My project research of Hist 151+ from Mt San Jacinto College It is about American Indigenous Dance = Hopi Snake Dance, Sun Dance, & Ghost Dance

1. HOPI SNAKE DANCE,
SUN DANCE, AND
GHOST DANCE: THE
POWER OF THE
DANCE OF THE
INDIGENOUS DANCE
IN NATIVE AMERICAN
KATHLEEN PROKOP
PROF FREEMAN
HIST 151 2067
29 APRIL 2018
RESEARCH PROJECT
PRESENTATION SPRING 2018

2. HOPI SNAKE DANCE
RAIN DANCE
SUN DANCE
PROTECTION
CREATE CHANGE
GHOST DANCE
LEAD TO PROSPERITY LIVING

3. Hopi Snake Dance
A
According to Lecture to Read:The Power of Dance Unit 1, Indigenous Dance In North America “The Hopi
Snake Dance, whose purpose is to produce rain, is a good example of a trance dance that allows
connection to other realms (Lecture P 4). Because of lack of rain, Hopi Village performs ritual dance
called Snake Dance so rain will come, and the crops in the field will get water. The Hopi Village farms in
the field for food. Snake Dance is a trance dance because the performers from the Hopi Village are able
to get in touch with the forces that govern the world and thus they believed the forces of the world brings
rain.
Because the Hopi Village had known evidence in the Snake Dance to bring rain to water the crops in the
fields, the Power of Dance is Snake Dance, this is where the power lies. Snake Dance performed by the
According to Gary A.David the author of The Kivas of Heaven : Ancient Hopi Starlore where David writes
“I have lived with my family in rural Arizona, I have learned to cherish the land of the indigenous Hopi
and the other Ancestral Pueblo People” (David P 9). The Pueblo People of Hopi Village settled in North
America in Arizona. Hopi Village used as the vehicle of the dance, their human bodies, and according to
Lecture to Read:The Power of Dance Unit 1, Indigenous Dance In North America this “serve as a divining
rod between the natural world and the spiritual” (Lecture P 2).

4. This ancient ritual is about sixteen days, and it occurs at the Hopi village in
Northern Arizona, usually during August of every other year.
Men from Snake Society, who are Snake Priests, are the performers of Snake
Dance.
There are about eighty snakes such as Rattlesnakes, Bull Snakes, Sidewinders,
and Tiny Whip Snakes. They are hunted but not killed, and they are collected;
then, they are placed in a sack carrying snakes.
The snakes are stroked, bathed, petted, even sung to and this is during the
sixteen days ceremony.

5. The Snake Priests and the Antelope Priest
are from the Hopi Village who are the class
of priests who take part in the Hopi Dance
Ceremonies, Snake Dance.
A sacred bow is tied with red
horsehair, and it is hung on the
ladder descending towards the
underground ceremonial chamber or
kiva.
This is the beginning of the Snake
Ceremony.

6. The Antelope Priests chant sacred songs while the Snake Priests dance
holding snakes in their mouth and hands.
During the fifth day, the Antelope Priests return to their kiva, and they make
praying sticks; and they build a sacred altar.

7. Rain Dance
Hopi to honor their snake
brothers

8. The Hopi believed that the snakes are from the underworld. This maybe because
snakes live in burrow holes. At the end of the event, the snakes are released
hoping the snakes, when they return to their underground homes, would tell their
spirit brothers how they were well treated up on the surface, and that they will
urge these spirits to answer the people’s prayers for rain.
What the Hopi believe is that the sacred dances they performed would be an
instrumental to provide life-giving moisture. This would also include the entire
world and not only for themselves.
On the last day, to test the speed and
endurance of the performers, a lead runner
would carry a small gourd filled with water. As
another runner pass him by, he would pass the
small gourd filled with water to the one runner
passing him by. This is to displace the first
runner. Women would greet the runners with
gifts, thanking them for bringing sacred water to
their people.

9. How are the runners related to the Snake
Dance? It is because the rain is coming and
that the runners run to take shelter, and the
women greet the runners bearing gifts
because of the arrival of the rain. The people
are thankful of the four running priests for
dancing and bringing rain. Now the crops in
the field will get water and the crops will grow
and bring food to Hopi Village.

