As part of the Native American Initiative within the Outer Planets/Solar Probe Project's
educational outreach program at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and with NASA's
Sun-Earth Connection Education Forum, Chief Joseph Chasing Horse is participating as a
Lakota representative, placing traditional star knowledge side by side with NASA knowledge
of space science and astronomy. The initial instruction involves an exchange of stories,
listening first to Joseph's telling of a Lakota star knowledge story followed by a
NASA scientist relating astronomy and space science knowledge.
By comparing the two sources of knowledge, we find some elements in common: designated
skywatchers (star-gazers or astronomers), detailed long-term observation of astronomical
events, construction of observatories, the naming of constellations through the
projecting of a correspondence between events in the sky and events on the Earth
(as above, so below).
We also find differences: Lakota astronomy and spiritual experience are
inseparable; within Western astronomy, spiritual awe may be acknowledged, but it
is separated out from the scientific process of obtaining data and developing
verifiable cause and effect explanations.
We also find interesting coincidences: a Lakota story referring to an event or object
in the sky may bear a remarkable resemblance to a scientific explanation. The scientific
theory, based on observation and a scientific method, may seem to confirm the mythopoetic
insight, that is based on observation and an intuitive mysticism. This raises interesting
questions for classroom discussion: Does the science confirm the insight? Does the insight
anticipate the science? Do we in fact carry both domains simultaneously in our thinking
about things? Out of this comparative work will emerge curriculum materials that
serve as a bridge of intercultural communication. Mainstream American schoolchildren
may find a new way to learn more about Native American cultures and in the process
be drawn to take a new look at the night sky. Consequently, the space science knowledge
will be made more available and accessible to educational institutions that serve
Lakota and other Native American youth.
"He is seated cross-legged upon a buffalo robe, the aroma of burning sweetgrass filling the room.
Behind him is a backdrop of the night sky filled with stars. His voice evokes the image of the
Lakota people moving with the seasonal migration of the buffalo, people of the Sun,
in a great circle centered at the Black Hills of South Dakota. The skies above mirror
what is below, in constellations that hold the history and the knowledge of the people
in their shining shapes. The buffalo no longer roam freely. "We once hunted for buffalo,
we now hunt for knowledge. Come into my classroom," he invites us, "Leave your square buildings,
and come walk with to the sacred mountain. Come sit with me within the Tee-chee-ka, where we
touch the ground and look out to the stars. Come learn through the Circle of Light
Where the Four Winds Meet...."
2. Using Shadows to Mark the Seasons:
"The Lakota were nomadic and didn't always camp at the same spots. The angle of
direction and length of the sun's noon shadow can be determined, and provides a simple
way to identify these 4 key days that mark the earth's seasons. There are painted hides
usually identified in museums as "star maps" or "feather circles". These resemble elaborate
compass roses used by mariners, and would be handy and portable for making solar shadow
time measurements, if a stick with a plumb-bob (an arrowhead, say) were placed upright
in the center of the pattern."
For more information go to:
http://www.kstrom.net/isk/stars/starkno3.html
3. The Lakota Symbol for Sun-Earth Connection
The inverted triangle on top symbolizes the stars and/or the Sun. The triangle on the
bottom symbolizes earth sites. The Lakota strongly believe that there is a powerful
connection between the Sun and the Earth. Much of their culture has been directly influenced
and shaped by centuries of solar observation.
In the book, "Lakota Star Knowledge" by Ronald Goodman, you can learn why the Lakota consider
the buffalo to be the embodiment of solar power and how the tipi symbolizes living inside
the sun.
4. Following the Path of the Sun
As the Sun travels along and annual path though specific constellations in the sky,
its location alerts the Lakota to perform particular ceremonies and when to travel
to specific sites found in the Black Hills of South Dakota. For instance, during the spring
equinox when the Sun is in the "Dried Red Willow" constellation (The Big Dipper),
the Lakota know it is time to travel to Harney Peak. It is at Harney Peak, found in the
center of the Black Hills, that they hike to the top, conduct a pipe ceremony and 'welcome
back the thunders'. This ceremony symbolically begins the season of renewal.
5. Buffalo: The Embodiment of Solar Power
The Lakota believed the buffalo to be "the embodiment of solar power". This belief is
in part due to the fact that the buffalo's migratory pattern around the
Black Hills, followed by the Lakota, coincided with sacred sites where traditional
Lakota Sun-related ceremonies were held each year. Each of those sites correlated
with a specific constellation in the Sun's path thus fulfilling one of the Lakota's strongest
beliefs that "what is above is also below". Eating buffalo meet was therefore consider
to be eating energy from the Sun.
6. A Traditional Type of Sundial
During a traditional 4-day Lakota dance called, "The Sun Dance", correctly translated to
mean, "Dancing in the Circle of Light", a large tree is placed in the center of a circular
arbor. The Lakota call this tree, "The Tree of Life". The arbor surrounding the tree
is comprised of 28 tree poles perfectly aligned with the rising sun in the east. As
the Sun makes is journey through the day-time sky, the shadows cast by 28 poles alert
participants when to perform specific portions of the "Sun Dance" ceremony.
