A 2,000-year-old legend passed down through the Lakota Indian tribe, seems to have been fulfilled with the birth of a white buffalo calf, according to The Associated Press.
The birth of the calf in Yellowstone National Park is said to fulfill a prophecy that portends better times when a white calf is seen, according to members of the American Indian tribe.
Erin Braaten of Kalispell, Montana, was in the park soon after the calf was born and took several photos of it on June 4 in the Lamar Valley in the northeastern corner of the park.
She got a closer view of the calf when traffic stopped as a group of bison crossed the road.
Reported birth of rare white buffalo calf in Yellowstone park fulfills Lakota prophecy https://t.co/Yu8mdqya5D
— The Associated Press (@AP) June 12, 2024
“I look and it’s this white bison calf. And I was just totally, totally floored,” she said.
After the bison cleared the roadway, the Braatens turned their vehicle around and found a spot to park. They watched the calf and its mother for 30 to 45 minutes, the AP reported.
The calf has white fur, a black nose, black eyes and black hooves.
According to the legend, about 2,000 years ago White Buffalo Calf Woman appeared to the tribe during bad times and presented a bowl pipe and a bundle to a tribal member.
She taught them how to pray and said that the pipe could be used to bring buffalo to the area for food. As she left, she turned into a white buffalo calf, the legend says.
“And some day when the times are hard again,” the woman said before she left, “I shall return and stand upon the earth as a white buffalo calf, black nose, black eyes, black hooves.”
A naming ceremony has been held for the Yellowstone calf, but the name has not yet been revealed.
A ceremony celebrating the calf’s birth is set for June 26 at the Buffalo Field Campaign headquarters in West Yellowstone.
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