This keeps the Hopi out of mischief3 and gives them a good reputation for minding their own business, besides furnishing them with the best round of free theatrical4 entertainments enjoyed by any people in the world, for nearly every ceremony has its diverting as well as its serious side, for religion and the drama are here united as in primitive5 times. The Hopi live and move and have their being in religion. They have peopled the unseen world with a host of beings, and they view all nature as full of life. The sun, moon, stars, rocks, winds, rain, and rivers are members of the Hopi pantheon to be reckoned with in their complicated worship.
Every moon brings its ceremony, and the cycle of [133] the different “dances” is completed in perhaps four years; a few dances indeed may have even longer intervals6, but these dances do not seem to fall in the calendar and are held whenever decided8 upon by the proper chief. Some of the dances alternate also, the Snake Dance, for instance, being held one year and the Flute9 Dance the following year. For half the year, from August to January, the actors in the ceremonies wear masks, while for the remainder of the year the dancers appear unmasked; and as every ceremony has its particular costumes, ritual, and songs, there is great variety for the looker-on in Tusayan. So many are the ceremonies, which differ more or less in the different villages, and so overwhelming is the immemorial detail of their performance, that one might well despair of recording10 them, much less of finding out a tithe11 of their meaning.
There is grouped around these dances the lore12 of clans14 in the bygone centuries, innumerable songs and prayers and rites15 gathered up here and there in the weary march, strewn with shells of old towns of the forgotten days. No fear that this inexhaustible mine will be delved16 out by investigators17 before it disappears utterly18; the wonder is that it has survived so long into this prosaic19 age of anti-fable. We have here the most complete Freemasonry in the world, which, if preserved, would form an important chapter in the history of human cults20, and in the opinion of enlightened men, it should have a record before the march of civilization treads it in the dust.
[134] The searcher for truth at the bottom of the Hopi well is likely to get various answers. Seeing the importance of the sun in Hopi thoughts and rites, one feels inclined to say “sun worship,” but the clouds, wind, rain, rocks, springs, rivers that enter into this paganism make for “nature worship”; then the birds and beasts give “animal worship”; the plants for food and ceremony, “plant worship”; the snake means “serpent worship,” and the communion with deified ancestors shows “ancestor worship” with unmistakable plainness.
The oldest gods in the Hopi conception of the unseen world are the deified manifestations21 of Nature and the natural objects that force themselves to his notice. The lightning, the cloud, the wind, the snow, the rain, the water, the rainbow, the dawn, the fire, all are beings. The sun, the moon, certain planets and constellations22, and the sky are beings of power. The surface of the earth is ruled by a mighty23 being whose sway extends to the underworld and over death, fire, and the fields; springs, rivers, and mountains have their presiding deities24. Among animals also there are many gods,—the eagle, bear, deer, mountain lion, badger25, coyote, and mole26 among the rest. Among the insects the butterfly, dragonfly, and spider are most important, the latter as the Spider Woman or Earth Goddess. She is spouse27 of the Sun and as mother of the warrior28 culture heroes of the race is revered29 by the Hopi. To the plants, however, the list [135] of beings does not extend, except in few instances, as the Corn Maid or Goddess of Corn, and perhaps to the Goddess of Germs. There are beings of the six directions; a god of chance in games and of barter30; gods of war and the chase; a god of the oven, and endless beings, good and bad, that have arisen in the Hopi fancy as the centuries rolled by with their changes of culture.
At some period a group of beings called Kachinas and new to Hopi worship was added to the pantheon. Most of these were brought in by the Badger clans, as tradition relates, from the East, which means the upper Rio Grande, and some were probably introduced during the great westward31 migrations33 of other clans from that region. The Kachinas are believed to be the spirits of ancestors in some part, but the Kachina worship is remarkable for the diversity of beings that it includes, from the representation of a tribe as the Apache Kachina, to the nature beings as the sun, but many of them are not true Kachinas. (See Chapter X, Intiwa, p. 227.)
As might be anticipated from the fact that the Hopi are made up of clans and fragments of clans of various origin, each with its separate ideas and practices, their beliefs and customs as to the unseen world show a surprising variety and include those of lower and higher comparative rank. One idea, however, running through all the ceremonies gives a clue to their intention, obvious to any man of the Southwest, be his [136] skin white or brown, the desire for rain so there shall be food and life. To wheedling34, placating35, or coercing36 the agencies which are thought to have power to bring rain all the energies of the Hopi are bent37. Included among these petitions are prayers for other things that seem good and desirable, and the ceremonies also embrace such episodes as the installing of a chief, or the initiation38 of novitiates, the hunts, races, etc.
From these ceremonies, which fall under one or the other of the thirteen moons, we may select the more striking for a brief description of their more salient features.
No one can determine which ceremony begins the Hopi calendar, but perhaps the Soyaluna, celebrated39 at the last of December, should have the honor. Not because it nearly coincides with our Christmas, but because it marks the astronomical40 period known as the winter solstice, an important date which ought by right to begin the new year. Few strangers see the Soyaluna, but those who have braved the winter to be present say that it is one of the most remarkable of the Hopi ceremonies. All the kivas are in use by the various societies taking part, and while there is only a simple public “dance,” there are dramatic observances of surprising character going on in the meeting places.
When the faint winter sun descends42 into his “south house,” which is a notch43 in the Elden Mesa near Flagstaff, there is great activity in the Hopi pueblos45, and [137] as in our holiday season the people exchange greetings of good wishes and make presents of nakwakwoshi, consisting of a downy eagle feather and long pine needles tied to a cotton string. December is a sacred month when all occupations are limited and few games are allowed, so that the Soyal is at the center of a “holy truce,” a time of “peace on earth and good will to men,” but strangely celebrated by pagan sun-worshippers. For the Soyal is peculiarly a ceremony brought to Hopiland by the Patki people who came from the south where in past centuries they worshipped the god of day. The warrior societies of the pueblos have made this their great festival and are most prominent in its celebration.
In the principal kiva the customary elaborate ritual has been conducted for nine days by the Soyal fraternity, which is made up of members of the Agave, Horn, Singers, and New Fire societies. At one end of the kiva is placed the altar, consisting of a frame with parallel slats on which are tied bunches of grass, and in these bunches are thrust hundreds of gaudily47 painted artificial flowers. On the top are bows covered with cotton, representing snow clouds. Before the altar is a pile of corn laid up like a wall which has been collected in the village to be returned filled with fertility after the ceremony. Before the corn wall is a ridge48 of sand on which are set corn fetiches of stone and wood. The medicine bowl and many pipes, feather prayer-sticks, etc., are in position on the floor. [138] There is also in the Walpi ceremony a performance of the Great Feathered Serpent who thrusts his grotesque49 head through an orifice in the screen and roars in answer to the prayers of the priests.
After a series of musical songs accompanied by rattles51, flutes52, whistles, and bull-roarers, and interspersed53 with prayers, there is an initiation of novices54. Then enters the first bird man, elaborately costumed, whose postures56 and pantomime imitate a bird. Next come another bird man and the Soyaluna maid who perform a strange dance, then comes Eototo, the forerunner57 of the Kachinas, bearing corn, and this episode closes with a stirring dance of the priests around the fireplace accompanied with song.
Next occurs the fierce assault by members from the different kivas on the Soyal shield-bearer. With wild yells and dramatic action they thrust their shields against the sun shield as in deadly combat, but the sun shield-bearer forces them back and vanquishes58 them in turn. This remarkable drama represents perhaps the driving of the sun back into his northward59 path, so that he may bring life to the Hopi. The Soyal public dance is performed by a Kachina and two Kachina maids and is simple compared with the elaborate, multicolored pageant60 of other dances. At the close of the public ceremony the corn is distributed to the villagers, and for four days consecrated61 pahos are placed in the shrines63, some for the dead and some [139] for increase of flocks, corn, peaches, and all good things spiritual and temporal and the people feast and are happy.
In February comes a ceremony called Powamu with its introductory ceremony called Powalawu. Some expectancy64 of the coming activities in the fields is in the air and hence, as the name indicates, the ceremony relates to getting ready, preparing the fields, etc. One of the chief features is the sprouting65 of beans in the kivas and the distribution of the sprouts66 to various persons. Another is the initiation of youthful candidates, accompanied by severe flogging with yucca switches at the hands of ferocious67 Kachinas. The ceremony lasts nine days and is presided over by the chief of the Powamu fraternity assisted by the Kachina chief. In the kivas various rites are carried on and altars of bright-colored sand are made. The most interesting event is the recital68 of the myth of the Powamu on which the ceremony is based. This account is given by a costumed priest who represents the Kachina Muyingwa, the god of germs, and relates to the wanderings of certain clans and their arrival in Tusayan.
On the ninth and last day bands of different Kachinas roam the village, some furnishing amusement to the people and others bringing terror to naughty children, while still others go about distributing bean sprouts or on various errands. With this ceremony [140] the joyous69 season of the Kachinas begins. Dr. Fewkes says:[4]
The origin of this feast dates from the adventures of a hero of the Ka-tci-nyu-muh, “Ka-tci-nia people.” The following legend of this people is preserved. While the group of gentes known by this name was on its travels, they halted near the San Francisco Mountains and built houses. During this moon the hero went out to hunt rabbits, and came to a region where there was no snow. There he saw another Ka-tci-na people dancing amidst beautiful gardens. He received melons from them, and carrying them home, told a strange story of a people who inhabited a country where there were flowering plants in midwinter. The hero and a comrade were sent back, and they stayed with these people, returning home, loaded with fruit, during February. They had learned the songs of those with whom they had lived, and taught them in the kib-va of their own people.
[4] For an extended study of this ceremony see The Oraibi Powamu Ceremony by H. R. Voth, Publication 61, Field Columbian Museum, Chicago, 1901, and Tusayan Katcinas by Dr. J. Walter Fewkes, 15th Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology.
