The Path on the Rainbow: Songs of the Chippewa

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The Path on the Rainbow, edited by George W. Cronyn, [1918], at sacred-texts.com

SONGS OF THE CHIPPEWA

HEALING SONG

They are in close consultation
    with their heads together
    Wenabojo
    and his grandmother.

LOVE-CHARM

What are you saying to me?
I am arrayed like the roses
and beautiful as they.

p. 14

I AM WALKING

Toward calm and shady places
I am walking
on the earth.

THEY THINK ME UNWORTHY

They think me unworthy
    my Midé brethren
    but look and see
    the length of my wigwam.

THE SOUND IS FADING AWAY

The sound is fading away
It is of five sounds
freedom
The sound is fading away
It is of five sounds.

DOCTOR'S SONG

I am singing and dreaming in my poor way
    over the earth
    I who will again disembark
    upon earth.

SONG OF THE TREES

The wind
only
I am afraid of.

p. 15

SONG OF THE THUNDERS

Sometimes
    I go about pitying
    myself
    while I am carried by the wind
    across the sky.

THE APPROACH OF THE STORM

From the half
    of the sky
    that which lives there
    is coming, and makes a noise.

I AM AFRAID OF THE OWL

Very much
    also
    I
    of the owl
    am afraid
    whenever I am sitting alone
        in the wigwam.

I AM AS BRAVE AS OTHER MEN

Men who are brave and heroic
    as you esteem them to be
Like them
    I also
    consider myself to be.

p. 16

MY MUSIC REACHES TO THE SKY

My music
reaches
to the sky.

FAREWELL TO THE WARRIORS

Come
it is time for you to depart
We are going on a long journey.

SONG OF THE MAN WHO WAS TO BE HUNG

The thunders will take me home,
    whenever I mind to go home,
    my friends,
    and the wind
    it will take me home, too.

FRIENDLY SONG

Over there
in the sky
they have taken pity on me.

The sky
loves to hear me.

GAMING SONG

I will go home
    if I am beaten
    after more articles
    to wager.

p. 17

WAR SONGS

At Co’goben's
    village
    they are weeping
    the men

At Co’goben's
    village
    they are wailing
    the women.

I feel no fear
    when the Great River man
    death
    speaks of.

THE MAN WHO STAYED HOME

Although
    Jinwábe
    considers himself
    a man
    his wife
    certainly
    takes all his attention.

ARROW SONG

Scarlet
is its head

SONG OF THE BUFFALO

Strike ye
our land
with curved horns

p. 18

SONG OF THE MINISINOWUCK

It is uncertain what will happen
to the one from whom I fly
It is uncertain what will happen
to the one from whom I rise.

DRUM SONG

I make them dance
those brave men
those brave men
every one of them

SONG OF WOMAN-OF-THE-RED-SKY, WHO WENT WITH HER HUSBAND, SINGING INTO BATTLE

At that time
    if I had been a man
    truly
    a man
    I would have seized.

DEATH SONG OF NAMEBINES

The odor of death
I discern the odor of death
in the front of my body

THE SIOUX WOMEN GATHER UP THEIR WOUNDED

The Sioux women
    pass to and fro wailing
    as they gather up
    their wounded men
The voice of their weeping comes back
    to us.

p. 19

THEY ARE PLAYING A GAME

The noise of passing feet
on the prairie
They are playing a game as they come
those men.

SCALP SONG

I wonder
    if she is humiliated
    the Sioux woman
    that I cut off her head.

SONG OF REJOICING

It shall be
    that I rejoice
O, my son
    your elder brother
    you have brought back
O, my son
    it shall be
    that I rejoice
O, my son.

DEATH SONG

Is there anyone who
would weep for me?
My wife
would weep for me.

SONG OF THE BUTTERFLY

In the coming heat
of the day
I stood there.

p. 20

MAPLE SUGAR

Maple sugar
is the only thing
that satisfies me.

A SONG OF SPRING

As my eyes
    search
    the prairie
    I feel the summer in the spring.

CARRIED AROUND THE SKY

As the wind is carrying me
around the sky.

THE SKY WILL RESOUND

It will resound finely
the sky
when I come making a noise.

AN OVERHANGING CLOUD

An overhanging
cloud
repeats my words with pleasing sound.

HEAPS OF CLOUDS

Great heaps
of clouds
in the direction I am looking.

p. 21

THE NOISE OF THE VILLAGE

Whenever I pause
the noise
of the village.

MIDÉ BURIAL SONG

Neniwá
    let us stand
    and you shall see
    my body
    as I desire.

LOVE SONGS

MY LOVE HAS DEPARTED

A loon
    I thought it was
    but it was
    my love's
    splashing oar.

To Sault Ste. Marie
he has departed
My love has gone on before me,
Never again
can I see him.

THE GENEROUS ONE

Why should
I, even I

p. 22

be jealous
because of that bad boy?

RECOVERY

Do not weep
I am not going to die.

LOVE-HURT

Although he said it
still
I am filled with longing
when I think of him.

GLAD-PARTING

Come
    I am going away
I pray you
    let me go
I will soon return
Do not
    weep for me
Behold
    we will be very glad
    to meet each other
    when I return
Do not
    weep for me.

INVITATION

My sweetheart
a long time
I have been waiting for you

p. 23

to come over
where I am.

YOU DESIRE VAINLY

You desire vainly
    that I seek you
    the reason is
    I come
    to see your younger sister.

HE IS GONE

I might grieve
I am sad
that he has gone
my lover.

SONG OF AN AMBITIOUS MOTHER

I am asking for
    Bugac's
    daughter
My big
    brass kettle
    he is giving.

NONSENSE SONG OF THE GAME OF SILENCE

(If you speak or laugh you are defeated)
It is hanging
    in the edge of the sunshine
It is a pig I see
    with its double (cloven) hoofs
It is a very fat pig.
The people who live in a hollow tree
    are fighting

p. 24

They are fighting bloodily
He is rich
He will carry a pack toward the great water.
(The rabbit speaks)
At the end of the point of land
I eat the bark off the tree
I see the track of a lynx
I don't care, I can get away from him
It is a jumping trail
sep!

WORK STEADILY

Be very careful
to work steadily
I am afraid they will take you away from me.

I HAVE FOUND MY LOVER

Oh
    I am thinking
Oh
    I am thinking
    I have found .
    my lover
Oh
    I think it is so.

MIDÉ SONGS

THESE REPRESENT THE EXPRESSION OF RELIGIOUS IDEAS

Is it that
which my voice resembles?

p. 25

Even metal
the sounding of my voice?

From beneath the high hill
my voice echoes forth.

III

The strength of metal
    has entered into my arrow point.
A spirit
    I could kill.
The strength of iron
    has entered into my arrow point.

Beautiful as a star hanging in the sky
is our Midé lodge.

I have gained such spirit-power
    that I can tame it in my hand
It is true
    even our white shell
    I can tame it in my hand.

Do not speak ill of the Midé
    my Midé brethren.
Wherever you may be
    do not speak ill of a woman
    my Midé brethren.

VII

We may live by it always
my Midé brethren
It is spiritual
the inspiration we receive.

p. 26

VIII

In the middle of the sea
in the lengthy room of the sea
there I am standing.

I that hasten around
I shoot at a man and he falls in a trance
Then I feel with my hand
to see if he is still alive.

My Midé brother
    is searched
In his heart is found
    that which I seek to remove
    a white shell.

Into thy body
I shoot
the spirit

XII

What is this
I promise you?
The skies shall be bright and clear for you
This is what I promise you.

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