Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/59

 Vbeir names of the Deity. 47

traders call the war, and beloved cabbins) (looping with their heads and bodies pretty low ; advancing a few fteps in this pofture, they carry their fhells with both hands, at an inftant, to one of the moft principal men on thofe red and white feats, faying, on a bafs key, Y'AH, quite fhort : then, in like manner, they retreat backward, facing each other, with their heads bowing forward, their arms acrofs, rather below their breaft, and their eyes half fhut, thus, in a very grave, folemn manner, they fing on a ftrong bafs key, the awful monofyllable, O, for the fpace of a minute : then they flrike up majeftic HE, on the treble, with a very intent voice, as long as their breath allows them ; and on a bafs key, with a bold voice, and fhort accent, they at laft utter the ftrong myfterious found, WAH, and thus finifh the great fong, or moft folemn invocation of the divine eflence. The notes together compofe their facred, myfterious name, Y-O-H

��~ That this feems to be the true Hebrew pronunciation of the divine effen- tial name, mjT, JEHOVAH, will appear more obvious from the found they feem to have given their characters. The Greeks, who chiefly copied their alphabet from the Hebrew, had not^W, but icra, very nearly refembling the found of our T. The ancient Teutonic and Sclavonian dialects, have Tab as an affirmative, and ufe the confonant /F"inftead of F. The high importance of the fubjecl, neceffarily would lead thefe fuppofed red Hebrews, when fe- parated from other people in America, to continue to repeat the favourite name of God, YO HE WAH, according to the ancient pronunciation. -^ _

Contrary to the ufage of all the ancient heathen world, the American In dians not only name God by feveral ftrong compounded appellatives, ex- prefllve of many of his divine attributes, but likewife fay YAH at the beginning of their religious dances, with a bowing pofture of body ; then they fing Yo Yo, HE HE, and repeat thole facred notes, on every reli gious occafion : the religious attendants calling to YAH to enable them humbly to fupplicate, feems to point to the Hebrew cuftom of pronouncing, n% Tabi which likewife fignifies the divine eflence. It is well known what facred regard the Jews had to the four- lettered divine name, fo as fcarcely ever to mention it, but once a year, when the high-prieft went into the holy fanctuary, at the expiation of fins. Might not the Indians copy from them, this facred invocation ? Their method of invoking God, in a

folemn

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