Keeping the World in Balance - Music Therapy in a Ritual Context

Abstract

I asked Walker why the Spirit Dances were held in the Winter. He told me that in the Winter the Earth's reserves are low, so the people must dance to create energy for the Earth during the Winter months. At the time I was a graduate student in anthropology at the University of British Columbia doing my field studies in the Salish Guardian Spirit Dance Ceremonials of the Pacific Northwest Coast (Kenny, 1982). Walker didn't seem to care as much about the academics as he cared about the fact that I was Native American myself. And he wanted to support my learning about healing and the arts. The Winter Dances, as the Salish people call them, are known for healing young adults in Pacific Northwest Coast Native societies who are not able to be cured by standard medical and psychological treatments (Kenny, 1982; Jilek, 1972).