Introduction

In Native American culture, parents and elders have been telling stories to their descendants for ages: myths about how the world was created and where humans came from, the adventures of ancestors in the distant and unexplored past, and the heroic deeds of well-known leaders. This way, the older generation reinforced the tribe's identity and motivated the younger generation by emphasizing the importance of their roots.

In the age of globalization, where the distinctness of cultural diversity is at risk, the Native American oral tradition remains a valuable part of cultural memory and continues to guide future generations. Scott Momaday, a member of the Kiowa tribe, believed strongly that without this oral tradition, maintaining ethnic identity would be impossible. Kiowa oral traditions are not just about remembering the past. Native American folklore encompasses customs, traditions, and spirituality, and is vital to forming their sense of identity. [King, 2008].

The Way to Rainy Mountain is a special work by Scott Momaday, the Pulitzer Prize laureate [Porter, Kenneth, Roemer 2005, p. 218]. The author recounts the epic, breathtaking journey of his people, starting from the turbulent past of the Kiowa tribe. Momaday consistently describes the ethnogenesis of the Kiowa tribe—the mythological origins of its ancestors, their migration from Montana to the southern plains, the last days of their free nomadic and hunting life on the western steppes in the 1860s and 1870s, the war between Kiowa warriors and the U.S. cavalry, their surrender at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, the forced settlement onto reservations, and final settlement near Rainy Mountain [Momaday, 1969, pp. 66-83]. Momaday's story vividly conveys the adventures and emotions of his ancestors through stunning language. This work is a unique blend of history, folklore, and poetic memoir, originally published in 1969. Scott Momaday aims to reconnect with and understand his people’s history and his own identity through a personal journey to Rainy Mountain, an isolated peak in the northwest of the Wichita Mountains. Against the backdrop of ancestral traditions and Kiowa values, Momaday's self-awareness and personal experience take a central role in his work. His journey is not just physical; the path to Rainy Mountain represents a return to his ancestors’ traditions. Inspired by stories from his childhood, Momaday's memories of the past gradually merge with the collective memory of the Kiowa [Porter, Kenneth, Roemer 2005, p. 214-215]. He explores the traditions and mythological past to define a person as a Native American. His personal biography, intertwined with oral tradition, shapes his identity as a Kiowa.

The text is a series of interconnected short, engaging prose passages. Although The Way to Rainy Mountain is not poetry, Momaday’s prose remains lyrical and deep in its essence. This isn’t surprising because the text is filled with the heartfelt emotions and lively sincerity typical of Native American oral tradition. Momaday's writing is also powerful because it not only captures the captivating voice of Kiowa oral lore but also shows how Native American oral tradition can turn personal and collective memory into a rich, unified sense of identity.

This article aims to address the central question of the research: How does The Way to Rainy Mountain portray the connection between identity, cultural memory, and ancestral traditions of the Native Americans? The study uses a multidisciplinary approach that combines historical, anthropological, and literary analysis of the text. Considering the historical and cultural background of Momaday’s work, the article examines the role of oral tradition as a link between the past and the present. It also seeks to provide the reader with insight into how Kiowa traditions are preserved and how identity is explored in the modern world.

My interest in the issue comes from a deep respect for the oral tradition of Native Americans as a source of living knowledge. Stories passed down verbally are not just about the past, but also a process that constantly shapes identity and worldview. Momaday's writing provides a unique example of how oral tradition can be transformed into a way of preserving cultural memory and revitalizing traditional identity.

I think that this article is especially important for the Georgian reader, including both academic and non-academic circles. It introduces the reader to the rich, diverse, and indigenous world of Native Americans’ oral tradition. For a wide audience, the article presents the universal means for understanding the oral tradition as part of the Native American identity and worldview.

I analyze Momaday's work, The Way to Rainy Mountain, considering the broader context of the Native American oral tradition. The article, which explores the rich cultural heritage of the Kiowa, addresses a current topic in American academia: how can oral traditions play a crucial role in restoring and interpreting Native American cultural heritage today?

