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Title: Navaho Legends
Author: Matthews, Washington
Language: English
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NAVAHO LEGENDS
COLLECTED AND TRANSLATED
BY
WASHINGTON MATTHEWS
M.D., LL.D.
MAJOR U.S. ARMY, EX-PRESIDENT OF THE AMERICAN FOLK-LORE
SOCIETY, ETC.
WITH INTRODUCTION, NOTES, ILLUSTRATIONS, TEXTS
INTERLINEAR TRANSLATIONS, AND MELODIES
BOSTON AND NEW YORK
Published for The American Folk-Lore Society by
HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY
LONDON: DAVID NUTT, 270, 271 STRAND
LEIPZIG: OTTO HARRASSOWITZ, QUERSTRASSE, 14
1897
Five hundred copies printed, of which this is No. 199
Copyright, 1897,
BY THE AMERICAN FOLK-LORE SOCIETY.
All rights reserved.
The Riverside Press, Cambridge, Mass., U.S.A.
Electrotyped and Printed by H. O. Houghton and Company.
CONTENTS.
PAGE
Introduction 1
LEGENDS.
The Navaho Origin Legend.
I. The Story of the Emergence 63
II. Early Events in the Fifth World 76
III. The War Gods 104
IV. Growth of the Navaho Nation 135
Nati'nesthani 160
The Great Shell of Kintyél 195
Notes 209
Bibliographic Notes 276
Melodies 279
ILLUSTRATIONS.
PLATE PAGE
I. Navaho Gods as represented in the dry-paintings Frontispiece
II. San Francisco Mountain, Arizona 63
III. Distant view of San Mateo Mountain, New Mexico 76
IV. Nayénezgani 104
V. El Cabezon 114
VI. Lava flow in the valley of the San José, New Mexico 118
VII. To`badzistsíni 134
FIGURE
1. Manuelito (portrait) 3
2. Mariano (portrait) 4
3. Jake the Silversmith (portrait) 5
4. Tánapa (portrait) 6
5. Hádapa (portrait) 7
6. Navaho man (portrait) 9
7. Navaho man (portrait) 10
8. Navaho skull, flattened at occiput 11
9. Navaho baby-case or cradle 12
10. Conical lodge with storm-door 13
11. Hut of logs 14
12. Hut built partly of stone 15
13. Summer houses 16
14. Medicine-lodge 16
15. Sudatory 17
16. Sacred basket 18
17. Sacred basket 19
18. Silver ornaments 20
19. Woman spinning 21
20. Ordinary loom 23
21. Loom for weaving diagonal cloth 25
22. The White House 36
23. Talking kethawn 39
24. Circle kethawn 40
25. Kethawns (sacrificial sticks and cigarettes) in basket 43
26. Mask of yucca 46
27. Mask of Hastséyalti 47
28. Mask of yébaad or goddess 48
29. Picture of silnéole, a dry-painting of the night chant 49
30. Alíli or show ("dance") of the nahikáï 52
31. Hatáli Natlói (portrait) 57
32. The shaman Hatáli Nez (Tall Chanter) (portrait) 59
33. Trail of Estsánatlehi (diagram) 148
34. Trail of turkey approaching his master (diagram) 171
35. Trail of man and turkey (diagram) 173
36. Ruin in the Chaco Canyon, probably Kintyél 195
37. Circle of branches of the rite of the mountain chant 206
38. Natural bridge, near Fort Defiance, Arizona 227
39. Yucca baccata 228
40. Drumstick made of yucca leaves 229
41. Diagram of bow-symbol on left leg of the personator of
Nayénezgani 253
42. Diagram of queue-symbol on left leg of the personator
of To`badzistsíni 253
Map of the Navaho country 1
NAVAHO LEGENDS.
INTRODUCTION.
PREFATORY REMARKS.
1. The legends contained in this book are those of the Navaho[1]
Indians, a tribe living in the southwestern portion of the United
States; mostly in the Territories of New Mexico and Arizona, but
partly in the States of Colorado and Utah. A definite reservation
of over 12,000 square miles has been set apart for them; but in
every direction, beyond the borders of this reservation, isolated
families and small bands may be found dwelling, either temporarily or
permanently, in localities where there are springs, streams, pools,
or artificial reservoirs of water. Some have taken up homesteads--or
have otherwise acquired a legal title to lands beyond the borders of
the reservation; others are merely squatters. A brief description of
these Indians--their arts, religion, ceremonies, etc.--is included in
this introduction, in the belief that, if the reader possesses some
knowledge of the Navaho before he begins to read the tales, he may
have a better understanding of the latter. But much more information,
of interest to the ethnographer, will be found in notes. Some items
in the introduction could not properly have appeared in the notes,
as there was nothing in the tales to suggest them. Other items might
perhaps as well have been transferred to the notes; the decision to
put them in the introduction was often arbitrary.
2. Title of Book.--In selecting a title for this book, the word
Legends was chosen, rather than Myths, for the reason that the tales
contained herein, though mostly mythical, are not altogether such. In
the Origin Legend, the last chapter, "The Growth of the Navaho Nation,"
is in part traditional or historical, and it is even approximately
correct in many of its dates, as has been shown by Frederick Webb
Hodge in his paper on the "Early Navaho and Apache."[301]
HOME OF THE NAVAHOES.
3. The land which the Navahoes occupy is arid, though not an absolute
desert. The precipitation at an altitude of 7,000 feet amounts on an
average to only 14.10 inches during the year (at lower altitudes it is
less, at higher altitudes greater), and this is generally confined to
two short seasons of moisture separated from one another by months of
absolute drought, which, except in specially favored localities, would
destroy any of our ordinary field-crops. But there are small spots, far
apart, where irrigation can be practised, and there are other places,
apparently deserts, which no white man would think of cultivating,
but where Indians raise meagre crops of corn, squashes, and melons.
4. Soil.--He who stands on the brow of the mesa at the Indian pueblo
of Walpi, in Arizona, may unravel one secret of Indian agriculture in
the arid region, and learn why ancient ruins may be found in the most
desolate parts. Six hundred feet below him stretches a sandy plain
which at most seasons of the year seems almost an absolute desert;
yet in summer it is green with rows of dwarf corn. Little rain falls
on it and there is no irrigation; yet the corn grows and furnishes a
return which repays an Indian, at least, for his labor. Through the
plain runs a gully which at certain seasons drains the water from
a high table-land beyond. The water does not all flow off, but in
part settles under the sandy surface, and keeps the subsoil moist
throughout the year. By planting deep, the Indian farmers reach
this moist subsoil, and place their seeds where the long drought
cannot destroy them. On the side of the mesa, peach-trees flourish,
with hidden moisture that comes out between the rocky strata at the
mesa's edge. Localities similar to those described are found in the
Navaho land, and similarly used by the Navaho for farms and peach
orchards. The myths make frequent allusions to such farms or gardens.
5. A few fields have recently been made by white men in the high
meadows of the Zuñi Mountains at altitudes above 8,000 feet, where
potatoes, oats, barley, and garden vegetables are raised without
irrigation; but farming at such altitudes was never tried by the
Navahoes, and they knew nothing of cultivating the crops named
above. Beside their aboriginal crops, they have for a long time raised
a little wheat. Potatoes grow wild in the Navaho country.
6. Mines.--Fortunately for the Navahoes, no mines of precious
metals have yet been discovered on their reservation; although for
years past rumors of such discoveries have from time to time been
circulated, and unwelcome prospectors have frequently invaded their
territory. For many years previous to 1892 the principal attraction
lay in the Carrizo Mountains.[2] A legend of a mine called the Lost
Adam, and of miners murdered in these mountains, had circulated
long through Colorado mining camps. Troubles between intruders and
Indians became so frequent and threatening in this region that General
McCook, then commanding the Department of Arizona, which included
the Navaho reservation, determined to make an expedition and settle,
if possible, the question of the existence of valuable mines in the
Carrizo Mountains. A commission, consisting of Gen. A. McD. McCook,
U.S.A., ex-Gov. John L. Barstow of Vermont, and Prof. J. G. Allyn of
New Mexico, was appointed. The commission entered the mountains with a
mounted escort in May, 1892, and invited prospectors who had previously
visited the region to come and show where the mineral lay. They came,
and then it appeared they had staked off various claims and given them
felicitous names such as the western miners know how to coin,--the
"Lucky Bill," the "Boggy Snoggy," etc. Specimen ores were collected
from every point where they were seen, and submitted to careful expert
examination; but all proved worthless. Some fine gold has been found
in the sands of the San Juan River,[3] within the Navaho reservation;
but it has not been found profitable to work for it.
7. Surface--Forests.--The surface of the country over which the
Navahoes are scattered varies in altitude from 4,000 feet, or less,
in the valley of the Colorado, to over 11,000 feet in the high peaks
of Tsisnadzi'ni,[52] San Mateo,[54] San Francisco,[56] and the San
Juan[58] range, which traditionally border their land. In the central
and more thickly inhabited portion the highest eminence is in the
Tuincha Mountains, 9,575 feet. The average altitude is about 6,000
feet. The country consists mostly of great plains and of plateaux
or mesas. While the lower levels, except in the bottom-lands of
the constantly flowing rivers, are destitute of trees, the mesas,
at altitudes of from 6,000 to 7,000 feet, are well covered with low
forests of piñon (Pinus edulis), red cedar (Juniperus virginianus)
and juniper (Juniperus occidentalis). At altitudes of 7,000 feet
white pine (Pinus ponderosa) is sparingly found; but at altitudes of
8,000 feet or more it grows abundantly and attains a good size. Spruce
(Pseudotsuga taxifolia) is found in shaded valleys, and on northern
hill-slopes above 7,000 feet, but it does not form an important part
of the forest. It is an essential element in certain rites. Cottonwood
(Populus monolifera and P. wislizenii), aspen (Populus tremuloides),
oak (Quercus gambellii), oak-bark juniper (Juniperus pachyphloea),
and other trees grow less abundantly.
8. Pasturage--Flocks and Herds.--While the Navaho Indians cultivate
the soil, it is evident, from what has been said, that they do not
do so to any great extent. Their crops furnish but a small part of
their subsistence. But their sterile country is fairly well adapted to
the raising of sheep and goats. These form their chief food supply,
and the former their principal source of wealth. With the money
received for their wool they purchase flour and other provisions
from the white traders, as well as various articles of luxury and
utility. They possess many ponies and ride a great deal. They raise
a few neat cattle.
9. As domesticated sheep and goats were unknown in America previous to
the discovery by Columbus, and were unknown in New Mexico previous
to the expedition of Coronado in A.D. 1540, it follows that the
Navahoes have not been shepherds for many centuries. It would appear
from their legends that it is not many years since they have become a
prosperous and wealthy people (and such they now are, for savages);
that in old days they were even poor hunters; and that they lived
largely on the seeds of wild plants and on small animals that they
caught in fall-traps. How meagrely they were dressed and equipped
the legends also tell us. (See pars. 382, 384, 391.)
POPULATION.
10. No exact census of the tribe has ever been taken, and it would not
now be an easy task to take one, because the Navahoes are scattered
so widely and over such a wild and rugged territory. Their low huts,
built in tangled cedar-woods or in regions of scattered rocks, are
often so obscurely hidden that one may ride through a cluster of
a dozen inhabited houses thinking there is not an Indian within ten
miles of him. When the Navahoes were held in captivity at Fort Sumner,
New Mexico, from 1863 to 1867, they depended for subsistence mostly
on rations supplied by the United States, and then these captives,
at least, could be accurately counted. There were in 1867 7,300 in
captivity.[298] Owing to desertions on the one hand, and additional
surrenders on the other, the numbers varied from time to time.
11. But while the majority of the tribe were prisoners of war, it
is well known that all were not captured during General Carson's
invasion in 1863, but that many still roamed at large while their
brethren were prisoners. The count of the prisoners, therefore,
does not show the strength of the tribe.
12. Perhaps the most accurate census ever taken was that of 1869. "In
November of 1869 a count was made of the tribe, in order to distribute
among them 30,000 head of sheep and 2,000 goats. Due notice was given
months before, and the tribe was present. The Indians were all put in
a large corral, and counted as they went in. A few herders, holding
the small herds that they had then bunched on the surrounding hills,
were not in the corral. The result of this count showed that there were
less than 9,000 Navahoes all told, making a fair allowance for all
who had failed to come in. At that time everything favored getting a
full count; rations were issued to them every four days; they had but
little stock, and, in addition to the issue of the sheep and goats,
there were also two years' annuities to be given out. The season of
the year was favorable, the weather fine, and they were all anxious
to get the sheep and goats and annuities."[268]
13. In 1890 a count of these Indians was made as a part of the
Eleventh Census of the United States.[297] Before the count was begun,
the writer was informed by one of the enumerators that the plan to
be employed was this: The Navaho country was to be divided into a
number of districts, and a special enumerator was to be sent to each
district at the same time to visit each hut and take the number of
each family. Whether this method was carried out, the report of the
Eleventh Census does not tell us. But this plan, while probably the
best that could be employed at the time with the means allotted, was
very imperfect and admitted of numerous sources of error, of which
two may be specified. Many huts might easily be passed unnoticed,
for reasons already given, and this would make the enumeration
too low. Many families might easily have been counted in more than
one district, for the Navaho frequently shifts his abode, and this
would make the count too high. The result of this enumeration was
to give the tribe a population of 17,204 for that year. White men,
living in the Navaho country at the time, generally considered the
estimate excessive. If the count of 1869 be approximately correct,
that of 1890 is probably not. It is not reasonable to suppose that by
natural increase alone--and no other source of increment is known--the
tribe should have nearly doubled in twenty-one years. It would require
birth-rates much higher and death-rates much lower than those commonly
found in Indian tribes to double the population in that time. The
Indian mother is not prolific.
14. The Navahoes say that during their captivity they had much sickness
and diminished in numbers; but nothing has been found in official
reports to corroborate such statements. All who have any intimate
knowledge of the Navahoes agree that they have increased rapidly
since they were restored to their ancient homes in 1869. During nearly
fifteen years that the author has had opportunity to observe them, he
has noticed no marked signs of physical degeneration among them. Their
general health and their power of resisting disease appeared about
as good in 1894 as in 1880. Consumption and scrofula, those greatest
enemies of our reservation Indians, have not yet begun to trouble
the Navahoes. The change from the rude hut to the close stone house,
which is rapidly going on among this people, is likely to affect their
health in the future, and probably not for the better. Fortunately for
them they have little fancy for stoves, but prefer open fireplaces such
as the Pueblos and Mexicans use. In the year 1888, while the writer
was absent from New Mexico, they had an epidemic of throat disease,
the precise character of which has not been ascertained. They say
that about 800 people died that winter. During the winter of 1894-95
they suffered from scarcity of food,--an unusual experience for them,
and the government had to assist them. An increased mortality ensued,
which undoubtedly would have been much greater had it not been for
the prompt action of their agent, Maj. Constant Williams, U.S.A.,
in securing supplies for them.
RACIAL AFFINITY--APPEARANCE.
15. The Navahoes are usually regarded by ethnologists as being,
by blood as well as by language, of the Dèné or Athapascan stock,
and such, probably, they are in the main. But their Origin Legend
represents them as a very mixed race, containing elements of Zuñian
and other Pueblo stocks, of Shoshonian and Yuman, and the appearance of
the people seems to corroborate the legend. There is no such thing as
a general or prevailing Navaho type. The people vary much in feature
and stature. Every variety of Indian face and form may be seen among
them,--tall men with aquiline noses and prominent features, such as we
find among the Crows and Dakotas; dwarfish men with subdued features,
such as we see among the Pueblos of New Mexico and Arizona, and every
intermediate variety.
16. The countenances of the Navahoes are, as a rule, intelligent
and expressive; some are stern and angry, some pleasant and smiling,
others calm and thoughtful; but seldom are any seen that are dull and
stupid. These characteristics are to be noted among the women as well
as among the men. The social position of the Navaho women is one of
great independence; much of the wealth of the nation belongs to them;
they are the managers of their own property, the owners of their own
children, and their freedom lends character to their physiognomies.
PORTRAITS.
17. Fig. 1 is a picture of Manuelito, who for many years was the
most influential chief among the Navahoes. Latterly he lost much
of his influence in consequence of his intemperate habits, though
he was regarded as a sage counsellor till the time of his death,
which occurred in 1893. When he was gone, an old Indian, announcing
his death to the writer, said: "We are now a people without eyes,
without ears, without a mind." Fig. 2 represents another chief of
much influence named Mariano, who also became addicted to drink in
his old age and died in 1893. Fig. 3 shows a very intelligent and
trustworthy Indian, a silversmith, known as Jake among the whites,
but called by the Navahoes Náltsos Nigéhani, or Paper-carrier, because
in his youth he was employed as a mail-carrier between Forts Wingate
and Defiance. He it was who communicated to the author version B[306]
of the Origin Legend. He practised a short medicine rite, was an
adept in singing sacred songs, and often led in song in the great
rites. His silver-work was in great demand, and he worked hard at his
trade. In 1894 he accompanied a circus through the Eastern States,
with his workshop as a side-show; but the journey proved too much for
him--he died of heart disease on his return to New Mexico. Fig. 4 is
a portrait of a Navaho woman named Tánapa, who took her hair out of
braid preparatory to standing before the camera. Fig. 5 is a woman
named Hádapa, whose smiling face is introduced as a contrast to the
stern brow of Tánapa. Figs. 6 and 7 are Navaho men whose names have not
been recorded. The expressions of their faces are in marked contrast.
CRANIA.
18. As a rule the crania of the Navahoes are brachycephalic,
and very few are dolichocephalic. The shortening seems to be due
to a flattening in the occipital region (fig. 8). The author is of
opinion that this is caused by the use of the baby-case, with a hard,
unyielding wooden back (fig. 9), in which the Navaho women carry
their infants. This flattening of the Navaho occiput has been the
subject of some controversy. It is true that the cradle is padded to
a slight extent; but the padding consists of the bark of the cliff
rose (Cowania mexicana), called by the Navaho awétsal, or baby-bed,
which forms a rather rigid pillow. True, again, when the baby is
carried on the mother's back, its head often hangs forward and does
not come in contact with the back of the cradle or the pillow; but
most of the time the child lies on its back, and its tender occiput
is subjected to deforming pressure.
LANGUAGE.
19. The language of the Navaho undoubtedly belongs in the main to the
Athapascan family. Hubert Howe Bancroft, in his "Native Races of the
Pacific States" (vol. iii. p. 583),[292] tells us that the Athapascans
or "Tinneh" are "a people whose diffusion is only equalled by that
of the Aryan or Semitic nations of the Old World. The dialects of
the Tinneh language are by no means confined within the limits of
the hyperborean division. Stretching from the northern interior of
Alaska down into Sonora and Chihuahua, we have here a linguistic line
of more than four thousand miles in length, extending diagonally over
forty-two degrees of latitude, like a great tree whose trunk is the
Rocky Mountain range, whose roots encompass the deserts of Arizona
and New Mexico, and whose branches touch the borders of Hudson Bay and
of the Arctic and Pacific Oceans." But the Origin Legend declares it
is a mixed language (par. 395), and it is but reasonable to suppose
that such a composite race cannot possess a very pure language. The
various accessions to the tribe from other stocks have probably added
many words of alien origin. What these additions are is not now known,
and will not be known until all the languages of the Southwest have
been thoroughly studied.
HOUSES.
20. The habitations of the Navahoes are usually of a very simple
character. The most common form consists of a conical frame, made
by setting up a number of sticks at an angle of about forty-five
degrees. An opening is left on one side of the cone to answer as a
doorway. The frame is covered with weeds, bark, or grass, and earth,
except at the apex, where the smoke from the fire in the centre of
the floor is allowed to escape. In the doorway an old blanket hangs,
like a curtain, in place of a door. But the opening of the door is not
a simple hiatus, as many descriptions would lead one to suppose. A
cross-piece, forming a lintel, connects the jambs at a convenient
height, and the triangular space between the lintel and the smoke-hole
is filled in as shown in fig. 10. A picture in Schoolcraft's extensive
work[327] (vol. iii. plate 17) is intended to represent a Navaho lodge;
but it appears to have been drawn by Captain Eastman from an imperfect
description. In this picture the doorway is shown as extended up and
continuous with the smoke-hole.
21. Some lodges are made of logs in a polygonal form, as shown in
fig. 11. Again they are occasionally built partly of stone, as shown
in fig. 12. In cold weather a small storm-door or portico is often
erected in front of the door (fig. 10), and an outer and an inner
curtain may be hung to more effectually keep out the wind.
22. Shelters.--Contiguous to the hut, the Navaho usually constructs
a rude shelter of branches. Here, in fair weather, the family often
cook and spend most of the day. Here, too, the women erect their
looms and weave or set out their metates and grind corn, and some
even choose to sleep here. Such a "corral" is shown in fig. 12.
23. Summer Houses.--In summer they often occupy structures more simple
than even the hut described above. Fig. 13 represents a couple of
summer houses in the Zuñi Mountains. A structure of this kind is
built in a few hours. A couple of forked sticks are set upright in
the ground; slanting poles are laid against this in the direction of
the prevailing winds, so as to form a windbreak, half wall and half
roof, and this is covered with grass, weeds, and earth. The ends may
be similarly enclosed, or may be merely covered in with evergreen
branches. One side of the house is completely open. In fig. 13 a
loom is shown set up for work in one of these rude structures, the
aboriginal appearance of which is somewhat marred by having a piece
of old canvas lying on top.
24. Medicine-lodges.--The medicine-lodges, when erected in regions
where long poles may be cut, are usually built in the form of the
ordinary hogáns (huts), though of much greater size (fig. 14). When
these large lodges are constructed at low altitudes, where only
stunted trees grow, they are built on a rude frame with walls and
roof separate, somewhat on the same plan as the lodges formerly used
by the Arickarees, Mandans, and other tribes on the Missouri, and
seeming a connecting link between the Navaho hogán and the Mandan
earth-lodge.[184]
25. Sweat-houses.--The sweat-house or sudatory is a diminutive form
of the ordinary hogán or hut as described in par. 20, except that
it has no smoke-hole (for fire is never kindled in it), neither
has it a storm-door. It is sometimes sunk partly underground and
is always thickly covered with earth. Stones are heated in a fire
outside and carried, with an extemporized tongs of sticks, into the
sudatory. Fig. 15 poorly represents one of these structures. When
ceremonially used, the frame is constructed of different materials
for different ceremonies, and the house is sometimes decorated with
dry-paintings.[82]
26. Modern Houses.--During the past ten years, a few of the more
progressive Navahoes have built themselves rectangular stone houses,
with flat roofs, glazed windows, wooden doors, and regular chimneys,
such as their neighbors, the Mexicans and Pueblo Indians, build. They
have had before them, for centuries, examples of such houses, and
they are an imitative and docile people. The reason they have not
copied at an earlier date is probably a superstitious reason. They
believe a house haunted or accursed in which a human being dies.[91]
They abandon it, never enter it again, and usually destroy it. With
such a superstition prevailing, they hesitate to build permanent
dwellings. Perhaps of late years the superstition is becoming weakened,
or they have found some mystic way of averting the supposed evil.
ARTS.
27. The arts of the Navahoes are not numerous. They make a very rude
and inartistic pottery,--vastly inferior to that of the neighboring
Pueblo tribes,--and they make but little of it. Their bows and arrows
are not equal to those of the northern Indians, and, since they have
both money and opportunity to purchase modern firearms, bows and arrows
are falling into disuse. They do not consider themselves very expert
dressers of deerskin, and purchase their best buckskins from other
tribes. The women do very little embroidery, either with beads or
porcupine-quills, and this little is unskilfully done. The legends
indicate that in former days they stole or purchased embroideries
from the Utes.
28. Basketry.--They make excellent baskets, but very few of them,
and have a very limited range of forms and patterns. In developing
their blanket-making to the highest point of Indian art, the women
of this tribe have neglected other labors. The much ruder but allied
Apaches, who know nothing of weaving woollen fabrics, make more
baskets than the Navahoes, and make them in much greater variety of
form, color, and quality. The Navahoes buy most of their baskets
and wicker water-jars from other tribes. They would possibly lose
the art of basketry altogether if they did not require certain kinds
to be used in the rites, and only women of the tribe understand the
special requirements of the rites. Figs. 16 and 17 show the patterns
of baskets almost exclusively made. These are used in ceremonies,
and are called by the author sacred baskets. A further description
of them is given in a note.[5]
29. Silver-work.--There are a few silversmiths in the tribe, whose
work, considering the rudeness of their tools and processes, is
very artistic. It is much sought after by white people, who admire
its rude beauty. Probably the art of the smith has not existed long
among the Navahoes. In a treatise entitled "Navajo Silversmiths,"[307]
the author described the art as it existed in 1881; but the work has
improved since that time with the introduction of better tools. Then
the smith built his forge on the ground and squatted to do his work;
now he builds it on an elevated frame (fig. 10), and sits on a stool
or chair to work. Fig. 18 represents silver ornaments made by Jake
in 1881.
30. Weaving.--It is in the art of weaving that the Navahoes excel all
other Indians within the borders of the United States. In durability,
fineness of finish, beauty of design, and variety of pattern, the
Navaho blanket has no equal among the works of our aborigines. The
author has written a treatise on "Navajo Weavers,"[309] in which he
describes their art as it existed some thirteen years ago. But since
that treatise was written the art has changed. It has improved in one
respect: an important new invention has been made or introduced,--a
way of weaving blankets with different designs on opposite sides. It
has deteriorated in another respect: fugitive aniline dyes, purchased
from the traders, have taken the place of the permanent native dyes
formerly used. In the finer blankets, yarn obtained from white traders
has supplanted the yarn laboriously twilled on the old distaff. Navaho
blankets are represented in figs. 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, and 12.
31. The Navahoes weave diagonal cloth and diamond-shaped diagonals,
and to do this a change is made in the mechanism of their simple
looms. They weave belts or sashes, garters and saddle-girths, and
these articles, too, require changes in the arrangement of the looms
and in the methods of weaving. Fig. 20 represents an ordinary loom,
with one set of healds. Fig. 21 represents a loom arranged for weaving
diagonal cloth with two sets of healds. Fig. 4 shows a woman wearing
a belt of native manufacture. The women depicted in figs. 5 and 21
wear dresses of Navaho cloth.
32. It is not only for gain that the Navaho woman weaves her
blanket. Having worn it for a time, until it has lost its novelty,
she may sell it for a price that scarcely pays her for the yarn. One
who possesses large herds, and is wealthy for an Indian, will weave
as assiduously as her poorest neighbor. At best, the labor brings low
wages. The work is done, to no small extent, for artistic recreation,
just as the females of our own race embroider and do "fancy work"
for mere pastime.
33. Knitting.--They knit stockings with four needles, but these
stockings are devoid of heels and toes. As the needles now used are
of wire and obtained from the whites, it might be thought that the
art of knitting was learned from our people; but knitted leggings,
made of human hair, and wooden knitting-needles, have been found in
the Navaho land, in cliff-dwellings which, there is reason to believe,
were abandoned before the arrival of the Spaniards.
INDUSTRY.
34. It cannot be said of the Navaho men, as it is often said of the
men of other Indian tribes, that they are either too proud or too lazy
to perform manual labor. They are, and apparently always have been,
willing to do any remunerative work. When the Atlantic and Pacific
Railroad was constructed near their reservation, in 1881, much of
the grading was done by Navaho laborers. The white men who worked
with them, and who had the strongest antipathy to Chinese laborers,
said that they liked the Indians because they were good comrades on the
work and kept up prices. A stalwart man is not ashamed to wash and iron
clothes for wages, which he may want only to spend in gambling. They
have been employed at Fort Wingate to dig cellars and make adobes,
and at the latter work proved themselves more expert than the more
experienced men of Zuñi.
35. Begging, which among other tribes is so often annoying to the
white man, is little practised by the Navahoes. The few who have ever
begged from the author persuaded themselves that they had some claim
on him. On the whole, they are a self-supporting people, and add to
the wealth of the community at large. But little government aid has
been given them since they were released from captivity and supplied
with stock in return for that slaughtered by our troops when their
land was invaded.
POETRY AND MUSIC.
36. For many years the most trusted account of the Navaho Indians
of New Mexico and Arizona was to be found in a letter written by
Dr. Jonathan Letherman,[303] of the army, and published in the
Smithsonian report for 1855. Dr. Letherman had lived three years
at Fort Defiance, in the heart of the Navaho country, when he wrote
this letter, and he acknowledges his indebtedness, for assistance in
preparing it, to Major Kendrick, who long commanded Fort Defiance. Both
the doctor and the major were men of unusual ability. The former
(having changed the spelling of his name to Letterman) afterwards
distinguished himself as medical director of the Army of the Potomac,
and the latter was, for many years, professor of chemistry at the
National Military Academy.
37. From this letter the following statement concerning the Navahoes
is extracted: "Of their religion little or nothing is known, as,
indeed, all inquiries tend to show that they have none." "The lack
of tradition is a source of surprise. They have no knowledge of their
origin or of the history of the tribe." "They have frequent gatherings
for dancing." "Their singing is but a succession of grunts, and is
anything but agreeable."
38. The evidence of these gentlemen, one would think, might be taken
as conclusive. Yet, fifteen years ago, when the author first found
himself among the Navahoes, he was not influenced in the least by
the authority of this letter. Previous experience with the Indians
had taught him of how little value such negative evidence might be,
and he began at once to investigate the religion, traditions, and
poetic literature, of which, he was assured, the Navahoes were devoid.
39. He had not been many weeks in New Mexico when he discovered that
the dances to which Dr. Letherman refers were religious ceremonials,
and later he found that these ceremonials might vie in allegory,
symbolism, and intricacy of ritual with the ceremonies of any people,
ancient or modern. He found, erelong, that these heathens, pronounced
godless and legendless, possessed lengthy myths and traditions--so
numerous that one can never hope to collect them all, a pantheon as
well stocked with gods and heroes as that of the ancient Greeks, and
prayers which, for length and vain repetition, might put a Pharisee
to the blush.
40. But what did the study of appalling "succession of grunts"
reveal? It revealed that besides improvised songs, in which the
Navahoes are adepts, they have knowledge of thousands of significant
songs--or poems, as they might be called--which have been composed with
care and handed down, for centuries perhaps, from teacher to pupil,
from father to son, as a precious heritage, throughout the wide Navaho
nation. They have songs of travelling, appropriate to every stage
of the journey, from the time the wanderer leaves his home until he
returns. They have farming songs, which refer to every stage of their
simple agriculture, from the first view of the planting ground in
the spring to the "harvest home." They have building songs,[6] which
celebrate every act in the structure of the hut, from "thinking about
it" to moving into it and lighting the first fire. They have songs for
hunting, for war, for gambling, in short for every important occasion
in life, from birth to death, not to speak of prenatal and post-mortem
songs. And these songs are composed according to established (often
rigid) rules, and abound in poetic figures of speech.
41. Sacred Songs.--Perhaps the most interesting of their metrical
compositions are those connected with their sacred rites,--their
religious songs. These rites are very numerous, many of them of nine
days' duration, and with each is associated a number of appropriate
songs. Sometimes, pertaining to a single rite, there are two hundred
songs or more which may not be sung at other rites.
42. The songs must be known to the priest of the rite and his
assistants in a most exact manner, for an error made in singing a song
may be fatal to the efficacy of a ceremony. In no case is an important
mistake tolerated, and in some cases the error of a single syllable
works an irreparable injury. A noteworthy instance of this rule is
a song sung at the beginning of work on the last night of the great
ceremony of the night chant. The rite is one which may cost the patron
from two hundred to three hundred dollars. It has lasted eight days
and nights, when four singers, after long and careful instruction
by the priest, come forth painted, adorned, and masked as gods to
sing this song of the atsá`lei. Several hundred people--many from
the farthest confines of the Navaho land--have come to sit up all
night and witness the public ceremonies. The song is long, and is
mostly made up of meaningless or obsolete expressions which convey
no idea to the mind of the singer, yet not a single vocable may be
omitted, mispronounced, or misplaced. A score or more of critics
who know the song by heart are listening with strained attention. If
the slightest error is made it is at once proclaimed, the fruitless
ceremony terminates abruptly, and the disappointed multitude disperses.
43. The songs all contain significant words; but these, for poetic
requirements, are often greatly distorted, and the distortions must be
kept in mind. In speaking thus, scant justice is done to the Navaho
poets. Similar distortions found in an Aryan tongue with a written
literature are spoken of as figures of orthography and etymology, and,
although there is yet no standard of spelling for the Navaho language,
we would perhaps do well to apply the same terms in speaking of the
Navaho compositions. The distortions are not always left to the whim of
the composer. They are made systematically, as a rule. If the language
were reduced to a standard spelling, we should find that the Navaho
poets have as many figures of these classes as the English poets have,
and perhaps more.
44. Some of the words, too, are archaic,--they mean nothing in modern
Navaho; but the priests assign traditional meanings to them, and this
adds to the task of memorizing. But, in addition to the significant
words, there are (as instanced above) numerous meaningless vocables
in all songs, and these must be recited with a care at least equal to
that bestowed on the rest of the composition. These meaningless sounds
are commonly introduced in the preludes and refrains of the stanzas
and in the verse endings, but they may occur anywhere in the song.
45. The preludes and refrains here referred to are found, with
rare exceptions, in every stanza and in every song. Although they
are all either totally meaningless or only partly significant,
they are the most characteristic parts of the poems, and the singer
cons the preludes over when he wishes to call to mind any particular
composition, just as we often remember a poem or song by means of the
first line. They are rarely or never quite alike in any two songs,
and great ingenuity is often displayed in giving them variety.
46. There is yet another burden laid on the memory of the singer
of sacred songs, and this is the order of their arrangement. The
songs of each ceremony are divided into groups which must follow
one another in an established order, and each song has, in the group
to which it belongs, a place that must not be changed under penalty
of divine displeasure. To sing, during the progress of a rite, the
sixth Song of the Whirling Sticks before the fifth song is sung,
would be a sacrilege as great as to chant the syllables óhohohó,
in place of éhehehé. To remember this exact order of sequence in a
set of two hundred or three hundred songs is no easy task.[322]
47. But it may be said: "Perhaps things were different with the
Navahoes in Dr. Letherman's day. May they not have learned from other
tribes, or have themselves invented all this ceremony and song since
he knew them?" The reply to this is, that it is absurd to suppose that
such an elaborate system of rites and songs could have grown up among
an illiterate people in the twenty-five years that elapsed between
Dr. Letherman's departure from the Navaho country and the author's
arrival there. Besides, the latter obtained his information from men of
advanced age--from sixty to eighty years old--who practised these rites
and sang these songs in their youth, and who in turn learned them from
men of a departed generation. The shamans who conduct these ceremonies,
tell these tales, and sing these songs are scattered widely over the
Navaho country. Men who are scarcely acquainted with one another, and
who learned from different preceptors, will sing the same sacred songs
and to exactly the same tune. All the lore of the Navaho priesthood
was undoubtedly extant in Dr. Letherman's time and for ages before.
48. Songless Women.--It is remarkable that, while the Navaho men are
such fruitful composers of song and such ardent singers, the women,
as a rule, do not sing. Among the wild hunting tribes of the North, as
the author knew them thirty years ago, the women not only had songs of
their own, but they took part in the ceremonial songs of the men. The
Pueblo Indian women of New Mexico, neighbors of the Navahoes, have
many fine songs, the song of the corn-grinders, often heard in Zuñi,
being especially wild and musical. But usually the Navaho woman is
songless. The writer tried a long time to find a woman who could sing,
and offered good pecuniary inducements before he got one. She came from
a distance of thirty miles. She knew no songs peculiar to her sex,
but her father was a medicine-man, who frequently repeated his songs
at home in order to familiarize himself with them, and she gradually
picked up several of them. She sang in a musical soprano with much
spirit, and was one of the most pleasing singers heard in the tribe.
49. Figures of Speech.--It is probable that all rhetorical figures of
speech known to our poets may be found in these simple compositions
of the Navahoes. But in many cases the allusions are to such recondite
matters of symbolism, or incidents in their myths, that they could be
made plain, if at all, only by a tedious recital. Thus it would not be
easy to make clear in a few words why, when the goddess Estsánatlehi,
in one of the songs to her honor, is spoken of as climbing a wand of
turquoise, we know the poet means to say she is ascending San Mateo
Mountain, in New Mexico, or why, when he speaks of her as climbing
a wand of haliotis shell, he is endeavoring to tell us that she is
ascending the peak of San Francisco in Arizona. Yet we may gain some
idea of the meaning by referring to the myth (par. 193).
50. But some of the metaphors and similes are not so hard to
understand. Here is a translation of the Dove Song, one of the gambling
songs sung in the game of kesitsé:--
Wos Wos picks them up (seeds),
Wos Wos picks them up,
Glossy Locks picks them up,
Red Moccasin picks them up,
Wos Wos picks them up.[273] [316]
Here Wos Wos (Wosh Wosh) is an onomatope for the dove, equivalent
to our "coo coo"; but it is used as a noun. Glossy Locks and
Red Moccasin are figurative expressions for the dove, of obvious
significance. Metaphor and synecdoche are here combined.
51. Antithesis is not an uncommon figure with the Navaho poet. Here
is an instance of it in a song belonging to the mountain chant,
one of the great nine-day ceremonies of the shamans:--
The voice that beautifies the land!
The voice above,
The voice of the thunder,
Among the dark clouds
Again and again it sounds,
The voice that beautifies the land.
The voice that beautifies the land!
The voice below,
The voice of the grasshopper,
Among the flowers and grasses
Again and again it sounds,
The voice that beautifies the land.
Here the great voice of the thunder above is contrasted with the
feeble voice of the grasshopper below, yet both are voices that make
the world beautiful.
52. Many instances of climax have been noted. One here presented is
from the mountain chant. It has but two steps to the ladder:--
Maid Who Becomes a Bear
Sought the gods and found them,
On the summits of the mountains
Sought the gods and found them,
Truly with my sacrifice
Sought the gods and found them.
Somebody doubts it, so I have heard.
Holy Young Woman
Sought the gods and found them,
On the summits of the clouds
Sought the gods and found them,
Truly with my sacrifice
Sought the gods and found them.
Somebody doubts it, so I have heard.
Maid Who Becomes a Bear (Tsiké Sas Nátlehi)[90] is an important
character in Navaho mythology. The last line in each stanza is an
instance of irony.
53. It will be seen from the instances given that they understand
the value of repetition in poetry. The refrain is a favorite form
of expression; but they know of other means of giving verbal melody
to their songs, as may be seen in the following original text of the
Bluebird (Sialia arctica) Song:--
Tsihayilkáe dóla aní,
Áyas dotli'zi biza holó,
Biza hozónigo, biza holó,
Biza holónigo hwíhe inlí
Dóla aní. Dóla aní.
To appreciate this a translation is not necessary, but it is given,
as the reader may wish to know it:--
Just at daylight Sialia calls.
The bluebird has a voice,
He has a voice, his voice melodious,
His voice melodious that flows in gladness.
Sialia calls. Sialia calls.
The regular Navaho name for the bluebird "dóli" (changed here to "dóla"
for poetic reasons) is translated Sialia, to distinguish it from the
descriptive term "áyas dotli'zi" which means literally bluebird.
54. Rhyme.--They are not ignorant of the value of rhyme in poetry,
but they more often produce this by the repetition of significant or
meaningless syllables than by selecting different words with similar
endings. Still we often find this, the more difficult means, resorted
to as in the above song of the bluebird.
55. Music.--To the casual listener it may appear that there is much
sameness in the music of their songs; but a more careful study will
reveal the fact that the variety is great. It is remarkable how, with
such rude instruments (an inverted basket for a drum, and a gourd
rattle) to accompany them, they succeed, in a series of two hundred
or more songs, in producing so many musical changes. In their sacred
songs of sequence, where four or more songs of similar import follow
one another, as is often the case, the music may be nearly alike (but
never quite alike) in all; but when the theme of the poetry changes,
the music also takes a decided change.
56. For further information on the subject of music the reader is
referred to note 272, which contains remarks by Prof. John Comfort
Fillmore, formerly of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but now of Claremont,
California. Over two years ago the writer sent a number of phonographic
records of Navaho songs to Professor Fillmore, who has diligently
studied them and has written many of them in musical notation. Some
of the musical scores are appended to the note.
TRIBAL ORGANIZATION.
57. Gentes.--The version of the Origin Legend by Tall Chanter, here
given, accounts for only thirty-eight gentes among the Navahoes;
but this informant was able to name, in all, forty-three gentes,
two of which, he said, were extinct. Lists of the Navaho gentes have
been obtained from various sources, and no single authority has been
found to give a greater number than this. But no two lists are quite
alike; they differ with regard to small or extinct gentes, and one
list may supply a name which another has omitted. There would be at
least fifty-one gentes extant and extinct in the tribe if each name so
far obtained represented a different organization. But we find in the
Legend instances of a gens having two names (pars. 386, 405, 428, 445).
58. On the other hand, it is possible that none of the lists may
be complete. Gentes derived from women of alien races, added to the
tribe since it has grown numerous and widely scattered, may exist in
one part of the Navaho country unknown to the best informed persons
in another part. Extinct gentes may be forgotten by one informant
and remembered by another.
59. The following is a list of the forty-three gentes named by Tall
Chanter:--
1. Tse`dzinki'ni, House of the Black Cliffs (pars.
378-381).
2. Tse`tláni, Bend in a Cañon (par. 382).
3. Dsi'lnaoti'lni, Encircled Mountain (par. 385).
4. Haskánhatso
(Haskanhatsódine`), Much Yucca (par. 386).
5. Nahopáni, Brown Streak; Horizontal on the
Ground (par. 387).
6. Tsinadzi'ni, Black Horizontal Forest (par. 390).
7. Tha`nezá` (Tha`nezá`ni), Among the Scattered (Hills) (par.
392).
8. Dsiltlá`ni, Base of the Mountain (par. 393).
9. Thá`paha (Thá`pahadine`), Among the Waters (par. 394 et
seq.).
10. Tsa`yiski'dni, Sage-brush Hill (par. 399).
11. Tse`zindiaí, Trap Dyke (par. 401).
12. Klógi (Klógidine`), (Name of an old pueblo) (par. 403).
13. Tó`hani, Beside the Water (par. 404).
14. Thá`tsini, Among the Red (Waters or Banks)
(par. 405).
15. Kai (Káidine`), Willows (par. 405).
16. Kinlitsí (Kinlitsídine`), Red House (of Stone) (par. 406).
17. Destsíni, Red Streak (par. 408).
18. Tlastsíni, Red Flat (par. 408).
19. Notá (Notádine`), Ute (par. 409).
20. Nakaí (Nakaídine`), White Stranger (Mexican) (par.
410).
21. To`yetlíni, Junction of the Rivers (par. 411).
22. Háltso (Háltsodine`), Yellow Bodies (par. 412).
23. To`ditsíni, Bitter Water (par. 427).
24. Maitó` (Maitó`dine`), Coyote Spring (par. 428).
25. Hasli'zni (Hasli'zdine`), Mud (par. 429).
26. To`dokónzi, Saline Water (par. 430, note 171).
27. Bitá`ni, Folded Arms (par. 431).
28. Tsinsakádni, Lone Tree (par. 441).
29. Pinbitó` (Pinbitó`dine`), Deer Spring (par. 442).
30. Tse`nahapi'lni, Overhanging Rocks (par. 445).
31. Honagá`ni, Place of Walking (pars. 447, 448).
32. Kinaá`ni, High Standing House (par. 458).
33. To`baznaáz (To`baznaázi), Two Come for Water (par. 449).
34. Nanaste'zin, Black Horizontal Stripe Aliens
(Zuñi) (par. 452).
35. Dildzéhi, (Not translated) (par. 453).
36. Ásihi (Ásihidine`), Salt (par. 454).
37. Maideski'z (Maideski'zni), Coyote Pass (Jemez) (par. 455).
38. Tse`yanató`ni (extinct), Horizontal Water under Cliffs (par.
457).
39. Tó`tsoni, Great Water (par. 459).
40. Bitáni or Dsiltáni, Brow of Mountain.
41. Tse`yikéhe
(Tse`yikéhedine`), Rocks Standing near One Another.
42. Tliziláni, Many Goats (par. 407).
43. To`tsalsitáya (extinct), Water under the Sitting Frog.
60. The following are eight names obtained from other sources, and
not mentioned by Tall Chanter:--
44. Aatsósni, Narrow Gorge.
45. Naa`í (Naa`ídine`), Monocline.
46. Yóo, Beads.
47. Ka`náni, Living Arrows.
48. Tse`tháni, Among the Rocks.
49. Lóka (Lókadine`) Reeds (Phragmites).
50. Tse`deski'zni, Rocky Pass.
51. Hoganláni, Many Huts.
61. More than one translation of a gentile name has often been noted;
but in the above lists only one translation is given,--that which the
author regards with the most favor. Often, too, different narrators
account differently for the origin of the gentile names. Some of the
translations are very liberal, and others, again, very brief; but in
the paragraphs and notes to which the reader is referred he will find
fuller explanations. The Navahoes sometimes, but not invariably, add
(as shown in the above lists) a suffix (diné`, ni, or i), signifying
people; but in the above translations, to simplify the study, the word
"people" is omitted.
62. There are reasons, which the author has set forth in a previous
essay[318] and will not now repeat, for believing that most of the
Navaho gentes were originally local exogamous groups, and not true
gentes according to Morgan's definition.[325] There is little doubt
that, in the majority of cases if not in all, the names of Navaho
gentes, which are not the names of tribes, are simply designations
of localities, even where the Legend states to the contrary; as,
for instance, when it tells us that certain gentes of the Western
immigrants were named from words that women uttered when they first
tasted of the magic fountains (pars. 427, 429, 430).
63. On the other hand, there are passages in the Legend which indicate
that a few of the Navaho gentes were once totemic, although no evidence
of clan totems is known to exist among the Navahoes at the present
time, and it is not improbable that a few of the gentile names may
be of totemic origin, although they are now accounted for in other
ways in the Origin Legend. The passage (par. 419) which tells us
that Estsánatlehi gave certain pets to the wanderers from the West,
and that these pets accompanied the people on their journey, refers
in all probability to the former use of totemic clan symbols, and
possibly to a custom of keeping live totemic animals in captivity,--a
custom prevalent among the ancient Mexicans and the modern Pueblos,
though not among the modern Navahoes. Other indications of a former
totemism may be found in the story of the Deer Spring People (par. 442,
note 195; see, also, note 173).
64. In reading the fourth chapter of the Origin Legend--"Growth of
the Navaho Nation"--one is impressed with the different degrees of
willingness, on both sides, with which new gentes are adopted into
the nation. In some instances two parties, meeting for the first time,
embrace one another and become friends at once (par. 382). The clans
from the Pacific coast--the Western immigrants, as they are here
called--learn of the existence of kindred tribes far to the east,
take a long and dangerous journey to join them, and, when their march
is done, they are received by the Navahoes at once as brethren. On
the other hand, the legend tells us of bands that camp long in the
neighborhood of the Navahoes before they become incorporated with the
latter (par. 394); of other clans descended from captives (pars. 406,
454, 455); and of others that seek refuge among the Navahoes only
to escape starvation or persecution at home (pars. 403, 452). On
the basis of their mode of adoption, the clans may be divided into
the ready and the reluctant. The cause of this is probably one of
language. Bands which we know to have been allied in language to
the Navahoes--such as those derived from the Apaches--will be found
among the ready; while bands which we know to have spoken languages
very different to the Navaho--such as those derived from the Utes,
from Zuñi, and Jemez--will be found among the reluctant. It is not
unreasonable to conclude that the same rule applies to clans of whose
original language we know nothing.
65. Phratries.--The gentes of the Navahoes are divided into a number
of groups, each of which may be called a phratry. Authorities in the
tribe differ as to the number of the phratries, and as to the gentes
that compose them. Some make but eight phratries. Captain Bourke[294]
has obtained a list of eleven, with three independent gentes. Some of
the Navahoes say there are twelve phratries, and suggest that they have
some relation to the twelve tribes who dwelt in the first world. But
the Navaho phratry seems not to be a homogeneous organization. A case
is mentioned in the Legend where a gens has changed its phratral
affinities (par. 451). Inquiry, too, has revealed that there are
sub-groups. There may be closer bonds of alliance among some gentes
in a group than there are among others in the same group. Authorities,
then, may differ without invalidating each other's testimony.
66. These groups are indicated in the Legend when it says that one
gens has become closely related or affiliated with another (pars. 385,
399, 403 et al.), or when it says that two gentes cannot intermarry
(pars. 393, 401, 406). If the Navahoes have a term equivalent to
"phratry," it has not been discovered. They have no special names
for the different phratries; they often, but not always, speak of a
phratry by the name of the most important gens in it.
67. If the Legend is to be taken as evidence, phratries have developed
among the Navahoes both by segmentation of gentes and by the addition
of new gentes from without; not by either method exclusively. But
legendary evidence is not needed to show that gentes which bear to-day
the names of alien tribes have been additions to the phratry.
68. Forbidden Degrees of Kindred.--A Navaho belongs to the gens of his
mother and takes the name of that gens. Cases have been noted where
a Navaho has been known by his gentile name and not by any other. No
man may marry one of his own gens; neither may he marry one of his
own phratry, though some exceptions seem to be made in the latter
case where the limits of the phratry are not well defined. Where this
descent in the female line exists among other tribes, it is held by
some ethnographers that the man does not regard his father or his
father's people as his relations, and may contract a marriage with
a woman of his father's gens. Such is certainly not the case among
the Navahoes. The gens and the phratry of the father are as much
forbidden kindred as those of the mother.
RELIGION.
69. Sources of Information.--That the Navahoes have a religion--an
elaborate pagan cult--has already been intimated. There is little
to be gained by asking a Navaho direct questions about this. Learned
controversialists and theologians, capable of analyzing and discussing
their faith, have not arisen among them, or, if they have, they cannot
easily communicate their philosophy to us. But the civilized scholar
has abundant material from which to study their religion, and he
must do the analyzing himself. In the great dry-paintings shown on
the floors of the medicine-lodges, during their long ceremonies,
may be seen pictures of many of the gods, with their hieratic
belongings. In the ceremonies, or so-called dances, men are masked
to represent gods. In the myths the acts and deeds of the divine
ones are described, and we learn their thoughts and feelings,--kind,
like Indians, to their kindred; usually cruel, yet often merciful and
magnanimous, to their foes. In the countless songs of the rites may
be found the poetic side of the divine characters, and in the long
prayers we may learn their potency, and discover how man hopes to
commune with them and gain their favor.
70. No Supreme God.--The religion of this people reflects their social
condition. Their government is democratic. There is no highest chief of
the tribe, and all their chiefs are men of temporary and ill-defined
authority, whose power depends largely on their personal influence,
their oratory, and their reputation for wisdom. It is difficult for
such a people to conceive of a Supreme God. Their gods, like their men,
stand much on a level of equality.
71. Sun God.--In the version of the Origin Legend here given,
the Sun God would seem to have some precedence over the others,
but in the beginning he was only one of the people; he never figures
conspicuously as a Creator, and is far from omnipotent. Other gods,
less potent or less respected, lived before the time of man, and were
powerful before the sun was made.
72. Creation.--The Legend begins with an already created world; there
is no original creation and no Creator of all. If the Navahoes have
a story of the beginning of all things, the author has not learned
it. To a god called Békotsidi[78] is given the credit of having made
all animals whose creation is not otherwise accounted for in the
myths, especially domestic animals. Some of the Indians who have
heard vaguely of our Creator are of the opinion that Békotsidi is
the God of the Americans.
73. Estsánatlehi.--But it is generally acknowledged by the Navahoes
that their most revered deity is Estsánatlehi,[95] the Woman
Who Changes (or rejuvenates herself). Much is said of her in the
legends, but something more is to be obtained by conversation with the
shamans. The name Estsánatlehi is derived by syncopation from estsán,
woman, and natéhi, to change or transform. She is so called because,
it is supposed, she never remains in one condition, but that she grows
to be an old woman, and in the course of time becomes a young girl
again, and so passes through an endless course of lives, changing
but never dying. It is probable that she is an apotheosis of Nature,
or of the changing year.
74. The deity of fruitful Nature is properly a female and a beneficent
goddess. She is properly, too, as the legends tell us, the wife of the
Sun, to whom Nature owes her fertility. Her home is said to be in the
west, probably for the reason that in the Navaho country, which lies
mostly on the Pacific slope, the rain comes usually from the west,
and from that direction, too, come the thawing breezes in the spring.
75. Yolkaí Estsán.--A divinity called Yolkaí Estsán,[96] or White
Shell Woman, created (or found, as some versions say) at the same time
as Estsánatlehi, is called the younger sister of the latter. The two
goddesses are associated in the myths, but White Shell Woman always
acts the subordinate part, and to-day is honored with a less degree
of worship than her sister. Estsánatlehi, made of an earthly jewel,
turquoise, is related to the land. Yolkaí Estsán, made of white shell
from the ocean, is related to the waters.
76. War Gods.--Next in importance to Estsánatlehi, the sacred
brethren, Nayénezgani (or Nagénezgani) and To`badzistsíni,[127]
seem to stand. The writer designates these as the War Gods, but
the Navahoes do not call them thus. According to the version of the
Origin Legend here given, one of these was the child of Estsánatlehi
and the Sun; the other the child of Yolkaí Estsán and the Water, and
this is the version most consistent in all respects. Other versions
make both the brothers children of Estsánatlehi. Some say they were
born twins. Accepting any of these versions, they would properly
be called brothers, according to the Indian system of relationship,
and such they are called in the legends. Their chief mission was to
destroy the alien gods; but they still help the warriors in battle,
and aid the sick who suffer from witchcraft. The longest chapter in the
Origin Legend is devoted to recounting their genesis and history. In
reading the chapter, it will be apparent to the comparative mythologist
that these characters have their counterparts, which need not now be
mentioned, in the myths of many races in both hemispheres. From their
mythic associations it would appear that Nayénezgani is a god of light,
with its associated heat, while To`badzistsíni is a god of darkness,
with its associated moisture; yet, apparently in contradiction to
this, the representative of the former is painted black and wears a
black mask in the ceremonies (plate IV.), while the representative
of the latter is painted red and wears a red mask (plate VII.).
77. Nayénezgani, whose name signifies Slayer of the Alien Gods,[127] is
spoken of as the elder brother in the legends and always plays the more
important part. To`badzistsíni, or Child of the Water,[127] is called
the younger brother and always appears as a subordinate character. In
the ceremonies, the masquerader who personates Nayénezgani always walks
in front, while he who personates To`badzistsíni comes behind. The two
gods are always associated in prayer and sacrifice, but here, again,
Nayénezgani takes precedence. In all the sacred songs where they are
mentioned, the superiority of Nayénezgani is indicated. Antithesis,
as has been said, is a favorite figure with the Navaho poets, and they
often employ it when speaking of these gods. The "Song of the Approach"
of the War Gods in the ceremony of klédzi hatál will serve, as well
as many other compositions, to show how they treat this subject. It
may be freely translated thus:--
He advances! He advances!
Now Slayer of the Alien Gods advances,
Above, among the mountain peaks, he advances,
In danger he advances.
He advances! He advances!
Now Child of the Water advances
Below, among the foothills, he advances,
In danger he advances.
Thus both the gods come to the aid of the supplicant; but while the
elder strides proudly on the summits of the mountains, the younger
walks humbly among the foothills.
78. Yéi.--There are a number of divinities in the Navaho pantheon
known as yéi (in compound words often pronounced ye or ge), which
is translated "god" or "genius." What distinction exists between the
yéi and other gods is not easy to determine definitely. The Zuñians
have a class of gods called by the same name, or, more correctly,
"yéyi," as Mr. Cushing pronounces it. Certain chiefs or important
personages among these gods are called by names which begin with the
syllables hastsé--as Hastséyalti[73] (Talking God), Hastséhogan[74]
(House God). It is believed that this, if spelled etymologically,
would appear as hastyé, but it is not so pronounced, Hast is a
prefix denoting age, especially venerable age. We have it in the word
hastín, which means a worthy or respected old man. Hastyé would mean a
venerable yéi or god. The yéi seem to be deities of minor importance
to those previously mentioned and to be more numerous. Thus, while
there is but one Estsánatlehi, but one Nayénezgani, and but one
To`badzistsíni there are several Hastséhogan and several Hastséyalti,
who are chiefs of the yéi. The yéi are supposed to abide in certain
localities, and in prayers in their honor the home is mentioned of
the yéi to whom appeal is specially made. A place called Tsé`natsi, or
Red Horizontal Rock, somewhere north of the San Juan River, Tse`gíhi,
another place north of the San Juan, and the White House (fig. 22),
in the Chelly Canyon, are important homes of the yéi.[265] Each of
the sacred mountains has its group of yéi. In the myths of klédzi
hatál, more than a score of places are named where yéi dwell. There
are some reasons for believing that the cult of the yéi is derived
from the Cliff-dwellers, or from the Pueblos; but there are arguments,
too, against this theory. The subject will not be further considered
here. The yéi are supposed to be married and have families. The males
are called yébaka; the females, yébaad.[200] Hastsézini,[212] the
god of fire, and Hastséoltoi,[206] the divine huntress, or goddess
of the chase, belong, as their names indicate, to the yéi; while
Gánaskidi,[207] the harvest god, and Tó`nenili[98] Water Sprinkler,
are associated with them in the legends.
79. Digíni.--Digi'n means sacred, divine, mysterious, or holy. It is
not quite synonymous with the Dakota wakán or the Hidatsa hopá. It
is not applied to the treatment of disease; it is not applied in a
general way to religious ceremonial; it has not been heard applied
to the anáye, or other things of evil: for this reason it is often
translated "holy." Digíni, derived from digi'n, means holy people,
gods, divinities. It is a name applied to the highest and lowest
divinities, including the yéi (see notes 92 and 93).
80. Alien Gods.--Such are the gods that are friendly to the human race;
but man has his enemies, too, among the mysterious powers. Chief among
the latter are the anáye,[7] the alien gods or inimical genii. These,
being analogous to the giants and ogres of European folk-lore, are
sometimes called giants in this work. They are usually represented
as creatures of great size. Many of them are described in the Origin
Legend. The worst have been slain, as the story relates; but others,
being not unmixed evils, still remain to torment man. The legend,
in accounting for their continued existence, shows the philosophic
endeavor of our race to reconcile itself to the unwelcome inevitable.
81. Water God.--The position of Tiéholtsodi,[8] the water monster,
is one of transferred allegiance. He was once the enemy of our race,
but now has become friendly to it in certain ways, though it is
probable that he is still thought to be responsible for cases of
drowning. Other gods, who were once inimical to man but are now his
friends, are mentioned in the legends (par. 354). But we are not
without evidence that the Navaho fears to offend his most beneficent
gods lest the latter may directly punish him, or at least withhold
their succor in his hour of need.
82. Devils.--Besides the alien gods, there are evil spirits haunting
the earth which men dread; these are the tsi'ndi, whose name cannot be
better translated than by calling them devils. The Navahoes frequently
speak of the tsi'ndi (Englished, chindee), and they often use the
term as an angry exclamation, just as the profane among ourselves
say, "Oh the Devil!" or "You devil!" (see pars. 257, 260), yet they
dislike to discuss its character or appearance. They believe there
is a devil associated with every corpse, and that it has something of
the appearance of a partly decayed corpse. The spirit of the dead man
goes to the lower world, which was the former home of the race, yet a
demon remains with the dead body. Other Indians believe in a similar
corpse spirit, yet the author has never known any who have such dread
as the Navahoes of human mortuary remains. (See par. 188 and note 91.)
83. Zoölatry.--The legend tells us that there is a First Man and a
First Woman (see pars. 160-165), who came into being in the fourth
world as the result of a special act of creation: but they have
not died like Adam and Eve; they still live in some form; they are
potent; they are immortal; they are divine. But it is not man only
that has his divine ancestral prototype: every animal on the face of
the earth has its also, and many, if not all, of these are objects
of worship. A share of reverence, too, in some cases, as in that
of the bear, is bestowed on their mortal descendants. In the rite
of the mountain chant[314] many of the sacrifices are sacred to the
animals of the mountains. In short, zoölatry is an important element
in Navaho worship.
84. Local Gods.--Some of the gods mentioned are also local divinities;
thus the War Gods are local divinities at To`ye'tli (par. 374), and
the yéi are local divinities at Tsé`natsi. But, in addition to these,
there are other gods of places so numerous that a complete list of
them will probably never be obtained. In the Origin Legend it is shown
that each of the sacred mountains of the Navaho land (seven in number
according to Tall Chanter) has its divine pair of indwelling guardians,
and these seem to receive more honor than any others which are gods of
places only; but the genii of other mountains and of different rocks
and canyons have their prayers and sacrifices in some of the rites.
85. Fanciful legends of places are common in all lands and among all
races, but no people are more ingenious in composing such tales than
our American Indians. The Navaho has unusual sources of inspiration in
this direction, and he fails not to profit by them. His land abounds
in wonderful geologic formations, in rocks strangely sculptured by
rain and by Nature's sand-blast, in vast volcanic peaks and fields of
lava; and it abounds also, as might be expected, in myths accounting
for these features, and in the genii which belong to the myths. A
few of these myths are incorporated in the tales told in this work,
but they are very few compared with the total of such legendary lore.
86. The strength of their belief in these local divinities may be
illustrated by the following incident: The writer once made a journey,
accompanied by two Navahoes, to Tsúskai[9] (Chusca Knoll), which is
supposed to be the home of the Tsiké Sas Nátlehi, or Maidens who Become
Bears. When the party got to the top of the ridge from which the knoll
rises, and about three hundred yards from the base of the knoll, the
Indians refused to go farther, saying they feared the divine ones who
dwelt in the knoll. The writer proceeded alone, and had much difficulty
in riding up the pathless hill, among loose rocks and fallen trees. On
the summit he found a little hollow among the rocks full of sand, and,
scraping into this, he discovered a number of hand-wrought stone and
shell beads, which had been put there as sacrifices. When he descended
from the knoll, he found the Indians awaiting him where he had left
them, and all set out together to retrace the rough mountain trail
down to Red Lake. In a little while, his horse becoming very lame, the
writer was obliged to dismount. "What has made your horse lame?" asked
the Indians. "He must have struck his leg against some of the fallen
trees when he was climbing the knoll," was the answer. "Think not
thus, foolish American," they said. "It was not the fallen trees
that wounded your horse. The digíni of the mountain have stricken
him because you went where you had no right to go. You are lucky if
nothing worse happens to you." Of course Indians had been up to the
top of the knoll, or the beads could not have been put there; but
they went only after preparatory prayer and only to deposit sacrifices.
87. Demonolatry.--There are writers who say that the Indians "worship
the Devil" and other malevolent powers; but it is not only learned
authors who speak thus. Jesus Alviso, a Mexican captive reared among
the Navahoes, said to the author in 1880: "Los Indios hacen figuras
de todos sus diablos, señor" ("The Indians make figures of all their
devils, sir"), and it was this hint which led to the discovery of
their dry-paintings. He called them devils; in this work they are
called gods. Perhaps other tribes worship personifications of evil,
but certainly the Navahoes do not. The gods who are supposed to love
and help men the most receive the greatest honor. The evil spirits are
not worshipped except, rumor says, by the witches. It would appear,
moreover, from the Origin Legend, that the worst of evil powers--the
alien gods--were long ago destroyed, and that only demons of minor
influence remain. The chief of witches, Estsán Natán, or Woman Chief,
has her home beneath the earth, in one of the lower worlds.
CEREMONIES.
88. A great number of ceremonies are practised by the Navaho
priests. Many of these are of nine days' duration; there are others
that last but a single day or a few hours. To learn one of the great
rites so as to become its hatáli (chanter, singer),[16] or priest,
is the work of many years, and no one knows more than one such rite
perfectly. The older priests know something of other rites, may assist
at them and sing songs at them, but are not competent to conduct
them. A priest of a great rite may know some of the lesser rites.
89. All the great ceremonies which the writer has witnessed among the
Navahoes are primarily for the healing of the sick; but the occasion is
always used to ask the gods for various temporal blessings, not only
for the sick person but for all,--the shaman, the relations of the
sick, and for the people in general. The invalid, for whose benefit
the rite is performed, defrays all the expenses of the ceremony,
which often amount in value to the sum of two hundred or three
hundred dollars. The Navahoes being a scattered and to some extent a
wandering people who do not build towns, they lack the organization
to have rites of a more public character, such as the village Indians
have.[184] Hence these healing ceremonies, in which the sick man and
his relations become hosts, are used as occasions for prayer for the
common weal, and as occasions in which large numbers may assemble to
witness interesting exhibitions and have the social enjoyments which
attend the gathering of a crowd.
90. Minor Ceremonies.--Among the minor ceremonies, besides those
for healing the sick, are those of planting, harvesting, building,
war, nubility, marriage, travel, and many other occasions in life. In
addition to these, there are ceremonies for special occasions, as for
bringing rain. During an unusually dry season a number of Navahoes
may subscribe together and raise a good fee for a priest to sing,
pray, sacrifice, and conduct a ceremony to bring rain.
91. Origin of Ceremonies.--The late Mr. A. M. Stephen of Arizona, who
for many years studied the rites and myths of both Mokis and Navahoes,
has often called the attention of the writer to the many resemblances
between the cults of these two tribes, who differ so much in other
respects, and he has suggested that the Navahoes may have borrowed
from the Mokis. This may be the case, for the Navahoes have, probably,
people of Moki descent among them, and they have had intercourse with
the Mokis, both peaceful and warlike, for a long time. But, throughout
all the Navaho legends so far collected, it is strongly indicated
that the Navaho cultus, where borrowed, came from cliff-dwellers, from
inhabitants of pueblos now deserted, and from wild tribes. The Mokis
figure but little in the Navaho rite-myths. The author is inclined
to believe that the Navahoes have not borrowed much directly from
the Mokis, but that both tribes have taken inspiration from common
sources. In radical points of symbolism, such as the sacred colors
and the ceremonial circuit, the Navaho and Moki rites differ widely.
92. Elements of Ceremonies.--In the ceremonies there are numerous
minor acts of such diverse character that they cannot be classified
and are not described in this work. They can be discussed better
in connection with the rites to which they belong. There are other
acts of minor importance, such as the ceremonial bath[10] [82]
and the administration of pollen,[11] which are considered in the
notes. But there are six elements of the worship which constitute
such important parts in all the great rites that brief descriptions
of them are presented in this introduction. These six are: Sacrifice,
painting, masquerade, dance, prayer, and song. The last has been
already discussed (par. 41 et seq.).
93. Sacrifices.--The sacrifices of the Navahoes are innocent and
bloodless. Their kindly gods are easily propitiated. Like their
worshippers, they are all fond of tobacco, and they prize a few
feathers and beads. Even the chief war god demands no smoking hearts
or blood of captives; a little painted cigarette is all he asks in
return for his favors. An extensive chapter might be written about
the sacrificial cigarettes and sticks which the Navahoes call ketán
(Englished, kethawn), but a short description of them must suffice
here. (See note 12.)
94. Cigarettes.--The cigarettes are usually made of the hollow
joints of the common reed (Phragmites communis), but other plants
are sometimes used. To form a cigarette, a piece of the reed is
cut off with a stone knife, the node being excluded; it is rubbed
with sandstone, so that the paint may adhere; it is painted with
some symbolical device; a wad of feathers is inserted into it to
keep the tobacco from falling out; it is filled with some kind of
native tobacco,[223] usually the Nicotiana attenuata, or dsi'lnato
of the Navahoes; it is sealed with moistened pollen and symbolically
lighted with a rock crystal, which is held up to the sky and touched
to the tip of the cigarette. After it has been prayed over it is
taken out and left for--i.e., sacrificed to--the god for whom it is
intended. The god, they say, recognizes it by its symbolic painting
and by the place where it is sacrificed. He picks it up, smells and
examines it. If he is satisfied that it is properly made and that it
is for him, he takes it and bestows on the supplicant the favors asked.
95. Sacrificial Sticks.--Besides the cigarettes, small sticks are
used as sacrifices to the gods. These are made from a variety of
woods,--different gods and different occasions requiring woods of
different sorts,--and they are painted in a variety of ways for the
same reasons. They are usually made in pairs, one for the male and
the other for the female. Celibacy is not practised by the Navaho
gods; every deity has its mate, and she must be propitiated as well
as he. The female is distinguished in some way from the male, and
this is usually done by cutting a small facet at the tip end of the
female stick (see fig. 23), to represent the square mask worn by one
who masquerades as a goddess in the ceremonies. He who appears as a
god wears a round cap-like mask (fig. 27), and the round cut end of
the stick sufficiently represents this.
96. Often the feathers of different kinds of birds are sacrificed
with the kethawns, either attached to the latter or separate; also
beads of stone or shell and various kinds of powdered vegetable and
mineral substances, including pollen,[11] which is the most sacred
substance employed by the Navaho priests.
97. Disposal of Kethawns.--The different ways in which kethawns are
deposited or sacrificed are as numerous as are their forms, materials,
and decorations, and each way has its special symbolism. Some are
laid in the branches of a tree, others among rocks, others at the
base of a cliff, others, again, at the root of a tree, and others
on level ground; a few are thrown away almost at random, but most of
them are laid down with care and with rigorous ceremonial form. All
that are laid with care are placed with their tips away from the
lodge, and each is destined to go toward some particular point of
the compass. When the bearer of the sacrifice leaves the lodge, he
proceeds in the direction of the place selected for the sacrifice;
when he has deposited it he turns to the right and takes a sunwise
direction in returning. He does not cross his outgoing trail; he must
not walk through an ant-hill; he must run both going and coming.[12]
98. Ceremonial Pictures.--The pictures accompanying the Navaho rites
are among the most transitory in the history of art. In previous
essays the author has called them dry-paintings. Similar works have
been observed among other tribes, both nomadic and sedentary, and the
observers have designated them as "sand-paintings," "sand-altars,"
etc. They are drawn in all the great rites, and even in some of
the lesser rites--those of only one day's duration--small but
handsome dry-paintings are sometimes made. They vary in size from
four to twelve feet in diameter. Sometimes the fire in the centre
of the medicine-lodge must be removed in order to accommodate
them. The groundwork is sand, which is conveyed in blankets into
the medicine-lodge, and spread out over the floor to the depth of
about three inches. It is smoothed with the broad oaken battens used
in weaving.
99. Before the sand is brought in, the pigments are ground to powder
and put on broad pieces of pine bark, which serve as trays--or
palettes, shall we say? The pigments are five in number,--white,
red, yellow, black, and gray. The white, red, and yellow are made
of sandstone. The black is made of powdered charcoal, with which a
little sandstone is mixed to facilitate the grinding and give weight
to the powder. The gray, made of black and white mixed in suitable
proportions, is intended to represent blue, is called blue by the
Navahoes, and, combined with the other colors, has the effect of blue
in the paintings. It will be spoken of as blue in the subsequent
descriptions. The Navahoes use indigo and a native bluish mineral
pigment to paint masks, kethawns, and other small objects; but for
the dry-paintings such a large quantity is needed that these would
be too expensive. To apply the colored powder, a pinch of it is taken
up between the thumb and first two fingers and allowed to fall slowly
on the sand, while the thumb is moved over the fingers.
100. To paint one of these large pictures may require the labor of
several men--a dozen sometimes--working from early morning till late
in the afternoon. The picture must be finished before dark, for it is
impracticable to work on it with such artificial lights as the Indians
can command. While the work is in progress the priest who conducts the
ceremonies does little more than direct and criticise. The operators
have received a certain initiation. They have seen the picture painted
before and are familiar with its details. If an error is made the
faulty part is not erased; sand is spread on it to obliterate it,
and the corrected drawing is made on the new deposit of sand. The
pictures are drawn according to exact and established rules. Some
parts are measured by palms and spans, and not a line of the sacred
designs may be varied in them. In drawing straight lines the colored
powder is poured over a tightened cord. But in a few cases the artist
is allowed to indulge his fancy, thus, in drawing the embroidered
pouches which the gods wear suspended at the waist (plate I.), the
limner may, within certain limits, give his god as handsome a pouch
as he wishes and embroider it to suit his notion. The naked forms
of the mythical characters are drawn first and then the clothing and
ornaments are laid on.
