Ghost Dance Origin Myth I - Winnebago

[Okwes]

Ghost Dance Origin Myth I - Winnebago

(1) A man was to learn from the spirits. He fasted and he would sleep four
times. In the evening he would stand with both hands full of tobacco.
Earthmaker made Waterspirits and put them in charge of the spirits, as many
as there are above, all that are on the earth, they and all below the earth.
Then the man cried pitifully -- he made himself thirst to death; he made
himself hunger to death. He cried to the spirits. After awhile, he would
sleep six times. After awhile, he would sleep eight times, then ten times he
would sleep, and then the spirits there are above [blessed him], the chiefs
that are below the earth, all of them, they blessed him. (2) The spirits
that there are, everyone he went to, in a space plumbed by spans of the
earth. He was thirsty, thereby he killed himself, therefore, that man had
nothing.

He became omniscient, so he made a warbundle. So the one in charge of ghosts
blessed him. He said, "I am he who is in charge of ghosts. Human being, I
bless you," he said to him, "not of anything will you fail to know. With
wars I bless you. I bless you with life. I bless you with the possessions of
the people. As I am in charge of this village, I bless you with everything.
With my Dance I shall bless you for as long as your root shall be, that long
shall I bless you. Whenever the people [perform?] this dance, they should
have you start it. (3) Those who lie sickly shall get well. And so I will
come back to place the souls in all that which is frail. If my servants
come, they too will take souls back home. They will come." He would always
remember tobacco and hot water.

The man knew of a great thing. Right away now he wanted to do it. The thing
that he did was to fix the war-date. He went to war taking very many along
with him. By victories he came back triumphant. So he was a dreamer that
they might know. Then he started the Ghost Dance (Wanâghí Wací) and a life
there was in it he thought, so in this way he acted. He gave a great feast.
He boiled for those who are in charge of ghosts. (4) Having offered the
Ghost Chief tobacco, he set on kettles reaching far into the distance. He
said, "Grandfather, you said you would come, so this I ask for: war powers,
life, and clothing for the people; place the souls back with us in all that
is frail. He boiled and gave tobacco for the Wanâghí Mónâtc who roamed about
visiting with them. "You also, my friends, added minds for me. You said to
me what you blessed me with, and it is these things that I ask for: wars,
long life that we may live, so tobacco I fill for you, so that the humans
will have all that. Everyone thought that the Ghost Dance was sacred, so
they were attentive. (5) For the dance the people made four of them dance
leaders so that they would be able to dance. That is where men and women are
to obtain life, to obtain war powers.

Narrated by R. G., Ghost Dance, in Paul Radin, [unpublished] Winnebago
Notebooks, #79 (Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 1909?) 1-5

[Okwes]

Ghost Dance Origin Myth II - Winnebago

. A young man lived in a village with his wife whom he loved so much that
there was nothing he would not do for her. One day she fell ill and her
condition rapidly deteriorated despite the treatment of many wâkdocewe
(physicians). Finally, he called a very wákâtcâk man, blessed with many
curative powers, to see what he could do. Even though he exerted himself
mightily, he was powerless to reverse her decline, and she died. That night
they held the Ghost Lighting Rites (Wanághadajáhira) to light her way to
Spiritland. He was much respected by the people, so everyone showed up for
each of the Four Slumbers. After games were played in her honor, everyone
went home.

