Sludge Watch ==> The Water Song Story - Corbin Harney Native Elder

[maureen.reilly at sympatico.ca]

Sludgewatch Admin:

It is always a good thing to hold your heart open with  love and respect for 
water.
Corbin Harney is a native elder who has a retreat centre in Tecopah 
California (between Barstow and Las Vegas).  The Centre is called PooHabah  
which means 'Doctor Water'.

This is the tiny town where Chief Tecopah donated his famous  hot spring to 
the American public on the condition that the admission be free to anyone 
who wanted to visit the water.

This past year, in violation of that agreement,  Tecopah started charging a 
$5 admission fee.

I suggest you visit Corbin instead at his retreat center PooHaBah. Mornings 
start early with a gathering around the ceremonial fire to greet the sun.

Poo-Ha-Bah Healing Center: Traditional Native American healing for all 
people.
    PO Box 299, Tecopa CA 92389
Phone 760.852.4288   Fax 760.852.4396

http://www.poohabah.com/
poohabah at lafn.org

..............................................................................

“The Water Song”

Listen to Audio (Real Player Required)
http://media.pbs.org/ramgen/electricshadows/corbin_final.rm


My name’s Corbin Harney. I was born in Idaho, raised in Idaho and Nevada 
both. Roamed the country.

My people always have said to me from the beginning of my life, as I 
remember, to do, to take care of what’s out here, what’s out there on the 
land. All those things, we have to have ceremonies for. Those are the 
reasons why I’ve been trying to teach my people, not only my people, but the 
people that survive on all this land. To teach them we have to really start 
talking to the nature. Nature Way of life is the only way we are going to 
survive here.

“Naraborochi”, that’s in my words, that’s water. Water is something that’s 
really, we have to appreciate. Those are the reasons why we have to sing 
about those things, cause if it wasn’t for water, there would be no life on 
this earth. We have to sing to ‘em, sing to the life of the water, the 
spirit of the water and so forth. So the water can be happier, the water can 
continue to flow. We have to make that water spirit at least as happy as can 
be.

(Song plays in Shoshone)
I’m asking the water to continue to flow over the land to give water to all 
the living things.

That’s singing about all the living things on this—that all we are is 
trickling over our mother earth. “Banoso”, in my lango, that’s our mother. 
Our mother is the one that we’re circling on, everything on this earth. 
That’s what it’s about, “wanonoawatee”, “wanososhy”, we all are rotating 
with our mother. So that’s what it is. So everything appreciates each other, 
we’re supposed to. Appreciating each other, working together, doing things 
together, living on this mother earth together. We have to appreciate. It’s 
really important.



http://www.pbs.org/circleofstories/storytellers/corbin_harney.html