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6
Basket-Drum Ceremonies
PREPARATIONS AND AIM
Songs are chanted to the accompaniment of a
basket-drum from the fifth through the eighth evenings of the Coyoteway ceremonial.
As before, most of these songs refer to the performance of the first Coyoteway
ceremonial and to the archetypal Coyote People. Coyote has been the first
sufferer, the first who was healed by Coyoteway, and also the first to teach
his healing procedures to human apprentices. Health, well being, and general
blessings emanate therefore from the Coyote People whose presence in the
surface world is realized by singing their own archaic and proven songs.
The basket-drum songs on
the fifth evening actually begin a new type of ceremony that in each instance
climaxes on the next morning in the appearance of a masked yé'ii-impersonator.
For three days in a row a blue-masked god from the underworld visits the
patient. On the last day, as many as three yé'ii-impersonators appear in
answer to the previous night's basket-drum songs.
Two large leaves of a yucca
plant are knitted together into a drumstick with slices of yucca leaves.
Kernels of maize are wrapped into the drumstick—one for each participating
member. Before him the practitioner sprinkles a leveled spot with cornmeal.
Then, at that same place a moistened wedding basket is placed upside down on
one side of a blanket. The remaining portion of the blanket is folded over the
basket; the basket-drum is ready for use.
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The participants sit in a
circle around the singer. The patient sits at his regular place north of the
practitioner. While the helpers sing along and take turns among each other with
the rattle, the practitioner beats the drum and leads in the singing. After the
first song the patient goes briefly outside; he reenters to sit somewhere along
the south side of the hogan. This is done to separate him from the old place
with which his illness has become associated. Moreover, the group of people,
chanting blessing songs, form a human shield charged with divine song power to
protect the patient from his former troubles.
FIFTH EVENING
The following basket-drum songs are chanted
in unison on the fifth evening of the Coyoteway ceremonial;
71. Song, Fifth Evening
This is
the Fur, this is the Fur.
On the Tips of the Fur is the White Water.
On the Tips of the Fur is the White Medicine....
This song is the same as Song 10.)

Two
large leaves of a yucca plant are knitted together
into a drumstick with slices of yucca leaves.
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While
the helpers sing along and take turns among each other with the rattle,
the practitioner beats the drum and leads in the singing.

…the
group of people, chanting blessing songs, form a human shield charged
with divine song power to protect the patient from his former troubles.
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100
72. Song, Fifth Evening, similar
to Song 25
This is the Hogan, this is the Hogan,
This is the Hogan, this is the Hogan.
This is the Hogan given to
me.
This is the White Clay Hogan.
This is the Hogan in the
White Fur.
This is the Hogan that is
immune.
This is the Hogan given to
me.
This is the Hogan, this is the Hogan,
This is the Hogan, this is the Hogan.
This is the Hogan built of
Logs.
This is the Hogan in the
Mountains
This is the Hogan in the Blue
Fur.
This is the Hogan that is immune.
This is the Hogan built of
Logs.
This is the Hogan, this is the Hogan,
This is the Hogan, this is the Hogan.
This is the Hogan behind the
Hill.
This is the Hogan of the
Abalone Shell Lady.
This is the Hogan in the
Yellow Fur.
This is the Hogan that is
immune.
This is the Hogan behind the
Hill.
This is the Hogan, this is the Hogan,
This is the Hogan, this is the Hogan.
This is the Hogan on top of
the Mountain.
This is the Brown Hogan on
the Mountain.
This is the Hogan in the
Black Fur.
This is the Hogan that is immune.
This is the Hogan on top of
the Mountain.
This is the Hogan, this is the Hogan,
This is the Hogan, this is the Hogan.
With these he is made well again, with these
he is made well again,
With these he is made well again, with
these he is made well again.
Song 72 is a reduced
version of Song 25. It is reduced to four stanzas to accommodate the four
directional colors—white (east), blue (south), yellow (west), black (north).