101. When the picture is finished a number of ceremonies (differing
somewhat in different rites) are performed over it. Pollen or
corn-meal may be placed on certain parts of the sacred figures,
and one of these substances may be scattered over it. Water or
medicinal infusions may be applied to it. At length the patient is
brought in and placed sitting on the picture. Moistening his palms,
the shaman or an assistant takes the colored dust from various parts
of the divine figures and applies it to similar parts of the subject's
body. Medicine is then usually administered in four draughts. When the
patient leaves, others in the lodge who are ill, or fancy themselves
ill, take dust on their palms from the picture and apply it to their
own persons. He who has headache takes dust from the head in the
picture and applies it to his own head. He who has sore feet takes
dust from the pictured feet. When all are done the picture is badly
marred; it is then totally obliterated,--the method and ceremony of
obliteration differing in different rites,--and the sand on which
it was drawn is taken out of the lodge and thrown away. The floor
on the lodge is swept, and the uninitiated, entering a moment later,
has no evidence of what has taken place.
102. Plate I. shows pictures of five different gods as they appear
separately in the dry-paintings. Figure 29 represents, in black, a
complete painting (the original of which was done in five different
colors) from the rite of the klédzi hatál, or the night chant. It
will be observed that some of the gods or yéi of plate I. are to be
seen in fig. 29.
103. The medicine-men declare that these pictures have been transmitted
from teacher to pupil, unchanged in all the years since they were
revealed to the prophets of the rites. There are good reasons for
believing that this is not strictly true: the majority of the great
ceremonies may be performed only during the coldest part of the
year,--the months when the snakes are dormant. No permanent copies
of the pictures were ever preserved until the author painted them;
they were carried from season to season in the memories of men,
and there was no final authority in the tribe to settle questions
of correctness. But it is probable that changes, if they occurred,
were unintentional and wrought slowly. After the writer made copies
of these pictures, and it became known to the medicine-men that he
had copies in his possession, it was not uncommon for the shamans,
pending the performance of a ceremony, to bring young men who were
to assist in the lodge, ask to see the paintings, and lecture on them
to their pupils, pointing out the various important points, and thus,
no doubt, saving mistakes and corrections in the medicine-lodge. The
water-color copies were always (as the shamans knew) kept hidden at
the forbidden season, and never shown to the uninitiated of the tribe.
104. Masquerade.--In the rites, men appear representing gods or other
mythic characters. Sometimes such representations are effected by
means of paint and equipment only, as in the case of the akáninili, or
messenger of the mountain chant,[314] who is dressed to represent the
prophet Dsi'lyi Neyáni as he appeared after the Butterfly Goddess had
transformed him; but on other occasions masks are added to the dress,
as in the rites of the night chant. In this there are twenty-one
masks,[267] made of sacred buckskin,[13] for representatives of the
gods to wear, besides a mask of yucca leaves[14] trimmed with spruce
twigs (fig. 26), which the patient wears on one occasion. The buckskin
masks, without plumes or collars, are kept in a sack by the shaman,
and he carries them on horseback to the place where the rites are
to be performed; there they are freshly painted, and the collars and
plumes are added just before they are to be used in the ceremony.
105. Plates IV. and VII. show the masks as they are actually worn,
and exhibit men as they are dressed and painted to represent the War
Gods. In plate I. we get representations of these masks as they are
depicted in the dry-paintings. Fig. 27 shows the mask of Hastséyalti,
the Talking God, as it appears when all is ready for the dance, with
plume and collar of fresh spruce twigs applied. Fig. 28 depicts the
mask of a yébaad, or female yéi. The female masks cover only the face,
leaving the hair free. The male masks (fig. 27) cover the entire head,
concealing the hair.
106. When a man is dressed in his godly costume he does not speak;
he only makes motions and utters a peculiar cry,--each god has his own
special cry,--and he may perform acts on the patient with his special
weapon or talisman. The masquerader, they say, is, for the time being,
no longer a Navaho, but a god, and a prayer to him is a prayer to
a god. When he enters the lodge and sits down before the sick man,
the latter hands him his sacrifice and prays to him devoutly, well
knowing that it may be his own uncle or cousin, disguised in the
panoply of divinity, who receives the sacrifice.
107. Dance.--It has been customary with travellers to speak of Indian
ceremonials as dances. This is chiefly for the reason that the dance
most attracts the attention of white men, and the other portions
of the work are likely to pass unheeded. Dancing is rarely the most
important element of an Indian ceremonial, and among the Navahoes it is
always a minor element. In some of the lesser rites it does not occur
at all. In the nine days' ceremony of the mountain chant it occurs
only on the last night, and then forms but a part of the show,--rude
dramatic performances and feats of legerdemain (see fig. 30) occupying
about an equal time until the entertainment ends, soon after dawn. In
the nine days' ceremony of the night chant, dancing as a part of the
ceremony is confined to the last night, although undress rehearsals
of the dance take place after sunset for a few days before.
108. These dances of the Navaho, although accompanied with religious
symbolism, and performed often by men wearing sacred costumes,
are undoubtedly intended largely to entertain the spectators. While
but a few people may be present during the first eight or nine days
of a great ceremony, a large crowd always gathers to witness the
performances of the last night, and many people stay up all night
to do this. On the last night of the mountain chant the dances
are picturesque and various. Many of them are borrowed from other
rites. They have been described by the author in a previous work. On
the last night of the night chant the dance and song vary but little,
and to the ordinary observer may seem not to vary at all. Yet the
spectators who come to the mountain chant are not more wakeful and
watchful than those who come to the night chant. The dancing is always
rhythmical and well-timed. Figures are often introduced like those
of our quadrilles; but no round dances, like our waltz or polka,
have been observed--the rough ground is not suited for such. The
dancers and the drummers practise long in private before coming to
the public exhibition.
109. Prayer.--In a paper entitled "The Prayer of a Navaho Shaman,"[315]
the author has published a long composition, called a prayer by the
man from whom he received it, which is a simple narrative and does
not contain a word of supplication. This is the only prayer of such
character obtained from a Navaho. Many other long prayers have been
recorded, all of which are formed on a common plan. The name of a god
is mentioned, and some flattering attributes are given to him. If
it is a god such as Hastséyalti, of which there are more than one
of the same name, his residence is mentioned. He is informed that
sacrifices have been prepared for him. He is asked to remove the
spell of disease. Immediately he is assured that it is removed. Then
he is asked to bestow various blessings on the supplicant and all his
kindred and people. The prayer is given out, one sentence at a time, by
the shaman, and the patient repeats it after him, sentence by sentence.
110. These prayers, repeated by two voices, sound much like litanies,
and all end with an expression (hozóna hastlé) analogous to the amen
of Christian prayers, four times repeated; yet the Navaho prayers
show in their spirit no indication of the influence of Christian
teaching. They are purely pagan compositions. The only evidence of any
modern influence they present is the occasional inclusion of a request
for increase of wealth in the shape of horses and sheep. A typical
Navaho prayer from the rites of klédzi hatál is given in note 288.
111. Besides these long prayers, repeated by two persons, the shamans
have many monologue prayers; there are prayers silent and vocal,
formulated and extempore, used by both priest and layman; and there
are short devotional sayings which may be classed as benedictions
and ejaculations.
THE LEGENDS.
112. Of the many lengthy myths and legends obtained by the author
from the Navahoes, three have been selected for publication in this
volume. The first is the Origin Legend of the tribe; the other two
are incomplete rite-myths, i.e., rite-myths told by men who were not
priests of the associated rites.
113. Versions.--As might be expected among an unlettered people,
thinly scattered over a wide territory, the legends of the Navahoes
have many variants. No two men will tell the same tale exactly alike,
and each story-teller will probably maintain that his own version is
the only reliable one. Variations of the Origin Legend, which is the
property of the tribe at large, and, unlike the rite-myths, is not
in the keeping of any especial order or priesthood, are particularly
numerous; but even in the rite-myths, as told by priests of the
rites, versions may be found. Notwithstanding these varieties, the
tale-tellers agree substantially in the more important matters. Of
the two rite-myths given in this work, only one version of each was
procured; but several versions of the Origin Legend, complete or
partial, were recorded. The one here published was selected as being
the most complete, extensive, and consistent of all. Other versions
often supplement it. The narrators sometimes acknowledged that they
had forgotten episodes which others had remembered and detailed. The
learned old shaman, Hatáli Nez, forgot to tell how the stars were
made; while a younger and less erudite person, Jake the silversmith,
related a fair version of this episode, which came also from other
sources to the writer. Jake's version of the Legend, which has
already been published, is designated in the notes as Version B;[306]
that of old Torlino, a priest of the hozóni hatál, is designated
as Version A. Other versions are alluded to, but not designated by
letter or number. Some fragmentary versions by other authors[291]
[300] have been published, but these are not quoted in the notes.
114. Origin Legend.--The Origin Legend divides itself into four very
distinct parts or chapters, which are named: I. The Story of the
Emergence; II. Early Events in the Fifth World; III. The War Gods;
IV. The Growth of the Navaho Nation. The name of the first part is
that given to it by the Navaho story-tellers. The names of the other
parts are supplied by the author. The first part, The Story of the
Emergence, ends when it is related that the people came out from the
fourth world to the surface of this, the fifth world.[15]
115. Rite-myths.--By a rite-myth is meant a myth which accounts
for the work of a ceremony, for its origin, for its introduction
among the Navahoes, or for all these things combined. The Navahoes
celebrate long and costly ceremonies, many of which are of nine days'
duration. Each ceremony has connected with it one or more myths,
or legends which may not be altogether mythical.
116. When a rite-myth is told by a priest of the rite to which the
myth belongs, minute and often tedious particulars concerning the
rite, its work, symbolism, and sacrifices are introduced into the
tale. When such a myth is told by one who is not a priest of the rite
(although he may be a priest of some other rite), these esoteric parts
are altogether omitted, or only briefly alluded to. To the latter
class belong the two rite-myths given in this book. They are here
published because they are among the most interesting and ingenious
that have been collected among the Navahoes. The attention of the
reader is directed, in the notes, to a few places where esoteric or
ceremonial matters are thought to be referred to. Tales containing
ceremonial allusions in full are reserved for future publication,
along with a description of the rites to which they pertain, as such
is considered the more appropriate place for their publication.
117. In one version of the Origin Legend (Version A) a portion of
this story is used as a rite-myth. It is embellished with prayers
and songs, and interspersed with allusions to ceremonial work which
the version of Hatáli Nez does not contain; but in other respects it
is inferior to the latter. Thus embellished it contributes a share
to the myth of the ceremony of hozóni hatál, or chant of terrestrial
beauty. Even in the version of Hatáli Nez, the songs seem introduced
from some rite-myth, and scarcely to belong to the original story.
118. Whenever an opportunity has occurred of studying a rite with its
associated myth, it has been found that the myth never explains all
the symbolism of the rite, although it may account for all the more
important acts. A primitive and underlying symbolism, which probably
existed previous to the establishment of the rite, remains unexplained
by the myth, as though its existence were taken as a matter of course,
and required no explanation. Some explanation of this foundation
symbolism may be found in the Origin Legend, or in other early legends
of the tribe; but something remains which even these do not explain.
119. Myths of the Whirling Logs.--In the ceremony of klédzi hatál there
is drawn upon the floor of the medicine-lodge a large dry-painting
which is very imperfectly represented in fig. 29. The original was
wrought in five colors and was about 12 feet in diameter. It depicts a
vision of the prophet Bélahatini, who established the rites of klédzi
hatál. On one occasion, says the tale, he was led, in the San Juan
valley, to a lake on the borders of which grew four stalks of sacred
corn, each of a different color. In the centre of the lake lay two
logs crossing one another at right angles. Near both ends of each log
sat a pair of yéi, or genii, male and female, making eight in all. On
the shore of the lake stood four more yéi, three of whom had staves,
by means of which they kept the crossed logs away from the shore
and whirling in the waters. The rainbow goddess, the anthropomorphic
rainbow of the Navahoes, surrounded the lake. All the circumstances
of this strange scene are duly symbolized in the painting.
120. It was in his efforts to get a further explanation of
this extraordinary picture that the author came upon the story
of Nati'nesthani. It is not the story that explains the picture,
although certain passages in it (pars. 481, 488) might seem to explain
it. The story to which the picture belongs is that of Bélahatini,
which may some day be published in connection with a description
of the ceremony of klédzi hatál, or the night chant. The prophet
Bélahatini, according to the tale, floated down the San Juan River
in a hollow log, until he came to the whirling lake, where he saw the
vision depicted in the dry-painting. But when the shaman had finished
telling the story of Bélahatini he said: "There is another story of
a man who floated down the San Juan River in a hollow log. It is a
story belonging to a different rite, the atsósidze hatál. Would you
like to hear it?" It was thus that the story of Nati'nesthani came
to be told. The narrator of the two tales was a priest of the klédzi
hatál, but not of the atsósidze hatál; hence one tale is crowded with
allusions to acts in the ceremony, while the other, as here published,
has few such allusions.
121. The Great Shell of Kintyél.--The story of the Great Shell of
Kintyél, as here given, is a fragment of a rite-myth,--the myth
of the yóidze hatál, or yói hatál[250] (bead chant), a nine days'
healing ceremony. It conveys a moral often found in Navaho tales,
which is, that we must not despise the poor and humble. They may be
favored by the gods and prove themselves, to-morrow, more potent than
those who yesterday despised and mocked them. It also signalizes the
triumph of a poor Navaho over wealthy Pueblos.
122. Translation of Legends.--In rendering the Navaho tales into
English, the author has not confined himself to a close literal
translation. Such translation would often be difficult to understand,
and, more often still, be uninteresting reading. He has believed it to
be his duty to make a readable translation, giving the spirit of the
original rather than the exact words. The tales were told in fluent
Navaho, easy of comprehension, and of such literary perfection as to
hold the hearer's attention. They should be translated into English
of a similar character, even if words have to be added to make the
sense clear. Such privileges are taken by the translators of the Bible
and of the classic authors. Still the writer has taken pains never to
exceed the metaphor or descriptive force of the original, and never
to add a single thought of his own. If he has erred in rendering the
spirit of the savage authors, it has been by diminishing rather than
by exaggerating. He has erred on the side of safety. He has endeavored
to "tune the sitar" rather low than high.15a Again, the original was
often embellished with pantomime and vocal modulation which expressed
more than the mere words, and which the writer is unable to represent,
and it contained extemporized onomatopes which no letters can express.
123. Texts.--The men who narrated to the author the tales contained
in this book were not men of unlimited leisure, as many suppose the
Indians to be; they were popular shamans, or medicine-men, who had
numerous engagements to conduct ceremonies during the summer months,
and it was only during the winter months that they permitted themselves
to tell the tales. It was usually with difficulty that arrangements
were made with one of these shamans to devote a period of two or
three weeks to the service of the author. Then, too, they had farms
and stock which demanded their care. Neither was the author a man of
unbounded leisure. Rarely could he devote more than two or three hours
out of twenty-four to the work of ethnography. It has happened more
than once that he has been obliged to break an engagement made with a
shaman, at a cost of considerable trouble and money, in order to go
on detached service away from his proper station. For these reasons
it was not practicable to record the original Indian texts of all the
stories. The author had to choose between copious texts and copious
tales. He chose the latter. But some texts have been recorded. In
order that the reader may judge how closely the liberal translation
here offered follows the original, the Navaho text of the opening
passages--ten paragraphs--of the Origin Legend, with interlinear
translations, are given in the notes. The texts of songs, prayers,
and interesting passages may also be found in the notes.
ALPHABET USED.
124. Ever since the present alphabet of the Bureau of Ethnology was
established (in 1880), it has been the author's custom to use it in
spelling Indian words. But heretofore he has written mostly for the
scientific world, for ethnologists and philologists who either were
familiar with the alphabet, or were willing to constantly refer to it
in reading. As the present work is designed to reach a wider circle
of readers, the propriety of using the alphabet of the Bureau becomes
doubtful. Many of the author's friends have begged him not to use it
in this collection of tales, believing that its unusual characters
would embarrass the average reader and detract from the interest of
the work. Another system has, therefore, been devised, according to
which consonants printed in Roman letters have the ordinary English
sounds, while those printed in Italics have sounds analogous to the
English but not identical with them. The vowels, when unmarked, have
the continental sounds. When these sounds are modified, diacritical
marks are added in accordance with the latest edition of Webster's
Dictionary. The sound of English a in what is indicated by a. The
only diphthong is ai, which has the sound of English i in pine. One
mark not employed in Webster's orthoepy is used in this book, viz.,
the inverted comma after a vowel to show that it is aspirated.
125. According to this arrangement, the casual reader will find the
Indian words easily legible. If he takes the trouble to consult this
and the preceding paragraph he may pronounce the words almost exactly
as a Navaho would; if not he may, at least, pronounce them in a way
that few Navahoes would fail to comprehend. At all events, to the
majority of readers, a perfect pronunciation of the Indian words is
immaterial. Many white men, living within the borders of the Navaho
land, converse with these Indians in a jargon or debased language which
might be spelled in English characters with their ordinary English
values. For example, let us take the word for hut or house. This is
properly pronounced hogán; but the whites in New Mexico generally
call it hogán, and the Navahoes never fail to understand the word
as thus pronounced. In this form it is an adopted English word in
the Southwest. The following are the values of the consonants when
printed in Italics:--
d has the sound of English th in this.
g has a sound unknown in English, gh imperfectly represents it. It
is the g of the Dakota, or the Arabic ghain.
h has the sound of German ch in machen.
l is an aspirated l unknown in English, hl imperfectly represents
it. It is formed with the side rather than with the tip of the tongue.
s has the sound of English sh in shot.
t has the sound of English th in thing.
z has the sound of English z in azure.
c, j, q, r, and x are not used. The sound of English ch in church is
represented by ts; that of English j in jug, by dz.
SPELLING OF NAVAHO.
126. In the many papers about the Navahoes which the author has
previously written he has spelled the name of the tribe according to
the Spanish system "Navajo," with the plural also in Spanish form,
"Navajos." In the present work he spells it, according to English
orthography, "Navaho," with an English plural, "Navahoes," and he thus
intends to spell it in the future. This he does because the Spanish
spelling is misleading to the majority of English readers. It may
properly be asked why he should adopt an English orthography for
Navaho, a name of Spanish origin, while he retains the misleading
Spanish orthography of San Juan. It is not sufficient, in reply,
to say that the territory of the Navaho has been in the possession
of the United States since 1848, and that we have thus acquired
the right to spell this name in our own way; for a thousand other
names of Spanish origin have marked our map as long, which we never
ventured to change, either in spelling or pronunciation. Perhaps the
best defence to be made of our course is that the name Navaho exists
nowhere but within our borders. If we change the spelling here, we
do not conflict with the spelling elsewhere. But there are scores of
San Juans in Spanish America. We could not change the spelling of our
San Juan without confusion. It were better that we should follow the
example of Lord Byron and pronounce it Jew'an; but this the people of
the Southwest will probably never do. They will speak of the stream
as the "San Won" or the "San Whon" for all time. Furthermore, the
English spelling of Navaho is not a new thing with the writer. Many
have already adopted it.
NOTES.
126. In preparing the notes the author has usually limited himself
to such matters as he believes he only can explain, or such as, at
least, he can explain better than any one else. In a few cases he has
given information on subjects not generally known and not easily to
be investigated. The temptation to wander into the seductive paths
of comparative mythology, and to speculate on the more recondite
significance of the myths, had to be resisted if the work were to be
kept within the limits of one volume. Resemblances between the tales
of the Navahoes and those of other peoples, civilized and savage,
ancient and modern, are numerous and marked; but space devoted to
them would be lost to more important subjects. Again, many of the
readers of this book may be prepared, better than the author, to note
these resemblances.
SHAMANS.[16]
127. So much has been said against the medicine-men of the Indians
by various writers, who accuse them of being reactionaries,
mischief-makers, and arrant deceivers, that the writer feels
constrained to give some testimony in their favor,--in favor, at
least, of those he has met among the Navahoes; he will not speak now
for other tribes.
128. There are, among the Navahoes, charlatans and cheats who treat
disease; men who pretend to suck disease out of the patient and then
draw from their own mouths pebbles, pieces of charcoal, or bodies
of insects, claiming that these are the disease which they have
extracted. But the priests of the great rites are not to be classed
with such. All of these with whom the writer is acquainted are above
such trickery. They perform their ceremonies in the firm conviction
that they are invoking divine aid, and their calling lends dignity
to their character. They interfere little with the political affairs
of the tribe.
129. Smiling Chanter.--It is a source of great regret that a better
likeness cannot be presented of Hatáli Natlói than that shown in
fig. 31. It is reproduced from a painting which was copied from a
dim kodak photograph. His name may be translated Smiling Chanter,
or Smiling Doctor; an angry or unpleasant expression is never seen on
his face. He is also called Hatáli Pahozóni, which may be translated
Happy or Good-natured Chanter. He is a priest of the klédzi hatál,
or night chant. He would be considered a man of high character in any
community. He is dignified, courteous, kind, honest, truthful, and
self-respecting. But his dignity is not of the pompous kind. He has
a keen sense of humor, makes an excellent joke, and is a good mimic;
but, for all his fun, he is neither vulgar nor unkind. He never begged
from the author, and never made a bargain with him in advance for
his services, or named a price for them when he was done. He always
took the greatest pains to explain everything, and, after the writer
had been duly initiated into the mysteries of his order, he withheld
nothing. To him we are indebted for the story of Nati'nesthani.
130. Tall Chanter.--Figure 32 represents an aged priest named Hatáli
Nez, or Tall Chanter. He was the first who could be persuaded to
explain to the author the ceremonies or relate the rite-myths; but when
he set the example, others were found to follow. He also is a priest
of the night chant. Of late years he has become unpopular as a shaman,
owing to an increasing irritability of temper; but he exhibits no envy
of his more popular rivals. He perhaps has a better knowledge of the
legends than any other man in the tribe. Before he would confide any
of his secrets to the author he said: "The chanters among the Navahoes
are all brothers. If you would learn our secrets you must be one of
us. You must forever be a brother to me. Do you promise this?" He has
ever since addressed the author as Sitsi'li, "My younger brother,"
and has in turn been called Sinái, "My elder brother."
131. Ethics.--Among themselves, these men have a code of ethics which
is, in general, more honestly upheld than the code of our own medical
profession. They exhibit no jealousy of one another. They boast
not of the excellence of the particular rite they practise. They
assist and counsel one another. If a medicine-man, in performing
a rite, finds that his supply of some sacred article is exhausted,
he sends to the nearest medicine-man for it. If the latter has it,
he is obliged to give, and is not allowed to receive payment in return.
132. Torlino.--They are as willing as any other Indians to learn the
white man's philosophy. Old Torlino, a priest of hozóni hatál, sent a
son to school at Carlisle, and when the young man returned he no doubt
imparted to his father much that he had learned there. The writer sent
for the old man to get from him the myth of hozóni hatál. Torlino
began: "I know the white men say the world is round, and that it
floats in the air. My tale says the world is flat, and that there
are five worlds, one above another. You will not believe my tale,
then, and perhaps you do not want to hear it." Being assured that
the tale was earnestly desired, despite of all white men's theories,
he proceeded. "I shall tell you the truth, then. I shall tell you
all that I heard from the old men who taught me, as well as I can now
remember. Why should I lie to you?" And then he made the interesting
asseveration which is here literally translated: "I am ashamed before
the earth; I am ashamed before the heavens; I am ashamed before the
dawn; I am ashamed before the evening twilight; I am ashamed before
the blue sky; I am ashamed before the darkness; I am ashamed before
the sun; I am ashamed before that standing within me which speaks with
me (my conscience!).[274] Some of these things are always looking at
me. I am never out of sight. Therefore I must tell the truth. That
is why I always tell the truth. I hold my word tight to my breast."
133. Medical Practice.--Often have the shamans come to the author for
treatment for themselves and their friends, and they never made any
secret of this, but asked for medicine in the presence of the laity of
their own tribe. They do not pretend to deal in panaceas. On the other
hand, in cases where the author has failed to give prompt relief to a
sick Indian, they have come in all sincerity and politeness and said,
"I know a remedy for that difficulty. Will you let me try it?" They do
not confine themselves to the practice of their shamanistic rites. They
use various plants in the treatment of disease, and these, in simple,
acute cases, they administer without prayer, sacrifice, or incantation.
A LAST WORD (TO POETS AND OTHERS).
134. It is possible that poets, novelists, travellers, and compilers
will search this humble volume and cull from it facts and fancies,
which, clothed in fairer diction, may add interest to their pages. The
author does not ask that such writers shall acknowledge the source of
their inspiration. This is more than he has a right to expect. Our
greatest poets have borrowed from sources as obscure and never
named their creditors. The author has often, ere now, experienced the
pleasure of seeing his thoughts and discoveries blazoned in print over
other names. But he ventures to make a few requests of the literary
borrower. He begs that the latter will not garble or distort what is
here written,--that he will not put alien thoughts into the minds of
these pagan heroes; that he will not arm them with the weapons nor
clothe them in the habiliments of an alien race; that he will not
make them act incongruous parts.
135. Stephen Powers, in his "Tribes of California"[326] (page 38),
gives, in simple and direct language, the story of how fire came to the
Karok nation. A few years after he wrote, some one worked his story
into a "poem," which appeared, most artistically illustrated, in one
of our leading magazines. In this poem the Coyote, in a quandary,
is represented as "stroking his goatee." Coyotes have no goatees;
Indians have no goatees. The act of stroking the goatee, in thought or
perplexity, is the special mannerism of a nervous American. No allusion
could be more out of place in an Indian legend. Should the poet
referred to ever select any of the tales in this book to be tortured
into a poem, I beg that he will not, even for the sake of making a
faulty rhyme, put a beard on the chin of the Navaho Coyote God.
WASHINGTON MATTHEWS.
1262 New Hampshire Avenue, Washington, D.C.
May 1st, 1896.
LEGENDS.
THE NAVAHO ORIGIN LEGEND.
I. THE STORY OF THE EMERGENCE.
136. At To`bilhaski'di (in the middle of the first world), white
arose in the east, and they[17] regarded it as day there, they say;
blue rose in the south, and still it was day to them, and they moved
around; yellow rose in the west and showed that evening had come;
then dark arose in the north, and they lay down and slept.[18]
137. At To`bilhaski'di water flowed out (from a central source) in
different directions; one stream flowed to the east, another to the
south, and another to the west. There were dwelling-places on the
border of the stream that flowed to the east, on that which flowed
to the south, and on that which flowed to the west also.
138. To the east there was a place called Tan (Corn), to the south a
place called Nahodoóla, and to the west a place called Lókatsosakád
(Standing Reed). Again, to the east there was a place called Essalái
(One Pot), to the south a place called To`hádzitil (They Come Often
for Water), and to the west a place called Dsillitsíbehogán (House
Made of the Red Mountain). Then, again, to the east there was a place
called Léyahogán (Under-ground House), to the south a place called
Tsiltsi'ntha (Among Aromatic Sumac), and to the west a place called
Tse`lisíbehogán (House Made of Red Rock).
139. Holatsí Dilyi'le (dark ants) lived there. Holatsí Litsí (red
ants) lived there. Tanilaí (dragon flies) lived there. Tsaltsá (yellow
beetles) lived there. Wointli'zi (hard beetles) lived there. Tse`yoáli
(stone-carrier beetles) lived there. Kinli'zin (black beetles) lived
there. Maitsán (coyote-dung beetles) lived there. Tsápani (bats) lived
there. Totsó` (white-faced beetles) lived there. Wonistsídi (locusts)
lived there. Wonistsídikai (white locusts) lived there. These twelve
people started in life there.[19]
140. To the east extended an ocean, to the south an ocean, to the
west an ocean, and to the north an ocean. In the ocean to the east
lay Tiéholtsodi; he was chief of the people there. In the ocean to
the south lived Thaltláhale (Blue Heron), who was chief of the people
there. In the ocean to the west lay Tsal (Frog), who was chief of
the people there. In the ocean to the north was Idni`dsilkaí (White
Mountain Thunder), and he was chief of the people there.[20]
141. The people quarrelled among themselves, and this is the way it
happened. They committed adultery, one people with another. Many
of the women were guilty. They tried to stop it, but they could
not. Tiéholtsodi, the chief in the east, said: "What shall we do with
them? They like not the land they dwell in." In the south Blue Heron
spoke to them, and in the west Frog said: "No longer shall you dwell
here, I say. I am chief here." To the north White Mountain Lightning
said: "Go elsewhere at once. Depart from here!"
142. When again they sinned and again they quarrelled, Tiéholtsodi,
in the east, would not speak to them; Blue Heron, in the south,
would not speak to them; Frog, in the west, would say nothing; and
White Mountain Thunder, in the north, would not speak to them.
143. Again, at the end of four nights, the same thing happened. Those
who dwelt at the south again committed crime, and again they had
contentions. One woman and one man sought to enter in the east
(to complain to the chief), but they were driven out. In the south
they sought to go in where Blue Heron lay, but again they were driven
out. In the west, where Frog was the chief, again they tried to enter;
but again they were driven out. To the north again they were driven
out. (The chief) said: "None of you (shall enter here). Go elsewhere
and keep on going." That night at Nahodoóla they held a council, but
they arrived at no decision. At dawn Tiéholtsodi began to talk. "You
pay no attention to my words. Everywhere you disobey me; you must go
to some other place. Not upon this earth shall you remain." Thus he
spoke to them.
144. Among the women, for four nights they talked about it. At the end
of the fourth night, in the morning, as they were rising, something
white appeared in the east. It appeared also in the south, the west,
and the north. It looked like a chain of mountains, without a break,
stretching around them. It was water that surrounded them. Water
impassable, water insurmountable, flowed all around. All at once
they started.
145. They went in circles upward till they reached the sky. It was
smooth. They looked down; but there the water had risen, and there
was nothing else but water there. While they were flying around,
one having a blue head thrust out his head from the sky and called to
them, saying: "In here, to the eastward, there is a hole." They entered
the hole and went through it up to the surface (of the second world).
146. The blue one belonged to the Hastsósidine`, or Swallow People.[21]
The Swallow People lived there. A great many of their houses, rough and
lumpy, lay scattered all around. Each tapered toward the top, and at
that part there was a hole for entrance. A great many people approached
and gathered around[275] the strangers, but they said nothing.
147. The first world was red in color; the second world, into which
the people had now entered, was blue.[22] They sent out two couriers,
a Locust and a White Locust, to the east, to explore the land and
see if there were in it any people like themselves. At the end of two
days the couriers returned, and said that in one day's travel they had
reached the edge of the world--the top of a great cliff that arose from
an abyss whose bottom they could not see; but that they found in all
their journey no people, no animals of any kind, no trees, no grass,
no sage-brush, no mountains, nothing but bare, level ground. The same
couriers were then dispatched in turn to the south, to the west, and
to the north. They were gone on each journey two days, and when they
returned related, as before, that they had reached the edge of the
world, and discovered nothing but an uninhabited waste. Here, then,
the strangers found themselves in the centre of a vast barren plain,
where there was neither food nor a kindred people. When the couriers
had returned from the north, the Swallows visited the camp of the newly
arrived people, and asked them why they had sent out the couriers to
the east. "We sent them out," was the reply, "to see what was in the
land, and to see if there were any people like ourselves here." "And
what did your couriers tell you?" asked the Swallows. "They told us
that they came to the edge of the world, yet found no plant and no
living thing in all the land." (The same questions were asked and
the same answers given for the other points of the compass.) "They
spoke the truth," said the Swallow People. "Had you asked us in the
beginning what the land contained, we would have told you and saved
you all your trouble. Until you came, no one has ever dwelt in all
this land but ourselves." The people then said to the Swallows: "You
understand our language and are much like us. You have legs, feet,
bodies, heads, and wings, as we have: why cannot your people and our
people become friends?" "Let it be as you wish," said the Swallows,
and both parties began at once to treat each other as members of one
tribe; they mingled one among the other, and addressed one another
by the terms of relationship, as, my brother, my sister, my father,
my son, etc.[23]
148. They all lived together pleasantly and happily for twenty-three
days; but on the twenty-fourth night one of the strangers made too
free with the wife of the Swallow chief, and next morning, when
the latter found out what had happened, he said to the strangers:
"We have treated you as friends, and thus you return our kindness. We
doubt not that for such crimes you were driven from the lower world,
and now you must leave this. This is our land and we will have you
here no longer. Besides, this is a bad land. People are dying here
every day, and, even if we spare you, you cannot live here long." The
Locusts took the lead on hearing this; they soared upwards; the others
followed, and all soared and circled till they reached the sky.
149. When they reached the sky they found it, like the sky of the first
world, smooth and hard with no opening; but while they were circling
round under it, they saw a white face peering out at them,--it was
the face of Ni'ltsi, the Wind. He called to them and told them if
they would fly to the south they would find a hole through which they
could pass; so off they flew, as bidden, and soon they discovered a
slit in the sky which slanted upwards toward the south; through this
slit they flew, and soon entered the third world in the south.
150. The color of the third world was yellow.[22] Here they found
nothing but the Grasshopper People. The latter gathered around the
wanderers in great numbers, but said nothing. They lived in holes in
the ground along the banks of a great river which flowed through their
land to the east. The wanderers sent out the same Locust messengers
that they had sent out in the second world to explore the land to the
east, to the south, to the west, to the north, to find out what the
land contained, and to see if there were any kindred people in it;
but the messengers returned from each journey after an absence of
two days, saying they had reached the end of the world, and that they
had found a barren land with no people in it save the Grasshoppers.[24]
151. When the couriers returned from their fourth journey, the two
great chiefs of the Grasshoppers visited the strangers and asked them
why they had sent out the explorers, and the strangers answered that
they had sent them out to see what grew in the land, and to find
if there were any people like themselves in it. "And what did your
couriers find?" said the Grasshopper chiefs. "They found nothing save
the bare land and the river, and no people but yourselves." "There is
nothing else in the land," said the chiefs. "Long we have lived here,
but we have seen no other people but ourselves until you came."
152. The strangers then spoke to the Grasshoppers, as they had spoken
to the Swallows in the second world, and begged that they might join
them and become one people with them. The Grasshoppers consented,
and the two peoples at once mingled among one another and embraced one
another, and called one another by the endearing terms of relationship,
as if they were all of the same tribe.
153. As before, all went well for twenty-three days; but on the
twenty-fourth one of the strangers served a chief of the Grasshoppers
as the chief of the Swallows had been served in the lower world. In the
morning, when the wrong was discovered, the chief reviled the strangers
and bade them depart. "For such crimes," he said, "I suppose you were
chased from the world below: you shall drink no more of our water,
you shall breathe no more of our air. Begone!"
154. Up they all flew again, and circled round and round until they
came to the sky above them, and they found it smooth and hard as
before. When they had circled round for some time, looking in vain
for an entrance, they saw a red head stuck out of the sky, and they
heard a voice which told them to fly to the west. It was the head of
Red Wind which they saw, and it was his voice that spoke to them. The
passage which they found in the west was twisted round like the tendril
of a vine; it had thus been made by the wind. They flew up in circles
through it and came out in the fourth world. Four of the Grasshoppers
came with them; one was white, one blue, one yellow, and one black. We
have grasshoppers of these four colors with us to this day.[25]
155. The surface of the fourth world was mixed black and white. The
colors in the sky were the same as in the lower worlds, but they
differed in their duration. In the first world, the white, the blue,
the yellow, and the black all lasted about an equal length of time
every day. In the second world the blue and the black lasted a little
longer than the other two colors. In the third world they lasted
still longer. In the fourth world there was but little of the white
and yellow; the blue and the black lasted most of the time. As yet
there was neither sun, moon, nor star.
156. When they arrived on the surface of the fourth world they saw
no living thing; but they observed four great snow-covered peaks
sticking up at the horizon,--one at the east, one at the south,
one at the west, and one at the north.
157. They sent two couriers to the east. These returned at the end
of two days. They related that they had not been able to reach the
eastern mountain, and that, though they had travelled far, they had
seen no track or trail or sign of life. Two couriers were then sent
to the south. When they returned, at the end of two days, they related
that they had reached a low range of mountains this side of the great
peak; that they had seen no living creature, but had seen two different
kinds of tracks, such as they had never seen before, and they described
such as the deer and the turkey make now. Two couriers were next sent
to the west. In two days these returned, having failed to reach the
great peak in the west, and having seen no living thing and no sign
of life. At last two couriers were sent to the north. When these got
back to their kindred they said they had found a race of strange men,
who cut their hair square in front, who lived in houses in the ground
and cultivated fields. These people, who were engaged in gathering
their harvest, the couriers said, treated them very kindly and gave
them food to eat. It was now evident to the wanderers that the fourth
world was larger than any of the worlds below.
158. The day following the return of the couriers who went to the
north, two of the newly discovered race--Kisáni (Pueblos) they
were called--entered the camp of the exiles and guided the latter
to a stream of water. The water was red, and the Kisáni told the
wanderers they must not walk through the stream, for if they did the
water would injure their feet. The Kisáni showed them a square raft
made of four logs,--a white pine, a blue spruce, and yellow pine,
and a black spruce,--on which they might cross; so they went over
the stream and visited the homes of the Kisáni.
159. The Kisáni gave the wanderers corn and pumpkins to eat, and the
latter lived for some time on the food given to them daily by their
new friends. They held a council among themselves, in which they
resolved to mend their manners for the future and do nothing to make
the Kisáni angry. The land of the Kisáni had neither rain nor snow;
the crops were raised by irrigation.
160. Late in the autumn they heard in the east the distant sound of
a great voice calling. They listened and waited, and soon heard the
voice nearer and louder. They listened still and heard the voice a
third time, nearer and louder than before. Once more they listened,
and soon they heard the voice louder still, and clear like the voice
of one near at hand. A moment later four mysterious beings appeared
to them.[26] These were: Bitsís Lakaí, or White Body, a being like the
god of this world whom the Navahoes call Hastséyalti; Bitsís Dotli'z,
or Blue Body, who was like the present Navaho god Tó`nenili, or Water
Sprinkler; Bitsís Litsói, or Yellow Body; and Bitsís Lizi'n, or Black
Body, who was the same as the present Navaho god of fire, Hastsézini.
161. These beings, without speaking, made many signs to the people,
as if instructing them; but the latter did not understand them. When
the gods had gone, the people long discussed the mysterious visit,
and tried to make out what the gods meant by the signs they had
made. Thus the gods visited four days in succession. On the fourth
day, when the other three had departed, Black Body remained behind
and spoke to the people in their own language. He said: "You do not
seem to understand the signs that these gods make you, so I must
tell you what they mean. They want to make more people, but in form
like themselves. You have bodies like theirs; but you have the teeth,
the feet, and the claws of beasts and insects. The new creatures are
to have hands and feet like ours. But you are uncleanly, you smell
badly. Have yourselves well cleansed when we return; we will come
back in twelve days."
162. On the morning of the twelfth day the people washed themselves
well. The women dried themselves with yellow corn-meal; the men with
white corn-meal.[27] Soon after the ablutions were completed they heard
the distant call of the approaching gods. It was shouted, as before,
four times,--nearer and louder at each repetition,--and, after the
fourth call, the gods appeared. Blue Body and Black Body each carried
a sacred buckskin. White Body carried two ears of corn, one yellow,
one white, each covered at the end completely with grains.[28]
163. The gods laid one buckskin on the ground with the head to the
west; on this they placed the two ears of corn, with their tips to the
east, and over the corn they spread the other buckskin with its head to
the east; under the white ear they put the feather of a white eagle,
under the yellow ear the feather of a yellow eagle. Then they told
the people to stand at a distance and allow the wind to enter. The
white wind blew from the east, and the yellow wind blew from the west,
between the skins. While the wind was blowing, eight of the Mirage
People came and walked around the objects on the ground four times,
and as they walked the eagle feathers, whose tips protruded from
between the buckskins, were seen to move. When the Mirage People had
finished their walk the upper buckskin was lifted,--the ears of corn
had disappeared; a man and a woman lay there in their stead.
164. The white ear of corn had been changed into a man, the yellow
ear into a woman. It was the wind that gave them life. It is the
wind that comes out of our mouths now that gives us life. When this
ceases to blow we die. In the skin at the tips of our fingers we
see the trail of the wind; it shows us where the wind blew when our
ancestors were created.
165. The pair thus created were First Man and First Woman (Atsé Hastín
and Atsé Estsán). The gods directed the people to build an enclosure
of brushwood for the pair. When the enclosure was finished, First Man
and First Woman entered it, and the gods said to them: "Live together
now as husband and wife." At the end of four days hermaphrodite[29]
twins were born, and at the end of four days more a boy and a girl were
born, who in four days grew to maturity and lived with one another
as husband and wife. The primal pair had in all five pairs of twins,
the first of which only was barren, being hermaphrodites.
166. In four days after the last pair of twins was born, the gods came
again and took First Man and First Woman away to the eastern mountain
where the gods dwelt, and kept them there for four days. When they
returned all their children were taken to the eastern mountain and
kept there for four days. Soon after they all returned it was observed
that they occasionally wore masks, such as Hastséyalti and Hastséhogan
wear now, and that when they wore these masks they prayed for all
good things,--for abundant rain and abundant crops. It is thought,
too, that during their visit to the eastern mountain they learned the
awful secrets of witchcraft, for the antíhi (witches, wizards) always
keep such masks with them and marry those too nearly related to them.
167. When they returned from the eastern mountain the brothers and
sisters separated; and, keeping the fact of their former unlawful
marriages secret, the brothers married women of the Mirage People and
the sisters married men of the Mirage People. They kept secret, too,
all the mysteries they had learned in the eastern mountain. The women
thus married bore children every four days, and the children grew to
maturity in four days, were married, and in their turn had children
every four days. This numerous offspring married among the Kisáni,
and among those who had come from the lower world, and soon there
was a multitude of people in the land.
168. These descendants of First Man and First Woman made a great
farm. They built a dam and dug a wide irrigating ditch. But they
feared the Kisáni might injure their dam or their crops; so they put
one of the hermaphrodites to watch the dam and the other to watch
the lower end of the field. The hermaphrodite who watched at the
dam invented pottery. He made first a plate, a bowl, and a dipper,
which were greatly admired by the people. The hermaphrodite who lived
at the lower end of the farm invented the wicker water-bottle.[30]
Others made, from thin split boards of cottonwood, implements which
they shoved before them to clear the weeds out of the land. They made
also hoes from shoulder-blades of deer and axes of stone. They got
their seeds from the Kisáni.
169. Once they killed a little deer, and some one among them thought
that perhaps they might make, from the skin of the head, a mask,
by means of which they could approach other deer and kill them. They
tried to make such a mask but failed; they could not make it fit. They
debated over the invention and considered it for four days, but did not
succeed. On the morning of the fifth day they heard the gods shouting
in the distance. As on a previous occasion, they shouted four times,
and after the fourth call they made their appearance. They brought
with them heads of deer and of antelope. They showed the people how the
masks were made and fitted, how the eye-holes were cut, how the motions
of the deer were to be imitated, and explained to them all the other
mysteries of the deer-hunt.[31] Next day hunters went out and several
deer were killed; from these more masks were made, and with these masks
more men went out to hunt; after that time the camp had abundance of
meat. The people dressed the deerskins and made garments out of them.
170. The people from the third world had been in the fourth world eight
years when the following incident occurred: One day they saw the sky
stooping down and the earth rising up to meet it. For a moment they
came in contact, and then there sprang out of the earth, at the point
of contact, the Coyote and the Badger. We think now that the Coyote
and the Badger are children of the sky. The Coyote rose first, and for
this reason we think he is the elder brother of the Badger. At once
the Coyote came over to the camp and skulked round among the people,
while the Badger went down into the hole that led to the lower world.
171. First Man told the people the names of the four mountains which
rose in the distance. They were named the same as the four mountains
that now bound the Navaho land. There was Tsisnadzi'ni in the east,
Tsótsil in the south, Dokoslíd in the west, and Depe'ntsa in the
north, and he told them that a different race of people lived in
each mountain.
172. First Man was the chief of all these people in the fourth world,
except the Kisáni. He was a great hunter, and his wife, First Woman,
was very corpulent. One day he brought home from the hunt a fine fat
deer. The woman boiled some of it and they had a hearty meal. When
they were done the woman wiped her greasy hands on her dress, and made
a remark which greatly enraged her husband; they had a quarrel about
this, which First Man ended by jumping across the fire and remaining
by himself in silence for the rest of the night.[32]
173. Next morning First Man went out early and called aloud to the
people: "Come hither, all ye men," he said; "I wish to speak to you,
but let all the women stay behind; I do not wish to see them." Soon
all the males gathered, and he told them what his wife had said the
night before. "They believe," he said, "that they can live without
us. Let us see if they can hunt game and till the fields without our
help. Let us see what sort of a living they can make by themselves. Let
us leave them and persuade the Kisáni to come with us. We will cross
the stream, and when we are gone over we will keep the raft on the
other side." He sent for the hermaphrodites. They came, covered
with meal, for they had been grinding corn. "What have you that you
have made yourselves?" he asked. "We have each two mealing-stones,
and we have cups and bowls and baskets and many other things," they
answered. "Then take these all along with you," he ordered, "and join
us to cross the stream." Then all the men and the hermaphrodites
assembled at the river and crossed to the north side on the raft,
and they took over with them their stone axes and farm implements
and everything they had made. When they had all crossed they sent the
raft down to the Kisáni for them to cross. The latter came over,--six
gentes of them,--but they took their women with them. While some of
the young men were crossing the stream they cried at parting with
their wives; still they went at the bidding of their chief. The men
left the women everything the latter had helped to make or raise.
174. As soon as they had crossed the river some of the men went out
hunting, for the young boys needed food, and some set to work to
chop down willows and build huts. They had themselves all sheltered
in four days.
175. That winter the women had abundance of food, and they feasted,
sang, and had a merry time. They often came down to the bank of the
river and called across to the men and taunted and reviled them. Next
year the men prepared a few small fields and raised a little corn;
but they did not have much corn to eat, and lived a good deal by
hunting. The women planted all of the old farm, but they did not work
it very well; so in the winter they had a small crop, and they did not
sing and make merry as in the previous winter. In the second spring
the women planted less, while the men planted more, cleared more land,
and increased the size of their farm. Each year the fields and crops
of the men increased, while those of the women diminished and they
began to suffer for want of food. Some went out and gathered the seeds
of wild plants to eat. In the autumn of the third year of separation
many women jumped into the river and tried to swim over; but they were
carried under the surface of the water and were never seen again. In
the fourth year the men had more food than they could eat; corn and
pumpkins lay untouched in the fields, while the women were starving.
176. First Man at length began to think what the effect of his course
might be. He saw that if he continued to keep the men and the women
apart the race might die out, so he called the men and spoke his
thoughts to them. Some said, "Surely our race will perish," and
others said, "What good is our abundance to us? We think so much of
our poor women starving in our sight that we cannot eat." Then he
sent a man to the shore to call across the stream to find if First
Woman were still there, and to bid her come down to the bank if she
were. She came to the bank, and First Man called to her and asked if
she still thought she could live alone. "No," she replied, "we cannot
live without our husbands." The men and the women were then told to
assemble at the shores of the stream; the raft was sent over and the
women were ferried across. They were made to bathe their bodies and
dry them with meal. They were put in a corral and kept there until
night, when they were let out to join the men in their feasts.[33]
177. When they were let out of the corral it was found that three were
missing. After dark, voices were heard calling from the other side
of the river; they were the voices of the missing ones,--a mother
and her two daughters. They begged to be ferried over, but the men
told them it was too dark, that they must wait until morning. Hearing
this, they jumped into the stream and tried to swim over. The mother
succeeded in reaching the opposite bank and finding her husband. The
daughters were seized by Tiéholtsodi, the water monster, and dragged
down under the water.
178. For three nights and three days the people heard nothing about
the young women and supposed them lost forever. On the morning of the
fourth day the call of the gods was heard,--four times as usual,--and
after the fourth call White Body made his appearance, holding up two
fingers and pointing to the river. The people supposed that these
signs had reference to the lost girls. Some of the men crossed the
stream on the raft and looked for the tracks of the lost ones; they
traced the tracks to the edge of the water, but no farther. White
Body went away, but soon returned, accompanied by Blue Body. White
Body carried a large bowl of white shell, and Blue Body a large bowl
of blue shell. They asked for a man and a woman to accompany them, and
they went down to the river. They put both the bowls on the surface of
the water and caused them to spin around. Beneath the spinning bowls
the water opened, for it was hollow, and gave entrance to a large
house of four rooms. The room in the east was made of the dark waters,
the room in the south of the blue waters, the room in the west of the
yellow waters, and the room in the north of waters of all colors.[36]
179. The man and the woman descended and Coyote followed them. They
went first into the east room, but there they found nothing;
then they went into the south room, but there they found nothing;
next they went into the west room, where again they found nothing;
at last they went into the north room, and there they beheld the
water monster Tiéholtsodi, with the two girls he had stolen and two
children of his own. The man and the woman demanded the children,
and as he said nothing in reply they took them and walked away. But
as they went out Coyote, unperceived by all, took the two children
of Tiéholtsodi and carried them off under his robe. Coyote always
wore his robe folded close around him and always slept with it thus
folded, so no one was surprised to see that he still wore his robe
in this way when he came up from the waters, and no one suspected
that he had stolen the children of Tiéholtsodi.
180. Next day the people were surprised to see deer, turkey, and
antelope running past from east to west, and to see animals of six
different kinds (two kinds of Hawks, two kinds of Squirrels, the
Hummingbird, and the Bat) come into their camp as if for refuge. The
game animals ran past in increasing numbers during the three days
following. On the morning of the fourth day, when the white light
rose, the people observed in the east a strange white gleam along
the horizon, and they sent out the Locust couriers to see what caused
this unusual appearance. The Locusts returned before sunset, and told
the people that a vast flood of waters was fast approaching from the
east. On hearing this the people all assembled together, the Kisáni
with the others, in a great multitude, and they wailed and wept over
the approaching catastrophe. They wept and moaned all night and could
not sleep.
181. When the white light arose in the east, next morning, the
waters were seen high as mountains encircling the whole horizon,
except in the west, and rolling on rapidly. The people packed up all
their goods as fast as they could, and ran up on a high hill near by,
for temporary safety. Here they held a council. Some one suggested
that perhaps the two Squirrels (Hazáitso and Hazáistozi) might help
them. "We will try what we can do," said the Squirrels. One planted
a piñon seed, the other a juniper seed, and they grew so very fast
that the people hoped that they would soon grow so tall that the
flood could not reach their tops, and that all might find shelter
there. But after the trees grew a little way they began to branch
out and grew no higher. Then the frightened people called on the
Weasels (Glo`dsilkái and Glo`dsilzi'ni). One of these planted a spruce
seed and one a pine seed. The trees sprouted at once and grew fast,
and again the people began to hope; but soon the trees commenced to
branch, and they dwindled to slender points at the top and ceased to
grow higher. Now they were in the depths of despair, for the waters
were coming nearer every moment, when they saw two men approaching
the hill on which they were gathered.
182. One of the approaching men was old and grayhaired; the other,
who was young, walked in advance. They ascended the hill and passed
through the crowd, speaking to no one. The young man sat down on the
summit, the old man sat down behind him, and the Locust sat down behind
the old man,--all facing the east. The elder took out seven bags from
under his robe and opened them. Each contained a small quantity of
earth. He told the people that in these bags he had earth from the
seven sacred mountains. There were in the fourth world seven sacred
mountains, named and placed like the sacred mountains of the present
Navaho land. "Ah! Perhaps our father can do something for us," said
the people. "I cannot, but my son may be able to help you," said the
old man. Then they bade the son to help them, and he said he would
if they all moved away from where he stood, faced to the west, and
looked not around until he called them; for no one should see him
at his work. They did as he desired, and in a few moments he called
them to come to him. When they came, they saw that he had spread
the sacred earth on the ground and planted in it thirty-two reeds,
each of which had thirty-two joints. As they gazed they beheld the
roots of the reeds striking out into the soil and growing rapidly
downward. A moment later all the reeds joined together and became one
reed of great size, with a hole in its eastern side. He bade them
enter the hollow of the reed through this hole. When they were all
safely inside, the opening closed, and none too soon, for scarcely
had it closed when they heard the loud noise of the surging waters
outside, saying, "Yin, yin, yin."[37]
183. The waters rose fast, but the reed grew faster, and soon it grew
so high that it began to sway, and the people inside were in great
fear lest, with their weight, it might break and topple over into
the water. White Body, Blue Body, and Black Body were along. Black
Body blew a great breath out through a hole in the top of the reed;
a heavy dark cloud formed around the reed and kept it steady. But the
reed grew higher and higher; again it began to sway, and again the
people within were in great fear, whereat he blew and made another
cloud to steady the reed. By sunset it had grown up close to the sky,
but it swayed and waved so much that they could not secure it to the
sky until Black Body, who was uppermost, took the plume out of his
head-band and stuck it out through the top of the cane against the
sky, and this is why the reed (Phragmites communis) always carries
a plume on its head now.[38]
184. Seeing no hole in the sky, they sent up the Great Hawk, Gini'tso,
to see what he could do. He flew up and began to scratch in the sky
with his claws, and he scratched and scratched till he was lost to
sight. After a while he came back, and said that he scratched to where
he could see light, but that he did not get through the sky. Next they
sent up a Locust.[39] He was gone a long time, and when he came back
he had this story to tell: He had gotten through to the upper world,
and came out on a little island in the centre of a lake. When he got
out he saw approaching him from the east a black Grebe, and from the
west a yellow Grebe.[40] One of them said to him: "Who are you and
whence come you?" But he made no reply. The other then said: "We own
half of this world,--I in the east, my brother in the west. We give
you a challenge. If you can do as we do, we shall give you one half of
the world; if you cannot, you must die." Each had an arrow made of the
black wind. He passed the arrow from side to side through his heart
and flung it down to Wonistsídi, the Locust.[41] The latter picked up
one of the arrows, ran it from side to side through his heart, as he
had seen the Grebes do, and threw it down.[42] The Grebes swam away,
one to the east and one to the west, and troubled him no more. When
they had gone, two more Grebes appeared, a blue one from the south
and a shining one from the north. They spoke to him as the other
Grebes had spoken, and gave him the same challenge. Again he passed
the arrow through his heart and the Grebes departed, leaving the land
to the locust. To this day we see in every locust's sides the holes
made by the arrows. But the hole the Locust made in ascending was
too small for many of the people, so they sent Badger up to make it
larger. When Badger came back his legs were stained black with the mud,
and the legs of all badgers have been black ever since. Then First Man
and First Woman led the way and all the others followed them, and they
climbed up through the hole to the surface of this--the fifth--world.
II. EARLY EVENTS IN THE FIFTH WORLD.
185. The lake[43] was bounded by high cliffs, from the top of which
stretched a great plain. There are mountains around it now, but these
have been created since the time of the emergence. Finding no way to
get out of the lake, they called on Blue Body to help them. He had
brought with him from the lower world four stones; he threw one of
these towards each of the four cardinal points against the cliffs,
breaking holes, through which the waters flowed away in four different
directions.[44] The lake did not altogether drain out by this means;
but the bottom became bare in one place, connecting the island with
the mainland. But the mud was so deep in this place that they still
hesitated to cross, and they prayed to Ni'ltsi Dilkóhi, Smooth Wind,
to come to their aid.[45] Ni'ltsi Dilkóhi blew a strong wind, and
in one day dried up the mud so that the people could easily walk
over. While they were waiting for the ground to dry, the Kisáni camped
on the east side of the island and built a stone wall (which stands
to this day), to lean against and to shelter them from the wind.[46]
The other people set up a shelter of brushwood. The women erected four
poles, on which they stretched a deerskin, and under the shelter of
this they played the game of three-sticks,[47] tsindi', one of the
four games which they brought with them from the lower world.
186. When they reached the mainland they sought to divine their
fate. To do this some one threw a hide-scraper into the water, saying:
"If it sinks we perish, if it floats we live." It floated, and all
rejoiced. But Coyote said: "Let me divine your fate." He picked up a
stone, and saying, "If it sinks we perish; if it floats we live," he
threw it into the water. It sank, of course, and all were angry with
him and reviled him; but he answered them saying: "If we all live,
and continue to increase as we have done, the earth will soon be too
small to hold us, and there will be no room for the cornfields. It
is better that each of us should live but a time on this earth and
then leave and make room for our children." They saw the wisdom of
his words and were silent. The day they arrived at the shore they
had two visitors,--Puma and Wolf. "We have heard," said these, "that
some new people had come up out of the ground, and we have come over
to see them." Puma took a bride from among the new people.
187. On the fourth day of the emergence some one went to look at the
hole through which they had come out, and he noticed water welling
up there; already it was nearly on a level with the top of the hole,
and every moment it rose higher. In haste he ran back to his people
and told them what he had seen. A council was called at once to
consider the new danger that threatened them. First Man, who rose
to speak, said, pointing to Coyote: "Yonder is a rascal, and there
is something wrong about him. He never takes off his robe, even when
he lies down. I have watched him for a long time, and have suspected
that he carries some stolen property under his robe. Let us search
him."[48] They tore the robe from Coyote's shoulders, and two strange
little objects dropped out that looked something like buffalo calves,
but were spotted all over in various colors; they were the young of
Tiéholtsodi. At once the people threw them into the hole through
which the waters were pouring; in an instant the waters subsided,
and rushed away with a deafening noise to the lower world.[49]
188. On the fifth night one of the twin hermaphrodites ceased to
breathe. They left her alone all that night, and, when morning came,
Coyote proposed to lay her at rest among the rocks. This they did; but
they all wondered what had become of her breath. They went in various
directions to seek for its trail, but could find it nowhere. While
they were hunting, two men went near the hole through which they had
come from the lower world. It occurred to one of them to look down
into the hole. He did so, and he saw the dead one seated by the side
of the river, in the fourth world, combing her hair. He called to his
companion and the latter came and looked down, too. They returned to
their people and related what they had seen; but in four days both
these men died, and ever since the Navahoes have feared to look upon
the dead, or to behold a ghost, lest they die themselves.[60]
189. After this it was told around that the Kisáni, who were in camp
at a little distance from the others, had brought with them from the
lower world an ear of corn for seed. Some of the unruly ones proposed
to go to the camp of the Kisáni and take the corn away from them;
but others, of better counsel, said that this would be wrong, that
the Kisáni had had as much trouble as the rest, and if they had more
foresight they had a right to profit by it. In spite of these words,
some of the young men went and demanded the corn of the Kisáni. The
latter said, after some angry talk on both sides, "We will break
the ear in two and give you whichever half you choose." The young
men agreed to this bargain, and the woman who owned the ear broke it
in the middle and laid the pieces down for the others to choose. The
young men looked at the pieces, and were considering which they would
take, when Coyote, getting impatient, picked up the tip end of the
ear and made off with it. The Kisáni kept the butt, and this is the
reason the Pueblo Indians have to-day better crops of corn than the
Navahoes. But the Pueblos had become alarmed at the threats and angry
language of their neighbors and moved away from them, and this is
why the Navahoes and Pueblos now live apart from one another.
190. After the Kisáni moved away, First Man and First Woman, Black
Body and Blue Body, set out to build the seven sacred mountains of
the present Navaho land. They made them all of earth which they had
brought from similar mountains in the fourth world. The mountains they
made were Tsisnadzi'ni in the east, Tsótsil (Taylor, San Mateo) in
the south, Dokoslíd (San Francisco) in the west, Depe'ntsa (San Juan)
in the north, with Dsilnáotil, Tsolíhi, and Akidanastáni (Hosta Butte)
in the middle of the land.[61]
191. Through Tsisnadzi'ni,[62] in the east, they ran a bolt of
lightning to fasten it to the earth. They decorated it with white
shells, white lightning, white corn, dark clouds, and he-rain. They
set a big dish or bowl of shell on its summit, and in it they put two
eggs of the Pigeon to make feathers for the mountain. The eggs they
covered with a sacred buckskin to make them hatch (there are many
wild pigeons in this mountain now). All these things they covered
with a sheet of daylight, and they put the Rock Crystal Boy and the
Rock Crystal Girl[53] into the mountain to dwell.
192. Tsótsil,[54] the mountain of the south, they fastened to
the earth with a great stone knife, thrust through from top to
bottom. They adorned it with turquoise, with dark mist, she-rain,
and all different kinds of wild animals. On its summit they placed a
dish of turquoise; in this they put two eggs of the Bluebird, which
they covered with sacred buckskin (there are many bluebirds in Tsótsil
now), and over all they spread a covering of blue sky. The Boy who
Carries One Turquoise and the Girl who Carries One Grain of Corn[55]
were put into the mountain to dwell.
193. Dokoslíd,[56] the mountain of the west, they fastened to the earth
with a sunbeam. They adorned it with haliotis shell, with black clouds,
he-rain, yellow corn, and all sorts of wild animals. They placed a
dish of haliotis shell on the top, and laid in this two eggs of the
Yellow Warbler, covering them with sacred buckskins. There are many
yellow warblers now in Dokoslíd. Over all they spread a yellow cloud,
and they sent White Corn Boy and Yellow Corn Girl[57] to dwell there.
194. Depe'ntsa, the mountain in the north, they fastened with
a rainbow. They adorned it with black beads (pászini), with the
dark mist, with different kinds of plants, and many kinds of wild
animals. On its top they put a dish of pászini; in this they placed two
eggs of the Blackbird, over which they laid a sacred buckskin. Over
all they spread a covering of darkness. Lastly they put the Pollen
Boy and Grasshopper Girl[59] in the mountain, to dwell there.
195. Dsilnáotil,[60] was fastened with a sunbeam. They decorated it
with goods of all kinds, with the dark cloud, and the male rain. They
put nothing on top of it; they left its summit free, in order that
warriors might fight there; but they put Boy Who Produces Goods and
Girl Who Produces Goods[61] there to live.
196. The mountain of Tsolíhi[62] they fastened to the earth with
ni'ltsatlol (the streak or cord of rain). They decorated it with
pollen, the dark mist, and the female rain. They placed on top of it
a live bird named Tsozgáli,[68]--such birds abound there now,--and
they put in the mountain to dwell Boy Who Produces Jewels and Girl
Who Produces Jewels.[64]
197. The mountain of Akidanastáni[66] they fastened to the earth with a
sacred stone called tse`hadáhonige, or mirage-stone. They decorated it
with black clouds, the he-rain, and all sorts of plants. They placed
a live Grasshopper on its summit, and they put the Mirage-stone Boy
and the Carnelian Girl there to dwell.[66]
198. They still had the three lights and the darkness, as in the lower
worlds. But First Man and First Woman thought they might form some
lights which would make the world brighter. After much study and debate
they planned to make the sun and moon. For the sun they made a round
flat object, like a dish, out of a clear stone called tsé`tsagi. They
set turquoises around the edge, and outside of these they put rays of
red rain, lightning, and snakes of many kinds. At first they thought
of putting four points on it, as they afterwards did on the stars,
but they changed their minds and made it round. They made the moon
of tsé`tson (star-rock, a kind of crystal); they bordered it with
white shells and they put on its face hadilki's (sheet lightning),
and tó`lanastsi (all kinds of water).[67]
199. Then they counseled as to what they should do with the sun; where
they should make it rise first. The Wind of the East begged that it
might be brought to his land, so they dragged it off to the edge of
the world where he dwelt; there they gave it to the man who planted
the great cane in the lower world, and appointed him to carry it. To
an old gray-haired man, who had joined them in the lower world, the
moon was given to carry. These men had no names before, but now the
former received the name of Tsóhanoai, or Tsínhanoai, and the latter
the name of Kléhanoai. When they were about to depart, in order to
begin their labors, the people were sorry, for they were beloved by
all. But First Man said to the sorrowing people: "Mourn not for them,
for you will see them in the heavens, and all that die will be theirs
in return for their labors."[68] (See notes 69 and 70 for additions
to the legend.)
200. Then the people (Diné`, Navahoes) began to travel. They journeyed
towards the east, and after one day's march they reached Nihahokaí
(White Spot on the Earth) and camped for the night. Here a woman
brought forth, but her offspring was not like a child; it was round,
misshapen, and had no head. The people counselled, and determined
that it should be thrown into a gully. So they threw it away; but it
lived and grew up and became the monster Téelget,[131] who afterwards
destroyed so many of the people.
201. Next day they wandered farther to the east, and camped at night
at Tse`taiská (Rock Bending Back). Here was born another misshapen
creature, which had something like feathers on both its shoulders. It
looked like nothing that was ever seen before, so the people concluded
to throw this away also. They took it to an alkali bed close by and
cast it away there. But it lived and grew and became the terrible
Tse`na'hale,[135] of whom I shall have much to tell later.
202. The next night, travelling still to the east, they camped at
Tse`bináhotyel, a broad high cliff like a wall, and here a woman bore
another strange creature. It had no head, but had a long pointed end
where the head ought to be. This object was deposited in the cliff, in
a hole which was afterwards sealed up with a stone. They left it there
to die, but it grew up and became the destroyer Tse`tahotsiltá`li,[142]
of whom we shall tell hereafter. Because he was closed into the rock,
his hair grew into it and he could not fall.
203. The next night, when they stopped at Tse`ahalzi'ni (Rock with
Black Hole), twins were born. They were both roundish with one end
tapering to a point. There were no signs of limbs or head, but there
were depressions which had somewhat the appearance of eyes. The
people laid them on the ground, and next day, when they moved camp,
abandoned them. Tse`ahalzi'ni is shaped like a Navaho hut, with a
door in the east. It is supposed that, when they were abandoned to
die, the twin monsters went into this natural hut to dwell. They grew
up, however, and became the Bináye Aháni, who slew with their eyes,
and of whom we shall have more to tell.
204. All these monsters were the fruit of the transgressions of the
women in the fourth world, when they were separated from the men. Other
monsters were born on the march, and others, again, sprang from the
blood which had been shed during the birth of the first monsters,[71]
and all these grew up to become enemies and destroyers of the people.
205. When they left Tse`ahalzi'ni they turned toward the west, and
journeyed until they came to a place called To`intsósoko (Water in
a Narrow Gully), and here they remained for thirteen years, making
farms and planting corn, beans, and pumpkins every spring.
206. In those days the four-footed beasts, the birds, and the
snakes were people also, like ourselves, and built houses and lived
near our people close to Depe'ntsa. They increased and became the
cliff-dwellers. It must have been the flying creatures who built the
dwellings high on the cliffs, for if they had not wings how could
they reach their houses?
207. From To`intsósoko they moved to Tse`lakaíia (Standing White Rock),
and here they sojourned again for thirteen years. From the latter
place they moved to Tse`pahalkaí (White on Face of Cliff), and here,
once more, they remained for a period of thirteen years. During this
time the monsters began to devour the people.
208. From Tse`pahalkaí they moved to the neighborhood of Kintyél[72]
(Broad House), in the Chaco Canyon, where the ruins of the great
pueblo still stand. When the wanderers arrived the pueblo was in
process of building, but was not finished. The way it came to be
built you shall now hear:--
209. Some time before, there had descended among the Pueblos, from the
heavens, a divine gambler, or gambling-god, named Nohoílpi, or He Who
Wins Men (at play); his talisman was a great piece of turquoise. When
he came he challenged the people to all sorts of games and contests,
and in all of these he was successful. He won from them, first, their
property, then their women and children, and finally some of the
men themselves. Then he told them he would give them part of their
property back in payment if they would build a great house; so when
the Navahoes came, the Pueblos were busy building in order that they
might release their enthralled relatives and their property. They
were also busy making a race-track, and preparing for all kinds of
games of chance and skill.
210. When all was ready, and four days' notice had been given, twelve
men came from the neighboring pueblo of Ki'ndotliz, Blue House, to
compete with the great gambler. They bet their own persons, and after
a brief contest they lost themselves to Nohoílpi. Again a notice of
four days was given, and again twelve men of Ki'ndotliz--relatives of
the former twelve--came to play, and these also lost themselves. For
the third time an announcement, four days in advance of a game, was
given; this time some women were among the twelve contestants, and
they, too, lost themselves. All were put to work on the building of
Kintyél as soon as they forfeited their liberty. At the end of another
four days the children of these men and women came to try to win back
their parents, but they succeeded only in adding themselves to the
number of the gambler's slaves. On a fifth trial, after four days'
warning, twelve leading men of Blue House were lost, among them the
chief of the pueblo. On a sixth duly announced gambling day, twelve
more men, all important persons, staked their liberty and lost it. Up
to this time the Navahoes had kept count of the winnings of Nohoílpi,
but afterwards people from other pueblos came in such numbers to play
and lose that they could keep count no longer. In addition to their
own persons the later victims brought in beads, shells, turquoise,
and all sorts of valuables, and gambled them away. With the labor of
all these slaves it was not long until the great Kintyél was finished.
211. But all this time the Navahoes had been merely spectators, and had
taken no part in the games. One day the voice of the beneficent god,
Hastséyalti,[73] was heard faintly in the distance crying his usual
call, "Wu`hu`hu`hú." His voice was heard, as it is always heard,
four times, each time nearer and nearer, and immediately after the
last call, which was loud and clear, Hastséyalti appeared at the
door of a hut where dwelt a young couple who had no children, and
with them he communicated by means of signs. He told them that the
people of Ki'ndotliz had lost at game with Nohoílpi two great shells,
the greatest treasures of the pueblo; that the Sun had coveted these
shells and had begged them from the gambler; that the latter had
refused the request of the Sun and the Sun was angry. In consequence
of all this, as Hastséyalti related, in twelve days from his visit
certain divine personages would meet in the mountains, in a place
which he designated, to hold a great ceremony. He invited the young
man to be present at the ceremony and disappeared.
212. The Navaho kept count of the passing days; on the twelfth day
he repaired to the appointed place, and there he found a great
assemblage of the gods. There were Hastséyalti, Hastséhogan[74]
and his son, Ni'ltsi[75] (Wind), Tsalyél (Darkness), Tsápani (Bat),
Listsó (Great Snake), Tsilkáli (a little bird), Nasi'zi (Gopher),
and many others. Besides these there were present a number of pets or
domesticated animals belonging to the gambler, who were dissatisfied
with their lot, were anxious to be free, and would gladly obtain
their share of the spoils in case their master was ruined. Ni'ltsi
(Wind) had spoken to them, and they had come to enter into the plot
against Nohoílpi. All night the gods danced and sang and performed
their mystic rites for the purpose of giving to the son of Hastséhogan
powers, as a gambler, equal to those of Nohoílpi. When the morning came
they washed the young neophyte all over, dried him with meal, dressed
him in clothes exactly like those the gambler wore, and in every way
made him look as much like the gambler as possible, and then they
counselled as to what other means they should take to outwit Nohoílpi.
213. In the first place, they desired to find out how he felt about
having refused to his father, the Sun, the two great shells. "I will
do this," said Ni'ltsi (Wind), "for I can penetrate everywhere, and no
one can see me;" but the others said: "No; you can go everywhere, but
you cannot travel without making a noise and disturbing people. Let
Tsalyél (Darkness) go on this errand, for he also goes wherever
he wills, yet he makes no noise." So Tsalyél went to the gambler's
house, entered his room, went all through his body while he slept,
and searched well his mind, and he came back saying, "Nohoílpi is
sorry for what he has done." Ni'ltsi, however, did not believe this;
so, although his services had been before refused, he repaired to
the chamber where the gambler slept, and went all through his body
and searched well his mind; but he, too, came back saying Nohoílpi
was sorry that he had refused to give the great shells to his father.
214. One of the games they proposed to play is called taká-thad-sáta,
or the thirteen chips. (It is played with thirteen thin flat pieces of
wood, which are colored red on one side and left white or uncolored
on the other side. Success depends on the number of chips which,
being thrown upwards, fall with their white sides up.) "Leave the game
to me," said the Bat; "I have made thirteen chips that are white on
both sides. I will hide myself in the ceiling, and when our champion
throws up his chips I will grasp them and throw down my chips instead."
215. Another game they were to play is called nánzoz.[76] (It is played
with two long sticks or poles, of peculiar shape and construction,
one marked with red and the other with black, and a single hoop. A
long, many-tailed string, called the "turkey-claw," is secured
to the end of each pole.) "Leave nánzoz to me," said Great Snake;
"I will hide myself in the hoop and make it fall where I please."
