Lakota Spirituality

Sacred People....the Intermediaries....Ritual Specialists

Insofar as taku wakan, 'sacred things' and the poteniality for transforming natural and cultural phenomena into wakan status were reflected in the entire Oglala universe, it is understandable that religion was widely diffused throughout all aspects of Oglala social organization. But if common man was to accomplish things, it was necessary for Wakantanka to appear in a vision. Visions manifested themselves as uninduced revelations, or they might be sought in the vision quest (hanbleceya, 'to cry for a vision, dream'). Wakan things were difficult to understand for the common man, and so certain persons were invested with the power of interpreting the multitudinous wonders of Wakantanka.

Those capable of mediating between the supernatural beings and powers and the common people were called wakan ( wicaša wakan, 'man sacred'; and winyan wakan, 'woman sacred'). Sacred persons were distinguished from pejuta wicaša, 'medicine men', and pejuta winyan, 'medicine women', who administered pejuta (from peji, 'grass', and huta, 'roots', i.e., 'herbal medicine'). Although sacred persons might on occasion be instructed to administer pejuta by Wakantanka, they cured people mainly by supernatural means; whereas the pejuta wicaša was primarily a medical doctor, and aside from prescribing internal and external medicines was capable of setting fractures and providing forms of physical therapy. The term medicine man is derived from this latter form of doctor, and while it is inappropriate to refer to wakan persons by the same label, it nevertheless has become a convention among Oglalas when speaking English.

The wakan people attended to the everyday needs of the common people: they interceded with the sacred to ensure a fair day for hunting and ceremonies; they sought out the buffalo by mystical means, and predicted the outcome of war journeys by divination. They were capable of creating potions and powders which could make a horse strong-winded or aid a young man in wooing a woman. They found lost objects by employing the aid of sacred stones; they interpreted the natural and sacred signs of the universe; they bestowed names upon the newborn and upon those who earned new names through prowess in hunting and warfare.

The wakan people were also instructors, interpreters of the sacred myths, and directors of the great ceremonies. Some were generalists; other were specialists. Among the latter were those who cured illnesses which were induced by wakan šica, 'evil wakan' or by other wakan persons who derived the power from the evil wakan, the wicah'munga, 'wizard' and wicah'munga, 'witch'. The specialists in curing were known as wapiye wicaša or wapiyapi (from wa, prefix, 'a person who'; piya, 'to renew, do over, repeat'; and wicaša, 'man'; wapiyapi, 'they who renew'). Even among the specialists, the techinques employed in curing varied, depending on the nature of the vision in which the wakan person received his power.

Wissler, in his systematic survey of Oglala sodalities, discusses a variety of so-called dream cults, associations comprised of people who had experienced similar visions. among them he lists:

The Heyoka. A cult comprised of persons who had dreamed of the thunder-beings (Wakinyan). Upon receiving such a vision of lightning or thunder, it was required that members act in an antinatural manner. They dressed warmly in summer, wore no clothes in winter. They sometimes spoke backwards. In one of their major ceremonies, Heyoka kaga, 'clown making ceremony', they plunged their hands into boiling-hot water in an effort to retrieve choice bits of dog meat, and complained of the coldness of the water.

The Elks (Heĥaka ihanblapi, 'they dream of elks'). The members of this cult dressed up to represent elks in their ceremonies. The elk was imbued with special powers over women, and members of the cult were supposed to be privileged to steal women, and made a special concoction from the white of the eye, the heart, and fetlocks, which they mixed with other pejuta and ate. This special medicine was called wincuwa, 'to chase women with'.

The Bears (Mato ihanblapi, 'they dream of bears'). The members, during their ceremonies, paraded around the camp dressed in bearskins, growling like a bear and chasing people. Bear dreamers were particularly astute curers.

The Black-Tailed Deer (Sinte sapela, 'black tails'). This cult was similar in dress and ceremony to the Elks, Like the Elks, the members were capable of killing people with their glance, or by capturing the reflection of another through a mirror, or by sighting them through a sacred hoop (cangleška wakan).

The Wolf Cult (Šung'manitu, or Šunkmahetu, ihanblapi, 'they dream of wolves'). The members wore wolf skins and were particularly adept at removing arrows from wounded warriors. They also prepared war medicines (wotawe) for protection against enemies.

The Buffalo Cult (Tatang ihanblapi, 'they dream of buffalo bulls'). The members dressed as buffalos and stamped about the camp bellowing like buffalos. One member stalked another, shooting him and causing him to vomit blood. Still another healed the wound with a special medicine.

