As we hiked flat land in the valley bottom of Canyon De Shelley, we unexpectedly came upon a Navaho hogan. During my life-long interest in Native American people, I had seen pictures of hogans, so I knew what they were and looked like, but to actually seeing a real, lived-in, Navaho hogan really cemented the feeling for me of being in Navaho land.
A hogan is a sacred home for the Navajo people who practice traditional religion. Every family even if they live most of the time in a newer home — must have the traditional hogan for ceremonies, and to keep themselves in balance.
The Navaho people refer to themselves as Diné and speak Athabaskan . That was of special interest to me, because as a Canadian, those are terms that I have often heard. The Dene people are First Nations people in Canada, and “Athabasca” is a name given to both a river and a glacier in the Canadian Rockies.
The Navaho people migrated from Canada into the US thousands of years ago, finally settling in the US Southwest. Native Athabaskan languages are spoken by Native people from Alaska to the Navahos in the desert areas of the United States.
Walking the trail in the flatland of Canyon De Shelley gave the hiker spectacular views in every direction. Against the massive red/brown sandstone walls, the sky looked incredibly blue. Wonderful. The hike took us two hours.
View my paintings at: davidmarchant2.ca
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