Manataka Smoke Signal Newsletter Volume V, Issue 5 May 2, 2003
CONTENTS:
1. WEB SITE ADDITIONS
2. PAY DUES - MAKE A DONATION ON LINE!
3. MAIC COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS
4. SUMMER GATHERING AT MANATAKA
5. MAKE YOUR DREAMS COME TRUE
6. WOLVES IN AMERICAN INDIAN CULTURE
7. UNSUBSCRIBE
WEB SITE ADDITIONS
21 NEW PAGES
and
21 UPDATED
PAGES!
Bear and the
Badger –
Children’s story
Bear Man–
Children’s story
Black Elk’s
Visions
–
Medicine
Lodge
–
Cherokee Dictionary – Updated!
–
Combing Snakes Out of Atotarho’s Hair -
Legends Constitution of the Six Nations Confederacy – History Essays
of Frank J. King III – Feature article
–
Fun Page – New jokes!
–
Honoring Lori – Women’s Council
–
Hopi Chief Dan – Medicine Lodge
–
Links Page – Over 350 Updated links!
–
Minominee Clans– Feature story
–
My Pilgrimage to Manataka - Feature
story
–
Native Games – Children’s Story
–
Search Engine – Search Manataka
–
State of Indian Nations – Special
Report
–
10 American Indians You Should Know –
Feature story
–
The First Totem Pole – Legends
–
The Old Rez Road – Beautiful
Words
–
Turtle Makes War On Men–
children’s story
–
Yaqui Nation – History
COMING SOON!
American Indian Book
Reviews
The new book review
committee is hard at work
bringing you the latest
books and resources information.
Do you have a story to tell or an article you would like
to see appear on our website? If so, let know.
manataka@myexcel.com CHECK IT OUT!
http://www.manataka.org
PAY YOUR DUES ONLINE!
The Manataka
American Indian Council is a nonprofit, tax-exempt,
501(c)(3),
educational and cultural organization.
MAIC needs
your help to continue our programs, services and events.
If you have not paid
your dues this year, please do so now.
It is quick, easy and
secure!
PAY DUES
ANNOUNCEMENT:
Attention
Traditional Artists/Craftspersons
Parkin Mound State Archeological Park will host a "Living
History Day" on Oct. 4, 2003. They seek traditional American Indian artists
and crafters to demonstrate their work. Demonstrators will be permitted to sell
their work and be paid $75.00. Candidates will be juried. "We are looking
for traditional work but we are interested in education the public that we keep
our arts and traditions alive."
Info:
Valarie: 501 330-2418 – vgcarving@cs.com
SUMMER
GATHERING AT MANATAKA
JUNE 27, 28,
29
Gulpha Gorge
Campgrounds
Hot Springs
National Park, Arkansas
This will be
an event you will not want to miss!
READ DETAILS:
www.manataka.org
<http://64.4.14.250/cgi-bin/linkrd?_lang=EN&lah=cac69b9f1d7a0fe4215bb6370591460b&lat=1054678028&hm___action=http%3a%2f%2fwww%2emanataka%2eorg>
The following committees are accepting offers of volunteer
assistance:
Ceremonies Committee
Greeting Committee
Membership Table
Lodge Committee
Women's Council
If you can volunteer a few hours of service, please let us know today!
ANNOUNCEMENT:
UPCOMING TV
MINI- SERIES MOVIE
MARK YOUR CALENDAR: "Dreamkeepers" mini-series, ABC
Television, Sunday, May 11, 8:00 p.m. EST; Monday, May 12, 9:00 p.m. EST.
Legends
of the Native American nations come to life in this epic mini-series from
Hallmark Entertainment as two generations—a century-old storyteller and his
grandson, a troubled 16-year-old boy—embark on a cross-country journey toward
self-discovery.
Wolves in
American Indian Culture
By Edwin Wollert
(Dedicated to all our wolf brothers and sisters everywhere.)
Did you
know?
The Navajo word for wolf, "mai-coh," also means witch, and a person
could transform if he or she donned a wolf skin. So the Europeans were not the
only ones with werewolf legends. However, the American tribes have an
overwhelming tendency to look upon the wolf in a much more favorable light. The
Navajo themselves have healing ceremonies which call upon Powers to restore
peace and harmony to the ill, and the wolf is one such Power.
"The caribou
feeds the wolf, but it is the wolf who keeps the caribou strong." -Keewatin
Eskimo saying.
Native
American tribes recognized the wolf for its extreme devotion to its family, and
many drew parallels between wolf pack members and the members of the tribe.
