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Why
the Mouse is so Silky
One day, on his wanderings in the land of the Swampy Cree, Wesukechak,
known as Bitter Spirit, saw a big, round stone lying beside the rocky
path. Because Bitter Spirit could talk and understand the language of
nature, he always spoke to the birds and beasts and many other things.
Now he spoke to the stone. "Can you run fast?" he asked.
"Oh, yes,"answered the stone. Once I get started, I can run
very fast.' 'Good!' Bitter Spirit cried. "Then you must race me.'
'I will,' answered the stone,' if you can push me to where I can start.'
With great difficulty, the maker of magic did so, and without waiting,
the stone
started to roll downhill, going faster and faster. Wesukechak caught up
with it almost at the bottomm of the hill and mocked it as he ran past.
'You are a turtle,' he laughed. 'You cannot travel fast.' The stone was
very angry but did not reply. Bitter Spirit ran and ran until he was so
tired that he fell down on his face and slept soundly. The stone caught
up with him at last and rolled up his legs and then onto his back, where
it was stopped by his shoulders. It could roll no further. Being a big
and very heavy stone, it held Bitter Spirit on the ground so that he
could not move.
The maker of magic had awakened in pain when the stone rolled onto his
legs but he could not escape in time. 'Roll off my back, stone,' he
shouted angrily. 'You are heavy; I hurt, and I cannot move.' 'You mocked
me when you passed me,' said the stone, 'but you see I have caught up
with you. Now that I have stopped, I cannot move until someone sets me
rolling again. I must stay here.' For many, many moons, the stone rested
on the back of Bitter Spirit and the make of magic could not help
himself to get free.
At last, Thunder decided to send some of his bolts of lightning to smash
the stone and set Bitter Spirit free. 'And so, O stone, you are punished
for holding me here so long,' cried the wondermaker as he continued on
his way. His clothes had been torn and worn, so Bitter Spirit threw them
into a bark lodge which he saw nearby, ordering that they be mended.
They were thrown outside so quickly and had been so well repaired that
Bitter Spirit cried out in surprise. 'Who are you in that lodge? Come
out, so that I may see and reward you.'
The maker of magic was much surprised when he saw a lithe mouse creep
out of the lodge. It was an ugly, fat, rough-haired little creature in
those days, with a short, stubby nose. Bitter Spirit picked the mouse up
very gently and stroked its little blunt nose until it became pointed.
'Now you will be able to smell out your food better,' he said.
Next, he brushed and combed its rough hair with his fingers until the
hairs of the little creature became soft as down and smooth as the fur
of an otter. 'Now you will be able to run more easily into little holes
in tree trunks when your enemies come,' Wesukechak said, and so it was.
To this day, the mouse is soft and furry and it sniffs daintily with its
long nose.
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Bear
Legend
In the long ago time, there was a Cherokee Clan call the Ani-Tsa-gu-hi (Ahnee-Jah-goo-hee),
and in one family of this clan was a boy who used to leave home and be
gone all day in the mountains. After a while he went oftener and stayed
longer, until at last he would not eat in the house at all, but started
off at daybreak and did not come back until night. His parents scolded,
but that did no good, and the boy still went every day until they
noticed that long brown hair was beginning to grow out all over his
body. Then they wondered and asked him why it was that he wanted to be
so much in the woods that he would not even eat at home.
The boy said, "I find plenty to eat there, and it is better than
the corn and beans we have in the settlements, and pretty soon I am
going into the woods to say all the time." His parents were worried
and begged him not leave them, but he said, "It is better there
than here, and you see I am beginning to be different already, so that I
can not live here any longer. If you will come with me, there is plenty
for all of us and you will never have to work for it; but if you want to
come, you must first fast seven days."
The father and mother talked it over and then told the headmen of the
clan. They held a council about the matter and after everything had been
said they decided: "Here we must work hard and have not always
enough.
There he says is always plenty without work. We will go with him."
So they fasted seven days, and on the seventh morning al the
Ani-Tsa-gu-hi left the settlement and started for the mountains as the
boy led the way. When the people of the other towns heard of it they
were very sorry and sent their headmen to persuade the Ani Tsaguhi to
stay at home and not go into the woods to live. The messengers found
them already on the way, and were surprised to notice that their bodies
were beginning to be covered with hair like that of animals, because for
seven days they had not taken human food and their nature was changing.
The Ani Tsaguhi would not come back, but said, "We are going where
there is always plenty to eat. Hereafter we shall be called Yonv(a)
(bears), and when you yourselves are hungry come into the woods and call
us and we shall shall come to give you our own flesh. You need not be
afraid to kill us, for we shall live always."
Then they taught the messengers the songs with which to call them and
bear hunters have these songs still.
When they had finished the songs, the Ani Tsaguhi started on again and
the messengers turned back to the settlements, but after going a little
way they looked back and saw a drove of bears going into the woods.
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Hau
Kola to all of you.
Racism is wrong and goes against Mitakuye
Oyasin, the concept that we are ALL relations.
The circle of the Medicine Wheel encloses all colors of people inside
the circle, Black, Red, Yellow, and White. It tells us we are of one
family.
