Amerindian Arts Native American News & Information

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Red Earth Museum Grand Opening, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Native American Identity

2010-03-22T16:10:00.001-05:00

Native American arts daily news, presented by
amerindianarts.us

Headlines, exhibits, powwows listed below: (access past headline archives for 2004-2006 here)

Red Earth Museum Grand Opening

Tales of an Urban Indian , at the Autry

Buffy Sainte-Marie
Cradleboard Teaching Project

Freedom of Information:The FBI, Indian Country, and Surveillance , poets and artists explore the relationship

Living Legends , Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribal Tribune

Native American exhibit at the Cleveland Museum of Art

Book Review- Everything You Know About Indians Is Wrong

In The Sovereign Image, a new exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts

Deer Valley Rock Art Center

Welch novel to be a movie , cast will be entirely Native American

Ancient Traders Gallery closing

A Song for the Horse Nation

“A Song for the Horse Nation,” an exhibition of 98 artifacts relating to native horse cultures, opening on Saturday at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian in Lower Manhattan and runs through July 7, 2011

"More than Fry Bread"

Residents audition for role in American Indian movie

See full article

Saving Native American languages

Some 40 languages, mainly in California and Oklahoma, where thousands of Indians were forced to relocate as part of the notorious 19th Century Trail of Tears, have fewer than 10 native speakers.

See full article

Prayer at sunrise

Now this day, (Lukka yattone)
My sun father, (Hom yatoka tatcu)
Now that you have come out standing to your sacred place, (yam telashina kwi to' ye lhana kwai ikapa)
That from which we draw the water of life, (yam kia kwi ya na te'ona)
Life sacred meal, (hala wo tinane)
Here I give to you. (lilha tom ho te'a upa)
Your long life, (yam onaya naka)
Your old age, (yam lha shiaka)
Your waters, (yam kashima)
Your seeds, (yam towashonane)
Your riches, (yam u/tenane)
Your power, (yam sawanikia)
Your strong spirit, (yam tsemakwin tsume)
All these to me may you grant, (temlha hom to anikchiana).

To be chanted with an offering of cornmeal
Zuñi

DVD- American Experience: Last Stand at Little Big Horn (2005)

Narrated by Pulitzer Prize-winning Native American writer Scott Momaday, "Last Stand at Little Big Horn" is an examination of Custer's last stand from the viewpoints of the Lakota Sioux and the white settlers. The film is a collaboration of Native American novelist James Welch (Winter in the Blood, The Indian Lawyer) and white filmmaker Paul Stekler (Eyes on the Prize).

Order American Experience: Last Stand at Little Big Horn

Recent Books of Interest

''Canyon Gardens: The Ancient Pueblo Landscapes of the American Southwest (University of New Mexico Press: 2006). Editors V.B. Price and Baker H. Morrow have assembled 15 essays on the millennium-old Puebloan landscape.

"Being Lakota", Book by Larissa Petrillo

"American Indian Nations: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow", Book by George Horse Capture

Spokane artist George Flett, well kown for his depictions of ledger art, announcing forthcoming book "The Ledger Art of George Flett"

Po'pay, Leader of the First American Revolution, Clear Light Publishing, 2006, new book by Herman Agoyo (Ohkay Owingeh)

