DINJ NANITIN
DINJ NANITIN
Navajo Traditional Teachings and History
Robert S. McPherson
UNIVERSITY PRESS OF COLORADO
Boulder
2012 University Press of Colorado
Published by the University Press of Colorado
5589 Arapahoe Avenue, Suite 206C
Boulder, Colorado 80303
The University Press of Colorado is a proud member of
The Association of American University Presses.
The University Press of Colorado is a cooperative publishing enterprise supported, in part, by Adams State University, Colorado State University, Fort Lewis College, Metropolitan State University of Denver, Regis University, University of Colorado, University of Northern Colorado, Utah State University, and Western State Colorado University.
All rights reserved
Manufactured in the United States of America
Cover design by Charles Yanito (artist)
ISBN: 978-1-60732-216-0 (paper)
ISBN: 978-1-60732-217-7 (e-book)
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
McPherson, Robert S., 1947
Dinj Nanitin : Navajo traditional teachings and history / Robert S. McPherson.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-60732-216-0 (hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN 978-1-60732-217-7 (ebook)
1. Navajo IndiansHistory. 2. Navajo philosophy. 3. Navajo IndiansSocial life and cus
toms. I. Title.
E99.N3M33 2012
979.10049726dc23
2012035285
To those elders who cared to share
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
No book is written in a vacuum, and this one is no exceptionespecially when one considers the large number of Navajo elders who have contributed their understanding to it. I have tried to listen carefully to their thoughts and express them in such a way that future generations can benefit from their knowledge. Their consistent concern that cultural beliefs be passed on has been the motivation for this work.
Along the way, I have been assisted by good friends whose influence should be recognized. Of the younger set there is Marilyn Holiday, Baxter Benally, Karen Toledo, Carla Phillips, Don Mose, Clayton Long, and John Fahey. Each of them has helped identify people, places, and ideas that are part of the story that unfolds here. Those who are older include John Holiday, Jim Dandy, and Harry Walters, all of whom are steeped in traditional lore and understanding. Both young and old have shared valuable insight on Navajo traditional teaching and history. In their company, I am comfortable that what is found between the covers of this book is both sensitive to cultural concerns and accurate in their portrayal. If there are errors of fact or interpretation, I accept full responsibility.
Two organizations deserve special recognition. The first is the Utah Humanities Council, whose unflinching support of examining diversity and providing financial assistance for projects over the years has made much of my work possible. I have never worked with a finer organization that knows how to get things done while thriftily providing necessary resources. The second, the Utah Historical Society, has published some of these chapters while encouraging research and opportunities for public presentation. It has also provided photographs of important people and places. I am grateful for the many good friends I have in this organization and the assistance they have provided. Others who have helped in various aspects of this work are the San Juan County Historical Commission, the Navajo Nation Museum, photographer Kay Shumway, acquisitions editor Michael Spooner, and the staff at the University Press of Colorado.
Finally, I wish to express my appreciation to family members who have provided release time to allow me to work on this project. Foremost is my wife, Betsy, who encourages and supports my traveling and writing at the expense of vacation time and Saturday afternoons. I hope this work brings as much pleasure to her and our children as it does to the people for whom it is written.
DINJ NANITIN
Introduction
Entering the Tchh
As I completed this manuscript in mid-July 2011, two seemingly unrelated items to most people came to my attention. The first was the containment of Arizonas largest fire in the history of the state, recently burning in the White Mountains of the Bear Wallow Wilderness. The blaze eventually dipped into part of western New Mexicoscorching over 538,000 acres total, destroying seventy-two buildings, and at one point causing the evacuation of 10,000 people. Started on May 29 by an abandoned campfire, the conflagration eventually required 1,700 firefighters to suppress the blaze, burning 841 square miles of rugged territory, primarily in eastern Arizona. By July 3, 95 percent of the fire was contained, with mop-up crews extinguishing remnants in isolated pockets. A related concern was the damage summer rains could bring as they washed over the charred areas.
The second occurrence was not nearly so dramatic. I received a copy of Bitter Water:Din Oral Histories of the Navajo-Hopi Land Dispute compiled by Malcolm D. Benally.the entire issue boiled down to Washingtons insensitivity to traditional Navajo practices. The voices of four angry elders rang loud and clear.
In both the instance of the wildfire and the relocation, something more caught my attention. It was not the events but their interpretation. Looking first at the fire, one finds that although the flames never touched the Navajo Reservation, the Navajo Times featured its spread and eventual control on the front page for three weeks running. Of particular interest was the June 23 issue with its banner headline Unnatural DisasterDisasters Signal Imbalance in the Natural World. The two previous issues (June 9 and 16) discussed primarily the fires physical spread, where crews were operating, and the logistical support necessary to contain it. A short section in the second issue entitled Praying for Dzi Ligai [White Mountain] told how Apache prayers for their sacred mountain tempered the destruction and kept the fire away from important cultural sites.
In Unnatural Disaster, it was the Navajos turn to interpret the event. As the tribal newspaper, it not surprisingly expressed views far different than those filed by other press agencies. The thoughts of traditional medicine people opened the article, which then focused on the comments of a traditional Navajo practitioner and faculty member at Din College, Avery Denny. The article warned that Mother Nature was upset, and this was her way of making necessary corrections. Here, Mother Nature was not figurative but literal. Denny stated that the exploitation of resources and contemporary Navajo lifestyles were angering the orb and that the four sacred elements of fire, air, water, and earth controlled by holy people (Diyin Dine) were providing this and other lessons. Fires, tornados, tsunamis, earthquakes, droughts, blizzards, extreme temperaturesthe list goes onwere physical manifestations of the spiritual sickness now pervading the earth and plaguing its people.
Avery commented, As humans, we do not look at what we are doing to the natural world. We share this world with other beings, specifying plants and animals that were the first holy beings to live on the earth. To readers unfamiliar with traditional Navajo beliefs, the connection with fires, tornados, holy people, massaging mountains, existent and nonexistent ceremonies leaves one wondering. Further, what does this have to do with how children act?