No 'full blood' is really of 'pure, genetic lines. It has been said in
the old traditions in the old days, new people from other tribes or
travelers from distant lands were married or adopted into most every
tribe all around the world, on this continent and elsewhere.
Today many 'full bloods' are 'card carrying Christians', and have no
connection to the Traditional Spirituality. How "indian" is
this?
Today, many 'full blood', mixed blood, and other peoples are finding
great Spiritual value and connection to Creator and Mother in the 'Old
Spiritual Ways' This should be an indicator of the intrinsic value and
correctness of the Old Traditional Spirituality, and should be taken as
a message that it is important for us to TEACH these values to all who
will learn, because they are the true right and correct way that we
humans are to connect with the universe and each other.
Today some people are mis-guided in their seeking of spiritual values,
and blindly adopt [steal] whatever seems to help, often without
understanding the depth of the Ceremony. See above for our
responsibility to teach the Traditions in a responsible and respectful
manner to those who seek a better way.
Humor is part of life, and no humor is better than that in which you can
laugh at yourself. "You might be Twinkee if..." includes stuff
that every Native from every land has done at one time or another, and
that is why it is so funny. Let us never forget to laugh at our selves
in love, not at others in arrogance and spite.
We live in a world of constant change,
and I believe what my elders and teachers have taught me, that the
underlying principles of our Creator, the Guiding Spirits, and our
Mother Earth are unchanging. What we are to learn is how to integrate
these Truths into a challenging and dynamic world, to MEND THE HOOP, and
and become a people, a world of people, with respect for ourselves, for
others people, for other nations, for our ancestors, for our Mother, for
our origins, for our Creator.
The Euro's culture is burning out all over the world. It is our duty as
indigenous peoples of the world, to step in and recover our Mother, and
to teach the other peoples the values that will carry us ALL, safely
into the next millennia. We need to laugh along the way too!
What right do I have to offer these words for your consideration? Only
that I care. Am I a 'Native' or a wannabee? Depends on how you count. I
am 1/2 Saami, and an adopted sister of a 1/4 Lakota woman-adopted in a
Traditional Lakota ceremony, the Hunkapi Ceremony. My Spirituality is
Traditional Lakota, and it was long before I became adopted into 'The
People'. [Sadly, the Euro's killed the Saami medicine men and women 300
years ago, and little remains of the old Saami Spiritual ways, though
the Saami people are alive and well as a part of Scandinavian culture]
Yeah, I carry some genes of the Germanic people that invaded
Scandinavia, my eyes are blue with dark streaks, my hair is also mixed,
looking mostly reddish with both blonde and brown streaks. My skin is
light, but is darker than that of my Sister, but so what. We are all
'breeds' of one sort or another, and we are brothers and sisters making
our home on Mother Earth, and under our common Creator.
Have a laugh, be respectful, Love our Mother, care for each other, know
our Creator, pretty simple isn't it.
May you all be Found Standing in the Light,
Mitakuye Oyasin
SunkmanituTankaSka = Jennifer WhiteWolf-Crock
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Ceremonies
Lost
Jennifer WhiteWolf,
All around the Mother Earth, for centuries, the Sacred Ways of Native
People have been under attack and in the time span of one or two
generations, the Way of Being that took thousands of years for one
Culture or another to learn has been lost. The Hoops, or Identity and
Way of Being, for many peoples and cultures were broken, and sometimes
broken very severely.
I feel great tears and sadness in my heart for the loss of so many of
the cultural values, ideals and hopes, and Traditional Sacred
Ceremonies of so many peoples. As many of you know, I am of Saami blood.
[Eight tribes from northern Scandinavia] As recently as the late 1600s
the Euro Christians were still burning our Shaman people alive, tied to
the stake. They feared our connections to the Spirits, and had to kill
the faith, the eremonies and the memories in order to subdue and conquer
the Saami. They accomplished the goal. Today, I am told that it is still
illegal for those Saami people still living in the home lands, who have
listened to Spirit and are relearning the old ways, to practice
"Shamanism". I am told that in Sweden, Norway, and Finland the
offense is considered severe and is punishable by very long prison terms
and heavy fines.
In The United States of America we have a Constitution that guarantees
freedom of religion, but until a few years ago, it was illegal for any
of to practice our Native Spirituality. Fortunately, today we can, but
this freedom came with a price for those powerful individuals willing to
go into battle for those rights. For sure, there is still much to
improve, but at least the basic right to believe is not denied as
strongly as it was just a short decade ago.
Though of Saami blood, I am also an adopted Lakota, my sister being a
descendant of her grandmother, a Full Blood born on the Rosebud Res. In
the manner of the old ways, the Hunkapi Ceremony, we became sisters in
1993. In a stroke of irony, it was I who had to teach her many of the
Native Traditions, because in her raising, the old ways had been lost to
the force of the Christians. I had been on or near the Red road for many
years of my life. Though half a globe and 3 centuries removed from my
Saami Shaman, but finding a way that spoke in harmony with my Spirit.
