{"id":5769,"date":"2026-05-13T20:21:02","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T20:21:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/tunkasila-grandfather-sky-of-the-lakota\/"},"modified":"2026-06-04T09:34:08","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T09:34:08","slug":"tunkasila-grandfather-sky-of-the-lakota","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/tunkasila-grandfather-sky-of-the-lakota\/","title":{"rendered":"Tunkasila: Grandfather Sky of the Lakota"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"5769\" class=\"elementor elementor-5769 elementor-2587 elementor-bc-flex-widget\" data-elementor-post-type=\"page\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-hero e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-hero\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-hl e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-hl\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-htxt e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-htxt\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-h1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-h1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Tunkasila, Grandfather, a sky being and form of address for the sacred in the Lakota tradition<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-lead elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-lead\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Tunkasila (Lakota <em>Thunkasila<\/em>, Grandfather) is the reverent form of address for the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Belonging to the divine and thereby withdrawn from everyday use.\" tabindex=\"0\">sacred<\/span> in the Lakota <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The passing on of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span>. It is used equally for <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wakan-tanka-great-sacred-power-of-the-lakota\/\">Wakan Tanka<\/a>, for the Four Grandfathers of the Sky, and for the personified point of reference in <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The linguistic act of a person addressing a deity.\" tabindex=\"0\">prayer<\/span>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-pillc e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-pillc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-pills elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-pills\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"iwg-pill-row\"><span class=\"iwg-klasse-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Creator of the Native American tradition.\">Creator<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/native-american-gods-wakan-tanka-and-first-nations\/\" class=\"iwg-kultur-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Mythology of the Native American tradition.\">Native American<\/a><span class=\"iwg-tradition-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Grandfather form of address.\">Grandfather address<\/span><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-tocc e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-tocc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-toc elementor-toc--minimized-on-tablet elementor-widget elementor-widget-table-of-contents\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-toc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;headings_by_tags&quot;:[&quot;h2&quot;,&quot;h3&quot;],&quot;minimize_box&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;marker_view&quot;:&quot;bullets&quot;,&quot;no_headings_message&quot;:&quot;Es wurden keine \\u00dcberschriften auf dieser Seite gefunden.&quot;,&quot;exclude_headings_by_selector&quot;:[],&quot;icon&quot;:{&quot;value&quot;:&quot;fas fa-circle&quot;,&quot;library&quot;:&quot;fa-solid&quot;,&quot;rendered_tag&quot;:&quot;&lt;svg class=\\&quot;e-font-icon-svg e-fas-circle\\&quot; viewBox=\\&quot;0 0 512 512\\&quot; xmlns=\\&quot;http:\\\/\\\/www.w3.org\\\/2000\\\/svg\\&quot;&gt;&lt;path d=\\&quot;M256 8C119 8 8 119 8 256s111 248 248 248 248-111 248-248S393 8 256 8z\\&quot;&gt;&lt;\\\/path&gt;&lt;\\\/svg&gt;&quot;},&quot;minimized_on&quot;:&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;hierarchical_view&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;min_height&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;min_height_tablet&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;min_height_mobile&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]}}\" data-widget_type=\"table-of-contents.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-toc__header-title\">\n\t\t\t\tTable of Contents\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__toggle-button elementor-toc__toggle-button--expand\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-controls=\"elementor-toc__iwgw-tunkasilag-toc\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-label=\"Open table of contents\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"e-font-icon-svg e-fas-chevron-down\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M207.029 381.476L12.686 187.132c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941l22.667-22.667c9.357-9.357 24.522-9.375 33.901-.04L224 284.505l154.745-154.021c9.379-9.335 24.544-9.317 33.901.04l22.667 22.667c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941L240.971 381.476c-9.373 9.372-24.569 9.372-33.942 0z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__toggle-button elementor-toc__toggle-button--collapse\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-controls=\"elementor-toc__iwgw-tunkasilag-toc\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-label=\"Close table of contents\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"e-font-icon-svg e-fas-chevron-up\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M240.971 130.524l194.343 194.343c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941l-22.667 22.667c-9.357 9.357-24.522 9.375-33.901.04L224 227.495 69.255 381.516c-9.379 9.335-24.544 9.317-33.901-.04l-22.667-22.667c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941L207.03 130.525c9.372-9.373 24.568-9.373 33.941-.001z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"elementor-toc__iwgw-tunkasilag-toc\" class=\"elementor-toc__body\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__spinner-container\">\n\t\t\t\t<svg