James Walker Sacred Pipe Analysis

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When looking at an American account by James Walker, who was a physician on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, gave an account of the sacred pipe and is uses. Walker writes, “When a Lakota does anything in a formal manner he should first smoke the pipe. This is because the spirit in the pipe smoke is pleasing to Wanka-Tanka and to all spirits.” This quote by Walker expresses the importance that the Sacred Pipe had in daily life if one took time out of their day to smoke before doing something of importance. The connection with ancestors and with Wakan-Tanka through the smoke that is released through a sacred pipe and the importance within Lakota society shows the way that an object is able to bring a closer relationship with a God.

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