Zuni fetish updates from Amerindian Arts

Sandra Quandelacy, 2-13-2010, corn maidens
Lena Boone, 2-12-2010, glass carvings
Prudentia Quam and Vernon Lunasee, 2-12-2010, bears
Andres Quandelacy, 2-11-2010, various chrysocolla carvings
Chad Quandelacy, 2-11-2010, T-rex
Faye Quandelacy, 2-11-2010, maidens
Ricky Laahty, 2-11-2010, blue and pink opal, variscite, and various other frogs, and a bear
Lynn Quam, 2-11-2010, hemimorphite and rhodocrosite buffaloes
Jayne Quam, 2-11-2010, owl
Albenita Yuni, 2-10-2010, various carvings
Jeffrey Yuni, 2-10-2010, various carvings
Peter Gasper, 2-10-2010, lapis carvings
Elroy Gasper, 2-10-2010, variscite carvings
Avery Quandelacy, 2-10-2010, turquoise otters
Claudia Peina, 2-10-2010, bears
Alonzo Esalio, 2-9-2010, stichtite bear
Dee Edaakie, 2-9-2010, boulder opal bear and lion. Marble rabbit, beaver, and bear
Colin Weeka, 2-9-2010, fox and bobcat sculpture
Brion Hattie, 2-9-2010, eagle
Todd Westika, 2-8-2010, buffaloes
Duane Dishta, 2-8-2010, Kachina paintings
Stewart Quandelacy, 2-8-2010, medicine bears from hemimorphite, dolomite, hickorite
Gibbs Othole, 2-8-2010, various carvings
Andres Quandelacy, 1-22-2010, various carvings
Andres Quandelacy, 1-11-2010, various carvings, hemimorphite, azurite, rhodocrosite, dolomite
LaVies and Daisy Natewa, 1-6-2010, various double carvings
Randy Nahohai, 1-3-2010, Zuni pottery, deer and antelope design
Todd Westika, 1-1-2010, buffaloes, bears
Garrick Weeka, 12-31-2009, owl
Lena Boone, 12-31-2009, various carvings
Prudentia Quam and Vernon Lunasee, 12-30-2009, lions, foxes, bears
Jayne Quam, 12-30-2009, various carvings
Michael Coble, 12-28-2009, ravens
Priscilla Lasiloo, 12-27-2009, various bears
Lynn Quam, 12-26-2009, bears, buffaloes, coyotes
Stewart Quandelacy, 12-26-2009, medicine bears from hemimorphite, turquoise, and dolomite of various patterns
Ricky Laahty, 12-26-2009, stichtite, blue opal, variscite frogs
Herbert Him, 12-23-2009, bear on a pueblo
Brion Hattie, 12-23-2009, bear
Albert Eustace, 12-23-2009, various sodalite carvings
Loren Tsalabutie, 12-23-2009, dancing bear and running lion
Nancy Westika, 10-25-2009, fetish necklace
Andres Quandelacy, 10-18-2009, Pegasus and various other carvings

Changing Woman, Walter Bone Shirt Ledger, Michael Kabotie

2009-11-18T12:34:00.000-05:00

Native American arts daily news, presented by
amerindianarts.us

Headlines, exhibits, powwows listed below: (access past headline archives for 2004-2006 here)

Michael Kabotie , Hopi artist, dies at 67

The Walter Bone Shirt Ledger
View Images here
View more images at plainsindianledger.org here

Tribal embassy opens in Washington

Bill and Demos Glass commissioned by AICC

Skinner's September 26 sale of American Indian and ethnographic art

A Song for the Horse Nation

"More than Fry Bread"

Residents audition for role in American Indian movie

See full article

Saving Native American languages

Some 40 languages, mainly in California and Oklahoma, where thousands of Indians were forced to relocate as part of the notorious 19th Century Trail of Tears, have fewer than 10 native speakers.

See full article

Iroquois Indian Museum exhibition “Native Americans in the Performing Arts: From Ballet to Rock and Roll.”

Start Date: March 30, 2009 - End Date: December 31, 2009
Location: Iroquois Indian Museum Howes Cave, N.Y.
Phone: (518) 296-8949

iroquoismuseum.org

Changing Woman

Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé] comes closest to being the personification of the earth [Nahasdzáán] and of the natural order of the universe [Yádihi Bii' Bi Haz'ánígíí] as to any other brief way of describing her. She represents the cyclical path of the seasons [nináhágháhígíí], birth (spring [daan dgo]), maturing (summer [sh shgo]), growing old (fall ['ak'eed]) and dying (winter [haigo]), only to be reborn again in the spring [daan dgo].

The birth of Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé] was planned by First Man [Átsé hastiin] and First Woman [Átsé asdzáán]. First Man [Átsé hastiin] repeatedly held up his medicine bundle [jish] toward Gobernador Knob [Ch'óol''] at dawn [hayíík]. Somehow from this action Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé] was born and found lying on top of Gobernador Knob [Ch'óol'']. She was found by Talking God [Haashch'éét'í] who was sent to investigate. First Man [Átsé hastiin] then presented her to the diyinii, saying that you could see that this is the child of the young man and young woman of exceeding beauty who themselves had arisen from the same medicine bundle to become the inner form of the earth.{*}

First Man [Átsé hastiin] raises and teaches Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé]. She grew from infancy to puberty in four [d] days, thus acquiring the name Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé]. This occasioned the first puberty ceremony. The Holy People [diyin diné] were called for and Talking God [Haashch'éét'í] officiated at the ceremony.

Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé] was dressed in jewels (white shell [yoogaii], turquoise [doot'izhii], abalone [diichi] and jet [bááshzhinii]), blessed with pollen [tádídíín] from the dawn [hayíík] and from twilight [nahootsoii], and with “pollen” from many jewels and soft fabrics, symbolizing her control over these articles. After this blessing, her hair was bathed with dews [dahtoo'] and she was instructed to run toward the dawn [hayíík] as far as she could see and then to return. As she ran, her dress of jewels jingled. She repeated this for four [d] nights [t'éé]. On these days [j], when not involved in ceremonies, she occupied herself with planning for the future of the earth [nahasdzáán]. By the end of the ceremony she had made millstones [tsédaashjéé and tsédaashch'íní], a whisk broom [bee nahalzhoohí], pots ['ásaa']and stirring sticks [ídístsiin]. The songs that were sung for Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé] as she ran are sung today for young women at their puberty ceremonies [kinaaldá].

