Deer Dancer: Yaqui Legands & Myths [Paperback]

Stan Padilla (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1998

From earliest times, the Yaqui people have had to overcome many oppressive and exploitative conditions to continue their own laws and customs in their own homeland in harmony and freedom. Many of their tribal stories reflect this struggle in this collection of Yaqui legends and myths.

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Book Publishing Company (TN); 1 edition (January 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1570670579
• ISBN-13: 978-1570670572
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #988,736 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent introduction to the Yaqui culture, September 11, 2006

By 

Charles Ashbacher (Marion, Iowa United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Deer Dancer: Yaqui Legands & Myths (Paperback)

The Yaqui are a Native American group whose original homeland was on both sides of the Gulf of California in what is now Mexico. The wars that they fought against encroachment and extermination were largely against the Mexican government. As was the case nearly everywhere else, they were overwhelmed and were scattered throughout northwest Mexico and the southwestern United States. Despite their hardships, they have managed to preserve much of their traditions and culture and some of it is explained in this book.

They have many legends of the origin of their environment and the animals that inhabit it. Those legends involve the origin of the first deer, the first corn, why the moon waxes and wanes, how humans acquired fire and are recounted here. The history of the Yaqui people before the arrival of the Spaniards and how they reacted is briefly retold. Christianity was not rejected, in fact the Yaqui generally embraced it, and a large part of the book gives detailed descriptions of the Yaqui Easter ceremony. A combination of traditional Yaqui beliefs and Christian worship, it is a demonstration of how cultures can simultaneously coexist in the same ceremonies.

The Yaqui are a tribal group of Native Americans who faced the same extermination and absorption pressures that the others did. It is a common myth that only the Europeans engaged in policies designed to eradicate other cultures. This book explains that other groups in power in the Western Hemisphere engaged in similar policies. If you have any interest in the ancient and rich culture of the Yaqui, then this is a book you should read.