Monument Valley Park closed out of respect for solar eclipse

MONUMENT VALLEY, Utah – Out of respect for the solar eclipse on Saturday there will not be a Navajo park employee in sight from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Monument Valley.

Louise Tsinijinnie, the media representative for Navajo Nation Parks and Recreation, said the park’s closure is due to Diné tradition.

“There was no decision-making. It was an immediate decision. Like this is what we’re going to do at this time; we’re going to remain in reverence with it,” said Tsinijinnie.

Jóhonaa’éí daaztsą́

The decision to close the park wasn’t hard to figure out because it’s a traditional Diné belief taught throughout the Navajo Nation and something Tsinijinnie said she and other Navajo employees were raised on.
“We are following what we know,” she said.

Tsinijinnie said as she was raised, she was taught to be respectful during a solar eclipse. She was taught that the eclipse is not for viewing nor something for Diné to see. The eclipse is a powerful astronomical event that shouldn’t be viewed out of respect.

Tsinijinnie was taught that the time of the eclipse is a rebirth and a revival of living things on Mother Earth, Nahasdzáán and that it’s not a negative or wrong thing to not look at the eclipse. It’s a positive event taking place.

Tsinijinnie said others may believe it’s bad because Navajos don’t look at the eclipse. But she wants to restate that belief because Navajos don’t think it’s bad. They want to respect the event.

‘Aa hasti’

Tsinijinnie said so far, the park visitors have understood the closure and know that they can go elsewhere to view the solar eclipse.

Monument Valley Park will be closed during the solar eclipse, as will all Navajo Nation Parks and Recreation locations. The employees will also be inside their offices or buildings to avoid seeing the eclipse.

The closure of the park during solar eclipses is not new. Tsinijinnie said the park has always respected traditional beliefs like not viewing the eclipses.

“All of our locations are on the Navajo Nation. Being a sovereign entity, we can create our own laws and practices,” said Tsinijinnie.

Those laws and practices include traditional customs and teachings. So far, Tsinijinnie said there has not been any backlash but more acknowledgment that the Navajo Nation park services staff will stay true to who they are first: Navajo.

“I wouldn’t look at it as a negative thing. I’m looking at it as positive,” said Tsinijinnie.

The solar eclipse is such a sacred moment to Diné. Tsinijinnie said she was taught Navajos aren’t supposed to look at it. She’s shocked when she hears others say they will buy glasses or telescopes to look at it.

Six years ago, when a solar eclipse took place in the afternoon, Tsinijinnie recalled an elder who told her he was feeling the side effects of being outside during the eclipse.

“I was like, ‘What? How do you know it’s from the eclipse?’ And he said, ‘It’s because my skin is hot, it feels hot,’ and I was just like, ‘Wow, this is definitely something you need to be in reverence about,’” said Tsinijinnie.

Beliefs, teachings

Like many Diné, Tsinijinnie said she learned these beliefs from her parents and grandparents, but other families may have learned other things, and it’s not all the same way of practicing the observance.

While Monument Valley Park will be closed during the eclipse, Gouldings Monument Valley Lodge is advertising “deluxe” and air flight tours to view the “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity firsthand.

After eight telephone calls to Gouldings Lodge, there was still no comment provided by the lodge.

Despite efforts by outsiders and their organizations to profit off an event like the solar eclipse, traditions remain strong among Diné.

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