III. PRAYERS TO THE UWANAMMI 



Four days after the summer solstice the priesthoods begin their 

 series of retreats to pray for rain. Each set in turn goes in at the 

 house where their sacred bundle is kept. The four chief priesthoods 

 associated with the four cardinal points go in for eight days each. 

 They are followed by the pekwin, who goes in for four days. He is 

 followed by the bow priest, who observes a 4-day retreat, although he 

 does not stay in his house. After these the minor priesthoods, "the 

 darkness people," foUow in fixed order. They go in for four days 

 each. The last come out about the first week in September, which 

 is near the end of the rainy season. 



Retreats always start in the evening, generally after sunset, and 

 nights only are counted. They end at sunrise on the fourth or eighth 

 morning following. The day before the retreat begins is spent by the 

 priests in making prayer sticks. These are tied together in the after- 

 noon, and shortly before simset the chief priest accompanied by an 

 associate leaves to plant them in a distant spring. They return late 

 at night. They go immediately into the inner room set aside for their 

 retreat, where the other members have already assembled. The chief 

 priest sets up his altar — a meal painting, one or more feather-wrapped 

 corn fetishes, pots of black paint that have been brought from the 

 imderworld, stone knives, thunder stones, and finally the sacred 

 bundle itself. 



The first of the two prayers below is said with the offering of com 

 meal when gathering wiUow sticks, the second on setting the sacred 

 bundle on the altar. They were dictated by a former member of the 

 priesthood of the water serpent, and have been verified by a priest of 

 the priesthood of the south. 



Prayer of a Priest on Going Into Retreat 



This day 



Desiring the waters of our fathers, 

 The ones who first had being,' 

 In our house 



Having prepared prayer meal, 

 Shells, 

 Corn pollen, 

 Hither with prayers 

 We made our road come forth. 

 This way we directed our roads. 

 Yonder on all sides our fathers, 

 Priests of the mossy mountains, 

 ' The priestly bundles. 



All those whose sacred places are round 



about, 

 Creatures of the open spaces 

 You of the wooded places, 

 We have passed you on your roads. 

 This day 

 Prayer meal, 

 Shell, 



Corn pollen 



We offer to you, my fathers. 

 Offering these to you, 

 Four times we offer them to you. 



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