Legend of the Dream Catcher |
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Long ago when the world was young, an old Lakota spiritual leader was on a high moun- tain and had a vision. In his vision, Iktomi, the great trickster and teacher of wisdom, appeared in the form of a spider. Iktomi spoke to him in a sacred language that only the spiritual leaders of the Lakota could understand. As he spoke, Iktomi, the spider, took the elder's willow hoop which had feathers, horse hair, beads and offerings on it and began to spin a web. He spoke to the elder about the cycles of life… and how we begin our lives as infants and we move on to childhood, and then to adulthood. Finally, we go to old age, where we must be taken care of as infants, completing the cycle. "But," iktomi said as he continued to spin his web, "in each time of life there are many forces - some good and some bad. If you listen to the good forces, they will steer you in the right direction. But if you listen to the bad forces, they will hurt you and steer you in the wrong direction." He continued, "There are many forces and different directions that can help or interfere with the harmony of nature, and also with the great spirit and all of his wonderful teachings." All the while the spider spoke, he continued to weave his web, starting from the outside and working towards the center. When iktomi finished speaking, he gave the Lakota elder the web and said: "See, the web is a perfect circle but there is a hold in the center of the circle." He said, "Use the web to help yourself and your people to reach your goals and make good use of your people's ideas, dreams and visions. "if you believe in the great spirit, the web will catch your good ideas - and the bad ones will go through the hole." The Lakota elder passed on his vision to his people and now the Sioux Indians use the dream catcher as the web of their life. It is hung above their beds or in their home to sift their dreams and visions. The good in their dreams are captured in the web of life and carried with them… but the evil in their dreams escapes through the hole in the center of the web and are no longer a part of them. They believe that the dream catcher holds the destiny of their future. TALKING STICKS A talking stick is a tool this is used amongst the circle of individuals en enable the person holding the stick the right to talk. No one else is permitted to talk until the stick is passed on to them. This way every persons opinions is respected and viewed. Our talking sticks are made from red willow which is also used as a sacred tobacco among the Native Americans. They have either otter or buffalo fur and deer buckskin with a turkey feather or sage. A sage puch is on some of them to keep bad feelings away. CHOKERS Chokers were used among the Native Americans traditionally as a form of armor. Today they are worn with regalia or worn as decoration. The chokers are hand made from buffalo horn, rabbit bone both white and stained, or amber horn which is buffalo horn that has been heat treated to look like amber. They have turquoise or glass beads and deer buckskin for the ties. PRAYER FANS Prayer fans are used in various ways. One of the most common ways it is used is for the smudging ceremony. In the ceremony negative energy is released through sage and cedar smoke, sweetgrass is used to bring in positive energy. The prayer fans are hand made from deer buckskin and turkey feathers and plumes. They are decorated with turquoise (for protection), deer antler (unity), or abalone shell (to reflect bad medicine). They also have fringe and come in various styles. BUFFALO BAGS Long ago the buffalo was used to feed and clothe the Native American Indians. They used every part of the buffalo and believed that it was sacred. Today, the buffalo respesents prayer and abundance for the people. The bags are made from quality buffalo hide and deer buckskin. They are all hand made and have various glass beads,turquoise, and fringe for decoration. |
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