CHAPTER THREE: WHAT DO THE ELDERS SEE?
Many people, myself included, go into anthropology because we are obsessed with the question "why?" This is particularly true when the question pertains to how societies work and what motivates people. The sacred aspects of life are some of the most fascinatingyet also some of the most sensitive and potentially easily misunderstoodsubjects that two people from different cultures can discuss. But that is what anthropologists do.
Although I am not a social anthropologist and the study of religion and spirituality is not one of my specialties, I have been very fortunate to have known and talked to some truly extraordinary spiritual leaders. While living in Thailand, I sat and drank tea as I learned something of Buddhism from young monks and a very energetic abbot. Another time, in Indianapolis of all places, I sat in a living room with a small group of people viewing slides of Tibet. Only later in the evening did I find out that the gentleman sitting next to me was the brother of the Dalai Lama.
Directing an archaeological project on the island of Yap in Micronesia gave me the opportunity to interview village chiefs as well as a man who was the last in a long line of canoe magicians. I have also discussed Catholic views on evolution with monastic Benedictine brothers. And, with the birth of the white buffalo, I have talked at length with Indian elders. Having grown up in small-town, midwestern Methodism, the study of anthropology and these exotic encounters have shown me a diversity of spirituality that I otherwise could not have imagined.
Scholar Joseph Campbell once said that American Indians may be the most spiritual people on earth. In their world, all things are sacred. In the world of the Plains Indian, the white buffalo is especially sacred. Stories from many different tribes speak of the buffalo as a nation not unlike the human nation. The bison have human attributes: They talk, hold council, advise, and help their human brothers. The story of White Buffalo Woman is only one of many stories about the buffalo nation. Although the particular story recounted in this book is Lakota, many Plains peoples share similar stories, if not the exact details. Farther from the plains, this story is less likely to hold such power. Just as the story's impact has changed across the landscape, so too has the legend of White Buffalo Woman changed through time. Yet the story still lives today, and through recent events it is gaining the attention of a new generation of Indians and non-Indians.
To the Lakota the birth of the white buffalo calf was a momentous occasion an event foretold in prophecy. Other tribes, depending on how important the myth of the White Buffalo Woman has been to their culture, viewed the event differently. For some tribes and elders, the calf was simply a curiosity, something to wonder about. For others, Miracle's arrival was no more important than any other item on the evening news. I spoke with Pueblo Indians, for example, to whom the event held little or no significance.
I have purposely chosen not to compare nineteenth-century versions of the White Buffalo Woman story with the one retold in this book. My intent is not to judge for historical accuracy. In fact, some aspects of the story are clearly different from versions recorded a hundred years ago. To me this serves to reinforce the idea of a living religion attempting to interpret the contemporary world.
In these days of resurgent Indian identity, Indian peoples no longer are willing to allow non-Indians to interpret their spirituality. For that reason I asked elders from three different tribes to tell me what they thought about Miracle and her spiritual significance. I conducted interviews with each of the elders, sent them copies of the transcript of our talk, and asked them to make corrections where necessary. The rest of this chapter presents our conversations in the question-and-answer format in which they were conducted. I have edited some redundant statements for the sake of length. However, the answers to the questions are the words of the speakers.
A Lakota spiritual leader and teacher, Arval Looking Horse is the Keeper of the Sacred Pipe. The sacred white buffalo calf pipe has been handed down through nineteen generations of the Looking Horse family, since it was first given to the Lakota Sioux by the White Buffalo Woman. His grandmother was Keeper of the Sacred Pipe before him. Prior to her death, she had a vision that told her to pass the pipe on to her grandson. Arval was just twelve years old when he was given this sacred honor. If a generation is considered to be 20 years, the pipe has been in his family for at least 380 years.
Arval Looking Horse was born and raised on the Cheyenne River Reservation in South Dakota, where he lives today with his wife and daughter. He has traveled the world over representing the Lakota people, participating in world peace ceremonies and Native American prayer services. As Keeper of the Sacred Pipe, he is responsible for keeping the sacred pipe ceremonies alive and passing on the knowledge of them to future generations.
You are the carrier of the sacred white buffalo calf pipe. What does that mean?
This is the pipe given by Buffalo Calf Woman to Tanka Wasla Najin, my ancestor. The pipe stays in the bloodline. When the keeper is going to the spirit world, he or she would have a dream as to whom to pass it on to. A woman can also be the keeper.
As I understand it, the prophecy associated with the white buffalo says that she will return to the people in times of need. Is that correct?
When she returns, it is a validation of the prayers our people have made. We pray to complete ourselves spiritually, to feel good about ourselves and the future.
Over the last hundred years, lots of people have lost their way of life. During that time, we did not have freedom of religion. Many of the stories were not handed down. But now we're getting the old ways back. The white buffalo and the return of the buffalo are part of the return to old ways.
There are prayers for the seventh generation. The seventh generation from Wounded Knee was in 1990. In that year, we had a "wiping of tears" ceremony at Wounded Knee. We know that this seventh generation is a crossroads for us. The people prayed for their way of life. If we don't live in the right way, we will be lost. That is why the white buffalo calf has been born now. It is a sign that the prayers are being fulfilled. People are taking notice.
The signs are good; people are coming back to the religion. If we don't go back to our way of life, our ceremonies, when White Buffalo Woman appears, then that will be the end of our way of life.
When I was very young, they killed off the buffalo and put people on the reservation. Today, buffalo are coming back and the culture is coming back. Even bison ranchers, non-Indian ranchers, are seeing it in a spiritual way.
Lots of people are having dreams, they are more open, and the white buffalo appears in their dreams.
Do you think that the calf born in Wisconsin two years ago is important?
I grew up hearing about these prophecies, that a white buffalo would be born in hardship times. It would be a sign that our prayers were still being answered. The calf being born to the Heiders doesn't change its significance. The calf is still sacred.
Floyd Hand told me that the calf's being born at the Heiders' farm meant that the message of White Buffalo Woman is for all people, not just for the Lakota and not just for Indians. Is that why Miracle is important?
When we pray, we pray to walk in the sacred manner. It is a message for all people, not just Indians. We live on Turtle Islanda sacred island. The whole plains, the whole continent, is Turtle Island. It is sacred land. A long time ago, Turtle Island was occupied by very spiritual people. They knew their territories. Those ideas are coming back. The ideas of responsibility, leadership, and the importance of the environment are coming back.