Lakota Sioux Animal Symbolism::

Lakota Sioux Animal Symbolism III

Black Elk believed that of all the creatures the birds ('wingeds') are the most important to the Lakota for they are the closest to the heavens. Unlike the 'four-leggeds' or the 'crawling peoples', they are not bound to the earth. From their height they can see all that happens on earth and they never miss their prey.

We have seen in another article that the circle has special connotations of power for the Plains Indian and it was observed that birds had a special association with the circle: their nests were round and they moved through the skies in the form of the sacred circle.

Among the birds the eagle was ascribed as having the greatest power, because the eagle can fly higher than all other birds, because it can see everything, and because it moves through the sky in the form of a circle. Many Lakota associate this sacred bird with Wakinyan.

The unusual power inherent in the eagle is indicated through the elaborate ritual that accompanied the catching of eagles. In order to avoid being injured by the eagle's power, the bird was carefully wrapped in sage. Because of the eagle's excessive power it was not safe to pluck an eagle's feathers until after a four-day period. Also the men were supposed to cry to show respect for the eagle's spirit when pulling the feathers out, in order for more eagles to be taken at other times. In fact the plumes and feathers and femur were particularly valuable, and feathers and plumes were thought to lend special powers to the wearer.

Even today, whenever an eagle is seen, tobacco must be offered to it, even if this means throwing a couple of cigarettes out of the window of a moving car. During powwows, if a dancer drops an eagle feather the entire festival must stop and a special ceremony is conducted by elders so that the eagle feather is honoured and picked up in a sacred and respectful manner. A dancer who drops an eagle feather is often distraught and has to be comforted by an elder who, at the same time explains to the dancer the significance of the eagle.

Seeing an eagle is a positive sign, as one of my research participants pointed out:

"[S]everal years ago I gave a talk about eagles [at a gathering], and while I was talking about the eagles up above there were two eagles circling near where I was standing, and... it's a blessing and an acknowledgement, and it's a very positive kind of symbolism because when they appear people feel good, it makes them feel good that some kind of the good part of the universe, some kind of the positive aspect of creation is there with you and saying, "It's going to be okay", or "Things are going to be good now", lifting worry, lifting concern" (1998).

When the eagle is referred to in ceremonies, it is Wanbli Gleska or Spotted Eagle, "which may not be a literal being. It may be related to some kind of a prototypical aspect of the eagle" as one man put it to me (Ibid.). It is Wanbli Gleska that carries one's prayers to Wakantanka, "which implies that that our thoughts and our words and our actions should be that lofty. That's a challenge because often as a human it's very difficult to have lofty thoughts [laughs]. But the eagle is there to remind us, if we understand what the eagle is about" (Ibid.). The eagle also carries the spirit of the dead on to the next world:

"[I]f you look at the Vision Quest as a symbolic death, oftentimes I've seen people when they go up on a Vision Quest, when they finish and they return back to the Sweat Lodge sometimes an eagle will be there and it will leave. And people might make the statement, "Well, eagle's bringing you home now". So a lot of times at funerals people see eagles flying up above because they are kind of a symbol or representative of the upper dimensions, the higher realms, that the eagles have come up for that spirit and are escorting it because it's flying, the implication that it's leaving, its movement it's going to be in space, so a lot of people see eagles at funerals or see them at the burial and know that the spirit or the soul of that person is safe because the eagles are taking it" (Ibid.).

For some, the soul of the dead becomes the eagle. One woman explained to me: "[T]he eagle, the representative of the eagle is - he is what we become when we pass on. We become an eagle. We soar, we help or we carry the prayers to Wakantanka. So every time we see an eagle we address it as a fallen relative, our relative that's gone on before" (1998).

On a cosmic level, there are four eagles: mature bald (anukasan), immature bald (wanbi gleska), mature golden (hunya) and immature golden (anukiyan). There is one eagle standing at each of the Four Quarters of the universe:

"the golden eagle of the east, symbol of the sun from whence comes life; the spotted eagle of the south which carried the souls of the dead to the land of happiness; the black eagle of the west, denoting sunset or darkness; and the bald eagle of the north, which brought the winds and snows of winter" (Standing Bear 1933: 122).¹

The crow or the raven was seen to represent attributes and qualities desired in warfare. They both flew swiftly and in a direct manner. The crow was also observed to be all-observant and ever-watchful.

The owl has the special ability to see in the dark. Its night-vision is clear and therefore when a medicine man gets his power from the owl through night dreams he believes his dream is also clear and he promises to respect the owl or else his power will desert him. For this reason some medicine men wear owl feathers. The power of the owl's night vision is passed to the yuwipi man who, during the yuwipi ceremony and aided by his owl 'spirit helper', is able to see clearly enough to locate lost objects. The owl is also associated with death, due to its nocturnal habits.

Bushotter wrote that the meadowlark individually dance the sun dance - "one bird at a time" (in Dorsey 1889: 157).² Other Lakota have said that the bird can communicate in Lakota.

Notes::

• 1 - Luther Standing Bear. 1933. Land of the Spotted Eagle. Boston/New York: Houghton Mifflin Co.
• 2 - James O. Dorsey. 1889. "Teton Folk-lore." American Anthropologist. 2: 143-158.