Style and color

Today most pipes are red and made from pipestone, which comes from only the upper Midwest. The most famous place, Pipestone, Minnesota, also has the best stone for carving. You might also see black stone pipes carved from a variety of stones from many parts of the world. The nicest stone to work with comes for Canada.

Peace pipes

The term 'peace pipe' is a misnomer — our tribal people refer to them as prayer pipes, personal pipes or just pipes.  They became known as peace pipes after being seen at many treaty signing ceremonies.  Our people believed if you shared a pipe you would be dishonored if you didn't keep your word, similar to the idea that in the old days a hand shake sealed a bargain.

Traditions

I often get asked about traditions.  One of my teachers said tradition only went back one generation because you could not know what or how your teacher was taught. Individuals might make changes to a prayer or a ceremony because of a vision quest or dream or another reason we do not understand. There are currently 566 federally recognized tribes in the U.S. today, each one having their own unique culture and traditions.