class=\"elementor-toc__spinner eicon-animation-spin e-font-icon-svg e-eicon-loading\" aria-hidden=\"true\" viewBox=\"0 0 1000 1000\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M500 975V858C696 858 858 696 858 500S696 142 500 142 142 304 142 500H25C25 237 238 25 500 25S975 237 975 500 763 975 500 975Z\"><\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-hr e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-hr\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-heroimg iwg-hero-image elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-heroimg\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_native-american_tunkasila-grossvater-himmel-683x1024.webp\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-5770\" alt=\"Tunkasila Grandfather Sky - Gods from the Native American tradition, historical-illustrative\" srcset=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_native-american_tunkasila-grossvater-himmel-683x1024.webp 683w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_native-american_tunkasila-grossvater-himmel-200x300.webp 200w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_native-american_tunkasila-grossvater-himmel-768x1152.webp 768w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_native-american_tunkasila-grossvater-himmel.webp 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s0 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s0\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s0h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s0h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Classification within Lakota Religion<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s0c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s0c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s0t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s0t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Tunkasila is not an independent being-figure within the Lakota religious system, but rather a theologically significant form of address. The word <em>tunkasila<\/em> simply means <em>Grandfather<\/em> and is used in everyday language for the biological grandfather as well as for older male relatives.<\/p><p>In religious speech, the form of address is extended to the sacred, thereby establishing a specific kinship relationship with the sacred.<\/p><p>From a religious-studies perspective, the Tunkasila concept is a central element of Lakota <em>kinship <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span><\/em>. Lakota prayers do not shape the sacred as a distant, remote supreme being, but rather as a close family person with whom one stands in a kinship relationship.<\/p><p>This element has been repeatedly highlighted by Joseph Epes Brown, Vine Deloria Jr., and the Lakota theologian Doris Leader Charge as a central distinction from the Western monotheistic tradition.<\/p><p>Lakota prayer practice contains two central kinship forms of address: <em>Tunkasila<\/em> (Grandfather) for male and in particular for higher sky beings, <em>Unci<\/em> (Grandmother) for female and in particular for earth beings (see also <a href=\"\/en\/spider-grandmother-creator-grandmother-of-the-pueblo-peoples\/\">Spider Grandmother<\/a>). This dual form of address reflects the gender-bipolar structure of the Lakota sacred and is an independent <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and the doctrines of a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">theological<\/span> element.<\/p><p>The Tunkasila tradition stands in a complementary relationship to the female <em>Unci<\/em> tradition. The Grandmother form of address applies in particular to earth beings, to the Spider Grandmother tradition of the western Lakota, and to higher female numinosity in general.<\/p><p>This gender-bipolar dual <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span> is a central structural feature of Lakota <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religion<\/span> that distinguishes it from the gender-monotypic principal deities of the Abrahamic religions. Joseph Epes Brown and Severt Young Bear have described this gender bipolarity as an equal complementarity, not as a hierarchically ordered gender <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s1 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s1\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s1h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s1h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Name and Etymology<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s1c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s1c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s1t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s1t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The Lakota term <em>thunkasila<\/em> is composed of <em>thunka<\/em> (stem) and <em>sila<\/em> (a relational marker for male ancestors). This yields the literal meaning <em>male kinsman<\/em> or <em>male ancestor<\/em>. When applied to the sacred, it establishes the notion of a transgenerational family relationship: the sacred is not distant, but rather a higher-ranking relative.<\/p><p>Lakota kinship terminology is highly complex overall. Unlike modern American English, which has only one term for the biological grandfather, Lakota has different terms for different categories of grandfathers (e.g., <em>tunkasila<\/em> for the paternal grandfather and <em>kakaala<\/em> for the maternal grandfather).<\/p><p>Applying the more general form <em>tunkasila<\/em> to the sacred generalizes the grandfather relationship and transforms it into a supra-biological point of reference.<\/p><p>An important theological observation is that <em>tunkasila<\/em> is often used in the plural form <em>tunkasilas<\/em> or <em>tunkasilapi<\/em>, which designates the <em>Grandfathers<\/em>. In this plural form, the address refers in particular to the <em>Four Grandfathers<\/em>, the Four Directions, which as personified wakan beings represent the cosmic structuring of the world.