216. Another game was one called tsi'nbetsil, or push-on-the-wood. (In
this the contestants push against a tree until it is torn from its
roots and falls.) "I will see that this game is won," said Nasi'zi,
the Gopher; "I will gnaw the roots of the tree, so that he who shoves
it may easily make it fall."
217. In the game tsol, or ball, the object was to hit the ball so that
it would fall beyond a certain line. "I will win this game for you,"
said the little bird Tsilkáli, "for I will hide within the ball,
and fly with it wherever I want to go. Do not hit the ball hard;
give it only a light tap, and depend on me to carry it."
218. The pets of the gambler begged the Wind to blow hard, so that they
might have an excuse to give their master for not keeping due watch
when he was in danger, and in the morning the Wind blew for them a
strong gale. At dawn the whole party of conspirators left the mountain,
and came down to the brow of the canyon to watch until sunrise.
219. Nohoílpi had two wives, who were the prettiest women in the
whole land. Wherever she went, each carried in her hand a stick with
something tied on the end of it, as a sign that she was the wife of
the great gambler.
220. It was their custom for one of them to go every morning at
sunrise to a neighboring spring to get water. So at sunrise the
watchers on the brow of the cliff saw one of the wives coming out
of the gambler's house with a water-jar on her head, whereupon the
son of Hastséhogan descended into the canyon and followed her to
the spring. She was not aware of his presence until she had filled
her water-jar; then she supposed it to be her own husband, whom the
youth was dressed and adorned to represent, and she allowed him to
approach her. She soon discovered her error, however, but, deeming
it prudent to say nothing, she suffered him to follow her into the
house. As he entered, he observed that many of the slaves had already
assembled; perhaps they were aware that some trouble was in store for
their master. The latter looked up with an angry face; he felt jealous
when he saw the stranger entering immediately after his wife. He said
nothing of this, however, but asked at once the important question,
"Have you come to gamble with me?" This he repeated four times, and
each time the young Hastséhogan said "No." Thinking the stranger feared
to play with him, Nohoílpi went on challenging him recklessly. "I'll
bet myself against yourself;" "I'll bet my feet against your feet;"
"I'll bet my legs against your legs;" and so on he offered to bet
every and any part of his body against the same part of his adversary,
ending by mentioning his hair.
221. In the mean time the party of divine ones, who had been watching
from above, came down, and people from the neighboring pueblos came in,
and among these were two boys, who were dressed in costumes similar to
those worn by the wives of the gambler. The young Hastséhogan pointed
to these and said, "I will bet my wives against your wives." The
great gambler accepted the wager, and the four persons, two women
and two mock-women, were placed sitting in a row near the wall. First
they played the game of thirteen chips. The Bat assisted, as he had
promised the son of Hastséhogan and the latter soon won the game,
and with it the wives of Nohoílpi.
222. This was the only game played inside the house; then all went out
of doors, and games of various kinds were played. First they tried
nánzoz. The track already prepared lay east and west, but, prompted
by the Wind God, the stranger insisted on having a track made from
north to south, and again, at the bidding of Wind, he chose the red
stick. The son of Hastséhogan threw the wheel; at first it seemed
about to fall on the gambler's pole, in the "turkey-claw" of which it
was entangled; but to the great surprise of the gambler it extricated
itself, rolled farther on, and fell on the pole of his opponent. The
latter ran to pick up the ring, lest Nohoílpi in doing so might hurt
the snake inside; but the gambler was so angry that he threw his stick
away and gave up the game, hoping to do better in the next contest,
which was that of pushing down trees.
223. For this the great gambler pointed out two small trees, but his
opponent insisted that larger trees must be found. After some search
they agreed upon two of good size, which grew close together, and of
these the Wind told the youth which one he must select. The gambler
strained with all his might at his tree, but could not move it, while
his opponent, when his turn came, shoved the other tree prostrate
with little effort, for its roots had all been severed by Gopher.
224. Then followed a variety of games, on which Nohoílpi staked his
wealth in shells and precious stones, his houses, and many of his
slaves, and lost all.
225. The last game was that of the ball. On the line over which
the ball was to be knocked all the people were assembled; on one
side were those who still remained slaves; on the other side were
the freedmen and those who had come to wager themselves, hoping
to rescue their kinsmen. Nohoílpi bet on this game the last of his
slaves and his own person. The gambler struck his ball a heavy blow,
but it did not reach the line; the stranger gave his but a light tap,
and the bird within it flew with it far beyond the line, whereat the
released captives jumped over the line and joined their people.
226. The victor ordered all the shells, beads, and precious stones,
and the great shells, to be brought forth. He gave the beads and
shells to Hastséyalti, that they might be distributed among the gods;
the two great shells were given to the Sun.[77]
227. In the mean time Nohoílpi sat to one side saying bitter things,
bemoaning his fate, and cursing and threatening his enemies. "I will
kill you all with the lightning. I will send war and disease among
you. May the cold freeze you! May the fire burn you! May the waters
drown you!" he cried. "He has cursed enough," whispered Ni'ltsi to
the son of Hastséhogan. "Put an end to his angry words." So the young
victor called Nohoílpi to him and said: "You have bet yourself and
have lost; you are now my slave and must do my bidding. You are not a
god, for my power has prevailed against yours." The victor had a bow
of magic power named Eti'n Dilyi'l, or the Bow of Darkness; he bent
this upwards, and placing the string on the ground he bade his slave
stand on the string; then he shot Nohoílpi up into the sky as if he
had been an arrow. Up and up he went, growing smaller and smaller
to the sight till he faded to a mere speck and finally disappeared
altogether. As he flew upwards he was heard to mutter in the angry
tones of abuse and imprecation, until he was too far away to be heard;
but no one could distinguish anything he said as he ascended.
228. He flew up in the sky until he came to the home of Békotsidi,[78]
the god who carries the moon, and who is supposed by the Navahoes
to be identical with the God of the Americans. He is very old, and
dwells in a long row of stone houses. When Nohoílpi arrived at the
house of Békotsidi he related to the latter all his misadventures in
the lower world and said, "Now I am poor, and this is why I have come
to see you." "You need be poor no longer," said Békotsidi; "I will
provide for you." So he made for the gambler pets or domestic animals
of new kinds, different to those which he had in the Chaco valley;
he made for him sheep, asses, horses, swine, goats, and fowls. He
also gave him bayeta,[79] and other cloths of bright colors, more
beautiful than those woven by his slaves at Kintyél. He made, too,
a new people, the Mexicans, for the gambler to rule over, and then
he sent him back to this world again, but he descended far to the
south of his former abode, and reached the earth in old Mexico.
229. Nohoílpi's people increased greatly in Mexico, and after a while
they began to move towards the north, and build towns along the Rio
Grande. Nohoílpi came with them until they arrived at a place north of
Santa Fé. There they ceased building, and he returned to old Mexico,
where he still lives, and where he is now the Nakaí Digíni, or God
of the Mexicans.
230. The Navaho who went at the bidding of the Sun to the tryst of the
gods stayed with them till the gambler was shot into the sky. Then he
returned to his people and told all he had seen. The young stranger
went back to Tse`gíhi, the home of the yéi.
231. The wanderers were not long at Kintyél, but while they were
they met some of the Daylight People. From Kintyél they moved
to To`i'ndotsos, and here Mai,[80] the Coyote, married a Navaho
woman. He remained in the Navaho camp nine days, and then he went
to visit Dasáni, the Porcupine. The latter took a piece of bark,
scratched his nose with it till the blood flowed freely out over it,
put it on the fire, and there roasted it slowly until it turned into
a piece of fine meat. Porcupine then spread some clean herbs on the
ground, laid the roasted meat on these, and invited his visitor
to partake. Coyote was delighted; he had never had a nicer meal,
and when he was leaving he invited his host to return the visit in
two days. At the appointed time Porcupine presented himself at the
hut of Coyote. The latter greeted his guest, bade him be seated, and
rushed out of the house. In a few minutes he returned with a piece
of bark. With this he scratched his nose, as he had seen Porcupine
doing, and allowed the blood to flow. He placed the bloody bark over
the fire, where in a moment it burst into flames and was soon reduced
to ashes. Coyote hung his head in shame and Porcupine went home hungry.
232. Soon after this Coyote visited Maítso,[80] the Wolf. The latter
took down, from among the rafters of his hut, two of the old-fashioned
reed arrows with wooden heads, such as the Navahoes used in the
ancient days; he pulled out the wooden points, rolled them on his
thigh, moistened them in his mouth, and buried them in the hot ashes
beside the fire. After waiting a little while and talking to his guest,
he raked out from the ashes, where he had buried the arrow points,
two fine cooked puddings of minced meat; these he laid on a mat of
fresh herbs and told Coyote to help himself. Coyote again enjoyed his
meal greatly, and soon after, when he rose to leave, he invited Wolf
to pay him a visit in two days. Wolf went in due time to the house of
Coyote, and when he had seated himself the host took two arrow-heads,
as Wolf had done, rolled them on his thigh, put them in his mouth,
and buried them in the hot ashes. After waiting a while, he raked
the ashes and found nothing but two pieces of charred wood where
he had placed the arrow-heads. This time he gave no evidence of his
disappointment, but sat and talked with his guest just as if nothing
had happened, until Wolf, seeing no sign of dinner and becoming very
hungry, got up and went home.
233. In those days the Chicken-hawks and the Hummingbirds were known
as great hunters. They were friendly to one another and dwelt together
in one camp.
234. Coyote went to pay them a visit, and when he arrived at the camp
he entered one of the huts of the Hummingbirds. He found therein two
beautiful Hummingbird maidens, gayly dressed, with rows of deer-hoof
pendants on their skirts and shoulders. He lay down in the lodge and
said to the maidens: "Where is everybody to-day? I heard there were
many people camped here, but the camp seems deserted." The maidens
replied: "There are many people camped here, but to-day the men are
all out hunting."
235. Now, Coyote was a dandy; he was always beautifully dressed; he
had a nice otter-skin quiver and his face was painted in spots. The
maidens, when they had looked well at him, bent their heads together
and whispered to one another, "He is a handsome young man. He is
beautifully dressed. He must be a person of some importance." He spent
the day gossipping with the maidens and telling them wonderful tales
about himself. "Would you know who I am?" he said. "I am the God of
Tsisnadzi'ni Mountain. I have no need to hunt. All I have to do is
to will the death of an animal and it dies. Your people have no need
to wear themselves out hunting for game. I can kill all they want
without labor."
236. At nightfall, when the hunters returned, the maidens left the
lodge, went to where their friends were assembled, and told them
all about the visitor. When the maidens had finished their story,
the chief directed one of the young men to go over to the hut,
peep in over the curtain in the doorway, and see what the stranger
looked like. The young man did as he was bidden, making no noise, and
looked into the lodge unobserved by Coyote. When he returned to the
chief he said: "The stranger is a fine-looking man and is beautifully
dressed. Perhaps he is indeed a god." The chief then said: "It may be
that all is true which he has told the maidens. We have to travel far
in all sorts of weather and to work hard to secure food. He may know
some way to save us from labor, so let us be kind to him. Go, one of
you maidens, back to the lodge to serve him." Hearing these words,
the younger of the two young women returned to the lodge. Her clothing
was ornamented with many pendants of bone and hoof that rattled with
every movement she made, and for this reason Coyote named her Tsiké
Nazi'li, or Young Woman Who Rattles.
237. In the morning she went to the lodge where her people were,
and where a good breakfast was already prepared, and she brought
a large dishful of the food for Coyote to eat. As she was about to
depart with the food her people charged her to tell Coyote nothing
of certain bad neighbors of theirs, lest he might visit them and work
wonders for their benefit. But their injunctions came too late. Already
Tsiké Nazi'li had told him all about these bad neighbors, and he had
made up his mind to visit them.
238. When breakfast was over she said: "Now the hunters are going
out." He replied: "I will go with them." So he joined the party,
and they travelled together till they got to the brow of a high hill
which overlooked an extensive country. Here Coyote told his companions
to remain concealed while he went into the plain and drove the game
toward them. When he got out of sight, he tied to his tail a long
fagot of shredded cedar-bark, which he set on fire, and then he ran
over the country in a wide circle as fast as he could go. Everywhere
the fagot touched it set fire to the grass, and raised a long line of
flame and smoke which drove the antelope up to where the hunters were
concealed. A great quantity of game was killed; the hunters returned
laden with meat, and their faith in Coyote was unbounded.
239. Next morning they all went out once more to hunt. Again the
hunters concealed themselves on the brow of a hill, and again Coyote
tied the blazing fagot to his tail and ran. The people on the hilltop
watched the line of fire advancing over the plain; but when it turned
around as if to come back to the place from which it started, it
suddenly ceased. Much game was driven toward the party in ambush;
but Coyote did not return, and the hunters went to work cutting up
the meat and cooking food for themselves.
240. Coyote, in the mean time, had gone to seek the bad neighbors. He
untied his brand at the place where the hunters had seen the line
of fire cease, and wandered off in a different direction. After
a while he came to two great trees, a spruce and a pine, growing
close together, and filled with chattering birds of two kinds. The
spruce-tree was filled with birds called Tsi'di Béze, and the
pine-tree with birds called Tsi'di Sási. They were all busily
engaged in playing a game which Coyote had never seen before. They
would pull out their eyes, toss these up to the top of the tree, cry
"Drop back, my eyes! Drop back!" and catch the eyes as they descended
in their proper sockets. Coyote watched their play for a long time,
and at length, becoming fascinated with the game, he cried out to
the Tsi'di Sási in the pine-tree, "Pull out my eyes for me. I want
to play, too." "No," they replied, "we will have nothing to do with
you." Again and again he begged to be allowed to join in the sport,
and again and again they refused him. But when he had pleaded for the
fourth time, they flew down to where Coyote sat, and, taking sharp
sticks, they gouged his eyes out. The eyes were thrown up to the top
of the pine-tree, and when they fell down Coyote caught them in his
orbits and could see again as well as ever. Coyote was delighted
with the result of his first venture, and he begged them to pull
his eyes out again, but they said angrily: "We do not want to play
with you. We have done enough for you now. Go and leave us." But he
continued to whine and beg until again they pulled out his eyes and
tossed them up with the same happy result as before. Thus four times
were his eyes pulled out, thrown upward, and caught back again in the
head. But when he begged them to pull out his eyes for the fifth time,
they went to a distance and held a council among themselves. When
they returned they pulled his eyes out once more; but this time
they took pains to pull out the strings of the eyes (optic nerves)
at the same time; these they tied together, and, when the eyes were
again flung up in the tree, they caught on one of the branches and
there they stayed. Now Coyote was in mortal distress. "Drop back, my
eyes! Drop back!" he cried. But back they never came, and he sat there
with his nose pointed up toward the top of the tree, and he howled
and prayed and wept. At last the birds took pity on him and said:
"Let us make other eyes for him." So they took a couple of partly
dried pieces of pine gum and rolled them into two balls; these were
stuck into the empty sockets, and, although they were not good eyes,
they gave him sight enough to see his way home. The gum was yellow,
and for this reason coyotes have had yellow eyes ever since.
241. He crept back, as best he could, to the place where he had left
the hunters, and where he found them cutting and cooking meat. He
sat down facing the fire, but he soon found that his gum eyes were
getting soft with the heat, so he turned his side to the fire. The
hunters gave him a piece of raw liver, supposing he would cook it
himself. Not daring to turn towards the fire, lest his eyes should
melt altogether, he threw the liver on the coals without looking,
and when he tried afterwards to take it up he thrust his hand at
random into the fire and caught nothing but hot coals that burned
him. Fearing that his strange action was observed, he tried to pass
it off as a joke, and every time he picked up a hot coal he cried:
"Don't burn me, liver! Don't burn me, liver!" After a while the hunters
seated around the fire began to notice his singular motions and words,
and one said to another: "He does not act as usual. Go and see what
is the matter with him." The hunter who was thus bidden went over in
front of Coyote, looked at him closely, and saw melted gum pouring
out from between his eyelids.
242. It happened that during the day, while Coyote was absent, a
messenger had come to the camp of the hunters from another camp to tell
them that an individual named Mai, or Coyote, had left his home, and
had been seen going toward the camp of the Hummingbirds, and to warn
them against him. "He is an idler and a trickster,--beware of him,"
said the messenger. So when they found out the condition of their
visitor they said: "This must be Coyote of whom we have heard. He
has been playing with the Tsi'di Sási and has lost his eyes."
243. When they had arrived at this conclusion they started for camp
and led the blind Coyote along. In the mean time they devised a plan
for getting rid of him. When they got home they took the rattling
dress of Tsiké Nazi'li and gave her an ordinary garment to wear. Then a
Chicken-hawk took the dress in his beak, and, flying a little distance
above the ground, shook the dress in front of Coyote. The latter,
thinking the maiden was there, approached the sound, and as he did so
the Chicken-hawk flew farther away, still shaking the dress. Coyote
followed the rattling sound, and was thus led on to the brink of a
deep canyon. Here the hawk shook the dress beyond the edge of the
precipice. Coyote jumped toward where he heard the sound, fell to
the bottom of the canyon, and was dashed to pieces.
244. But for all this he did not die. He did not, like other beings,
keep his vital principle in his chest, where it might easily be
destroyed; he kept it in the tip of his nose and in the end of his
tail, where no one would expect to find it; so after a while he
came to life again, went back to the camp of the birds, and asked
for Tsiké Nazi'li. They told him she was gone away, and ordered him
angrily to leave, telling him they knew who he was, and that he was
a worthless fellow.
245. Coyote left the camp of the birds, and wandered around till
he came to the house of one of the anáye, or alien gods, named
Yélapahi,[71] or Brown Giant. He was half as tall as the tallest
pine-tree, and he was evil and cruel. Coyote said to the Brown Giant,
"Yélapahi, I want to be your servant; I can be of great help to
you. The reason that you often fail to catch your enemies is that
you cannot run fast enough. I can run fast and jump far; I can jump
over four bushes at one bound. I can run after your enemies and help
you to catch them." "My cousin," responded Brown Giant, "you can do
me service if you will." Coyote then directed the giant to build
a sweat-house for himself, and, while the latter was building it,
Coyote set out on another errand.
246. In those days there was a maiden of renowned beauty in the
land. She was the only sister of eleven divine brothers.[81] She
had been sought in marriage by the Sun and by many potent gods, but
she had refused them all because they could not comply with certain
conditions which she imposed op all suitors. It was to visit her that
Coyote went when he left Yélapahi at work on the sweat-house.
247. "Why have you refused so many beautiful gods who want you for a
wife?" said Coyote to the maiden after he had greeted her. "It would
profit you nothing to know," she replied, "for you could not comply
with any one of my demands." Four times he asked her this question,
and three times he got the same reply. When he asked her the fourth
time she answered: "In the first place, I will not marry any one who
has not killed one of the anáye." When he heard this Coyote arose
and returned to the place where he had left Yélapahi.
248. On his way back he looked carefully for the bone of some big
animal which Great Wolf had slain and eaten. At length he found a
long thigh-bone which suited his purpose. He took this home with him,
concealing it under his shirt. When Coyote got back, Yélapahi had
finished the sweat-house.[82] Together they built the fire, heated the
stones, and spread the carpet of leaves. Coyote hung over the doorway
four blankets of sky,--one white, one blue, one yellow, and one black,
and put the hot stones into the lodge. Then they hung their arms and
clothes on a neighboring tree, entered the sudatory, and sat down.[83]
249. "Now," said Coyote, "if you want to become a fast runner, I
will show you what to do. You must cut the flesh of your thigh down
to the bone and then break the bone. It will heal again in a moment,
and when it heals you will be stronger and swifter than ever. I often
do this myself, and every time I do it I am fleeter of foot than
I was before. I will do it now, so that you may observe how it is
done." Coyote then produced a great stone knife and pretended to cut
his own thigh, wailing and crying in the mean time, and acting as if
he suffered great pain. After a while of this pretence he put the old
femur on top of his thigh, held it by both ends, and said to the giant:
"I have now reached the bone. Feel it." When the giant had put forth
his hand, in the absolute darkness of the sweat-house, and felt the
bare bone, Coyote shoved the hand away and struck the bone hard with
the edge of his knife several times until he broke the bone, and he
made the giant feel the fractured ends. Then he threw away the old
bone, rubbed spittle on his thigh, prayed and sang, and in a little
while presented his sound thigh to the giant for his examination,
saying: "See! my limb is healed again. It is as well as ever." When he
had thus spoken Coyote handed his knife to Yélapahi, and the latter
with many tears and loud howls slowly amputated his own thigh. When
the work was done he put the two severed ends together, spat upon them,
sang and prayed, as Coyote had done. "Tóhe! Tóhe! Tóhe!"[84] he cried,
"Heal together! Grow together!" he commanded; but the severed ends
would not unite. "Cousin," he called to Coyote, "help me to heal this
leg." Coyote thought it was now time to finish his work. He ran from
the sweat-house, seized his bow, and discharged his arrows into the
helpless Yélapahi, who soon expired with many wounds.
250. Coyote scalped his victim, and tied the scalp to the top of a
branch which he broke from a cedar-tree; as further evidence of his
victory, he took the quiver and weapons of the slain and set out for
the lodge of the maiden. He knew she could not mistake the scalp,
for the yéi, in those days, had yellow hair,[85] such as no other
people had. When he reached the lodge he said to the maiden: "Here is
the scalp and here are the weapons of one of the anáye. Now you must
marry me." "No," said the maiden, "not yet; I have not told you all
that one must do in order to win me. He must be killed four times
and come to life again four times." "Do you speak the truth? Have
you told me all?" said Coyote. "Yes; I speak only the truth," she
replied. Four times he asked this question, and four times he received
the same answer. When she had spoken for the fourth time Coyote said:
"Here I am. Do with me as you will." The maiden took him a little
distance from the lodge, laid him on the ground, beat him with a
great club until she thought she had smashed every bone in his body,
and left him for dead. But the point of his nose and the end of his
tail she did not smash. She hurried back to her hut, for she had much
work to do. She was the only woman in a family of twelve. She cooked
the food and tanned the skins, and besides she made baskets. At this
particular time she was engaged in making four baskets. When she
returned to the lodge she sat down and went on with her basket-work;
but she had not worked long before she became aware that some one was
standing in the doorway, and, looking up, she beheld Coyote. "Here I
am," he said; "I have won one game; there are only three more to win."
251. She made no reply, but took him off farther than she had taken
him before, and pounded him to pieces with a club. She threw the
pieces away in different directions and returned to her work again;
but she had not taken many stitches in her basket when again the
resurrected Coyote appeared in the doorway, saying: "I have won two
games; there are only two more to win."
252. Again she led him forth, but took him still farther away from the
lodge than she had taken him before, and with a heavy club pounded
him into a shapeless mass, until she thought he must certainly be
dead. She stood a long time gazing at the pounded flesh, and studying
what she would do with it to make her work sure. She carried the mass
to a great rock, and there she beat it into still finer pieces. These
she scattered farther than she had scattered the pieces before, and
went back to the house. But she had still failed to injure the two
vital spots. It took the Coyote a longer time on this occasion than
on the previous occasions to pull himself together; still she had not
wrought much on her basket when he again presented himself and said:
"I have won three games; there is but one more game to win."
253. The fourth time she led him farther away than ever. She not only
mashed him to pieces, but she mixed the pieces with earth, ground
the mixture, like corn, between two stones, until it was ground to
a fine powder, and scattered this powder far and wide. But again she
neglected to crush the point of the nose and the tip of the tail. She
went back to the lodge and worked a long time undisturbed. She
had just begun to entertain hopes that she had seen the last of
her unwelcome suitor when again he entered the door. Now, at last,
she could not refuse him. He had fulfilled all her conditions, and
she consented to become his wife. He remained all the afternoon. At
sunset they heard the sound of approaching footsteps, and she said:
"My brothers are coming. Some of them are evil of mind and may do you
harm. You must hide yourself." She hid him behind a pile of skins,
and told him to be quiet.
254. When the brothers entered the lodge they said to their sister:
"Here is some fat young venison which we bring you. Put it down to
boil and put some of the fat into the pot, for our faces are burned
by the wind and we want to grease them." The woman slept on the north
side of the lodge and kept there her household utensils. She had
about half of the lodge to herself. The men slept on the south side,
the eldest next to the door.
255. The pot was put on and the fire replenished, and when it began
to burn well an odor denoting the presence of some beast filled the
lodge. One of the brothers said: "It smells as if some animal had been
in the wood-pile. Let us throw out this wood and get fresh sticks from
the bottom of the pile." They did as he desired; but the unpleasant
odors continued to annoy them, and again the wood was taken from the
fire and thrown away. Thinking the whole pile of wood was tainted
with the smell, they went out, broke fresh branches from trees, and
built the fire up again; but this did not abate the rank odor in the
least. Then one said: "Perhaps the smell is in the water. Tell us,
little sister, where did you get the water in the pot?" "I got it at
the spring where I always get it," she replied. But they got her to
throw out the water and fill the pot with snow, and to put the meat
down to boil again. In spite of all their pains the stench was as bad
as ever. At length one of the brothers turned to his sister and said:
"What is the cause of this odor? It is not in the wood. It is not in
the water. Whence comes it?" She was silent. He repeated the question
three times, yet she made no answer. But when the question had been
asked for the fourth time, Coyote jumped out of his hiding-place into
the middle of the lodge and cried: "It is I, my brothers-in-law!" "Run
out there!" the brothers commanded, and turning to their sister they
said: "Run out you with him!"
256. They both departed from the lodge. As Coyote went out he took
a brand from the fire, and with this he lighted a new fire. Then he
broke boughs from the neighboring trees and built a shelter for himself
and his wife to live in. When this was completed she went back to the
lodge of her brothers, took out her pots, skins, four awls, baskets,
and all her property, and carried them to her new home.
257. One of the elder brothers said to the youngest: "Go out to-night
and watch the couple, and see what sort of a man this is that we have
for a brother-in-law. Do not enter the shelter, but lie hidden outside
and observe them." So the youngest brother went forth and hid himself
near the shelter, where he could peep in and see by the light of the
fire what took place and hear what was said. The pair sat side by
side near the fire. Presently the woman laid her hand in a friendly
manner on Coyote's knee, but Coyote threw it away. These motions were
repeated four times, and when he had thrown her hand away for the
fourth time he said: "I have sworn never to take a woman for a wife
until I have killed her four times." For a while the woman remained
silent and gazed at the fire. At length she said: "Here I am. Do with
me as you will." (The myth then relates four deaths and resurrections
of the woman, similar to those of the Coyote, but it does not state
how or where she preserved her vital principle.) When she returned
for the fourth time she lay down, and Coyote soon followed her to
her couch. From time to time during the night they held long, low
conversations, of which the listener could hear but little. At dawn the
watcher went home. In reply to the questions of his brothers he said:
"I cannot tell you all that I saw and heard, and they said much that
I could not hear; but all that I did hear and behold was tsindás"
(devilish, evil).
258. Next morning the brothers proposed to go out hunting. While
they were getting ready Coyote came and asked leave to join them,
but they said to him tauntingly: "No; stay at home with your wife;
she may be lonely and may need some one to talk to her," and they
chased him out of the lodge. Just as they were about to leave he came
back again and begged them to take him with them. "No," they replied,
"the woman will want you to carry wood; you must stay at home with
her." They bade him begone and set out on their journey. They had not
gone far on their way when he overtook them, and for the third time
asked to be allowed to join the party; but again they drove him back
with scornful words. They travelled on till they came to the edge of a
deep canyon bordered with very steep cliffs, and here Coyote was seen
again, skulking behind them. For the fourth time he pleaded with them;
but now the youngest brother took his part, and suggested that Coyote
might assist in driving game towards them. So, after some deliberation,
they consented to take Coyote along. At the edge of the canyon they
made a bridge of rainbow,[86] on which they proceeded to cross the
chasm. Before the brothers reached the opposite bluff Coyote jumped
on it from the bridge, with a great bound, and began to frolic around,
saying: "This is a nice place to play."
259. They travelled farther on, and after a while came to a mesa, or
table-land, which projected into a lower plain, and was connected with
the plateau on which they stood by a narrow neck of level land. It was
a mesa much like that on which the three eastern towns of the Mokis
stand, with high, precipitous sides and a narrow entrance. On the
neck of land they observed the tracks of four Rocky Mountain sheep,
which had gone in on the mesa but had not returned. They had reason,
therefore, to believe that the sheep were still on the mesa. At the
neck they built a fire, sat down near it, and sent Coyote in on the
mesa to drive the sheep out. Their plans were successful; soon the
four sheep came running out over the neck, within easy range of the
hunters' weapons, and were all killed. Presently Coyote returned and
lay down on the sand.
260. In those days the horns of the Rocky Mountain sheep were
flat and fleshy and could be eaten. The eldest brother said:
"I will take the horns for my share." "No," said Coyote, "the
horns shall be mine: give them to me." Three times each repeated
the same declaration. When both had spoken for the fourth time,
the eldest brother, to end the controversy, drew out his knife
and began to cut one of the horns; as he did so Coyote cried out,
"Tsinántlehi! Tsinántlehi! Tsinántlehi! Tsinántlehi!" (Turn to
bone! Turn to bone! Turn to bone! Turn to bone!) Each time he cried,
the horn grew harder and harder, and the knife slipped as it cut,
hacking but not severing the horn. This is why the horns of the Rocky
Mountain sheep are now hard, not fleshy, and to this day they bear
the marks of the hunter's knife. "Tsi'ndi! Tsindás bilnáalti!" (You
devil! You evil companion in travel!) said the hunter to Coyote.
261. The hunters gathered all the meat into one pile, and by means
of the mystic power which they possessed they reduced it to a very
small compass. They tied it in a small bundle which one person might
easily carry, and they gave it to Coyote to take home, saying to him,
"Travel round by the head of the canyon over which we crossed and go
not through it, for they are evil people who dwell there, and open
not your bundle until you get home."
262. The bundle was lifted to his back and he started for home,
promising to heed all that had been told him. But as soon as he was
well out of sight of his companions he slipped his bundle to the
ground and opened it. At once the meat expanded and became again a
heap of formidable size, such that he could not bind it up again or
carry it; so he hung some of it up on the trees and bushes; he stuck
part of it into crevices in the rocks; a portion he left scattered
on the ground; he tied up as much as he could carry in a new bundle,
and with this he continued on his journey.
263. When he came to the edge of the forbidden canyon he looked down
and saw some birds playing a game he had never witnessed before. They
rolled great stones down the slope, which extended from the foot of
the cliff to the bottom of the valley, and stood on the stones while
they were rolling; yet the birds were not upset or crushed or hurt
in the least by this diversion. The sight so pleased Coyote that he
descended into the canyon and begged to be allowed to join in the
sport. The birds rolled a stone gently for him; he got on it and
handled himself so nimbly that he reached the bottom of the slope
without injury. Again and again he begged them to give him a trial
until he thus three times descended without hurting himself. When he
asked the birds for the fourth time to roll a stone for him they became
angry and hurled it with such force that Coyote lost his footing, and
he and the stone rolled over one another to the bottom of the slope,
and he screamed and yelped all the way down.
264. After this experience he left the birds and travelled on until
he observed some Otters at play by the stream at the bottom of the
canyon. They were playing the Navaho game of nánzoz. They bet their
skins against one another on the results of the game. But when one
lost his skin at play he jumped into the water and came out with a
new skin. Coyote approached the Otters and asked to be allowed to take
part in the game, but the Otters had heard about him and knew what a
rascal he was. They refused him and told him to begone; but still he
remained and pleaded. After a while they went apart and talked among
themselves, and when they returned they invited Coyote to join them
in their game. Coyote bet his skin and lost it. The moment he lost,
the Otters all rushed at him, and, notwithstanding his piteous cries,
they tore the hide from his back, beginning at the root of his tail
and tearing forward. When they came to the vital spot at the end of
his nose his wails were terrible. When he found himself denuded of
his skin he jumped into the water, as he had seen the Otters doing;
but, alas! his skin did not come back to him. He jumped again and
again into the water; but came out every time as bare as he went
in. At length he became thoroughly exhausted, and lay down in the
water until the Otters took pity on him and pulled him out. They
dragged him to a badger hole, threw him in there, and covered him
up with earth. Previous to this adventure Coyote had a beautiful,
smooth fur like that of the otter. When he dug his way out of the
badger hole he was again covered with hair, but it was no longer the
glossy fur which he once wore; it was coarse and rough, much like
that of the badger, and such a pelt the coyotes have worn ever since.
265. But this sad experience did not make him mend his ways. He again
went round challenging the Otters to further play, and betting his
new skin on the game. "Your skin is of no value; no one would play for
it. Begone!" they said. Being often refused and insolently treated, he
at length became angry, retired to a safe distance, and began to revile
the Otters shamefully. "You are braggarts," he cried; "you pretend to
be brave, but you are cowards. Your women are like yourselves: their
heads are flat; their eyes are little; their teeth stick out; they
are ugly; while I have a bride as beautiful as the sun." He shook his
foot at them as if to say, "I am fleeter than you." He would approach
them, and when they made motion as if to pursue him, he would take a
big jump and soon place himself beyond their reach. When they quieted
down, he would approach them again and continue to taunt and revile
them. After a while he went to the cliff, to a place of safety, and
shouted from there his words of derision. The Otters talked together,
and said they could suffer his abuse no longer, that something must
be done, and they sent word to the chiefs of the Spiders, who lived
farther down the stream, telling them what had occurred, and asking
for their aid.
266. The Spiders crept up the bluff, went round behind where Coyote
sat cursing and scolding, and wove strong webs in the trees and
bushes. When their work was finished they told the Otters what
they had done, and the latter started to climb the bluff and attack
Coyote. Conscious of his superior swiftness, he acted as if indifferent
to them, and allowed them to come quite close before he turned to
run; but he did not run far until he was caught in the webs of the
Spiders. Then the Otters seized him and dragged him, howling, to the
foot of the hill. He clung so hard to the grasses and shrubs as he
passed that they were torn out by the roots. When the Otters got him
to the bottom of the hill they killed him, or seemed to kill him. The
Cliff Swallows (Hastsósi)[21] flew down from the walls of the canyon
and tore him in pieces; they carried off the fragments to their nests,
leaving only a few drops of blood on the ground; they tore his skin
into strips and made of these bands which they put around their heads,
and this accounts for the band which the cliff swallow wears upon
his brow to-day.
267. It was nightfall when the brothers came home. They saw that Coyote
had not yet returned, and they marvelled what had become of him. When
they entered the lodge and sat down, the sister came and peeped in over
the portière, scanned the inside of the lodge, and looked inquiringly
at them. They did not speak to her until she had done this four times,
then the eldest brother said: "Go back and sleep, and don't worry
about that worthless man of yours. He is not with us, and we know
not what has become of him. We suppose he has gone into the canyon,
where we warned him not to go, and has been killed." She only said,
"What have you done with him?" and went away in anger.
268. Before they lay down to sleep they sent the youngest brother out
to hide where he had hidden the night before to watch their sister,
and this is what he saw: At first she pretended to go to sleep. After
a while she rose and sat facing the east. Then she faced in turn
the south, the west, and the north, moving sunwise. When this was
done she pulled out her right eye-tooth, broke a large piece from
one of her four bone awls and inserted it in the place of the tooth,
making a great tusk where the little tooth had once been. As she did
this she said aloud: "He who shall hereafter dream of losing a right
eye-tooth shall lose a brother." After this she opened her mouth to
the four points of the compass in the order in which she had faced
them before, tore out her left eye-tooth and inserted in its place
the pointed end of another awl. As she made this tusk she said:
"He who dreams of losing his left eye-tooth shall lose a sister."
269. The watcher then returned to his brothers and told them what
he had seen and heard. "Go back," said they, "and watch her again,
for you have not seen all her deeds." When he went back he saw her
make, as she had done before, two tusks in her lower jaw. When she had
made that on the right she said: "He who dreams of losing this tooth
(right lower canine) shall lose a child;" and when she made that on
the left she said: "He who dreams of losing this tooth (left lower
canine) shall lose a parent."
270. When she first began to pull out her teeth, hair began to grow
on her hands; as she went on with her mystic work the hair spread
up her arms and her legs, leaving only her breasts bare. The young
man now crept back to the lodge where his brethren waited and told
them what he had seen. "Go back," they said, "and hide again. There
is more for you to see."
271. When he got back to his hiding-place the hair had grown over
her breasts, and she was covered with a coat of shaggy hair like
that of a bear. She continued to move around in the direction of the
sun's apparent course, pausing and opening her mouth at the east,
the south, the west, and the north as she went. After a while her ears
began to wag, her snout grew long, her teeth were heard to gnash, her
nails turned into claws. He watched her until dawn, when, fearing he
might be discovered, he returned to his lodge and told his brothers
all that had happened. They said: "These must be the mysteries that
Coyote explained to her the first night."
272. In a moment after the young man had told his story they heard
the whistling of a bear, and soon a she-bear rushed past the door of
the lodge, cracking the branches as she went. She followed the trail
which Coyote had taken the day before and disappeared in the woods.
273. At night she came back groaning. She had been in the fatal canyon
all day, fighting the slayers of Coyote, and she had been wounded
in many places. Her brothers saw a light in her hut, and from time
to time one of their number would go and peep in through an aperture
to observe what was happening within. All night she walked around the
fire. At intervals she would, by means of her magic, draw arrow-heads
out of her body and heal the wounds.
274. Next morning the bear-woman again rushed past the lodge of her
brethren, and again went off toward the fatal canyon. At night she
returned, as before, groaning and bleeding, and again spent the long
night in drawing forth missiles and healing her wounds by means of
her magic rites.
275. Thus she continued to do for four days and four nights; but
at the end of the fourth day she had conquered all her enemies; she
had slain many, and those she had not killed she had dispersed. The
swallows flew up into the high cliffs to escape her vengeance;
the otters hid themselves in the water; the spiders retreated into
holes in the ground,[87] and in such places these creatures have been
obliged to dwell ever since.
276. During these four days, the brothers remained in their camp;
but at the end of that time, feeling that trouble was in store for
them, they decided to go away. They left the youngest brother at home,
and the remaining ten divided themselves into four different parties;
one of which travelled to the east, another to the south, another to
the west, and another to the north.
277. When they were gone, the Whirlwind, Níyol, and the Knife Boy,
Pésasike, came to the lodge to help the younger brother who had
remained behind. They dug for him a hole under the centre of the
hogán; and from this they dug four branching tunnels, running east,
south, west, and north, and over the end of each tunnel they put
a window of gypsum to let in light from above. They gave him four
weapons,--atsinikli'ska, the chain-lightning arrow; hatsoilhálka
(an old-fashioned stone knife as big as the open hand); natsili'tka,
the rainbow arrow; and hatsilki'ska, the sheet-lightning arrow. They
roofed his hiding-place with four flat stones, one white, one blue,
one yellow, and one black. They put earth over all these, smoothing
the earth and tramping it down so that it should look like the natural
floor of the lodge. They gave him two monitors, Ni'ltsi, the Wind,
at his right ear, to warn him by day of the approach of danger;
and Tsalyél, darkness, at his left ear, to warn him by night.
278. When morning came and the bear-woman went forth she discovered
that her brothers had departed. She poured water on the ground
(hali'z) to see which way they had gone. The water flowed to the
east; she rushed on in that direction and soon overtook three of the
fugitives, whom she succeeded in killing. Then she went back to her
hut to see what had become of her other brothers. Again she poured
water on the level ground and it flowed off to the south; she followed
in that direction and soon overtook three others, whom she likewise
slew. Returning to the lodge she again performed her divination by
means of water. This time she was directed to the west, and, going
that way, she overtook and killed three more of the men. Again she
sought the old camp and poured on the ground water, which flowed to
the north; going on in this direction she encountered but one man,
and him she slew. Once more she went back to discover what had become
of her last brother. She poured water for the fifth time on the level
ground; it sank directly into the earth.
279. The brothers had always been very successful hunters and their
home was always well supplied with meat. In consequence of this
they had had many visitors who built in their neighborhood temporary
shelters, such as the Navahoes build now when they come to remain only
a short time at a place, and the remains of these shelters surrounded
the deserted hut. She scratched in all these places to find traces of
the fugitive, without success, and in doing so she gradually approached
the deserted hut. She scratched all around outside the hut and then
went inside. She scratched around the edge of the hut and then worked
toward the centre, until at length she came to the fireplace. Here
she found the earth was soft as if recently disturbed, and she dug
rapidly downward with her paws. She soon came to the stones, and,
removing these, saw her last remaining brother hidden beneath them. "I
greet you, my younger brother! Come up, I want to see you," she said
in a coaxing voice. Then she held out one finger to him and said:
"Grasp my finger and I will help you up." But Wind told him not
to grasp her finger; that if he did she would throw him upwards,
that he would fall half dead at her feet and be at her mercy. "Get
up without her help," whispered Ni'ltsi.
280. He climbed out of the hole on the east side and walked toward the
east. She ran toward him in a threatening manner, but he looked at her
calmly and said: "It is I, your younger brother." Then she approached
him in a coaxing way, as a dog approaches one with whom he wishes to
make friends, and she led him back toward the deserted hogán. But
as he approached it the Wind whispered: "We have had sorrow there,
let us not enter," so he would not go in, and this is the origin of
the custom now among the Navahoes never to enter a house in which
death had occurred.[91]
281. "Come," she then said, "and sit with your face to the west,
and let me comb your hair." (It was now late in the afternoon.) "Heed
her not," whispered Wind; "sit facing the north, that you watch her
shadow and see what she does. It is thus that she has killed your
brothers." They both sat down, she behind him, and she untied his
queue and proceeded to arrange his hair, while he watched her out of
the corner of his eye. Soon he observed her snout growing longer and
approaching his head, and he noticed that her ears were wagging. "What
does it mean that your snout grows longer and that your ears move
so?" he asked. She did not reply, but drew her snout in and kept her
ears still. When these occurrences had taken place for the fourth time,
Wind whispered in his ear: "Let not this happen again. If she puts out
her snout the fifth time she will bite your head off. Yonder, where
you see that chattering squirrel, are her vital parts. He guards them
for her. Now run and destroy them." He rose and ran toward the vital
parts and she ran after him. Suddenly, between them a large yucca[88]
sprang up to retard her steps, and then a cane cactus,[89] and then
another yucca, and then another cactus of a different kind. She ran
faster than he, but was so delayed in running around the plants that
he reached the vitals before her, and heard the lungs breathing under
the weeds that covered them. He drew forth his chain-lightning arrow,
shot it into the weeds, and saw a bright stream of blood spurting
up. At the same instant the bear-woman fell with the blood streaming
from her side.
282. "See!" whispered Ni'ltsi, the Wind, "the stream of blood from
her body and the stream from her vitals flow fast and approach one
another. If they meet she will revive, and then your danger will be
greater than ever. Draw, with your stone knife, a mark on the ground
between the approaching streams." The young man did as he was bidden,
when instantly the blood coagulated and ceased to flow.
283. Then the young man said: "You shall live again, but no longer as
the mischievous Tsiké Sas Nátlehi.[90] You shall live in other forms,
where you may be of service to your kind and not a thing of evil." He
cut off the head and said to it: "Let us see if in another life you
will do better. When you come to life again, act well, or again I
will slay you." He threw the head at the foot of a piñon-tree and it
changed into a bear, which started at once to walk off. But presently
it stopped, shaded its eyes with one paw, and looked back at the man,
saying: "You have bidden me to act well; but what shall I do if others
attack me?" "Then you may defend yourself," said the young man; "but
begin no quarrel, and be ever a friend to your people, the Diné`. Go
yonder to Black Mountain (Dsillizi'n) and dwell there." There are
now in Black Mountain many bears which are descended from this bear.
284. The hero cut off the nipples and said to them: "Had you belonged
to a good woman and not to a foolish witch, it might have been your
luck to suckle men. You were of no use to your kind; but now I shall
make you of use in another form." He threw the nipples up into a
piñon-tree, heretofore fruitless, and they became edible pine nuts.
285. Next he sought the homes of his friends, the holy ones, Níyol
and Pésasike. They led him to the east, to the south, to the west,
and to the north, where the corpses of his brothers lay, and these
they restored to life for him. They went back to the place where
the brothers had dwelt before and built a new house; but they did
not return to the old home, for that was now a tsi'ndi hogán and
accursed.[91]
286. The holy ones then gave to the young hero the name of Léyaneyani,
or Reared Under the Ground, because they had hidden him in the earth
when his brethren fled from the wrath of his sister. They bade him
go and dwell at a place called Atáhyitsoi (Big Point on the Edge),
which is in the shape of a hogán, or Navaho hut, and here we think
he still dwells.
III. THE WAR GODS.
287. The Diné` now removed to Tse`lakaíia (White Standing Rock),
where, a few days after they arrived, they found on the ground a small
turquoise image of a woman; this they preserved. Of late the monsters
(anáye, alien gods) had been actively pursuing and devouring the
people, and at the time this image was found there were only four
persons remaining alive;[92] these were an old man and woman and
their two children, a young man and a young woman. Two days after the
finding of the image, early in the morning, before they rose, they
heard the voice of Hastséyalti, the Talking God, crying his call of
"Wu`hu`hu`hu" so faint and far that they could scarcely hear it. After
a while the call was repeated a second time, nearer and louder than
at first. Again, after a brief silence, the call was heard for the
third time, still nearer and still louder. The fourth call was loud
and clear, as if sounded near at hand;[26] as soon as it ceased,
the shuffling tread of moccasined feet was heard, and a moment later
the god Hastséyalti stood before them.
288. He told the four people to come up to the top of Tsolíhi after
twelve nights had passed, bringing with them the turquoise image they
had found, and at once he departed. They pondered deeply on his words,
and every day they talked among themselves, wondering why Hastséyalti
had summoned them to the mountain.
289. On the morning of the appointed day they ascended the mountain
by a holy trail,[93] and on a level spot, near the summit, they
met a party that awaited them there. They found there Hastséyalti,
Hastséhogan (the Home God), White Body (who came up from the lower
world with the Diné`), the eleven brothers (of Maid Who Becomes a
Bear), the Mirage Stone People, the Daylight People standing in the
east, the Blue Sky People standing in the south, the Yellow Light
People standing in the west, and the Darkness People standing in the
north. White Body stood in the east among the Daylight People, bearing
in his hand a small image of a woman wrought in white shell, about
the same size and shape as the blue image which the Navahoes bore.
290. Hastséyalti laid down a sacred buckskin with its head toward
the west. The Mirage Stone People laid on the buckskin, heads west,
the two little images,--of turquoise and white shell,--a white and a
yellow ear of corn, the Pollen Boy, and the Grasshopper Girl. On top
of all these Hastséyalti laid another sacred buckskin with its head
to the east, and under this they now put Ni'ltsi (Wind).
291. Then the assembled crowd stood so as to form a circle, leaving in
the east an opening through which Hastséyalti and Hastséhogan might
pass in and out, and they sang the sacred song of Hozóngisin. Four
times the gods entered and raised the cover. When they raised it for
the fourth time, the images and the ears of corn were found changed
to living beings in human form: the turquoise image had become
Estsánatlehi, the Woman Who Changes (or rejuvenates herself); the
white shell image had become Yolkaí Estsán, the White Shell Woman;
the white ear of corn had become Natálkai Asiké; the White Corn Boy
and the yellow ear of corn, Natáltsoi Atét the Yellow Corn Girl.[94]
After the ceremony, White Body took Pollen Boy, Grasshopper Girl,
White Corn Boy, and Yellow Corn Girl with him into Tsolíhi; the rest
of the assembly departed, and the two divine sisters, Estsánatlehi[95]
and Yolkaí Estsán,[96] were left on the mountain alone.
292. The women remained here four nights; on the fourth morning
Estsánatlehi said: "Site'zi (younger sister), why should we remain
here? Let us go to yonder high point and look around us." They went to
the highest point of the mountain, and when they had been there several
days Estsánatlehi said: "It is lonely here; we have no one to speak to
but ourselves; we see nothing but that which rolls over our heads (the
sun), and that which drops below us (a small dripping waterfall). I
wonder if they can be people. I shall stay here and wait for the one
in the morning, while you go down among the rocks and seek the other."
293. In the morning Estsánatlehi found a bare, flat rock and lay
on it with her feet to the east, and the rising sun shone upon
her. Yolkaí Estsán went down where the dripping waters descended
and allowed them to fall upon her. At noon the women met again on
the mountain top and Estsánatlehi said to her sister: "It is sad to
be so lonesome. How can we make people so that we may have others of
our kind to talk to?" Yolkaí Estsán answered: "Think, Elder Sister;
perhaps after some days you may plan how this is to be done."
294. Four days after this conversation Yolkaí Estsán said: "Elder
Sister, I feel something strange moving within me; what can it be?" and
Estsánatlehi answered: "It is a child. It was for this that you lay
under the waterfall. I feel, too, the motions of a child within me. It
was for this that I let the sun shine upon me." Soon after the voice
of Hastséyalti was heard four times, as usual, and after the last
call he and Tó`nenili[98] appeared. They came to prepare the women
for their approaching delivery.[99]
295. In four days more they felt the commencing throes of labor, and
one said to the other: "I think my child is coming." She had scarcely
spoken when the voice of the approaching god was heard, and soon
Hastséyalti and Tó`nenili (Water Sprinkler) were seen approaching. The
former was the accoucheur of Estsánatlehi, and the latter of Yolkaí
Estsán.[100] To one woman a drag-rope of rainbow was given, to the
other a drag-rope of sunbeam, and on these they pulled when in pain,
as the Navaho woman now pulls on the rope. Estsánatlehi's child was
born first.[101] Hastséyalti took it aside and washed it. He was glad,
and laughed and made ironical motions, as if he were cutting the baby
in slices and throwing the slices away. They made for the children two
baby-baskets, both alike; the foot-rests and the back battens were made
of sunbeam, the hoods of rainbow, the side-strings of sheet lightning,
and the lacing strings of zigzag lightning. One child they covered
with the black cloud, and the other with the female rain.[102] They
called the children Sináli (grandchildren), and they left, promising
to return at the end of four days.
296. When the gods (yéi) returned at the end of four days, the boys
had grown to be the size of ordinary boys of twelve years of age. The
gods said to them: "Boys, we have come to have a race with you." So a
race was arranged that should go all around a neighboring mountain,
and the four started,--two boys and two yéi. Before the long race
was half done the boys, who ran fast, began to flag, and the gods,
who were still fresh, got behind them and scourged the lads with
twigs of mountain mahogany.[103] Hastséyalti won the race, and the
boys came home rubbing their sore backs. When the gods left they
promised to return at the end of another period of four days.
297. As soon as the gods were gone, Ni'ltsi, the Wind, whispered to
the boys and told them that the old ones were not such fast runners,
after all, and that if the boys would practice during the next four
days they might win the coming race. So for four days they ran hard,
many times daily around the neighboring mountain, and when the gods
came back again the youths had grown to the full stature of manhood. In
the second contest the gods began to flag and fall behind when half
way round the mountain, where the others had fallen behind in the
first race, and here the boys got behind their elders and scourged
the latter to increase their speed. The elder of the boys won this
race, and when it was over the gods laughed and clapped their hands,
for they were pleased with the spirit and prowess they witnessed.
298. The night after the race the boys lay down as usual to sleep;
but hearing the women whispering together, they lay awake and
listened. They strained their attention, but could not hear a word
of what was uttered. At length they rose, approached the women,
and said: "Mothers, of what do you speak?" and the women answered:
"We speak of nothing." The boys then said: "Grandmothers, of what do
you speak?" but the women again replied: "We speak of nothing." The
boys then questioned: "Who are our fathers?" "You have no fathers,"
responded the women; "you are yutáski (illegitimate)." "Who are our
fathers?" again demanded the boys, and the women answered: "The round
cactus and the sitting cactus[104] are your fathers."
299. Next day the women made rude bows of juniper wood, and arrows,
such as children play with, and they said to the boys: "Go and play
around with these, but do not go out of sight from our hut, and do not
go to the east." Notwithstanding these warnings the boys went to the
east the first day, and when they had travelled a good distance they
saw an animal with brownish hair and a sharp nose. They drew their
arrows and pointed them toward the sharp-nosed stranger; but before
they could shoot he jumped down into a canyon and disappeared. When
they returned home they told the women--addressing them as "Mother"
and "Grandmother"--what they had seen. The women said: "That is Coyote
which you saw. He is a spy for the anáye Téelget."
300. On the following day, although again strictly warned not to go
far from the lodge, the boys wandered far to the south, and there they
saw a great black bird seated on a tree. They aimed their arrows at it;
but just as they were about to shoot the bird rose and flew away. The
boys returned to the hogán and said to the women: "Mothers, we have
been to the south to-day, and there we saw a great black bird which
we tried to shoot; but before we could let loose our arrows it flew
off." "Alas!" said the women. "This was Raven that you saw. He is the
spy of the Tse`na'hale, the great winged creatures that devour men."
301. On the third day the boys slipped off unknown to the anxious
women, who would fain keep them at home, and walked a long way
toward the west. The only living thing they saw was a great dark
bird with a red skinny head that had no feathers on it. This bird
they tried to shoot also; but before they could do so it spread its
wings and flew a long way off. They went home and said to the women:
"Mothers, we have been to the west, and we have seen a great dark bird
whose head was red and bare. We tried to shoot it, but it flew away
before we could discharge our arrows." "It was Dzéso, the Buzzard,
that you saw," said the women. "He is the spy for Tse`tahotsiltá`li,
he who kicks men down the cliffs."
302. On the fourth day the boys stole off as usual, and went toward
the north. When they had travelled a long way in that direction,
they saw a bird of black plumage perched on a tree on the edge of a
canyon. It was talking to itself, saying "a`a`i`." They aimed at it,
but before they could let fly their arrows it spread its wings and tail
and disappeared down the canyon. As it flew, the boys noticed that
its plumes were edged with white. When they got home they told their
mothers, as before, what they had seen. "This bird that you saw,"
said the women, "is the Magpie. He is the spy for the Bináye Aháni,
who slay people with their eyes. Alas, our children! What shall we
do to make you hear us? What shall we do to save you? You would not
listen to us. Now the spies of the anáye (the alien gods) in all
quarters of the world have seen you. They will tell their chiefs,
and soon the monsters will come here to devour you, as they have
devoured all your kind before you."
303. The next morning the women made a corncake and laid it on
the ashes to bake. Then Yolkaí Estsán went out of the hogán, and,
as she did so, she saw Yéitso,[105] the tallest and fiercest of the
alien gods, approaching. She ran quickly back and gave the warning,
and the women hid the boys under bundles and sticks. Yéitso came
and sat down at the door, just as the women were taking the cake
out of the ashes. "That cake is for me," said Yéitso. "How nice it
smells!" "No," said Estsánatlehi, "it was not meant for your great
maw." "I don't care," said Yéitso. "I would rather eat boys. Where
are your boys? I have been told you have some here, and I have come
to get them." "We have none," said Estsánatlehi. "All the boys have
gone into the paunches of your people long ago." "No boys?" said the
giant. "What, then, has made all the tracks around here?" "Oh! these
tracks I have made for fun," replied the woman. "I am lonely here,
and I make tracks so that I may fancy there are many people around
me." She showed Yéitso how she could make similar tracks with her
fist. He compared the two sets of tracks, seemed to be satisfied,
and went away.
304. When he was gone, Yolkaí Estsán, the White Shell Woman, went up
to the top of a neighboring hill to look around, and she beheld many
of the anáye hastening in the direction of her lodge. She returned
speedily, and told her sister what she had seen. Estsánatlehi took four
colored hoops, and threw one toward each of the cardinal points,--a
white one to the east, a blue one to the south, a yellow one to
the west, and a black one to the north. At once a great gale arose,
blowing so fiercely in all directions from the hogán that none of
the enemies could advance against it.
305. Next morning the boys got up before daybreak and stole away. Soon
the women missed them, but could not trace them in the dark. When it
was light enough to examine the ground the women went out to look
for fresh tracks. They found four footprints of each of the boys,
pointing in the direction of the mountain of Dsilnáotil, but more
than four tracks they could not find. They came to the conclusion
that the boys had taken a holy trail, so they gave up further search
and returned to the lodge.
306. The boys travelled rapidly in the holy trail,[93] and soon after
sunrise, near Dsilnáotil, they saw smoke arising from the ground. They
went to the place where the smoke rose, and they found it came from
the smoke-hole of a subterranean chamber. A ladder, black from smoke,
projected through the hole. Looking down into the chamber they saw an
old woman, the Spider Woman,[106] who glanced up at them and said:
"Welcome, children. Enter. Who are you, and whence do you two come
together walking?" They made no answer, but descended the ladder. When
they reached the floor she again spoke to them, asking: "Whither do
you two go walking together?" "Nowhere in particular," they answered;
"we came here because we had nowhere else to go." She asked this
question four times, and each time she received a similar answer. Then
she said: "Perhaps you would seek your father?" "Yes," they answered,
"if we only knew the way to his dwelling." "Ah!" said the woman,
"it is a long and dangerous way to the house of your father, the
Sun. There are many of the anáye dwelling between here and there,
and perhaps, when you get there, your father may not be glad to
see you, and may punish you for coming. You must pass four places
of danger,--the rocks that crush the traveller, the reeds that cut
him to pieces, the cane cactuses that tear him to pieces, and the
boiling sands that overwhelm him. But I shall give you something to
subdue your enemies and preserve your lives." She gave them a charm
called nayéatsos, or feather of the alien gods, which consisted of
a hoop with two life-feathers (feathers plucked from a living eagle)
attached, and another life-feather, hyiná biltsós,[107] to preserve
their existence. She taught them also this magic formula, which, if
repeated to their enemies, would subdue their anger: "Put your feet
down with pollen.[108] Put your hands down with pollen. Put your head
down with pollen. Then your feet are pollen; your hands are pollen;
your body is pollen; your mind is pollen; your voice is pollen. The
trail is beautiful (biké hozóni). Be still."[109]
307. Soon after leaving the house of Spider Woman, the boys came to
Tse`yeinti'li (the rocks that crush). There was here a narrow chasm
between two high cliffs. When a traveller approached, the rocks would
open wide apart, apparently to give him easy passage and invite him
to enter; but as soon as he was within the cleft they would close like
hands clapping and crush him to death. These rocks were really people;
they thought like men; they were anáye. When the boys got to the rocks
they lifted their feet as if about to enter the chasm, and the rocks
opened to let them in. Then the boys put down their feet, but withdrew
them quickly. The rocks closed with a snap to crush them; but the
boys remained safe on the outside. Thus four times did they deceive
the rocks. When they had closed for the fourth time the rocks said:
"Who are ye; whence come ye two together, and whither go ye?" "We are
children of the Sun," answered the boys. "We come from Dsilnáotil,
and we go to seek the house of our father." Then they repeated the
words the Spider Woman had taught them, and the rocks said: "Pass on
to the house of your father." When next they ventured to step into
the chasm the rocks did not close, and they passed safely on.
308. The boys kept on their way and soon came to a great plain covered
with reeds that had great leaves on them as sharp as knives. When the
boys came to the edge of the field of reeds (Lokáadikisi), the latter
opened, showing a clear passage through to the other side. The boys
pretended to enter, but retreated, and as they did so the walls of
reeds rushed together to kill them. Thus four times did they deceive
the reeds. Then the reeds spoke to them, as the rocks had done;
they answered and repeated the sacred words. "Pass on to the house
of your father," said the reeds, and the boys passed on in safety.
309. The next danger they encountered was in the country covered
with cane cactuses.[89] These cactuses rushed at and tore to pieces
whoever attempted to pass through them. When the boys came to the
cactuses the latter opened their ranks to let the travellers pass on,
as the reeds had done before. But the boys deceived them as they had
deceived the reeds, and subdued them as they had subdued the reeds,
and passed on in safety.
310. After they had passed the country of the cactus they came,
in time, to Saitád, the land of the rising sands. Here was a great
desert of sands that rose and whirled and boiled like water in a pot,
and overwhelmed the traveller who ventured among them. As the boys
approached, the sands became still more agitated and the boys did not
dare venture among them. "Who are ye?" said the sands, "and whence
come ye?" "We are children of the Sun, we came from Dsilnáotil,
and we go to seek the house of our father." These words were four
times said. Then the elder of the boys repeated his sacred formula;
the sands subsided, saying: "Pass on to the house of your father,"
and the boys continued on their journey over the desert of sands.[110]
311. Soon after this adventure they approached the house of the Sun. As
they came near the door they found the way guarded by two bears that
crouched, one to the right and one to the left, their noses pointing
toward one another. As the boys drew near, the bears rose, growled
angrily, and acted as if about to attack the intruders; but the elder
boy repeated the sacred words the Spider Woman had taught him, and
when he came to the last words, "Be still," the bears crouched down
again and lay still. The boys walked on. After passing the bears they
encountered a pair of sentinel serpents, then a pair of sentinel winds,
and, lastly, a pair of sentinel lightnings. As the boys advanced,
all these guardians acted as if they would destroy them; but all were
appeased with the words of prayer.[111]
312. The house of the Sun God was built of turquoise; it was square
like a pueblo house, and stood on the shore of a great water. When the
boys entered they saw, sitting in the west, a woman; in the south,
two handsome young men;[112] and in the north, two handsome young
women. The women gave a glance at the strangers and then looked
down. The young men gazed at them more closely, and then, without
speaking, they rose, wrapped the strangers in four coverings of the
sky, and laid them on a shelf.[113]
313. The boys had lain there quietly for some time when a rattle that
hung over the door shook and one of the young women said: "Our father
is coming." The rattle shook four times, and soon after it shook the
fourth time, Tsóhanoai, the bearer of the sun, entered his house. He
took the sun off his back and hung it up on a peg on the west wall
of the room, where it shook and clanged for some time, going "tla,
tla, tla, tla," till at last it hung still.
314. Then Tsóhanoai turned to the woman and said, in an angry tone:
"Who are those two who entered here to-day?" The woman made no
answer and the young people looked at one another, but each feared to
speak. Four times he asked this question, and at length the woman said:
"It would be well for you not to say too much. Two young men came
hither to-day, seeking their father. When you go abroad, you always
tell me that you visit nowhere, and that you have met no woman but
me. Whose sons, then, are these?" She pointed to the bundle on the
shelf, and the children smiled significantly at one another.
315. He took the bundle from the shelf. He first unrolled the robe of
dawn with which they were covered, then the robe of blue sky, next the
robe of yellow evening light, and lastly the robe of darkness. When
he unrolled this the boys fell out on the floor. He seized them,
and threw them first upon great, sharp spikes of white shell that
stood in the east; but they bounded back, unhurt, from these spikes,
for they held their life-feathers tightly all the while. He then
threw them in turn on spikes of turquoise in the south, on spikes
of haliotis in the west, and spikes of black rock in the north;
but they came uninjured from all these trials and Tsóhanoai said:
"I wish it were indeed true that they were my children."
316. He said then to the elder children,--those who lived with
him,--"Go out and prepare the sweat-house and heat for it four of the
hardest boulders you can find. Heat a white, a blue, a yellow, and a
black boulder." When the Winds heard this they said: "He still seeks
to kill his children. How shall we avert the danger?" The sweat-house
was built against a bank. Wind dug into the bank a hole behind the
sudatory, and concealed the opening with a flat stone. Wind then
whispered into the ears of the boys the secret of the hole and said:
"Do not hide in the hole until you have answered the questions
of your father." The boys went into the sweat-house, the great
hot boulders were put in and the opening of the lodge was covered
with the four sky-blankets. Then Tsóhanoai called out to the boys:
"Are you hot?" and they answered: "Yes, very hot." Then they crept
into the hiding-place and lay there. After a while Tsóhanoai came
and poured water through the top of the sweat-house on the stones,
making them burst with a loud noise, and a great heat and steam was
raised. But in time the stones cooled and the boys crept out of their
hiding-place into the sweat-house. Tsóhanoai came and asked again:
"Are you hot?" hoping to get no reply; but the boys still answered:
"Yes, very hot." Then he took the coverings off the sweat-house and
let the boys come out. He greeted them in a friendly way and said:
"Yes, these are my children," and yet he was thinking of other ways
by which he might destroy them if they were not.
317. The four sky-blankets were spread on the ground one over another,
and the four young men were made to sit on them, one behind another,
facing the east. "My daughters, make these boys to look like my
other sons," said Tsóhanoai. The young women went to the strangers,
pulled their hair out long, and moulded their faces and forms so
that they looked just like their brethren. Then Sun bade them all
rise and enter the house. They rose and all went, in a procession,
the two strangers last.
318. As they were about to enter the door they heard a voice whispering
in their ears: "St! Look at the ground." They looked down and beheld
a spiny caterpillar called Wasekede, who, as they looked, spat out two
blue spits on the ground. "Take each of you one of these," said Wind,
"and put it in your mouth, but do not swallow it. There is one more
trial for you,--a trial by smoking." When they entered the house
Tsóhanoai took down a pipe of turquoise that hung on the eastern
wall and filled it with tobacco. "This is the tobacco he kills with,"
whispered Ni'ltsi to the boys. Tsóhanoai held the pipe up to the sun
that hung on the wall, lit it, and gave it to the boys to smoke. They
smoked it, and passed it from one to another till it was finished. They
said it tasted sweet, but it did them no harm.
319. When the pipe was smoked out and Tsóhanoai saw the boys were not
killed by it, he was satisfied and said: "Now, my children, what do
you want from me? Why do you seek me?" "Oh, father!" they replied,
"the land where we dwell is filled with the anáye, who devour the
people. There are Yéitso and Téelget, the Tse`náhale, the Bináye Aháni,
and many others. They have eaten nearly all of our kind; there are
few left; already they have sought our lives, and we have run away
to escape them. Give us, we beg, the weapons with which we may slay
our enemies. Help us to destroy them."
320. "Know," said Tsóhanoai, "that Yéitso who dwells at Tsótsil is also
my son, yet I will help you to kill him. I shall hurl the first bolt
at him, and I will give you those things that will help you in war." He
took from pegs where they hung around the room and gave to each a hat,
a shirt, leggings, moccasins, all made of pes (iron or knives),[114]
a chain-lightning arrow, a sheet-lightning arrow, a sunbeam arrow,
a rainbow arrow, and a great stone knife or knife club (peshál).[115]
"These are what we want," said the boys. They put on the clothes of
pes, and streaks of lightning shot from every joint.[116]
321. Next morning Tsóhanoai led the boys out to the edge of the world,
where the sky and the earth came close together, and beyond which there
was no world. Here sixteen wands or poles leaned from the earth to
the sky; four of these were of white shell, four of turquoise, four
of haliotis shell, and four of red stone.[117] A deep stream flowed
between them and the wands. As they approached the stream, Ni'ltsi,
the Wind, whispered: "This is another trial;" but he blew a great
breath and formed a bridge of rainbow,[86] over which the brothers
passed in safety. Ni'ltsi whispered again: "The red wands are for
war, the others are for peace;" so when Tsóhanoai asked his sons:
"On which wands will ye ascend?" they answered: "On the wands of red
stone," for they sought war with their enemies. They climbed up to the
sky on the wands of red stone, and their father went with them.[118]
322. They journeyed on till they came to Yágahoka, the sky-hole,
which is in the centre of the sky.[119] The hole is edged with four
smooth, shining cliffs that slope steeply downwards,--cliffs of the
same materials as the wands by which they had climbed from the earth
to the sky. They sat down on the smooth declivities,--Tsóhanoai on
the west side of the hole, the brothers on the east side. The latter
would have slipped down had not the Wind blown up and helped them to
hold on. Tsóhanoai pointed down and said: "Where do you belong in the
world below? Show me your home." The brothers looked down and scanned
the land; but they could distinguish nothing; all the land seemed flat;
the wooded mountains looked like dark spots on the surface; the lakes
gleamed like stars, and the rivers like streaks of lightning. The
elder brother said: "I do not recognize the land, I know not where
our home is." Now Ni'ltsi prompted the younger brother, and showed
him which were the sacred mountains and which the great rivers, and
the younger exclaimed, pointing downwards: "There is the Male Water
(San Juan River), and there is the Female Water (Rio Grande); yonder
is the mountain of Tsisnadzi'ni; below us is Tsótsil; there in the
west is Dokoslíd; that white spot beyond the Male Water is Depe'ntsa;
and there between these mountains is Dsilnáotil, near which our
home is." "You are right, my child, it is thus that the land lies,"
said Tsóhanoai. Then, renewing his promises, he spread a streak of
lightning; he made his children stand on it,--one on each end,--and
he shot them down to the top of Tsótsil (Mt. San Mateo, Mt. Taylor).
323. They descended the mountain on its south side and walked toward
the warm spring at Tó`sato.[120] As they were walking along under
a high bluff, where there is now a white circle, they heard voices
hailing them. "Whither are you going? Come hither a while." They went
in the direction in which they heard the voices calling and found four
holy people,--Holy Man, Holy Young Man, Holy Boy, and Holy Girl. The
brothers remained all night in a cave with these people, and the
latter told them all about Yéitso.[121] They said that he showed
himself every day three times on the mountains before he came down,
and when he showed himself for the fourth time he descended from
Tsótsil to Tó`sato to drink; that, when he stooped down to drink,
one hand rested on Tsótsil and the other on the high hills on the
opposite side of the valley, while his feet stretched as far away as
a man could walk between sunrise and noon.
324. They left the cave at daybreak and went on to Tó`sato, where in
ancient days there was a much larger lake than there is now. There
was a high, rocky wall in the narrow part of the valley, and the lake
stretched back to where Blue Water is to-day. When they came to the
edge of the lake, one brother said to the other: "Let us try one of
our father's weapons and see what it can do." They shot one of the
lightning arrows at Tsótsil; it made a great cleft in the mountain,
which remains to this day, and one said to the other: "We cannot
suffer in combat while we have such weapons as these."
325. Soon they heard the sound of thunderous footsteps, and they
beheld the head of Yéitso peering over a high hill in the east; it
was withdrawn in a moment. Soon after, the monster raised his head
and chest over a hill in the south, and remained a little longer
in sight than when he was in the east. Later he displayed his body
to the waist over a hill in the west; and lastly he showed himself,
down to the knees, over Tsótsil in the north.[122] Then he descended
the mountain, came to the edge of the lake, and laid down a basket
which he was accustomed to carry.
326. Yéitso stooped four times to the lake to drink, and, each time he
drank, the waters perceptibly diminished; when he had done drinking,
the lake was nearly drained.[123] The brothers lost their presence
of mind at sight of the giant drinking, and did nothing while he
was stooping down. As he took his last drink they advanced to the
edge of the lake, and Yéitso saw their reflection in the water. He
raised his head, and, looking at them, roared: "What a pretty pair
have come in sight! Where have I been hunting?" (i.e., that I never
saw them before). "Yiniketóko! Yiniketóko!"[124] "Throw (his words)
back in his mouth," said the younger to the elder brother. "What a
great thing has come in sight! Where have we been hunting?" shouted
the elder brother to the giant. Four times these taunts were repeated
by each party. The brothers then heard Ni'ltsi whispering quickly,
"Akó`! Akó`! Beware! Beware!" They were standing on a bent rainbow just
then; they straightened the rainbow out, descending to the ground,
and at the same instant a lightning bolt, hurled by Yéitso, passed
thundering over their heads. He hurled four bolts rapidly; as he
hurled the second, they bent their rainbow and rose, while the bolt
passed under their feet; as he discharged the third they descended,
and let the lightning pass over them. When he threw the fourth bolt
they bent the rainbow very high, for this time he aimed higher than
before; but his weapon still passed under their feet and did them
no harm. He drew a fifth bolt to throw at them; but at this moment
the lightning descended from the sky on the head of the giant and
he reeled beneath it, but did not fall.[125] Then the elder brother
sped a chain-lightning arrow; his enemy tottered toward the east,
but straightened himself up again. The second arrow caused him to
stumble toward the south (he fell lower and lower each time), but
again he stood up and prepared himself to renew the conflict. The
third lightning arrow made him topple toward the west, and the fourth
to the north. Then he fell to his knees, raised himself partly again,
fell flat on his face, stretched out his limbs, and moved no more.
