Constellation of The Hand



Lakota hand constellation. The index finger is the bright star Rigel while the thumb is the Orion Nebula. Orion's belt makes up the wrist. The pinky is held by Beta Eridani, a star in the constellation Eridanis.
Click on image for full size (24K JPEG)
Chris Gleason, Windows Original
According to the Lakota, the Constellation of the Hand, in the constellation Orion, represents the arm of a great Lakota chief. The gods wanted to punish the chief for his selfishness and made Thunder People rip out his arm.

His daughter promised to marry anyone who would recover her father's arm. Fallen Star, a young warrior, did so and married the daughter. The return of the chief's arm means peace and harmony between the gods and the people.

Constellation of The Hand



Lakota hand constellation. The index finger is the bright star Rigel while the thumb is the Orion Nebula. Orion's belt makes up the wrist. The pinky is held by Beta Eridani, a star in the constellation Eridanis.
Click on image for full size (24K JPEG)
Chris Gleason, Windows Original
According to the Lakota, the Constellation of the Hand, namely the bottom half of the constellation Orion, represents the arm of a great Lakota chief. The gods wanted to punish the Lakota's chief for his selfishness and made the Thunder People rip out his arm. The chief's daughter offered to marry anyone who would recover her father's arm.

Fallen Star, a young warrior whose father was a star and whose mother was human, returned the arm and married the daughter. The return of the arm to the chief symbolizes harmony between the gods and the people with the help of the younger generation.

Constellation Of The Hand



Lakota hand constellation. The index finger is the bright star Rigel while the thumb is the Orion Nebula. Orion's belt makes up the wrist. The pinky is held by Beta Eridani, a star in the constellation Eridanis.
Click on image for full size (24K JPEG)
Chris Gleason, Windows Original
According to the Lakota, the Constellation of the Hand, namely the bottom half of Orion, represents the arm of a great Lakota chief. The Orion's Belt represents the Chief's wrist and the thumb is formed by his sword. Rigel is the tip of the index finger, and Beta Eridani that of the little finger.

The tale related to this constellation tells us how the gods wanted to punish the Lakota chief for his selfishness and made the Thunder People rip out his arm. To help her father, the chief's daughter offered to marry whomever would recover her father's arm. One man made a long and perilous journey through the sky and the Earth.

Fallen Star, a young warrior born of a mortal mother and a celestial father, returned the lost arm to the chief and married his beautiful daughter. The return of the arm to the chief symbolizes the harmony between the gods and the people with the help of the younger generation.


Last modified March 27, 1997 by the Windows Team

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