April 14, 2009
August 31, 2009
Totems and their meanings
Posted by tipiheaven under History, People, What | Tags: native american totem, totem, totem pole, totem symbol |Leave a Comment
Totem. Ref: cr.nps.gov
A totem can be the symbol of a tribe, clan, family or individual. Native American tradition provides that each individual is connected with nine different animals that will accompany each person through life, acting as guides. Different animal guides come in and out of our lives depending on the direction that we are headed and the tasks that need to be completed along our journey.
Native beliefs further explain that a totem animal is one that is with you for life, both in the physical and spiritual world. Though people may identify with different animal guides throughout their lifetimes, it is this one totem animal that acts as the main guardian spirit. (more…)
August 28, 2009
Native American Folk Lore “The Morning Star”
Posted by tipiheaven under Environment, The Outdoor Life | Tags: History, Native American Folk Lore, Native American Lore, north american, The Morning Star |Leave a Comment
“The Morning Star”
Morning Star
It was a warm summer’s night and many of the Indians had forsaken their airless tipis to sleep under the open sky among the cool, sweet smelling prairie grass. One, a young girl called Feather Woman, awoke early. It was not yet dawn and the morning star had just begun to rise above the distant horizon. The girl propped herself on one elbow and watched the star as it climbed steadily into the dark sky. She thought that she had never seen anything quite so beautiful.
‘I love the morning star,’ she whispered to herself. ‘How clear and bright it is! If only I could find a husband half as handsome as that star, how happy I should be!’ Her loving gaze followed the star until it faded into the paler light of the coming day. (more…)
August 25, 2009
Some Native American Proverbs and Wisdom
Posted by tipiheaven under Environment, History, People | Tags: anishinabe proverb, aoache proverb, arapaho proverb, assiniboine proverb, blackfoot proverb, cherokee proverb, cheyenne proverb, comanche proverb, creole proverb, crow proverb, dakota proverb, duwamish proverb, hopi proverb, indian wisdom, kiowa proverb, lakota proverb, lumbee proverb, maricopa proverb, minquass proverb, mohawk proverb, navajo proverb, nez perce proverb, oglala proverb, paiute proverb, proverbs, sauk proverb, seneca proverb, shawnee proverb, sioux proverb, tuscarora proverb, umpqua proverb, ute proverb, yurok proverb, zuni proverb |Leave a Comment
Blackfoot Tipi. Ref: legendsofamerica.com
Don’t be afraid to cry. It will free your mind of sorrowful thoughts. – Hopi
Day and night cannot dwell together. – Duwamish
It is better to have less thunder in the mouth and more lightning in the hand. – Apache
They are not dead who live in the hearts they leave behind. – Tuscarora
All plants are our brothers and sisters. They talk to us and if we listen, we can hear them. – Arapaho
Tell me and I’ll forget. Show me, and I may not remember. Involve me, and I’ll understand. – Tribe Unknown.
Before eating, always take time to thank the food. – Arapaho
August 23, 2009
Native American Folk Lore “How the Hopi Indians Reached Their World”
Posted by tipiheaven under History, How, People, The Outdoor Life | Tags: hopi, hopi four worlds, hopi indian, Native American Folk Lore |Leave a Comment
“How the Hopi Indians Reached Their World”
Hopi Indians
When the world was new, the ancient people and the ancient creatures did not live on the top of the earth. They lived under it. All was darkness, all was blackness, above the earth as well as below it.
There were four worlds: this one on top of the earth, and below it three cave worlds, one below the other. None of the cave worlds was large enough for all the people and the creatures.
They increased so fast in the lowest cave world that they crowded it. They were poor and did not know where to turn in the blackness. When they moved, they jostled one another. The cave was filled with the filth of the people who lived in it. No one could turn to spit without spitting on another. No one could cast slime from his nose without its falling on someone else. The people filled the place with their complaints and with their expressions of disgust.
Some people said, “It is not good for us to live in this way.”
“How can it be made better?” one man asked. (more…)
August 20, 2009
Dancing for their Gods
Posted by tipiheaven under History, People, What | Tags: dance, dancing, hopi dances, hopi indian, indian dancing, indian tribes, ko-pe-ley, kopeley, native american dance, pueblo indian, pueblos, snake dance |Leave a Comment
Ko-pe-ley. Ref: harvard-diggins.org
Ko-pe-ley. Ref: harvard-diggins.org
DANCING FOR THEIR GODS
All Indian tribes love ceremony involving religious dances, but none more than the Pueblos, who evolve a rite for every occasion of life. The Hopi people, in particular, were devoted to their ceremonies, the most famous of which was the Snake Dance.
Although most of the dances of the Pueblo Indians were forbidden to white men’s eyes, I was permitted to witness many of those of the Hopis, as I had been accepted as one of them. The Hopi dances were the most elaborate of the rites practiced by the Pueblos. Features of the Hopi dances were practiced by the other Indians of the Southwest – even relics of the Snake Dance. (more…)
