Jessica Buhler ~ Making Nature Sacred- Wildness (Gatta)

It is observed that a person has a significant tendency to “associate wilderness with a sense of the sacred.” Many cultures have viewed these wild things as sacred, untouched religious icons. Many Native Americans tribes viewed the bear, one of the wildest animals, as a sacred animal that was not to be harmed. Some tribes even viewed the bear as a “brother” and were worshiped as a god. In Mayan tradition, volcanoes or fire pits were viewed as sacred. Volcanoes and fire are two of the wildest forces on the planet, yet it was an honor to be sacrificed in them to a god. The use of the wild fires and volcanoes was a direct link to pleasing the gods. Wildness has always been associated with sacredness and will continue to be so in the future.