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
The old woman brought all the bows of her dead kindred; he broke all
but one, which had a string made from the shoulder sinews of a deer.
He took that and went out. This day Howichinaipa hid himself in a
cedar-tree: he was watching a bird. Pakalai Jawichi knew that he was
there, and called with the voice of the bird that Howichinaipa was
watching. Howichinaipa came down on the tree lower and lower, looking
to see where the call came from.
Pakalai Jawichi was hidden in a tree opposite, where Howichinaipa
could not see him; he kept calling, and Howichinaipa kept coming down.
Pakalai Jawichi had a good sight of him.
"If I hit him in the body," thought he, "the arrow will not hurt him;
I must hit him in the outside toe."
He did that, and Howichinaipa fell to the ground wounded. Pakalai
Jawichi pinned him to the earth with one arrow, then with another;
pinned his two sides to the ground with two rows of arrows. Pakalai
Jawichi ran home.
"Oh, grandmother!" cried he.
"What is the matter?" asked the old woman; "you came near falling into
the fire."
"There is some one out here; I want you to see him."
The old woman took her cane and followed Pakalai Jawichi.
"Do you see that person lying there?"
The old woman looked, and saw the person who had killed her son, saw
him pinned to the earth. She was so glad that she cried, she dropped
down then, and rolled on the ground; after that she jumped up and
danced around his body, danced many times, danced till she was tired.
"Hereafter," said Pakalai Jawichi, "everybody will call you
Howichinaipa. You will be a person no longer; you will be only a
little bird, with these arrow-marks on both sides of your breast."
He became a little bird then and flew away, the little bird which we
call Howichinaipa.
Next morning after the second hunt Jupka heard loud shouting in the
east; a great Mapchemaina had thrust his head above the edge of the
sky. This person had beautiful feathers waving on his head. Jupka had
made him shout, and he said to him,--
"Every time you rise up and show yourself to the people of Jigulmatu
you must shout in that way."
This great person in the east had two dogs; they were small, but very
strong. "Which of you is coming with me?" asked he that morning. "I
want a good dog; I am always afraid when I travel in the daytime."
"I will give you a name now," said Jupka to this person in the east.
"All people will call you hereafter by the name which I give now. The
name which I give you is Tuina. You will be known always by this name.
And your name," said he to the dog, "will be Machperkami."
When Tuina was ready to start, he made his small dog still smaller,
very small; put him under the hair on the top of his head, and tied
him in there.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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