Legends and Folklore of the Northern Lights

The aurora borealis has intrigued people from ancient times, and still
does today. The Eskimos and Indians of North America have many stories
to explain these northern lights.

One story is reported by the explorer Ernest W. Hawkes in his book, The Labrador Eskimo:

Evil Thing

The Point Barrow Eskimos were the only Eskimo group who considered the
aurora an evil thing. In the past they carried knives to keep it away
from them.

Omen of War

The Fox Indians, who lived in Wisconsin, regarded the light as an omen
of war and pestilence. To them the lights were the ghosts of their
slain enemies who, restless for revenge, tried to rise up again.

Dancing Spirits

The Salteaus Indians of eastern Canada and the Kwakiutl and Tlingit of
Southeastern Alaska interpreted the northern lights as the dancing of
human spirits. The Eskimos who lived on the lower Yukon River believed
that the aurora was the dance of animal spirits, especially those of
deer, seals, salmon and beluga.

Game of Ball

Most Eskimo groups have a myth of the northern lights as the spirits of
the dead playing ball with a walrus head or skull. The Eskimos of
Nunivak Island had the opposite idea, of walrus spirits playing with a
human skull.

Spirits of Children

The east Greenland Eskimos thought that the northern lights were the
spirits of children who died at birth. The dancing of the children
round and round caused the continually moving streamers and draperies
of the aurora.

Fires in the North

The Makah Indians of Washington State thought the lights were
fires in the Far North, over which a tribe of dwarfs, half the length
of a canoe paddle and so strong they caught whales with their hands,
boiled blubber.

Stew Pots

The Mandan of North Dakota explained the northern lights as fires over
which the great medicine men and warriors of northern nations simmered
their dead enemies in enormous pots. The Menominee Indians of Wisconsin
regarded the lights as torches used by great, friendly giants in the
north, to spear fish at night.

Creator Reminder

An Algonquin myth tells of when Nanahbozho, creator of the Earth, had
finished his task of the creation, he traveled to the north, where he
remained. He built large fires, of which the northern lights are the
reflections, to remind his people that he still thinks of them.

Re-printed with permission from Anistara:

“I think most of California central to northern have a bear dance. They’re all pretty much the same, different dancers and songs vary, but the medicine is the same, good and strong. Our family grows smudge for this particular event and so each season it carries new ceremony for healing. I am in the bear mode now and find it in particularly uncanny that we moved to Los Osos recently, which means, The Bear.

More on our annual ceremony/old school way

The origin of the bear dance is told this way. Two brothers were hunting in the mountains and stopped to rest. One of the brothers saw a bear clawing and singing as he danced around a tree. As one brother went on to hunt the other watched the bear, who taught him the dance and the song. The bear told him to teach this to his people as a sign of respect for the bear’s spirit which gives strength.

The Annual Bear Dance was held in the spring at the first sound of thunder; about the middle of March. But preparation was made all winter: around the campfires the story teller told tales of the way of life and the singers practiced songs which had come in dreams.

As the time came near the men prepared the Bear Dance arbor and did other necessary work, while the women made the family’s clothes for the dance. The bands would come and set up camp.

After a long winter the festivities began. The men and women would enter the arbor wearing plumes that signified their worries. At the end of the dance on the fourth day, the plumes would be hung on a cedar tree at the east entrance of the arbor and they would leave their troubles behind.

Cameras are allowed for this social dance.”

The following is an excerpt from an article I recently read about the Lakota tradition of Wopila or as I know it ‘the giveaway”….a common tradition throughout the Indian culture.

Ceremonies and rituals are our way of communicating through the pipe with the spirits and Wakantanka. Wakantanka is often translated from Lakota to English as Great Spirit, but the literal translation of Wakantanka is Sacred Big. Most Lakota only concern themselves with the Earth Spirits and the Grandmothers and Grandfathers; the creator is not knowable, so they really don’t think about it too much. When white missionaries came out to proselytize the Lakota, they used the term Great Spirit because they asserted that they did know the nature of the creator.  Nowadays, the term is used nearly interchangeably with the term God, in the Christian sense.