The harmony sung loudly and strong in the Sacred Traditions of the
Lakota, Nakota, and Dakota peoples. I was never so filled with the joy
of giving as when I was helping JoAnna to learn the ways, to be aware of
the Spirits in the world around us, to hear the voice of our Mother
Earth, and to see her joy in opening up the eyes of her heart to really
feel and engage the beauty of the greater Universe around her. If Wakan
Tanka had a purpose for me to have been put here, certainly the joy we
shared in our mutual sharing and growth was part of that purpose. She
left her robe last July, loosing a gallant and lifelong battle with
Crohns disease. I am forever her sister, her proud Lakota Sister! I am
forever grateful for the many gifts she gave me and forever grateful for
her allowing me to give her the gifts she deserved. Of course, these
were not material gifts, but gifts of the Heart and Spirit, gifts in
ways we lived and taught each other.
The old ways of knowing our Creator and the Spirits are SO important,
the Ceremonies are so much a connection to our Creator and the Spirit
that provides us with the means to live and thrive, both in this
lifetime and after. Every Pipe Carrier or Medicine person [there have
both men and women] I have met has a little different way of doing
things. It has been said that this was also the way it was in the very
old days. There are certain truths that never change, our Creator, the
Mother/GrandMother our Earth, our Father/Grandfather Sky, and the
Spirits of the 4 Directions, and the Medicine wheel. For us, we also
have the truth of the White Buffalo Calf Woman who also brought us the
Sacred Chanunpa, and many of our Seven principle Sacred Ceremonies.
These are Truths, and never change, but the ways in which we honor these
truths are often sometimes a little different in the passing of time,
and a little different in the interpretation by the person holding
ceremony. It is nor necessary, nor even correct to copy a Ceremony, it
is correct to find a way to connect to the underlying Truth that the
Ceremony connects us to.
Ceremonies lost can be found again. The Creator and the spirits have
told us in Visions and dreams of the Ceremonies for thousands of years.
Perhaps we should pray for the gift of knowledge of the Ceremonies lost.
They came to the people before, and I have the belief that the Spirits
and Creator will answer the Prayers of those who seek to know. It will
take time, it will take dedication. These answers can't be found in a
history book or in a college class. These answers will come in the
Traditional Way, they will be told to those among us who are dedicated
to serve our brothers and sisters with the Sacred Knowledge that has
been passed down from our elders, and learned from the Spirits who
taught us ages ago.
Anybody can claim they 'have the faith' and 'know the ways' There is no
card that you can show that says your heart is True in its Belief and
Knowledge. Because of this, we have phony Sweats that come with
admission charge, fake 'peace pipes' that can be had for 20 or 30
dollars. We have well intended, and some not at all well intended
wannabees and 'new agers' that that do a sweat or two and suddenly are
'expert' in Native Spiritual ways. There is no credential for proving
ones faith and knowledge other than to live it, to be it, to make it a
way of life and to simply be of service.
I have been studying the old ways for a very long time, and yet I feel
like a child in so many ways because I have SO much more to learn. My
'very ling time' is but a moment in comparison to the time our ancestors
took to learn the Sacred Ways of living. Even if a Respected Elder
offered me a Chanunpa, I would have to think very hard about it, because
I know what it means to be Pipe Carrier, and though I know in my Heart
that my own Faith is total and unbreakable, I am not ready enough to be
Pipe Carrier. I suppose that someday that may change, but not yet and
maybe not at all. It is not a 'goal' to be achieved. It is an honor
given when the time is right. I have an Honor and Respect for my
teachers, and I am not yet a peer among them. There are people that I
help, but mostly I learn much from those who ask me for assistance, for
as I give help - we really help each other.
It can take years of practice and doing to learn a Traditional Ceremony.
It is so much more than just words and motions and objects. It is
connecting with the Spirits and our Creator in a respectful way. Without
the Connection, the Ceremony is just motion, and this seems to be what
the outsiders want to copy and do a few times to say they have
"been there-done that'. Some who honorably wish to conduct
Traditional Sacred
Ceremonies never connect deeply, others seem to easily, it is just part
of how we are all different from one another and totally unique. Some
few are natural 'Shaman', others not. If you are called to be a
Ceremonial leader I suppose it helps that you have a naturaly easy time
with Spirit communication. With integrity and conviction, this
naturalness often follows. I also believe that ANYBODY can learn to
communicate at a deep Spiritual level with an honest heart and desire to
be of service. We are ALL our Creators children.
I try to be on the Red Road path, but I am imperfect. Sometimes I trip
and fall from the path, but I always strive to find my way back onto it,
sometimes even covered with the mud of lessons learned from the
straying. For me, the important thing is to strive to be on that path,
every day learning a little more how my Spirit fits into the larger
world and how I can be of some service to the connectedness of it all.
The being on the path, taking the Journey is what matters to me, not the
'arriving' somewhere. I honor those who also walk the path, as we try to
help each other along. It is on that path that our Creator and the
Spirits will see and hear us honoring, will see and hear us praying, and
will speak to us with the ways that have been lost, so that the People
can once again know them.
