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Religion may be hidden motive behind Anasazi migration

A young Hopi child plays with a rattle while dancing at Second Mesa in Arizona

By John Fox

March 28, 2000
Web posted at: 12:20 p.m. EST (1720 GMT)

Micah Loma'omvaya knows why the Anasazi (or as the Hopi say, Hisatsinom) left their homes in the Four Corners 700 years ago. The answer, he says, is found in the minds and hearts of his people. I'm convinced he's right.

We've spent the last couple of days with Micah here in the village of Songoopavi. Micah is a well-educated young Hopi man deeply rooted in Hopi religion and culture, and more than capable of making his way in modern America.

The Hopi call this place the "center of the world" and have a deeply spiritual connection to it. It's easy to see why they call it this. The village plaza, where important community rituals occur, is found next to several square kivas, ceremonial pits. Wooden ladders lead down into the darkness where the most sacred clan and society rituals happen. From the flat roofs of the houses you can see the world all around, including the Hopi Buttes and the San Francisco Peaks, home of the kachinas, powerful spirits of rain and fertility.

After taking part in Micah's traditional Hopi engagement ceremony, we had the chance to witness a kachina ceremony. While the whole village lined the roofs and edges of the plaza, about 20 elaborately masked figures representing different kachina spirits arrived in the plaza. For about two hours, the plaza became a kind of carnival as young boys covered in mud raced the kachinas.

Only a Hopi person could begin to understand the meanings behind this ritual. The ceremony ended with the kachinas throwing fruit and bread treats to people in the crowd. Once they had delivered their blessings, they returned to their symbolic homes in the mountains.

Over the last several weeks, we've explored the world of the ancient Anasazi. We've learned about how the Anasazi lived and wondered why they left. Dan explored the warfare theory in depth and showed that conflict must have played some role in the abandonment. Christina argued that drought and other environmental problems came first.

After my time with Micah in the Hopi village, I'm convinced that this only tells half the story. Religion is the missing half.

Religion is the hardest thing to read from the crumbling ruins of ancient dwellings. In a way you have to get inside the minds of the ancient people, how they lived, and what they felt when they climbed the cliffs and planted their fields. The kivas we found in every site show the importance of religion to the people. The petroglyphs of Mesa Verde and Scaffold House tell stories of the people and spirits who have occupied these places. The spirit paths of Chaco Canyon suggest the presence of a powerful religion there.

Kachina dolls are representations of specific kachina spirits.

Archaeologist Bill Lipe thinks religion was a powerful force in the abandonment. He says that rather than thinking of the Anasazi being "pushed" out of the Four Corners by drought or warfare, we should think about what was "pulling" them toward the south. He thinks this "pull" was the kachina religion, which symbols first appear in rock art and pottery around the time of the abandonment. With its focus on rain, fertility, and peace the kachina religion offered a new vision of hope to the Anasazi as it drew them south in search of a better place.

The Anasazi were only human. They overused their environment and they fought with each other, sometimes brutally, but in the end their religion gave them a solution. This solution was to move in search of a better life, to continue their migrations to the center place, what Micah calls "the promised land." According to Micah's Hopi tradition, they have arrived. "We've wandered all over the place," Micah explains "but finally we were led to this sacred spot."

Maybe Micah's onto something. After all, the Hopi aren't the only people who see religion as the answer to conflict and social stress. They're not the only people who've wandered the earth in search of a promised land. They've just been lucky enough to find theirs.

As the sun dips below the mesa edge, Dan and I continue our discussion of the abandonment with Micah. "So, where DID the Anasazi go from Mesa Verde?" presses Dan. "Well," said Micah with a smile and a yawn, "I know where THIS Anasazi is going: To bed, so he can get up and work tomorrow. Does that solve your mystery?"

Diggin' it,

John

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