The Berdache Cult (Winkte, from win, 'woman', and kte, enclitic, future tense, i.e., 'would-be-woman'). Men who dreamed of a wakan woman or a hermaphroditic buffalo cow (pte winkte) were forever required to behave as a woman, sometimes marrying men, and doing the household chores of women. The winkte were regarded as sacred people, but it is unlikely that they formed an association. One of their primary responsibilities was naming children.

The Double-Woman Cult (Anukite ihanblapi, 'they dream of face-on-both-sides'). Double-Woman is a supernatural who, being once beautiful, was punished for infidelity by acquiring a second, horrid face. Those who dreamed of Anukite became proficient in the handwork of women, particularly quillwork and tanning. The Double-Woman appears in a number of conventional forms: as a person with two faces, one beautiful, the other ugly; a single beautiful woman, most often a temptress; or two women who represent alternative answers to a single question, often of a divinatory nature, The two women often change into black-tailed deer at the conclusion of dreams. Thus a synonym for Double-Woman is Sinte sapela win, 'black-tailed woman'.

Women who dreamed of Double-Woman inherited powers to seduce men. Such women were not regarded as normal. Men who encountered Double-Woman in a vision were often required to choose between male and female utensils. The latter choice indicated that the man should live as a winkte.

Men were instructed to avoid lone women whom they might encounter on the prairie or in the woods, for they might be deer women. Deer women usually appeared as beautiful women who, upon seducing a man, turned into a deer and ran away. Sexual contact with a deer woman was fatal.

The Dreaming-Pair Cult (wakan ic^ihanbla, 'they dream of each other sacredly'). This cult was one of which two people who had dreamed of each other made feasts for those who had similar experiences. Not much is reported about this cult.

Mountain Sheep Cult (hecinškayapi ihanblapi, 'they dream of mountain sheep [hecinškayapi, 'to make horn ladles, spoons'])'. There is some debate over the existence of this cult; some members were credited with having the ability to make strong war medicine.

A Rabbit Cult, Horse Cult, Women's Medicine Cult, Mescal Cult, and Dog Cult are also reported by Wissler, but is is questionable whether or not these cults had the same status as the others. The Horse Cult is probably the Šunkwakan wacipi, 'horse dance', a reenactment of a vision related to dreaming of thunder. The Mescal Cult is the same as the Peyote Cult, now called the Native American Church. Mescal is a misnomer.

Although Wissler focused on dream cults and the relationships between sacred persons who shared similar visions, many sacred persons derived their powers from unique experiences. Here it is important to distinguish between the concept of inhanbla, 'to dream of', and piyapi, 'to renew, cure'. The first term identifies the source of the power and the means by which a sacred person received instructions. The second refers to the process of curing, and is used as a marker to identify sacred persons and their specific means of curing. Thus one who received instructions to cure from the bear was said to have mato ihanbla, 'dreamed of a bear'. As long as this sacred person cured by ;means of the aforesaid instructions, he was known as a mato wapiye, 'bear curer'. Presumably Wissler did not identify some dream cults, or was unable to gather information on others because they did not exist as cults. For example, he does not mention wanbli wapiye, 'eagle curer', nor does he mention yuwipi wicaša because they both were apparently not of cult status. Yuwipi, a contemporary form of curing, existed during Wissler's time, but no mention is made of it, probably because it suggests a method of curing rather than a source of power. Yuwipi, discussed later, centers on a sacred person who usually (but not always) conducts his ceremonies in a darkened room, and is often bound with rawhide thongs, which are later loosened by his spirit-helpers.

Mystical experience. Although statistically most sacred men and women assumed their duties upon reaching middle age (35 - 45, but actually "fortyish" is regarded as old age among Oglalas), many relate that they had experiences as a child which left them perplexed. Black Elk had his first vision when he was nine. As a child, Crazy Horse behaved unusually, preferring isolation to sociability. The initial experience might take the form of an uninterpretable vision or a feat of accomplishment in hunting or warfare which was far beyond the person's age or ability. Sitting Bull killed his first buffalo when he was ten, and his first enemy when he was fourteen. He soon after was able to communicate with birds, particularly the meadowlark, which the Sioux believe speads Lakota. (Actually, a number of birds "speak" Lakota, and their responses to questions are used as divinatory devices.) The initial mystical experience was normally not acted upon immediately, but often obsessed the person thoughout his early life.

Misfortune. In middleage, the potentially sacred person usually experienced a misfortune which took the form of a riding or hunting mishap or misadventure in war. He was often injured bodily, or his sensory modalities were temporarily impaired. Frequently, the person was haunted by a recurring vision which eventually demanded interpretation. He might also be bothered by strange voices, communications from animals and birds, or revelations from deceased members of his family. At some stage in his life, these misfortunes and perplexities led him to seek interpretation from an established sacred person.

