The Sioux Yuwupi Ceremony

The Sioux Yuwupi ceremony; other tribes, such as the Cheyenne and others, may have very similar ceremonies comparably, however the mainstay is the Lakota Sioux. The Yuwupi ceremony for the Sioux is to prophesy-tell what will happen or predict something to happen in the future that will come true, and it does precisely according to as predicted, by the medicine man at the end of the ceremony when he finally speaks to the people present and participants and witnesses at the end of the Yuwupi ceremony.

In preparation for the ceremony chosen individuals- preferably young Indian women will make 405 tobacco ties of out of squares of cloth-about 1" by 1", filled with tobacco as Spirit offerings. They are tied on to small tree branches inserted in old 3 lb. Used empty coffee cans and filled with dirt half full to hold branches with these ties securely during ceremony. About 2 dozen coffee cans are used with the branches inserted in the can and the the tobacco ties tied on the branches by the women.

The medicine man's thumbs and hands are tied together in back of him and covered with an Indian hand made star quilt and tied up. He is laid face down by his three assistants between these 2 dozen coffee cans with the branches and tobacco ties. Three gourds are placed at the head of the medicine man. All the lights are turned out. Everyone present sits Indian style shoulder to shoulder with legs crossed against the wall in a one room teepee or house.

These assistants begin to sing while beating individual Indian made drums. They sing three Spirit songs and the Spirits enter the room this goes on all the while the medicine man in still all tied up lying face down on the floor in total darkness. By the third song these gourds come to life and start keeping time with the drum beats, at first they float up to the ceiling and give off blue hue electrical impulse flashes of light and return to the place at the head of the medicine man at the end of every song.

Then at the beginning of the fourth song these three gourds float out and gently tap people if they are sick and on their ailments while still keeping in time with the drum beats and singing. If anyone present has any ailments these gourds heal you, on the other hand, it is recommended that if you are "not" a good person "not" to attend these Yuwupi meetings, because these Spirits will attack you hitting you, cursing your life, and the wall viciously where you sit.

After a while when the ceremony is completed and the lights are turned back on, the medicine man is sitting up untied and all the tobacco ties are gone, everyone of them, just the branches, cans, and soil remain. Then the medicine man begins to prophesy to everyone present in attendance, and answers any and every questions asked with 100% accuracy about anything unknown to all present, but every word said comes the medicine man's predictions come true. This ceremony is thousands of years old among the Sioux tribe.