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| Taking Up The Bowl | |
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| Topic Started: Mar 6 2007, 03:40 AM (168 Views) | |
| Wapankitupe | Mar 6 2007, 03:40 AM Post #1 |
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One
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Saugh-he, in addition to the Western Sun Dance; my ancestors did an Atse “Bowl” ceremony"; the ceremony was four days of prayers and feast to Creator and Earth Mother; there was also piercing and fasting as with the Western Sun Dance. The more important of the Bowl ceremony was the “Taking Up The Atse”, which symbolized Earth Mother that will never die if the people take care of her. This ceremony was handed down to me from my grand parents. The bowl is marked with tracks of several small Hooha “geese” around the bowls rim. A holy man had a vision and the bowl spoke in the words of a woman, "My child, I am “Old Woman Who Never Dies”. Hold me sacred and I will bring you good. Corn is my food. I shall teach you the songs and rites of the ceremony that will help your people to grow strong and bring rain. Make gifts to me of corn and hang them on cottonwood stakes. Make a pipe from a dried cottonwood limb; gather tobacco for the smoking of the pipe. All the birds and animals living at the river are of my medicine. Let no person who has blood on their hands from another person; enter the lodge where the ceremony takes place. Then the Atse gave the holy man the rites of “Taking Up The Bowl”. When all is ready a person goes to the Keeper of the Bowl and offers the pipe that has been gathered; speaking the reason for the prayer. The Keeper of the Bowl would speak that the person was doing right to take up the Atse in prayer and would accept the pipe; then light the pipe and pray to the sacred Atse, which was kept in a place of honor in his lodge. “Atse we are about to take you up again with prayers and feasting to Creator. Open your ears that you may hear our song and prayers; we need your aid. He silently repeated the songs and prayers until the morning; then he go to the prayer lodge, where after purifying, he prepared a canopy of Deer hides in the honor place. He laid a hide down where he placed an empty bowl, a basket of cedar twigs and a box of white pine bark; these were the symbols to our people of the "Old Woman Who Never Dies". A woman's dress made from Deer hide was put in placed and was partially covered with a newly brain tanned white Deer hide. On top of this was a basket of mixed feathers and at each side were placed gifts of hides made into male and female clothing. In front hung several prayer paunches made from Rabbit hides on cottonwood stakes. To the right side, a bed of white pine straw was laid for the sacred bowl, which was enclosed in a Deer hide bag, stretched tight over the top of the bowl, as to form a drum. Small bunches of White Pine needles were put under the sinew that held the skin around the Atse. The Drum stick was about one foot long, with one end bent into a circle. When the Atse was prepared, it was symbolic of prayer from the people to Creator. Towards Sun down the people would gather and the keeper of the pipe and bowl walked four times around the village singing, "The rain is coming, it is here." The people entered the lodge while the Keeper of the Bowl burned sweet grass and white pine needles; the pipe keeper laid the pipe with the White Deer skin. The singers, eight or nine, would gather around the bowl, the medicine men sitting at their right and those who had come to fast arranging themselves to the left, each laying down an armful of cedar, that was to be their bed during the four days and four nights of the “Taking Up The Bowl”, ceremony. The ceremonial dress was Deer hides worn hairy side outward and the participants painted them self blue; from the color of clay that some pottery is made. When all the people had entered the prayer lodge, the singers sang a wordless song, that mint the Creators power had come. They stood up imitating the various birds that belong to the sacred bowl, ducks, geese and smaller birds, while the fasters rising, sang to Creator and Earth Mother; as lost little ones crying for their parents. Several other prayer songs, without words, were sung; then the Keeper of the Bowl sings, signifying that the spirit helpers were there. The singers sway from side to side and at the end of the song settled down, mimicking the actions of waterfowl and making their sounds. The Keeper of the Bowl burns sweet grass, cedar and pine needles, taking some of the feast previously brought in by relatives of the fasters; held it to the four winds and then offered it to “Old Woman Who Never Dies” with a prayer. “Old Woman Who Never Dies”, your powers are good. Our people have provided this feast that you may help make them strong. The fasters now divided the food and each of them took a bowl of it to one of the medicine people. When they had finished eating, the faster placed his hands on the medicine man's shoulders and rubbed his arm to the wrists; to receive strength or virtue from him. His relative then sang to the spirits, asking them to aid the faster. The fasters carried food to the other people and the medicine men; while the Prayer lodge provided for the singers and the Keeper of the Bowl. Before eating, each one offered the food to the Four Winds. After the others had eaten and smoked, the Bowl and the fasters that were chose came to the Bowl Keeper. The singers were pierced somewhat as in the Sun dance. There were cuts into each breast and inserted with rawhide ropes; then fastened to the cross timbers of the supporting posts of the prayer lodge. Deer skulls were sometimes hung through cuts in the thighs or shoulders; other fasters were cut through the shoulders and were suspended from the top of the Prayer Lodge, with their feet clear of the ground. The singers gave encouragement from their singing and drumming. The fasters endured as long as they were able; if they could not tear themselves loose or fainted; the Keeper of the Bowl and the singers cut the thongs and laid the exhausted person on a bed of White Pine straw; where they remained until the ending of the ceremony, walk with peace. Creator is Chief, Wapankitupe ![]() |
| It's not the great skill of a teacher that understanding will be achieved; but through the teacher's awareness of their walk with creation and their understanding of Creator and Earth Mother. | |
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| Loveandbeloved | Mar 7 2007, 01:39 AM Post #2 |
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Administrator
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Thank you for sharing this story of this ceremony, Wapankitupe. I am especially fond of cedar and I see it was used quite a bit in this cermony and sacred rites. |
| In Love | |
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| Wapankitupe | Mar 7 2007, 02:44 PM Post #3 |
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One
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Saugh-he Loveandbeloved, we use Cedar and Sweet grass in all our ceremonies. We can’t get Sage here unless we buy it or comes to us as a gift. We also use Red Cedar as a healing medicine; it’s also a good disinfectant. The extracted oil when diluted and massaged into the skin, treats colds, congestion, as well as wounds and ulcers. Red Cedar is also used in making our drums and flutes, walk with peace. Creator is Chief, Wapankitupe ![]() |
| It's not the great skill of a teacher that understanding will be achieved; but through the teacher's awareness of their walk with creation and their understanding of Creator and Earth Mother. | |
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| Loveandbeloved | Mar 8 2007, 01:21 AM Post #4 |
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Administrator
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I imagine the red cedar makes for wonderful drums and flutes, Wapankitupe. It is such a beautiful wood and very close to my heart. I have only used sage and sweetgrass. It was given to me and I use it for very special times. I tried to grow sweetgrass a couple of years ago, but I am sad to say that it did not grow well. The summer weather was harsh that year, very hot with little rain and my few little plants struggled. Thank you for the information about the cedar oil. I received some last December and have not used it much. The scent is so wonderful to me, so I have smelled it from time to time - just to enjoy it's scent. I will be sure to remember the uses you shared with me. What you said reminded me of a time many years back when one of my friends used a pine remedy for a very large sore he had on his shoulder. The pine remedy was very sticky and thick - perhaps a pine sap? I helped put it on his shoulder and the remedy healed the sore nicely. I still have a little he gave me in a bottle. I have some cedar cones with seeds in them, and tried to put a few in the dirt to grow. The seeds have very tough exteriors and I was told a better way to try to grow them by using smaller pots and sandier soil. So I will try that. I am doing this because I would like to plant a cedar tree (or more if I could) by my father's house. Cedar was very special to him too. Many thanks for your sharing... |
| In Love | |
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8:58 PM Jul 10