10. Kiva underground chamber.
Fringed sashes symbolizing
rain.

11. Malibu sunset
Each Snake Dancer would circle the
plaza four times, and he hands his
snake to the Antelope Priest. The
Snake Dancers will continue to
dance with each snakes and would
then hand each snake to the
Antelope Priest.
Finally, the snakes are placed
inside a circle of cornmeal in a
writhing mass and blessed with
sacred cornmeal (Bronstein Par
11).

12. Power of the
dance =human
body is the vehicle
of the dance
Power of the dance =divining
rod between natural world
and spiritual world
“With snake whips, made of two
eagle feathers on the end of a
wood handle, these lads herd the
reptiles in the sand” (Forrest P 49).
“Hopis regard snake as an ‘Elder Brother’,
because they believe that they are descended
from the legendary snake woman; and they
never kill a serpent” (Forrest P 155). The
danger is not the bite; but the venom that
enters the flesh, and it would be very harmful.
These colors are symbolic of Hopi universe:
yellow represents North; West, green; South, red;
East, white; black, heavens. This is the sun shield
colors that the priest wears on his back which is a
symbol of Sun God and is decorated with Hopi
colors as mentioned above.
Power of Dance

13. Antelope Priest
Sun Shield
Human Bodies Use As
Vehicle For The Dance

14. HOPI VILLAGE

15. According to The Lecture to Read: The Power of Dance Page 3 and it says “Sun Dance is practiced for
the welfare of the tribe and in order to bring protection and good fortune to the people” (The Lecture P
2/4). According to the author Ronan Hallowell in the article Time-Binding in the Lakota Sun Dance:
Oral Tradition and Generational Wisdom he wrote “Tunkashila, hear from prayer as I speak to the
people. I am suffering, have pity on me. I pray for help and health” (Hallowell P 86). In the Lakota
language it is translated to “Omakiyaiyo, makakijelo, unshimala ye. Wokiye na wichonzani” (Hallowell
P 87). The Sun Dance is a trance dance and the Power of Dance lies in that it is to ask for protection
or to create change in the world. Time-binding is the preserving of memories and of records. It is for
use for the subsequent generations where it provides time-binding to take place. The pledgers perform
Sun Dance of about 200 - 500 hundred from the camp; only 20 - 40 were pledgers. Sun Dance is also
to celebrate the renewal of human society and it is not contain for just painful rite of sacrifice. Medicine
Man or the Chiefs are the intercessors of Sun Dance. The piercing of the skin of the pledgers are
performed by either the Medicine man or the Chief. According to the author Kevin Abourezk of Lincoln
Journal Star , Native Sun Dance, Rare in the Area, is Being Held” and he wrote “Near the end of the
dance,the men often pierce their flesh with sharp sticks attached to ropes. The ropes are then tied to
the tree, and the men eventually tear the sticks from their chest by pulling away from the tree”
(Abourezk Article). The blood sacrifice is the hope that their prayers are heard by their creator.

16. Time-binding, ceremony, and the Sun Dance
Succinct definition of time-binding, the distinctively human attribute of preserving memories and records
of the experiences for the use of subsequent generations.
Sun Dance consists of four-day ceremony of fasting and ritual dancing by certain community members
called pledgers. To undergone preparation of the dancers omitting food and water, the dancers are
lead by the intercessor who is a shamanic leader responsible to guide the ceremony. The intercessor
responsibility includes also the function of flesh-piercing to some or all of the dancers or pledgers.
The main focus of the dance ceremony is to create change in the world, facilitate communal, tribal and
individual renewal that preserves Lakota traditions and values. Sun Dance values by welfare of the
tribe by the sacrificial with ethical behavior. Individuals learn how to be good relatives by tempering
their egoic preoccupations and learning how to act in ways that support communal well-being through
sacrifice, suffering work, mutual aid, song, dance, drumming, and prayers for four days.
Power of Dance

17. The ceremony begins at sunrise of the next day, and any community members who dance are the
pledgers. The dancers look at the sun as they dance. Short breaks without food and drink is permitted.
During the self-sacrifice ritual dance, the pledgers dance for something they want such as: good hunting
skills, better fighting skills, or healing powers.
The Lakota Sun Dance has a very important contribution to the greater wisdom of humanity because it
recognizes that the earth, universe, and humans are profoundly interconnected.
Lakota ceremony phrase “mitakuye oyasin which means “we are all related” at the end of each prayers
or speech. The Southeast Nebraska Lakota Indians who perform Sun Dance pierce their skin on the
chest.