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s2 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s2\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s2h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s2h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Four Grandfathers<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s2c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s2c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s2t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s2t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In the more specific theological application, <em>Tunkasila<\/em> and the plural <em>Tunkasilas<\/em> designate the <em>Four Grandfathers of the Directions<\/em>. These are: <em>Wiyohpeyata<\/em> (West, Thunder), <em>Waziyata<\/em> (North, Bison, Power), <em>Wiyohinyanpata<\/em> (East, White Swan, <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An incorporeal being to which effects in the world are attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">Mind<\/span>) and <em>Itokagata<\/em> (South, Crane, Life Growth).<\/p><p>Each of the Four is assigned a color (Black, Red, Yellow, White), a wakan animal, and a specific function in the cosmic order.<\/p><p>The Four Grandfathers are explicitly <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The petitioning or invoking address to a deity or power.\" tabindex=\"0\">invoked<\/span> at the beginning of every Lakota <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A regulated sequence of symbolic actions with religious or cultural significance.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritual<\/span>.<\/p><p>This is accomplished by presenting the sacred pipe <em>chanunpa<\/em> toward all Four Directions, by casting small pinches of tobacco in all Four Directions, or by the verbal <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The petitioning or conjuring address of a deity or power.\" tabindex=\"0\">invocation<\/span> using the standard formula <em>Mitakuye Oyasin<\/em> (All My Relations), which includes all relatives, visible and invisible, in the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A regulated sequence of symbolic actions with religious or cultural significance.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritual<\/span>.<\/p><p>This Four Directions structure is the organizing foundational structure of all Lakota <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span>.<\/p><p>It determines not only <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The linguistic act of a person addressing a deity.\" tabindex=\"0\">prayer<\/span>, but also the ritual topography of the Sweat Lodge (which is oriented toward the Four Directions), the temporal structuring of the major rituals (four days of Sun Dance, four nights of Vision Quest), and the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A sign that stands representatively for a concept or meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">symbolic<\/span> structuring of healing practice.<\/p><p>Joseph Epes Brown described the central significance of the Four Directions structure in detail in <em>The Sacred Pipe<\/em>.<\/p><p>The color symbolism of the Four Grandfathers varies according to reservation tradition. In the most common variant, as preserved in Black Elk texts, West is black, North is red, East is yellow, South is white. In other Lakota traditions, West is arranged as red, North as white, East as yellow, South as black.<\/p><p>These regional variants have been repeatedly observed in ethnological research and reflect the genealogical diversity of the Lakota tradition. James Walker documented in the Sword texts a structuring that differs in many details, which is to be regarded as an alternative main line of Lakota <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s3 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s3\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s3h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s3h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Function in Prayer<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s3c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s3c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s3t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s3t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The function of the Tunkasila form of address in Lakota <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The linguistic act of a person addressing a deity.\" tabindex=\"0\">prayer<\/span> is deeply differentiated. A standard Lakota prayer formula begins with <em>Tunkasila Wakan Tanka, unsi unkila<\/em> (Grandfather Great <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Belonging to the divine and thereby withdrawn from everyday use.\" tabindex=\"0\">Holy<\/span>, have pity on us), addressing the sacred in the direct kinship form of address.<\/p><p>This form of address establishes an emotional closeness to the sacred that in the Western tradition corresponds more closely to the Father address of the Christian prayer (<em>Our Father<\/em>).<\/p><p>The Grandfather address differs from the parental Father model through an additional element: generational distance. The grandfather is not the immediate educator (that would be the father), but one generation further removed, dignified, wise, teaching, yet not directly intervening.<\/p><p>This generational distance allows for a respectful closeness without authoritarian directness, which shapes the specific Lakota prayer tonality.<\/p><p>An important Lakota prayer element is the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The beseeching or conjuring address of a deity or power.\" tabindex=\"0\">invocation<\/span> of the principal wakan beings by their specific Tunkasila epithets: <em>Wakinyan Tunkasila<\/em> (Thunder Grandfather, see <a href=\"\/en\/thunderbird-thunder-bird-of-the-native-americans\/\">Thunderbird<\/a>), <em>Tatanka Tunkasila<\/em> (Buffalo Grandfather), <em>Inyan Tunkasila<\/em> (Stone Grandfather). These multiple Tunkasila forms of address show that the Grandfather address can be flexibly applied to all higher-ranking wakan beings.<\/p><p>The <em>Mitakuye Oyasin<\/em> formula, with which every Lakota prayer act concludes, is a central theological statement. It means literally <em>All My Relations<\/em> and includes not only human family relatives, but also wakan relatives, animal relatives, plant relatives, and stone relatives in the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The linguistic act of a person addressing a deity.\" tabindex=\"0\">prayer<\/span>.