Iroquois Prayer of Thanksgivng

This prayer comes from the Native people of the Iroquois Confederacy. The Iroquois or Haudenosanee is comprised of six Native tribes: Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca and Tuscarora, all located in New York State and Canada.

The prayer is based on the belief that the world can not be taken for granted, and that we must thank all living things in order to align our minds with the natural world. This prayer is the backbone of the Iroquois culture.

We return thanks to our mother, the earth, which sustains us.
We return thanks to the rivers and streams, which supplies us with water.
We return thanks to all herbs, which furnish medicines for the cure of our diseases.
We return thanks to the corn, and to her sisters, the beans and squash, which give us life.
We return thanks to the bushes and trees, which provide us with fruit.
We return thanks to the wind, which, moving the air, has banished diseases.
We return thanks to the moon and the stars, which have given us their light when the sun was gone.
We return thanks to our grandfather He-no, who has given to us his rain.
We return thanks to the sun, that he has looked upon the earth with a beneficent eye.
Lastly, we return thanks to the Great Spirit, in whom is embodied all goodness, and who directs all things for the good of his children.

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