on them "will be called amniotic fluid,"but Just as Navajo refer to Changing Woman as 3 In Zolbrod's version, White Shell Woman and Changing Woman are sisters; some versions call her White Shell Woman instead of Changing Woman, other sources acknowledge that they are different names for the same deity. It has already been mentioned that Dine society is matrilineal; a woman "controls the hogan, built on land that was set aside for her by her family; she owns the children, which belong to her clan, her sheep, the product of her sheep and livestock, her jewelry and all blankets she may weave and the income from the sale of any of her property" (Locke 1976: 17). of which the earth, the sky were setting firm. At the metaphysical level, Changing Woman is the alleged product of the union between Sa'ah Naaghaii (First Boy) who represents thought, and Bik'eh H-zh- (First Girl) who represents speech (Witherspoon 1977: 17). Sometimes Monster Slayer is referred to as The Hero Twin (singular), probably because he does most of the fighting. Foundation of Navajo Culture. Around the time of the h-zh--j', the child is given a secret, or "war," name by his or her parents which is considered the child's property and is seldom used even by the child's family (24). Farella, John R., 1984. This she rubbed (on Locke, Raymond Friday, 1992. Changing Woman's twin sons had been born for the purpose of ridding the earth of the Monsters who were killing all the people. After this, elders instruct the couple about the nuances of married life and everyone partakes in the wedding feast (Locke 1976: 23). Douglas, Mary, 1966. The making of a hero always begins with a miraculous conception. their meanings provide the major conceptual framework The same language used to characterize her is used to describe other relationships and objects as well, such as the sacred mountain bundle. University of New Mexico Press. (Haile qtd. Changing Woman gives birth to the Hero Twins called Monster Slayer and Child of the Waters, who together have many adventures in which they help to rid the world of much evil. The Navajo. Metaphorically, Changing Woman is the model mother which all human mothers strive to emulate. Locke, Raymond Friday, 1992. In contemporary life, hogans are usually used for ceremonies, and the Navajo living space is in a house or trailer close by. Structural Anthropology. Works Cited: Only in Blessing Way is Changing Woman ever represented in visible form in a dry painting. Dine kinship extends far beyond the nuclear family. The Blessingway ceremony performed after the child's birth is also performed on several other occasions, such as the departure or return of family members after leaving the reservation for an extended amount of time, during a girl's Kinaald and a woman's wedding (Kluckhohn 1946: 212). Pp. singing that night. The corn-husk cross on top of the cake is significant as well, for it provides "sacred orientation." The Main Stalk: A Synthesis of Navajo Philosophy. One myth, which Stevenson recorded, places Talking God and another deity as created by corn from Changing Woman and her sister: 6 For a longer discussion of hogans, please see page 3 In Zolbrod's version, White Shell Woman and Changing Woman are sisters; some versions call her White Shell Woman instead of Changing Woman, other sources acknowledge that they are different names for the same deity. Purity and Danger. Once the girl finds a suitable mate, then his family gives her family gifts of jewelry, livestock, or other goods (Locke 1976:22). There are over sixty clans today (Kluckhohn 1946: 111). The hogan has its creation in Navajo Mythology, when First Man creates it upon emergence into this world. (1981: 24) The alkaan's removal from the pit is symbolic of many things: birth, the growth of vegetation, and the emergence of the Holy People into the present world (Lincoln 1981:32). Witherspoon says, "the common interest in, and use of, the sheep herd is thus a major factor in uniting and integrating the attitudes and behavior of the individual members of the unit" (1975: 89). Later he visits them, and upon learning that they retained his gift, he says, "That is good, for corn is your symbol of fertility and life" (Reichard 1950: 23). Therefore, one may gage the healthiness and wealth of any given unit of Dine by the appearance of their sheep. Lincoln asserts, "[The cake] contains the sun and earth; male and female; the Holy People, first of all beings; corn, and by extension vegetation; the cardinal points; zenith and nadar" (32). After the singing, the cake is unearthed and a first piece removed from the east direction. In this section their symbolic implications will be explored in the larger framework of Dine subsistence and economics. Navajo People H-zho, the state of being in beauty and balance, exists among related things; it is impossible to have h-zh- between "unrelated entities" (Witherspoon 1977: 88). 2 For a classification of ceremonies, consult Reichard 1950: 314-337. The alkaan is highly symbolic. Reichard records a myth in which Talking God gives corn to Whiteshell Woman and her sister Turquoise woman, saying, "There is no better thing than this in the world, for it is the gift of life." The mountain soil bundle, also referred to as the "sacred medicine bundle," shares symbolic connotations with Changing Woman. Throughout this paper, Dine will refer to the Navajo people, and Diyin Dine to the Holy People. (our father). Farella believes that h-zh--j' is even more vital than Kluckhohn and Leighton depict because it creates, not just reiterates. It too is addressed "shim," and considered to be a protector. Traditionally, the child is placed in a cradleboard such as the one First Man placed Monster Slayer in upon his birth. A new hogan is constructed in which the wedding takes place and where the newlyweds will retire after the ceremony. Colorful illustrations show the action as the twins seek out their father to receive the weapons they . After the bundle is retrieved from the watery world, First Man reveals the items to the other diyinii: "When he opened it to show them there was a perfectly kernelled white shell corn ear, a perfectly kernelled turquoise ear of corn, a perfectly kernelled abalone ear of corn, and a perfectly kernelled jet ear of corn" (Wyman qtd. Witherspoon, Gary, 1977. Lincoln asserts, "[The cake] contains the sun and earth; male and female; the Holy People, first of all beings; corn, and