<\/p><p>This radical extension of the concept of kinship to the entire cosmic inventory is a genuinely Lakota <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span> construction and is one of the most distinctive features of Lakota religion in comparison with monotheistic traditions.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s4 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s4\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s4h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s4h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Application in the Rites<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s4c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s4c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s4t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s4t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The Tunkasila form of address is present throughout the ritual process of the Lakota tradition. In the <em>Inipi<\/em> (Sweat Lodge), it is invoked multiple times at the beginning of each of the four endurance phases.<\/p><p>In the <em>Hanblechiyapi<\/em> (Vision Quest), it is the constantly repeated prayer element of the solitary vigil. In the <em>Wiwanyag Wachipi<\/em> (Sun Dance), it is invoked on each of the four days with different emphasis.<\/p><p>An important ritual application is the <em>Cetan Wakan<\/em> <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The linguistic act of a person addressing a deity.\" tabindex=\"0\">prayer<\/span>, the Sacred Bird <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The linguistic act of a person addressing a deity.\" tabindex=\"0\">prayer<\/span>, in which the Sacred Bird (often the eagle) is invoked as a messenger between humans and Tunkasila.<\/p><p>The eagle is said to carry the human <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The linguistic act of a person addressing a deity.\" tabindex=\"0\">prayer<\/span> to the Grandfather in the Sky and bring back the answer. This bird-messenger concept is a common element of numerous indigenous American religions and forms an important element of mediating <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span> between humans and the sacred.<\/p><p>In modern indigenous movements, particularly in Pan-Indian gatherings (such as the American Indian Movement since the 1970s), the Tunkasila form of address has become one of the best-known prayer forms in North American indigenous religions. It is widely used in public Sun Dance ceremonies, in AIM activist gatherings, and in contemporary Native American spirituality.<\/p><p>The <em>Cetan Wakan<\/em> eagle-feather tradition is prescribed in detail. Only certain eagle species, the golden eagle (<em>wanblee<\/em>) and not the common buzzard, provide the sacred feathers. These feathers are exchanged only in ritual form; they may not be bought or sold, but must be transferred <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Belonging to a fixed religious sequence of actions.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritually<\/span> or acquired through a vision.<\/p><p>The federal law <em>Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act<\/em> (1940, amended several times) permits only recognized indigenous tribal members to possess eagle feathers for ritual purposes; all eagle killings are strictly regulated. This legal framework of protection is a unique example of governmental recognition of indigenous religiosity in American law.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s5 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s5\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s5h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s5h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Protective Practice and Apotropaic Function<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s5c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s5c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s5t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s5t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The protection-related practice in relation to Tunkasila is the general practice of the Lakota prayer tradition. When someone faces an emergency, illness, threat, or harmful <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A bodiless being to which agency in the world is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">spirits<\/span>, they call upon the Grandfather, often with the standard formula <em>Tunkasila, unsi unkila<\/em>.<\/p><p>This is done by smoking the sacred pipe, by smudging with buffalo <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A traditional narrative with an often historical core and wondrous elements.\" tabindex=\"0\">sage<\/span> or sweetgrass, or by simple verbal invocation.<\/p><p>A specific protective practice is the Naming <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A solemn act carried out according to fixed rules.\" tabindex=\"0\">Ceremony<\/span> <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A regulated sequence of symbolic actions with religious or cultural significance.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritual<\/span>, in which a child or an adult receives a sacred Lakota name. This name is determined through a vision or by an experienced healer and is conferred with an extensive <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The beseeching or conjuring address of a deity or power.\" tabindex=\"0\">invocation<\/span> of the Four Tunkasilas and the Tunkasila-Wakan-Tanka.<\/p><p>The sacred name accompanies the child or adult throughout their entire life and is considered the most important protection against harmful spirits and accidents.<\/p><p>Another important protective practice is the wearing of small eagle feathers (<em>wanblee wapaha<\/em>) as eagle-feather adornment, which may only be worn by persons who have been meritoriously initiated.<\/p><p>The eagle feather symbolizes the connection to the Grandfather in the Sky and is regarded as an effective <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Warding off evil: of signs and objects intended to keep harmful influences away.\" tabindex=\"0\">apotropaic<\/span> protection. In traditional Lakota practice, the bestowal of an eagle feather was connected with a complex ritual event that continues to be practiced in some reservation communities to this day.