Among the Apache, there was a deep-seated belief in a gift known as sacred strength. It was considered an intangible force drawn from the natural world, bestowed by their primary deity, Usen. Leaders and spiritual healers were said to use this power for healing, predicting the future, and even knowing the circumstances of their own death. However, this gift carried a dangerous dual nature.
When wielded against the community, it transformed the user into a sorcerer, a figure feared and often banished, a punishment deemed worse than death in a society that valued kinship above all. The Apache held many superstitions, but sacred strength was distinct. It was typically acquired during a youth’s journey to a holy mountain, where they would fast and pray alone for four days and nights without food, water, or weapons. On the final night, they would hear a voice instructing them on how to claim their power, often by taking a fragment of an animal, plant, or stone.
This item was carried in a small deerskin pouch around the neck for the rest of their lives, serving as a guide. This power manifested in many ways. Leader Nana was said to unfailingly locate ammunition and could handle rattlesnakes without harm, a significant ability for a people who held a deep fear of the snakes that hunted at night. Herman Layman, an American captured by the Apache, reported that others could forecast the weather by studying spider webs, noting that a low, dense web predicted rain while a high, thin one signaled dry weather.
When such a prediction failed, the Apache sought a cause, once blaming a Mexican captive for displeasing the great spirit. In a brutal ritual to atone, they bound the man to a rock near a rattlesnake. After returning to camp, the healer’s prediction for rain was fulfilled, resulting in a great flood. Some, like western Apache spiritual healer Willie Neil, could foresee the future.
He predicted the advent of automobiles, describing them as iron objects with eyes that could see in the dark. However, the most famous figures associated with this power are Lozen and Geronimo, who played pivotal roles in the Apache Wars from 1848 to 1886. Lozen, the sister of Chief Victorio, was a rare female warrior. Exceeding all the boys in strength and speed as a child, she was later included in council meetings and described by Chief Nana as his right hand, as strong as a man, braver than most, and shrewd in strategy.
Lozen’s sacred strength allowed her to locate enemies with uncanny precision. When her brother needed an enemy’s position, she would stand with arms outstretched and pray to Usen. As she turned, her palms would change hue and tingle when an enemy was before her, with the intensity of the sensation revealing their distance. In October 1880, she was separated from Victorio’s band to escort a pregnant woman to safety.
She was not present when her brother and nearly 80 of his people were ambushed and massacred by Mexican cavalry. Many Apache believed the attack would never have succeeded had Lozen been there. Years later, in 1886, Lozen was with Geronimo when they surrendered to the Americans. She is seen in the only known photograph of the Apache taken before they were boarded onto a prison train to Florida.
Geronimo’s claims to sacred strength are more widely recognized. The Apache assert his gifts were granted by Usen after Mexican soldiers murdered his family in 1851. His abilities were numerous: he could summon rain, no bullet could kill him, and he could even manipulate time. When pursued, Geronimo would chant of water, bringing heavy rains that obscured his trail.
An Apache named Perico recounted that Geronimo once chanted to delay the dawn, making the night linger for two or three hours so his people could cross a mountain and avoid detection. Though Geronimo was forced to surrender in 1886, he never died in battle. When an artist was painting his portrait for his autobiography, it was noted his body bore as many as fifty bullet scars. His abilities made him one of the most elusive figures in history.
The darker side of sacred strength was sorcery. While shamans used their power for the tribe’s benefit, sorcerers were feared and avoided. They used dark magic, gathering at night to perform perverse rituals with parts of exhumed bodies. Their deerskin pouches contained powdered human remains, rattlesnake parts, or sap from a lightning-struck tree, which they used to poison their victims.
They could also lay curses by burying their poison and repeating forbidden words four times. Victims might fall ill or die without cause. To protect themselves, the Apache carried items like an eagle’s breast feather, and spiritual healers could perform counter-rituals. Suspected sorcerers faced trials led by a headman.
If they denied the accusation, they could be hung from a tree branch by their wrists, sometimes with fires lit beneath them, until they confessed. When found guilty, they were banished, though some accounts say a victim’s relatives might kill them. While modern readers may question these beliefs, alternative explanations exist. The Apache’s intimate knowledge of their environment could explain the ability to read spider webs for rain, a practice that modern sources suggest is based on observation.
The prediction of automobiles may have been inspired by trains with their bright lanterns, which the Apache were initially confused by and believed to be alive. Geronimo’s famous cave escape likely came from his deep knowledge of the land, using exits unknown to his American pursuers. His ability to summon rain may have been coincidental, and his claims of slowing time could be an embellished oral tradition. In his autobiography, Geronimo states he was wounded in battle at least eight times, which could account for the numerous bullet scars.
The belief in sacred strength had a compelling social purpose. It enhanced the prestige of leaders, making them worthy of being followed for the tribe’s benefit. Conversely, belief in sorcery promoted pro-social behavior, as hostility could lead to accusations of betraying the people. As Apache scholar Keith Basso noted, the best way to avoid sorcery was to have many friends.
The Apache were historically reluctant to discuss their spirituality with Westerners, who often sought to rationalize or debunk their deeply held convictions. Echoing this sentiment, Apache stock Lupe once said that Usen would speak to the Apache like a telephone, but because today’s people no longer have that faith, his voice falls silent.