Summary
I've often heard Elder William Commanda, a pipe carrier from the Algonquin community of Kitigaan Zibi in Quebec, say that he does not himself carry the pipe. The pipe carries him. It is, after all, considered in direct contact with the Creator.
In this modern day, the passing around of the revered communal pipe is now considered by some to be a health hazard. As one deeply spiritual Native man told me recently: "I'm afraid of sharing the pipe. There are a lot more diseases out there that our Elders didn't know about.""The pipe is basically a helper. The helper that will take the smoke and transport your prayers to nthe Creator." He admits there have been discussions about some of the health issues. "I now am almost at a point of refusing to take the pipe at a big event or where there are many people. There are a lot of people refusing to take it because they don't want to have their lips on it."See the full content of this document
Extract
Modern Concern Plagues Ancient Practice
Nothing makes an archeologist salivate more than finding a precontact First Nation pipe in a 600-year-old garbage dump. That's because the pipe ceremony is the most sacred and cherished of all the Native spiritual practi...
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