STEVENSON! Ha'lo'KWE 52^ 



Initiation into the Ha'Io'kwe order sometimes occurs on the first 

 night of the meeting- of the fraternity for initiation into MysteiT med- 

 icine, which initiation takes place on the last night. The fraternity- 

 father, having prepared te'likinawe (prayer phimes) to the ants of the 

 six regions, goes at sunset to the home of the novice, who accompanies 

 him over the southern road to an ant-hill. On reaching the spot the}- 

 stand facing east while the fraternity father otters a prayer. After the 

 prayer the fraternity father gives the novice a portion of the praj^er 

 plumes which he carries, depositing the others separately on the ant- 

 hill, then the novice plants his there one by one. The pra3'ers offered 

 during the planting of the plumes are for rains to fructify the earth 

 and that the ant gods will give them power to cure disease. 



The order of Hii'loicwe are the agents of the ant gods, and as such 

 heal disease caused by these gods, who ''shoot" the pebbles from the 

 ant-hills into those who micturate or step upon them. The pebbles 

 produce all sorts of cutaneous troubles and sore throat, and relief is 

 obtained by the theurgists' bringing the pebbles to the surface, 

 through their prayers and incantations, and brushing them from the 

 body with bunches of ))rooni straws. 



When the patient is treated in the ceremonial chamber he sits upon 

 a low stool in the center of a mi'ha (white, embroidered blanket) laid 

 on the floor. A line of meal is sprinkled from the edge of the blanket to 

 meet the line of meal which extends a short distance before the tal)let 

 altar (see plate cxxii); the line is then continued over the blanket and 

 along the floor to the ladder; and then, l)eginning in the center of the 

 blanket, a line is extended to the north ledge; and, again, a line of 

 meal is carried from the center of the blanket to the south ledge, that 

 the ants, their spirits, may come over the meal road and be present. 

 The patient is presept four nights, and the process of healing is 

 most curious and interesting. A number of the theurgists surround 

 the patient. Each has his two eagle-wing plumes and a bunch of 

 broom straws in his left hand and a gourd rattle in his right, and with 

 the most weird incantations they invoke the ant gods to be present 

 and give them power to "see the disease." The Yellow Ant of the 

 North is the one specially appealed to the tirst night; the second night 

 the Blue Ant of the West has the special prayers; on the third night 

 the Red Ant of the South is the special ol)ject of prayei-. and the 

 White Ant of the East is appealed to the fourth night. Occasionally 

 there is a wild animal-like cry when one of the Beast Gods is invoked 

 to influence the ant gods to give the theurgist power to see disease. 

 After a time pebbles are brushed ofl' in showers from the patient's nude 

 bodv. The Zunis and the Sia observe the same method in curing 

 disease caused by angry ants. 

 23 ETH— 04 34 



