Introduction
The Onkwehón:weFootnote 1 of North America have engaged in storytelling since time immemorial (M’Lot & Ferguson, Reference M’Lot and Ferguson2022). Used as a means of storing and sharing such things as spiritual experiences, histories and the ecologies of their territories, storytelling has enabled Onkwehón:we to retain and strengthen their individual and collective identities as first peoples of their territories (Archibald, Reference Archibald2008). Through the development, sharing and resharing or stories over generations, Onkwehón:we have retained important aspects of their respective communal and national identities that have contributed to their tribal strength. Through story, Onkwehón:we have preserved a sense of their collective selves and their heritage (Davidson, Reference Davidson2018).
Stories are as important to individual areas of endeavour as they are for communities. Beyond the purpose of storing and sharing communal and national knowledge, heritage and consciousness, stories can be used as a powerful source of guidance in life (Vukelich, Reference Vukelich2023). In what one may regard as a journey towards moral truth, the paths we create in that journey are forged with the support of our families and communities as well as with the guidance of those who have forged their journeys in similar ways. For the Onkwehón:we, the stories of their families and ancestors provide important points of reference and inspiration represented in cogent paradigmatic structures that can support their respective journeys.
The following will explore how storytelling supports the retention, sharing and celebration of Onkwehón:we knowledge, heritage and consciousness with a focus upon archetypes, struggle and achievement. Using Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey Framework (Reference Campbell2008) and with a focus on the Journey of the Peacemaker, the following will explore how the various components of such a story may be related to and inform the journey through life of Onkwehón:we and their communities. This article, in examining how Onkwehón:we storytelling functions as a dynamic practice that preserves cultural identity, guides governance and fosters relational ethics, is intended to demonstrate how Onkwehón:we stories may be understood to serve as living frameworks for social transformation and ecological stewardship, underscoring their ongoing relevance to justice and self-determination.
Onkwehón:we stories & storytelling: A summary
Through the rearing and support of his Kanien’kehá:kaFootnote 2 parents, the author developed into the man he would become in his home community of Kahnawake – a Kanien’kehá:ka community that is situated to the south of Tiohtià:keFootnote 3 in the Rotinonshón:niFootnote 4 Confederacy. For most of his time as an elementary student at one of the local schools, the author benefitted from school programming that was provided almost entirely in Kanien’keháFootnote 5. In these educational and communal contexts, he learned of Kanien’kehá:ka and other Onkwehón:we stories. It is from that position as a Kanien’kehá:ka man who learned of Onkwehón:we stories from Kanien’kehá:ka knowledge holders and community leaders that this essay on Onkwehón:we stories is offered.
Storytelling amongst Onkwehón:we is a living, relational practice that stores and shares tenets of Onkwehón:we knowledge, heritage and consciousness such as spiritual knowledge, ceremonial law, ethics and concepts of personhood across generations (Archibald, Reference Archibald2008). Rather than being discrete or centre around delineated texts, the stories of Onkwehón:we are dynamic reflections of the past and feature mythical accounts of ancestors that reflect specific places, peoples and relationships. Scholars emphasise that such narratives may be understood to be inseparable from land, kinship networks and ceremonial praxis (Basso, Reference Basso1996; Kovach, Reference Kovach2009; Ortiz, Reference Ortiz1969). In commenting on Onkwehón:we storytelling, such features as cosmology, creation, relations with sacred beings, ecology, colonial disruption and cultural/linguistic revitalisation can feature centrally.
A starting point for many accounts is cosmology; those stories that articulate those aspects of Onkwehón:we belief that are reflected in how we perceive the heavens (Buck, Reference Buck2009). Among the Rotinonshón:ni, the Sky Woman narrative involves a cosmological starting point in a cloud world and the narrative arc takes her to the ocean world below and situates water, animals and interdependence at the centre of life, culminating in a social ethic encoded in the Kaianere’kó:waFootnote 6 (Parker, Reference Parker1916). Amongst many Anishinaabe, stories of Nanaboozhoo are both aetiological and ethical: they explain the formation of features of the universe while modelling such things as humility, humour and responsibility (Johnston, Reference Johnston1976; Simpson, Reference Simpson2011). Many Pueblo accounts tie emergence from previous worlds such as those understood to be of an extra-terrestrial sort to ritual obligations that sustain balance (Ortiz, Reference Ortiz1969; Silko & McMurtry, Reference Silko and McMurtry1996). These narratives, although having and out-of-world context, situate learners to understand them as not merely backward-looking but instead as stories that inform historical and ongoing covenants between humans, non-human beings, and place (Hallowell, Reference Hallowell1960; Kimmerer, Reference Kimmerer2013).
