Fran Dancing Feather

Journeying very deeply into the teachings of the Good Red Road requires the discipline of an absolutely chemical free lifestyle.

What exactly is the “Good Red Road?” First of all, and very importantly, it is necessary to understand what the Good Red Road is NOT. The term is certainly not in reference to any kind of new age philosophy, although many writers have attempted to inject it into that category. On the contrary, it is a description of a very ancient design for living dating back thousands of years, long before the first explorers landed on the costliness of the Americas.

“The Good Red Road” is a term used by many Native Americans to represent one who is walking the road of balance, living right, and following the rules of the Creator according to ancient Tribal traditions.

The term is born from the translations of a variety of indigenous languages into English as we attempt to define the characteristics of our American Indian Heritage. During the formation of the United States, Canadian, and Mexican governments, the BIA (Bureau of Indian Affairs) was developed as a Department of the United States Federal Government to deal with what they called the “Indian problem.” Indigenous people were everywhere around the “European Americans” in villages and longhouses. Those who took over the land wanted and needed the real estate to form permanent settlements like the ones in the old country and the Indians were in the way.

As the new states and countries drew boundaries and lines of separation, the “reservation era” began. Indigenous peoples were forced to live behind secured boundaries of barbwire fences and barricades on Federally reserved lands. Indian youth were placed in government boarding schools and severely punished for speaking their native languages. Thus, the English language began to emerge as the first language of the descendants of the boarding school generations. Several decades passed for a people whose culture and heritage was quickly becoming extinct. Oppression and despair were the dark shadow hanging over the once proud First Native Nations of the Untied States, Canada, and Mexico.

During the 1960’s the Civil Rights movement appeared to shine on all the minorities like a new sunrise at the end of a devastating hurricane. Much had been lost but what remained of our culture began to realize a kind of resurrection from the ashes of our history.

It began like a whisper in the backwoods of the remote Indian communities, first with the sound of drums and rattles moving with what came to be known in English, as the “heartbeat of the mother earth.” Then came the singing and dancing and people returning to traditional regalia and some speaking and praying in the ancient languages. The mesmerizing sound emerged like a butterfly from its chrysalis, out into nearby small towns, and finally into the cities. The light of the people had never really been fully extinguished but had become totally inaudible to many of us who were quickly assimilating into the modern world. Oppression slowly began to give way as Indian Gaming, and The American Indian Movement appeared. Our people suffered and many still do, from illiteracy, alcoholism, third-world poverty, and a host of physical disabilities. The road to recovery for an entire race of human beings is a long and challenging journey but it has begun and is well under way.

The Good Red Road calls us home after finishing college, to speak our native languages, help heal the sick, and help lift the remaining oppression from our people. It calls us to a stronger sense of self and of our ancestry. It stirs within our hearts a spirituality far beyond anything we have experienced in many generations. Over seven-hundred documented Tribes exist in the U.S. today. Each nation or tribe retains a separate language group, set of unique ceremonies and lifestyle. The following categories serve to form a kind of outline describing some of the things most of these Tribes share as common universal characteristics.

Today there are American Indian doctors, attorneys, professors, and others living among the elite of American society. Extraordinary artistic and literary contributions are flowing from the First Nations, where it is difficult still for many to find our way. Others who have found success continue to help and assist our extended families and Tribes. The healing has surely begun! The Good Red Road is the way we maintain the ancient beauty of our culture and present it in the English language to each other and the rest of the world.

Respect for all Nations

We honor the fact that humans of every color, from all over the earth, come from various cultures, national origins, religions, and traditions. Although we may express very different practices and lifestyles, each represents the reflection of its own ancient culture and all are equal and valuable under the one Creator and we respect each of them with equal dignity. Many who recognize the Good Red Road acknowledge the four directions from which the races of man originate, East (red), South (yellow), West (black) and North (white). Different Tribes assign various animals to each of these directions, along with ceremonial songs and dances for the four seasons of the year. The sacred circle encompasses the directions of humankind, the seasons, and all eternity within the unending sacred circle of life.

First Environmentalists

The Good Red Road suggests that we live closer to the laws of the planet, with respect for our natural resources. We are conscious of our “carbon footprint” or the effect of each and every facet of our lives as a whole and how they will affect the next seven generations. We are related to all things in nature. The seasons, the earth, the stones, birds and animals, water, fire, wind, and each other are “all our relations.” Traditionally we are taught to never take more then we need of any of the resources available to us, be they natural, economic, or prestigious.

Historical Truths

History has been written and recorded from many differing perspectives. Every writer has opinions based on a system of beliefs and values peculiar to his or her separate identity. Those opinions and beliefs will filter through even the most scrutinized aspects of journalism. When studying the history of the First Native Nations of our land, we must consider both sides of the lines of war and prejudice. Each person is individually responsible for the way in which we interpret our history and even greater responsibility lies in the way we pass on the things we have learned about ourselves and each other, to the next generation.

Harmony

Seeking to move in harmony with the natural world and the circles of the seasons and generations brings serenity acceptance and peace to everything within and around us. Balance is expressed by giving equal time to work, play, prayer, celebration, and dance. We honor the ancient traditions along with the new and bring all things together within ourselves.

The Good Red Road begins with prayer. It is a journey into the interior of ourselves and our own unique roots and individual cultures. It is reached by the complete and fully awake and sober state of prayer, in which we surrender ourselves absolutely to the one and only Creator of all things physical, mental, and spiritual. Native peoples do not believe in more than one God or in goddesses. American Indians are completely monotheistic at the base of every interpretation of creation. History has often referred to indigenous people as practitioners of totemic worship but this is a misunderstanding created by the difficulties of translation and interpretation of language barriers throughout history.

A superficial understanding of this form of spirituality is fine and informative but journeying very deeply into the teachings of the Good Red Road requires the discipline of an absolutely chemical free lifestyle. The individual can only reach his or her greatest wisdom by feeling every passionate emotion available to the human soul, no matter how painful or frightening it may be along the way. People who require medication or alcohol or any mind comforting substance will do well not to dig too deeply into this brand of spirituality as it may be dangerous to their sense of well-being and serenity.

This Good Red Road article was published in a journal of psychology as a model for residential treatment of American Indian patients diagnosed with substance abuse in the U.S. Military, as they are returning from foreign wars. For more information about Red Road Recovery, contact us at the Rimrock Red Road Group at Fran Dancing Feather or for nationwide networking.

References:

Dancing Feather, F., & Robinson, R. (2003). Exploring Native American wisdom: Lore, traditions, and rituals that connect us all. Franklin Lakes, NJ: New Page Books.

Gibson, Arrell Morgan. (1980). The American Indian: Prehistory to the present. Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath and Company.

Thomas, David Hurst. (1993). Native Americans: An illustrated history. Atlanta, GA: Turner Publishing.

Vecsey, C. (1996). On the Padre’s Trail. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press.

Vecsey, C. (1999). Where the two roads meet. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press.

White Bison. (2002). The Red Road to Wellbriety: In the American Indian way. Colorado Springs, CO: White Bison, Inc.

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