on into six smaller reservations. Some of the tribes began performing the Ghost Dance, a religious ceremony meant to extinguish the whites and return the buffalo. In 1890 Chief Sitting Bull was murdered on the Standing Rock Reservation. Following this event, Big Foot and his Mnikowoju band fled to Pine Ridge to seek protection under Red Cloud. More than 250 members of Big Foots band were massacred by the 7th Cavalry on December 29 at Wounded Knee. This event is often described as the last major conflict between the U.S. Army and the Great Sioux Nation.Its undeniable that the conflicts between Native Americans and whites have always been exacerbated by a fundamental misunderstanding of Native American spirituality by outsiders, who often fail to comprehend the involvement of religion in every aspect of Native American life. The Lakota Sioux believe in Wakan Tanka, the great incomprehsibility, the benevolent force that created the universe and comprises everything. This concept is understood not so much as a specific entity, but as a spirit that signifies the unity of the universe, and celebrates the mysteries of life. Wakan Tanka is sometimes embodied in human beings the Wicasa Wakan, or holy people. These holy beings are seen as the spiritual fathers and mothers of all men. One such Wicasa Wakan is the White Buffalo Calf Woman. Here is her story:The story goes that she appeared to two warriors who were out hunting buffalo in the sacred Black Hills. They saw a white buffalo calf coming toward them, and as it came closer it turned into a beautiful young Indian girl. One of the warriors was consumed by impure thoughts, and the girl told him to step forward. When he did, a black cloud circled his body, and when it disappeared he had no flesh or blood on his bones. The other warrior kneeled down to pray, and the girl told him to go to his people and warn them that in four days she would return with a sacred bundle. He warned ...
