[Lexicog] A prototypical blessing

[Richard Rhodes]

Wayne,
	You can't mean that the Cheyenne don't have a traditional way
that supernatural power can be conferred to them. What happens in the
vision quest? When someone fasts to gain the support of a manito
(whatever that's called in Cheyenne), isn't that a "blessing". That's
sure the way it works in the woodlands Algonquian cultures.

Rich


At 9:57 AM -0600 4/23/04, Wayne Leman wrote:
>  > Phil,
>>
>>  I agree about the world view but probably we have to distinguish
>>  between words and concepts.
>
>Yes, sometimes this is necessary, Fritz.
>
>>  Even if a word for "blessing" does not exist in Cheyenne or Nez Perce,
>>  I would imagine the idea of "conveying or transmitting power" exists.
>
>Not in Cheyenne.
>
>>  I contend that "blessing" as a speech act or an action is an
>>  "empowering."
>
>That makes sense to me, also, but Cheyennes don't empower people.
>
>>  In Manding languages in West Africa an interesting semantic shift
>>  occurred from Arabic barakat = blessing to baraka = power.
>>
>>  Fritz Goerling
>>
>>  P.S.: About "sin" I daresay that there is a transcultural definition
>>        as a transgression/violation of ethical norms. How these norms
>>        look like (like the 10 Commandments or another ethical code) and
>>        what constitutes a "transgression" (or "sin") can be quite
>>        different from culture to culture or from person to person.
>>        Like what is a "lie" can be quite different from culture to
>>        culture.
>
>True
>
>>  Is there a prototypical "lie"?
>
>I think there can be prototypes within each culture/worldview.
>
>Wayne Leman
>Cheyenne project
>
>
>
>
>Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>


--
******************************************************************

  Richard A. Rhodes
  Department of Linguistics
  University of California
  Berkeley, CA 94720-2650
  Voice (510) 643-7325
  FAX (510) 643-5688

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