

o Truth - Wowicake

o Compassion –

Wausilapi

o Bravery - Woohitike

o Fortitude -

Cantewasake

o Generosity -

Canteyuke

o Wisdom - Woksape



Bio-psycho-social-spiritual

approach to health:

o Herbs

o Manipulative therapies

o Ceremonies

o Music

o Prayer

o Storytelling and legendsBy Edward S. Curtis - Library of

Congress, Public Domain,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/i

ndex.php?curid=7035569




Ceremony

o Symbolic healing

rituals

o Involve the patient,

family and community

in the healing process

o May last for days or

weeks

o Through participation

in songs, prayer,

music and dance

By Edward S. Curtis - Library of

Congress[1], Public Domain,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/

w/index.php?curid=8043280



Symbolism and Ceremony

o Ceremonies

incorporate

symbolism, icons

and ritualistic objects

o Used to restore

harmony necessary

for health

o Provides powerful

healing synergyBy Joseph Henry Sharp - Own work by Ad Meskens.,

Public Domain,


23616



Music – The Drum

o Sacred

significance

o Drumming

stimulates

physiological

responses that

have mystical

implications within

spiritual traditionsBy Quadell - Self-published work

by Quadell, CC BY-SA 3.0,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w

/index.php?curid=218082



Sacred Dance

“The sun descends upon the trees. The heat is hypnotic…

It is as if I am asleep.

Then the drums break, the voices of the singers gather

To the beat, the rattles shake all around

– mine among them.

I stand and move again, slowly, toward the center of the

universe in time,

In time, more and more closely in time.”

~ N. Scott Momaday, 1975 ~

(In Kracht, 1994)


Dance

o Dance can elevate one into

altered states of

consciousness to achieve

spiritual experience

o May be joined by ancestors

or facilitate shape-shifting

o Can facilitate key rites or

ceremony

• Sioux – Sundance

• Apache – Dance of Gahan

(mountain spirit)

• Kiowa – Gourd Dance By Montanabw - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php

?curid=20143641



Sacred Pipe

o In Lakota Sioux tradition,

the sacred pipe and

instructions was brought by

White Buffalo Calf Woman

o Integral part of Lakota

spiritual and cultural life

o Each part of the pipe holds

significance

o Symbolic of the fundamental relationship between all

things

o Used as a means to carry prayers upward to the Creator

or Great Mystery (Wakantanka)

Public Domain,




Smudging

o Used as a means of

purification

o Involves the passing of

smoke over individuals

(including healers) and

throughout environments

• Cedar and Sage – dispel

negative energies

• Sweetgrass – attracts positive

energy

o Can facilitate healing as beneficial energy is drawn

in, and non-beneficial energy is drawn away

o Can be incorporated into other ceremonies

By Axel Kristinsson from Reykjavík, Iceland

(Western Redcedar) [CC BY 2.0

(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via

Wikimedia Commons


Storytelling and Legend

o Oral traditions convey

information from one

generation to the next

o Stories contribute to

healing, offering faith and

tradition

o They are lessons that can

be applied to daily life, and

a connection to the past,

where the way of life

remains through the

storytellerBy unknown illustrator - Public Domain,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index

.php?curid=32748514



Medicine Wheel - Cangleska

o Circular with a balanced

cross of two intersecting

lines that create four

sections

o Represents the circle of life,

with the intersecting lines

representing the roads in life

o Red Road is the good road

o Black Road is the bad road

o 4 sacred colours (red,

yellow, black, white)

By U.S. Forest Service Photo -

http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/bighorn/, Public Domain,


d=3358774



The Medicine Wheel

Image: cited as used under Creative Commons at

http://ojibweresources.weebly.com/medicine-wheel.html

http://ojibweresources.weebly.com/medicine-wheel.html


Revision Questions

o List four of the components of Native North

American healing practice.

o What is the role of spirituality and community in

their healing philosophy?

Other food for thought:o Is Native American Healing a form of

Complementary Medicine?


Mexico and Central America

By U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) -

CIA The World Factbook - Public Domain,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?

curid=15784084

By Carport - Own work, C BY 3.0,


4019



Central American CulturesPERIOD TIME CULTURES AND CULTURAL CENTRES

Palaeoindian 10,000-3500 BCE Stone age Amerindian cultures of Honduras, Guatemala, Belize

Archaic 3500-1800 BCE Neolithic agricultural settlements of Tehuacán

Formative BC 2000-250 CE Monte Alto culture; Unknown cultures of La Blanca and Ujuxste

Early Preclassic 2000-1000 BCEOlmec Tenochtitlan; Central Mexico cultures; Oaxaca; Mayas

Cerros, Nakbe

Middle Preclassic 1000-400 BCE Olmec, Oaxaca, Maya

Late Preclassic 400 BCE-200 CEMaya; Central Mexico Teotihuacan, Epi-Olmec: Gulf Coast, Western

Mexico

Classic 200-900 CE Classic Maya Centres: Teotihuacan, Zapotec

Early Classic 200-600 CE Maya; Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Palenque, Teuchtitlan

