Buffalo Spirit Articles - Second Issue Buffalo Spirit Articles - Second Issue Preservation & Education Chief Adam Dick - In his own words Mary Thomas - In her own words Ruth Brass - In her own words The Medicine Wheel Why do they ride? Helping the Young Preserving Wisdom Designs recount personal achievements - Transfer of rites Long Arms - Elders warn against it Your words - comments

Phone: (780) 455-2700Fax (780) 455-7639 Email: edwind@ammsa.com Designs recount personal achievements By Marie Burke The designs painted on Blackfoot war tipis are symbolic records of their owners' truth for all to see. James Dempsey, Native Studies associate professor at the University of Alberta, is writing his thesis on Blackfoot warrior art forms, including the designs found on buffalo robes and tipis. "They were the gamblers tipis, quite literally," said Dempsey who adds there may be as many as 10 warriors' achievements painted on one tipi. The designs recounted what happened in the warriors' lives, their accomplishments in battle or coups. It was about their standing in the community and their recognition by the community, Dempsey said. The symbols also tell about the risks taken by the warriors in the event or the acts they committed and that's why they are called the gamblers tipis. "For example," said Dempsey, "the taking of a scalp, a white haired scalp, that meant it was from an old person. That was a very high gamble to take." During a battle the old people were kept in the middle of the camp. For a warrior to risk going into the middle of any enemy camp and to come out alive spoke of the greatness of his risk in battle, said Dempsey. Another example of the gamble that warriors might take would be stealing a buffalo runner. A buffalo runner was a horse that was valued for its speed in a buffalo hunt. Stealing one of these horses was not an easy feat, as great consideration was taken by their owners in the horses' care, said Dempsey. "People had different strengths in politics, in war and in spirit and they were called upon to act on that strength. It was these gambles that demonstrated their individual strengths that were related in the drawings on tipis and robes," said Dempsey. Tipis were owned by the women in a tribe, but it was the men who made the designs on them. The designs on the tipis were not just from family members, but from other warriors as well, said Dempsey. Tipis wore out with time and use, but the designs were transferred to the next tipi by the owner of the designs. There is no religious significance to the designs on tipis, although there were larger figures that appeared on them that depicted the guardian spirits of the tipis, said Dempsey. Those spirits guarded the dwellings. Tipis were passed down to family members and tipi designs were transferred through ceremony. The right to draw the designs on tipis belongs to individuals. The ownership of the design is transferred through ceremony. The transfer of designs was not limited to members of one family. When a design was transferred to another person, it belonged to them and it was their right to put it on their tipis, said Dempsey. A design can be "purchased," which is the same as being transferred. The family that holds the tipi design would determine who the right person was to transfer the design to. It was then determined what would occur in the transfer ceremony, including what songs would be sung, when the ritual will take place and how the payment would be handled, said Dempsey. The designs the warriors put on the tipis were obtained through visions and dreams in relation to their gambles and the status of the warriors. Interpretation of the designs is very personal, although some similarities occur when depicting certain people or objects. During the 1950s and the 1960s, the transfer of tipi designs declined dramatically. This is a period in time when Dempsey believes the cultural practices of Native people almost died out. He calls it the reserve period and contributes the decline of cultural practices and ceremonies to a lack of interest on the part of Native people. "There is still a high amount of disinterest in ceremonies, but it has changed from the 1960s. It is still ignored mainly because of the times we now live in. Christianity and the many different commitments we have today contribute to that. Sometimes, the mixture of Christian beliefs is intertwined with cultural ceremonies to the point that there is no separating them," said Dempsey. There is much significance in the designs on Blackfoot buffalo robes. They are the personal records of the stature of Blackfoot men in their communities. "One of the things that has to be remembered about the buffalo robes that were worn by Blackfoot warriors is that they were not heirlooms. They were personal property. They were to be worn in public," Dempsey said. These robes that recounted events in warriors' live were usually buried with the warriors that wore them. Many of the robes were also given to esteemed friends of the owner and sometimes traded or sold, said Dempsey. "It was when we hit the reserve period that changed the way a warrior recorded his exploits and when he wore his robe. That is because the way of life had changed to a more stationary lifestyle than before there was reserves," said Dempsey. The wearing of the robes also occurred less and less after the reserve system was instituted. It became more of a symbolic gesture, said Dempsey. He compared the robes to the medals worn by war veterans for acts of bravery in the World Wars. Before the treaties were signed, the buffalo robes were worn for social occasions, a public display to state the honor or status of the men who wore them. "These were not ceremonial. There is no religious aspect to them. The symbols are for public consumption. The symbols on robes are not sacred, but more for a matter of recording one's accomplishments or important events," said Dempsey. "If I was to ask you to recount about 10 or 11 significant events in your life that determined what events were recorded on a robe, they are to project to everyone the significance of your life. And it was a great dishonor to lie about any of the events, said Dempsey. The buffalo robes are a testimony of the owner's medicine power, of the owner's own unique abilities, which is opposed to the religious symbols that tell of the spirit. The recordings on robes were much more of a personal testament to an individual life. Transfer of authority to paint By Trina Gobért In maintaining traditional Blackfoot ceremony, spiritual leader Devalon Small Legs of the Peigan First Nation received the authority to paint on buffalo hides. "In order for someone to paint on the buffalo hide you require the right to do that," said Small Legs. "The transfer must be made official by somebody who already has that right. Donald Black Plume transfered me the rights to paint on the buffalo hide, and to paint in general with the sacred colors we use." The Blackfoot society and other plains tribes were historically known to practice this transfer of rights within their cultural beliefs. A buffalo song and sacred prayers were offered while Small Legs had his face painted during the ceremony. "To transfer rights you officially have to be painted and the ochre paint is the official sign that things have been transfer to you," explained Small Legs. The significance of the designs painted on the robes is of a personal nature. Small Legs has now painted one buffalo hide and received the design through vision. "The buffalo fertility came in my vision. It has the male and the female, and the female is pregnant. It is the continuance of the fertility of the buffalo," said Small Legs. Small Legs made the request to Elder Donald Black Plume of the Blood First Nation to receive the transfer, as he prepared to travel to Germany to teach Native culture and spirituality. "It is a great thing to happen. I now can paint tipis and other hides without running into conflict. I have the right to use the "ausun," the official Blackfoot paint," said Small Legs. He received the honor on March 16 before embarking on his trek to Germany. "I have been given several different rights, but I needed that right to continue on my journey to teach," he said. Continue your journey