Pokračování textu ze strany 40
… and many that loved their own people and were in no wise touched by the doctrines of the whites.
If from these men we gather their beliefs, their teachings, and the common thoughts that guided their lives, we may fairly assume that we have outlined the creed of the best Indians.
The Indian's Creed
These are the main thoughts in the Redman's creed:
(1) While he believed in many gods, he accepted the idea of one Supreme Spirit, who was everywhere all the time; whose help was needed continually, and might be secured by prayer and sacrifice.
(2) He believed in the immortality of the soul, and that its future condition was to be determined by its behavior in this life.
(3) He reverenced his body as the sacred temple of his spirit; and believed it his duty in all ways to perfect his body, that his earthly record might be the better.
We cannot, short of ancient Greece, find his equal in physical perfection.
(4) He believed in the subjection of the body by fasting, whenever it seemed necessary for the absolute domination of the spirit; as when, in some great crisis, that spirit felt the need for better insight.
(5) He believed in reverence for his parents, and in old age supported them, even as he expected his children to support him.
(6) He believed in the sacredness of property. Theft among Indians was unknown.
(7) He believed that the murderer must expiate his crime with his life; that the nearest kin was the proper avenger, but that for accidental manslaughter compensation might be made in goods.
