Hopi, asteroid 2,938 (the 2,938th asteroid to be discovered, on June 14, 1980), is approximately 25.4 kilometers in diameter and has an orbital period of 5.6 years. Hopi was named after the Hopi tribe of North American Indians. Jacob Schwartz gives the astrological significance of this asteroid as “territorial disputes, minority experiences, Native Americans.” According to Martha Lang-Wescott, Hopi represents the awareness of oppression and prejudice. This asteroid also represents the principle of “ambush,” including psychological ambush. This asteroid’s key words are “prejudice” and “ambush.”
The Hopi, who live in the southwestern desert plateau of the United States, regard dreams as particularly important. Hopi society conveys much of its religious and recreational experience through a rich imagery derived from dramatic rituals that are frequently translated into dreams. These images are consistently presented to individuals throughout their lifetimes.
It is believed the soul of each person, corresponding to the Spirit of the Breath (hikwsi), can resist what the Hopi call the Mighty Something (himu), which is a composite concept of divinity. When the hikwsi resists the himu, the Hopi become confused. The Hopi then look for familiar anchors in their inner world, and this is expressed in dreams.
Dreams are viewed as an attempt by the self to make a statement about the individual’s present situation, as well as the extent of the person’s cultural integration. They are considered a type of thought-action in which hikwsi explores both the inner and the outer world through images provided by Hopi religion. Good dreams have to be held in the heart and can be told only after they have been fulfilled, whereas bad dreams—in that they contain bad thoughts—must be eliminated through the practice of reporting and discussing them, and by working out problems in them through confession of questionable behavior.
The Hopi believe that hikwsi is not confined within the mortal individual, but can be projected through thought, prayer, and dreams, and can interact with distant people and things. Also, the conceptual universe of the Hopi is not delimited by the notions of time and space, which make dreams an experience apart from reality.
Hopi dreams are characterized by a number of personally invented and culturally defined symbols that are applicable to personal situations at the time of the dream. For instance, when Palulukon, the Water Serpent, appears in a dream, it can represent both a possible punishing and a possible supportive agent, depending on whether the dream is charged with quiet or fear. The state of being at the time of the dream can determine the specific use of cultural or personal symbols, as well as the rules used to deal with and interpret the dream.