Charlevoix county herald. (East Jordan, Mich.) 189?-1953, 1919-08-01

Masks In the possession of Joseph
Bourke of Valdez, Alaska, carved from
single piece of wood, brightly col
ored, with long wooden tendrils pro-
truding from the top of the head like
a devil fish's arm, recall to those ia
miliar with the natives of Alaska their
age-old shamanism.
Shamanism, or superstition and sor-
Gerry, always has played an important
part In the life Of the Alaskan native.
So implicitly did these natives of
not many years ago believe in the
words and actions of the shaman that
whole tribe would go hungry rather
than incur his displeasure by eating
foods which he had tabOOed.
The shaman attained his position
and power by unusual methods. By
fasting and prayer amid the sOlitudes
of the woods or mountains, where he
fed only upon grasses and roots, he
prepared himself to become q shaman.
BY this method, 1t was conceded, the
candidates body became sufficiently
purified to become the abiding place
of the spirits, and all successful
shamans had to have numerous spirits
at their immediate command. Usually
the spirit willing to abide with the
shaman sent the novitiate land otter
which the candidate killed. The otter's
tongue he preserved as a talisman
away from all human view, for should
the talisman ever be seen, IL was be-
lieved the shaman would go insane or
be turned into the animal from which
the tongue was taken. The skin of
the otter was kept by the shaman as
sign of his profession.
Otter q Sacred Animal.
Thus II came about that the land
otter was regarded as too sacred an
animal to be killed by other than the
shamans, and neither Aleutlan natives
nor those Of the mainland would kill
the otter until long after the coming
of the Russians.
Sometimes 1t happened that the fast
ing and prayer in solitude did not
bring to the would-be shaman the
spirits craved. In this emergency he
betOok himself, still fasting. to the
grave of some deceased shaman and
passed a night with the corpse, taking
mouth. Upon the shaman's return tc
his tribe his skill was then tested by
shaman of known powers.
For each spirit which the shaman
could produce he had separate
wooden mask with features as hor.
rible as the tastes of the carver could
devise.
Healer and Prophet.
The shaman had many duties to per-
form. He was supposed to heal the
sick, to cast out the devils from the
frail bodies of his subjects, to fOretell
the future, and with the aid of his
spirits to enable one to avoid misfor
tune and disaster. The tricks of his |
trade, paraphernalia and charms gen.
orally descended from father to son
The shaman's hair was never cut, fol- |
to lose his locks would be to lose his |
powers. When he died he was not
cremated. After death his body was
allowed to remain In the spot where |
death came for "a hours, so that the
wandering spirit might find Its tene. |
ment of clay should II so desire. When
two suns had waned the body was
removed to another corner of the |
house, this procedure continuing until
the body had rested In every corner |
Meanwhile the inmates of the house |
tasted.
At last, dressed In full regalia, the |
body was dashed to a board. One of
the two bone sticks used by every well. |
accoutered shaman was placed
through the hair and the other throuAl
the orifice cut In the nose. The head
was covered with basket woven of
small twigs and grass, and at night
the body was carried secretly to some
remote cavern or crevice. Thereafter |
the members Of the tribe never entered
this burial place, for II was supposed
to be filed with evil spirits.
Mr.. Bourke's collection of native
masks, weapons and utensils is said
to be one Of the finest In Alaska.