Chanter:--
1. Tse`dzinki'ni, House of the Black Cliffs (pars.
378-381).
2. Tse`tláni, Bend in a Cañon (par. 382).
3. Dsi'lnaoti'lni, Encircled Mountain (par. 385).
4. Haskánhatso
(Haskanhatsódine`), Much Yucca (par. 386).
5. Nahopáni, Brown Streak; Horizontal on the
Ground (par. 387).
6. Tsinadzi'ni, Black Horizontal Forest (par. 390).
7. Tha`nezá` (Tha`nezá`ni), Among the Scattered (Hills) (par.
392).
8. Dsiltlá`ni, Base of the Mountain (par. 393).
9. Thá`paha (Thá`pahadine`), Among the Waters (par. 394 et
seq.).
10. Tsa`yiski'dni, Sage-brush Hill (par. 399).
11. Tse`zindiaí, Trap Dyke (par. 401).
12. Klógi (Klógidine`), (Name of an old pueblo) (par. 403).
13. Tó`hani, Beside the Water (par. 404).
14. Thá`tsini, Among the Red (Waters or Banks)
(par. 405).
15. Kai (Káidine`), Willows (par. 405).
16. Kinlitsí (Kinlitsídine`), Red House (of Stone) (par. 406).
17. Destsíni, Red Streak (par. 408).
18. Tlastsíni, Red Flat (par. 408).
19. Notá (Notádine`), Ute (par. 409).
20. Nakaí (Nakaídine`), White Stranger (Mexican) (par.
410).
21. To`yetlíni, Junction of the Rivers (par. 411).
22. Háltso (Háltsodine`), Yellow Bodies (par. 412).
23. To`ditsíni, Bitter Water (par. 427).
24. Maitó` (Maitó`dine`), Coyote Spring (par. 428).
25. Hasli'zni (Hasli'zdine`), Mud (par. 429).
26. To`dokónzi, Saline Water (par. 430, note 171).
27. Bitá`ni, Folded Arms (par. 431).
28. Tsinsakádni, Lone Tree (par. 441).
29. Pinbitó` (Pinbitó`dine`), Deer Spring (par. 442).
30. Tse`nahapi'lni, Overhanging Rocks (par. 445).
31. Honagá`ni, Place of Walking (pars. 447, 448).
32. Kinaá`ni, High Standing House (par. 458).
33. To`baznaáz (To`baznaázi), Two Come for Water (par. 449).
34. Nanaste'zin, Black Horizontal Stripe Aliens
(Zuñi) (par. 452).
35. Dildzéhi, (Not translated) (par. 453).
36. Ásihi (Ásihidine`), Salt (par. 454).
37. Maideski'z (Maideski'zni), Coyote Pass (Jemez) (par. 455).
38. Tse`yanató`ni (extinct), Horizontal Water under Cliffs (par.
457).
39. Tó`tsoni, Great Water (par. 459).
40. Bitáni or Dsiltáni, Brow of Mountain.
41. Tse`yikéhe
(Tse`yikéhedine`), Rocks Standing near One Another.
42. Tliziláni, Many Goats (par. 407).
43. To`tsalsitáya (extinct), Water under the Sitting Frog.
60. The following are eight names obtained from other sources, and
not mentioned by Tall Chanter:--
44. Aatsósni, Narrow Gorge.
45. Naa`í (Naa`ídine`), Monocline.
46. Yóo, Beads.
47. Ka`náni, Living Arrows.
48. Tse`tháni, Among the Rocks.
49. Lóka (Lókadine`) Reeds (Phragmites).
50. Tse`deski'zni, Rocky Pass.
51. Hoganláni, Many Huts.
61. More than one translation of a gentile name has often been noted;
but in the above lists only one translation is given,--that which the
author regards with the most favor. Often, too, different narrators
account differently for the origin of the gentile names. Some of the
translations are very liberal, and others, again, very brief; but in
the paragraphs and notes to which the reader is referred he will find
fuller explanations. The Navahoes sometimes, but not invariably, add
(as shown in the above lists) a suffix (diné`, ni, or i), signifying
people; but in the above translations, to simplify the study, the word
"people" is omitted.
