"Mayne, Elizabeth - Lion's Lady" - читать интересную книгу автора (Mayne Elizabeth)

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-: Garwood, Julie - Lion's Lady :-


Lion's Lady

Julie Garwood
["contents"]
Contents

["#chapter_1"]Prologue
["#chapter_2"]Chapter One
["#chapter_3"]Chapter Two
["#chapter_4"]Chapter Three
["#chapter_5"]Chapter Four
["#chapter_6"]Chapter Five
["#chapter_7"]Chapter Six
["#chapter_8"]Chapter Seven
["#chapter_9"]Chapter Eight
["#chapter_10"]Chapter Nine
["#chapter_11"]Chapter Ten
["#chapter_12"]Chapter Eleven
["#chapter_13"]Chapter Twelve
["#chapter_14"]Chapter Thirteen
["#chapter_15"]Chapter Fourteen
["#chapter_16"]Chapter Fifteen
["#chapter_17"]Chapter Sixteen
["#chapter_18"]Chapter Seventeen
["chapter_1"]
Prologue
["#Contents"]Contents- ["#chapter_2"]Next

The Black Hills, America, 1797
It was time to seek the vision.
The shaman waited for the Great Spirit to send him a sign. One month passed, then another, and still the gods ignored him. But the shaman was a patient man. He continued his daily prayers without complaint and waited for his humble petition to be heard.
When the moon was covered by a thick mist for four consecutive nights, the holy man knew the time had arrived. The Great Spirit had heard him.
He immediately began his preparations. After gathering his sacred powders, rattle, and drum, he made the slow climb to the top of the mountain. It was an arduous journey, made more difficult by his advanced years and the dense fog the evil spirits had surely sent to test his determination.
As soon as the old man reached the summit, he built a small fire in the center of the ledge overlooking the valley of the bitterroot. He sat down beside the flames with his face turned toward the sun. Then he reached for his powders.
First he sprinkled sage over the fire. The shaman knew all evil spirits hated the bitter smell. The scent would make them stop their mischief and leave the mountain.
The mist left the mountaintop the following morning, a signal to the holy one that the mischief makers had been chased away. He put the remaining sage powder away and began to feed incense to the flames. The scent was made sweet by the addition of sacred buffalo prairie grass. Incense would purify the air and was known to attract benevolent gods.
For three days and nights the shaman stayed close to the fire. He fasted and prayed, and on the fourth morning he reached for his rattle and drum. He then began the chant that would bring the Great Spirit closer.
During the black hours of the fourth night, the shaman's sacrifice was rewarded. The Great Spirit gave him his dream.
While the holy man slept, his mind was suddenly awakened to the vision. The sun appeared in the night sky. He saw a speck of black that grew and took shape, until it was magically transformed into a vast herd of buffalo. The magnificent animals thundered above the clouds towards him. An eagle, gray with white-tipped wings, flew overhead, leading them on.
As the buffalo drew closer, some of their faces became those of the holy man's ancestors who had traveled to the Afterlife. He saw his father and his mother, his brothers, too. The herd parted then, and in the middle stood a proud mountain lion. The animal's coat was as white as lightning, the spirit Thunderbolt's work no doubt, and the Great Spirit had given the lion's eyes the color of the sky.
The herd of buffalo again enclosed the lion before the dream abruptly ended.
The holy man returned to his village the following morning. His sister prepared a meal for him. Once he'd taken his fill, he went to the leader of the Dakota, a mighty warrior named Gray Eagle. He told his leader only that he must continue to guide his people. The holy man kept the rest of his vision to himself, for the full meaning had yet to be revealed to him. And then he returned to his tipi to remember his vision with his dyes. On a soft deerskin hide he painted a circle of buffalo. In the center he drew the mountain lion, making certain the color of the animal's coat was just as white as he could recall, the color of the eyes just as blue as a sky in summer. When the rendering was completed he waited for the dye to dry, then carefully folded the skin and put it away.
The dream continued to haunt the shaman. He'd hoped to be given some comforting message for his leader. Gray Eagle was grieving. The shaman knew his friend wanted to pass leadership on to a younger, more fit warrior. Since his daughter and grandson had been taken from him, the leader's heart hadn't belonged to his people. He was filled with bitterness and anger.