Pipe ceremony being held to protect Mother Earth

Posted on 20 May 2026 by Ryan Dahlman

By Alexandra Noad

Alberta Newspaper Group

In Blackfoot culture, everything is provided by Mother Earth, and they accept the duty to protect her and value the resources she gives for everyone to thrive.

Due to colonization, many of the resources Mother Earth provides are often over utilized causing significant damage to the land and also to the Blackfoot culture.

Piikani elders decided to come together in ceremony to not only pray for the land but to also reconcile with Mother Earth.

This is the second of a series of pipe ceremonies along the Old Man River.

There will be a gathering today beginning at 10 a.m. at Napi’s Playground located 21 km east of Hwy 22, following Maycroft Rd. through The Gap and then turning right onto Forestry Trunk Rd #40 and shortly after turning right onto the flat. A link to the Google Maps Location will be available on the Herald’s Instagram (@leth_herald)

Elder Morris Little Wolf, an Elder from Piikani, says many people are disrespectful to the earth, by digging for coal which is contaminating the headwaters with selenium and by clearcutting which can cause significant issues with the rivers and lakes in the area.

“The majority of people don’t love Mother Earth. They’re digging in and around her, they’re doing things they shouldn’t be done to her.”

He adds that Mother Earth gave us everything to live a good life and it is our responsibility to take care of her for future generations.

The pipe ceremony is a sacred part of Blackfoot culture, symbolizing our prayers being lifted through the smoke, to the eagle which presents them to the Creator.

Elder Harley Crow Shoe, who has been focusing on Indigenous health, explains the ceremony will contain four pipes, a number which holds significant meaning in Blackfoot culture.

“It’s the circle of life and certainly those four quadrants as we grow up and the responsibility. We come into this world from the east and we travel south, west, north and back to the creator, but the four directions are important because they all give us certain gifts as we grow.”

He adds that it also represents the four races of mankind, meaning we are all children of the Creator.

The health of the land is much deeper than the physical aspect of it for the Blackfoot people, its connected to their core identity as Niisitapi.

“We need everything within our land for our future generations,” says Crow Shoe. “If we lose certain medicines, how do we replace those? If we lose certain animals, how do we bring them back? Because they’re important to us.”

While the pipe ceremony is a sacred ceremony for the Blackfoot people, everyone is welcome to join with an open mind and heart. There are also plans in the works to continue the ceremonies downstream on the Old Man River.