Song 72 is repeated three times with sequential variations—south, west, north,
east; west, north, east, south; and north, east, south, west.
73. Song, Fifth Evening
With
their Blood in me I am immune,
With their Blood in me I am
immune,
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With their blood in me I am immune,
With their Blood in me I am immune.
With the Wind People's Blood
in me,
With the Cornripener Beetle's
Blood in me,
With the White Medicine's
Blood in me,
With the Cornripener Sons'
Blood in me,
With their Blood in me I am immune.
With the Blue Sky in me,
With the Sons of Blue Sky in
me,
With the White Medicine in
me,
With their Blood in me I am immune.
With the Yellow Medicine in
me,
With the White Medicine in
me,
With their Blood in me I am immune,
With their Blood in me I am immune,
With their Blood in me I am immune,
With their Blood in me I am immune.
74. Song, Fifth Evening
Down the Mountain, they roll it over
him.
Down the Mountain, they roll it over
him.
Down the Mountain, they roll it over
him.
Down the Mountain, they roll it over
him.
The Rock of Black Cloud's
Sons, they roll it over him.
The Rock of White Medicine,
they roll it over him.
I am immune, they roll it
over him.
It is their Rock, they roll
it over him.
The Blue Lizards' Rock, they
roll it over him.
At the Place of Yellow
Evening, they roll it over him.
The White Medicine's Rock,
they roll it over him.
I am immune, they roll it
over him.
Down the Mountain, they roll it over
him.
Down the Mountain, they roll it over
him.
Down the Mountain, they roll it over
him.
Down the Mountain, they roll it over
him.
Song 74 refers to the
episode mentioned in the myth by tséyi'nii (Chapter 10); Coyote came to
a place where lizards were sliding down on rocks. He wanted to slide down with
them, but a rock fell on him and smashed him. The song implies that the lizards
rolled a rock over him. According to the myth. Coyote survived and recovered;
this is the important point for the present healing effort. Together with
Coyote, even with rocks crashing on him, the patient is considered immune.
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The next two songs elaborate on the Coyote mysticism according to which
the patient and the tenacious Coyote are one.
75. Song, Fifth Evening
He has come back and I am walking,, as I am walking
with him,
With his Body I am walking, as I am walking with him.
On the Path I am walking, as I am walking with him.
With his Body I am walking, as I am walking with him.
My Body is immune as I am walking, as I am walking
with him.
With the Fur I am walking, as I am walking with him.
My Body is immune as I am walking, as I am walking
with him.
In the Woods I am walking, as I am walking with him.
My Body is immune as I am walking, as I am walking
with him.
With the Black Fur I am walking, as I am walking with
him.
My Body is immune as I am walking, as I am walking
with him.
On the Path to Water I am walking, as I am walking
with him.
My Body is immune as I am walking, as I am walking
with him.
I am not ashamed as I am walking, as I am walking
with him.
My Body is immune as I am walking, as I am walking
with him.
I am not ashamed as I am walking, as I am walking
with him.
76. Song, Fifth Evening
I am
not ashamed as I am walking, as I am walking with him.
I am
not ashamed as I am walking, as I am walking with him.
I am not ashamed as I am walking, as I am
walking with him.
I am not ashamed as I am walking,
as I am walking with him.
In the White Fur I am walking, as I am walking with
him.
The Path behind the Hill I am walking, as I am
walking with him.
My Body
is immune as I am walking, as I am walking with him.
On the Path to Water I am walking, as I am walking
with him.
With the Medicine I am walking, as I am walking with
him.
My Body
is immune as I am walking, as I am walking with him.
In the Blue Fur I am walking, as I am walking with
him.
With the White Corn I am walking, as I am walking
with him.
My Body is immune as I am walking, as I
am walking with him,...
(continued as in first stanza)
In the Yellow Fur I am walking, as I am walking with
him.
The Path behind the Hill I am walking, as I am
walking with him.