The interaction between oral tradition and text

The Way to Rainy Mountain effectively captures the complex tapestry of oral history in written form. Momaday describes the inseparable connection between the Kiowa’s past and present with a spectral richness. The narrative has its own rhythm: a steady alternation of Kiowa myths, scholars’ commentaries, and the author's personal memories. This pattern highlights the importance of oral traditions for the tribe [Momaday, 1969; Schubnell, 1985, p. 146; Porter, Kenneth, Roemer 2005, p. 215]. Therefore, we can say that the Kiowa’s folk speech is not only a cultural memory but also a way of shaping individual and collective identity. The three-part structure of the essays arranges the text into a living cultural mosaic. Momaday’s Kiowa folk art preserves traditions that help sustain identity in the face of threats from ancestral customs.

In Momaday’s work, speech gradually loses one of its traditional roles: to preserve the memory of past events. Instead, storytelling becomes a dynamic process, a stream that fosters the Kiowa identity. The author shares Kiowa myths and reinterprets their importance for modern times. Momaday’s goal is to remind the Kiowa people that oral tradition is a form of language activity that strengthens traditional values and connects descendants with their ancestors [Roemer, 1988, p. 41-47; Schubnell, 1985, p. 40-42]. Kate Basso, a renowned anthropologist studying the significance of oral tradition, believed that the oral traditions of Native Americans are not merely static artifacts. They, as living systems, adapt to changing historical and cultural contexts, and because of this, they remain relevant even today [Basso, 1996].

Cultural memory and the significance of oral tradition

The Way to Rainy Mountain is deeply connected to the idea of cultural memory. Momaday's Kiowa myths offer a strong base for understanding his people’s shared experiences and values. For instance, the story of the Sun Dance highlights the Kiowa's spiritual bond with the environment and shows the resilience of Native Americans during tough times. This myth, passed down through oral tradition, is a key tool for sharing cultural knowledge among the Kiowa and reinforcing their sense of identity [Roemer, 1988, p. 32-41].

Long ago, there were bad times. The Kiowas were hungry, and there was no food. There was a man who heard his children cry from hunger, and he went out to look for food. He walked four days and became very weak. On the fourth day he came to a great canyon. Suddenly, there was thunder and lightning. A voice spoke to him and said, "Why are you following me? What do you want?" The man was afraid. The thing standing before him had the feet of a deer, and its body was covered with feathers. The man answered that the Kiowas were hungry. "Take me with you," the voice said, "and I will give you whatever you want." From that day Tai-me  has belonged to the Kiowas. 

The great central figure of the kado, or Sun Dance, ceremony is the tai-me. This is a small image, less than two feet in length, representing a human figure dressed in a robe of white feathers, with a headdress consisting of a single upright feather and pendants of ermine skin, with numerous strands of blue beads around its neck, and painted upon the face, breast, and back with designs symbolic of the sun and moon.

The image itself is of dark green stone, in form rudely resembling a human head and bust, probably shaped by art like the stone fetishes of the Pueblo tribes. It is preserved in a rawhide box in charge of the hereditary keeper, and is never under any circumstances exposed to view except at the annual Sun Dance, when it is fastened to a short upright stick planted within the medicine lodge, near the western side. It was last exposed in 1888. - Mooney 

Once, I went with my father and grandmother to see the Tai-me bundle. It was suspended by means of a strip of ticking from the fork of a small ceremonial tree. I made an offering of bright red cloth, and my grandmother prayed aloud. It seemed a long time that we were there. I had never come into the presence of Tai-me before nor have I since. There was a great holiness all about in the room, as if an old person had died there or a child had been born.  [Momaday, 1969, p. 36-37].

Jan Assmann’s theory of cultural and communicative memory offers a solid framework for analyzing how Momaday’s work connects to oral tradition. According to Assmann [Assmann, 2011, p. 34-44], cultural memory is maintained through rituals, symbols, and stories that link individuals to their shared past. In Momaday's narrative, oral tradition serves as such a symbol. The story provides listeners with a perspective that enables a proper understanding of Kiowa historical experience.

