James Mooney - Native Americans - 22 Books on History, Mythology, Culture & Linguistic Studies

At the beginning of some of their performances I have observed the angakoq crawling about in the passage of the hut, howling and shouting, while those inside kept on singing. Then he entered the hut and continued the incantations on the back part of the bed.

Sometimes their cure for sickness is laying a piece of burning wick upon the diseased part of the body and blowing it up into the air or merely blowing upon it.

Storm and bad weather, when lasting a long time and causing want of food, are conjured by making a large whip of seaweed, stepping to the beach, and striking out in the direction whence the wind blows, at the same time crying Taba (It is enough).

A great number of the performances of the angakut require much skill and expertness. Thus in invoking a tornaq or flying to a distant place they can imitate a distant voice by a sort of ventriloquism. In these performances they always have the lamps extinguished and hide themselves behind a screen hung up in the back part of the hut. The tornaq, being invoked, is heard approaching and shaking the hut. The angakoq believes that it is unroofed and flies with his spirit to their place of destination, to propitiate the wrath of a hostile tornaq, to visit the moon or Sedna’s dismal abode.

Part of their performances might almost be called juggling. Hall (II, p. 101) describes one of these performances:

The angakoq (Ar-too-a) now made use of three walrus spears. One of these he thrust into the wall of the snow house, and ***ran with it outside of the igdlu [house] where his ejaculations were responded to by the party inside with the cries of “Atte! Atte!” [Go on! Go on!]. Returning with his spear to the door, he had a severe wrestling match with four of the men, who overcame him. But coming again into the central igdlu, and having the lights which had been at the first patted down, relit, he showed the points of two spears apparently covered with fresh blood, which he held up in the presence of all.

The performance of the angakut in the Sedna feast, which will be described hereafter ( p. 604) is quite astonishing. Some pierce their bodies with harpoons, evidently having bladders filled with blood fastened under their jackets beforehand, and bleed profusely as they enter the hut. (See Appendix, Note 5.)

A memorable ceremony has been described by Hall (I, p. 469):

I heard a loud shout just outside [the hut]. As quick as thought, the Eskimo sprang for the long knives lying around, and hid them wherever they could find places. ***Immediately there came crawling into the low entrance to the hut a man with long hair completely covering his face and eyes. He remained on his knees on the floor of the hut, feeling round like a blind man at each side of the entrance, back of the firelight, the place where meat is usually kept, and where knives may generally be found. Not finding any, the angakoq slowly withdrew. ***If he had found a knife he would have stabbed himself in the breast.

It is one of their favorite tricks to have their hands tied up and a thong fastened around their knees and neck. Then they begin invoking their tornaq, and all of a sudden the body lies motionless while the soul flies to any place which they wish to visit. After returning, the thongs are found untied, though they had been fastened by firm knots. The resemblance of this performance to the experiments of modern spiritualists is striking.

The angakut use a sacred language in their songs and incantations. A great number of words have a symbolic meaning, but others are old roots, which have been lost from common use in the lapse of time. These archaic words are very interesting from a linguistic point of view. Indeed, some are found which are still in use in Greenland, though lost in the other dialects, and others which are only used in Alaska.

I ought to add here that most of the angakut themselves believe in their performances, as by continued shouting and invoking they fall into an ecstasy and really imagine they accomplish the flights and see the spirits.

The angakoq, who must be paid at once for curing a sick person, receives pretty large fees for services of this kind.

Although witchcraft occupied a prominent place in the belief of the Greenlanders I could only find very faint traces of it in Baffin Land, to wit, the opinion that a man has the power of injuring a distant enemy by some means the details of which I did not learn.

I shall add here the numerous regulations referring to eating and working, many of which are connected with the Sedna tradition, and the observance of which is watched by the angakut. As all sea animals have originated from her fingers the Eskimo must make an atonement for every animal he kills. When a seal is brought into the hut the women must stop working until it is cut up. After the capture of a ground seal, walrus, or whale they must rest for three days. Not all kinds of work, however, are forbidden, for they are allowed to mend articles made of sealskin, but they must not make anything new. For instance, an old tent cover may be enlarged in order to build a larger hut, but it is not permitted to make a new one. Working on new deerskins is strictly forbidden. No skins of this kind obtained in summer may be prepared before the ice has formed and the first seal is caught with the harpoon. Later, as soon as the first walrus is caught, the work must stop again until the next fall. For this reason all families are eager to finish the work on deerskins as quickly as possible, as the walrusing season is not commenced until that is done.

The laws prohibiting contact with deer and sea animals at the same time are very strict. According to the Eskimo themselves Sedna dislikes the deer (probably for some reason connected with the tradition of its origin,) and therefore they are not allowed to bring it in contact with her favorites. The meat of the whale, seal, or walrus must not be eaten on the same day with venison. It is not permitted that both sorts of meat lie on the floor of the hut or behind the lamps at the same time. If a man who has eaten venison in the morning happens to enter a hut in which seal meat is being cooked he is allowed to eat venison on the bed, but it must be wrapped up before being carried into the hut and he must take care to keep clear of the floor. Before changing from one food to the other the Eskimo must wash themselves. For the same reason walrus hide must not be carried to Lake Nettilling, which is considered the domain of deer.

A similar custom requires that the Ukusiksalirmiut carry salmon into a hut by a separate entrance, for it must not pass through the same one as seal oil. Besides, the fish must only be cooked at the distance of a day’s journey from the place where they have been caught. If eaten on the spot they must be eaten raw (Klutschak, p. 158).

Their customs referring to hunting are manifold. When skinning a deer they must not break a single bone; then, they cut off bits of different parts of the animal and bury them in the ground or under stones (Hall I, p. 386). I have never noticed this custom myself. On the west shore of Hudson Bay dogs are not allowed to gnaw deer bones during the deer hunting season or seal bones during the sealing season (Klutschak, p. 123). Deer bones must not be broken while walrus are hunted (Hall II, p. 155).

When the men go out hunting in their kayaks the women of the Aivillirmiut take a cup down to the shore and leave it there, believing that it will bring luck (Hall II, p. 103). On Davis Strait they throw a piece of seal’s blubber on their husband’s kayak when he is about to go hunting (Kumlien, p. 45). After the capture of a whale the Aivillirmiut are not allowed to burn shrubs, but use bones of the whale instead, which are mixed with blubber (Hall II, p. 364). If an animal that is with young is killed the fetus must not be taken and used for food (Hall II, p. 253). When a bear is caught the Nugumiut and the Oqomiut are accustomed to fasten its bladder to a stick which is placed upright near the hut or encampment for three days.