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About Father Black Hawk
If you want to know Father Black Hawk, listen to his words. He has given us pages about his life experiences and feelings in his autobiography, first published in 1834 and edited by J.B. Patterson. Although some liberties were taken by the editor in the translation, Black Hawk tells us what he likes and what he dislikes, how he feels about his people and about his adversaries. He talks about family, about being a father, about life as a warrior, how he feels about alcohol and what it is like to be betrayed and oppressed. There is little guesswork to working with him if we just listen. I strongly recommend anyone who wants to get to know Black Hawk to read his autobiography, as well as “Life,” by Benjamin Drake, also Drake's “Indian Biography,” and “Life of Black Hawk,” by W. J. Snelling.
Black Hawk is growing in popularity within the growing conjure community online. The idea of keeping an Indian bust in a bucket is a novel one, but as you read Conjuring Black Hawk, the complexity of his life and the conditions in which he lived and died are anything but novel. |
Who He Was
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His Indian name is Ma-ka-tai-me-she-kia-kiak, or Black Sparrow Hawk, and he was born in 1767 at Saukenuk, the principle city of the Sauk tribe located along the Rock River. Black Hawk was born into the Thunder clan. He chose to have only one wife, As-she-we-qua, or Singing Bird, although in Sauk culture polygamy was the norm. Black Hawk and Singing Bird had five children—two girls and three boys.
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A Spiritualist Saint
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According to Spiritualists, Black Hawk is a saint sent by God. It is said that when Black Hawk comes to help, God is right behind him. Anyone who is recognized as doing the work of the Creator is considered a saint, whether or not they have been officially canonized by the Catholic Church. To spiritualists, Black Hawk fights injustices and will come to your aid when called upon, even fighting battles you are too weak to fight for yourself.
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A Bad Hoodoo Saint
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However, in Harry Middleton Hyatt's Hoodoo-Conjuration-Rootwork-Witchcraft, Black Hawk is referred to by some respondents as a bad saint, evil and up to no good. I find the clear difference of opinion between members of the Spiritualist Church, modern day rootworkers and Hyatt’s sample of old time rootworkers to be interesting, to say the least. But if we take a look at his life and the times in which he lived, and then look at the various contexts in which he is considered, it is not surprising to see divergent opinions.
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"We can all be as brothers. There is no need to fight with a war of words, or your weapons! For whether you are Indian, black or white, the sorrow you feel is the same. The love you feel is the same. Your children laugh and smile like all children..Is this not so? I am just an old Indian now, but I think some men forget these things.”
- BLACK HAWK
Black Hawk, The Watchman on the WallBlack 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.
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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.
Because of exploitation by hoodoo marketeers, the image of the Indian spirit guide has had a big influence on commercial hoodoo products. The image can be seen on many hoodoo products such as Indian Spirit incense and room spray by the E. Davis Company. The Indian motif is significant in the art and organization of the Mardi Gras Indians, as well.
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 Ma-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.
Father Black Hawk is invoked routinely by the bishops in the Spiritualist churches in New Orleans. His altar in the Spiritualist church is that of a teepee with a plate of incense on the floor in the front. He is frequently found alongside images of St. Michael, guardian of Israel, and Dr. Martin Luther King. This trinity represents three oppressed races and functions as a symbol of strength and victory. Rootworkers who serve him keep him in a metal bucket with sand or dirt, along with a hatchet, tomahawk, and a spear. Father Black Hawk is petitioned by individuals from their homes. He is typically evoked for help with money and protection, justice, release from prison, to win court cases, and to overcome tragedy. He is the consummate warrior, and wants to fight your battles for you. They say he will come to those who have enough patience to sit still.
Black Hawk likes spaghetti and meatballs, red beans and rice, bread, and fruit, and is served these dishes on Wednesdays and Sundays. He is approached at his altar. 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. Of course 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.
