Head Veteran

What is a head veteran and what does he/she do at gatherings?

First a head veteran must be a veteran, Duh!

I have been to some 'powwows' of late and one way or another found out that a head veteran was, in fact, never a veteran!

Next he/she must be a native American, there are many way to see if one is a native and a few ways to see if he/she is a veteran.

So no need to go into this, if you have been reading my past postings and many of you have, than you know my feelings about that.

To completely understand where I am coming from with sacred ceremonies like our gatherings and also see why the responsibility of a head veteran is now, but never should have been diminished, let's start with paw-paus and head veteran?

A paw- paus as with all gatherings before first contact was assigned by the Sachem through the Head Clan Mother to take full control of the event.

Like the Powwow's of today, those gatherings were started at a monthly meeting long before the event, so everyone in the tribe knew in advance what their job was.

The Sachem or Head Clan Mother assigned the Head Veterans job to the warrior with the most knowledge of the tribe to run the Paw-paus.

This person became the Chief of the gathering, so for a smooth outing everyone worked under this warrior, everyone except the Head Clan Mother!

As Sachem and many times a head veteran, I worked under the Head Clan Mother at our paw paus, less confusion from everybody!

With our people if this warrior (Head Veteran) said that you are a Native American, you are a native American!

Not only is this right, old warriors have a way with knowing just who is and who is not!

The MC with permission from the Head Clan Mother, controlled the singing, dancing and what dance at what time.

The lead drum controlled songs and which drum group drums which dance.

The Head Veteran controls everything else!

How on earth did the word 'arena director' get into a powwow?

Arena directors run rodeos, Fairs, circus, and carnivals out west someplace don't they?

East entry started after this head veteran checked that everything and everyone is ready to dance, gave the signal to the MC and unless carrying the Sacred Staff, stayed at the ready at the gate.

At a paw-paus, any bird or animal was always allowed into the circle as long as they wished to be in the circle, never tied or chained as with powwow.

If you are dancing in this type of circle and see a feather drop or spot a feather and are positive that it is only a costume feather, pick it up and carry it out of the circle with you, hand it to the head veteran, if you are not sure, protect that feather, no veteran worth his or her salt will think less of you one way or the other.

I was at a 'powwow' not so long ago and a native girl about 12ish, saw three Eagle feathers drop from an Alaskan dancers regalia, she danced over the feathers until a 'dancer' from a Canadian tribe can along picked up the feathers walked backwards through the circle and handed them to the Alaskan!

This is what our gatherings are coming to !

After things calmed down and out of sight I walked both 'men' out of the gathering!

I found the young girl and family, through a ceremony and with a blessing for Creator, handed her a prayer pouch with some of my grandfathers tobacco (Kinnick Kinnick) in it and made sure that she knew that she was 100% correct!

Sachem Tallfox a proud WW-2 Veteran, Sachem Zeak wounded at the sub base before service and could not serve. Sachem Walkingfox a proud Vietnam Veteran.

Misunderstanding Spirituality

 Welcome to a visitor from Oklahoma City Oklahoma

http://www.okc.gov/

To an old website of ours

Native American Spiritualism

http://walkingfox.tripod.com/id14.html

While surfing the internet looking for information on the misunderstanding of native American spirituality?

I must, as always, start with your state in the South Central part of Indian country and we are from the North East.

Culture and ceremonies may differ a little in tribal information?

A couple more of our sites may help in your search? http://www.tahtonka.com/spirituality.html

http://sachemspeaks.wordpress.com/2013/03/22/the-fear-of-spirituality/

However, something's that seem to confuse our European friends might be the same in both areas of the country?

The first thing that I have noticed throughout the years while traveling around Indian country invited to attend their religious roundtable discussions and I believe, the most confusing to religious leaders is,

Native Americans throughout the country have no problem with our own Spirituality (they call religion).

We all Fear (believe) in our Creator, some call this Supreme Being by different names and some difference in ways of contacting our Supreme Being.

However, it has never, to my knowledge, turned into battles as with our Europeans do?

They also do not understand our praying inside of a Sweat Lodge, Longhouse or to trees and rocks, why we have a Prayer Pouch or call a Drum our heartbeat of Mother Earth.

 Information that can be found on our newest blog,

http://sachemspeaks.wordpress.com/

Welcome Iisalmi, Billingham, Schnecksville

Welcome to my three new visitors

Iisalmi, Northern Savo, Finland

https://www.iisalmi.fi/Suomeksi

Billingham, England

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billingham

Schnecksville, Pennsylvania

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schnecksville,_Pennsylvania

To the posting on

Edinburgh, Scotland/ Indore, India

10/07/2019

http://mysmudgingblog.blogspot.com/2019/10/edinburgh-scotland-indore-india.html

 O.K.

Paw-paus, why would this be a Sacred Ceremony?

By the way, 

the writing 

on the post 

is also for you,

 just ask?

A Paw-paus in and of its self is not sacred, it means 'The Gathering of the people'

Our original gathering (Paw-paus), was a celebration

because Creator protected the people 

through season after season, 

hence, four gatherings (Paw-paus).

Our people included a pouch (usually red), on their regalia 

of

 'Sacred Medicine and Memorabilia' 

from family, friends and so on. 

Our ancestors believer that this was sacred and should never be in photo!

I believe and love my ancestors so what ever they wanted

was what I plan on giving until I also cross!

https://sachemspeaks.wordpress.com/crossing-ceremony/

This is why I say, 'In Person Only'

As always, 

questions will be answered my friends.

Love You All

Shechaim Ohjieshan

Happy Birthday Chief Silver Eagle (Friday December 28th 1985)

 

Chief Silver Eagle

Also known as

(Chief Silver Eagle Feather) 

a long time friend of our family would have been 100 today.

