The construction of the first sweat house, or tachi, was begun at dawn.
Four of these houses were built on four consecutive mornings, each one
located about 400 feet distant from the great central medicine lodge,
toward the four cardinal points, and all facing to the east. The first one
built was east of the lodge. A description of the construction of this
particular one will answer for all, but the ceremonies differ in detail.
Four upright poles, forked at the upper ends, were placed at the four
cardinal points within an area designated as the base of the house, the
forked ends resting against each other, a circular excavation some 6 feet
in diameter and 1 foot in depth having first been made. Between the
uprights smaller poles were laid; on the poles piñon boughs, sage and
_Bigelovia Douglasii_ (a kind of sage brush) were placed as a thatch; all
being laid sufficiently compact to prevent the sand placed over the top
from sifting through. The doorway, on the east side of the house, was
about 2-1/2 feet high and 20 inches wide. Highly polished sticks (the same
as those employed in blanket weaving) were used to render the sand
covering of the structure smooth. The sweat houses to the east and west
had the rainbow painted over them. Those to the north and south were
devoid of such decoration, because the song priest seldom completes his
medicine in one ceremonial; and he chose to omit the songs which would be
required if the bow ornamented the north and south sweat houses. Under the
direction of the priest of the sweat house, who received instruction from
the song priest, three young men painted the rainbow, one the head and
body, another the skirt and legs, while the third painted the bow. The
head of this goddess was to the north, the bow extending over the
structure. The colors used were made from ground pigments sprinkled on
with the thumb and forefinger. Whenever a pinch of the dry paint was taken
from the pieces of bark which served as paint cups, the artist breathed
upon the hand before sprinkling the paint. This, however, had no religious
significance, but was merely to clear the finger and thumb of any
superfluous sand. The colors used in decoration were yellow, red, and
white from sandstones, black from charcoal, and a grayish blue, formed of
white sand and charcoal, with a very small quantity of yellow and red
sands. (See Fig. 118.) The decorators were carefully watched by the song
priest.
[Illustration: Figure 118]
FIG. 118. Sweat house.
Upon the completion of the rainbow the song priest returned to the
medicine lodge, but soon reappeared bearing a basket of twelve turkey
wands, and these he planted around the base of the sweat house on a line
of meal he had previously sprinkled. There was a fire some 20 feet from
the house, in which stones were heated. These stones were placed in the
sweat house on the south side, and upon them was thrown an armful of white
sage and _Bigelovia Douglasii_. A few pine boughs were laid by the side of
the stones for the invalid to sit upon. The entrance to the sweat house
was then covered with a black and white striped blanket upon which were
placed two large Coçonino buckskins one upon the other, and upon them a
double piece of white cotton. The buckskins represented daylight, or the
twilight that comes just at the dawn of day. The invalid for whom this
ceremony was held took off all his clothing except the breech cloth, and
sat on the outside by the entrance of the sweat house amid the din of
rattle and song, the theurgist being the only one who had a rattle. The
invalid propelled himself into the house feet foremost, the covering of
the sweat house having been raised for this purpose. After entering it, he
rid himself of his breechcloth and the coverings were immediately dropped.
The song continued 5 minutes, when all stopped for a moment and then
recommenced.
[Illustration]