The Great Plumed70 Serpent who appears in the mythology71 of many American tribes is the chief actor in the Palulukong ceremony, which is held in March. It is a serpent drama in which the sun also has high honor. The actors are masked, as the ceremony is under the control of the Kachinas, who are adept72 at theatrical performances when represented by the fertile-minded Hopi.
[141] The clans have gathered in their respective kivas, where painting of masks and other paraphernalia73, rehearsals74, etc., have continued for several days. In the kiva which is for the nonce to be the theater, a crowd of visitors have assembled, and in the middle of the room two old kiva chiefs sit around the fire, which they feed with small twigs75 of greasewood to produce an uncertain, flickering76 light.
The arrival of the first group of actors is heralded77 by strange cries from without the kiva, and a ball of corn meal thrown down the hatchway is answered with invitations to enter. The fire is darkened by a blanket held over it, and the actors climb down the ladder and arrange their properties. The fire tenders drop the blankets, and on the floor is seen a miniature field of corn made by fastening sprouted78 corn in clay pedestals. Behind this corn field is a cloth screen decorated with figures of human beings, corn, clouds, lightning, etc., hung across the room, and along the screen six openings masked by flaps. On either side of the screen stand several masked men, one dressed as a woman holding a basket tray of meal and an ear of corn. A song begins and the actors dance to the music; the hoarse79 roar of a gourd80 horn resounds81 through the kiva, and instantly the flaps in the screen are drawn82 up and the heads of grotesque serpents with goggle83 eyes, feather crest84, horn, fierce teeth, and red tongues, appear in the six openings. Farther and farther they seem to thrust themselves out, until four [142] feet of the painted body can be seen. Then as the song grows louder the plumed snakes sway in time to the music, biting at each other and darting85 toward the actors. Suddenly they bend their heads down and sweep the imitation cornfield into a confused heap, then raise their wagging heads as before, and it is seen that the central serpent has udders and suckles the others. Amid the roars of the horn and great excitement offerings of meal and prayers are made to the plumed serpents. The actor dressed as a woman and who represents the mother of the Kachinas now presents the corn and meal to the serpents as food and offers his breasts to them.
Now the song diminishes, the effigies86 are drawn back, and the flaps with the sun symbol painted on them let down; the blankets are again held around the fire, the spectacle is dismantled87, the actors file out, and the people among whom the corn hills have been distributed wait for other actors to appear, while foreign visitors wonder at the mechanical skill displayed in constructing and manipulating the effigies.
Now Tewan actors from Hano give a remarkable buffalo88 dance. They wear helmets, representing buffalo heads, and are clad in black sheep pelts89. In their hands they hold zigzag90 lightning wands, and to the beat of a drum dance with characteristic postures; with them dance a man and boy dressed as eagles, who give forth91 shrill92 bird calls. This dance is an introduction from Rio Grande Pueblos.
[143] After them comes another group of actors clothed in ceremonial kilts and wearing helmet masks. They are called the “Stone War Club Kachinas” and with them are two men dressed as women; one, representing the Spider Woman, dances before the fire with graceful93 movements of the arms and body to the sound of singing and the beat of a drum. At the close of the dance she distributes seeds of corn, melons, and useful plants.
The fourth act is that of the Maiden94 Corn Grinders. First, two masked men bring down the ladder bundles containing two grinding slabs95 and grinding stones and arrange them on the floor. After them come two masked girls in elaborate ceremonial attire97, followed in a little while by a line of masked dancers who form the chorus. At a signal the chorus begins to sing and posture55 while the maids grind corn in time with the song. They then leave the mills and dance in the middle of the room with graceful movements, pointing at the audience with ears of corn, while the bearers of the mill stones put pinches of meal in the mouths of the spectators.
The fifth act is somewhat like the first, except that there are two huge snakes, and several of the actors as chorus, with knobs of mud on their masks, wrestle98 with the snakes in a most realistic fashion and afford great entertainment.
After this act another set of performers gives a more remarkable serpent drama. Back of the field of [144] corn on the floor are seen two large pottery99 vases, and, as if by magic, the covers of the vases fly back, and from them two serpents emerge, swoop100 down and overthrow101 the corn hills, struggle with each other and perform many gyrations, then withdraw into the vases. In the dim light of the kiva fire the cords by which the serpents are manipulated cannot be seen, and the realism of the act is wonderful. In other years the acts are even more startling, as when masked men wrestle with serpents which seem to try to coil about their victims. The actor thrusts one arm in the body of the snake in order to give these movements, while a false arm is tied to his shoulder. Sometimes also the corn-maid grinders are represented by joined figures surrounded by a framework. They are made to bend backward and forward and grind corn on small metates. At times they raise one hand and rub meal on their faces, like the Hopi corn grinders in daily life, while above them on the framework two birds carved from wood and painted are made to walk back and forth. On the day of the public dance the corn maids attended by many masked Kachinas grind in the dance plaza102.
The Great Plumed Serpent who has control of all the waters of the earth and who frequents the springs, once, as the legend goes, caused a great flood and was appeased103 only by the sacrifice of a boy and girl. (See Myths.) The home of this monster was in the Red Land of the South, whence some of the Hopi clans [145] came. Dr. J. Walter Fewkes believes that the great serpent of Mexican and Central American mythology is this same being, which shows the debt of the Hopi to the culture of the south.
Now the Kachinas throng105 the pueblos and a perfect carnival106 reigns107 with the joyful108 Hopi. There is a bewildering review of the hosts of the good things and bad, interwoven with countless109 episodes. Songs of great beauty, strange masked pageants110, bright-tinted piki and Kachina bread attract powerfully three of the senses, and the Hopi enjoy the season to the full with the knowledge that the growing crops thrive toward perfection in the fields below the mesa.
The Kachinas are the deified spirits of the ancestors, who came from San Francisco Mountains and perhaps from the Rio Grande and other places, to visit their people. Their name means the “sitters,” because of the custom of burial in a sitting posture, and they resemble “The watchers sitting below” of Faust. They are believed to guard the interests of the Hopi and to intercede111 with the gods of rain and fertility. Their first coming is in December at the Soyal ceremony, and others continue to come till August when the great Niman, or Farewell Kachina, is celebrated with songs, dances, and feasting.
These deified spirits, or Kachinas, are personated by Indians who sometimes go outside the town, dress themselves in appropriate costume, present themselves at the gate, and are escorted through the streets with [146] great fun and frolic. Every few days there is a new arrival and a fresh festival. Each year there is something new, and the Indians rack their inventive genius to produce the most startling masks and costumes. The kachinas admit of any character in the extensive Hopi mythology. Almost any character from a clown to a god can be introduced, and there are songs belonging to each. Every male Hopi takes some part in the kachinas, and all dates and distances are cancelled when these dances are in progress.
The kachina dances promote sociability112 among the pueblos. The Walpi boys, for instance, may give a representation of a kachina at a neighboring pueblo44 in return for a like expression of good-will on some other occasion. It goes without saying that there is a friendly rivalry113 among the pueblos, each striving to give the best dance. Like his white brothers, the Indian works harder at his amusement than at almost anything else.
These dances also show the cheerful Hopi at his best,—a true, spontaneous child of nature. They are the most characteristic ceremonies of the pueblos, most musical, spectacular, and pleasing. They are really more worthy114 of the attention of white people than the forbidding Snake Dance, which overshadows them by the element of horror.
In July the kachinas take their flight, and with a great culminating ceremony the Hopi bid them farewell. The Niman, or Farewell ceremony, begins [147] about July 20th and lasts nine days, like the four great ceremonies between August and November, and like them also having a regular secret ritual in the kivas. Instead, however, of one day or so of public ceremony, the Niman furnishes many surprises and sallyings forth to the amusement of the populace. Delegates hurry on very long journeys for sacred water, pine boughs115, and other essentials for the use of the priests. Sad indeed is the state of the Hopi that fate detains, and strong must be circumstances that prevent his reunion with his people at this great festival.
The Niman public dances which follow the eight days of kiva rites are imposing116 spectacles. The first takes place before sunrise and the second in the afternoon. There are many kachinas in rich costumes, wearing strange helmets and adorned117 in many striking ways. They carry planting sticks, hoes, and other emblematic118 paraphernalia. A number are dressed as female kachinas. These furnished an accompaniment to the song by rasping sheep’s scapul? over notched119 sticks placed on wooden sounding boxes. The male and female dancers stand in two lines and posture to the music, and the former turn around repeatedly during the dance. The children especially enjoy the dance, because the kachinas have brought great loads of corn, beans, and melons, and baskets of peaches, which are gifts for the young folks, and dolls, bows, and arrows are also given them. The dance is repeated [148] in the afternoon in another plaza, after which the procession departs to carry offerings to a shrine62 outside the town and the drama of the Farewell kachina is over.
With the coming of the different clans, each having some ceremony peculiar46 to itself, and held at a certain time in the year, there must have been an adjustment of interests to fit the ceremonies to the moons, as we now see in the Hopi calendar. This may explain the fusing of the Snake-Antelope120 ceremonies and the two Flutes, which come in August, and the assignment of the two groups to alternate years. It is to be expected also that rain ceremonies would preponderate121 in the Southwest, and by mutual122 concessions123 the clans making up the Hopi would arrange their rites to fit in the month when the rain-makers124 are needed. Thus, the women’s ceremonies in September and October would not need to be disturbed, perhaps to the relief of the obscure Hopi who, like Julius C?sar, reformed the calendar.
The Snake and Flute ceremonies of the Hopi are most widely known, since at this season of the year most travelers visit Tusayan, and besides, the Snake Dance, from its elements of horror, has overshadowed other ceremonies that are beautiful and interesting. Still, the Snake Dance is unique, and in its unfolding displays virile125 action and the compelling force of man over the lesser126 animate127 creation, giving to the drama a certain grandeur128 not observed in other ceremonies. [149] No form of language is capable of describing it. Those who have seen it make it an unforgettable episode in their lives. Those who have made it a study declare that the mind of man has never conceived its equal.
