Page:American Anthropologist NS vol. 22.djvu/347

 FRACHTENBERG] ESCHATOLOGY OF THE QUILEUTE 335

clearly the exact function of the life-unit and its relative position to the other component elements of a human being. The most they ventured to say regarding it was that,

It is distinct from the body, looks just like any of the two souls, dwells between the ghost and the outer soul, leaves the body before the departure of the latter, and may be recovered and restored to its owner by a properly qualified shaman.

Far clearer and more definite was the information obtained regarding the other parts of a human being, which may be given as follows :

The outside shadow leaves a person, as soon as he becomes sick, the inner soul departs a day or two before his death ; and the ghost leaves the body at the very moment when death sets in. Death can occur only after the departure of either the inner soul or of the ghost; the loss of the outer soul does not necessarily involve death. In other words, the Quileute Indian regards sickness as a result of the departure of a person's outside soul; while death is caused by the loss of the inner soul or of the ghost.

Upon leaving the body, the outer soul goes straight to the underworld. This, however, is not the case with the inner shadow which, before going to the underworld, visits the places frequented by its owner prior to his death and bids them farewell. These wanderings last usually a week and sometimes two. Upon its arrival at the underworld the inner soul is met by the outside shadow, and the two become unified just as they were prior to their temporary dissociation. Only the outside soul can be brought back from the Land of the Shadows and restored to its owner. But if a shaman succeeds in catching the inner soul of a person, while it is still traveling and before it has descended to the Land of the Shadows, he can restore it to its owner who, thereupon, regains his health. Only such shamans are capable of intercepting the two souls who have special guardian-spirits, called titepa 'dasiL Such guardian-spirits are usually human beings. As has been said before, the two souls look exactly like the human being who owns them; the outside shadow, however, is somewhat darker than the inner soul. The souls of a person are his individual prop- erty and may not be sold.

The ghost of a person is a trifle longer than the rest of the body.

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