Mohican

Mohican RITES OF PASSAGE CEREMONIES About the time of puberty, a boy was encouraged to go into the forest for several days at a time, fast during the day, and dream at night. For breakfast, he was offered either food or charcoal: if he chose to fast, he took the charcoal and rubbed it on his cheeks to indicate that he was on a vision quest. The fast was either a complete one or one with very little water. After sundown, a small amount of food could be eaten, but some didn’t even do this. Most people said that fasting “cleared the mind" after several days, so they were able to see a vision or hear a new name or song and remember it. To stay out for four days in a row was highly desirable. On the first day, the father often went to help his son prepare a small shelter or a nest in a tree. Many fathers went back once in a while to make sure their son was safe. There were few examples of failure, although a child might have to fast several times before he has a real vision. The fasting dream, or vision quest, was of vision, girl, food, spirit, small, guardian, first, fasting, fast, days, after, time, through, several, little, fruit, dream, water, until, summer, son, quest, puberty, person, one, life, illness, good, four, favors, either, during, day, charcoal, ceremony, before