156 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [Bdll. 196 



PHASE III. NIZTI 



('lying') 



Phase III of na ih es is based on the belief that certain parts of the 

 girl's body are made strong by ritualistic massage. The reasoning 

 behind this belief is explained in the following quotation. 



Changing Woman's power is in the girl and makes her soft, like a lump of 

 wet clay. Like clay, she can be put into different shapes. Na ihl esn puts her 

 in the right shape and Changing Woman's power in the girl makes her grow up 

 that way, in that same shape. When na ihl esn rubs her the right way, she will 

 grow up strong and hard and never get tired. 



Shortly after the end of phase II, the medicine man instructs the 

 girl to lie prone on the buckskin, with her arms at her sides and her 

 legs together. (She may also be told to raise her head and stare into 

 the sun.) During phase III, which consists of one or two songs, the 

 girl remains in this position while na ihl esn kneads the muscles in her 

 legs, back, and shoulders. 



Na ihl esn rubs her legs so she will never have any trouble walking long ways. 

 Also, so she can stand up for long time and never get tired. She rubs her back 

 so that when she gets to be really old age she won't bend over and not straighten 

 up. Her shoulders ... so she can carry heavy things for her camp and never 

 get tired doing that either; carry wood and water and groceries long ways. 



Na ihl esn rubs her back and legs so she can always work hard for a long time 

 and never get tired out. 



Na ihl esn does that for her so she will grow up strong and in good shape and 

 always be able to help out at her camp and whenever her relatives need help. 



IV. GISH IH ZHA HA YINDA SLE DIt IHLYE 



('cane set out for her, she runs around it') 



During the pause (8-12 minutes) between phase III and phase IV, 

 the pubescent girl remains on the buckskin and the medicine man 

 and his drummers relax. The cane, which has been lodged between two 

 baskets or cardboard cartons in phases II and III, is retrieved by na 

 ihl esn. Directly east of the buckskin, and approximately 25 feet 

 from it, one of the medicine man's assistants makes a shallow cylindrical 

 hole in the earth with a crowbar. Here, na ihl esn inserts the cane, 

 standing it upright. 



When the opening song of phase IV begins, the girl runs to the cane, 

 circles it once, and runs back again. She is closely followed by na ihl 

 esn who, after going around the cane, takes it from the hole and returns 

 with it to the buckskin. There, she hands it to the girl, and the re- 

 mainder of the song is danced in place. 



This procedure is repeated during each of the three additional songs 

 that comprise phase IV, At the start of each, the cane is placed 



