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Yuwipi facts for kids

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Yuwipi is a special healing ceremony practiced by the Lakota people. During this ceremony, a healer is gently tied up with a blanket and ropes. The healer and others who are there pray and sing to help someone who needs healing. This ceremony can be for one person or a small group, depending on what is needed and how experienced the medicine man is.

What is Yuwipi?

In the Lakota culture, the Yuwipi (pronounced yoo-WEE-pee) ceremony helps people with both their bodies and their spirits. The word Yuwipi means "they wrap him up" or "they tie him up." This ceremony can happen at any time of the year when someone needs help to heal.

The Yuwipi Ceremony

Who Leads the Ceremony?

The person who leads the Yuwipi ceremony is called the Yuwipi man. He is the healer and the one who is tied up. During the ceremony, he calls upon spirits to help the people. While many traditions are passed down through families, each Yuwipi man has his own special way of leading the ceremony.

Spirits Called Upon

The spirits that are called during the ceremony can be different for each Yuwipi man and for what the ceremony is trying to achieve. These spirits might be ancestors (people who lived before us) or they could be animal spirits. Animal spirits can be from birds or from animals with four legs.

How the Ceremony Works

Everyone attending the ceremony must follow certain rules. The medicine man's special pipe, called a chanunpa, is always present. The ceremony includes a lot of prayer, the sound of a drum, and traditional songs. Some songs are sung to invite the spirits to come, and other songs are sung to let the spirits know it is time to leave and end the ceremony.

The Yuwipi man often feels very tired after the ceremony. This is because he needs to focus very hard to talk with the spirits. The spirits also use some of his life energy to help heal the people. Because of this, Yuwipi men often have short and challenging lives.

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