Mythology Book

240

C

entral to the culture of the

Yurok and other Native

Americans are traditional

ceremonies that feature sacred

dances. Among the most important

is the Deerskin Dance (deer were a

crucial food source), which is still

performed during World Renewal

rituals to safeguard the earth. In

Yurok mythology, the dance is also

specifically associated with the

building of a salmon dam. The

account of the dance’s origins was

told to the American anthropologist

Alfred L. Kroeber in the early 1900s

by Jim, a Yurok from Pekwan in

present-day Humboldt County.

In the time of the Woge—the

ancient spirit beings that the Yurok

considered to be the First People—

BEGIN A DEERSKIN

DANCE FOR IT BECAUSE

EVERYTHING WILL COME

OUT WELL FROM THAT

THE WOGE SETTLE A DISPUTE

IN BRIEF

THEME

Bringing balance to

the world

SOURCES

Oral tradition transcribed in

World Renewal: A Cult System

of Native Northwest California,

A. L. Kroeber and E. W. Gifford,

1949.

SETTING

Northwestern California in the

time of the Woge.

KEY FIGURES

Woge The first people of

the Yurok tribe; ancient

beings who lived along

the Klamath River.

Kepel Ancestors of the

Yurok tribe, living upstream

from the Turip villagers.

Turip A tribe living

downstream from the Kepel.

A Hupa man stands spear in hand

ready to fish in a photo from 1923 by

Edward S. Curtis. At this time, salmon

were important for survival in the areas

where tribes had rights to fish.

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THE AMERICAS 241

See also: Cherokee creation 236–37 ■ Spider Woman 238–39 ■ Raven and the whale 242–43 ■ The first canoe 258–59

large salmon no longer swam up

the Klamath River to where the

Kepel lived. They could only catch

small fish, and became upset since

the salmon were their staple food.

The cause was a dam erected near

the mouth of the river by the Turip;

the mature fish coming from the

ocean to spawn upriver could not

swim beyond that point.

One Kepel man decided they

should remove the dam and take it

to their village. With help from his

people, he pulled it from the river

and carried it off. The people of

Turip were angered by the loss of

their dam. They wanted it back

and set off toward Kepel to try

to regain it.

A peaceful settlement

As the Turip people approached,

their chief saw the many Kepel

villagers at work installing their

new dam. Fearing that his people

might be killed if they attacked,

he decided not to fight the Kepel

people. As they stood on the

hillside overlooking the dam, he

told his men, “We had better give

it up and let them keep it. We will

take care of this dam also; we shall

visit now and then to see it.”

The Kepel man who had taken

the Turip dam then announced that

it would stay at his village and

declared that a Deerskin Dance

should begin “because everything

will come out well from that.” He

called on the people to dance and

to rebuild the dam every year,

warning that “much sickness”

would result if they failed to do so.

Watchful spirits

Then the Woge, who approved of

the dam, began to leave the Kepel

villagers to find places from which

they could watch over all of the

people. At each place they vowed to

create a Deerskin Dance to bring

good fortune, and the people at

each of these new sites were

happy; upriver at Olar, for instance,

they said: “When it is bad in the

world, it will become well again

when they dance here.”

Some Woge stayed close to

Kepel, going up into 10 small hills

overlooking the village to watch out

Very well, keep it well.

Hold to it as long as they

make the Deerskin Dance,

because it will be good

for the people.

World Renewal

for the smoke from villagers’ fires

indicating that, as promised, they

had come together at Klamath

River to remake the salmon dam.

Every year, the Yurok reenacted

the dam-building in fall, at the peak

of the salmon season. This ritual

culminated in the Deerskin Dance,

performed by men bearing poles

hung with deerskins, followed by a

Jump Dance. The event, which

Kroeber saw and described,

continued into the 20th century. ■

Spiritual leaders

Men and women who take on

the role of spiritual leader in

Native American communities

still command great respect.

Although many tribes no longer

use the word “shaman,” such

leaders are said to receive power

and knowledge, primarily

through dreams, from ancestral

prehuman spirits who departed

or transformed themselves into

animals, trees, rocks, and plants

when humans arrived. Many of

today’s leaders are healers,

using their spiritual powers and

natural medicine to treat sickness.

In the past, they were often called

upon to predict the future, or to

bring good fishing or hunting.

Traditionally, spiritual leaders

of northwestern California play

a key role in the annual World

Renewal ceremonies. To prepare,

the leaders go to nearby hills to

fast and pray, and call upon the

healing powers of their ancestral

spirits. During the ritual, wearing

masks and regalia, they perform

healing rites and take part in the

sacred dances.

Traditionally, Yurok and Hupa

shamans were women who received

their calling in dreams. This Hupa

shaman was photographed in 1923.

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