When the Snake and Antelope fraternities descend41 into their respective kivas about the middle of August, the rites commence. The events that attract popular interest begin at once on the first day, when a party of Snake priests, painted and costumed and with snake whips and digging sticks in their hands, descend from the mesa to hunt snakes in the north quarter. These men, keenly watching for snake trails, eagerly search, beating the sage-brush and digging in holes that may harbor their quarry130, thrusting their hands into such places with the utmost fearlessness. At sunset, after an exhausting day’s work, they return from the hunt with snakes, if they have been successful, which are transferred from their pouches131 into the snake jars. For four days the hunt goes on, each day to a different world quarter. If a snake is seen it is sprinkled with meal, and as it tries to escape, one of the hunters seizes it a few inches back of the head and places it in his pouch132.
When the snakes, big and little, venomous and harmless, have been collected and stowed away in the jars like those used by the women to carry water, there comes the great event of snake washing. The priests assemble in the kiva and seat themselves on stone seats around the wall, holding in the hand a snake whip [150] made of two eagle feathers secured to a short stick. On the floor dry sand has been spread out and on it a medicine bowl of water. The snakes have been placed in bags near by in the care of priests, and the snake washer, arrayed as a warrior, sets himself before the bowl, while back of him stand two men waving snake whips. A weird133 song begins, and the warrior thrusts his hand into the bag and draws out a handful of snakes, plunges134 them into the medicine water, and drops them on the sand. Then the snakes are rapidly passed to the warrior, who plunges them and casts them forth, while the priests wave their wands and sing, now low and now loudly and vehemently135. Some of the snakes try to escape, but are herded136 on the sand field, which is for the purpose of drying them. The snakes are left on the floor for a few hours intervening before the public dance, a writhing137 mass, watched over by naked boys. These boys, barefoot and otherwise entirely138 naked, sit down on the stones and with their whips or naked hands, play with the snakes, permitting them to crawl over and under their feet, between their legs, handling them, using them as playthings, paying no more attention to the rattlesnakes than to the smallest harmless whip-snakes, creating a sight never to be forgotten. It must be admitted, however, that owing to the absolute abandon and recklessness used by the boys in handling these snakes, all of one’s preconceived notions of the dangerousness of the rattlesnake entirely disappear. Occasionally, one [151] of the snakes, being tossed to a distance of four or five feet, apparently139 resents the insult, but before the snake has had sufficient time to coil, it will be straightened out by one of the other boys or tossed back to its original position, and so the sport (for it was nothing less to these boys) continue, as has been stated, for more than two hours.[5]
[5] The Mishongnovi Ceremonies of the Snake and Antelope Ceremonies. G. A. Dorsey and H. R. Voth. Field Columbian Museum, Chicago, 1902, p. 247-248.
Dr. Fewkes thus describes the Walpi snake washing:
The Snake Priests, who stood by the snake jars which were in the east corner of the room, began to take out the reptiles141, and stood holding several of them in their hands behind Su-pe-la, so that my attention was distracted by them. Su-pe-la then prayed, and after a short interval7 two rattlesnakes were handed him, after which venomous snakes were passed to the others, and each of the six priests who sat around the bowl held two rattlesnakes by the necks with their heads elevated above the bowl. A low noise from the rattles of the priests, which shortly after was accompanied by a melodious142 hum by all present, then began. The priests who held the snakes beat time up and down above the liquid with the reptiles, which, although not vicious, wound their bodies around the arms of the holders143. The song went on and frequently changed, growing louder and wilder, until it burst forth into a fierce, blood-curdling yell, or war-cry. At this moment the heads of the snakes were thrust several times into the liquid, so that even parts of their bodies were submerged, and were then drawn [152] out, not having left the hands of the priests, and forcibly thrown across the room upon the sand mosaic144, knocking down the crooks145 and other objects placed about it. As they fell on the sand picture three Snake priests stood in readiness, and while the reptiles squirmed about or coiled for defense146, these men with their snake whips brushed them back and forth in the sand of the altar. The excitement which accompanied this ceremony cannot be adequately described. The low song, breaking into piercing shrieks147, the red-stained singers, the snakes thrown by the chiefs, and the fierce attitudes of the reptiles as they lashed148 on the sand mosaic, made it next to impossible to sit calmly down, and quietly note the events which followed one after another in quick succession. The sight haunted me for weeks afterwards, and I can never forget this wildest of all the aboriginal149 rites of this strange people, which showed no element of our present civilization. It was a performance which might have been expected in the heart of Africa rather than in the American union, and certainly one could not realize that he was in the United States at the end of the nineteenth century. The low weird song continued while other rattlesnakes were taken in the hands of the priests, and as the song rose again to the wild war-cry, these snakes were also plunged150 into the liquid and thrown upon the writhing mass which now occupied the place of the altar. Again and again this was repeated until all the snakes had been treated in the same way, and reptiles, fetiches, crooks and sand were mixed together in one confused mass. As the excitement subsided151 and the snakes crawled to the corners of the kiva, seeking vainly for protection, they were pushed back in the mass, and brushed together in the sand in order that their bodies might be [153] thoroughly152 dried. Every snake in the collection was thus washed, the harmless varieties being bathed after the venomous. In the destruction of the altar by the reptiles the snake ti-po-ni stood upright until all had been washed, and then one of the priests turned it on its side, as a sign that the observance had ended. The low, weird song of the Snake men continued, and gradually died away until there was no sound but the warning rattle50 of the snakes, mingled153 with that of the rattles in the hands of the chiefs, and finally the motion of the snake whips ceased, and all was silent.
On the previous day the Antelope society had celebrated its race and public dance, which duplicate those of the Snake society, except that the former take first place, and instead of snakes, the priests dance about, the leader holding a bundle of cornstalks in the mouth.
Now comes the stirring dawn race of the Snake society. The race is from a distant spring to the mesa and is full of excitement, filling one with surprise at the endurance of the runners. The winner will arrive at the kiva, breathing more freely, perhaps, than usual, but showing almost no traces of his strenuous154 efforts, and will wait quietly for the award of the prize. In the kiva meanwhile the priests have been enacting155 a drama of the Snake legend.
After a few hours, when the sun is getting low, the Antelope priests file out and after circling the plaza stand in line awaiting the Snake priests, who advance with tragic156 strides. They circle the plaza three times, each stamping on a plank157 in front of the cottonwood [154] bower158, kisi, to notify the denizens159 of the underworld that a ceremony in their honor is progressing. They face the Antelope chorus, the rattles tremble with a sound like the warning of the rattlesnake, and a deep, low-toned chant begins like a distant storm. The chant increases in volume, the lines sway, then undulate backward and forward, and at last, in a culminating burst of the chant, the Snake men form in groups of three and dance around the plaza with a strange step like a restrained leap. The snakes have been placed in the kisi in care of the passer hidden among the boughs. As the trios in succession arrive before the kisi the carrier drops to his knees, secures a snake which he grasps in his mouth, rises and dances around in a circular path four times, when the snake is dropped to the ground and is picked up with lightning rapidity by the third member of the trio who retains the squirming reptile140 in his hands. Thus these groups of demons160 circle until all the snakes have been carried. The chant ceases; a priest draws a cloud symbol in white meal on the rock floor of the mesa, and with wild action the gatherers throw the snakes on the meal; a fierce scramble161 ensues, and in a moment one sees the priests running down the trails to deposit their brothers among the rocks a mile or so away.
After all, no ceremony goes on in Hopiland without the aid of the gentler sex. While the dance has focussed the attention of every eye a group of maids and matrons, neat and clean as to hair and costume, and holding [155] trays of sacred meal, have sprinkled the dancers and snakes as they passed by. The Antelopes162 take up their line, march around the plaza the required number of times, file away to their kiva, and the public dance is over. Those who wish, however, go to the mesa side to see the effects of the powerful emetic163 taken by the Snake priests as a purification. At Walpi, the old Snake Woman, Saalako, brews164 the medicine, and she knows how many black bettles must be stewed165 in this concoction166 of herbs. Last, but not least, comes the feast consumed with the appetite of youth amid general rejoicing if the August rain cumuli burst over the fields. For several days after the Snake Dance the young and not too old play jolly comes the feast consumed with the appetite of youth, childlike simplicity167.
A bite from a venomous snake so rarely occurs that there is no eye witness, so far as is known, to such happening. The fangs168 are not extracted, nor are the snakes stupefied. Careful handling and the herding169 of the reptiles with others of their kind before the ceremony perhaps give the explanation.
The Snake Ceremony, whose wild scenes rack the nerves of the onlooker170, is a prayer for rain and is based on a legend whose sentiment might be applauded if the other passive actors were not subject to an instinctive171 enmity. Snakes are blood brothers of the Hopi Snake clan13.
The legend relates that a youth, having the curiosity [156] to know where the waters flowed, embarked172 in a hollow log, closed except a small orifice, and went down the Great Colorado to its mouth, thus antedating173 the perilous174 feat1 of Major Powell by a long time! Here he found the Spider Woman, who prompted him in his dealings with the people living there. After many strange adventures, during which he was taught the rites now practiced by the Snake society, he won the daughter of a Snake chief and brought her to his country. The first fruits of this union were snakes, who bit the Hopi and who were driven away on this account. Later, children were human, and with them originated the Snake clan, whose wanderings brought them at last to Walpi; and tradition affirms that they were among the first arrivals there.
The Flute Ceremony, which alternates with the Snake-Antelope Ceremony, is most pleasing and interesting. Visitors to Hopiland in August of the proper year are always charmed with the dramatic performance and beautiful songs of the Flute society. In Walpi there is only one priesthood of the Flute, but in other pueblos of the Middle Mesa and in Oraibi there are two, one of the Blue Flute and the other of the Gray Flute.