Late Classic 600-900 CE Maya; Teuchtitlan

Terminal Classic 800-900/1000 CE Maya; Uxmal

Postclassic 900-1519 CE Aztec, Mixtec, Tarascans, Totonac

Early Postclassic 900-1200 CE Cholula, Tula

Late Postclassic 1200- 1519 CE Tenochtitlan

Post-Conquest Until 1697 CE Central Peten


The Maya

o Flourished from ~1,000 BCE to 1,000 CE in

Mesoamerica

o Only Native American culture to have a fully developed

written language

By Daniel Schwen -

Own work, CC BY-

SA 4.0,

https://commons.wiki

media.org/w/index.p

hp?curid=7647000



Mayan Religion• Science and religion were the same

• Philosophy was that astronomy and

mathematics were priestly inventions

• Theologians were also scribes,

mathematicians, astronomers and

philosophers

• Religion was part of daily life

• Life and death is cyclical

• Everything has a soul

• Polytheistic

• Kinih Ahous (Sun God)

• Ah-Kinob - Healer

By Maudslay -

Cyrus Thomas

(1904) Public

Domain,

https://commons.w

ikimedia.org/w/ind

ex.php?curid=183

54650



Mayan Medicine

• Highly complex mixture of

shamanistic, empirical and

scientific practices

administered by specialist

healers

• Disease is a manifestation

of imbalance

• Healers sought to balance

the flow of life force

• 6 Principles of Mayan

HealingBy BobMak at English Wikipedia, CC BY 2.5,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?

curid=4197231



Maya Medicine – 1st Principle

o Ch’ulel (life force) is

everywhere and

permeates everything

o From mountains,

rivers, plants, and

houses, to people

o Ch’ulel is spiritually

divine and binds

everyone and

everything togetherBy Photography by Wikipedia

User:MrX, CC BY-SA 3.0,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/

w/index.php?curid=38632806



Maya Medicine Principles

2nd Principle -

o There is no separation between the body and soul

3rd Principle –

o Recognition of natural cycles and veneration of

plants

4th Principle –

o Healing is comprehensive and integrative

approach with everybody


Maya Medicine Principles

5th Principle –

o Blood determines origin of illness and course of

treatment

6th Principle –

o Hot and cold

• Hot Symptom – fever, diarrhoea, vomiting

• Hot food – garlic, onion, peppers, ginger

• Cold Symptom – cramps, constipation, paralysis

• Cold food – cheese(Bley, 2011)


Maya Medicine

o Ix Chel – Mayan Moon Goddess

and goddess of medicine and

healing

o Ix Chel in her main form is Mother

Goddess and Weaver who set the

Universe in motion

o Chak Chel, the Old Moon

Goddess, called the Midwife of

Creation

By Artist unknown - Public Domain,




Curandero/Curandera

o Curanderismo is a form of

Native American healing

o Includes:

• Prayer, herbal medicine,

healing rituals,

spiritualism, massage,

and psychic healing

• It is a system of

traditional beliefs that are

common amongst

Hispanic-American

communities

CC by SA

http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/borderrhetori

cs/images/2/2d/Curandera_by_Ochichi.jpg/revis

ion/latest?cb=20140720185746

http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/borderrhetorics/images/2/2d/Curandera_by_Ochichi.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20140720185746


The Aztecso Located in the South Central region of present-day

Mexico.

By

Provincias_tributarias_de_la_

Triple_Alianza_(s._XVI).svg:

YavidaxiuAztec_Empire_(orth

ographic_projection).from the

Atlas del México

prehispánico, special edition

of Arqueología Mexicana,

2000-07-05,

México.Aztec_Empire_(orthog

raphic_projection).svg, CC

BY-SA 3.0,

https://commons.wikimedia.or

g/w/index.php?curid=9451425



Astrological Calendar

o Extended over solar year

of 365 days

• Divided into 18 months of

20 days

• Plus 5 unlucky days

o Religious/Ritual Calendar

• 260 days, 13 months of 20

days

• Each month is ruled by a

god

By Anagoria - Own work, CC BY 3.0,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.p

hp?curid=30763137



Aztec Religion

o Believed in the afterlife

o Heaven consisted of:

• Tonatiuh – heaven in

the sun (reserved for

heroes)

• Tlalocan – heaven on

earth (abode of rest)

• Mictlan – underworld

(reached by dead

after a dangerous

journey)

Public Domain,




Aztec Religion

o The world was created by

a God under dual principle

• Tonacatecutli (male

principle) – Tonacacihuatl

(female principle)

o Toci (or Teteoinam) –

Mother goddess

o Huitzilopocchtli – God of

war

o Tlaloc – God of agriculture

o Quetzalcoatl – Wisdom

o Mictlantecutli - Death By British_Museum_Huaxtec_1.jpg:

Gryffindorderivative work:

Ophelia.summers (talk) - CC BY-SA 3.0,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.

php?curid=15254577



Ticiotl (Medical Art)

o Believed to have been

developed by four wise

men

o Profound religious

elements

o Sickness could be

punishment by gods

• Eg. Tlaloc (god of waters)

responsible for rheumatic

aliments, gout, dampness

and cold syndromes

o Expert herbalistsBy Unknown, Public Domain,




Revision Questions

o What are the six principles of Mayan medicine?

o Explore the similarities and differences between

Aztec and Mayan medical thought.