At Changing Woman’s [Asdz nádleehé] next menstration another puberty ceremony was held, similar to the first. But at this ceremony other procedures for the future were defined. These decree that no menstruating woman shall be present at any ceremonial. The order of songs at future Blessingway [hózhójí] ceremonies was thus determined.

After this ceremony Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé] would go outside and walk on the trail which had been prepared for her. One day at noon a strange man walked up to her and spoke to her. He said “Prepare yourself for something that is going to happen, after a while I will visit you.” This stranger was so dazzling that Changing Woman [Asdz& n nádleehé] had to look away. When she turned back, he was gone. She returned home and reported this encounter to First Woman [Átsé asdz] and First Man [Átsé hastiin]. It seems that First Man [Átsé hastiin] was expecting this occurence, which happened twice again. On the third time Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé] was told to fix her bed outside, with her head to the east. When she fell asleep a young man came and lay beside her. This happened again and she asked who he was. He replied, “Don’t you know me? Didn’t you ever see me? Don’t you know that you see me all the time? It is I that takes care of all things, whatever there is on earth. I am the Sun’s inner form. In my very presence you came into being, in my presence you were put into shape, even I was among them!” He then indicated that First Man [Átsé hastiin] had directed him to do this. The next day she decided to bathe because the young man might visit her again.

While bathing the young man appeared again and with the collaboration of the dripping water impregnated Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé]. In nine [náhást'éí] days [j], twins were born to Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé]. These twins were to become Monster Slayer and Born for Water. These two [nakii] also grew in four [d] day [j] periods and in twelve [nakits'áadah] days [j] they were grown young men.

At this point Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé] asked for and receives the medicine bundle [jish] that First Man [Átsé hastiin] had brought up from the previous worlds. She moves to a hooghan that was built for her at the base of Huerfano Mountain [Dzina'oodIII. Here she conducted the first wedding ceremony, the mating of corn. After this ceremony Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé] leaves for the house that her sons have built for her, at the direction of their father, the Sun [Jóhonaa'éí], in the west ['e'e'aah], at or on the Pacific Ocean.

Here Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé] grew lonely and created the Navajo People from skin rubbed off various parts of her body. The four [d] pairs of people created at this time are the ancestors of all Navajo today.

Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé] also caused the abduction of the two children of Rock Crystal Talking God. They were taken to her house in the west ['e'e'aah] by way of a rainbow [nááts'íílid] and a sunbeam [shábit'óól]. Here they were taught the Blessingway [Hózhójí] ceremony. They returned home to teach the ceremony to all of their people (the original Navajos saw the ceremony being taught to these children). The diyinii all gathered to learn the ceremony and to construct the original Mountain Soil bundle, containing soil from each of the sacred mountains [dzi dadiyinígíí], with which the ceremony is still conducted. The Holy People then said that, after their departure from this ceremony, they would never be seen in person again but that their presence would be manifest in the sound of the wind [níyol], the feathers [ats'os] of an eagle ['atsá], in various birds [naat'a'gii], the growth of the corn [naad] and other aspects of the world surrounding the earth surface people.The two children who had been taught the Blessingway ceremony [Hózhójí] then departed to live with the Holy People.

{*} The parentage of Changing Woman [Asdz nádleehé] is described in several different ways by different informants; however these can be thought of as just different ways of saying the same thing. Some say that her father and mother are the Sky and the Earth. Others say her parents are sa’a naghái ashkii (boy) and bik’e hózh at’ééd (girl) as in this version. However the Sky is sometimes referred to as sa’a naghái and the Earth as bik’e hózh. In either case, Changing Woman is Earth’s child, the child of the Sky and the child of the mountain. As she was planned for by First Man [Átsé hastiin] and First Woman [Átsé asdz] and called forth by First Man [Átsé hastiin], she is also their child.

