Yellowtail, Crow Medicine Man and Sun Dance Chief: An Autobiography

278 Pages·1994·36.78 MB·English

by  Thomas Yellowtail, Michael Oren Fitzgerald

CROW MEDICINE MAN AND SUN DANCE CHIEF
An Autobiography
As told to Michael Oren Fitzgerald
Introduction by Fred Voget
ISBN: □-ADbl-2333-S
Medicine man and Sun Dance chief
Thomas Yellowtail is a pivotal figure
in Crow tribal life. As a youth he
lived in the presence of old warriors,
hunters, and medicine men who
knew the freedom and sacred ways
of pre-reservation life. As the prin-
cipal figure in the Crow-Shoshone
Sun Dance religion, Yellowtail has
preserved traditional values in the
face of the constantly encroaching,
diametrically opposed values of ma-
terialistic modern society. Through
his life story and description of the
Sun Dance religion we can reex-
amine the premises and orientations
of both cultures.
In part one, "Exposure to a Tradi-
tional Life," Yellowtail introduces us
to traditional Indian ways, including
the major influences that helped him
form his values. Part two focuses on
the Sun Dance religion, particularly
purification in the sweat lodge, the
individual spiritual retreat known as
the "vision quest," daily prayer with
the sacred pipe, and the Sun Dance
ceremony itself.
Finally, warning about the impact
of modern society on traditional
Crow religion, Yellowtail asks that
each person determine whether the
Indian way of life has application in
both contemporary and future so-
cieties, Indian and non-Indian.
This book will be of value to an-
thropologists and anyone else inter-
ested in examining the traditional
Indian way of life and patterns of reli-
(Continued on back flap)

Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2017 with funding from
Kahle/Austin Foundation
https://archive.org/details/yellowtailcrowmeOOyell_0
YELLOWTAIL

YELLOWTAIL
CROW MEDICINE MAN
AND SUN DANCE CHIEF
An Autobiography
as told to Michael Oren Fitzgerald
Introduction by Fred Voget
University of Oklahoma Press : Norman and London
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Yellowtail, Thomas.
Yellowtail, Crow medicine man and Sun Dance chief : an
autobiography / as told to Michael Oren Fitzgerald : introduction by
Fred Voget.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographic references.
ISBN 0-8061-2333-8
1. Yellowtail, Thomas. 2. Crow Indians—Biography. 3. Shamans—
Montana—Biography. 4. Crow Indians—Religion and mythology.
5. Crow Indians—Rites and ceremonies. 6. Sun-dance.
I. Fitzgerald, Michael Oren, 1949- . II. Title.
E99.C92Y45 1991
978.6'00497502—dc20
[B] 90-50702
CIP
The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability
of the Committee on Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of the Council
on Library Resources, Inc.°°
Copyright © 1991 by the University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, Publishing
Division of the University. All rights reserved. Manufactured in the U.S.A.
First edition.
This book is dedicated to all American Indian people
All royalties from this book will be used to support the Sun
Dance religion or to purchase copies of this book for distribu-
tion to American Indian readers.