Other food for thought:o The downfall of the Aztec civilisation was epidemic

new illnesses brought by the colonising Spanish—

according to Aztec medical thought, what might

they have believed to be the cause of these

illnesses?


South America

By Radosław Botev (own work

based on a PD map from

Demis) [CC BY-SA 2.5 pl

(http://creativecommons.org/lic

enses/by-sa/2.5/pl/deed.en)],

via Wikimedia Commons


The Incas

Public Domain,

https://commons.wikimedia.or

g/w/index.php?curid=30532

By icelight from

Boston, MA,

US - Over

Machu Picchu,

CC BY 2.0,

https://common

s.wikimedia.org

/w/index.php?c

urid=4200556




Incan Religion

o Religion dominated every aspect of the Incan life

o Connected to the forces of nature and the success

of farming

o Polytheistic

• Viracocha – Creator god

• Inti – Sun god (source of warmth, light and

healthy crops)

• Mama-Quilla – Moon goddess

• Illapa – Thunder god (brought rains)

• Pacha-Mama – Earth goddess

• Mama-Cocha – Sea goddess


Incan Medicine

o Sophisticated

understanding of herbal

medicinal properties

• Bark of a tree produced

quinine – used to treat

cramps and chills

• Coca used for pain

• Hunters dipped arrows

in curare to paralyse

muscles of prey

o Neurosurgery – trepanation By Rama (talk · contribs) - Self-photographed,

CC BY-SA 2.0 fr,


d=5097169



Herbs - Acai

o Euterpe oleracea

o Native to Central and

South America

o Amazonian palm berry

o Indications: anti-oxidant

with demonstrated anti-

cancer and anti-

inflammatory properties

o Available: juices,

powders, tablets,

capsulesBy P. S. Sena - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.ph

p?curid=37381224



Bromelain

o Ananas comosus L.

o Native to Central and South

America

o Pineapple extract

o Indications: relieving symptoms

of acute nasal congestion and

sinus inflammation, helps to

remove dead skin from burns

(topical), may be helpful for

osteoarthritis and muscle aches

o Available: powder, cream, tablet

and capsule

By David Monniaux (Own work) [GFDL

(http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html),

CC-BY-SA-3.0

(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by

-sa/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0


Cat’s Claw – Uña de Gato

o Uncaria tomentosa

o Native to Central and

South America

o Woody vine

o Indications: osteoarthritis

and rheumatoid arthritis,

stimulates immune system

o Available: inner bark is

used to make liquid

extracts, tinctures,

capsules and topical

applicationsBy Franz Eugen Köhler, Köhler's Medizinal-Pflanzen - List

of Koehler Images, Public Domain,




Integrating Native American

Healing

o Native Americans frequently combine allopathic

and traditional healing practices

o Spirituality needs to be incorporated in health

promotion and wellness

~Mitakuye oyasin -We are all related~


Revision Questions

o How does the philosophy of the Incan people

connect with all of the other Native American

cultures studied in this session?

Other food for thought:o What responsibility does conventional medicine

and pharmacy have to native forms of medicine in

the present day?


Referenceso Benson, S & Baker, D (2005), Early civilisations in the Americas reference library,

Detroit.

o Bley B 2011, The Ancient Maya and Their City of Tulum, iUniverse, Bloomington.

o Boston College, Considering curanderismo: the place of traditional Hispanic folk healing in modern medicine, viewed 10 June 2016 <http://www.bc.edu/clubs/mendel/ethos/archives/2008/brown.shtml>.

o Encyclopedia Britannica Online, Native American, viewed 10 June 2016 <http://www.britannica.com/topic/Native-American>.

o Guerra, F 1966, ‘Aztec medicine’, Medical History, 10, pp 315-338, viewed 10 June 2016, doi:10.1017/S0025727300011455, <http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=8614139&fileId=S0025727300011455>.

o Harner, M 1980, The way of the shaman, Harper, San Francisco.

o Kayne, SB 2010, Traditional medicine: a global perspective, Pharmaceutical Press, London.

o Koithan, M & Farrell C 2010, ‘Indigenous Native American healing traditions’, J Nurse Pract. Jun 1;6(6):477-478.

o Marshall, J III 2001, The Lakota way: stories and lessons for living, Penguin, New York.

o National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, Herbs at a glance, viewed 10 June 2016 <https://nccih.nih.gov/health/herbsataglance.htm>.

o Ryback, C & Decker-Fitts, A 2009, ‘Understanding Native American healing practices’, Counseling psychology quarterly, vol.22, no.3, pp 333-342.

http://www.bc.edu/clubs/mendel/ethos/archives/2008/brown.shtml

http://www.britannica.com/topic/Native-American

http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=8614139&fileId=S0025727300011455

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20689671

https://nccih.nih.gov/health/herbsataglance.htm

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