One recurring theme amongst Onkwehón:we stories is the presence of sacred intermediaries such as cultural heroes, knowledge holders and tricksters – the actions of whom structure moral imagination. As will be explored later in this piece, such intermediaries such as cultural heroes often reflect the main figures and archetypes resident in an Onkwehón:we story. Trickster figures can be rather interesting parts of an Onkwehón:we narrative that can be central to a narrative or serve not as a central hero or villain but essential to the story in the tradition of Davie’s fifth business (Davies, Reference Davies1970). Onkwehón:we trickster characters like Coyote, Raven, or Nanaboozhoo often carry paradoxes: they teach through their missteps, their crossings of boundaries, and how their roles in stories reveal the consequences of imbalance (Brightman, Reference Brightman1989). Some argue that stories that feature Tricksters such as Nanaboozhoo resist literal reading; their spiritual work lies in cultivating interpretive fluidity and inter-personal discussion in which interpretations are shared (Justice, Reference Justice2018; Sarris, Reference Sarris1993). Because such Onkwehón:we stories are told and retold in different contexts and to different audiences, their teachings can be dynamic. This sort of narrative plasticity, often treated as variation, is in fact a mechanism of spiritual governance, ensuring that ethical principles remain responsive to context (Cruikshank, Reference Cruikshank1998).
Performance and place figure centrally in how stories of Onkwehón:we are understood. One of the central tenets here is that storytelling may not only be a verbal exercise; Onkwehón:we storytelling can be embodied. Through ceremony, seasonal rounds and protocols about which community or kinship members may tell or do what, when and to whom, stories may be shared and understood (Gill, Reference Gill1987; Vecsey, Reference Vecsey1991). Basso (Reference Basso1996) explored how some Apache peoples in America locate moral instruction in what is called place-making, which is an exercise through which stories are situated at or within named sites whose histories can inform moral behaviour. Amongst Coast Salish Peoples, transformer stories are situated at specific places such as river bends and mountains within their territory; the telling of such stories are understood to activate sacred geographies during winter dance seasons. In Plains First Nations contexts, narrative and vision are understood to be intertwined; visionary experiences are recounted within ceremonial frames that inspire songs, naming and rituals (DeMallie, Reference DeMallie1984; Deloria, Reference Deloria1992). In each of these cases, there is said to be a spiritual power resident in story that is inseparable from the authority conferred by place and practice (Deer, Reference Deer2024).
Another important feature resident in Onkwehón:we storytelling is that of Onkwehón:we languages. In an era in which colonial disruption has denigrated much of Onkwehón:we life, non-Onkwehón:we languages have adversely affected how stories may be understood. Many note that translation into English risks flattening layered meanings, kinship terms and metaphors that illustrate spiritual relationships (Johnston, Reference Johnston1976; Simpson, Reference Simpson2011). Hallowell’s (Reference Hallowell1960) classic analysis of meaning resident in the Anishinaabe language where human-like sentience is attributed to such things as stones, thunder and animals illustrates that some Onkwehón:we stories do not merely symbolise relations with non-human beings and “objects” but instead presupposes that those beings and objects as interlocutors. In order to honour such symbolisation, the integrity of Onkwehón:we language and orality may be regarded as a spiritual responsibility, not a stylistic preference (Kovach, Reference Kovach2009). Adjacent to how language may feature in storytelling are the respective performance features, pauses, repetition, voice quality, gesture, may also carry sacred authority, and the right to narrate is governed by lineage and community consent.
Colonialism has profoundly affected the ability of Onkwehón:we to share their stories (Smith, Reference Smith2023). Christian missionary acquisition, salvage ethnography and museum storing, displaying and archiving are examples of the sort of colonial activities that have extracted narratives from communal, ceremonial and linguistic contexts (Brown, Reference Brown2003). In some cases, purloined stories are retold, shared, or published without permission. The Black Elk Speaks corpus of Neihardt (Reference Neihardt2017) exemplifies this problem: while it is a source of Lakota spiritual knowledge, the editorial mediation by Neihardt and others raises questions about Onkwehón:we voice, framing and audience (DeMallie, Reference DeMallie1984). With such appropriation and unethical representation of Onkwehón:we stories having adversely affected many, communities have engaged in selective adoption and syncretism on religious and spiritual frames that are not traditional Onkwehón:we; these syncretisms have affected the orientations of some Onkwehón:we (Deer & Heringer, Reference Deer and Heringer2024). Some scholars have documented Onkwehón:we worldviews that amalgamate their own traditional forms of spirituality where Christian doctrine is integrated with Onkwehón:we cosmologies while maintaining ceremonial calendars and relational ethics (Laugrand & Oosten, Reference Laugrand and Oosten2010; Vecsey, Reference Vecsey1991). Such syntheses are not signs of dilution but expressions of Onkwehón:we sovereignty over spiritual and religious life (Deloria, Reference Deloria1992; Justice, Reference Justice2018).