On the first day the sand altar is made and at night the songs are begun. Within the kiva the interminable rites go on, and daily the cycle of songs accompanied with flutes is rehearsed. A messenger clad in an embroidered175 kilt and anointed with honey runs with flowing hair to deposit prayer-sticks at the [157] shrines, encircling the fields in his runs and coming nearer the pueblo on each circuit. During the seventh and eighth days a visit is made to three important springs where ceremonies are held, and on the return of the priests they are received by an assemblage of the Bear and Snake societies, the chiefs of which challenge them and tell them that if they are good people, as they claim, they can bring rain.
After an interesting interchange of ceremonies the Flute priests return to their kiva to prepare for the public dance on the morrow. When at 3 A. M. the belt of Orion is at a certain place in the heavens the priests file into the plaza, where a cottonwood bower has been erected176 over the shrine called the entrance to the underworld. Here the priests sing, accompanied with flutes, the shrine is ceremonially opened and prayer-sticks placed within, and they return to the kiva. At some of the pueblos there is a race up the mesa at dawn on the ninth day as in other ceremonies.
On the evening of the ninth day the Flute procession forms and winds down the trail to the spring in order: a leader, the Snake maiden and two Snake youths, the priests, and in the rear a costumed warrior with bow and whizzer. At the spring they sit on the north side of the pool, and as one of the priests plays a flute the others sing, while one of their number wades177 into the spring, dives under the water, and plants a prayer-stick in the muddy bottom. Then taking a flute he again wades into the spring and [158] sounds it in the water to the four cardinal178 points. Meanwhile sunflowers and cornstalks have been brought to the spring by messengers. Each priest places the sunflowers on his head and each takes two cornstalks in his hands, and the procession, two abreast179, forms to ascend180 the mesa. A priest draws on the trail with white corn meal a line and across it three cloud symbols. The Flute children throw the offerings they hold in their hands upon the symbols and advance to the symbols, followed by the priests who sing to the sound of the flutes. The children pick the offerings from the ground with sticks held in the hand, and the same performance is repeated till they stand again in the plaza on the mesa before the cottonwood bower, when they sing melodious songs, then disperse181.
The Flute legend, of which the ceremony is a dramatization, relates that the Bear and Snake people in early times lived along the Walpi. The Horn and Flute people came that way and halted at a spring. Not knowing whether other people lived in their neighborhood, they sent out a spy who returned and reported that he had seen traces of other peoples. The Flute people set forth to find them, and so they came to the Walpi houses, halting at the foot of the mesa and moving up the trail, as in the ceremony, with songs and the music of flutes.
The Walpi people had drawn a line of meal across the trail, closing it from all comers, and demanded [159] whence the Flutes were going and what they desired. Then the Flute chief said:
“We are of your blood, Hopi. Our hearts are good and our speech straight. We carry on our backs the tabernacle of the Flute Altar. We can cause rain to fall.” Four times they challenged the Flute people as they stood before the line of meal and four times this reply was given. Then the Walpians erased182 the meal barrier and the Flutes passed into the pueblo, set up their altar, sang the cloud-compelling songs and brought the welcome rain. Then the Bear and Snake chiefs said, “Surely your chief shall be one of our chiefs.”
It will be seen that this legend, collected by Dr. J. Walter Fewkes, is enacted183 in the ceremony just described. And the Flute priests also think they are more successful rain makers than the Snake-Antelope priests, and do not hesitate to so declare.[6]
[6] The Walpi Flute Observance, Dr. J. Walter Fewkes, Jour. Am. Folk-Lore, Vol. 7, Oct.-Dec., 1894.
In the September moon the Hopi women of five of the pueblos hold a celebration of their own, which is not the least interesting ceremony in the calendar. It is called the Lalakonti, and like the other ceremonies of this part of the year extends over nine days. Sometimes it is called the Basket Dance—from the great use made of the sacred plaques185 in the ceremony—a quite appropriate use, since these baskets are peculiarly the product of women’s taste and skill. The details of the kiva rites, such as paho making, the [160] construction of a sand altar, initiation of novitiates, dispatching of messengers, songs, etc., need not be entered into, since they belong to all the ceremonies and have much in common.
On the morning of the fourth day, if one is up at the faintest dawn he may see a procession emerging from the kiva and marching single-file to deposit, with much ceremony, offerings at a shrine. At six in the evening of the eighth day a picturesque186 procession winds down the trail among the rocks to the sacred spring, where pahos are planted and rites performed. Then comes the stirring event, the race up the trail to the kiva. Under the supervision187 of an old priest an even start is made and the women run up the trail. As Hopi women in contrast with the men are stout188, the chances are that a lithe189, clean-limbed young girl will win the goal over her breathless sisters.
At daybreak on the ninth day the Lalakonti race is eagerly awaited by the spectators and by the Lakone maid, who stands gorgeously costumed, basket in her hand, on the trail by which the runners will come. As the dawn brightens, they may be seen, mere190 specks191 on the trail over the plain, and soon they run up the trail to the villages amid great excitement and applause for the winner. The priestesses have marched to the dance plaza, where they form a circle, and as the racers come they rush through the circle and this act of the drama is over. Later in the day comes the public dance, when the circle of priestesses, each [161] carrying a basket plaque184, again forms in the plaza and begins singing in chorus. The baskets are held in the two hands with concave side to the front, and as the song continues the women sway their bodies and raise the baskets slowly, first to one breast, then to the other, and finally bring them downward to a line with the hips129. In a short time two gorgeously decorated maidens192, wearing ceremonial blankets and having bundles on their backs, advance within the circle. All interest is centered in them as they untie193 their bundles and stand for a moment at opposite sides of the circle, holding up in their hands a basket, and then crossing back and forth and exchanging places. All at once they throw their baskets high in the air and into the crowd of young men. Then begins a titanic194 struggle that would put a football melee195 in the shade. Fiercely they wrestle, till out of the squirming, perspiring196, now ragged197 mass emerges the lucky young man with a much damaged basket for his prize. Sometimes these struggles last a long time, but there is no slugging and no blood is spilt, and there is a great deal of jollity. This closes the Lalakonti ceremony and the celebrants return to their homes to take up their ordinary avocations198. Supela is one of the two men who aid the women in the Lalakonti ceremony, and he also has an important place in the Mamzrauti ceremony, described below, of which his wife, Saalako, is the chief priestess.
The Mamzrauti ceremony, held at the October moon, [162] is a harvest dance, and fortunate are the Hopi when they can celebrate it with joyful heart and abundant feasting. The Mamzrau resembles in many points the Lalakonti, but the differences are more important. A sand picture is made, a frame of painted slabs erected back of it, and fetiches placed around the medicine bowl and sand picture. Novices are initiated199 in a tedious ceremony lasting200 through several days, and messengers are sent to springs and shrines to deposit prayer-sticks. There are ceremonial head washings as in other ceremonies, and various secret rites are performed in the kiva. On the fourth day the final initiation of the novices takes place, and the priestesses dance around a pile of peaches on the kiva floor, and, what is more, enjoy a good feast of this prized fruit. On the sixth day a public dance is held by actors who imitate certain kachinas, and on the seventh day, just at sunset, the priestesses, some disguised as men, dance the spirited buffalo dance. On the eighth day, disguised as clowns, they parade around the pueblo and are attacked by the men who throw water none too clean and various unpleasant things upon them, and after much noise and fun, the women run home.
There is no dawn race on the morning of the ninth day, but early the priestesses have donned their costumes and assemble in the court where they dance and throw green cornstalks among the men who crowd around. Later in the day comes the concluding dance, [163] when the celebrants, holding gaily201 painted slabs of wood in each hand, march into the plaza and form a horseshoe figure with the opening toward the east. From the kiva now come two women dressed as men, having bows and arrows in their hands. As they advance they throw before them a package of corn husks and shoot their arrows at it, the act representing lightning striking and fertilizing202 the fields. Thus they advance by stages to the circle of dancers and throw the bundle in their midst, shooting at it, then shooting two arrows in the air they return to the kiva. In a few minutes they appear again, carrying trays of dumplings of sweet corn meal which they toss one by one to the eager spectators. Then the circle of dancers disperse, but again and again throughout the day, the distributors return to dispense203 their offerings. At sunset, the sand pictures, fetiches, and altar slabs are removed by Saalako and the Mamzrau is over.
At night there is a serenade by two parties of men, each party singing loudly as though to drown the voices of the other. This serenade is said to be in honor of the women for their pious204 celebration of the Mamzrau.[7]
[7] The Mamzrauti: A Tusayan Ceremony, by J. Walter Fewkes and A. M. Stephen, American Anthropologist205, Vol. 5, No. 3, July, 1892.
One of the most complicated ceremonies of the Hopi is the New Fire, which occurs in November at five of the pueblos. Every fourth year the ceremony is [164] extended by the initiation of novices, but in ordinary years it is abbreviated206. Four societies take part and these include almost every male adult in the villages, so there is no lack of performers.
The first event that is noteworthy is the making of new fire by two of the societies. Two pairs of fire makers each place a piece of cottonwood on the kiva floor and drill upon it with a slender rod revolved207 between the palms of the hands, until the friction208 of the drill on the wood ignites the dust which has been ground off. The little coal of fire is fed with shredded209 bark until flame is produced; from this the fuel on the kiva fireplace is lighted and with a bark fuse is carried to the kivas of the three other societies. This fire is sacred and no one may blow upon it, or take a light from it, and after the end of the ceremony it is suffered to go out and the ashes are thrown over the mesa with prescribed rites. Sacrifices of pine needles are made to the sacred fire soon after it is kindled210. Most of the Hopi are familiar with the ancient method of making fire by the friction of wood, and it is not many years since they knew no other way. Now matches of a particularly sulphurous variety are easy to get, and the primitive fire drill is in force only in the New Fire ceremony.