From the point of view of the Lakota, Mother Earth gives us everything. When we receive a gift, such as a vision or a child or a husband, it is good to say thank you. When hard times come and we lose things we are attached to or people we care about, it is good to give things away to ease the burden of grief by spreading it around a little.

After I held my own Giveaway, I began to see the connection between the virtue of generosity and Mother Earth. She teaches us that generosity is not predicated upon the expectation that someone else will give to us at some later date. Generosity is not doing someone a favor. True generosity gives from the heart and expects nothing in return, just as the Earth gives us everything and asks nothing of us.

David Little Elk, a Lakota teacher and musician, summed up the philosophy behind the Wopila in such a clear way that I will quote him here:

“The foundation of the Lakota ways is the expression Mitokuye Oyas’in, which means all my relations or everything is connected. To keep our connections strong and healthy requires that we communicate as clearly and effectively as possible. Communication is the transfer of medicine (energy) via our thoughts, feelings, actions and words. Thus, we were meant to communicate. The Lakota Natural Law of Generosity states that energy we use to communicate with others will return to us fourfold.”

It is with this in mind that many Lakota are generous. They know that if they are generous with others, the universe will return that generosity fourfold.

To me, it also makes the ceremony or ritual more meaningful when people gather together to eat and share, not just the material gifts given, but the “medicine” of the Wopila. In this way, the power of the ceremony can be shared with all our relations.

*From My friend White Wolf~

This story was told to me by an old man. His Cherokee name was
Gansdi-Stick. Some people say it was a dog that made the Milky Way but
he was told it was the wolf. He said only the wolf could be so crafty
as to make the stars…

There were people in the southern part of the world that made corn
meal. The women would pound the dried corn in a pounder with a large
stick till it was a fine powder. They would work all day to make the
powder and then store it in large kettles in a storehouse for the
winter. After a few days of pounding the corn they began to notice
that some of the kettles were not as full as they were supposed to be.
It was being taken. They examined the ground around the storehouse and
noticed tracks. They decided to hide and watch the next night to see
who was stealing the corn meal.

Seven women decided to hide inside the storehouse. They crouched
behind the large pottery kettles and waited. Well after midnight all
the women had gone to sleep except one. She watched and waited in the
darkness. Suddenly she heard a noise outside and then noticed a bluish
glow like a bright moonlight. The light came closer to the storehouse.
The woman crouched even further behind the kettles, afraid of what was
coming toward her. She picked up a stick laying beside her. The door
to the storehouse opened.

In walked a wolf with a strange glow around it. The wolf walked over
to one of the kettles that was brimming with freshly made corn meal
and began to eat. Suddenly the woman began to scream, waking the other
women. They opened their eyes and noticed the wolf inside. They all
jumped up and ran towards it. The woman with the stick began hitting
it till it ran out of the storehouse. The wolf became so frightened
that he jumped into the air and began flying in a wide circle back
toward the north. As he flew drops of corn meal fell from his mouth.
They glowed as the wolf did and so he left a trail today we call the
Milky Way.

One day long ago a traveling party of the Kiowa People were crossing
the great prairie and camped by a stream. Many of the Bear People lived
nearby, and they smelled the Kiowa People. The Bear People were hungry,
and some of the bear warriors went out to hunt the Kiowa People. Seven
young girls from the Kiowa camp were out gathering berries, up along
the stream, far from the campsite. The Bears came upon them and growled
to attack. The girls ran and ran, out across the open prairie, until
they came to a large gray rock. They climbed onto the rock, but the
bears began to climb the rock also. The girls began to sing a prayer to
the rock, asking it to protect them form the Bear People. No one had
ever honored the rock before, and the rock agreed to help them. The
rock, who had laid quietly for centuries, began to stand up and reach
to the sky. The girls rose higher and higher as the rock stood up. The
bear warriors began to sing to the bear gods, and the bears grew taller
as the rock rose up. The bears tried and tried to climb the rock as it
grew steeper and higher, but their huge claws only split the rock face
into thousands of strips as the rock grew up out of their reach. Pieces
of rock were scraped and cut away by the thousands and fell in piles at
the foot of the rock. The rock was cut and scarred on all of its sides
as the bears fought to climb it. At last, the bears gave up the hunt,
and turned to go back to their own houses. They slowly returned to the
original sizes. As the huge bears came back across the prairie, slowly
becoming smaller, the Kiowas saw them and broke camp. They fled in
fear, and looking back at the towering mountain of rock, they guessed
that it must be the lodge of these giant bears. “Tso’ Ai’,” some People
say today, or “Bears’ Lodge.” The Kiowa girls were afraid, high up on
the rock, and they saw their People break camp and leave them there,
thinking the girls had all already been eaten by the bears. The girls
sang again, this time to the stars. The stars were happy to hear their
song, and the stars came down and took the seven girls into the sky,
the Seven Sisters, and each night they pass over Bears’ Lodge and smile
in gratitude to the rock spirit.

