There are four general categories of Navajo ceremony considered here: Holyway Chants (used to cure common illnesses); Evilway Chants(used to cure illnesses caused by contact with ghosts); Lifeway Chants (used to cure bodily injuries); and Blessingway ceremonies (employed for "positive blessings").
Each Holyway ceremony has two-, five- and nine-night versions. The nine-night ceremony is carried out only after the first frost. All include sandpainting, singing (chanted storytelling), prayers, and food at dawn. Five- and nine-night cermonies also include a sweat. Note: These groupings are the result of anthropological study, and do not necessarily present the understanding of medicine men.
| Chant Group | Ceremonial Ways | Application |
|---|---|---|
| Shooting Chant | Male/Female Shootingway | For disease caused by thunder & lightning, snakes, arrows |
| Red Antway | For disease caused by ants, horned toads, lightning and bears | |
| Windway | For disease caused by winds, lightning, snakes and cactus | |
| Hailway; Waterway; Big Starway; Flintway; Lifeway | No longer practiced | |
| Mountain Chant | Mountainway | For diseases caused by bear, porcupine, weasel, squirrel and chipmunk, mountain sheep, turkey, and other mountain birds and beasts |
| Beautyway | For diseases caused by snakes, lizards, weasel, & certain water creatures (frogs, toads, etc.) | |
| Excessway; Mothway | No longer practiced | |
| Eagle-Trapping Chant | Eagleway; Beadway | No longer practiced |
| Wind Chant | Navajo Windway | |
| Chiricahua Windway | ||
| God-impersonators | Nightway | For diseases caused by the Ye'i, mountain sheep |
| Plumeway | For diseases caused by game animals (especially deer) | |
| Big Godway; Coyoteway; Dogway; Ravenway | No longer practiced | |
| Hand-trembling Chant | Hand-tremblingway | For diseases caused by overpracticing hand-trembling or star-gazing divination |
| Uncertain Grouping | Awlway; Earthway; Reared-in-Earthway | No longer practiced |
| Ceremonial Way | Application |
|---|---|
| Flintway | |
| Lifeway |
| Chant Group | Ceremonial Ways | Application |
|---|---|---|
| Navajo Ghostways | Upward-reachingway | For disease caused by contact with Navajo ghosts |
| Male Shootingway | ||
| Enemy Ghostways | Enemyway | For disease caused by contact with non-Navajo ghosts |
| Two Went Back for Scalp Way |
||
| Ghosts of Every Description Way |
Information gathered from Wyman, Leland C. Southwest Indian Drypainting (New Mexico, 1983) and Spencer, Katherine. An Analysis of Navaho Chantway Myths (American Folklore Society, 1957).