Lakota Divine Woman: Part 1: The Pipe

“We have been told by the white men, or at least by those who are Christian, that God sent to men His son, who would restore order and peace upon the earth; and we have been told that Jesus the Christ was crucified, but that he shall come again at the Last Judgment, the end of this world or cycle. This I understand and know that it is true, but the white men should know that for the red people too, it was the will of Wakan-Tanka, the Great Spirit, that an animal turn itself into a two-legged person in order to bring the most holy pipe to His people; and we too were taught that this White Buffalo Cow Woman who brought our sacred pipe will appear again at the end of this “world,” a coming which we Indians know is now not very far off.” Black Elk, The Sacred Pipe, p.xix

Since reading these words from Black Elk, the legend of White Buffalo Calf Woman has been on my mind a lot. It seemed very important that I understand her and what she represents better. I’ve made earlier assumptions about her that I now think are incorrect. I think that the Lakota account of her is rich with sacred symbolism that can be compared to Christian scripture that I’d like to lay out here.

This comparison is not meant to discount the existence of an actual divine woman that appeared some time ago to this people and will return again. I respect the possibility that this may be the case. I am merely going to look at what this teaching has in common with the scriptures and may also be telling us metaphorically.

I have taken a strategy while studying cultural beliefs, that each version of a creator, divine woman, or savior should be compared to my own scriptures and beliefs and studied for what more they add to my understanding about these beings, as I have found most, if not all, relate to each other.

Visitation and Prophecy of the Lakota Divine Woman:

"Early one morning, very many winters ago, two Lakota were out hunting with their bows and arrows, and as they were standing on a hill looking for game, they saw in the distance something coming towards them in a very strange and wonderful manner. When this mysterious thing came nearer to them, they saw that it was a very beautiful woman, dressed in white buckskin, and bearing a bundle on her back. Now this woman was so good to look at that one of the Lakota had bad intentions and told his friend of his desire, but this good man said that he must not have such thoughts, for surely this is a wakan woman. The mysterious person was now very close to the men, and then putting down her bundle, she asked the one with bad intentions to come over to her. As the young man approached the mysterious woman, they were both covered by a great cloud, and soon when it lifted the sacred woman was standing there, and at her feet was the man with the bad thoughts who was now nothing but bones, and terrible snakes were eating him.

"‘Behold what you see!’ the strange woman said to the good man. ‘I am coming to your people and wish to talk with your chief Hehlokecha Najin [Standing Hollow Horn]. Return to him, and tell him to prepare a large tipi in which he should gather all his people, and make ready for my coming. I wish to tell you something of great importance!’

"The young man then returned to the tipi of his chief, and told him all that had happened: that this wakan woman was coming to visit them and that they must all prepare. The chief, Standing Hollow Horn, then had several tipis taken down, and from them a great lodge was made as the sacred woman had instructed. He sent out a crier to tell the people to put on their best buckskin clothes and to gather immediately in the lodge. The people were, of course, all very excited as they waited in the great lodge for the coming of the holy woman, and everybody was wondering where this mysterious woman came from and what it was that she wished to say.

"Soon the young men who were watching for the coming of the wakan person announced that they saw something in the distance approaching them in a beautiful manner, and then suddenly she entered the lodge, walked around sun-wise, and stood in front of Standing Hollow Horn. She took from her back the bundle, and holding it with both hands in front of the chief, said: ‘Behold this and always love it! It is lela wakan [very sacred], and you must treat it as such. No impure man should ever be allowed to see it, for within this bundle there is a sacred pipe. With this you will, during the winters to come, send your voices to Wakan-Tanka, your Father and Grandfather.’