18. Sun Dance
Self-Sacrificial Dance =
Pledgers dance for skills,
wisdom, and protection

19. Before the Sun Dance was forbidden, the dance occurs during the summer of either late July or early
August. The pledgers usually have their chest pierce, and the dancers use buffalo horns to pierce their
chest and take tiny bones from their body. The Holy Men would go into the forest and select a large
cottonwood tree. The tree would be use as a central pole. The pledgers are selected because of great
deed or great bravery.
The Christians and Federal Government prohibited the dance for cruelty. It was banned in United
States in 1904, and it was banned in Canada in 1880 because . However, the Lakota Indians
considered the Sun Dance as a sacred religious ceremony. Crow Dog said “Sun Dance should be
shared with other people” ( Abourezk Article).

20. According to Frederic Remington who is the author of the article The Sun
Dance of the Sioux” and he wrote “they performed those barbarous rites
and ceremonies of cruelty and self-torture that have placed the Sun Dance
of the sioux on a level with the barbarisms” (Remington Article). However,
the Lakota choses the most bravery and most great deeds pledgers who
can withstand Sun Dance.

21. “He had given me his medicine, and how he
has given me his dreams and his visions which
brought me many victories and the summers
and winters passed” (Voget p 38). The
performance of sun dance depends on the
visions or dreams that occur for the
participants; however, because of cruelty and
inflicting self-torture as part of the ceremony, it
was banned. It was considered by the United
States government self-torture because the
pain and barbarisms of its ritual.
On a personal scale, Sun Dance may be danced for
their place in the universe, and on the larger scale, it
serves the tribe and the earth. Indigenous people
believe they need to dance because the earth will
lose touch with the universe and its creative power,
thereby, lose its ability to regenerate.
Sun Dance involves fasting because it
is supposed to be a sacrificial dance
ceremony and the “sacred number of
the dance was four or multiples of four”
(Voget p 101).

22. SUN DANCE

23. According to Russell Thornton the author of Demographic Antecedents of a Revitalization Movement:
Population Change, Population Size, and the 1890 Ghost Dance he wrote “Ghost Dance as arising from social
and cultural deprivation which the Indian people experiences after contact with white population” ( Thornton
Review). This movement is a Ghost Dance trying to revitalized and the restructure for friendship with the
whites for social and cultural. The dancers practice Ghost Dance faithfully for clean living and hard work that
would lead the Indians into prosperity. The movement restructured in order that food supply will not stop and
starve the Sioux. The land allotment deprived the Sioux from hunting buffalo because the buffalo were all
being hunted and destructed. The Sioux relied on the United States government for food rations. Part of the
Ghost Dance is a prayer that the United States will bring food to their campsite or reservation especially
during the winter. Ghost Dance was in the hope of contacting the Sioux forefathers from the dead. According
to Jim Hume the author of Newspaper Accounts Reflected Scorn for Hostiles; Massacre at Wounded Knee
Treated was Great Victory for Government forces and he wrote “Kicking Bear created the Ghost Dance, a
ceremony accompanied by speeches about a messiah who promised to bring the dead warriors back to life
and restore tribal lifestyle to the way it was before the white man” (Hume Article). According to the author
Hume and he wrote “It was at down on December 15 1890, that Sitting Bull, legendary chief of the Sioux, was
shot in the head and killed while resisting arrest” (Hume Article).

24. The Sioux begins Ghost Dance sometimes in the morning, as well as in the afternoon, and in the
evening. Sioux does not wear any metals during the dance unlike the Southern Tribes. The Southern
Tribes wear German Silver ornaments.
Ghost Shirt is the featured connection between tribes in the Ghost Dance. Because of the scarcity of
buckskin, Ghost Shirts are worn, and the shirts are made of cloth, and it is cut and figured in Indian
fashion. Sioux plants a tree in the center of the circle and the tree is decorated with feathers, stuffed
animals, and strips of cloth.
The dancers stand in line and face the sun, and the leader stands facing the dancers. the leader says
a prayer, and he would wave over the heads of the dancers ghost sticks of staff about six feet long,
trimmed with red cloth and feathers of the same color. As part of the ghost dance, during the prayer, a
woman stands near the tree and held out a pipe toward the sun while another woman beside her, held
out several arrows. The arrows’ points were removed. There are about four arrows. Faithful dancing,
clean living, and hard work would lead the Indians to prosperity. Ghost Dance connects with the
afterworld. Spiritual is manifested through prayer with bodily movement and ritual practice rather
through sitting and reading. Colonizers was threatened of the spirituality of Ghost Dance.
Power of Dance