I pray that more and more people will come to a place in life that they
will seek to know the Spirits and Creator as many have before, and that
they too will lead the People in the important Spiritual Ways. This is
not something done for self-gratification or ego building; it is done in
giving and honoring. Because of the selfless nature of leading Ceremony
the modern selfish ways of ego and greed offer an empty but often
'greener pasture' that will keep many away from the path.
My heart sings with joy that more of us than ever before in this century
DO honor the Traditional Faiths, but at the same time my heart breaks
that so much has been lost, and that out Mother has been so damaged due
to greed and-or neglect. Modern communications like the internet help us
to take steps in the direction of more and more of us finding purpose
and focus, to help bring a good future into being. I believe that a good
future has a chance, and that that future will be built on the Truths
our peoples have known for generations, and are remembering once again.
I believe that round the world, all of us of Native Bloods and Spirit
will rise and re-claim our Mother from the greedy Euro hoards, as they
are burning out and loosing their millennium long grip. We are
remembering the Old Sacred Ways to Honor our Mother, we will be ready to
inherit Her once again and we will find our broken Hoops healed.
These are only my thoughts, and only that, just my thoughts. I am not
saying that you should agree with me, or think as I do. These thoughts
are what I find growing in my Heart, and I can only offer freely that
what is true and Sacred for me.
With tears of both sadness and Joy in my eyes, and with sincerity in my
Heart to you all,
Mitakuye Oyasin
Jennifer WhiteWolf
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Coyote
Creates the Earth
Long ago there was no earth, only water. Coyote was floating around on a
small raft when he met the ducks. They were the only other creatures.
"my brother," he said,"there is no one else around. It is
no good to be alone like this. You must get me some earth so I can make
things right." He turned to the red-headed mallard. "Dive
beneath this water and try to bring up some earth. We'll use it as a
means of living." The red-headed mallard dived. He remained down
for a long time but came up without bringing and earth. Coyote turned to
the pinto duck. "I sent the older one, but he was not able to get
any earth. Now I will let you try." The pinto duck came up after a
long time and said, "My brother, I was not able to get any."
"How is that? I thought surely you would bring some." Then
Coyote asked a smaller blue feathered duck to dive. "If you do not
bring up any, we will have no land to live on." He dived down, but
he came up with no earth.
Coyote did not know what to do.
Then the grebe spoke up. "My older brother, you should have asked
me to go down before you asked these others. They are my superiors, but
they are helpless." He took his turn diving and stayed down a long
time. When he came up Coyote said, "What sort of luck did you
have?" "I have brought some." He had a little dirt
between his webbed feet. Coyote said, "To every undertaking there
are always four trials. You have achieved it." Then he took the mud
and said, "I will make this into the earth. You will live in the
ponds and streams and multiply there where you can build your nests. Now
I am going to make this earth." Coyote started in the east. "I
will make it large so we have plenty of room." As he traveled along
he spread the mud around and made the earth. He traveled like this for a
long time, going toward the west. When he was finished he said,
"Now that we have this earth, there are some things that want to be
here." They heard a wolf howling. "Already there is one
howling,'" said Coyote. He pointed toward the Sun, which was going
down, and said, "Listen, there is another out there now." It
was a coyote. "That coyote has attained life by his own
powers," said Coyote. "He is great." Then they all went
for a walk. Out on the plains they saw some shiny objects. When they got
up close they saw that these were medicine stones.
"This is part of the earth," said Coyote, picking up one of
the stones which looked like a buffalo, "the oldest part. There
shall be stones like this everywhere. They are separate beings."
When they had gone on some ways they saw a person standing near a hill.
"Look," said Coyote, "there is a human being. He is one
of the Stars, but now he is standing down here on the ground. Let's go
look at him." When they got up close, the star-person changed
himself into a plant. It was the tobacco plant. There was no other
plants around at that time. It
was the first. Coyote said, "From now on all the people will have
this plant, take it in the spring and raise it. It is the stars up above
that have come down like this. They will take care of the people. Take
care of this plant. It will be your means of living. Use it in dancing.
When
you plant it in the spring, sing this song: Female comrade, the earth,
where shall I plant it?"
After that, Coyote found there was no grass. "This is no
good." He made it. "Let us make some mountains, hills and
trees." He made them all. He saw there were there was no fish in
the creeks, so he put some there. This is the way he started making the
whole thing.
Handed
Golanv Towodi
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Why
Flint would not !
STOW-WAY-NA -Flint was rich and powerful. His lodge was toward the
sunrise. It was guarded by Squr-hein-Crane. He was the watcher. He
watched the from the top of a lone tree. When anybody approached, Crane
would call out and warn Flint, and Flint would come out of his lodge and
meet the visitor. There was an open flat in front of the lodge. Flint
met all his visitors there. Warriors and hunters came there and bought
flint for arrow points and spear-heads. They paid Flint big prices for
the privilege of chipping off the hard stone. Some who needed flint for
their weapons were poor and could not buy. These poor persons Flint
turned away. Coyote heard about Flint and, as he wanted some
arrow-points, squas-tenk' to help him. Squas-tenk' refused. "Hurry,
do what I ask, or I will throw you away and let the rain wash you...wash
you cold," said Coyote, and then the power gave him three rocks
that were harder than the flint-rock. It also gave him a little
dog that only had one ear. But this ear was sharp, like a knife; it was
a knife-ear.
