Long ago in the ancient world of the Ojibwa Nation, the
Clans were all located in one general area of that place known as Turtle
Island. It is still told by the old Ojibwa storytellers how Asibikaashi
(the Spider Woman) helped Wanabozhoo bring giizis (the sun) back to the people.
To this day, Asibikaashi will build her special lodge before dawn. If you
are awake at dawn, as you should be, look for her lodge and you will see
this miracle of how she captured the sunrise as the light sparkles on the
dew which is gathered there.
Asibikaasi took care of her children, the people of the
land, and she continues to do so to this day. When the Ojibwa Nation dispersed
to the four corners of North America, to fill a prophecy, Asibikaashi had
a difficult time making her journey to all those cradle boards, so the mothers,
sisters, and grandmothers took up the practice of weaving the
magical webs for the new babies using willow hoops and sinew or cordage
made from plants. It is in the shape of a circle to represent how giizis
travels each day across the sky. The dream catcher will filter out all the
bad dreams and allow only good thoughts to enter into our
minds. You will see a small hole in the center
of each dream catcher where the good may come through. With
the first rays of sunlight, the bad dreams would perish. When we see little
asibikaashi, we should not fear her, but instead respect and protect her.
In honor of their origin, the number of points where the web connected to
the hoop numbered 8 for Spider Woman's eight legs or 7 for the Seven Prophecies.
It was traditional to put a feather in the center of the
dream catcher; it means breath, or air. It is essential for life. A baby
watching the air playing with the feather on her cradleboard was entertained
while also being given a lesson on the importance of good air. This lesson
comes forward in the way that the feather of the owl is kept for wisdom
(a woman's feather) and the eagle feather is kept for courage (a man's
feather). This is not to say that the use of each is restricted by gender,
but that to use the feather each is aware of the gender properties she/he
is invoking. (Native Americans, in general, are very specific about gender
roles and identity.) The use of gem stones is not something that was done by the old ones. U.S. Government laws
have forbidden the sale of feathers from sacred birds, so using four
gem stones, to represent the four directions, and the stones used by western
nations have been substituted. The woven dream catchers of adults do not
use feathers.
Dream catchers made of willow and sinew are for children,
and they are not meant to last. Eventually the willow dries out and the
tension of the sinew collapses the dream catcher. That's supposed to happen.
It belies the temporary-ness of youth. Adults should use dream catchers
of woven fiber which is made up to reflect their adult "dreams."
It is also customary in many parts of Canada and the Northeastern U.S. to
have the dream catchers be a tear-drop/snow shoe shape.