Another important aspect of Onkwehón:we storytelling is that of women’s narrative authority. In many Onkwehón:we stories, main protagonists and archetypes are that of women and frequently one that is in a maternal role. The Sky Woman of many creation stories, the Corn Mother of numerous Onkwehón:we mythologies, and Asibikaashi (“Spider Woman”) of the Anishinaabe are examples of the female as principal figure in stories that foreground gendered power, reproduction and agricultural reciprocity (Kimmerer, Reference Kimmerer2013; Silko & McMurtry, Reference Silko and McMurtry1996). As is the case in current public dialogue on Onkwehón:we issues, contemporary scholarship is also acknowledging and at times supporting Onkwehón:we women as keepers of songs and protocols who caution against androcentric collecting practices that historically overlooked women’s roles as leaders of ceremonies (Simpson, Reference Simpson2011). The current movement towards rebalancing has altered how some interpret spiritual authority and community governance, including the ethics encoded in clan-based transmission of stories.
In exploring the importance of Onkwehón:we stories and storytelling, scholars have explored how Onkwehón:we law and ceremony are situated in their traditional narratives (Borrows, Reference Borrows2010). Although Onkwehón:we stories may be understood principally as sources for spiritual and cultural knowledge, these stories may also do important normative work in illustrating Onkwehón:we ways of knowing and doing in that they show how to address such things as the adjudication of disputes, the allocation of harvesting rights, and the governance of ceremonial responsibilities (Napoleon & Friedland, Reference Napoleon and Friedland2016). The Kaianere’kó:wa, at once a traditional story and a constitution, codifies how new chiefs are elevated to those roles; Coast Salish sxwōxwiyám origin stories have been cited in communal stewardship decisions; Inuit angakkuq (shamanic) accounts articulate rules around taboo mores and animal spirits (Cruikshank, Reference Cruikshank1998; Laugrand & Oosten, Reference Laugrand and Oosten2010). In these examples, spirituality and law are not separate domains but interwoven through story. The telling and retelling of Onkwehón:we stories has and continues to provide guidance to law and governance in Onkwehón:we communities.
Although the telling of traditional Onkwehón:we stories may put one in mind of past practices, experiences and pre-contact ways of life, scholars, artists and others are focusing on contemporary creative and academic work that revitalises spiritual storytelling through literature, film and community research in ways that make it relevant to modern audiences. Works such as Silko & McMurtry’s Ceremony dramatises the healing power of story and ceremony in modern life; King’s essays and novels argue that “the truth about stories is that that’s all we are,” insisting on narrative sovereignty for contemporary Onkwehón:we peoples and communities (King, Reference King2003; Silko & McMurtry, Reference Silko and McMurtry1996). Leanne Simpson describes gikendaasowin (“knowledge” in Anishinaabemowin) as generated in relationships and practices rather than abstracted from them thus emphasising the experiential dimension of knowledge generation (Simpson, Reference Simpson2011). Kimmerer’s (Reference Kimmerer2013) work fuses plant science and Potawatomi teachings, presenting gratitude ceremonies and Honorable Harvest principles as spiritual narratives of reciprocity. These writers have challenged academic genres, showing that spiritual stories should not be regarded as only objects of study but as deliberate, active methods of living well with others people and with the environment.
The contributions that Onkwehón:we storytelling can have to academic endeavour is becoming better appreciated amongst scholars. In order to appropriately situate Onkwehón:we storytelling into academic study, many scholars are utilising Onkwehón:we research frameworks in order to adequately foreground community protocols, consent and benefits. Kovach (Reference Kovach2009) and Smith (Reference Smith2023) adduce that researchers must respect restrictions on sacred narratives, co-create interpretive authority with communities, and situate themselves ethically. The rights of Elders and Knowledge Keepers to withhold, the seasonal timing of offering stories and their teachings, and the distinction between public and restricted stories are important aspects when considering how scholars may research Onkwehón:we stories. The prevailing view amongst Onkwehón:we scholars with expertise in this area points to notions that spiritual storytelling should not be regarded as “data” to be extracted from Onkwehón:we. Increasingly, Onkwehón:we communities are taking initiative and developing community-led archives and language programmes curate recordings with culturally appropriate access levels, sometimes using digital tools to support access (Christen, Reference Christen2015).