"After the mysterious woman said this, she took from the bundle a pipe, and also a small round stone which she placed upon the ground. Holding the pipe up with its stem to the heavens, she said: ‘With this sacred pipe you will walk upon the Earth; for the Earth is your Grandmother and Mother, and She is sacred. Every step that is taken upon Her should be as a prayer. The bowl of this pipe is of red stone; it is the Earth. Carved in the stone and facing the center is this buffalo calf who represents all the four-leggeds who live upon your Mother. The stem of the pipe is of wood, and this represents all that grows upon the Earth. And these twelve feathers which hang here where the stem fits into the bowl are from Wanli Galeshka, the Spotted Eagle, and they represent the eagle and all the wingeds of the air. All these peoples, and all the things of the universe, are joined to you who smoke the pipe—all send their voices to Wakan-Tanka, the Great Spirit. When you pray with this pipe, you pray for and with everything.’

"The wakan woman then touched the foot of the pipe to the round stone which lay upon the ground, and said: ‘With this pipe you will be bound to all your relatives: your Grandfather and father, you Grandmother and Mother. This round rock, which is made of the same red stone as the bowl of the pipe, your Father Wakan-Tanka has also given to you. It is Earth, your Grandmother and Mother, and it is where you will live and increase. This Earth which He has given to you is red, and the two-legeds who live upon the Earth are red; and the Great Spirit has also given to you a red day, and a red road. All of this is sacred and so do not forget! Every dawn as it comes is a holy event, and very day is holy, for the light comes from your Father Wakan-Tanka; and also you must always remember that the two-leggeds and all the other peoples who stand upon this earth are sacred and should be treated as such.

"‘From this time on, the holy pipe will stand upon this red Earth, and the two-leggeds will take the pipe and will send their voices to Wakan-Tanka. These seven circles which you see on the stone have much meaning, for they represent the seven rites in which the pipe will be used. The first large circle represents the first rite which I shall give to you, and the other six circles represent the rites which will in time be revealed to you directly. Standing Hollow Horn, be good to these gifts and to your people, for they are wakan! With this pipe the two-leggeds will increase, and there will come to them all that is good. From above Wakan-Tanka has given to you this sacred pipe, so that through it you may have knowledge. For this great gift you should always be grateful! But now before I leave I wish to give to you instructions for the first rite in which your people will use this pipe…"

"…He who keeps the soul of a person must be a good and pure man, and he should use the pipe so that all the people, with the soul, will together send their voice to Wakan-Tanka. The fruit of your Mother the Earth and the fruit of all that bears will be blessed in this manner, and your people will then walk the path of life in a sacred way. Do not forget that Wakan-Tanka has given you seven days in which to send your voices to Him. So long as you remember this you will live; the rest you will know from Wakan-Tanka directly.’

"The sacred woman then started to leave the lodge, but turning again to Standing Hollow horn, she said: ‘Behold this pipe! Always remember how sacred it is, and treat it as such, for it will take you to the end. Remember, in me there are four ages. I am leaving now, but I shall look back upon your people in every age, and at the end I shall return.’
  

"Moving around the lodge in a sun-wise manner, the mysterious woman left, but after walking a short distance she looked back towards the people and sat down. When she rose the people were amazed to see that she had become a young red and brown buffalo calf. Then this calf walked farther, lay down, and rolled, looking back at the people, and when she got up she was a white buffalo. Again the white buffalo walked farther and rolled on the ground, becoming now a black buffalo. This buffalo then walked farther away from the people, stopped, and after bowing to each of the four quarters of the universe, disappeared over the hill." The Sacred Pipe: Black Elk’s Account of the Seven Rites of the Oglala Sioux, Recorded & Edited by Joseph Epes Brown, p. 3-9

A separate account can be found at this link: http://www.kstrom.net/isk/arvol/buffpipe.html

I’ve come to believe now that in order to understand what and who White Buffalo Calf Woman could represent we must first understand what the sacred pipe itself may represent.

I’ll compare some things below from native sources and scriptural sources that will, I think, shed light on this subject.

First from our earlier example from Black Elk:

“…for within this bundle there is a sacred pipe. With this you will, during the winters to come, send your voices to Wakan-Tanka, your Father and Grandfather.’”

