Navajo Lifeway: The Way of Beauty

Dine

Term that refers to the Navajo People.

Dine Bikeyah

The Navajo homeland, traditionally bounded by four sacred mountains.

Hozho

Refers to the state of balance, beauty, and harmony that encompasses health and well-being.

Hocho

Refers to disharmony, illness, evil, or ugliness.

Sa’a Naghai Bik’e Hozho (SNBH)

Representing the goal of a long life of happiness and the cosmic force of restoration.

Holy People (Diyin Dine’e)

Supernatural being who emerged from lower worlds and established the world for humans.

Changing Woman

The most revered Holy Person, representing the cycles of life and the changing seasons.

First Man and First Woman

The first human-like beings to emerge from the lower worlds.

Father Sky and Mother Earth

Cosmic progenitors whose union and balance sustain life.

Earth Surface People

Ordinary humans who live on the surface of the earth.

Holy Wind

The vital force that enters humans at birth and connects them to all living things.

Hogan (place home)

A traditional circular dwelling used as a home and a sacred space for ceremonies.

Ceremony

Rituals designed to restore Hozho; they are often massive multi-day events.

Blessingway

The core ceremony used to ensure good luck, health, and a long life; it commemorates the acts of Changing Woman.

Singer

A ritual specialist who has memorized complex ceremonies to heal and restore balance.

Diagnostician

A specialist who determines the cause of a person’s illness or disharmony before a ceremony is chosen.

One-sung-over

The patient or individual for whom a ceremony is being performed.

Sand Painting

Sacred, temporary images made of colored sand/minerals used during ceremonies to channel the power of the Holy People.

Medicine Bundle

A sacred collection of objects (stones, feathers, corn) used by a Singer to perform rituals.

Native American Church

A pan-tribal religious movement that often incorporates elements of traditional Navajo belief.

Peyotism

The ritual use of Peyote, central to the Native American Church, for healing and spiritual insight.