What is a Kachina?
 
kachina (ke-chê´ne) noun
Any of numerous deified ancestral spirits of
the Pueblo peoples,
believed to
reside in the pueblo for part of each year.
A masked dancer believed to embody a particular
spirit during a
religious ceremony.
A carved doll in the costume of a particular
spirit, usually presented
as a gift to a child.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition copyright ©
1992 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Electronic version licensed from InfoSoft International,
Inc. All rights reserved.
Excerpt from Hopi Kachinas, The Complete Guide to Collecting Kachina
Dolls, by Barton Wright. Published by Northland Press, Flagstaff, AZ. Copyright © 1977 by
Barton Wright.
High on the mesas in the arid lands of northeastern Arizona live the Hopi, westernmost
of the Pueblo people. A small, peaceful and friendly group, they have occupied their
barren mesa tops and farmed their arid but fertile valleys for many centuries.
The driving force of Hopi religion is the urgent need for water in any form. To survive
in this waterless land the Hopi developed a complex religion to secure supernatural
assistance in fulfilling their needs.
One element of this religion is the Kachina Cult, with every Hopi past the age of ten
being an initiated member. The basic concept of the cult is that all things in the world
have two forms, the visible object and a spirit counterpart, a dualism that balances mass
and energy. Kachinas are the spirit essence of everything in the real world.
The multitude of spirits range from Star Kachinas to Ash Kachinas. They represent game,
domestic plants and animals, wild foods, birds, insects, even death itself is given
kachina form. The Hopi do not worship these kachinas but rather treat them as friends or
partners who are interested in Hopi welfare.
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