25. According to Sam Maddra who is the author of The Wounded Knee Ghost Dance Shirt and
he wrote “The Ghost Shirt was worn by Ghost Dancers as an important part of the Native
American Ghost Dance religion, which prophesied that white men and their unwanted
influences would disappear, dead friends and relatives would return and all would live
together in the traditional way with plentiful game if they live peacefully, did not lie, worked
hard and performed the Ghost dance” (Maddra Journal).

27. The Ghost Dance spread throughout the great plains as
a four-day round dance. Some dancers would enter in
trance state. Ghost Dancers connect with the
afterworld, and they have visions of the happy life of the
preservation era. Spiritual movement involved adoption
and redirection of various western colonizing
institutions.
Ghost Dance, unfortunately, does not have a happy ending. Sioux warriors
who wore the ghost shirts believed they would not be hurt with white men’s
bullets. Alarmed by the numbers of Ghost Dancers, the government
authorities saw that it was an imminent threat. The violent confrontations in
which Indians wearing the Ghost Shirt were gunned down by rifle and
gatling-gun fire. The United States Seventh Cavalry massacred an entire
Sioux encampment including women and children. Ghost Dance of 1890.
Ghost Dance steps are
clockwise direction,
advancing with the left foot
and following with right foot
in dragging step while
singing and chanting in
unison. Because of its
common cause, Ghost
Dance brought
togetherness of tribe
members who had been
long enemies. At times,
before falling in hypnotic
state, Ghost Dancers run
wildly around the circle or
out over the prairie.

29. Spiritual Movement
“Men and women, persons of all ages and
capabilities, were welcomed into a faith of
hope for the future, consultation and
assistance in the present, and honor to the
Indians who had passed into the afterlife”
(Kehoe p 7).
Ghost Dance will provide visions of happy life during the
pre-reservation era. A Western Paiute leader named
Wovoka prophesied of a coming earthquake. This is
suppose to bring back prairie grasses and herds of buffalo
that had thrived on them.This would have been the
progression necessary for the adaptation for the
preservation of the Sioux. The non believers would be
swallowed underground while those Ghost Dancers
believers would rejoin their resurrected ancestors on new-
made earth of peace and plenty.
“This is not a matter of ‘progress’ but of
adaptation to necessity; there is no single line
of development but a multitude of adaptations”
(Kehoe p 126).
Ghost Dance is a dance of hope and of
faith that whoever believe will experience
bless. Dancers danced in hope for food
from the government would arrive on their
encampment; thus prevent starvation.
Although U.S. Government threatened the
Sioux of their destruction because of the
way of their lives.

30. Ghost Dance
It is a hope dance, and a circle is formed
during the dance. This symbolized the
ingathering of the tribes in order to embrace
‘Our Father, God’ and universe, earth. The
harmonious dance is similar to steps around the
sun and leftward is so they must live and work
in harmony. If every Indians believe in Ghost
Dance, which is the expression of faith, love
would rid of evil from earth; thus, renewing
earth’s goodness in every form, from youth to
health and to abundance of food.

31. The indigenous dance of Native American is a powerful dance because the Indians really believe with the dance
each of the Indian Nation is performing. They were dedicated to the ceremony and dance each of the tribe
celebration.
The Hopi dance believed being one and brothers to the spirits of the snake. They believed snakes can influence
the underworld, and the Hopi dance is a tradition Hopis enjoyed celebrating. The Hopis must have seen evidence
of the tradition or else why would they then continue to celebrate Snake Dance. The snakes do not bite the Snake
Priest, although, they know that bites could happen. The bathing and petting of the snakes, perhaps make
bonding between the Snake Priests and the snakes. Do they believe these are work of the underworld? I would
like to say, yes, because the Hopis love doing the tradition in those era.
Sun Dance is also a powerful dance because the bravery and athletics of the pledgers. It is not humane to the
understanding of the outside world. My research not once mentioned the pledgers scream with pain, and that is
why it is a special dance. However, it was understood by the Christians and US Government as cruelty. Sun Dance
must be then performed by a more sophisticated tribe of Indians with how the Christian of today may call it “gift of
pain!”
Ghost Dance is also powerful because the dance is of hope. A hope for them to live on; and, also, asking their God
to provide for their needs. They don't understand how fragile a Ghost Shirt is, and this tribe of Indians really
believed they would be protected. That is why it is a sad dance.
CONCLUSION

