The spirit is often in a material form in the shape of a doll, carried somewhere about the person. If it is wanted to insure success in the chase, it is carried in the bag containing the ammunition.
When an individual fails to overcome the obstacles in his path the misfortune is attributed to the evil wrought by his attending spirit, whose good will must be invoked. If the spirit prove stubborn and reluctant to grant the needed assistance the person sometimes becomes angry with it and inflicts a serious chastisement upon it, deprives it of food, or strips it of its garments, until after a time it proves less refractory and yields obedience to its master. It often happens that the person is unable to control the influence of the evil-disposed spirit and the only way is to give it to some person without his knowledge. The latter becomes immediately under the control of the spirit, and the former, released from its baleful effects, is able successfully to prosecute the affairs of life. In the course of time the person generally relents and takes back the spirit he gave to another. The person on whom the spirit has been imposed should know nothing of it lest he should refuse to accept it. It is often given in the form of a bundle of clothing. It is supposed that if in hunting somebody merely takes the bag to hang it up the influence will pass to him. The spirit is supposed to be able to exert its influence only when carried by some object having life. Hence the person may cast it away for a time, and during that period it remains inert.
Besides this class of spirits, there are the spirits of the sea, the land, the sky (for be it understood that the Eskimo know nothing of the air), the winds, the clouds, and everything in nature. Every cove of the seashore, every point, island, and prominent rock has its guardian spirit. All are of the malignant type and to be propitiated only by acceptable offerings from persons who desire to visit the locality where it is supposed to reside. Of course some of the spirits are more powerful than others, and these are more to be dreaded than those able to inflict less harm.
These minor spirits are under the control of the great spirit, whose name is “Tung ak.” This one great spirit is more powerful than all the rest besides. The lesser spirits are immediately under his control and ever ready to obey his command. The shaman (or conjurer) alone is supposed to be able to deal with the Tung ak. While the shaman does not profess to be superior to the Tung ak, he is able to enlist his assistance and thus be able to control all the undertakings his profession may call for.
This Tung ak is nothing more or less than death, which ever seeks to torment and harass the lives of people that their spirits may go to dwell with him.
A legend related of the origin of the Tung ak is as follows: A father had a son and daughter whom he loved very much. The children fell ill and at last died, although the father did all in his power to alleviate their sufferings, showing his kindness and attentions to the last moment. At their death the father became changed to a vicious spirit, roaming the world to destroy any person whom he might meet, determined that, as his dear children died, none others should live.
Tung ak visits people of all ages, constantly placing obstacles in their pathway to prevent the accomplishment of their desires, and provoking them beyond endurance so as to cause them to become ill and die and go to live with him. Tung ak no longer knows his own children and imagines all persons that he meets to be his children. Famine, disease, and death are sent abroad to search for these lost children.
People at last began to devise some means of thwarting the designs of Tung ak and discovered that a period of fasting and abstinence from contact with other people endowed a person with supernatural powers and enabled him to learn the secrets of Tung ak. This is accomplished by repairing to some lonely spot, where for a greater or less period the hermit abstains from food or water until the imagination is so worked upon that he believes himself imbued with the power to heal the sick and control all the destinies of life. Tung ak is supposed to stand near and reveal these things while the person is undergoing the test. When the person sees the evil one ready to seize upon him if he fails in the self-imposed task to become an “Angekok” or great one, he is much frightened and beseeches the terrible visitor to spare his life and give him the power to relieve his people from misfortune. Tung ak then takes pity on him, and imparts to him the secret of preserving life, or driving out the evil which causes death.
This is still the process by which the would-be shaman fits himself for his supernatural duties.
The newly fledged angekok returns to his people and relates what he has seen and what he has done. The listeners are awed by the recitals of the sufferings and ordeal, and he is now ready to accomplish his mission. When his services are required he is crafty enough to demand sufficient compensation, and frankly states that the greater the pay the greater the good bestowed. A native racked with pain will gladly part with all of his worldly possessions in order to be restored to health.