In commemoration of First Peoples Heritage Week, the Santa Rosa First Peoples paid their respects to one of nature’s vital elements, water, on Thursday.
Groups visited the Arima River off the Blanchisseuse Road to provide offerings to the god of the elements — something they believe represents the physical manifestation of God the Creator.
Chief Ricardo Bharath-Hernandez highlighted the link the First Peoples have with the element of water.
“So water is one of the manifestations of Creator watching us. The forest is part of the manifestation just as we are in our bodies and we have a body, we have a head, we have a nose, we have mouths. Similarly all these things are different parts of the Creator. We are here to observe the Creator God through his/her creation of nature. We as a people cannot appreciate God, who we have never seen, no one have ever seen that true God, that form of God, but what we can see is what God has given to us through the nature.”
According to Mr. Bharath-Hernandez, this creator is not confined to the typical ideation of man but takes on multiple forms that are beyond man’s imagination.
“According to the element, it is associated with a gender, so God has no particular single gender. Some people think God is man sitting up there and we cannot see him. No. God is masculine, God is feminine and can take any form and any gender to reach people.”
Not only does water symbolise a life-giving force for the First Peoples, but it also remains something they are caretakers over, safeguarding it from pollution and the harmful effects of climate change.
“The water is life, without water you have no life. You have water within your body, if you don’t have water, you could go without food for a few days, you cannot go without water because you will be called dead. You will be dead.”
Santa Rosa First Peoples Heritage Week activities end on October 14th with a Day of Recognition.