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From Shaking the Pumpkin - Jerome Rothenberg
Overview
This song poem originates from the Seneca tribe and is chanted to begin a ceremonial season of rebirth called I'dos. The poem was transcribed by Jerome Rothenberg and was written and formatted in a way to exemplify the dynamic and rhythmic nature that the chanted oral piece provides.
Context
This song-poem originates from the oral chants of the Senecan tribe. Traditionally, these were songs sung by ceremonial leaders called hajawas. Hajawas sang these chants to begin the cycle of renewal called I'dos in the Senecan language, which is called Onöndowa’ga:’ Gawë:nö׳, translated to “Language of the People of the Great Hills.” I'dos is also translated to “shaking the pumpkin” and also “The Society of the Mystic Animals.”