The initiative by Onkwehón:we communities to lead and administer resources that share their respective stories also responds to a problem that has been resident across Onkwehón:we territories since the arrival of non-Onkwehón:we settlers – the development and use of pan-Onkwehón:we frames to describe or explore all Onkwehón:we as if they were a single nation or group. While certain motifs such as those resident in numerous creation stories as well as those associated with trickster stories appear widely, their meanings can be rather unique to specific communities and often locally distinct (Gill, Reference Gill1987). Even within a single Onkwehón:we nation, stories may vary by family line, dialect and ceremonial society. As many scholars assert, responsible scholarship that explores Onkwehón:we stories should focus on particular communities as much as possible, acknowledge any limits to the scope of its study, and treat variations amongst Onkwehón:we and their stories as signs of vitality rather than inconsistency (Vecsey, Reference Vecsey1991).
Onkwehón:we stories, in addition to being thought of as reflections of the past, ought to be understood to be forward-looking. As stated earlier, Onkwehón:we stories that contain spiritual, experiential, communal information such as that of the Kaianere’kó:wa may provide guidance towards contemporary approaches to such things as governance and relationships. Onkwehón:we stories have been shared for the purposes of supporting environmental stewardship, youth wellness and language resurgence. For instance, land-based education programmes that are of increasing interest in educational spaces situate the sharing of stories in such place-based contexts as sugarbush camps, salmon runs and prairie burns; in cases such as these, ceremonies and stories guide ethical relations with animal life and watersheds (Kimmerer, Reference Kimmerer2013; Simpson, Reference Simpson2011). In legal and political contexts, Onkwehón:we stories have supported the development and adjudication of land claims and have also been employed to help protect sacred sites by demonstrating continuous occupation and spiritual significance (Borrows, Reference Borrows2010; Napoleon & Friedland, Reference Napoleon and Friedland2016). In these cases and others like them, the stories of Onkwehón:we may be understood as contributing to renewal.
Scholarship on Onkwehón:we storytelling converges on several points. Onkwehón:we stories and their telling are spiritually efficacious. They can and often are embedded in place, language and ceremony. When situated appropriately, Onkwehón:we stories can inform important aspects of public life such as governance and relationships. Importantly, many of these stories continue to be shared through adaptation and modern sharing under the pressures of post-colonial impacts. The most compelling work, often authored by Onkwehón:we scholars and knowledge keepers, invites readers to approach stories not simply as literature or myth but as living agreements that can sustain Onkwehón:we communities. Future research that is community-led, language-focused and attentive to protocol has the potential to deepen the understandings of all people.
Campbell: The journey of the hero
Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey frame (Reference Campbell2008) has become one of several useful frames through which the analysis of narratives and their respective mythic structures can reveal important features that serve as mechanisms that support understanding of Onkwehón:we knowledge, heritage and stories. Campbell has argued that myths, legends and epics around the world share similar narrative arcs that he referred to as the monomyth that describes the stages of a hero’s transformation from an ordinary life, through trials and revelations, to their return with newfound wisdom or achievement. Although not every story follows every step, the Hero’s Journey provides a lens for understanding how people can make meaning through the narrative journey through life.
Applying Campbell’s narrative arc to Onkwehón:we stories may be useful in coming to understand how Onkwehón:we learners may learn from such mythical stories as a means of informing their own journeys. For instance, in those creation stories that feature the Sky Woman who was an expectant mother living in the clouds and succumbed to her desire for the roots of a tree, fell through the clouds to the ocean world below, and was saved by the creatures below and lent to the development of a land mass on the back of a sea turtle (what would eventually become Turtle Island), Campbell’s Arc helps one to hone in upon key aspects of the Sky Woman’s journey. Although Campbell’s narrative arc delineates aspects of the story for the benefit of the careful listener, the principal focus with the use of the narrative arc is to support the illustration of meaning. What aspects of Onkwehón:we knowledge, heritage and consciousness may be gleaned from a story such as that of the Sky Woman? These are the sort of important inquiries that may emerge from the use of Campbell’s framework.
Campbell’s Hero’s Journey is typically divided into three constituent parts: departure, initiation, and return. For each of these main parts reside important contexts, stages and acts. As stated earlier, not all elements of the Hero’s Journey frame are resident in all stories.