From day to day there are processions of the celebrating societies, who dance through the pueblo, forming a line with locked hands and moving with a sidelong halting step forward and backward, while the [165] women from the houses drench211 them with water and shout rude jests. At night there are patrols of the celebrants, who ring cowbells or beat on tin cans and make night hideous212. The novices take their nocturnal rounds at breakneck speed led by a priest, somewhat in the way of a college initiation. These poor fellows have a hard life of fasting and vigils; one of their ordeals213 is to go to a mountain about fifteen miles away to dig soap root and white earth with which they return gaunt and worn.
This ceremony presents more life and public exhibition than almost any other in Hopiland, hence a description of it in brief compass is impossible. To an onlooker it must exhibit a chaos214 of acts by the four powerful fraternities that perform it, a bewildering pageant by day and alarms and sallying forth by night, with rites also in progress in all the kivas.
The meaning of the New Fire Ceremony is obscure, but it seems in our present knowledge to be a prayer to the Germ God for fertility of human beings, animals, and crops. The Germ Gods, earth gods, and fire gods are to be placated215 and honored by these rites, and no doubt the new fire ceremonies of all times and peoples were held with such intent, for the relation of life and fire was a philosophic216 observation of the remote past. With this ceremony the round of the year has been finished and the Hopi are ready to begin again.[8]
[8] The Naac-nai-ya. By J. Walter Fewkes and A. M. Stephen; Jour. American Folk-Lore, Vol. 5, 1892. The Tusayan New Fire Ceremony, by J. Walter Fewkes; Proc. Bost. Society Nat. Hist., Vol. 26, 1895. The New Fire Ceremony at Walpi, by J. Walter Fewkes; Am. Anthropologist (N. S.), Vol. 2, Jan., 1900.
[166] The Yayawimpkia are fire priests who heal by fire. They are experts in the art of making fire by drilling with a stick on a bit of wood and they perform this act in the Sumaikoli or Little New Fire Ceremony. There are few of them remaining, and their services are sometimes called for when a burn is to be treated, or some such matter. One woman whose breast had been blistered217 by a too liberal application of kerosene218 was healed by the Yaya, who filled his mouth with soot219 and spurted220 the fluid over the burn, the theory of the Yaya being that wounds made by fire should be checked by fire or the products of fire.
The Yaya priests are supposed to be able to bring to life people who have been killed in accidents. There is a story that a man who was pushed off the high mesa upon the rocks below was restored to his friends by the magical power of the Yaya. Other fabulous221 stories, always placed among the happenings of the past, tell of the wonderful doings of the Yaya. The Hopi relate that one Yaya standing222 at the edge of the mesa said: “Do you see that butte over yonder [the Giant’s Chair, 30 miles distant]; it is black, is it not? I will paint it white.” So with a lump of kaolin the Yaya made magical passes skyward, and behold223, the mountain was white! A brother Yaya said, [167] “I will make it black again!” So with soot he made magical passes horizonward, and behold, the butte resumed again its natural color!
Notwithstanding the style of these stories, of which there are many, the fire-priests do perform wonderful feats224 of juggling225 and legerdemain226, especially in winter when abbreviated ceremonies are held. On account of these performances of sleight-of-hand and deception227 the Hopi are renowned228 as jugglers and have a reputation extending far and wide over the Southwest.
Besides the Yaya there are many other medicine men, or shamans, who relieve persons afflicted229 by sorcerers.
The sufferer believes that a sorcerer has shot with his span-long bow an old turquoise230 bead231 or arrowhead into some part of his body. He, therefore, summons one of his shamans to relieve him. A single shaman is called Tu hi ky a, “the one who knows by feeling or touching232.” The first treatment adopted to relieve the sufferer is to pass an eagle feather, held by the shaman in his fingers, over the body of the afflicted person until the shaman asserts he feels and locates the missile.
The term applied233 to more than one of these shamans is Poboctu or eye seekers. In the concluding part of the conjuring234, in which more than one person usually engages, the shamans move around peering and gazing everywhere, until they determine the direction in which the malign235 influence lies. I have been informed by Mr. Stephen that he saw them engaged over a victim in Sitcumovi many years ago and that they [168] cleverly pretended to take out of the sufferer’s breast a stone arrowhead half the size of the hand.[9]
[9] Dr. J. Walter Fewkes, Journal of American Ethnology and Archaeology236, Vol. II, Boston, 1892, p. 157.
One may chance to see, even yet, a patient being treated for headache or some minor237 ailment238. The method is very like massage239, the eyebrows240, forehead, temples and root of the nose being rubbed with straight strokes or passes, with occasional pressure at certain points, while a preternatural gravity is maintained by the operator.
The Hopi ideas and customs as to animals connected with their religious observances form an interesting and picturesque feature of their life. An account of some of the more striking customs in this regard follows:
A few years ago a story went the rounds about a Hopi and his eagle which a Navaho had taken. It was related that the Hopi hurried to the agent with his grievance241 and secured a written order commanding the Navaho to restore the bird. With considerable temerity242 the Hopi presented the “talk paper” to the lordly Navaho, and as might have been expected got no satisfaction. This story produced a great deal of amusement at the time, but no one realized that there was embodied243 history, folk-lore, religious custom, tribal244 organization, archeology, and a number of other matters recently made clear by Dr. J. Walter Fewkes.[10]
[10] Property-Right in Eagles among the Hopi; Am. Anthropologist, N. S., Vol. II, Oct.-Dec., 1900.
[169] It transpired245 that the Navaho had not bodily and by force seized an eagle which the Hopi had captured by his craft, though one not knowing the relations between those desert neighbors might have so thought. On the contrary, the Navaho had taken the eagle from an eyrie on a mountain many miles away from the Hopi villages, not dreaming of poaching on anyone’s preserves.
He would probably care as little to know that the Snake clan claims the eagle nests near their old village of Tokonabi to the north of Walpi; the Horn clan those to the northeast; the Firewood clan those at the upper end of Keam’s Canyon246; the Bear clan those at the mouth of the same canyon; the Tobacco clan those on the crags of Awatobi; the Rain Cloud clan the nests in the Moki Buttes; the Reed clan those in the region of their old town forty miles north of Navajo Springs on the Santa Fé railroad; the Lizard247 clan the nests on Bitahuchi or Red Rocks, about forty miles south of Walpi; or that the eagle nests west of the pueblos along the Little Colorado and Great Colorado belong to the Oraibi and Middle Mesa villagers. He would disdain248 the fact that one cannot meddle249 with eagles within forty or fifty miles of the Hopi towns without trespassing250 on property rights.
The curious fact comes out that these eagle preserves are near the place of ancient occupancy of the clans, and show in a most interesting way the lines of migration32 by which the several clans traveled to the [170] villages where they now live. These rights are jealously guarded by the Hopi and are one of the sore spots in their relations with the Navaho; they frequently ask to have the Government define their eagle reservations by survey to establish the boundaries free from molestation251.
It may be well to say here that the eagle is a Hopi sacred bird and one of the most important. Its feathers, like those of the turkey, parrot, and other birds, are of especial use in the religious ceremonies. The downy plumes252 moving at the faintest breath are thought to be efficacious in carrying to the nature gods the prayers of their humble253 worshippers.
Among the sacred hunts that of the eagle was one of the most ancient as well as important. Small circular stone towers about four feet in height were built and across the top were laid beams to which were tied dead rabbits as a bait. Perhaps the mysterious towers of the Mancos and of the north in Colorado may be explained in this light. Within the tower the hunter hid after a ceremonial head washing symbolic254 of purification, and the deposit of a prayer-offering at a shrine. The eagle, attracted by the rabbits, circled around and at last launched himself upon his prey255. When he had fastened his talons256 in a rabbit the concealed257 hunter reached through the beams and grasped the king of the air by the legs and made him captive, taking him to the village where a cage was provided for his reception. At each hunt one eagle was [171] liberated258 after a prayer-stick had been tied to his thigh259 in the belief that the bird would carry the prayer to the mighty beings with whom he was supposed to be on familiar terms.
This describes the method pursued formerly260 and which some of the old men have witnessed. Now the Hopi eagle hunters take upon themselves the difficult and somewhat hazardous261 task of visiting the eyries to seize the eaglets. Not all are taken from the nest, since a wise prohibition262 requires that some be left to continue the species. The eaglets are brought to the pueblo, where their heads are washed with due ceremony, and they are sprinkled with sacred meal. Then the feathers are plucked out and the birds are killed by pressure on the breastbone so as not to shed blood, and they are buried in a special cemetery263 in a cleft264 among the rocks where a few stones are put upon the bodies after the ritual. At the close of the ceremony of the departure of the gods, called the Niman, or Farewell ceremony, small painted wooden dolls and little bows and arrows are placed upon the eagle graves and liberally sprinkled with sacred meal.
But this does not end the Hopi eagle customs. Near the school at Dawapa, below Walpi, one may stumble upon a collection of oval objects of wood, placed among rocks, some weathered and some bearing traces of spots of white paint and feathers. He may learn also that this is an eagle shrine and that these wooden eggs are prayers for the increase of eagles prepared [172] during the Soyaluna or Winter Solstice ceremony. At present figurines of the domestic animals are also offered for the same purpose. Perhaps we have here a step toward the domestication265 of animals which was carried out with the turkey, parrot, and dog. In any case, however, there is shown the veneration266 of the Hopi for the birds of the air and especially the eagle, which is honored in the symbols of so many peoples.
Among the sacred animals of the Hopi the turkey is of great importance. In accord with the belief that the markings on the tail feathers were caused by the foam267 and slime of an ancient deluge268, the feathers are prescribed for all pahos; since through their mythical269 association with water they have great power in bringing rain. The Spanish Conquerors270 of the sixteenth century when they visited the pueblos spoke271 of “cocks with great hanging chins” they saw there, and this is the first notice of the bird for which the world is indebted to America. In the villages turkeys roam around without restraint and become household pets. Sometimes also they dispute the entrance of a village by a stranger and put him to a great deal of annoyance272 by their attacks, which are usually in the nature of a surprise from the rear. At present the Hopi keep them for their feathers, which are plucked as occasion requires, so that the village turkey commonly has a ragged appearance.
