The Philosophícal Research Society, Inc.

3910 Los Feliz Blù. - Los Angelet, Calif.9oo27 - 663-2167

MANLY P. HALL HENRY L. DRAKE

P¡esidcnt . Founder Vice.Pre¡idcot

CONTRIBUTORSI BULLETIN - APRIL I972

Dear Friends:

While we visit distant parts of the world in search of drama and adventure, there are
strange customs in our own country which are endangered by the rapid expansion of our
industrialized society. In the bleak mesalands of New Mexico and Arizona are old
communÍties where the religions and customs of the Navajo, l{opi, and Zuni peoples
linger on with small but devout followings. Flost of the betiefs of these bulture
groups are animistic, concerned with a living universe of visible and invisibte powers
which extend but a short distance from the isolated villages.
One morning nearly thirty years ago, I
took a plane from the Grand Canyon to the village
of 0raibe. Ernest Thompson Seton accompanied me, and our purpose was to watch the
ceremony_of welcoming the gods from the great rnountains where they dwelt. Our plane
was small, with only one engine, for there was no tanding field except the desert. One
modern innovation was a wind sock which I learned later disappeared regularly. After a
rough landÍng, v',e climbed the steep path which led up to the little adõbe town. It was
a very important and sacred day, and the Indians were dressed in their best velvet shirts
1r ârd finest turquoise
iewelry. It was immediately noticeable that very few men were
ipresent, and I assumed they were in the kiva. thts is an undergroundroom in the central
;' square, from the opening in the roof of which a long ladder projected at an acute angle.
The people were very friendly and as the day was hot, invited us to share in the shade
of their homes. It was hard to tell how many persons were present, but there were
probably two hundred, counting the small children.
Things move slowly on the mesas, and sacred matters are not subject to the tyranny of
time. Ultimately, however, there was a heavy rumble of drums, and a hush of expectancy
descended upon the assembláge. From the kivã emerged a numbei of masked dancer! who
had spent the previous night in their subterranean chapel purifying their souls with
the mystic chants of long ago. The villagers recognized these men-as sons, fathers, or
husbands; but the magic of the masks temporari.ly transfonned the wearers into super-
natural beings. They had become spirit ancestors--heroes of long ago and guardian
spirits that had taken flesh for a few hours. In addÍtion to the grotesque masks with
their pendant feathers and geometric paÍntings, the'dancers also wõre curiously designed
kilts trinmed with fur, and anklets from which were suspended tittle tinkling bells.
f4asks are essentia'l parts of animistic paraphernalia throughout the world. The dancers
at 0raibe were similar to the masked priests of Egypt, the-shaman of Siberia, the devil
dancers of Tibet, and the strangely costumed witch doctors of, Africa.
COIITRIBUTORS' BULLETIN - APRIL 1972, Page 2

At graibe, masks were homemade, buù tfre preparing of them was comple!_el.y. ritualistic.
Wñen ãn iñ¿iàn decided to make a rnsk for hís own use, he had to do all
the work behind
¡is back¡ and he should not so much as glance at the mask until it
was painted and
ãecorãteã and finished. If he transgreised this rule, he would surely die a painful
and lingering death. He must never þut on the mask except qn.t!'tq specified occasions
when he-had þurifiecl hirnself and offered up his body to be.inhabited by a spirit not
hii own. l^lhên this spirit came, the dancer was transformed into another pelso!. There
ras ñò àeceit or subtärfuge wheñ a viìlager said, "Today !!g.gods come'" and the ritual
ls-mà¿e nnre perfect vrhen"these unearthly beings present little flat baskets of yellow
corn meal as a symbol of good fortune and fecundity.
l¡le were alwatchi f,9t but so far as I could tell there were no 0 ther Anglos present. As
I
the dance pro gres s ed and the chantíno grew louder and the drums roared like distant
cannon, a san dsto rm came to Oraibe. The a ir was so laden with dust that we could not
see across the open square. The shadowy fo rms of the dancers appeared as through clouds'
and then vanished aga in. At last the sound became so intense that its effect was
eerie and almost hypnotic. It seemed impo ssibte that Ì,re were in prosaic United States
in the twentieth century. The great momen t was approaching when the holy visitors
from the blue-capped mountains would come to bìess the corununity. Then, out of the mist
they came whirling and twisting, shaking thelr rattles and whirli ng their bul lroarers.
,
In the course of the dancing they approach ed groups of by-
standers and gesticul ated with their hands as though causing
magnet ic currents to flow from them. The storm howled, tearing
at curta ins and blankets; and the top of the mesa became a
fragment of some phantom universe. The number of dancers must
havã been nearly one hundred, and although allseemed !o-be
pandemonium, thê dancers npved with extraOrdinary precision.
Later when the sandstorm had faded away and the ceremony was
over, the surface of the open square resembled waves breaking
on a seashore, the sets of the ripples in the sand being the
impressions of the bare feet of the dancers. I

The gods came to bring blessings to the people. There were

chitðren to be we'lcomèd into the nystery of the spi¡its who
walk with men. There were unborn babes to be brought safely
into the world. There were young couples who should not be
barren, and old folks who should live in peace. Below the mesa
lhe coin must ripen, and the wells must not gg dty. . The spirits
of the ancient dêad will reioice because the living have kept
the ways of the "Olds" and the "Trues."
l|e had witnessed one of mankind's oldest religions. The gods
from the mountalns then circled the square in single filer 1!d,
walking away, disappeared over the edge of the mesa by a differ-
ànt pai,n tnãñ ttrat.which we had ascended. They were. going back
ll Repr.esentlng to a kind of terreStrial paradise, for the gods of the mesaland
ioved thelr good earth moie than any verdant place beyond the sKy.
Kachlna Dancer
Later, the Indlans shared sonp of-their fetishes with us and
reõrette¿-that the mn of the fanilles had been "called ar1ay.rl
CO!{TRIBUT0RS' BULLETIN - APRIL 1972, Page 3

