They left their homeland to search for the Scared Megis Shell. The Objiwe believe that wild rice is a gift from Gitchi Manido, the Creator. Ojibwe call wild rice manoomin, the good seed that grows in water and the seasonal grain is sacred food and a dietary staple for many generations.
Prior to harvest women went to the rice lakes in small canoes and tied the stalks into sheaves with strips of basswood fiber, marking their territory and protecting the crop from high winds and birds.
Then they are gliding through the water, using long clubs to beat the rice off the plant into the bottom of their boats. They dried and stored it in baskets and birch bark boxes for the winter.
In ritual use of Ojibwe people have accorded wild rice vitality beyond its nutritional value. Even today, though the beliefs behind such customs may be obscure to many Ojibwe, the practices of leaving wild rice at a grave and refraining from the harvest while menstruating or mourning persist.
Ojibwe people and wild rice