Then to his wife, Mole, Coyote said, "Go and make your underground
trails in the flat where Flint lives. When you have finished, and see me
talking with him, show yourself so that we can see you." Then
Coyote set out for Flint's lodge. As he got near it, he had his power
make a fog to cover the land, and the thick fog spread over everything.
Crane, the watcher, up in the lone tree, could not see Coyote. He did
not know that Coyote was around. Coyote climbed the tree and took Crane
from his high perch and broke his neck. Crane had no time to cry out.
Then Coyote went on to Flint's lodge. He was almost there when Flint's
dog, Grizzly Bear, jumped out of the lodge and ran toward him.
Coyote was not scared, and he yelled at Flint, "Stop your grizzly
bear dog! Stop him, or my dog will kill him." That mused Flint, who
was looking through the doorway. He saw that Coyote's one-eared dog was
very small, hardly a mouthful for Grizzly Bear. Flint came out of his
lodge. He was laughing. "Coyote, you better take your dog away. My
Grizzly Bear will eat him up." "No, stop your dog,"
repeated Coyote. "One-Ear is bad!" "Hah!" laughed
Flint. "No dog can hurt my Grizzly Bear!" So, without talk,
Coyote sent One-Ear at Grizzly Bear, who opened his mouth wide. The
little dog went right ahead and jumped straight into Grizzly Bear's
mouth, and kept on going. He went clean through Grizzly Bear. His sharp
knife-ear cut Flint's dog wide open.
"See!" Coyote said. "I told you that One-Ear was bad. He
can kill anything." About that time Mole appeared at the far edge
of the flat. She was dressed in skins that were painted red, and she
looked very handsome. "My friend," Coyote spoke to Flint,
"see that woman over there? Let us run a race. The one who gets to
her first shall take her for his wife."
Flint was willing. So they raced. They ran toward Mole. She pretended to
be digging bitter-root. She had made tunnels all through the flat, and
they were a bother to Flint. He kept falling into them and falling, and
every time he fell Coyote would jump over him and shout, "Eh!
Ha-yea! My friend, what is wrong?"
Flint was heavy, and slow in picking himself up. Sometimes Coyote jumped
over him twice before he could get up. When they got to where Mole was
standing, she changed herself into a real mole and skipped into one of
her tunnels. Then Coyote began to hit Flint with the sguas-tenk' rocks.
At each blow they scaled off big flakes of flint. Flint tried to catch
Coyote, but every few steps he stumbled into one of Mole's tunnels, and
he grew weaker and weaker. Coyote kept striking him with the
medicine-rocks. At last all of the monster's body was chipped away. Only
the heart was left. Then Flint died. Coyote picked up the heart and
threw it across the flat. There it is today. It is still standing there.
Much flint is found there.
The pieces of Flint's body which were scattered around the flats were
gathered by Coyote and thrown all over the earth for warriors and
hunters to use. That done, Coyote said, "Sto-way'-na, you are a
person no more. From this sun you are only dead stone!"
And that is why the flint-rock is senseless and cannot fight back when
chipped for arrow-heads. Coyote made it so before the New People came.
handed story
Golanv Towodi
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A
Little Morning Prayer
Dear God:
So far today I have done all right.
I have not gossiped.
I have not lost my temper.
I have not been greedy,
grumpy, nasty, selfish,
proud or overindulgent.
I am very thankful for that....
But in a few minutes, God,
I am going to get out of bed.
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How
the Chipmunk Got his Stripes
Long ago when animals could talk, a bear was walking along. Now it has
always been said that bears think very highly of themselves. Since they
are big and strong, they are certain that they are the most important of
the animals.
As this bear went along turning over big logs with his paws to look for
food to eat, he felt very sure of himself. "There is nothing I
cannot
do," said this bear.
"Is that so?" said a small voice. Bear looked down. There was
a little
chipmunk looking up at Bear from its hole in the ground.
"Yes," Bear
said, "that is true indeed." He reached out one huge paw and
rolled over
a big log. "Look at how easily I can do this. I am the strongest of
all
the animals. I can do anything. All the other animals fear me."
"Can you stop the sun from rising in the morning?" said the
Chipmunk.
Bear thought for a moment. "I have never tried that," he said.
"Yes, I
am sure I could stop the sun from rising." "You are
sure?" said
Chipmunk.
"I am sure," said Bear. "Tomorrow morning the sun will
not rise. I,
Bear, have said so." Bear sat down facing the east to wait. Behind
him
the sun set for the night and still he sat there. The chipmunk went into
its hole and curled up in its snug little nest, chuckling about how
foolish Bear was. All through the night Bear sat. Finally the first
birds started their songs and the east glowed with the light which comes
before the sun.
"The sun will not rise today," said Bear. He stared hard at
the glowing
light. "The sun will not rise today."
