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Cherokee Sacred Colors
The symbolic color
system was as follows:
East
red = success; triumph
North
blue = defeat; trouble
West
black = death
South
white = peace; happiness
The Red Man, living in
the East, is the spirit
of power, triumph, and
success. The Black Man,
in the West, is the
spirit of death. The
shaman would invoke the
Red Man to the
assistance of his
patient and consign his
enemy to the fatal
influences of the Black
Man. According to Thomas
Mails, in his book,
"Cherokee People," the
mythological
significance of
different colors were
important in Cherokee
lore.
Red
Red was symbolic of
success. It was the
color of the war club
used to strike an enemy
in battle as well as the
other club used by the
warrior to shield
himself. Red beads were
used to conjure the red
spirit to insure long
life, recovery from
sickness, success in
love and ball play or
any other undertaking
where the benefit of the
magic spell was wrought.
Black
Black was always typical
of death. The soul of
the enemy was
continually beaten about
by black war clubs and
enveloped in a black
fog. In conjuring to
destroy an enemy, the
priest used black beads
and invoked the black
spirits- which always
lived in the
West,-bidding them to
tear out the man's soul
and carry it to the
West, and put it into
the black coffin deep in
the black mud, with a
black serpent coiled
above it.
Blue
Blue symbolized failure,
disappointment, or
unsatisfied desire. To
say "they shall never
become blue" expressed
the belief that they
would never fail in
anything they undertook.
In love charms, the
lover figuratively
covered himself with red
and prayed that his
rival would become
entirely blue and walk
in a blue path. "He is
entirely blue,"
approximates meaning of
the common English
phrase, "He feels blue."
The blue spirits lived
in the North.
White
White denoted peace and
happiness. In ceremonial
addresses, as the Green
Corn Dance and ball
play, the people
symbolically partook of
white food and, after
the dance or game,
returned along the white
trail to their white
houses. In love charms,
the man, to induce the
woman to cast her lost
with his, boasted, "I am
a white man," implying
that all was happiness
where he was. White
beads had the same
meaning in bead
conjuring, and white was
the color of the stone
pipe anciently used in
ratifying peace
treaties. The White
spirits lived in the
South.
There are three
additional sacred
directions:
Up Above
= yellow
Down Below
= brown
Here in the Center
= green
Colors
Red |
gi-ga-ge
|
Yellow |
da-lo-ni-ge |
Blue |
sa-go-ne-ge
|
Green |
i-tse-i-yu-s-di
|
Orange |
a-da-lo-ni-ge |
White |
u-ne-ga
|
Black |
gv-ni-ge
|
Purple |
gi-ga-ge-s-di |
Brown |
u-wo-di-ge
|
Pink |
gi-ga-ge-i-yu-s-di |
Grey |
u-s-go-lv sa-go-ni-ge |
Silver |
a-de-lv-u-ne-gv
|
Hoping the above has been
enlightening for you
Students wishing to learn, here is your chance.
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©Eagles Aerie
Mentor
-Editor : Wareagle
- Original artwork remains the
copyrighted property of
their respective artists.
- Many thanks to
David Penfound
For permission to use your wonderful graphics
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2000-2008
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