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Native rhythms ANDREW Thomas' spirituality spills from him in words that hardly seem enough to explain the complexity of his beliefs as a traditional Dine.
Balance, tranquility,
and truth are a way of
life for the Dine
By Cynthia Oi
Star-BulletinIt is important to the flute player that those he encounters understand the core of his being and the way of life he calls "walking in beauty."
He will be in Honolulu this weekend to play at the 26th Annual American Indian Powwow at Thomas Square and in a concert with other Native American flute players at the University of Hawaii-Manoa.
Although Thomas, 38, a member of the Navajo nation, lives and works in a modern world, away from the land that's so much a part of his culture, he adheres to "the old ways."
"We call ourselves Dine (dee-NEH), the people of the Earth," he explained at the start of a telephone conversation from his "very small apartment" in Albuquerque, N.M., about 150 miles from the reservation where he was born and raised.
He names his clan affiliations: his mother is Meadow Lands people, his father Folded Arm.What follows is a recounting of his people's practices and ceremonies, their elements of life, stories and legends, of Father Sky and Mother Earth, White Shell Woman and Salt Woman.
He alternates Navajo and English as he tells of Changing Woman, one of the Dine's primary deity "who gave us the provisions to live, the nourishment of the Earth, all our beliefs, our songs and prayers."
He uses the word deity, but the Dine do not look at their belief system as religion.
"We call it the way of life, rather than religion. We walk in beauty. For Dine, it is hozho, a balance. If you have balance, you have tranquility, beauty, power."
In this state of mind, Thomas appears to have a rare mellowness. He says he never gets angry.
"Maybe when I was a child, I did. Not now."
Even when someone insults him or throws racist remarks at him, he doesn't lose his temper.
"They can call me just about anything. It shows who is weak or strong. If I can walk away from something, that makes me stronger."
A conflict "is not worth it, absolutely not worth it."
He has no problem with other people adopting Dine culture.
"As long as they respect the ways and not do it for gain or to make a profit, it's OK. If they do it with a good intention, in the proper order of life, I don't see anything wrong with that."
He harbors no ill feelings against those who may have wronged the Dine in the past.
"I've been part of the (Indian rights) movement since the 1970s. But my activism is to be a human. If there is unfairness now, I'll do something about it, but I'm not going to change what happened before. I can't change that. But if we can all talk, we can appreciate and respect, we can walk in beauty," he said.
"I can't complain about life," he said. "I'm not rich, but I have everything I need -- a place to stay, my relatives, my mom and my dad, all in good health.
"I've got good friends, a good job, a good car (a 1995 GMC Jimmy) and food to eat. I can walk, I can sit, I can smell. I have all the blessings from the holy people."
Thomas works as assistant manager and supervisor of pottery and rugs at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque. Navajo are not Pueblo, but he works in collaboration with the 19 Pueblo groups the center represents.
"We are all people of the Earth," he said.
With that same approach, Thomas is anxious to meet Native Hawaiians. He sees similarities in his culture and theirs, such as the binding of people and land and feminine deities.
"I'd really like to learn what I can about the Hawaiians. I want to learn their spirituality."
He'd also like to explore music. "I play nose flute and they do, too."
While a traditional, Thomas revels in modern culture. He loves "The X-Files," the blues and telling Indian jokes. (Why were the Indians here first? Because we had reservations. Vegetarian is a Navajo word; it means lousy hunter.)
"Humor," he said, "is very important to a Navajo way of life."
Gathering
What: 26th Annual American Indian Powwow, with crafts, food, dance and music
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