However, the sun rose, just as it always had. Bear was very upset, but
Chipmunk was delighted. He laughed and laughed. "Sun is stronger
than
Bear," said the chipmunk, twittering with laughter. Chipmunk was so
amused that he came out of his hole and began running around in circles,
singing this song:
"The sun came up,
The sun came up.
Bear is angry,
But the sun came up."
While Bear sat there looking very unhappy, Chipmunk ran around and
around, singing and laughing until he was so weak that he rolled over on
his back. Then, quicker than the leap of a fish from a stream, Bear shot
out one big paw and pinned him to the ground. "Perhaps I cannot
stop the
sun from rising," said Bear, "but you will never see another
sunrise."
'Oh, Bear," said the chipmunk. "oh, oh, oh, you are the
strongest, you
are the quickest, you are the best of all of the animals. I was only
joking." But Bear did not move his paw.
"Oh, Bear," Chipmunk said, "you are right to kill me, I
deserve to die.
Just please let me say one last prayer to Creator before you eat
me."
"Say your prayer quickly," said Bear. "Your time to walk
the Sky Road
has come!"
"Oh, Bear," said Chipmunk, "I would like to die. But you
are pressing
down on me so hard I cannot breathe. I can hardly squeak. I do not have
enough breath to say a prayer. If you would just lift your paw a little,
just a little bit, then I could breathe. And I could say my last prayer
to the Maker of all, to the one who made great, wise, powerful Bear and
the foolish, weak, little Chipmunk.
"Bear lifted up his paw. He lifted it just a little bit. That
little
bit, though, was enough. Chipmunk squirmed free and ran for his hole as
quickly as the blinking of an eye. Bear swung his paw at the little
chipmunk as it darted away. He was not quick enough to catch him, but
the very tips of his long claws scraped along Chipmunk's back leaving
three pale scars.
To this day, all chipmunks wear those scars as a reminder to them of
what happens when one animal makes fun to another.
The
origin of Bears and The Bear Songs
Long ago there was a Cherokee clan called the Ani'-Tsa'guhi, and in one
family of this clan was a boy who used to leave home and be gone all day
in
the mountains. After a while he went oftener and stayed longer, until at
last he would not eat in the house at all, but started off at daybreak
and
did not come back until night. His parents scolded, but that did no
good,
and the boy still went every day until they noticed that long brown hair
was
beginning to grow out all over his body. Then they wondered and asked
him
why it was that he wanted to be so much in the woods that he would not
even
eat at home. Said the boy, "I find plenty to eat there, and it is
better
than the corn and beans we have in the settlements, and pretty soon I am
going into the woods to stay all the time." His parents were
worried and
begged him not to leave them, but he said, "It is better there than
here,
and you see I am beginning to be different already, so that I can not
live
here any longer. If you will come with me, there is plenty for all of us
and you will never have to work for it; but if you want to come you must
first fast seven days."
The father and mother talked it over and then told the headmen of the
clan. They held a council about the matter and after everything had been
said they decided: "Here we must work hard and have not always
enough.
There he says there is always plenty without work. We will go with
him."
So they fasted seven days, and on the seventh morning all the
Ani'-Tsa'guhi
left the settlement and started for the mountains as the boy led the
way.
When the people of the other towns heard of it they were very sorry and
sent their headmen to persuade the Ani'-Tsa'guhi to stay at home and not
go
into the woods to live. The messengers found them already on the way,
and
were surprised to notice that their bodies were beginning to be covered
with
hair like that of animals, because for seven days they had not taken
human
food and their nature was changing. The Ani'-Tsa'guhi would not come
back,
but said, "We are going where there is always plenty to eat.
Hereafter we
shall be called yanu (bears), and when you yourselves are hungry come
into
the woods and call us and we shall come to give you our own flesh. You
need
not be afraid to kill us, for we shall live always." Then they
taught the
messengers the songs with which to call them, and the bear hunters have
these songs still. When they had finished the songs the Ani'-Tsa'guhi
started on again and the messengers turned back to the settlements, but
after going a little way they looked back and saw a drove of bears going
into the woods.
First Bear Song
He-e! Ani'-Tsa'guhi, Ani'-Tsa'guhi, akwandu'li e'lanti' ginun'ti,
Ani'-Tsa'guhi, Ani'-Tsa'guhi, akwandu'li e'lanti' ginun'ti--Yu!
(He-e! The Ani'-Tsa'guhi, the Ani'-Tsa-guhi, I want to lay them low on
the
ground,
The Ani'-Tsa'guhi, the Ani'-Tsa-guhi, I want to lay them low on
the ground--Yu!)
The bear hunter starts out each morning fasting and does not eat until
near evening. He sings this song as he leaves camp, and again the next
morning, but never twice in the same day.
*****************
Second Bear Song
This song is also sung by the bear hunter, in order to attract the
bears, while on his way from the camp to the place where he expects to
hunt
during the day. The melody is simple and plaintive.
He-e! Hayuya'haniwa', hayuya'haniwa', hayuya'haniwa', hayuya'haniwa',
Tsistuyi' nehandu'yanu, Tsistuyi' nehandu'yanu -- Yoho-o!