62. There are reasons, which the author has set forth in a previous
essay[318] and will not now repeat, for believing that most of the
Navaho gentes were originally local exogamous groups, and not true
gentes according to Morgan's definition.[325] There is little doubt
that, in the majority of cases if not in all, the names of Navaho
gentes, which are not the names of tribes, are simply designations
of localities, even where the Legend states to the contrary; as,
for instance, when it tells us that certain gentes of the Western
immigrants were named from words that women uttered when they first
tasted of the magic fountains (pars. 427, 429, 430).
63. On the other hand, there are passages in the Legend which indicate
that a few of the Navaho gentes were once totemic, although no evidence
of clan totems is known to exist among the Navahoes at the present
time, and it is not improbable that a few of the gentile names may
be of totemic origin, although they are now accounted for in other
ways in the Origin Legend. The passage (par. 419) which tells us
that Estsánatlehi gave certain pets to the wanderers from the West,
and that these pets accompanied the people on their journey, refers
in all probability to the former use of totemic clan symbols, and
possibly to a custom of keeping live totemic animals in captivity,--a
custom prevalent among the ancient Mexicans and the modern Pueblos,
though not among the modern Navahoes. Other indications of a former
totemism may be found in the story of the Deer Spring People (par. 442,
note 195; see, also, note 173).
64. In reading the fourth chapter of the Origin Legend--"Growth of
the Navaho Nation"--one is impressed with the different degrees of
willingness, on both sides, with which new gentes are adopted into
the nation. In some instances two parties, meeting for the first time,
embrace one another and become friends at once (par. 382). The clans
from the Pacific coast--the Western immigrants, as they are here
called--learn of the existence of kindred tribes far to the east,
take a long and dangerous journey to join them, and, when their march
is done, they are received by the Navahoes at once as brethren. On
the other hand, the legend tells us of bands that camp long in the
neighborhood of the Navahoes before they become incorporated with the
latter (par. 394); of other clans descended from captives (pars. 406,
454, 455); and of others that seek refuge among the Navahoes only
to escape starvation or persecution at home (pars. 403, 452). On
the basis of their mode of adoption, the clans may be divided into
the ready and the reluctant. The cause of this is probably one of
language. Bands which we know to have been allied in language to
the Navahoes--such as those derived from the Apaches--will be found
among the ready; while bands which we know to have spoken languages
very different to the Navaho--such as those derived from the Utes,
from Zuñi, and Jemez--will be found among the reluctant. It is not
unreasonable to conclude that the same rule applies to clans of whose
original language we know nothing.
65. Phratries.--The gentes of the Navahoes are divided into a number
of groups, each of which may be called a phratry. Authorities in the
tribe differ as to the number of the phratries, and as to the gentes
that compose them. Some make but eight phratries. Captain Bourke[294]
has obtained a list of eleven, with three independent gentes. Some of
the Navahoes say there are twelve phratries, and suggest that they have
some relation to the twelve tribes who dwelt in the first world. But
the Navaho phratry seems not to be a homogeneous organization. A case
is mentioned in the Legend where a gens has changed its phratral
affinities (par. 451). Inquiry, too, has revealed that there are
sub-groups. There may be closer bonds of alliance among some gentes
in a group than there are among others in the same group. Authorities,
then, may differ without invalidating each other's testimony.
66. These groups are indicated in the Legend when it says that one
gens has become closely related or affiliated with another (pars. 385,
399, 403 et al.), or when it says that two gentes cannot intermarry
(pars. 393, 401, 406). If the Navahoes have a term equivalent to
"phratry," it has not been discovered. They have no special names
for the different phratries; they often, but not always, speak of a
phratry by the name of the most important gens in it.
67. If the Legend is to be taken as evidence, phratries have developed
among the Navahoes both by segmentation of gentes and by the addition
of new gentes from without; not by either method exclusively. But
legendary evidence is not needed to show that gentes which bear to-day
the names of alien tribes have been additions to the phratry.
