The Sia: (1894 N 11 / 1889-1890 (pages 3-158))Stevenson, Matilda Coxe
History
The Sia: (1894 N 11 / 1889-1890 (pages 3-158))
Stevenson, Matilda Coxe
Zia Indians
The house in which this family lives is small and without means of
ventilation, and the old man may be seen, on his return from his daily
labors, assisting his invalid wife and paralytic son to some point
where they may have a breath of pure air. They are usually accompanied
by the little girl leading her blind sister and carrying the baby on
her back by a bit of an old shawl which the girl holds tightly around
her.
Always patient, always loving, is the old man to those of his
household, and the writer was ever sure of a greeting of smiles and
fond words from each of these unfortunates. Not wanting in hospitality
even in their extremity, they invited her to join them whenever she
found them at their frugal meal.
The only medicine possessed by the Quer´ränna is se´-wili, which is
composed of the roots and blossoms of the six mythical medicine plants
of the sun, archaic white shell and black stone beads, turkis, and a
yellow stone.
The preparation of this medicine and that of the other cult societies
is similar to the mode observed by the Zuñi. Women are dressed in
sacred white embroidered Tusayan blankets, and they grind the medicine
to a fine powder amid great ceremony. When a woman wishes to become
pregnant this medicine is administered to her privately by the
ho´naaite, a small quantity of the powder being put into cold water and
a fetich of Quer´ränna dipped four times into the water. A dose of this
medicine insures the realization of her wish; should it fail, then the
woman’s heart is not good. This same medicine is also administered at
the ceremonials to the members of the society for the perpetuation of
their race; and the ho´naaite, taking a mouthful, throws it out through
his teeth to the cardinal points, that the cloud people may gather and
send rain that the earth may be fruitful.
RAIN CEREMONIAL OF THE QUER´RÄNNA SOCIETY.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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