Wabunowin
Encyclopedia
The Wabunowin is the "Dawn Society", also sometime improperly called the "Magical Dawn Society", is a distinct Anishinaabe
society of visionaries, practiced among the Anishinaabe
g peoples, consisting of the Algonquin/Nipissing
, Ojibwa/Chippewa
/Saulteaux
/Mississaugas
, Odawa
, Potawatomi
and Oji-cree, located primarily in the Great Lakes region of the United States
and Canada
. Like the Midewiwin
, the Wabunowin is a secretive animistic
religion, requiring an initiation, thus early non-indigenous writers lumped the information on the Wabunowin with the Midewiwin. But unlike the Mide, the Waabano have only 2 levels: Elder and Senior Elder.
This society was mentioned in The Song of Hiawatha
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
who used informational materials made available from Henry Schoolcraft
to compose the epic poem. The Dawn Society members were systematically imprisoned in mental hospital
s by the United States government in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Because of this persecution, the Wabunowin went underground and have just began to reemerge in the last decade. While many of the ceremonies and traditions are closely guarded, one that is known is the Fire Dance.
. The stories of Nanabozho are used in the ceremonies and teachings of the Society. Further, the Wabunowin lodge, usually with less than 10 participants, only needed one or two elders to perform the ceremonies, unlike the Midewiwin
which required several. This would allow the Wabunowin ceremonies to have existed in the much smaller settlements that the Anishinaabeg lived before contact.
). After the sweat the ceremony begins at dusk and goes until dawn.
camps. During the Spring Ceremony the focus is on the Waabanong Manidoo (Spirit of the East), the Grandfather.
camps.
Anishinaabe
Anishinaabe or Anishinabe—or more properly Anishinaabeg or Anishinabek, which is the plural form of the word—is the autonym often used by the Odawa, Ojibwe, and Algonquin peoples. They all speak closely related Anishinaabemowin/Anishinaabe languages, of the Algonquian language family.The meaning...
society of visionaries, practiced among the Anishinaabe
Anishinaabe
Anishinaabe or Anishinabe—or more properly Anishinaabeg or Anishinabek, which is the plural form of the word—is the autonym often used by the Odawa, Ojibwe, and Algonquin peoples. They all speak closely related Anishinaabemowin/Anishinaabe languages, of the Algonquian language family.The meaning...
g peoples, consisting of the Algonquin/Nipissing
Nipissing First Nation
The Nipissing First Nation consists of first nation people of Ojibwa and Algonquin descent who have lived in the area of Lake Nipissing in the Canadian province of Ontario for about 9,400 years. Though in history known by many names, they are generally considered part of the Anishinaabe peoples,...
, Ojibwa/Chippewa
Ojibwa
The Ojibwe or Chippewa are among the largest groups of Native Americans–First Nations north of Mexico. They are divided between Canada and the United States. In Canada, they are the third-largest population among First Nations, surpassed only by Cree and Inuit...
/Saulteaux
Saulteaux
The Saulteaux are a First Nation in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, Canada.-Ethnic classification:The Saulteaux are a branch of the Ojibwe nations. They are sometimes also called Anihšināpē . Saulteaux is a French term meaning "people of the rapids," referring to...
/Mississaugas
Mississaugas
The Mississaugas are a subtribe of the Anishinaabe-speaking First Nations people located in southern Ontario, Canada. They are closely related to the Ojibwa...
, Odawa
Odawa people
The Odawa or Ottawa, said to mean "traders," are a Native American and First Nations people. They are one of the Anishinaabeg, related to but distinct from the Ojibwe nation. Their original homelands are located on Manitoulin Island, near the northern shores of Lake Huron, on the Bruce Peninsula in...
, Potawatomi
Potawatomi
The Potawatomi are a Native American people of the upper Mississippi River region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, a member of the Algonquian family. In the Potawatomi language, they generally call themselves Bodéwadmi, a name that means "keepers of the fire" and that was applied...
and Oji-cree, located primarily in the Great Lakes region of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Like the Midewiwin
Midewiwin
The Midewiwin or the Grand Medicine Society is a secretive religion of the aboriginal groups of the Maritimes, New England and Great Lakes regions in North America. Its practitioners are called Midew and the practices of Midewiwin referred to as Mide...
, the Wabunowin is a secretive animistic
Animism
Animism refers to the belief that non-human entities are spiritual beings, or at least embody some kind of life-principle....
religion, requiring an initiation, thus early non-indigenous writers lumped the information on the Wabunowin with the Midewiwin. But unlike the Mide, the Waabano have only 2 levels: Elder and Senior Elder.
This society was mentioned in The Song of Hiawatha
The Song of Hiawatha
The Song of Hiawatha is an 1855 epic poem, in trochaic tetrameter, by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, featuring an Indian hero and loosely based on legends and ethnography of the Ojibwe and other Native American peoples contained in Algic Researches and additional writings of Henry Rowe Schoolcraft...
