It governs succession to political offices after a leader dies.
[2][4] Attendees are divided into two moieties: the clear-minded and the downcast or bereaved.
[2][5] The ceremony progresses through several stages, including a recitation of the Great Law.
[6] It was typically the first item on the agenda when a Haudenosaunee council met.
[8] Among other things, the ceremony recalls the Great Peacemaker's condolence of Hiawatha and the "transformation" of Tadodaho from a state of confusion and disorder to a state of peace.