mpovjerenja nije mu donosio zadovoljstvo, i tako je odlučio vratiti se svojim korijenima i potražiti duhovnu smisao u svojoj indijanskoj kulturi.
Kao šaman, Hromi Jelen je bio povezan s prirodom i duhovnim svijetom. Vjerovao je da je priroda živa i da svaka stvar i biće ima svoju svrhu. Kroz promatranje prirode i simbola koje je nalazio oko sebe, uspjevao je spoznati dublje značenje života. Učio je svoju zajednicu o važnosti očuvanja prirode i povezanosti s duhovnim svijetom.
Hromi Jelen je bio priznat u svojoj zajednici i širio je svoje znanje i iskustvo putem predavanja i knjiga. Njegovo djelo, poput knjige “Pogled s klanca” (Vision Quest), donijelo je važne spoznaje o indijanskoj duhovnosti i borbi protiv bezdušne modernizacije.
Hromi Jelen je ostavio dubok trag u povijesti američkog domorodačkog naroda. Njegova predanost svojoj kulturi i borba za očuvanje duhovne baštine inspirirali su mnoge ljude da ponovno cijene i poštuju indijansku mudrost i način života.
He had been fake all his life. He realized that Americans who exploit and destroy the land and animals do not become happier, but only lonelier and fatter. He said that while Indians search for visions, white people search for dollars.
The Medicine Wheel (also known as the Wheel of Life) is located in the Bighorn National Forest in Wyoming, at an altitude of about 3000m. The diameter of the circle is 23 meters, and from the outer edge of the circle to the central circle, with a diameter of 3 meters, which represents the source of life, 28 spokes resembling the rays of the Sun radiate radially. When observed up close, the Wheel of Life resembles a network in which everything is interconnected by invisible threads. The Medicine Wheel in Bighorn is considered a prototype for over a hundred similar, albeit smaller wheels found in North America. It is considered the central place of a thousands of years old ceremonial center.
At the age of 39, he decided to become a true Indian, return to his roots, and continue the tradition of his ancestors. His ancestor. He frequently participated in various events of the American Indian Movement, including meetings in the Black Hills. That territory belonged to the Indians until gold was discovered in the valleys, and then the government claimed it. Lame Deer became a fervent advocate for Indian rights to their land, their traditional way of life, and Lakota ceremonies.
Although extremely simple, the Circle of Life represents the cosmos and the cyclical nature of all creation.
The wheel symbolizes the unending circle of life with no beginning or end, while the cross forms the four directions of the world and the four seasons. The quarters of the circle that form the cross are symbolically colored white, yellow, red, and black. Each quarter is associated with a particular season, direction, plant, animal, natural phenomenon, etc.
In ceremonies, the cross takes on verticality through the central pillar. Everything has its place and role, and it is all interconnected, and this connection is sacred.
His life and thoughts represent They were welcomed in the book edited by Richard Erdoes. In it, Lame Deer speaks about the importance of symbols that are common to all people. Those who knew how to read signs could understand the messages of Nature because stones, leaves, numbers, and many other things leave messages. For the Indians, the number four is the most sacred number. This number represents the four elements, the four cardinal points of space, as well as the four virtues: courage, generosity, perseverance, and wisdom. Words are also symbols, as well as names. They give strength and speak of those who use them. Each person has their everyday name, but also a sacred name given to them by a shaman at birth. It was forbidden to use this sacred name in everyday situations.
Lame Deer emphasized the importance of the connection with nature and claimed that modern lifestyle and cities have hindered the preservation of that connection, creating a man-made world that is closed off. In this artificial world, there is no taste, no smell, it is sterile, and everything in it has lost its sacred side. By separating themselves from nature. People have become lonely and afraid of death. When someone dies, Native Americans believe that their spirit travels from the north to the south along the Milky Way until they reach the Spirit Realm. In the well-known Sun Dance, which is a sacred offering to the Great Spirit, the tree represents the Milky Way.
For Lakota Indians, the world is sacred and humans are an integral part of it. In one of his final speeches, Lame Deer stated that modern people should save themselves from themselves before they destroy everything. And this will only happen if everyone changes their way of thinking and realizes that we are all dependent on the Earth on which we live. If we harm any part of it, we harm ourselves. The greatest enemy is within, he said, and it can be defeated.