“From this time on, the holy pipe will stand upon this red Earth, and the two-leggeds will take the pipe and will send their voices to Wakan-Tanka.”

From the scriptures:

…therefore, ye must always pray unto the Father in my name. And whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold, it shall be given unto you. Pray in your families unto the Father always in my name, that your wives and your children may be blessed.  3 Nephi 8, paragraph 8

Jesus says unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes unto the Father but by me. John 9, paragraph 7

 Again from Black Elk's account:

“From above Wakan-Tanka has given to you this sacred pipe, so that through it you may have knowledge.”

From the scriptures:

He that will not believe my words will not believe me, that I am. And he that will not believe me will not believe the Father who sent me. For behold, I am the Father. I am the light, and the life, and the truth of the world. Come unto me, O ye gentiles, and I will shew unto you the greater things, the knowledge which is hid up because of unbelief. Come unto me, O ye house of Israel, and it shall be made manifest unto you how great things the Father hath laid up for you from the foundation of the world; and it hath not come unto you because of unbelief. Behold, when ye shall rend that veil of unbelief which doth cause you to remain in your awful state of wickedness, and hardness of heart, and blindness of mind, then shall the great and marvelous things which have been hid up from the foundation of the world from you — yea, when ye shall call upon the Father in my name with a broken heart and a contrite spirit — then shall ye know that the Father hath remembered the covenant which he made unto your fathers, O house of Israel. And then shall my revelations which I have caused to be written by my servant John be unfolded in the eyes of all the people. Remember, when ye see these things, ye shall know that the time is at hand that they shall be made manifest in very deed. Therefore, when ye shall receive this record, ye may know that the work of the Father has commenced upon all the face of the land. Therefore, repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me, and believe in my gospel, and be baptized in my name. For he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned. And signs shall follow them that believe in my name. And blessed is he that is found faithful unto my name at the last day, for he shall be lifted up to dwell in the kingdom prepared for him from the foundation of the world. And behold, it is I that hath spoken it. Amen.  Ether 1, paragraph 19

“The Peace Pipe is our only weapon. It’s our holy power. It’s God’s power. The Pipe mediates between man and God. To receive the Pipe, to receive God’s gift, you’ve got to be pure in your heart, mind, body, and soul…” Mathew King, Lakota, Wisdomkeepers, by Steve Wall and Harvey Arden p. 31

From the Scriptures:

For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who is desirous to have all men saved and come unto the knowledge of the truth which is in Christ Jesus, who is the only begotten Son of God and ordained to be a mediator between God and man, who is one God and has power over all men, who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time, for which I am ordained a preacher and an apostle — I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not — a teacher of the gentiles in faith and truth. 1 Timothy 1, paragraph 6

I know much is said about the symbolism of the actual parts of the pipe, and that these may differ from person to person, and tribe to tribe, I will simply explain possible symbolism that I see, so take that for the worth it has. Here again is the description of the parts as taken from what is quoted above from The Sacred Pipe.

“Holding the pipe up with its stem to the heavens, she said: ‘With this sacred pipe you will walk upon the Earth; for the Earth is your Grandmother and Mother, and She is sacred. Every step that is taken upon Her should be as a prayer. The bowl of this pipe is of red stone; it is the Earth. Carved in the stone and facing the center is this buffalo calf who represents all the four-leggeds who live upon your Mother. The stem of the pipe is of wood, and this represents all that grows upon the Earth. And these twelve feathers which hang here where the stem fits into the bowl are from Wanli Galeshka, the Spotted Eagle, and they represent the eagle and all the wingeds of the air.”

The red bowl of the pipe that is described here is formed from clay. It is the part that is held downwards, while the stem is held “to the heavens.”

