Creation Myths of Primitive America: In relation to the Religious History and Mental Development of MankindCurtin, Jeremiah
Religion
Creation Myths of Primitive America: In relation to the Religious History and Mental Development of Mankind
Curtin, Jeremiah
Creation -- Mythology; Indian mythology -- North America; Indians of North America -- Folklore
On the south side of Bohem Puyuk is a small mountain called Tede
Puyuk. Near that small mountain lived Waida Dikit Kiemila. He lived
all alone, without neighbors. There was no house near his. He lived
long in that place, thinking what was best for him to do, thinking,
thinking. After a great while he thought: "The best thing to do is to
build a sweat-house."
He built a sweat-house about a mile west of the place where he was
living. When he had finished, he took a kind of red earth and painted
the eastern half of the house red on the outside. The western half he
painted green with paint made from leaves of bushes. After he had
painted the western half, all the different kinds of bushes whose
leaves he had used for paint grew out of that side of the
sweat-house.
The sweat-house was ready for use now, and Waida Dikit went to see a
man, Tsaroki Sakahl, who lived farther south.
"My grandson," said Waida Dikit, "I wish you would come up and stay in
my house. I have no one to keep me company. I wish you would come and
live with me."
"I will go with you," said Tsaroki, and he went to live with the old
man.
Waida Dikit had not told Tsaroki of the sweat-house, he took him to
the old house. After two or three nights Waida Dikit said,--
"My grandson, what shall we do? What would you like to do? What will
be best for us? We must talk about something. There should be
something for us to talk about. We must have something to say."
"Well," said Tsaroki, "I think that you want what is best; you want to
see somebody, to see something. I think that is what you want. I think
I know what you want. The best way to get what you want is to build a
sweat-house."
"That is wise talk, my grandson, I like to hear it. I have a
sweat-house built--all finished."
"Where is it?" asked Tsaroki.
"I will show it to you soon," answered Waida Dikit.
Putting his hand behind him, he picked up a small basket, took out
yellow paint with his thumb and forefinger, and drew a yellow streak
from Tsaroki's head down his back. The young man had been all green;
now there was yellow on his back. Next Waida Dikit took a net woven of
grass fibre, like a woman's hair net, and put it on Tsaroki's head.
"You are ready now," said he. Then he led him out of the house and
said, pointing to the west,--
"Look! There is our sweat-house. Now, my grandson, I am going to take
you to that house. The east side is painted red. When we are there,
don't go near the sweat-house on this eastern side; pass by, but not
too near, a little way off. When we go in I will take the eastern half
and stay in it; you will take the other half and stay on the western
side, where there is green paint. That is where you are to lie, on the
green side."
They started. The old man walked ahead. When they went in, Waida Dikit
took the eastern half of the house and Tsaroki the western. The young
man sat down, and then Waida Dikit took a pipe which was in the
sweat-house.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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