327. When the arrows struck him, his armor was shivered in pieces and
the scales flew in every direction. The elder brother said: "They
may be useful to the people in the future."[126] The brothers then
approached their fallen enemy and the younger scalped him. Heretofore
the younger brother bore only the name of To`badzistsíni, or Child
of the Water; but now his brother gave him also the warrior name of
Naídikisi (He Who Cuts Around). What the elder brother's name was
before this we do not know; but ever after he was called Nayénezgani
(Slayer of the Alien Gods).[127]
328. They cut off his head and threw it away to the other side
of Tsótsil, where it may be seen to-day on the eastern side of
the mountain.[128] The blood from the body now flowed in a great
stream down the valley, so great that it broke down the rocky wall
that bounded the old lake and flowed on. Ni'ltsi whispered to the
brothers: "The blood flows toward the dwelling of the Bináye Aháni;
if it reaches them, Yéitso will come to life again." Then Nayénezgani
took his peshál, or knife club, and drew with it across the valley
a line. Here the blood stopped flowing and piled itself up in a high
wall. But when it had piled up here very high it began to flow off in
another direction, and Ni'ltsi again whispered: "It now flows toward
the dwelling of Sasnalkáhi, the Bear that Pursues; if it reaches him,
Yéitso will come to life again." Hearing this, Nayénezgani again drew
a line with his knife on the ground, and again the blood piled up
and stopped flowing. The blood of Yéitso fills all the valley to-day,
and the high cliffs in the black rock that we see there now are the
places where Nayénezgani stopped the flow with his peshál.[129]
329. They then put the broken arrows of Yéitso and his scalp into his
basket and set out for their home near Dsilnáotil. When they got near
the house, they took off their own suits of armor and hid these, with
the basket and its contents, in the bushes. The mothers were rejoiced
to see them, for they feared their sons were lost, and they said:
"Where have you been since you left here yesterday, and what have you
done?" Nayénezgani replied: "We have been to the house of our father,
the Sun. We have been to Tsótsil and we have slain Yéitso." "Ah, my
child," said Estsánatlehi, "do not speak thus. It is wrong to make fun
of such an awful subject." "Do you not believe us?" said Nayénezgani;
"come out, then, and see what we have brought back with us." He
led the women out to where he had hidden the basket and showed them
the trophies of Yéitso. Then they were convinced and they rejoiced,
and had a dance to celebrate the victory.[130]
330. When their rejoicings were done, Nayénezgani said to his mother:
"Where does Téelget[131] dwell?" "Seek not to know." she answered,
"you have done enough. Rest contented. The land of the anáye
is a dangerous place. The anáye are hard to kill." "Yes, and it
was hard for you to bear your child," the son replied (meaning
that she triumphed notwithstanding). "He lives at Bikehalzi'n,"
she said. Then the brothers held a long council to determine what
they should do. They made two cigarette kethawns of a plant called
azeladiltéhe,[132] one black and one blue, each three finger-widths
long; to these they attached a sunbeam and laid them in a turquoise
dish. "I shall go alone to fight Téelget," said Nayénezgani, "while
you, younger brother, remain at home and watch these kethawns. If they
take fire from the sunbeam, you may know that I am in great danger;
as long as they do not take fire, you may know that I am safe." This
work was finished at sundown.[133]
331. Nayénezgani arose early next morning and set out alone to find
Téelget. He came, in time, to the edge of a great plain, and from one
of the hills that bordered it he saw the monster lying down a long way
off. He paused to think how he could approach nearer to him without
attracting his attention, and in the mean time he poised one of his
lightning arrows in his hand, thinking how he should throw it. While he
stood thus in thought, Nasi'zi, the Gopher, came up to him and said:
"I greet you, my friend! Why have you come hither?" "Oh, I am just
wandering around," said Nayénezgani. Four times this question was
asked and this answer was given. Then Nasi'zi said: "I wonder that
you come here; no one but I ever ventures in these parts, for all
fear Téelget. There he lies on the plain yonder." "It is him I seek,"
said Nayénezgani; "but I know not how to approach him." "Ah, if that
is all you want, I can help you," said Gopher; "and if you slay him,
all I ask is his hide. I often go up to him, and I will go now to show
you." Having said this, Nasi'zi disappeared in a hole in the ground.
332. While he was gone Nayénezgani watched Téelget. After a while he
saw the great creature rise, walk from the centre in four different
directions, as if watching, and lie down again in the spot where he was
first seen. He was a great, four-footed beast, with horns like those
of a deer. Soon Nasi'zi returned and said: "I have dug a tunnel up to
Téelget, and at the end I have bored four tunnels for you to hide in,
one to the east, one to the south, one to the west, and one to the
north. I have made a hole upwards from the tunnel to his heart, and I
have gnawed the hair off near his heart. When I was gnawing the hair
he spoke to me and said: 'Why do you take my hair?' and I answered,
'I want it to make a bed for my children.' Then it was that he rose
and walked around; but he came back and lay down where he lay before,
over the hole that leads up to his heart."
333. Nayénezgani entered the tunnel and crawled to the end. When he
looked up through the ascending shaft of which Nasi'zi had told him,
he saw the great heart of Téelget beating there. He sped his arrow
of chain-lightning and fled into the eastern tunnel. The monster
rose, stuck one of his horns into the ground, and ripped the tunnel
open. Nayénezgani fled into the south tunnel; Téelget then tore the
south tunnel open with his horns, and the hero fled into the west
tunnel. When the west tunnel was torn up he fled into the north
tunnel. The anáye put his horn into the north tunnel to tear it up,
but before he had half uncovered it he fell and lay still. Nayénezgani,
not knowing that his enemy was dead, and still fearing him, crept
back through the long tunnel to the place where he first met Nasi'zi,
and there he stood gazing at the distant form of Téelget.
334. While he was standing there in thought, he observed approaching
him a little old man dressed in tight leggings and a tight shirt,
with a cap and feather on his head; this was Hazaí, the Ground
Squirrel. "What do you want here, my grandchild?" said Hazaí. "Nothing;
I am only walking around," replied the warrior. Four times this
question was asked and four times a similar answer given, when Ground
Squirrel spoke again and inquired: "Do you not fear the anáye that
dwells on yonder plain?" "I do not know," replied Nayénezgani; "I
think I have killed him, but I am not certain." "Then I can find out
for you," said Hazaí. "He never minds me. I can approach him any time
without danger. If he is dead I will climb up on his horns and dance
and sing." Nayénezgani had not watched long when he saw Hazaí climbing
one of the horns and dancing on it. When he approached his dead enemy
he found that Hazaí had streaked his own face with the blood of the
slain (the streaks remain on the ground squirrel's face to this day),
and that Nasi'zi had already begun to remove the skin by gnawing on
the insides of the fore-legs. When Gopher had removed the skin, he
put it on his own back and said: "I shall wear this in order that,
in the days to come, when the people increase, they may know what
sort of a skin Téelget wore." He had a skin like that which covers
the Gopher to-day. Hazaí cut out a piece of the bowel, filled it with
blood, and tied the ends; he cut out also a piece of one of the lungs,
and he gave these to Nayénezgani for his trophies.[134]
335. When Nayénezgani came home again, he was received with great
rejoicing, for his mother had again begun to fear he would never more
return. "Where have you been, my son, and what have you done since you
have been gone?" she queried. "I have been to Bikehalzi'n and I have
slain Téelget," he replied. "Ah, speak not thus, my son," she said;
"he is too powerful for you to talk thus lightly about him. If he
knew what you said he might seek you out and kill you." "I have no
fear of him," said her son. "Here is his blood, and here is a piece
of his liver. Do you not now believe I have slain him?" Then he
said: "Mother, grandmother, tell me, where do the Tse`na'hale[135]
dwell?" "They dwell at Tsé`bitaï (Winged Rock),"[136] she answered,
"but do not venture near them; they are fierce and strong."
336. Next morning early he stole away, taking with him the piece of
bowel filled with blood. He climbed the range of mountains where the
hill of Tsúskai rises, and travelled on till he came to a place where
two great snakes lay. Since that day these snakes have been changed
into stone. He walked along the back of one of the snakes, and then
he stepped from one snake to the other and went out on the plain
that stretched to the east of the mountains, until he came close to
Tsé`bitaï, which is a great black rock that looks like a bird. While
he was walking along he heard a tremendous rushing sound overhead,
like the sound of a whirlwind, and, looking up, he saw a creature
of great size, something like an eagle in form, flying toward him
from the east. It was the male Tse`na'hale. The warrior had barely
time to cast himself prone on the ground when Tse`na'hale swooped
over him. Thus four times did the monster swoop at him, coming each
time from a different direction. Three times Nayénezgani escaped;
but the fourth time, flying from the north, the monster seized him
in his talons and bore him off to Tsé`bitaï.
337. There is a broad, level ledge on one side of Tsé`bitaï, where
the monster reared his young; he let the hero drop on this ledge,
as was his custom to do with his victims, and perched on a pinnacle
above. This fall had killed all others who had dropped there; but
Nayénezgani was preserved by the life-feather, the gift of Spider
Woman, which he still kept. When the warrior fell he cut open the
bag of bowel that he carried and allowed the blood of Téelget to flow
out over the rock, so that the anáye might think he was killed. The
two young approached to devour the body of the warrior, but he said
"Sh!" at them. They stopped and cried up to their father: "This thing
is not dead; it says 'Sh!' at us." "That is only air escaping from the
body," said the father; "Never mind, but eat it." Then he flew away
in search of other prey. When the old bird was gone, Nayénezgani hid
himself behind the young ones and asked them, "When will your father
come back, and where will he sit when he comes?" They answered: "He
will return when we have a he-rain,[137] and he will perch on yonder
point" (indicating a rock close by on the right). Then he inquired:
"When will your mother return, and where will she sit?" "She will
come when we have a she-rain,[137] and will sit on yonder point"
(indicating a crag on the left). He had not waited long when drops
of rain began to fall, the thunder rolled, lightning flashed, the
male Tse`na'hale returned and perched on the rock which the young had
pointed out. Then Nayénezgani hurled a lightning arrow and the monster
tumbled to the foot of Winged Rock dead. After a while rain fell again,
but there was neither thunder nor lightning with it. While it still
poured, there fell upon the ledge the body of a Pueblo woman, covered
with fine clothes and ornamented with ear pendants and necklaces of
beautiful shells and turquoise. Nayénezgani looked up and beheld the
female Tse`na'hale soaring overhead (she preyed only on women, the male
only on men). A moment later she glided down, and was just about to
light on her favorite crag, when Nayénezgani hurled another lightning
arrow and sent her body down to the plain to join that of her mate.
338. The young ones now began to cry, and they said to the warrior:
"Will you slay us, too?" "Cease your wailing," he cried. "Had you grown
up here you would have been things of evil; you would have lived only
to destroy my people; but I shall now make of you something that will
be of use in the days to come when men increase in the land." He seized
the elder and said to it, "You shall furnish plumes for men to use in
their rites, and bones for whistles." He swung the fledgling back and
forth four times; as he did so it began to change into a beautiful bird
with strong wings, and it said: "Suk, suk, suk, suk." Then he threw
it high in the air. It spread its pinions and soared out of sight, an
eagle. To the younger he said: "In the days to come men will listen
to your voice to know what will be their future: sometimes you will
tell the truth; sometimes you will lie." He swung it back and forth,
and as he did so its head grew large and round; its eyes grew big;
it began to say, "Uwú, uwú, uwú, uwú," and it became an owl. Then he
threw it into a hole in the side of the cliff and said: "This shall
be your home."[138]
339. As he had nothing more to do at Tsé`bitaï, he determined to go
home, but he soon found that there was no way for him to descend
the rock; nothing but a winged creature could reach or leave the
ledge on which he stood. The sun was about half way down to the
horizon when he observed the Bat Woman walking along near the
base of the cliff. "Grandmother," he called aloud, "come hither
and take me down." "Tse'dani,"[139] she answered, and hid behind
a point of rock. Again she came in view, and again he called her;
but she gave him the same reply and hid herself again. Three times
were these acts performed and these words said. When she appeared
for the fourth time and he begged her to carry him down, he added:
"I will give you the feathers of the Tse`na'hale if you will take me
off this rock." When she heard this she approached the base of the
rock, and soon disappeared under the ledge where he stood. Presently
he heard a strange flapping sound,[140] and a voice calling to him:
"Shut your eyes and go back, for you must not see how I ascend." He did
as he was bidden, and soon after the Bat Woman stood beside him. "Get
into this basket, and I will carry you down," she demanded. He
looked at the large carrying-basket which she bore on her back,
and observed that it hung on strings as thin as the strings of a
spider's web. "Grandmother," he said, "I fear to enter your basket;
the strings are too thin." "Have no fear," she replied; "I often carry
a whole deer in this basket: the strings are strong enough to bear
you." Still he hesitated, and still she assured him. The fourth time
that he expressed his fear she said: "Fill the basket with stones
and you will see that I speak the truth." He did as he was bidden,
and she danced around with the loaded basket on her back; but the
strings did not break, though they twanged like bowstrings. When
he entered the basket she bade him keep his eyes shut till they
reached the bottom of the cliff, as he must not see how she managed
to descend. He shut his eyes, and soon felt himself gradually going
down; but he heard again the strange flapping against the rock,
which so excited his curiosity that he opened his eyes. Instantly
he began to fall with dangerous rapidity, and the flapping stopped;
she struck him with her stick and bade him shut his eyes. Again he
felt himself slowly descending, and the flapping against the rock
began. Three times more he disobeyed her, but the last time they were
near the bottom of the cliff, and both fell to the ground unhurt.
340. Together they plucked the two Tse`na'hale, put the feathers
in her basket, and got the basket on her back. He reserved only the
largest feather from one wing of each bird for his trophies. As she
was starting to leave he warned her not to pass through either of two
neighboring localities, which were the dry beds of temporary lakes;
one was overgrown with weeds, the other with sunflowers. Despite his
warning she walked toward the sunflowers. As she was about to enter
them he called after her again, and begged her not to go that way,
but she heeded him not and went on. She had not taken many steps among
the sunflowers when she heard a fluttering sound behind her, and a
little bird of strange appearance flew past her close to her ear. As
she stepped farther on she heard more fluttering and saw more birds
of varying plumage, such as she had never seen before, flying over
her shoulders and going off in every direction. She looked around,
and was astonished to behold that the birds were swarming out of her
own basket. She tried to hold them in, to catch them as they flew out,
but all in vain. She laid down her basket and watched, helplessly,
her feathers changing into little birds of all kinds,--wrens,
warblers, titmice, and the like,--and flying away, until her basket
was empty. Thus it was that the little birds were created.[141]
341. When he got home To`badzistsíni said to him: "Elder brother,
I have watched the kethawns all the time you were gone. About midday
the black cigarette took fire, and I was troubled, for I knew you were
in danger; but when it had burned half way the fire went out and then I
was glad, for I thought you were safe again." "Ah, that must have been
the time when Tse`na'hale carried me up and threw me on the rocks,"
said Nayénezgani. He hung his trophies on the east side of the lodge,
and then he asked his mother where Tse`tahotsiltá`li[142] dwelt. She
told him he lived at Tse`tezá`; but, as on previous occasions,
she warned him of the power of the enemy, and tried to dissuade
him from seeking further dangers. Next morning he set out to find
Tse`tahotsiltá`li, He Who Kicks (People) Down the Cliff. This anáye
lived on the side of a high cliff, a trail passed at his feet, and
when travellers went that way he kicked them down to the bottom of
the precipice. Nayénezgani had not travelled long when he discovered
a well-beaten trail; following this, he found that it led him along
the face of a high precipice, and soon he came in sight of his enemy,
who had a form much like that of a man. The monster reclined quietly
against the rock, as if he meditated no harm, and Nayénezgani advanced
as if he feared no danger, yet watching his adversary closely. As he
passed, the latter kicked at him, but he dodged the kick and asked:
"Why did you kick at me?" "Oh, my grandchild," said the anáye,
"I was weary lying thus, and I only stretched out my leg to rest
myself." Four times did Nayénezgani pass him, and four times did the
monster kick at him in vain. Then the hero struck his enemy with his
great stone knife over the eyes, and struck him again and again till
he felt sure that he had slain him; but he was surprised to find that
the body did not fall down the cliff. He cut with his knife under the
corpse in different places, but found nothing that held it to the rock
until he came to the head, and then he discovered that the long hair
grew, like the roots of a cedar, into a cleft in the rock. When he
cut the hair,[143] the body tumbled down out of sight. The moment it
fell a great clamor of voices came up from below. "I want the eyes,"
screamed one; "Give me an arm," cried another; "I want the liver,"
said a third; "No, the liver shall be mine," yelled a fourth; and
thus the quarrelling went on. "Ah!" thought Nayénezgani, "these are
the children quarrelling over the father's corpse. Thus, perhaps,
they would have been quarrelling over mine had I not dodged his kicks."
342. He tried to descend along the trail he was on, but found it led
no farther. Then he retraced his steps till he saw another trail
that seemed to lead to the bottom of the cliff. He followed it
and soon came to the young of the anáye, twelve in number, who had
just devoured their father's corpse; the blood was still streaming
from their mouths. He ran among them, and hacked at them in every
direction with his great stone knife. They fled; but he pursued them,
and in a little while he had killed all but one. This one ran faster
than the rest, and climbed among some high rocks; but Nayénezgani
followed him and caught him. He stopped to take breath; as he did
so he looked at the child and saw that he was disgustingly ugly and
filthy. "You ugly thing," said Nayénezgani; "when you ran from me so
fleetly I thought you might be something handsome and worth killing;
but now that I behold your face I shall let you live. Go to yonder
mountain of Natsisaán[144] and dwell there. It is a barren land,
where you will have to work hard for your living, and will wander
ever naked and hungry." The boy went to Natsisaán, as he was told,
and there he became the progenitor of the Pahutes, a people ugly,
starved, and ragged, who never wash themselves and live on the vermin
of the desert.[145]
343. He went to where he had first found the children of
Tse`tahotsiltá`li. Nothing was left of the father's corpse but the
bones and scalp. (This anáye used to wear his hair after the manner
of a Pueblo Indian.) The hero cut a piece of the hair from one side of
the head and carried it home as a trophy. When he got home there were
the usual questions and answers and rejoicings, and when he asked his
mother, "Where is the home of the Bináye Aháni, the people who slay
with their eyes," she begged him, as before, to rest contented and
run no more risks; but she added: "They live at Tse`ahalzi'ni, Rock
with Black Hole."[146] This place stands to this day, but is changed
since the anáye dwelt there. It has still a hole, on one side, that
looks like a door, and another on the top that looks like a smoke-hole.
344. On this occasion, in addition to his other weapons, he took a bag
of salt with him on his journey.[147] When he came to Tse`ahalzi'ni
he entered the rock house and sat down on the north side. In other
parts of the lodge sat the old couple of the Bináye Aháni and many of
their children. They all stared with their great eyes at the intruder,
and flashes of lightning streamed from their eyes toward him, but
glanced harmless off his armor. Seeing that they did not kill him,
they stared harder and harder at him, until their eyes protruded far
from their sockets. Then into the fire in the centre of the lodge
he threw the salt, which spluttered and flew in every direction,
striking the eyes of the anáye and blinding them. While they held
down their heads in pain, he struck with his great stone knife and
killed all except the two youngest.
345. Thus he spoke to the two which he spared: "Had you grown up here,
you would have lived only to be things of evil and to destroy men;
but now I shall make you of use to my kind in the days to come when
men increase on the earth." To the elder he said: "You will ever speak
to men and tell them what happens beyond their sight; you will warn
them of the approach of enemies," and he changed it into a bird called
Tsidiltói[148] (shooting or exploring bird). He addressed the younger,
saying: "It will be your task to make things beautiful, to make the
earth happy." And he changed it into a bird called Hostódi,[149]
which is sleepy in the daytime and comes out at night.
346. When he reached home with his trophies, which were the eyes[150]
of the first Bináye Aháni he had killed, and told what he had done,
Estsánatlehi took a piece of the lung of Téelget (which he had
previously brought home), put it in her mouth, and, dancing sang
this song:--
Nayénezgani brings for me,
Of Téelget he brings for me,
Truly a lung he brings for me,
The people are restored.
To`badzistsíni brings for me,
Of Tse`na'hale he brings for me,
Truly a wing he brings for me,
The people are restored.
Léyaneyani brings for me,
Of Tse`tahotsiltá`li he brings for me,
Truly a side-lock he brings for me,
The people are restored.
Tsówenatlehi[151] brings for me,
Of Bináye Aháni he brings for me,
Truly an eye he brings for me,
The people are restored.[276]
347. When she had finished her rejoicings he asked, "Where shall
I find Sasnalkáhi (Bear that Pursues)?" "He lives at Tse`bahástsit
(Rock that Frightens)," she replied; but again she pleaded with him,
pictured to him the power of the enemy he sought, and begged him to
venture no more.
348. Next morning he went off to Rock that Frightens and walked all
around it, without meeting the bear or finding his trail. At length,
looking up to the top of the rock, he saw the bear's head sticking
out of a hole, and he climbed up. The bear's den was in the shape
of a cross, and had four entrances. Nayénezgani looked into the east
entrance, the south entrance, and the west entrance without getting
sight of his enemy. As he approached the north entrance he saw the
head of the watching bear again; but it was instantly withdrawn, and
the bear went toward the south entrance. The hero ran round fast and
lay in wait. In a little while the bear thrust forth his head to look,
and Nayénezgani cut it off with his great stone knife.
349. He addressed the head, saying: "You were a bad thing in your old
life, and tried only to do mischief; but in new shapes I shall make you
of use to the people; in the future, when they increase upon the earth,
you will furnish them with sweet food to eat, with foam to cleanse
their bodies, and with threads for their clothing." He cut the head
into three pieces: he threw one to the east, where it became tsási,
or haskán (Yucca baccata); he threw another to the west, where it
became tsásitsoz (Yucca angustifolia); and he threw the third to the
south, where it became nóta (mescal). He cut off the left forepaw to
take home as a trophy.
350. "Where shall I find Tsé`nagahi (Travelling Stone)?" he said
after he had returned from his encounter with Pursuing Bear and shown
his trophy to his people. "You will find him in a lake near where
Tsé`espai points up," answered Estsánatlehi; but she implored him
not to go near the lake. He did not heed her, and next morning he
went off to seek the Travelling Stone.
351. He approached the lake on the north side, while the wind was
blowing from the south, but he saw nothing of the stone. Thence he
went around to the south side of the lake. When he got here the stone
scented him, rose to the surface, poised itself a moment, and flew
toward Nayénezgani as if hurled by a giant hand. Raising his lightning
arrow, he held it in the course of the stone and knocked a piece off
the latter. When the stone fell he struck another piece off with his
knife. Tsé`nagahi now saw it had a powerful foe to contend against;
so, instead of hurling itself at him again, it fled and Nayénezgani
went in pursuit. He chased it all over the present Navaho land,
knocking pieces off it in many places[152] as he followed, until at
length he chased it into the San Juan River at Tsintáhokata, where
a point of forest runs down toward the river.
352. Travelling Stone sped down with the current and Nayénezgani
ran along the bank after it. Four times he got ahead of the stone,
but three times it escaped him by dipping deep into the river. When
he headed it off for the fourth time, he saw it gleaming like fire
under the water, and he stopped to gaze at it. Then the stone spoke
and said: "Sawé (my baby, my darling), take pity on me, and I shall
no longer harm your people, but do good to them instead. I shall keep
the springs in the mountains open and cause your rivers to flow;
kill me and your lands will become barren." Nayénezgani answered:
"If you keep this promise I shall spare you; but if you ever more
do evil as you have done before, I shall seek you again, and then
I shall not spare you." Tsé`nagahi has kept his promise ever since,
and has become the Tiéholtsodi of the upper world.
353. He brought home no trophy from the contest with Tsé`nagahi. It
had now been eight days since he left the house of the Sun.[153] He
was weary from his battles with the anáye, and he determined to rest
four days. During this time he gave his relatives a full account of
his journeys and his adventures from first to last, and as he began
he sang a song:--
Nayénezgani to Atsé Estsán began to tell,
About Bitéelgeti he began to tell,
From homes of giants coming, he began to tell.
To`badzistsíni to Estsánatlehi began to tell,
About the Tse`na'hale he began to tell,
From homes of giants coming, he began to tell.
Léyaneyani to Atsé Estsán began to tell,
Of Tse`tahotsiltá`li he began to tell,
From homes of giants coming, he began to tell.
Tsówenatlehi to Estsánatlehi began to tell,
About Bináye Aháni he began to tell,
From homes of giants coming, he began to tell.[277]
354. There were still many of the anáye to kill; there was White under
the Rock, Blue under the Rock, Yellow under the Rock, Black under
the Rock, and many yélapahi, or brown giants. Besides these there
were a number of stone pueblos, now in ruins, that were inhabited
by various animals (crows, eagles, etc.),[154] who filled the land
and left no room for the people. During the four days of rest, the
brothers consulted as to how they might slay all these enemies, and
they determined to visit again the house of the Sun. On the morning
of the fourth night they started for the east. They encountered no
enemies on the way and had a pleasant journey. When they entered
the house of the Sun no one greeted them; no one offered them a
seat. They sat down together on the floor, and as soon as they were
seated lightning began to shoot into the lodge. It struck the ground
near them four times. Immediately after the last flash Tsápani, Bat,
and Tó`nenili, Water Sprinkler, entered. "Do not be angry with us,"
said the intruders; "we flung the lightning only because we feel happy
and want to play with you:" still the brothers kept wrathful looks on
their faces, until Ni'ltsi whispered into their ears: "Be not angry
with the strangers. They were once friends of the anáye and did not
wish them to die; but now they are friends of yours, since you have
conquered the greatest of the anáye." Then, at last, Tsóhanoai spoke to
his children, saying: "These people are rude; they respect no one. Heed
them not. Here are seats for you. Be seated." Saying this, he offered
the brothers a seat of shell and a seat of turquoise; but Ni'ltsi told
the brothers not to take them. "These are seats of peace," he said;
"you still want help in war. Nayénezgani, take the seat of red stone,
which is the warrior's seat; and you, To`badzistsíni, stand." They
did as the Wind bade them.
355. "My children, why do you come to me again?" asked Tsóhanoai,
the bearer of the sun. "We come for no special purpose; we come
only to pass away the time," Nayénezgani answered. Three times he
asked this question and got the same reply. When he asked for the
fourth time, he added, "Speak the truth. When you came to me before I
gave you all you asked for." Now it was To`badzistsíni who replied:
"Oh, father! there are still many of the anáye left, and they are
increasing. We wish to destroy them." "My children," said Tsóhanoai,
"when I helped you before, I asked you for nothing in return. I
am willing to help you again; but I wish to know, first, if you are
willing to do something for me. I have a long way to travel every day,
and often, in the long summer days, I do not get through in time, and
then I have no place to rest or eat till I get back to my home in the
east. I wish you to send your mother to the west that she may make a
new home for me." "I will do it," said Nayénezgani; "I will send her
there." But To`badzistsíni said: "No, Estsánatlehi is under the power
of none; we cannot make promises for her, she must speak for herself,
she is her own mistress; but I shall tell her your wishes and plead
for you." The room they were in had four curtains which closed the
ways leading into other apartments. Tsóhanoai lifted the curtain in
the east, which was black, and took out of the room in the east five
hoops: one of these was colored black, another blue, a third yellow,
and a fourth white, the fifth was many-colored and shining. Each hoop
had attached to it a knife of the same color as itself. He took out
also four great hailstones, colored like the four first hoops. He
gave all these to his sons and said: "Your mother will know what to
do with these things."
356. When they got their gifts they set out on their homeward
journey. As they went on their way they beheld a wonderful vision. The
gods spread before them the country of the Navahoes as it was to
be in the future when men increased in the land and became rich and
happy. They spoke to one another of their father, of what he had said
to them, of what they had seen in his house, and of all the strange
things that had happened. When they got near their journey's end they
sang this song:--
Nayénezgani, he is holy,
Thus speaks the Sun,
Holy he stands.
To`badzistsíni, he is holy,
Thus speaks the Moon,
Holy he moves.
Léyaneyani, he is holy,
Thus speaks the Sun,
Holy he stands.
Tsówenatlehi, he is holy,
Thus speaks the Moon,
Holy he moves.[278]
357. When they got within sight of their home they sang this song:--
Slayer of Giants,
Through the sky I hear him.
His voice sounds everywhere,
His voice divine.
Child of the Water,
Through the floods I hear him.
His voice sounds everywhere,
His voice divine.
Reared 'neath the Earth,
Through the earth I hear him.
His voice sounds everywhere,
His voice divine.
The Changing Grandchild,
Through the clouds I hear him.
His voice sounds everywhere,
His voice divine.[279]
358. When the brothers got home they said to Estsánatlehi: "Here are
the hoops which our father has given us, and he told us you knew all
about them. Show us, then, how to use them." She replied: "I have no
knowledge of them." Three times she thus answered their questions. When
they spoke to her for the fourth time and Nayénezgani was becoming
angry and impatient, she said: "I have never seen the Sun God except
from afar. He has never been down to the earth to visit me. I know
nothing of these talismans of his, but I will try what I can do." She
took the black hoop to the east, set it up so that it might roll,
and spat through it the black hail, which was four-cornered; at once
the hoop rolled off to the east and rolled out of sight. She took
the blue hoop to the south, set it up, and spat through it the blue
hail, which was six-cornered. Then the hoop rolled away to the south
and disappeared. She carried the yellow hoop to the west, set it up,
and spat through it the eight-cornered yellow hail; the hoop rolled
off to the west and was lost to sight. She bore the white hoop to
the north; spat through it the white hail, which had eleven corners,
and the hoop sped to the north until it was seen no more. She threw
the shining hoop up toward the zenith, threw the four colored knives
in the same direction, and blew a powerful breath after them. Up they
all went until they were lost to sight in the sky. As each hoop went
away thunder was heard.[155]
359. During four days after this nothing of importance happened, and
no change came in the weather. At the end of four days they heard
thunder high up in the sky, and after this there were four days
more of good weather. Then the sky grew dark, and something like a
great white cloud descended from above. Estsánatlehi went abroad;
she saw in all directions great whirlwinds which uprooted tall
trees as if they had been weeds, and tossed great rocks around as
if they had been pebbles. "My son, I fear for our house," she said
when she came back. "It is high among the mountains, and the great
winds may destroy it." When he heard this, Nayénezgani went out. He
covered the house first with a black cloud, which he fastened to the
ground with rainbows; second, with a black fog, which he fastened
down with sunbeams; third, with a black cloud, which he secured with
sheet-lightning; and fourth, with a black fog, which he secured with
chain-lightning. At sunset that evening they caught a little glimpse
of the sun; but after that, continuously for four days and four nights,
it was dark; a storm of wind and hail prevailed, such as had never been
seen before, and the air was filled with sharp stones carried before
the wind. The people stayed safe in the lodge, but they could hear the
noise of the great storm without. On the morning of the fifth day the
tumult ceased, and Nayénezgani, going out, found that all was calm,
though it was still dark. He now proceeded to remove the coverings
from the lodge and threw them upwards toward the heavens. As the first
covering, a sheet of fog, ascended, chain-lightning shot out of it
(with chain-lightning it had been fastened down). As the second
covering, a cloud, ascended, sheet-lightning came forth from it. As
the third covering, a fog, went up, sunbeams streamed from it; and
as the fourth cover, a robe of cloud, floated up, it became adorned
with rainbows. The air was yet dark, and full of dust raised by the
high wind; but a gentle shower of rain came later, laying the dust,
and all was clear again. All the inmates of the lodge now came out,
and they marvelled to see what changes the storm had wrought: near
their house a great canyon had been formed; the shape of the bluffs
around had been changed, and solitary pillars of rock[156] had been
hewn by the winds.
360. "Surely all the anáye are now killed," said Estsánatlehi. "This
storm must have destroyed them." But Ni'ltsi whispered into
Nayénezgani's ear, "San (Old Age) still lives." The hero said then
to his mother: "Where used Old Age to dwell?" His mother would not
answer him, though he repeated his question four times. At last
Ni'ltsi again whispered in his ear and said: "She lives in the
mountains of Depe'ntsa."
361. Next morning he set out for the north, and when, after a long
journey, he reached Depe'ntsa, he saw an old woman who came slowly
toward him leaning on a staff. Her back was bent, her hair was white,
and her face was deeply wrinkled. He knew this must be San. When they
met he said: "Grandmother, I have come on a cruel errand. I have come
to slay you." "Why would you slay me?" she said in a feeble voice,
"I have never harmed any one. I hear that you have done great deeds
in order that men might increase on the earth, but if you kill
me there will be no increase of men; the boys will not grow up to
become fathers; the worthless old men will not die; the people will
stand still. It is well that people should grow old and pass away
and give their places to the young. Let me live, and I shall help
you to increase the people." "Grandmother, if you keep this promise
I shall spare your life," said Nayénezgani, and he returned to his
mother without a trophy.
362. When he got home Ni'ltsi whispered to him: "Hakáz Estsán (Cold
Woman) still lives." Nayénezgani said to Estsánatlehi: "Mother,
grandmother, where does Cold Woman dwell?" His mother would not answer
him; but Ni'ltsi again whispered, saying: "Cold Woman lives high on
the summits of Depe'ntsa, where the snow never melts."
363. Next day he went again to the north and climbed high among the
peaks of Depe'ntsa, where no trees grow and where the snow lies white
through all the summer. Here he found a lean old woman, sitting
on the bare snow, without clothing, food, fire, or shelter. She
shivered from head to foot, her teeth chattered, and her eyes
streamed water. Among the drifting snows which whirled around her, a
multitude of snow-buntings were playing; these were the couriers she
sent out to announce the coming of a storm. "Grandmother," he said,
"a cruel man I shall be. I am going to kill you, so that men may no
more suffer and die by your hand," and he raised his knife-club to
smite her. "You may kill me or let me live, as you will. I care not,"
she said to the hero; "but if you kill me it will always be hot,
the land will dry up, the springs will cease to flow, the people will
perish. You will do well to let me live. It will be better for your
people." He paused and thought upon her words. He lowered the hand
he had raised to strike her, saying: "You speak wisely, grandmother;
I shall let you live." He turned around and went home.
364. When Nayénezgani got home from this journey, bearing no trophy,
Wind again whispered in his ear and said: "Tieín (Poverty) still
lives." He asked his mother where Poverty used to live, but she would
not answer him. It was Wind who again informed him. "There are two,
and they dwell at Dsildasdzi'ni."
365. He went to Dsildasdzi'ni next day and found there an old man
and an old woman, who were filthy, clad in tattered garments, and
had no goods in their house. "Grandmother, grandfather," he said,
"a cruel man I shall be. I have come to kill you." "Do not kill us, my
grandchild," said the old man: "it would not be well for the people,
in days to come, if we were dead; then they would always wear the
same clothes and never get anything new. If we live, the clothing
will wear out and the people will make new and beautiful garments;
they will gather goods and look handsome. Let us live and we will
pull their old clothes to pieces for them." So he spared them and
went home without a trophy.
366. The next journey was to seek Ditsi'n, Hunger, who lived, as
Ni'ltsi told him, at Tlóhadaskaí, White Spot of Grass. At this place
he found twelve of the Hunger People. Their chief was a big, fat man,
although he had no food to eat but the little brown cactus. "I am
going to be cruel," said Nayénezgani, "so that men may suffer no more
the pangs of hunger and die no more of hunger." "Do not kill us,"
said the chief, "if you wish your people to increase and be happy
in the days to come. We are your friends. If we die, the people will
not care for food; they will never know the pleasure of cooking and
eating nice things, and they will never care for the pleasures of the
chase." So he spared also the Ditsi'n, and went home without a trophy.
367. When Nayénezgani came back from the home of Hunger, Ni'ltsi spoke
to him no more of enemies that lived. The Slayer of the Alien Gods
said to his mother: "I think all the anáye must be dead, for every one
I meet now speaks to me as a relation; they say to me, 'my grandson,'
'my son,' 'my brother.'"[157] Then he took off his armor--his knife,
moccasins, leggings, shirt, and cap--and laid them in a pile; he put
with them the various weapons which the Sun had given him, and he
sang this song:--
Now Slayer of the Alien Gods arrives
Here from the house made of the dark stone knives.
From where the dark stone knives dangle on high,
You have the treasures, holy one, not I.
The Offspring of the Water now arrives,
Here from the house made of the serrate knives.
From where the serrate knives dangle on high,
You have the treasures, holy one, not I.
He who was Reared beneath the Earth arrives,
Here from the house made of all kinds of knives.
From where all kinds of knives dangle on high,
You have the treasures, holy one, not I.
The hero, Changing Grandchild, now arrives,
Here from the house made of the yellow knives.
From where the yellow knives dangle on high,
You have the treasures, holy one, not I.[280]
368. His song had scarcely ceased when they heard, in the far east,
a loud voice singing this song:--
With Slayer of the Alien Gods I come,
From the house made of dark stone knives I come,
From where dark knives dangle on high I come,
With implement of sacred rites I come,
Dreadful to you.
With Offspring of the Waters now I come,
From the house made of serrate knives I come,
From where the serrate knives hang high I come,
With implement of sacred rites I come,
Divine to you.
With Reared beneath the Earth now do I come,
From house of knives of every kind I come,
Where knives of every kind hang high I come,
With implement of sacred rites I come,
Dreadful to you.
Now with the Changing Grandchild here I come,
From the house made of yellow knives I come,
From where the yellow knives hang high I come,
With implement of sacred rites I come,
Dreadful to you.[281]
369. As the voice came nearer and the song continued, Estsánatlehi
said to the youths: "Put on quickly the clothes you usually wear,
Tsóhanoai is coming to see us; be ready to receive him," and she left
the lodge, that she might not hear them talk about the anáye.
370. When the god had greeted his children and taken a seat, he
said to the elder brother: "My son, do you think you have slain
all the anáye?" "Yes, father," replied the son, "I think I have
killed all that should die." "Have you brought home trophies from the
slain?" the father questioned again. "Yes, my father," was the reply;
"I have brought back wing-feathers, and lights and hair and eyes,
and other trophies of my enemies." "It is not well," said Tsóhanoai,
"that the bodies of these great creatures should lie where they fell;
I shall have them buried near the corpse of Yéitso." (He got the holy
ones to carry the corpses to San Mateo and hide them under the blood
of Yéitso, and this is the reason we do not see them lying all over
the land now, but sometimes see them sticking out of the rocks.)[159]
He took the trophies and the armor and said: "These I shall carry
back to my house in the east and keep them safe. If you ever need them
again, come and get them." Promising to come back again in four days,
and meet Estsánatlehi on the top of Tsolíhi, he departed.
371. At the end of four days Estsánatlehi went to the top of Tsolíhi
and sat down on a rock. Tsóhanoai came, sat beside her, and sought
to embrace her; but she avoided him, saying: "What do you mean by
this? I want none of your embraces." "It means that I want you for
my own," said the bearer of the Sun. "I want you to come to the
west and make a home for me there." "But I do not wish to do so,"
said she. "What right have you to ask me?" "Have I not given your
boys the weapons to slay the alien gods?" he inquired, and added:
"I have done much for you: now you must reward me." She replied, "I
never besought you to do this. You did not do it on my account; you did
it of your own good will, and because your sons asked you." He urged
another reason: "When Nayénezgani visited me in the east, he promised
to give you to me." "What care I for his promise?" she exclaimed;
"I am not bound by it. He has no right to speak for me." Thus four
times she repulsed him. When he pleaded for the fifth time, saying:
"Come to the west and make a home for me," she said: "Let me hear
first all you have to promise me. You have a beautiful house in the
east. I have never seen it, but I have heard how beautiful it is. I
want a house just the same built for me in the west; I want to have
it built floating on the water, away from the shore, so that in the
future, when people increase, they will not annoy me with too many
visits. I want all sorts of gems--white shell, turquoise, haliotis,
jet, soapstone, agate, and redstone--planted around my house, so
that they will grow and increase. Then I shall be lonely over there
and shall want something to do, for my sons and my sister will not
go with me. Give me animals to take along. Do all this for me and
I shall go with you to the west." He promised all these things to
her, and he made elk, buffalo, deer, long-tail deer, mountain sheep,
jack-rabbits, and prairie-dogs to go with her.
372. When she started for her new home the Hadáhonestiddine` and the
Hadáhonigedine`, two tribes of divine people,[160] went with her and
helped her to drive the animals, which were already numerous. They
passed over the Tuintsá range at Péslitsi (Red Knife or Red Metal),
and there they tramped the mountain down so that they formed a
pass. They halted in Tsinlí valley to have a ceremony[161] and a
foot-race, and here the animals had become vastly more numerous. When
they crossed Dsillizi'n (Black Mountain),[162] the herd was so great
that it tramped a deep pass whose bottom is almost on a level with
the surrounding plain; at Black Mountain all the buffaloes broke from
the herd and ran to the east; they never returned to Estsánatlehi
and are in the east still. At Hostódito` the elks went to the east
and they never returned. From time to time a few, but not all, of
the antelope, deer, and other animals left the herd and wandered
east. Four days after leaving Tsinlí valley they arrived at Dokoslíd
(San Francisco Mountain), and here they stopped to perform another
ceremony. What happened on the way from this mountain to the great
water in the west, we do not know, but after a while Estsánatlehi
arrived at the great water and went to dwell in her floating house
beyond the shore. Here she still lives, and here the Sun visits her,
when his journey is done, every day that he crosses the sky. But he
does not go every day; on dark, stormy days he stays at home in the
east and sends in his stead the serpents of lightning, who do mischief.
373. As he journeys toward the west, this is the song he sings:--
In my thoughts I approach,
The Sun God approaches,
Earth's end he approaches,
Estsánatlehi's hearth approaches,
In old age walking
The beautiful trail.
In my thoughts I approach,
The Moon God approaches,
Earth's end he approaches,
Yolkaí Estsán's hearth approaches,
In old age walking
The beautiful trail.[282]
374. When Estsánatlehi had departed, Nayénezgani and To`badzistsíni
went, as their father had bidden them, to To`ye'tli,[163] where two
rivers join, in the valley of the San Juan; there they made their
dwelling, there they are to this day, and there we sometimes still
see their forms in the San Juan River.[164] The Navahoes still go
there to pray, but not for rain, or good crops, or increase of stock;
only for success in war, and only the warriors go.
IV. GROWTH OF THE NAVAHO NATION.
375. Before Estsánatlehi left, she said to Yolkaí Estsán: "Now, younger
sister, I must leave you. Think well what you would most like to do
after I am gone." The younger sister replied: "I would most like to
go back to Depe'ntsa, where our people came from." "Alas! you will
be lonely there," said the elder sister. "You will want for some
one around you to make a noise and keep you company." Still, when
Estsánatlehi left, Yolkaí Estsán turned her face toward Depe'ntsa. She
went with the two brothers as far as To`ye'tli, and, when these
stopped there, she set out alone for the mountains.
376. When she got to Depe'ntsa (the San Juan Mountains), she went
first to a place lying east of Hadzinaí (the Place of Emergence),
named Dsilladiltéhi; in an old ruined pueblo on its side she rested
during the day, and at night she went to the top of the mountain
to sleep. On the second day she went to a mountain south of the
Place of Emergence, called Dsili'ndiltéhi; rested on the side of the
mountain during the day, and on its top at night. She began now to feel
lonely, and at night she thought of how men might be made to keep her
company. She wandered round in thought during the third day, and on
the third night she slept on top of Dsiltagiiltéhi, a mountain west of
Hadzinaí. On the fourth day she walked around the Place of Emergence,
and wandered into the old ruins she found there. On the fourth night
she went to the top of Dsiltiniltéz, the mountain which lies to the
north of the Place of Emergence, and there she rested, but did not
sleep; for she thought all the time about her loneliness, and of how
people might be made. On the fifth day she came down to the shores of
the lake which surrounded the Place of Emergence, and built a shelter
of brush. "I may as well stay here," she said to herself; "what does
it avail that I wander round?" She sat up late that night thinking of
her lonely condition. She felt that she could not stay there longer
without companionship. She thought of her sister in the far west, of
the Twelve People, of the gods that dwelt in the different mountains,
and she thought she might do well to go and live with some of them.
377. The next morning she heard faintly, in the early dawn, the
voice of Hastséyalti shouting his usual "Wu`hu`hu`hú," in the
far east. Four times the cry was uttered, each time louder and
nearer. Immediately after the last call the god appeared. "Where
did you save yourself?" he asked the White Shell Woman, meaning,
"Where were you, that you escaped the anáye when they ravaged the
land?" "I was at Dsilnáotil with my sister," she said; "but for five
nights I have been all alone in these mountains. I have been hoping
that something might happen to relieve my great loneliness,--that I
might meet some one. Sítsaí (Grandfather), whence do you come?" He
replied: "I come from Tse`gíhi,[165] the home of the gods. I pity
your loneliness and wish to help you. If you remain where you are,
I shall return in four days and bring Estsánatlehi, the divine ones
of all the great mountains, and other gods, with me." When he left,
she built for herself a good hut with a storm door. She swept the
floor clean, and made a comfortable bed of soft grass and leaves.
378. At dawn on the fourth day after the god departed, Yolkaí Estsán
heard two voices calling,--the voice of Hastséyalti, the Talking God,
and the voice of Hastséhogan, the House God. The voices were heard,
as usual, four times, and immediately after the last call the gods
appeared. It was dark and misty that day; the sun did not rise. Soon
after the arrival of the first two, the other promised visitors
came, and they all formed themselves in a circle east of the lodge,
each in the place where he or she belonged. Thus the divine ones of
Tsisnadzi'ni stood in the east; those of Tsótsil (San Mateo Mountain)
in the south; those of Dokoslíd (San Francisco Mountain) in the west;
those of Depe'ntsa (San Juan Mountain) in the north. Each one present
had his appropriate place in the group. At first Yolkaí Estsán stood in
the west; but her sister, Estsánatlehi, said to her: "No, my young
sister; go you and stand in the east. My place is in the west,"
and thus they stood during the ceremony. Estsánatlehi brought with
her two sacred blankets called Dilpi'l-naská, the Dark Embroidered,
and Lakaí-naská, the White Embroidered. Hastséhogan brought with him
two sacred buckskins, and the Nalkénaaz (a divine couple who came
together walking arm in arm) brought two ears of corn,--one yellow,
one white,--which the female carried in a dish of turquoise.
379. Hastséyalti laid the sacred blankets on the ground, and spread
on top of these one of the sacred buckskins with its head to the
west. He took from the dish of the female Nalkénaaz the two ears of
corn, handing the white ear to Tse`gádinatini Asiké, the Rock Crystal
Boy of the eastern mountain, and the yellow ear to Natáltsoi Atét,
the Yellow Corn Girl of San Francisco Mountain. These divine ones laid
the ears on the buckskin,--the yellow with its tip toward the west,
the white with its tip toward the east. Hastséyalti picked up the
ears, and nearly laid them down on the buckskin with their tips to the
east, but he did not let them touch the buckskin; as he did this he
uttered his own cry of "Wu`hu`hu`hú." Then he nearly laid them down
with their tips to the south, giving as he did so Hastséhogan's cry
of "Ha-wa-u-ú." With similar motions he pointed the ears to the west
and the north. Next he raised them toward the sky, and at length laid
them down on the buckskin, with their tips to the east. He accompanied
each act with a cry of his own or of Hastséhogan, alternating as in
the beginning. So the ears were turned in every direction, and this
is the reason the Navahoes never abide in one home like the Pueblos,
but wander ever from place to place. Over the ears of corn he laid the
other sacred buckskin with its head to the east, and then Ni'ltsi, the
Wind, entered between the skins. Four times, at intervals, Hastséyalti
raised the buckskins a little and peeped in. When he looked the fourth
time, he saw that the white ear of corn was changed to a man, and
the yellow ear to a woman. It was Ni'ltsi who gave them the breath
of life. He entered at the heads and came out at the ends of the
fingers and toes, and to this day we see his trail in the tip of
every human finger. The Rock Crystal Boy furnished them with mind,
and the Grasshopper Girl gave them voices. When Hastséyalti at last
threw off the top buckskin, a dark cloud descended and covered like
a blanket the forms of the new pair. Yolkaí Estsán led them into her
hogán, and the assembled gods dispersed. Before he left, Hastséyalti
promised to return in four days.
380. No songs were sung and no prayers uttered during their rites, and
the work was done in one day. The hogán near which all these things
happened still stands; but since that time it has been transformed
into a little hill. To-day (A.D. 1884) seven times old age has killed
since this pair was made by the holy ones from the ears of corn. The
next very old man who dies will make the eighth time.[166]
381. Early on the fourth morning after his departure Hastséyalti
came again as he had promised, announcing his approach by calling
four times as usual. When White Shell Woman heard the first call,
she aroused the young people and said: "Get up, my children,
and make a fire. Hastséyalti is coming." He brought with him
another couple, Hadáhonige Asiké (Mirage Boy) and Hadáhonestid Atét
(Ground-heat Girl). He gave Yolkaí Estsán two ears of corn, saying,
"Grind only one grain at a time," and departed. Yolkaí Estsán said to
the newly-arrived couple: "This boy and girl of corn cannot marry one
another, for they are brother and sister; neither can you marry one
another, for you are also brother and sister, yet I must do something
for you all." So she married the boy made of corn to the Ground-heat
Girl, and the Mirage Boy to the girl made of corn. After a time each
couple had two children,--a boy and a girl. When these were large
enough to run around, this family all moved away from Hadzinaí, where
they had lived four years, to Tse`lakaíia (White Standing Rock). The
two men were busy every day hunting rabbits, rats, and other such
animals, for on such game they chiefly lived. From these people are
descended the gens of Tse`dzinki'ni,[167] House of the Dark Cliffs;
so named because the gods who created the first pair came from the
cliff houses of Tse`gíhi, and brought from there the ears of corn
from which this first pair was made.
382. After they had lived thirteen years at Tse`lakaíia, during
which time they had seen no sign of the existence of any people but
themselves, they beheld one night the gleam of a distant fire. They
sought for the fire all that night and the next day, but could not
find it. The next night they saw it again in the same place, and the
next day they searched with greater vigilance, but in vain. On the
third night, when the distant gleam shone again through the darkness,
they determined to adopt some means, better than they had previously
taken, to locate it. They drove a forked stick firmly into the
ground; one of the men got down on his hands and knees, spreading
them as wide apart as possible, and sighted the fire through the
fork of the stick. Next morning he carefully placed his hands and
knees in the tracks which they had made the night before, and once
more looked through the fork. His sight was thus guided to a little
wooded hollow on the side of a far-off mountain. One of the men walked
over to the mountain and entered the little hollow, which was small
and could be explored in a few moments; but he discovered no fire,
no ashes, no human tracks, no evidence of the presence of man. On
the fourth night all the adults of the party took sight over the
forked stick at the far twinkle, and in the morning when they looked
again they found they had all sighted the same little grove on the
distant mountain-side. "Strange!" said the man who had hunted there
the day before; "the place is small. I went all through it again and
again. There was no sign of life there, and not a drop of water that
could reflect a ray from a star or from the moon." Then all the males
of the family, men and boys, went to explore the little wood. Just
as they were about to return, having found nothing, Wind whispered
into the ear of one: "You are deceived. That light shines through
a crack in the mountain at night. Cross the ridge and you will find
the fire."[168] They had not gone far over the ridge when they saw
the footprints of men, then the footprints of children, and soon they
came to the camp. One party was as much rejoiced as the other to find
people like themselves in the wilderness. They embraced one another,
and shouted mutual greetings and questions. "Whence do you come?" said
the strangers. "From Tse`lakaíia," was the response. "And whence come
you?" asked the men of the White Standing Rock. "We tarried last,"
replied the strangers, "at To`i'ndotsos, a poor country, where we
lived on ducks and snakes.[169] We have been here only a few days,
and now we live on ground-rats, prairie-dogs, and wild seeds." The new
party consisted of twelve persons,--five men, three women, one grown
girl, one grown boy, and two small children. The Tse`dzinki'ni people
took the strangers home with them, and Yolkaí Estsán welcomed them,
saying: "Ahaláni sastsíni!" (Greeting, my children!) The place where
the Tse`dzinki'ni found the strangers encamped was called Tsé`tlana
(Bend in a Canyon); so they gave them the name of Tse`tláni, or
Tse`tlánidine`, and from them is descended the present gens of
Tse`tláni in the Navaho nation.
383. The next morning after the arrival of the Tse`tláni, Hastséyalti
came once more to the lodge of the White Shell Woman; but he talked
with her apart from the others, and when he was gone she told no one
what he said. In three days he came back again; again they talked
apart, and when Hastséyalti was gone she remained silent. It was her
custom to sleep with one of the little girls, who was her favorite
and companion. In the morning after the second visit of Hastséyalti
she said to this little girl: "I am going to leave you. The gods
of Tse`gíhi have sent for me; but I shall not forget your people,
and shall come often to watch over them and be near them. Tell them
this when they waken." When she had spoken she disappeared from the
sight of the little girl, and when the people woke they searched,
but could find her nowhere. They supposed she had gone to Tse`gíhi
and tarried there a while before she went to Depe'ntsa to dwell
forever in the house of White Shell, which had been prepared for
her there. The fourth night after the departure of Yolkaí Estsán
the little girl had a dream, which she related to her people in
the morning. In the vision she saw Yolkaí Estsán, who said to her:
"My grandchild, I am going to Depe'ntsa to dwell. I would take you
with me, for I love you, were it not that your parents would mourn
for you. But look always for the she-rain when it comes near your
dwelling, for I shall ever be in the she-rain."
384. While at White Standing Rock the men wandered much around the
country in search of food. Some who had been to To`dokónzi (Saline
Water) said the latter was a better place than than that in which
they lived; that there were some porcupines there, an abundance of
rats, prairie-dogs, and seed-bearing plants; and that there were
steep-sided mesa points in the neighborhood where they might surround
large game.[170] After the departure of Yolkaí Estsán the people all
moved to To`dokónzi;[171] but they remained here only a few days,
and then went to Tsa`olgáhasze. Here they planted some grains of corn
from the two ears that Hastséyalti had given them long ago. This was
a very prolific kind of corn; when planted, several stalks sprouted
from each grain, and a single grain, when ground, produced a large
quantity of meal, which lasted them many days.
385. When they had been fourteen years at Tsa`olgáhasze they
were joined by another people, who came from the sacred mountain
of Dsilnáotil, and were therefore called Dsilnaoti'lni, or
Dsilnaoti'ldine`. These were regarded as diné` digíni, or holy
people, because they had no tradition of their recent creation, and
were supposed to have escaped the fury of the alien gods by means of
some miraculous protection. They did not camp at first with the older
settlers, but dwelt a little apart, and sent often to the latter to
borrow pots and metates. After a while all joined together as one
people, and for a long time these three gentes have been as one gens
and have become close relations to one another. The new-comers dug
among old ruins and found pots and stone axes; with the latter they
built themselves huts.
386. Seven years after the arrival of the Dsilnaoti'lni a fourth gens
joined the Navahoes. The new arrivals said they had been seeking for
the Dsilnaoti'lni all over the land for many years. Sometimes they
would come upon the dead bushes of old camps. Sometimes they would
find deserted brush shelters, partly green, or, again, quite green and
fresh. Occasionally they would observe faint footprints, and think
they were just about to meet another people like themselves in the
desolate land; but again all traces of humanity would be lost. They
were rejoiced to meet at last the people they so long had sought. The
new-comers camped close to the Dsilnaoti'lni, and discovered that
they and the latter carried similar red arrow-holders,[172] such
as the other gentes did not have, and this led them to believe that
they were related to the Dsilnaoti'lni. The Navahoes did not then make
large skin quivers such as they have in these days; they carried their
arrows in simpler contrivances. The strangers said that they came from
a place called Haskánhatso (much Yucca baccata), and that they were
the Haskándine`, or Yucca People; but the older gentes called them
Haskánhatso, or Haskanhatsódine`, from the place whence they came.[173]
387. Fourteen years after the accession of the fourth gens, the
Navahoes moved to Kintyél (which was then a ruin), in the Chaco
Canyon. They camped there at night in a scattering fashion, and made
so many fires that they attracted the attention of some strangers
camped on a distant mountain, and these strangers came down next
day to find out who the numerous people were that kindled so many
fires. As the strangers, who were also diné` digíni, or holy people,
said they came from Nahopá (Place of the Brown Horizontal Streak),
the Navahoes called them Nahopáni. They joined the tribe, camping
near the Haskánhatso and Dsilnaoti'lni.
388. It was autumn when the fifth gens was received. Then the whole
tribe moved to the banks of the San Juan River and settled at a place
called Tsintó`betlo[174] (Tree Sweeping Water), where a peculiar white
tree hangs over the stream and sweeps the surface of the water with its
long branches: there is no other tree of its kind near by. Here they
determined to remain some time and raise crops; so they built warm
huts for the winter, and all the fall and winter, when the days were
fair, they worked in the bottom-lands grubbing up roots and getting
the soil ready for gardens to be planted in the spring. The elder
gentes camped farther down the stream than those more newly arrived.
389. In those days the language which the Navahoes spoke was not the
same they speak now. It was a poor language then; it is better in
these days.
390. When the tribe had been living six years on the banks of
the San Juan, a band joined them who came from Tsi'nadzin[175]
(Black Horizontal Forest), and were named as a gens from the place
whence they came. The Navahoes observed that in this band there was
a man who talked a great deal to the people almost every morning and
evening. The Navahoes did not at first understand what this meant;
but after a while they learned he spoke to his people because he was
their chief. His name was Nabiniltáhi.
391. While living at the San Juan the people amused themselves
much with games. They played mostly nánzoz[76] in the daytime and
kesitsé[176] at night. They had as yet no horses, domestic sheep,
or goats. They rarely succeeded in killing deer or Rocky Mountain
sheep. When they secured deer it was sometimes by still-hunting them,
sometimes by surrounding one and making it run till it was exhausted,
and sometimes by driving them over precipices. When a man got two
skins of these larger animals he made a garment of them by tying
the fore-legs together over his shoulders. The woman wore a garment
consisting of two webs of woven cedar bark, one hanging in front
and one behind; all wore sandals of yucca fibre or cedar bark. They
had headdresses made of weasel-skins and rat-skins, with the tails
hanging down behind. These headdresses were often ornamented with
colored artificial horns, made out of wood, or with the horns of
the female mountain sheep shaved thin. Their blankets were made of
cedar bark, of yucca fibre, or of skins sewed together.[177] Each
house had, in front of the door, a long passageway, in which hung
two curtains,--one at the outer, the other at the inner end,--made
usually of woven cedar bark. In winter they brought in plenty of wood
at night, closed both curtains, and made the house warm before they
went to sleep. Their bows were of plain wood then; the Navahoes had
not yet learned to put animal fibre on the backs of the bows.[178]
Their arrows were mostly of reeds tipped with wood; but some made
wooden arrows.[180] The bottom-land which they farmed was surrounded
by high bluffs, and hemmed in up-stream and down-stream by jutting
bluffs which came close to the river. After a time the tribe became
too numerous for all to dwell and farm on this spot, so some went up
in the bluffs to live and built stone storehouses in the cliffs,[179]
while others--the Tsinadzi'ni--went below the lower promontory to
make gardens. Later yet, some moved across the San Juan and raised
crops on the other side of the stream.[180]
392. Eight years after the coming of the Tsinadzi'ni, some fires
were observed at night on a distant eminence north of the river,
and spies were sent out to see who made them. The spies brought
back word that they had found a party of strangers encamped at a
place called Tha`nezá`, Among the Scattered (Hills). Soon after,
this party came in and joined the Navahoes, making a new gens, which
was called Tha`nezá`ni. The strangers said they were descended from
the Hadáhonigedine`, or Mirage People. The remains of their old huts
are still to be seen at Tha`nezá`.
393. Five years after the Tha`nezá`ni were added, another people joined
the tribe; but what gods sent them none could tell. They came from a
place called Dsiltlá` (Base of Mountain), and were given the name of
Dsiltlá`ni. As they had headdresses, bows, arrows, and arrow-holders
similar to those of the Tha`nezá`ni they concluded they must be
related to the latter. Ever since, these two gentes have been very
close friends,--so close that a member of one cannot marry a member
of the other. The Dsiltlá`ni knew how to make wicker water-bottles,
carrying-baskets, and earthen pots, and they taught their arts to
the rest of the people.
394. Five years later, they were joined on the San Juan by a numerous
band who came originally from a place called Thá`pahahalkaí, White
Valley among the Waters, which is near where the city of Santa Fé
now stands. These people had long viewed in the western distance
the mountains where the Navahoes dwelt, wondering if any one
lived there, and at length decided to go thither. They journeyed
westward twelve days till they reached the mountains, and they
spent eight days travelling among them before they encountered the
Navahoes. Then they settled at To`i'ndotsos and lived there twelve
years, subsisting on ducks and fish,[169] but making no farms. All
this time they were friendly to the Navahoes and exchanged visits;
but, finding no special evidences of relationship with the latter,
they dwelt apart. When at length they came to the San Juan to live,
marriages had taken place between members of the two tribes, and
the people from Among the Waters became a part of the Navaho nation,
forming the gens of Thá`paha. They settled at a place called Hyíetyin
(Trails Leading Upward), close to the Navahoes. Here was a smooth,
sandy plain, which they thought would be good for farming, and the
chief, whose name was Góntso, or Big Knee, had stakes set around the
plain to show that his people claimed it. The people of the new gens
were good hunters, skilled in making weapons and beautiful buckskin
shirts, and they taught their arts to the other gentes.
395. The Thá`paha then spoke a language more like the modern Navaho
than that which the other gentes spoke. The languages were not
alike. The chief of the Tsinadzi'ni and Góntso often visited one
another at night, year after year, for the purpose of uniting the
two languages and picking out the words in each that were best. But
the words of the Thá`paha were usually the best and plainest;[182]
so the new language resembles the Thá`paha more than it resembles
the old Navaho.
396. While the Thá`paha lived at Hyíetyin they had always abundant
crops,--better crops than their neighbors had. Sometimes they could
not harvest all they raised, and let food lie ungathered in the
field. They built stone storehouses, something like pueblo houses,
among the cliffs, and in these stored their corn. The storehouses
stand there yet. The Thá`paha remained at Hyíetyin thirteen years,
during which time many important events occurred, as will be told,
and then they moved to Azdeltsígi.
397. Góntso had twelve wives; four of these were from the gens of
Tsinadzi'ni, four from the gens of Dsiltlá`ni, and four from the
gens of Tha`nezá`ni. He used to give much grain from his abundant
harvests to the gentes to which his wives belonged; but, in spite
of his generosity, his wives were unfaithful to him. He complained
to their relations and to their chiefs; these remonstrated with the
wives, but failed to improve their ways. At last they lost patience
with the women and said to Góntso: "Do with them as you will. We
shall not interfere." So the next wife whom he detected in crime he
mutilated in a shameful way, and she died in consequence. He cut off
the ears of the next transgressor, and she, too, died. He amputated
the breasts of the third wife who offended him, and she died also. He
cut off the nose of the fourth; she did not die. He determined then
that cutting the nose should, in future, be the greatest punishment
imposed on the faithless wife,--something that would disfigure but
not kill,--and the rest of the people agreed with him.[183] But this
had no effect on the remaining wives; they continued to lapse from
virtue till all were noseless. Then they got together and began to
plot mischief against their husband, Big Knee. They spoke so openly
of their evil intentions that he feared to let any of them stay in
his lodge at night and he slept alone.
398. About this time the people determined to have a great ceremony
for the benefit of Big Knee; so they made great preparations and held
a rite of nine days' duration.[184] During its progress the mutilated
women remained in a hut by themselves, and talked about the unkindness
of their people and the vengeance due to their husband. They said
one to another: "We should leave our people and go elsewhere." On the
last night of the ceremony there was a series of public exhibitions
in a corral, or circle of branches, such as the Navahoes have now on
the last night of the ceremony of the mountain chant,[185] and among
the different alíli, or entertainments of the night, was a dance by
the mutilated women. When their time came they entered the circle,
each bearing a knife in her hand, and danced around the central fire,
peering among the spectators as if searching for their husband; but
he was hidden in the wall of branches that formed the circle. As they
danced they sang a song the burden of which was "Pésla asilá." (It was
the knife that did it to me.) When they had finished their dance they
left the corral, and, in the darkness without, screamed maledictions
at their people, saying: "May the waters drown ye! May the winters
freeze ye! May the fires burn ye! May the lightnings strike ye!" and
much more. Having cursed till they were tired, they departed for the
far north, where they still dwell, and now, whenever they turn their
faces to the south, we have cold winds and storms and lightning.
399. Not long after this memorable ceremony a number of Utes visited
the Navahoes. They came when the corn-ears were small, and remained
till the corn was harvested. They worked for the Navahoes, and when
their stomachs were filled all left except one family, which consisted
of an old couple, two girls, and a boy. These at first intended to
stay but a short time after their friends had gone; but they tarried
longer and longer, and postponed their going from time to time,
till they ended by staying with the Navahoes till they died. They
made particular friends with the Thá`paha, and got into the way of
speaking to the latter people as they would to relations. One of the
girls, whose name was Tsá`yiskid (Sage-Brush Hill), lived to be an
old woman and the mother of many children. From her is descended the
gens of Tsa`yiski'dni, which is so closely allied to the Thá`paha that
a member of one of these gentes may not marry a member of the other.
400. Soon after the departure of the Utes the Navahoes were joined
by a group of people who, when they came to tell their story, were
found to have come from Thá`paha-halkaí, and to have made wanderings
similar to those of the people who first came from that place. The
new people spoke, also, the same language as the Thá`paha. For these
reasons they were not formed into a new gens, but were joined to the
gens of Thá`paha.
401. Some years later a large band came from the south to the
settlement on the San Juan. It consisted of Apaches, who told the
Navahoes that they had left their old tribe forever and desired
to become Navahoes. They had not come to visit, they said, but to
stay. They all belonged to one gens among the Apaches,--the gens of
Tse`zindiaí (Trap-dyke),[186] and they were admitted into the tribe
as a new gens with their old name. From the beginning they showed a
desire to associate with Thá`paha, and now they are closely related
to the latter and must not marry with them. Another band of Apaches,
which came a little later, was added to the same gens.
402. About this time there was a great famine in Zuñi, and some people
from this pueblo came to the San Juan to dwell with the Navahoes. They
came first to the Thá`paha, and, although they had women in the party,
they were not formed into a new gens, but added to Thá`paha. The gens
of Zuñi was formed later.
403. The famine prevailed also at other pueblos, and some starving
people came to the Navahoes from an old pueblo named Klógi, which was
near where the pueblo of Jemez now stands. These formed the gens of
Klógi, and made special friends of the Thá`paha.
404. The next accession was a family of seven adults, who came from
a place called Tó`hani (Near the Water). They first visited the
Dsiltlá`ni and remained, forming the gens of Tó`hani, affiliated now
with Dsiltlá`ni.
405. The people who joined the Navahoes next after the Tó`hani
came from a place called Tha`tsí, Among the Red (Waters or Banks),
which was west of the San Juan settlement. From their traditions it
appeared that they were not a newly created people; they had escaped
in some way from the alien gods, and were for these reasons regarded
as diné` digíni, or holy people. They were divided into two gentes,
Thá`tsini and Kaídine`, or Willow People, and for a while they formed
two gentes among the Navahoes; but in these days all traces of this
division have been lost, and all their descendants are now called,
without distinction, sometimes Thá`tsini and sometimes Kai or Kaídine`.
406. Before this time the Navahoes had been a weak and peaceable
tribe; but now they found themselves becoming a numerous people and
they began to talk of going to war. Of late years they had heard
much of the great pueblos along the Rio Grande, but how their people
had saved themselves from the anáye the Navahoes did not know. A man
named Napaílinta got up a war party and made a raid on a pueblo named
Kinlitsí (Red House), and returned with some captives, among whom
was a girl captured by Napaílinta. From her is descended the gens
of Kinlitsí, whose members are now close relations to Tsinadzi'ni
(the gens of Napaílinta), and cannot intermarry with the latter.
407. The captives from Kinlitsí were, at first, slaves among the
Navahoes;[187] but their descendants became free and increased greatly,
and from them came another gens, Tliziláni, Many Goats, also closely
related to Tsinadzi'ni.
408. Next in order came a band of Apaches from the south representing
two gentes,--Destsíni (Red Streak People), and Tlastsíni (Red Flat
Ground People). These were adopted by the Navahoes as two separate
gentes and became close relations to the Tsinadzi'ni.
409. Not long after the arrival of these Apaches some Utes came
into the neighborhood of the Navahoes, camping at a place called
Tsé`di`yikáni (a ridge or promontory projecting into the river),
not far from Hyíetyin. They had good arms of all kinds, and two
varieties of shields,--one round and one with a crescentic cut in the
top. They lived for a while by themselves, and were at first unruly and
impertinent; but in the course of time they merged into the Navahoes,
forming the gens of Notá or Notádine`, Ute People.
410. About the time they were incorporated by the Navahoes, or soon
after, a war party of the Utes made a raid on a Mexican settlement,
somewhere near where Socorro now is, and captured a Spanish woman. She
was their slave; but her descendants became free among the Navahoes
and formed the Nakaídine` (White Stranger People), or Mexican gens,
who cannot now intermarry with Notádine`.
411. Góntso, or Big Knee, chief of the Thá`paha, was still alive
and was a famous old man; but he had become feeble and had many
ailments. There was a great ceremony practised in those days
called natsi'd, which lasted all winter,[184] from harvest-time
to planting-time; but the Navahoes have long ceased to celebrate
it. This ceremony was held one winter for the benefit of Big Knee at
the sacred place of To`ye'tli, the home of the War Gods. One night,
while the rites were being performed, some strangers joined the
Navahoes coming from the direction of the river. Adopted by the
Navahoes, they formed the gens of To`yetlíni, and became closely
allied to Notádine` and Nakaídine`.
412. On another occasion during the same winter some Apaches came from
their country in the south to witness the ceremony of natsi'd. Among
the women of the Thá`paha was one who visited the Apache camp and
remained all night there. She became attached to an Apache youth,
with whom she secretly absconded when the visitors left. For a
long time her people did not know what had become of her; but many
years after, learning where she was, some of her relations went to
the Apache country to persuade her to return. She came back an old
woman, bringing her husband and a family of three girls. The girls
were handsome, had light skins and fair hair. Their grandmother, who
admired them very much, insisted that a new gens should be made of
them. So they were called Háltso, Yellow Bodies,[188] and originated
the gens of that name. Their father died an old man among the Navahoes.
413. On another night of the same winter, while the ceremony for Big
Knee was going on, two strange men, speaking the Navaho language,
entered the camp. They said they were the advanced couriers of a
multitude of wanderers who had left the shores of the great waters
in the west to join the Navahoes. You shall now hear the story of
the people who came from the western ocean:--
414. Surrounding Estsánatlehi's home were four mountains, located like
those at the Place of Emergence--one in the east, one in the south,
one in the west, and one in the north. She was in the habit of dancing
on these mountains,--on the mountain in the east to bring clouds;
on the mountain in the south, to bring all kinds of goods,--jewels,
clothing, etc.; on the mountain in the west, to bring plants of all
kinds; and on the mountain in the north, to bring corn and animals. On
these journeys for dancing she passed from the east mountain to
the south, the west, and the north mountain, the way the sun goes;
and when she was done dancing on the north mountain she retraced her
course (without crossing it) to the east; but she never completed
the circle, i.e., she never passed from the north directly to the
east. Over the space between the north and the east mountains she
never travelled. This is the way her trail lay:--
415. Estsánatlehi had not been long in her western home when she
began to feel lonely. She had no companions there. The people who had
accompanied her thither did not stay with her. She thought she might
make people to keep her company, so one day, when she had completed one
of her dancing journeys, she sat down on the eastern mountain. Here
she rubbed epidermis from under her left arm with her right hand;
she held this in her palm and it changed into four persons,--two men
and two women,--from whom descended a gens to which no name was then
given, but which afterwards (as will be told) received the name of
Honagá`ni. She rubbed the epidermis with her left hand from under
her right arm, held it in her palm as before, and it became two
men and two women, from whom descended the gens afterwards known as
Kinaá`ni. In a similar way, of epidermis rubbed from under her left
breast she created four people, from whom descended the gens later
known as To`ditsíni; of epidermis from under her right breast, four
persons, from whom descended the gens called Bitáni; of epidermis
from the middle of her chest, the four whose descendants were called
Hasli'zni; and of epidermis from her back between her shoulders,
the four whose descendants were called Bitá`ni in later times.