From the scriptures:

For behold, the time cometh and is not far distant that with power the Lord Omnipotent who reigneth, who was and is from all eternity to all eternity, shall come down from Heaven among the children of men, and shall dwell in a tabernacle of clay, and shall go forth amongst men, working mighty miracles such as healing the sick, raising the dead, causing the lame to walk, the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear, and curing all manner of diseases. And he shall cast out devils, or the evil spirits which dwell in the hearts of the children of men. And lo, he shall suffer temptations and pain of body, hunger, thirst, and fatigue, even more than man can suffer except it be unto death. For behold, blood cometh from every pore, so great shall be his anguish for the wickedness and the abominations of his people. And he shall be called Jesus Christ, the Son of God the Father of Heaven and of earth, the creator of all things from the beginning; and his Mother shall be called Mary. And lo, he cometh unto his own, that salvation might come unto the children of men, even through faith on his name. And even after all this, they shall consider him as a man and say that he hath a devil, and shall scourge him, and shall crucify him. And he shall rise the third day from the dead.  Mosiah 1, paragraph 14

The comparison here, in case it is not obvious, is that the clay bowl is similar to the “tabernacle of clay” Christ would take by descending into this world and living in it with us. His descent is similar to the stem that points from heaven to the clay bowl, and conversely from the bowl back to heaven, like His rise from the dead and back to the throne of His Father.

Likewise the presence of feathers from the spotted eagle is significant to me.

A description of the meaning of a spotted eagle taken from the Footnotes of The Sacred Pipe:

Since Wanbli Galeshka (the Spotted Eagle) flies the highest of all created creatures and sees everything, he is regarded as Wakan-Tanka under certain aspects. He is a solar bird, His feathers being regarded as rays of the sun, and when one is carried or worn by the Indian it represents, or rather is, the “Real Presence.” In wearing the eagle-feathered “war-bonnet,” the wearer actually becomes the eagle, which is to say that he identifies himself, his real Self, with Wakan-Tanka. Footnote 9, page 6.

Similarly, the eagle across many First Nations is regarded as a messenger from God and/or intercessor for man before God. I have written about that in this post. Here is a sample of that idea from an Ojibwe author.

“Just before dawn of the fourth day, the Mi-gi-zi’ (eagle) flew out of the crack between darkness and light—that edge between night and day. He flew straight into the sky. He flew so high that he flew completely out of sight. He flew to talk with the Creator. The sun was about to come over the rim of the Earth. The eagle screamed four times to get the Creator’s attention. The Creator saw the eagle and held back the Sun. At the time of this be-da’-bun (“false dawn’) the eagle talked to the Creator. He said, ‘I know the earth is full of evil and corruption. I have seen all this. But also I have seen that there are yet a few people who have remained true to their instructions. I still see the smoke of Tobacco rise here and there from humble people who are still trying to live in harmony with the Universe. I plead on behalf of these few that you call off the destruction of the Earth….”
 “The Creator pondered what the eagle had to say. He then instructed the spiritual being in which he had left the destruction of the Earth to hold back his fury. He entrusted the eagle with the duty of reporting to him each day the condition of the Earth’s people. The miracle of the sunrise happened again for the Anishinabe.
 “We owe our lives and the lives of our children to the eagle. This is why the eagle is so respected by native and natural people everywhere. This is why Indian people make a whistle from the wing-bone of the eagle. They sound this whistle four times at the start of their ceremonies…” “They do this to remember our brother, the eagle, and the role he plays in the preservation of the earth.” The Mishomis Book, by Edward Benton-Banai, p.80-82

From the scriptures:

Listen to him who is the advocate with the Father, who is pleading your case before him, saying, Father, behold the sufferings and death of him who did no sin, in whom you were well pleased. Behold the blood of your Son which was shed, the blood of him whom you gave that you might be glorified. Wherefore, Father, spare these my brethren that believe on my name, that they may come unto me and have everlasting life.  T&C Section 31:1

There is so much here that correlates to the pipe. It leads me to contemplate the possibility that the pipe may always have been a symbol of Christ. I believe this throws light onto the role that White Buffalo Calf Woman represents, and what will follow in Part 2 may now be obvious to the reader, but I will continue that in the next post.