Native American Spirituality

Honestly, this depends on what tribe was performing the ritual.
Not all tribes shared the same beliefs, rituals, even gods.

I am cherokee , and know only about my heritage, and this description doesnt strike a chord with me.. ?
Not that I am the end all say all mind you.

Oh dear.

Where did you get that story? First thing you need to figure out if you haven't already is What Group of People you are studying.

Right. Corn meal, and especially corn pollen are typical of Navajo medicine (for wont of a better word); the rest, including the colors involved don't sound at all familiar

What Roger said about the corn pollen: ditto. The grey feather, though, sounds more like Lakota (Sioux) or Cheyenne. And colors of face-paint often had personal meaning for a specific person. Thus, for example, the Lakota warrior Ta-Shunka Witko (aka Crazy Horse) painted hailstones all over his body and decorated his face with symbolic zigzags of lightning bolts when going into battle. To consider this somehow typical Lakota get-up would be in error.

I, too, would like to know the source of the quote.

I love those translated names. Man Afraid of His Horses sounds a little shaky for a warrior, but in the original, I understand it meant a man with respect for his horses - an understandable error, I suppose.

Right, Roger. It always seemed to me silly to translate a person's name rather than just transliterating it. BTW, I understand that Ta-shunka Witko actually translates as 'His Crazy Horse' rather than just 'Crazy Horse,' if you want to be accurate about it. It somehow sounds different when you get specific like that.