Among recent arrivals from the 0rient is a de-

lightful shrine containing an image of the
Japanese folk deity of wealth, Daikokusen, or
l4r. Daikoku. ThÍs shrine is in the form of the
cintamani, or radiant jewel, of Buddhism--a
form, incidentally, which came into Europe from
the l,lear East and is a favorite shape for
church steeples. l4r. Daikoku ís the patron
protector of the lzumo Shrine, the oldest
Shinto sanctuary in Japan. His name means "the
great black," and he can be traced directly to
the East Indian god, Shiva, whose ferocious
asoect, Mahakala, is also a familiar figure in
the Tibetan pantheon. The Japanese, an opti-
mistic people, transformed the Indian Lord of
Death into a cheerful, rotund figure standing
on two rice bales and accompanied by rats.
Daikoku has another meaning. The central
column which upholds the roof of a house i s
called the Daikoku Pil1ar, associating thi s rather humorous go dling with the stability of
the home, which i'n turn is an appropriate symbol of the stabil ity of humanity. In one
hand, Daikoku holds a magic mallet, and whatever he strikes with this pours forth gold.
He also carries a large sack on his back filled with gifts. Though seldom recognized
in official Shintoism, Daikoku is privately adored by.all seeking tg improve their
fortunes. The shrine pictured here shows the result of Kobo Daishi's effort to amal-
gamate Shintoísm with Buddhism. The sacred pearl is essentially the symbol of the-light
of guddha, but in thÍs case it is supported by figures of rats. Altogether, this is a
most curious example of folk religion and may very well be unique.

Our April exhibit at headquarters features "Magic, l4yths, and Medicine,u and we have
gatheied sone fascinating.material dealing with varÍous phases of mental and physical
ñealing. There will be rare acupuncture diagrams, examples of leaves from old herbals'
talismåns, charms, early anatomical figures, Oriental mandalas, Navaio Indian sand
paintings, and other curiosities. l,üe hope that those of you living in the area will
make it a point to attend thÍs fascinating display.

l¡le will
be writing you soon again, and in the meantime please accept our thanks for your
support and encouragement.
Always most sincerely,

Ø4 r
CONTRIBUTORST BULLETIN - APRIL 1972, Page 4

SPECIAL NOTICE FROM OUR BOOK DEPARTMENT

A number of important and scholarly volumes in our fields of interest are now available
in attractive and accurate reprints. l{ost of those listed here are included in Mr.
Hall's list of recormended reading and have long been rare and out of print. To these
have been added selected works by outstanding modern authors. The Contributors' Bulletin
will list additional works in future issues.
Title Author Pri ce
Cosmic Consciousness R.M. Bucke $ 6 .00
CosmÍc I'lemory Rudolf Steiner 6 .50
Cosmo Conceplion (Rosicrucian) Max Heindel (P) 4 .50
The Count of l'lonte Cristo Dumas 3 .25
Creation Flyths of Formosan Natives Arundel Del Re 3 .75
Creative Ikebana N.Ohno 7 .50
Crude Black t*lolasses Cyril Scott t .00
Cul ture--Ptan's Adapti ve Dirnension M.F.A. l4ontagu (P) 2 .50
The Cosmic Doctrine Dione Fortune 4 .00
Cl ai rvoyance C.l,l. Leadbeater 2 .25
The Curious Lore of Precious Stones Geo. F. Kunz (P) 4 .50
Conmentaries on Living (Volumes 1,2r3) J. Krishnamurti (P) t .7Sea
Culpeper's Complete Herbal Remedies Nicholas Culpeper (P) 2 .00
The Cosmic ï,lomb (Man's Relationship to the Infinite) Arthur t{. Osborn (P) 2 .25
The Comte de Sainte Germaine I.
rMil
Cooper-Oakley 7 .50
Dayspring of Youth B .50
Death and Rebirth of Psychoìogy Ira Progoff 6 .50
Death of Socrates, The R, Guardini (P) 2 .45
Depth Psychology and Modern Man Ira Progoff 6 .50
Depth Psychology and a New Ethic Eric Neumann 7 .00
Development of Personality, The #17 Carl G. Jung 6 .00
The Dharma--The Religion of Enlightenment P. Carus 2 .00
Did Jesus Live 100 B.C.? G.R.S. Mean I 0 .00
Dionysus l.lyth and Cult l,l.F. 0tto (P) 2 .65
Dl sti I I ed l,li sdom fred lvlontapert
Aì 5 .00
The Divining Rod Barrett and Besterman 7 .50
Doctrine of-the Subtle Body in llestern Tradition G.R.S. l4ean (P) 2 .75
Dowsi ng l.l.H. Trinder 2 .75
Dweller on Two Planets Phyl os I .50
The Diamond Sutra-and the Sutra of HuÍ Neng Trans. A.F. Price and
t'long l"þu-Lam (P) 2.25
A Dictionary of Pagan Religions l'ledeck and Baskin 10.00
The Doors o1 Perception (Heaven and Hell ) Aldous Huxley (P) I .45
Dalton's Table of Houses 4.00
Dictionary of Astrology James l,lil son 12.95
Early Greek Philosophy John Burnet (P) 2.25
An Earth Dweller's Return Phylos (Tibetan) 8.50
The Earth Gods Kahlil Gibran 3.95
Education and the Significance of Life J. Krishnamurti 2.50
Eleusis and Eleusian-Mysterìes Geo. Mylonas (P) 4.95

These books may be ordered directly from The Phîlosophical Research Srciety, Inc.
(addrress on fiist
page). Please add 250 for handling on orders of less than $5,00, and
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