The Plant Blessing of Earth
by Jasper Blowsnake
translated by Richard Dieterle
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| Jasper Blowsnake |
Hōcąk-English Interlinear Text
Original Texts
Winnebago II, #1: 145-147 — | 145 | 146 | 147 |
Winnebago II, #5: 156-158 — | 156 | 157 | 158 |
Winnebago III, #1: 122-124 — | 122 | 123 | 124 |
(122) The song that we are going to use (123) they are saying is a plant song, and again they say there is a greeting. We are greeting Him, the Creator, all the Spirits that He created, all that we see, however many, were made to rule over something, and if we cry with the means of asking for the Light and Life that he has, in saying what one desires, they are saying that the Creator thus made them so that they would bless us with them.
Grandfather made his plea for the people with that which they use on themselves from the Grandfather Who Stands in the Middle,49 and he also cried to Grandfather. He had tobacco. Our Grandmother heard his song, and she spoke to him: "Grandson, with as many good plants as there are that stand up with Light and Life from the Creator above, with these I bless you," she said. For whatever one uses these plants, sure enough it would be so. Whatever one longs for, that will be obtained. And she said, "Grandson, thus as you go, if your roots are (124) as long as the earth lasts, this will always be so for you. The plants, if you boil them properly, if you do things well in boiling for them, you will never fail to get something for them.
If you are going to pull out one of these plants, do not pull it out always choking it with you hand, but first pour out for them the full amount of tobacco, abounding in Light and Life, only then may you dig it, and it will remain thus for the length of the earth. If you use my song for me, for whatever one you went to sing it, thus I will think of you," they are saying that our Grandmother said.
"We will now do a song, a plant song, but you'll use it for a greeting," they are saying that he said.1
Radin’s Notes
49 Ritualistic term for fire and the fireplace.
Commentary. "the Creator" — Wažągų́zᵉra, literally, "the Maker of Things." Here Radin translates this as "Earthmaker," but elsewhere in this narrative as "creator."
"Light and Life" — Radin's conventional translation (elsewhere) of the word hąp, "light, day." It is particularly in the Medicine Rite that the word hąp is used in this metaphorical sense that expresses life as a form of luminence (as it was, for instance, in Gnostic Christianity).
"that which they use on themselves" — this refers to the ashes found in the fireplace. These ashes were used to blacken one's face in order to express mourning, and in this context it is designed to induce pity in the spirits for the mortal and powerless condition of mankind generally, and the supplicant in particular.
"the Grandfather Who Stands in the Middle" — the fire is located in the center of the lodge, and is always addressed as "Grandfather."
"cried to the spirits" — in vision quests, in order to receive blessings from the spirits, the supplicant always induced their pity by weeping and crying out.
"Grandmother" — the usual form of address for Earth in recognition of her antiquity.
"your roots" — rajų, "roots," also means "descendants."
"in boiling for them" — that is, in making food offerings to them.
Stories: featuring Grandmother Earth as a character: Medicine Rite Foundation Myth, Maize Origin Myth, Grandmother Packs the Bear Meat, Grandmother's Gifts, Owl Goes Hunting, Hare and the Grasshoppers, Hare Acquires His Arrows, The Stench-Earth Medicine Origin Myth, Hare Visits the Blind Men, Hare Visits His Grandfather Bear, Hare Visits the Bodiless Heads, Hare Burns His Buttocks, Hare Gets Swallowed, Hare Kills Wildcat, Hare and the Dangerous Frog, Hare Retrieves a Stolen Scalp, Hare Recruits Game Animals for Humans, The Necessity for Death, Hare Secures the Creation Lodge, Hare Steals the Fish, Hare Kills Sharp Elbow, Hare Kills Flint, The Gift of Shooting, The Creation of the World, The Creation of Man (vv 4, 6), Hare Establishes Bear Hunting, Redhorn's Father (?); about fasting blessings: Earthmaker Blesses Wagíšega (Wešgíšega), The Difficult Blessing, The Boy Who Became a Robin, The Boy who would be Immortal, The Woman Who Fought the Bear, The Girl who Refused a Blessing from the Wood Spirits, The Seer, The Woman who Loved Her Half-Brother, The Nightspirits Bless Jobenągiwįxka, Disease Giver Blesses Jobenągiwįxka, The Blessings of the Buffalo Spirits, Black Otter's Warpath, The Boy who was Blessed by a Mountain Lion, Ghost Dance Origin Myth I, The Blessing of a Bear Clansman, Aracgéga's Blessings, The Meteor Spirit and the Origin of Wampum, Great Walker's Medicine, Buffalo Dance Origin Myth, Thunderbird and White Horse, The Man who was Blessed by the Sun, Holy Song, A Waterspirit Blesses Mąnį́xete’ų́ga, Paint Medicine Origin Myth, The Blessing of Šokeboka, Heną́ga and Star Girl, The Tap the Head Medicine, The Sweetened Drink Song, Ancient Blessing, A Deer Story; pertaining to the Medicine Rite: The Medicine Rite Foundation Myth, The Journey to Spiritland, Holy Song, Holy Song II, Maize Origin Myth, The Necessity for Death, Hog's Adventures, Great Walker's Warpath.
