Great Race (Native American legend) facts for kids
The Great Race is an important Native American legend. It tells the story of a big race between buffalo and humans. This race decided how the world would be ordered. Different tribes have their own versions of the story. But they all agree that humans won and became more powerful than the buffalo. This legend is also linked to the origins of the Sun Dance and the Medicine Lodge. The Sun Dance is a special ceremony held in July. People dance for four to eight days to connect with the Great Spirit.
Suhtai Great Race Story
This story comes from the Suhtai people. It explains how the Medicine Lodge ceremony began. Fire Wolfe, a respected Suhtai Buffalo and Sun Dance priest, told this version. This happened before the Suhtai and Tsistsistas tribes joined together. In those days, buffalo sometimes ate humans.
A young Suhtai man had a strange dream for three nights. In his dream, he shot an arrow at a buffalo. But the arrow changed direction and hit a different buffalo cow far away. He told the tribe's elders, but they said his dreams meant nothing.
However, the young man had the same dream again that night. He knew he had to act. The next morning, he went hunting early. Just like in his dream, his arrow hit a different buffalo cow. He followed her until sundown but couldn't catch her. So he went back to camp.
The next morning, he found the buffalo cow again. She was standing in front of a tipi. But now, she was a beautiful woman. The young man fell in love with her. She later had a son who looked just like her.
One morning, the young man woke up and found his wife and child gone. He searched for four days. On the fourth day, he reached a high ridge. Below, a herd of buffalo was grazing. As he got closer, a young buffalo calf ran to meet him. This calf was his son.
The young man told his son he wanted to follow them. But his son warned him that the journey was too long and he might die. Still, the young man kept going.
A few days later, the buffalo decided to test the young man. He had to pick out his son from a group of other buffalo calves. Before the test, his son told him he would give him secret signals. When the test happened, the father and son easily communicated. The young man passed the test.
The herd moved on. A few days later, the young calf approached his father again. His buffalo grandfather and grandmother wanted to kill the young man by charging at him. The young calf told his father how to survive. He said to stay calm and have a pure heart. The grandfather charged, but couldn't harm him. He realized the young man had "a strong heart and great human power." The grandmother also charged but failed for the same reason. The young man passed another test, and they continued their journey.
The young calf then told his father that his grandfather would challenge him to a race. This was another attempt to kill him. The calf told his father to pick the black stick, not the red one. He also said to run on the inside, close to the rim rock. He warned his father to duck down when his grandfather turned around, as that's when he would try to kill him.
The race began. The young man ran on the inside, just as his son said. The grandfather turned and charged. The young man ducked, and the buffalo ran past him, falling off a cliff to his death.
After this, the animals held a meeting. They decided to have a great race between humans and buffalo. If humans won, they would eat buffalo, and buffalo would no longer eat humans. If buffalo won, they would eat humans, and humans would no longer eat buffalo. All birds and animals came and painted their bodies the colors they are today.
The buffalo chose Slim Walking Woman as their racer. She was the fastest and had the most endurance. The animals and birds chose sides. Most of them sided with the buffalo. Only the swift hawk, crow, magpie, and eagle sided with the young man.
The race started. Slim Walking Woman took an early lead. Magpie flew very high above. Many racers became too tired and dropped out. Slim Walking Woman led the whole race. But just as she was about to cross the finish line, magpie dove from the sky. He passed her right before she crossed the line. Humans won the race!
After the race, the buffalo elders said they must have the Medicine Lodge ceremony. They said, "all will be performed that has happened since the beginning of this great race. On the fourth day of the ceremony it will belong to human beings." This ceremony gave humans power over buffalo. From then on, the Suhtai considered themselves the buffalo people.
Lakota Version
The Lakota were the last Native American group to live in the Black Hills. The United States government took their land in 1877. The Great Race story explains how the Black Hills were formed. It also explains how order was set in the universe.
The Lakota connect the Racetrack area with gathering sacred stones for their Sundance ceremonies. They believe the race happened at Inyan Kara Mountain. It takes place before the summer equinox. Lakota versions of the story specifically mention the Black Hills and the Race Track.
The Lakota say the race was between the "two-leggeds" (humans) and the "four-leggeds" (animals). It would decide who would eat whom. Lakota also believe the race still happens today. Animals from all over the world gather to re-enact it. They also believe the race track is where the Sundance began and where order was established.
Cheyenne Version
The Cheyenne and Suhtai people lived in the Black Hills from 1670 to 1876. They also believe the Great Race took place on Inyan Kara Mountain. The Cheyenne Great Race myth explains the origins of their Sundance, also called the Medicine Lodge.
The Cheyenne tradition of the Great Race is similar to the Suhtai's version. The story of the Great Race is very important in Cheyenne beliefs. It helped establish order among all living things. In both the Cheyenne and Lakota versions, the race starts and ends at Buffalo Gap. Other versions of the story mention the first Sun Dance near Bear Lodge Butte and Sundance Mountain.
Current Day Traditions
The Great Race legend is still important today. During the Sundance ceremony, an arrow is pushed through a piece of meat. This represents the arrow in the side of the buffalo woman in the story. Both the arrow and meat are placed in the Thunder's nest as an offering.
In the story, the man's child looked like his mother. This fits the Cheyenne kinship system. A child belongs to the mother's people. So, the child became a buffalo calf because the buffalo people were his mother's tribe.
Red and black paint is used on the rafter beams and center pole of the Medicine Lodge. These colors are symbols of the painted sticks used in the Great Race. During the final dance in the Medicine Lodge, the instructor and a dancer (called a pledger) dance side by side. The instructor pushes the pledger against the cottonwood brush around the altar. This represents the buffalo grandfather trying to push the Suhtai man off the cliff.
The Cheyenne did not eat one part of the buffalo: the sweetbreads (a gland). They called it 'human fat'. This was because the buffalo originally ate human beings. It is believed that some buffalo who had killed a man were surprised by enemies. They ran away, taking some human flesh with them. This fat became part of the buffalo. So, a small part of human flesh is believed to remain in the buffalo's body even today.
