Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Sand


This is a Navajo sand painting used in ceremony and healing. ( I didn't know that the Navajo did sand paintings until recently.) Rather than paraphrase, I will just show a description I found of the meanings:

The Whirling Logs Narrative

From the Nightway Chant

In the Whirling Logs narrative, or Tsil-ol-ne story, the hero of the story sets out on a long journey [down the San Juan River]. At first, the gods try to persuade him against going, but seeing his determination, help him hollow out a log in which he will travel down the river.

Along the way, he has many misadventures which ultimately result in his gaining important ceremonial knowledge. In one such instance, he and his craft are captured by the Water People, who carry him down beneath the waters to the home of Water Monster. Black God threatens to set fire to Water Monster's home and the hero is released, but not before being taught by Frog how to cure the illnesses caused by the Water People.

When he finally reaches the big river [the Colorado River] that is his destination, the gods take his log out of a whirlpool where the rivers meet, and help him to shore.

In the sandpainting, you will see the gods, clockwise from the top, they are Talking God (B'ganaskiddy), the teacher; and at the bottom, Calling God (Hastye-o-gahn), associated with farming and fertility. On each side, left and right, are two humpbacked guardians, dressed alike. The humps are usually regarded as back-packs. They are the seed gatherers and bearers. The two guardians usually carry tobacco pouches.

The Gods carry prayer sticks, Talking God, elder of the Gods, carries a medicine pouch in the shape of a weasel.

Where the rivers met, the hero came upon a whirling cross with two Yeis seated on each of the four ends. From them, he learned the knowledge of farming and is given seeds. He then returns to his home to share these gifts with his people. The yei pair are male and female. The male in black, with a round head mask. The female has a square head mask.

In the sandpaintings, these plants are shown, from the right of Talking God as corn, and clockwise as beans, squash, and tobacco. The plants, and/or other elements of the design are shown in the four sacred colors, white, blue, yellow and black, according to their cardinal positions.

On the right side, bottom, and left side of the sandpainting is portrayed the Rainbow Yei, a guardian god. There is sometimes a circle drawn, and painted blue, at the intersection of the cross, said to represent the whirlpool which was the destination of the episode's hero.

Figures in Navajo sandpaintings generally proceed either towards the sunrise or clockwise, depending upon the viewers orientation. For the Navajo, the cardinal directions start in the east (as opposed to our north), and the east is usually shown at the top of a sandpainting, and open (to let in the dawn's light). This is the same orientation of a hogan, whose door is always in the east.

This description is by Mary & Jay Tallant of Canyon Country Originals in Tucson, Arizona.

Their Home

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Me again ----- The San Juan river flows in southern Utah into the Colorado river (now Lake Powell) from the east. South is Navajo territory in northeast Arizona where the mesas can be seen for hundreds of miles. When last going through this area, we found many Navajos' hitching rides as they always get picked up. Hitching a ride is a lost art elsewhere since everyone may be suspect! Unfortunate . . . we met some of the best people , picking up the hitchers.

Once, sitting in a hot spring south of Santa Fe, we heard a Hopi from the Jemiz Pueblo above on the rocks chanting in preparation for their spring-solstice ceremony. Story was that if the women in the Pueblo miles to the south could hear him, he was ready for the festivities. After a winter of rest it took awhile for him to build up the volume but improvement was evident after a few hours.


20 comments:

  1. Great post, I didn't have idea either that the Navajo did sand paintings. Had to read it a few times to get everything because i kept going back and looking at the painting.

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  2. This is very similar to a sand painting my parents bought when we lived in New Mexico. This would be almost 40 years ago now. I never knew the meaning of the symbols until now. Thank you.

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  3. hey friend... i'm dazzled!

    thanks for this marvelous post...

    when you compared my silly doodling to Navajo sand painting, i got interested and googled it... and found the meaning (the place where gods come and go) the applictions in healing and education...
    also i watched some beautiful works...
    i wanted to know more...

    your post was exactly what i needed...
    now i understand what i have done much better...

    the river... the journey...
    learning the art of healing...

    those archetypal images residing in our subconscious.... surfacing... helping us to find our way...

    wow... and once again i found out why all through my life i had a close affinity to native Americans and their philosophy of life and their art...
    i tell my husband, i should have been one of them in one of my previous lives...
    :D

    can i put a link to this post on my blog?

    love and peace to you, goatman...
    Ruth? is this your name?
    can i call you by this name?

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  4. I did what Beach Bum did, going up and down all the time. Thanks for that, very interesting. You live in a beautiful part of the world.

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  5. well, this is fascinating stuff.
    i, too kept returning to the image while reading yur text...
    great insight into other peoples' culture.

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  6. What a magnificent work!! I am glad I stopped by.

    Goatman I picked you up from Beach Bum's place and noticed that you grew up in St. Louis County! So did I, albeit a long time ago. I then moved west to Franklin County. Unfortunately I am no longer in Missouri but I have a lot of fond memories. Great blog!

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  7. the colours and order and symmetry in this are so calming


    fascinating to see some of the story behind/in it

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  8. I received a Sand Painting from the Navajo as a gift many years ago. Mine is entitled the Four Houses of the Sun; it takes pride of place in my office. This painting has distinctive healing powers...many times I have meditated with it, and have always felt a release of anxiety. Lovely painting, Goatman!

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  9. Remind me of the pharoas ...Im ot sure why ..I guess the healing journey and death for them or maybe the drawing it has some similarities

    Regards

    Nasra

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  10. Wonderful post!
    I so enjoyed it!

    Thank you!

    Margie

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  11. Great stuff! Very interesting!

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  12. hello

    very artful sand painting. thanks for the description. i thought that's interesting.

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  13. i'm waving 4 hooves (which means i must be rolling on the ground ...)

    and further confirms my official presence here. thanks for the invite to your blog.

    x
    rdm

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  14. Very interesting post, my friend!
    I love this kind of native socialisations, and their cultures, from all over the world. (often similar ways of thinking, no matter if they are Indians or Vikings etc, they have a lovely relation to nature, that we must learn of.

    Have a lovely weekend!

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  15. Excellent post on these paintings Goatman. I've seen them many times but never knew the meaning of the symbols. It's a thrill to read about other cultures the world over.

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  16. How are You my Friend?

    (( hug ))

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  17. Brilliant post, and so interesting as always.

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  18. it's really interesting when every detail has it's own history.

    me too, i kept looking back to the image. you had me there goatman.

    nice day ;)

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  19. At first I thought --oh that resembles a swastika !-- then I thought well, that was a Native American symbol first, and before that? anyway it's a lovely precise sand painting.

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  20. Appears to be a sandpainting of Whirling Logs from the Blessingway chant. The artist is almost certainly Fred Stevens, Jr. aka Grey Squirrel. This would make the painting at least 30 years old in that he died in 1983. Judging by the shape, I'd say the painting is 2 ft. by 3 ft. in size. Should be a short description of some of the symbolism on the back as this was standard procedure with the artist.

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