It’s another way to hold your horses: in your hand, on the bowl of a pipe.
It can get a little heated, yes, when the mixture inside is lit, but it’s safer than the other sort of holding. Believe me, I had my own experience with that yesterday, when our red horse decided to go off, as the law is fond of saying, “on a frolic of his own.” Fortunately, he’s pretty voice-responsive, and I was able to retrieve him in a matter of minutes and bring im back safe and sound. It’s been a while since I’ve run like that, though.
Come to think of it, maybe a pipe was what I should’ve used afterward to soothe my lungs from the irritation of sprinting in the sub-freezing air. I know the dominant culture has finally managed to normalize “Smoking = BAD” as an official meme (and for the most part, that’s accurate), but our peoples have always used smoking, in moderation and with carefully chosen substances used as “tobacco,” for healing of all kinds. Six or seven years ago, we were both knocked flat for the better part of a month by a bug that was making the late-winter rounds. To help soothe the wracking, croupy coughs, we used ground kinnickinnick, a mixture of dried plant medicines with anti-inflammatory properties, rolled into cigarettes the old-fashioned way. Three or four inhalations of this traditional “tobacco” worked far better than cough syrup, and without any of the groggy side effects.
For our peoples, smoking is a method of administering traditional medicine — and not only medicine in the more contemporary accepted sense of the word. To us, of course, harmony and therefore health of body and spirit are inextricably intertwined, or perhaps more accurately, parts of the same whole. This idea of a healthy spirit encompasses all of life, individual and communal alike, and extends not only to ceremonial communion with spirits but to social and political relationships and interactions with others outside of one’s own people. It is for this reason that the pipe has long been, for many nations throughout Indian Country, a symbol of communication, of respectful listening and speaking in a way that will lead to honorable action.
I’ve written about the pipe before, in discussing pipestone, the sacred material from which it is made:
Among the Sioux and Ojibwe nations that have historically used pipestone for the traditional canupa (pronounced cha-NOO-pah) or calumet, it is a sacred substance, intended by Spirit to be used for that purpose only. The dominant culture has hung the misnomer “peace pipe” upon traditional pipes, but a better term would be “ceremonial pipe,” since they are used in collective environments of all sorts where the subject(s) of discussion were of great import; some involved “peacemaking,” to be sure, but there are many other contexts in and purposes for which they were (and are) used. They are also closely-held ceremonial items; despite what you may read or hear about non-Natives being “pipe carriers” and “pipekeepers,” it’s all appropriative nonsense that bears no relationship to reality. The pipes are sacred, and holding them is considered an equally sacred trust. Because of this, the material used to make them is likewise considered sacred, its value not to be diminished or diluted or trivialized by other use. For those who mine and use the pipestone from the restricted Minnesota pits, to sell the stone, even to other Native artists for use in other ways, would be sacrilege.
However, for numerous other tribal nations, pipestone is important historically and an object of beauty, but is not regarded as sacred. For these peoples, it’s perfectly acceptable to use it for carving fetishes and sculptures, pipe bowls for non-ceremonial art replicas, and even jewelry. The rich dark red color is beautiful in its own right, but the knowledge of its historical value to brother and sister nations gives it special resonance for artists all over Indian Country. Since they are able to obtain it from other sources, they can use it freely, in accordance with their own people’s traditions, without infringing upon what is culturally sacrosanct for some tribes.
At the same link is a bit of history, part of the story of the sacred stone from which the pipes are made. It’s worth a read: It covers both the mineralogical properties and the very identity of the stone itself, as well as an exploration of colonial incursions onto sacred lands and a rare and welcome victory for Native sovereignty.
We only sell replica pipes, of course. A true calumet or canupa should not be on the market in the first place, and if one were to find one, there is only one legitimate course of action: to repatriate it immediately to the nation to whom it belongs (or to its contemporary blood descendants). Truly, there is no other option with something so sacred, so integral to a people’s spiritual culture and identity.
Because of the role of the pipe in ceremonial events of all sorts, including political negotiations and other official gatherings between tribal nations, it has become something of an intertribal symbol throughout Indian Country, even among those nations that historically did not use the pipe. When multiple nations gather for any purpose, it’s often used symbolically to demonstrate a willingness to enter into the coming events with a good heart. It borrows from the [often stereotypical] symbolism of the “peace pipe” to manifest solidarity and alliance, collaboration among equals and mutual support. And so, as with many other indigenous motifs, such as the dreamcatcher, the medicine wheel, the Sacred White Buffalo, a sacred object of only a few peoples transforms into a symbol of honor and respect among Native people as a whole.
This is why you will see replica pipes, and other art made of pipestone, created by Native artists all over the country. For many, it is not per se a sacred object (of it were, they couldn’t and wouldn’t create this sort of art with it), but because of its history, it is a form and substance to be revered, something not only to be admired but to be honored.
And so it is with the pipes we carry: replicas of traditional ceremonial pipes, created in vintage style by Randy Roughface (Ponca). Pipes vary greatly by tradition and use; some are extremely elaborate, often with the bowl formed out of the body of an animal that has particular spiritual meaning. Others are very simple, nothing more than a plain utilitarian bowl with a wooden stem inserted. Still others, like those Randy makes, are a melding of the two: a simple, functional pipe bowl, but with an effigy carved alongside it in the form of the desired animal or other spirit being.
Randy comes from a horse culture, as does Wings; horses play an integral role in our lives even today, and so it was natural that he would bring these to us. As with all of his work, they’re vintage-style carvings, meaning that there is little in the way of extraneous detail: The carving arises naturally from the stone, and animal and stone speak with one voice. From the description of the one pictured at the top of this post, as it appears in the https://wingssilverwork.com/category/all/otherartists/sculpture/page/2/ gallery here on the site:
A sacred pipe is never to be bought or sold; it is always to be held only by the actual tribal member who has been appointed its keeper. Replica pipes fashioned as pieces of art, on the other hand, may be held by anyone. This one evokes the old ancestral pipes, honoring their existence but not duplicating them. Carved of traditional pipestone by Randy Roughface (Ponca), this vintage-style pipe bowl bears an effigy of a running wild horse. The pipe comes with a placeholder pipestem, also rough-hewn in the vintage style, of local cedar. The stem is about 13″ long, with a bowl that measures roughly 3″ X 2.5″.
Pipestone; red cedar
$125 + shipping, handling, and insurance
These pipes were paired, like a pair of running red horses. The second one is slightly smaller, but no less beautiful, no less spirited (and inspirited):
This small old-fashioned vintage-style pipe with a mustang effigy evokes the spirit of the wild ponies that are such an integral historical part of our cultures. Rough-hewn out of traditional pipestone by Randy Roughface (Ponca), it pays homage to the sacred pipes (which are never to be bought, sold, or owned by anyone but their keeper by blood), but it strictly an art piece that can be held by anyone. The bowl comes with a vintage-style placeholder stem, rough-cut from local cedar. The pipestem is roughly 8.5″ inches long, with a bowl some 2″ X 1.75″.
Pipestone; red cedar
$110 + shipping, handling, and insurance
Yes, I’m being a bit facetious with the title of today’s piece, but no one should read into that even one iota of disrespect. It’s simply a pairing of two powerful motifs and their associated powers and purposes, expressed with a bit of light humor. These simple pipes are simply beautiful, and the pair of spirit animals associated with them embody, to me, a wild strength and freedom and unbridled joy.
Like our red horse when brought back to his herd yesterday — neck and tail arched, mane flowing in the wind, sprinting at a full gallop to rejoin his family.
A horse running for the sheer joy of it is a beautiful thing indeed.
~ Aji
All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2015; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owners.
