Iktomi
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In Lakota mythology, Iktómi is a spider-trickster spirit, and a culture hero for the Lakota people. Alternate names for Iktómi include Ikto, Ictinike, Inktomi, Unktome, and Unktomi. These names are due to the differences in languages between different indigenous nations, as this spider deity was known throughout many of North America's tribes.
His appearance is that of a
Story
The Spider, although most tales involve the trickster figure and center on morality lessons for the young, Iktómi was also the bringer of Lakota culture. He is the first born son of Inyan, the Rock. He was originally called Ksa.
Iktómi still had the feature of making games. It seems that Iktómi, in stories attributed to him, in his very essence is representing the confusion between wisdom and folly. He began playing malicious tricks because people would jeer at his strange or funny looks. Most of his schemes end with him falling into ruin when his intricate plans backfire. Because it is Iktómi, a respected (or perhaps feared) deity playing the part of the
Iktómi is a shapeshifter, and can use strings to control humans like puppets. He has also the power to make potions that change gods, gain control over people and trick gods and mortals. Mica or Coyote is his great accomplice in all of this, though there are times when he behaves seriously and comes to the aid of the Lakota people, there are instances where he gives the people ways to protect themselves from evil, live a better life with technology, or warn them of danger.
Interpretations
The tales of Iktómi's propensity for mischief leads many without a full understanding of
The picture of a spider, of Iktómi, could be used as love magic: by it, the souls of a boy and a girl could be caught and connected. In this case they cannot escape meeting and falling in love.[3] Lame Deer tells a story in which Iktómi saw a group of ducks. He wanted to eat them and that is why he lied that his bag is full of pou-wow songs. The ducks asked him to sing some of them. He agrees, but only if they close their eyes. So he started killing them, while some realized what happen. Iktómi, says Lame Deer, is like those of the politicians who make us close our eyes, sing and dance for them while they hit us on the head.[4]
Because the Lakota mythology is word of mouth, and traditionally there were no written records, most of the information about Iktómi in Lakota mythology has not been written down or recorded. He has lived on in the retelling of tales and the religious traditions which are passed on from generation to generation, into the modern day.
In popular culture
- In Ifreet. He also appears in the book, but as Wisakedjakor "Whiskey Jack".
- Sioux author Zitkála-Šá, also known by the missionary-given and later married name Gertrude Simmons Bonnin, included tales of Iktómi in her Old Indian Legends, published by Ginn and Company, Boston, in 1901.[5]
- In the Netflix sitcom Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Iktómi is referenced on multiple occasions, as part of a season 3 plot between Jacqueline White and Russ Snyder.
- Iktómi is portrayed in the 2002 film Skins, directed by Cheyenne-Arapaho director Chris Eyre.
- The ill-fated ship in the 2016 PC game Tharsis is named Iktómi.
- He has appeared multiple times in the Megami Tensei video game series and its spinoffs as a demon under the name Ictinike. He was first introduced in the 1995 game Devil Summoner, and has since appeared in Devil Children: Book of Fire and Book of Ice, Devil Survivor 2, Shin Megami Tensei IV, and Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse. Ictinike is almost always classified as a "genma," a category of demons typically reserved for legendary heroes.
See also
References
- ^ Gerald Musinsky, Encyclopedia Mythica
- ^ American indian Trickster Tales, Richar Erdoes, Alfonso Ortiz, Penguin books 1999
- ^ Lame Deer, Seeker of Visions, by Richard Erdoes and John (Fire) Lame Deer, 1994
- ^ Lame Deer, Seeker of Visions, by Richard Erdoes and John (Fire) Lame Deer, 1994
- ^ Zitkála-Šá (2014). American Indian Stories and Old Indian Legends. Dover Publications Inc. p. vii.
- ISBN 978-0-8032-9918-4.
- Lame Deer. Lame Deer, Seeker of Visions.[year needed]
- Marie L. McLaughlin. Myths and Legends of the Sioux.[year needed]
- J. R. Walker. The Sun Dance and Other Ceremonies of the Oglala Division of The Teton Dakota.[year needed]
- Pliny Earle Goddard. Jicarilla Apache Texts.[year needed]
- Philip Jenkins. Dream Catchers: How Mainstream America Discovered Native Spirituality (2004)[page needed]