However, the man could not accept the parting of his wife, and prepared for
a journey to the west, as that is the direction that they say souls
(wanâghi) take after death. So he set out the next morning in pursuit of his
wife, traveling long and hard toward the setting sun until finally he became
so fatigued that he had to use a cane. In time he became exhausted and fell
to his hands and knees. Even so he did not give up, but began crawling
westward. Soon his knees became so badly skinned that he tied basswood bark
around them. In the distance he saw a little knoll surrounded by very
beautiful country. He thought to himself, "If I could only make it to the
top of that knoll, I would be content to die there." So he struggled
mightily, and finally having reached the summit, rolled over on his back
exhausted. There he waited for death to overtake him. When he closed his
eyes, unexpectedly, he heard a voice which said, "Let's go home. This is
where I live." He opened his eyes, and there before him was a man covered
with what looked like hair. At first he could not get up, but when the man
said, "Come on!" he jumped right up and followed the man to his lodge
nearby. Once inside, the man told him, "Grandson, you are indeed pitiable,
and what little I can do for you, I will certainly try my utmost to
accomplish." After they had eaten, the hairy man told him, "Grandson, keep
going as you have been. You will eventually reach the lodge of my friend,
but first you must jump across a wide stream. It will be difficult,
grandson, but you must jump across it." The next day he traveled far until
finally he came upon the stream. Unexpectedly, it was no mere stream at all,
but a raging torrent whose current swept by with such force that whirlpools
and violent eddies swirled turbulently in its channel. The land on the other
side was so distant that it looked like a man's eyebrow. He did not see how
any human being could jump across it, but he thought to himself all that he
had suffered, and said, "I already died long ago!" He took a running start,
and closing his eyes, made a blind leap. Unexpectedly, he came down on dry
land. In amazement he turned around to see how he could have sailed across
such an immense expanse, but the raging torrent that he thought that he had
jumped was nowhere to be seen. Instead, there was a small creek in its
place. It had all been an illusion. He thought to himself, "If everything
that looks difficult proves this easy, then maybe I will succeed after all."
At this thought he took heart.

He went on some ways until finally he came to a round lodge. A voice from
inside said, "Come in," so he entered. There, much to his surprise, he found
the very man he had talked to before, and with him was another man. They
spoke to him and said, "Grandson, what you wish to accomplish will indeed be
very difficult, but we will concentrate our minds upon it for you. So keep
going and you will come to a lodge where our friend lives. Perhaps he will
be able to tell you something that will help you." So after he ate, he went
on his way again. Finally he came to another round lodge, where he was
invited inside. This time he encountered the two men he had seen before, and
with them was a third. This man gave him something to eat, and then spoke to
him: "What I wish to tell you is that what you are doing is indeed
difficult, but exert your utmost efforts, for if you fail, you will be in a
very pitiable condition," he said. So the man went onward. Not long
afterwards, he came to a hill with numerous lodges clustered about it.The
village was so large that its end was lost to view. He walked into the
village whose lodges were made of bark, yet it appeared to be a ghost town.
He looked into several lodges, but could find no one, until at last he
entered a lodge where he found four men. Three of the men were the ones with
whom he had already spoken. The fourth one addressed him and said,
"Grandson, it will indeed be difficult for you, but you are now at the place
that you have so long sought. Just the same, you are not to look upon your
wife, but you must do exactly as we instruct you, or all you have hoped for
will be lost. Tonight there will be a great dance, but no matter what
happens, you must not look around anywhere -- just gaze straight ahead. My
friends and I will do all we can for you."

That evening, unexpectedly, he heard the sound of a drum followed by shouts
from people all around the village. The drum sounded four times, and each
time the shouting grew louder and more widespread. Then someone said, "It's
about to begin. It will be crowded in front of the lodge." So the man and
the four spirits went inside and took their place in the center of the
lodge. They were in the dance lodge. He heard whispering behind him as
someone said, "Wagisga has come in pursuit of his wife. In this he will
surely fail." Then they began to tease him: "Doesn't he know that's she
remarried?" Another said, "Yeah, I'm the one who married her." Then the
singing began. It was indeed powerful, and his relatives gathered around him
and sang about him:
Wagisga's wife has come;
Many more still will come.

These were their words as they teased him. This went on all night, until
they all disappeared with the rays of the morning sun. Despite what they had
said, his wife knew nothing about his arrival in Spiritland.

Once the sun was up, Wagisga and his four helpers returned to their own
lodge. His spiritual attendants were very pleased and told him, "Grandson,
this night ;you have done well; but tomorrow night will be more difficult --
you must exert all your powers." That evening when they heard the drum and
the shouting that followed it, Wagisga and his friends set out for the long
lodge. When they arrived, immediately the teasing began. They were trying to
get him to say something. Then they began their singing, and as good as it
had been the night before, their singing this night was beyond compare. This
night, beside teasing him mercilessly, the ghosts put their hands on him and
pushed his head down. Still he did not look around even for his wife, and
when morning came, the first light dispersed all the ghosts. When he got
back to his lodge, his spiritual attendants were full of praise: "Grandson,
you have again done well, but tonight it will be even more difficult,
tonight you must exert your powers to the fullest."

