The Imprisonment of the Katcinas

THE IMPRISONMENT OF THE KATCINAS ⁵

At Gashpeta they were having a basket dance. They came in to begin the dance, and a little squirrel (siqu) ran into the middle of the line. It frightened all the dancers and they ran in every direction. For four days (years) the katcinas were lost. The people waited. In eight days (years) about half of them came back and they called another dance. The people were unhappy because half the dancers were gone, and Heluta threatened the koshare and told them, "Go find the katcinas who are lost." The koshare said to the people, "Tell Heluta to listen. If he hears any noise in the mountains, follow it and he will find the dancers." The people answered, "We have been to all the mountains, but we could not hear any sounds of the katcinas." Masewa said to the koshare, "You must use your own power to find the dancers." The koshare used their power. They took ashes in their hands and threw in every direction. At last they heard a noise and the earth broke open at their feet. A spruce tree grew up out of the place where the earth had split. It grew larger and larger until it grew up to the top of the hole. All the people stood about. The women were crying and crying for the katcinas to come back. The first one who came out was the Bloody Hand katcina. He was so weak he could hardly walk. Yellow Woman came next and with her was her little son, dressed in the dancer's costume. At last all the katcinas had come out from the place where they had been imprisoned. They asked Heluta, "Are they all here?" He answered, "Yes. All that were lost have

p. 12

returned." He put them with the other dancers so that they were all mixed together again. They held the dance and the people were happy. When the dance was over the katcinas. went back to the place where they costumed themselves.

The dance came back again and this time Yellow Woman's son had grown to be a big boy. The dancers retired again, and when they came back next he had grown still bigger. He was just the size of all the other katcinas. The koshare said to the people, "Tell which of the katcinas is Yellow Woman's little boy." Everybody tried, but they could not tell. He was Mayurli katsena (the dance leader who stands in the center of the line and starts the songs). ^15b

Footnotes

11:5 Informant 2. Notes, p. 207.

12:15b Notes, p. 208.