The Four Sacred Medicines
Tobacco is the first plant that the Creator gave to First Nations Peoples. It is the main activator of all the plant spirits.
Three other plants, sage, cedar and sweetgrass, follow tobacco, and together they are referred to as the Four Sacred Medicines. The Four Sacred Medicines are used in everyday life and in ceremonies. All of them can be used to smudge with, though sage, cedar and sweetgrass also have many other uses. It is said that tobacco sits in the eastern door, sweetgrass in the southern door, sage in the western door and cedar in the northern door. Elders say that the spirits like the aroma produced when we burn tobacco and the other sacred medicines. Traditional people say that tobacco is always first. It is used as an offering for everything and in every ceremony. “Always through tobacco”, as the saying goes.
TOBACCO
While teachings around Tobacco varies within Indigenous culture, it is most commonly used in ceremonies. The sacred medicine of tobacco is said to have been given to Indigenous Peoples, so that they can communicate with the spirit world.
Tobacco is often gifted to Elders and Traditional Knowledge Keepers as a means of demonstrating one’s intentions. The Elders and Traditional Knowledge Keepers receive information from the spirit world and the tobacco acts as a pathway to deliver those messages.
Indigenous people also use tobacco:
To set one’s intentions prior to foraging other traditional medicines and/or plants;
When requesting help or advice from an Elder, Medicine Person or Healer; and,
To express gratitude to the spirit world by delivering one’s message and intentions.
Additionally, tobacco acts as a communicator with other plant life by relaying the intentions of other living being
SAGE
Sage is used to prepare people for ceremonies and teachings. Because it is more medicinal and stronger than sweetgrass, it tends to be used more often in ceremonies. Sage is used for releasing what is troubling the mind and for removing negative energy. It is also used for cleansing homes and sacred items. It also has other medicinal uses. There is male sage and female sage. The female sage is used by women.
Sage is commonly used to prepare people for ceremonies and teachings. Sage is used as a cleansing medicine as it releases and removes any negative energy that may be troubling you.
Ways you may see Indigenous People use Sage:
For cleansing homes, spaces, and sacred items;
To clear the senses from seeing, hearing, speaking, or feeling negative thoughts and energies; and,
White buffalo sage is commonly used in Anishinaabe cultures and is known to have antimicrobial properties to fend off infectious bacteria, viruses, and molds.
CEDAR
Like sage and sweetgrass, cedar is used to purify the home. It also has many restorative medicinal uses. Cedar baths are healing. When cedar is put in the fire with tobacco, it crackles. When it does this, it is calling the attention of the spirits to the offering that is being made. Cedar is used in fasting and sweat lodge ceremonies as a form of protection: cedar branches cover the floor of the sweat lodge and a circle of cedar surrounds the faster’s lodge.
Cedar is used in many ways, however most Indigenous Peoples use Cedar for its restorative ability and to purify physical spaces including the mind, body, spirit, and/or home.
Ways you may see Indigenous Peoples use Cedar, include:
Cedar baths to relieve sore muscles and joints;
Adding Cedar to a fire to create a crackling sound, which calls attention to the spirit world and lets it be known that an offering is being made; and,
For its protective qualities. Cedar is often placed at entrance ways to homes, and on the ground around the perimeter of a sweat lodge as Cedar ensures that bad energies are not able to enter.
SWEETGRASS
Sweetgrass is used in prayer, smudging and purifying ceremonies. It is usually braided, dried and burned. It is usually burned at the beginning of a prayer or ceremony to attract positive energies.
Sweetgrass is used in prayer, smudging and purifying ceremonies. Known to represent Mother Earth’s hair, it is usually braided, and the scent reminds us of the kindness and of the love She has for all people and their non-human relations. Wingushk is usually burned at the beginning of a prayer or ceremony to attract positive energies.
Ways you may see Indigenous People use Sweetgrass:
Burning it at the beginning of a ceremony to attract positive energies;
Using it in healing circles as it has a calming effect;
To sooth sore throats, chafing and infections; and,
Sweetgrass is used to draw the sweetness of life into your life.
We encourage you to learn more about Sacred Medicines by visiting a First Peoples Indigenous Center. Speak with an Elder or Traditional Knowledge Keeper to experience these Sacred Medicines.
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