Deganawidah

Deganawidah (or Deganawida), known as "The Great Peacemaker," was the traditional founder, with Hiawatha, of the Haudenosaunee (commonly called the Iroquois) confederacy, a political and cultural union of Native American tribes in what is now New York State.

Deganawidah, means “Two River Currents Flowing Together.” The legends about him are conflicting. It is reported that he was born a Huron. By some accounts it was a virgin birth. Others say he was born an Onondaga and later adopted by the Mohawks. By all accounts he was a prophet who counseled peace among the warring tribes. He also called for an end to cannibalism. His disciple Hiawatha, a Mohawk renown for his oratory, helped him achieve his vision.

This vision, from the Great Maker that peace would come to all nations, led him to spend his life working to bring this to fruition for the Haudenosaunee. In his prophecy, he referred to a white serpent who would come to their lands and make friends with his people, only to later deceive them. According to the prophecy, at the end times, a red serpent would make war on the white one and after a season, a black serpent would come and defeat them both. He said that his nation would accept those of other origins into their safekeeping. Because of their worship of, and obedience to, the Great Maker, the Haudenosaunee would be protected from the disasters to come.

Deganawidah established a council of clan and village chiefs to govern the confederacy. The tribes each had an equal voice and all decisions were made by consensus. Led by Deganawidah, and Hiawatha, the Haudenosaunee became the dominant Native American group in the northeast woodlands.

External link

"Deganawidah" Infoplease, University of Liverpool