_Qojónli hóçe_ _cĭkóŋ_
May it he delightful and well, my fire.
and tosses a handful or two up through the smoke hole, saying--
_Qojónli_ _Tcíŋhanoaí_ _cĭçá naiĭcní‘_
May it be delightful Sun (day carrier), my mother’s ancestor,
for this gift;
_Qojónli_ _nacále_ _coġán_
May it be delightful as I walk around my house.
Then two or three handfuls of meal are sprinkled out of the doorway
while he says--
_Qojónli_ _caĕ´çin_ _cĭçá_
May it be delightful this road of light, my mother’s ancestor.
The woman then makes an offering to the fire by throwing a few small
handfuls of meal upon it, and as she sprinkles it she says in a subdued
voice--
_Qojónli_ _cĭkóŋ_
May it be delightful my fire;
_Qojónli_ _caltcíni_ _¢áltso yahóçe_
May it be delightful for my children; may all be well;
_Qojónli_ _cibeaçán_ _¢áltso yahóçe_
May it be delightful with my food and theirs; may all be well;
_¢áltso cĭnalgéya_ _yahóçe ¢olel‘_
All my possessions well may they be made
(that is, may they be made to increase);
_¢áltso cĭl‘íŋ_ _yahóçe ¢olel‘_
All my flocks well may they be made (to increase).
When a hogán is built for a woman who has no husband, or if the husband
is absent at the time, the wife performs all these ceremonies. In the
absence of white cornmeal, yellow cornmeal is sometimes used, but never
the _çqa¢ĭçíŋ ¢oçlĭ´j_, the sacred blue pollen of certain flowers, which
is reserved exclusively for the rites of the shaman.
By the time these forms have been observed night will have fallen.
During the day, while the house building was in progress, the women were
busily engaged in preparing food; all now gather inside the hogán, a
blanket is suspended over the door frame, all the possessions of the
family are bought in, sheepskins are spread on the floor, the fire is
brightened and the men all squat around it. The women bring in food in
earthen cooking pots and basins, and, having set them down among the
men, they huddle together by themselves to enjoy the occasion as
spectators. Every one helps himself from the pots by dipping in with
his fingers, the meat is broken into pieces, and the bones are gnawed
upon and sociably passed from hand to hand. When the feast is finished
tobacco and corn husks are produced, cigarettes are made, everyone
smokes, and convivial gossipy talk prevails. This continues for two or
three hours, when the people who live near by get up their horses and
ride home. Those from a long distance either find places to sleep in the
hogán or wrap themselves in their blankets and sleep at the foot of a
tree. This ceremony is known as the _qoġán aiíla_, a kind of salutation
to the house.
But the _qoġán bĭgĭ´n_, the house devotions, have not yet been observed.
Occasionally these take place as soon as the house is finished, but
usually there is an interval of several days to permit the house
builders to invite all their friends and to provide the necessary food
for their entertainment. Although analogous to the Anglo-Saxon “house
warming,” the _qoġán bĭgĭ´n_, besides being a merrymaking for the young
people, has a much more solemn significance for the elders. If it be
not observed soon after the house is built bad dreams will plague the
dwellers therein, toothache (dreaded for mystic reasons) will torture
them, and the evil influence from the north will cause them all kinds
of bodily ill; the flocks will dwindle, ill luck will come, ghosts will
haunt the place, and the house will become _bátsĭç_, tabooed.
A few days after the house is finished an arrangement is made with some
shaman (_qaçál‘i_, devotional singer) to come and sing the ceremonial
house songs. For this service he always receives a fee from those who
engage him, perhaps a few sheep or their value, sometimes three or four
horses or their equivalent, according to the circumstances of the house
builders. The social gathering at the _qoġán bĭgĭ´n_ is much the same
as that of the _qoġán aiíla_, when the house is built, except that
more people are usually invited to the former. They feast and smoke,
interchange scandal, and talk of other topics of interest, for some
hours. Presently the _qaçál‘i_ seats himself under the main west timber
so as to face the east, and the singing begins.
In this ceremony no rattle is used. The songs are begun by the shaman
in a drawling tone and all the men join in. The _qaçál‘i_ acts only as
leader and director. Each one, and there are many of them in the tribe,
has his own particular songs, fetiches, and accompanying ceremonies,
and after he has pitched a song he listens closely to hear whether the
correct words are sung. This is a matter of great importance, as the
omission of a part of the song or the incorrect rendering of any word
would entail evil consequences to the house and its inmates. All the
house songs of the numerous _qaçál‘i_ are of similar import but differ
in minor details.