68. Forbidden Degrees of Kindred.--A Navaho belongs to the gens of his
mother and takes the name of that gens. Cases have been noted where
a Navaho has been known by his gentile name and not by any other. No
man may marry one of his own gens; neither may he marry one of his
own phratry, though some exceptions seem to be made in the latter
case where the limits of the phratry are not well defined. Where this
descent in the female line exists among other tribes, it is held by
some ethnographers that the man does not regard his father or his
father's people as his relations, and may contract a marriage with
a woman of his father's gens. Such is certainly not the case among
the Navahoes. The gens and the phratry of the father are as much
forbidden kindred as those of the mother.
RELIGION.
69. Sources of Information.--That the Navahoes have a religion--an
elaborate pagan cult--has already been intimated. There is little
to be gained by asking a Navaho direct questions about this. Learned
controversialists and theologians, capable of analyzing and discussing
their faith, have not arisen among them, or, if they have, they cannot
easily communicate their philosophy to us. But the civilized scholar
has abundant material from which to study their religion, and he
must do the analyzing himself. In the great dry-paintings shown on
the floors of the medicine-lodges, during their long ceremonies,
may be seen pictures of many of the gods, with their hieratic
belongings. In the ceremonies, or so-called dances, men are masked
to represent gods. In the myths the acts and deeds of the divine
ones are described, and we learn their thoughts and feelings,--kind,
like Indians, to their kindred; usually cruel, yet often merciful and
magnanimous, to their foes. In the countless songs of the rites may
be found the poetic side of the divine characters, and in the long
prayers we may learn their potency, and discover how man hopes to
commune with them and gain their favor.
70. No Supreme God.--The religion of this people reflects their social
condition. Their government is democratic. There is no highest chief of
the tribe, and all their chiefs are men of temporary and ill-defined
authority, whose power depends largely on their personal influence,
their oratory, and their reputation for wisdom. It is difficult for
such a people to conceive of a Supreme God. Their gods, like their men,
stand much on a level of equality.
71. Sun God.--In the version of the Origin Legend here given,
the Sun God would seem to have some precedence over the others,
but in the beginning he was only one of the people; he never figures
conspicuously as a Creator, and is far from omnipotent. Other gods,
less potent or less respected, lived before the time of man, and were
powerful before the sun was made.
72. Creation.--The Legend begins with an already created world; there
is no original creation and no Creator of all. If the Navahoes have
a story of the beginning of all things, the author has not learned
it. To a god called Békotsidi[78] is given the credit of having made
all animals whose creation is not otherwise accounted for in the
myths, especially domestic animals. Some of the Indians who have
heard vaguely of our Creator are of the opinion that Békotsidi is
the God of the Americans.
73. Estsánatlehi.--But it is generally acknowledged by the Navahoes
that their most revered deity is Estsánatlehi,[95] the Woman
Who Changes (or rejuvenates herself). Much is said of her in the
legends, but something more is to be obtained by conversation with the
shamans. The name Estsánatlehi is derived by syncopation from estsán,
woman, and natéhi, to change or transform. She is so called because,
it is supposed, she never remains in one condition, but that she grows
to be an old woman, and in the course of time becomes a young girl
again, and so passes through an endless course of lives, changing
but never dying. It is probable that she is an apotheosis of Nature,
or of the changing year.
74. The deity of fruitful Nature is properly a female and a beneficent
goddess. She is properly, too, as the legends tell us, the wife of the
Sun, to whom Nature owes her fertility. Her home is said to be in the
west, probably for the reason that in the Navaho country, which lies
mostly on the Pacific slope, the rain comes usually from the west,
and from that direction, too, come the thawing breezes in the spring.
75. Yolkaí Estsán.--A divinity called Yolkaí Estsán,[96] or White
Shell Woman, created (or found, as some versions say) at the same time
as Estsánatlehi, is called the younger sister of the latter. The two
goddesses are associated in the myths, but White Shell Woman always
acts the subordinate part, and to-day is honored with a less degree
of worship than her sister. Estsánatlehi, made of an earthly jewel,
turquoise, is related to the land. Yolkaí Estsán, made of white shell
from the ocean, is related to the waters.
