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BLACK HAWK
black Hawk
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Black
Hawk was a famous leader and warrior of the Sauk
American Indian Nation. Contrary to popular
belief, he was not a hereditary civil chief of
the Sauk, though he did inherit a sacred
medicine bundle. Rather, he was an appointed war
chief. During the War of 1812, Black Hawk fought
on the side of the British. Later he led a band
of Sauk and Fox warriors against settlers in
Illinois and present-day Wisconsin in the 1832
Black Hawk War. After the war, he was captured
and taken to the eastern United States, where he
and other British band leaders toured several
cities. Black Hawk died in 1838 in what is now
southeastern Iowa.
The
Spiritualist churches of New Orleans honor the
Native American spirit of Black Hawk. Black Hawk
is also considered a Voodoo saint, and is often
included in ritual work wherein worshipers
become possessed and gain the power to heal and
prophesy. He is served by many hoodoo
practitioners as well. |
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In the Native way, Black Hawk
is an elder. Elders are revered and given the
utmost respect. This is translated in hoodoo and
Spiritualism into Father Black Hawk, though his
given name in Mesquakie is Ka-Tai-Me-She-Kia-Kiak.
Few can pronounce his given name, so it is
hoodooized as Father Black Hawk. Black Hawk was
born into the Thunder clan, and sometimes he
wows his servitors by announcing his arrival
with a loud clap of thunder.
To set up a home altar to
Black Hawk, you need a bucket of sand and a
statue of an Indian warrior. Some people will
use a combination of seven different dirts taken
from seven different places of power. I have
dirt from the Rock River in Illinois where he
was born and where he fought in the Black Hawk
War. I added dirt from a crossroads, along with
graveyard dirt, mud dauber nest, and sand from
the Gulf Coast where I grew up. These dirts,
along with several others, make for a powerful
representation of Mother Earth. The number seven
in Native American cosmology represents the
seventh sacred direction of the medicine wheel,
which is the place where
the people, self, and all living things reside.
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you can have a variation on this theme, as I did
for my first altar. I had a small statuette of
him that stood in a Native American bowl full of
sand from the Gulf Coast.
It is usually a good idea to
burn sage, cedar, or sweet grass while
petitioning Black Hawk. Some people insist on
giving him whiskey to "fire him up," but I find
this to be an amplification of the Indian
stereotype that depicts the drunken Indian
juiced up on fire water. This is an image that
is offensive to Native peoples. He can be
equally fired up by offering him
lightning-struck wood (remember, he is of the
Thunder clan) or respectfully offering him
Indian tobacco, which is the tradition of his
people. To petition him, put on some traditional
Indian music or play a drum or flute. Offer him
some Indian tobacco and food. Then recite one of
the prayers to Black Hawk, followed by a
heartfelt prayer of your own. Then you can talk
to him and tell him what you need.
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PRAYER TO BLACK HAWK
Oh Great
Spirit, hear my voice, I believe in your
power and your ability to defend me.
In the name of
all that is good, I ask for your help with
this battle, my battle, with those who
intend to harm me.
Oh Powerful
Indian Spirit, you are the Great Chief and
you know my problems.
Help me with
your warrior medicine and guide me to safety
with your Divine protection.
Faithful
Indian Spirit, I humbly ask for your
protection.
With your
warrior shield, shield me from the attacks
of my enemies.
With your bow
and arrow, protect me from the evil
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thoughts and
actions hurled towards me.
With your
hatchet, cut the chains and ropes that bind
me.
With your
feathers, brush away the negative energy
surrounding me.
With your
eyes, see that no jealousy and envy
penetrates me.
With your
peace pipe, create harmony where there is
discord.
Black Hawk,
have my back and be a watchman on the wall.
See that no
evil befalls me.
Fight the
battle to destroy those who will harm me.
Take revenge
on my behalf and destroy the insurrection of
the wicked.
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Protect me
from all evil, danger, slander, and threat.
In peace and
protection walk before me.
In strength
and wisdom walk beside me.
In honor and
courage walk behind me.
In power and
resolve fly above me.
In truth and
beauty walk below me.
This prayer I
ask not just for myself but for all of my
relations past and present, and for those
yet to come,
Amen.
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