Departure
Sometimes refered to as a stage of separation, Campbell’s narrative arc begins in what he refers as an Ordinary World, a place where the hero lives in a familiar and sometimes limited existence. In due course, the hero encounters a Call to Adventure, a challenge or invitation to leave behind the ordinary world. Initially, there hero may Refuse the Call or otherwise be overly cautious or even find the call as dubious of unachievable; the hero may hesitate due to fear, duty, or insecurity. In some stories, assistance may be provided by a Supernatural Aid – a mentor, guide, or magical helper who offers protection, advice or other form of support. Eventually, the hero crosses a sort of Threshold, leaving the ordinary behind and entering a realm of uncertainty and possibility.
Initiation
This central stage of Campbell’s frame features struggle which may be understood as the trials and challenges that test the hero of the story and eventually help that character to transform. Upon entering the new world of trials and challenges, the hero may find them self in a Belly of the Whale moment – one that symbolises total immersion into danger or disorientation. In some stories, the belly of the whale moment may be regarded as a sort of symbolic death and rebirth. In some mythical journeys, the Road of Trials is traversed on which a series of tests, allies and enemies are met that build the hero’s strength and resolve. Along the way, the hero may experience a Meeting with the Goddess moment, representing union with nurturing forces or higher truths, and sometimes an encounter with a Temptress, symbolising distractions or destructive desires.
Often an important part of this stage of the journey is the Atonement with the Father, a confrontation with authority or ultimate power that might challenges the hero to reconcile such things as their fear, guilt, or inadequacy. Through this journey of personal reconciliation comes what Campbell regards as an Apotheosis, where the hero gains enlightenment, insight, or transcendence. Although not resident in every story, the climax of this stage of initiation is the Ultimate Boon – a reward, knowledge, or other achievement that fulfils the purpose of the quest in which a hero may have been engaged.
Return
Having gained knowledge, reward, or some form of boon, the hero must bring these achievements back to their home or community. Although the initiative stage earlier might be regarded as that which is most difficult, this stage may also be very challenging. Sometimes the hero experiences a Refusal of the Return in which the hero is reluctant to leave the newfound location or situation. When the hero undertakes a return, it may require a Magic Flight – a dramatic escape where outside forces aid the hero. Crossing the Return Threshold normally means reintegrating into ordinary life, now transformed by the journey. It is here when the hero’s home, family, or community might begin to benefit from their achievement. In these final stages of the journey, the hero achieves a Master of Two Worlds status in which they balance the spiritual or extraordinary insights with the practical realities of life.
Campbell’s framework has had lasting influence, particularly in literature, psychology and film. The Hero’s Journey highlights what might be regarded as universal aspects of human experience: the tension between safety and growth, the necessity of facing struggle, and the transformative power of knowledge and self-discovery. By showing how stories from vastly different cultures mirror one another, Campbell’s Hero’s Journey suggests that stories are not just entertainment but may be understood as maps of human and communal potential.
The Journey of the Peacemaker
The Journey of the Peacemaker is one of the central spiritual and political narratives of the Rotinonshón:ni – a confederacy comprised of the Kanien’kehá:ka, Oneota:haka, Onontaka:haka, Kaokwa:haka, Sonontowa:haka and Tuscarora nations (Rice, Reference Rice2013). The Journey of the Peacemaker explores the origins of the Kaianere’kó:wa. As mentioned earlier, this constitution and philosophy unites the Rotinonshón:ni as a single confederacy in which a shared spirituality and collective identity exist. The Journey of the Peacemaker is a foundational story that contains teachings that continue to shape Onkwehón:we governance and diplomacy. What follows in this section is a summary of the story. A full, robust telling of this story by a knowledgeable storyteller can take several days. Rice (Reference Rice2013) and Williams (Reference Williams2018) offer more thorough descriptions of this story than can be provided herein.
According to how the story is understood, the Peacemaker, sometimes referred to by his name Tekanawí:ta Footnote 7, was born of a virgin mother among the Huron. From the beginning, he possessed extraordinary spiritual gifts and in time developed a view of a journey: to bring peace to a land that had been torn apart by conflict, vengeance and cycles of retribution. With his vision of how peace amongst Onkwehón:we nations may look, he sought to transform warring nations into a confederacy bound by laws of unity, equity and peace.
The Peacemaker’s first companion was Hiawatha, a man grieving the loss of his daughters who had succumbed to the violence that had enveloped the nations of the region. Overcome with sorrow, Hiawatha’s trauma led to his isolation until the Peacemaker restored him through words of condolence. The moment in which the Peacemaker restored Hiawatha’s well-being is central; the Peacemaker demonstrated that healing from grief and trauma is a prerequisite for peace. Hiawatha, inspired by his spiritual rebirth, became the Peacemaker’s spokesperson and ally in spreading the message. The support in the relationship between the Peacemaker and Hiawatha was reciprocal; it is sometimes said that the Peacemaker was not as gifted an orator as Hiawatha and his role as a spokesperson helped the Peacemaker in his journey towards forging peace.
