FIRE WORSHIP FEWKES. 591 



originated. A study of it is important to the culture historian on 

 account of its archaic origin. 



The primary object of Hopi ceremonies is shown by the prayers 

 at the winter solstice ceremony when many sacred feathers or 

 symbolic prayer offerings 3 are tied to almost everything the Hopi 

 desires — human beings, horses, donkeys, clay imitations of sheep, 

 goats, rabbits, antelopes, deer, peach trees, imitations of eagle eggs, 

 etc. The wish expressed when one of these stringed prayer feathers 

 is presented to an individual is revealed in the following words of 

 the giver : " May Katcinas grant you all blessings," and blessings 

 among the Hopi always mean that crops may grow and that life may 

 be perpetuated and increased. There is likewise a connection of 

 morality with some of their prayers. I have often heard the priests 

 halt as they droned over their ritualistic songs and exclaim, " Whose 

 heart is bad? Whose words are leaving the straight path?" and 

 then they sorrowfully resumed their songs, showing a connection of 

 conduct to the efficacy of their prayers, but as a rule material good 

 is the aim and ethical conduct is secondary. When they say, " Whose 

 heart is bad? " they may mean, " Who is not doing his prescribed 

 ceremonial duty and through this neglect is thereby rendering the 

 whole ceremonial futile ? " 



As the Hopi regard fire as life there is naturally in their fire cere- 

 monies a connection between the creation of fire and the procreation 

 of life. Hence it is impossible to adequately understand the new 

 fire rite without considering the symbols of fertilization and cere- 

 monies connected with the perpetuation of life. 



A supernatural being among the Hopi has several names which 

 are recognized by some of the priests as attributive but which the 

 ignorant regard as different gods, considering every attributive name 

 as a distinct deity. This multiplicity of names tends to confuse the 

 student of mythology in comparative studies. It imparts so great a 

 complexity to legends in which they are mentioned that it is not pos- 

 sible to recognize in all cases the nature of the being of which they 

 are designations. The cause of these many names for the same god 

 may be traced to component clans which may have perpetuated in 

 mythology ancient words that are otherwise extinct. The secret rites 

 of one priesthood are carefully guarded and are generally unknown to 

 another. 4 



3 Thousands of these wish feathers are made during every winter solstice and every 

 Hopi uses them in his prayers for blessings. 



* The priests have repeatedly warned the author not to divulge the secrets of the 

 Walpi kivas to the residents of the neighboring pueblo, Hano, and vice versa, nor do they 

 look with favor on public exhibits of pictures of altars in one rite to priests in another, 

 lest knowledge of secret things should become secularized. Kopeli, the former snake chief 

 at Walpi, would not enter the Middle Mesa snake kivas and confessed that he knew little 

 of the rites of the snake fraternities of any pueblo but his own. This secrecy may explain 

 the erroneous information on Hopi snake dances that is often printed. No one but a 

 snake priest knows anything about the snake altars, and some of them are unfamiliar 

 with many details. 



