Pacific Northwest Coast SHAMANS

Pacific Northwest Coast SHAMANS

Shaman s roles Ability to communicate mystically and directly with world of spirits Assured general welfare of community Highly respected member of community, but may live outside its usual rules Cured sick Combated witches Assure success in battle, fishing, hunting, etc. Considered most powerful and important in the North NWC (Tlingit, then Tsimshian, then Haida..)

In olden times, there were in this country a great many shamans who were like supernatural beings among the people, and who, through their magic worked wonders among them. Everybody was afraid of their supernatural powers. They would help those who paid much, and kill those who were against them. Ethnographer Franz Boas

Northern shaman outside normal rules: Never cut hair or nails or combed hair Often lived apart from village (Tlingit) Shaman s regalia potent & dangerous to others Shaman s artwork is personal property, normally depicting spirit helpers, not crests -Art often asymmetrical

Shaman selected By spirits during puberty Usually informed through serious illness, coma, or dream

Yek Shaman s spirit helpers, usually 8 Acquired on first vision quest, usually 8 days Tongues of spirit helpers given to the shaman kept in special medicine bags (tongues as source of spiritual wisdom; referring to power over life and death) On shaman s artwork; shaman often shown in artwork transforming from human into spirit helper s form

Navy Lt. George Emmons, collector, 1882-1887, on Tlingit shaman: movements so wild head thrown back, half closed glazed eyes shadows confusion of sounds..the tense expectancy of the crowded spaces kept alive the belief in the unknown and this juggler of life.

Art used in the Curing Process: Shake rattles, beat drums Touch charms (amulets) to patient s body, sometimes leave with the patient Use soulcatchers to catch spirit, draw out illness Don series of masks depicting yek, transforming self into different yek, revalidating claims to spiritual knowledge

Northern NWC Shamanic Art Masks, rattles, amulets, crowns, dance aprons, grave figures, grave houses Specialties: Tlingit masks, oystercatcher rattles, grave figures with devilfish, Chilkat caps Tsimshian soulcatchers and Raven rattles, bear fang crowns Haida grave houses

Tlingit shaman s cap: Chilkat material with image of land otter; also real wolf s tail, Wolf head eating human

Tlingit shaman s hat woven of human hair. Depicting powerful chief/shaman flanked by grave guardians

Shaman s moosehide apron with amulets and deer dew claws

Talking stick

Shaman s crowns: Made of carved bear claws (or mountain goat horns or wood carved and shaped that way) Often carved with images Of the shaman s yek

Soulcatchers Made only by Tsimshian but used by other northern tribes Used to recover lost souls and return them to patient, or suck out disease/evil from the patient Often Sisiutl

(Ivory) Amulets Often depict images seen in dreams or trances Often depict metamorphosis

Killer whale eating humanoid Bear face Raven tail

Raven eating human Octopus (devilfish)

Bear Owl Eagle Ducks biting witches

Land Otter Raven eating human Shaman s club

Sea monster and its baby

Haida shaman transforming

Shaman s masks Ideally 8 for 8 spirit helpers, plus humans Could use to transform into spirit helpers, cross over plane of existence to world of the dead, exert power over all aspects of life & death

Tongue sticking out often refers to transforming or dying state

Shaman transforming into land otter, most powerful spirit; was human, drowned, went to land otter village under sea, became land otter and lured others to their death by drowning; only shaman can control

Land Otter Man: lost man becoming otter Note : Otter revenged the loss (almost to extinction) of other otters by abducting humans

Land otter eyebrows. Shaman transforming into bear.

Devilfish (octopus) -extremely potent and potentially dangerous spirit helper (only shaman and Kumugwe, Chief of the Sea, could control them) -had many mysterious abilities (ink, camouflage, use of its hands and even use of tools) and had 8 legs

Shaman transforming into eagle

devilfish

Open-mouthed, dead slave; Human hair as train

Transforming into Raven; made of whale vertebrate

Wolf brows Mice Mice eat the secrets of the spirits and witches which they give to the shaman. -Emmons 1882-7

Bear cub Transforming Into Bear Land otters

Land otter frogs frog

mountain goats

Blue jay wings, Swansdown, Eagle feathers, Bear fur..

Raven Rattles Originated with Tsimshian, used by all tribes Depict Raven stealing Sun, Moon, and Stars and/or Shaman riding on Raven while receiving spiritual power from a yek

kingfisher

Raven rattles in hands (heads upside-down)

Touching tongues of shaman and spirit helper show spiritual connection, the sharing of wisdom from the spirit helper to the shaman.

Oystercatcher Rattles Primarily Tlingit Made with beak of real oystercatcher; peculiar bird Shaman usually riding on the back torturing witches (often by tying their hands and pulling their hair) Witch s spirit helper often emerges from his/her chest while the shaman s spirit helpers assist

Shaman twisting witch s hair in small-scale sculpture

Witch bound, 1882

Mountain goat yek holds evil witches in check

Tsimshian

Shaman grave houses and grave figures Shaman not cremated like others; necessary to bury him and his regalia far from the village because he remained highly potent and dangerous Often buried in elevated grave houses and guarded by grave figures

Spine/Land otter with devilfish suckers Wearing spirit fish cloak Originally holding rattles Originally riding on the back of a seal, showing his ability to travel as silently as a seal

Tlingit shaman s hat woven of human hair. Depicting powerful chief/shaman flanked by grave guardians

Coast Salish shaman with fisher guardian spirit