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On the path of Sámi Spirit
17-27 April 2003
Experience the Sámi way of life



Getting to know Europe's indigenous peoples


- Five days trekking with reindeer herds from winter to summer grazing lands at the North Cape sharing the lifestyle of a Sámi traditional reindeer herding family group
- four days in comfortable modem earth-houses, with sauna andjacuzzi facilities
- assist at the Sámi Grand Prix, the most important yoik competition of the year , watch the reindeer races and visit art exhibitions of Kautokeino Easter festival
- get a workshop as introduction into traditional song technique from professional yoikers
- leam about the history of Sámi shamanism from university researcher
- do Sámi drum divination and do light drum joumeying, depending on your experience
- visit a Siuni sacred site in a respectful and spiritual manner
- leam about Siuni political rights and their struggle to maintain their basic rights and traditional ways of living from leading activists ;
- visit craft shops, drum makers, musea, and other interesting places
- enjoy, relax and rebalance yourself in the beautiful tundra with 'mild' temperatures between - 5 and- 15 degrees C at this time of the year.


Unique journey

This joumey will offer you an unique opportunity to spend ten days with Europe's own indigenous nation, the Sámi, 'people of the sun and wind' in order to get to know their way oflife, in particular the reindeer herding and the spiritual dimension from their own perspective. You will experience the two forms of traditional housing of the Sámi : Lávvu (Sámi tipi, a tent that is the traditional summer housing) and Earth houses (hut covered with earth, traditional winter housing). You will have a chance to meet, ex change and leam from Sámi that are living and developing their ancestral spirituality through the traditionallifestyle, the semi-nomadic reindeer herding, the tradition al song and shamanic techniques like the drumming.
Finally you also will get an understanding of the struggle they are in with the national authorities and other population groups to safeguard their constant I y threatened living conditions for future generations.

This is a special programme designed for the Initiations spiritual Center in Brussels t hat has shown its long term commitment and professionalism to assist people to discover a harmonious and respectful way of life. This travel programme is being developed in co-operation with Sámi and non Sámi persons who are familiar with promoting Sámi rights and spiritual knowledge.

Who are the Sámi

The Sámi are an indigenous people with an millenary holistic worldview and an unique and an intimate relationship with Mother Earth, Father Sky and nature just like Australian Aboriginals or North- and South American Indians. They count about 100 000 persons who are living in the most Northem part of the European continent in Norway, Finland, Sweden and he Kola Peninsula in Russia. The Sámi speak their own Sámi Janguage, have a specific mythoJogy and world view. Sámi have been described in European
classical1iterature since the 9th century as a separate nation of shamanic and nomadic people. Sámi are the first inhabitants of the Arctic European areas. They have managed to survive in its extreme climatic circumstances since time unknown. Missionaries have been active christianising Sámi since the Il th century . Unfortunately this was often done in a spirit of intolerance and severe oppression.
Drums and shamen were bumed. The old Earth- and nature related spiritual practices were demonised and forbidden. Non-Christian oral and magical traditions of healing, divination, communicating with gods, animal spirits and ancestors, infIuencing the weather or shape-shifting became entirely confidential.
 

Much of this knowledge got lost. Still today much ofit is taboo, at some places yoiks for instance are still forbidden and not spoken of. At the moment there is a still fragile Sámi cultural revival. More and more young Sámi are starting to sing the old yoiks and practice the tradition al spiritual knowledge. They adapt it in a form suited to the present times as every living tradition has always done. Sámi nowadays are almost entirely integrated into contemporary Scandinavian society: they live in modem houses, have regular professional training and use advanced computer technology for reindeer herding.

The traditional Sámi have never exhausted nature's resources. They did not made any visible permanent changes to the naturallandscape like putting up permanent buildings or doing agriculture. They never started wars with neighbouring peoples. They posses amazing traditional knowledge and survival skills.

Aiso it is important to be aware that Sámi have never been culturally isolated from the rest of the world. They have been permanent I y in contact with other peoples and have contributed to shape Europe's cultural history. As early as there are writings about Scandinavia we find mentions of Sámi with their fur trade, the ski they invented, shamanic magic and knowledge ofherbs and healthy living.

The modern societies have taken step by step away the basis for Sámi traditionallifestyle and culture. The reindeer pastures became divided in country national boundaries. The land belonged to the state and not to the Sámi any more, they had to accept to get only small parcels for houses. There were more and more roads, there was deforestation and mining. Many new inhabitants came, there was less and less free space. Nowadays
Sámi languages are spoken by only 35000 persons and they are on the red list of endangered languages.

AlI over the world people realise that indigenous peoples have invaluable traditional knowledge and experience in nature spirituality and social values that allowed in the past and partly still today very stable and happy societies.


Programme

A traditional Sámi Siidda (group of families that herds together) wilI take you with them over the Tundra from the i1Ùands of Finmnark to the North Cape on the spring migration of over 1000 reindeer to the summer grazing lands. You wilI be sleeping in traditional Sámi Lávvu on reindeer skins and driving with snowmobiles. You wilI be provided with traditional Sámi reindeer skin shoes and dresses so that you are not cold , get traditional food, catch your own fishmeal, try lasso-throwing, and be explained the reindeer herding. They all speak basic English. You wilI be accompanied by an experienced English speaking Sámi guide.

 

The Earth houses are built by Ester Utsi, a Sámi woman who is a masseuse and healer, was a leading bureaucrat in the local administration and changed her life to devote herself to healing and hosting guests. Her beautiful and well kept spiritual center at the shore of the Tana/Deatnu river bas modem equipped earth houses with sauna and jacuzzi. lnside the earth houses you find double or triple rooms with shower and toilet. She prepares delicious traditional food. Here you wilI be offered meetings and workshops with Yoik singers, traditional spiritual knowledge keepers, a S3mi academic who teaches Sámi culture at University and leading Sámi
activists.

At Easter the annual Sámi Kautokeino Easter festival takes place. There are concerts of many music bands, exhibitions, and partying. We choose to visit one day of the festival to participate at its culminating point: the Grand Prix concert and the reindeer races. At the Grand prix concert the best yoikers meet to show their singing skilIs before an audience of about 1000 Sámi from aIl parts of Sapmi, most of them in traditional clothing. At the reindeer races you can see how Sámi manage to ri1ake speed on a sledge with a reindeer in front.

It is not a normal touristic trip. The persons that wilI accompany you are not trained for touristic group work. They just wish to ri1ake possible tbat you get an authentic idea of Sámi life today, share their approach to life and some parts of the spirituality to others and increase understanding for them and support.

Practical information

You wilI arrive and depart from Lakselv airport in NorthemNorway. You wilI be transported in a mini-bus. The tundra trip does not demand very strong physical effort as you will be driven in sledges and wilI be kept warm and welI-fed, but can not be recommended for persons with serious health problems. English wilI be the current language of the trip. Translation into French will be provided is required.

As preparation to the trip, we would like to talk briefly to you about your motivation to come. We recommend you watch a video cassette we prepared and read a brochure on Sámi.

Cost

The approximate price will be 3800 EUR/153 100 BEF aIl in : air travel, local transport, all meals,
accommodation, workshops. We are aware that this is a lot, and this is not even a luxury trip. Norway is an very expensive country and we did not find a way to lower the cost in offering you a progranune of this quality.

Contact: Initiations Bruxelles - Tel. 00 32 2 375 48 11
initiations@skynet.be - Fax 00 32 2 375 28 96


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