The Religions Book

46

T

he first sacred spaces

of early religions were

naturally occurring ones—

groves, springs, and caves. However,

as worship became more ritualized,

the need to define holy places

arose, and buildings designed

for worship encoded the essential

features of each religion.

On the other hand, buildings

used for everyday activities often

took on cosmic significance in

cultures in which religious and

daily life were intertwined. This

was true of the earth lodges, or

ceremonial centers, of the Pawnee,

one of the Native American

nations of the Great Plains. The

Pawnee earth lodge had a sacred

architecture, making each lodge

a miniature cosmos as Tirawahat,

the creator god and chief of all the

gods, had prescribed at the

beginning of time, after he had

made the heavens and earth and

brought the first humans into

being (see box, facing page).

Four posts held up each earth

lodge, one at each corner. These

represented four gods, the Stars of

the Four Directions, who hold up the

heavens in the northeast, northwest,

southwest, and southeast. The

Pawnee believed that stars had

The world and we ourselves

were created by Tirawahat,

the expanse of the heavens.

He told us the earth is

our mother, the sky is

our father.

If we make our lodges to

encircle the earth and

encompass the sky, we

invite our mother and

father to live with us.

If we open our lodges to the

east, Tirawahat can enter with

the dawning sun. Our lodges

are a miniature version

of the cosmos.

IN CONTEXT

KEY BELIEVERS

Pawnee

WHEN AND WHERE

From c.1250 CE, Great

Plains, US

AFTER

1875 The Pawnee are relocated

from their lands in Nebraska to

a new reservation in Oklahoma.

1891–92 Many Pawnee adopt

the new Ghost Dance religion,

which promises resurrection for

their ancestors.

1900 The US census records a

Pawnee population of just 633;

over the next four decades,

traditional Pawnee religious

practices dwindle and die out.

20th century The Pawnee

Nation is mainly Christian, its

people belonging to the Indian

Methodist, Indian Baptist,

or Full Gospel Church. Some

Pawnee are members of the

Native American Church.

WE CAN BUILD

A SACRED SPACE

SYMBOLISM MADE REAL