It’s a gathering that in many ways is incongruous to one’s senses.

The group of young men at the Birdtown recreation building in Cherokee talk of cars and stereos and wear baseball caps, some turned backwards. They use cell phones and cigarettes, just like young men from anywhere, USA.

Then they take their places around a large drum. They dust the drum with tobacco and offer a prayer. A quiet chant fills the air as the drum slowly and rhythmically comes to life. Soon the building and the senses are filled with a song and rhythm that knows no time or place. It is a primeval celebration of life.

“Awo-Ha-Li” is the Cherokee word for eagle, and it is the name of the drum group that is practicing for the upcoming Memorial In May Pow-Wow which will be held at the Cherokee Ceremonial Grounds May 25-27. Awo-Ha-Li will be one of the Northern host drums, and Mystic River from Connecticut will be the other. The two southern host drums will be White Tail from Nebraska and Yellowhammer from Oklahoma.

Many Native American traditionalists have had a hard time coming to grips with the modern pow wow. Some think it is a commercialization of private ceremony — a sell out.

Pow wow participants and attendees would disagree. Mike Thompson of Awo-Ha-Li has been drumming and singing for more than 10 years. He said the group attends 10 to 15 pow wows a year, and he admits that at first it was simply the singing that attracted him. But as he began traveling the pow wow circuit and experiencing different Indian cultures, that changed.

“It made me want to learn more about my tribe,” he said.

Will Tushka is a celebrated Cherokee dancer and also a member of Awo-Ha-Li. “Pow wows help people get back to their own traditions,” he said.

Pow wows are especially effective ways of introducing traditional culture to young people, Tushka said. They get caught up in the music and dance and want to learn more.

The original term “pow wow” was misunderstood and misused by early white settlers. It is from the Algonquin language and was used to refer to a shaman or teacher, or to a dream or vision. Originally, it was an entity, not an action. Settlers used the term to refer to any meeting or event held by Indians.

It is generally accepted that pow wows began in the west with Plains Indians. They were tribal gatherings where people would gather to celebrate and renew family and tribal ties.

Modern pow wows began to gain momentum in the late 1940s and 1950s. They evolved from tribal to intertribal celebrations. They are a way for Native Americans to share their traditions and culture with each other and the world.

While the term pow wow does not translate to anything specific in the Cherokee language, the Cherokee, like all Native American cultures, have always had their own music and dance.

According to Thompson, Cherokee elders have kept tribal dances alive and there are often exhibitions at pow wows. The “stomp” dance is one of the Cherokee dances.

There are two basic kinds of Native American dances, Thompson said — social and religious or ceremonial. He said each tribe has its own ceremonial dances which are private. Pow wows are celebrations of social dances, which are dances meant to be shared.

Each tribe’s style of dancing is unique, but dancers share with each other at pow wows. It is not uncommon to see dancers performing different styles. If a dancer sees a new dance or a singer hears a new song he or she wants to learn, it is custom to ask permission of the artist before attempting the new piece.

Contemporary pow wow dancing may look like improvisation to the untrained eye, but there is much ritual, study and practice that go into learning a dance. Tushka danced all around the world for two years with the American Indian Dance Theater of New York City. He said the troupe learned many dances from noted Indian dancers like Iroquois Bill Crouse. But when Tushka dances alone at pow wows, he has his own personal dance which he performs. In accordance with tradition, Tushka’s dance was given to him.

“My dance was given to me by my brother. It was given to him by his elders. The colors on my costume are his colors. The dance doesn’t belong to me. It was a gift,” Tushka said.

Tushka’s dance is in the Northern Traditional style.

“It is one of the warrior dances,” he said. The dance must be danced the right way. The judges have keen eyes and they know all the styles, Tushka said. The right way, however, is more than which foot goes where. The right way is the way of the spirit, the way of tradition, said Tushka.

 

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The Smoky Mountain News