Tenskwatatwa

Tenskwatawa




Tecumseh (left) and Tenskwatawa also known as the prophet (right) were brothers in the Shawnee Tribe.  They had another brother named Cheeseeaku.  I only mention that because Cheeseeaku is always left out of conversations, and I feel he should atleast be acknowleged.  With that being said I want to focus on the story of Tenskwatawa. 


Tecumseh was Chief of the Shawnee Nation, while brother Tenskwatawa was a drunk for most of his life.  In fact Tenskwatawa did not become known as "The Prophet" until he had awoke from self harm and drunken state in which he exclaimed that he had a vision.  The Prophet tells his people that he had died, and went to the world above where he spoke to the maker.  He then lets it be known that he is full of the shining power in which all men once held.  He lets his people know that they had lost the shining power due to things like drinking whisky, wearing the wool of the sheep and eating of the pig.  He says they were happy before they had things such as guns.  All of these European things had brought things like disease to his people.  He says they did not know they were being foolish trading with the Europeans for metals, mirrors blankets, and other things.  They did not want to admit that the Great Good God would see them as foolish.  In his eyes it was the things of the white man like greed that had been destroying their lives.  The creator told him of people using witchcraft and medicine bags for false beliefs.  He asks his people to destroy these medicine bags, and to confess their wrong doings to the Great Good God. "I tell you what I was told! We cannot save ourselves from corruption by doing only little, easy things! Listen! And when you destroy your medicine bags you will make an open confession of all the bad deeds you have done, and beg forgiveness. You heard me confess all my sins, which were much worse than yours,and I did so because it is required by the Great Good Spirit! Only light will cure moldiness; only light will purify your spirits. Soon I will call us all together for this cleansing, and anyone who wants to follow me through the open door to goodness will have to do this,or else be doomed!"-Tenskwatawa (Words of the Shawnee)  The message that he conveyed to his people was a powerful one, but it would be up to them if they chose to follow. 

Work Cited

 

"Words of the Shawnee." Words of the Tecumseh. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Feb. 2016.