The Animal Connection

In this post, I would like to focus on something that I had previously left out in my last entry but is quite important in when looking at the effigy mounds. The exact relationship between the woodlander peoples and animals remains unknown. However, it is evident from looking at the mounds, the shapes of the mounds, and the drawings that there was a very high value placed on the lives of animals, as well as their possible relationship with the afterlife. Arial views show the mound shapes of birds, rabbits and other 4 legged creatures. Obviously, the native peoples took great pride in building these mounds, as these burial sites(and whatever else they functioned as) took time and effort to construct, not to leave out that they were constructed in the shape of an animal…not your average mound shape. Taking a step back, we can draw two points from these mounds. First, bones have been found in them so it is quite possible that these were burial mounds (which I completely agree with) and second, a well known fact…they were built in the shape of an animal. From this, we can draw the connection between the dead and the animals. In my opinion, the dead were placed inside these creature shaped mounds for the symbolic meaning of the animals carrying them peacefully into and through the afterlife.  In early times, animals were treated as much more sacred beings than they are today, not quite as equals, but much different than today. When killed for food, often times there would be ceremonies following the hunt  and the skinning and gutting of the animal would become a village wide event. This testifies to the importance of the animals and the respect that the early peoples had for them. To conclude, I find it fascinating that the mounds were built in the shapes of animals, as it symbolizes the ultimate natural connection between man, animal, earth, and spirit.