Prayer fans in different forms are used by Native Americans to assist in the healing of the body and the spirit. Each tribe crafted the fans based of beliefs and ceremonial practices. The fans are made with feathers from different birds, with the intention of imbuing their specific spirit into the fan. In some rituals, the fan is waved to help send a specific prayer to the spirit world. In other rituals for physical ailments, the fan directs smoke from burning herbs to attract helpful spirits and direct the focus towards the location of the problem. Gift of Robert Caples (Longfoot).

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