 | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources. Find sources: "Weyekin" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (April 2016) |
Weyekin or wyakin /ˈwiːjəkɪn/ is a Nez Perce word for a type of spiritual being.
According to Lucullus Virgil McWhorter, everything in the world - animals, trees, rocks, etc. - possesses a consciousness. These spirits are thought to offer a link to the invisible world of spiritual power. These spirits are seen not as divine beings, but as mediators.
To receive a weyekin, a young person around the age of 12 to 15 would go to the mountains on a vision quest. The person about to go on this quest would be tutored by a "renowned warrior, hunter, or medicine man," for boys, or for girls, "an elderly woman of reputed power." Success had much to do with how they prepared their minds. Fasting for long periods of time, going without a fire, holding their spiritual retreat in a remote and "awe inspiring" location.
Notes
- ^ McWhorter, Lucullus Virgil (1940). Yellow Wolf: His Own Story. Caldwell, ID: Caxton Printers, Ltd. pp. 295–300, 521.
- ^ J. M. Cornelison. "Obtaining the Weyekin". The Indian Country, 1800: A Brilliant Plan for Living. Newberry Library. Retrieved 17 January 2010.