Native American Rituals

Native Americans and the Rituals of Birth There are so many different cultures inside the American Indian culture. Although within the American Indian culture you can categorize or generalize the culture by making factual statements such as: Native Americans value your word, Trust is important, and Native Americans rely on information networks, there are still numerous different religions, tribes, rituals and ceremonies that all lie within the one culture of Native Americans. Birthing rituals in the Native American culture different vastly from the birthing rituals of other culturals. The word is defined as the prescribed order of a religious ceremony; The body of ceremonies or rites used in a place of worship; and the prescribed form of
The father may part the hair of the mother three times upward from the front to the back, to assure the ripening of the embryo. Charms may serve toward off the evil eye and witches or demons. At birth, before the umbilical cord is severed, the father may touch the baby's lips with a gold spoon or ring dipped in honey, curds, and ghee. The word vak (speech) is whispered three times into the right ear, and mantras are chanted to ensure a long life. A number of rituals for the infant include the first visit outside to a temple, the first feeding with solid food (usually cooked rice), an ear-piercing ceremony, and the first haircut (shaving the head) that often occurs at a temple or during a festival when the hair is offered to a deity.
It is usually held on the twelfth day of the child's birth, though, according to one convention, it can be held on any day after the tenth day, and before the first birthday. The twelfth day is also when the child's horoscope is formally drawn up. The first ten days after birth are considered an 'impure' time for the mother and child. On the twelfth day, the mother and child are given a ritual bath. The mother swathes the baby in a piece of new cloth, applies kajal to its eyes, and makes a little beauty mark on the