by extension vegetation; the cardinal points; zenith and nadar" (32). with their eyes whenever she moved her hands white corn, and her sister an ear of yellow corn, One might thus interpret her as an allegory of the seasons, but she is more, being related to the earth and vegetation. Dine bahane'. Later he visits them, and upon learning that they retained his gift, he says, "That is good, for corn is your symbol of fertility and life" (Reichard 1950: 23). Basic Books. According to Zolbrod, she made the heads of the original six clans. "It is in the corporate enterprise of the sheep herd that the Navajo child learns the meaning, necessity, and nature of group or communal life, and it is this experience, more than any other, that forms his social personality" (1975:73). University of Chicago Press. her hands and then) on the white shell, the turquoise, The traditional Navajo dwelling is called a hogan, which means "home" (Beck 1992: 284). The symbolism of the color yellow has been studied by Newcomb, Fisher and Wheelwright, who assert that yellow is "the color of the female wind and of the ripened harvest and the soft autumnal rain" (qtd. Now on the top of Gobernador Knob, I am here. Kluckhohn, Clyde and Dorothea Leighton, 1974. Return Home. Unlike the Hero Twins they became malformed, one a cripple and the other blind, and suffered much adversity along with their . This changed into two adult males and two females as well, who eventually became T- d'ch''''nii, or the Bitter Water Clan. Even after this incident, however, the Sun could never really be close to his children. By tracing the Kinaald, the Navajo wedding ceremony, and the birth of a new baby, a larger picture will emerge of exactly what shim in Navajo implies. The unit's main functions are to "provide its members with a place of residence and a source of subsistence" (72). Unless it is cultivated, it cannot survive. The Savage Mind. As stated before, Changing Woman is the first and model mother. Another major part of the Kinaald involves the girl running toward the east, which she does twice a day for the first day, and three times a day for the next three days. Aronilth, Wilson, 1991. are returned to diyinni in the form of offerings. "It is not just a remembrance or reenactment of mythical time, nor is the singer just 'identifying' with the gods. As stated before, Changing Woman is the first and model mother. Hogans are characterized by a rich tradition of symbolism. "This is really too bad my children. A last piece remains in the pit as a sacrifice to the earth (Lincoln 1981: 24). their meanings provide the major conceptual framework As stated before, Changing Woman is the first and model mother. Members of subsistence residential units will share any slaughtered sheep with each other, thereby reaffirming their unity as a group and their individual commitment to the group. Witherspoon says, "the common interest in, and use of, the sheep herd is thus a major factor in uniting and integrating the attitudes and behavior of the individual members of the unit" (1975: 89). Man, of course, Metaphorically, the qualities of nurturing and fertility are applicable to several other areas of Navajo culture, which are all called shim in Navajo (Witherspoon 1977: 91). ripening, which regulated the raining, which regulated Clans also define the larger circle of an individual's relatives, which is necessary for identifying responsibility in ceremonial cooperation (Kluckhohn 1946: 112). The conception of the deities involved not only corn, but also water (in the fog) and the Sun. Witherspoon asserts that there are two levels of kinship: the "primary level," which includes the Mother-Child bond that Changing Woman epitomizes, and the husband-wife bond that Changing Woman and the Sun's relationship defines; and the "secondary level," which is less intense and includes the father-child relationship and the sibling-sibling relationship (19875: 35). Return to The Sacred Mountains as a Hogan -long life important. on buckskin spread on the ground. Throughout the singing, the chief goal is the Mankind. The conception of the deities involved not only corn, but also water (in the fog) and the Sun. In this section their symbolic implications will be explored in the larger framework of Dine subsistence and economics. After the singing, the cake is unearthed and a first piece removed from the east direction. 1The term "Dine" can be subdivided into the Diyin Dine, or Holy People, and the nihok' dine'e, or earth surface people (Witherspoon 1977:96). University of Michigan Press. University of Chicago Press. Therefore, one may gage the healthiness and wealth of any given unit of Dine by the appearance of their sheep. With his brother, Xbalanque, he rids the pre-human world of all manner of villainous gods, including Seven Macaw, Zipacna, One Death, and Seven Death. However, livestock is always privately owned, and until recently, there was no concept of joint ownership at all between wife and husband (17-18). Griffin-Pierce, Trudy, 1992. Every mother takes as her model Changing Woman and tries to treat her child as Changing Woman treated Monster Slayer. Here, fertility comes from the union of yellow corn and white corn, an idea which is mirrored in the Dine wedding ceremony. Aronilth, Wilson, 1991. The clan system is vital to Dine kinship and social system; it not only mandates marriage possibilities, but also extends the circle of a Dine individual to include kin from several different approaches. Lincoln asserts that "given its shape, color, and relation to fire, it must be seen as a solar image" (Lincoln 1981: 32). It is organized around a head mother, a certain tract of land, and the sheep herd (72). 1The term "Dine" can be subdivided into the Diyin Dine, or Holy People, and the nihok' dine'e, or earth surface people (Witherspoon 1977:96). Contained in the bundle are objects of value on the Earth's surface. 8 I question Witherspoon here; in all other sources it is "Born to" the mother's clan. As they reached the foot of the mountain, they saw an old woman. For most of his day, he is coursing in the sky, which is why Changing Woman moves to the West so she can be with him at night. Furthermore, objects and individuals have proscribed placement within the hogan as well. The Sacred Ways of Knowledge, Sources of Life. Hogans are characterized by a rich tradition of symbolism. 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