Elaborate Festivals
Some of the elaborate festivals involve nine days’ active work, others five. In years when the New-fire ceremony is brief, other nine-day ceremonies are abbreviated to five, and five-day ceremonies are shortened to one. A list of the festivals of the latter class is given below, under Abbreviated Festivals.
Among the elaborate festivals with a nine-day duration may be mentioned the following:
|
Naacnaiya. |
Leleñti (Leñpaki). |
With the exception of Powamû and Niman the above festivals have two additional ceremonial days called the smoke talk and the public announcement days. The ceremonial days of these elaborate festivals are called:
|
First day: Tcotcoyuñya. |
Fourteenth day: Yuñya. |
The days between the announcement (second day) and Yuñya (tenth day) are generally seven in number, but may be less. The nine active days begin on the first Yuñya and end on Tihüni, the public dance day, which is followed by three or four days of purification. Practically each of these ceremonies takes twenty days from the smoke talk (Tcotcoyuñya) to the final day of purification.
Abbreviated Festivals
Among five-day ceremonies which are believed to be contracted forms of the first group, may be mentioned:
|
Wüwütcimti. |
Palülükoñti, or Añkwañti. |
The one-day ceremonies, which may be extended over five days in special years, are as follow:
|
Winter Flute prayer-stick-making. |
Winter Marau prayer-stick-making. |
- ↑ Literally, snake (tcüa) going down (pakit), referring to entering the kiva.
