Medicine Wheel

Within Native American philosophies lies the ideas of wholeness and interconnectedness with all life’s elements. An ingredient essential in this viewpoint is achieving balance and harmony in all relationships. The medicine wheel is a visual example of the relationships and interconnectedness which can be a framework used to obtain harmony and balance (Clarke & Holtslander, 2010). Additionally, the medicine wheel can be displayed in several ways including artwork and incorporates the four directions i.e., north, south, east, and west (National Library of Medicine, n.d.). Teaching in Anishinaabe culture is often situated within the medicine wheel framework (Williams, 2009) and the medicine wheel framework has been modified and used in diverse subjects such as nutrition, health education and end of life care (Clarke & Holtslander, 2010; Conti, 2006; Haozous, Eschiti, Lauderdale, Hill, & Amos, 2010). Ms. Worthington’s quill box with its circular shape and exquisite colors displayed in the rainbow, water, sun, and trim resembles the medicine wheel. There is red, blue, and yellow in the rainbow, blue in the waters, and white trim on both the top and bottom of the quill box, these colors are typically associated with the medicine wheel (Dapice, 2006). The communion portrayed with the sun, sky, air, and water represents various life elements that are linked in a circular fashion with no end and no beginning—indicative of the connections within our cosmos. For further understanding of the medicine wheel please see the following video.