Surrounding the statue in my Black Hawk bucket are a number of rocks that have personal and cultural significance. In the Native way, rocks are considered the elders of Mother Earth and the keepers of ancient wisdom. I also have a bear fetish that was carved from stone by my son’s father (a full-blooded Navajo), a small clay pot made by a Native American, and my quilled medicine wheel that I wore at Sundance. The bucket sits on a small Indian blanket. A beaded golden eagle feather that I use in Native American church ceremonies lies on the back of the bucket. His spear, which is thrown to reach a distant goal, and a tomahawk, used to cut a right of way, are also in his bucket. As can be seen, everything placed in, on, or around his bucket holds special significance.
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 in chapter 4, followed by a heartfelt prayer of your own. Then you can talk to him and tell him what you need.
*Excerpt from the Voodoo Hoodoo Spellbook
Because of exploitation by hoodoo marketeers, the image of the Indian spirit guide has had a big influence on commercial hoodoo products. The image can be seen on many hoodoo products such as Indian Spirit incense and room spray by the E. Davis Company. The Indian motif is significant in the art and organization of the Mardi Gras Indians, as well.
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 Ma-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.
Father Black Hawk is invoked routinely by the bishops in the Spiritualist churches in New Orleans. His altar in the Spiritualist church is that of a teepee with a plate of incense on the floor in the front. He is frequently found alongside images of St. Michael, guardian of Israel, and Dr. Martin Luther King. This trinity represents three oppressed races and functions as a symbol of strength and victory. Rootworkers who serve him keep him in a metal bucket with sand or dirt, along with a hatchet, tomahawk, and a spear. Father Black Hawk is petitioned by individuals from their homes. He is typically evoked for help with money and protection, justice, release from prison, to win court cases, and to overcome tragedy. He is the consummate warrior, and wants to fight your battles for you. They say he will come to those who have enough patience to sit still.
Black Hawk likes spaghetti and meatballs, red beans and rice, bread, and fruit, and is served these dishes on Wednesdays and Sundays. He is approached at his altar. 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. Of course 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.
Surrounding the statue in my Black Hawk bucket are a number of rocks that have personal and cultural significance. In the Native way, rocks are considered the elders of Mother Earth and the keepers of ancient wisdom. I also have a bear fetish that was carved from stone by my son’s father (a full-blooded Navajo), a small clay pot made by a Native American, and my quilled medicine wheel that I wore at Sundance. The bucket sits on a small Indian blanket. A beaded golden eagle feather that I use in Native American church ceremonies lies on the back of the bucket. His spear, which is thrown to reach a distant goal, and a tomahawk, used to cut a right of way, are also in his bucket. As can be seen, everything placed in, on, or around his bucket holds special significance.
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 in chapter 4, followed by a heartfelt prayer of your own. Then you can talk to him and tell him what you need.
*Excerpt from the Voodoo Hoodoo Spellbook
Who are the Meskwaki Indians?
Throughout their post contact history, the Meskwaki have been a clearly defined tribe. However, the U.S. Government has blurred their identity by designating them Fox and merging them with the Sauk. Their relationship with the Sauk after 1733 was a close alliance rather than a union. The Fox and Sauk occasionally acted jointly, but remained territorially and politically autonomous. However, the government grouped them as a single entity under the name Sac-and-Fox. After a Sauk band split away in the early 19th century and acquired official recognition as the Sac-and-Fox of the Missouri, the Fox and the rest of the Sauk were designated Sac-and-Fox of the Mississippi. During the 1850’s the Fox ended their Sauk alliance and returned to Iowa from Kansas. This movement changed the official terminology and the Fox are now called the Sac-and-Fox of the Mississippi in Iowa. Their Algonkian dialect is closely related to the Sauk and Kickapoo in which their language is contemporarily termed Sauk-Fox-Kickapoo (Callender 636, 1978).
Source: http://archive.mpm.edu/research-collections/botany/collections/ethnobotany/meskwaki
Source: http://archive.mpm.edu/research-collections/botany/collections/ethnobotany/meskwaki
The Sauk and Fox Indians
Recommended Reading
Want to learn more about Black Hawk? Read the books below to gain information about his life and background.
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