These stones were thought to have great magic and were highly valued by the Medicine Men of the Tribes. Described as a supernatural being, the enormous bird was a symbol of power and strength that protected humans from evil spirits. The Sioux believed that where lightening bolts struck the ground, medicine stones were formed. The rolling thunder was from the wings of the young Thunderbirds. The thunderclap came from the beating of his great wings. The lightening came from his eyes as he blinked, or, lightening bolts were shot to the earth from a mighty bow he fashioned with his wings. Rain fell from a lake that the great bird carried on his back. The Thunderbird was believed to be the source of the rain, the lightening and the thunder. Thunderbird, Legendary Bird, Native Americans, Mythology, Totem, Spirit, Animal Bucket Hat Cowboy Hat golf Man Womens Black Red Deep Heather Gray Blue. Wakan Tanka was therefore revered in all the Tribes as a powerful ally of the "Human Beings." Wakan Tanka caused rain that nourished the people, and they flourished. Nothing was left of Unktehi but her bones which had turned to stone and can still be found in riverbeds all over the earth. This was done and the waters boiled and Unktehi was burned as were all the forests and the land was desolate except for those truthful, pure, and loyal "Human Beings"on the mountain tops. It was decided that all the Thunderbirds would release their lightening bolts at the same time. Wakan Tanka withdrew to the sky and called the Thunderbirds and their young to a council where it was decided that to fight Unktehi in her world of water was futile and it was best to fight from their world, the sky. Wakan Tanka first tried to fight Unktehi on the water but suffered many wounds and was losing the battle. Wakan Tanka seeing this, decided to help these "Human Beings" and began a great battle with Unktehi that lasted for many years. The truthful, pure, and loyal "Human Beings" fled to these mountains to survive. This caused a great flood which covered the earth, except for a few mountain tops. Because of her dislike for any creature unlike herself, Unktehi decided to flood the earth and destroy the "Human Beings."She did this by swelling her body to fill all the oceans, rivers and streams leaving no room for the water. The legend of how the great Thunderbird, Wakan Tanka, saved the "Human Beings" from the evil underworld water monster, Unktehi, comes to us from the vision quest of a Brule - Sioux Medicine Man. The Thunderbird was the Spirit of all things good for the native peoples and was a constant protector against the Spirits of the Underworld. The Iroquois of the Eastern Nations, the Shawnee of the Woodland Tribes, the Sioux of the Plains and Nez Perce of the Northwestern Tribes all recognized the Thunderbird as a mighty force against the Evil Spirits of the Underworld. Legends of the Thunderbird have occurred in Native American Mythology and Religion in almost every Tribe and Nation to inhabit the United States. Our troop's neckerchief is embroidered with a Thunderbird. These various images are illustrated and described and an interpretation of their meaning and age is presented.The Thunderbird was chosen as the Totem of Troop 50 because, for centuries, it has represented the Spirit and Philosophy of Scouting as it reveres people who embrace TRUTH, PURITY, LOYALTY and DUTY to "Human Beings." Thunderbirds appear in the archaeological record as copper cutouts, castings in pewter and lead, fashioned from shell and incised into clay. Thunderbird images have been engraved into artifacts including ornaments, small flat stones, a stone pipe, and pebbles. Images occur on bedrock outcrops located along the banks of rivers and streams, the shores of lakes, and seaside bays. It has been expressed on rock surfaces, in shell, clay, animal hide, metal, and as facial tattoos. In southeastern Canada and the northeastern United States, or the Northeast, the thunderbird image is found in various design forms and artistic mediums. It causes lightning, thunder, wind, devours serpents, and is seen as a guardian spirit of Indian people. In the legends of Algonkian and Iroquoian peoples of the Northeast region the thunderbird is a powerful and sacred spirit-being in the form of a giant eagle-like bird. Thunderbird figures and images are found in American Indian art throughout Canada and the United States.
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