A Latter Day Prophet and why God is a feminist. Part 3
Posted: Sunday, January 24, 2010
by Carol Fernandez
Part 3; Maniilaq defies the shamans and makes prophesies.
Maniilaq's first act of defiance against the shamans was to scrape the skin of a sheep.
This was forbidden by the shamans as it would bring bad luck, terrible disease and even death.
The community was very angry, sure that Maniilaq had put a curse upon them and many gathered their belongings and fled.
'The power that the shamans call upon is not a good power....we must be strong against it.'
Even though he was unharmed, people were angry that he said things that would anger the shamans.
Undeterred, though, maniilaq continued to refute their taboos.
He deliberately went to the hut of a young woman, banished there due to the onset of puberty.
He took her food and in response to the outraged remonstrations of her father, stated that one day the shaman's power would be no longer. He stated; 'It saddens our Grandfather that we do treat our women in this manor... our Grandfather desires that we treat our women with respect.'
He told the father that it was not right that a girl be sentenced to solitude for something that she had not done.
Maniilaq's odd activities did gain him more of an audience, although many considered him crazy.
Half happy, half sad, he told the people that their lives would change completely; hardships would ease.
Food shortages would be no more and homes would be kept warm throughout the winter months.
He said that men with white skins would come and that people would travel through the air 'in ships'.
The shamans decided that they had heard enough of this insane and disobedient talk. Action was clearly needed-they must extinguish his soul. The people were terrified but Maniilaq calmly settled his family down to sleep.
As the darkness fell. the shamans called forth their most powerful spirits and sent them time and time again to get to Maniilaq's soul. But they could not reach it. The area around where Maniilaq slept was lit by an unfamiliar light, a glow that they could not penetrate; it was so bright that it hurt their eyes and they could not find his soul to kill it. They withdrew and retreated, attacked again but were entirely defeated.
Maniilaq was unharmed and continued to teach of his grandfather's great love for all his people and that all would one day know him ; Maniilaq carried on to inform the people of the great changes to come.
But sometimes this seemed to make him sad..
(Coming in part 4; Maniilaq's predictions come true and why can missionaries not have more respect for the traditions of people?)
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