I will always remember him from his last Paw ~Paus back in 1985, his first day home.

On that day Creator Chose to honor a faithful servant and do so through, of all people, me?

Our Creator has a sense of humor, Creator knows that I loathe being at the forefront of any gathering, so all of my life I end up in the forefront of a social event?

I received my native name at a Chief Eagle Feathers Paw ~Paus age 6, my first time as Head Veteran was in 1965 at a Chief Eagle Feathers Paw ~Paus, the second time in the history of both tribes a Sachem of one tribe became a warrior of the other tribe for a day, was on this day in 1985.

Without going into any parts of a Sacred Ceremony because, you see, this turned into one of them.

It just so happened that I was again the Head Veteran at his gathering (Paw ~Paus) and within seconds of offering tobacco ( as you know by now Kinnick - Kinnick) to invite Creator into the circle, everything in the Grange Hall went quiet and I froze in place.

This was the first time that Chief Eagle Feather was not at the side of a Head Veteran at his gathering handing out and offering tobacco.

Some months earlier he became Wheelchair bound.

I put my tobacco back into my pouch in my Regalia, walked straight through the circle to the Elders seating in the West, performed the Sacred Ceremony, handed my Great Grandfathers Bird of Prey Staff to the Chiefs Head Clan Mother and as soon as she finished her ceremony handing the staff to Chief, I walked back through the East to the back of the line now knowing that I was the one Creator wanted to dance Grand Entry for my friend.

No one including me knew why this happened, that is until we danced Grand Entry passed the Elder Chairs.

As I honored Chief on the way passed the elders I knew, he had a smile from ear to ear and winked to me.

Within seconds after the Paw ~ Paus Creator took my best friend home!

This one is for you Chief Silver Eagle, you are still my very best friend.

MOHEGAN/MOHICAN

It's All In The Spelling of A Name

I had an eye doctors appointment the other day, always an interesting experience after a corneal transplant.

That day however, was extra tough because the Orlando VA is now in a holding pattern, waiting for the new VA Hospital in Medical City to be finished.

So, I had to go to an outside Doctor and this meant starting from scratch, not a fun day for me, my puppy, or my driver.

Anyhow, my doctor and I, (Great Doctor) started talking about Native Americans, right after he spotted my pouch.

"Last of the Mohegan's" he said, with a grin.

"Well, I was for a while," I said.

He then told me that he had another person/patient for an appointment who said that there are thousands of Mohegan's around.

I felt obligated to give him a short history lesson about my Mohegan people, explaining that from the time of my birth in the 1940's, until the late 1970's, there were never more than 13 families at any of the monthly meetings held by my Grandfather, Sachem Tallfox, the last true Sachem of the Mohegan people.

But, right after Congress passed some funny, not ha ha funny, but strange funny laws and people starting building casinos, Mohegan's and Pequot's came out of the woodwork.

Strange thing, wouldn't you say?

Next, we went into the life of Uncas, his father and friend.

The Last of the Mohicans, by James Fennimore Cooper, is a story about a great friendship between Hawkeye, the white Man, and Chingachook, the Chief of the Mohicans.

The name is not spelled the same, but no one seems to care, just like where did all of these long dead Indians come from?

Also from fiction?

Slocan British Columbia Canada

How much tobacco offering to elder for inipi

Welcome Slocan British Columbia Canada

http://slocanlakechamber.com/

Although you are quite a ways up north from my people, your people and my people did travel north and south long before someone places a "Border" between our people?

I would like to step out on a limb, so to speak, and give you our answer to your question if I may?

Remembering that our people used herbs now called tobacco long before chemicals were placed into modern tobacco just to get people addicted to smoke and we call this our tobacco (Kinnick, Kinnick) or a group of herbs?

OK

How much tobacco offering to an Elder presiding over a "Sacred Sweat (Sweat-Lodge) Inipi?

First, one must never, never be forced to pay for any true traditional ceremony in our culture, never.

That said, this Elder more than likely uses a lot of his Kinnick-Kinnick through the year so a pouch before the ceremony, any ceremony is always appreciated my friend.

https://sachemspeaks.wordpress.com/2011/06/14/native-american-gifting-tobacco-to-an-elder/

AND

http://mysmudgingblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/native-american-gifting-tobacco-to_14.html

Why is Grand Entry Sacred?

Welcome to the visitor from the City of Winston Salem North Carolina

http://www.visitwinstonsalem.com/

Glad to have this question once again although this is the first in such a long time at calling it Sacred?

Makes one wonder just who is asking and why?

You see Grand Entry or (Cangi Sidiai Niungo) as it was called at a Paw paus and a powwow up until the early 1960's, was and should always be Sacred however, I have not heard it called Cangi Sidiai Niungo since returning from Vietnam in 1965.

It would seem that after the government made Casino Indians, nothing about the new gatherings is sacred?

One exception, because there is always an exception.

Many years ago while we were still called "The Book People,"

Donna teaches our culture using books and she is very good at it.

I teach in the circle and around the grounds.

At a gathering one year, the head veteran (Auburn University powwow) came asking to use my Pow-Mia Flag, I do not remember why?

After an agreement, because of the Bird of Prey Feathers plus some Sacred Pouches from past Crossing ceremonies, we walked it into the east and placed over the drum.

About an hour he came back with another Red Pouch and I said a fast prayer hoping that it was not for Grandfathers Staff!

He came asking if or when the drum could continue a dance because the flag was in the circle?

Point to this posting is.

He came to ask and not just move on with the gathering.

I'll tell you what I explained to him however, I believe that he was just being polite!

Once the flag and/or staff is placed, the gathering can continue.

I am not using a name because, this person is a veteran and a true traditionalist and I would never embarrass him however, this information was important for me to tell.