76. War Gods.--Next in importance to Estsánatlehi, the sacred
brethren, Nayénezgani (or Nagénezgani) and To`badzistsíni,[127]
seem to stand. The writer designates these as the War Gods, but
the Navahoes do not call them thus. According to the version of the
Origin Legend here given, one of these was the child of Estsánatlehi
and the Sun; the other the child of Yolkaí Estsán and the Water, and
this is the version most consistent in all respects. Other versions
make both the brothers children of Estsánatlehi. Some say they were
born twins. Accepting any of these versions, they would properly
be called brothers, according to the Indian system of relationship,
and such they are called in the legends. Their chief mission was to
destroy the alien gods; but they still help the warriors in battle,
and aid the sick who suffer from witchcraft. The longest chapter in the
Origin Legend is devoted to recounting their genesis and history. In
reading the chapter, it will be apparent to the comparative mythologist
that these characters have their counterparts, which need not now be
mentioned, in the myths of many races in both hemispheres. From their
mythic associations it would appear that Nayénezgani is a god of light,
with its associated heat, while To`badzistsíni is a god of darkness,
with its associated moisture; yet, apparently in contradiction to
this, the representative of the former is painted black and wears a
black mask in the ceremonies (plate IV.), while the representative
of the latter is painted red and wears a red mask (plate VII.).
77. Nayénezgani, whose name signifies Slayer of the Alien Gods,[127] is
spoken of as the elder brother in the legends and always plays the more
important part. To`badzistsíni, or Child of the Water,[127] is called
the younger brother and always appears as a subordinate character. In
the ceremonies, the masquerader who personates Nayénezgani always walks
in front, while he who personates To`badzistsíni comes behind. The two
gods are always associated in prayer and sacrifice, but here, again,
Nayénezgani takes precedence. In all the sacred songs where they are
mentioned, the superiority of Nayénezgani is indicated. Antithesis,
as has been said, is a favorite figure with the Navaho poets, and they
often employ it when speaking of these gods. The "Song of the Approach"
of the War Gods in the ceremony of klédzi hatál will serve, as well
as many other compositions, to show how they treat this subject. It
may be freely translated thus:--
He advances! He advances!
Now Slayer of the Alien Gods advances,
Above, among the mountain peaks, he advances,
In danger he advances.
He advances! He advances!
Now Child of the Water advances
Below, among the foothills, he advances,
In danger he advances.
Thus both the gods come to the aid of the supplicant; but while the
elder strides proudly on the summits of the mountains, the younger
walks humbly among the foothills.
78. Yéi.--There are a number of divinities in the Navaho pantheon
known as yéi (in compound words often pronounced ye or ge), which
is translated "god" or "genius." What distinction exists between the
yéi and other gods is not easy to determine definitely. The Zuñians
have a class of gods called by the same name, or, more correctly,
"yéyi," as Mr. Cushing pronounces it. Certain chiefs or important
personages among these gods are called by names which begin with the
syllables hastsé--as Hastséyalti[73] (Talking God), Hastséhogan[74]
(House God). It is believed that this, if spelled etymologically,
would appear as hastyé, but it is not so pronounced, Hast is a
prefix denoting age, especially venerable age. We have it in the word
hastín, which means a worthy or respected old man. Hastyé would mean a
venerable yéi or god. The yéi seem to be deities of minor importance
to those previously mentioned and to be more numerous. Thus, while
there is but one Estsánatlehi, but one Nayénezgani, and but one
To`badzistsíni there are several Hastséhogan and several Hastséyalti,
who are chiefs of the yéi. The yéi are supposed to abide in certain
localities, and in prayers in their honor the home is mentioned of
the yéi to whom appeal is specially made. A place called Tsé`natsi, or
Red Horizontal Rock, somewhere north of the San Juan River, Tse`gíhi,
another place north of the San Juan, and the White House (fig. 22),
in the Chelly Canyon, are important homes of the yéi.[265] Each of
the sacred mountains has its group of yéi. In the myths of klédzi
hatál, more than a score of places are named where yéi dwell. There
are some reasons for believing that the cult of the yéi is derived
from the Cliff-dwellers, or from the Pueblos; but there are arguments,
too, against this theory. The subject will not be further considered
here. The yéi are supposed to be married and have families. The males
are called yébaka; the females, yébaad.[200] Hastsézini,[212] the
god of fire, and Hastséoltoi,[206] the divine huntress, or goddess
of the chase, belong, as their names indicate, to the yéi; while
Gánaskidi,[207] the harvest god, and Tó`nenili[98] Water Sprinkler,
are associated with them in the legends.