Thus, by adding oral tradition to the work, Momaday again highlights the importance of listening to stories to preserve Kiowa’s cultural memory.

Identity and physical environment

Historically, the pre-reservation life of the Kiowa was linked to the steppes of the American West. The Kiowa moved across the central and southern Great Plains, with their territory covering parts of Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, and Colorado. They led a highly mobile, nomadic existence centered on buffalo hunting. Kiowa society consisted of small, bilateral kinship-based local groups; they had no clans. The tribe followed the seasonal migration of buffalo herds [Mooney, 1979, p. 227-237]. This way of life was deeply connected to Native American beliefs and oral traditions. Kiowa religious ceremonies reinforced humans’ mystical bonds with the soil, plants, and animals [Mooney, 1979, pp. 237-245]. For instance, the Sun Dance, an important ceremonial event, symbolized the Kiowa's physical and spiritual unity [Momaday, 1969, p. 32-39].

In Momaday's narrative, the Great Plains landscape is not merely background but an integral component of Kiowa identity. The physical environment, detailed in Momaday’s text, is simultaneously a source of inspiration and keeper of the tribe’s past secrets. The author’s descriptions of plains, mountains, and sky are imbued with trans-physical meanings, once again indicating the Kiowa’s deep connection with their homeland. For the Kiowa identity to persist, new generations must maintain their connection with nature. Therefore, the memory of wholeness with the external world is strengthened through oral traditions. Oral stories fill the Native American landscape with histories and give it sacred meaning [Roemer, 1988, p. 89-98].

Mircea Eliade's idea of sacred space helps us better understand this part of Momaday’s work. Eliade [Eliade, 1959, p. 20-68] argues that sacred spaces are filled with spiritual meaning through rituals and myths, which symbolize the life-giving force of traditional cultural identity. In Momaday's work, the Kiowa homeland, where his ancestors once lived freely and roamed, “functions” as sacred space. Oral histories fostered strong emotional ties to the homeland among the Kiowa. Different places in Kiowa territory are linked to important events and heroes from their oral history.

Thus, this relationship between identity and landscape clearly demonstrates the role of narration in traditional Kiowa culture. The natural-geographical complex invoked in stories ensures the stability of the unbroken chain of ancestors and nourishes Kiowa spirituality.

The liveliness of oral literature

Momaday is concerned about losing traditional culture. This is exactly why he focuses on how much oral literature can survive past upheavals. The Kiowa migration from the Yellowstone area to the southern plains, as described in the work, serves as a symbol for Momaday of the tribe’s ability to adapt and stay purposeful. This journey, passed down through oral stories, demonstrates that the Kiowas have consistently adapted to new conditions while preserving their cultural identity. Momaday’s ancestors could always quickly regain their physical and spiritual strength.

Linda Tuhiwai Smith’s [Smith, 1999] work on decolonization methodologies effectively demonstrates the importance of oral traditions as a form of resistance against the threat of cultural assimilation. In this context, Momaday's work can be seen as a decolonizing act that revitalizes Kiowa history and identity through storytelling. By combining oral traditions with written narrative, Momaday challenged the dominant historical narratives in academic spaces that had previously overlooked Kiowa experience. Momaday introduces the Kiowa perspective, which is a powerful “weapon” in the hands of Native Americans in the process of decolonization.

The universality of oral literature

Although The Way to Rainy Mountain is rooted in the Kiowa people’s experiences and reflects the traits specific to their culture, its themes resonate with universal human values. The relationship between oral history and identity formation is a phenomenon seen in many cultures. For example, the preservation of Gaelic oral traditions in Ireland plays a similar role, linking modern communities to their ancestral roots [Ó hÓgáin, 2000]. The universality of oral literature highlights the significance of oral history in preserving cultural heritage and maintaining continuity over time.

Momaday allows readers to experience the endless power of oral stories as a way of passing down ancestral wisdom and values. The work shows how stories heard from ancestors can serve as a connection between past and present, individual and community, local and universal.