Legends and Folklore of the Northern Lights

The aurora borealis has intrigued people from ancient times, and still does today. The Eskimos and Indians of North America have many stories to explain these northern lights.

One story is reported by the explorer Ernest W. Hawkes in his book, The Labrador Eskimo:

Evil Thing

The Point Barrow Eskimos were the only Eskimo group who considered the aurora an evil thing. In the past they carried knives to keep it away from them.

Omen of War

The Fox Indians, who lived in Wisconsin, regarded the light as an omen of war and pestilence. To them the lights were the ghosts of their slain enemies who, restless for revenge, tried to rise up again.

Dancing Spirits

The Salteaus Indians of eastern Canada and the Kwakiutl and Tlingit of Southeastern Alaska interpreted the northern lights as the dancing of human spirits. The Eskimos who lived on the lower Yukon River believed that the aurora was the dance of animal spirits, especially those of deer, seals, salmon and beluga.

Game of Ball

Most Eskimo groups have a myth of the northern lights as the spirits of the dead playing ball with a walrus head or skull. The Eskimos of Nunivak Island had the opposite idea, of walrus spirits playing with a human skull.

Spirits of Children

The east Greenland Eskimos thought that the northern lights were the spirits of children who died at birth. The dancing of the children round and round caused the continually moving streamers and draperies of the aurora.

Fires in the North

The Makah Indians of Washington State thought the lights were fires in the Far North, over which a tribe of dwarfs, half the length of a canoe paddle and so strong they caught whales with their hands, boiled blubber.

Stew Pots

The Mandan of North Dakota explained the northern lights as fires over which the great medicine men and warriors of northern nations simmered their dead enemies in enormous pots. The Menominee Indians of Wisconsin regarded the lights as torches used by great, friendly giants in the north, to spear fish at night.

Creator Reminder

An Algonquin myth tells of when Nanahbozho, creator of the Earth, had finished his task of the creation, he traveled to the north, where he remained. He built large fires, of which the northern lights are the reflections, to remind his people that he still thinks of them.

Honoring Life Changes
Blessing Way

A Mother Blessing is a ritual adapted from the traditional Navajo ceremony known as a Blessing Way. Mother Blessings fill a gap in western celebrations surrounding birth. Whereas a baby shower celebrates the coming of the child, a Mother Blessing celebrates the woman’s passage into motherhood. Friends-generally all women, but not always-gather to give their support to the mother as she approaches one of the most intense experiences of her life. A Father Blessing is also a wonderful idea especially during a time when fathers can be feeling a little left out.

A Blessing Way ceremony can be given in honor of anyone going through a major life transition. From graduating high school to turning 50, significant life changes deserve to be acknowledged and celebrated. Many of our traditional ways of recognizing these transitions have become hollow, often dominated by consumerism. A Blessing Way is less about giving gifts and more about communicating from the heart, offering words of encouragement and inspiration to buoy the guest of honor in the face of major change.

Often at Mother Blessings, each participant brings a bead to give to the mother, and a necklace or bracelet is made for her. Each person presents their bead to the mother and says something of what they wish for her journey-strength, courage, or a sense of humor, for example. They can also give their bead in honor of a quality she already has that they believe will make her a good mother. This way she leaves the ritual with a magical talisman imbued with the loving energy of her community. She can carry this into labor or hang it over her baby’s crib as a reminder of the strength she carries within and the love surrounding her. The same idea can be adapted to fit Blessing Ways in honor of retirement, a new job, a major move, or even a divorce.

