Yaqui Literature

Among my People...the Yaqui...we call the night..Tuka Ania...the Night World....the Vehicle of Dreams... I cannot imagine what your dreams are like unless you describe them to me. Dreams reflect that which we hold deep within our minds...Have you ever looked at your reflection in the water? You see your face so clearly and it appears as reachable as your hand. But...when you reach to touch it...it is only water. Yet, in the reflection, you are safe from any harm....nothing can touch you.

We call that reflection...the Dream world. When you see the reflection of a forest across a large lake...look closely. You can see that the forest in the reflection can never be burned...or cut down. The sky in the reflection is clear...blue and unpolluted. A forest...a world that once existed.

Long ago...a world that we dream will exist once again. In this real world that we live in we all seek a place of our own...a place we belong to. We can find this place in our dreams or we can look for a reflection on a clear lake or we can find it within ourselves. Dreams can come true...but we must make them come true...with our eyes open...

Official Website: Pascua Yaqui Tribe

Pascua Yaqui Tribe, San Juan Southern Paiute,
with the help of The Native American Rights Fund gained federal recognition in September 1978. (see Activity Map)

Yaqui Culture
Yaqui History
Yaqui Historical Photos
Yaqui Kinship System
Yaqui Music

En Español
El Website oficial del gobierno tribal de Pascua Yaqui

Yaqui Writers

Anita Endrezze
"At the Helm of Twilight"

Rosalio Moises
"A Yaqui Life: The Personal Chronicles of a Yaqui Indian"
Born in 1896 in Northwestern Mexico, Rosalio's story begins during the Yaqui revolutionary period, continues through the last uprising in 1926, and ends with recollections of his life on a Texas farm until 1969.

Stan Padilla
"A Natural Education"
"It is a big task to be a human living on the earth at this time. Let us all help each other by respecting, nurturing and honoring the earth...she is a mother to us all!" - Stan Padilla

Refugio Savala
The Autobiography of a Yaqui Poet.

In the 70 years following his flight from the Yaqui-Mexican wars in Sonora, Savala became a talented poet and loving recorder of his people's heritage. The original works in this book, together with the beautifully written autobiography, offer a unique view of Arizona Yagui culture and history, railroading in the American West, and the personal and artistic growth of a Native man of letters.

Felipe Molina
Felipe Molina is a Yoeme (Yaqui) from Arizona. His background is in native education and literacy. His career includes teaching in Yaqui community schools and colleges from 1974-1991. Molina is a member of the Yaqui Language Commission of the Pascua Pueblo and from 1978-1980 he was governor of the Yoem Pueblo Marana, Arizona. He was Representative of the Yoem Pueblo on the Pascua Yaqui Tribal Council from 1981-1982. Currently, Molina is Diabetes Project Coordinator for Native American Communities at native Seeds/SEARCH, a Tucson based nonprofit organization that promotes the preeervation of native plant resources.
Artwork of Felipe Molina
Available Books by Felipe
Poetics and Politics
"Yaqui Deer Songs: Maso Bwikam "
"Wo'i Bwikam: Coyote Songs"

Robert Valencia, Chairman
Pascua Yaqui Tribe
7474 S. Camino De Oeste
Tucson, AZ 85746
Phone: 520/883-2838
Toll Free 1-800-5-Pascua.
(above information valid August 2003)

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Compiled by: Glenn Welker

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