Also, the wolf's superior and cooperative hunting skills made it the envy of
many tribes. Finally, the wolf was known to defend its home against outsiders, a
task with which each tribe had to contend as well.
Some
examples of the wolf appearing throughout Native American religion and mythology
include the following. The Eskimos told of an old woman, Qisaruatsiaq, who was
abandoned and forced to live by herself, and who eventually turned into a wolf.
The Sioux called the wolf "shunk manitu tanka," or "animal that
looks like a dog but is a powerful spirit." Cheyenne medicine men rubbed
warrior arrows against wolf fur to bring better success in hunting. The Nootka
celebrated spiritual ties to the wolf, in a ceremony whereby they pretended to
bring back to life the chief's dead son, by wearing wolf clothing. The Cherokee
would not kill a wolf, believing the dead wolf's siblings would enact revenge.
They also imitated the wolf's walk to help ward off frostbite to their feet. The
Crow dressed in wolf skins to hunt. The Mandan displayed on their moccasins wolf
tails, signs of success in battle. Women of the Hidatsa tribe rubbed their
bellies with wolf skin to alleviate difficult childbirth. The Cree believed
divine wolves visited earth when the northern lights would shine during winter.
The Ahtena
would prop dead wolves up, sometimes feeding them ceremonial meals. Chippewa
myths tell of wolves supplying humans with food and hides. The Delaware tribe
thought a change in weather might be announced through a wolf's howl. The Hopis
include Wolf as one of the Katchinas, the costumed dancers who represent the
powers of the universe.
Indian
creation mythology sometimes involves wolves, as in this example from the
heritage of the Arikara tribe:
"In the
beginning, they say, was water and sky. Here on high you could find Nesaru the
sky spirit, and Wolf and Lucky-man. Below lay a watery vastness, empty, it
seemed, with only two small ducks swimming about, making eternal, small ripples.
Envisioning another kind of earth, with space and variety for myriad creatures,
Wolf and Lucky-man asked the ducks to dive down for mud. Using his endless
energy, Wolf took half of the mud to build a great prairie for hunting beasts
like himself. Lucky-man, his partner in creation, built hills and valleys where
the Indians could hunt and live. Last they pushed up the remaining mud into
banks of a river, which you can still see, to divide their territories.
Earth was ready. Wolf and Lucky-man understood that large creatures must emerge
from the reproduction of smaller, humble ones. They enter deep into the earth to
find two Spiders who are meant to begin propagating the world. Imagine their
disgust when they find the Spiders to be not only ignorant of the business of
reproduction, but so dirty and ugly that they aren't
interested in each other. Wolf and Lucky-man scrub down their charges and
explain the pleasures and responsibilities of fertilization. Clean and
enlightened, the Spiders give birth to earth's many creatures - the eight-legged
like themselves, the six, the four, and finally the two-legged ones." -
Cottie Burland
Perhaps the
tribe with the closest of all associations with the wolf is the Pawnee, in the
lands now known as Nebraska and Kansas. The Pawnee felt such a close kinship
that their hand-signal for wolf is the same as the hand-signal for Pawnee. They
were known as the Wolf People even by neighboring tribes. The cyclical
appearance and disappearance of Sirius, the Wolf Star, indicated the wolf coming
and going from the spirit world, running down the trail of the Wolf Road,
otherwise known as the Milky Way. The Blackfoot tribe also called our galaxy the
Wolf Trail, or the Route to Heaven. The Pawnee, like the Hidatsa and Oto tribes,
used wolf bundles, pouches of skins from wolves in which to keep and protect
treasured implements used for ceremonies and magic.
Copyright © 2003
Wolf Song of Alaska and Alaska Web Publishing.
Wolf Song of Alaska©, and the logo is registered and protected and cannot be
used without permission. All rights reserved.
10 STEPS TO
MAKE YOUR DREAMS COME TRUE!
1. Listen to your inner voice. It takes
practice to hear your true desires. Your passion will
often come as a whisper or
serendipitous event that reminds you of what's important and
what makes you happy.
2. Recognize crisis. Does your job feel like a grind? Are you
spending your free time on
something you love? Take an opportunity
to appraise your happiness. One of the keys to
living a purposeful life is seeing that
you feel unfulfilled.
3. Dwell in possibilities. Your passions could lead you in a lot of
different directions to find
fulfillment. Explore your life and
unearth all of the things that bring you joy.
4. Tune out the voice of the world. Make
the strongest voice in your life your own. Finding
your purpose could mean going against the
advice of close friends and family. Take a leap
of faith and trust in your dreams.