My Body
is immune as I am walking, as I am walking with him.
(continued as in first stanza)
In the Black Fur I am walking, as I am walking with him.
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With the White Corn I am walking, as I am walking
with him.
My Body is immune as I am
walking, as I am walking with him....
(continued as in first stanza)
/ am not ashamed as I am walking, as
I am walking with him.
I am not ashamed as I am walking, as I
am walking with him.
I am not ashamed as I am walking, as I
am walking with him.
I am not ashamed as I am walking, as I
am walking with him.
77. Song, Fifth Evening
Hogan below from where he emerges,
Hogan
below from where he comes out in a circle,
Hogan
below from where he comes out in a circle.
Long Hogan from where he emerges.
Hogan made of White Fur, made in a circle.
Under the Rocks from where he emerges.
My Body is made immune, made in a circle.
Hogan
below from where he comes out in a circle,
Hogan below from where he comes
out in a circle.
Long Hogan from where he
emerges.
Hogan made of Blue Fur, made
in a circle.
(Continued as in first
stanza. Third and fourth stanzas are sung with
Yellow Fur and Black Fur
respectively.)
Song 77 presents an interesting, and
very logical, mixture of Pueblo Indian emergence mythology and Apachean hunter
wit. The hole of emergence is here a foxhole (foxes are coyotes) under a rock.
The underworld hogan of Coyote is recognized as a long underground burrow,
extending in a circle.
78. Song, Fifth Evening
The Adulterous Coyote, he walks underground.
The Song
he sings does not affect me, he walks underground.
In the White Fur, he walks underground.
A Song he sings, as he walks underground.
The Song
he sings does not affect me, he walks underground.
He does not see me, as he walks underground.
He sings under a Spruce Tree, as he walks
underground.
The Song
he sings does not affect me, he walks underground.
The Sunset Twilight Boy, he walks underground.
The Song
he sings does not affect me, he walks underground.
He sings under a Spruce Tree, as he walks
underground.
The Song
he sings does not affect me, he walks underground.
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79.
Song, Fifth Evening
The Adulterous Coyote, he
calk everywhere, underground.
A Song he sings, he calls
everywhere, underground.
The Song he sings does not
affect me, he calk everywhere, underground.
The One Running Along the
Path, under the Spruce Tree, he calk everywhere, underground.
The Song he sings does not
affect me, he calk everywhere, underground.
The One Running Along the
Path, under the Spruce Tree, he calk everywhere, underground.
The Song he sings does not
affect me, he calk everywhere, underground.
The One Running Along the Path, on the Rock, he calls
everywhere, underground.
80. Song, Fifth Evening
He makes the Medicine, he makes the
Medicine,
He makes the Medicine, he makes the
Medicine,
He makes the Medicine, he makes the
Medicine,
He makes the Medicine, he makes the
Medicine.
The Adulterous Coyote, he
makes the Medicine.
Below the Cliffs, he makes
the Medicine.
The White Fur, he makes the
Medicine.
The Holy Medicine, he makes the Medicine.
The Making of the Medicine,
he makes the Medicine.
Out among the Hills, he makes the Medicine.
The Holy Medicine, he makes the Medicine.
The Crystal Medicine, he makes the Medicine.
The Holy Medicine, he makes the Medicine.
The Making of the Medicine, he makes the
Medicine.
81. Song, Fifth Evening
I put it
in your mouth, I put it in your mouth,
I put it
in your mouth, I put it in your mouth.
The Black Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
The Invisible Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
The White Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
The Holy Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
The Invisible Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
_________________________
(1) Literally "he does
everything"—explained by the singer as "he calls everywhere."
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The White Corn, I put it in your mouth.
The Yellow Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
The Holy Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
The Invisible Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
The Evening Yellow, I put it in your mouth.
The Blue Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
The Holy Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
The Invisible Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
The Crystal Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
The Holy Medicine, I put it in your mouth.
The Medicine is holy to him.
