Article
In some versions of Navajo cosmology, there are stories and songs about a group of Coyote deities, who are also referred to as Holy People. Coyote, known as First Scolder in much Navajo lore, is a trickster deity that can be both benevolent and evil. The Coyote People show up in the Coyoteway ceremonial that cures Coyote illness, a form of mental illness associated with the ambivalent nature of the coyote.
"Coyote" by Don McCullough is licensed under CC BY-NC.
Manuscripts
References
Kaplan, Bert, and Dale Johnson
1964 Social Meaning of Navaho Psychopathology and Psychotherapy. Magic, Faith and
Healing: Studies in Primitive Psychiatry Today. New York: Free Press of Glencoe.
Luckert, Karl W.
1979 Coyoteway: A Navajo Holyway Healing Ceremonial. Tucson: University of Arizona
Press.
Waldman, Carl
1994 Holy People. Word Dance: The Language of Native American Culture. New York:
Facts On File, Inc.