Eighth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology: to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1886-1887, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1891
History
Eighth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology: to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1886-1887, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1891
Navajo Indians -- Rites and ceremonies; Pueblo Indians -- Antiquities; Pueblo architecture
“People, you come to see us; you have a house in the heart of the rocks;
you are the chief of them; you are beautiful. Come inside of our houses.
Your feet are white; come into our house! Your legs are white; come into
our house! Your bodies are white; come into our house! Your face is
white; come into our house! Old man, this world is beautiful; the people
look upon you and they are happy. This day let all things be beautiful.”
This prayer is repeated many times, merely substituting for old man old
woman, then youth, young girl, boy, then all children. The old man and
woman spoken of are not the first old man and woman in the myth of the
old man and woman of the first world. After the prayer the song-priest
and invalid took seats by the entrance of the lodge. Hasjelti took his
position to the west end and to the north of the line of the Etsethle.
He remained standing while the four slowly raised the right foot
squarely from the ground, then on the toe of the left foot, which motion
shook the rattle. In a short time Hasjelti passed down the line hooting.
He passed around the east end, then returned up the north side to his
former position, and again hooting, resumed the leadership of the
Etsethle, who gave a long shake of the rattle as soon as Hasjelti stood
in front of them. They then followed their leader to the dressing room.
CONCLUSION--THE DANCE.
The song-priest having returned to the green room, emerged therefrom,
followed by Hasjelti, who carried a fawn skin partially filled with
meal, and by twelve dancers and Hostjoghon, holding in each hand a
feather wand. The twelve dancers represented the old man and woman six
times duplicated. Hasjelti led the dancers and Hostjoghon followed in
the rear. When they came near the lodge the song-priest turned and faced
the dancers, and being joined by the invalid, he led him down the line
of dancers on the north side, the invalid carrying a sacred meal basket,
and sprinkled the right side of each dancer. The song-priest and invalid
then returned to their seats in front of the lodge. Hasjelti passed down
the line on the north side and joined Hostjoghon at the east end of the
line, both then passing to the west end, where each one endeavored to be
the first to stamp twice upon the ground immediately in front of the
leading dancer. This double stamp is given with hoots, and they then
returned down the line to the center, when Hasjelti dashes back to the
west end, clasping the throat of the fawn skin with his right hand and
holding the legs with his left, with both his arms extended to the
front. Hostjoghon extending his hands with the feather wands in them,
they point the head of the skin and tops of the wands directly in front
of them as they stand facing each other, hooting at the same time.
Reversing sides by dashing past each other, Hasjelti points his fawn
skin to the east while Hostjoghon points his wands to the west. They
then return to their respective positions as leader and follower.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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