Mount Umunhum holds great spiritual value for local tribal bands such as the Amah Mutsun and Muwekma. It is a mountain where visions are sought and communion with the spiritual world is made, where relationships with ancestors and future descendants are strongest, and where hummingbirds remind those who see the mountain of the old teachings. It is also a place of ceremony and prayer today. The Amah Mutsun hold ceremonies here because it is close to their Creator, because of its resonance to the spiritual self, and because it is where the children of their ancestors continue to reach out for balance and harmony. The Amah Mutsun consider the number four sacred and pray to the four compass directions for balance. There are four seasons and four directions, and good decisions are made when four elements align: heart, mind, body, and soul. The sun rising in the east presents a new day, new opportunity, a new birth, hope and optimism, and future generations, while the sun setting in the west reminds them of their ancestors who have passed. The Ohlone invite all people to this destination for healing and prayer, to pray for past generations and future descendants, for healing, and for renewal of the environment.