He-e! Hayuya'haniwa', hayuya'haniwa', hayuya'haniwa', hayuya'haniwa',
Kuwah
i' nehandu'yanu, Kuwahi' nehandu'yanu -- Yoho-o!
He-e! Hayuya'haniwa', hayuya'haniwa', hayuya'haniwa', hayuya'haniwa',
Uyahye' nehandu'yanu, Uyahye' nehandu'yanu' -- Yoho-o!
He-e! Hayuya'haniwa', hayuya'haniwa', hayuya'haniwa', hayuya'haniwa',
Gategwa' nehandu'yanu', Gategwa' nehandu'yanu' -- Yoho-o!
(Recited) Ule-`nu' asehi' tadeya' statakuhi' gun'nage astu' tsiki'.
(He! Hayuya'haniwa' (four times),
In Tsistu'yi you were conceived (two times) -- Yoho!
He! Hayuya'haniwa' (four times),
In Kuwa'hi you were conceived (two times) -- Yoho!
He! Hayuya'haniwa' (four times),
In Uya'hye you were conceived (two times) -- Yoho!
He! Hayuya'haniwa' (four times),
In Gate'gwa you were conceived (two times) -- Yoho!
And now surely we and the good black things, the best of all, shall see
each other.)
-----------------------------
From "Trail of Tears - The Rise and Fall of the Cherokee
Nation", by John
Ehle.
"The shamans were ever fretful, seeing a breach in the cultural
armor of
the people that would, if not mended, reduce the Cherokee to the state
of
the black bear. According to one of the tribal accounts, once long ago a
few Cherokees had forgotten their responsibilities to their clansmen,
and
as a consequence hair grew longer on their bodies and they began to move
about on all fours. They ignored the warning of their priests and even
failed to revenge the death of fellow clansmen. Eventually they forgot
the Cherokee language. In this way the bear was formed, and the bears
were ever after made to serve the needs of the Cherokee, their distant
kinsman, and to provide meat and fur."
Tsiatsila
We were contented to let things remain as the Great Spirit made them.
Chief Joseph 1873
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Going
to Water.....for ballplay
This is the idigawesdi, or sacred formula for "going to water"
before ballplay, found in Mooney's Myths and Sacred Formulas.
I will give the english version first, then the tsalagi version
for those language students. Then the expanation will come
at the end.
This Concerns the Ball Play -- To Take Them to Water with It.
Listen! Ha! Now where the white thread has been let down,
quickly we are about to examine into (the fate of) the admirers
of the ball play.
They are of --- such a (iyu'sti) descent. They are called --- so
and so (iyu'sti). They are shaking the road which shall never
be joyful. The miserable Terrapin has come and fastened
himself upon them as they go about. They have lost all
strength. They have become entirely blue.
But now my admirers of the ball play have their roads lying
along in this direction. The Red Bat has come and made himself
one of them. There is the first heaven are the pleasing stakes.
There in the second heaven are the pleasing stakes. The Pewee
has come and joined them. The immortal ball stick shall place
itself upon the whoop, never to be defeated.
As for the lovers of the ball play on the other side, the common
Turtle has come and fastened himself upon them as they go
about. Under the earth they have lost all strength.
The pleasing stakes are in the third heaven. The Red 'Tlaniwa'
has come and made himself one of them, that they may never be
defeated. The pleasing stakes are in the fourth heaven. The Blue
Fly-catcher has made himself one of them, that they may never be
defeated. The pleasing stakes are in the fifth heaven.
The Blue Martin has made himself one of them, that they may
never be defeated.
The other lovers of the ball play, the Blue Mole has come and
fastened upon them, that they may never be joyous. They have
lost all strength. The pleasing stakes are there in the sixth heaven.
The Chimney Swift has made himself one with them, that they may
never be defeated.
The pleasing stakes are in the seventh heaven. The Blue Dragon-Fly
has made himself one of them, that they may never be defeated.
As for the other admirers of the ball play, the Bear has just come and
fastened him upon them, that they may never be happy. They have
lost all strength. He has let the stakes slip from his grasp and there
shall be nothing left for their share.
The examination is ended.
Listen! Now let me know that the twelve are mine,
O White Dragon-Fly.
Tell me that the share is to be mine -- that the stakes are mine.
As for the player there on the other side, he has been forced to let
go his hold upon the stakes.
Now they are become exultant and happy. Yu!
Hia' Ane'tsa Ugu'wali Ama'yi Ditsu'stati
Sge! Ha-nagwa a'sti une'ga aksa'utanu usinu'li a`ne'tsa
unatsa'nutse'lahi akta'ti aduni'ga.
Iyu'sti utada'ta, iyu'sti tsunada'ita. Nuna'hi anite'lahehu' ige'ski
nige'suna. Du'ksi-gwu' dedu'natsgu`la'wate'gu. Da'`su
unilatsi'satu. Sa`ka'ni unati'satu'.
Nuna'hi da'tadu'nina'wati' a'yu-`nu' digwatseli'ga a`ne'tsa
unatsa'nutse'lahi. Tla'mehu Gigage'i sa'gwa danutsgu'`lani'ga.
