Wakan
A Lakota word for what is sacred, mysterious or powerful, used in names for spiritual leaders and the sacred itself.
Also: wakan tanka, wakȟáŋ
In Lakota and Dakota, wakȟáŋ describes what holds sacred power or is beyond ordinary understanding. It appears in wakȟáŋ tȟáŋka, often translated as the Great Spirit or the Great Mystery, though Lakota speakers note that no English phrase fully fits. A wičháša wakȟáŋ is a holy man. Writers in the early twentieth century, such as Frances Densmore, compared the word to mana and orenda, and that grouping shaped how the concept entered comparative religion. Lakota teachers today stress that the term belongs to living ceremonies. Some sacred matters are not for outsiders, and published accounts by non-members are often contested.