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s6 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s6\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s6h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s6h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Parallels in Other Cultures<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s6c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s6c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s6t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s6t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The kinship form of address for the sacred is a widespread religious-historical phenomenon. Structurally comparable are the Christian <em>Our Father<\/em> address (though with Father rather than Grandfather), the Jewish <em>Avinu Malkenu<\/em> address (Our Father, Our King), and the Islamic <em>Rabbana<\/em> address (Our Lord).<\/p><p>Important, however, is the cultural-historical specificity of the Lakota tradition: the Grandfather address is not a Father address but a Grandfather address; it respects a generational distance that the Western Father address does not carry.<\/p><p>This distinction has been repeatedly highlighted by Vine Deloria Jr. as a central element of Lakota <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span> that argues against a hasty equation with the Christian God the Father.<\/p><p>Within the American indigenous traditions, the Grandfather form of address is widespread. Among Algonquian-speaking peoples the expression is <em>Gitchi Manitou<\/em> (Great <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A non-corporeal being to which effect in the world is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">Spirit<\/span>) with a similarly generation-distanced connotation.<\/p><p>Among the Cherokee, Choctaw, Cheyenne, and Crow there are respective Grandfather forms of address that are structurally comparable. The pan-Indian spread of <em>Tunkasila<\/em> in the modern Pan-Indian movement has, however, generalized the specifically Lakota usage and in some cases made it less precise.<\/p><p>Within the broader Plains Indian tradition, the Cheyenne Grandfather address is particularly similar. The Cheyenne address the high god <em>Maheo<\/em> as <em>Old Man<\/em> and sometimes as <em>Grandfather<\/em>. Among the Crow, the corresponding address is <em>Akbatatdia<\/em>, the Sacred Transmitter, who likewise stands in a Grandfather connotation.<\/p><p>The structural convergence of these Plains Grandfather theologies suggests a cultural-historical kinship that likely developed in the close inter-tribal relationships of the Plains region in the 17th and 18th centuries.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s7 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s7\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s7h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s7h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Contemporary Reception and Research<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s7c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s7c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s7t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s7t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The Tunkasila form of address remains undiminished in present-day Lakota practice and is regularly used in reservation communities and in the growing urban Lakota diaspora. It is one of the few elements of Lakota <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span> that is translated directly into American English, as <em>Grandfather<\/em>, making it accessible to non-Lakota speakers as well.<\/p><p>In academic research, Vine Deloria Jr., Joseph Epes Brown, Aase Hultkrantz, Raymond DeMallie, and the Lakota theologian Doris Leader Charge have systematically described the Tunkasila tradition. The central theological point, the kinship relationship with the sacred, has been recognized as an important contribution of indigenous American <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span> to global religious history.<\/p><p>From a religious-studies perspective, the Tunkasila form of address is an important example of the distinctiveness of indigenous American religiosity in relation to pre-established European religious categories.<\/p><p>Unlike the simple <em>Great Spirit<\/em> concept of popular Native American literature, which represents a simplified Christianizing reading of Lakota <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span>, the Tunkasila form of address conveys a specifically Lakota kinship <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span> that deserves separate attention in comparative <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic discipline that studies religions comparatively and without doctrinal commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religious studies<\/span>.<\/p><p>The iWell Guard reference to the Lakota tradition describes these findings from a religious-historical perspective, without making claims about efficacy or spiritual recommendations.<\/p><p>An important research strand in recent years addresses the question of Lakota linguistic <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and of a religion's beliefs.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span>. The Tunkasila form of address is embedded in a comprehensive Lakota language whose grammatical structures (verb system, kinship terminology, wakan concepts) carry the religious content.<\/p><p>If the Lakota language is lost, and it faces considerable danger through language loss among younger generations, the genuine theological depth of the Tunkasila tradition is also lost. The Lakota language revitalization programs in reservation schools since the 1990s are therefore also a religious-theological concern.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s8 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s8\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s8h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s8h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Literature and Sources<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s8c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s8c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-s8t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-s8t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The following selection lists central works on Lakota religion and comparative <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic discipline that studies religions comparatively and without doctrinal commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religious studies<\/span> concerning the Tunkasila tradition.