Igu'yi galu'la ge'su i'yu kanu'lagi waha'hista'gi. Ta'line galu'la
ge'su i'yu kanu' lagi waha'hista'gi. He'nilu danitsgu'`lani'ga.
Tla'ma uni'ta a'nigwalu'gi gutla'`tisge'sti, ase'gwu nige'suna.
Du'tale a`ne'tsa unatsa'nutse'lahi saligu'gi-gwu dedu'natsgu'`la-
wisti'tegu'. Elawi'ni da'`su unilatsi'satu.
Tsa'ine digalu'latiyu' Sa'niwa Gi'gagei sa'gwa danutsgu'`lani'ga,
ase`gagi nige'suna. Kanu'lagi waha'hista'gi nu'`gine digalu'latiyu'.
Guli'sguli' Sa`ka'ni sa'gwa danutsgu'`lani'ga, ase`ga'gi nige'suna.
Kanu'lagi waha'histagi hi'skine digalu'latiyu'. Tsutsu' Sa`ka'ni
sa'gwa danutsgu'`lani'ga, ase`ga'gi nige'suna.
Du'tale a`ne'tsa utsa'nutse'lahi Tine'gwa Sa`ka'ni sa'gwa
danutsgu'`lani'ga, ige'ski nige'suna. Da'`su unilatsi'satu.
Kanu'lagi waha'hista'gi sutali'ne digalu'latiyu'. A'nigasta'ya sa'gwa
danutsgu'`lani'ga, ase`ga'gi nige'suna. Kanu'lagi waha'hista'gi
kul`kwagine digalu'latiyu. Watatu'ga Sa`ka'ni sa'gwa danutsgu'`la-
ni'ga, ase`ga'gi nige'suna.
Du'tale a`ne'tsa unatsa'nutse'lahi, Ya'na dedu'natsgu'`lawistani'ga,
ige'ski nige'suna. Da`su du'nilatsi'satu. Kanu'lagi de'tagaskala'utanu',
igu'wulstanuhi-gwudi'na tsuye'listi gesu'i. Akta'`ti aduni'ga.
Sge! Na'gwa t`ski'nane'li ta'ladu' iyu'ta a'gwatseli'ga, Watatu'ga
Tsune'ga. Tsuye'listi gesu'iski'nahusi' a'gwatseli'ga---kanu'lagi
a'gwatseli'ga. Na'`na utada'ta kanu'lagi dedu'skala'asi'ga.
Dedu'ndagu' yastani'ga, guwa'hisa'nuhi. Yu !
*my note* there are many other pronunciation type symbols included
in the tsalagi writing in Mooney's and Swimmer's texts that cannot
be duplicated using a keyboard. As yet, I have not discovered
what they mean. Also, if you notice, some words have syllables
that are not described in the Sequoyah syllabary. As yet, I can
not account for this variation either.
FORMULA USED BEFORE BALL PLAY.
Explanation.
This formula, from the A'yuini manuscript is one of those used
by the conjurer in taking the ball players to water before the game.
The ceremony is performed in connection with red and black beads,
as described in the formula just given for destroying life. The
formulistic name given to the ball players signifies literally,
"admirers of the ball play."
The Tla'niwa (sa'niwa in the Middle dialect) is the mythic great hawk,
as large and powerful as the roc of Arabian tales.
The conjurer begins by declaring that it is his purpose to examine or
inquire into the fate of the ball players, and then gives his attention
by turns to his friends and their opponents, fixing his eyes upen the
red bead while praying for his clients, and upon the black bead while
speaking of their rivals. His friends he raises gradually to the seventh
or highest galu'lati. This word literally signifies height, and is the
name
given to the abode of the gods dwelling above the earth, and is also
used to mean heaven in the Cherokee bible translation. The opposing
players, on the other hand, are put down under the earth, and are made
to resemble animals slow and clumsy of movement, while on behalf of
his friends the conjurer invokes the aid of swift-flying birds, which,
according to the Indian belief, never by any chance fail to secure their
prey. The birds invoked are the He'nilu or wood pewee (Contopus virens),
the TIaniwa, or mythic hawk, the Guli'sguli'or great crested flycatcher
(Myiarchus crinitus), the Tsutstu or martin (Progne subis), and the
A'nigasta'ya or chimney swift (Choetura pelasgia). In the idiom of the
formulas it is said that these "have just come and are sticking to
them"
(the players), the same word (danutsgu'lani'ga) being used to express
the devoted attention of a lover to his mistress. The Watatuga, a small
species of dragon-fly, is also invoked, together with the bat, which,
according to a Cherokee myth, once took sides with the birds in a great
ball contest with the fourfooted animals, and won the victory for the
birds
by reason of his superior skill in dodging. This myth explains also why
birds, and no quadrupeds, are invoked by the conjurer to the aid of his
friends. In accordance with the regular color symbolism the flycatcher,
martin, and dragonfly, like the bat and the tlg'niwa, should be red, the
color of success, instead of blue, evidently so written by mistake. The
white thread is frequently mentioned in the formulas, but in this
instance
the reference is not clear. The twelve refers to the number of runs made
in the game.
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