Ceremonial of Hasjelti Dailjis and Mythical Sand Painting of the Navajo Indians | Page 4

from the pieces of bark
which served as paint cups, the artist breathed upon the hand before
sprinkling the paint. This, however, had no religious significance, but
was merely to clear the finger and thumb of any superfluous sand. The
colors used in decoration were yellow, red, and white from sandstones,
black from charcoal, and a grayish blue, formed of white sand and
charcoal, with a very small quantity of yellow and red sands. (See Fig.

118.) The decorators were carefully watched by the song priest.
[Illustration: Figure 118]
FIG. 118. Sweat house.
Upon the completion of the rainbow the song priest returned to the
medicine lodge, but soon reappeared bearing a basket of twelve turkey
wands, and these he planted around the base of the sweat house on a
line of meal he had previously sprinkled. There was a fire some 20 feet
from the house, in which stones were heated. These stones were placed
in the sweat house on the south side, and upon them was thrown an
armful of white sage and Bigelovia Douglasii. A few pine boughs were
laid by the side of the stones for the invalid to sit upon. The entrance to
the sweat house was then covered with a black and white striped
blanket upon which were placed two large Coçonino buckskins one
upon the other, and upon them a double piece of white cotton. The
buckskins represented daylight, or the twilight that comes just at the
dawn of day. The invalid for whom this ceremony was held took off all
his clothing except the breech cloth, and sat on the outside by the
entrance of the sweat house amid the din of rattle and song, the
theurgist being the only one who had a rattle. The invalid propelled
himself into the house feet foremost, the covering of the sweat house
having been raised for this purpose. After entering it, he rid himself of
his breechcloth and the coverings were immediately dropped. The song
continued 5 minutes, when all stopped for a moment and then
recommenced.
[Illustration]
RAINBOW OVER SWEAT HOUSE.
During the song the theurgist mixed various herbs in a gourd over
which he poured water. After chanting some twenty minutes he
advanced to the entrance of the house, taking the medicine gourd with
him, and, after pouring some of its contents on the heated stones, took
his seat and joined in the chanting. After another twenty minutes
Hasjelti and Hostjoghon appeared. A Navajo blanket had previously

been placed on the ground at the south side of the entrance. Hasjelti
lifted the coverings from the entrance, and the patient, having first
donned his breech cloth, came out and sat on the blanket. Hasjelti
rubbed the invalid with the horn of a mountain sheep held in the left
hand, and in the right hand a piece of hide, about 10 inches long and 4
wide, from between the eyes of the sheep. The hide was held flatly
against the palm of the hand, and in this way the god rubbed the breast
of the invalid, while he rubbed his back with the horn, occasionally
alternating his hands. Hostjoghon put the invalid through the same
manipulation. The gods then gave him drink four times from the gourd
containing medicine water composed of finely-chopped herbs and
water, they having first taken a draught of the mixture. The soles of the
feet, palms, breast, back, shoulders, and top of the head of the invalid
were touched with medicine water, and the gods suddenly disappeared.
The patient arose and bathed himself with the remainder of the
medicine water and put on his clothing. The coverings of the entrance,
which were gifts to the song priest from the invalid, were gathered
together by the song priest and carried by an attendant to the medicine
lodge. An attendant erased the rainbow by sweeping his hand from the
feet to the head, drawing the sands with him, which were gathered into
a blanket and carried to the north and deposited at the base of a piñon
tree. The song priest placed the wands in a basket, and thus, preceded
by the invalid, carried them in both hands to the medicine lodge singing
a low chant. The sweat house was not carelessly torn down, but was
taken down after a prescribed form. Four men commenced at the sides
toward the cardinal points, and with both hands scraped the sand from
the boughs. When this was all removed the boughs were carefully
gathered and conveyed to a piñon tree some 50 feet distant and fastened
horizontally in its branches about 2 feet above the ground. The heated
stones from the interior of the sweat house were laid on the boughs; the
upright logs which formed the frame work of the house were carried to