From: madrone@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us
Subject: Heyoka and an Explanation (was Re: Virtual Ritual)
Date: Wed, 18 Aug 93 23:27:41 PDT

The word "heyoka" is an American Indian (Cree?) word which describes a
person or teacher who teaches in a crazy or contrary way.  Or a person
who is a trickster, like Coyote.  Or a person who is all butterfingers
and makes lots of stupid, but profound, mistakes.  Heyoka energy is
associated with the East and creativity.
[deleted]

===
From: tim@toad.com (Tim Maroney)
Subject: Re: Heyoka and an Explanation (was Re: Virtual Ritual)
Date: 19 Aug 93 22:53:54 GMT

dancer@daisy.cc.utexas.edu, Donn Chambers writes:
> Finally (and I am wrapping my asbestos blanket tightly around me
> when I write this), many natives and non-natives find it personally
> insulting when people use a word like "heyoka" in the way you did,
> because the way you used it was really not the way it was meant.  A
> person who is a "butterfingers" is NOT heyoka.

Really?  Is there a separate word for a holy fool -- someone who seems
superficially clownish or idiotic, but whose strange or inept actions
act to teach great wisdom?  This seems like an aspect of the
"backwards" meaning of heyoka to me.

> I recall a story a Crow elder told at a powwow once.  Someone had
> remarked that Mickey Mouse was like Coyote to mainstream americans.
> He thought he had made a relevant insight.  The elder was very upset
> at this, because the man obviously did not understand exactly who
> Coyote was, and what he represented to the people.

I agree.  We all know that Bugs Bunny is the real Coyote.
-- 
Tim Maroney, Communications and User Interface Engineer