There were ceremonial antelope hunts before cattle and horses destroyed the grass on the ranges and while [173] these members of the deer tribe were plentiful273. One of the most beautiful flowers of the Southwest, the scarlet274 gilia, is thought to be especially liked by the antelope, and tradition says that for this reason the hunter formerly ground up the flowers with sacred meal and made offerings with it for success in hunting that graceful animal. Remains275 of extensive stake fences and corrals built by the Navaho for driving the antelope are to be seen south of the Hopi Reservation. One of these is called the “Chindi corral,” because the Navaho say that in the last great hunt those who ate of the antelope captured were made sick and many died. Hence no Navaho will camp in this bewitched corral or use a piece of the wood for camp fires, no matter how great the necessity.
The Hopi sometimes hunted the antelope by driving, but usually relied on surprise, fleetness of foot, the bow and arrow, and the boomerang. No doubt the deer and great elk276 were ceremonially hunted in the old days of tradition. There is little reason to believe that the Hopi vegetarians277 have for centuries gained more than a flavor of animal food to vary their diet. Formerly the antelope must have been more important, though always difficult to capture. Now, the Hopi perforce hunt rabbits, as the tabo or cottontail and the sowi or jackrabbit alone of all the game animals survive in this region.
If one chances to see a hunting party set out or to encounter them in active chase he will have a novel [174] experience and wonder what all the screaming, barking of dogs, and running hither and thither278 mean, if he does not fear that he has met the Peaceful People on the warpath. The hunters smeared279 with clay present a strange appearance. In their hands they carry bow and arrows, boomerangs of oak, and various clubs and sticks. One of the party is delegated to carry the rabbits, and he usually rides a burro. In and out among the rocks of the mesa sides they skirmish like coyotes and with quite as fiendish noise. Rabbits have little chance unless they take to earth, and even then the Hopi stop to dig or twist them out. Such a hunt means sixty or seventy miles, perhaps, of hard work before the hunters dash up the home mesa with their game to “feed the eagles” or for some other ceremonial purpose.
Some of the ceremonial hunts bring out as many as a hundred Hopi, and in such case those on horse or burro or afoot drive the rabbits into a narrowing circle and close in with an exciting melee that displays more energy than a football game. If for any reason the rabbits are scarce and the result of a hunt is small, the Hopi return somewhat dejected and have little to say, but if the sowimaktu has been a success they make a triumphant280 entry with much shouting and exultant281 song.
In walking about the pueblos one sees many things connected with the religious life of the Hopi, especially shrines. An account of the more notable of these may prove of interest.
[175] It is not often granted one to stand at the center of the world. The feeling ought not to be different from that occasioned by standing at any other place on the earth, but in the presence of the shrine by which the Walpians mark that mysterious spot a number of inquiries282 spring up in the mind. At Jerusalem, at Mecca, and at perhaps a hundred other places are authentic283 earth centers, each fixed284 by edicts of church or the last word of wise men and upheld against all comers. The disputes over the center of the world in the times before men knew that the world was round are amusing to enlightened nineteenth century people.
The Hopi felt the need of an earth center just as other benighted285 folks did in early times, so beneath the mesa cliffs among the rocks they placed their shrine and bestowed286 their offerings. Just what the Hopi believe about this particular shrine no doubt would be very interesting.
Other shrines abound287 near each pueblo and are likely to be happened upon in out-of-the-way places among the rocks where the offerings are scattered288 about, some new with fresh paint and feathers and some much weather-worn. Near the Sun Spring at Walpi there is a spot where many rounded blocks of wood lie on the ground. This is the Eagle Shrine and the bits of wood represent eagle eggs; the green paint and cotton string with the prayer feather decorating them soon disappear in the sun and wind.
While it is not good policy to pry289 around these [176] sacred places, knowing that the keen eyes of the Hopi watch from the mesa top, yet casually290 some of the more interesting shrines may be visited.
At the point of the Walpi mesa where the old town stood several centuries ago, are several shrines, to one of which the kachinas after the ceremonies go in order to deposit their wreaths of pine brought from the San Francisco Mountains and to make “breath-feather” offerings of paint and meal. Here also they make offerings of food to the dead. At another spot the bushes are hung with little disks of painted gourd, each with a feather representing the squash flower.
A heap of small stones is a Mas a uah shrine, and a stone is added by each one who passes as an offering to the terrible god of the earth, death, and fire. No orthodox Hopi would dare to omit throwing a stone accompanied with a prayer to Masauah, of whom all speak in fear and with bated breath. For a good reason, then, many shrines to this god may be seen in Hopiland, as it is necessary to appease104 this avenging291 being.
Everyone who goes to Walpi sees the great shrine in the gap which is called the “shrine of the end of the trail.” The base and sides are large slabs of stone, and within are various odd-shaped stones surrounding a coiled fossil believed by the Hopi to be a stone serpent. During the winter Sun ceremony this whole stone box blossoms with feathered prayer-sticks, almost hiding the shrine, and converting it into a thing of beauty.
[177] Other holy places, most of them ruins of abandoned towns, are visited at times by this people, who cheerfully make long journeys to mountains and running streams for sacred water, pine boughs, or herbs. They carry with them feather prayer-sticks and sacred meal as offerings to the gods of the place. One of the streams from which holy water is brought is Clear Creek292 near the town of Winslow, seventy-five miles south of Walpi.
Each field has a shrine and pahos are often seen there; this is also the custom among the Zu?i and other of the Pueblos. In the center of the main plaza of each pueblo may be seen a stone box with a slab96 of stone for a door which opens to the east. This is called the pahoki, or “house of the pahos,” the central shrine of the village, and it is carefully sealed up when not in use.
It is to be expected that the shrines of the ancient pueblos would have vanished, and it is true that such remains are the rarest encountered in exploring ruins. Still a few traces reward a careful search in the outskirts293 of many of the ruins. A shrine made of slabs of stone painted with symbolic designs of the rain cloud was found at the ancient town of Awatobi, and is now in the National Museum.
In caves and rock recesses294 of the mesas are deposits of the sacred belongings295 of the societies. These places, while not shrines perhaps, are kept inviolably sacred, and no curious white visitors have peered into [178] them, even those highest in the good graces of the priests.
Once by chance two explorers came upon such a treasure house and with some trepidation296 took a photograph of it. In a dark cleft under the rocks were the jars in which the “snake medicine” is carried. These were arranged without much order near a most remarkable carved stone figure of Talatumsi, the “dawn goddess” painted and arrayed in the costume of that deity297. In truth, this little cavern298 had a gruesome look, and knowing also the prohibition against prying299, one breathed more freely on getting away from the neighborhood.
Though the Hopi may have no house shrines, and this is said with caution, because not much is known of their domestic life, yet in some of the houses are rude stone images which are venerated300. These images may be household gods like the Lares and Penates of the ancients. No one would be surprised to know that the Hopi hold the fireplace sacred and make sacrifice to it as the shrine of Masauah, the dread301 ruler of the underworld.
So while our towns have interesting churches and historical buildings, none of them can compete with the high houses of the Hopi surrounded by primitive shrines to the nature gods, who, in their simple belief, protect the people and send the rains which insure abundant harvests.