I put it in your mouth, I put it in your
mouth,
I put it in your mouth, I put it in your
mouth.
82. Song, Fifth Evening
I put it in your mouth, he is eating it;
for its miraculous power, he is eating
it,
for its miraculous power, he is eating
it.
The White Medicine, he is
eating it.
The Holy Medicine, he is
eating it.
Here the Medicine, he is
eating it.
The Holy Medicine, he is
eating it.
Here the Medicine, he is
eating it.
For its miraculous power, he
is eating it.
The Crystal Medicine, he is
eating it.
The Holy Medicine, he is
eating it.
Here the Medicine, he is
eating it.
I put it in your mouth, he is eating it:
for its miraculous power, he is eating
it,
for its miraculous power, he is eating
it.
83. Song, Fifth Evening
The
Hawks are going in pairs, the Hawks are going in pairs,
The Hawks are going in pairs, the
Hawks are going in pairs.
Out on the Plains they are
going in pairs.
On a Path behind the Ridge
they are going in pairs.
(To their feathery arrows) I am immune.
(This stanza is sung four times.)
84. Song, Fifth Evening
The Pairs keep going behind ridges,
The Pairs keep going behind ridges,
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The Pairs keep going behind ridges,
The Pairs keep going behind ridges.
White Coyote Pairs keep going
behind ridges.
Black Coyote Pairs keep going
behind ridges.
The White Medicine, they are
eating it.
The Black Medicine, they are
eating it.
I am immune.
The Pairs keep going behind ridges,
The Pairs keep going behind ridges,
The Pairs keep going behind ridges,
The Pairs keep going behind ridges.
Yellow Coyote Pairs keep
going behind ridges.
Blue Coyote Pairs keep going
behind ridges.
The Yellow Medicine, they are
eating it.
The Blue Medicine, they are
eating it.
I
am immune.
The Pairs keep going behind ridges,
The Pairs keep going behind ridges,
The Pairs keep going behind ridges,
The Pairs keep going behind ridges.
85. Song, Fifth Evening
He carried it away, far away, he carried
it away.
He carried it away, far away, he carried
it away.
Beneath the Two Rising, he
carried it away.
The White Prayerstick in his
hand, he (White Coyote) carried it away.
With Happiness before him, he
carried it away.
With Happiness behind him, he carried it away.
He carried it away, far away, he carried
it away.
He carried it away, far away, he carried
it away.
Beneath the Two Above, he
carried it away.
The Blue Prayerstick in his
hand, he (Blue Coyote) carried it away.
With Happiness behind him, he
carried it away.
With Happiness before him, he carried it away.
He carried it away, far away, he carried
it away.
He carried it away, far away, he carried
it away.
Beneath the Two Setting, he
carried it away.
The Yellow Prayerstick in his hand,
he (Yellow Coyote) carried it away....
(continued as in first stanza)
He carried it away, far away, he carried
it away.
He carried it away, far away, he carried
it away.
Beneath Where the Stars Turn,
he carried it away.
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The Black Prayerstick in his hand,
he (Black Coyote) carried it away....
(continued as in second stanza)
He carried it away, far away, he carried
it away.
He carried it away, far away, he carried
it away.
SIXTH EVENING
The following basket-drum songs are
chanted in unison on the sixth evening of the Coyoteway ceremonial:
89. Song, Sixth Evening
To the Hogan I came, to the Hogan I
came,
To the Hogan I came, to the Hogan I
came.
Beneath the Two Rising, to
the Hogan I came.
To the Hogan of White Coyote,
to the Hogan I came.
Round Corn across the Door,
to the Hogan I came.
On the Pollen-path I came, to
the Hogan I came.
Sunshine over the Door, to
the Hogan I came.
To the Holy Hogan, to the Hogan I came.
To the Hogan I came, to the Hogan I
came,
To the Hogan I came, to the Hogan I
came.
Beneath the Two Above, to the
Hogan 1 came.