How to Make Lakota Prayer Ties: Tobacco Offerings and the Left-Hand Protocol

What Prayer Ties Are and Why They Matter

A prayer tie (canli wapahta) is a small bundle of loose tobacco wrapped in a square of cotton cloth, tied closed, and presented to a spiritual leader, elder, or drum group member as a formal request for their help. In Lakota tradition, the tobacco offering is not a casual gesture — it initiates a binding spiritual contract. When someone accepts your tobacco, they are obligated to fulfill the request you make alongside it.

During a funeral, prayer ties serve two functions. First, they are the proper way to ask a medicine man (Wicasa Wakan), singer, or drum keeper to participate in your loved one's service. Second, strings of prayer ties are sometimes hung in the ceremonial space during the wake, each bundle representing a specific prayer for the deceased's safe journey along the Spirit Path.

Materials You Need

Making prayer ties requires simple materials, but each element carries specific meaning:

• Traditional tobacco — čaŋšášá or čaŋlí, derived from red willow bark
• Cotton cloth squares — cut into roughly 4×4 inch pieces; the colors red, yellow, black, and white are used for the four directions as directed by the family elder or spiritual leader
• String or tie material — follow the family elder's or spiritual leader's instructions
• Scissors — for cutting cloth

Use the traditional tobacco directed by the family elder or spiritual leader. The smoke from traditional tobacco carries prayers to Wakan Tanka.

How to Make Them

1. Cut the cloth into 4×4 inch squares. If you are making a string of prayer ties (rather than individual offerings), ask the family elder or spiritual leader how many ties and which colors to use.
2. Place a small amount of traditional tobacco in the center of each cloth square. As you handle the tobacco, hold a specific prayer or intention in your mind. Each tie carries one prayer.
3. Gather the corners of the cloth up around the tobacco and twist the top closed.
4. Tie it shut with the material directed by the family elder or spiritual leader. If making a string of prayer ties, follow their instructions for how the bundles should be connected.
5. Do not decide the number, spacing, or arrangement of ties without asking the family elder or spiritual leader who will receive the offering.

Work in a calm, quiet space and hold the prayer or intention in mind as you make each tie.

The Left-Hand Protocol

When you present a tobacco offering to a medicine man, elder, or drum group leader, you must extend it with your left hand. This is not optional etiquette — it is the correct protocol because the left hand is directly connected to the heart. Offering with the left hand signals that your request comes from a place of sincerity and spiritual need rather than casual convenience.

The presentation follows a simple sequence:

1. Approach the person directly and greet them quietly
2. Hold the tobacco tie or bundle in your left hand, extended toward them
3. State your request clearly — "I am asking you to conduct the pipe ceremony for my father's funeral" or "I am asking your drum group to sing at my grandmother's wake"
4. The person takes the tobacco from your hand. By accepting it, they have agreed to your request and are spiritually bound to fulfill it.

If someone declines the tobacco — which is rare but does happen, usually due to a scheduling conflict or a personal spiritual obligation — do not take offense. Thank them and approach another qualified leader.

When to Present Tobacco During Funeral Planning

The tobacco offering is part of the formal request for help. Make it when you approach each person:

• Medicine man or spiritual leader who will oversee the funeral rites
• Drum group leader and singers you are asking to participate
• Elders you are asking to speak, pray, or share memories during the vigil

For the one-year memorial (Wiping of Tears ceremony), ask the spiritual leader how to make the tobacco offering used in the soul-release rites.

A Note for Non-Native Family Members

If you are a non-Native spouse or in-law coordinating funeral arrangements, making and presenting prayer ties is one of the most respectful actions you can take. It demonstrates that you understand and honor the protocol rather than bypassing it. If you are uncertain about any detail — which colors to use, how much tobacco, who to approach first — ask a family elder before proceeding. Sincere effort to get it right is deeply respected, even if your form is imperfect.

Our Lakota / Sioux Funeral Guide includes detailed prayer tie instructions with visual references, a contact protocol for approaching medicine men and drum groups, and the exact scripts for making your request — so you can approach the tobacco offering with confidence during an overwhelming time.