Keeper of Stories

DVD- American Experience: Last Stand at Little Big Horn (2005)

Order American Experience: Last Stand at Little Big Horn

Recent Books of Interest

"Being Lakota", Book by Larissa Petrillo

"American Indian Nations: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow", Book by George Horse Capture

Spokane artist George Flett, well kown for his depictions of ledger art, announcing forthcoming book "The Ledger Art of George Flett"

Po'pay, Leader of the First American Revolution, Clear Light Publishing, 2006, new book by Herman Agoyo (Ohkay Owingeh)

Zuni fetish updates from Amerindian Arts

Nancy Westika, 10-25-2009, fetish necklace
Andres Quandelacy, 10-18-2009, Pegasus and various other carvings
Peter Gasper, 8-30-2009, various carvings
Debra Gasper, 8-30-2009, a frog
Fabian Tsethlikai, 8-30-2009, various carvings
Claudia Peina, 8-30-2009, corn maidens and owls
Marcella Chase Weahkee, 8-30-2009, single serpentine bear carving on Lena Boone's page
Lena Boone, 8-30-2009, various carvings
Ernie Mackel, 8-30-2009, various carvings
Randy Nahohai, 8-29-2009, Zuni pottery
Michael Coble, 8-28-2009, parrot, snake, spider, frog, and an otter
Avery Quandelacy, 8-29-2009, various carvings
Prudentia Quam and Vernon Lunasee, 8-29-2009, lions, bears, and bear pendants
Jayne Quam, 8-28-2009, various stichtite carvings
Lynn Quam, 8-28-2009, bears, buffaloes
Todd Westika, 8-28-2009, buffaloes, bears, and a limpet shell turtle
Ron Laahty, 8-27-2009, turquoise carvings
Ricky Laahty, 8-27-2009, stichtite, turquoise, palo verde frogs
Albert Eustace, 8-27-2009, bear carvings
Rhoda Quam, 8-27-2009, Zuni mother of pearl maiden fetish necklaces
Valerie Comosona, 8-27-2009, Zuni bumble earrings; koala, monkey, and flamingo pin/pendants
Chad Quandelacy, 8-27-2009, Zuni fossil ivory maiden fetish pendant necklace
Chad Quandelacy, 8-27-2009, Gleeson turquoise stegosaurus
Stewart Quandelacy, 8-27-2009, horse, mountain lion, and eagle carvings
Andres Quandelacy, 8-27-2009, Pegasus, baltic amber and various other carvings
Alonzo Esalio, 8-27-2009, bear, bobcat and mountain lion
Herbert Him, 8-27-2009, bears, badger and turtles
Stewa rt Quandelacy, 8-27-2009, turquoise medicine bear pendant pendant
Andres Quandelacy, 8-27-2009, Baltic amber Zuni horse pendant and lion pendant
Jayne Quam, 6-12-2009, howling coyotes, various carvings
Lynn Quam, 6-12-2009, bears, buffaloes
Gibbs Othole, 5-30-2009, various carvings
Dee Edaakie, 5-10-2009, ivory stone marble bears, lions
Jeff Tsalabutie, 5-4-2009, amber carvings
Stewart Quandelacy, 4-6-2009, rare turtle carving
Chad Quandelacy, 4-4-2009, corn maiden pendants
Stewart Quandelacy, 4-4-2009, long necks and medicine bear pendants
Jeff Tsalabutie, 3-25-2009, an elephant, dancing bear, fox, frog, and a squirrel
Todd Westika, 3-23-2009, buffaloes, bears, and a bobcat
Stewart Quandelacy, 3-23-2009, various carvings
Chad Quandelacy, 3-23-2009, turquoise corn maidens
Stewart Quandelacy, 3-8-2009, various carvings
Todd Poncho, 2-19-2009, horse carvings
Albenita Yuni, 2-19-2009, various carvings
Brion Hattie, 2-17-2009, various carvings
Burt Awelagte, 2-17-2009, various carvings
Stuart Quandelacy, 2-17-2009, turquoise corn maidens
Chad Quandelacy, 2-17-2009, turquoise corn maidens
Jeff Tsalabutie, 2-15-2009, various carvings
Stewart Quandelacy, 2-15-2009, Mother of pearl buffaloes
Ernie Mackel, 2-15-2009, lions, horses, wolves, and geese
Jayne Quam, 2-13-2009, howling coyotes, various carvings
Brian Yuni, 2-13-2009, various carvings
Peter Gasper, 2-13-2009, various carvings
Lena Boone, 2-13-2009, various carvings
Faye Quandelacy, 2-13-2009, cornmaidens
Avery Quandelacy, 2-13-2009, various carvings
Lynn Quam, 2-13-2009, bears, buffaloes
Prudentia Quam and Vernon Lunasee, 2-13-2009, lions, bears, and horses
Claudia Peina, 2-13-2009, corn maidens and bears
Ricky Laahty, 2-3-2009, frogs
Ricky Laahty, 2-3-2009, bird fetish pendant
Andres Quandelacy, 2-3-2009, Zuni horse pendant and lion pendant
Dee Edaakie, 2-3-2009, ivory stone marble bears, lapis lion
Stewart Quandelacy and Priscilla Lasiloo, 2-2-2009, Zuni medicine bear fetish pendants and earrings, turquoise horse pendant
Duane Dishta, 2-2-2009, Kachina paintings
Albert Eustace, 2-2-2009, bear carvings
Herbert Him, 2-2-2009, bear and buffalo
Kateri Sanchez, 2-2-2009, corn maidens
Todd Westika, 2-2-2009, howling coyotes, bears, wolves
Todd Westika, 12-29-2008, bears, buffaloes
Jeff Tsalabutie, 11-28-2008, various carvings
Priscilla Lasiloo, 11-26-2008, lapis, rhodocrosite bears
Sandra Quandelacy, 8-31-2008, corn maidens
Sandra Quandelacy, 8-30-2008, Zuni mother of pearl butterfly maiden fetish pendants
Prophet's Rock, All new listings for 8-22-2007

