The Sun Dance ritual is the subject for R. Carlos Nakai"s Sundance Season. The Sun Dance celebrates and honors man"s relationship with Mother Earth. Nakai explains that tribal dancers in the ritual are encouraged to concentrate on their reasons for dancing and to meditate on the orderliness of life. Nakai"s original melodies arise from the themes of the sacred traditions: On Eagle"s Wings, (meditations on the scintillating flight of the golden eagle), Light Waves, (recurring phenomenon of light refracting through water droplets, manifesting as rainbow paths), and Water Bearer (reaffirming the essence of life upon this small dust speck orbiting a very small star). The inspired playing by Nakai of the wooden flute, together with vocal chanting, drumming, and the lonely sound of the eagle bone whistle, brings to life this celebration of creation.