In Dark Winds Season 3, Episode 6, “WHAT WE HAD BEEN TOLD” (“Ábidoo’niid ᙁĝ”) Joe Leaphorn (Zahn McClarnon) is in a life-or-death situation after being hit with a dart—which sends him on a strange journey through his past. Leaphorn has to find his way through a blur of memory and reality as he faces his guilt and old Navajo stories. He is trying to find redemption while dealing with the choices that define him. Will he finally get the answers he needs or will the weight of what he did in the past destroy him? The episode is a thrilling mix of mysticism and coming to terms with your own life.
Let’s explain what happens when Leaphorn faces his past and present demons.
Dark Winds Season 3, Episode 6 Recap
Leaphorn is knocked out by a dart at the start of the episode, which is a powerful and unsettling scene. This is the start of his spiritual journey, which will take him deep into his feelings and memories and bring him face to face with forces that are much stronger than anything he has ever faced before. It’s not just about finding the killer or solving a case; Leaphorn has to face his past, his guilt and the very nature of his soul.
As Leaphorn drifts into unconsciousness, the episode draws us back to the mystery that has haunted the season: the monstrous figure of Ye’iitsoh, a being that has been a shadow over Leaphorn’s journey since the very beginning. Leaphorn has to face Ye’iitsoh, who is more than just a physical threat. He is a darker force of evil that he must face in order to protect others and deal with the guilt he’s been carrying for years.
The Navajo Hero Twins and Leaphorn’s Personal Crisis
The episode takes an unexpected turn when Leaphorn finds himself in a yellow desert, surrounded by visions of his past. This is where the story of the Navajo Hero Twins and this story match up. Monster Slayer and Born for Water, the Hero Twins, were told to kill monsters and get rid of all evil in the world. In Leaphorn’s case, Ye’iitsoh stands for the monster, and his search for answers is like the Hero Twins’.
Leaphorn meets a young version of himself and his cousin William in this strange world. These memories take Leaphorn back to the house where he grew up and help him understand how he became the man he is today. The journey is very personal because Leaphorn is trying to find peace between the man he has become and the boy he was before the world and its problems changed him. But what he sees isn’t just a memory; it’s a face-to-face with his own inner demons, especially the guilt he feels over killing someone.
The Priest and the Murder Mystery
It gets more spiritual as Leaphorn’s memories take him to a priest from his past. The priest seemed like a trustworthy person, but Leaphorn’s memories show that the priest was a pedophile who had been abusing children in the community, including Will. Fueled by his desire to protect Will and other children, Joe told his father and other community elders, hoping that they would take action to stop the priest and get justice for the children. However, his efforts were met with indifference. Despite his pleas, no one took action against the priest, leaving Joe feeling abandoned and helpless. Now that Leaphorn knows this, he feels bad that he didn’t stop the priest sooner.
In this spiritual vision, the priest’s death becomes a focal point. Leaphorn is haunted by the idea that he might have killed the priest as a teenager, in an act of vengeance. But the truth, as it turns out, is far more complicated. In his spiritual journey, Leaphorn believes he is the one responsible for the priest’s death. However, it becomes clear that the priest was never actually killed by Leaphorn as a child. The real murderer remains a mystery, and Leaphorn’s guilt is something he must work through before he can move forward.
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Confronting Guilt and the Search for Redemption
Leaphorn’s journey through his past keeps going as he faces the different parts of his soul that are broken by guilt. In his memories, he sees his father, Henry Leaphorn, who killed a man to protect their people. The elder Leaphorn felt bad about the killing, even though it was the right thing to do. And this is the moment when Leaphorn realizes what he has done, especially the fact that he killed BJ Vines.
Leaphorn’s inner battle gets worse as the episode goes on. His guilt over his moral mistakes, both in the past and more recently, gets so bad that it’s almost unbearable. That being said, he learns on his spiritual path that his actions, while they made him feel bad, were not done on purpose. He starts to understand that the weight of his badge, the responsibility of doing what’s right, and the moral difficulties of the choices he has made have made him the man he is now.
There is a turning point in the episode when Leaphorn has a realization. The Hero Twins were able to defeat Ye’iitsoh, but Leaphorn is reminded that he is also fighting monsters inside himself, like the guilt, shame, and regrets that have made him feel less like himself. Even though Leaphorn realizes it too late to be free of his past, it is a very important step on his way to redemption.
The Real World vs. the Spiritual World
To return to the real world, George is working hard to awaken Leaphorn. His determination is like the Hero Twins’ unwavering determination in their fight against Ye’iitsoh. Like the other Hero Twin, George won’t leave Leaphorn when he needs help, even though it would have been easier for him to save himself. The main message of the episode is that people are willing to give up their own needs for the sake of the greater good.
The effects of Leaphorn’s actions will be felt in both the physical and spiritual worlds when he finally wakes up. When Emma played by Deanna Allison confronts him, she tells him how upset she is that he can’t be there for her and their family. Leaphorn feels even worse about himself because he failed as a husband and father. This makes his already heavy load even heavier. He realizes that he can’t change the past, though, as Emma keeps complaining. He can only move on and try to be okay with the choices he has made.
In the final moments of the episode, Leaphorn’s journey of self-discovery reaches a temporary resolution. While he may never fully understand whether his actions—particularly the killing of BJ Vines—were justified, he realizes that his quest for redemption is not about finding a clear-cut answer. It’s about accepting the moral complexities of his life and learning to live with the choices he has made.
In many ways, Leaphorn’s journey mirrors that of the Hero Twins. Like them, he is forced to confront evil, both external and internal, and find a way to cleanse his soul. While victory is not easily attained, Leaphorn’s path forward is clearer. He understands that his struggle is ongoing, but he is no longer alone in it. The episode concludes on a note of tentative hope—Leaphorn is not beyond redemption, but his path to healing is long and uncertain.
As we look ahead, it’s clear that Leaphorn’s battle is far from over. But with each step, he is moving closer to understanding the full scope of his soul’s journey.
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