On the other hand, when the dancer is unafraid and handles the reptile in the true Hopi spirit, viz., as his _Elder Brother_--for, according to Hopi mythology, the Snake Clan originates with the Snake Mother, and therefore all members of it are younger brothers to all snakes--the aura of friendliness and brotherly kindliness surrounds him, which, being perceived by the snake, it is at once soothed and allows itself to be handled with restfulness and assurance of safety. And in the thirteen times that I have witnessed the Snake Dance (and several times been privileged to see and take part in the secret ceremonials of the underground chambers where the snakes are handled and washed), only twice have I known any one to be bitten.[A]
[A] For a full and complete description of the Snake Dance see the writings of Dr. J. W. Fewkes in the Reports of the U. S. Bureau of Ethnology and my own _Indians of the Painted Desert Region_, published by Little, Brown & Co., Boston, Mass.
Perhaps the majority of human beings do not really _live_: they merely _exist_ for a time in the flesh and for the flesh. And as all are constantly reminded that such existence is temporary and fleeting it is a very common belief that only in youth can one "have a good time." Old age is dreaded because we have been taught to expect a greater or lesser degree of decrepitude, pain, and physical disability when we shall pass the so-called "Bible-limit" of three-score years and ten, and, therefore, we anticipate losing our powers of enjoyment. Fathers and mothers encourage their children to "make the most of their youth," and to "get all out of life they can while they have the opportunity," thus fostering and cultivating a high state of nervous tension in young people that is demoralizing in every way.
I believe this attitude is wrong, and yet I believe fully in "having a good time." I believe God intended that all living beings should be happy, and that it is possible to order our lives--our habits, actions, thoughts, desires, and ambitions--so that every conscious hour of every day will be full of real joy. I believe in the buoyancy, the happiness, the radiancy, the perfection of life. Browning expresses my thought in _Rabbi Ben Ezra_, and in _Saul_. In the latter he says: