Lame Deer, John

Lame Deer, John
(Fire)
(1900 or 1903–1976)
   Oglala Lakota wichasha wakan, holy man or medicine man, who also earned a living as, among other things, a rancher, rodeo rider, and reservation police officer. Lame Deer initiated the collaboration with Richard Erdoes that resulted in their coauthoring of Lame Deer, Seeker of Visions (1972). For Erdoes, the project was evidently initiatory as he went on to coauthor a number of significant biographies and other works with Native American authors in a similar conversational style. In the book, Lame Deer describes his life and that of his people and explains Lakota ceremonies and practices—not only “traditional” ones such as vision quests, the sun dance, and healing rituals but also recent indigenous developments such as the Native American Church rooted in ritual ingestion of peyote. He says of the wichasha waken that “such a one can cure, prophesy, talk to the herbs, command the stones, conduct the sun dance or even change the weather, but all this is of no great importance to him. These are merely stages he has passed through. . . . He has the wakanya wowanyanke—the great vision.” Going on to talk about the importance of listening rather than preaching, Lame Deer stresses the vital importance of following one’s (initiatory) vision that establishes one’s particular way of relating to the powerful other-than-human persons of the world. He also talks about the vital importance of places, especially the Black Hills, and how their sacrality continues to lead to various forms of protest about dominant American abuse of the land, its waters, minerals, and life. This should not be mistaken for an environmentalist message, however, because it is about the place of humanity in the community of life.
   Lame Deer’s shamanism is an aspect of a broader animism. His motivations for recording his life story and knowledge are both to guarantee the continuity among his people and other Native nations of the practices he discusses and to “save the white man from himself” by pointing out the folly of an obsession with gold or money. This book and websites about Lame Deer regularly refer to the humor with which he presented himself and his interests, and even desperately serious concerns. Lame Deer’s son, Archie Fire Lame Deer, followed his father as a respected holy man and passed the tradition on through his family.

Historical dictionary of shamanism. . 2007.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Lame Deer — This entry is about the Lakota holy man; for the town, see Lame Deer, Montana. Lame Deer, (in Lakota Tahca Ushte ; [ Táhca Hušte , pronounced / tá hhca hušte /. See Lakota language.] [cite book| last = Buechel| first = Eugene| coauthors = Paul… …   Wikipedia

  • Archie Fire Lame Deer — (* 1935 in South Dakota, USA; † 16. Januar 2001) war Medizinmann der Lakota Indianer und Aktivist für die indianische Kultur in den Vereinigten Staaten. Leben Er wuchs bei seinem Großvater Quick Bear auf, einem traditionellen Heiler; ab 1947… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • John savage (acteur) — Pour les articles homonymes, voir John Savage. John Savage John Savage est un acteur et producteur américain, né le 25 août …   Wikipédia en Français

  • John Savage (acteur) — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Savage et John Savage. John Savage …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Bibliography —    As the scope of the dictionary entries and extent of this bibliography make clear, there is a huge range of literature on shamans, from introductory works, general discussions on such topics as definition, and culture specific ethnographic… …   Historical dictionary of shamanism

  • Mount Rushmore — For the 1960s rock band, see Mount Rushmore (band). Mount Rushmore National Memorial IUCN Category V (Protected Landscape/Seascape) …   Wikipedia

  • Crazy Horse Memorial — Artist Korczak Ziolkowski Location Custer County, South Dakota, United States …   Wikipedia

  • Heyoka — The word Heyoka refers to the Lakota concept of a contrarian, jester, satirist or sacred clown.Heyoka are thought of as being backwards forwards, upside down, or contrary in nature. This spirit is often manifest by doing things backwards or… …   Wikipedia

  • Crazy Horse Memorial — Entrée vers le Crazy Horse Memorial. Le Crazy Horse Memorial est un monument sculpté dans la montagne d après le projet de Korczak Ziółkowski et situé dans les Black Hills, dans le Dakota du Sud aux …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Erdoes, Richard —    American coauthor of a number of biographies (or partial autobiographies) of significant Native Americans, including John Lame Deer and Leonard Crow Dog, along with a number of other relevant books such as his collection of “trickster tales.”… …   Historical dictionary of shamanism

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”