The first song is addressed to the east, and is as follows:
_House song to the East_
_Qa‘ádje_ _biyádje_ _beqoġán_ _aiíla_
Far in the east far below there a house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Qastcéyalçi_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
God of Dawn there his house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Qayol‘kál‘_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
The Dawn there his house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Naçáŋ l‘akaí_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
White Corn there its house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Yu´¢i alçqasaí_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
Soft possessions for them a house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Ço‘l‘á_ _nastcín_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_,
Water in plenty surrounding for it a house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Çqa¢ĭçíŋ_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
Corn pollen for it a house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Sáŋa nagaí_ _aiíla bĭké_ _qojón_
The ancients make their presence delightful;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
Immediately following this song, but in a much livelier measure, the
following benedictory chant is sung:
_Cĭtsĭ´dje_ _qojógo_
Before me may it be delightful;
_Cĭké¢e_ _qojógo_
Behind me may it be delightful;
_Cĭná¢e_ _qojógo_
Around me may it be delightful;
_Ciyági_ _qojógo_
Below me may it be delightful;
_Cĭkígi_ _qojógo_
Above me may it be delightful;
_¢áltso_ _qojógo_
All (universally) may it be delightful.
After a short interval the following is sung to the west:
_House song to the West_
_Iŋiŋádje_ _biyádje_ _beqoġán_ _aiíla_
Far in the west far below there a house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Qastcéqoġan_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
God of Twilight there his house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Naqotsói_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_,
Yellow light of evening there his house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Naçáŋ ĭl‘tsói_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
Yellow corn there its house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Ĭntlĭ´z alçqasaí_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
Hard possessions there their house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Ço‘biáji_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
Young rain there its house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Çqa¢ĭçíŋ_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
Corn pollen there its house was made;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
_Sáŋa nagaí_ _aiíla bĭké_ _qojón_
The ancients make their presence delightful;
_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.
The song to the west is also followed by the benedictory chant, as
above, and after this the song which was sung to the east is repeated;
but this time it is addressed to the south. The song to the west is then
repeated, but addressed to the north, and the two songs are repeated
alternately until each one has been sung three times to each cardinal
point. The benedictory chant is sung between each repetition.
All the men present join in the singing under the leadership of the
shaman, who does not himself sing, but only starts each song. The women
never sing at these gatherings, although on other occasions, when they
get together by themselves, they sing very sweetly. It is quite common
to hear a primitive kind of part singing, some piping in a curious
falsetto, others droning a deep bass.
The songs are addressed to each of the cardinal points, because in the
Navaho system different groups of deities are assigned to each of these
points. The Navaho also makes a distinction between heavy rain and light
rain. The heavy rain, such as accompanies thunderstorms, is regarded
as the “male rain,” while the gentle showers or “young rains,” coming
directly from the house of Estsánatlehi, are regarded as especially
beneficent; but both are deemed necessary to fertilize. A distinction is
also made between “hard possessions,” such as turquois and coral beads,
shell ornaments, and all articles made from hard substances, and “soft
possessions,” which comprise blankets and all textile substances, skins,
etc. The Navaho prays that his house may cover many of both hard and
soft possessions.
The songs given above are known as the twelve house-songs, although
there are only two songs, each repeated twelve times. These are sung
with many variations by the different _qaçál‘i_, and while the builders
are preparing for this ceremony they discuss which _qaçál‘i_ has the
best and most beautiful words before they decide which one to engage.
But the songs are invariably addressed to the deities named,
Qastcéyalçi, the God of Dawn, and Qastcéqoġan, the God of Twilight;
and they always have the same general significance.
After the “twelve songs” are finished many others are sung: to
Estsánatlehi, a benignant Goddess of the West, and to Yol‘kaí Estsán,
the complementary Goddess of the East; to the sun, the dawn, and the
twilight; to the light and to the darkness; to the six sacred mountains,
and to many other members of a very numerous theogony. Other
song-prayers are chanted directly to malign influences, beseeching them
to remain far off: to _ĭntcóŋgi_, evil in general; to _dakús_, coughs
and lung evils, and to the _bĭ¢akúji_, sorcerers, praying them not to
come near the dwelling. The singing of the songs is so timed that the
last one is delivered just as the first gray streaks of dawn appear,
when the visitors round up their horses and ride home.