When a soldier returns home from battle, healing must take place for him and for his family. The wounds from battle may be many. The physical wounds are easiest to see. The spiritual wounds cannot be seen, yet they are the most damaging.
The clan system works to promote healing in Anaa'ji . Here we see clan membership acknowledged and respected. Here we see how clan relatives come together and work as one for the good of the clan, the soldier, and his family.
General clan protocol begins with the selection of the medicine man to perform the cermony. The medicine man could be an uncle or a grandfather. Neither the soldier nor the medicine man can be related to the recipient of the rattle. The medicine man cuts the stick and takes it to someone who's not related to the soldier. If the recipient of the rattle is a clan relative, it is like committing suicide.
Another clan practice keeps clan relatives from dancing with one another during all nights of the cermony. This is in keeping with the general prohibition of relatives touching one another.
The soldier and his wife are kept separate during the cermony, as are their relatives. Each group has a different location for eating in the chaha'oh. There are two seperate chah'ohs: one for cooking and eating and a second one placed in front of the ceremonial hogan.
The wife gets painted inside the chaha'oh situated in front of the ceremonial hogan. This chaha'oh is covered from the south side in the direction of the Sun's path to be sure that she receives no direct sunlight from the Sun while she's painted because the Sun was adulterous. The man and wife are painted seperatelt but at the same time. The man is painted in the ceremonial hogan.
The man's clan relatives gather cloth and buckskin for the wife. They cover the wife with this material while she is in the chaha'oh. This material drapes from her head clear to the ground.
The soldire's bandolier, the belt worn over one shoulder and across his chest, is kept away from females during the ceremony. The wife is not supposed to look at it while she is in the chaha'oh because it represents the monsters killed by the Twins.
At the conclusion of the exorcism, the soldier moves the bandolier from one side of his body to the other and walks to the eating area. This is done around 10am so the so;dier can breath in the Sun when it is really strong.
The wife follows her husband to the eating area. The material draped on her body drags on the ground and erases her footprints. This is very important to insure that healing is complete.
Wedding basket is prepared with corn mush for the man and woman. They eat together, use pollen, and apply clay to themselves. The clay represents the Earth. It reconnects the couple to the Earth. This application reminds each that he/she is a child of the Earth.
The husband makes peace with his wife. They have overcome sickness together. They have nurished their inner beings together. They have reinforced their spiritual inner beings as a couple.
Now the husband and wife can lead a normal life.
If a soldier is not married, he should choose a distantly relatrd k'ets'osi female to stand in for the wife's role.
Many of our soldiers are females today. When the ceremony is done she must find a male nephew to sit in foe her. The female never wears the bandolier or any of the attire worn by the male. Females are not allowed into the ceremonial hogan at any time during the ceremony. They are only painted in the chaha'oh. Also a female cannot get a warrior name ceremonilly.