Walking in Two Worlds

What does it mean for a Native American to “walk in two worlds” and does it apply to other cultures in the U.S.? Well, before I can answer this question, I first need to talk about balance.

I’m going to break myself down to four equally important aspects: There is the physical part, the mental part, the emotional and the spiritual. You are the same. Together, these aspects form the circle of our being, and no one aspect is more important than the other.

But, a circle requires all of its points (or aspects) to be equi-distant from its center point – and in that center point is you, the individual. Thus, we experience the most balance as individuals when we cultivate all four of our aspects. When we neglect one aspect or focus primarily on another, we become unbalanced.

Of course, we bump up against the real challenge of staying in balance as we go about our day-to-day lives. In this contemporary world, there seems little time to focus on the core aspects of self. With this in mind, consider people like Native Americans who must stay in balance while “walking in two worlds.”

Walking in Two Worlds - Rez-PL-Need-Vets 12B-Army (Jerry Headley, Wayne Brown, Ronald Howard, Al Brown, Norman Willow, Martin Blackburn, Tyrel Teran)

Minorities in the United States know that two worlds exist in this country. There is the world of the dominant culture, and in my case the world of indigenous culture. One is very new. The other is very old. One culture landed here hundreds of years ago. The other originated here thousands of years ago, if not longer. Often, one contradicts the other, and sometimes they complement each other.

Regardless, this leaves Native Americans no choice but to walk in both worlds. We have the history of forced assimilation, but we also have a rich history of adaptation to the dominant culture. It is through this adaptation to the best parts of the dominant culture that Native peoples have been able to make a positive impact in their communities. Yet, balancing this requires a strong knowledge and ability to navigate both cultures, a constant striving to maintain an indigenous identity while also coursing the mainstream.

Over the next few weeks, National Relief Charities will feature stories of Native Americans living in two worlds or adapting to the use of technologies prevalent in the dominant culture. Check in next week to learn what living in two worlds means for a Native American college student. In the meantime, leave us a comment below if you have an experience of living in two worlds you would like to share.

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One Comment

  1. Posted February 12, 2020 at 2:24 am | Permalink

    Hello, I find this idea of walking two worlds very interesting. WEB DuBois said something similar about African Americans having two identities. I wonder is there a word for “walking between worlds” in any of the many indigenous Native American languages?

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