Words are
not merely symbols that point to things, they call for the reality and power of
the being mentioned.
To the
Western mind, the spoken word is conceived as symbol. The relationship between the spoken word and
its meaning is based on a somewhat arbitrary consensus. Such separation of experience is not possible
in Native American languages, in which a mysterious identity between sound and
meaning. To name a being, or any aspect
of function of creation, actualizes that reality.
The Crow
word for talk is translated in English as “breaking with the mouth”. It is understood that once a word has left
the mouth, it has consequence in the world.
The
Navajo language: there are more than
300,000 distinct conjugations of the verb “to go” and only two or three
conjugations of the verb “to be”.
The
Eskimo believe not only in the succession of souls but also the simultaneity of
souls.
