What is the Powamu Ceremony?

The powamu ceremony is one of the most important Hopi ceremonies. It occurs in February of each year in most of the Hopi villages. In actuality it is not a single ceremony but a cluster of several important events that are interwoven. Most years the ceremony is presented in an abbreviated form. However, In years when the tribal initiation of the young men is held, the Pachavu Ceremony will be attached to the Powamu, and the ceremony is presented in its full, unabridged form.

Undoubtedly the most important aspect of the Powamu ceremony is the anticipation of the coming growing season, with ritual designed to promote fertility and germination. To accomplish this the Powamu chief appears as Muyingwa, the principal deity of germination, and every male who how has been initiated into the Kachina cult is expected to grow beans in the kivas. The growing of these bean sprouts gives the ceremony its popular name, and offers omens for the success for the growing season. The ceremonial processionof the Pachavu Manas carrying these bean sprouts and the presentation of ritual bundles of them to the women and children during the height of the winter are tangible evidence of the presence of Muyingwa. Second in importance is the initiation of the children into the Kachina society at this time. Powamu officers serve as fathers of the kachinas at this time reinforcing the relationship between the Powamu and Kachina Cult.

 

Incorporated into the Powamu are historical or mythological events which are given as dramatic presentations. The relationships between the Village chief and his clan with the clans of the pother chiefs are emphasized. Most of these events are accompanied by the impersonation of a great many  Chief Kachinas. These presentations allow all men and kachinas in positions of authority before the village.

 

In addition to these rites there is a strong educational aspect that appears throughout the entire ceremony. The incorporation of the Soyoko ceremony with its disciplinary emphasis on the younger children and the feeling that all have bought their lives for another year is a part of this. The whipping of the children who are initiated to emphasize the need for secrecy might also be included.

The presentation of these rituals brings forth an enormous number of kachinas. Some of these are present but never be seen by outsiders or, for, that matter, by most of the Hopis. Other kachinas appear only during Pachavu or Initiation or at irregular intervals.

Soyal Ceremony

Corn Maiden Hopi Kachina Doll

The Soyal is the winter solstice ceremony and with its beginning other kachinas make their appearance. For some Mesas and villages this will be the first appearance of any kachina. The primary ritual is conceived as helping to turn the sun back toward its summer path. Woven around this concept are many others that involve the entire community in one respect or another. On second and third mesas there is a war ritual in which medicine is prepared that all members of the village may either drink or smear on themselves for health and strength.  On first mesa this occurs after the Soyal, but there is an appearance of the masked War Chief that does not occur on the second and third mesas. Corn of all colors that is ritually tied with yucca fiber is brought into the kivas for consecration. On third mesa the consecrated corn is returned to the women by four unmasked individuals while on first mesa it is symbolically paraded by Ahulani and the two Corn Maidens before being returned. Pahos (prayer feathers) are prepared by groups and individuals for every conceivable purpose. Prayer feathers are prepared for relatives, family and friends; for personnel well being; for the increase of animals and crops; and prayer objects are made by the kiva group of the village. On third mesa the Mastop Kachinas appear and symbolically fertilize all the females of the village. A different kachina but one with a similar purpose appears on second mesa during initiation years. There is no known kachina that is comparable on first mesa. The final day of the Soyal on  third mesa is characterized by the appearance of the Qoqoqolom and their kachina manas who appear and “open the kivas” by marking the hatchways with cornmeal. On first mesa it is Ahulani and the Corn Maidens who open the kivas with their appearance in the village, while on second mesa, it is Ahul and a single Mana that perform this function.