5. Decide what kind of person you want to be. Rather than
concentrating on what you want
to do, think in terms of what kind of
person you want to be. Let that guide your choices.
6. Bring your heart to your work. It
takes passion and courage to find a profession that you
love. Spending the time to discover that
job is time well spent—it could make all the
difference in your life!
7. Trust transformation. Hard times are a natural part of life.
Don't be afraid to change
because of your experiences. Instead,
let them shape and steer your course.
8. Have no regrets. According to the experts, it's easy to regret the
time you've spent being
unhappy or unfulfilled. Realize that
during that time, you developed the skills you need to
succeed!
9. Take the first step. Destiny can't help you until you are
willing to step out of your comfort
zone. Get prepared to make changes in
your life…and start making them!
10. Be patient. Finding your life purpose won't happen overnight. In every life,
there's a fast
road and a slow road. Most of us take the
slow road! Keep your commitment and take
small steps to make it happen.
OUR THANKS TO THE BUTTERFLIES!
ATTENTION:
MANATAKA
MEMBERS
A new system to enhance member participation in various facets of
Manataka’s educational and cultural program has been developed to insure that
everyone has an opportunity to get involved. Every member will be assigned to a
committee position regardless of where you live, your experience, or the amount
of time you may have to devote.
This new program will work in a way similar to tribal culture of old,
every member of the tribe, from young to old had a job, a position of purpose to
fulfill for the common good of all.
If you have not do so already, send an email indicating your top
three choices for committee assignment.
Committee
Explanations
? American
Indian Book Review – Colonel
John Mountain Wind Outler, Chair
Members
research, read and write regular book reviews for publication on this web site.
? Manataka
American Indian Village Project– Dr. Bob Eagle Horse McFarlin, Chair
This
project is long-term and requires expertise of many disciplines. See Village
? Ceremonies
and Events – Cuchi
Davilla, Chair
Usually
requires on-site (Hot Springs), hands-on coordination. A fun committee.
? Counseling
and Assistance – Colonel
John Mountain Wind Outler, Chair
People
in need find Manataka a welcome haven. May require a background in social/
human
services.
? Fund
Raising & Events – (NO
chair yet)
Here
is where the action is regardless of where you live. No special skills needed
except a
voice
and a happy face. This is a fun committee. Experienced grant writers needed.
? Education
Task Force – Dr.
Bob Tsalagi Digadoli Swindell, Chair
This
committee developing programs for presentation in public schools nationwide.
Lots of
research
and coordination work. Great for teachers from all walks of life. See Task Force
? Grave
Preservation and Repatriation – James
Thunder Walker Sirak, Chair
Honoring
our ancestors is the focus of this committee. Members collect data on sacred
sites,
burial grounds, petroglyphs/pictographs and artifacts to assist tribes, state
and federal
agencies
to implement laws and regulations.
? Lodge
Keepers – David
Avery, Chair
The
Manataka Tipi is a gathering place for elders of many nations. This committee
designs,
constructs and maintains tipis and other structures. They also keep an eye on
protocol
and the comfort of guests.
? Manataka.Org
– Web Site – Lee
Standing Bear Moore, Chair
Manataka.org
is among the top American Indian web sites in the country. Members re
search,
write and create web pages; develop new features and promote the website.
? Membership
Committee – Garl
WhiteHorse Neel, Chair
Help
keep track of members and their status. Develops programs and services. Provides
first
contact support and serve as hosts during gatherings and other events.
? Public
Relations & Communications – David Quiet Wind Furr, Chair
Volunteer
your writing, communication and public relations skills shine here. Committee
writes
and distributes press releases and hosts various events.
? Program
Committee – Pat
Yellow Hawk Carter
Interesting
live programs on dozens of topics are presented during regular membership
meetings
at Manataka and other locations. Members contact knowledgeable presenters
and
schedule programs.
? Smoke
Signals Newsletter – Lee
Standing Bear Moore, Chair
This
committee research and write articles for release to members and subscribers.
? Women's
Council – Sharon
Kamama Baugh, Chair
The
ladies are always busy learning, teaching and supporting the people of Manataka.
The
Women’s Council is one of the most important functions of MAIC. See Women
? Warrior
Society – James
Lone Wolf Black, Chair
Open
to men, women and teens, this group participates in many outdoor activities,
learn
survival
skills and stresses good moral character. See Warrior
? Youth
Activities – Michael
Unger, Chair
Having
fun while learning about American Indian culture and traditions at Gatherings
and
other
events is the focus of this committee.