The signification of the term is, _that which stirs_. This god is too
subtle in essence to be perceived by the human senses, and is as subtle
in his disposition as in his being. Though invisible, he is ubiquitous.
He is supposed to have a controlling influence over intellect, instinct
and passion. His symbol is the boulder; and, hence, boulders are
universally worshipped by the Dakotas. He lives, also, in what is termed
“the four winds,” and the consecrated spear and tomahawk are animated
by his spirit. He is much gratified to see men in trouble, and is
particularly glad when they die in battle or otherwise.
He can rob a man of the use of his rational faculties, and inspire a
beast with intelligence, so that the hunter, like an idiot, will wander
and become bewildered on the prairie or in the forest, and the game on
which he hoped to feast his family at night, escapes with perfect ease.
Or, if he please, he may reverse his influence, and the animal has not
even brutal instinct to escape from its pursuer.
This god is passionate and capricious to the highest degree; and, hence,
it is very difficult to retain his favor. Often he is likened to a
passionate, whimsical child, taking offence at everything, while it is as
necessary to secure his favor, on the part of the hunter or the warrior,
as it is to procure food, or to prove one’s manhood by taking a scalp.
Subordinate to this god are the buzzard, the raven, the fox, the wolf,
and other animals of a similar nature. To him belong the “armor feast”
and the “vapor bath.”
The “armor feast” is of ordinary occurrence when the provisions are of
sufficient abundance to support it, in which the warriors assemble and
exhibit the sacred implements of war, to which they burn incense around
the smoking sacrifice.