Stories from Jasper Blowsnake's account of the Medicine Rite (The Road of Life and Death) in notebook order: The Shell Anklets Origin Myth (v. 1), Keramaniš’aka's Blessing, The Woman's Scalp Medicine Bundle, The Blessing of Kerexųsaka, Historical Origins of the Medicine Rite, Hare Secures the Creation Lodge of the Medicine Rite, Lifting Up the Bear Heads, East Enters the Medicine Lodge (v. 1), The Creation of the World (v. 12), The Creation of Man (v. 8), Otter Comes to the Medicine Rite, The Journey to Spiritland (v. 4), East Enters the Medicine Lodge (v. 2), Testing the Slave, South Enters the Medicine Lodge (v. 2), The Descent of the Drum (v. 1), The Commandments of Earthmaker, The Coughing Up of the Black Hawks, The Animal Spirit Aids of the Medicine Rite, The Arrows of the Medicine Rite Men (v. 2), East Shakes the Messenger, The Medicine Rite Foundation Myth (v. 4), The Messengers of Hare (v. 2), North Shakes His Gourd, Grandmother's Gifts, South Seizes the Messenger, Four Steps of the Cougar, The Messengers of Hare (v. 1), The Island Weight Songs, The Petition to Earthmaker, A Snake Song Origin Myth, The Completion Song Origin, Great Walker's Medicine (v. 2), Great Walker and the Ojibwe Witches, The Diving Contest, The Sweetened Drink Song, Tobacco Origin Myth (v. 3), The Tap the Head Medicine, The Claw Shooter, Tobacco Origin Myth (v. 4), Peace of Mind Regained, The Journey to Spiritland (v. 5), A Wife for Knowledge, The Shell Anklets Origin Myth (v. 2), The Descent of the Drum (v. 2), South Enters the Medicine Lodge (v. 1), Death Enters the World.
Themes: a person who fasts receives blessings from the spirits: The Blessings of the Buffalo Spirits, The Boy who was Blessed by a Mountain Lion, The Nightspirits Bless Jobenągiwįxka, Ghost Dance Origin Myth I, Redhorn's Sons, The Boy Who Became a Robin, The Woman Who Fought the Bear, The Seer, Maize Comes to the Hocągara, The Warbundle of the Eight Generations, The Woman who Loved Her Half-Brother, The Boy who would be Immortal, The Thunderbird, Lake Wąkšikhomįgra (Mendota): the Origin of Its Name, The Waterspirit Guardian of the Intaglio Mound, Great Walker's Medicine, Šųgepaga, Earthmaker Blesses Wagíšega (Wešgíšega), The Man Who Would Dream of Mą’ųna, Heną́ga and Star Girl, A Man's Revenge, Aracgéga's Blessings, The Blessing of a Bear Clansman, The Man who was Blessed by the Sun, The Girl who Refused a Blessing from the Wood Spirits, The Man Who Lost His Children to a Wood Spirit, Buffalo Dance Origin Myth, The Man who Defied Disease Giver, White Thunder's Warpath, Black Otter's Warpath, A Man and His Three Dogs, The Oak Tree and the Man Who was Blessed by the Heroka, A Waterspirit Blesses Mąnį́xete’ų́ga, The Meteor Spirit and the Origin of Wampum, The Diving Contest, Holy Song, The Tap the Head Medicine, The Blessing of Šokeboka, The Completion Song Origin, Paint Medicine Origin Myth, The Nightspirits Bless Ciwoit’éhiga, Sunset Point, Song to Earthmaker, First Contact (v. 1), The Horse Spirit of Eagle Heights; a spirit is quoted as he gives someone a blessing: Earthmaker Blesses Wagíšega (Wešgíšega), Traveler and the Thunderbird War, The Nightspirits Bless Jobenągiwįxka, Disease Giver Blesses Jobenągiwįxka, Eats the Stinking Part of the Deer Ankle, The Man Whose Wife was Captured, The Blessings of the Buffalo Spirits, The Stench-Earth Medicine Origin Myth, The Boy who was Blessed by a Mountain Lion, Ghost Dance Origin Myth I, The Woman Who Fought the Bear, The Blessing of a Bear Clansman, Aracgéga's Blessings, The Girl who Refused a Blessing from the Wood Spirits, The Friendship Drum Origin Myth, The Meteor Spirit and the Origin of Wampum, Great Walker's Medicine, Buffalo Dance Origin Myth, Thunderbird and White Horse, The Completion Song Origin, The Man who was Blessed by the Sun, Thunder Cloud is Blessed, The Difficult Blessing, The Blessing of Šokeboka, A Waterspirit Blesses Mąnį́xete’ų́ga, Bow Meets Disease Giver, Heną́ga and Star Girl, Sunset Point, The Rounded Wood Origin Myth, A Peyote Vision, The Healing Blessing; the spirits bless a fasting man with a special plant: Maize Comes to the Hocągara, The Blessings of the Buffalo Spirits, Great Walker's Medicine; a man acquires knowledge of a medicinal plant through a vision given to him by the spirits: The Blessings of the Buffalo Spirits, The Stench-Earth Medicine Origin Myth, Great Walker's Medicine, The Origins of the Sore Eye Dance.
Notes
1 For the original handwritten interlinear text, see Winnebago III, #1: 122-124; a handwritten phonetic text is found at Winnebago II, #1: 147-148; and its typed version at Winnebago II, #5: 156-158. The published translation is found in Paul Radin, The Road of Life and Death: A Ritual Drama of the American Indians. Bollingen Series V (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1973 [1945]) 147-148.