79. Digíni.--Digi'n means sacred, divine, mysterious, or holy. It is
not quite synonymous with the Dakota wakán or the Hidatsa hopá. It
is not applied to the treatment of disease; it is not applied in a
general way to religious ceremonial; it has not been heard applied
to the anáye, or other things of evil: for this reason it is often
translated "holy." Digíni, derived from digi'n, means holy people,
gods, divinities. It is a name applied to the highest and lowest
divinities, including the yéi (see notes 92 and 93).
80. Alien Gods.--Such are the gods that are friendly to the human race;
but man has his enemies, too, among the mysterious powers. Chief among
the latter are the anáye,[7] the alien gods or inimical genii. These,
being analogous to the giants and ogres of European folk-lore, are
sometimes called giants in this work. They are usually represented
as creatures of great size. Many of them are described in the Origin
Legend. The worst have been slain, as the story relates; but others,
being not unmixed evils, still remain to torment man. The legend,
in accounting for their continued existence, shows the philosophic
endeavor of our race to reconcile itself to the unwelcome inevitable.
81. Water God.--The position of Tiéholtsodi,[8] the water monster,
is one of transferred allegiance. He was once the enemy of our race,
but now has become friendly to it in certain ways, though it is
probable that he is still thought to be responsible for cases of
drowning. Other gods, who were once inimical to man but are now his
friends, are mentioned in the legends (par. 354). But we are not
without evidence that the Navaho fears to offend his most beneficent
gods lest the latter may directly punish him, or at least withhold
their succor in his hour of need.
82. Devils.--Besides the alien gods, there are evil spirits haunting
the earth which men dread; these are the tsi'ndi, whose name cannot be
better translated than by calling them devils. The Navahoes frequently
speak of the tsi'ndi (Englished, chindee), and they often use the
term as an angry exclamation, just as the profane among ourselves
say, "Oh the Devil!" or "You devil!" (see pars. 257, 260), yet they
dislike to discuss its character or appearance. They believe there
is a devil associated with every corpse, and that it has something of
the appearance of a partly decayed corpse. The spirit of the dead man
goes to the lower world, which was the former home of the race, yet a
demon remains with the dead body. Other Indians believe in a similar
corpse spirit, yet the author has never known any who have such dread
as the Navahoes of human mortuary remains. (See par. 188 and note 91.)
83. Zoölatry.--The legend tells us that there is a First Man and a
First Woman (see pars. 160-165), who came into being in the fourth
world as the result of a special act of creation: but they have
not died like Adam and Eve; they still live in some form; they are
potent; they are immortal; they are divine. But it is not man only
that has his divine ancestral prototype: every animal on the face of
the earth has its also, and many, if not all, of these are objects
of worship. A share of reverence, too, in some cases, as in that
of the bear, is bestowed on their mortal descendants. In the rite
of the mountain chant[314] many of the sacrifices are sacred to the
animals of the mountains. In short, zoölatry is an important element
in Navaho worship.
84. Local Gods.--Some of the gods mentioned are also local divinities;
thus the War Gods are local divinities at To`ye'tli (par. 374), and
the yéi are local divinities at Tsé`natsi. But, in addition to these,
there are other gods of places so numerous that a complete list of
them will probably never be obtained. In the Origin Legend it is shown
that each of the sacred mountains of the Navaho land (seven in number
according to Tall Chanter) has its divine pair of indwelling guardians,
and these seem to receive more honor than any others which are gods of
places only; but the genii of other mountains and of different rocks
and canyons have their prayers and sacrifices in some of the rites.
85. Fanciful legends of places are common in all lands and among all
races, but no people are more ingenious in composing such tales than
our American Indians. The Navaho has unusual sources of inspiration in
this direction, and he fails not to profit by them. His land abounds
in wonderful geologic formations, in rocks strangely sculptured by
rain and by Nature's sand-blast, in vast volcanic peaks and fields of
lava; and it abounds also, as might be expected, in myths accounting
for these features, and in the genii which belong to the myths. A
few of these myths are incorporated in the tales told in this work,
but they are very few compared with the total of such legendary lore.