Over 2,000 articles about native americans of the US and Canada First Nations.
Submit your own articles about american indians without knowing any HTML here
Are you ready?
| Privacy Policy |
Any information collected on our site is used for internal purposes only and will not be shared or sold to third parties! |
|
| Your transactions in our store are secure |
 |
|
|  |
| Dances->Ceremonial: Cherokee Legend of the Butterfly Dance |
Posted on Friday, September 21 @ 03:12:16 PDT | |
Some say the modern day Pow Wow competition dance known as the Ladies Fancy Shawl Dance has its roots in a ceremonial dance called the Butterfly Dance. Here is a Cherokee account of how that dance came to be.
© 2000 Courtesy of L. David Eveningthunder
Visit Artists and Artisans to learn more about David and other outstanding artists. David's work is currently being offered at ArtNatAm.
I've been told the Shoshone have a similar story but I heard this version from Cherokee dancers in North Carolina. These dancers told me the Ladies Fancy Shawl Dance is a representation of the following Butterfly Legend:
Many, many years ago when the Earth was still quite new, there was a beautiful butterfly who lost her mate in battle. To show her grief, she took off her beautiful wings and wrapped herself in a drab cocoon. In her sadness, she could not eat and she could not sleep and her relatives kept coming to her lodge to see if she was okay.
Of course she wasn't, but she didn't want to be a burden on her people so she packed up her wings and her medicine bundle and took off on a long journey. She wandered about for many days and months, until finally she had gone all around the world. (To this day, butterflies go on long journeys, but that is another story.)
On her journey she kept her eyes downcast and stepped on each stone she came to as she crossed fields and creeks and streams. Finally, one day as she was looking down, she happened to notice the stone beneath her feet, and it was so beautiful that it healed her sorrow.
She then cast aside her cocoon, shook the dust from her wings, and donned them once more. She was so happy she began to dance to give thanks for another chance to begin her life anew. Then she went home and told The People about her long journey and how it had healed her.
To this day,The People dance this dance as an expression of renewal, and to give thanks for new seasons, new life, and new beginnings.
The shawl in the Fancy Shawl Dance represents the butterfly's wings, the fancy steps and twirls represent the butterfly's style of flight. This is another reason you will sometimes hear the Fancy Shawl Competition Dance referred to as " the butterfly dance."
RELATED STORIES:
Crow Explanation of How the Ladies Fancy Shawl Dance Came to Be
Dance Regalia of the Fancy Shawl Dancer
How the Fancy Shawl Dance Competition is Judged
|
|
|
|
|
| |
New Navigation
(New Site Design in Progress) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| | |
|
| | |
US Tribes |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| | |
Canadian First Nations |
|
| | |
Shopping |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| | |
|
| | |
| Article Rating |
Average Score: 4.3
Votes: 30
|
|
|
Site Sections
You are an Anonymous user. Anonymous users are not allowed to post stories or leave comments. You can 
Stumble It!
