IV. Idea of sacrifice.—The idea of sacrifice as atoning for sin has not yet been found by the author among these Siouan tribes. In no instance of sacrifice recorded in this paper has the author detected any notion of expiation for sin against a just and holy Being. But sacrifice, whether in the form of fasting, self-torture, or the offering of property, was made in order to win the favor of a god, to obtain a temporal advantage (§§ 28, 29, 101, 144, etc.), or to avert the anger of demons, as when the people were suffering from famine or an epidemic (§ 144).
V. Shamanism.—While there have been shamans and various orders of shamans among these tribes, no trace of a worship of shamans as gods has yet been found. On one occasion the author met a Ponka shaman, Cramped Hand, who exclaimed, “I am a wakanda.” But no other Ponka ever said that he or she worshiped Cramped Hand as a wakanda.
VI. The other beliefs named by Dr. Peet have been found, in some tribes, side by side. Animism, or a form of animism, was held by those who worshiped the sun, animals, etc. “Everything had a soul” (§§ 97, 136, 137, 265-288, 344, etc.). Certain animals were worshiped (§§ 24, 43, 78, 92, 326, etc.). The sun was invoked, not only in the sun dance (§§ 139-212), but on other occasions (§§ 28, 43, 73, 312, 323). Stars, too, were regarded as gods (§§ 31, 43). Elemental worship had a wider significance among these tribes than Dr. Peet assigns it (§§ 27, 33-35, 43, 44, 74-77, 363, etc.). And there are traces of anthropomorphism, for some of the gods are in human form (§§ 217, 235); others are supposed to inhale the odor of tobacco smoke, which is pleasant to them; they eat, breathe, use weapons against one another as well as against human beings, and on one occasion an Indian was called on to aid one or the other of two contending gods; they hear, think, marry, die, and are succeeded by their children (§§ 25, 29, 35, 36, 72, 75, 94, 109, 112, 117, 119, 136, 217, 322, etc.).[282]
§ 362. The cults affected the social organization of the tribes that had gentes bearing mystic names (see §§ 57 and 82 of this paper, and Om. Soc., in 3d An. Rept. Bur. Eth., Chap. iii, and pp. 356, 359-361); orders of shamans and other secret societies were intimately associated with them (§§ 43-45, 86, 87, and 89; and Om. Soc., pp. 342-355); personal names still refer to them (§§ 31, 47, 53, 59, 74, 75, and 77; and Om. Soc., pp. 228, 232, 236, 238-244, 246-248, 250, and 251); and almost every act of the daily life of the people was influenced by them (§§ 23, 24, 27, 28-30, 32, 33-36, 39-41, 54, 101, etc.; and Om. Soc., Chap. vi, and pp. 267, 274, 286, 287, 289-291, 293-299, 316, 319-325, 327, 328, 357, 368-370).
CULTS OF THE ELEMENTS.
§ 363. Prior to writing this paper, the author had observed what Dr. Foster stated in his Indian Record and Historical Data respecting the division of the Winnebago tribe into four groups, named after the earth, air, fire, and water, respectively, i.e., Foster claimed that the Winnebago had people named after land animals, others after birds and the winds, others after the thunder-beings, and others after the Waktceqi or water monsters.[283] (See § 96.)
FIG. 193.—The Ȼatada gentile circle.
During the year 1890 the author obtained from the three principal Ponka chiefs the classification of their gentes by phratries, and the character of the mystic songs peculiar to each phratry.
On comparing this information with that which has been related about the Dakota gods, there seemed to be good reasons for inferring that not only the Dakota tribes, but also the Omaha, Ponka, Winne-bago, and others of the same stock, divided their gods into four classes, those of the earth, wind-makers, fire, and water.