The Way to Rainy Mountain and methods of studying the Native American oral literature

By analyzing Scott Momaday's storytelling style, we can create a structured approach for studying and understanding Native American oral history. Through combining oral traditions, personal memories, and historical commentary, Momaday shows that oral histories are not just “fossilized” relics of the past but living texts that actively shape cultural memory and worldview. Therefore, researchers must rely on oral literature to fully grasp the scope of American Indian culture. Moreover, it should not be viewed solely as a fixed part of Indian history or an ethnographic trait, but as a phenomenon relevant to modern generations.

Momaday's triadic text structure - myths, historical context, and personal awareness—serves as a model for multidimensional literature. The "voice" of ancestors conveys Kiowa myths and collective memory, while the "voice" of historians' commentary adds analytical depth to the narrative. Meanwhile, the personal "voice" bridges the past with the present, making these traditions accessible to contemporary audiences [Momaday, 1969, p. ix]. It is this three-layered narration that shows how oral history works as a cultural whole, acting as a bridge between generations and transmitting ancient knowledge and experiences to the future.

Additionally, Momaday's focus on the connection between landscape and storytelling encourages scholars to explore those aspects of oral history where the perception of living space is conveyed. Using examples of stories told within specific geographical and spiritual contexts, the author demonstrates that "place" is a vital part of shaping cultural identity. This view aligns with anthropological and Native American studies methods that emphasize the link between ancestral land, memory, and oral tradition [Basso, 1996].

The Way to Rainy Mountain establishes a methodological foundation for understanding the tradition of oral transmission as a vital epistemological framework. This helps clarify the authentic reality of the Kiowas and Native Americans in general. I believe the proposed perspective aligns with Donald Fixico’s concept of “Medicine Way” [Fixico, 2013, p. 1-7]. Fixico’s idea of Native “seeing” suggests the inseparable and merged existence of metaphysical and physical reality within the American Indian worldview. Traditional Native American identity was defined by a bilateral relationship between the spiritual and material spheres of existence. Momaday's narration harmoniously fuses Kiowa myths, tribal history, and personal experience, clearly demonstrating how this unified worldview is expressed through storytelling.

Thus, oral tradition best demonstrates that for Native Americans, a holistic view of homeland, life, and identity—and generally of existence—was typical. This outlook contrasts with Western civilization's ideas about separating physical and trans-physical spaces. Using Momaday’s approach as a method allows researchers to recognize the value of oral history not as a collection of imaginary or unreal data. Instead, oral literature should be seen as a way of gathering, sharing, and safeguarding traditional knowledge, which aligns with Native American customs and is justified by motives and reasons acceptable to all.

By merging Fixico’s “Medicine Way” with Momaday’s narrative methods, it becomes possible to study Kiowa and Native American culture in general “from within,” from the position of its bearers. For the reconstruction of the ethnographic life and authentic social environment of the indigenous peoples of North America, it is essential to vividly imagine how Native American tribes perceived the multifaceted reality existing around them.

Momaday’s approach encourages researchers to see oral histories as valuable, not less reliable, data sources. It is important to treat oral literature with respect; the researcher should view “story” as an essential part of Native American identity. Oral traditions give us deep insights into the values, identity development, and ongoing experiences of Native Americans.

Conclusion

Through the integration of oral history, personal perception, and historians’ commentary, The Way to Rainy Mountain offers a path to a deep understanding of identity and the importance of traditional Kiowa culture. Momaday’s work not only preserves rich oral traditions but also highlights their crucial role in shaping modern Kiowa identity. Momaday provides a strong example for understanding the universal importance of oral traditions.

Folk oral art is a dynamic process; it can bridge the gap between past and present, helping contemporary Native Americans maintain their identity. Momaday skillfully demonstrates how oral literature can serve both as a way to preserve cultural heritage and as a source of inspiration for future generations. Remembering the voice of ancestors ensures the continuity of identity and tradition despite various challenges.