People of Darkness (1980)

A mind-altering substance that induces a state of heightened awareness and perception, often accompanied by hallucinations. Psychedelic plants such as peyote, which is native to Mexico and the southwestern U.S., were traditionally used in indigenous cultures as part of spiritual rituals, aiding in vision quests or healing ceremonies. LSD, also known as acid, one of the most commonly used synthetic psychedelic drugs, was developed in 1938 in Switzerland, and reached a height in popularity in the 1960s and '70s as the drug of choice of the hippie subculture in Europe and the U.S. A synthetic form of the active chemicals of the peyote cactus, LSD is exponentially more powerful than peyote or other plant-based psychedelics, and is considered a dangerous, illegal substance. Consequently, many other natural and synthetic substances that induce similar effects to LSD have been outlawed by association.

A ponderosa pine is a large coniferous evergreen tree, with long pine needles, that can grows over 70 feet in height. Ponderosa are found throughout the western United States and in Canada. The tree is easily identifiable by its bark, which is often yellow or red with large plates separated by crevices, making ponderosa bark look kind of like puzzle pieces. Ponderosa pines are generally found in mountainous regions, and in the U.S. Southwest, ponderosa can be found in open, park-like stands above 6,000 feet in elevation.

Officially known as the Utah State Prison in Draper, this correction facility was opened in 1951 and today can house approximately 4,500 inmates. The Draper Prison complex is located about twenty miles south of Salt Lake City, Utah. It has separate units for male and female offenders, and these units range from minimum to maximum security. The prison site is informally called "Point of the Mountain" because it is situated right next to a mountain range by the same name, which forms the eastern parts of the Traverse Mountains.

In Hillerman's 1980 Navajo detective novel People of Darkness, the place is mentioned as "Idaho's Point of the Mountain Prison," although the facility is located in Utah, not in Idaho.

A large or powerful creature that preys on smaller and weaker creatures. The term typically refers to a carnivorous animal that hunts other animals for survival. Common predators in the Southwest are wolves, mountain lions, and birds of prey such as the eagle or the hawk. However, depending on the context, a predator can also be a human who victimizes people who don't possess the agency to resist him or her. In addition, some institutions such as government agencies, large corporations, and prominent financial institutions, among others, are said to be predatory because of their exploitative policies or business practices.

A degraded and eroded spot in the road caused by the combination of standing water and the friction of passing vehicles. Potholes develop in areas where the engineering of the road bed is faulty and permits water to accumulate on the surface or to seep into and collect under the road surface, softening the road and making it susceptible to damage from passing vehicles.

A drum that is made by filling a ceramic pot with water and then covering it with a buckskin. A pot drum is played by hitting the stretched hide with a looped drumstick made of branches. The pot drum is used during ceremonies, such as the the Navajo Enemyway.

In Latin, the term literally means "after death." In a medical context, postmortem refers to a thorough examination of a dead body in order to determine the cause and circumstances of death. Autopsy, which is the surgical dissection of the body, can be part of this examination, but it is not always necessary.

Unless stated otherwise, Hillerman's use of "pollen" refers to yellow corn pollen (or tádídíín in Navajo), which is a sweet tasting, yellow-colored powder that is collected from the tassels of mature corn plants. Because corn, or maize, has traditionally been a life-giving staple of indigenous groups throughout the Americas, the pollen, which is necessary for corn's own survival via pollination, has attained a sacred, life-giving status of its own. Often kept in small leather pouches, corn pollen is used in ceremonies as a blessing and offered in prayer.

A wood panel that is manufactured by gluing thin sheets of wood together. Although the wood sheets are thin, the combination of multiple layers of wood and resin (glue) combine to create a relatively light-weight, strong, and inexpensive building material.