A Kootenai Grizzly Story

“The grizzly bear is a very significant character for the Kootenai people.

Because he is the carrier of ceremony. That is very important to the Kootenai people because of an incident that took place a long time ago where a little boy was lost. Became lost during the huckleberry picking season.

And was taken in by the grizzly bear. And lived with the grizzly bear for three years. And during that course of time of living with the grizzly bear the boy was taught that the grizzly looks in on the ceremonies of the Kootenai people in the middle of the wintertime. And the grizzly bear by looking down the pipe stem of someone who had smoked the pipe, he could see from inside the pipe stem what was inside that person’s heart.

And he could see how sincere that person was and what it was that person was asking for. And so the little boy learned that thats what the grizzly bear did. During those three years he learned how to do it. And then the grizzly bear returned that boy during huckleberry season back to his parents. And the little boy shared with his family and with the rest of the people how important it was for the Kootenai people to always be sincere in their heart when they pick up the pipe and when they smoke it.

Because what goes on in their heart is revealed within the stem of the pipe that they’re smoking. And the grizzly bear looks at it and determines whether or not that person is sincere and whether or not that person is worthy of receiving what it is they are asking for. So thats why the grizzly is important to the Kootenai people.”