416. She said to these: "I wish you to dwell near me, where I can
always see you; but if you choose to go to the east, where your
kindred dwell, you may go." She took them from her floating home to
the mainland; here they lived for thirty years, during which time they
married and had many children. At the end of this time the Twelve
People (Diné` Nakidáta), or rather what was left of them, appeared
among Estsánatlehi's people and said to them: "We have lost our sister
who kept our house for us; we have no home; we know not where else to
go; so we have come here to behold our mother, our grandmother. You
have kindred in the far east who have increased until they are now a
great people. We do not visit them, but we stand on the mountains and
look at them from afar. We know they would welcome you if you went to
them." And many more things they told about the people in the far east.
417. Now all crossed on a bridge of rainbow to the house of
Estsánatlehi on the sea, where she welcomed them and embraced them. Of
the Diné` Nakidáta but ten were left, for, as has been told, they lost
their sister and their younger brother; but when they came to the home
of Estsánatlehi she made for them two more people out of turquoise,
and this completed their original number of twelve. She knew with what
thoughts her children had come. She opened four doors leading from
the central chamber of her house into four other rooms, and showed
them her various treasures, saying: "Stay with me always, my children;
these things shall be yours, and we shall be always happy together."
418. When the people went back from the house of Estsánatlehi to the
mainland, all was gossip and excitement in their camp about what they
had heard of the people in the east. Each one had a different part
or version of the tale to tell,--of how the people in the east lived,
of what they ate, of the way in which they were divided into gentes,
of how the gentes were named, and of other things about them they
had heard. "The people are few where we live," they said; "we would
be better off where there are so many." They talked thus for twelve
days. At the end of that time they concluded to depart, and they
fixed the fourteenth day after that as the day they should leave.
419. Before they left, the Diné` Nakidáta and Estsánatlehi came to see
them. She said: "It is a long and dangerous journey to where you are
going. It is well that you should be cared for and protected on the
way. I shall give you five of my pets,[189]--a bear, a great snake, a
deer, a porcupine, and a puma,--to watch over you. They will not desert
you. Speak of no evil deeds in the presence of the bear or the snake,
for they may do the evil they hear you speak of; but the deer and the
porcupine are good,--say whatever you please to say in their presence."
420. Besides these pets she gave them five magic wands. To those
who were afterwards named Honagá`ni she gave a wand of turquoise;
to those who later were called Kinaá`ni, a wand of white shell; to
those who became To`ditsíni, a wand of haliotis shell; to those who
became Bitá`ni, a wand of black stone; and to those who in later days
became Hasli'zni, a wand of red stone. "I give you these for your
protection," she said, "but I shall watch over you myself while you
are on your journey."
421. On the appointed day they set out on their journey. On the
twelfth day of their march they crossed a high ridge and came in
sight of a great treeless plain, in the centre of which they observed
some dark objects in motion. They could not determine what they were,
but suspected they were men. They continued their journey, but did not
directly approach the dark objects; they moved among the foothills that
surrounded the plain, and kept under cover of the timber. As they went
along they discerned the dark objects more plainly, and discovered
that these were indeed human beings. They got among the foothills to
one side of where the strangers were, and camped in the woods at night.
422. In spite of all the precautions taken by the travellers, they
had been observed by the people of the plain, and at night two of the
latter visited their camp. The visitors said they were Kiltsói, or
Kiltsóidine` (People of the Bigelovia graveolens); that their tribe was
numerous; that the plain in which they dwelt was extensive; and that
they had watermelons getting ripe, with corn and other food, in their
gardens. The people of the west concluded to remain here a while. The
second night they had two more visitors, one of whom became enamored
of a maiden among the wanderers, and asked for her in marriage. Her
people refused him at first; but when he came the second night and
begged for her again, they gave her to him. He stayed with her in
the camp of her people as long as they remained in the valley, except
the last two nights, when she went and stayed with his people. These
gave an abundance of the produce of their fields to the wanderers,
and the latter fared well. When the travellers were prepared to move,
they implored the young husband to go with them, while he begged to
have his wife remain with him in the valley. They argued long; but in
the end the woman's relations prevailed, and the Kiltsói man joined
them on their journey. In the mean time four other men of Kiltsói had
fallen in love with maidens of the wanderers, and asked for them in
marriage. The migrating band refused to leave the girls behind, so the
enamored young men left their kindred and joined the travellers. The
Kiltsói tried to persuade the others to dwell in their land forever,
but without avail.
423. They broke camp at last early in the morning, and travelled all
day. At night a great wind arose, and the bear would not rest, but ran
around the camp all night, uneasy and watchful. The men looked out
and saw some of the Kiltsói trying to approach; but the bear warded
them off and they disappeared without doing harm. In the morning it
was found that the men of the Kiltsói who had joined them on their
journey had now deserted them, and it was supposed that in some way
they were in league with their brethren outside.
424. The second day they journeyed far, and did not make camp until
after dark. As on the previous night, the bear was awake, watchful,
and uneasy all night. They supposed he was still looking out for
lurking Kiltsói. Not until daybreak did he lie down and take a little
sleep while the people were preparing for the day's march.
425. On the third night the bear was again wakeful and on guard, and
only lay down in the morning while the people were breaking camp. "My
pet, why are you troubled thus every night?" said one of the men to
the bear. The latter only grunted in reply, and made a motion with
his nose in the direction whence they had come.
426. On the fourth night they camped, for mutual protection, closer
together than they had camped before. The bear sat on a neighboring
hill, from which he could watch the sleepers, but slept not himself
all night. As before, he took a short sleep in the morning. Before the
people set out on their march some one said: "Let us look around and
see if we can find what has troubled our pet." They sent two couriers
to the east and two to the west. The former returned, having found
nothing. The latter said they had seen strange footprints, as of
people who had approached the camp and then gone back far to the
west. Their pursuers, they thought, had returned to their homes.
427. They had now been four days without finding water, and the
children were crying with thirst. On the fifth day's march they
halted at noon and held a council. "How shall we procure water?" said
one. "Let us try the power of our magic wands," said another. A man
of the gens who owned the wand of turquoise stuck this wand into the
ground, and worked it back and forth and round and round to make a
good-sized hole. Water sprang from the hole. A woman of another gens
crouched down to taste it. "It is bitter water," she cried. "Let
that, then, be your name and the name of your people," said those
who heard her; thus did the gens of To`ditsíni, Bitter Water People,
receive its name.
428. When the people had cooked and eaten food and drunk their fill
of the bitter water, they said: "Let us try to reach yonder mountain
before night." So they pushed on to a distant mountain they had beheld
in the east. When they got near the mountain they saw moccasin tracks,
and knew there must be some other people at hand. At one place,
near the base of the mountain, they observed a cluster of cottonwood
trees, and, thinking there might be a spring there, they went straight
to the cottonwood. Suddenly they found themselves among a strange
people who were dwelling around a spring. The strangers greeted the
wanderers in a friendly manner, embraced them, and asked them whence
they came. The wanderers told their story briefly, and the strangers
said: "We were created at this spring and have always lived here. It is
called Maitó`, Coyote Water (Coyote Spring), and we are the Maídine`"
(Coyote People). The Navahoes called them Maitó`dine`.
429. The travellers tarried four days at the Coyote Spring, during
which time they talked much to their new friends, and at length
persuaded the latter to join them on their eastern journey. Before they
started, the Coyote People declared that their spring was the only
water in the neighborhood; that they knew of no other water within
two days' journey in any direction. On the morning of the fifth day
they all moved off toward the east. They travelled all day, and made
a dry camp at night. The next day at noon they halted on their way,
and decided to try again the power of a magic wand. This time the
white shell was used by a member of the gens to whom it had been
given, in the same way that the turquoise wand was used before. Water
sprang up. A woman of another gens said: "It is muddy; it may make the
children sick." "Let your people then be named Hasli'zni, Mud People,"
cried voices in the crowd. Thus the gens of Hasli'z, or Hasli'zni,
was named.
430. The second night after leaving Coyote Spring, darkness overtook
the wanderers at a place where there was no water, and they rested
there for the night. At noon on the following day all were thirsty,
and the children were crying. The people halted, and proposed to try
again the efficacy of a sacred wand. The wand of haliotis was used
this time. When the water sprang up, a woman of the Coyote People
stooped first and drank. "It is To`dokónz, alkaline (or sapid) water,"
she exclaimed. To her and her children the name To`dokónzi was then
given, and from them the present gens of that name is descended. Its
members may not marry with Maitó`dine`, to whom they are related.
431. On the night after they found the alkaline water, they encamped
once more at a place where no water was to be found, and on the
following day great were their sufferings from thirst. At midday
they rested, and begged the bearers of the black stone wand to try
the power of their magic implement. A stream of fine, clear water
sprang up when the wand was stuck in the ground. They filled their
vessels and all drank heartily, except a boy and a girl of the gens
that bore the black stone wand. "Why do you not come and drink before
the water is all gone?" some one asked. The children made no reply,
but stood and looked at the water. The girl had her arms folded
under her dress. They gave then to her and to her gens the name of
Bitá`ni,[190] which signifies the arms under the dress.
432. The night after the Bitá`ni was named, the travellers slept
once more at a place where no water was to be found, and next day
they were very thirsty on their journey. In the middle of the day
they stopped, and the power of the red stone wand was tried. It
brought forth water from the ground, as the other wands had done,
and all drank till they were satisfied; but no member of the gentes
still unnamed said anything and no name was given.
433. After this they camped two nights without water. On the second
noon they arrived at a spring in a canyon known to the Maídine` and
called by them Halkaíto`, Water of the White Valley. They journeyed
no farther that day, but camped by the water all night.
434. From Halkaíto` they travelled steadily for twenty-five days,
until they came to a little river near San Francisco Mountain, and
west of it. During this part of the journey they found sufficient
water for their needs every day. They stopped at this river five
nights and five days and hunted. Here one man, and one only,--whose
name was Bainili'ni (Looks on at a Battle),--killed a deer, a large
one, which he cut into small pieces and distributed around so that
every one might get a taste.
435. From the banks of this stream they came to the east side of
San Francisco Mountain, to where, beside a little peak, there is a
spring that has no name. Here the travellers stopped several days,
and built around their camp a stone wall that still stands.
436. The puma belonged to the gens that bore the black stone wand, and
that was afterwards called Kinaá`ni. While the people were camped at
this spring he killed a deer. The bear sometimes killed rabbits. The
snake and the porcupine were of no use, but were a trouble instead,
since they had to be carried along. The deer ran among the crowd and
did neither good nor harm. The people lived mostly on rabbits and
other small animals and the seeds of wild plants.
437. From the spring near San Francisco Mountain they
travelled to Bitáhotsi (Red Place on Top),[191] and from there to
Tsé`zintsidilya. Here they held a council about the big snake. He was
of no use to them, and a great encumbrance. They turned him loose
among the rocks, and his descendants are there in great numbers to
this day. At Natsisaán (Navaho Mountain) they turned the porcupine
loose, and that is why there are so many porcupines on the Navaho
Mountain now.
438. They next went to the place now called Agála,[192] or
Agálani, Much Wool, or Hair, and were now in the land of the Ozaí
(Oraibes). They camped all around the peak of Agála and went out
hunting. Some who wore deer-masks for decoys, and went to get deer,
succeeded in killing a great number. They dressed many skins, and
the wind blew the hair from the skins up in a great pile. Seeing
this, one of the Honagá`ni proposed that the place be called Agála,
so this name was given to it.
439. From Agála the wanderers went to Tse`hotsóbiazi, Little Place
of Yellow Rocks, and from there to Yótso, Big Bead. On the way they
camped often, and sometimes tarried a day or two to hunt. It was now
late in the autumn. At Yótso they saw moccasin tracks, evidently not
fresh, and they said to one another: "Perhaps these are the footprints
of the people whom we seek." Now there were diverse counsels among
the immigrants. Some were in haste to reach the end of the journey,
while others, as the season was late, thought it prudent to remain
where they were. Thus they became divided into two parties, one of
which remained at Yótso, while the other (containing parts of several
gentes) continued the journey. Soon after the latter was gone, those
who remained at Yótso sent two messengers, and later they sent two
more, to induce the seceders to return; but the latter were never
overtaken. The couriers came to a place where the runaways had divided
into two bands. From one of these the Jicarilla Apaches are supposed
to have descended. The other band, it is thought, wandered far off
and became part of the Diné` Nahotlóni.[193]
440. The last two messengers sent out pursued one of the fugitive
bands some distance, gave up the task, and returned to Yótso. The
messengers sent first pursued the other band. After a while they saw
its camp-fires; but at such a great distance that they despaired of
overtaking it and turned toward the San Juan River, where they found
at length the long-sought Navahoes. These two messengers were the men,
of whom you have heard before, who entered the camp of Big Knee at
To`ye'tli while the dance of natsi'd was going on, and announced the
approach of the immigrants from the west. (See par. 143.)
441. When spring-time came, the people who had remained at Yótso set
out again on their journey; but before long some of the To`ditsíni got
tired. They said that the children's knees were swollen, that their
feet were blistered, and that they could not go much farther. Soon
after they said this they came to a place where a great lone tree
stood, and here they declared: "We shall stop at this tree. After
a while the people will come here and find us." They remained and
became the gens of Tsinsakádni, People of the (Lone) Tree, who are
closely related to To`ditsíni and cannot marry with the latter.
442. At Pinbitó`, Deer Spring, some more of the gens of To`ditsíni
halted, because, they said, their children were lame from
walking and could travel no farther. Here they formed a new gens
of Pinbitó`dine`, People of Deer Spring,[194] who are also closely
related to To`ditsíni. At this place they wanted their pet deer to
leave them, but he would not go; he remained at the spring with the
people who stayed there. What finally became of him is not known.[195]
443. The main body of the immigrants kept on their way, and, soon after
passing Deer Spring, arrived at Hyíetyin, where the people of Thá`paha
had their farms. Big Knee was still alive when they came; but he was
very old and feeble, and was not respected and obeyed as in former
days. When Thá`paha and Hasli'zni met, they traced some relationship
between the two gentes: their names had much the same meaning; their
headdresses and accoutrements were alike; so the Hasli'zni stopped
with Thá`paha and became great friends with the latter. Yet to-day
a member of one of these gentes may marry a member of the other.
444. The bear was the last of their five pets which the immigrants
retained. When they were done their journey they said to him: "Our pet,
you have served us well; but we are now safe among our friends and
we need your services no more. If you wish you may leave us. There
are others of your kind in Tsúskai (the Chusca Mountains). Go there
and play with them." They turned him loose in Tsúskai, and bears have
been numerous there ever since.
445. Of the people from the west, there was yet one gens--that to which
Estsánatlehi had given the wand of turquoise--which had no name. This
nameless people did not stay long on the banks of the San Juan before
they wandered off far toward the south. One day two men of the party,
while hunting, came to a place called Tsé`nahapil, where there were
high overhanging rocks. Here they saw the fresh prints of unshod human
feet. They followed these tracks but a short distance when they beheld
a man watching them from a rocky pinnacle. As soon as he saw that he
was observed, he crouched and disappeared. They ran quickly behind
the rock on which they had seen him and again observed him, running as
fast as he could. "Why do you fly from us?" they shouted. "We mean no
harm to you." Hearing this he stopped till they came up to him. Then
they found he spoke the same language they did, and they addressed
him in terms of relationship. "Where do you live?" they asked. "In a
canyon high on the mountain," he replied. "What do you live on?" they
queried. "We live mostly on seeds," he answered; "but sometimes we
catch wood-rats, and we raise small crops." "We shall have many things
to tell one another," said the hunters; "but your home is too far for
our people to reach to-day. Tell your people to come to this spot, and
we shall tell ours to come up here and meet them." When the hunters
got home they found their friends cooking rabbits and making mush of
wild seeds. When the meal was finished all climbed the mountain to the
appointed place and found the strangers awaiting them. The two parties
camped together that night and related to one another their histories
and adventures. The strangers said that they had been created at the
place where they were all then camped only seven years previously;
that they were living not far off at a place called Natanbilhátin,
but that they came often to their natal place to pick cactus fruit
and yucca fruit. They said they called themselves Tsé`dine`, or Rock
People; but the nameless ones gave them the name of Tse`nahapi'lni,
Overhanging Rocks People, from the place where they met. With this
name they became a gens of the Navahoes.
446. The Tse`nahapi'lni told their new friends that they had some corn
and pumpkins cached at a distance, and they proposed to open their
stores and get ready for a journey. They knew of some Apaches to the
south, whom they would all visit together. These Apaches, they said,
had some gentes of the same names as those of the Navahoes. Then
they all went to where the provisions were stored, and they made
corn-cakes to use on the journey. When they were ready they went
to the south and found, at a place called Tsóhanaa, the Apaches,
who recognized them as friends, and treated their visitors so well
that the latter concluded to remain for a while.
447. At the end of three years the Tse`nahapi'lni went off to join
the Navahoes on the San Juan. The nameless people stayed four years
longer. About the end of that time they began to talk of leaving,
and their Apache friends tried to persuade them to remain, but without
avail. When they had all their goods packed and were ready to start,
an old woman was observed walking around them. She walked around the
whole band, coming back to the place from which she started; then she
turned towards them and said: "You came among us without a name, and
you have dwelt among us, nameless, for seven years; no one knew what
to call you; but you shall not leave us without a name. I have walked
around you, and I call you Honagá`ni (Walked-around People)."[196]
448. When the Honagá`ni got back to the San Juan they found that the
Tse`nahapi'lni had been long settled there and had become closely
related to Tlastsíni, Destsíni, Kinlitsíni, and Tsinadzi'ni. The
Honagá`ni in time formed close relationships with Tha`nezá`ni,
Dsiltlá`ni, Tó`hani, and Nahopáni. These five gentes are now all the
same as one gens, and no member of one may marry a member of another.
449. It happened about this time, while some of the Thá`paha were
sojourning at Agála, that they sent two children, one night, to a
spring to get water. The children carried out with them two wicker
bottles, but returned with four. "Where did you get these other
bottles?" the parents inquired. "We took them away from two little
girls whom we met at the spring," answered the children. "Why did you
do this, and who are the girls?" said the elders. "We do not know. They
are strangers," said the little ones. The parents at once set out
for the spring to find the strange children and restore the stolen
bottles to them; but on their way they met the little girls coming
toward the Thá`paha camp, and asked them who they were. The strange
children replied: "We belong to a band of wanderers who are encamped
on yonder mountain. They sent us two together to find water." "Then
we shall give you a name," said the Thá`paha; "we shall call you
To`baznaázi," Two Come Together for Water. The Thá`paha brought the
little girls to their hut and bade them be seated. "Stay with us,"
they said. "You are too weak and little to carry the water so far. We
will send some of our young men to carry it for you." When the young
men found the camp of the strangers they invited the latter to visit
them. The Thá`paha welcomed the new-comers as friends, and told them
they had already a name for them, To`baznaázi. Under this name they
became united to the Navahoes as a new gens, and they are now closely
affiliated with Thá`paha.[197]
450. Shortly after the coming of To`baznaázi, the Navahoes were joined
by a band of Apaches, who were adopted by Thá`paha and not formed
into a new gens. About the same time a band of Pah Utes came and
were likewise adopted by Thá`paha. A little later some more Apaches
arrived and became a part of Thá`paha; but, although no distinct name
is now given them, their descendants are known among the Thá`paha as
a people of different origin from the others.
451. Another party of Apaches, who came afterwards, dwelt a long
time among the To`dokózi; but later they abode with the Thá`paha,
and became closely related to the latter. They are still affiliated
with Thá`paha, but these call them To`dokózi.
452. Some years passed before the next accession was made. This was
another party of Zuñi Indians, and they were admitted into the gens
of the Thá`paha. Soon after them came the Zuñi People, who were at
last formed into a separate gens,--that of Nanaste'zin. This is the
Navaho name for all the Zuñians, and means Black Horizontal Stripe
Aliens.[198] All these people deserted the Zuñi villages on account
of scarcity of food.
453. A new people, with painted faces, came from the west about the
same time as those who formed the gens of Zuñi, or a little later. They
are supposed to have been a part of the tribe now called Mohaves on
the banks of the Colorado. They bore the name of Dildzéhi, and their
descendants now form a gens of that name among the Navahoes. At first
they affiliated with Nanaste'zin; but to-day they are better friends
with Thá`tsini than with Nanaste'zin.
454. A war-party, consisting of members of different gentes, was now
organized among the Navahoes to attack a pueblo called Saíbehogan,
House Made of Sand. At that place they captured two girls and brought
them home as slaves. There was a salt lake near their old home,
and the girls belonged to a gens of Salt People there. So their
numerous descendants now among the Navahoes form the gens of Ásihi,
or Salt. The captives were taken by members of the Tse`dzinki'ni,
hence Ásihi and Tse`dzinki'ni are now affiliated.
455. Then a war party was gotten up to attack the people of Jemez
pueblo. On this raid one of the Tlastsíni captured a Jemez girl,
but sold her to one of the Tse`dzinki'ni. She was the progenitor of
the gens of Maideski'zni, People of Wolf Pass (i.e., Jemez), which
is now affiliated with Tse`dzinki'ni.
456. After the Navahoes attacked Saíbehogan there was a famine
there, and some of the people abandoned their homes and joined the
Navahoes. They said that in their pueblo there was a gens of Thá`paha,
and hearing there was such a gens among the Navahoes they came to
join it. Therefore they sought Thá`paha till they found it and became
a part of it.
457. There came once a party of seven people from a place called
Tse`yanató`ni, Horizontal Water under Cliffs, to pay a short visit
to the Navahoes; but from time to time they delayed their departure,
and at last stayed forever with the Navahoes. They formed the gens
of Tse`yanató`ni, which is now extinct.
458. The people whom Estsánatlehi created from the skin under her
right arm, and to whom she gave the wand of white shell, was called,
after they came among the Navahoes, Kinaá`ni, High Stone House People;
not because they built or dwelt in such a house, but because they
lived near one.[199]
459. When the Bitá`ni were encamped at a place called Tó`tso, or Big
Water, near the Carrizo Mountains, a man and a woman came up out of
the water and joined them. From this pair is descended the gens of
Tó`tsoni, People of the Big Water, which is affiliated with Bitá`ni.
NATI'NESTHANI.
460. Nati'nesthani,[201] He Who Teaches Himself, lived, with his
relations, near the mountain of Dsilnáotil. The few people who lived
there used to wander continually around the mountain, hence its name,
Encircled Mountain. Nati'nesthani delighted in gambling, but was not
successful. He lost at game, not only all his own goods, but all the
goods and jewels of his relations, until there was only one article
of value left--a necklace consisting of several strings of white
beads. His parents and brother lived in one lodge; his grandmother and
niece lived in another, a little distance from the first. When the
gambler had parted with everything except the necklace, his brother
took this to the lodge of his grandmother and gave it to her, saying:
"My brother has gambled away everything save this. Should he lose
this at game, it is the last thing he will ever lose, for then I
shall kill him."
461. Nati'nesthani did not spend all his time gambling; sometimes
he hunted for wood-rats and rabbits in the mountains. The day the
necklace was brought, in returning from his hunt, he came to the
house of his grandmother and saw the necklace hanging up there. "Why
is this here?" he asked. "It is put here for safe-keeping," replied
his niece. "Your brother values it and has asked us to take care of
it. If you lose it in gambling, he has threatened to kill you. I have
heard the counsels of the family about you. They are tired of you. If
you lose this necklace at play, it is the last thing you will ever
lose." On hearing this he only said to his niece, "I must think what
I shall do," and he lay down to rest.
462. Next morning he rose early, made his breakfast of wood-rats,
and went out to hunt, travelling toward the east. He stopped at one
place, set fall-traps for wood-rats, and slept there all night. During
the night he pondered on many plans. He thought at first he would
go farther east and leave his people forever; but again he thought,
"Who will hunt wood-rats for my niece when I am gone?" and he went
back to her lodge and gave her all the little animals he had killed.
463. In the morning he breakfasted again on wood-rats, and said to
himself: "I shall go to-day to the south and never return." Such was
his intention as he went on his way. He travelled to the south, and
spent the night out again; but in the morning he changed his mind,
and came back to his niece with wood-rats and rabbits and the seeds
of wild plants that he had gathered. The women cooked some of the
wood-rats for his supper that night. When he lay down he thought of
his brother's threats, and made plans again for running away. He had
not touched the beads, though he longed to take them.
464. Next morning he went to the west, hunted there all day, and
camped out at night as before; but again he could not make up his
mind to leave his people, though he thought much about it; so he
returned to his niece with such food as he had been able to get for
her, and slept in the lodge that night.
465. On the following day he went to the north and hunted. He slept
little at night while camping out, for his mind was filled with sad
thoughts. "My brother disowns me," he said to himself. "My parents
refuse me shelter. My niece, whom I love most, barely looks at me. I
shall never go back again." Yet, for all these words, when morning
came he returned to the lodge.[19]
466. By this time he was very poor, and so were his grandmother and
niece. His sandals, made of grass and yucca-fibre, were worn through,
and the blanket made of yucca-fibre and cedar-bark, which covered his
back, was ragged.[177] But the people in the other lodge were better
off. They gave the grandmother and niece food at times; but always
watched these closely when they came for food, lest they should carry
off something to give the gambler. "Let him live," said his parents,
"on wood-rats and rabbits as well as he can."
467. The night after he returned from his hunt to the north he slept
little, but spent the time mostly in thinking and making plans. What
these plans were you shall soon know, for the next day he began to
carry them out. His thought for his niece was now the only thing that
made him care to stay at home.
468. In the morning after this night of thought he asked his niece to
roast for him four wood-rats; he tied these together and set out for
the San Juan River. When he got to the banks of the river he examined
a number of cottonwood trees until he found one that suited him. He
burned this down and burned it off square at the base. He kept his fire
from burning up the whole trunk by applying mud above the place to be
burned. His plan was to make a hollow vessel by which he could go down
the San Juan River. It was his own plan. He had never heard of such
a thing before. The Navahoes had never anything better than rafts,
and these were good only to cross the river. He lay down beside the
log to see where he should divide it, for he had planned to make the
vessel a little longer than himself, and he burned the log across at
the place selected. All this he did in one day, and then he went home,
collecting rats on the way; but he told his niece nothing about the
log. He slept that night in the lodge.
469. He went back, next morning, to his log on the banks of the
San Juan, and spent the day making the log hollow by means of fire,
beginning at the butt end. He succeeded in doing only a part of this
work in one day. It took him four days to burn the hole through from
one end of the log to the other and to make it wide enough to hold his
body. At the end of each day's work he returned to his grandmother's
lodge, and got wood-rats and rabbits on his way home.
470. The next day, after the hole was finished, was spent in making
and inserting plugs. He moistened a lot of shredded cedar-bark and
pounded it between stones so as to make a soft mass. He shoved a
large piece of this in at the butt end and rammed it down to the tip
end. In burning out the log, he had burned, where the tree branched,
four holes which he did not need, and these he filled with plugs of
the cedar-bark. He prepared another plug to be rammed into the butt
from the inside, after he entered the log, and when this was finished
he went home to his grandmother's house, collecting wood-rats from
his traps as he went.
471. The next morning his niece cooked several wood-rats and ground
for him a good quantity--as much as could be held in two hands--of the
seeds of tlo`tsózi (Sporobolus cryptandrus). This meal she put in a
bag of wood-rat skins sewed together. Thus provided he went back to his
log. He put the provisions into the hole and then proceeded to enter,
in person, to see if the log was sound and the hole big enough. He
entered, head foremost, and crawled inwards until half of his chest
was in the log, when he heard a voice crying, "Wu`hu`hu`hú!"[26]
and he came out to see who called. He looked in every direction and
examined the ground for tracks, but seeing no signs of any intruder he
proceeded again to enter the log. This time he got in as far as his
waist, when again he heard the cry of "Wu`hu`hu`hú," but louder and
nearer than before. Again he came out of the log and looked around
farther and more carefully than he did the first time, going in his
search to the margin of the river; but. he saw no one, found no tracks,
and returned to his log. On the next trial he entered as far as his
knees, when for the third time the cry sounded, and he crept out once
more to find whence it came. He searched farther, longer, and more
closely than on either of the previous occasions, but without success,
and he went back to enter the log again. On the fourth trial, when
he had entered as far as his feet, he heard the cry loud and near,
and he felt some one shaking the log. He crept out for the fourth
time and beheld Hastséyalti, the Talking God,[73] standing over him.
472. Hastséyalti did not speak at first, but told the man by
signs that he must not get into the log, that he would surely be
drowned if he did, and that he must go home. Then Hastséyalti walked
off a distance from the log and motioned to the Navaho to come to
him. When Nati'nesthani came near the god, the latter spoke, saying:
"My grandchild, why are you doing all this work? Where do you intend
to go with this log?" The man then told the god all his sad story,
and ended by saying: "I am an outcast. I wish to get far away from
my people. Take pity on me. Stop me not, but let me go in this
log as far as the waters of the Old Age River (San Juan) will bear
me." Hastséyalti replied: "No. You must not attempt to go into that
log. You will surely be drowned if you do. I shall not allow you." Four
times Nati'nesthani pleaded, and four times the god denied him. Then
the god said: "Have you any precious stones?" "Yes," replied the
man. "Have you white shell beads? Have you turquoise?" and thus the god
went on asking him, one by one, if he had all the original eighteen
sacred things[202] that must be offered to the gods to gain their
favor. To each of his questions the man replied "Yes," although he
had none of these things, and owned nothing but the rags that covered
him. "It is well," said the god. "You need not enter that log to make
your journey. Go home and stay there for four nights. At daylight,
after the fourth night, you may expect to see me again. Have yourself
and your house clean and in order for my coming. Have the floor and
all around the house swept carefully. Have the ashes taken out. Wash
your body and your hair with yucca suds the night before I arrive,
and bid your niece to wash herself also with yucca. I shall go off,
now, and tell the other divine ones about you."
473. As soon as he came home, Nati'nesthani told his niece what things
he wanted (except the baskets and the sacred buckskins); but he did
not tell her for what purpose he required them, and he asked her to
steal them from their neighbors. This she did, a few things at a time,
and during many visits. It took her three days to steal them all. On
the evening of the third day, after they had washed themselves with
the yucca suds, he told her about the baskets and the sacred buckskins
which he needed. She went to the neighboring lodge and stole these
articles, wrapping the baskets up in the buckskins. When she returned
with her booty, he wrapped all the stolen goods up in the skins,
put them away in the edge of the lodge, and lay down to rest. He was
a good sleeper, and usually slept all night; but on this occasion he
woke about midnight, and could not go to sleep again.
474. At dawn he heard, faintly, the distant "Wu`hu`hu`hú" of
Hastséyalti. At once he woke his grandmother, saying: "I hear a
voice. The digíni (holy ones, divine ones) are coming." "You fool,"
she replied. "Shut your mouth and go to sleep. They would never come
to visit such poor people as we are," and she fell asleep again. In
a little while he heard the voice a second time, louder and nearer,
and again he shook his grandmother and told her he heard the voices of
the gods; but she still would not believe him, and slept again. The
third time that he awoke her, when he heard the voices still more
plainly, she remained awake, beginning to believe him. The fourth
time the call sounded loud and clear, as if cried by one standing at
the door. "Hear," he said to his grandmother. "Is that not truly the
voice of a divine one?" At last she believed him, and said in wonder:
"Why should the digíni come to visit us?"
475. Hastséyalti and Hastséhogan were at the door, standing on the
rainbow on which they had travelled. The former made signs to the
man, over the curtain which hung in the doorway, bidding him pull
the curtain aside and come out. "Grandmother," said the Navaho,
"Hastséyalti calls me to him." "It is well," she answered. "Do as he
bids you." As he went out, bearing his bundle of sacrificial objects,
he said: "I go with the divine ones, but I shall come back again to
see you." The niece had a pet turkey[203] that roosted on a tree near
the lodge, Hastséyalti made signs to the Navaho to take the turkey
along. The Navaho said: "My niece, the gods bid me take your turkey,
and I would gladly do it, for I am going among strange people, where I
shall be lonely. I love the bird; he would be company to me and remind
me of my home. Yet I shall not take him against your will." "Then
you may have my turkey pet," replied the niece. The old woman said to
the god: "I shall be glad to have my grandchild back again. Will you
let him return to us?" Hastséyalti only nodded his head. The gods
turned the rainbow around sunwise, so that its head,[204] which
formerly pointed to the door of the lodge, now pointed in a new
direction. Hastséyalti got on the bow first. He made the Navaho get
on behind him. Hastséhogan got on behind the man. "Shut your eyes,"
commanded Hastséyalti, and the Navaho did as he was bidden.
476. In a moment Hastséyalti cried again: "Open your eyes." The Navaho
obeyed and found himself far away from his home at Tsé`tadi, where the
digíni dwelt. They led him into a house in the rock which was full
of divine people. It was beautiful inside--the walls were covered
with rock crystal, which gave forth a brilliant light. Hastséyalti
ordered food brought for his visitor. The latter was handed a small
earthen cup only so big (a circle made by the thumb and index finger
joined at the tips) filled with mush. "What a poor meal to offer
a stranger!" thought the Navaho, supposing he would finish it in
one mouthful. But he ate, and ate, and ate, and ate, from the cup
and could not empty it. When he had eaten till he was satisfied the
little cup was as full as in the beginning.[205] He handed the cup,
when he was done, back to Hastséyalti, who, with one sweep of his
finger, emptied it, and it remained empty. The little cup was then
filled with water and given to the guest to drink. He drank till his
thirst was satisfied; but the cup was as full when he was done as it
was when he began. He handed it again to Hastséyalti, who put it to
his own lips and emptied it at a single swallow.
477. The gods opened the bundle of the Navaho and examined the contents
to see if he had brought all they required, and they found he had done
so. In the mean time he filled his pipe and lighted it. While he was
smoking, the gods Nayénezgani, Tó`badzistsíni, and Hastséoltoi[206]
arrived from To`ye'tli and entered the house. Nayénezgani said to
the visitor: "I hear that you were found crawling into a hole which
you had made in a log by burning. Why were you doing this?" In reply
the Navaho told his whole story, as he had told it to Hastséyalti,
and ended by saying: "I wished to go to To`ye'tli, where the rivers
meet, or wherever else the waters would bear me. While I was trying
to carry out this plan, my grandfather, Hastséyalti, found me and
bade me not to go. For this reason only I gave my plan up and went
home." "Do you still wish to go to To`ye'tli?" said Nayénezgani. "Yes,"
said the Navaho, "I wish to go to To`ye'tli or as far down the San
Juan as I can get." "Then you shall go," said the god.
478. Nayénezgani went forth from the house and the other gods followed
him. They went to a grove of spruce, and there picked out a tree
of unusual size. They tied rainbow ropes to it, so that it might
not fall with too great force and break in falling. Nayénezgani and
To`badzistsíni cut it near the root with their great stone knives,
and it fell to the north. Crooked Lightning struck the fallen tree
and went through it from butt to tip. Straight Lightning struck it and
went through it from tip to butt. Thus the hole was bored in the log,
and this was done before the branches were cut away. The hole that
Crooked Lightning bored was too crooked. Straight Lightning made
it straight, but still it was too small. Black Wind was sent into
the hole, and he made it larger, but not large enough. Blue Wind,
Yellow Wind, and White Wind entered the hole, each in turn, and each,
as he went through, made it a little larger. It was not until White
Wind had done his work that the hole was big enough to contain the
body of a man. Hastséyalti supplied a bowl of food, a vessel of water,
and a white cloud for bedding. They wrapped the Navaho up in the cloud
and put him into the log. They plugged the ends with clouds,--a black
cloud in the butt and a blue cloud in the tip,--and charged him not
to touch either of these cloudy plugs. When they got him into the log
some one said: "How will he get light? How will he know when it is
night and when it is day?" They bored two holes in the log, one on
each side of his head, and they put in each hole, to make a window,
a piece of rock crystal, which they pushed in so tightly that water
could not leak in around it.
479. While some of the gods were preparing the log, others were
getting the pet turkey ready for his journey, but they did this
unknown to the Navaho. They put about his body black cloud, he-rain,
black mist, and she-rain. They put under his wings white corn, yellow
corn, blue corn, corn of mixed colors, squash seed, watermelon seed,
muskmelon seed, gourd seed, and beans of all colors. These were the
six gods who prepared the turkey: four of the Gánaskidi[207] from
a place called Depéhahatil, one Hastséhogan from Tse`gíhi,[165] and
the Hastséhogan from Tsé`tadi,--the one who found the Navaho entering
his cottonwood log and took him home to the house in the rocks.
480. The next thing they had to think about was how they should
carry the heavy log to the river with the man inside of it. They put
under the log (first) a rope of crooked lightning, (second) a rope of
rainbow, (third) a rope of straight lightning, and (fourth) another
rope of rainbow. They attached a sunbeam to each end of the log. All
the gods except those who were engaged in preparing the turkey tried
to move the log, but they could not stir it; and they sent for the
six who were at work on the turkey to come to their aid. Two of the
Gánaskidi were now stationed at each end, and two of the Hastséhogan
in the middle. The others were stationed at other parts. The Gánaskidi
put their wands under the log crosswise, thus, X. All lifted together,
and the log was carried along. Some of them said: "If strength fail
us and we let the log fall, we shall not attempt to raise it again,
and the Navaho will not make his journey." As they went along some
became tired and were about to let the log go, but the winds came
to help them--Black Wind and Blue Wind in front, Yellow Wind and
White Wind behind, and soon the log was borne to the margin of the
river. As they went along, Tó`nenili,[98] the Water Sprinkler, made
fun and played tricks, as he now does in the dances, to show that he
was pleased with what they were doing. While the gods were at work
the Navaho sang five songs, each for a different part of the work;
the significant words of the songs were these:--
First Song, "A beautiful tree they fell for me."
Second Song, "A beautiful tree they prepare for me."
Third Song, "A beautiful tree they finish for me."
Fourth Song, "A beautiful tree they carry with me."
Fifth Song, "A beautiful tree they launch with me."[283]
481. When they threw the log on the surface of the water it floated
around in different directions, but would not go down stream, so the
gods consulted together to determine what they should do. They covered
the log first with black mist and then with black cloud. Some of the
gods standing on the banks punched the log with their plumed wands,
when it approached the shore or began to whirl round, and they kept
this up till it got into a straight course, with its head pointed
down stream, and floated on. When the gods were punching the log to
get it into the current, the Navaho sang a song, the principal words
of which were:--
1. "A beautiful tree, they push with me."
When the log was about to go down the stream, he sang:--
2. "A beautiful tree is about to float along with me,"
and when the log got into the current and went down, he sang:--
3. "A beautiful tree floats along with me."[284]
482. All went well till they approached a pueblo called Ki'ndotliz,
or Blue House,[208] when two of the Kisáni, who were going to hunt
eaglets, saw the log floating by, though they could not see the gods
that guided its course. Wood was scarce around Blue House. When the
men saw the log they said, "There floats a big tree. It would furnish
us fuel for many days if we could get it. We must try to bring it to
the shore." The two men ran back to the pueblo and announced that a
great log was coming down the river. A number of people turned out
to seize it. Most of them ran down the stream to a shallow place
where they could all wade in, to await the arrival of the log, while
a few went up along the bank to herald its approach. When it came to
the shallow place they tried to break off branches, but failed. They
tied ropes to the branches, and tried to pull it ashore; but the log,
hurried on by the current, carried the crowd with it. But the next
time the log got to a shallow place the Kisáni got it stranded, and
sent back to the pueblo for axes, intending to cut off branches and
make the log light. When the gods saw the people coming with axes they
said: "Something must be done." They sent down a great shower of rain,
but the Kisáni held on to the log. They sent hail, with hailstones as
big as two fists; but still the Kisáni held on. They sent lightning
to the right--the people to the left held on. They sent lightning
to the left--the people to the right held on. They sent lightning
in all directions four times, when, at last, the Kisáni let go and
the log floated on. Now the gods laid upon the log a cloud so thick
that no one could see through it; they put a rainbow lengthwise and
a rainbow crosswise over it, and they caused the zigzag lightning to
flash all around it. When the Kisáni saw all these things they began
to fear. "The gods must guard this log," they said. "Yes," said the
chief. "Go to your homes, and let the log pass on. It must be holy."
483. The log floated steadily with the stream till it came to a place
where a ridge of rocks, standing nearly straight up, disturbs the
current, and here the log became entangled in the rocks. But two of
the Fringe-mouths[209] of the river raised it from the rocks and set
it floating again. They turned the log around, one standing at each
end, until they got it lying lengthwise with the current, and then
they let it float away.
484. Thence it floated safely to Tó`hodotliz, where the gods on
the bank observed it stopping and slowly sinking, until only a few
leaves on the ends of the branches could be seen. It was the sacred
people under the water who had pulled the log down this time. These
were Tiéholtsodi, Tielín,[210] Frog, Fish, Beaver, Otter, and
others. They took the Navaho out of the log and bore him down to
their home under the water. The gods on the bank held a council to
consider why the tree stuck. They shook it and tried to get it loose,
but they could not move it. Then they called on Tó`nenili, Water
Sprinkler, to help them. He had two magic water jars, To`sadilyi'l,
the black jar, which he carried in his right hand, and To`sadotli'z,
the blue jar, which he carried in his left hand; with these he struck
the water to the right and to the left, crying as he did so his call
of "Tu`wu`wu`wú!" The water opened before him and allowed him to
descend. He went around the tree, and when he came to the butt he
found that the plug had been withdrawn and that the Navaho was no
longer there. He called up to his friends on the bank and told them
what he had found. They spread a short rainbow[211] for him to travel
on, and he went to the house of the divine ones under the water. This
house consisted of four chambers, one under another, like the stories
of a pueblo dwelling. The first chamber, that on top, was black;
the second was blue; the third yellow; the fourth white.[18] Two of
the Tielín, or water pets with blue horns, stood at the door facing
one another, and roared as Tó`nenili passed. He descended from one
story to another, but found no one till he came to the last chamber,
and here he saw Tiéholtsodi, the water monster; Tsal, Frog (a big rough
frog); Tsa, Beaver, Tábastin, Otter, Tlo`ayuinli'tigi (a great fish),
and the captive Navaho. "I seek my grandchild. Give him to me," said
Tó`nenili. "Shut your mouth and begone," said Tiéholtsodi. "Such as
you cannot come here giving orders. I fear you not, Water Sprinkler;
you shall not have your grandchild." Then Tó`nenili went out again
and told his friends what had happened to him, and what had been said
in the house of Tiéholtsodi under the water.
485. The gods held another council. "Who shall go down and rescue our
grandchild?" was the question they asked one another. While they were
talking Hastsézini[212] (Black God), who owns all fire, sat apart
and took no part in the council. He had built a fire, while the
others waited, and sat with his back to it, as was his custom. "Go
tell your grandfather there what has occurred," said the others to
Tó`nenili. The latter went over to where Hastsézini sat. "Why are they
gathered together yonder and of what do they talk so angrily?" said
the Black God. In answer, Tó`nenili told of his adventures under the
water and what Tiéholtsodi had said to him. Hastsézini was angry when
he heard all this. "I fear not the sacred people beneath the water,"
he said. "I shall have my grandchild." He hastened to the river,
taking Tó`nenili with him, for Tó`nenili had the power to open the
water, and these two descended into the river. When they reached the
room where Tiéholtsodi sat, the Black God said, "We come together for
our grandchild." "Run out there, both of you. Such as you may not enter
here," said Tiéholtsodi. "I go not without my grandson. Give him to me,
and I shall go," said the other. "Run out," repeated Tiéholtsodi, "I
shall not release your grandchild." "I shall take my grandchild. I fear
you not." "I shall not restore him to you. I heed not your words." "I
never recall what I have once spoken. I have come for my grandchild,
and I shall not leave without him." "I said you should not go with
him, and I mean what I say. I am mighty." Thus they spoke defiantly
to one another for some time. At length Hastsézini said: "I shall
beg no longer for my grandchild. You say you are mighty. We shall
see which is the more powerful, you or I," and Tiéholtsodi answered:
"Neither shall I ask your permission to keep him. I should like
to see how you will take him from me." When Hastsézini heard this
he took from his belt his fire-stick and fire-drill.[213] He laid
the stick on the ground, steadied it with both feet, and whirled the
drill around, pausing four times. The first time he whirled the drill
there was a little smoke; the second time there was a great smoke;
the third time there was flame; the fourth time the surrounding
waters all took fire. Then Tiéholtsodi cried: "Take your grandchild,
but put out the flames." "Ah," said Hastsézini, "you told me you
were mighty. Why do you implore me now? Why do you not put out the
fire yourself? Do you mean what you say this time? Do you really
want the fire quenched?" "Oh! yes," cried Tiéholtsodi. "Take your
grandchild, but put out the flames. I mean what I say." At a sign
from Black God, Water Sprinkler took the stoppers out of his jars
and scattered water all around him four times, crying his usual
"Tu`wu`wu`wú" as he did so, and the flames died out. The water in
Tó`nenili's jars consisted of all kinds of water--he-rain, she-rain,
hail, snow, lake-water, spring-water, and water taken from the four
quarters of the world. This is why it was so potent.[67]
486. When the fire was extinguished the three marched out in single
file--Tó`nenili in front, to divide the water, the Navaho in the
middle, and Hastsézini in the rear. Before they had quite reached the
dry land they heard a flopping sound behind them, and, looking around,
they saw Tsal, the Frog. "Wait," said he. "I have something to tell
you. We can give disease to those who enter our dwelling, and there
are cigarettes, sacred to us, by means of which our spell may be
taken away. The cigarette of Tiéholtsodi should be painted black;
that of Tielín, blue; those of the Beaver and the Otter, yellow;
that of the great fish, and that sacred to me, white." Therefore,
in these days, when a Navaho is nearly drowned in the water, and has
spewed the water all out, such cigarettes[12] are made to take the
water sickness out of him.
487. The gods took Nati'nesthani back to his log. Tó`nenili opened
a passage for them through the river, and took the water out of the
hollow in the log. The Navaho crawled into the hollow. The gods plugged
the butt again, and set the log floating. It floated on and on until
it came to a fall in the San Juan River, and here it stuck again. The
gods had hard labor trying to get it loose. They tugged and worked,
but could not move it. At length the Dsahadoldzá, the Fringe-mouths
of the water, came to help. They put the zigzag lightning which was
on their bodies[209] under the butt of the log,--as if the lightning
were a rope,--and soon they got the log loose and sent it floating
down the river.
488. At the end of the San Juan River, surrounded by mountains, there
is a whirling lake or large whirlpool called Tó`nihilin, or End of
the Water. When the log entered here it whirled around the lake four
times. The first time it went around it floated near the shore, but it
gradually approached the centre as it went round again and again. From
the centre it pointed itself toward the east and got near the shore;
but it retreated again to the centre, pointed itself to the south,
and at last stranded on the south shore of the lake. When it came
to land four gods stood around it thus: Hastséhogan on the east,
Hastséyalti on the south, one Gánaskidi on the west, and one on the
north. They pried out one of the stoppers with their wands, and the
Navaho came out on the land. They took out what remained of the food
they had given him, a bow of cedar with the leaves on, and two reed
arrows that they had placed in the log before they launched it. This
done, they plugged the log again with a black cloud.
489. Then the gods spoke to the Navaho and said: "We have taken
you where you wished to go. We have brought you to the end of the
river. We have done for you all that in the beginning you asked us
to do, and now we shall give you a new name. Henceforth you shall be
called Áhodiseli, He Who Floats. Go sit yonder" (pointing out a place),
"and turn your back to us." He went and sat as he was told, and soon
they called to him and bade him go to a hill west of the lake. When
he ascended it he looked around and saw the log moving back in the
direction whence, he thought, he had come. He looked all around, but
could see no one. The gods had disappeared, and he was all alone. He
sat down to think. He felt sad and lonely. He was sorry he had come;
yet, he thought, "This is my own deed; I insisted on coming here,
and had I stayed at home I might have been killed." Still the more
he thought the sadder he felt, and he began to weep.
490. The mountains all around the lake were very precipitous, except
on the west side. Here they were more sloping, and he began to think
of crossing, when he heard faintly in the distance the gobbling of a
turkey. He paused and listened, and soon heard the gobbling again, more
distinctly and apparently nearer. In a short time he heard the sound
for the third time, but louder and clearer than before. The fourth
time that the gobbling was heard it seemed very loud and distinct;
and a moment later he beheld, running toward him, his pet turkey,
whom he had thought he would never see again. The turkey, which had
followed him all the way down the San Juan River, now approached its
master from the east, as if it were coming to him at once; but when
it got within arm's length of the man it retreated and went round him
sunwise, approaching and retreating again at the south, the west, and
the north. When it got to the east again it ran up to its master and
allowed itself to be embraced. (Fig. 34 shows the way it approached
its master.) "Ahaláni, silín (Welcome, my pet)," said Nati'nesthani,
"I am sorry for you that you have followed me, I pity you; but now
that you are here, I thank you for coming."
491. The man now began to think again of crossing the mountain in the
west, but suddenly night came on. He had not noticed the light fading
until it was too dark to begin the journey, and he felt obliged to
seek a resting-place for the night. They went to a gulch near at hand
where there were a few small cedar-trees. They spread out, for a bed,
the dead leaves and the soft débris which they found under the trees
and lay down, side by side, to sleep. The Navaho spread his bark
blanket over himself, and the turkey spread one of its wings over
its master, and he slept well that night.
492. Next morning they rose early and went out to hunt wood-rats. They
went down a small winding valley till they came to a beautiful flat,
through which ran a stream of water. "This would be a good place for
a farm if I had but the seeds to plant," said the Navaho aloud. When
he had spoken he observed that his turkey began to act in a very
peculiar manner. It ran to the western border of the flat, circled
round to the north, and then ran directly from north to south, where
it rejoined its master, who had in the mean time walked around the
edge of the flat from east to west. This (fig. 35) shows how they
went. When they met they walked together four times around the flat,
gradually approaching the centre as they walked. Here, in the centre,
the man sat down and the turkey gambolled around him. "My pet," said
the Navaho, "what a beautiful farm I could make here if I only had
the seeds." The turkey gobbled in reply and spread out its wings.
493. Nati'nesthani had supposed that when the gods were preparing
the log for him they had done something to the turkey, but what they
had done he knew not. Now that his pet was acting so strangely, it
occurred to him that perhaps it could aid him. "My pet," he said,
"can you do anything to help me make a farm here?" The turkey ran a
little way to the east and shook its wings, from which four grains of
white corn dropped out; then it ran to the south and shook from its
wings four grains of blue corn; at the west it shook out four grains
of yellow corn, and at the north four grains of variegated corn. Then
it ran up to its master from the east and shook its wings four times,
each time shaking out four seeds. The first time it dropped pumpkin
seeds; the second time, watermelon seeds; the third time, muskmelon
seeds; the fourth time, beans. "E`yéhe, silín (Thanks, my pet). I
thought you had something for me," said Nati'nesthani.
494. He went away from the flat, roasted wood-rats for a meal, and
when he had eaten he made two planting sticks, one of greasewood and
one of tsintli'zi[214] (Fendleria rupicola). He returned to the flat
and began to make his farm. He dug four holes in the east with the
stick of tsintli'zi, and dropped into each hole a grain of white
corn. He dug four holes in the south with his greasewood stick,
and placed in each hole one grain of blue corn. He dug four holes
in the west with the tsintli'zi stick, and planted in each one grain
of yellow corn. He made four holes in the north with the greasewood,
and put in each one grain of variegated corn. With the implement of
tsintli'zi he planted the pumpkin seed between the white corn and the
blue corn. With the implement of greasewood he planted watermelon
seed between the blue corn and the yellow corn. With the stick of
tsintli'zi he planted muskmelon seeds between the yellow corn and
the variegated corn. With the stick of greasewood he planted beans
between the variegated corn and the white corn.[215] He looked all
around to see if he had done everything properly, and he went to the
west of his farm among the foothills and camped there.
495. He felt uneasy during the night, fearing that there might
be some one else to claim the land, and he determined to examine
the surrounding country to see if he had any neighbors. Next day he
walked in a circle, sunwise, around the valley, and this he did for
four consecutive days, taking a wider circle each day; but he met no
people and saw no signs of human life, and he said: "It is a good place
for a farm. No one claims the land before me." Each morning, before
he went on his journey, he visited his farm. On the fourth morning
he saw that the corn had grown half a finger-length above the ground.
496. On the fourth night, after his long day's walk around the
valley, when darkness fell, he sat by his fire facing the east,
and was surprised to see a faint gleam half way up the side of the
mountains in the east. "Strange," he said, "I have travelled all
over that ground and have seen neither man nor house nor track nor
the remains of fire." Then he spoke to the turkey, saying: "Stay at
home to-morrow, my pet; I must go and find out who builds that fire."
497. Next day, leaving his turkey at home, he went off to search
the mountain-side, where he had seen the gleam; but he searched
well and saw no signs of human life. When he came home he told all
his adventures to his turkey and said: "It must have been a great
glow-worm that I beheld." He got home pretty early in the day and
went out to trap wood-rats, accompanied by his turkey. In the evening
when he returned to his camp, he looked again, after dark, toward
the eastern mountain, and saw the gleam as he had seen it the night
before. He set a forked stick in the ground, got down on his hands
and knees, and looked at the fire through the fork. (See par. 382.)
498. On the following morning he placed himself in the same position
he was in the night before,--putting his hands and knees in the tracks
then made,--and looked again over the forked stick. He found his sight
directed to a spot which he had already explored well. Notwithstanding
this he went there again, leaving his turkey behind, and searched
wider and farther and with greater care than on previous occasions;
but he still saw no traces of human life. When he returned to camp he
told his turkey all that had happened to him. That night he saw the
light again, and once more he sighted over the forked stick with care.
499. When morning came, he found that he had marked the same spot
he had marked before; and though he had little hope he set out for
the third time to find who made the distant fire. He returned after
a time, only to tell his disappointment to his turkey. As usual he
spent the rest of the day, accompanied by the turkey, setting traps
for wood-rats and other small animals. After dark, when he saw the
distant flame again, he set a second forked stick in the ground and
laid between the two forks a long, straight stick, which he aimed at
the fire as he would aim an arrow. When this was done he went to sleep.
500. Next morning he noted with great care the particular spot to which
the straight stick pointed, and set out to find the fire. Before he
left he said to his turkey: "I go once more to seek the distant fire;
but it is the last time I shall seek it. If I find it not to-day,
I shall never try again. Stay here till I return." While he spoke
the turkey turned its back on him, and showed its master that it
was angry. It acted like a pouting child. He went to the place on
the eastern mountain to which the stick pointed, and here he found,
what he had not observed before, a shelf in the rocks, which seemed
to run back some distance. He climbed to the shelf and discovered
there two nice huts. He thought that wealthy people must dwell in
them. He felt ashamed of his ragged bark blanket, of his garment of
wood-rat skins, of his worn grass sandals; of his poor bow and arrows;
so he took these off, laid them in the fork of a juniper-tree, and,
retaining only his breech-cloth of wood-rat skins, his belt, tobacco
pouch, and pipe, he approached one of the houses.
501. He pushed aside the curtain and saw, sitting inside, a young woman
making a fine buckskin shirt which she was garnishing beautifully
with fringes and shells. Ashamed of his appearance, he hung his
head and advanced, looking at her under his eyebrows. "Where are the
men?" he said, and he sat on the ground. The young woman replied: "My
father and mother are in the other hut." Just as the Navaho had made
up his mind to go to the other house the father entered. Doubtless
the Navaho had been observed while disrobing, for the old man, as
he came in, brought the poor rags with him. "Why do you not take
in my son-in-law's goods?" said the old man to his daughter, as he
laid the ragged bundle in a conspicuous place on top of a pile of
fine fabrics. Poor Nati'nesthani hung his head again in shame and
blushed, while the woman looked sideways and smiled. "Why don't you
spread a skin for my son-in-law to sit on?" said the old man to his
daughter. She only smiled and looked sideways again. The old man took
a finely dressed Rocky Mountain sheep-skin and a deer-skin,--skins
finer than the Navaho had ever seen before,--spread them on the ground
beside the woman, and said to the stranger: "Why do you not sit on
the skins?" Nati'nesthani made a motion as if to rise and take the
offered seat, but he sank back again in shame. Invited a second time,
he arose and sat down beside the young woman on the skins.
502. The old man placed another skin beside the Navaho, sat on it,
tapped the visitor on the knee to attract his attention, and said:
"I long for a smoke. Fill your pipe[216] with tobacco and let me smoke
it." The Navaho answered: "I am poor. I have nothing." Four times
this request was made and this reply given. On the fourth occasion
the Navaho added: "I belong to the Ninokádine` (the People up on
the Earth),[217] and I have nothing." "I thought the Ninokádine`
had plenty of tobacco," said the old man. The young man now drew
from his pouch, which was adorned with pictures of the sun and moon,
a mixture of native wild tobacco with four other plants.[218] His
pipe was made of clay, collected from a place where a wood-rat had
been tearing the ground. He filled the pipe with the mixture, lighted
it with the sun,[219] sucked it four times till it was well kindled,
and handed it to the old man to smoke. When the latter had finished
the pipe and laid it down he began to perspire violently and soon
fell into a swoon. The young woman thought her father was dead or
dying, and ran to the other lodge to tell her mother. The mother
gave the young woman a quantity of goods and said: "Give these to my
son-in-law and tell him they shall all be his if he restores your
father to life." When the daughter returned to the lodge where her
father lay, she said to the Navaho: "Here are goods for you. Treat
my father. You must surely know what will cure him." They laid the
old man out on his side, in the middle of the floor, with his head
to the north and his face to the east. The Navaho had in his pouch
a medicine called ké`tlo, or atsósi ké`tlo,[220] consisting of many
different ingredients. Where he got the ingredients we know not; but
the medicine men now collect them around the headwaters of the San
Juan. He put some of this medicine into a pipe, lighted it with the
sunbeams, puffed the smoke to the earth, to the sky, to the earth, and
to the sky again; puffed it at the patient from the east, the south,
the west, and the north. When this fumigation was done, the patient
began to show signs of life,--his eyelids twitched, his limbs jerked,
his body shook. Nati'nesthani directed the young woman to put some
of the medicine, with water, to soak in an earthen bowl,--no other
kind of bowl is now used in making this infusion,--and when it was
soaked enough he rubbed it on the body of the patient.
503. "Sadáni, sitá (My son-in-law, my nephew)," said the old man, when
he came to his senses once more, "fill the pipe for me again. I like
your tobacco." The Navaho refused and the old man begged again. Four
times did the old man beg and thrice the young man refused him;
but when the fourth request was made the young man filled the pipe,
lit it as before, and handed it to the old man. The latter smoked,
knocked out the ashes, laid down the pipe, began to perspire, and
fell again into a deathly swoon. As on the previous occasion, the
women were alarmed and offered the Navaho a large fee, in goods, if
he would restore the smoker to life. The medicine being administered
and the ceremonies being repeated, the old man became again conscious.
504. As soon as he recovered he said: "My son-in-law, give me another
smoke. I have travelled far and smoked much tobacco; but such fine
tobacco as yours I never smoked before." As on the other occasions,
the old man had to beg four times before his request was granted. A
third time the pipe was filled; the old man smoked and swooned; the
women gave presents to the Navaho; the atsósi ké`tlo was administered,
and the smoker came to life again.
505. But as soon as he regained his senses he pleaded for another
smoke. "The smoke is bad for you," said the Navaho. "It does you
harm. Why do you like my tobacco so well?" "Ah! it makes me feel
good to the ends of my toes. It smells well and tastes well." "Since
you like it so well," said the young man, "I shall give you one more
pipeful." This time the old man smoked vigorously; he drew the smoke
well into his chest and kept it there a long time before blowing it
out. Everything happened now as before, but in addition to the medicine
used previously, the Navaho scattered the fragrant yádidinil[221] on
the hot coals and let the patient breathe its fumes. The Navaho had
now four large bundles of fine goods as pay for his services. When the
old man recovered for the fourth time he praised loudly the tobacco of
the Navaho. He said he had never felt so happy as when smoking it. He
asked the Navaho: "How would you like to try my tobacco?" and he went
to the other lodge to fetch his tobacco pouch. While he was gone
the Wind People whispered into the ear of the Navaho: "His tobacco
will kill you surely. It is not like your tobacco. Those who smoke
it never wake again!"
506. Presently the old man returned with a pouch that had pictures
of the sun and moon on it, and with a large pipe--much larger than
that of the Navaho--decorated with figures of deer, antelope, elk,
and Rocky Mountain sheep.[222] The old man filled his pipe, lighted
it, puffed the smoke to earth and sky, each twice, alternately, and
handed the pipe to the Navaho. The young man said: "I allow no one to
fill the pipe for me but myself. My customs differ from yours. You
ask a stranger for a smoke. I ask no man for a smoke. I pick my own
tobacco. Other people's tobacco makes me ill; that is why I do not use
it." Thus he spoke, yet the stuff he had given the old man to smoke was
not the same that he used himself. The latter consisted of four kinds
of tobacco: glónato, or weasel tobacco, depénato, or sheep tobacco,
dsi'lnato, or mountain tobacco, and kósnato, or cloud tobacco.[223] He
had different compartments in his pouch for his different mixtures. The
old man invited him four times to smoke; but four times the Navaho
refused, and said at last: "I have my pipe already filled with my
own tobacco. I shall smoke it. My tobacco injures no one unless he
is ill." He proceeded to smoke the pure tobacco. When he had done
smoking, he said: "See. It does me no harm. Try another pipeful."
507. He now filled his pipe with the mixture of four kinds of real
tobacco and handed it to the old man to smoke. When the latter had
finished he said: "Your tobacco does not taste as it did before, and I
do not now feel the same effect after smoking it as I did at first. Now
it cools me; formerly it made me perspire. Why did I fall down when I
smoked it before? Tell me, have I some disease?" The Navaho answered:
"Yes. It is yasi'ntsogi, something bad inside of you, that makes the
tobacco affect you so. There are four diseases that may cause this:
they are the yellow disease, the cooked-blood disease, the water-slime
disease, and the worm disease. One or more of these diseases you
surely have."[224] The old man closed his eyes and nodded his head to
show that he believed what was told him. Of course the Navaho did not
believe what he himself had said; he only told this to the old man
to conceal the fact that he had filled the pipe with poisoned tobacco.
508. While all these things were happening the Navaho had paid no heed
to how the day was passing; but now he became suddenly aware that
it was late in the afternoon and that the sun was about to set. "I
must hasten away. It is late," he said. "No, my son-in-law; do not
leave us," pleaded the old man. "Sleep here to-night." He ordered his
daughter to make a bed for the stranger. She spread on the floor fine
robes of otter-skin and beaver-skin, beautifully ornamented. He laid
down on the rugs and slept there that night.
509. Next morning the young woman rose early and went out. Soon after
her departure the old man entered the lodge and said to his guest:
"I and my daughter were so busy yesterday with all that you did to me,
and all the cures you wrought on me, that we had no time to cook food
and eat; neither had you. She has gone now to prepare food. Stay and
eat with us." Presently the young woman returned, bringing a dish of
stewed venison and a basket filled with mush made of wild seeds. The
basket was such a one as the Navahoes now use in their rites.[5] On
the atáatlo (the part where the coil terminates, the point of finish),
the old man had, with the knowledge of his daughter, placed poison. She
presented the basket to the stranger, with the point of finish toward
him, as her father had directed her to do, saying: "When a stranger
visits us we always expect him to eat from the part of the basket
where it is finished." As he took the basket the Wind People[75]
whispered to him: "Eat not from that part of the basket; death is
there, but there is no death in the venison." The young man turned the
basket around and began to eat from the side opposite to that which
was presented to him, saying: "It is my custom to eat from the edge
opposite to the point of finish." He did not eat all the mush. He tried
the venison stew; but as it was made of dried meat he did not like it
and ate very little of it. When he had done she took the dishes back
to the other lodge. "From which side of the basket did my son-in-law
eat?" asked the old man. "From the wrong side. He told me it was his
custom never to eat from the side where the basket was finished,"
said the young woman. Her father was surprised. When a visitor came
to him he always tried the poisoned tobacco first; if that failed he
next tried the poisoned basket. "My husband says he wants to go home
now," said the young woman. "Tell him it is not the custom for a man
to go home the morning after his marriage. He should always remain
four days at least," said the old man. She brought this message back
to the Navaho. He remained that day and slept in the lodge at night.
510. Next morning the young woman rose early again and went to the
other lodge. Soon after she was gone the old man entered and said to
Nati'nesthani: "You would do well not to leave till you have eaten. My
daughter is preparing food for you." In a little while, after he left,
the young woman entered, bringing, as before, a dish of stewed venison
and a basketful of mush, which she handed to the Navaho without making
any remark. But Wind whispered: "There is poison all around the edge
of the basket this time; there is none in the venison." The Navaho
ate some of the stew, and when he took the basket of mush he ate only
from the middle, saying: "When I eat just as the sun is about to come
up, it is my custom to eat only from the middle of the basket." The
sun was about to rise as he spoke. When she went back to the other
lodge with the remains of the meal, her father asked: "How did he
eat this morning?" She replied: "He ate the stew; but the mush he
ate only from the middle of the basket." "Ahahahá!" said the old man,
"it never took me so long, before." The Navaho remained in the lodge
all that day and all night.
511. The next (third) morning things happened as before: the woman
rose early, and while she was gone the old man came into the lodge,
saying: "The women are cooking food for you. Don't go out till you have
eaten." The reason they gave their visitor only one meal a day was
that he might be so ravenous with hunger when it came that he would
not notice the poison and would eat plenty of it. When the food was
brought in, the Wind People whispered to the Navaho: "Poison is mixed
all through the mush, take none of it." He ate heartily of the stew,
and when he was done he said to the young woman: "I may eat no mush
to-day. The sun is already risen, and I have sworn that the sun shall
never see me eat mush." When she went back to the other lodge her
father asked: "How did my son-in-law eat this morning?" "He ate only
of the stew," she said. "He would not touch the mush." "Ahahahá,"
said the old man in a suspicious tone; but he said no more. Again
the Navaho stayed all day and all night.
512. On the fourth morning when the daughter went to prepare food and
the old man entered the lodge, he said: "Go out somewhere to-day. Why
do you not take a walk abroad every day? Is it on your wife's account
that you stay at home so much, my son-in-law?" When the young woman
brought in the usual venison stew and basket of mush, Wind whispered:
"All the food is poisoned this morning." When she handed the food
to the young man he said: "I do not eat at all to-day. It is my
custom to eat no food one day in every four. This is the day that I
must fast." When she took the untasted food back to the other lodge,
her father inquired: "What did my son-in-law eat this morning?" and
she answered: "He ate nothing." The old man was lying when he spoke;
he rose when she answered him and carefully examined the food she
had brought back. "Truly, nothing has been touched," he said. "This
must be a strange man who eats nothing. My daughter, do you tell him
anything he should not know?" "Truly, I tell him nothing," she replied.
513. When the young woman came back again from her father's lodge,
the Navaho said to her: "I have a hut and a farm and a pet not far
from here; I must go home to-day and see them." "It is well," she
said. "You may go." He began to dress for the journey by putting
on his old sandals. She brought him a pair of fine new moccasins,
beautifully embroidered, and urged him to put them on; but he refused
them, saying: "I may put them on some other time. I shall wear my
old sandals to-day."
514. When Nati'nesthani got back to his farm he found the tracks of
his turkey all around, but the turkey itself he could not see. It was
evident from the tracks that it had visited the farm and gone back
to the hut again. The Navaho made four circuits around the hut--each
circuit wider than the preceding--to see whither the tracks led. On
the fourth circuit he found they led to the base of a mountain which
stood north of the hut. "I shall find my pet somewhere around the
mountain," thought the Navaho. The tracks had the appearance of being
four days old, and from this he concluded that the turkey had left
the same day he had. It took him four days, travelling sunwise and
going spirally up the mountain, to reach the summit, where he found
many turkey tracks, but still no turkey. He fancied his pet might
have descended the mountain again, so he went below and examined the
ground carefully, but found no descending tracks. He returned to the
summit and, looking more closely than at first, discovered where the
bird had flown away from a point on the eastern edge of the summit
and gone apparently toward the east.
515. The Navaho sat down, sad and lonely, and wept. "Dear pet," he
said, "would that I had taken you with me that day when I set out
on my journey. Had I done so I should not have lost you. Dear pet,
you were the black cloud; you were the black mist; you were the
beautiful he-rain;[225] you were the beautiful she-rain;[137] you
were the beautiful lightning; you were the beautiful rainbow; you were
the beautiful white corn; you were the beautiful blue corn; you were
the beautiful yellow corn; you were the beautiful corn of all colors;
you were the beautiful bean. Though lost to me, you shall be of use to
men, upon the earth, in the days to come--they shall use your feathers
and your beard in their rites." The Navaho never saw his pet again;
it had flown to the east, and from it we think the tame turkeys of the
white men are descended. But all the useful and beautiful things he
saw in his pet are still to be seen in the turkey. It has the colors
of all the different kinds of corn in its feathers. The black of the
black mist and the black cloud are there. The flash of the lightning
and the gleam of the rainbow are seen on its plumes when it walks in
the sun. The rain is in its beard; the bean it carries on its forehead.
516. He dried his tears, descended the mountain, and sought his old
hut, which was only a poor shelter of brush, and then he went to
visit his farm. He found his corn with ears already formed and all
the other plants well advanced toward maturity.[226] He pulled one
ear from a stalk of each one of the four different kinds of corn,
and, wrapping the ears in his mantle of wood-rat skins, went off to
see his wife. She saw him coming, met him at the door, and relieved
him of his weapons and bundle. "What is this?" she said, pointing
to the bundle after she had laid it down. He opened it. She started
back in amazement. She had never seen corn before. He laid the ears
down side by side in a row with their points to the east, and said:
"This is what we call natán, corn. This (pointing to the first ear--the
most northerly of the row) is white corn; this (pointing to the next)
is blue corn; this (pointing to the third) is yellow corn, and this
(pointing to the fourth) is corn of all colors."[227] "And what do your
people do with it?" she asked. "We eat it," he replied. "How do you
prepare it to eat?" she inquired. He said: "We have four ways when it
is green like this. We put it, husk and all, in hot coals to roast. We
take off the husk and roast it in hot ashes. We boil it whole in hot
water. We cut off the grains and mix it with water to make mush."
517. She wrapped the four ears in a bundle and carried them to the
other lodge to show them to her parents. Both were astonished and
alarmed. The old man rose and shaded his eyes with his open hand to
look at them. They asked her questions about the corn, such as she had
asked her husband, and she answered them as he had answered her. She
cooked the four ears of corn, each one in a different way, according
to the methods her husband described. They increased in cooking so that
they made food enough to furnish a hearty meal for all. The old people,
who were greatly pleased, said the mush smelled like fawn-cheese.[228]
"Where does my son-in-law get this fine stuff? Ask him. I wish to know,
it is so delicious. Does he not want some himself?" said the old man
to his daughter. She brought a large dish of the corn to her husband
in the other lodge, and they ate it together. The Navaho had no fear
of poison this time, for the food did not belong to the old man.
518. At night when they were alone together she asked him where
he got the corn. "I found it," he said. "Did you dig it out of the
ground?" she asked. "No. I picked it up," was his answer. Not believing
him, she continued to question him until at last he told her: "These
things I plant and they grow where I plant them. Do you wish to see
my field?" "Yes, if my father will let me," the woman replied.
519. Next morning she told her father what she had found out on the
previous night and asked his advice. He said he would like to have her
go with Nati'nesthani to see what the farm looked like and to find
out what kind of leaves the plant had that such food grew on. When
she came back from her father's lodge she brought with her pemmican
made of venison and a basket of mush. The Wind People whispered to
him that he need not fear the food to-day, so he ate heartily of
it. When the breakfast was over, the Navaho said: "Dress yourself
for the journey, and as soon as you are ready I shall take you to my
farm." She dressed herself for travel and went to the lodge of her
parents, where she said: "I go with my husband now." "It is well,"
they said; "go with him."
