Sila

Spirit | Inuit

The spirit of air, consciousness, and weather in Inuit cosmology; not a personal deity but the animating intelligence pervading all of existence; experienced in wind, storms, and thought. Sila is the closest the Inuit tradition comes to a concept of God as universal ground of being — but it is not personal, not a figure to pray to, only a presence to listen to. The word also means “intelligence” or “awareness” in many Inuit languages.

Parallels: Pneuma (Greek Stoic — divine breath pervading all), Brahman (Hindu — universal ground of being), Tao (Chinese — the Way underlying all things), the Holy Spirit (Christian — divine breath/presence) See also: Raven, Angakkuq, Aningaaq