Korak–You make a good point about the dreamcatchers; a lot of it has to do with *how* something is done. The big issue with appropriation today is that rather than two relatively “equal” cultures passing information between them, you have members of a very powerful culture drawing from more disempowered (through the actions of the powerful culture) cultures, and often ignoring the protests entirely. It makes it tougher to navigate, because of the politics and so forth.

As for the idea of cultural appropriation, I also think it should be discouraged. But let’s clearly define what appropriation is!

Is having a dreamcatcher above your bed truly that abhorrent to the Lakota people? Where do you draw the line? To me, this is a case of the letter of the law versus the spirit of the law. And how do you define the spirit of the law? It’s difficult, unless you are willing to take the time to analyse every individual shamanist’s every action. Most would say that’s impossible in today’s world, and I’d tend to agree. But an overall, generic ban on anything that could be labeled as “indian” being used by a non-Indian would require the sort of ultra-powerful police state none of us would desire. So what’s the answer?

My own response is “focus on the individual.” If you’re buying corporate products made in China by wage-slaves, and calling yourself a “shaman” because you have a mass-manufactured dreamcatcher hanging from your rearview mirror, that’s appropriation.

But if you are carefully harvesting grapevine from your own land, with the spirit of the vine’s permission, then constructing your own dreamcatchers from organic materials, and truly endevouring to work in harmony with the spirits, then you are not appropriating someone else’s culture- you are creating a bridge between your own life and their’s, honoring the culture that created “dreamcatchers” at the same time you are continuing the tradition in your way. How can anyone be angry with that?

My own opinion is that shamanism is humanity’s natural spirituality- it is eternal, and as long as humans survive, they will attempt to stay in contact with the spirits, using some form of shamanism. No one culture has a monopoly on that. Don’t forget- until the Romans invaded western Europe, all the so-called white people (Celts, Gauls and Nordics) were also tribal and shamanic. My own shamanic journeys to contact my ancestor spirits have made this very clear. But if you go back far enough, all human cultures were shamanic and tribal.