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp289d6f52 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp289d6f52\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp2d341ae1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cp2d341ae1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">T\u021fu\u014bk\u00e1\u0161ila as a Form of Address in Lakota Prayer<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp293703eb e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cp293703eb\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp225c40b1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cp225c40b1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The designation <em>T\u021fu\u014bk\u00e1\u0161ila<\/em>, literally Grandfather, is understood by the Lakota less as the proper name of a discrete <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being venerated as divine within a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">deity<\/span> than as a reverential form of address used in <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The linguistic act of a person addressing a deity.\" tabindex=\"0\">prayer<\/span>.<\/p><p>It can refer to <em>Wak\u021f\u00e1\u014b T\u021f\u00e1\u014bka<\/em>, the great sacred mystery, but also to individual sacred powers and to the spirits of the ancestors. This flexibility of the term is decisive for an adequate understanding and distinguishes Lakota religion fundamentally from <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the gods of a religion or culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">pantheon<\/span> systems with clearly delineated individual deities.<\/p><p>In the transmitted prayers, for example in the texts associated with the holy man Black Elk, the address T\u021fu\u014bk\u00e1\u0161ila appears repeatedly, often in connection with orientation toward the four cardinal directions, upward toward the sky, and downward toward the earth.<\/p><p>The person praying addresses the Grandfather in each direction, thereby placing themselves at the center of an ordered sacred world.<\/p><p>The German translation as Grandfather Sky narrows this finding because it suggests a fixed celestial <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being venerated as divine within a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">deity<\/span>.<\/p><p>In the Lakota tradition, the distinction between a Grandfather Sky and a Grandmother Earth, <em>U\u014b\u010d\u00ed Mak\u021f\u00e1<\/em>, is indeed familiar, yet both belong to a relational fabric in which the sacred is not broken down into individual figures, but conceived as a kinship-connected whole.<\/p><p>From a religious-studies perspective, it is therefore important to read T\u021fu\u014bk\u00e1\u0161ila primarily as a prayer form of address and expression of a kinship <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The conception of the structure and order of the world within a culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">cosmology<\/span>, and not as an isolated sky god modeled on European patterns.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp27df1f4e e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp27df1f4e\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp22486db9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cp22486db9\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Sources: From James Walker to the Critique of the Early Collectors<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp2b8dc244 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cp2b8dc244\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp26823363 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cp26823363\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The textually transmitted knowledge about the religious ideas of the Lakota, which includes the concept of the Grandfather, derives to a considerable extent from a small number of collectors of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.<\/p><p>The most important of these is James R. Walker, a physician who worked on the Pine Ridge Reservation from 1896 onward and collaborated over many years with holy men such as George Sword, Thomas Tyon, and Little Wound.<\/p><p>His records were not critically edited until late, from the 1980s onward, by Raymond DeMallie and Elaine Jahner, and published under titles such as <em>Lakota Belief and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A regulated sequence of symbolic actions with religious or cultural significance.\" tabindex=\"0\">Ritual<\/span><\/em>.<\/p><p>Walker&#8217;s material is rich but not unproblematic. He sometimes organized the statements of his informants into a systematic doctrinal edifice that articulated the hierarchy of sacred powers more fully than may have corresponded to lived religion.<\/p><p>Later research has pointed out that Walker brought his own ordering assumptions to the material, and that some of his informants may not have communicated everything to him, or not everything without modification.<\/p><p>A second central source is the material going back to Black Elk, transmitted through John Neihardt in <em>Black Elk Speaks<\/em> (1932) and through Joseph Epes Brown in <em>The Sacred Pipe<\/em> (1953). Here too, the mediating role of the non-indigenous authors must be considered.<\/p><p>From a religious-studies perspective, statements about T\u021fu\u014bk\u00e1\u0161ila are therefore filtered through a narrow source base shaped by mediation and systematization. More recent research, including DeMallie&#8217;s work, draws out the internal Lakota perspective more strongly and urges caution toward the closed systems of the early collectors.