32. The indigenous dance of the Native American is not primitive to my understanding as it was
the social and culture for the Indigenous Native Americans such as: Snake Dance, rain
dance; Sun Dance, protection and create change; Ghost Dance, lead to prosperity living and
contacting the Sioux of the Lakota from the dead in hope they will come back to life; and that
is why the dance is Power of Dance.

33. Recap:
Indigenous dance in native american
● Indigenous dance forms reflect the importance of relationality and connection with community
● The power of indigenous dance can be also seen in how it threatened the u.s. and canadian
governments in their attempts to assimilate native americans.
● As governments made attempts to wipe out not only indian dance, but indian ways of being, native
peoples continued to practice communal sharing, healing, religiosity, history telling, and dancing.
Recap is part from the lecture : The Power of Dance

34. Works Cited
Book. Forrest, Earle R. “The Snake Dance of the Hopi Indians.” Page 49, 155. MSJC Milo Library.
WesternLore Press…1961…los Angeles 41.
Book. Kehoe, Alice Beck. “The Ghost Dance, Ethnohistory and Revitalization.” Page 7, 126. 1936. MSJC
Milo Library. Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Copyright 1989.
Book. Voget, Fred W. “The Shoshoni-Crow Sun Dance.” Page 38, 101. MSJC Milo Library. University of
Oklahoma Press. Norman. 1984.
There are no sources in the current document.

35. Works Cited
EBSCO. Bronstein, Nancy. “A Hopi Ceremony: Dancing With Snakes.” FACES, Vol 12. No. 2. Oct.
1995. Page 12. MSJC Milo Library. Printed Sp 18. Article.
EBSCO. David, Gary A. “The Kivas of Heaven: Ancient Hopi Starlore. Page 9. MSJC Milo Library.
www.adventuresunlimitedpress.com. Copyright 2010.
EBSCO. Hallowell, Ronan. “Time-Binding in the Lakota Sun Dance: Oral Tradition and Generational
Wisdom.” Page 86, 87. MSJC Milo Library. Printed Sp 18. Article.
EBSCO. Remington, Frederic. “The Sun-Dance of the Sioux.” Editor Kenny A. Franks. MSJC Milo
Library. Printed Sp 18. Article.
There are no sources in the current document.

36. Works Cited
JSTOR. Maddra, Sam. “The Wounded Knee Ghost Dance Shirt.” Page 41. MSJC Milo Library. Published by
Museum Ethnographers Group. Printed Sp 18. www.jstor.org. Journal.
JSTOR. Thornton, Russell. “Demographic Antecedents of a Revitalization Movement: Population Change,
Population Size, and the 1890 Ghost Dance.” Page 88. MSJC Milo Library. Published by
American Sociological Association. Printed Sp 18. Review.
There are no sources in the current document.

37. Works Cited
Lexis Nexis Academic. Abourezk, Kevin. “Native Sun Dance, Rare in the Area, is Being Held. Section A
Page 1. Page 1 of 997 Documents. MSJC Milo Library. Printed Sp 18. Lincoln Journal Star
(Nebraska). Article.
Lexis Nexis Academic. Hume, Jim. “Newspaper Accounts Reflected Scorn for ‘Hostiles’; Massacre at
Wounded Knee Treated as Great Victory for Government Forces.” Section Special Section: Pg.
BB12. 16 of 308 Documents. MSJC Milo Library. Published by Time Colonist (Victoria, British
Columbia). Dec 7, 2008, Sunday. Final Edition. Article.
There are no sources in the current document.

38. Works Cited
MSJC. The Power of Dance. “Lecture to Read: The Power of Dance Unit I”. Prof Freeman. Hist 151
2067. Spring 2018. San Jacinto, CA. Power Point. 2018.