28.) Excerpts of Seneca Thanksgiving Rituals, concerning: the Creator, the Chiefs, the Faith Keepers, the Children and the People.(10 min read)

 Taken from the Smithsonian Institute, Bulletin 183. Reference to Article 15.) Seneca Thanksgiving Rituals : Translations from Corbett Sundown and Solon Jones, speech.

These short excerpts, in no way, should be taken as anywheres near a complete description of the subjects listed and are simply provided as one version and as a reminder...

The Creator: And now this is what Our Creator did. He decided, "I myself shall continue to dwell above the sky, and that is where those on the earth will end their Thanksgiving. They will simply continue to have gratitude for everything they see that I created on this Earth, and for everything they see that is growing." That is what he intended. "The people moving about on the earth will have, that feeling amoung us (love); they will simply be thankful. They will begin on the Earth, giving thanks for all they see. They will carry it upward, ending where I dwell. I shall always be listening carefully to what they are saying, the people who move about. And indeed I shall always be watching carefully what they do, the people on the Earth." And up to the present time, indeed, we people believe that we are happy. And therefore let there also be gratitude that we can claim to be happy. And give it your thought, that with One Mind we may now give thanks for him, Our Creator. Our minds will continue to be so.

The Chiefs: And now we people have gathered. This is what Our Creator decided: "They will simply continue to be grateful, those who move about on the earth." And he decided, "The clan partners who are called Chiefs will be present. They will be responsible for looking after the security of those who move about on the Earth. And it will also be their responsibility to roll into one, the minds of the people." All that he gave them was good. "They will continue to look after the happiness of the people." That is what he did. And it continues unchanged up to the present. It continues unchanged. They are standing there, the clan partners who are called Chiefs. They have indeed carried out their responsibilities. At all times they look after the happiness of the old people as well as of the children, and those yet unborn. And indeed they also do the talking wherever people gather. They roll into one, as far as they are able, the minds of the people. They keep providing for their happiness. And this is what the Creator decided: "It will continue to be their responsibility to help the clan partners who are called Faith Keepers. The Faith Keeper will whisper to them whatever is on his mind. The Chiefs are there. It will be the Chiefs responsibility to speak in public." And indeed we know that the form of the ceremonies continues unchanged. The Chiefs keep the whole thing straight, as the Four Rituals are performed. And indeed it continues unchanged; the whole things goes as he intended it. And now indeed again there is thanks for those who are called Chiefs and who remain. And now we ask this: that it will continue in the same manner; that they might still remain for another year.

The Faith Keepers: And now we are expressing our gratitude; that is all we can do. And now this is what the Creator intended, when he finished the creation of the earth. He decided, "I shall have helpers who will be persons among those who move about on the Earth. It will be their responsibility to get up the ceremonies, the Four Rituals, the ceremonies I laid down for myself." That is what he intended. And these are the clan partners who are called Faith Keepers. It continues unchanged, they are standing there by the support pole for the kettle containing soup prepared by the faith keepers, set up for the Creator. Indeed, they are carrying out their responsibilities. When the ceremonies are due, they decide that it is the proper time. And then they get up whatever ceremony it is, announcing that a ceremony is indicated. And indeed, those who are called Faith Keepers have been getting up the ceremonies. It must also be so: the trees are of equal height, there is no difference in rank among the clan partners who are called Faith Keepers. And there will be consent showing towards the Faith Keepers by those dependent on them, those who are called the ones with no assigned responsibilities. They all work together as one when they deliberate. They decide when the time comes, according to the way the Creator assigned the sequence of ceremonies. And it is true: this is the manner in which it continues to operate. They are carrying out the responsibility that was assigned to them. Up to the present time, too, this is their responsibility. And therefore let there be gratitude, that it still continues unchanged, operating as he planned it. And the entire group is thankful, as many people as remain. It continues unchanged. The clan partners who I call Faith Keepers are still standing they're at the support pole for the kettle containing soup prepared by the Faith Keepers, setup for him. And now we ask only this: that it will continue in the same manner for the period of another year.

The Children: And we are expressing our gratitude; that is all we can do. This is what Our Creator intended. He decided that children would be running about among us. They will be crawling about among us. And it is true: it continues unchanged. Up to the present time we have seen them, our children running about among us. They are indeed crawling about. And it is coming to pass as the Creator intended, for he decided that new persons would be taking their places on the Earth. And because of it she is strong, our mother the Earth, who supports our feet, it continues unchanged: the little children are taking their places. Therefore let there be gratitude that we are still seeing them, the new ones coming along, the little children. And now they are thankful that it continues unchanged, that we see our children running and crawling about among us. And now we ask only that it may continue in the same manner for the period of another year.

The People: And now, we are gathered in a group. And this is what the Sky Dwellers did: they told us that we should always have that feeling amoung us (love), we who move about on the Earth. And this will always be first, when people come to gather, the people who move about on the Earth. It is the way it begins when two people meet: they first have the obligation to be grateful that they are happy. They greet each other, and after that they take up the matter with which just they two are concerned. And this is what our creator did: he decided, "the people moving about on the earth will simply come to express their gratitude." And that is the obligation of those of us who are gathered: that we continue to be grateful. This, too, is the way things are: we have not heard of any unfortunate occurrences that there might be in the community. And the way things are, there are people lying here and there, held down by illness; and even that, certainly, is the responsibility of the Creator, for him to decide whether or not they will recover. And therefore let there be gratitude; we are always going to be grateful, we who remain, we who can claim to be happy. And give it your thought: the first thing for us to do is to be thankful for each other. And our minds will continue to be so.