The Peacemaker and Hiawatha journeyed from nation to nation, urging leaders and communities to abandon cycles of bloodshed and join in a collective council. They taught a new philosophy that would inform the development of an international confederacy that is guided by the Kaianere’kó:wa – the constitutional mechanism that would be founded on the principles of righteousness, well-being and power (interpreted as justice, spiritual well-being and unity). The symbol of this law was and still is the Great White Pine, under whose roots the Peacemaker invited all nations to cast their weapons, burying them to signify the end of violence. The tree’s spreading branches provided shelter for all and its roots extended in four directions, signifying openness to allies and kin beyond the confederacy.
One of the greatest obstacles to peace was the fearsome Onontaka:haka (Onondaga) leader Atotarhoh, whose cruelty and imbalance symbolised the destructive force of unchecked rage and violence. Described as having a twisted body and hair filled with snakes, Atotarhoh resisted the call for unity. The Peacemaker and Hiawatha, with the support of clan mothers and chiefs from other nations, worked together to heal Atotarhoh – straightening his body and soothing his spirit through ritual and compassionate persuasion. Once transformed, Atotarhoh became the firekeeper of the Grand Council, responsible for maintaining order and balance. This act dramatised the core principle that even the most destructive forces can be brought into harmony through compassion and collective responsibility.
The establishment of the Rotinonshón:ni Confederacy marked the culmination of the Peacemaker’s Journey. Governance was rooted in consensus, with clan mothers holding authority to nominate and depose chiefs, and with laws designed to ensure equity and unity among nations. The Kaianere’kó:wa not only ended cycles of violence but also provided a durable framework for diplomacy, one that has influenced democratic thought beyond Onkwehón:we contexts. Today, the Journey of the Peacemaker continues to be recounted as both sacred story and political charter. It teaches that true peace arises from healing grief, reconciling with adversaries, respecting women’s authority, and grounding governance in spiritual balance. The story remains a living guide for the Rotinonshón:ni and a profound contribution to global philosophies of peace.
Analysis
In using Campbell’s Hero’s Journey framework to analyse the Journey of the Peacemaker, some interesting similarities and differences emerge. Campbell’s Hero’s Journey describes a universalised pattern of transformation that is readily understood to be situated within the journey, struggle and metamorphosis of a single individual where a hero departs the ordinary world, undergoes challenges and returns with knowledge or power to benefit the community. Although the Rotinonshón:ni story of the Peacemaker is not simply one of an individual hero who passes through the stages of the narrative arc, it shares structural resonances with Campbell’s framework whilst focusing on collective healing, spiritual law and relational governance rather than individual triumph. In a sense, the Journey of the Peacemaker is not his journey alone, but that of a nation and a future confederacy.
In Campbell’s narrative arc, the hero is called away from ordinary life by a challenge, destiny, or journey on which they are compelled to travel. Similarly, the Peacemaker is born with a sort of mission that is at once divine, daunting and necessary for the service of peace (i.e., to end cycles of warfare among the Iroquoian nations). Campbell’s individualised hero who responds to the call to journey is represented by the Peacemaker’s embodiment of a sacred purpose from birth whose mission is less about personal transformation and more about communal renewal (i.e., the eventual establishment of the confederacy). In his views on communal renewal, Campbell describes supernatural helpers or mentors who aid the hero. In the Journey of the Peacemaker, Hiawatha serves as both disciple and spokesman who acts not just in service of the Peacemaker, but also in service of the vision for communal well-being that is reflected in the Peacemaker’s vision. The Onkwehón:we value for reciprocity is reflected in the relationship when the Peacemaker’s healing words are spoken to Hiawatha after the loss of his daughters; these words can be understood as a spiritual gift, the condolence ceremony, which is now central to Rotinonshón:ni governance as cited in the Kaianere’kó:wa. The Journey of the Peacemaker offers the notion that no hero acts alone; transformation requires partnership and community.
In Campbell’s Trials and Transformation stage, the story’s hero undergoes trials to gain strength or wisdom as described earlier. For the Peacemaker, the trials are not battles of the sort one might normally associate with those in biblical narratives or other epics; in the Journey of the Peacemaker there were not stereotypical monsters although there are some features of Atotarhoh that might reflect the imagery of such creatures. Instead, the Peacemaker, with the support of Hiawatha and others, confront trials of moral and spiritual sorts in the course of persuading hostile nations to consider the importance of peace, international cooperation, and addressing the situation with Atotarhoh. Although Atotarhoh may be understood as an “enemy” in the story, the fundamental focus of the Peacemaker is to work with all nations to address imbalance, violence and despair.
