The Cultural Significance of the Buffalo Kachina to the American Southwest Pueblo.
The Pueblo peoples of the American Southwest share a common culture even though they speak many different languages. They share rituals and ceremonies that have been passed down through the generations. This transfer of oral knowledge shows an interaction between the different communities of peoples and the possibility that they participated in rituals with other tribes. Even though they could not communicate through language, they communicated through their ceremonies by way of performance and dance that told stories of their origin and their relationship with the earth. The Pueblo believed that life came from the Earth and their emergence tale states that some…show more content… These spirits provided influence over weather, animal populations, and human life. The abundance of animals and crops was a reflection of how the spirits perceived the community. By associating living spirits with the forces of nature, the Pueblo would have felt a direct connection with nature and the plants and animals that lived around them. Their belief in the spirits that controlled natural events like weather, animal populations, and even human life would have taught them to respect the earth and the wildlife. The Pueblo, and likely most of the cultures of the Neolithic period, had great respect for nature and the living things around them. They understood that they survived because of the plants and animals around them. By dressing in costumes that represented the Kachina spirits, like the Buffalo Kachina, the Pueblo would show their respect for the earth and would believe that they were communicating with the spirits (Sayre 22). The celebrations and rituals were most likely common occurrences. However, it is also likely that the rituals were held more frequently in response to adverse weather conditions, such as drought, or when animal populations were