Lily Clara Letter 10 - “The Peaceful People”
Ancient Hopi village of Walpi, built into the red rock cliffs of First Mesa. Courtesy of National Archives and Records.
For thousands of years, an advanced native culture of peace, ritual, and prophecy has flourished in the Four Corners region. Sometimes known as “The Oldest People,” Native Americans from the Hopi Tribe trace their roots to the Ancestral Puebloans and include the oldest continuously-inhabited settlement in the United States. Perched on the steep cliffs of three mesas in northeastern Arizona, the pueblo homes of the twelve Hopi villages stand apart both physically and culturally.
Members of this agricultural tribe believe they are the earth’s caretakers. A deeply religious people, they have long worshiped hundreds of deities called Katsinas, or Kachinas. Their complex mythology includes Hopi legends about the cyclical creation of worlds and the tribe’s role in the end of this world, which they consider to be the Fourth World that has been inhabited by the Hopi. According to Hopi prophecy, the eventual arrival of the Blue Star Kachina and Red Star Kachina will usher in a Day of Purification, where the wicked will be judged and destroyed. The faithful Hopi, however, will be protected in underground caves until the return of Pahana, the “Lost White Brother” who will come wearing red and usher in the peaceful Fifth World. These apocalyptic legends, preserved by oral tradition, share striking similarities to legends of other cultures, including the Aztec belief in Quetzalcoatl. Ceremonial Hopi rituals feature kachina masks and costumes, as well as elaborately-carved Kachina dolls to teach about Hopi customs and beliefs.
The Hopi call themselves “Hopituh Shi-nu-mu,” meaning “Peaceful People,” and this peacefulness has enabled them to preserve their traditions and culture even in the face of outside encroachment. Hopi culture continues the mandate of Maasawu, the Earth God who gave them stewardship over the land, to strive for harmony with nature and reverence for all things.
Learn the Lingo:
Texas Rangers: a public safety division originally established in 1823 to provide law enforcement for the state of Texas. It features prominently in Texas history and the criminal history of the Old West, including the capture of famous outlaws such as John Wesley Hardin and Bonnie and Clyde.
Papoose: an English term historically meaning a Native American child or the cradleboard carriers used by some Native American women to carry their children. The term is now considered offensive by some tribes.
Wampum: highly-valued shell beads formed into cylindrical tubes and strung together in strings and belts; used by Native tribes in the coastal northeast to record histories, treaties, and ceremonial pledges, and to indicate authority and serve as currency.
Fire Whiskey: also called “fire water”; potent alcohol introduced to Native Americans by European traders.
Masked Kachinas during a ceremonial rain dance in the Village of Shonghopavi, Arizona, ca. 1903. Courtesy of Library of Congress.
"Lily Clara Letter 10 ""The Peaceful People"" - Kijiji cha kale cha Hopi cha Walpi, kilichojengwa kwenye miamba nyekundu ya First Mesa." Kwa neema ya Hifadhi za Kitaifa na Rekodi. Kwa maelfu ya miaka, utamaduni wa asili wa amani, desturi, na unabii umesitawi katika eneo la pembe nne. Wakati mwingine inajulikana kama <unk>The Oldest People,<unk> Wenyeji wa Amerika kutoka Kabila la Hopi hufuatilia mizizi yao kwa Puebloans ya Mababu na ni pamoja na makazi ya zamani zaidi ya kuendelea katika Marekani. Kwa kuwa miji hiyo iko kwenye miamba ya milima ya milima ya kaskazini-mashariki mwa Arizona, miji hiyo 12 ya Wahopi ni tofauti sana kihalisi na kitamaduni. Washiriki wa kabila hili la wakulima wanaamini kwamba wao ndio walinzi wa dunia. Watu hao ni wa kidini sana, na kwa muda mrefu wameabudu mamia ya miungu iitwayo Katsinas, au Kachinas. Hadithi zao tata ni pamoja na hadithi za Hopi kuhusu uumbaji wa mzunguko wa ulimwengu na jukumu la kabila katika mwisho wa ulimwengu huu, ambao wanaona kuwa Ulimwengu wa Nne ambao umekaliwa na Hopi. Kulingana na unabii wa Hopi, kuwasili kwa Blue Star Kachina na Red Star Kachina kutatangaza Siku ya Utakaso, ambapo waovu watahukumiwa na kuharibiwa. Hata hivyo, Wahopi waaminifu watalindwa katika mapango ya chini ya ardhi hadi kurudi kwa Pahana, 'Ndugu Mweupe aliyepotea' ambaye atakuja akiwa amevaa nyekundu na kuanzisha Ulimwengu wa Tano wenye amani. Hadithi hizo za mwisho wa ulimwengu, zilizohifadhiwa kwa mapokeo ya mdomo, zinafanana sana na hadithi za tamaduni nyingine, kutia ndani imani ya Waazteki katika Quetzalcoatl. Desturi za sherehe za Wahopi hutia ndani vinyago na mavazi ya Kachina, na vilevile wanasesere wa Kachina waliochongwa kwa ustadi ili kufundisha juu ya desturi na itikadi za Wahopi. Wahopi wanajiita "Hopituh Shi-nu-mu", ikimaanisha "Watu wa Amani", na amani hii imewawezesha kuhifadhi mila na utamaduni wao hata wakati wa uvamizi wa nje. Utamaduni wa Hopi unaendelea na agizo la Maasawu, Mungu wa Dunia ambaye aliwapa usimamizi wa ardhi, kujitahidi kwa upatano na asili na heshima kwa vitu vyote. Texas Rangers ni idara ya usalama wa umma iliyoanzishwa mwaka 1823 ili kutoa ulinzi wa sheria kwa jimbo la Texas. Katika historia ya Texas na historia ya uhalifu ya Magharibi ya Kale, ikiwa ni pamoja na kukamatwa kwa wahalifu maarufu kama vile John Wesley Hardin na Bonnie na Clyde. "Papoose ni neno la Kiingereza linalomaanisha ""mtoto wa asili wa Amerika"" au ""waendeshaji wa cradleboard"" waliotumiwa na wanawake wa asili wa Amerika kubeba watoto wao." Neno hilo sasa linaonwa kuwa lenye kuudhi na makabila fulani. Wampum ni shellbeads yenye thamani kubwa iliyoundwa katika mabomba ya silinda na kushikamana pamoja katika kamba na mikanda; kutumika na makabila ya asili katika pwani ya kaskazini mashariki kurekodi historia, mikataba, na ahadi za sherehe, na kuonyesha mamlaka na kutumika kama sarafu. Fire Whiskey: pia huitwa <unk>fire water<unk>; pombe yenye nguvu iliyoanzishwa kwa Wenyeji wa Amerika na wafanyabiashara wa Ulaya. Kachinas waliovalia vinyago wakati wa dansi ya mvua ya sherehe katika Kijiji cha Shonghopavi, Arizona, ca. Mwaka 1903 Kwa neema ya Maktaba ya Congress.