The Sacred White Buffalo

I am sure many of you will have read about these sacred animals at sometime. You probably even heard about the birth of a white buffalo calf some years ago. I know I did, so when recently my friends Janet and Tommy from Phoenix, Arizona offered to take me to Flagstaff to see the white buffalo, I jumped at the chance.

I was captivated by these beautiful animals, although at the same time I was sad to see them in pens, rather than roaming the range as they were born to do. Their owners, Jim and Dena Riley are planning to move away from Flagstaff before long so that they can provide just such an open range for their charges. Keeping buffalo in pens can be an expensive business, for all their food (and they eat a lot) has to be purchased. If their plans materialise, this expense will be vastly reduced because the animals will be able to graze.

Here is part of Jim and Dena’s story about the white buffalo, in their own words:

“In the spring of 1987, a female white buffalo was born on the edge of the Black Hills of Wyoming. At the time of her birth, a young bull in the pasture tried to kill the newborn calf by flipping her fifteen feet into the air. The rancher, Jim Riley was there and witnessed the event. Risking his own life, he rushed to save the newborn as she was being flipped for the second time. It was a miracle the little girl was not killed. The ranchers, Jim and Dena Riley named the little miracle “Miracle Moon”.

A white buffalo is extremely rare. So rare in fact, that out of less than ten white buffalo tested genetically by a DNA test, only “Miracle Moon” tested 100% North American Bison. Miracle Moon has been tested not only once, bit three times for purity! Most white buffalo occur due to interbreeding with cattle. The result is called a beefalo/cattleo. Miracle Moon is not an albino she has large dark eyes, with blond eyelashes and she was born on a Native American spiritual leader’s birthday!

All the white females have been tested for purity.

Since her birth, Miracle Moon has lived up to her name. On June 8th 2000, she gave birth to her first born, “Rainbow Spirit”. Surprisingly, Rainbow Spirit also turned white, a little whiter than her mother, with a white stripe down her back. Miracle Moon’s second daughter, “Mandela Peace Pilgrim,” born July 18th 2001 was just like her mom and sister. Miracle Moon’s third calf, her first male born July 1st 2002, we named “Arizona Spirit”. He was born just like his big sister Rainbow Spirit, with a white stripe down his back. These were all fathered by a dark buffalo, our herd sire, “Willy Wonka”.

The white buffalo are known to be healers. Many have come and shared their healing stories with us. These stories were very moving indeed. It was also predicted that a white female buffalo would be born to a white couple near the centre of North America, which is where Miracle Moon and Rainbow Spirit were born. The address was Belle Fourche, SD. Known as ‘The centre of the Nation’.

According to Native prophecy, the white buffalo is a symbol to all people to join together in peace, balance and harmony. The legend says that the white buffalo would return during a period of chaos and disaster. The female white buffalo was to be a sign to Native Americans to seek peace, balance and harmony in their New World. It is for this reason we feel Miracle Moon’s birth is important to all people, regardless of race, culture or religion. Now at the beginning of this new millennium we should individually seek a balance of tolerance and peaceful solace in the message of the Great White Buffalo.”

The Native American prophecy concerning the white buffalo tells the story how nineteen generations ago, during a time of famine a beautiful maiden appeared to two Lakota Indian braves. She asked them to take her to their camp to speak to their chief. She presented the chief with a bundle containing a peace pipe and explained its purpose. She described it as the way Indians should pray, for in the smoke their prayers would ascend. The red earthen bowl represented “Mother and Grandmother Earth,” which is sacred; the buffalo carving on the bowl symbolised the “four leggeds” on earth and the wooden stem the plants. The feathers attached to the pipe symbolised “the wingeds” of the earth. She said, “All these are joined to you who smoke the pipe. When you pray with this pipe you pray for everything.”

She left a prophecy that said at the end of time there would be five years of increasing disasters and crises which would be followed by an era of peace. She said she would return one day to mark the beginning of the five years of trouble and to bring healing to the earth. Leaving the pipe with the tribe, she was transformed into a white buffalo as she walked away. The ecumenical Peace Pipe she brought has been handed down for nineteen generations and is perhaps the most sacred object of the American Indians. It is from this legend all Indians derive their understanding of the Peace Pipe.

Miracle Moon was born on the birthday of Arvol Looking Horse, who is the keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Woman’s Pipe! Her daughter Rainbow Spirit was born on the death day of Arvol’s father, Stanley Looking Horse. Arvol said his father predicted her birth!