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-lit e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-lit\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-lith elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-lith\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Literature (Selection)<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-litc e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-litc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-litt elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-litt\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul><li>Joseph Epes Brown: <em>The Sacred Pipe<\/em> (1953)<\/li><li>Vine Deloria Jr.: <em>God Is Red<\/em> (1973)<\/li><li>Raymond DeMallie: <em>The Sixth Grandfather<\/em> (1984)<\/li><li>James Walker: <em>Lakota Belief and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A regulated sequence of symbolic actions with religious or cultural significance.\" tabindex=\"0\">Ritual<\/span><\/em> (1980)<\/li><li>Aase Hultkrantz: <em>Belief and Worship in Native North America<\/em> (1981)<\/li><li>Doris Leader Charge: <em>Lakota Way of Strength and Courage<\/em> (1995)<\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-kwd e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-kwd\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-kwdc e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-kwdc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-kwdt elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-kwdt\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><em>Related key terms: Tunkasila Thunkasila Grandfather Lakota Four Directions Mitakuye Oyasin.<\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-cc e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-cc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" id=\"iwg-cc-tunkasila-grossvater-himmel\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-ccinner e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-ccinner\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-cch elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-cch\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">iWell Guard and Protective Traditions<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-cct elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-cct\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div data-nosnippet=\"true\"><p>iWell Guard draws on the cultural-historical tradition of wearable protective objects, in the tradition of <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/native-american-gods-wakan-tanka-and-first-nations\/\">Native American<\/a> and many other cultures worldwide. 41 levels, real gold, platinum, silver, crafted in Germany. 30-day return policy.<\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-ccb iwg-cc-button iwg-cc-cta-2026-05-13 elementor-widget elementor-widget-jet-button\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-ccb\" data-element_type=\"widget\" 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.jet-button__instance{width:320px;height:56px;}.elementor-element.elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-ccb .jet-button__state-normal .jet-button__label{text-align:center;margin:0px 0px 0px 0px;color:#1a1b20;font-family:Montserrat,sans-serif;font-size:13px;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:4px;line-height:1.714em;text-transform:uppercase;}.elementor-element.elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-ccb .jet-button__state-hover .jet-button__label{text-align:center;margin:0px 0px 0px 0px;color:#FECC76;font-family:Montserrat,sans-serif;font-size:13px;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:4px;line-height:1.714em;text-transform:uppercase;}.elementor-element.elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-ccb .jet-button__plane-normal{background-color:#FECC76;border-style:solid;border-color:#C99540;border-width:2px 2px 2px 2px;}.elementor-element.elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-ccb .jet-button__plane-hover{background-color:rgba(0,0,0,0.55);border-style:solid;border-color:#FECC76;border-width:2px 2px 2px 2px;}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-ccd elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-ccd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div data-nosnippet=\"true\"><p style=\"text-align:center;font-size:13px;opacity:0.7;margin-top:14px\">Personal experiences may vary. Not a medical product. No healing claims.<\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-disc e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-disc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tunkasilag-discw elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"iwgw-tunkasilag-discw\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<footer data-nosnippet=\"true\" class=\"iwg-disclaimer-block\"><p>iWell Guard is <strong>not a medical product<\/strong> and does not replace medical or psychotherapeutic treatment. The religious-studies content is cultural-historical context, not a spiritual practice recommendation.<\/p><\/footer>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tunkasila, Grandfather, a sky being and form of address for the sacred in the Lakota tradition Tunkasila (Lakota Thunkasila, Grandfather) is the reverent form of address for the sacred in the Lakota tradition. It is used equally for Wakan Tanka, for the Four Grandfathers of the Sky, and for the personified point of reference in [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5770,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"elementor_header_footer","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"Tunkasila Grandfather Lakota","_yoast_wpseo_title":"Tunkasila: Grandfather Sky Lakota","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Tunkasila, the Grandfather Sky of the Lakota, is a form of address for the sacred and a way of relating to it. Academic religious-studies context.","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_angie_page":false,"gefaehrdungsstufe":"","wesen_kultur":"","wesen_klasse":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"class_list":["post-5769","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.7 (Yoast SEO v27.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Tunkasila: Grandfather Sky Lakota<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Tunkasila, the Grandfather Sky of the Lakota, is a form of address for the sacred and a way of relating to it. 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