This Is Not A Competition

I just got home from my first sweat in South Dakota. I've done one other sweat ceremony when I was in New Mexico a few months back in the Navajo Nation. I definitely expected there to be differences between the two interpretations of the ceremony, but I was REALLY taken aback by how individual each ceremony felt. For anyone who is not familiar, the best way to describe a sweat ceremony is a prayer ceremony that focuses on oneself in connection to everyone else, the world, and God. A sweat takes place in a sweat lodge, which is a low-ceilinged structure (sometimes a hogan, sometimes a dome, there are many different shapes). You crawl into the lodge and remain there for the four rounds of the ceremony. Once the fire has burned the rocks for quite some time (outside the lodge), burning rocks are brought into the center of the lodge which has a large hole dug out for the rocks to sit. Rocks sit in each possible direction of the earth. Once everyone is in, all the rocks have been placed, and sage burns on each rock, water is poured onto the rocks and the steam fills the sweat lodge, pouring over each individual (all participants sit in a circle very close to each other). Each round has a different method of prayer and communication. Let me break down the four rounds for you guys of my first sweat here.

Round One: Oh my word, what the hell was I thinking?
So, the first round (in Lakota sweats) is the most intense round. The rocks are burning at their hottest, you are not yet accustomed to the heat, and it definitely feels like the longest round. The opening to the lodge is covered, leaving you in complete darkness. Small steam waves hit you and you think, "Oh, this is cute. Like a sauna." WRONG! DON'T YOU EVER IN YOUR LIFE ASSUME THAT AGAIN! Within five minutes, I was afraid I would start to get sick.  Each breath fills like dust coming into your body, and, yet, the towel that is supposed to filter out the discomfort a little is already so hot there is little to take that away. Sweat is dripping from every pore of your body. I didn't ever actually get sick or dizzy (thankfully), but the fear was there. This round is in complete silence minus the singers who sing various prayers at the top of their lungs. The drum pounds loudly as you sit trying to center yourself away from the intensity of the steam's heat. I found myself crying out in my head, "Dear Jesus, what the hell was I thinking? Please just pull me through." And lo and behold, right as I thought I would have to walk out or leave, the flap was uncovered and the sweetest rush of cool air filled the lodge. We all exhaled in a collective sigh of relief. Mitakuye Oyasin (roughly "we are all related").

In the break with the flap open, we went around and each individual prayed for any number of things: family, friends, gratitude for life, struggles, joys, triumphs, etc. We each sipped water and then, once we were replenished, round two began.

Round Two: Okay, I think I can do this...
The flap closed again, a few hits of steam made me nervous that I would repeat round one, but the waves were calmer, more consistent. I began to think "I think I can do this..." The singers began again, and I was able to get a little bit closer to the center. I didn't need to use my towel as often. I began to sit straighter. Nothing too revolutionary in this round except I was a little tougher, a little more able to focus on the most important thing: prayer. All of the intentions we had said in the break were racing through my mind, so it was difficult to fully focus, but I felt like I was starting to get into a prayerful mode.

Round Two ended and we had another opening of the entrance. This time, a tobacco pipe was passed. The tobacco pipe is the sacred pipe, one of the foundational pieces of Lakota culture and religion. We were told beforehand we didn't have to inhale the smoke, we could merely puff it if we wished. The pipe was passed around and after each pass, we said Mitakuye Oyasin, further connecting us.

Round Three: Prayer Time!
This was the round that changed the game for me. From the moment the entrance closed, I felt myself pulled into the pseudo-trance of intense, prayerful focus. Each of my family members, each of my friends, each of the intentions mentioned in the sweat came up in clear, crystal focus. I didn't necessarily spend a whole lot of time on each intention, but it was so clear that I was praying for a lot of different things at once. I felt myself completely unaware of the sweat, the singers, or the lodge itself. I was just thinking about the prayer. I had a funny moment of realization where I screamd in my head, "Oh my goodness! I'm ACTUALLY praying!" It's a pretty incredible mode of prayer I rarely find myself able to access, so I really hope and PRAY that I can get into more mindsets like that even outside the sweat ceremonies.

One more quick break.

Round Four: Thank You
The heat of this round had calmed just like the round before. In New Mexico, this round was called the Warrior Round where the heat was most intense. It was the opposite here. This round was a continuation of the singing and praying, but I merely found myself overwhelmed with a sense of gratitude: gratitude for friends, family, the people in the lodge with me, God, life, the Earth, everything. I smiled. I smiled a long time in that round. Thank You were the only justifiable words.

We exited the lodge and allowed the night breeze to cool our skin. People went around thanking each other and shaking each other's hands, and we've been invited whenever we want (they run sweats weekly).

The greatest part of this ceremony was the piece of advice we kept getting from everybody before the sweat began: this is NOT a competition Sweats are not some random test to prove one's strength and durability in heat. We were told from the get go if it ever got too intense, we could yell the safety word and leave. This is NOT a competition. This is prayer. This is connection. This is meant to unify, not divide. The sweat is about humbling oneself to a state where one recognizes one cannot live this life alone, and it is then about gratitude to God for providing all we need to live full lives on this planet. People looking to do this simply to say they "survived" the sweat are not comprehending its ultimate intent. "This is not a competition; this is about prayer." I'll hear that phrase every time I go now. Thank you to everyone who helped make this ceremony possible for us. I look forward to many more this upcoming year.

Mitakuye Oyasin.