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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3
mischief
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| n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹 | |
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4
theatrical
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| adj.剧场的，演戏的；做戏似的，做作的 | |
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5
primitive
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| adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物 | |
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6
intervals
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| n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息 | |
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7
interval
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| n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息 | |
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8
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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9
flute
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| n.长笛；v.吹笛 | |
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10
recording
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| n.录音，记录 | |
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11
tithe
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| n.十分之一税；v.课什一税，缴什一税 | |
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12
lore
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| n.传说；学问，经验，知识 | |
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13
clan
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| n.氏族，部落，宗族，家族，宗派 | |
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14
clans
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| 宗族( clan的名词复数 )； 氏族； 庞大的家族； 宗派 | |
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15
rites
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| 仪式，典礼( rite的名词复数 ) | |
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16
delved
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| v.深入探究，钻研( delve的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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17
investigators
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| n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 ) | |
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18
utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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19
prosaic
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| adj.单调的，无趣的 | |
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20
cults
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| n.迷信( cult的名词复数 )；狂热的崇拜；（有极端宗教信仰的）异教团体 | |
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21
manifestations
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| n.表示，显示（manifestation的复数形式） | |
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22
constellations
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| n.星座( constellation的名词复数 )；一群杰出人物；一系列（相关的想法、事物）；一群（相关的人） | |
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23
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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24
deities
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| n.神，女神( deity的名词复数 )；神祗；神灵；神明 | |
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25
badger
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| v.一再烦扰，一再要求，纠缠 | |
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26
mole
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| n.胎块；痣；克分子 | |
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27
spouse
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| n.配偶(指夫或妻) | |
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28
warrior
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| n.勇士，武士，斗士 | |
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29
revered
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| v.崇敬，尊崇，敬畏( revere的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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30
barter
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| n.物物交换，以货易货，实物交易 | |
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31
westward
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| n.西方，西部；adj.西方的，向西的；adv.向西 | |
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32
migration
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| n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙 | |
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33
migrations
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| n.迁移，移居( migration的名词复数 ) | |
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34
wheedling
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| v.骗取（某物），哄骗（某人干某事）( wheedle的现在分词 ) | |
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35
placating
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| v.安抚，抚慰，使平静( placate的现在分词 ) | |
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36
coercing
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| v.迫使做( coerce的现在分词 )；强迫；（以武力、惩罚、威胁等手段）控制；支配 | |
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37
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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38
initiation
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| n.开始 | |
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39
celebrated
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| adj.有名的，声誉卓著的 | |
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40
astronomical
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| adj.天文学的，（数字）极大的 | |
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41
descend
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| vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降 | |
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42
descends
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| v.下来( descend的第三人称单数 )；下去；下降；下斜 | |
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43
notch
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| n.(V字形)槽口，缺口，等级 | |
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44
pueblo
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| n.（美国西南部或墨西哥等）印第安人的村庄 | |
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45
pueblos
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| n.印第安人村庄( pueblo的名词复数 ) | |
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46
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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47
gaudily
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| adv.俗丽地 | |
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48
ridge
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| n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭 | |
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49
grotesque
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| adj.怪诞的，丑陋的；n.怪诞的图案，怪人（物） | |
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50
rattle
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| v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓 | |
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51
rattles
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| （使）发出格格的响声， （使）作嘎嘎声( rattle的第三人称单数 )； 喋喋不休地说话； 迅速而嘎嘎作响地移动，堕下或走动； 使紧张，使恐惧 | |
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52
flutes
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| 长笛( flute的名词复数 )； 细长香槟杯（形似长笛） | |
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53
interspersed
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| adj.[医]散开的；点缀的v.intersperse的过去式和过去分词 | |
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54
novices
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| n.新手( novice的名词复数 )；初学修士（或修女）；（修会等的）初学生；尚未赢过大赛的赛马 | |
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55
posture
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| n.姿势，姿态，心态，态度；v.作出某种姿势 | |
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56
postures
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| 姿势( posture的名词复数 )； 看法； 态度； 立场 | |
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57
forerunner
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| n.前身，先驱（者），预兆，祖先 | |
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58
vanquishes
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| v.征服( vanquish的第三人称单数 )；战胜；克服；抑制 | |
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59
northward
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| adv.向北；n.北方的地区 | |
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60
pageant
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| n.壮观的游行；露天历史剧 | |
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61
consecrated
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| adj.神圣的，被视为神圣的v.把…奉为神圣，给…祝圣( consecrate的过去式和过去分词 )；奉献 | |
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62
shrine
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| n.圣地，神龛，庙；v.将...置于神龛内，把...奉为神圣 | |
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63
shrines
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| 圣地，圣坛，神圣场所( shrine的名词复数 ) | |
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64
expectancy
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| n.期望，预期，（根据概率统计求得）预期数额 | |
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65
sprouting
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| v.发芽( sprout的现在分词 )；抽芽；出现；（使）涌现出 | |
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66
sprouts
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| n.新芽，嫩枝( sprout的名词复数 )v.发芽( sprout的第三人称单数 )；抽芽；出现；（使）涌现出 | |
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67
ferocious
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| adj.凶猛的，残暴的，极度的，十分强烈的 | |
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68
recital
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| n.朗诵，独奏会，独唱会 | |
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69
joyous
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| adj.充满快乐的；令人高兴的 | |
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70
plumed
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| 饰有羽毛的 | |
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71
mythology
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| n.神话，神话学，神话集 | |
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72
adept
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| adj.老练的，精通的 | |
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73
paraphernalia
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| n.装备；随身用品 | |
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74
rehearsals
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| n.练习( rehearsal的名词复数 )；排练；复述；重复 | |
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75
twigs
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| 细枝，嫩枝( twig的名词复数 ) | |
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76
flickering
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| adj.闪烁的，摇曳的，一闪一闪的 | |
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77
heralded
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| v.预示( herald的过去式和过去分词 )；宣布（好或重要） | |
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78
sprouted
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| v.发芽( sprout的过去式和过去分词 )；抽芽；出现；（使）涌现出 | |
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79
hoarse
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| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
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80
gourd
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| n.葫芦 | |
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81
resounds
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| v.（指声音等）回荡于某处( resound的第三人称单数 )；产生回响；（指某处）回荡着声音 | |
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82
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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83
goggle
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| n.瞪眼，转动眼珠，护目镜；v.瞪眼看，转眼珠 | |
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84
crest
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| n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖 | |
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85
darting
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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86
effigies
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| n.（人的）雕像，模拟像，肖像( effigy的名词复数 ) | |
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87
dismantled
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| 拆开( dismantle的过去式和过去分词 )； 拆卸； 废除； 取消 | |
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88
buffalo
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| n.(北美)野牛；(亚洲)水牛 | |
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89
pelts
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| n. 皮毛，投掷, 疾行 vt. 剥去皮毛，（连续）投掷 vi. 猛击，大步走 | |
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90
zigzag
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| n.曲折，之字形；adj.曲折的，锯齿形的；adv.曲折地，成锯齿形地；vt.使曲折；vi.曲折前行 | |
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91
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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92
shrill
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| adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫 | |
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93
graceful
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| adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的 | |
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94
maiden
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| n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的 | |
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95
slabs
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| n.厚板，平板，厚片( slab的名词复数 )；厚胶片 | |
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96
slab
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| n.平板，厚的切片；v.切成厚板，以平板盖上 | |
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97
attire
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| v.穿衣，装扮[同]array；n.衣着；盛装 | |
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98
wrestle
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| vi.摔跤，角力；搏斗；全力对付 | |
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99
pottery
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| n.陶器，陶器场 | |
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100
swoop
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| n.俯冲，攫取；v.抓取，突然袭击 | |
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101
overthrow
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| v.推翻，打倒，颠覆；n.推翻，瓦解，颠覆 | |
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102
plaza
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| n.广场，市场 | |
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103
appeased
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| 安抚，抚慰( appease的过去式和过去分词 )； 绥靖（满足另一国的要求以避免战争） | |
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104
appease
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| v.安抚，缓和，平息，满足 | |
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105
throng
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| n.人群，群众；v.拥挤，群集 | |
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106
carnival
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| n.嘉年华会，狂欢，狂欢节，巡回表演 | |
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107
reigns
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| n.君主的统治( reign的名词复数 )；君主统治时期；任期；当政期 | |
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108
joyful
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| adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的 | |
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109
countless
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| adj.无数的，多得不计其数的 | |
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110
pageants
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| n.盛装的游行( pageant的名词复数 )；穿古代服装的游行；再现历史场景的娱乐活动；盛会 | |
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111
intercede
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| vi.仲裁，说情 | |
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112
sociability
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| n.好交际，社交性，善于交际 | |
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113
rivalry
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| n.竞争，竞赛，对抗 | |
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114
worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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115
boughs
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| 大树枝( bough的名词复数 ) | |
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116
imposing
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| adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的 | |
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117
adorned
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| [计]被修饰的 | |
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118
emblematic
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| adj.象征的，可当标志的；象征性 | |
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119
notched
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| a.有凹口的，有缺口的 | |
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120
antelope
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| n.羚羊；羚羊皮 | |
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121
preponderate
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| v.数目超过；占优势 | |
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122
mutual
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| adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的 | |
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123
concessions
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| n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权 | |
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124
makers
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| n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式） | |
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125
virile
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| adj.男性的；有男性生殖力的；有男子气概的；强有力的 | |
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126
lesser
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| adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地 | |
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127
animate
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| v.赋于生命，鼓励；adj.有生命的，有生气的 | |
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128
grandeur
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| n.伟大，崇高，宏伟，庄严，豪华 | |
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129
hips
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| abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的 | |
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130
quarry
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| n.采石场；v.采石；费力地找 | |
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131
pouches
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| n.（放在衣袋里或连在腰带上的）小袋( pouch的名词复数 )；（袋鼠等的）育儿袋；邮袋；（某些动物贮存食物的）颊袋 | |
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132
pouch
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| n.小袋，小包，囊状袋；vt.装...入袋中，用袋运输；vi.用袋送信件 | |
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133
weird
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| adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的 | |
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134
plunges
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| n.跳进，投入vt.使投入，使插入，使陷入vi.投入，跳进，陷入v.颠簸( plunge的第三人称单数 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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135
vehemently
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| adv. 热烈地 | |
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136
herded
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| 群集，纠结( herd的过去式和过去分词 )； 放牧； （使）向…移动 | |
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137
writhing
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| （因极度痛苦而）扭动或翻滚( writhe的现在分词 ) | |
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138
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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139
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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140
reptile
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| n.爬行动物；两栖动物 | |
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141
reptiles
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| n.爬行动物，爬虫( reptile的名词复数 ) | |
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142
melodious
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| adj.旋律美妙的，调子优美的，音乐性的 | |
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143
holders
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| 支持物( holder的名词复数 )； 持有者； （支票等）持有人； 支托（或握持）…之物 | |
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144
mosaic
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| n./adj.镶嵌细工的，镶嵌工艺品的，嵌花式的 | |
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145
crooks
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| n.骗子( crook的名词复数 )；罪犯；弯曲部分；（牧羊人或主教用的）弯拐杖v.弯成钩形( crook的第三人称单数 ) | |
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146
defense
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| n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩 | |
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147
shrieks
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| n.尖叫声( shriek的名词复数 )v.尖叫( shriek的第三人称单数 ) | |
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148
lashed
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| adj.具睫毛的v.鞭打( lash的过去式和过去分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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149