Consultation. When it became apparent that interpretation was required, the person sought out an established practitioner. The vision or other mysterious experience was described to the sacred person, and after a few days an interpretation was offered. It required that the person go through an ordeal which would be both instructive and revealing to himself about the nature of the problem, and would allow the sacred person to provide an additional interpretation. The ordeal was the vision quest.

Crying for a vision. Under the direction of the sacred person, the novitiate, as he may now be called, underwent instructions related to hanbleceya, 'to cry for a vision'. A sacred place, usually a hill or isolated place, was chosen, and the novice was required to stay there alone, usually for four days, until he received a vision. He must show humility; he drank no water and ate no food; and his only possessions were perhaps a blanket and, most important, a pipe.

After a vision had been received, the novice returned to the camp for further consultation with the sacred person. On the basis of the vision, the sacred person decided whether or not the novice should become an apprentice and begin to learn the sacred knowledge of the Oglalas. Not all persons became sacred; some were simply instructed to perform their visions for the people or to take part in a ceremony such as the sun dance. But if the vision signified potential power in the novice, he would be instructed to learn the practices of the sacred person, under the tutelage of his mentor.

Apprenticeship. During his apprenticeship, the novice learned the sacred knowledge, the significance of the myths, the sacred language, and the techniques required to perform ceremonies or cure the common people. Most importantly, he learned that he must be unšike, 'pitiable', because the power that he had gained could be used for either good or evil. Sacred knowledge and the performance of rituals could be used for the welfare of all the people, but at the same time, the power could be dangerous to the practitioner. It could also be misused if the supernatural beings and powers were not properly propitiated. The novice learned the meanings of prayers and songs, and often served as an assistant to his mentor in the great ceremonies such as the sun dance.

Ordination. After the conclusion of his apprenticeship, the novice became established as a sacred person in his own right. It is not always clear how long an apprenticeship was served. Frequently, however, the novice slowly drifted away from the tutelage of his mentor; and upon occasion, the newly established practitioner might find himself in competition with his mentor. As a sacred person, he now conducted his own rituals and assisted other sacred persons with the duties of larger ceremonies. He was also active as a counselor to the secular administration of the Oglala camp, and his influence figured prominently in the selection of civil magistrates.

Renewal. In order to retain his powers and propitiate the supernaturals, the sacred person periodically visited sacred places and underwent the vision quest. The more frequently he sought visions, the more power he maintained. If he cured people and invested in them some of his own powers (šicun), he would have to compensate for the loss of these powers by continual renewal. Should he not participate in the vision quest, he would eventually lose all power or he sould be susceptible to evil powers.

Abdication. Growing old was synonymous with losing power and finally abdicating the role and responsibilities of the sacred person. Power was lost because one's personal šicun were given away, or because one's memory failed and with it the ability to properly propitiate the supernaturals. The loss of this power was recognized by the common people, and they turned to a more powerful intermediary. In old age the wakan person was often subjected to ridicule and distrust by the same common people he had guided and cured. When he died, his ritual paraphernalia were burned because of its residual power. In some cases, an elderly sacred person, in anticipation of abdicating his position, might train his son in the duties of a ritual specialist and bequeath to him part of his remaining power and his ritual paraphernalia.

By far more Oglala men than women became sacred persons. However, the woman's role in ritual affairs was prominent, particularly prior to first menstruation and after menopause. During these times there were no menstrual avoidance rules in effect, and women were not capable of ritually contaminating men's paraphernalia related to hunting, warfare, and the supernatural. Before the onset of menstruation, girls in fact played a more prominent role in ritual matters than boys. The witanšna, 'virgins', were selected by men's warrior societies to perform rituals and sing certain songs. The virgins also handled ritual objects and figured prominently in the sun dance.

After puberty, certain women received visions in which they were taught how to find herbs and roots which they later applied as medicine. Some women mediated between the common people and the supernaturals. During menstruation women were required to leave the camp and live temporarily in an išnatipi. Išnati, 'to live alone', is a metaphor for menstruation as well as the name of the menstrual dwelling. During this period, women could not handle or be in the same dwelling with ritual paraphernalia lest it be contaminated. The menstrual bundle was carefully placed in trees in order to prevent animals, such as coyotes, from stealing it and ultimately holding power over the woman from whom it was stolen.

A woman past menopause could enjoy more ritual obligations inasmuch as menstrual restrictions were no longer applicable. An old woman might assist her husband in sacred rituals to the extent that the death of the wife might be regarded as a partial loss of power by the husband. The potency of women was underscored in the sacred myths. All of the sacred ceremonies of the Oglalas were given to them by a woman in her sexual prime, the White Buffalo Calf Woman.