The Good Mind, Kaʔnikuhli·yó

A brief overview of Oneida thought

Opening

In the text below I have attempted to demonstrate what a rough interlinear translation for this passage would look like by using alternating font colors to make clear which words in the English corrospond to the Oneida. It is my hope that this interlinear translation will give readers, who have likely not encountered the language before, some sense of how the Oneida expresses ideas.

Ta· swatahuhsiyósteʔ, o·nʌ tsiʔnáhteʔ ohʌ·tú yolihwatéhtuʔ
Now all of you listen intently, now as to what before all else the subject spoken

Akwe·kú úskah tsiʔ ʌtwahewʔnu·ni· yukwaʔnikuhlaʔ, tʌhethwanuhela·tú·
Still as one that we will unite our minds, we'll extend our thankfulness, greetings, and love to him

Shukwayaʔtísu tsiʔ akwe·kú oskʌ·nʌ· yakwanuht&nuhe
Our Creator that everything is peaceful out thoughts/feelings

Ta· tho niyohtúhak yukwaʔnikúhlaʔ
This is how it shall be our minds

Kanehelatúksla, n.d., p. 4

Kanehelatúksla

I open with a version of the first chapter of the Kanehelatúksla because to my mind the Oneida concept of good mind, kaʔnikuhli·yó, can best be understood by listening to this address in Oneida. The Oneida Indian Nation of New York provides a storybook recitation (below) read in Oneida with English translation in the images. The Oneida name for the address, Kanehelatúksla, comes from the verb stem -nuhelatu, which also appears as the last word in the second line above. As you can see from the interlinear translation provided, this verb is not easily translated into English. It encompasses a number of sentiments that might be seen to be distinct in English, but are all aspects of one profound feeling in Oneida: thankfulness, greeting, and love. This feeling is at the center of the good mind philosophy. In English the address is sometimes referred to as Greetings to the Natural World or as the Thanksgiving Address. While neither are incorrect, the sentiment the address expresses is perhaps better described as a combination of care, reciprocity, and balance with the world around us.

The Kanehelatúksla is a collection of several short verses, all of which begin and end in the same way. A verse begins by bringing our minds (the minds of all listeners) together as one and extending greetings, thankfulness, and love. A verse ends by affirming our minds remain together as one. In each verse an important part of creation is acknowledged and thanked for performing its duty. These include both supernatural beings (like the Creator and the Thunderers) and elements of the natural world (including medicine plants and domestic animals). As part of the oral tradition, the exact number of verses, the order the verses come in, and the reason stated for giving thanks sometimes varies. A famous Mohawk Elder, Tom Porter (2008), recalls that when learning the address in Mohawk he was taught to look out into the environment and to offer thanks to all he could see. In addition to slight variations on the number and content of the verses, the Kanehelatúksla also varies in tone and complexity. The Oneida Nation of Wisconsin provides this simplified version on the official tribal website. This version, often referred to by community members as “the preschool” version, cuts some of the more formal aspects in favor of emphasizing the two most important parts of the address: reinforcing the Good Mind through thanks and gratitude and acknowledging all parts of creation. Regardless of what is kept or simplified, every version underscores the importance of finding balance, community, and thankfulness. A Good Mind, from an Oneida perspective, is one that embodies these characteristics.

Designing with Kaʔnikuhli·yó thus meant figuring out how to bring these values into both the final game and into the design process itself. My NEH grant was a “gift” in the sense that Jennifer Clary-Lemon (2017) defines them: an opportunity that came with obligations and a commitment to reciprocity. In the Design Reflections you will see clearer examples of how the team attempted to bring Kaʔnikuhli·yó into the final play experience. Thus, in this section I will briefly touch on how we built these philosophies into our design process.

Oneida artistry is highly material in nature; we are known for our raised beadwork, our pottery, our wampum belts that record our history. It was thus important to me, as an enrolled member of Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, that we find some way to honor this materiality in the digital game. I believe that we accomplished this both by working with Indigenous artists, composers, scholars, and knowledge keepers throughout the design process and by building mentoring programs into our design.

For both concept art and music, we created mentorship opportunities for Indigenous youth to work with master artists and not only create work that would appear in the final game, but also learn something about the life of a working artist. Both Dawn Dark Mountain and Brent David Michaels briefly mention their extensive mentoring. Unfortunately, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, these mentoring opportunities had to be completed virtually. Initially, the grant also included an opportunity for me to mentor Oneida youth in game design and for us to collaborate on the design of a minigame. However, due to the travel restrictions in the summer of 2020, these plans were canceled. Instead, I used those funds to hire an Oneida production assistant. While not able to mentor in game design, I was able to stay true to the intention of those funds and create opportunities within my community to gain experience with the game production process.

Finally, we worked with a variety of language consultants, translators, and voice actors. We included Oneida voices from youth to Elders, demonstrating the persistence and currency of our people. Whenever possible, the project drew on the community. When not possible, we attempted to build capacity within the community.