The Thompson Indians of British Columbia cook and eat the sunflower
root (_Balsamorrhiza sagittata,_ Nutt.), but they used to regard it
as a mysterious being, and observed a number of taboos in connexion
with it; for example, women who were engaged in digging or cooking
the root must practice continence, and no man might come near the
oven where the women were baking the root. When young people ate the
first berries, roots, or other products of the season, they
addressed a prayer to the Sunflower-Root as follows: "I inform thee
that I intend to eat thee. Mayest thou always help me to ascend, so
that I may always be able to reach the tops of mountains, and may I
never be clumsy! I ask this from thee, Sunflower-Root. Thou art the
greatest of all in mystery." To omit this prayer would make the
eater lazy and cause him to sleep long in the morning.
These customs of the Thompson and other Indian tribes of North-West
America are instructive, because they clearly indicate the motive,
or at least one of the motives, which underlies the ceremonies
observed at eating the first fruits of the season.
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