Ceremonial Pipes (1955)

sorry on my one year Mia died on my warning long ago was the custom for Indians to begin almost any kind of meat Council or even a dance by smoking a ceremonial pipe beside a sacred altar before Columbus came to America smoking was unknown to the rest of the world but to us anyone who smoked a pipe with another bound himself in friendship and to tell only the truth all pipes were sacred and smoking was not a mere habit to us but a ritual communion prayer the earliest pipe was a bone or stone to Western Indians used a section of the leg bone of a deer or sometimes of an elk clay from Mother Earth was used for some of the early pipes after a time they were made curved instead of straight these are simple everyday pipes rather than strictly ceremonial ones and the bags in which they were carried the final development was the tea Bowl a soft stone was now used in preference to clay sometimes a decorative comb was added or even carvings of birds animals or people this is an elaborately carved ceremonial pipe Bowl of cattle a night the sacred red pipe stone most prized of all stone for making pipes in all the world cattle night is found only in Minnesota and Wisconsin these two quarries are holy ground owned by all the tribes and even if we met our enemies there we would not fight this ancient effigy pipe is from the spiral mound of Oklahoma and is more than 700 years old in the southeast the Catawba and the Cherokee had ceremonial pipe balls made of clay and fitted with four or even six stems thus the Chiefs smoked the pipe in communion at the same time uniting in fellowship and common effort the stem of the pipe is the spirit trail the trail between man and the sky the trail over which all must pass some day in some ceremonies the stems were more important than the bowls so that no bowls were used nevertheless the stem always had a hole through which the smoke or spirit could pass being straight it symbolized the good road and that man should speak with a straight tongue even this creep i'p stem can be smoked for the corners were carefully split hollowed out and glued together again the tomahawk pipe was invented by the white man so we could bury the tomahawk and smoke the pipe of peace we carried our best pipes and smoking materials and beaded bags with long fringe and porcupine quills embroidery ceremonial pipe stems are often decorated with porcupine quills the buffalo hair represents the earth and the great herds of buffalo that once roamed upon it the feathers of the mallard duck represent the life existing in the water and in the air impervious to wind and water they are used on the pipe stem to show that man should shed trouble and discord remaining unruffled and tranquil long ago some of our hunters saw a figure on the horizon at first they thought it was a sacred white buffalo but as it approached they realized that it was a young woman she was the white buffalo maiden who brought the first pipe to the campfires of our people many many winters ago yeah yeah she taught us how to care for the pipe the songs and rituals that go with it and then she vanished the original pipe is still in our possession but it's very holy and is kept in his sacred bundle so few of us have ever seen it but every pipe we have was patterned after the one she brought to us in that long ago time to carry out her instructions a holy man gave an invocation a ceremony to the four winds the earth the sky and all of the powers of the universe to assure the success of any serious undertaking instead of tobacco our people used a mixture of the inner bark of red Osier and bearberry leaves which we call Shan Shasha the chip away call it Kinnickinnic we offer Shan Shasha to the winged power where the sun goes down to the north and the great white cleansing wind the east and the morning star bringing the light of wisdom to the south the direction we are always facing to the spotted eagle in the heavens above all created beings to mother earth who gives us all good things tobacco is really a Carib word meaning the pipe itself and not the material smoked as the early settlers thought the pipe tamper was made from a broken enemy arrow symbol of peace Tofurky ma katachi walkie tope Akiyama cartagia walkie oh hey honk arc of a circle is prepared on the ground representing the universe the little mound is the earth on which we live a dope Akiyama katachi walkie a tall Pocky makar torch a walkie hey whoa car cars at the center of the universe is what car Tonka the great mystery everything leads into and returns to the center which is here and yet we know is really everywhere and is what can't talk we cover these trails with Jascha or tobacco representing the growing things on the earth uncle coffee star chart a warlock a pillowy toe Pocky red pink sacred color of the Sun unites the life-giving forces of Earth and sky making everything very holy and sacred Oh Pocky Mikoto Chiaki a walk our country star chart a Oaxaca pillowy to Pocky amok attach a walkie halo we offer this sacred gray grass the healing sage placing it upon the earth the Buffalo schoo is the symbol of the great animals upon which we Lakota depended for existence and shows that all things return to a car Tonka who made them all here on earth we live together with Tatanka the Buffalo and are grateful to him for he gives us food and now we give him our relative this sacred gray grass coal's from the fire symbolizing life the light of the world the destruction of everything evil and unclean are gathered to ignite the incense on the sacred altar Hey a happy way hey Tonya Hina fine away sweetgrass is sacred to a cantata and wall of his creation Hey oh the smoke is the symbol of spirit and as it arises into the heavens it carries the prayers of those below to the ones above first going to overpay the beautiful one then to all the universe which is a happy week on yurina far away hey I hate to eat Tonga he not burn away my couch on Zhang ya dang upon away great mystery my grandfather this is the day I am to tell your world you yourself the star nation's above everything that we see everything was made by you before you nothing else was great mystery leaned close to the earth that you may hear this voice I send you were the Sun drops over the edge of the world behold me Thunder being behold me you wear the white giant lives in power behold me we all hear you once the daybreak star and the dawn continually return behold me beautiful one you dwelling with eatle [ __ ] where the summer lives behold me not and you in the depths of the heavens an eagle of power behold he not Mother Earth our only mother you have shown mercy to your children the powers of creation and of destruction are now united in the bowl of the pipe which becomes in itself a sacred altar where the sacrificial fire burns on the spirit smoke we send the voice to all of the powers of the universe my cars here means four quarters of the world a relative I am give me the strength to walk the soft earth a relative to all that is give me the eyes to see and the strength to understand that I may be like you whoa great mystery my grandfather look down upon the faces of your children that they may face the winds and walk the good road to the day of quiet this is my prayer hear me the voice I have sent is weak and yet with earnestness I have sent it by this pipe the emblem of peace goodwill friendship Brotherhood we know what Kartika the great mystery will be with us Oh talk away pink stop no it is finished we re ammonia