Zuni Carver Jeff Tsalabutie, in memoriam

2009-06-28T17:49:00.003-05:00

Native American arts daily news, presented by
amerindianarts.us

Headlines, exhibits, powwows listed below: (access past headline archives for 2004-2006 here)

Jeff Tsalabutie, in memoriam

Zuni artist Jeff Tsalabutie died tragically in a truck accident on June 22, 2009, in Arizona. Jeff was one of the premier contemporary fetish carvers from the Zuni Pueblo. He had the rare ability to give a stone carving a personality that would speak to you in volumes. Balancing acts and dancing bears, he had an exceptional talent for revealing the spirit in the stone while giving you a glimpse of his own free spirit and attitude on aesthetic license.

I had known Jeff since the late 90s and for the last few years we had scouted and ran point for each other every February at the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show, searching for unique stones for carvings. He was intent as an artist to experience new materials and find the best stones for his carvings, always being conscientious towards providing his patrons with quality work and a unique experience that he could share with them. I regret that I will never be able to share that experience with him again.

An Outstanding young man and exceptional artist he will be missed immensely.

Idyllwild Summer Arts Program

Native American Arts Festival, will take place July 12-18

"More than Fry Bread"

Residents audition for role in American Indian movie

See full article

Saving Native American languages

Some 40 languages, mainly in California and Oklahoma, where thousands of Indians were forced to relocate as part of the notorious 19th Century Trail of Tears, have fewer than 10 native speakers.

See full article

Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian

National Museum of the American Indian Awarded Accreditation by the American Association of Museums

See full article

Iroquois Indian Museum exhibition “Native Americans in the Performing Arts: From Ballet to Rock and Roll.”

Start Date: March 30, 2009 - End Date: December 31, 2009
Location: Iroquois Indian Museum Howes Cave, N.Y.
Phone: (518) 296-8949

iroquoismuseum.org

DVD- American Experience: Last Stand at Little Big Horn (2005)

Order American Experience: Last Stand at Little Big Horn

Recent Books of Interest

"Being Lakota", Book by Larissa Petrillo

"American Indian Nations: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow", Book by George Horse Capture

Spokane artist George Flett, well kown for his depictions of ledger art, announcing forthcoming book "The Ledger Art of George Flett"

Po'pay, Leader of the First American Revolution, Clear Light Publishing, 2006, new book by Herman Agoyo (Ohkay Owingeh)

Zuni fetish updates from Amerindian Arts

Stewart Quandelacy, 4-6-2009, rare turtle carving
Chad Quandelacy, 4-4-2009, corn maiden pendants
Stewart Quandelacy, 4-4-2009, long necks and medicine bear pendants
Jeff Tsalabutie, 3-25-2009, an elephant, dancing bear, fox, frog, and a squirrel
Todd Westika, 3-23-2009, buffaloes, bears, and a bobcat
Stewart Quandelacy, 3-23-2009, various carvings
Chad Quandelacy, 3-23-2009, turquoise corn maidens
Stewart Quandelacy, 3-8-2009, various carvings
Todd Poncho, 2-19-2009, horse carvings
Albenita Yuni, 2-19-2009, various carvings
Brion Hattie, 2-17-2009, various carvings
Burt Awelagte, 2-17-2009, various carvings
Stuart Quandelacy, 2-17-2009, turquoise corn maidens
Chad Quandelacy, 2-17-2009, turquoise corn maidens
Jeff Tsalabutie, 2-15-2009, various carvings
Stewart Quandelacy, 2-15-2009, Mother of pearl buffaloes
Ernie Mackel, 2-15-2009, lions, horses, wolves, and geese
Jayne Quam, 2-13-2009, howling coyotes, various carvings
Brian Yuni, 2-13-2009, various carvings
Peter Gasper, 2-13-2009, various carvings
Lena Boone, 2-13-2009, various carvings
Faye Quandelacy, 2-13-2009, cornmaidens
Avery Quandelacy, 2-13-2009, various carvings
Lynn Quam, 2-13-2009, bears, buffaloes
Prudentia Quam and Vernon Lunasee, 2-13-2009, lions, bears, and horses
Claudia Peina, 2-13-2009, corn maidens and bears
Ricky Laahty, 2-3-2009, frogs
Ricky Laahty, 2-3-2009, bird fetish pendant
Andres Quandelacy, 2-3-2009, Zuni horse pendant and lion pendant
Dee Edaakie, 2-3-2009, ivory stone marble bears, lapis lion
Stewart Quandelacy and Priscilla Lasiloo, 2-2-2009, Zuni medicine bear fetish pendants and earrings, turquoise horse pendant
Duane Dishta, 2-2-2009, Kachina paintings
Albert Eustace, 2-2-2009, bear carvings
Herbert Him, 2-2-2009, bear and buffalo
Kateri Sanchez, 2-2-2009, corn maidens
Todd Westika, 2-2-2009, howling coyotes, bears, wolves
Todd Westika, 12-29-2008, bears, buffaloes
Jeff Tsalabutie, 11-28-2008, various carvings
Priscilla Lasiloo, 11-26-2008, lapis, rhodocrosite bears
Sandra Quandelacy, 8-31-2008, corn maidens
Sandra Quandelacy, 8-30-2008, Zuni mother of pearl butterfly maiden fetish pendants
Prophet's Rock, All new listings for 8-22-2007

