bunzel] 



PRAYERS OF THE MEDICINE CULT 



80& 



Those who were society bow priests, 

 Those who with thoughts embracing, 

 Held in their keeping our world; 

 And furthermore our ancestors. 

 Those who had knowledge of how to 



care for us, 

 And the Beast Priests. 

 Where they were all fittingly gathered 



together, 

 None being absent. 

 There I passed them on their roads. 

 I gave them the plume wands. 

 My fathers took firm hold of my plume 



wands. 

 Yonder at the place of their first 



beginning. 

 At Cipapolima, 

 While lyatiku Poceyanki '» 

 By means of my plume wands sent 



word about. 

 Anxiously waiting 

 They came to evening. 

 When our sun father 

 Had gone in standing to his sacred 



place. 

 And our night fathers, 

 Our night mothers. 



Coming out rising to their sacred place. 

 Passed us on our roads, 

 Saying, "Let it be now," 

 Our father, 

 Our mother, 



The perfectly robed ones 5° 

 Both of them we made arise. 

 They leading, 

 Near by into the rain-fiUed rooms of our 



daylight fathers. 

 Our roads entered.*' 

 Sitting down quietly. 

 Again for the second time 

 Taking our child's prayer meal, 

 And giving it to our fathers. 

 Here in the hoUow of their life-giving 



left hand, 

 The prayer meal. 

 The shell giving to them. 

 We held one another fast. 



Saying, "Let it be now," 



Our father, 



Our mother, 



The perfectly robed, 



We made arise. 



With these leading, 



Far ofif to the east, 



With prayers we made our road go 

 forth .52 



Where our fathers' life-giving road 

 comes in, 



We passed them on their roads. 



Standing face to face 



Our child's prayer meal, 



His shells. 



We gave to our fathers. 



And adding my own words 



In accordance with whatever had al- 

 ready been said to make the prayer 

 meal a being potent in prayer, 



I asked for life for my child. 



There we met our fathers, 



Life-giving priests; 



And furthermore, our ancestors. 



Those who here belonged to societies. 



The ones who had attained the far off 

 place of waters; 



.\nd furthermore our relatives. 



Those who used to know how to care 

 for us; 



Where none were missing 



But where all abide holding their long 

 life. 



Holding their old age, 



We passed them on their roads; 



.\11 the Beast Priests 



Holding their weapons^ 



We met; 



With these all leading, 



We following at their backs, 



Hither with prayers we eame.*^ 



Into their daylight children's water- 

 filled rooms. 



Their seed-filled rooms, 



The divine ones entered. 



After they had sat down quietly 



We, the daylight people. 



" Described as a single individual with two names. " Some one who knows about medicine." lyatiku 

 is the "mother com" of the Keres. Po'ciyanki is the culture hero of all the eastern Pueblos. 

 " The mi*le "and something else." What, could not be leame<l. 

 '1 The first night visit to the patient. 



" He goes out with com meal for the second time to pray for divine help. 

 " Sa'wanik^, any weapon including the claws of animals, and, abstractly, power. 

 •* He returns to the house of the patient. 



