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In Eastern Algonquin religion, it was believed that there was a spiritual world that was constantly interacting with the physical world. They believed in a primary spirit that controlled everything in existence and called it "Kitchie Manitou" or the "Great Spirit". To the Algonquins, "Kitchie Manitou" was present in everything, including both living and non-living items. This even included things like the Sun, the Moon, and even sicknesses. The only people in the Algonquin religion who could communicate with "Kitchie Manitou" were the Algonquin Shamans, who were looked up to for spiritual guidance as well as medicinal purposes. The Shamans were the most important spiritual leaders in the Woodland Algonquin culture, and were well known because of their ability to communicate with the spirit world and ward off evil spirits. They could do this by performing curing rituals where they used magical rites to force the evil spirits out of the bodies of the sick.
The Algonquins also believed in a great evil spirit they called "Windigo". According to the legend, a man was lost in the forest and starving, he resorted to cannibalism in order to survive and he became the Windigo. It was suspected a person might be suffering from Windigo when they returned home from the forest only to become extremely violent and anti-social. These people would gradually succumb to the urge to eat human flesh, giving more power to the Windigo spirit. The only way to kill the spirit was to kill the host and burn their body to ashes. Different versions of the legend say there are different ways of becoming Windigo, like being bitten by a Windigo, a shaman's curse, or dreaming of the Windigo.
The Algonquins also held various ceremonies and feasts throughout the year. The held a ceremony at the beginning of each season, and held similar ceremonies for the three stages of life; birth, puberty, and death. Face paint was also an important aspect of these ceremonies with different colours representing different feelings. Red meant life, Black meant death and eternal grief, Purple was used to mark royalty or it was used on special occasions. Algonquin peoples also used masks in a similar fashion, only masks were used to cure diseases and scare off evil spirits during these ceremonies.
The Algonquins also believed in a great evil spirit they called "Windigo". According to the legend, a man was lost in the forest and starving, he resorted to cannibalism in order to survive and he became the Windigo. It was suspected a person might be suffering from Windigo when they returned home from the forest only to become extremely violent and anti-social. These people would gradually succumb to the urge to eat human flesh, giving more power to the Windigo spirit. The only way to kill the spirit was to kill the host and burn their body to ashes. Different versions of the legend say there are different ways of becoming Windigo, like being bitten by a Windigo, a shaman's curse, or dreaming of the Windigo.
The Algonquins also held various ceremonies and feasts throughout the year. The held a ceremony at the beginning of each season, and held similar ceremonies for the three stages of life; birth, puberty, and death. Face paint was also an important aspect of these ceremonies with different colours representing different feelings. Red meant life, Black meant death and eternal grief, Purple was used to mark royalty or it was used on special occasions. Algonquin peoples also used masks in a similar fashion, only masks were used to cure diseases and scare off evil spirits during these ceremonies.