Sentiments of Frank Hamilton Cushing and others on the Church and State, Zuni, and Assimilation

2009-05-23T04:02:00.005-05:00

The following is evidenced for the most part based upon the research of others who had the opportunity to study the Zuni first-hand prior to the phenomenal acculturation that transpired in the last half of the twentieth century. It is also the introduction, or prelude, to a larger work concerning Cushing's notion of being (ontology) in the Zuni culture in contrast to Ruth Bunzel's analytic approach and accusations of Cushing's "metaphysical glossings" in his writings.

These writings may then be termed as dated or archaic in regard to certain aspects of the Zuni culture. To whatever extent that may be true, it is also true that the Zuni have resisted the offerings of the colonial cultures which sought to conquer them and which have been, as Frank Hamilton Cushing noted over a century previous, "as aught against the enduring genius of that ancient tongue and tone, and the philosophies and creeds framed in them a thousand years ago." (Green 1979: 175)

To that extent, the Zuni remain one of the most unique cultures on earth.

The plural inflection of the term "culture" as a signification of a set of customs and values relative to a certain group of people as a coherent entity in itself is a usage in anthropology which is wholly attributable to Cushing, and was distinct from the Victorian employment as an absolute which was current among his colleagues. The influence upon Cushing by the English anthropologist E.B. Tylor(1) on this matter is not disputed, but Tylor’s employment of the term "culture" was limited to a "concept of culture as accumulated customs" and he had "little or no sense of cultural pluralism…of cultural relativism, or of cultures as integrated coherent units." (Mark 1976: 466-467) The determinates of cultural plurality or relativism were notions added later by Cushing when he suggested "that a society is perhaps structured around what he called a guiding "Idea."" (Mark 1976: 468) As Mark indicates, Cushing's idea of cultures was reflected in the writings of his journalist friend, Sylvester Baxter. It was Baxter who referred to Cushing as the father of the Zuni Kultur in his article "The Father of the Pueblos," originally published in Harper's New Monthly Magazine in 1882, "indicating Baxter's awareness of the German origin and meaning of the term "culture" as Tylor and now Cushing were using it – as customs in general, not refinement and cultivation." (Mark, Ibid.)

That Cushing was also familiar with the German culture and language is evident, but to what extent he was knowledgeable in this area is uncertain. However, his conceptualization of the Zuni society and philosophy and the terminology he used to describe it bears an uncanny resemblance to that implemented in Kant's Anthropology from a Pragmatic Point of View. If Cushing had read this work it would have been in Kant's native German. Even if he had only secondary knowledge of the work it would explain his use of the terminology which was instrumental in Kant's explanation of the distinction between semblance (Schein) and the appearance (Erscheinung)(2) and his discussion of the confusion and conflict of subject and object in regard to primal thought as analogous to motive as a practical (moral) matter. This information can, for the most part, be found on a single page of the above title. (Kant 1798: 22)

The pragmatic point of view is that while morality is absolutely universal and a metaphysical body of moral principles must be a priori, the anthropologist can only deal with practical knowledge as an empirical science and therefore in anthropology there is no basis in the strict a priori for morality to become a science.

