LA FLESCHE— OSAGE CEREMONIES 



whether the place of meeting be in a wigwam or outdoors. The space 

 between the two parallel lines represents the space between the sky 

 and the earth, through which lies the path traveled by the sun. 



North 



B A 7 6 54-321 



TSIZHU 



West ;] : '.. 



h6"ga 



7654-321 C 7 654.321 



Wazhazhe subdivision Ho n ga. subdivision 



South 

 Diagram of the dual division of the Osage 



This symbolic arrangement of the positions of the two great tribal 

 divisions governs the movements in ceremonies and the places the 

 symbols must occupy — as to whether they belong to the right side 

 or to the left. For example, when a candidate is to be initiated into 

 the mysteries of the tribal rites, two pairs of symbolic moccasins are 

 made, one to be worn by the initiator and the other by his official 

 messenger. While the two great divisions are represented in the use 

 of these two pairs of moccasins, another symbol, denoting the living 

 unity of the tribe, appears in connection with the making of the 

 moccasins, namely, that of a young buffalo bull. The knife employed 

 in cutting the material for the moccasins is spoken of as a "horn" of 

 this symbolic buffalo. If the ceremony is being given by a gens on 

 the H6 n ga side, the knife is spoken of as the "right horn", and if given 

 by a gens of the Tsizhu side, the knife is spoken of as the "left horn" 

 of the buffalo. 



The downy feather, an under-tail covert of the eagle, worn by the 

 initiator in the ceremony, symbolizes one of the sun-pillars, some- 

 times seen on both sides of the sun as it begins to rise above the 

 horizon. This feather is spoken of as the sun-pillar at the right or 

 the one at the left side of the sun, according to the side of the tribal 

 division to which the initiator and the candidate belong. 



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