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet and educator whose works include "Paul Revere's Ride", The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline...
who used informational materials made available from Henry Schoolcraft
Henry Schoolcraft
Henry Rowe Schoolcraft was an American geographer, geologist, and ethnologist, noted for his early studies of Native American cultures, as well as for his 1832 discovery of the source of the Mississippi River. He married Jane Johnston, whose parents were Ojibwe and Scots-Irish...
to compose the epic poem. The Dawn Society members were systematically imprisoned in mental hospital
Mental Hospital
Mental hospital may refer to:*Psychiatric hospital*hospital in Nepal named Mental Hospital...
s by the United States government in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Because of this persecution, the Wabunowin went underground and have just began to reemerge in the last decade. While many of the ceremonies and traditions are closely guarded, one that is known is the Fire Dance.
Name
The word for "dawn" or "east" in the Anishinaabe language is waaban. Its practitioners are called Waabanow (plural: Waabanowag) and the practices of Waabanowin referred to as the Waabano (often transcribed as "Waubuno"). Unlike the mide where gender-specific references could be made for its practitioners, Waabano do not. Though of differing etymology, culturally, waaban is associated with owaabi'aan (syncoped as waabhaan), "they see them", from waabi′, "to see SOMEBODY". This word association reinforces the idea of the Waabanowag as being visionaries.Origin
There are differing stories about the origins of the Wabunowin. Many writings put them as a late 19th century origin, but the members with their oral traditions place the origin many centuries ago. The oral traditions of the lodge put the formation of the society happening shortly after creation.Oral Tradition
The Waabanowin elders trace the origins of the lodge or society to the original teachings of NanabozhoNanabozho
In Anishinaabe mythology, particularly among the Ojibwa, Nanabozho is a spirit, and figures prominently in their storytelling, including the story of the world's creation. Nanabozho is the Ojibwe trickster figure and culture hero...
. The stories of Nanabozho are used in the ceremonies and teachings of the Society. Further, the Wabunowin lodge, usually with less than 10 participants, only needed one or two elders to perform the ceremonies, unlike the Midewiwin
Midewiwin
The Midewiwin or the Grand Medicine Society is a secretive religion of the aboriginal groups of the Maritimes, New England and Great Lakes regions in North America. Its practitioners are called Midew and the practices of Midewiwin referred to as Mide...
which required several. This would allow the Wabunowin ceremonies to have existed in the much smaller settlements that the Anishinaabeg lived before contact.
Ceremonies
The lodge has several ceremonies they share in common with the other medicine traditions of the Anishinaabe people. They also have ceremonies that are specific to the Dawn Society.Solstice/Equinox Ceremonies
On the solstice and equinox the lodge performs a set of ceremonies that begin at dusk and end at dawn. Each of the ceremonies differ, with the winter ceremony being the highest ceremony of the lodge. All of the lodge ceremonies begin with a purification done through a Madoodiswan (sweat lodgeSweat lodge
The sweat lodge is a ceremonial sauna and is an important event in some North American First Nations or Native American cultures...
). After the sweat the ceremony begins at dusk and goes until dawn.
Minookamin
The Spring Equinox was the beginning of the new year to the Wabunowin, which unlike the dominate Midewiwin whose new year began in Winter. Minookamin (Late Spring) was a time to celebrate and fell just after the MapleMaple sugar
Maple sugar is a traditional sweetener in the northeastern United States and Canada, prepared from the sap of the sugar maple tree.-Preparation:...
camps. During the Spring Ceremony the focus is on the Waabanong Manidoo (Spirit of the East), the Grandfather.
Dagwaagin
Like the Spring the dagwaagin (Autumn) ceremony fell just before the Wild riceWild rice
Wild rice is four species of grasses forming the genus Zizania, and the grain which can be harvested from them. The grain was historically gathered and eaten in both North America and China...
camps.
Biboon
Traditionally the Anishinaabe peoples only told certain traditions during biboon (winter). This was because the underwater Manidoo hibernated at that time. Because of this the Wabunowin would recount the Nanabozho and creation stories as a part of the winter ceremonies. The Ceremony was a teaching time and a prayer for healing of individuals and aki (Earth). It was at this time that the fire dance was done as a part of the ceremony.Personal Healing
The Waabanowin are known as spiritual healers. There is a ceremony they perform to bring the person's spirit and body back into alignment thus healing them.Other descriptions
The Encyclopaedia Britannica describes the society as "Waubuno is a member of a society of men who continue their orgies till daylight. "Further reading
- Hoffman, Walter James. "The Midewiwin, or 'Grand Medicine Society', of the Ojibwa" in Smithsonian Institution, U. S. Bureau of Ethnology Report, v. 7, pp. 149-299. (Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1891).
- Johnston, Basil. "The Society of Dawn\Waubunowin" in Ojibway Ceremonies, pp. 113–128. (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1990). ISBN 0803275730
- Laufer, Berthold. The Indian Tribes of the Chicago Region, with special reference to the Illinois and the Potawatomi, Field Museum of Natural History Leaflet No. 24. (Chicago: 1938).