aboriginal
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| adj.（指动植物）土生的，原产地的，土著的 | |
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150
plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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151
subsided
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| v.（土地）下陷（因在地下采矿）( subside的过去式和过去分词 )；减弱；下降至较低或正常水平；一下子坐在椅子等上 | |
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152
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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153
mingled
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| 混合，混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 )； 混进，与…交往[联系] | |
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154
strenuous
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| adj.奋发的，使劲的；紧张的；热烈的，狂热的 | |
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155
enacting
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| 制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的现在分词 ) | |
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156
tragic
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| adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的 | |
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157
plank
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| n.板条，木板，政策要点，政纲条目 | |
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158
bower
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| n.凉亭，树荫下凉快之处；闺房；v.荫蔽 | |
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159
denizens
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| n.居民，住户( denizen的名词复数 ) | |
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160
demons
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| n.恶人( demon的名词复数 )；恶魔；精力过人的人；邪念 | |
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161
scramble
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| v.爬行，攀爬，杂乱蔓延，碎片，片段，废料 | |
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162
antelopes
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| 羚羊( antelope的名词复数 )； 羚羊皮革 | |
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163
emetic
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| n.催吐剂；adj.催吐的 | |
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164
brews
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| n.（尤指某地酿造的）啤酒( brew的名词复数 )；酿造物的种类；（茶）一次的冲泡量；（不同思想、环境、事件的）交融v.调制( brew的第三人称单数 )；酝酿；沏（茶）；煮（咖啡） | |
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165
stewed
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| adj.焦虑不安的，烂醉的v.炖( stew的过去式和过去分词 )；煨；思考；担忧 | |
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166
concoction
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| n.调配(物)；谎言 | |
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167
simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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168
fangs
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| n.（尤指狗和狼的）长而尖的牙( fang的名词复数 )；（蛇的）毒牙；罐座 | |
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169
herding
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| 中畜群 | |
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170
onlooker
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| n.旁观者，观众 | |
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171
instinctive
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| adj.(出于)本能的；直觉的；(出于)天性的 | |
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172
embarked
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| 乘船( embark的过去式和过去分词 )； 装载； 从事 | |
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173
antedating
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| v.（在历史上）比…为早( antedate的现在分词 )；先于；早于；（在信、支票等上）填写比实际日期早的日期 | |
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174
perilous
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| adj.危险的，冒险的 | |
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175
embroidered
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| adj．绣花的 | |
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176
ERECTED
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| adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立 | |
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177
wades
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| （从水、泥等）蹚，走过，跋( wade的第三人称单数 ) | |
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178
cardinal
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| n.(天主教的)红衣主教；adj.首要的，基本的 | |
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179
abreast
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| adv.并排地；跟上(时代)的步伐，与…并进地 | |
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180
ascend
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| vi.渐渐上升，升高；vt.攀登，登上 | |
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181
disperse
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| vi.使分散；使消失；vt.分散；驱散 | |
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182
erased
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| v.擦掉( erase的过去式和过去分词 )；抹去；清除 | |
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183
enacted
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| 制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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184
plaque
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| n.饰板，匾，(医)血小板 | |
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185
plaques
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| （纪念性的）匾牌( plaque的名词复数 )； 纪念匾； 牙斑； 空斑 | |
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186
picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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187
supervision
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| n.监督，管理 | |
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189
lithe
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| adj.(指人、身体)柔软的，易弯的 | |
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190
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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191
specks
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| n.眼镜；斑点，微粒，污点( speck的名词复数 ) | |
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192
maidens
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| 处女( maiden的名词复数 )； 少女； 未婚女子； （板球运动）未得分的一轮投球 | |
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193
untie
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| vt.解开，松开；解放 | |
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194
titanic
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| adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的 | |
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195
melee
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| n.混战；混战的人群 | |
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196
perspiring
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| v.出汗，流汗( perspire的现在分词 ) | |
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197
ragged
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| adj.衣衫褴褛的，粗糙的，刺耳的 | |
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198
avocations
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| n.业余爱好，嗜好( avocation的名词复数 )；职业 | |
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199
initiated
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| n. 创始人 adj. 新加入的 vt. 开始，创始，启蒙，介绍加入 | |
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200
lasting
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| adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持 | |
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201
gaily
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| adv.欢乐地，高兴地 | |
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202
fertilizing
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| v.施肥( fertilize的现在分词 ) | |
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203
dispense
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| vt.分配，分发；配(药)，发(药)；实施 | |
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204
pious
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| adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的 | |
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205
anthropologist
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| n.人类学家，人类学者 | |
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206
abbreviated
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| adj. 简短的，省略的 动词abbreviate的过去式和过去分词 | |
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207
revolved
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| v.（使）旋转( revolve的过去式和过去分词 )；细想 | |
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208
friction
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| n.摩擦，摩擦力 | |
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209
shredded
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| shred的过去式和过去分词 | |
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210
kindled
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| （使某物）燃烧，着火( kindle的过去式和过去分词 )； 激起（感情等）； 发亮，放光 | |
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211
drench
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| v.使淋透，使湿透 | |
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212
hideous
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| adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的 | |
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213
ordeals
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| n.严峻的考验，苦难的经历( ordeal的名词复数 ) | |
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214
chaos
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| n.混乱，无秩序 | |
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215
placated
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| v.安抚，抚慰，使平静( placate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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216
philosophic
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| adj.哲学的，贤明的 | |
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217
blistered
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| adj.水疮状的，泡状的v.（使）起水泡( blister的过去式和过去分词 )；（使表皮等）涨破，爆裂 | |
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218
kerosene
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| n.(kerosine)煤油，火油 | |
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219
soot
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| n.煤烟，烟尘；vt.熏以煤烟 | |
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220
spurted
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| （液体，火焰等）喷出，（使）涌出( spurt的过去式和过去分词 )； （短暂地）加速前进，冲刺 | |
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221
fabulous
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| adj.极好的；极为巨大的；寓言中的，传说中的 | |
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222
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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223
behold
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| v.看，注视，看到 | |
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224
feats
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| 功绩，伟业，技艺( feat的名词复数 ) | |
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225
juggling
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| n. 欺骗, 杂耍(=jugglery) adj. 欺骗的, 欺诈的 动词juggle的现在分词 | |
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226
legerdemain
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| n.戏法，诈术 | |
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227
deception
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| n.欺骗，欺诈；骗局，诡计 | |
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228
renowned
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| adj.著名的，有名望的，声誉鹊起的 | |
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229
afflicted
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| 使受痛苦，折磨( afflict的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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230
turquoise
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| n.绿宝石；adj.蓝绿色的 | |
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231
bead
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| n.念珠；(pl.)珠子项链；水珠 | |
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232
touching
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| adj.动人的，使人感伤的 | |
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233
applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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234
conjuring
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| n.魔术 | |
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235
malign
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| adj.有害的；恶性的；恶意的；v.诽谤，诬蔑 | |
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236
archaeology
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| n.考古学 | |
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237
minor
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| adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修 | |
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238
ailment
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| n.疾病，小病 | |
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239
massage
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| n.按摩，揉；vt.按摩，揉，美化，奉承，篡改数据 | |
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240
eyebrows
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| 眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 ) | |
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241
grievance
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| n.怨愤，气恼，委屈 | |
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242
temerity
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| n.鲁莽，冒失 | |
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243
embodied
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| v.表现( embody的过去式和过去分词 )；象征；包括；包含 | |
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244
tribal
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| adj.部族的，种族的 | |
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245
transpired
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|
| （事实，秘密等）被人知道( transpire的过去式和过去分词 )； 泄露； 显露； 发生 | |
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246
canyon
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| n.峡谷，溪谷 | |
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247
lizard
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| n.蜥蜴，壁虎 | |
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248
disdain
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| n.鄙视，轻视；v.轻视，鄙视，不屑 | |
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249
meddle
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| v.干预，干涉，插手 | |
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250
trespassing
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| [法]非法入侵 | |
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251
molestation
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| n.骚扰，干扰，调戏；折磨 | |
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252
plumes
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| 羽毛( plume的名词复数 )； 羽毛饰； 羽毛状物； 升上空中的羽状物 | |
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humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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symbolic
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| adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的 | |
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prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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talons
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| n.（尤指猛禽的）爪( talon的名词复数 )；（如爪般的）手指；爪状物；锁簧尖状突出部 | |
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257
concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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258
liberated
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| a.无拘束的，放纵的 | |
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thigh
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| n.大腿；股骨 | |
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formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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261
hazardous
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| adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的 | |
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prohibition
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| n.禁止；禁令，禁律 | |
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cemetery
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| n.坟墓，墓地，坟场 | |
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cleft
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| n.裂缝；adj.裂开的 | |
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domestication
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| n.驯养，驯化 | |
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veneration
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| n.尊敬，崇拜 | |
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267
foam
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| v./n.泡沫，起泡沫 | |
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deluge
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| n./vt.洪水，暴雨，使泛滥 | |
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mythical
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| adj.神话的；虚构的；想像的 | |
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conquerors
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| 征服者，占领者( conqueror的名词复数 ) | |
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spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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annoyance
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| n.恼怒，生气，烦恼 | |
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plentiful
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| adj.富裕的，丰富的 | |
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scarlet
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| n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的 | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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elk
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| n.麋鹿 | |
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277
vegetarians
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| n.吃素的人( vegetarian的名词复数 )；素食者；素食主义者；食草动物 | |
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thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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smeared
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| 弄脏； 玷污； 涂抹； 擦上 | |
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triumphant
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| adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的 | |
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exultant
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| adj.欢腾的，狂欢的，大喜的 | |
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inquiries
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| n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听 | |
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authentic
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| a.真的，真正的；可靠的，可信的，有根据的 | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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benighted
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| adj.蒙昧的 | |
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286
bestowed
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| 赠给，授予( bestow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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abound
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| vi.大量存在；(in，with)充满，富于 | |
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scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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pry
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| vi.窥(刺)探，打听；vt.撬动(开，起) | |
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casually
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| adv.漠不关心地，无动于衷地，不负责任地 | |
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291
avenging
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| adj.报仇的，复仇的v.为…复仇，报…之仇( avenge的现在分词 )；为…报复 | |
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292
creek
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| n.小溪，小河，小湾 | |
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293
outskirts
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| n.郊外，郊区 | |
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recesses
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| n.壁凹( recess的名词复数 )；（工作或业务活动的）中止或暂停期间；学校的课间休息；某物内部的凹形空间v.把某物放在墙壁的凹处( recess的第三人称单数 )；将（墙）做成凹形，在（墙）上做壁龛；休息，休会，休庭 | |
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295
belongings
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| n.私人物品，私人财物 | |
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296
trepidation
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| n.惊恐，惶恐 | |
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297
deity
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| n.神，神性；被奉若神明的人(或物) | |
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298
cavern
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| n.洞穴，大山洞 | |
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299
prying
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| adj.爱打听的v.打听，刺探（他人的私事）( pry的现在分词 )；撬开 | |
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300
venerated
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| 敬重（某人或某事物），崇敬( venerate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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301
dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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