In order to appreciate tribal ways of viewing the world, the following is a look at Hopi perspectives provided by Fred Eggan in his classic work Social Organization of the Western Pueblos. This section, taken directly from Eggan's book provides a perspective on how the Hopi relate to nature.
HOPI CLASSIFICATION OF NATURE
Turning now to the classification of nature represented in the Hopi clan-phratry system, we can get some additional insight into the bases for phratral groupings. The application of the term "totemism" to Hopi clans has been resisted by most investigators. Thus Lowie states: "The relationship of a clan to the eponymous animal was so irregular as hardly to merit the term 'totemic.' Thus while the Butterfly people refrain from killing butterflies, the Rabbit people always kill rabbits and the Bear clan kill bears."
But this is an exceedingly narrow and one sided view of totemism; more useful in my opinion is Radcliffe-Brown's suggestion that "the problem of totemism is part of the wider problem of the relation of man to nature in ritual and myth, and must always be studied in reference to the larger problem. Regardless of what term is used for the Hopi system, one of the import tent bases for clan-phratry unity lies in the relations of this social classification to the classification of natural phenomena.
Each Hopi clan is named after some object, personage, aspect of nature. Titiev has summarized the situation as follows:
The great majority of names on any clan list are those of plants animals, or supernatural personages. These eponyms the Hopi call wuya or n'atola, terms which seem to refer to ancestors or ancient Some of them are represented by masks, figurines, or fetishes of various sorts, others have no tangible representation; but in either case there is a strong feeling of empathy and kinship between each group and its wuya
Between the clan group and the wuya a definite relationship exists - the wuya is personified in part and kinship terms extended to it. The wuya protects a Hopi; he will pray to it for strength and good crops. Some informants evince a belief in descent of the clan from its wuya, but the mythological explanations generally refer to the securing of wuya and clan names as a result of events occurring after the emergence of the clans from the underworld. Where the wuya are represented by masks, they are stored in the clan house and are regarded as the heart of the clan.There are no taboos on the utilization of wuya for necessary purposes, although they must always be treated with respect and with a certain amount of ritual. During the Soyal ceremony each clan makes prayer sticks for its own, and associated, wuya and natoila; this is one of the major ritual duties of a clan head. When an animal or bird is killed for food or feathers by any Hopi, it is ritually treated so that the spirit will return again - eagles have a special ritual in which they are treated as if they were persons.
Titiev has discussed the dynamics of clan segmentation and union among the Hopi as a basis for phratral groupings. He assumes that phratries arise chiefly from the splitting of lineages or clans which acquire a separate status but continue their interest in one another. Such a hypothesis accounts for the multiple clan wuya (it is probable that "each clan has one primary and several secondary wuya"), the common stock of names, and the exercise of phratral exogamy. But it does not explain the variations in phratry groupings from mesa to mesa; nor is it clear why the clan legends do not refer to common origins except in terms of common experiences.
The clan legends are of two general types: (I) after emergence a clan has a series of adventures which account for the several objects with which it is associated or (2) a series of clans have somewhat different adventures with the same object which accounts for the clan groups in a particular phratry and for the relations between particular wuya There are no cases of legendary origins of phratry groupings in the underworld or by splitting of clan groups. Hence it may be useful to examine the nature of the groupings of natural objects or aspects of nature in terms of their position in Hopi thinking and culture.
The basis for the classification of wuya into groups seems to be related to the position and significance of the various species and objects in Hopi culture. The wuya and the people of the clan group are considered as if they were in a "partnership"; in fact, the wuya are often spoken of as "partners." Within the various groupings, the classification is expandable, so that there is a definite (or potential) place for everything that is important to the Hopi. Each clan group is closely associated with all the wuya of the phratry group, as well as with its own.
The nature of the relationships involved in the classification are not completely clear. The Hopi have a definite feeling that the sets of "clan names" in the various phratry groups [groupings of clans into a larger social unit] go together in a logical manner, and they agree pretty well on the groupings, but the "reasons" they give for the groupings are in most cases merely the mythological sanctions. If the phratry groupings outlined above are carefully examined, certain inferences as to the bases of association can be made; others will require more adequate historical and ceremonial information.
The Bear-Spider-Bluebird-Bear's Rope phratry grouping has a mythological sanction in the adventures of various clans with a dead bear; in other accounts the Bear clan was aided by Spider Woman in the emergence from the underworld. The bear is considered a strong animal with powerful "medicine"; in aboriginal times he was the only animal that the Hopi could not handle. Since he hibernates in winter, he is associated with seasonal changes. The "bear's rope" refers to the carrying strap or tumpline, formerly used for carrying loads. Spider Woman taught the Hopi how to spin and weave, as well as guiding them on various journeys. The trap-door spider, which lives in a "kiva," is specifically referred to in many of the myths. The bluebird is associated with summer and perhaps with wisdom.
The ceremonial relationships provide additional tieups in the Second and Third Mesa villages. The Bear clan controls the Winter Solstice chieftainship, while the "Summer Solstice" Flute and Antelope ceremonies are largely in the hands of other clans of this phratry. The bluebird is important in Blue Flute ritual, I and the locust, in both adult and immature forms, is represented in the Blue and Gray Flute ceremonies. The Spider "grandmother" is an important mythological figureso important that she gave a strong sanction to the Spider den in connection with the "split" at Oraibi and the founding of Hotevilla.' The primacy of the Bear clan in all the villages may be the result of colonization from one main village; the Oraibi traditions of separation from Shongopovi and the recent efforts of Walpi and Old Oraibi to re-establish the Bear clan by importing a Shongopovi Bear clan girl are indications in this direction.
The basis for the associations in the Katcina-Parrot-Crow phratry seems primarily ceremonial: in connection with the Katcina cult. The Katcina clan is generally in charge of the Katcinas; parrot feathers "belong" to the Katcinas and are an integral part of their costume. Spruce is also associated with this group for a similar reason; and cottonwood because it is associated with water and is used for making Katcina dolls. The crows or ravens were formerly associated with war - and also with storm clouds, since they come in flocks an hour or two before a storm. The Crow-Wing Katcina acts as "mother" of the Katcinas during the Katcina initiation. It is probable that the "extinction" of the Crow clan everywhere is in part a function of loss of war prestige and the deprecatory attitudes of whites; such clans have shifted to Katcina or Parrot in certain cases.
The association of Rabbit and Tobacco with this group is found only at Oraibi and is probably the result of the extinction of the Tobacco clan and the lack of ceremonial importance of the Rabbit clan, particularly with the decline of hunting. Despite the relative separation of these two subgroups, they have developed a mythological sanction for their "partnership."
The Snake-lizard-Sand phratry association is based on a "logical" relationship: the sand or earth is a "mother" who feeds the Hopi by producing crops; the snakes are "messengers" for rain as well as guardians of the springs; lizards likewise bring rain, as well as being associated with love-making. The burrowing owl and snake are thought to inhabit prairie-dog holes in the ground.