In Campbell’s cycle, a Supreme Ordeal is often faced by the hero in a significant and epic tribulation often represented by a battle or other testing ordeal that can lead to revelation experienced by the hero. The Peacemaker’s supreme ordeal occurs in the confrontation with Atotarhoh, the twisted Onontaka:haka leader who is orientated towards violence and discord. Rather than working eliminate him or render him powerless, the Peacemaker and Hiawatha help Atotarhoh to transform through ritual and support marked by compassion. In what would become the Rotinonshón:ni Confederacy, Atotarhoh would hold the noble role of firekeeper of the Confederacy’s Grand Council. Where many stories find the hero contributing to the destruction of an antagonistic figure, this Onkwehón:we story emphasises reconciliation and integration of former enemies into the circle of peace.
Campbell’s narrative arc features the hero’s reward that he has referred to as hero’s boon; this prize can be of personal value or something that will benefit the hero’s family or community. In the Journey of the Peacemaker, the boon is represented by the unification of nations that would contribute to the establishment of the Rotinonshón:ni Confederacy and the Kaianere’kó:wa – the spiritual and political constitution enshrined in the symbolism of the Great White Pine and continues to be used to inform spiritual and political activities of those nations of the Confederacy. Unlike Campbell’s hero who often brings back treasure, wisdom, or power, the Peacemaker helps to establish a framework for collective governance that reflects such things as balance, equity and maternal influence. So strong and influential is the Kaianere’kó:wa that it is difficult to overlook how this boon, which is often real only as a cultural symbol in many stories, is a gift that actually exists and is used and venerated by the people and nations of the Confederacy today.
The provision of the Kaianere’kó:wa to the nations of the Confederacy marks the end of Peacemaker’s journey. Not completely analogous to Campbell’s Hero’s Journey frame in which the hero returns home transformed and becomes a “Master of Two Worlds,” the Peacemaker’s return is not to an individual’s home or community but to a collective state of balance among nations. The Confederacy itself is the transformed world, where nations live under one law, yet retain their distinct identities. The story culminates not in personal mastery but in a shared political-spiritual order.
Discussion
While the Path of the Peacemaker resonates with numerous elements of Campbell’s Hero’s Journey, it is important to emphasise that this Onkwehón:we story is one that focuses on collective transformation that is facilitated by one hero and his support network (e.g., Hiawatha) with a view of enabling others to consider change. It is less a “hero myth” as it may be understood in other stories that can inform and inspire prospective human action; in the Journey of the Peacemaker we have a story that has as its rather explicit outworking, a boon if one wishes, a charter for peace, law and diplomacy that is grounded in the relational worldview of the people of the Rotinonshón:ni – the Kaianere’kó:wa. In Campbell’s universalised framework, one can illuminate structural similarities in stories such as the Journey of the Peacemaker, but through analysis, one should not overlook the unique values embedded in Onkwehón:we storytelling traditions that reflect values centred on balance, reciprocity and shared responsibility.
One of the central aspects of the Journey of the Peacemaker is the manner through which international collaboration is established within in the Rotinonshón:ni Confederacy through what is codified within the Kaianere’kó:wa. Although the character of nationhood is reflected in the unique manifestations of Onkwehón:we knowledge, heritage and consciousness resident in each of the five (eventually six) nations of the Confederacy, the Kaianere’kó:wa was the culminating stage of the Journey of the Peacemaker that informed how these nations would co-exist with a focus upon peace, respect and righteousness.
For Rotinonshón:ni people, the Journey of the Peacemaker is a story that may be understood to contain key identity marker. One of the key tenets of the story is the notion that Rotinonshón:ni identity is not simply a matter of ancestry but of embodying the values of peace, balance and respect for all life. As Alfred (Reference Alfred1999) argues, Rotinonshón:ni identity is inseparable from the principles of the Kaianere’kó:wa, which emphasise spiritual balance, governance through consensus, and the responsibility of leaders to their people. The narrative arc of the Journey of the Peacemaker, therefore, provides a living constitution that connects personal and collective identity with an enduring cultural philosophy.
The collective identity of the Rotinonshón:ni is and has been marked by the importance of self-determination – a now recurrent issue amongst Onkwehón:we. One of the most powerful ways the story of the Peacemaker informs Rotinonshón:ni meaning making is through its articulation of self-determination. The Kaianere’kó:wa was the governing mechanism that established a confederacy that operated through collective decision-making, equality among nations and an emphasis on consensus. This form of governance was revolutionary in its time, providing a sophisticated model of democracy that influenced, as scholars argue, even the framers of the United States Constitution (Grinde & Johansen, Reference Grinde and Johansen1991).
