Introduction-E

taboos anymore. They were allowed to deliver their babies in the iglu. Looking at the
way they used to deliver in the little iglu, it was like treating them like dogs and leaving
them to deliver on their own.
An iglu would be made where they would deliver?
Elisapee: Yes, an iglu would be built where they would deliver the baby.
Have you heard that in the summer they had to be in a tent?
Elisapee: That was the only way as they were not allowed to have a baby in the tent
where the other people stayed.
When they say siqqitiqtuq are they trying to say siqqatiqtuq,
wetting them with water?
Elisapee: No, that’s not the meaning. Following another belief, or changing one’s way
of life, but it doesn’t mean going through baptism.
Maybe the word has more than one meaning?
Elisapee: No. For example, if we’re on land, we’re on land. If we go on the shore into
the water, I would say siqqippugut. When they leave an old way of life that way, it’s
siqqitiqtuq, going on the right path. That was probably what the word meant.
Was that different from saagiaqtuq?
Elisapee: It’s not the same word. When they first started changing their way of life, they
were submitting themselves to a new life. The people actually changed, even the
shamans. They’d leave behind their powers. Those were the changes that took place
when they went through siqqitirniq.
I feel for the shamans, who were powerful leaders when they were
shamans. They must have become poor when they let go of their powers.
Elisapee: No, they were just grateful for their new way of life and they were more
comfortable. They did not have to seek answers anymore. They didn’t have to wait for
the possible revenge someone might be plotting against them. They could just discuss
problems with the person they were angry at and they found it a lot less stressful. This
was expressed by former shamans who spoke of this.
That’s how it was in our community. They did not become poorer as a result. They
actually had a better way of life. When they’d go seal hunting, it wasn’t long before they
56 Introduction to the Oral Traditions