Listening Woman (1978)

The term Big Reservation refers to the Navajo Reservation or the Navajo Nation as it has been called since 1969. The Navajo Nation covers 27,425 square miles of territory, covering portions of northeastern Arizona, southeastern Utah, and northwestern New Mexico. It is the largest land area that is primarily governed by a Native American tribe.

An arroyo is a dry creek or stream bed with nearly vertical walls. Arroyos are ephemeral water ways, and so remain dry most of the time, but can fill and flow with water after a large amount of rainfall. Although they are often naturally created when riverbeds overflow and then dry out again, cutting into the rock outside the streambed, in many desert regions, arroyos are also constructed and used as a means of flood control and irrigation. Arroyos exist throughout the western United States, but are most common in the arid and semi-arid climates of the Southwestern U.S.

The number four is sacred to many Native Americans. There are four sacred directions, four sacred mountains, four sacred plants, and four times of day. It is believed that attempts to create new things are usually unsuccessful the first three times but are successful the fourth time. The Navajo believe that the four directions are alive and places where sacred things happen. Each direction has its own star or constellation, a color, and various associations.

East Direction is associated with the Great Divine or Big Star, positive thinking, and the development of concentration and the senses. South Direction is associated with the Pleiades or the Flint Brothers, planning, and with organization, communication, comprehension, and the planting of seeds. West Direction is associated with Cluster of Stars, Many Stars, and the Milky Way, life, and the clan system, kinship, social development, and life cycles. North Direction is associated with the Horned Star, spirituality, hope, strength, the natural order, sacred songs, prayers, ceremonies, and protection.

In some Native American traditions, the bear is considered the most powerful of all of the animals and is one of the most popular subjects of Native American artists. For the Navajo, historically there were two main species of bear that resided in Navajo territory: the grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) and the black bear (Ursus americanus). While the grizzly bear has been hunted to extinction in the Southwest, the black bear still inhabits mountainous areas in the Southwest, including those within the Navajo Reservation. Also known as "Mountain People," bears have complex symbolic and spiritual meanings. Bears are believed to be spiritual guides and represent strength and self-knowledge. The Navajo also believe that bears have supernatural powers, including great healing powers. The bear is a symbol of deliberate action, introspection, soul searching, and insight. In addition, the bear is the guardian of the West.

Bears are also taboo in Navajo beliefs. Some acts revolving around bears can cause “bear sickness.” This is probably due to the bear’s rather human appearance, especially when they are standing on their hind legs. Causes of bear sickness include killing bears or eating their flesh, touching an object a bear has touched, crossing a bear’s path, or drinking from a bear’s watering hole. The chantway ceremony used to cure “bear sickness” is the Mountainway Chant (see Mountainway Chant). Finally, bears are also associated with witchcraft, as they are thought, similar to the wolf, to be an animal whose powers and characteristics shapechangers and skinwalkers prefer to take.

In general terms, a fetish is a small, material object that is believed to impart special strength, power, or attributes to the person carrying it. In many indigenous cultures, fetishes are made from naturally occurring materials whose shapes often resemble or represent various animals. Fetishes can also be produced by makers and in these cases can take different forms including masks, prayer plumes, and amulets, as well as fetish animals that are small enough to fit in the palm of one's hand. It is believed that when the fetish is in contact with a person's body it shares with its user the strength, power, and characteristics of the animal or natural form it represents. For example, a bear fetish would be used by a healer, a teacher, or a leader, because the bear is believed to possess the courage and strength necessary to persevere in the face of adversity, as well as to have the patience and wisdom to heal, to reflect and meditate for long periods of time, and to remain grounded. Frog fetishes, on the other hand, might be used by those interested in starting a family or those who desire change, as frogs are known for their fertility, as well as their ability to start over and to transform (from tadpole to adult amphibian).

Colors, directions, and even materials also influence the kind and amount of power a fetish can impart to its wearer. Depending upon the particular cultural tradition, both the production as well as the use of a fetish entail a range of ceremonial procedures. For example, the Zuni rituals surrounding the making, protecting, and wearing of kachina masks are an excellent example of the need for strict ceremonial secrecy and observances associated with a fetish. The Zuni masks are cared for by individual clans throughout the year, and when the time comes to use them during a ceremony their power is so great that the wearer actually becomes the god/natural force the mask represents.

The San Francisco Peaks are a volcanic mountain range located in just North of Flagstaff, Arizona. This mountain range was once a cluster of volcanoes, and it has the tallest peak in Arizona; Humphrey’s Peak is 12,633 feet. Navajos consider it the sacred mountain of the West, and it has three names Dook'o'oosłííd -"Never Thaws on Top", Ghá’niłts’įįlii- “Faultless Mountain”, and the sacred name "Diichiłi Dziil" - Abalone Shell Mountain. It marks the western boundary of the Navajo’s aboriginal homeland.

In Navajo Origin mythology, First Man adorned the mountain range with abalone shells, yellow clouds, male rain, and all animals. It is also said to have been the home of Talking God, White Corn Boy, and Yellow Corn Girl and then fastened them into the sky with sunbeams. Interestingly, the Navajo also consider the mountain male and the mountain's diverse vegetation made it a perfect place to gather herbs to make traditional medicines.