In the forests of present-day New York State and the neighbouring regions of Canada live the nations the French called Iroquois and who call themselves Haudenosaunee, «the people of the Longhouse». Their tradition joins two aspects rarely studied together: a great political and religious narrative about the birth of peace, and a ceremonial life in which the masks of the False Faces play a central role.
Five nations, then six
The Confederacy arose from the union of five nations: Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga and Seneca. In the early eighteenth century the Tuscarora, coming from the South, joined them, and since then one speaks of the Six Nations.
The name Haudenosaunee recalls the traditional dwelling, the bark longhouse in which several families related through the mother's line lived. The Confederacy sees itself as a single great longhouse stretching from east to west: the Mohawk keep the eastern door, the Seneca the western door, the Onondaga the central fire.
The Peacemaker and Hiawatha
The origin story tells of a time of endless wars and revenge between the nations. A man called the Great Peacemaker, often named Deganawida, arrived bringing a message of peace, righteousness and the power of the good mind.
His first ally was Hiawatha, a man broken by grief at the loss of his daughters. The Peacemaker consoled him with strings of shell beads, wampum, speaking words that dried his tears, opened his ears and cleared his throat. From this episode comes the condolence rite, still part of the ceremonies by which new chiefs are installed. (The historical Hiawatha should not be confused with the hero of Longfellow's poem, which only borrowed his name.)
The greatest obstacle was Tadodaho, a fearsome Onondaga chief, described with snakes in his hair. The Peacemaker and Hiawatha managed to «comb out» the snakes, that is, to straighten his twisted mind. Tadodaho accepted peace and his name became the title of the chief who presides over the Grand Council.
The Tree of Peace
The symbol of the Great Law, Gayanashagowa, is a white pine. The Peacemaker planted it after first uprooting a tree and throwing weapons into the hole, so that an underground current would carry them away. The white roots spread in the four directions, so that whoever seeks peace can follow them to the tree. On top sits an eagle that keeps watch and warns of danger.
The Great Law establishes the councils, the titles of the chiefs and their relationship with the clan mothers, who are responsible for choosing chiefs and, if necessary, removing them. The oral tradition is tied to wampum belts that hold its memory.
The False Face Society
Alongside the political dimension there is a ceremonial life marked by seasonal festivals in the Longhouse, such as the Midwinter festival and the Green Corn festival. It is in this context that the False Face Society works.
The False Face masks represent beings of the forest. The most important is often identified with a great being who challenged the Creator by moving a mountain and came away with a twisted face and a bent nose. The masks have metal eyes, contorted mouths and long manes of horsehair.
Traditionally they were carved into the trunk of a living tree, often a basswood, and detached only when the work was well advanced, after prayers and offerings of tobacco. For the Haudenosaunee they are not representations, but entities with a life of their own, to be fed, cared for and kept appropriately. There is also a Husk Face Society, with masks braided from corn husks.
A request for respect
In the last century many masks ended up in museums and private collections. The Haudenosaunee Grand Council has publicly asked that they not be displayed, reproduced, sold or photographed, and that those held outside the communities be returned. For this reason this article does not describe them in ritual detail.
It is an important point for anyone studying the traditions of peoples: what to us is an object to catalogue may be, for those who made it, a living presence.
In short
- The Haudenosaunee are six nations united in the Longhouse Confederacy.
- The Peacemaker and Hiawatha brought the Great Law of Peace to nations at war.
- The white pine with the eagle at its top symbolises peace and vigilance.
- False Face masks are considered living beings, not works of art.
- The communities ask that the masks not be displayed or reproduced.