520. The Navaho and his wife set out together. When they came to a
little hill from which they could first see the field, they beheld the
sun shining on it; yet the rain was falling on it at the same time,
and above it was a dark cloud spanned by a rainbow. When they reached
the field they walked four times around it sunwise, and as they went
he described things in the field to his wife. "This is my white corn,
this is my blue corn, this is my yellow corn, and this is my corn of
all colors. These we call squashes, these we call melons, and these we
call beans," he said, pointing to the various plants. The bluebirds
and the yellowbirds were singing in the corn after the rain, and
all was beautiful. She was pleased and astonished and she asked many
questions,--how the seeds were planted, how the food was prepared and
eaten,--and he answered all her questions. "These on the ground are
melons; they are not ripe yet. When they are ripe we eat them raw,"
he explained. When they had circled four times around the field they
went in among the plants. Then he showed her the pollen and explained
its sacred uses.[11] He told her how the corn matured; how his people
husked it and stored it for winter use, how they shelled, ground, and
prepared it, and how they preserved some to sow in the spring. "Now,
let us pluck an ear of each kind of corn and go home," he said. When
she plucked the corn she also gathered three of the leaves and put
them into the same bundle with the corn; but as they walked home the
leaves increased in number, and when she got to the house and untied
the bundle she found not only three, but many leaves in it.
521. He explained to her how to make the dish now known to the Navahoes
as ditlógi klesán,[230] and told her to make this of the white corn. He
instructed her how to prepare corn as ditlógin tsidikói,[231] and told
her to make this of the blue corn. He showed her how to prepare corn
in the form of thábitsa,[232] or three-ears, and bade her make this of
the yellow corn. He told her to roast, in the husk, the ear of many
colors. She took the corn to the other lodge and prepared it as she
had been directed. In cooking, it all increased greatly in amount,
so that they all had a big meal out of four ears.
522. The old people questioned their daughter about the farm--what
it looked like, what grew there. They asked her many questions. She
told them of all she had seen and heard: of her distant view of
the beautiful farm under the rain, under the black cloud, under the
rainbow; of her near view of it--the great leaves, the white blossoms
of the bean, the yellow blossoms of the squash, the tassel of the
corn, the silk of the corn, the pollen of the corn, and all the other
beautiful things she saw there. When she had done the old man said:
"I thank you, my daughter, for bringing me such a son-in-law. I have
travelled far, but I have never seen such things as those you tell
of. I thought I was rich, but my son-in-law is richer. In future cook
these things with care, in the way my son-in-law shows you."
523. The old man then went to see his son-in-law and said: "I thank
you for the fine food you have brought us, and I am glad to hear you
have such a beautiful farm. You know how to raise and cook corn; but do
you know how to make and cook the pemmican[229] of the deer?" "I know
nothing about it," said the Navaho. (The one knew nothing of venison;
the other knew nothing of corn.) "How does it taste to you?" asked
the old man. "I like the taste of it and I thank you for what you have
given me," replied the Navaho. "Your wife, then, will have something to
tell you." When he got back to the other lodge he said: "My son-in-law
has been kind to us; he has shown you his farm and taught you how to
prepare his food. My daughter, now we must show him our farm." She
brought to her husband a large portion of the cooked corn.
524. When night came and they were alone together she asked him to tell
her his name. "I have no name," he replied. Three times he answered
her thus. When she asked for the fourth time he said: "Why do you
wish to know my name? I have two names. I am Nati'nesthani, He Who
Teaches Himself, and I am Áhodiseli, He Who Has Floated. Now that I
have told you my name you must tell me your father's name." "He is
called Píniltani, Deer Raiser. I am Píniltani-bitsí, Deer Raiser's
Daughter, and my mother is Píniltani-baád, She Deer Raiser," the
young woman answered.
525. In the morning after this conversation they had a breakfast of
mush and venison; but Nati'nesthani received no warning from the Wind
People and feared not to eat. When the meal was over, the young woman
said to her husband: "My father has told me that, as you have shown
me your farm, I may now show you his farm. If you wish to go there,
you must first bathe your body in yucca-suds and then rinse off in
pure water." After he had taken his bath as directed he picked up
his old sandals and was about to put them on when she stopped him,
saying: "No. You wore your own clothes when you went to your own
farm. Now you must wear our clothes when you come to our farm." She
gave him embroidered moccasins; fringed buckskin leggings; a buckskin
shirt, dyed yellow, beautifully embroidered with porcupine quills,
and fringed with stripes of otter-skin; and a headdress adorned with
artificial ears called Tsáhadolkohi--they wore such in the old days,
and there are men still living who have seen them worn.
526. Dressed in these fine garments he set out with his wife and
they travelled toward the southeast. As they were passing the other
hut she bade him wait outside while she went in to procure a wand
of turquoise. They went but a short distance (about three hundred
yards)[233] when they came, on the top of a small hill, to a large,
smooth stone, adorned with turquoise, sticking in the ground like
a stopple in a water-jar. She touched this rock stopple with her
wand in four different directions--east, south, west, north--and it
sprang up out of the ground. She touched it in an upward direction,
and it lay over on its side, revealing a hole which led to a flight
of four stone steps.
527. She entered the hole and beckoned to him to follow. When they
descended the steps they found themselves in a square apartment with
four doors of rock crystal, one on each side. There was a rainbow over
each door. With her wand she struck the eastern door and it flew open,
disclosing a vast and beautiful country, like this world, but more
beautiful. How vast it was the Navaho knew not, for he could not see
the end of it. They passed through the door. The land was filled
with deer and covered with beautiful flowers. The air was filled
with the odor of pollen and the odor of fragrant blossoms. Birds
of the most beautiful plumage were flying in the air, perching on
the flowers, and building nests in the antlers of the deer. In the
distance a light shower of rain was falling, and rainbows shone in
every direction. "This, then, is the farm of my father-in-law which
you promised to show me," said the Navaho. "It is beautiful; but in
truth it is no farm, for I see nothing planted here." She took him
into three other apartments. They were all as beautiful as the first,
but they contained different animals. In the apartment to the south
there were antelope; in that to the west, Rocky Mountain sheep;
in that to the north, elk.
528. When they closed the last door and came out to the central
apartment they found Deer Raiser there. "Has my son-in-law been in
all the rooms and seen all the game?" he asked. "I have seen all,"
said Nati'nesthani. "Do you see two sacrificial cigarettes of the
deer above the rainbow over the eastern door?" "I see them now,"
responded the Navaho, "but I did not notice them when I entered." The
old man then showed him, over the door in the south, two cigarettes of
the antelope; over the door in the west, two cigarettes of the Rocky
Mountain sheep; over the door in the north, the single white cigarette
of Hastséyalti[234] (the elk had no cigarette), and at the bottom of
the steps by which they had entered, two cigarettes of the fawn. "Look
well at these cigarettes," said the old man, "and remember how they
are painted, for such we now sacrifice in our ceremonies." "Are you
pleased?" "Do you admire what you have seen?" "What do you think of
it all?" Such were the questions the old man asked, and the Navaho
made answer: "I thank you. I am glad that I have seen your farm and
your pets. Such things I never saw before."
529. "Now, my daughter," said Deer Raiser, "catch a deer for my
son-in-law, that we may have fresh meat." She opened the eastern
door, entered, and caught a big buck by the foot (just as we catch
sheep in these days). She pulled it out. The Navaho walked in front;
the young woman, dragging the buck, came after him, and the old man
came last of all, closing the doors and putting in the stopple as he
came. They brought the buck home, tied its legs together with short
rainbows, cut its throat with a stone arrow point, and skinned it as
we now skin deer.
530. Now Deer Raiser began again to plot the death of his
son-in-law. He found he could not poison him, so he determined to
try another plan. In a neighboring canyon, to which there was but one
entrance, he kept four fierce pet bears. He determined to invite his
son-in-law out to hunt with him, and get him killed by these bears. The
rest of that day the Navaho remained at home with his wife, while the
old man took the hoofs of the slain deer and made with them a lot of
tracks leading into the canyon of the bears.
531. On the following morning, while the young woman was cooking in
the other lodge, Deer Raiser came in where the Navaho sat and said:
"My son-in-law, four of my pet deer have escaped from the farm. I have
tracked them to a canyon near by, which has only one entrance. As
soon as you have eaten I want you to help me to hunt them. You will
stand at the entrance of the canyon while I go in to drive the deer
toward you, and you can kill them as they come out. No," said the
old man after pausing for a while and pretending to think, "you must
go into the canyon, my son-in-law, while I stay at the entrance and
kill the deer. That will be better." When about to start on his hunt,
the Wind People whispered to the Navaho: "Do not enter the canyon."
532. The two men walked along the steep side of the valley, following
the tracks until they came to the high rugged cliffs that marked
the entrance to the canyon. "When my deer escape, here is where
they usually come," said Deer Raiser. A little stream of water ran
out of the canyon, and here the old man had raised a dam to make a
pool. When they reached the pool he said: "Here I shall stop to shoot
the deer. Go you in and drive them out for me." "No, I fear the deer
will pass me," said Nati'nesthani. Four times these words were said by
both. At last the old man, seeing that his companion was obstinate,
said: "Stay here, then, but do not let the deer escape you, and do
not climb the hillsides around for fear the deer should see you,"
and he went himself into the canyon. In spite of all the warnings he
had received, Nati'nesthani climbed a rocky eminence where he could
watch and be out of danger. After waiting a while in silence he heard
a distant cry like that of a wolf,[235] woo-oo-oo-oo, and became
aware that something was moving toward him through the brush. He
soon descried four bears walking down the canyon in single file,
about thirty paces apart, alternately a female and a male. The old
man had probably told them there was some one for them to kill, for
they advanced with hair bristling, snouts up, and teeth showing. When
he saw them coming he said, "I am Nayénezgani. I am Hastséyalti. I
am Sasnalkáhi. I am a god of bears," and he mentioned the names of
other potent gods. As the bears were passing their hidden enemy he
drew arrow after arrow to the head and slew them all, one by one. He
killed them as they walked along a ledge of rock, and their bodies
tumbled down on the other side of the ledge, where they were hidden
from view. Soon the voice of the old man was heard in the distance
crying: "Oh, my pets! Oh, Tsananaí! Oh, Tse'skodi! (for the bears
had names).[236] Save a piece for me! Save a piece for me!" And a
little later he came in sight, running and panting. He did not see
his son-in-law till he was right beside him. He showed at once that he
was surprised and angry, but he quickly tried to make it appear that
he was angry from another cause. "I should have been here. You have
let them run by," he cried in angry tones. "Oh, no," said the Navaho,
"I have not let them run by. I have killed them. Look over the ledge
and you will see them." The old man looked as he was told, and was
struck dumb with astonishment and sorrow. He sat down in silence,
with his head hanging between his knees, and gazed at the bodies of
his dead pets. He did not even thank his son-in-law.[237]
533. Why did Deer Raiser seek the life of his son-in-law? Now
Nati'nesthani knew, and now you shall know. The old man was a
diné`yiani, or man-eater, and a wizard. He wanted the flesh of the
Navaho to eat, and he wanted parts of the dead body to use in the
rites of witchcraft. But there was yet another reason; he was jealous
of the Navaho, for those who practise witchcraft practise also incest.
534. "Why did you shoot them?" said the old man at last; "the deer
went out before them. Why did you not shoot the deer? Now you may skin
the bears." "You never drove deer to me," said the Navaho. "These are
what you drove to me. When a companion in the hunt drives anything
to me I kill it, no matter what it is. You have talked much to me
about hunting with you. Now I have killed game and you must skin
it." "Help me, then, to skin it," said Deer Raiser. "No. I never skin
the game I kill myself.[238] You must do the skinning. I killed for
you," said the Navaho. "If you will not help me," said the old man,
"go back to the house and tell my daughter to come and assist me to
skin the bears. Go back by the way we came when we trailed the deer."
535. Nati'nesthani set off as the Deer Raiser had directed him. As
soon as he was out of sight the old man rushed for the house by a
short cut. Reaching home, he hastily dressed himself in the skin of
a great serpent, went to the trail which his son-in-law was to take,
and lay in ambush behind a log at a place where the path led through
a narrow defile. As the Navaho approached the log the Wind People
told him: "Your father-in-law awaits you behind the log." The Navaho
peeped over the log before he got too near, and saw Deer Raiser in
his snake-skin suit, swaying uneasily back and forth, poising himself
as if preparing to spring. When he saw the young man looking in his
direction he crouched low. "What are you doing there?" called the
Navaho (in a way which let Deer Raiser know he was recognized),[239]
and he drew an arrow on the old man. "Stop! stop!" cried the latter. "I
only came here to meet you and hurry you up." "Why do you not come
from behind, if that is so? Why do you come from before me and hide
beside my path?" said the Navaho, and he passed on his way and went
to his wife's house.
536. When Nati'nesthani reached the house he told his wife that he
had killed four animals for his father-in-law, but he did not tell
her what kind of animals they were, and he told her that her father
sent for her mother to help skin the animals and cut up the meat. The
daughter delivered the message to her mother, and the latter went
out to the canyon to help her husband. When Deer Raiser saw his wife
coming he was furious. "It was my daughter I sent for, not you," he
roared. "What sort of a man is he who cannot carry my word straight,
who cannot do as he is told? I bade him tell my daughter, not you,
to come to me." Between them they skinned and dressed the bears and
carried them, one at a time, to his house. He sent to his son-in-law to
know if he wanted some meat, and the Navaho replied that he did not eat
bear meat. When he heard this, Deer Raiser was again furious, and said:
"What manner of a man is this who won't eat meat? (He did not say what
kind of meat.) When we offer him food he says he does not want to eat
it. He never does what he is told to do. We cook food for him and he
refuses it. What can we do to please him? What food will satisfy him?"
537. The next morning after the bears were killed, the young woman
went out as usual, and the old man entered during her absence. He said
to Nati'nesthani: "I wish you to go out with me to-day and help me
to fight my enemies. There are enemies of mine, not far from here,
whom I sometimes meet in battle." "I will go with you," said the
Navaho. "I have long been hoping that some one would say something
like this to me,"
538. They went from the lodge toward a mountain which was edged on two
sides by steep cliffs, which no man could climb. On the top of the
mountain the old man said there was a round hole or valley in which
his enemies dwelled. He stationed his son-in-law on one side of this
round valley where no cliffs were, and he went to the opposite side
to drive the enemy, as he said. He promised to join the Navaho when
the enemy started. Deer Raiser went around the mountain and cried
four times in imitation of a wolf. Then, instead of coming to his
comrade's help, he ran around the base of the hill and got behind
his son-in-law. Soon after the old man made his cry, the Navaho saw
twelve great ferocious bears coming toward him over the crest of the
hill. They were of the kind called sasnalkáhi, or tracking bears, such
as scent and track a man, and follow till they kill him. They were of
all the sacred colors,--white, blue, yellow, black, and spotted. They
came toward the Navaho, but he was well armed and prepared to meet
them. He fought with them the hardest fight he ever fought; but at
length he killed them all, and suffered no harm himself.[240]
539. In the mean time the old man ran off in the direction of
his home, sure that his son-in-law was killed. He said: "I think
we shall hear no more of Nati'nesthani. I think we shall hear
no more of Áhodiseli Hereafter it will be Nati'nesthanini (the
dead Nati'nesthani). Hereafter it will be Áhodiselini (the dead
Áhodiseli).[241] He can't come back out of the tracking bears'
mouths." After killing the bears, the Navaho found the old man's
trail and followed it. Presently he came to Deer Raiser, who was
sitting on a knoll. The old man could not conceal his astonishment
at seeing the Navaho still alive. "When we went out to this battle,"
said the young man, "we promised not to desert one another. Why did you
run away from me?" The Deer Raiser answered: "I am sorry I could not
find you. I did not see where you were, so I came on this way. What
did you do where I left you? Did you kill any of the bears?" "Yes, I
killed all of them," said Nati'nesthani. "I am glad you killed all and
came away with your own life, my dear son-in-law," said the old cheat.
540. They started to walk home together, but night fell when they
reached a rocky ridge on the way; here they picked out a nice spot
of ground to sleep on, built a shelter of brushwood, and made a
fire. Before they went to rest the old man said: "This is a bad
place to camp. It is called Kedidi'lyena`a` (Ridge of the Burnt
Moccasins)." As they lay down to sleep, one on either side of the
fire, each took off his moccasins and put them under his head. The
old man said: "Take good care of your moccasins, my son-in-law. Place
them securely." "Why does he say these things?" asked the Navaho to
himself. As he lay awake, thinking of the warning of the old man,
he heard the latter snoring. He rose softly, took away the old man's
moccasins, put his own in their place, and lay down to sleep with
Deer Raiser's moccasins under his head. Later in the night the old
man got up, pulled the moccasins from under the young man's head,
and buried them in the hot embers. He was anxious to get home next
morning before his son-in-law.
541. At dawn the old man aroused his companion with "It is time
we were on our road." The young man woke, rubbed his eyes, yawned,
and pretended to look for his moccasins. After searching a while he
asked: "Where are my moccasins? Have I lost them?" "Huh!" said Deer
Raiser. "You did not listen to what I told you last night. I said that
this was the Ridge of the Burned Moccasins." In the mean time, on the
other side of the fire, the old man was putting on his companion's
moccasins, not noticing that they were not his own. "Look. You are
putting on my moccasins instead of your own. Give me my moccasins,"
said the Navaho, reaching across the fire. He took them out of his
companion's hands, sat down and put them on. "Now we must hurry back,"
he said. "I can't see what made you burn your moccasins, but I cannot
wait for you. I am going now."[242]
542. Before the young man left, his father-in-law gave him a
message. "I cannot travel as fast as you on my bare feet. When you go
home, tell my daughter to come out with a pair of moccasins and some
food, and meet me on the trail." When the Navaho got home he said to
his wife: "I camped with your father last night, and he burned his
moccasins. He is limping home barefoot. He bids his wife to come out
and meet him with moccasins and food." The daughter delivered the
message to her mother, and the latter went out to meet her husband
with moccasins, food, and a brand of burning cedar-bark. When the
old man met her he was angry. "Why have you come? Why has not my
daughter come?" he asked. "Your son-in-law said that I should come,"
the old woman replied. "Oh, what a fool my son-in-law is," cried Deer
Raiser. "He never can remember what he is told to say." He ate his
food, put on his moccasins, and hurried home with his wife.
543. When Deer Raiser visited his son-in-law on the following morning
he said: "I warn you never to stray alone to the east of the lodge in
which you dwell. There is a dangerous place there." The old man went
home, and the Navaho pondered all day over what his father-in-law
had said, and during the night he made up his mind to do just what
the old man had told him not to do.
544. When Nati'nesthani had eaten in the morning he dressed himself
for a journey, left the lodge, and travelled straight to the east. He
came to a steep white ridge;[243] when he had climbed this about half
way, he observed approaching him a man of low stature. His coat, which
fitted him skin-tight, was white on the chest and insides of the arms,
while it was brown elsewhere, like the skin of a deer. He wore on his
head a deer-mask, with horns, such as deer-hunters use. He carried
a turquoise wand, a black bow with sinew on the back, and two arrows
with featherings of eagle-tail. He was one of the Tsidastóidine`.[244]
When the men met, the stranger, who had a pale face,[245] looked out
from under his mask and said: "Whence come you, my grandchild?" "I
come, my grandfather, from a place near here. I come from the house
of Píniltani," the Navaho answered. "My grandchild, I have heard of
you. Do you know how my cigarette is made?" said the man with the
deer-mask. "No, my grandfather, I never heard of your cigarette,"
was the reply. "There is a cigarette[12] for me, my grandson,"
said the stranger. "It is painted white, with a black spot on it,
and is so long (second joint of middle finger). It should be laid in
the fork of a piñon-tree. I am now walking out, and am going in the
direction whence you came. There are people living behind the ridge
you are climbing. You should visit them, and hear what they will have
to tell you."
545. The Navaho climbed the ridge; and as he began to descend it
on the other side, he observed below him two conical tents, such
as the Indians of the plains use. The tents were white below and
yellow above, representing the dawn and the evening twilight. As he
approached the tents he observed that two games of nánzoz were being
played,--one beside each tent,--and a number of people were gathered,
watching the games. As he advanced toward the crowd a man came forward
to meet him, saying: "Go to the lodge in the south. There are many
people there." He went to the lodge in the south, as he was bidden. A
woman of bright complexion, fairer than the Navahoes usually are,
the wife of the owner of the lodge, came out and invited him to enter.
546. When Nati'nesthani entered the lodge he found its owner seated in
the middle. The latter was a man past middle age, but not very old. He
was dressed in a beautiful suit of buckskin embroidered with porcupine
quills. He pointed to a place by his side, and said to the Navaho:
"Sit here, my grandchild." When the Navaho was seated his host said:
"Whence do you come? The people who live up on the earth are never
seen here." "I come from the house of Píniltani," the young man
answered. "Oh! Do you?" questioned the host. "And do you know that
Deer Raiser is a great villain; that he kills his guests; that he
talks softly, and pretends friendship, and lures people to stay with
him until he can quietly kill them? Has he never spoken thus softly
to you? How long have you been staying with him?" "I have dwelt with
him for many days," Nati'nesthani answered. "Ah!" said his host. "Many
of our young men have gone over there to woo his daughter; but they
have never returned. Some are killed on the first day; others on the
second day; others on the third day; others on the fourth; but no
one ever lives beyond the fourth day. No one has ever lived there as
long as you have." "He seems to be such a man as you describe him,"
said Nati'nesthani. "He has been trying to kill me ever since I have
been with him." "You must be a wise man to have escaped him so long;
your prayer must be potent; your charm must be strong,"[246] declared
the host. "No, truly, I know no good prayer; I possess no charm,"
the Navaho replied, and then he went on to tell how he came into that
country, and all that happened to him, till he came to the house of
Deer Raiser. "He is rich, but he is no good. That daughter of his
is also his wife, and that is why he wants to poison her suitors,"
said the owner of the lodge, and then he described four ways in which
Píniltani killed his guests. The Navaho remained silent. He knew all
the ways of the Deer Raiser, but he pretended not to know. Then the
host went on: "The house of Deer Raiser is a place of danger. You will
surely be killed if you stay there. I am sorry you are in such bad
company, for you seem to be a good man." "You speak of Deer Raiser as
a great man; but he cannot be so great as you think he is. Four times
have I killed him with, smoke, and four times have I brought him to
life again," said the Navaho, and then he related all his adventures
since he had been with Píniltani.
547. The host thanked him for having slain the bears, and went out
to call the players and all the crowd that stood around them to come
to his tent. They came, for he was their chief, and soon the tent was
crowded. Then he spoke to the assembly, and told them the story of the
Navaho. There was great rejoicing when they heard it. They thanked
Nati'nesthani for what he had done. One said that Deer Raiser had
killed his brother; another said he had killed his son; another said
the bears had slain his nephew, and thus they spoke of their many woes.
548. The people were of five kinds, or gentes: the Puma People, the
Blue Fox People, the Yellow Fox People, the Wolf People, and the Lynx
People, and the host was chief of all.
549. The chief ordered one of his daughters to prepare food for the
visitor. She brought in deer pemmican. The Navaho ate, and when he was
done he said: "I am now ready to go, my grandfather." "Wait a while,"
said the chief. "I have some medicine to give you. It is an antidote
for Deer Raiser's poison." He gave his visitor two kinds of medicine;
one was an object the size of the last two joints of the little finger,
made of the gall of birds of prey,--all birds that catch with their
claws; the other was a small quantity (as much as one might grasp with
the tips of all the fingers of one hand) of a substance composed of
material vomited by each of the five animals that were the totems of
this people. "Now have no fear," said the chief. "The bears are slain,
and you have here medicines that will kill the wizard's poison. They
are potent against witchcraft."[247]
550. When the Navaho went back to the house where his wife was, she
said: "My father has been here inquiring for you. When I told him
you had gone to the east he was very angry, and said that he told
you not to go there." Soon the old man entered and said fiercely:
"Why have you gone to the east? I told you not to go there. I told you
it was a bad place." The young man made no reply, but acted as if he
had seen and heard nothing while he was gone, and in a little while
Deer Raiser calmed down and acted as if he wished to be at peace again
with his son-in-law; but before he left he warned him not to go to the
south. Nati'nesthani pondered on the words of his father-in-law that
night, and made up his mind to again disobey him when morning came.
551. Next day, when he had eaten, he dressed himself for a journey and
walked toward the south. He came, in time, to a blue ridge, and when
he was ascending it he met a little man, much like the one he had met
the day before, but he had a bluish face. Instead of being dressed to
look like a deer, he was dressed to look like an antelope; he wore
an antelope hunting-mask with horns, he carried a wand of haliotis,
and a bow made of a wood called tselkáni, with no sinew on the back,
and he had arrows trimmed with the tail feathers of the red-tailed
buzzard.[248] Like the little man of the east, he was also one of the
Tsidastói People. He told the Navaho how to make the cigarette that
belonged to him, to make it the length of the middle joint of the
little finger, to paint it blue, spot it with yellow, and deposit it
in the fork of a cedar-tree. The little man told the Navaho to go on
over the ridge till he came to two lodges and to listen there to what
the people would tell him. He went and found two lodges, and people
playing nánzoz, and had all things happen to him nearly the same as
happened to him in the east. When he returned home he had again an
angry talk from his father-in-law, and was warned not to go to the
west; but again he determined to pay no heed to the warning.
552. When he went to the west, next day, he found a yellow ridge to
cross. The little man whom he met had a yellowish face; he was armed
and dressed the same as the little man of the east, except that he
had no horns on his deer-mask, for he represented a doe. He described
to the Navaho how to make a cigarette sacred to himself, which was to
be painted yellow, spotted with blue, and deposited in a piñon-tree,
like the cigarette of the east. Other events happened much as on the
two previous days.
553. On the fourth of these forbidden journeys the Navaho went to the
north. The ridge which he had to cross was black. The little man whom
he met was armed and dressed like the man in the south, but he had
no horns on his mask. His face was very dark. The cigarette which he
described was to be painted black and spotted with white; it was to
be the same length as the cigarette of the south, and disposed of in
the same way.
554. When he got home from his fourth journey, his father-in-law came
into the lodge and reviled him once more with angry words; but this
time the Navaho did not remain silent. He told the old man where he had
been, what people he had met, what stories he had heard, and all that
he knew of him. He told him, too, that he had learned of cigarettes,
and medicines, and charms, and rites to protect him against a wizard's
power. "You have killed others," said Nati'nesthani, "you have tried
to kill me. I knew it all the time, but said nothing. Now I know all
of your wickedness." "All that you say is true," said the old man;
"but I shall seek your life no more, and I shall give up all my evil
ways. While you were abroad on your journeys you learned of powerful
sacrifices, and rites, and medicines. All that I ask is that you
will treat me with these." His son-in-law did as he was desired,
and in doing so performed the first atsósi hatál.[249]
555. After treating his father-in-law, Nati'nesthani returned to his
people, taught them all he had learned while he was gone, and thus
established the rite of atsósi hatál among the Navahoes. Then he went
back to the whirling lake of Tó`nihilin, and he dwells there still.
THE GREAT SHELL OF KINTYÉL.
556. Kintyél,[72] Broad House, and Ki'ndotliz, Blue House,[208] are
two pueblo houses in the Chaco Canyon. They are ruins now; but in
the days when Kinníki lived on earth many people dwelt there. Not
far from the ruins is a high cliff called Tse`dezá`, or Standing
Rock. Near these places the rite of yói hatál,[250] or the bead chant,
was first practised by the Navahoes, and this is the tale of how it
first became known to man:--
557. Two young men, one from Kintyél and one from Ki'ndotliz, went
out one day to hunt deer. About sunset, as they were returning to
Ki'ndotliz, weary and unsuccessful, they observed a war-eagle soaring
overhead, and they stopped to watch his flight. He moved slowly away,
growing smaller and smaller to their gaze until at length he dwindled
to a black speck, almost invisible; and while they strained their
sight to get a last look he seemed to them to descend on the top of
Standing Rock. In order to mark the spot where they last saw him
they cut a forked stick, stuck it in the ground fork upward, and
arranged it so that when they should look over it again, crouching
in a certain position, their sight would be guided to the spot. They
left the stick standing and went home to Ki'ndotliz.[251]
558. In those days eagles were very scarce in the land; it was a
wonder to see one; so when the young men got home and told the story
of their day's adventures, it became the subject of much conversation
and counsel, and at length the people determined to send four men,
in the morning, to take sight over the forked stick, in order to find
out where the eagle lived.
559. Next morning early the four men designated went to the forked
stick and sighted over it, and all came to the conclusion that the
eagle lived on the point of Tse`dezá`. They went at once to the rock,
climbed to the summit, and saw the eagle and its young in a cleft
on the face of the precipice below them. They remained on the summit
all day and watched the nest.
560. At night they went home and told what they had seen. They had
observed two young eagles of different ages in the nest. Of the four
men who went on the search, two were from Kintyél and two were from
Ki'ndotliz, therefore people from the two pueblos met in counsel in
an estufa, and there it was decided that Ki'ndotliz should have the
elder of the two eaglets and that Kintyél should have the younger.
561. The only way to reach the nest was to lower a man to it with
a rope; yet directly above the nest was an overhanging ledge which
the man, descending, would be obliged to pass. It was a dangerous
undertaking, and no one could be found to volunteer for it. Living
near the pueblos was a miserable Navaho beggar who subsisted on such
food as he could pick up. When the sweepings of the rooms and the
ashes from the fireplaces were thrown out on the kitchen heap, he
searched eagerly through them and was happy if he could find a few
grains of corn or a piece of paper bread. He was called Nahoditáhe,
or He Who Picks Up (like a bird). They concluded to induce this man
to make the dangerous descent.
562. They returned to the pueblo and sent for the poor Navaho to come
to the estufa. When he came they bade him be seated, placed before him
a large basket of paper bread, bowls of boiled corn and meat, with all
sorts of their best food, and told him to eat his fill. He ate as he
had never eaten before, and after a long time he told his hosts that
he was satisfied. "You shall eat," said they, "of such abundance all
your life, and never more have to scrape for grains of corn among the
dirt, if you will do as we desire." Then they told him of their plan
for catching the young eagles, and asked him if he were willing to be
put in a basket and lowered to the nest with a rope. He pondered and
was silent. They asked him again and again until they had asked him
four times, while he still sat in meditation. At last he answered:
"I lead but a poor life at best. Existence is not sweet to a man who
always hungers. It would be pleasant to eat such food for the rest
of my days, and some time or other I must die. I shall do as you wish."
563. On the following morning they gave him another good meal; they
made a great, strong carrying-basket with four corners at the top;
they tied a strong string to each corner, and, collecting a large
party, they set out for the rock of Tse`dezá`.
564. When the party arrived at the top of the rock they tied a long,
stout rope to the four strings on the basket. They instructed the
Navaho to take the eaglets out of the nest and drop them to the bottom
of the cliff. The Navaho then entered the basket and was lowered
over the edge of the precipice. They let the rope out slowly till
they thought they had lowered him far enough and then they stopped;
but as he had not yet reached the nest he called out to them to lower
him farther. They did so, and as soon as he was on a level with the
nest he called to the people above to stop.
565. He was just about to grasp the eaglets and throw them down
when Wind whispered to him: "These people of the Pueblos are not
your friends. They desire not to feed you with their good food as
long as you live. If you throw these young eagles down, as they
bid you, they will never pull you up again. Get into the eagles'
nest and stay there." When he heard this, he called to those above:
"Swing the basket so that it may come nearer to the cliff. I cannot
reach the nest unless you do." So they caused the basket to swing
back and forth. When it touched the cliff he held fast to the rock and
scrambled into the nest, leaving the empty basket swinging in the air.
566. The Pueblos saw the empty basket swinging and waited, expecting
to see the Navaho get back into it again. But when they had waited a
good while and found he did not return they began to call to him as if
he were a dear relation of theirs. "My son," said the old men, "throw
down those little eagles." "My elder brother! My younger brother!" the
young men shouted, "throw down those little eagles." They kept up
their clamor until nearly sunset; but they never moved the will of
the Navaho. He sat in the cleft and never answered them, and when
the sun set they ceased calling and went home.
567. In the cleft or cave, around the nest, four dead animals lay;
to the east there was a fawn; to the south a hare; to the west the
young of a Rocky Mountain sheep, and to the north a prairie-dog. From
time to time, when the eaglets felt hungry, they would leave the nest
and eat of the meat; but the Navaho did not touch it.
568. Early next day the Pueblo people returned and gathered in a great
crowd at the foot of the cliff. They stayed there all day repeating
their entreaties and promises, calling the Navaho by endearing terms,
and displaying all kinds of tempting food to his gaze; but he heeded
them not and spoke not.
569. They came early again on the third day, but they came in
anger. They no longer called him by friendly names; they no longer
made fair promises to him; but, instead, they shot fire-arrows at
the eyry in hopes they would burn the Navaho out or set fire to the
nest and compel him to throw it and the eaglets down. But he remained
watchful and active, and whenever a fire-arrow entered the cave he
seized it quickly and threw it out. Then they abused him and reviled
him, and called him bad names until sunset, when again they went home.
570. They came again on the fourth day and acted as they had done on
the previous day; but they did not succeed in making the Navaho throw
down the little eagles. He spoke to the birds, saying: "Can you not
help me?" They rose in the nest, shook their wings, and threw out many
little feathers, which fell on the people below. The Navaho thought
the birds must be scattering disease on his enemies. When the latter
left at sunset they said: "Now we shall leave you where you are, to
die of hunger and thirst." He was then altogether three nights and
nearly four days in the cave. For two days the Pueblos had coaxed and
flattered him; for two days they had cursed and reviled him, and at the
end of the fourth day they went home and left him in the cave to die.
571. When his tormentors were gone he sat in the cave hungry and
thirsty, weak and despairing, till the night fell. Soon after dark
he heard a great rushing sound which approached from one side of the
entrance to the cave, roared a moment in front, and then grew faint
in the distance at the other side. Thus four times the sound came and
went, growing louder each time it passed, and at length the male Eagle
lit on the eyry. Soon the sounds were repeated, and the female bird,
the mother of the eaglets, alighted. Turning at once toward the Navaho,
she said: "Greeting, my child! Thanks, my child! You have not thrown
down your younger brother, Donikí."[285] The male Eagle repeated
the same words. They addressed the Navaho by the name of Donikí, but
afterwards they named him Kinníki, after the chief of all the Eagles
in the sky. He only replied to the Eagles: "I am hungry. I am thirsty."
572. The male Eagle opened his sash and took out a small white cotton
cloth which contained a little corn meal, and he took out a small
bowl of white shell no bigger than the palm of the hand. When the
Indian saw this he said: "Give me water first, for I am famishing with
thirst." "No," replied the Eagle; "eat first and then you shall have
something to drink." The Eagle then drew forth from among his tail
feathers a small plant called eltíndzakas,[252] which has many joints
and grows near streams. The joints were all filled with water. The
Eagle mixed a little of the water with some of the meal in the shell
and handed the mixture to the Navaho. The latter ate and ate, until
he was satisfied, but he could not diminish in the least the contents
of the shell vessel. When he was done eating there was as much in
the cup as there was when he began. He handed it back to the Eagle,
the latter emptied it with one sweep of his finger, and it remained
empty. Then the Eagle put the jointed plant to the Navaho's lips as
if it were a wicker bottle, and the Indian drank his fill.
573. On the previous nights, while lying in the cave, the Navaho had
slept between the eaglets in the nest to keep himself warm and shelter
himself from the wind, and this plan had been of some help to him;
but on this night the great Eagles slept one on each side of him,
and he felt as warm as if he had slept among robes of fur. Before
the Eagles lay down to sleep each took off his robe of plumes, which
formed a single garment, opening in front, and revealed a form like
that of a human being.
574. The Navaho slept well that night and did not waken till he heard
a voice calling from the top of the cliff: "Where are you? The day
has dawned. It is growing late. Why are you not abroad already?" At
the sound of this voice the Eagles woke too and put on their robes
of plumage. Presently a great number of birds were seen flying before
the opening of the cave and others were heard calling to one another
on the rock overhead. There were many kinds of Eagles and Hawks in
the throng. Some of all the large birds of prey were there. Those on
top of the rock sang:--
Kinnakíye, there he sits.
When they fly up,
We shall see him.
He will flap his wings.[286]
575. One of the Eagles brought a dress of eagle plumes and was about
to put it on the Navaho when the others interfered, and they had a
long argument as to whether they should dress him in the garment of
the Eagles or not; but at length they all flew away without giving
him the dress. When they returned they had thought of another plan
for taking him out of the cave. Laying him on his face, they put
a streak of crooked lightning under his feet, a sunbeam under his
knees, a piece of straight lightning under his chest, another under
his outstretched hands, and a rainbow under his forehead.
576. An Eagle then seized each end of these six supports,--making
twelve Eagles in all,--and they flew with the Navaho and the eaglets
away from the eyry. They circled round twice with their burden before
they reached the level of the top of the cliff. They circled round
twice more ascending, and then flew toward the south, still going
upwards. When they got above the top of Tsótsil (Mt. Taylor), they
circled four times more, until they almost touched the sky. Then they
began to flag and breathed hard, and they cried out: "We are weary. We
can fly no farther." The voice of one, unseen to the Navaho, cried
from above: "Let go your burden." The Eagles released their hold on
the supports, and the Navaho felt himself descending swiftly toward
the earth. But he had not fallen far when he felt himself seized around
the waist and chest, he felt something twining itself around his body,
and a moment later he beheld the heads of two Arrow-snakes[258] looking
at him over his shoulders. The Arrow-snakes bore him swiftly upwards,
up through the sky-hole, and landed him safely on the surface of the
upper world above the sky.
577. When he looked around him he observed four pueblo dwellings,
or towns: a white pueblo in the east, a blue pueblo in the south,
a yellow pueblo in the west, and a black pueblo in the north. Wolf
was the chief of the eastern pueblo, Blue Fox of the southern, Puma
of the western, and Big Snake of the northern. The Navaho was left at
liberty to go where he chose, but Wind whispered into his ear and said:
"Visit, if you wish, all the pueblos except that of the north. Chicken
Hawk[254] and other bad characters dwell there."
578. Next he observed that a war party was preparing, and soon after
his arrival the warriors went forth. What enemies they sought he
could not learn. He entered several of the houses, was well treated
wherever he went, and given an abundance of paper bread and other
good food to eat. He saw that in their homes the Eagles were just
like ordinary people down on the lower world. As soon as they entered
their pueblos they took off their feather suits, hung these up on pegs
and poles, and went around in white suits which they wore underneath
their feathers when in flight. He visited all the pueblos except the
black one in the north. In the evening the warriors returned. They
were received with loud wailing and with tears, for many who went out
in the morning did not return at night. They had been slain in battle.
579. In a few days another war party was organized, and this time
the Navaho determined to go with it. When the warriors started on the
trail he followed them. "Whither are you going?" they asked. "I wish
to be one of your party," he replied. They laughed at him and said:
"You are a fool to think you can go to war against such dreadful
enemies as those that we fight. We can move as fast as the wind, yet
our enemies can move faster. If they are able to overcome us, what
chance have you, poor man, for your life?" Hearing this, he remained
behind, but they had not travelled far when he hurried after them. When
he overtook them, which he soon did, they spoke to him angrily, told
him more earnestly than before how helpless he was, and how great
his danger, and bade him return to the villages. Again he halted;
but as soon as they were out of sight he began to run after them,
and he came up with them at the place where they had encamped for the
night. Here they gave him of their food, and again they scolded him,
and sought to dissuade him from accompanying them.
580. In the morning, when the warriors resumed their march, he
remained behind on the camping-ground, as if he intended to return;
but as soon as they were out of sight he proceeded again to follow
them. He had not travelled far when he saw smoke coming up out of
the ground, and approaching the smoke he found a smoke-hole, out of
which stuck an old ladder, yellow with smoke, such as we see in the
pueblo dwellings to-day. He looked down through the hole and beheld,
in a subterranean chamber beneath, a strange-looking old woman with a
big mouth. Her teeth were not set in her head evenly and regularly,
like those of an Indian; they protruded from her mouth, were set
at a distance from one another, and were curved like the claws of a
bear. She was Nastsé Estsán, the Spider Woman. She invited him into
her house, and he passed down the ladder.
581. When he got inside, the Spider Woman showed him four large
wooden hoops,--one in the east colored black, one in the south colored
blue, one in the west colored yellow, and one in the north white and
sparkling. Attached to each hoop were a number of decayed, ragged
feathers. "These feathers," said she, "were once beautiful plumes, but
now they are old and dirty. I want some new plumes to adorn my hoops,
and you can get them for me. Many of the Eagles will be killed in the
battle to which you are going, and when they die you can pluck out
the plumes and bring them to me. Have no fear of the enemies. Would
you know who they are that the Eagles go to fight? They are only the
bumblebees and the tumble-weeds."[256] She gave him a long black cane
and said: "With this you can gather the tumble-weeds into a pile, and
then you can set them on fire. Spit the juice of tsildilgi'si[257]
at the bees and they cannot sting you. But before you burn up the
tumble-weeds gather some of the seeds, and when you have killed the
bees take some of their nests. You will need these things when you
return to the earth." When Spider Woman had done speaking the Navaho
left to pursue his journey.
582. He travelled on, and soon came up with the warriors where they
were hiding behind a little hill and preparing for battle. Some
were putting on their plumes; others were painting and adorning
themselves. From time to time one of their number would creep
cautiously to the top of the hill and peep over; then he would run
back and whisper: "There are the enemies. They await us." The Navaho
went to the top of the hill and peered over; but he could see no
enemy whatever. He saw only a dry, sandy flat, covered in one place
with sunflowers, and in another place with dead weeds; for it was
now late in the autumn in the world above.
583. Soon the Eagles were all ready for the fray. They raised their
war-cry, and charged over the hill into the sandy plain. The Navaho
remained behind the hill, peeping over to see what would occur. As
the warriors approached the plain a whirlwind arose;[258] a great
number of tumble-weeds ascended with the wind and surged around madly
through the air; and, at the same time, from among the sunflowers
a cloud of bumblebees arose. The Eagles charged through the ranks
of their enemies, and when they had passed to the other side they
turned around and charged back again. Some spread their wings and
soared aloft to attack the tumble-weeds that had gone up with the
whirlwind. From time to time the Navaho noticed the dark body of an
Eagle falling down through the air. When the combat had continued some
time, the Navaho noticed a few of the Eagles running toward the hill
where he lay watching. In a moment some more came running toward him,
and soon after the whole party of Eagles, all that was left of it,
rushed past him, in a disorderly retreat, in the direction whence
they had come, leaving many slain on the field. Then the wind fell;
the tumble-weeds lay quiet again on the sand, and the bumblebees
disappeared among the sunflowers.
584. When all was quiet, the Navaho walked down to the sandy flat,
and, having gathered some of the seeds and tied them up in a corner of
his shirt, he collected the tumble-weeds into a pile, using his black
wand. Then he took out his fire-drill, started a flame, and burnt up
the whole pile. He gathered some tsildilgi'si, as the Spider Woman
had told him, chewed it, and went in among the sunflowers. Here the
bees gathered around him in a great swarm, and sought to sting him;
but he spat the juice of the tsildilgi'si at them and stunned with it
all that he struck. Soon the most of them lay helpless on the ground,
and the others fled in fear. He went around with his black wand and
killed all that he could find. He dug into the ground and got out some
of their nests and honey; he took a couple of the young bees and tied
their feet together, and all these things he put into the corner of
his blanket. When the bees were conquered he did not forget the wishes
of his friend, the Spider Woman; he went around among the dead eagles,
and plucked as many plumes as he could grasp in both hands.
585. He set out on his return journey, and soon got back to the house
of Spider Woman. He gave her the plumes and she said: "Thank you,
my grandchild, you have brought me the plumes that I have long wanted
to adorn my walls, and you have done a great service to your friends,
the Eagles, because you have slain their enemies." When she had spoken
he set out again on his journey.
586. He slept that night on the trail, and next morning he got back
to the towns of the Eagles. As he approached he heard from afar the
cries of the mourners, and when he entered the place the people
gathered around him and said: "We have lost many of our kinsmen,
and we are wailing for them; but we have been also mourning for you,
for those who returned told us you had been killed in the fight."
587. He made no reply, but took from his blanket the two young
bumblebees and swung them around his head. All the people were
terrified and ran, and they did not stop running till they got safely
behind their houses. In a little while they got over their fear,
came slowly from behind their houses, and crowded around the Navaho
again. A second time he swung the bees around his head, and a second
time the people ran away in terror; but this time they only went as far
as the front walls of their houses, and soon they returned again to the
Navaho. The third time that he swung the bees around his head they were
still less frightened, ran but half way to their houses, and returned
very soon. The fourth time that he swung the bees they only stepped
back a step or two. When their courage came back to them, he laid the
two bees on the ground; he took out the seeds of the tumble-weeds and
laid them on the ground beside the bees, and then he said to the Eagle
People: "My friends, here are the children of your enemies; when you
see these you may know that I have slain your enemies." There was great
rejoicing among the people when they heard this, and this one said:
"It is well. They have slain my brother," and that one said: "It is
well. They have slain my father," and another said: "It is well. They
have slain my sons." Then Great Wolf, chief of the white pueblo, said:
"I have two beautiful maiden daughters whom I shall give to you." Then
Fox, chief of the blue pueblo in the south, promised him two more
maidens, and the chiefs of the other pueblos promised him two each,
so that eight beautiful maidens were promised to him in marriage.
588. The chief of the white pueblo now conducted the Navaho to
his house and into a large and beautiful apartment, the finest the
poor Indian had ever seen. It had a smooth wall, nicely coated with
white earth, a large fireplace, mealing-stones, beautiful pots and
water-jars, and all the conveniences and furniture of a beautiful
pueblo home. And the chief said to him: "Sadáni, my son-in-law,
this house is yours."
589. The principal men from all the pueblos now came to visit him,
and thanked him for the great service he had done for them. Then
his maidens from the yellow house came in bringing corn meal; the
maidens from the black house entered bringing soap-weed, and the
maidens of the white house, where he was staying, came bearing a
large bowl of white shell. A suds of the soap-weed was prepared in
the shell bowl. The maidens of the white house washed his head with
the suds; the maidens of the black house washed his limbs and feet,
and those of the yellow house dried him with corn meal. When the
bath was finished the maidens went out; but they returned at dark,
accompanied this time by the maidens of the blue house. Each of the
eight maidens carried a large bowl of food, and each bowl contained
food of a different kind. They laid the eight bowls down before the
Navaho, and he ate of all till he was satisfied. Then they brought in
beautiful robes and blankets, and spread them on the floor for his bed.
590. Next morning the Navaho went over to the sky-hole, taking with
him the young bees and the seeds of the tumble-weeds. To the former
he said: "Go down to the land of the Navahoes and multiply there. My
people will make use of you in the days to come; but if you ever
cause them sorrow and trouble, as you have caused the people of this
land, I shall again destroy you." As he spoke, he flung them down to
the earth. Then taking the seeds of the tumble-weeds in his hands,
he spoke to them as he had spoken to the bees, and threw them down
through the sky-hole. The honey of the bees and the seeds of the
tumble-weeds are now used in the rites of yói hatál, or the bead chant.
591. The Navaho remained in the pueblos of the Eagle People twenty-four
days, during which time he was taught the songs, prayers, ceremonies,
and sacrifices of the Eagles, the same as those now known to us in the
rite of yói hatál;[259] and when he had learned all, the people told
him it was time for him to return to the earth, whence he had come.
592. They put on him a robe of eagle plumage, such as they wore
themselves, and led him to the sky-hole. They said to him: "When you
came up from the lower world you were heavy and had to be carried
by others. Henceforth you will be light and can move through the air
with your own power." He spread his wings to show that he was ready;
the Eagles blew a powerful breath behind him; he went down through
the sky-hole, and was wafted down on his outstretched wings until he
lit on the summit of Tsótsil.
593. He went back to his own relations among the Navahoes; but when
he went back everything about their lodge smelt ill; its odors were
intolerable to him, and he left it and sat outside.[260] They built for
him then a medicine-lodge where he might sit by himself. They bathed
his younger brother, clothed him in new raiment, and sent him, too,
into the lodge, to learn what his elder brother could tell him. The
brothers spent twelve days in the lodge together, during which the
elder brother told his story and instructed the younger in all the
rites and songs learned among the Eagles.
594. After this he went to visit the pueblo of Kintyél, whose inmates
had before contemplated such treachery to him; but they did not
recognize him. He now looked sleek and well fed. He was beautifully
dressed and comely in his person, for the Eagles had moulded, in
beauty, his face and form. The pueblo people never thought that
this was the poor beggar whom they had left to die in the eagles'
nest. He noticed that there were many sore and lame in the pueblo. A
new disease, they told him, had broken out among them. This was the
disease which they had caught from the feathers of the eaglets when
they were attacking the nest. "I have a brother," said the Navaho, "who
is a potent shaman. He knows a rite that will cure this disease." The
people of the pueblo consulted together and concluded to employ his
brother to perform the ceremony over their suffering ones.
595. The Navaho said that he must be one of the atsá`lei,[261] or
first dancers, and that in order to perform the rite properly he must
be dressed in a very particular way. He must, he said, have strings
of fine beads--shell and turquoise--sufficient to cover his legs and
forearms completely, enough to go around his neck, so that he could
not bend his head back, and great strings to pass over the shoulder
and under the arm on each side. He must have the largest shell basin
to be found in either pueblo to hang on his back, and the one next in
size to hang on his chest. He must have their longest and best strings
of turquoise to hang to his ears. The Wind told him that the greatest
shell basin they had was so large that if he tried to embrace it around
the edge, his finger-tips would scarcely meet on the opposite side,
and that this shell he must insist on having. The next largest shell,
Wind told him, was but little smaller.[262]
596. Three days after this conference, people began to come in from
different pueblos in the Chaco Canyon and from pueblos on the banks
of the San Juan,--all these pueblos are now in ruins,--and soon a
great multitude had assembled. Meantime, too, they collected shells
and beads from the various pueblos in order to dress the atsá`lei as
he desired. They brought him some great shell basins and told him
these were what he wanted for the dance; but he measured them with
his arms as Wind had told him, and, finding that his hands joined
easily when he embraced the shells, he discarded them. They brought
him larger and larger shells, and tried to persuade him that such
were their largest; but he tried and rejected all. On the last day,
with reluctance, they brought him the great shell of Kintyél and
the great shell of Ki'ndotliz. He clasped the first in his arms;
his fingers did not meet on the opposite side. He clasped the second
in his arms, and the tips of his fingers just met. "These," said he,
"are the shells I must wear when I dance."
597. Four days before that on which the last dance was to occur,
the pueblo people sent out messengers to the neighboring camps of
Navahoes, to invite the latter to witness the exhibition of the last
night and to participate in it with some of their alíli (dances or
dramas). One of the messengers went to the Chelly Canyon and there
he got Gánaskidi, with his son and daughter, to come and perform a
dance. The other messengers started for the Navaho camp at the foot
of Tsótsil on the south (near where Cobero is now). On his way he met
an akáninili, or messenger, coming from Tsótsil to invite the people
of the Chaco Canyon to a great Navaho ceremony. (You have heard all
about the meeting of these messengers in the legend of the mountain
chant. I shall not now repeat it.)[263] The messengers exchanged bows
and quivers as a sign they had met one another, and the messenger from
Kintyél returned to his people without being able to get the Navahoes
to attend. This is the reason that, on the last night of the great
ceremony of yói hatál, there are but few different dances or shows.
598. On the evening of the last day they built a great circle
of branches, such as the Navahoes build now for the rites of the
mountain chant (fig. 37), and a great number of people crowded into
the enclosure. They lighted the fires and dressed the atsá`lei in all
their fine beads and shells just as he desired them to dress him. They
put the great shell of Kintyél on his back, and the great shell of
Ki'ndotliz on his chest, and another fine shell on his forehead. Then
the Navaho began to dance, and his brother, the medicine-man, began
to sing, and this was the song he sang:--
The white-corn plant's great ear sticks up.
Stay down and eat.
The blue-corn plant's great ear sticks up.
Stay down and eat.
The yellow-corn plant's great ear sticks up.
Stay down and eat.
The black-corn plant's great ear sticks up.
Stay down and eat.
All-colored corn's great ear sticks up.
Stay down and eat.
The round-eared corn's great ear sticks up.
Stay down and eat.[287]
599. This seemed a strange song to the pueblo people, and they all
wondered what it could mean; but they soon found out what it meant,
for they observed that the dancing Navaho was slowly rising from
the ground. First his head and then his shoulders appeared above the
heads of the crowd; next his chest and waist; but it was not until his
whole body had risen above the level of their heads that they began to
realize the loss that threatened them. He was rising toward the sky
with the great shell of Kintyél, and all the wealth of many pueblos
in shell-beads and turquoise on his body. Then they screamed wildly
to him and called him by all sorts of dear names--father, brother,
son--to come down again, but the more they called the higher he
rose. When his feet had risen above them they observed that a streak
of white lightning passed under his feet like a rope, and hung from a
dark cloud that gathered above. It was the gods that were lifting him;
for thus, the legends say, the gods lift mortals to the sky. When the
pueblos found that no persuasions could induce the Navaho to return,
some called for ropes that they might seize him and pull him down;
but he was soon beyond the reach of their longest rope. Then a shout
was raised for arrows that they might shoot him; but before the arrows
could come he was lost to sight in the black cloud and was never more
seen on earth.
NOTES.
1. How and when the name Navajo (pronounced Na'va-ho) originated has
not been discovered. It is only known that this name was given by
the Spaniards while they still claimed the Navaho land. The name
is generally supposed to be derived from navaja, which means a
clasp-knife, or razor, and to have been applied because the Navaho
warriors carried great stone knives in former days. It has been
suggested that the name comes from navájo, a pool or small lake. The
Navahoes call themselves Diné` or Diné, which means simply, men,
people. This word in the various forms, Dénè, Tinnéh, Tunné, etc., is
used as a tribal designation for many branches of the Athapascan stock.
2. The Carrizo Mountains consist of an isolated mountain mass, about
12 miles in its greatest diameter, situated in the northeast corner
of Arizona. It is called by the Navahoes Dsilnáodsil, which means
mountain surrounded by mountains; such is the appearance of the
landscape viewed from the highest point, Pastora Peak, 9,420 feet high.
3. The San Juan River, a branch of the Colorado of the West, flows
in a westerly direction through the northern portion of the Navaho
Reservation, and forms in part its northern boundary. It is the
most important river in the Navaho country. It has two names in
the Navaho language: one is Sánbito` (Water of Old Age, or Old Age
River), said to be given because the stream is white with foam and
looks like the hair of an old man; the other is To`baká (Male Water),
given because it is turbulent and strong in contrast to the placid
Rio Grande, which the Navahoes call To`baád, or Female Water. (See
note 137.) Perhaps the river has other names.
4. Tu-in-tsá is derived from to` or tu (water) and intsá or intsá
(abundant, scattered widely). The name is spelled Tuincha, Tuintcha,
and Tunicha on our maps. The Tuincha Mountains are situated partly
in New Mexico and partly in Arizona, about 30 miles from the northern
boundary of both Territories. They form the middle portion of a range
of which the Chusca and Lukachokai Mountains form the rest. The portion
known as Tuintsá is about 12 miles long. The highest point is 9,575
feet above sea-level. The top of the range, which is rather level and
plateau-like, is well covered with timber, mostly spruce and pine,
and abounds in small lakes and ponds; hence the name Tuintsá.
5. The basket illustrated in fig. 16 is made of twigs of aromatic sumac
(Rhus aromatica, var. trilobata). It is 13' in diameter and 3-3/8'
deep. In forming the helical coil, the fabricator must always put
the butt end of the twig toward the centre of the basket and the
tip end toward the periphery, in accordance with the ceremonial
laws governing the disposition of butts and tips (see notes 12 and
319). The sole decoration is a band, red in the middle with black
zigzag edges. This band is intersected at one point by a narrow
line of uncolored wood. This line has probably no relation to the
"line of life" in ancient and modern pueblo pottery. It is put
there to assist in the orientation of the basket at night, in the
dim light of the medicine-lodge. In making the basket, the butt of
the first twig is placed in the centre; the tip of the last twig,
in the helix, must be in the same radial line, which is marked by the
uncolored line crossing the ornamental band. This line must lie due
east and west on certain ceremonial occasions, as for instance when
the basket, inverted, is used as a drum during the last five nights
of the night chant. The margin of this, as of other Navaho baskets,
is finished in a diagonally woven or plaited pattern, and there
is a legend, which the author has related in a former paper,[321]
accounting for the origin of this form of margin. If the margin is
worn through or torn, the basket is unfit for sacred use. The basket
is one of the perquisites of the shaman when the rites are done;
but he, in turn, must give it away, and must be careful never to
eat out of it. Notwithstanding its sacred uses, food may be served
in it. Fig. 25 represents a basket of this kind used as a receptacle
for sacrificial sticks and cigarettes. In this case the termination
of the helix must be in the east, and the sacrifices sacred to the
east must be in the eastern quarter of the basket.
Fig. 17 shows the other form of sacred basket. It is also made of
aromatic sumac, and is used in the rites to hold sacred meal. The
crosses are said to represent clouds, and the zigzag lines to indicate
lightning.
6. The ceremonies of "House Dedication" are described at some length
by Mr. A. M. Stephen in his excellent paper on "The Navajo,"[329]
and he gives a free translation of a prayer and a song belonging to
these rites.
7. A-na-yé, or a-ná-ye, is composed of two words, aná and yéi or
ye. Aná, sometimes contracted to na, signifies a member of an alien
tribe,--one not speaking a language similar to the Navaho,--and is
often synonymous with enemy. Ye (see par. 78) may be defined as genius
or god. The anáye were the offspring of women conceived during the
separation of the sexes in the fourth world.
8. Ti-é-hol-tso-di is a water god, or water monster, a god of
terrestrial waters,--not a rain god. He seems akin to the Unktehi of
the Dakotas. He is said to dwell in the great water of the east, i.e.,
the Atlantic Ocean. Although commonly spoken of as one, there is little
doubt that the Navahoes believe in many of the Tiéholtsodi. Probably
every constant stream or spring has its own water god, (See note
152.) A picture of this god is said to be made in a dry-painting of
the rite of hozóni hatál, but the author has not seen it. Tiéholtsodi
is described as having a fine fur, and being otherwise much like an
otter in appearance, but having horns like a buffalo. (See pars. 140,
187, 484, 485.)
9. Tsús-kai or Tsó-is-kai is the name given by the Navahoes to
a prominent conical hill rising 8,800 feet above sea-level, in
northwestern New Mexico, about twenty-six miles north of Defiance
Station on the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad. It is called Chusca
Knoll, Chusca Peak, and Choiskai Peak by geographers. It rises abruptly
four hundred feet or more above the level of the neighboring ridge, is
visible at a great distance from the south (but not from the north),
and forms a prominent landmark. The Navahoes limit the name Tsúskai
to this knoll, but the Mexicans, and following them the Americans,
apply the name in different forms (Chusca Mountains, Sierra de Chusca,
Chuska, Chuskai, Tchuskai, etc.) to the whole mountain mass from
which the knoll rises. The name, not accurately translated, contains
the words for spruce (tso) and white (kai).
10. The bath forms an important part of the Navaho rites, being
administered on many occasions, and it is often mentioned in the
tales. It usually consists of a suds made in a water-tight wicker
basket by soaking the root of some species of yucca (see note 88) in
water; the root of Yucca baccata being usually preferred, as it seems
richest in saponine. After the application of the suds, the subject
is commonly rinsed off with plain water and dried by rubbing on corn
meal. In different ceremonies different observances are connected
with the bath. In the myth of "The Mountain Chant,"[314] pp. 389,
390, a bath is described as part of the ceremony of the deer-hunt. It
is given, no doubt, in preparing for the hunt, for practical as well
as religious reasons. It is important that the hunter should divest
himself as much as possible of his personal odor when he goes to
kill game.
11. Pollen (Navaho, thaditín) is obtained, for sacred uses, from
various plants, but Indian corn is the chief source of supply. The
pollen is carried in small buckskin bags, which also usually contain
small sacred stones, such as rock crystal and pyrophyllite, or small
animal fetishes. The administration or sacrifice of pollen is a part
of all rites witnessed, and almost always follows or accompanies
prayer. It is used in different ways on different occasions; but the
commonest way is to take a small pinch from the bag, apply a portion
of it to the tongue and a portion to the crown of the head. For some
purposes, the shaman collects a quantity of pollen, puts it in a
large bag, immerses in it some live bird, insect, or other animal,
and then allows the prisoner to escape. This is supposed to add
extra virtue to the pollen. In one kind called i`yidezná a bluebird,
a yellowbird, and a grasshopper are put in the pollen together. In
note 49 we have a mythic account of pollen put on the young of the
sea monster and then preserved. Pollen which has been applied to a
ceremonial dry-painting is preserved for future uses. Pollen in which
a live striped lizard has been placed is used to favor eutocia. The
term thaditín is applied to various things having the appearance of
an impalpable powder, such as the misty hues of the horizon in the
morning and evening, due in Arizona more frequently to dust in the
air than to moisture. Captain Bourke, in "The Medicine-men of the
Apache,"[295] chapter ii., describes many modes of using pollen which
exist also among the Navahoes.
12. The following are a few additional observances with regard to
kethawns:--
In cutting the reed used for a series of cigarettes, they cut off a
piece first from the end nearest the root, and they continue to cut
off as many pieces as may be necessary from butt to point. The pieces,
according as they are cut, are notched near the butt (with a stone
knife), so that the relations of the two extremities of the piece
may not be forgotten. All through the painting of the cigarettes,
and the various manipulations that follow, the butt end must be
the nearer to the operator, and the tip end the farther away from
him. Since the cigarette-maker sits in the west of the medicine-lodge
facing the east, the cigarettes, while there, must lie east and west,
with the tips to the east. If a number of cigarettes are made for one
act of sacrifice, the first piece cut off is marked with one notch
near the base, the second piece with two notches, the third piece
with three notches, the fourth piece with four notches, all near the
butt ends. This is done in order that they may always be distinguished
from one another, and their order of precedence from butt to tip may
not be disregarded. When they are taken up to be painted, to have the
sacred feathers of the bluebird and yellowbird inserted into them,
to be filled with tobacco, to be sealed with moistened pollen, or
to be symbolically lighted with the rock crystal, the piece that
came from nearest the butt (the senior cigarette, let us call it)
is taken first, that nearest the tip last. When they are collected
to be placed in the patient's hands, when they are applied to his
or her person, and finally when they are taken out and sacrificed,
this order of precedence is always observed. The order of precedence
in position, when sacrifices are laid out in a straight row, is from
north to south; the senior sacrifice is in the northern extremity of
the row, the junior or inferior in the southern extremity. When they
are laid out in a circle, the order is from east back to east by the
way of the south, west, and north. The gods to whom the sacrifices are
made have commonly also an order of precedence, and when such is the
case the senior sacrifice is dedicated to the higher god, the junior
sacrifice to the lower god. When it is required that other articles,
such as feathers, beads, powdered vegetable and mineral substances,
be sacrificed with the cigarettes, all these things are placed in
corn-husks. To do this, the husks are laid down on a clean cloth with
their tips to the east; the cigarettes are laid in them one by one,
each in a separate husk, with their tip ends to the east; and the
sacred feathers are added to the bundle with their tips also to the
east. When dry pollen is sprinkled on the cigarette, it is sprinkled
from butt to tip. When moist pollen is daubed on the side of the
cigarette, it is daubed from butt to tip. (From "A Study in Butts and
Tips.")[319] The hollow internode of the reed only is used. The part
containing the solid node is discarded and is split up, so that when
thrown away the gods may not mistake it for a true cigarette and suffer
disappointment. All the débris of manufacture is carefully collected
and deposited to the north of the medicine-lodge. The tobacco of
commerce must not be employed. A plug of feathers, referred to above,
is shoved into the tube from tip to butt (with an owl's feather) to
keep the tobacco from falling out at the butt. The moistened pollen
keeps the tobacco in at the tip end. The rules for measuring kethawns
are very elaborate. One or more finger-joints; the span; the width
of the outstretched hand, from tip of thumb to tip of little finger;
the width of three finger-tips or of four finger-tips joined,--are a
few of the measurements. Each kethawn has its established size. This
system of sacrifice is common among the pueblo tribes of the Southwest,
and traces of it have been found elsewhere. Fig. 23 represents a
thing called ketán yaltí, or talking kethawn (described in "The
Mountain Chant,"[314] p. 452), consisting of a male stick painted
black and a female stick painted blue. Fig. 24 shows a kethawn used
in the ceremony of the night chant; a dozen such are made for one
occasion, but male and female are not distinguished. Fig. 25 depicts
a set of fifty-two kethawns, used also in the night chant: of these
the four in the centre are cigarettes lying on meal; the forty-eight
surrounding the meal are sticks of wood. Those in the east are made
of mountain mahogany, those in the south of Forestiera neo-mexicana,
those in the west of juniper, and those in the north of cherry. A
more elaborate description of them must be reserved for a future work.
13. "Sacred buckskin" is a term employed by the author, for
convenience, to designate those deerskins specially prepared for
use in making masks and for other purposes in the Navaho rites. The
following are some of the particulars concerning their preparation;
perhaps there are others which the author has not learned: The
deer which is to furnish the skin must not be shot, or otherwise
wounded. It is surrounded by men on foot or horseback, and caused
to run around until it falls exhausted; then a bag containing pollen
is put over its mouth and nostrils, and held there till the deer is
smothered. The dead animal is laid on its back. Lines are marked with
pollen, from the centre outwards along the median line of the body and
the insides of the limbs. Incisions are made with a stone knife along
the pollen lines, from within outwards, until the skin is opened;
the flaying may then be completed with a steel knife. When the skin
is removed it is laid to the east of the carcass, head to the east,
and hairy side down. The fibulæ and ulnæ are cut out and put in the
skin in the places where they belong,--i.e., each ulna in the skin of
its appropriate fore-leg, each fibula in the skin of its appropriate
hind-leg. The hide may then be rolled up and carried off. Both ulnæ
are used as scrapers of the skin. If masks are to be made of the skin,
the fibulæ are used as awls,--the right fibula in sewing the right
sides of the masks, the left fibula in sewing the left sides of the
masks. Other rules (very numerous) for making the masks will not be
mentioned in this place. Fibulæ and ulnæ other than those belonging
to the deer that furnished the skin must not be used on the latter.
14. This mask, made of leaves of Yucca baccata, from which the thick
dorsal portions have been torn away, is used in the rite of the night
chant. The observances connected with the culling of the leaves, the
manufacture of the mask, and the destruction of the same after use,
are too numerous to be detailed here. The author never succeeded in
getting such a mask to keep (the obligation on the shaman to tear it up
when it has served its purpose seemed imperative), but he was allowed
to take two photographs of it, one before the fringe of spruce twigs
was applied, the other when the mask was finished, as shown in fig. 26.
15. The following account taken from "The Prayer of a Navajo
Shaman,"[315] and repeated here at the request of Mr. Newell, shows
how definitely fixed was the limit of this part of the tale in the
mind of the narrator:--
"In none of my interviews with him (Hatáli Nez) had he shown any
impatience with my demands for explanations as we progressed, or with
interruptions in our work. He lingered long over his meals, lighted
many cigarettes and smoked them leisurely, got tired early in the
evening, and was always willing to go to bed as early as I would let
him. When, however, he came to relate the creation myth, all this was
changed. He arrived early; he remained late; he hastened through his
meals; he showed evidence of worry at all delays and interruptions,
and frequently begged me to postpone minor explanations. On being urged
to explain this change of spirit he said that we were travelling in
the land of the dead, in a place of evil and potent ghosts, just so
long as he continued to relate those parts of the myth which recount
the adventures of his ancestors in the nether world, and that we
were in danger so long as our minds remained there; but that when we
came to that part of the tale where the people ascend to this--the
fifth and last world--we need no longer feel uneasy and could then
take our time. His subsequent actions proved that he had given an
honest explanation.
"It was near sunset one afternoon, and an hour or more before
his supper time, that he concluded his account of the subterranean
wanderings of the Navajos and brought them safely through the "Place
of Emergence," in the San Juan Mountains, to the surface of this
world. Then he ceased to speak, rolled a cigarette, said he was tired,
that he would not be able to tell me any more that night, and left me.
"After his departure I learned that he had announced to some of
his friends during the day that he would have to pray at night
to counteract the evil effects of his journey through the lower
world. After his supper he retired to the apartment among the old adobe
huts at Defiance in which he had been assigned room to sleep. I soon
followed, and, having waited in the adjoining passage half an hour or
more, I heard the voice of the old man rising in the monotonous tones
of formulated prayer. Knowing that the rules of the shaman forbade
the interruption of any prayer or song, I abruptly entered the room
and sat down on the floor near the supplicant."
(Thus the prayer in question became known to the author.)
15a. "Tune us the sitar neither low nor high."--The Light of Asia.
16. Hatál, in Navaho, means a sacred song, a hymn or chant,--not a
trivial song: hence the names of their great ceremonies contain this
word, as dsilyi'dze hatál (the mountain chant); klédzi hatál (the
night chant), etc. The man who conducts a ceremony is called hatáli
(chanter or singer). As equivalents for this word the author uses
the terms shaman, priest, medicine-man, and chanter. One who treats
disease by drugs is called azé-eli'ni, or medicine-maker.
17. No antecedent. We are first told to whom "they" refers in
paragraph 139.
18. In symbolizing by color the four cardinal points, the Navahoes
have two principal systems, as follows:--
East. South. West. North.
First System White. Blue. Yellow. Black.
Second System Black. Blue. Yellow. White.
Both systems are the same, except that the colors black and white
change places. The reasons for this change have not been satisfactorily
determined. In general, it seems that when speaking of places over
ground--lucky and happy places--the first system is employed; while,
when places underground--usually places of danger--are described,
the second system is used. But there are many apparent exceptions to
the latter rule. In one version of the Origin Legend (Version B) the
colors are arranged according to the second system both in the lower
and upper worlds. In the version of the same legend here published
the first system is given for all places in the lower worlds, except
in the house of Tiéholtsodi under the waters (par. 178), where the
east room is described as dark and the room in the north as being
of all colors. Yet the Indian who gave this version (Hatáli Nez),
in his Prayer of the Rendition (note 315), applies the second system
to all regions traversed below the surface of the earth by the gods
who come to rescue the lost soul. Although he does not say that the
black chamber is in the east, he shows it corresponds with the east by
mentioning it first. Hatáli Natlói, in the "Story of Nati'nesthani,"
follows the first system in all cases except when describing the
house of Tiéholtsodi under the water, where the first chamber is
represented as black and the last as white. Although in this case the
rooms may be regarded as placed one above another, the black being
mentioned first shows that it is intended to correspond with the
east. In all cases, in naming the points of the compass, or anything
which symbolizes them, or in placing objects which pertain to them
(note 227), the east comes first, the south second, the west third,
the north fourth. The sunwise circuit is always followed. If the
zenith and nadir are mentioned, the former comes fifth and the latter
sixth in order. The north is sometimes symbolized by "all colors,"
i.e., white, blue, yellow, and black mixed (note 22), and sometimes
by red. In the myth of dsilyi'dze hatál[314] (the story of Dsi'lyi`
Neyáni) five homes of holy people underground are described, in all
of which the second system is used. See, also, note 111, where the
second system is applied to the house of the sun. In the story of the
"Great Shell of Kintyél" at the home of the Spider Woman underground,
in the sky world, the east is represented by black and the north by
white. (See par. 581 and note 40.)
19. There are but three streams and but nine villages or localities
mentioned, while twelve winged tribes are named. Probably three are
supposed to have lived in the north where no stream ran, or there
may have been a fourth river in the Navaho paradise, whose name is
for some reason suppressed.
References to the sacred number four are introduced with tiresome
pertinacity into all Navaho legends.
20. Version B.--In the first world three dwelt, viz.: First Man,
First Woman, and Coyote.
21. The swallow to which reference is made here is the cliff
swallow,--Petrochelidon lunifrons.
