BLNzELl RELIGIOUS LIFE 507 



times to whipthem to euro thciii of "had droains" (sec p. 481). The 

 whipping of the initiates is prol)ahly also purificatory. 



Ceremonial Pattern 



A full ceremony at Zuni utilizes all of the foregoing techniques. 

 The usual ceremonial pattern is a retreat followed hy a dance. Fre- 

 quently the dance is public, the retreat, of course, always being 

 secret. Sometimes, also, the dance is not performed by the same group 

 that hold the core of the rite, but by some cooperating group or by 

 an organized group of lajonen (e. g., the dances by girls and youths 

 during the scalp dance). The relative importance attached to the 

 esoteric and the spectacular approaches varies among the different 

 cults. The ceremonies of the katcina society are weighted on the 

 side of the spectacular. In the summer katcina dances only the 

 leaders offer prayer sticks and observe continence, and even for them 

 there is no formal retreat. The priesthoods, on the other hand, con- 

 centrate on secret rites and dispense entirely with public dancing, 

 imless some katcina group chooses to honor one of the priesthoods by 

 dancing on its "middle day." 



A retreat usually opens and closes with offerings of prayer sticks. 

 Sometimes there is a public announcement of the opening of the 

 ceremony such as the announcements by pekwin of the solstices, of 

 the opening of the scalp dance, and the beginning of the Ca'lako 

 festival. There is some kind of set-up of sacred objects — a formal 

 altar, fetishes, masks, medicine water, etc. — and much of the ritual 

 of the retreat is concerned with the manipulation of these objects. 

 Those participating in the retreat practice various forms of abstinence. 

 Se.xual continence is always required. Sometimes there are taboos on 

 certain foods or, rarely, on all food. There is a variable amount 

 of seclusion. At intervals throughout the retreat there are recitals of 

 prayers and songs. The rest of the time is spent preparing parapher- 

 nalia for the final dance, if there is to be one, rehearsing, and telling 

 tales, especially the origin myths in the ritualistic forms appropriate 

 to the particular ceremony. A great deal of instruction in ritualistic 

 affairs is given during these retreats. 



The form which the concluding ceremonies takes is subject to un- 

 limited variation. Each ceremony has its characteristic features, of 

 which the most conspicuous is always group dancing. Dancing 

 always continues with brief intervals for many hours; the emotional 

 effect is cumulative, although there is no definite clima.x. The danc- 

 ing itself is always reduced to its barest essentials — the rhythmic 

 repetitions of a single body movement. Although impersonation is 

 conunon there is no dramatic representation. Whenever myth is 

 suggested it is in a highly stylized and symbolic form. Great impor- 

 tance is attached to correctness and uniformity in costume and re- 



