The Ghostway (1984)

The Lukachukai Mountains are a mountain range in northeastern Arizona that lay entirely within the Navajo Reservation. The highest point of the range is an unnamed point at 9,466 feet above sea level. The mountains are still largely used as summer ranges for sheepherding. For that reason, the range is called Shíík'eh (A Summer Place) in Navajo. In Navajo mythology, this mountain range, along with the Carrizo Mountains, forms a prone male figure called Yódí Dziil (Wealth Mountain). Ch'óshgai (Chuska Mountains) forms the head; Leezhch'iih Deezgai (western Lukachukai Mountains) forms the chest, abdominal areas, and limbs; and Dzi Náhoodziii (Carrizo Mountains) forms the feet.

A flat-topped hill or plateau of rock with one or more steep sides, usually rising abruptly from a surrounding plain. Commonly found in arid environments, mesas are formed by the erosion of horizontally layered rocks that have been pushed above the surface of the earth by tectonic activity.

An imprint made by the ridges, crests, and arches that adorn the soft pads aon our fingertips. These imprints are created by ridges that are present on the epidermis (the outer layer of the skin) on the palm side at the tips of every person's fingers. When a person touches something, the naturally-occurring oils produced by the skin leave traces in the shape of the ridges of their skin. These imprints are unique to each person, which allows fingerprints to be used as identification during criminal investigations. Some consistent fingerprint patterns have been identified, including double loops, central pocket loops, loops, plain whorls, plain arches, and tented arches.

Medicine man is an Anglicized term that refers to traditional Native American healers. However, each tribe has unique understandings about the roles and responsibilities of their healers, who may also double as spiritual leaders. In the Navajo culture, there are four categories of healers: listeners, hand tremblers, and stargazers, who may be consulted about sickness, identifying witchcraft, dreams, lost items or any unusual happenings. But it is the haatali, or singer, who fills the position of medicine man in Navajo culture.

Traditionally called a haatali, or "singer," in Navajo, this healer performs ceremonial cures that are targeted at body, mind, and spirit. There are nearly 100 Navajo chants of varying range and intricacy. Originating from the Navajo Creation Story, they are so nuanced and complex that a medicine man learns only one or two sings over many years of apprenticeship. Ceremonies last anywhere from one to nine days and include chants, songs, prayers, lectures, dances, sweat baths, prayer sticks, and sand paintings. In order for a ceremony to be effective, everything must be done as prescribed in the legends.

A relatively level area of natural land that is covered with grass and often wild flowers. Meadows can be found in low as well as high altitudes, and in a variety of climates. In the American Southwest, small, open grasslands are a typical feature of the otherwise densely forested mountains, and can also occur around sources of water such as rivers and lakes.

A catapult is a relatively simple machine that uses non-explosive force to hurl objects far distances. Subjecting the throwing arm to extreme tension and releasing it like a giant spring is often complemented with the use of a counterweight to increase the momentum of the projectile as it is released.

The force and distance achieved by catapults lend themselves to descriptive language. When someone or something hurls through space at great speed, one can describe the motion as "catapulting through space."

The component of a modern ammunition cartridge that is fired from a weapon. Before the invention of firearms, bullets were made of clay or stone and thrown with slings. Modern bullets are made of metal and are the component of the ammunition cartridge that is ejected from the weapon. The bullet hits the target, causing the damage of the gunshot. Bullet measurements are given in caliber (diameter in hundredths of an inch).

Generally speaking, in most indigenous traditions, including the Pueblo and Navajo cultures, when a dancer dons a mask for a specific ceremony, that dancer becomes the god represented by the mask, just as the mask becomes animated by the god as it is worn. The boy or man who prepares to wear a mask for a specific ritual actually becomes, or personates, the god whose semblance is captured by the mask. During the ceremony, the wearer does not impersonate or merely act like the god, but rather, he is the god.

Masks are sacred objects that facilitate communication and connection between man and gods. Even when not worn during ceremonial dances, masks are revered objects that are fed and taken care of, for example by Pueblo kiva societies or clans, who are responsible for the masks' well-being as if, and because, they are vital, dynamic, and sentient things.Masks are sacred objects that facilitate communication and connection between man and gods. Even when not worn during ceremonial dances, masks are revered objects that are fed and taken care of, for example by Pueblo kiva societies or clans, who are responsible for the masks' well being as if, and because, they are vital, dynamic, and sentient things.

The hollow, cylindrical portion of a gun through which bullets or shot are discharged. Gun barrels vary in length; the length affects the volume, accuracy, and velocity of the shot, as well as the ease of handling of the firearm itself. Depending on the type of gun, it may be loaded from the front or rear of the barrel.

Among the Navajo, a listener is one of three different types of diagnosticians who may be consulted to determine the cause of a indivudual's illness and recommend the proper ceremony to cure it. Hand tremblers and star gazers are the other two types of diagnosticians. Any of these three types of diagnosticians may be consulted about sickness, witchcraft, dreams, lost items, or any unusual happenings; however, diagnosticians are most often called in to diagnose the cause of an illness when the cause, and therefore cure, of the illness cannot be determined by obvious symptoms.

A listener, who is most commonly a woman, might meet with the person seeking a diagnosis and any family members or friends to discuss the problem before beginning the consultation, or she might not. The listener then leaves and goes to a location where she can "listen" for the diagnosis. Different from hand tremblers and star gazers, the cause of an illness and its proper cure reveal themselves to the listener through auditory means. Once the listener has heard and understood both the cause of the illness and the path necessary to correct it, she returns to advise the patient. Frequently, this involves recommending a particular healing ceremonial. The listener may even recommend a medicine man (or hataałii) to perform the ceremony.