22. The colors given to the lower worlds in this legend--red for the
first, blue for the second, yellow for the third, and mixed for the
fourth--are not in the line of ordinary Navaho symbolism (note 18),
but they agree very closely with some Moki symbolism, as described
by Victor Mindeleff in his "Study of Pueblo Architecture,"[324]
p. 129. The colors there mentioned, if placed in order according to the
Navaho system (note 18), would stand thus: red (east), blue (south),
yellow (west), white (north). Mixed colors sometimes take the place
of the north or last in Navaho symbolism. Possibly Moki elements have
entered into this version of the Navaho legend. (See par. 91.)
23. Version B.--In the second world, when First Man, First Woman,
and Coyote ascended, they found those who afterwards carried the sun
and moon, and, beyond the bounds of the earth, he of the darkness
in the east, he of the blueness in the south, he of the yellowness
in the west, and he of the whiteness in the north (perhaps the same
as White Body, Blue Body, etc., of the fourth world in the present
version. See par. 160). Sun and First Woman were the transgressors
who caused the exodus.
24. Version B.--When the five individuals mentioned in note 23 came
from the second world, they found the "people of the mountains"
already occupying the third world.
25. Version B.--The people were chased from the third world to the
fourth world by a deluge and took refuge in a reed, as afterwards
related of the flight from the fourth world.
26. In the Navaho tales, when the yéi (genii, gods) come to visit men,
they always announce their approach by calling four times. The first
call is faint, far, and scarcely audible. Each succeeding call is
louder and more distinct. The last call sounds loud and near, and
in a moment after it is heard the god makes his appearance. These
particulars concerning the gods' approach are occasionally briefly
referred to; but usually the story-teller repeats them at great length
with a modulated voice, and he pantomimically represents the recipient
of the visit, starting and straining his attention to discern the
distant sounds.
Nearly every god has his own special call. A few have none. Imperfect
attempts have been made in this work to represent some of these calls
by spelling them; but this method represents the original no better
than "Bob White" represents the call of a quail. Some of the cries
have been recorded by the writer on phonographic cylinders, but even
these records are very imperfect. In the ceremonies of the Navahoes,
the masked representatives of the gods repeat these calls. The calls
of Hastséyalti and Hastséhogan are those most frequently referred to
in the tales. (Pars. 287, 378, 471, etc.)
27. Yellow corn belongs to the female, white corn to the male. This
rule is observed in all Navaho ceremonies, and is mentioned in many
Navaho myths. (Pars. 164, 291, 379; note 107, etc.)
28. An ear of corn used for sacred purposes must be completely covered
with full grains, or at least must have been originally so covered. One
having abortive grains at the top is not used. For some purposes, as
in preparing the implements used in initiating females in the rite
of klédzi hatál, not only must the ear of corn be fully covered by
grains, but it must be tipped by an arrangement of four grains. Such
an ear of corn is called tohonoti'ni.
29. The Navaho word nátli or nu'tle is here translated hermaphrodite,
because the context shows that reference is made to anomalous
creatures. But the word is usually employed to designate that class of
men, known perhaps in all wild Indian tribes, who dress as women, and
perform the duties usually allotted to women in Indian camps. Such
persons are called berdaches (English, bardash) by the French
Canadians. By the Americans they are called hermaphrodites (commonly
mispronounced "morphodites"), and are generally supposed to be such.
30. These so-called hermaphrodites (note 29) are, among all Indian
tribes that the author has observed, more skilful in performing women's
work than the women themselves. The Navahoes, in this legend, credit
them with the invention of arts practised by women. The best weaver
in the Navaho tribe, for many years, was a nátli.
31. Masks made from the skins of deer-heads and antelope-heads,
with or without antlers, have been used by various Indian tribes,
in hunting, to deceive the animals and allow the hunters to approach
them. There are several references to such masks in the Navaho tales,
as in the story of Nati'nesthani (par. 544) and in the myth of "The
Mountain Chant," page 391.[314] In the latter story, rites connected
with the deer mask are described.
32. The quarrel between First Man and First Woman came to pass in
this way: When she had finished her meal she wiped her hands in her
dress and said: "E`yéhe si-tsod" (Thanks, my vagina). "What is that
you say?" asked First Man. "E`éhe si-tsod," she repeated. "Why do you
speak thus?" he queried; "Was it not I who killed the deer whose flesh
you have eaten? Why do you not thank me? Was it tsod that killed the
deer?" "Yes," she replied; "if it were not for that, you would not
have killed the deer. If it were not for that, you lazy men would
do nothing. It is that which does all the work." "Then, perhaps,
you women think you can live without the men," he said. "Certainly we
can. It is we women who till the fields and gather food: we can live
on the produce of our fields, and the seeds and fruits we collect. We
have no need of you men." Thus they argued. First Man became more
and more angry with each reply that his wife made, until at length,
in wrath, he jumped across the fire.
33. During the separation of the sexes, both the men and the women were
guilty of shameful practices, which the story-tellers very particularly
describe. Through the transgressions of the women the anáye, alien gods
or monsters, who afterwards nearly annihilated the human race, came
into existence; but no evil consequences followed the transgressions
of the men. Thus, as usual, a moral lesson is conveyed to the women,
but none to the men.
34, 35. Notes 34 and 35 are omitted.
36. Version A.--Water in the east, black; south, blue; west, yellow;
north, white. In the ceremony of hozóni hatál a picture representing
Tiéholtsodi and the four waters is said to be made.
37. Version A says that the nodes were woven by the spider, and
that different animals dwelt in the different internodes. Version B
says that the great reed took more than one day to grow to the sky;
that it grew by day and rested by night; that the hollow internodes
now seen in the reed show where it grew by day, and the solid nodes
show where it rested by night. Some say four reeds were planted to
form one, others that one reed only was planted.
38. Version B.--The Turkey was the last to take refuge in the reed,
therefore he was at the bottom. When the waters rose high enough to
wet the Turkey he gobbled, and all knew that danger was near. Often
did the waves wash the end of his tail; and it is for this reason
that the tips of turkeys' tail-feathers are, to this day, lighter
than the rest of the plumage.
39. Version A.--First Man and First Woman called on all the digging
animals (i'ndatsidi dáltso) to help. These were: Bear, Wolf, Coyote,
Lynx, and Badger. First, Bear dug till he was tired; then Coyote
took his place, and so on. When badger was digging, water began to
drip down from above: then they knew they had struck the waters of
the upper world, and sent Locust up. Locust made a sort of shaft in
the soft mud, such as locusts make to this day.
40. Version A says there were four cranes; Version B, that there were
four swans. Both versions say that the bird of the east was black,
that of the south blue, that of the west yellow, and that of the
north white. (See note 18.)
41. Two versions, A and B, have it that the bird passed the arrows
through from mouth to vent, and vice versa, but all make the Locust
pass his arrows through his thorax. Another version relates that two
of the birds said: "You can have the land if you let us strike you in
the forehead with an axe." Locust consented. They missed their aim and
cut off his cheeks, which accounts for his narrow face now. Version
A relates that the arrows were plumed with eagle-feathers.
42. Version A.--The Locust, before transfixing himself with the arrows,
shoved his vitals down into his abdomen; then he changed his mind and
shoved them high into his chest. That accounts for his big chest now.
43. A small lake situated somewhere in the San Juan Mountains is said
to be the place through which the people came from the fourth world to
this world. It is surrounded, the Indians tell, by precipitous cliffs,
and has a small island near its centre, from the top of which something
rises that looks like the top of a ladder. Beyond the bounding cliffs
there are four mountain peaks,--one to the east, one to the south, one
to the west, and one to the north of the lake,--which are frequently
referred to in the songs and myths of the Navahoes. These Indians
fear to visit the shores of this lake, but they climb the surrounding
mountains and view its waters from a distance. The place is called
Ha-dzi-naí, or Ni-ho-yos-tsá-tse, which names may be freely translated
Place of Emergence, or Land Where They Came Up. The San Juan Mountains
abound in little lakes. Which one of these is considered by the
Navahoes as their Place of Emergence is not known, and it is probable
that it could only be determined by making a pilgrimage thither with
a party of Navahoes who knew the place. Mr. Whitman Cross, of the
United States Geological Survey, who has made extensive explorations
in the San Juan Mountains, relates that Trout Lake is regarded by
the Indians as a sacred lake; that they will not camp near it, and
call it a name which is rendered Spirit Lake. This sheet of water is
designated as San Miguel Lake on the maps of Hayden's Survey. It lies
near the line of the Rio Grande Southern Railroad, at the head of
the South Fork of San Miguel River. It has no island. A small lake,
which accords more in appearance with the Navahoes' description of
their sacred lake, is Island Lake. This has a small, rocky island in
the middle. It is situated on a branch of the South Fork of Mineral
Creek, three miles southeast of Ophir, Colorado, at an altitude of
12,450 feet. Prof. A. H. Thompson has suggested that Silver Lake,
about five miles southeasterly from Silverton, Colorado, may be the
Place of Emergence. This lake is 11,600 feet above sea-level, and is
surrounded by four high mountain peaks, but it has no island.
44. Version A.--Gánaskidi struck the cliffs with his wand. "Gong ê'"
it sounded, and broke the cliffs open. Version B.--He of the darkness
of the east cut the cliffs with his knife shaped like a horn.
45. Version A.--They prayed to the four Winds,--the black Wind of the
east, the blue Wind of the south, the yellow Wind of the west, and the
white Wind of the north,--and they sang a wind-song which is still sung
in the rite of hozóni hatál. Version B.--They prayed to the four Winds.
46. The Kisáni, being builders of stone houses, set up a stone wall;
the others, representing the Navahoes, set up a shelter of brushwood,
as is the custom of the Navahoes now.
47. Tsi-di'l, or tsin-di'l is a game played by the Navaho women. The
principal implements of the game are three sticks, which are thrown
violently, ends down, on a flat stone, around which the gamblers
sit. The sticks rebound so well that they would fly far away, were
not a blanket stretched overhead to throw them back to the players. A
number of small stones, placed in the form of a square, are used
as counters; these are not moved, but sticks, whose positions are
changed according to the fortunes of the game, are placed between
them. The rules of the game have not been recorded. The other games
were: dilkón, played with two sticks, each the length of an arm;
atsá, played with forked sticks and a ring; and aspi'n.
48. Version A.--Coyote and Hastsézini were partners in the theft
of the young of Tiéholtsodi. When Coyote saw the water rising, he
pointed with his protruded lips (as Indians often do) to the water,
and glanced significantly at his accomplice. First Man observed the
glance, had his suspicions aroused, and began to search.
49. Other variants of the story of the restoration of Tiéholtsodi's
young speak of sacrifices and peace offerings in keeping with the
Indian custom. Version A.--They got a haliotis shell of enormous
size, so large that a man's encircling arm could barely surround
it. Into this they put other shells and many precious stones. They
sprinkled pollen on the young and took some of it off again, for it
had been rendered more holy by contact with the bodies of the young
sea monsters. Then they put these also into the shell and laid all
on the horns of Tiéholtsodi; at once he disappeared under the earth
and the waters went down after him. The pollen taken from the young
was distributed among the people, and brought them rain and game and
much good fortune. Version B.--"At once they threw them (the young)
down to their father, and with them a sacrifice of the treasures of
the sea,--their shell ornaments. In an instant the waters began to
rush down through the hole and away from the lower worlds."
50. Some give the name of the hermaphrodite who died as
Natliyilhátse, and say that "she" is now the chief of devils in the
lower world,--perhaps the same as the Woman Chief referred to in the
"Prayer of a Navaho Shaman." [315] Version B says that the first to
die was the wife of a great chief. (See note 68.)
51. Version A describes the making of the sacred mountains thus: Soon
after the arrival of the people in the fifth world (after the first
sudatory had been built and the first corn planted), some one said:
"It would be well if we had in this world such mountains as we had in
the world below." "I have brought them with me," said First Man. He did
not mean to say he had brought the whole of the mountains with him,
but only a little earth from each, with which to start new mountains
here. The people laid down four sacred buckskins[18] and two sacred
baskets[5] for him to make his mountains on, for there were six sacred
mountains in the lower world, just as there are six in this, and they
were named the same there as they now are here. The mountain in the
east, Tsisnadzi'ni, he made of clay from the mountain of the east
below, mixed with white shell. The mountain of the south, Tsótsil,
he made of earth from below mixed with turquoise. The mountain of
the west he made of earth mixed with haliotis or abalone shell. The
mountain of the north he made of earth mixed with cannel coal.[158]
Dsilnáotil he made of earth from the similar mountain in the lower
world, mixed with goods of all kinds (yúdi althasaí). Tsolíhi he made
of earth from below, mixed with shells and precious stones of all kinds
(inkli'z althasaí). While they were still on the buckskins and baskets,
ten songs were sung which now belong to the rites of hozóni hatál. The
burdens of these songs are as follows:--
1st. Long ago he thought of it.
2d. Long ago he spoke of it.
3d. A chief among mountains he brought up with him.
4th. A chief among mountains he has made.
5th. A chief among mountains is rising.
6th. A chief among mountains is beginning to stand.
7th. A chief among mountains stands up.
8th. A cigarette for a chief among mountains we make.
9th. A chief among mountains smokes.
10th. A chief among mountains is satisfied.
When the people came up from the lower world they were under twelve
chiefs, but only six of them joined in the singing these songs, and
to-day six men sing them. When the mountains were made, the god of each
of the four quarters of the world carried one away and placed it where
it now stands. The other two were left in the middle of the world and
are there still. A pair of gods were then put to live in each mountain,
as follows: East, Dawn Boy and Dawn Girl, called also White Shell Boy
and White Shell Girl; south, Turquoise Boy and Turquoise Girl; west,
Twilight Boy and Haliotis Girl; north, Darkness (or Cannel Coal)
Boy and Darkness Girl: at Dsilnáotil, All-goods (Yúdi-althasaí)
Boy and All-goods Girl; at Tsolíhi, All-jewels (Inkli'z-althasaí)
Boy and All-jewels Girl.
Version B speaks of the making of only four mountains, and very
briefly of this.
52. Tsis-na-dzi'n-i is the name of the sacred mountain which the
Navahoes regard as bounding their country on the east. It probably
means Dark Horizontal Belt. The mountain is somewhere near the pueblo
of Jemez, in Bernalillo County, New Mexico. It is probably Pelado
Peak, 11,260 feet high, 20 miles N.N.E. of the pueblo. White shell
and various other objects of white--the color of the east--belong to
the mountain.
53. Tse`-gá-di-na-ti-ni A-si-ké (Rock Crystal Boy) and
Tse`-gá-di-na-ti-ni A-tét (Rock Crystal Girl) are the deities of
Tsisnadzi'ni. They were brought up from the lower world as small
images of stone; but as soon as they were put in the mountain they
came to life.
54. Tsó-tsil, or Tsó`-dsil, from tso, great, and dsil, a mountain,
is the Navaho name of a peak 11,389 feet high in Valencia County,
New Mexico. Its summit is over twelve miles distant, in a direct
line, east by north, from McCarty's Station on the Atlantic and
Pacific Railroad. It is called by the Mexicans San Mateo, and was
on September 18, 1849, named Mt. Taylor, "in honor of the President
of the United States," by Lieut. J. H. Simpson, U.S. Army.[328] On
the maps of the United States Geological Survey, the whole mountain
mass is marked "San Mateo Mountains," and the name "Mount Taylor" is
reserved for the highest peak. This is one of the sacred mountains
of the Navahoes, and is regarded by them as bounding their country
on the south, although at the present day some of the tribe live
south of the mountain. They say that San Mateo is the mountain of
the south and San Francisco is the mountain of the west, yet the
two peaks are nearly in the same latitude. One version of the Origin
Legend (Version B) makes San Mateo the mountain of the east, but all
other versions differ from this. Blue being the color of the south,
turquoise and other blue things, as named in the myth, belong to
this mountain. As blue also symbolizes the female, she-rain belongs
to San Mateo. Plate III. is from a photograph taken somewhere in the
neighborhood of Chavez Station, about thirty-five miles in a westerly
direction from the summit of the mountain.
55. Dot-li'-zi Lá-i Na-yo-á-li A-si-ké, Boy Who Carries One Turquoise;
Na-tá Lá-i Na-yo-á-li Atét, Girl Who Carries One (Grain of) Corn.
56. Do-kos-líd or Do-ko-os-li'd, is the Navaho name of San Francisco
Mountain, one of the most prominent landmarks in Arizona. The summit
of this peak is distant in a direct line about twelve miles nearly
north from the town of Flagstaff, on the Atlantic and Pacific
Railroad, in Yavapai County, Arizona. The precise meaning of the
Indian name has not been ascertained, but the name seems to contain,
modified, the words to` and kos, the former meaning water and the
latter cloud. It is the sacred mountain of the Navahoes, which they
regard as bounding their land on the west. The color of the west,
yellow, and the various things, mostly yellow, which symbolize the
west, as mentioned in the myth, are sacred to it. Haliotis shell,
although highly iridescent, is regarded by the Navahoes as yellow,
and hence is the shell sacred to the mountain. In Navaho sacred songs,
the peak is called, figuratively, The Wand of Haliotis. Plate II. is
from a photograph taken on the south side of the mountain, at a point
close to the railroad, two or three miles east of Flagstaff.
57. The name Na-tál-kai A-si-ké (White Corn Boy) is from natán
(corn), lakaí (white), and asiké or iské (boy). The name Natáltsoi
Atét (Yellow Corn Girl), comes from natán (corn), litsói (yellow),
and atét (girl). In paragraph 291 mention is made of the creation of
a White Corn Boy and a Yellow Corn Girl. It is not certain whether
these are the same as the deities of Dokoslíd, but it is probable
the Navahoes believe in more than one divine pair with these names.
58. Depe'ntsa, the Navaho name for the San Juan Mountains
in southwestern Colorado, is derived from two words,--depé
(the Rocky Mountain sheep) and intsá (scattered all over, widely
distributed). These mountains are said to bound the Navaho land on the
north. Somewhere among them lies Níhoyostsátse, the Place of Emergence
(note 43). Black being the color of the north, various black things,
such as pászini (cannel coal),[158] blackbirds, etc., belong to these
mountains. There are many peaks in this range from 10,000 to 14,000
feet high.
59. Tha-di-tín A-si-ké (Pollen Boy), A-nil-tá-ni A-tét (Grasshopper
Girl). In paragraphs 290, 291, these are referred to again. In a
dry-painting of klédzi hatál, Grasshopper Girl is depicted in corn
pollen.
60. Dsil-ná-o-til seems to mean a mountain encircled with blood, but
the Navahoes declare that such is not the meaning. They say it means
the mountain that has been encircled by people travelling around it,
and that, when Estsánatlehi and her people lived there they moved
their camp to various places around the base of the mountain. Of
course this is all mythical. Had the author ever seen this mountain,
he might conjecture the significance of the name; but he does not even
know its location. The name of the Carrizo Mountains, Dsilnáodsil,
meaning Mountain Surrounded with Mountains, is nearly the same; but
when the writer visited the Carrizo Mountains in 1892 he was assured
by the Indians that the sacred hill was not there. Dsilnáotil is
rendered in this work Encircled Mountain, which is only an approximate
translation. It is altogether a matter of conjecture why goods of
all kinds--yúdi althasaí (see note 61)--are thought to belong to
this mountain.
61. Yú-di Nai-di-si's-i A-si-ké, Boy who Produces Goods, or causes
the increase of goods; Yú-di Nai-di-si's-i A-tét (Girl Who Produces
Goods). Yódi or yúdi is here translated "goods." It originally referred
to furs, skins, textile fabrics, and such things as Indians bartered
among themselves, except food and jewels. The term is now applied to
nearly all the merchandise to be found in a trader's store.
62. Tso-lí-hi, or Tso-lín-i, is one of the seven sacred mountains of
the Navaho country. Its location has not been determined, neither
has the meaning of its name. Perhaps the name is derived from tsó,
the spruce (Pseudotsuga taxifolia). We can only conjecture what
relation the mountain may have to jewels.
63. Tsoz-gá-li, a large yellow bird, species undetermined.
64. In-kli'z Nai-di-si's-i A-si-ké (Boy Who Produces Jewels);
In-kli'z Nai-di-si's-i Atét (Girl who Produces Jewels). Inkli'z means
something hard and brittle. It is here translated "jewels" for want
of a better term. It is not usually applied to finished jewels, but to
the materials out of which the Navaho jewels are made, such as shells,
turquoise in the rough, cannel coal, and other stones, many of which
are of little value to us, but are considered precious by the Navahoes.
65. A-ki-da-nas-tá-ni, signifying
One-round-thing-sitting-on-top-of-another, is the Navaho name of
an eminence called on our maps Hosta Butte, which is situated in
Bernalillo County, New Mexico, 14 miles N.N.E. of Chavez Station
on the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad. This butte or mesa has an
altitude of 8,837 feet. Being surrounded by hills much lower, it is
a prominent landmark.
66. Tse`-ha-dá-ho-ni-ge, or mirage-stone, is so called because
it is thought in some way to look like a mirage. The writer has
seen pieces of this in the pollen bags of the medicine-men, but
never could procure a piece of it. They offered to exchange for
another piece, but would not sell. A stone (Chinese idol) which they
pronounced similar was analyzed by the chemists of the United States
Geological Survey in Washington, and found to be silicate of magnesia,
probably pyrophyllite. Such, perhaps, is the mirage-stone. The author
offered the Chinese idol to one of the shamans in exchange for his
mirage-stone; but, having heard that the stone image represented a
Chinese god, the shaman feared to make the trade.
67. Tó`-la-nas-tsi is a mixture of all kinds of water, i.e., spring
water, snow water, hail water, and water from the four quarters of
the world. Such water Tó`nenili is supposed to have carried in his
jars. Water used to-day in some of the Navaho rites approximates this
mixture as closely as possible.
68. The subject of the dead belonging to the Sun and the Moon is
explained at length in the version of Náltsos Nigéhani (Version B)
thus: "On the fifth day (after the people came up to the surface
of this world) the sun climbed as usual to the zenith and (then)
stopped. The day grew hot and all longed for the night to come, but
the sun moved not. Then the wise Coyote said: 'The sun stops because
he has not been paid for his work; he demands a human life for every
day that he labors; he will not move again till some one dies.' At
length a woman, the wife of a great chief, ceased to breathe and
grew cold, and while they all drew around in wonder, the sun was
observed to move again, and he travelled down the sky and passed
behind the western mountains.... That night the moon stopped in
the zenith, as the sun had done during the day; and the Coyote told
the people that the moon also demanded pay and would not move until
it was given. He had scarcely spoken when the man who had seen the
departed woman in the nether world died, and the moon, satisfied,
journeyed to the west. Thus it is that some one must die every night,
or the moon would not move across the sky. But the separation of the
tribes occurred immediately after this, and now the moon takes his
pay from among the alien races, while the sun demands the life of a
Navaho as his fee for passing every day over the earth."
69. Many of the Indians tell that the world was originally small and
was increased in size. The following is the version of Náltsos Nigéhani
(B): "The mountains that bounded the world were not so far apart then
as they are now; hence the world was smaller, and when the sun went
over the earth he came nearer to the surface than he does now. So
the first day the sun went on his journey it was intolerably hot;
the people were almost burned to death, and they prayed to the four
winds that each one would pull his mountain away from the centre of
the earth, and thus widen the borders of the world. It was done as
they desired, and the seas that bounded the land receded before the
mountains. But on the second day, although the weather was milder, it
was still too hot, and again were the mountains and seas removed. All
this occurred again on the third day; but on the fourth day they
found the weather pleasant, and they prayed no more for the earth to
be changed."
70. The story of the making of the stars is told in essentially
the same way by many story-tellers. It is surprising that Hatáli
Nez totally omitted it. The following is the tale as told by Náltsos
Nigéhani: "Now First Man and First Woman thought it would be better if
the sky had more lights, for there were times when the moon did not
shine at night. So they gathered a number of fragments of sparkling
mica of which to make stars, and First Man proceeded to lay out
a plan of the heavens, on the ground. He put a little fragment in
the north, where he wished to have the star that would never move,
and he placed near it seven great pieces, which are the seven stars
we behold in the north now. He put a great bright one in the south,
another in the east, and a third in the west, and then went on to
plan various constellations, when along came Coyote, who, seeing
that three pieces were red, exclaimed, 'These shall be my stars, and
I will place them where I think best;' so he put them in situations
corresponding to places that three great red stars now occupy among
the celestial lights. Before First Man got through with his work,
Coyote became impatient, and, saying, 'Oh! they will do as they are,'
he hastily gathered the fragments of mica, threw them upwards, and blew
a strong breath after them. Instantly they stuck to the sky. Those
to which locations had been assigned adhered in their proper places;
but the others were scattered at random and in formless clusters over
the firmament." See "A Part of the Navajo's Mythology," pp. 7, 8.[306]
71. The following are some of the destroyers who sprang from this
blood:--
Tse`nagahi, Travelling Stone.
Tsindilhásitso, Great Wood That Bites.
Bitsóziyeada`a`i,
Sánisdzol, Old Age Lying Down.
Tse`tlahódilyil, Black Under Cliffs.
Tse`tlahódotli'z, Blue Under Cliffs.
Tsé`tlahaltsó, Yellow Under Cliffs
Tsé`tlahalkaí, White Under Cliffs.
Tse`tlahóditsos, Sparkling Under Cliffs.
Tsadidahaltáli, Devouring Antelope.
Yeitsolapáhi, Brown Yéitso.
Lokáadikisi, Slashing Reeds.
"You see colors under the rocks, at the bottoms of the cliffs, and
when you approach them some invisible enemy kills you. These are the
same as the Tse`tlayaltí`, or Those Who Talk Under the Cliffs." Thus
said Hatáli Nez when questioned.
72. Kintyél or Kintyê'li.--This name (from kin, a stone or adobe house,
a pueblo house, and tyel, broad) means simply Broad Pueblo,--one
covering much ground. It is applied to at least two ruined pueblos in
the Navaho country. One of these--the Pueblo Grande of the Mexicans,
situated "twenty-two or twenty-three miles north of Navaho Springs,"
a station on the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad, in Arizona--is well
described and depicted by Mr. Victor Mindeleff in his "Study of
Pueblo Architecture."[326] The other--the Kintyél to which reference
is made in this story--is in the Chaco Canyon, in New Mexico. With
its name spelled "Kintail," and rendered "the Navajo name for ruin,"
it is mentioned by Mr. F. T. Bickford,[293] and one of his pictures,
probably representing Kintyél, is here reproduced (fig. 36). In the
Journal of American Folk-Lore, April-June, 1889, the author says:
"I have reason to believe that this pueblo is identical with that
seen and described in 1849 by Lieut. J. H. Simpson, U.S.A., under
the name of Pueblo Chettro Kettle."
73. The name Has-tsé-yal-ti, spelled according to the alphabet of the
Bureau of Ethnology "Qastcéyalçi" may be translated Talking God, or
Talking Elder of the Gods. Hastséyalti is otherwise called Yébitsai,
or the Maternal Grandfather of the Gods. He is a chief or leader
among several groups of local divinities who are said to dwell at
Kininaékai, in the Chelly Canyon, at Tse'nitse, Tsé`híhi, and at
various other sacred places. Although called a talking god, the man
who personates him in the rites never speaks while in character,
but utters a peculiar whoop and makes signs. In the myths, however,
the god is represented as speaking, usually after he has whooped
and made signs. (Par. 472.) He is a beneficent character, always
ready to help man and rescue him from peril. He is sometimes spoken
of and prayed to as if there were but one, but the myths show that
the Navahoes believe in many gods of this name, and in some prayers
it is distinctly specified which one is meant by naming his home
in connection with him. In plate I. he is shown, as represented in
the dry-paintings, carrying a tobacco bag made of the skin of Abert's
squirrel (Sciurus aberti). In the picture the black tips of toes, nose,
and ears, and the reddish (chestnut) spot on the back of the squirrel,
are carefully indicated. The dry-painting shows the more important
characters of the mask worn by the personator,--the eagle-plumes at
the back, the owl-feathers at the base of the plume-ornament, and the
peculiar symbols at mouth and eyes,--but it does not show the cornstalk
symbol over the nose. Fig. 27, taken from a photograph, shows the mask
trimmed with its collar of fresh spruce boughs, as it appears when used
in the dance of naakhaí on the last night of the ceremony of klédzi
hatál. The personator of Hastséyalti has his whole person clothed,
while the representatives of other gods go nearly naked. The proper
covering for his back is a number of finely dressed deerskins, one over
another, tied together in front by the skins of the legs; but of late
years the masquerader often appears in an ordinary calico shirt. The
symbol surrounding each of the holes for the eyes and mouth is this
[symbol]. It is said to represent the storm cloud hanging above,
and the mist rising from below to meet it. Thus cloud and mist often
appear in the mountains of the Navaho land during the rainy season,
Hastséyalti or the Yébitsai is the principal character in the great
rite of klédzi hatál, or the night chant. Our people, who often go
to witness the public performance of the last night in this rite,
call it the Yébitsai (Yáybichy) dance. The songs and prayers in which
Hastséyalti is mentioned are numerous. For the points in which fig. 2,
plate I., agree with fig. 1, plate I., see note 74.
74. Has-tsé-ho-gan, spelled with alphabet of Bureau of Ethnology,
Qastcéqogan, may be freely translated House God. Hastséhogan is one
of the leading personages in each of the local groups of the yéi,
or divine beings, who dwell in caves and old cliff-dwellings. He
is commonly spoken of as if there were but one; but an examination
of the myths shows that the Navahoes believe in many of these
gods. Those of Tse`gíhi, Tsé`nihogan, Tsé`nitse, Kininaékai, and
the sacred mountains are the ones most commonly worshipped. In most
myths he appears as second in authority to Hastséyalti, the Talking
God, but occasionally he is represented as equal or even superior
to the latter. He is a farm god as well as a house god. To him are
attributed the farm-songs sung during the night chant (see note 322),
and many other songs. He is a beneficent character and a friend to
man. There are many songs and prayers in his honor. In the rite of
klédzi hatál, or the night chant, he is represented in the dance
by a man wearing a collar of spruce, a blue mask decorated with
eagle-plumes and moccasins, with shirt and leggings, which should be
(but of late years are not always) of buckskin. He is depicted in the
dry-paintings thus (see plate I., fig. 1): He wears a black shirt
ornamented with four star-like ornaments embroidered in porcupine
quills, and having a fancy fringe of porcupine quills at the bottom;
white buckskin leggings; colored garters; quill-embroidered moccasins,
tied on with white strings; long ear-pendants of turquoise and coral;
bracelets of the same; an otter-skin (hanging below the right ear),
from which depend six buckskin strings with colored porcupine quills
wrapped around them; a cap-like (male) mask painted blue, fringed with
red hair, and adorned with eagle-plumes and owl-feathers. He carries a
staff (gis) painted black (with the charcoal of four sacred plants),
streaked transversely with white, and adorned with a single cluster
of turkey tail-feathers arranged as a whorl, and two eagle plumes,
which, like the plumes on the head, are tipped with small, downy
eagle-feathers. The yellow stripe at the chin indicates a similar
stripe on the mask actually worn, and symbolizes the yellow light
of evening (nahotsóí). The neck of this as well as the other divine
figures is painted blue, and crossed with four stripes in red. Some
say that this indicates the larynx with its cartilaginous rings;
others say that it represents the collar of spruce-twigs; others are
uncertain of its meaning. If it does not represent the spruce collars,
it represents nothing in the costume of the masquerader, which, in
other respects, except the quill embroideries, agrees closely with the
picture, Hastséyalti is also a dawn god, Hastséhogan a god of evening.
75. In the Navaho tales, men frequently receive friendly warnings
or advice from wind gods who whisper into their ears. Some
story-tellers--as in the version of the origin myth here given--speak
of one wind god only, whom they call simply Ni'ltsi (Wind); while
others--as in the story of Nati'nesthani--speak of Ni'ltsi-diné`
(Wind People) and Niltsiázi-diné` (Little Wind People) as the friendly
prompters.
76. The game of nánzoz, as played by the Navahoes, is much the
same as the game of chungkee played by the Mandans, described and
depicted by Catlin in his "North American Indians,"[296] vol. i.,
page 132, plate 59. A hoop is rolled along the ground and long poles
are thrown after it. The Mandan pole was made of a single piece of
wood. The pole of the Navahoes is made of two pieces, usually alder,
each a natural fathom long; the pieces overlap and are bound together
by a long branching strap of hide called thágibike, or turkey-claw.
77. These shells may not be altogether mythical. Possibly they are the
same as those described in the story of "The Great Shell of Kintyél"
given in this book.
78. Vague descriptions only of Bé-ko-tsi-di so far have been
obtained. He is not represented by any masked characters in the
ceremonies, or by any picture in the dry-paintings. No description
of his appearance has been recorded, except that he looks like an old
man. There is a myth concerning him of which a brief epitome has been
recorded. There are four songs of sequence connected with this myth. If
a Navaho wants a fine horse, he thinks he may get it by singing the
second and third of these songs and praying to Békotsidi. In his prayer
he specifies the color and appearance of the horse desired. Some say
that Békotsidi made all the animals whose creation is not otherwise
accounted for in the myths. Others say that he and the Sun made the
animals together. Others, again, limit his creation work to the larger
game animals and the modern domestic animals. In this paragraph (228)
it is said he is the god who carries the moon, while in paragraph 199
it is said the moon-bearer is Kléhanoai. Perhaps these are two names
for one character. Some say he is the same as the God of the Americans.
79. Bayeta, Spanish for baize. The variety of baize which finds its
way into the Navaho country is dyed some shade of crimson, and has a
very long nap. It is supposed to be made in England especially for
the Spanish-American trade, for each original bale bears a gaudy
colored label with an inscription in Spanish. It takes the place in
the Southwest of the scarlet strouding which used to form such an
important article in the trade of our northern tribes. The bright
red figures in the finer Navaho blankets, fifteen years or more ago,
were all made of threads of ravelled bayeta.
80. The coyote, or prairie-wolf (Canis latrans), would seem to be
regarded by the Navahoes as the type, or standard for comparison,
among the wild Canidæ of the Southwest. The coyote is called mai;
the great wolf, maítso, which means great coyote; and the kit fox
(Vulpes velox) is called maidotli'z, which means blue or gray coyote.
81. Some versions say there were twelve brothers and one sister in this
divine family, making thirteen in all. In this version the narrator
tells how another brother was created by Estsánatlehi to make up for
the loss of Léyaneyani, who left the brotherhood. (Par. 417.) Although
called Diné` Nakidáta, or the Twelve People, these brothers are
evidently divinities. True, they once died; but they came to life
again and are now immortal. They are gifted with superhuman powers.
82. The sweat-house of the Navahoes (par. 25, fig. 15) is usually not
more than three feet high. Diaphoresis is produced on the principle
of the Turkish (not the Russian) bath. While the Indians of the North
pour water on the hot stones and give a steam bath, the Navahoes
simply place stones, heated in a fire outside, on the floor of the
sweat-house, cover the entrance with blankets, and thus raise a high
heat that produces violent perspiration. When the occupant comes out,
if the bath is not ceremonial, he rolls himself in the sand, and, when
his skin is thus dried, he brushes the sand away. He usually returns
then to the sweat-house, and may repeat the operation several times in
a single afternoon. If the sweat is ceremonial, the bath of yucca suds
usually follows (see note 10), and the subject is dried with corn meal.
83. One version relates that, before they entered the sudatory, Coyote
proposed they should produce emesis by tickling their throats,--a
common practice among the Navahoes. He placed a large piece of pine
bark before each, as a dish, and bade Yélapahi keep his eyes shut
till he was told to open them. That day Coyote had fared poorly. He
had found nothing to eat but a few bugs and worms, while Yélapahi
had dined heartily on fat venison. When the emesis was over, Coyote
exchanged the bark dishes and said to Yélapahi: "Open your eyes and
see what bad things you have had in your stomach. These are the things
that make you sick." The giant opened his eyes and beheld on the bark
a lot of bugs and worms. "It is true, my friend, what you tell me,"
he said. "How did I get such vile things into me? No wonder I could
not run fast." Coyote then told the giant to go before him into the
sudatory, and when the giant had turned his back the hungry Coyote
promptly devoured the contents of the other dish of bark.
84. The word tóhe (Englished thóhay), which may be interpreted stand,
stick, or stay, is, in various rites, shouted in an authoritative
tone when it is desired that some object shall obey the will of the
conjurer. Thus in the dance of the standing arcs, as practised in the
rite of the mountain chant, when an arc is placed on the head of a
performer, and it is intended that it should stand without apparent
means of support, the cry "tóhe" is frequently repeated. (See "The
Mountain Chant,"[314] p. 437.)
85. The statement that the hair of the gods, both friendly and alien,
is yellow, is made in other tales also. The hair of the ceremonial
masks is reddish or yellowish. (See plates IV. and VII.) The hair of
the gods is represented by red in the dry-pictures. Dull tints of red
are often called yellow by the Navahoes. Various conjectures may be
made to account for these facts.
86. The bridge of rainbow, as well as the trail of rainbow, is
frequently introduced into Navaho tales. The Navaho land abounds in
deep chasms and canyons, and the divine ones, in their wanderings,
are said to bridge the canyons by producing rainbows. In the myth
of "The Mountain Chant," p. 399 (note 314), the god Hastséyalti is
represented as making a rainbow bridge for the hero to walk on. The
hero steps on the bow, but sinks in it because the bow is soft; then
the god blows a breath that hardens the bow, and the man walks on it
with ease. A natural bridge near Fort Defiance, Arizona, is thought
by the Navahoes to have been originally one of the rainbow bridges
of Hastséyalti (See fig. 38.)
87. The spiders of Arizona are largely of the classes that live in
the ground, including trap-door spiders, tarantulas, etc.
88. This legend and nearly all the legends of the Navaho make
frequent allusions to yucca. Four kinds are mentioned: 1st, tsási
or haskán. Yucca baccata (Torrey); 2d, tsasitsóz, or slender yucca,
Yucca glauca (Nuttall), Yucca angustifolia (Pursh); 3d, yebitsasi,
or yucca of the gods, probably Yucca radiosa (Trelease), Yucca elata
(Engelmann); 4th, tsasibité or horned yucca, which seems to be but a
stunted form or dwarf variety of Yucca baccata, never seen in bloom or
in fruit by the author. Tsási is used as a generic name. All kinds are
employed in the rites, sometimes indifferently; at other times only a
certain species may be used. Thus in the sacred game of kesitsé,[176]
the counters are made of the leaves of Y. glauca; in the initiation
into the mystery of the Yébitsai, the candidate is flogged with the
leaf of Y. baccata. Fig. 26 represents a mask used in the rites of
klédzi hatál, which must be made only of the leaves of Y. baccata,
culled with many singular observances. All these yuccas have saponine
in their roots (which are known as tálawus or foam), and all are used
for cleansing purposes. All have, in their leaves, long tough fibres
which are utilized for all the purposes to which such fibres may be
applied. One species only, Yucca baccata, has an edible fruit. This
is called haskán (from hos, thorny, and kan, sweet), a name sometimes
applied to the whole plant. The fruit is eaten raw and made into a
tough, dense jelly, both by the Navaho and Pueblo Indians. The first
and second kinds grow abundantly in the Navaho country; the third and
fourth kinds are rarer. Fig. 40 represents a drumstick used in the
rites of klédzi hatál, which must be made only of four leaves of Yucca
baccata. The intricate observances connected with the manufacture,
use, destruction, and sacrifice of this drumstick have already been
described by the author.[321]
89. The cane cactus is Opuntia arborescens (Engelm.).
90. Tsiké Sas Nátlehi means literally Young Woman Who Changes to a
Bear, or Maid Who Becomes a Bear. To judge from this tale, it might be
thought that there was but one such character in the Navaho mythology
and that she had died. But it appears from other legends and from
rituals that the Navahoes believe in several such maidens, some of
whom exist to this day. The hill of Tsúskai (note 9) is said in the
myth of dsilyi'dze hatál to be the home of several of the Tsiké Sas
Nátlehi now. It would seem from the songs of dsilyi'dze hatál that the
Maid Who Becomes a Bear of later days is not considered as malevolent
as the first of her kind. Her succor is sought by the sick.
91. See par. 26. From the language of this story, the conclusion
may be drawn that death is not the only thing that renders a house
haunted or evil but that, if great misfortune has entered there,
it is also to be avoided.
92. This remark must refer only to the particular group whose story
is traced. According to the legend, other bands of Diné` who had
escaped the fury of the alien gods, existed at this time, and when
they afterwards joined the Navahoes they were known as diné` digíni
(holy or mystic people). (See pars. 385 and 387.)
93. The gods, and such men as they favor, are represented in the
tales as making rapid and easy journeys on rainbows, sunbeams, and
streaks of lightning. Such miraculous paths are called eti'n digíni,
or holy trails. They are also represented as using sunbeams like
rafts to float through the air.
94. Compare this account with the creation of First Man and First
Woman. (Pars. 162-164.)
95. Es-tsá-na-tle-hi (par. 72) is never represented in the rites by a
masquerader, and never depicted in the sand-paintings, as far as the
author has been able to learn. Other versions of the legend account
for her creation in other ways. Version A.--First Man and First
Woman stayed at Dsilnáotil and camped in various places around the
mountain. One day a black cloud descended on the mountain of Tsolíhi,
and remained there four days. First Man said: "Surely something has
happened from this; let some one go over there and see." First Woman
went. She approached the mountain from the east, and wound four times
around it in ascending it. On the top she found a female infant, who
was the daughter of the Earth Mother (Naestsán, the Woman Horizontal)
and the Sky Father (Yádilyil, the Upper Darkness). She picked up the
child, who till that moment had been silent; but as soon as she was
lifted she began to cry, and never ceased crying until she got home to
Dsilnáotil. Salt Woman said she wanted the child. It is thought the
sun fed the infant on pollen, for there was no one to nurse it. In
twelve days she grew to be a big girl, and in eighteen days she
became a woman, and they held the nubile ceremony over her. Twelve
songs belong to this ceremony. Version B only says that First Woman
found the infant lying on the ground and took it home to rear it. (See
"Some Deities and Demons of the Navajos,"[313] pp. 844, 846.)
96. Yol-kaí Es-tsán signifies White Shell Woman. Yolkaí is derived
by syncope from yo (a bead, or the shell from which a bead is made)
and lakaí (white). Estsán means woman. As far as known, she is not
represented by a character in any of the ceremonies, and not depicted
in the dry-paintings.
97. Note omitted.
98. Tó`-ne-ni-li or Tó-ne-ni-li, Water Sprinkler, is an important
character in Navaho mythology. He is a rain-god. In the dry-paintings
of the Navaho rites he is shown as wearing a blue mask bordered with
red, and trimmed on top with life-feathers. Sometimes he is represented
carrying a water-pot. In the rite of klédzi hatál, during the public
dance of the last night, he is represented by a masked man who enacts
the part of a clown. While other masked men are dancing, this clown
performs various antics according to his caprice. He walks along the
line of dancers, gets in their way, dances out of order and out of
time, peers foolishly at different persons, or sits on the ground,
his hands clasped across his knees, his body rocking to and fro. At
times he joins regularly in the dance; toward the close of a figure,
and when the others have retired, pretending he is unaware of their
departure, he remains, going through his steps. Then, feigning to
suddenly discover the absence of the dancers, he follows them on a
full run. Sometimes he carries a fox-skin, drops it on the ground,
walks away as if unconscious of his loss; then, pretending to become
aware of his loss, he turns around and acts as if searching anxiously
for the skin, which lies plainly in sight. He screens his eyes with
his hand and crouches low to look. Then, pretending to find the
skin, he jumps on it and beats it as if it were a live animal that
he seeks to kill. Next he shoulders and carries it as if it were a
heavy burden. With such antics the personator of Tó`nenili assists
in varying the monotony of the long night's performance. Though shown
as a fool in the rites, he is not so shown in the myths.
99. They manipulated the abdominal parietes, in the belief that by so
doing they would insure a favorable presentation. This is the custom
among the Navahoes to-day.
100. Among the Navahoes, medicine-men act as accoucheurs.
101. Other versions make Estsánatlehi the mother of both War Gods, and
give a less imaginative account of their conception. Version A.--The
maiden Estsánatlehi went out to get wood. She collected a bundle, tied
it with a rope, and when she knelt down to lift it she felt a foot
pressed upon her back; she looked up and saw no one. Three times more
kneeling, she felt the pressure of the foot. When she looked up for
the fourth time, she saw a man. "Where do you live?" he asked. "Near
by," she replied, pointing to her home. "On yonder mountain," he said,
"you will find four yuccas, each of a different kind, cut on the north
side to mark them. Dig the roots of these yuccas and make yourself a
bath. Get meal of tohonoti'ni corn (note 28), yellow from your mother,
white from your father (note 27). Then build yourself a brush shelter
away from your hut and sleep there four nights." She went home and
told all this to her foster parents. They followed all the directions
of the mysterious visitor, for they knew he was the Sun. During three
nights nothing happened in the brush shelter that she knew of. On
the morning after the fourth night she was awakened from her sleep
by the sound of departing footsteps, and, looking in the direction
that she heard them, she saw the sun rising. Four days after this
(or twelve days, as some say) Nayénezgani was born. Four days later
she went to cleanse herself at a spring, and there she conceived of
the water, and in four days more To`badzistsíni, the second War God,
was born to her. Version B.--The Sun (or bearer of the sun) met her
in the woods and designated a trysting place. Here First Man built a
corral of branches. Sun visited her, in the form of an ordinary man, in
the corral, four nights in succession. Four days after the last visit
she gave birth to twins, who were Nayénezgani and To`badzistsíni. (See
"A Part of the Navajos' Mythology,"[306] pp. 9, 10.)
102. Version A thus describes the baby basket of the elder brother:
The child was wrapped in black cloud. A rainbow was used for the hood
of the basket and studded with stars. The back of the frame was a
parhelion, with the bright spot at its bottom shining at the lowest
point. Zigzag lightning was laid on each side and straight lightning
down the middle in front. Niltsátlol (sunbeams shining on a distant
rainstorm) formed the fringe in front where Indians now put strips
of buckskin. The carrying-straps were sunbeams.
103. The mountain mahogany of New Mexico and Arizona is the Cercocarpus
parvifolius, Nutt. It is called by the Navahoes Tsé`estagi, which
means hard as stone.
104. Round cactus, one or more species of Mammilaria. Sitting cactus,
Cereus phoeniceus, and perhaps other species of Cereus.
105. Yé-i-tso (from yéi, a god or genius, and tso, great) was
the greatest and fiercest of the anáye, or alien gods. (Par. 80,
note 7.) All descriptions of him are substantially the same. (See
pars. 323, 325, 326.) According to the accounts of Hatáli Nez and
Torlino, his father was a stone; yet in par. 320 and in Version B
the sun is represented as saying that Yéitso is his child. Perhaps
they mean he is the child of the sun in a metaphysical sense.
106. This part of the myth alludes to the trap-door spiders, or
tarantulæ of the Southwest, that dwell in carefully prepared nests
in the ground.
107. By life-feather or breath-feather (hyiná biltsós) is meant a
feather taken from a live bird, especially one taken from a live
eagle. Such feathers are supposed to preserve life and possess other
magic powers. They are used in all the rites. In order to secure
a supply of these feathers, the Pueblo Indians catch eaglets and
rear them in captivity (see pars. 560 et seq.); but the Navahoes,
like the wild tribes of the north, catch full-grown eagles in traps,
and pluck them while alive. This method of catching eagles has been
described by the author in his "Ethnography and Philology of the
Hidatsa Indians."[305]
108. Pollen being an emblem of peace, this is equivalent to saying,
"Put your feet down in peace," etc.
109. Version A in describing the adventure with Spider Woman adds:
There were only four rungs to the ladder. She had many seats in her
house. The elder brother sat on a seat of obsidian; the younger,
on a seat of turquoise. She offered them food of four kinds to eat;
they only accepted one kind. When they had eaten, a small image of
obsidian came out from an apartment in the east and stood on a serrated
platform, or platform of serrate knives. The elder brother stood
on the platform beside the image. Spider Woman blew a strong breath
four times on the image in the direction of the youth, and the latter
became thus endowed with the hard nature of the obsidian, which was to
further preserve him in his future trials. From the south room came a
turquoise image, and stood on a serrated platform. The younger brother
stood beside this. Spider Woman blew on the turquoise image toward him,
and he thus acquired the hard nature of the blue stone. To-day in the
rites of hozóni hatál they have a prayer concerning these incidents
beginning, "Now I stand on pésdolgas." (See note 264.)
110. In describing the journey of the War Gods to the house of the
Sun, version A adds something. At Tó`sato or Hot Spring (Ojo Gallina,
near San Rafael), the brothers have an adventure with Tiéholtsodi, the
water monster, who threatens them and is appeased with prayer. They
encounter Old Age People, who treat them kindly, but bid them not
follow the trail that leads to the house of Old Age. They come to
Hayolkál, Daylight, which rises like a great range of mountains
in front of them. (Songs.) They fear they will have to cross this,
but Daylight rises from the ground and lets them pass under.... They
come to Tsalyél, Darkness. Wind whispers into their ears what songs
to sing. They sing these songs and Tsalyél rises and lets them pass
under. They come to water, which they walk over. On the other side
they meet their sister, the daughter of the Sun, who dwells in the
house of the Sun. She speaks not, but turns silently around, and they
follow her to the house.
111. According to version A, there were four sentinels of each kind,
and they lay in the passageway or entrance to the house. A curtain
hung in front of each group of four. In each group the first sentinel
was black, the second blue, the third yellow, the fourth white. The
brothers sang songs to the guardians and sprinkled pollen on them.
112. Version A gives the names of these two young men as Black Thunder
and Blue Thunder.
113. The teller of the version has omitted to mention that the
brothers, when they entered the house, declared that they came to
seek their father, but other story-tellers do not fail to tell this.
114. Four articles of armor were given to each, and six different
kinds of weapons were given to them. The articles of armor were: peské
(knife moccasins), pesistlê' (knife leggings), pesê' (knife shirt),
and pestsá (knife hat). The word "pes" in the above names for armor,
is here translated knife. The term was originally applied to flint
knives, and to the flakes from which flint knives were made. After
the introduction of European tools, the meaning was extended to
include iron knives, and now it is applied to any object of iron,
and, with qualifying suffixes, to all kinds of metal. Thus copper is
peslitsí, or red metal, and silver, peslakaí, or white metal. Many
of the Navahoes now think that the mythic armor of their gods was of
iron. Such the author believed it to be in the earlier years of his
investigation among the Navahoes, and he was inclined to believe that
they borrowed the idea of armored heroes from the Spanish invaders of
the sixteenth century. Later studies have led him to conclude that
the conception of armored heroes was not borrowed from the whites,
and that the armor was supposed to be made of stone flakes such as
were employed in making knives in the prehistoric days. The Mokis
believe that their gods and heroes wore armor of flint.
115. The weapons were these:--
atsinikli'ska (chain-lightning arrows)
hatsilki'ska or hadilki'ska (sheet-lightning arrows)
sa`bitlólka (sunbeam arrows)
natsili'tka (rainbow arrows)
peshál (stone knife-club)
hatsoilhál, which some say was a thunderbolt, and others say was
a great stone knife, with a blade as broad as the hand. Some say
that only one stone knife was given, which was for Nayénezgani,
and that only two thunderbolts were given, both of which were
for To`badzistsíni. The man who now personates Nayénezgani in the
rites carries a stone knife of unusual size (plate IV.); and he who
personates To`badzistsíni carries in each hand a wooden cylinder
(one black and one red) to represent a thunderbolt. (Plate VII.)
116. Version A adds that when they were thus equipped they were
dressed exactly like their brothers Black Thunder and Blue Thunder,
who dwelt in the house of the Sun.
117. The man who told this tale explained that there were sixteen poles
in the east and sixteen in the west to join earth and sky. Others
say there were thirty-two poles on each side. The Navahoes explain
the annual progress of the sun by saying that at the winter solstice
he climbs on the pole farthest south in rising; that as the season
advances he climbs on poles farther and farther north, until at
the summer solstice he climbs the pole farthest north; that then
he retraces his way, climbing different poles until he reaches the
south again. He is supposed to spend about an equal number of days
at each pole.
118. Many versions relate that the bearer of the sun rode a horse,
or other pet animal. The Navaho word here employed is lin, which means
any domesticated or pet animal, but now, especially, a horse. Version
A says the animal he rode was made of turquoise and larger than a
horse. Such versions have great difficulty in getting the horse up
to the sky. Version A makes the sky dip down and touch the earth to
let the horse ascend. Of course the horse is a modern addition to
the tale. They never saw horses until the sixteenth century, and
previous to that time it is not known that any animal was ridden
on the western continent. Version B merely says that the Sun "put
on his robe of cloud, and, taking one of his sons under each arm,
he rose into the heavens."
119. Version B says they all ate a meal on their journey to the
sky-hole. Version A says that they ate for food, at the sky-hole,
before the brothers descended, a mixture of five kinds of pollen,
viz.: pollen of white corn, pollen of yellow corn, pollen of dawn,
pollen of evening twilight, and pollen of the sun.[11] These were
mixed with tó`lanastsi, all kinds of water.[67]
120. Tó`-sa-to or Warm Spring is at the village of San Rafael, Valencia
County, New Mexico. It is about three miles in a southerly direction
from Grant's, on the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad, five miles from
the base and eighteen miles from the summit of Mount Taylor, in a
southwesterly direction from the latter. The lake referred to in the
myth lies about two miles southeast of the spring.
121. According to Version A, the monsters or anáye were all conceived
in the fifth world and born of one woman (a granddaughter of First
Woman), who travelled much and rarely stayed at home. According to
Version B, the monsters were sent by First Woman, who became offended
with man.
122. Version A gives, in addition to Tsótsil, the names of the other
three hills over which Yéitso appeared. These were: in the east,
Sa`akéa`; in the south, Dsilsitsí (Red Mountain); in the west,
Tse`lpaináli (Brown Rock Hanging Down).
123. Version A.--"Hragh!" said he, with a sigh of satisfaction
(pantomimically expressed), "I have finished that."
124. Yiniketóko! No etymology has been discovered for this
expression. It is believed to be the equivalent of the "Fee Fa Fum!" of
the giants in our nursery tales.
125. Version B.--This bolt rent his armor.
126. It is common in this and all other versions to show that evil
turns to good (see pars. 338, 345, 349, et al.) and that the demons
dead become useful to man in other forms. How the armor of Yéitso
became useful to man, the narrator here forgot to state; but it may
be conjectured that he should have said that it furnished flint flakes
for knives and arrow-heads.
127. Other versions state, more particularly, that, in accordance with
the Indian custom, these names were given when the brothers returned
to their home, and the ceremony of rejoicing (the "scalp-dance")
was held for their first victory. Nayénezgani is derived from na,
or aná (alien or enemy: see note 7); yéi, ye or ge (a genius or god;
hence anáye, an alien god or giant: see par. 80); nezgá` (to kill
with a blow or blows, as in killing with a club); and the suffix ni
(person). The name means, therefore, Slayer of the Alien Gods, or
Slayer of Giants. As the sounds of g and y before e are interchangeable
in the Navaho language, the name is heard pronounced both Nayénezgani
and Nagénezgani,--about as often one way as the other. In previous
essays the author has spelled it in the latter way; but in this work
he gives preference to the former, since it is more in harmony with
his spelling of other names containing the word "ye" or "yéi." (See
par. 78.) To`-ba-dzis-tsí-ni is derived from to` (water), ba (for
him), dzistsín (born), and the suffix ni. The name therefore means,
literally, Born for the Water; but the expression badzistsín (born
for him) denotes the relation of father and child,--not of a mother
and child,--so that a free translation of the name is Child of the
Water. The second name of this god, Naídikisi, is rarely used.
128. About 40 miles to the northeast of the top of Mt. San Mateo
there is a dark, high volcanic hill called by the Mexicans El Cabezon,
or The Great Head. This is the object which, according to the Navaho
story-tellers, was the head of Yéitso. Around the base of San Mateo,
chiefly toward the east and north, there are several more high volcanic
peaks, of less prominence than El Cabezon, which are said to have
been the heads of other giants who were slain in a great storm raised
by the War Gods. (See pars. 358, 359.) Plate V. shows six of these
volcanic hills. The high truncated cone in the distance (17 miles
from the point of view) is El Cabezon. Captain Clarence E. Dutton,
U.S.A., treats of the geologic character of these cones in his work
on Mount Taylor.[299] Plate V. is taken from the same photograph as
his plate XXI. In Lieut. Simpson's report,[328] p. 73, this hill is
described under the name Cerro de la Cabeza, and a picture of it is
given in plate 17 of said report. It is called "Cabezon Pk." on the
accompanying map.
129. To the south and west of the San Mateo Mountains there is a
great plain of lava rock of geologically recent origin, which fills
the valley and presents plainly the appearance of having once been
flowing. The rock is dark and has much resemblance to coagulated
blood. This is the material which, the Navahoes think, was once the
blood of Yéitso. In some places it looks as if the blood were suddenly
arrested, forming high cliffs; here the war god is supposed to have
stopped the flow with his knife. Plate VI. shows this lava in the
valley of the Rio San José, from a photograph supplied by the United
States Geological Survey.
130. Version A adds some particulars to the account of the return of
the brothers to their home, after their encounter with Yéitso. They
first went to Azíhi, the place at which they descended when they
came from the sky, and then to Kainipéhi. On their way home they sang
twenty songs--the Nidotátsogisin--which are sung to-day in the rites of
hozóni hatál. Near Dsilnáotil, just at daybreak, they met Hastséyalti
and Hastséhogan, who embraced them, addressed them as grandchildren,
sang two songs, now belonging to the rites, and conducted the young
heroes to their home.
131. Té-el-get, Tê-el-ge'-ti and Del-gét are various pronunciations
of the name of this monster. In the songs he is sometimes called
Bi-té-el-ge-ti, which is merely prefixing the personal pronoun "his"
to the name. The exact etymology has not been determined. The name has
some reference to his horns; tê, or te, meaning horns, and bité, his
horns, in Navaho. All descriptions of this anáye are much alike. His
father, it is said, was an antelope horn.
132. Arabis holböllii (Hornemann), a-ze-la-dil-té-he, "scattered" or
"lone medicine." The plants grow single and at a distance from one
another, not in beds or clusters. (See "Navajo Names for Plants,"[312]
p. 770.)
133. Version A relates that they sang, while at work on these kethawns,
six songs, which, under the name of Atsós Bigi'n, or Feather Songs,
are sung now in the rite of hozóni hatál.
134. Version A says that the horns of Téelget were like those of an
antelope, and that Nayénezgani cut off the short branch of one as an
additional trophy.
135. Tse`na'-ha-le. These mythic creatures, which in a previous paper,
"A Part of the Navajos' Mythology,"[306] the author calls harpies,
from their analogy to the harpies of Greek mythology, are believed
in by many tribes of the Southwest. According to Hatáli Nez they were
the offspring of a bunch of eagle plumes.
136. Tsé`-bi-ta-i, or Winged Rock, is a high, sharp pinnacle of dark
volcanic rock, rising from a wide plain in the northwestern part of
New Mexico, about 12 miles from the western boundary of the Territory,
and about 20 miles from the northern boundary. The Navahoes liken it
to a bird, and hence the name of Winged Rock, or more literally Rock,
Its Wings. The whites think it resembles a ship with sails set, and
call it Ship Rock. Its bird-like appearance has probably suggested to
the Navahoes the idea of making it the mythic home of the bird-like
Tse`na'hale.
137. There are many instances in Navaho language and legend where, when
two things somewhat resemble each other, but one is the coarser, the
stronger, or the more violent, it is spoken of as male, or associated
with the male; while the finer, weaker, or more gentle is spoken
of as female, or associated with the female. Thus the turbulent
San Juan River is called, by the Navaho, To`baká, or Male Water;
while the placid Rio Grande is known as To`baád, or Female Water. A
shower accompanied by thunder and lightning is called niltsabaká, or
male rain; a shower without electrical display is called niltsabaád,
or female rain. In the myth of Nati'nesthani the mountain mahogany
is said to be used for the male sacrificial cigarette, and the cliff
rose for the female. These two shrubs are much alike, particularly
when in fruit and decked with long plumose styles, but the former
(the "male") is the larger and coarser shrub. In the myth of Dsilyi`
Neyáni another instance may be found where mountain mahogany is
associated with the male, and the cliff rose with the female. Again,
in the myth of Nati'nesthani a male cigarette is described as made
of the coarse sunflower, while its associated female is said to be
made of the allied but more slender Verbesina. Instances of this
character might be multiplied indefinitely. On this principle the
north is associated with the male, and the south with the female,
for two reasons: 1st, cold, violent winds blow from the north, while
gentle, warm breezes blow from the south; 2d, the land north of the
Navaho country is more rough and mountainous than the land in the
south. In the former rise the great peaks of Colorado, while in the
latter the hills are not steep and none rise to the limit of eternal
snow. A symbolism probably antecedent to this has assigned black as
the color of the north and blue as the color of the south; so, in turn,
black symbolizes the male and blue the female among the Navaho. (From
"A Vigil of the Gods.")[328]
138. Version A.--The young birds were the color of a blue heron,
but had bills like eagles. Their eyes were as big as a circle made
by the thumbs and middle fingers of both hands. Nayénezgani threw the
birds first to the bottom of the cliff and there metamorphosed them.
139. The etymology of the word Tse'-da-ni (Englished, chedany) has not
been determined. It is an expression denoting impatience and contempt.
140. On being asked for the cause of this sound, the narrator gave an
explanation which indicated that the "Hottentot apron" exists among
American Indians. The author has had previous evidence corroborative
of this.
141. Version B here adds: "Giving up her feathers for lost, she turned
her attention to giving names to the different kinds of birds as they
flew out,--names which they bear to this day among the Navajos,--until
her basket was empty."
142. Tse`-ta-ho-tsil-tá`-li is said to mean He (Who) Kicks (People)
Down the Cliff. Some pronounce the name Tse`-ta-yi-tsil-tá`-li.
143. In versions A and B, the hero simply cuts the hair of the monster
and allows the latter to fall down the cliff.
144. Na-tsis-a-án is the Navaho Mountain, an elevation 10,416 feet
high, ten miles south of the junction of the Colorado and San Juan
rivers, in the State of Utah.
145. Thus does the Navaho story-teller weakly endeavor to score a point
against his hereditary enemy, the Pah Ute. But it is poor revenge, for
the Pah Ute is said to have usually proved more than a match for the
Navaho in battle. In Version A, the young are transformed into Rocky
Mountain sheep; in Version B, they are changed into birds of prey.
146. This is the place at which the Bináye Aháni were born, as told
in par. 203. The other monsters mentioned in Part II. were not found
by Nayénezgani at the places where they were said to be born.
147. Other versions make mention, in different places, of a Salt Woman,
or goddess of salt, Ásihi Estsán; but the version of Hatáli Nez does
not allude to her. Version A states that she supplied the bag of salt
which Nayénezgani carried on his expedition.
148. Tsi-dil-tó-i means shooting or exploding bird. The name comes,
perhaps, from some peculiarity of this bird, which gives warning of
the approach of an enemy.
149. Hos-tó-di is probably an onomatopoetic name for a bird. It is
said to be sleepy in the daytime and to come out at night.
150. Version B says that scalps were the trophies.
151. In all versions of this legend, but two hero gods or war gods
are prominently mentioned, viz., Nayénezgani and To`badzistsíni; but
in these songs four names are given. This is to satisfy the Indian
reverence for the number four, and the dependent poetic requirement
which often constrains the Navaho poet to put four stanzas in a
song. Léyaneyani, or Reared Beneath the Earth (par. 286), is an
obscure hero whose only deed of valor, according to this version
of the legend, was the killing of his witch sister (par. 281). The
deeds of Tsówenatlehi, or the Changing Grandchild, are not known to
the writer. Some say that Léyaneyani and Tsówenatlehi are only other
names for Nayénezgani and To`badzistsíni; but the best authorities
in the tribe think otherwise. One version of this legend says that
Estsánatlehi hid her children under the ground when Yéitso came
seeking to devour them. This may have given rise to the idea that
one of these children was called, also, Reared Beneath the Earth.
152. The following are the names of places where pieces were knocked
off the stone:--
Bisdá, Edge of Bank.
To`kohokádi, Ground Level with Water. (Here Nayénezgani chased
the stone four times in a circle; the chips he knocked off are
there yet.)
Daatsi'ndaheol, Floating Corn-cob.
Nitati's, Cottonwood below Ground.
Sasdestsá`, Gaping Bear.
Béikithatyêl, Broad Lake.
Nánzozilin, Make Nánzoz Sticks.
Aki'ddahalkaí, Something White on Top (of something else).
Anádsil, Enemy Mountain.
Sásbito`, Bear Spring (Fort Wingate).
Tse`tyêliski'd, Broad Rock Hill.
Tsadihábitin, Antelope Trail Ascending.
Kinhitsói, Much Sumac.
Tsúskai (Chusca Knoll).
Lestsídelkai, Streaks of White Ashes.
Dsilnáodsil, Mountain Surrounded by Mountains (Carrizo Mountains.).
Tisnáspas, Circle of Cottonwood.
The above, it is said, are all places where constant springs of
water (rare in the Navaho land) are to be found. Some are known to be
such. This gives rise to the idea expressed in note 8. There is little
doubt that the Navahoes believe in many of the Tiéholtsodi. Probably
every constant spring or watercourse has its water god.
153. Version A adds an account of a wicked woman who dwelt at
Ki'ndotliz and slew her suitors. Nayénezgani kills her. It also adds
an account of vicious swallows who cut people with their wings. Version
B omits the encounter with Sasnalkáhi and Tsé`nagahi.
154. Possibly this refers to Pueblo legends.
155. Version B, which gives only a very meagre account of this
destructive storm, mentions only one talisman, but says that songs
were sung and dances performed over this.
156. Such pillars as the myth refers to are common all over the
Navaho land.
157. Version A makes Nayénezgani say here: "I have been to
ni`indahazlágo (the end of the earth); to`indahazlágo (the end of the
waters); to yaindahazlágo (the end of the sky); and to dsilindahazlágo
(the end of the mountains), and I have found none that were not
my friends."
158. Pás-zin-i is the name given by the Navahoes to the hard mineral
substance which they use to make black beads, and other sacrifices to
the gods of the north. Specimens of this substance have been examined
by Prof. F. W. Clark of the United States Geological Survey, who
pronounces it to be a fine bituminous coal of about the quality of
cannel coal; so it is, for convenience, called cannel coal in this
work. It is scarce in the Navaho land and is valued by the Indians.
159. This refers to large fossil bones found in many parts of Arizona
and New Mexico.
160. Ha-dá-ho-ni-ge-di-ne` (Mirage People), Ha-dá-ho-nes-tid-di-ne`
(Ground-heat People). Hadáhonestid is translated ground-heat, for want
of a more convenient term. It refers to the waving appearance given
to objects in hot weather, observed so frequently in the arid region,
and due to varying refraction near the surface of the ground.
161. The ceremony at Tsinlí (Chinlee Valley) was to celebrate
the nubility of Estsánatlehi. Although already a mother, she was
such miraculously, and not until this time did she show signs
of nubility. Such a ceremony is performed for every Navaho maiden
now. The ceremony at San Francisco Mountain occurred four days after
that at Tsinlí. It is now the custom among the Navahoes to hold a
second ceremony over a maiden four days after the first. On the second
ceremony with Estsánatlehi they laid her on top of the mountain with
her head to the west, because she was to go to the west to dwell
there. They manipulated her body and stretched out her limbs. Thus
she bade the people do, in future, to all Navaho maidens, and thus
the Navahoes do now, in the ceremony of the fourth day, when they
try to mould the body of the maiden to look like the perfect form of
Estsánatlehi. Version A makes the nubile ceremony occur before the
child was born.
162. Dsil-li-zi'n, or Dsillizi'ni (Black Mountain), is an extensive
mesa in Apache County, Arizona. The pass to which the myth refers is
believed to be that named, by the United States Geological Survey,
Marsh Pass, which is about 60 miles north of the Moki villages. The
name of the mesa is spelled "Zilh-le-jini" on the accompanying map.
163. To`-ye't-li (Meeting Waters) is the junction of two important
rivers somewhere in the valley of the San Juan River, in Colorado or
Utah. The precise location has not been determined. It is a locality
often mentioned in the Navaho myths. (See par. 477.)
164. The following appeared in the "American Naturalist" for February,
1887:--
"In the interesting account entitled 'Some Deities and Demons of the
Navajos,' by Dr. W. Matthews, in the October issue of the "Naturalist"
(note 306), he mentions the fact that the warriors offered their
sacrifices at the sacred shrine of Thoyetli, in the San Juan Valley. He
says that the Navajos have a tradition that the gods of war, or sacred
brothers, still dwell at Thoyetli, and their reflection is sometimes
seen on the San Juan River. Dr. Matthews is certain the last part
is due to some natural phenomenon. The following account seems to
furnish a complete explanation of this part of the myth. Several years
ago a clergyman, while travelling in the San Juan Valley, noticed
a curious phenomenon while gazing down upon the San Juan River as
it flowed through a deep canyon. Mists began to arise, and soon he
saw the shadows of himself and companions reflected near the surface
of the river, and surrounded by a circular rainbow, the 'Circle of
Ulloa.' They jumped, moved away, and performed a number of exercises,
to be certain that the figures were their reflections, and the
figures responded. There was but slight color in the rainbow. Similar
reflections have no doubt caused the superstitious Indians to consider
these reflections as those of their deities."--G. A. Brennan, Roseland,
Cook County, Illinois, January 12, 1887.
165. Tse`-gí-hi is the name of some canyon, abounding in
cliff-dwellings, north of the San Juan River, in Colorado or Utah. The
author knows of it only from description. It is probably the McElmo
or the Mancos Canyon. It is supposed by the Navahoes to have been
a favorite home of the yéi or gods, and the ruined cliff-houses
are supposed to have been inhabited by the divine ones. The cliff
ruins in the Chelly Canyon, Arizona, are also supposed to have been
homes of the gods; in fact, the gods are still thought to dwell there
unseen. Chelly is but a Spanish orthography of the Navaho name Tsé`gi,
Tséyi or Tséyi. When a Navaho would say "in the Chelly Canyon,"
he says Tséyigi. The resemblance of this expression to Tse`gíhi (g
and y being interchangeable) led the author at first to confound
the two places. Careful inquiry showed that different localities
were meant. Both names have much the same meaning (Among the Cliffs,
or Among the Rocks).
166. The expression used by the story-teller was, "seven times old age
has killed." This would be freely translated by most Navaho-speaking
whites as "seven ages of old men." The length of the age of an old
man as a period of time is variously estimated by the Navahoes. Some
say it is a definite cycle of 102 years,--the same number as the
counters used in the game of kesitsé (note 176); others say it is
"threescore years and ten;" while others, again, declare it to be
an indefinite period marked by the death of some very old man in
the tribe. This Indian estimate would give, for the existence of the
nuclear gens of the Navaho nation, a period of from five hundred to
seven hundred years. In his excellent paper on the "Early Navajo and
Apache,"[301] Mr. F. W. Hodge arrives at a much later date for the
creation or first mention of the Tse`dzinki'ni by computing the dates
given in this legend, and collating the same with the known dates of
Spanish-American history. He shows that many of the dates given in
this story are approximately correct. While the Tse`dzinki'ni is,
legendarily, the nuclear gens of the Navahoes, it does not follow,
even from the legend, that it is the oldest gens; for the diné`
digíni, or holy people (see note 92), are supposed to have existed
before it was created.
167. Tse`-dzin-ki'n-i is derived from tse` (rock), dzin (black, dark),
and kin (a straight-walled house, a stone or adobe house, not a Navaho
hut or hogán). Tse` is here rendered "cliffs," because the house or
houses in question are described as situated in dark cliffs. Like
nearly all other Navaho gentile names, it seems to be of local origin.
168. The rock formations of Arizona and New Mexico are often so
fantastic that such a condition as that here described might easily
occur.
169. The author has expressed the opinion elsewhere[318] that we
need not suppose from this passage that the story-teller wishes to
commiserate the Tse`tláni on the inferiority of their diet; he may
merely intend to show that his gens had not the same taboo as the
elder gentes. The modern Navahoes do not eat ducks or snakes. Taboo
is perhaps again alluded to in par. 394, where it is said that the
Thá`paha ate ducks and fish. The Navahoes do not eat fish, and fear
fish in many ways. A white woman, for mischief, emptied over a young
Navaho man a pan of water in which fish had been soaked. He changed
all his clothes and purified himself by bathing. Navahoes have been
known to refuse candies that were shaped like fish.