If someone you know is approaching a momentous rite of passage, organize a Blessing Way in their honor. Or, if you need one, ask for one. It could become a beautiful new tradition in your community of friends and family.

Birch bark…an exhausted looking slice of tree that is somehow
speaking of times long past. It seems as though this tree has shed or
somehow discarded this layer of itself, to be left as proof of its
existence.
She’s tired, worn, grey with age, yet comfortable with the
journey she has taken. Her skin is brittled with age, like the sinewy
hands of a 1,000 year old Grandmother, knotted and twisted from ages of
work, yet her energy seemed infinite, almost fluid like time.
She is marked with many lines, pathways, fissures and wrinkles,
perhaps a testament to her long journey. She feels unassuming and
practical, comfortable, if you will. She holds the coolness of the
forest and the warmth of the sun at the same time.
She beckons me to come closer, to see and to listen. I struggle
to understand what she wants me to know. Peering into her face, she
seems to be looking back at me with eyes everywhere and she seems to
possess the wisdom of a million ancient souls.
There is a feeling of transcendency as she shows me the tale of the universe.

Endless, open, wide and expansive! Every moment of it written on
her aged, layered exterior. My eyes roam from picture to picture, my
mind amazed at the striking, yet intricate photographs of her life’s
journey.
An eagle, perched in its watchful repose, looking down, as if
protecting its world. Below, groves of trees reaching up toward the
sky. There are roads, paths, rivers, and waterfalls.
Even the knots take on a curious appearance. One shows me a
canyon, rich with layers of time, as if trying to show me the rhythm of
life, like water passing by.
Another knot reveals the stars, wrapped up neatly within what
appears to be a nebula,circular lines adding a sense of movement to
their portrait. It briefly reminds me of Van Gogh’s “Starry Night”.
My eyes drift further to yet another knot. Within this knot is a
tiny hole that invites me to follow it through, much like a winding
road from outside to inside. Following the road, I turn her over to
behold yet more of her well traveled soul.
There are gritty layers combined with a soft brown, velvety
interior;; an illustration of her essence of spirit. It is almost as
though she has weathered the ups and downs of life, yet has not lost
her softness, her innocence, her ability to comfort and nurture.
There are fine grains of sand here, even finer bits of sparkling
glass mixed in. Earthy, aged and wise, yet preserved as if young like a
child. She has drunk from the cup of life and ingested the joy of
living, in all its entirety. She certainly has a story to tell.
She has brought to mind such wonderful images, from Van Gogh’s
“Starry Night to that familiar stretch of road just south of our sacred
mountain, Mt. Katahdin on route 95 North in Maine, where there is a
sudden break in the tree line amidst the repetitiousness of the pine.
There in the clearing is a grove of tall rather stately looking
silver birch trees, leaves dancing in the sunlight. It is a small but
welcome diversion on an endless drive. The birch trees offer a welcome
respite from the tediousness of the trip. I always take my rest in that
oasis; my face caressed by the wind and my own weary spirit welcomed
home by the birches. A very feminine contrast to the maleness of
Katahdin. There the world seems in perfect balance, if only for a brief
moment.
No other tree can make the sun dance so playfully and make the
whole forest come alive with joyous, golden twinkles. No other tree
reflects the moon-light so magically from its silver bark.
The ancient people called the birch ‘the Mother Tree’, because
after the ice age it gave birth to a new habitat for all the trees and
plants which did not have the same powers of endurance.
They sometimes called the tree “the shining one” Maybe this
nickname was given because of the bright silvery bark, or the way the
sunlight dances in the leaves, or perhaps simply because of her
radiating spirit.
She is a spirit of the universe, the sun, moon, and stars and she
has told a million stories. Somehow I think she has a million more to
tell.
Birch bark lives for years, long after it is separated from the
tree. As I place her shed skin back on the forest floor, I wonder if
someone else will pick her up again one day and she will tell the story
again.
The story of an enduring spirit for all time.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=utBkbJIYMy8

