Bear's Den: "Dance, Dance, Dance... Do the 'Bear!"

Man, back in my teens, dancing was a big deal. It wasn´t that old fogey stuff, neither. Nah, no waltzes or Charleston´s for us. We liked cool boogies like ´The Twist´, ´The ´Mashed Potato´, ´The Swim´, ´The Froog´, ´The Watusi´, ´The Hitchhike´, ´The Pony´, ´The Dog´ and ´The Chicken´. Yeah man, groovy bops like that, eh. Of course... that might be because I´m Shawnee, too. Now if I was a Knisteneaux (Cree) or a Chippewa Indian, then I would´ve really dug... ´The Bear´, too.

Yeah well, it´s been cold outside, huh? Um-hmm, and there´s not a lot to be excited about in that, is there now? Well, maybe not, but it is good napping weather. Sure, but wouldn´t you know it, there´s always someone or something that´s disturbing your slumber. Yep. So, for thousands of years, American Indians have been gently lulling the bruins and grizzlies into nighty-night for the long winter ahead, in a little hop called... the Bear Dance.

Now, ordinarily, by late October bears have usually found a den in which to hole-up for papoonwi (winter). These dens can be anything from a cave to an earthen hole in a hillside and even to an old, hollow tree. Yeah, and it´s into these fancy digs that they go to partake in what´s known as ´hibernation´. Bears hibernate for primarily one reason – the pick´ns are mighty slim out there once conee (snow) blankets the ground. Yes´um, and that´s why a bear puts on close to 40 pounds of fat a week prior to naptime, too. Once they get in bed, it´s more akin to a two-legged nap than a sound sleep, eh – kind´a like a doze. Yeah, and it´s easy enough for them to do because their heart rate drops from around 50 beats a minute right down to 10 thumps every 60 seconds, eh. Not only that, but their overall, normal body temperature drops drastically as well. Yes´sir, and even though it´s possible for an American Black Bear to sleep straight-through up to 100 days without waking up, most of them don´t. They get woken up, or they have a bad dream – whatever. And, once awake, they stagger outside, blink at the brightness, scratch their belly and yawn – no wait – I do that. But anyway, you know what I mean? They get up, go out and ramble around a bit before hitting the sack again to try to cop some more Z's.

Now the Bear Dance dates back thousands of years and is actually a Ghost Dance. That means – to those spiritually attuned – that while the living Indians are dancing, they can actually see the ghosts of their ancestors, which are dancing with them. And while practiced in various forms, by many Indian nations, it´s the Knisteneaux or Cree and the Chippewa´s version that I refer to here. The dance symbolizes putting the Great Bear to sleep for his winter hibernation. It goes this-away. First, the Bear appears as a ghost (some two-legged in a bearskin) and he walks mightily across the area of the dance to clear it of all bad spirits that may be present. When Bear is done clearing the area, the living two-leggeds start a log fire and begin the Bear Dance with song and chant. As they dance, their ancestors join the dance in spirit form, and, slowly, the bear is lulled to sleep for the winter and the dance is complete. Usually, this boogie is performed in the late fall. But, if there are mid-winter thaws that wake up the grumpy bears, then a bear dance may be performed to send those that are grouchy as... well... an Old Bear... back to slumber land.

Now, when I was a teen, whenever one song ended another began, so did a different dance. And Indians follow suit here. A multi-step that usually follows the Bear Dance is the ´Circle of Life´ Dance. This dance begins with a log fire being flared up. The fire symbolizes the light and warmth of the sun, and this shindig... is all about bringing that warm orb back home, eh. The dance is started with a song and chant that gives praise and thanks to God, The Master of Life, and also asks for longer sunlight and warmer days to return quickly. Yes´sir, and just like the band´s, "Last number of the Night"... the dance ended with the fading of the fire. Heck yeah, and since I´m known as "Bear"... I do, indeed, dig that groovy boogie called... The Bear Dance and I'm into that bomb of a bop called... The ´Circle of Life´, too.

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David Walks-As-Bear is an Inter-Tribal Elder and Kispoko Shawnee Indian. He works as a private game warden and detective and is a novelist and syndicated newspaper columnist living in Northwest Michigan. Contact him at The White Lake Beacon: 231-894-5356 or visit his website at: www.Walks-As-Bear.com