The anthropologist can, intensively and comparatively, analyze a culture, but a culture?s morality in particular cannot be a science of its own accord. A moral anthropology can only contain the subjective conditions in human nature which represent only that which is not attained because there can be no precepts founded upon a priori principles. (Kant 1797: 17) In other words, precepts are simple semblances of absolutes and are therefore "accidental." (See Cushing, 1966) It is the intent of the anthropologist then to analyze a group of people in its own terms as a culture in itself; yet explanation of the accidental dictates that absolutes must be kept in view, at least for the purpose of comparison. The accidental can only be accidental in contrast to universal. Since the absolute may also be grounded to a degree in the subjectivity of the observer, no culture can be considered as absolute. This is, in essence, the very spirit of Kultur. It was Cushing's belief that the culture of the Zuni was driven by the "Idea" and that it was completely self-determined.

Cushing's sentiments in regard to previous attempts at assimilation of the Zuni are opposed by several schools of thought. Andrew Knaut points out in his essay the school which is representative of Robert Ricard’s work La "Conquête Sprituelle" du Mexique (1933). This work is based upon the assumption that the success of the Spanish military virtually eliminated the pre-contact religion of the Pueblos and as a "classic interpretation" is one "of Pueblo-Spanish cultural interaction as one of complete native submission to the perceived superiority of a new faith promoted by European military might." (Knaut 1995: 54, 199 n.1) Knaut also specifies the school of thought where the Pueblo and Catholic belief systems merged into a synthesis which is practiced contemporaneously in the Pueblos (Ibid 53) and this view "permeates much of the anthropological work on the American Southwest." (Ibid, 200 n.2)

Knaut's position however is that in the first instance the Pueblos sought military protection, most notably from the nomadic Athapaskan groups, and were forced into the acceptance of Christian baptism primarily for this reason as well as the avoidance of hunger, for the Spanish had control of scarce resources and trade routes. This did not, however, prevent the Pueblos from practicing their rituals behind the "closed doors of native ceremonial chambers." (Ibid, 54) It is, in fact, these clandestine practices that are ignored by adherence to a view that contemporary Pueblo religious practices are a synthesis, "for such a perspective ignores the fact that…to engage in traditional ceremonies and practices behind a façade of Christian piety thus took on a deadly seriousness for those dedicated to preserving the old ways." (Ibid, 55) If there was a synthesis then perhaps there would be no motive for clandestine practices.

Knaut presents the thesis that the long time conflict between the colonial church and state provided many opportunities for the Pueblo traditionalists to continue the old ways. In the efforts of the state to maintain power over the church the natives were allowed to continue the old ways as the church was held in abeyance. The natives simply bided their time until the balance of power between the "Francescan missionaries, the bureaucratic authorities appointed by the crown, and the permanent settlers" deteriorated as a result of denunciation, accusation and greed, and these factors eventually discredited one another. It was the Pueblos who had everything to gain from the tension between the church and state.

Knaut's thesis is supportive of Cushing and the notion that it was the volition of Zuni to remain determinedly Zuni. Prior to 1924 the church and state within the Zuni Pueblo was indistinguishable. The only noticeable factions were the Catholic and Protestant appellations with the majority of the population being Zuni. When Frederick Hodge received permission in 1923 to photograph the Shalako from the progressives, or anti-Catholic faction, the Catholics opposed. This conservative faction and their opposition to outside interference clearly supports the notion that Roman Catholicism was accepted in the Pueblo in order to protect the natives from other European religions. The façade of Catholicism allows the natives to discreetly practice their "idolatry." (Eggan)

Other schools have advanced their thoughts on possible influences or the lack of influences as well. The Book of Mormon lectures by Nibley assert that the Spanish found Old and New Testament teachings pre-existing in the Pueblo rituals.

This is contrasted by the writings of Nancy Davis in The Zuni Enigma, a presentation of a distinctively Eastern, most likely Buddhist influence on the Zuni philosophy and religion and the claims of linguistic (3) and physical evidence. There are examples of pictorial symbolism of the Zuni and their possible religious significance and origins. Davis specifies the rosette (hepa’kinne) and its resemblance to the turning wheel of dharma in the Buddhist tradition whereas other anthropologists and ethnologists point to possible European origins where it was assimilated by the Zuni from Catholic alter cloths (4) . This symbol has also however, been recorded as decorations on St. John's polychrome which is in all probability pre-contact. There is also the resemblance of a set of Salado earrings (5) , c. 1200, which bear a strong resemblance to a Buddhist wheel of becoming. (Cerillo 1992: 11, plate 5)