When night fell again, they heard once more the sound of the drum followed
by the shouts of the ghosts. He placed himself in the center of the lodge.
Even though there were now six spirits attending upon Wagisga, they could do
nothing for him as the ghosts teased him endlessly. Now the singing began,
and the earth seemed to shake from the sounds of the drum. He could hardly
resist the temptation to join in. The ghosts tugged at his blanket and fell
down beside him, but despite all, he held on to the first rays of the sun.
As the light fell upon them, the ghosts seemed to evaporate. When he got
back to the lodge where he was staying, there were now eight spirits. One
said, "Grandson, tonight will be the last night, and although there are now
eight of us, still we will not be able to help you unless you exert all your
power."

That night the drum sounded and the shouting was so strong that it seemed to
fill the heavens. "Let's go," said the spirits, "as the lodge will be
crowded." He noticed immediately that the village had grown a bit, as during
this time all those who had died had arrived there. The lodge was so crowded
that they had to squeeze their way in. Amid the teasing that followed his
arrival, unexpectedly, he heard the voice of his wife asking him, "If you
were going to ignore me, then why did you come after me?" She said this
twice, and he almost turned to look at her. Now the world itself seemed to
resonate with the beat of the drum and the voices seemed to fill the
heavens. This time they grabbed his blanket and dragged him along. His wife
led them in this. He tried to stay wrapped in his blanket, but the ghosts
nearly pulled it off of him more than once. They began to pile on him, and
treated his eight attendants as if they did not exist. He became tired and
weak. Soon the ghosts were grabbing him by the knees and dragging him
around. Just the same, he resisted, and with the coming of day, the light
dispersed the ghosts. The attendants said, "Well done, Grandson! You have
attained your objective." When they returned to the lodge at which they were
staying, one of the spirits spoke to him and said, "Grandson, from now on
what you have achieved will not be permitted. Earthmaker has not ordained
that it should be so, but through our blessings you have attained it, you
have won back your wife." Then he turned to one of the other spirits and
said, "Go get his wife for him!" They brought her to him, and the spirit
spoke again: "Grandson, I have blessed you, and with this too I bless you: a
thing that may be heard over the whole earth." And he handed the couple a
drum painted with blue earth. The spirit told him furthermore, "If a person
is near death and his soul is about to leave, play this drum and his soul
will not depart from you. Offer me tobacco and I will grant you this. The
ghosts are bad, and will chase after you -- but here is a handful of ashes,
and should they get near, toss some ashes behind you. When you get home,
have them build a lodge for you."

So Wagisga and his wife with eight attendants set out whence he had come.
Soon the ghosts began to chase after them, crying out, "Wagisga has stolen
our wife, let's get her back!" When they got close, Wagisga threw the ashes
over his shoulder. The ghosts yelled, "Fall back! The ashes will ruin our
clothes!" After this, they were able to get free of their pursuers, but
eventually the ghosts caught up to them again , only to have more ashes
thrown at them. This time they gave up. Once the ghosts had turned back, the
attendants also went back, leaving the couple to go forth on their own. Soon
they were near their village. In the distance they could hear the echoes
from someone chopping wood, so they went in the direction of the noise. When
they arrived, unexpectedly, there a woman was crying as she chopped wood. It
was Wagisga's mother. When she saw him, she was overjoyed, but then she
recognized that he was in the company of a t'ijâ (one who is dead). He then
told his mother, "Go get ten young men and ten young women, all of whom must
be virgins. Have them bring some incense with them." She ran back to the
village and told the people what had happened, and returned with the twenty
virgins and many others besides. He instructed them to build a lodge with
ten fireplaces, and when it was done they entered and sprinkled the place
with incense. That night the drums were brought in and a dance was given.
Wagisga sung the special songs he had been taught for the occasion.

Even to this day they beat the drum for this rite. It is a wákâtcâk (holy)
rite, and great is the noise of it. Wagisga is he who founded the rite, and
because of his achievement, it is called the Wanâghí Waci (Ghost Dance).

John Baptiste, "The Man who Brought His Wife back from Spiritland," in Paul
Radin, The Culture of the Winnebago as Described by Themselves (Baltimore:
Special Publications of the Bollingen Foundation, #1, 1949) 47-65. This
story is discussed in Claude Lévi-Strauss, "Four Winnebago Myths,"
Structural Anthropology, vol. 2, trs. Monique Layton (Chicago: University of
Chicago Press, 1976) 198-210