How Spiritual Guidance, As Delivered By The Stars, Led To Freedom

The night sky has always been considered magical. But for our enslaved ancestors, stargazing was more than looking at pretty constellations. It was about survival.

How Spiritual Guidance, As Delivered By The Stars, Led To Freedom
Via Wikimedia Commons

“Follow the drinking gourd” is a phrase that our people once put all their faith in. It was a guiding light they turned to on some of their darkest nights.

As Black people escaped enslavement, they used the Drinking Gourd, a code name for the Big Dipper, to locate the North Star. Along Underground Railroad routes, leaders like Harriett Tubman used “signal songs” like “Follow the Drinking Gourd” to secretly convey detailed instructions about pathways to freedom.

Knowledge of the stars was one of the few things stolen West Africans brought with them across the Atlantic that was not taken away. Understanding the night sky became crucial to survival because making the wrong turn was deadly.

Today, only about two percent of astronomers are Black. But this is ancestral work. Studies show our health can benefit from embracing the stars by acting  as a form of stress release and helping with mindfulness.

Many enslaved people relied on the stars, nature, and their intuitions to guide them through to liberation. Celestial wayfinding is part of who we are, and when we’re in our darkest hours, we must remember to keep our heads up and eyes focused on our own personal North Stars.


We have a quick favor to ask...

We hope you're enjoying PushBlack Spirit! Spreading the truth about Black spiritual practices and history is just as important to you as it is to us.

And as a small non-profit, we need your support to keep spreading these important stories.

With as little as $5 a month, you will support our tech and writing costs, so we can reach even more people like you. It only takes a minue, so will you please donate now?