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Agudar ('Creator' [1]) is the creator god in Aleutian mythology. The name is also alternately rendered as Agurur, Agûģuq, Agugux, Agu'gux or Agu'gux'.

Agudar is a universal force, similar to the concept of Great Spirit in other Native American religions. [2] They are believed to be the creator of the universe, [3] [4] a hunting deity who watches over animals and hunters, [5] a reincarnation deity and a solar deity. [6] [7]

There is not much documented information about Agudar. [8]

Worship and rituals

The worship of Agudar by men and women were performed separately, in sacred places such as caves. [9] Only adult males were allowed in sacred ceremonies. [3] When someone dies, commoners and slaves are cremated, and children and the upper class are mummified by stuffing the body with grass and oil and wrapped in fur before burial. [3] [5]

Ioannin Veniaminov, a member of the Russian Orthodoxy, noted a ritual where at dawn everyone would face the sun, open their mouths, and swallow the light because daylight represents life. [4] Stepan Cherepanov noted that when hunting with the Aleut people, they would say a prayer asking for aid. [10]

After the introduction and influence of Russian Orthodoxy, [11] Agudar was also used to refer to the Christian God. [1] [12]

References

  1. ^ a b University of Alaska, Fairbanks (December 1954). Anthropological Papers of the University of Alaska. University of Alaska.
  2. ^ Utter, Jack (2001). American Indians: Answers to Today's Questions. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 145. ISBN  978-0-8061-3309-6.
  3. ^ a b c Mitchell, Bruce M.; Salsbury, Robert E. (2000). Multicultural Education in the U.S.: A Guide to Policies and Programs in the 50 States. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 11. ISBN  978-0-313-30859-8.
  4. ^ a b Atkins, Sean (2008-03-24). "Spiritual and Secular Transculturation in Russian America, 1821-1867". Past Imperfect. 13. University of Alberta Libraries. doi: 10.21971/p77p4w. ISSN  1718-4487.
  5. ^ a b Werness, Hope B. (1 January 2006). Continuum Encyclopedia of Animal Symbolism in World Art. A&C Black. pp. 270–271. ISBN  978-0-8264-1913-2.
  6. ^ B. J. Harrington, ed. (1881). The Canadian Naturalist and Quarterly Journal of Science with the Proceedings of the Natural History Society of Montreal. p. 208.
  7. ^ Lantis, Margaret (1984). "Aleut". In William C. Sturtevant (ed.). Handbook of North American Indians, Volume 5: Arctic. Vol. 5. Smithsonian. pp. 161–184. ISBN  978-0-16-004580-6.
  8. ^ Jochelson, Waldemar (2018-11-12). The Yukaghir and the Yukaghirized Tungus. BoD – Books on Demand. ISBN  978-3-942883-90-0.
  9. ^ Peterson, Barbara Bennett (10 March 2015). Steven L. Danver (ed.). Native Peoples of the World: An Encyclopedia of Groups, Cultures and Contemporary Issues. Taylor & Francis. ISBN  978-1-317-46399-3.
  10. ^ III, Shepard Krech (2008). Indians, Animals, and the Fur Trade: A Critique of Keepers of the Game. University of Georgia Press. p. 135. ISBN  978-0-8203-3150-8.
  11. ^ Jordan, Michael (14 May 2014). Dictionary of Gods and Goddesses. Infobase Publishing. p. 7. ISBN  978-1-4381-0985-5.
  12. ^ Geoghegan, Richard Henry (1944). Fredericka I. Martin (ed.). The Aleut language: the elements of Aleut grammar with a dictionary in two parts containing basic vocabularies of Aleut and English. Dept. of the Interior. p. 18.
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