CREE PROPHECY

Warriors of the Rainbow

Last century an old wise woman of the Cree Indian nation, named “Eyes of Fire”, had a vision of the future. She prophesied that one day, because of the white mans’ or Yo-ne-gis’ greed, there would come a time, when the earth being ravaged and polluted, the forests being destroyed, the birds would fall from the air, the waters would be blackened, the fish being poisoned in the streams, and the trees would no longer be, mankind as we would know it would all but cease to exist. There would come a time when the “keepers of the legend, stories, culture rituals, and myths, and all the Ancient Tribal Customs” would be needed to restore us to health, making the earth green again. They would be mankind’s key to survival, they were the “Warriors of the Rainbow”. There would come a day of awakening when all the peoples of all the tribes would form a New World of Justice, Peace, Freedom and recognition of the Great Spirit. The “Warriors of the Rainbow” would spread these messages and teach all peoples of the Earth or “Elohi”. They would teach them how to live the “Way of the Great Spirit”. They would tell them of how the world today has turned away from the Great Spirit and that is why our Earth is “Sick”.

The “Warriors of the Rainbow” would show the peoples that this “Ancient Being” (the Great Spirit), is full of love and understanding, and teach them how to make the “Earth or Elohi” beautiful again. These Warriors would give the people principles or rules to follow to make their path light with the world. These principles would be those of the Ancient Tribes. The Warriors of the Rainbow would teach the people of the ancient practices of Unity, Love and Understanding. They would teach of Harmony among people in all four corners of the Earth.

Like the Ancient Tribes, they would teach the peoples how to pray to the Great Spirit with love that flows like the beautiful mountain stream, and flows along the path to the ocean of life. Once again, they would be able to feel joy in solitude and in councils. They would be free of petty jealousies and love all mankind as their brothers, regardless of color, race or religion. They would feel happiness enter their hearts, and become as one with the entire human race. Their hearts would be pure and radiate warmth, understanding and respect for all mankind, Nature and the Great Spirit.

They would once again fill their minds, hearts, souls, and deeds with the purest of thoughts. They would seek the beauty of the Master of Life - the Great Spirit! They would find strength and beauty in prayer and the solitude of life.

Their children would once again be able to run free and enjoy the treasures of Nature and Mother Earth. Free from the fears of toxins and destruction, wrought by the Yo-ne-gi and his practices of greed. The rivers would again run clear, the forests be abundant and beautiful, the animals and birds would be replenished. The powers of the plants and animals would again be respected and conservation of all that is beautiful would become a way of life.

The poor, sick and needy would be cared for by their brothers and sisters of the Earth. These practices would again become a part of their daily lives.

The leaders of the people would be chosen in the old way - not by their political party, or who could speak the loudest, boast the most, or by name calling or mud slinging, but by those whose actions spoke the loudest. Those who demonstrated their love, wisdom and courage and those who showed that they could and did work for the good of all, would be chosen as the leaders or Chiefs. They would be chosen by their “quality” and not the amount of money they had obtained. Like the thoughtful and devoted “Ancient Chiefs”, they would understand the people with love, and see that their young were educated with the love and wisdom of their surroundings. They would show them that miracles can be accomplished to heal this world of its ills, and restore it to health and beauty.

The tasks of these “Warriors of the Rainbow” are many and great. There will be terrifying mountains of ignorance to conquer and they shall find prejudice and hatred. They must be dedicated, unwavering in their strength, and strong of heart. They will find willing hearts and minds that will follow them on this road of returning “Mother Earth” to beauty and plenty - once more.

The day will come, it is not far away.

The day that we shall see how we owe our very existence to the people of all tribes that have maintained their culture and heritage. Those that have kept the rituals, stories, legends and myths alive. It will be with this knowledge, the knowledge that they have preserved, that we shall once again return to “harmony” with Nature, Mother Earth and mankind. It will be with this knowledge that we shall find our “Key to our Survival”.

This is the story of the “Warriors of the Rainbow”.