For the Rotinonshón:ni, retelling the Peacemaker’s journey reinforces their sovereignty as a people. The story serves as a reminder that Onkwehón:we governance systems are not relics of the past but vibrant traditions that continue to guide political and social life. Simpson (Reference Simpson2011) emphasises that Rotinonshón:ni self-determination lies in practicing and revitalising these traditions, rather than conforming to colonial structures of governance. The Peacemaker’s journey embodies the power of self-determined political order, one that arises from the people themselves and reflects their values, rather than imposed external systems. This is particularly significant in modern struggles for Onkwehón:we rights and land reclamation. By turning to the Peacemaker’s narrative, Rotinonshón:ni communities assert that their legitimacy as nations is grounded in a history of governance that predates colonial presence in their territories. In this sense, the journey of the Peacemaker is not just a myth but an ongoing political statement about sovereignty.
Although collective identity and endeavour are significant areas of focus when considering the value of the Journey of the Peacemaker, it also has significant merit for individuals. The Peacemaker’s story may be understood as a roadmap for personal growth and healing. Characters within the narrative undergo profound transformations: Hiawatha moves from grief and despair to becoming a spokesperson for peace, while Atotarhoh transitions from a twisted, violent leader to a healed and respected figure within the confederacy. These transformations mirror the struggles of individuals facing trauma, anger, or displacement, offering hope that renewal and balance are possible.
The symbolic healing of Atotarhoh may be a central aspect of the story that informs how malevolence may be confronted in ways that lead to healing as well as individual and collective betterment. The transformation of Atotarhoh represents the possibilities for reconciling with past violence and pain; as Monture (Reference Monture2009) notes, the story’s emphasis on transformation provides a powerful framework for Onkwehón:we dealing with the legacies of colonisation, substance abuse and intergenerational trauma. By identifying with these characters, Onkwehón:we can find personal strength in the knowledge that healing is integral to their cultural teachings. Moreover, the narrative reflected in the Journey of the Peacemaker can encourage growth through the teachings of responsibility; each individual, through their clan or community role, has a responsibility in contributing to the maintenance of peace and balance. Personal growth, then, is not solely an inward journey but one linked to communal responsibility, reinforcing the interconnectedness of identity and community (Deer, Reference Deer2024).
The story of the Peacemaker is not static; it is a living tradition retold in ceremonies, teachings and community gatherings. This oral transmission ensures that the lessons remain relevant, adapting to new contexts while preserving their core meaning. For the Rotinonshón:ni and all Onkwehón:we, storytelling itself becomes an act of resistance and survival, ensuring continuity across generations. As Coulthard (Reference Coulthard2014) highlights, decolonisation requires reclaiming Onkwehón:we traditions of thought and practice. The Peacemaker’s narrative, as a source of guidance, is therefore a decolonial story, resisting erasure by centreing Onkwehón:we epistemologies. Each retelling reinforces not only the story’s moral lessons but also the sovereignty of the Rotinonshón:ni worldview. In this way, the journey of the Peacemaker becomes a narrative of resilience, keeping alive the principles of Onkwehón:we identity, autonomy and balance.
In addition to its role as a narrative guide for Onkwehón:we, the Journey of the Peacemaker is also serves as a story about territory, environment and sovereignty as it explores peace, governance and unity in the lands and waters of the Rotinonshón:ni, where the Great White Pine symbolises both the physical and spiritual grounding of the Confederacy. Educators across nations can use stories such as the Journey of the Peacemaker to support Onkwehón:we resurgence by treating these stories as living frameworks for growth, governance and ecological stewardship. These stories invite learners to see beyond myth and recognise teachings about balance, reciprocity and community responsibility, helping to unsettle colonial narratives that have long dismissed Onkwehón:we knowledge systems. By embedding these narratives in classrooms, land-based education, and intercultural dialogue, educators can create spaces where Onkwehón:we philosophies are not just acknowledged but centred as guiding principles for collective renewal. Ultimately, sharing and honouring such stories in respectful ways strengthens Onkwehón:we sovereignty, while also teaching all peoples that peace and sustainability may be achieved through relational ethics and the restoration of reconciliatory balance.
Financial support
This research received no specific grant from any funding agency, commercial and non-for-profit sectors.
Ethical standard
Nothing to note.
Author Biography
Frank Deer is a professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba where he studies Onkwehón:we language education and Onkwehón:we religious and spiritual orientations in schools.
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