The Universe Of The Ojibwe Anishinaabeg, an illustrated glossary by Zhaawano Giizhik*

The Universe of The Ojibwe Anishinaabeg by Zhaawano Giizhik - 2014
The female figure that I
depicted inside the turtle
(see image), represents
Sky Woman who, after
fulfilling her task of
recreating the world,
ascends into her home, the
sky world. The sturgeon
and the water snake
(which is also Sky
Woman's right arm)
depicted inside the turtle's
body symbolize the water
creatures and the
doodemag (clans) of
Science and Medicine,
while the stylized wolf
footprints that run around
the circumference of the
turtle's back shell refer to
the land creatures - and to
the warrior clans, the wolf
doodem included: it was
wolf himself who helped
creating a new island home
for the Anishinaabe People.
The plant world (in the
form of the long grains
of wild rice) is represented
by Sky Woman's loose hair
streaming after her. The
five birds depicted on top
of the turtle's head refer to the origins of the Anishinaabeg and the five original
doodeman (animal totems), which formed the basis of an extensive family clan system
that exists even until today. These five are: Crane, Bear, Marten, Catfish, and Turtle.
Finally, the stylized sea shell or miigis depicted inside the turtle's head is a sacred symbol
representing the seven great mide miigisag, radiant beings that appeared in human form
to the Ojibwe Anishinaabeg to teach the people about the midewiwin life-style. (See also
MIDE-MIIGIS, page 92).
The floating seed designs that surround the great snapping turtle are seeds of life, or
balls of spirit power. These stylistic elements are powerful carriers of symbolic
meaning, reminiscent of the sacred rock and birch bark art of the Ancients. The ovalshaped
Power circle over the turtle's head and the flowing power lines that are connected
to the turtle's fore legs express interdependence and communication and indicate a high
level of spiritual power that's present in the drawing.
The Power circle, or unity symbol, depicted in the top of the drawing, and which I
stylized after the oval shape of a miigis, symbolizes the duality of life. The divided circle
represents dualities present in the new world that Sky Woman created - womanhood and
manhood, sky and earth, good and evil, birth and decay, day and night, moon and sun,
ebb and flood, honesty and dishonesty, function and dysfunction. One section of the
circle inspires, complements, and strengthens the other part. Each part depends on the
other. The four smaller circles depicted inside the power circle/unity symbol, representing
the four cardinal directions, are a reference to GICHI-MANIDOO, the Great Mystery that
encompasses the four directions and everything that is.
The Universe of The Ojibwe Anishinaabeg by Zhaawano Giizhik - 2014
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