Daughters of the Greening presents:

Haokah

by Susan Allen

Haokah was, by far, one of the most unique Gods of Native America. He is most widely known as the God of Thunder and Lightening. Some of his other attributes include hunting and the ruler of dreams. His most interesting attribute is as the God of Contradiction.       As the God of Contradiction, Haokah laughs when he’s sad, cries when he’s happy, shivers when he’s warm, and sweats when he’s cold. His behaviors are the exact opposite of what they should be. Haokah’s followers devoted their lives to these attributes. They would also do the exact opposite of what was expected. For example, if you asked a follower of Haokah to go away, he would instead come closer to you. Due to the demanding nature of this devotion, Haokah only had a few followers per tribal village. It can be assumed that an individual requiring Haokah’s assistance would have to ask for the opposite of what he/she wanted in order to get it.       Haokah is depicted as a great giant with elk antlers on his head. His contradictory nature is expressed by half of his face being shaded red and the other half of his face being shaded blue. He also has two different colored eyes. In his left hand, he holds a hunter’s lance, called the “Lance of Contradiction”. He is also drawn using the wind as sticks to beat his drum of thunder.       He is one of the few gods whose pictographic record has been discovered and identified by the Lakota people. It was said that his “royal court” was in the forest in which he dwelt. Ancient natives felt that all of nature was supernatural and that trees and other natural formations could contain gods. If a particular area of the forest or landscape seemed abundant with supernatural energies, it was assumed that a god must reside there. It was in just such an area that Haokah held his court.

Based on the pictographs and their meanings, many things can be learned about Haokah. His sacred animals included frogs, deer, elk, and bison. Sacred plants were fungus that grew on the bark of trees, and a particular tree called “touchwood”. Objects sacred to Haokah were bows and arrows, arrowheads, natural ornaments such as pine cones and rattlesnake rattles, deer hooves used as rattles, whistles and flutes. He also appreciated incense offerings and decorated his court with red-down feathers.       Haokah protected what he considered to be his. Lightening surrounded his court, much as electric fences are used to protect modern places. When under attack, he would launch meteors at his enemies and also use lightening when needed. When a more intimate form of protection was needed, Haokah could feed touchwood to animals and they would die instantly. This may have also been used as a humane way for Haokah to take care of creatures too ill to continue a happy life.       In the Lakota-Sioux tradition, Haokah was a prominent thunder God. However, his quirky attitude and behaviors truly made him an exceptional deity. Background by http://www.firstpeople.us/

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