Black Elk:
Black Elk was born into a tribe of the Plains Indians, the Oglala Sioux. The Sioux were hunters, and they relied mainly on the buffalo. Buffalo was their main source for food as well as shelter and clothing. The Sioux lived throughout the Midwestern plains of North America, until they were put on Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota. Residents of Pine Ridge refer to themselves often time as Sioux, Siouxs, Indian, and Lakota.# As America flourished, the Lakota found themselves being pushed westwards. As a means of maintaining their identity, as well as their survival, religion was integral. Religion allowed them to be resilient against their enemies, both in the physical and spiritual world. Religion allowed for adaptation in Lakota society as America pushed them westward. It was the Holy Men, such as Black Elk, that underlined the Lakota society, and kept a nomadic people together. What is known of Black Elk comes from his teachings. By his own accounts, he was born in the "Moon of the Popping Trees on the Little Powder River When the Four Crows Were Killed"#, or December, 1863. Black Elk received his first vision at the age of five: The first time I rode a horse I was five years old and my father made me some bows and arrows
All over the sky a sacred voice is calling you. I stood gazing at them and they were coming from the north; then they started toward the west and were geese. The vision lasted about twenty minutes.# One of the greatest controversies surrounding Black Elk is his "dual natured ness". Black Elk the traditionalist versus Black elk the catholic. Some would argue that Blackk Elk was a sincere Catholic who held on to the culture of his people out of respect for them. Others would argue that his Catholicism was simply a matter of convenience. That he was a traditionalist whose Catholicism was "insincere". The ultimate question remains, who was the true Black Elk? To look at his recreation of the Sun Dance, it was as much Lakota as it was Catholic. Therefore, it remains entirely possible that Black Elk managed to sustain his dual religion, merging them into one. Often times, a less severe form of sacrifice was used, such as a buffalo head being attached to the small of the back and dragging it through camp, or cutting and piercing the flesh with knives, or being attached to the pole but not suspended, or even practicing the mental discipline of the rite without the physical sacrifices. In all cases, however, the mind remained fixed upon the object of desire. The ultimate purpose idea behind the Sun Dance was one of self-sacrifice. The black road, according to Black Elk was the road of predictability. There was another choice, however, a red road. The red road represented spiritual understanding. Traveling the red road meant performing the visions in song, ceremonies, and dances. Along the black road and the red road, there existed an intersection. At this intersection, Black Elk explained: In response to the ban of the Sun dance, the Lakota adopted the Ghost Dance. The Ghost Dance was done, not as a replacement of the Sun dance, but as a substitute for it under the ban. The emphasis of the Ghost Dance was to obtain a vision of one's dead relations through a trance. It was a dance of revival, not self-sacrifice. Even while the Ghost Dance was being performed, the Sun Dance was still done in secret.
Some common words found in the essay are:
Black Elk, Sun Dance, Elk Imagine, Lakota# America, Ghost Dance, black elk, Civil War, Black Elk's, Blackk Elk, Sioux Sioux, Indian Courts#, sun dance, ghost dance, red road, black road, black elk's, elk received, voice calling, sacred hoop, black elk received, sacred voice calling, hard black, black elk's opinion, sun dance black, elk received vision,
Approximate Word count = 1545
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)
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