Ceremonial of Hasjelti Dailjis and Mythical Sand Painting of the Navajo Indians — John Shaqi
Ceremonial of Hasjelti Dailjis and Mythical Sand Painting of the Navajo IndiansStevenson, James
Religion
Ceremonial of Hasjelti Dailjis and Mythical Sand Painting of the Navajo Indians
Stevenson, James
Navajo Indians -- Rites and ceremonies
The theurgist carried a bowl of water and pine needles, and an attendant
bore a gourd of water, a small vase of powdered herbs, and an Apache
basket containing corn meal, buckskin bags, horn of the mountain sheep and
a piece of hide cut from between the eyes of the animal. The theurgist and
attendant took seats to the right of the entrance of the sweat house west
of the medicine lodge. This sweat house was decorated with the rainbow.
Over the entrance were, first, two striped blankets, one upon the other, a
buckskin, and a piece of white cotton. Hot stones, etc., having been
previously placed in the sweat house, the sick man entered. The
song-priest and four attendants sang, accompanied by the rattle. At the
conclusion of the chant Hasjelti and Hostjoghon appeared as on the
previous days. Hasjelti lifted the coverings from the entrance and the
invalid came out and sat upon a blanket south of the entrance and bathed
both his hands in the bowl containing the pine needles and water; he then
drank of it and bathed his feet and legs to the thighs, his arms and
shoulders, body and face and head, and then emptied the remainder over his
back. Hasjelti manipulated the right leg with the sheep’s horn and hide,
rubbing the upper part of the leg with the right hand, then the under part
with the left; he then rubbed the sides of the leg in the same manner,
each time giving a hoot; the arms, chest, head, and face were similarly
manipulated. Hostjoghon repeated the hooting every time he changed the
position of the hands. Hasjelti, taking the gourd containing the water and
corn meal, gave four draughts of it to the invalid, hooting each time the
bowl was put to the lips; Hostjoghon did the same. The song and rattle
continued. Hasjelti, then put the powdered plants from the small vase to
the soles of the feet, knees, palms, breast, back, shoulders, and top of
the head of the invalid, hooting each time an application was made; this
was repeated by Hostjoghon. The invalid took a sip from the bowl and
rubbed the remainder over his body. The song-priest then removed the wands
from the base of the sweat house and the coverings from the door; the pine
boughs and hot stones were also removed and the invalid preceded the
song-priest to the medicine lodge. All the wood of the sweat house was
placed in a tree, excepting four small pieces, which were deposited,
together with the pine boughs from the interior of the sweat house, in a
semicircle formed by the rocks from the sweat house at the base of a piñon
tree. A line of meal 2 inches in length running east and west was
sprinkled on the apex of the semicircle, and upon this line the black tube
was laid. A bit of meal was sprinkled on the tube and a quantity over the
pine boughs of this small shrine. Before sprinkling the meal on the top of
the medicine tube the attendant waved his hand in a circle from left to
right, calling "hooshontko;" meaning: Widespread blessings that come not
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