It is unlikely that the Zuni, even in consideration of their remote western position in relation to the mainstream Spanish contact area of the eastern Pueblos, remained completely unaffected by the outside contact prior to Cushing's residency. But Cushing nonetheless detected a certain purity and in a letter to Frederick Ward Putnam, the director of Harvard's Peabody Museum, expressed his concern that the study of the Zuni could not be accomplished in a lifetime, but a lifetime was also too long a period of time for the study given his opinion that in the midst of vast acculturation the tribe and its culture would disappear. (Green 1990: 304) One can surmise the sense of urgency when he abandoned the tent he shared with Smithsonian photographer John Hillers and took up residence in the pueblo of the Zuni governor. (Cushing 1882)

Cushing was not a philosopher, but his participatory method and ability to understand the Zuni as "their own best interpreter" and his capacity to literally "translate the mind of the Zuni" (Green 1990, later quote from Alice Fletcher) enabled him to gain insights the value of which can be assessed as something more than merely "metaphysical glossings." It was his ambition to elucidate the primitive conception and polytheism, or at least to "record such facts as shall enable philosophers to do this." (Green 1990: 304)

Post Script- This essay was written as an introuduction to another essay regarding Bunzel remarking on Frank Hamilton Cushing's Zuni notes as "metaphysical glossings". Ruth Bunzel's analytic method and tendency to translate Zuni literally seems to reduce it to a body of folklore that left the Zuni mythology vaporous. It is a stark contrast to Cushing's interpretation of the Zuni's ontology, or concept of being, which gave substance to a complex hierarchy of "made being". To be published in future posts.

Notes

1) Primitive Culture (London, 1871), and Researches into the Early History of Mankind and the Development of Civilization (London, 1865)

2) These terms have been translated variously; Schein as "illusion" or "appearance" and Erscheinung as "phenomenon."

3) In Japanese, for example, anyone seeking enlightenment through vows to save all sentient beings is bosatsu. The Zuni name for the Ne-we-kwe, the highest of priests, is Bitsitsu. The phoneme 'b' is rare in Zuni. Bunzel, in several places, refers to bitsulia as the Zuni term for "circle". Newman’s orthography for "circle" is pizulliya. (1958) Bitsu is a term Davis cites for Buddha.

4) Matilda Stevenson proposes the sunflower as the source, and Bunzel seems to take this for granted. (Bunzel 1929:53)

5) These earrings resemble spoked wagon wheels, an object which is undoubtedly not what they were fashioned after.

References

Bunzel, Ruth L. The Pueblo Potter: A Study of Creative Imagination in Primitive Art. New York: Dover, 1929

______. "Introduction to Zuni Ceremonialism," (1932a); "Zuni Origin Myths," (1932b); "Zuni Ritual Poetry," (1932c). In Forty-Seventh Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology. Pp. 467-835. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1932. Reprint, Zuni Ceremonialism: Three Studies. Introduction by Nancy Pareto. University of New Mexico Press, 1992.

______. "Zuni Katcinas: An Analytic Study," (1932d). Forty-Seventh Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology. Pp. 836-1086. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1932. Reprint, Zuni Katcinas: 47th Annual Report. Albuquerque: Rio Grande Classics, 1984.

______. Zuni Texts. Publications of the American Ethnological Society, 15. New York: G.E. Steckert & Co., 1933.

Cushing, Frank Hamilton. My Adventures in Zuni. 1882. Palmer Lake, CO: Filter Press, 1999 reprint.

______. "Zuni Fetishes". Second Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology, 1880-1881. Pp. 3-45. Washington D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1883. Reprint, KC Publications, 1966.

Davis, Nancy Yaw. The Zuni Enigma. Norton, 2000.

Eggan, Fred and T.N. Pandey. "Zuni History, 1855-1970." In Handbook of North American Indians, Southwest,. Vol. 9. Ed. by Alfonso Ortiz. Pp. 474-481. Washington D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1979.

Green, Jesse, ed. Zuni: Selected Writings of Frank Hamilton Cushing. Lincoln and London: University of Nebraska Press, 1979.

______. Cushing at Zuni: The Correspondence and Journals of Frank Hamilton Cushing, 1879-1884. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1990.

Kant, Immanuel. Anthropology from a Pragmatic Point of View, 1798. Trans., Mary J. Gregor. The Hague, Netherlands: Martinus Nijhoff, 1974.

Knaut, Andrew L. Pueblo Revolt of 1680. Norman, OK: University Oklahoma Press, 1995

Mark, Joan. "Frank Hamilton Cushing and an American Science of Anthropology." In Perspectives in American History. 10: 444-486, 1976.

Newman, Stanley. Zuni Dictionary. Indiana University Research Center Publication Six. Bloomington: Indiana University, 1958.

Nibley, Hugh W. Teachings of the Book of Mormon. Transcripts of lectures presented to an Honors Book of Mormon Class at Brigham Young University, 1988-1990. Provo, UT: Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 1993.