170. A common method of killing deer and antelope in the old days was
this: They were driven on to some high, steep-sided, jutting mesa,
whose connection with the neighboring plateau was narrow and easily
guarded. Here their retreat was cut off, and they were chased until
constrained to jump over the precipice.
171. The name To`-do-kón-zi is derived from two words,--to` (water)
and dokónz (here translated saline). The latter word is used to
denote a distinct but not an unpleasant taste. It has synonyms in
other Indian languages, but not in English. It is known only from
explanation that the water in question had a pleasant saline taste.
172. The arrow-case of those days is a matter of tradition only. The
Indians say it looked something like a modern shawl-strap.
173. In the name of this gens we have possibly another evidence
of a former existence of totemism among some of the Navaho
gentes. Haskánhatso may mean that many people of the Yucca gens lived
in the land, and not that many yuccas grew there.
174. From the description given of this tree, which, the Indians say,
still stands, it seems to be a big birch-tree.
175. Tsin-a-dzi'-ni is derived by double syncopation from tsin (wood),
na (horizontal), dzin (dark or black), and the suffix ni. The word
for black, dzin, in compounds is often pronounced zin. There is a
place called Tsi'nadzin somewhere in Arizona, but the author has not
located it.
176. Ke-si-tsé, or kesitsé, from ke (moccasins), and sitsé (side by
side, in a row), is a game played only during the winter months,
at night and inside of a lodge. A multitude of songs, and a myth
of a contest between animals who hunt by day and those who hunt by
night, pertain to the game. Eight moccasins are buried in the ground
(except about an inch of their tops), and they are filled with
earth or sand. They are placed side by side, a few inches apart, in
two rows,--one row on each side of the fire. A chip, marked black
on one side (to represent night), is tossed up to see which side
should begin first. The people of the lucky side hold up a screen to
conceal their operations, and hide a small stone in the sand in one
of the moccasins. When the screen is lowered, one of the opponents
strikes the moccasins with a stick, and guesses which one contains the
stone. If he guesses correctly, his side takes the stone to hide and
the losers give him some counters. If he does not guess correctly,
the first players retain the stone and receive a certain number of
counters. (See note 88.) A better account of this game, with an epitome
of the myth and several of the songs, has already been published.[316]
177. There are many allusions in the Navaho tales to the clothing
of this people before the introduction of sheep (which came through
the Spanish invaders), and before they cultivated the art of weaving,
which they probably learned from the Pueblo tribes, although they are
now better weavers than the Pueblos. The Navahoes represent themselves
as miserably clad in the old days (par. 466), and they tell that many
of their arts were learned from other tribes. (Par. 393.)
178. Allusion is here made to the material used by Indians on the
backs of bows, for bow-strings, as sewing-thread, and for many other
purposes, which is erroneously called "sinew" by ethnographers and
travellers. It is not sinew in the anatomical or histological sense
of the word. It is yellow fibrous tissue taken from the dorsal region,
probably the aponeurosis of the trapezius.
179. The Navaho country abounds in small caves and rock-shelters, some
of which have been walled up by these Indians and used as store-houses
(but not as dwellings, for reasons elsewhere given, par. 26). Such
store-houses are in use at this day.
180. The legends represent the Navahoes not only as poorly clad
and poorly fed in the old days, but as possessing few arts. Here
and elsewhere in the legends it is stated that various useful arts
became known to the tribe through members of other tribes adopted by
the Navahoes.
181. Another version states that when the Western immigrants were
travelling along the western base of the Lukachokai Mountains, some
wanted to ascend the Tse`inlín valley; but one woman said, "No;
let us keep along the base of the mountain." From this they named
her Base of Mountain, and her descendants bear that name now. This
explanation is less likely than that in par. 393.
182. This statement should be accepted only with some allowance for
the fact that it was made by one who was of the gens of Thá`paha.
183. Punishments for adultery were various and severe among many Indian
tribes in former days. Early travellers mention amputation of the nose
and other mutilations, and it appears that capital punishment for this
crime was not uncommon. If there is any punishment for adultery among
the Navahoes to-day, more severe than a light whipping, which is rarely
given, the author has never heard of it. The position of the Navaho
woman is such that grievous punishments would not be tolerated. In the
days of Góntso even, it would seem they were scarcely less protected
than now, for then the husband, although a potent chief, did not dare
to punish his wives--so the legend intimates--until he had received
the consent of their relatives.
184. For the performance of these nine-days' ceremonies the Navahoes
now build temporary medicine-lodges, which they use, as a rule, for one
occasion only. Rarely is a ceremony performed twice in the same place,
and there is no set day, as indicated by any phase of any particular
lunation, for the beginning of any great ceremony. Many ceremonies may
be performed only during the cold months, but otherwise the time for
performance is not defined. There is a tradition that their customs
were different when they lived in a compact settlement on the banks
of the San Juan River (before they became shepherds and scattered
over the land); that they then had permanent medicine-lodges, and
exact dates for the performance of some ceremonies. In paragraph 411
we hear of a ceremony which lasted all winter.
185. For a description of this ceremony see "The Mountain Chant:
a Navaho Ceremony,"[314] by the author. It is an important healing
ceremony of nine days' duration. The rites, until the last night,
are held in the medicine-lodge and are secret. Just after sunset on
the last day, a great round corral, or circle of evergreen branches,
is constructed, called ilnásdzin, or the dark circle of branches. This
is about forty paces in diameter, about eight feet high, with an
opening in the east about ten feet wide. From about eight P.M. on
the last night of the ceremony until dawn next morning, a number of
dances, dramatic shows, medicine rites, and tricks of legerdemain
are performed in this corral, in the presence of a large group of
spectators,--several hundred men, women, and children. No one is
refused admittance. Fig. 37 shows the dark circle of branches as it
appears at sunrise when the rites are over, and, in addition to the
original opening in the east, three other openings have been made
in the circle. Fig. 30 shows the alíl (rite, show, or ceremony)
of nahikáï, which takes place on this occasion, and it is designed
largely for the entertainment and mystification of the spectators. The
performers march around (and very close to) the great central fire,
which emits an intense heat. Their skin would probably be scorched
if it were not heavily daubed with white earth. Each actor carries
a short wand, at the tip of which is a ball of eagle-down. This ball
he must burn off in the fire, and then, by a simple sleight-of-hand
trick, seem to restore the ball again to the end of his wand. When
this is accomplished, he rushes out of the corral, trumpeting like
a sand-hill crane. In "The Mountain Chant" this is called a dance,
but the movements of the actors are not in time to music. Nahikáï
signifies "it becomes white again," and refers to the reappearance of
the eagle-down. The show is very picturesque, and must be mystifying
to simple minds.
186. Tse`-zin-di-aí signifies Black Rock Standing (like a wall). It
might mean an artificial wall of black rock; but as the result of
careful inquiry it has been learned that the name refers to a locality
where exists the formation known to geologists as trap-dyke. It cannot
be averred that it is applied to all trap-dyke.
187. Slaves were numerous among the Navahoes, and slavery was openly
recognized by them until 1883, when the just and energetic agent,
Mr. D. M. Riordan, did much to abolish it. Yet as late as 1893,
when the writer was last in the Navaho country, he found evidence
that the institution still existed, though very occultly, and to a
more limited extent than formerly.
188. Some translate Háltso as Yellow Valley, and give a different myth
to account for the name. As most Navaho gentile names are undoubtedly
of local origin, there may be a tendency to make all gentile names
accord with the general rule.
189. The word here translated pet (lin) means also a domestic animal
and a personal fetish. (See par. 63.)
190. Although this name, Bi-tá`-ni, seems so much like that of Bitáni
that one might think they were but variants of the same word, they
are undoubtedly distinct names and must not be confounded.
191. This is believed to be the notable landmark called by the whites
Sunset Peak, which is about ten miles east of San Francisco Peak,
in Yavapai County, Arizona. Sunset Peak is covered with dark forests
nearly to its summit. The top is of brilliant red rock capped by a
paler stratum, and it has the appearance, at all hours of the day,
of being lighted by the setting sun.
192. This locality is in Apache County, Arizona, about sixty miles from
the eastern boundary and twelve miles from the northern boundary of
the Territory. A sharp volcanic peak, 6,825 feet high above sea-level,
which marks the place from afar, is called "Agathla Needle" on the
maps of the United States Geological Survey, and on the accompanying
map, which was compiled from the government maps by Mr. Frank Tweedy
of the Geological Survey.
193. The Navahoes are aware that in lands far to the north there are
kindred tribes which speak languages much like their own. They have
traditions that long ago some of their number travelled in search of
these tribes and found them. These distant kinsmen are called by the
Navaho Diné` Nahotlóni, or Navahoes in Another Place.
194. A version has been recorded which says that, on the march,
one woman loitered behind at Deer Spring for a while, as if loath to
leave; that for this reason they called her Deer Spring, and that her
descendants became the gens of that name. The same version accounts in
a similar manner for the names given at the magic fountains. The women
did not call out the names of the springs, but they loitered at them.
195. The story of the Deer Spring People affords, perhaps, the best
evidence in favor of the former existence of totemism to be found in
the legend. Assuming that the immigrants from the west had once totemic
names, we may explain this story by saying that it was people of the
Deer gens who stayed behind and gave their name to the spring where
they remained; that in the course of time they became known as People
of the Deer Spring; and that, as they still retain their old name
in a changed form, the story-teller is constrained to say that the
fate of the deer is not known. Perhaps the name of the Maitó`dine`
(par. 428) may be explained in somewhat the same way. (See "The
Gentile System of the Navajo Indians," p. 107.[318])
196. The more proper interpretation of Ho-na-gá`-ni seems to be People
of the Walking Place, from ho (locative), nága (to walk), and ni
(people). It is not unreasonable to suppose that, like nearly all
other Navaho gentile names, this name has a local meaning, and that
the story here told to account for its origin is altogether mythical.
197. This episode indicates that kindness and pity are sentiments
not unknown to the Navahoes, and that (though there are many thieves)
there are honest men and women among them.
198. Na-nas-te'-zin, the Navaho name for the Zuñi Indians, is said
to be derived from aná (an alien or an enemy), naste (a horizontal
stripe), and zin (black). Some say it refers to the way the Zuñians
cut their hair,--"bang" it,--straight across the forehead; others
say it is the name of a locality.
199. Kin-a-á`-ni, or Kin-ya-á`-ni, means People of the High Pueblo
House,--the high wall of stone or adobe. The name kinaá` might with
propriety be applied to any one of hundreds of ruins in the Navaho
country, but the only one to which the name is known to be given is
a massive ruin six or seven stories high in Bernalillo County, New
Mexico, about seventeen miles in a northerly direction from Chaves
Station, on the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad. This ruin consists
of unusually large fragments of stone, and looks more like a ruined
European castle than other old Indian dwellings. It seems too far
east and south, and too far away from the settlements on the San
Juan, where the western immigrants finished their journey, to be the
place, as some say it is, from which the gens of Kinaá`ni derived
its name. The high stone wall which the immigrants passed en route,
mentioned in par. 435 in connection with the gens of Kinaá`ni, may be
the place to which the legend originally ascribed the origin of the
name. There are many pueblo remains around San Francisco Mountain. The
name is written "Kin-ya-a-ni" on the accompanying map.
200. Plate I., fig. 1, shows a yébaad, or female yéi or goddess,
as she is usually represented in the dry-paintings. The following
objects are here indicated: (1) A square mask or domino, which covers
the face only (see fig. 28), is painted blue, margined below with
yellow (to represent the yellow evening light), and elsewhere with
lines of red and black (for hair above, for ears at the sides), and
has downy eagle-feathers on top, tied on with white strings; (2) a
robe of white, extending from the armpits to near the knees, adorned
with red and blue to represent sunbeams, and fringed beautifully at
the bottom; (3) white leggings secured with colored garters (such
as Indians weave); (4) embroidered moccasins; (5) an ornamental
sash; (6) a wand of spruce-twigs in each hand (sometimes she is
shown with spruce in one hand and a seed-basket in the other);
(7) jewels--ear-pendants, bracelets, and necklaces--of turquoise
and coral; (8) long strips of fox-skin ornamented at the ends, which
hang from wrists and elbows. (For explanation of blue neck, see note
74.) In the dance of the nahikáï, there are properly six yébaad in
masquerade; but sometimes they have to get along with a less number,
owing to the difficulty in finding suitable persons enough to fill the
part. The actors are usually low-sized men and boys, who must contrast
in appearance with those who enact the part of males. Each yébaad
actor wears no clothing except moccasins and a skirt, which is held
on with a silver-studded belt; his body and limbs are painted white;
his hair is unbound and hangs over his shoulders; he wears the square
female mask and he carries in each hand a bundle of spruce twigs,
which is so secured, by means of strings, that he cannot carelessly
let it fall. Occasionally females are found to dance in this character:
these have their bodies fully clothed in ordinary woman's attire; but
they wear the masks and carry the wands just as the young men do. While
the male gods, in plate I., except Dsahadoldzá, are represented with
white arms, the female is depicted with yellow arms. This symbolism
is explained in note 27.
201. The exact etymology of the word Na-ti'n-es-tha-ni has not
been determined. The idea it conveys is: He who teaches himself,
he who discovers for himself, or he who thinks out a problem for
himself. We find the verb in the expression nasinítin, which means,
"Teach me how to do it." Here the second and third syllables are
pronouns. Although the hero has his name changed after a while, the
story-teller usually continues to call him Nati'nesthani to the end
of the story. Often he speaks of him as the man or the Navaho.
202. The eighteen articles here referred to are as follows: 1, white
shell; 2, turquoise; 3, haliotis shell; 4, pászini or cannel coal;
5, red stone; 6, feathers of the yellow warbler; 7, feathers of
the bluebird; 8, feathers of the eagle; 9, feathers of the turkey;
10, beard of the turkey; 11, cotton string; 12, i`yidezná;[11] 13,
white shell basket; 14, turquoise basket; 15, haliotis basket; 16,
pászini basket; 17, rock crystal basket; 18, sacred buckskin. (See
note 13.) These were the sacred articles which the gods were said
to require in the myths of klédzi hatál and atsósidze hatál. In the
myths of the former rite they are mentioned over and over again, to
the weariness of the hearer. They are all used to-day in the rites
mentioned, except the five baskets. Now ordinary sacred baskets
(note 5, par. 28) are used; the jeweled baskets are legendary only.
203. The knowledge of domestic or pet turkeys is not new to the
Navahoes. The Pueblo Indians of the Southwest have kept them for
centuries. The Navahoes declare that in former years they kept pet
turkeys themselves; but this seems doubtful, considering their mode
of life. A conservative Navaho will not now eat turkey flesh, although
he will not hesitate to shoot a wild turkey to sell it to a white man.
204. In the Navaho dry-paintings the rainbow is usually depicted
with a head at one end and legs and feet at the other. The head
is represented with a square mask to show that it is a goddess. It
is apotheosized. (See fig. 29.) In one of the dry-paintings of the
mountain chant the rainbow is depicted without limbs or head, but
terminating at one end with five eagle-plumes, at the other end with
five magpie-plumes, and decorated near its middle with plumes of the
bluebird and the red-shafted woodpecker. (See "The Mountain Chant,"
p. 450.[314])
205. This magic cup figures in many other Navaho myths. (See paragraph
572.)
206. Has-tsé-ol-to-i means the Shooting Hastsé (par. 78), or Shooting
Deity. As the personator of this character always wears a female mask
(fig. 28), it would seem that this divinity of the chase, like the
Roman Diana, is a goddess. The personator (a man) carries a quiver
of puma skin, a bow, and two arrows. The latter are made of reed,
are headless, and are feathered with the tail and wing feathers of the
red-tailed buzzard (Buteo borealis), tied on with fibrous tissue. The
tips of the arrows are covered with moistened white earth and moistened
pollen. Each arrow is at least two spans and a hand's-breadth long; but
it must be cut off three finger-widths beyond a node, and to accomplish
this it may be made a little longer than the above dimensions. There
are very particular rules about applying the feathers. The man who
personates Hastséoltoi, in a rite of succor in the ceremony of the
night chant, follows the personators of the War Gods. While the patient
stands on a buffalo robe in front of the medicine-lodge, the actor
waves with the right hand one arrow at him, giving a peculiar call;
then, changing the arrows from one hand to another, he waves the other
arrow at the patient. This is done east, south, west, and north. The
actor repeats these motions around the lodge; all then enter the lodge;
there the patient says a prayer, and, with many formalities, presents
a cigarette to the personator (after he has prayed and sacrificed
to the War Gods). The three masqueraders then go to the west of
the lodge to deposit their sacrifices (that of Hastséoltoi is put
under a weed,--Gutierrezia euthamiæ, if possible). When this is done,
they take off their masks, don ordinary blankets,--brought out by an
accomplice,--hide the masks under their blankets, and return to the
lodge in the guise of ordinary Indians. Some speak as if there were
but one Hastséoltoi, and say she is the wife of Nayénezgani. Others
speak as if there were one at every place where the yéi have homes.
207. The Gán-as-ki-di are a numerous race of divinities. Their
chief home is at a place called Depéhahatil (Tries to Shoot Sheep),
near Tse`gíhi, north of the San Juan; but they may appear anywhere,
and, according to the myths, are often found in company with the yéi
and other gods. They belong to the Mountain Sheep People, and often
appear to man in the form of Rocky Mountain sheep. In the myths of the
night chant it is said that they captured the prophet of the rites,
took him to their home, and taught him many of the mysteries of the
night chant. In the treatment accompanying these, the tendo-achillis
of a mountain sheep is applied to an aching limb to relieve pain;
the horn is pressed to an aching head to relieve headache; and water
from the sheep's eye is used for sore eyes. The Gánaskidi are gods of
plenty and harvest gods. A masquerader, representing one of these,
sometimes appears in an act of succor about sundown on the last day
of the night chant, following representatives of Hastséyalti and
Dsahadoldzá. He wears the ordinary blue mask of a yébaka with the
fringe of hair removed. He carries a crown or headdress made of a
basket from which the bottom has been cut, so that it may fit on the
head. The basket crown is adorned with artificial horns; it is painted
on the lower surface black, with a zigzag streak to represent lightning
playing on the face of a black cloud; it is painted red on the upper
surface (not shown in picture), to indicate the sunlight on the other
side of the cloud; and it is decorated with radiating feathers,
from the tail of the red-shafted woodpecker (Colaptes mexicanus),
to represent the rays of the sun streaming out at the edge of the
cloud. The god is crowned with the storm-cloud. The horns on the crown
are made of the skin of the Rocky Mountain sheep (sewed with yucca
fibre); they are stuffed with hair of the same, or with black wool;
they are painted part black and part blue, with white markings; and
they are tipped with eagle-feathers tied on with white string. On
his back the actor carries a long bag of buckskin, which is empty,
but is kept distended by means of a light frame made of the twigs of
aromatic sumac, so as to appear full; it is decorated at the back with
eagle-plumes, and sometimes also with the plumes of the red-shafted
woodpecker; it is painted on the sides with short parallel white lines
(12 or 16), and at the back with long lines of four colors. This bag
represents a bag of black cloud, filled with produce of the fields,
which the god is said to carry. The cloudy bag is so heavy, they say,
that the god is obliged to lean on a staff, bend his back, and walk
as one bearing a burden; so the personator does the same. The staff,
or gis, which the latter carries, is made of cherry (new for each
occasion); it is as long as from the middle of the left breast to
the tip of the outstretched right hand; it is painted black with the
charcoal of four sacred plants; it bears a zigzag stripe in white to
represent lightning, and it is trimmed with many turkey-feathers in
two whorls, and one eagle-feather. These properties and adornments
are conventionally represented in the dry-paintings. (See plate I.,
fig. 5.) The red powder thinly sprinkled over the eagle-plumes at
the back represents pollen. The cloud bag is tied on the god, says
the myth, with rainbows. The yellow horizontal line at the chin in
the picture represents a yellow line on the mask which symbolizes the
evening twilight. The actor wears a collar of fox-skin (indicated by
mark under right ear) and ordinary clothing. The elaborate ceremony
of succor will not be described here. Gánaskidi means Humpback. The
name is sometimes given Nánaskidi.
208. The only Ki'ndoliz, or Ki'ndotliz (Blue House), the writer knows
of is a ruined pueblo of that name in the Chaco Canyon; but this can
hardly be the Blue House referred to in the myth. There is probably
another ruin of this name on the banks of the San Juan.
209. The Dsahadoldzá, or Fringe-mouths, are a class of divine beings
of whom little information has been gained. They are represented in the
rite of klédzi hatál by sand-paintings, and by masqueraders decked and
masked as shown in the pictures. There are two kinds,--Fringe-mouths
of the land and Fringe-mouths of the water (plate I., fig. 3),
or Thastlátsi Dsahadoldzá; the latter are the class referred to in
this story. The zigzag lines on their bodies shown in the pictures
represent the crooked lightning, which they used as ropes to lift the
log. On the mask (shown in the dry-painting) the mouth is surrounded
by white radiating lines; hence the name Fringe-mouths. The actor
who represents the Fringe-mouths of the land has one half of his
body and one half of his mask painted black, the other half red. He
who represents the Fringe-mouths of the water has his body painted
half blue and half yellow, as shown in plate I., fig. 3. Both wear a
similar mask and a similar crown or headdress. The crown consists of a
basket from which the bottom has been cut, so that it may fit on the
head; the lower surface is painted black, to represent a dark cloud,
and is streaked with white to represent lightning; the upper surface
(not shown in the painting) is colored red, to represent the sunlight
of the back of the cloud; and feathers of the red-shafted woodpecker
are attached to the edge, to represent sunbeams. So far, this crown
is like that worn by Gánaskidi (note 207). Ascending from the basket
crown is a tripod of twigs of aromatic sumac, painted white; between
the limbs of the tripod finely combed red wool is laid, and a downy
eagle-feather tips each stick. The actor carries in his left hand a
bow adorned with three eagle-plumes and two tufts of turkey feathers,
and in his right hand a white gourd rattle, sometimes decorated
with two whorls of feathers. His torso, arms, and legs are naked,
but painted. He wears a shirt around his loins, and rich necklaces
and ear pendants. All these things are plainly indicated in the
dry-paintings. The fox-skin collar which he wears is vaguely shown by
an appendage at the right ear. The angles of the white lightning on the
chest and limbs of the actor are not as numerous as in the paintings.
210. Tielín are ferocious pets that belong to Tiéholtsodi, the water
monster, and guard the door of his dwelling. They are said to have
blue horns.
211. Na-tsi-li't a-kó-di (short rainbow), the fragmentary or incomplete
rainbow.
212. Has-tsé-zin-i signifies Black Hastsé, or Black God. There are
several of them (dwelling at Tsení`hodilyil, near Tse`gíhi), but
the description will be given in the singular. He is a reserved,
exclusive individual. The yéi at other places do not visit him
whenever they wish. He owns all fire; he was the first who made
fire, and he is the inventor of the fire-drill. It is only on rare
occasions that he is represented by a masquerader at a ceremony. When
it is arranged to give a night chant without the public dance of the
last night (and this seldom occurs), Black God appears in a scene
of succor[206] on the evening of the ninth day in company with three
other gods,--Nayénezgani, To`badzistsíni, and Hastséoltoi. It is said
that the personator is dressed in black clothes; wears a black mask,
with white marks and red hair on it, and a collar of fox-skin; and
that he carries a fire-drill and a bundle of cedar-bark. The author
has never seen Hastsézini represented either in a dry-painting or in
masquerade, and he has therefore never witnessed the scene or ceremony
of succor referred to. This ceremony, which is very elaborate, has
been described to the author by the medicine-men. The actor has to be
well paid for his tedious services, which occupy the whole day from
sunrise to sunset, though the act of succor lasts but a few minutes.
213. The fire-drill is very little used by the Navahoes at the present
time,--matches and flint-and-steel having taken its place; but it is
frequently mentioned in the myths and is employed in the ceremonies. Of
the many aboriginal fire-drills, described and depicted by Dr. Walter
Hough in his excellent paper on "Fire-making Apparatus,"[302] that
of the Navahoes is the rudest. It looks like a thing that had been
made to order.
214. Tsin-tli'-zi signifies hard, brittle wood.
215. It is probable that the various peculiar acts described in this
paragraph have reference to agricultural rites still practised,
or recently practised, by the Navahoes, but the writer has never
witnessed such rites.
216. The Navahoes now universally smoke cigarettes, but they say that
in ancient days they smoked pipes made of terra-cotta. Fragments
of such pipes are often picked up in New Mexico and Arizona. The
cliff-dwellers also had pipes, and these articles are still
ceremonially used by the Mokis. The Navahoes now invariably,
in ceremonies, sacrifice tobacco in the form of cigarettes. But
cigarettes are not new to the Southwest: they are found in ancient
caves and other long-neglected places in New Mexico and Arizona.
217. Ni-no-ká-di-ne` (People up on the Earth) may mean people living
up on the mountains, in contradistinction to those dwelling in
canyons and valleys; but other tribes use a term of similar meaning
to distinguish the whole Indian race from the whites or other races,
and it is probable that it is used in this sense here and in other
Navaho myths. The people whom Nati'nesthani now meets are probably
supposed to be supernatural, and not Indians.
218. The plants mixed with the tobacco were these: tsohodzilaí`,
silátso (my thumb), a poisonous weed, azébini`, and azétloi. It has
not been determined what plants these are; but the Navaho names are
placed on record as possibly assisting in future identification.
219. In the Navaho ceremonies, when sacred cigarettes are finished,
and before they are deposited as offerings to the gods, they are
symbolically lighted with sunbeams. (See par. 94.) The statement made
here, that the hero lighted his pipe with the sun, refers probably
to this symbolic lighting.
220. Ke'tlo is a name given to any medicine used externally, i.e.,
rubbed on the body. Atsósi ke'tlo means the liniment or wash of
the atsósi hatál, or feather ceremony. It is also called atsósi azé
(feather medicine), and atsósi tsíl (feather herbs).
221. Yá-di-di-nil, the incense of the Navaho priests, is a very
composite substance. In certain parts of the healing ceremonies it is
scattered on hot coals, which are placed before the patient, and the
latter inhales actively the dense white fumes that arise. These fumes,
which fill with their odor the whole medicine-lodge, are pungent,
aromatic, and rather agreeable, although the mixture is said to
contain feathers. The author has obtained a formula for yádidinil,
but has not identified the plants that chiefly compose it.
222. These are the animals he raises and controls, as told in par. 527.
223. The Navahoes say they are acquainted with four kinds of wild
tobacco, and use them in their rites. Of these the author has seen
and identified but two. These are Nicotiana attenuata which is the
dsi'lnato, or mountain tobacco; and Nicotiana palmeri, which is
the depénato, or sheep tobacco. N. attenuata grows widely but not
abundantly in the mountains of New Mexico and Arizona. N. palmeri is
rare; the writer has seen it growing only in one spot in the Chelly
Canyon. It has not been learned what species are called weasel tobacco
and cloud tobacco; but one or more of the three species, N. rustica,
N. quadrivalvis, and N. trigonophylla, are probably known to the
Navahoes.
224. The description of these diseases given by the narrator of this
tale is as follows: "Patients having these diseases are weak, stagger,
and lose appetite; then they go to a sweat-house and take an emetic. If
they have li'tso, or the yellow disease, they vomit something yellow
(bile ?). If they have til-litá, or cooked blood disease, they vomit
something like cooked blood. Those having the yellows have often
yellow eyes and yellow skin. Thatli't, or slime disease, comes from
drinking foul water full of green slime or little fish (tadpoles
?). Tsoxs, worms, usually come from eating worms, which you sometimes
do without knowing it; but tsi'lgo, tapeworm, comes from eating parched
corn." Probably the last notion arises from the slight resemblance
of the joints of Tænia solium to grains of corn. This little chapter
in pathology from Hatáli Natlói is hardly in accordance with the
prevalent theory that savages regard all disease as of demoniac origin.
225. The adjective yazóni, or yasóni, here used, which is translated
"beautiful," means more than this: it means both good (or useful)
and beautiful. It contains elements of the words yatí`, good, and of
inzóni, nizóni, and hozóni, which signify beautiful.
226. According to the Navaho myths and songs, the corn and other
products in the gardens of the yéi or divine ones grow and mature in
a very short time. The rapid growth of the crops in Nati'nesthani's
farm is supposed to result from the divine origin of the seed.
227. The order in which Nati'nesthani lays down the ears of corn
is the order in which sacrificial cigarettes, kethawns, and other
sacred objects, when colored, are laid down in a straight row. The
white, being the color of the east, has precedence of all and is
laid down first. The blue, the color of the south, comes next, for
when we move sunwise (the sacred ceremonial circuit of the Navahoes)
south follows immediately after east. Yellow, the color of the west,
on the same principle, comes third; and black (in this case mixed)
comes fourth. Mixed is properly the coloring of the upper region,
and usually follows after black; but it sometimes takes the place of
black. These apparently superfluous particulars of laying down the
corn have a ceremonial or religious significance. In placing sacred
objects ceremonially in a straight row, the operator proceeds southward
from his starting-point, for this approximates the sunwise circuit,
and he makes the tip ends point east.
228. Pín-i-az bi-tsó (fawn-his-cheese), or fawn-cheese, is a substance
found in the abdomen of the fawn. A similar substance is found in
other young mammals. They say it looks like curds, or cottage cheese,
and that it is pleasant to the taste. They eat it raw. The author has
not determined by observation what this substance is. Dr. C. Hart
Merriam, of the Department of Agriculture, suggests that it is the
partly digested milk in the stomach of the fawn, and this is probably
the case.
229. The dish offered to Nati'nesthani is called by the Navahoes
atsón, which is here translated "pemmican." It consists of dried
vension pounded on a stone and fried in grease.
230. To make di-tló-gi kle-sán, cut the grain off the ear, grind it
to a pulp on a metate, spread out the embers, lay a number of green
corn leaves on them, place the pulp on the leaves, put other leaves
on top of the pulp, rake hot embers over all, and leave it to bake.
231. Di-tló-gin tsi-di-kó-i is made of a pulp of green corn ground
on a metate, like ditlógi klesán. The pulp is encased in husks,
which are folded at the ends, and is then placed between leaves and
hot coals to bake.
232. Thá-bi-tsa (three-ears) is made also of pulp of green corn. This
is placed in folded cones made of husks; three cones being made of
one complete husk, whose leaves are not removed from their stem. It
looks like three ears fastened together, whence the name. It is boiled
in water.
233. The story-teller said: "about as far as from here to Jake's
house,"--a distance which the writer estimated at 300 yards.
234. Over the east door, one cigarette, that for the male, was made of
mountain mahogany (tsé`estagi, Cercocarpus parvifolius), perforated,
painted blue, and marked with four symbols of deer-tracks in yellow;
the other cigarette, that for the female, was made of cliff rose
(awétsal, Cowania mexicana), painted yellow and marked with four
symbols of deer-tracks in blue. Over the south door the cigarette for
the male was made of sunflower (indigíli), painted yellow and dotted
with four symbols of antelope-tracks in blue; the cigarette for the
female was made of "strong-smelling sunflower" (indigíli niltsóni,
Verbesina enceloides), painted white and dotted with four symbols
of antelope-tracks in black. Over the west door, the cigarettes were
of the same material as those in the east; but one was painted black
with symbols of deer-tracks in blue, and the other was painted blue
with symbols of deer-tracks in black. At the bottom of the steps, one
of the cigarettes was painted black and dotted with four symbols of
fawn-tracks in yellow; the other was painted yellow and dotted with
four symbols of fawn-tracks in black. The above was written from the
description of the narrator. The writer has never seen such cigarettes;
but they are said to be employed in some Navaho ceremonies at the
present time. In this series of cigarettes the colors are not in
the usual order,[18] but there may be a special symbolism for these
animals, or the variation may arise because they are the cigarettes
of a wizard and therefore unholy.
235. When driving game to a party in ambush, the Navahoes often
imitate the cry of the wolf. In this myth the old man is supposed
to give the cry, not to drive the bears, but to make Nati'nesthani
believe that deer are being driven.
236. The name Tsa-na-naí is derived from tsan, which means
dung. Tse'-sko-di means Spread-foot. The narrator said the other
bears had names, but he could not remember them.
237. "He did not even thank his son-in-law" is an instance of sarcasm.
238. The bear is a sacred animal with the Navahoes; for this reason
the hero did not skin the bears or eat their flesh. The old man,
being a wizard, might do both.
239. Há-la-dzi-ni? means "What are you doing?" but it is a jocose
expression, used only among intimate relations, or relations by
marriage. In employing this interrogatory the Navaho gave the old
man to understand that he was recognized.
240. This episode of the twelve bears is the weakest and least
artistic in the tale. Moreover, it details a fifth device on the part
of Deer Raiser to kill his son-in-law. Under ordinary circumstances
we should expect but four devices. It seems an interpolation, by
some story-teller less ingenious than he who composed the rest of the
tale, introduced to get the men out together once more, so that, on
their way home, the incident of the burnt moccasins might occur. The
latter incident has been previously recorded by the writer in another
connection. (See note 242.)
241. Among the Navahoes, when a person dies, the suffix ni, or ini, is
added to his (or her) name, and thus he is mentioned ever afterwards.
242. Before the story of Nati'nesthani was obtained, the writer had
already recorded this tale of the burnt moccasins in a version of the
Origin Legend. In the latter connection it is introduced as one of the
Coyote tales. The mischievous Coyote is made to try this trick on his
father-in-law; but the latter, warned by the Wind, foils the Coyote.
243. The ridge which he crosses in the east and also those which he
crosses later in the south, west, and north are colored according to
the regular order of Navaho symbolism.
244. The narrator described the bird called tsi-das-tó-i thus: When a
man passes by where this bird is sitting, the latter does not fly off,
but sits and looks at the man, moving its head in every direction. It
is about the size of a screech-owl.
245. It must not be supposed that in this and the following paragraph,
when pale-faced people are mentioned, any allusion is made to
Caucasians. The reference is merely symbolic. White is the color
of the east in Navaho symbolism: hence these people in the east are
represented as having pale faces. For similar reasons the man in the
south (par. 551) is said to have a blue face, the man in the west
(par. 552) a yellow face, and the man in the north (par. 553) a dark
face. (See note 18.)
246. Bi-za (his treasure), something he specially values; hence his
charm, his amulet, his personal fetish, his magic weapon, something
that one carries to mysteriously protect himself. Even the divinities
are thought to possess such charms. The songs often mention some
property of a god which they say is "Bi'za-yedigi'ngo" (The treasure
which makes him holy or sacred). (See par. 367 and note 280.)
247. These medicines are still in use among the Navahoes. The
medicine made of gall consists mostly of gall of eagles. If a witch
has scattered evil medicine on you, use this. If there are certain
kinds of food that disagree with you, and you still wish to eat them,
use the vomit medicine. Hunters obtain the materials when they go out
hunting. All the totemic animals named (puma, blue fox, yellow fox,
wolf, and lynx, see par. 548) vomit when they eat too much. So said
the narrator.
248. Buteo borealis. The tail is described as red ("bright chestnut
red," Coues) by our ornithologists; but the Navahoes consider it
yellow, and call the bird atsé-litsói, or yellow-tail.
249. A-tsó-si-dze ha-tál, or a-tsó-si ha-tál means feather chant or
feather ceremony. The following particulars concerning the ceremony
were given by the narrator of the story. Dry-paintings are made on
the floor of the medicine-lodge much like those of the klédzi hatál,
and others are made representing different animals. It is still
occasionally celebrated, but not often, and there are only four priests
of the rite living. It lasts nine days, and it has more stories, songs,
and acts than any other Navaho ceremony. A deer dance was part of the
rite in the old days, but it is not practised now. The rite is good
for many things, but especially for deer disease. If you sleep on
a dry, undressed deer-skin or foul one, or if a deer sneezes at you
or makes any other marked demonstration at you, you are in danger of
getting the deer disease.
250. Yó-i ha-tál, or yói-dze ha-tál (bead chant), is a nine days'
ceremony, which is becoming obsolete. The author has been informed
that there is only one priest of the rite remaining; that he learned
it from his father, but that he does not know as much about it as
his father did.
251. The device of setting up forked sticks to assist in locating fires
seen by night and in remembering the position of distant objects is
often mentioned in the Navaho tales. (See pars. 382 and 497.)
252. Equisetum hiemale, and perhaps other species of Equisetum,
or horse-tail.
253. ["Klis-ka', the arrow-snake, is a long slender snake that moves
with great velocity,--so great that, coming to the edge of a cliff when
racing, he flies for some distance through the air before reaching
the ground again. The Navahoes believe he could soar if he wanted
to. He is red and blue on the belly, striped on the back, six feet
long or longer. Sometimes moves like a measuring-worm."] From the
above description Dr. H. C. Yarrow, formerly curator of reptiles in
the Smithsonian Institution, is of the opinion that the arrow-snake
is Bascanium flagelliforme.
254. Accipiter cooperii, called gíni by the Navahoes.
255. Compare with description of Spider Woman and her home in paragraph
306. It would seem that the Navahoes believe in more than one Spider
Woman. (May be they believe in one for each world.) In paragraph 581
we have an instance of black being assigned to the east and white to
the north. (See note 18.)
256. There are several plants in New Mexico and Arizona which become
tumble-weeds in the autumn, but the particular weed referred to here
is the Amarantus albus. It is called tlotáhi nagi'si, or rolling
tlotáhi, by the Navahoes. Tlotáhi is a name applied in common to
several species of the Amarantaceæ and allied Chenopodiacæ. (See
"Navaho Names for Plants."[312]) The seeds of plants of these families
formerly constituted an important part of the diet of the Navahoes,
and they still eat them to some extent.
257. Tsil-dil-gi'-si is said to mean frightened-weed, scare-weed,
or hiding-weed, and to be so named because snakes, lizards, and
other animals hide in its dense foliage when frightened. It is a
yellow-flowered composite, Gutierrezia euthamiæ (T. and G.), which
grows in great abundance in Arizona and New Mexico. It is used
extensively in the Navaho ceremonies in preparing and depositing
sacrifices, etc.
258. Whirlwinds of no great violence are exceedingly common throughout
the arid region. One seldom looks at an extensive landscape without
seeing one or more columns of whirling dust arising.
259. In the full myth of yói hatál, as told by a priest of the rite,
a complete account of the ceremonies, songs, and sacrifices taught
to the Navaho would here be given; but in this account, told by an
outsider, the ritual portion is omitted.
260. In the myth of the "Mountain Chant,"[314] p. 410, it is stated,
as in this tale, that the wanderer returning to his old home finds
the odors of the place intolerable to him. Such incidents occur in
other Navaho myths.
261. In the rite of the klédzi hatál, or the night chant, the first
four masked characters, who come out to dance in the public performance
of the last night, are called atsá`lei. From this story it would seem
that a similar character or characters belong to the yói hatál.
262. These great shells are perhaps not altogether mythical. Similar
shells are mentioned in the Origin Legend (pars. 211, 213, 226),
in connection with the same pueblos. Shells of such size, conveyed
from the coast to the Chaco Canyon, a distance of 300 miles or more,
before the introduction of the horse, would have been of inestimable
value among the Indians.
263. In the myth recorded in "The Mountain Chant: a Navaho
Ceremony,"[314] p. 413, there is an account of a journey given
by a courier who went to summon some distant bands to join in a
ceremony. From this account the following passage is taken: "I ... went
to the north. On my way I met another messenger, who was travelling
from a distant camp to this one to call you all to a dance in a circle
of branches of a different kind from ours. When he learned my errand
he tried to prevail on me to return hither and put off our dance until
another day, so that we might attend their ceremony, and that they
might in turn attend ours; but I refused, saying our people were in
haste to complete their dance. Then we exchanged bows and quivers,
as a sign to our people that we had met, and that what we would
tell on our return was the truth. You observe the bow and quiver I
have now are not those with which I left this morning. We parted,
and I kept on my way toward the north." In par. 597 of "The Great
Shell of Kintyél" reference is made to the same identical meeting
of couriers. It is interesting to observe how one legend is made to
corroborate the other,--each belonging to a different rite.
264. Pésdolgas is here translated serrate knife. A saw is called
benitsíhi, but in describing it the adjective dolgás is used for
serrate. The pésdolgas is mentioned often in song and story. It
is said to be no longer in use. Descriptions indicate that it was
somewhat like the many-bladed obsidian weapon of the ancient Mexicans.
265. The cliff-ruin known as the White House, in the Chelly Canyon,
Arizona, has been often pictured and described. It is called by
the Navahoes Kin-i-na-é-kai, which signifies Stone House of the
White Horizontal Streak (the upper story is painted white). The
name White House is a free translation of this. The Navaho legends
abound in references to it, and represent it as once inhabited by
divinities. (See par. 78 and fig. 22.)
266. Hát-das-tsi-si is a divinity who is not depicted in the
dry-paintings, and whose representative the author has not seen. He
appears rarely in the ceremonies and is thus described: The actor
wears an ordinary Navaho costume, and an ordinary yébaka mask adorned
with owl-feathers, but not with eagle-plumes. He carries on his back
an entire yucca plant with the leaves hanging down, and a large ring,
two spans in diameter, made of yucca leaves (to show that he is a great
gambler at nánzoz). He carries a whip of yucca leaves, and goes around
among the assembled crowd to treat the ailing. If a man has lumbago he
bends over before the actor and presents his back to be flagellated;
if he has headache he presents his head. When the actor has whipped
the ailing one, he turns away from him and utters a low sound (like
the lowing of a cow). When he can find no more people to whip, he
returns to the medicine-lodge and takes off his mask. The cigarette
(which the author has in his possession) appropriate to this god is
painted black, and bears rude figures of the yucca ring and the yucca
plant. It is buried east of the lodge beside a growing yucca. Ten songs
are sung when the cigarette is being made, and a prayer is repeated
when the work is done. The yucca which the actor carries must have
a large part of its root-stock over ground. It is kicked out of the
ground,--neither pulled nor cut. The principal home of the divinity
is at Tsasitsozsakád (Yucca Glauca, Standing), near the Chelly Canyon.
267. The following is a list of the twenty-one divinities represented
by masks in the ceremony of the klédzi hatál:--
MALE.
1. Hastséyalti.
2. Gánaskidi.
3. Tó`nenili.
4. Nayénezgani.
5. To`badzistsíni.
6. Dsahadoldzá.
7. Hastsézini.
8. Hastséhogan.
9. Hátdastsisi.[266]
10. Hastséltsi.[271]
11. Tsóhanoai.
12. Kléhanoai, or Tléhanoai.
13. Hastsébaka.
Each, for the first seven, wears a different mask. The last six wear
masks of one pattern, that of yébaka. (See plate I., fig. 1.)
FEMALE.
14. Hastséoltoi.
15 to 21. Hastsébaad, or goddesses.
All the female characters wear masks of one kind. (See fig. 28 and
plate I., fig. 3.)
268. The language of the Eleventh Census is quoted here, although it
differs slightly from the official report of the count of 1869, made
by the acting agent, Capt. Frank T. Bennett, U.S.A. Captain Bennett
says the count was made on two separate days, October 2d and 18th,
and gives the number of Indians actually counted at 8,181. (Report
of Commission of Indian Affairs for 1869, p. 237.[298])
269. Plate IV. represents a man dressed to personate Nayénezgani,
or Slayer of the Alien Gods, as he appears in an act of succor in
the ceremony of the night chant, on the afternoon of the ninth day,
in company with two other masqueraders (To`badzistsíni[270] and
Hastséoltoi[206]). The personator has his body painted black with
charcoal of four sacred plants, and his hands painted white. He wears
a black mask which has a fringe of yellow or reddish hair across the
crown and an ornament of turkey's and eagle's feathers on top. Five
parallel lines with five angles in each, to represent lightning, are
painted on one cheek of the mask (sometimes the right, sometimes the
left). Small, diamond-shaped holes are cut in the mask for eyes and
mouth, and to the edge of each hole a small white shell is attached. On
his body there are drawn in white clay the figures of eight bows;
six are drawn as shown in the picture and two more are drawn over the
shoulder-blades. All these bows are shown as complete (or strung)
except those on the left leg and left side of the back, which are
represented open or unstrung, as shown in the plate and fig. 41. The
symbol at the left leg is made first, that on the left shoulder last
of all. All the component lines of the symbol are drawn from above
downward; fig. 41 shows the order in which they must be drawn. The
symbols must all turn in one direction. The personator wears a collar
of fox-skin, a number of rich necklaces of shell, turquoise and coral,
a fine skirt or sash around his loins (usually scarlet baize, bayeta,
but velvet or any rich material will do), a belt decorated with silver,
and ordinary moccasins. He carries in his right hand a great stone
knife, with which, in the scene of succor, he makes motions at the
patient and at the medicine-lodge to draw out the disease. The patient
prays to him, and gives him a cigarette painted black and decorated
with the bow-symbols in white. This cigarette is preferably deposited
under a piñon-tree. A dry-painting of this god has never been seen
by the author, and he has been told that none is ever made.
270. Plate VII. represents the personator of the War God,
To`badzistsíni, or Child of the Water, as he appears in the act of
succor described in notes 206 and 269. His body and limbs are painted
with a native red ochre; his hands are smeared with white earth;
and eight symbols are drawn in his body in white,--two on the chest,
two on the arms, two on the legs, and two on the back, partly over the
shoulder-blades. As with the bow-symbols of Nayénezgani (note 269),
two of the symbols are left open or unfinished,--that on the left
leg (painted first) and that over the left shoulder-blade (painted
last), to indicate (some say) that the labors of the god are not yet
done. Fig. 42 shows the order and direction in which each component
line of the symbol must be drawn. The symbols represent a queue, such
as the Navahoes now wear (fig. 31). Some say these figures represent
the queue of the god's mother, others say they represent the scalps
of conquered enemies; the latter is a more probable explanation. The
personator wears a mask painted also with red ochre (all except a
small triangular space over the face, which is colored black and
bordered with white); and it is decorated both in front and behind
with a number of queue-symbols (the number is never the same in two
masks, but is always a multiple of four). The mask has a fringe
of red or yellow hair, and a cockade of turkey-tail and a downy
eagle-feather. The holes for the eyes and mouth are diamond-shaped,
and have white shells attached to them. The actor carries in his left
hand a small round cylinder of cedar-wood painted red, and in his right
a cylinder of piñon painted black. With these, in the scene of succor,
he makes motions at the patient and at the lodge. Like his companion,
the personator of Nayénezgani, he wears a collar of fox-skin (Vulpes
velox); rich necklaces of shell, turquoise, and coral; a skirt or sash
of bayeta, or some other rich material; a belt adorned with plaques
of silver; and ordinary moccasins. The sacrificial cigarette which he
receives is painted red, marked with the queue-symbols, and deposited
under a cedar-tree. No dry-painting of To`badzistsíni has been seen
by the author, and he has been assured that none is made.
271. The name Has-tsél-tsi (Red God) is derived from Hastsé (God, see
par. 78) and litsí (red). The Red God, it is said, is never depicted in
dry-paintings. The author has never seen the character in masquerade;
it seldom appears,--only on the rare occasions when there is no dance
of the naakhaí on the last night of the night chant. He seems to be a
god of racing. The following account of him is from verbal description:
Red God is one of the yéi, and dwells wherever other yéi dwell (hence
there are many). His representative never appears in an act of succor
and never helps the patient. A fast runner is chosen to play the
part. He goes round among the assembled Indians and challenges men,
by signs and inarticulate cries, to race with him. If he wins, he
whips the loser with two wands of yucca leaves (culled with special
observances) which he carries. If he loses, the winner must not whip
him. If the loser begs him to whip softly he whips hard, and vice
versa. His body is painted red and has queue-symbols drawn on it,
like those of To`badzistsíni (plate VII.). His mask, which is a domino
and not a cap, is painted red and marked with circles and curves in
white. His cigarette is prepared on the fourth day, but it is not
given to him to sacrifice; it is placed by other hands. Song and
prayer accompany the preparation and sacrifice of the cigarette. The
latter is painted red, and decorated in white with queue-symbols,
either two or four; if four, two are closed or complete, and two open
or incomplete. (Note 270.)
NAVAHO MUSIC.
BY PROF. JOHN COMFORT FILLMORE.
272. The twenty-eight songs which I have transcribed from phonographic
records made by Dr. Washington Matthews have very great scientific
interest and value, inasmuch as they throw much light on the problem
of the form spontaneously assumed by natural folk-songs. Primitive man,
expressing his emotions, especially strongly excited feeling, in song,
without any rules or theories, must, of course, move spontaneously
along the lines of least resistance. This is the law under which
folk-melodies must necessarily be shaped. The farther back we can
get toward absolutely primitive expression of emotion in song, the
more valuable is our material for scientific purposes; because we
can be certain that it is both spontaneous and original, unaffected
by contact with civilized music and by any and all theories. In such
music we may study the operation of natural psychical laws correlated
with physical laws, working freely and coming to spontaneous expression
through the vocal apparatus.
These Navaho songs are especially valuable because they carry us well
back toward the beginnings of music-making. One only needs to hear
them sung, or listen to them in the admirable phonographic records
of Dr. Matthews, to be convinced of this from the very quality of
tone in which they are sung. In all of them the sounds resemble
howling more than singing, yet they are unmistakably musical in two
very important particulars: (1) In their strongly marked rhythm; (2)
In the unquestionably harmonic relations of the successive tones. I
shall deal with them, therefore, under the two heads of Rhythm and
Harmonic Melody.
1. Rhythm.--Mr. Richard Wallascheck, the distinguished author of
"Primitive Music," has lately called attention to the importance of
sonant rhythm. Not only does the rhythmic impulse precede the other
musical elements, but the superiority of sonant rhythm is such as to
serve as an incitement to tone-production. Rhythm tends to set the
voice going; and of course vocal sounds, which constitute the first
music, do not become music until they are rhythmically ordered. They
tend to become so ordered by a natural law of pulsation which need not
be discussed here. The regularly recurring pulsations, which specially
show themselves in all prolonged emissions of vocal sounds, tend also
to form themselves in metrical groups; speaking broadly, these metrical
groups are usually twos or threes, or simple multiples of twos or
threes. This is so, for the most part, in savage folk-music, in our
most advanced culture-music, and in all the development which comes
between. The metrical grouping into fives or sevens is comparatively
rare; but I have found it more frequently by far in savage folk-music
than in our music of civilization.
The most striking characteristic of the metrical grouping of tones
in the Navaho songs here given is the freedom with which the singer
changes from one elementary metre to the other; i.e. from twos to
threes and vice versa. So in the compound metres: two twos and three
twos, or two threes and three threes, are intermingled with the utmost
freedom, so that few of them can be marked in the notation with a
single-time signature. Or, if they are, there is almost sure to be
an exceptional measure or two here and there which varies from the
fundamental metrical type. Thus, the first song on cylinder No. 38 has
metrical groupings of three threes and of two threes; i.e. 9/8 and 6/8
time. The two songs on cylinder No. 41 have three twos and two twos,
treating the eighth note as a unit; or, better, 2/4 and 3/4 metre,
mingled at the pleasure of the singer. Nearly all the songs vary the
metre in this way. The one on cylinder No. 62 has an exceptionally
rich variety of metrical arrangement; while the second one, on cylinder
No. 38, is exceptionally simple and monotonous in metre and rhythm. A
few of them, like No. 25, recorded on cylinder No. 143, are singularly
irregular. This song would seem to be based on a grouping of simple
twos (2/4 time, equal to 4/8) as its fundamental metrical conception;
yet a great many measures contain only three eighth notes, and some
contain five or even six. The song numbered 28, on cylinder No. 144,
has a 8/8 metre as its foundation, but varied by 2/4, equal to 4/8. In
respect of metrical grouping, these Navaho songs do not differ in any
essential characteristic from the songs of the Omahas, the Kwakiutls,
the Pawnees, the Otoes, the Sioux, and other aboriginal folk-music, nor
from that of other nations and races, including our own. The complexity
of metrical arrangement has been carried much farther by some other
tribes, notably the Omahas and the Kwakiutls, than by the Navahoes,
so far as appears from the present collection of songs. There is no
record here of an accompanying drum-beat, so that, if the combinations
of dissimilar rhythms which are so common in the two above-named tribes
exist among the Navahoes, they are yet to be recorded and transcribed.
2. Harmonic Melody.--These songs seem to be a real connecting
link between excited shouting and excited singing. In quality
of tone they are shouts or howls. In pitch-relations they are
unmistakably harmonic. Some of them manifest this characteristic most
strikingly. For example, the two songs on cylinder No. 41 contain
all the tones which compose the chord of C major, and no others. The
second one on cylinder No. 38 has the tones D and F sharp and no
others, except in the little preliminary flourish at the beginning,
and here there is only a passing E, which fills up the gap between
the two chord-tones. D is evidently the key-note, and the whole
melody is made up of the Tonic chord incomplete. The first song on
the same cylinder is similarly made up of the incomplete Tonic chord
in C minor; only the opening phrase has the incomplete chord of E
flat, the relative major. Cylinder No. 49 has nothing but the Tonic
chord in C major, and the chord is complete. No. 61 has the complete
chord of B flat minor and nothing else. No. 62 is made up mainly
of the chord of F major complete. It has two by-tones occasionally
used, G and D, the former belonging to the Dominant and the other
to both the Sub-dominant and Relative minor chords. Song No. 9 on
cylinder No. 100 has the incomplete chord of D sharp minor, with G
sharp, the Sub-dominant in the key, as an occasional by-tone. The
last tone of each period, the lowest tone of the song, sounds in
the phonograph as if the singer could not reach it easily, and the
pitch is rather uncertain. It was probably meant for G sharp; but a
personal interview with the singer would be necessary to settle the
point conclusively. Song No. 10, on the same cylinder, has the complete
Tonic chord in D sharp minor and nothing else except the tone C sharp,
which is here not a melodic by-tone, but a harmonic tone, a minor
seventh added to the Tonic chord. This is curiously analogous to some
of the melodies I heard in the Dahomey village at the World's Fair, and
also to some of the melodies of our own Southern negroes. Song No. 11,
on the same cylinder, has the same characteristics as No. 9. Nos. 12
and 13, on cylinder No. 135, contain the complete chord of D flat and
nothing else. The two songs on cylinder No. 138 contain the complete
chord of C major and nothing else, except at the beginning, where A,
the relative minor tone, comes in, in the opening phrase. As a rule,
whatever by-tones there are in these songs are used in the preliminary
phrase or flourish of the song, and then the singer settles down
steadily to the line of the Tonic chord. The two songs recorded on
No. 139 have the complete major chord of B flat, with G, the relative
minor, as a by-tone. The two songs on No. 143 are in C sharp minor
and embody the Tonic chord, with F sharp, the Sub-dominant, as a
by-tone. Only the first of the two begins with the tone B, which
does not occur again. Song No. 27, on cylinder No. 144, embodies
only the complete chord of C sharp minor. No. 28 has the same chord,
with F sharp as a by-tone. The two songs on No. 145 are in D minor and
are made up mainly of the Tonic chord. The by-tones used are G and B
flat, which make up two thirds of the Sub-dominant chord, and C, which
belongs to the relative major. No. 32, on cylinder No. 146, has more
of diatonic melody. It is in G major, and embodies the chord of the
Tonic with by-tones belonging to both the Dominant and Sub-dominant
chords, one from each chord. No. 33, on the same cylinder, is less
melodious, but has the same harmonic elements. Cylinder 147 has two
songs in D major which embody the Tonic chord complete, with slight
use of a single by-tone, B, the relative minor. The same is true of
song No. 36, on cylinder No. 148. Song No. 37, on the same cylinder,
has the major chord of C and nothing else.
There are two striking facts in all this: (1) When these Navahoes make
music spontaneously,--make melodies by singing tones in rhythmically
ordered succession,--there is always a tone which forces itself on
our consciousness as a key-note, or Tonic, and this tone, together
with the tones which make up its chord (whether major or minor),
invariably predominates overwhelmingly; (2) Whenever by-tones are
employed, they invariably belong to the chords which stand in the
nearest relation to the Tonic.
I do not care at present to go into any speculations as to why this
is so. No matter now what may be the influence of sonant rhythm; what
may be the relations of the psychical, physiological, and physical
elements; how sound is related to music; how men come to the conception
of a minor Tonic when only the major chord is given in the physical
constitution of tone. All these questions I wish to waive at this
time and only to insist on this one fact, viz.: That, so far as these
Navaho songs are concerned, the line of least resistance is always a
harmonic line. If we find the same true of all other folk-melodies,
I can see no possible escape from the conclusion that harmonic
perception is the formative principle in folk-melody. This perception
may be sub-conscious, if you please; the savage never heard a chord
sung or played as a simultaneous combination of tones in his life;
he has no notion whatever of the harmonic relations of tones. But
it is not an accident that he sings, or shouts, or howls, straight
along the line of a chord, and never departs from it except now and
then to touch on some of the nearest related chord-tones, using them
mainly as passing-tones to fill up the gap between the tones of his
Tonic chord. Such things do not happen by accident, but by law.
That these Navahoes do precisely this thing, no listener can doubt
who knows a chord when he hears it. But the same thing is true of all
the folk-music I have ever studied. Hundreds of Omaha, Kwakiutl, Otoe,
Pawnee, Sioux, Winnebago, Iroquois, Mexican Indian, Zuñi, Australian,
African, Malay, Chinese, Japanese, Hindoo, Arab, Turkish, and European
folk-songs which I have carefully studied, taking down many of them
from the lips of the native singers, all tell the same story. They are
all built on simple harmonic lines, all imply harmony, are all equally
intelligible to peoples the most diverse in race, and consequently owe
their origin and shaping to the same underlying formative principles.
Mr. Wallascheck has called attention to the fact that the rhythmic
impulse precedes the musical tones, and also to the part played by
sonant rhythm in setting tone-production going. The rhythmic impulse
is doubtless the fundamental one in the origination of music. But when
the tone-production is once started by the rhythmic impulse, it takes
a direction in accordance with the laws of harmonic perception. I was
long ago forced to this conclusion in my study of the Omaha music; and
these Navaho songs furnish the most striking corroboration of it. How
else can we possibly account for the fact that so many of these songs
contain absolutely nothing but chord tones? How can we escape the
conclusion that the line of least resistance is a harmonic line? Is
it not plain that, in the light of this principle, every phenomenon
of folk-music becomes clear and intelligible? Is there any other
hypothesis which will account for the most striking characteristics of
folk-music? Every student must answer these questions for himself. But
I, for my part, am wholly unable to resist the conviction that the
harmonic sense is the shaping, formative principle in folk-melody.
[In the numbers of The Land of Sunshine (Los Angeles, Cal.), for
October and November, 1896, under the title of "Songs of the Navajos,"
the poetry and music of this tribe have already been discussed by
Professor Fillmore and the author. All the music which follows (see
pp. 258, 279-290), except that of the "Dove Song," was written by
Professor Fillmore.]
273. DOVE SONG.
(See par. 50.) Music by Christian Barthelmess.
Slow.
Wos wos nai-di-la a a, Wos wos nai-di-lo o o,
Wos wos nai-di-la a a, Tsi-nol-ka-zi nai-di-la a a,
Ke-li-tsi-tsi nai-di-la a a, Wos wos nai-di-lo o o.
TEXTS AND INTERLINEAR TRANSLATIONS.
274. ASSEVERATION OF TORLINO (IN PART).
Naestsán bayántsin.
Earth (Woman Horizontal), for it I am ashamed.
Yádilyil bayántsin.
Sky (dark above), for it I am ashamed.
Hayolkál bayántsin.
Dawn, for it I am ashamed.
Nahotsói bayántsin.
Evening (Land of Horizontal Yellow), for it I am ashamed.
Nahodotli'zi bayántsin.
Blue sky (Land or Place of Horizontal Blue), for it I am ashamed.
Tsalyél bayántsin.
Darkness, for it I am ashamed.
Tsóhanoai bayántsin.
Sun, for it I am ashamed.
Si sizíni beyastí`yi bayántsin.
In me it stands, with me it talks, for it I am ashamed.
275. BEGINNING OF ORIGIN LEGEND.
To`bilhaski'digi haádze lakaígo ta`i'ndilto; tsin
Water with Hill Central in to the east white up rose; day
dzilínla tsi'ni. Sadaádze dotli'zgo ta`i'ndilto;
they thought it they say. To the south blue up rose;
tábitsin indzilté tsi'ni. Inádze litsógo
still their day they went around they say. To the west yellow
ta`i'ndilto; ininála á`le tsi'ni. Akógo náhokosdze
up rose; evening always it showed they say. Then to the north
dilyi'lgo ta`i'ndilto; akógo dazintsá dádzilkos tsi'ni.
dark up rose; then they lay down they slept they say.
To`bilhaski'di to`altsáhazlin;
Water with Hill Central water flowed from in different directions;
haádze la ilín, sadaágo la ilín, la inádze ilín
to the east one flowed, at the south one flowed, one to the west flowed
tsi'ni. Haádze ilínigi ban kéhodziti;
they say. To the east where it flowed its border place where they
dwelt;
sadaádze eltó`; inádze eltó` ban kéhodziti
to the south also; to the west also its border place where they dwelt
tsi'ni.
they say.
Haádze Tan holgé; sadaádze Nahodoóla holgé;
To the east Corn a place called; to the south Nahodoóla a place called;
inádze Lókatsosakád holgé. Haádze Asalái
to the west Reed Great Standing a place called. To the east Pot One
holgé; sadaádze To`hádzitil holgé;
a place called; to the south Water They Come for Often a place called;
inádze Dsillitsíbehogán holgé. Haádze
to the west Mountain Red Made of House a place called. To the east
Léyahogan holgé; sadaádze Tsiltsi'ntha
Earth under House a place called; to the south Aromatic Sumac among
holgé; inádze Tse`litsíbehogán holgé.
a place called; to the west Rock Red Made of House a place called.
Holatsí Dilyi'le kéhati inté. Holatsí Litsí kéhati inté. Tanilaí
Ants Dark lived there. Ants Red lived there. Dragon-flies
kéhati inté. Tsaltsá kéhati inté. Wointli'zi kéhati
lived there. (Yellow beetles) lived there. Beetles (?) hard lived
inté. Tse`yoáli kéhati inté. Kinli'zin
there. Stone carriers (beetles) lived there. Bugs black (beetles)
kéhati inté. Maitsán kéhati inté. Andi'ta Tsápani
kéhati
lived there. Coyote-dung (beetles) lived there. Besides Bats lived
inté. Totsó` kéhati inté. Wonistsídi kéhati inté.
there. (White-faced beetles) lived there. Locusts lived there.
Wonistsídi Kaí kéhati inté. Nakidátago diné` aísi
Locusts White lived there. Twelve people these
dezdél.
started (in life).
Haádze hahóse to`sigi'n tsi'ni; Sadaádze to`sigi'n
To the east extended ocean they say; to the south ocean
tsi'ni; inádze to`sigi'n tsi'ni; náhokosdze to`sigi'n
they say; to the west ocean they say; to the north ocean
tsi'ni. Haádze to`sigi'n bígi Tiéholtsodi sitín tsi'ni.
they say. To the east ocean within Tiéholtsodi lay they say.
Natáni inlíngo; hanantáï tsi'ni. Sadaádze to`sigi'n
Chief he was; Chief of the people they say. To the south ocean
bígi Thaltláhale sitín tsi'ni. Natáni inlin'go; hanantáï
within Blue Heron lay they say. Chief he was; chief of the people
tsi'ni. Inádze to`sigi'n bígi Tsal sitín tsi'ni. Natáni
they say. To the west ocean within Frog lay they say. Chief
inlíngo; hanantáï tsi'ni. Náhokosdze to`sigi'n bígi
he was; chief of the people they say. To the north ocean within
Idní`dsilkai sitín tsi'ni; hanantáï tsi'ni.
Thunder Mountain White lay they say; chief of the people they say.
Tígi itégo hazágo kédahatsitigo; e'hyidelnago
In this way they quarrelled around where they lived; with one another
ahádaztilge tsi'ni. E'hyidelnago estsáni altsan
they committed adultery they say. With one another women several
tatsikíd tsi'ni. Yúwe tséhalni tsi'ni. Tiéholtsodi
committed crime they say. To banish it they failed they say. Tiéholtsodi
haádze "Hatégola doléla? Hwehéya
to the east "In what way shall we act? Their land
holdá`odaka`la." Sadaádze Thaltláhale halní
the place they dislike." To the south Blue Heron spoke to them
tsi'ni. Inádze "Kat si dokoné kehadzitídolel," Tsal
they say. To the west "Now I (say) not here shall they dwell," Frog
hatsí Natáni inli'ni, hatsí tsi'ni. Náhokosdze
he said Chief he was, he said they say. To the north
Idní`dsilkai "Ta`kadá` hádzeta dahízdinolidi" tsi'ni.
Thunder Mountain White "Quickly elsewhere they must depart" they say.
Haádze Tiéholtsodi ahánadazdeyago
To the east Tiéholtsodi when again they committed adultery
alkinatsidzé tohatsí tsi'ni. Sadaádze
among themselves again fought nothing he said they say. To the south
Thaltláhale tatohanantsída tsi'ni. Inádze Tsal natáni
Blue Heron again said nothing to them they say. To the west Frog chief
inlinéni tatohanantsída tsi'ni. Náhokosdze
he formerly was again said nothing to them they say. To the north
Idní`dsilkai tatohanantsída tsi'ni.
Thunder Mountain White again said nothing to them they say.
Tóbiltahozondala tsi'ni.
Not with pleasant ways, one they say.
Tin naikálago takonáhotsa tsi'ni. Sadaádze
Four again ends of nights again the same happened they say. To the south
kéhodzitini takonátsidza tsi'ni; kinatsidzé tsi'ni.
the dwellers did the same again they say; again they fought they say.
Haádze la estsánigo la dinégo yahatsaáz inté;
To the east one woman one man tried to enter two together there;
tsehodineltsa, tsi'ni. Sadaádze Thaltláhale sitínedze
they were driven they say. To the south Blue Heron to where he lay
yahanátsataz inté; tsenáhodineltsa
again they tried to enter two together there; again they were driven out
tsi'ni. Inádze Tsal natáni inli'nedze
they say. To the west Frog chief to where he was
yahanátsataz inté; tsenáhodineltsa
again they tried to enter two together there; again they were driven out
tsi'ni. Náhokosdze tsenáhodineltsa "Tóta ní`yila.
they say. To the north again they were driven out. "Not one of you.
Dainoká` hádzeta," ho`doní tsi'ni. Andi'ta aibitlé
Keep on going elsewhere," thus he spoke they say. Besides the same night
Nahodoóla bai'ndadzitigo iská' tatoastetsáda
Nahodoóla they discussed it the end of the night they did not decide
tsi'ni. Na`déyayilkágo Tiéholtsodi hayálti tsi'ni.
they say. After dawn Tiéholtsodi began to talk they say.
"Todadotsáda tsiní`yitsinyasti hádis tadidotsíl
"You pay no attention all I said to you anywhere you will disobey;
ní`yila` hádzeta tanelída; koné tóta ti` ni dasakádgi kat
all of you elsewhere must go; here not this earth upon stand in now
tóta;" hodoní tsi'ni.
not;" thus he said they say.
Estsánigo tin iskágo basahatsilágo tsi'ni.
Among the women four ends of nights, till they talked about it they say.
Tín iská` api'nigo názditse inté tsi'ni,
Four ends of nights in the morning as they were rising there they say,
haádze hatísi lakáigo taigánil tsi'ni; andi'ta sadaádze
to the east something white it appeared they say; besides to the south
eltó` taigánil tsi'ni; naakoné inádze eltó` taigánil
also it appeared they say; again here to the west also it appeared
tsi'ni; andi'ta náhokosdze eltó` taigánil tsi'ni. Dsil
they say; besides to the north also it appeared they say. Mountains
ahyéna`a` náhalini silín tsi'ni; tatobitá`hazani.
rising up around like it stretched they say; without opening.
To`ahyéintsil tsi'ni; to`tobityió, tatódizaatego
Water all around they say; water not to be crossed, not to be climbed
ahyéintsilin tsi'ni. Táako tahadiltél tsi'ni.
flowed all around they say. At once they started they say.
Ahyéiltégo nihiziilté tsi'ni;
They went around in circles thus they went they say;
yabiilté tsi'ni. Dilkógo. Táado tan indazdéti
they went to the sky they say. It was smooth. Thence down they looked
tsi'ni; to` i'ndadiltlayengi; to` toahotéhida tsi'ni.
they say; water where it had risen; water nothing else there they say.
Nité kondé la haznolán tsi'ni; tsi dotli'z léi;
There from here one stuck out they say; head blue it had;
hatsotsí tsi'ni; "Kónne," tsiné, "haádzego
he called to them they say; "In here," he said, "to the eastward
ahótsala" tsi'ni. Akónne ooilté tsi'ni; binaká`
a hole" they say. In here they went entering they say; through it
ilté tsi'ni bagándze hasté tsi'ni.
they went they say; to the upper surface they came out they say.
Dotli'zeni Hastsósidine` ati'nla tsi'ni. Hastsósidine`
The blue one Swallow People belonged to they say. Swallow People
kéhatil tsi'ni. Hogánin togólgo nazni'l,
lived there they say. The houses rough (lumpy) scattered around,
tsi'ni; háhosi` yilá` tsi'ni. Bilathádze
they say; a great many were placed they say. Toward their tops
dahatsózgo; áde yahadáhaztsa` tsi'ni. Háhosi`
they tapered; from that gave entrance an opening they say. A great many
diné` altsí kotgá tsi'ni. Háalahazlín tsi'ni.
people collected together they say. They crowded together they say.
276. SONG OF ESTSÁNATLEHI.
Aieneyá.
(No meaning.)
Eó eá aiá ahèea aía eeeaía ainá.
(A meaningless prelude twice repeated.)
I.
1. Yéinaezgani sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
Nayénezgani for me he brings, (meaningless.)
2. Kat Bitéelgeti sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
Now Téelget for me he brings, (meaningless.)
3. Tsi'da la bidzái sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
Truly one his lung for me he brings, (meaningless.)
4. Diné` nahostli'di. Sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
People are restored. For me he brings, (meaningless.)
Haía aína aiyéya aína.
(Meaningless refrain after each stanza.)
II.
1. Kat To`badzistsíni sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
Now To`badzistsíni for me he brings, (meaningless.)
2. Tseninaholi'si sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
Tse`náhale for me he brings, (meaningless.)
3. Tsi'da la bitái, sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
Truly one his wing, for me he brings, (meaningless.)
4. Diné` nahostli'di. Sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
People are restored. For me he brings, (meaningless.)
III.
1. Kat Léyaneyani sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
Now Léyaneyani for me he brings, (meaningless.)
2. Tse`tahotsiltá`li sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
Tse`tahotsiltá`li for me he brings, (meaningless.)
3. Tsi'da bitlapi'le sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
Truly his side-lock for me he brings, (meaningless.)
4. Diné` nahostli'di. Sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
People are restored. For me he brings, (meaningless.)
IV.
1. Kat Tsówenatlehi sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
Now Tsówenatlehi for me he brings, (meaningless.)
2. Bináye Tsagáni sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
Bináye Aháni for me he brings, (meaningless.)
3. Tsi'da la binái sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
Truly one his eye for me he brings, (meaningless.)
4. Diné` nahostli'di. Sa` niyi'nigi, yeyeyéna.
People are restored. For me he brings, (meaningless.)
In line 1, stanza I., Nayénezgani is changed to Yéinaezgani,
and in line 1, stanza IV., Bináye Aháni is changed to Bináye
Tsagáni. Nahostli'di in the last line of each stanza is rendered here
"restored," but the more exact meaning is, not that the original
people are called back to life, but that others are given in place
of them. This verb is used if a man steals a horse and gives another
horse as restitution for the one he stole.
277. SONG OF NAYÉNEZGANI (NAYÉNEZGANI BIGI'N).
I.
Atsé Estsán Nayénezgani yihaholni'z,
Atsé Estsán Nayénezgani began to tell her of,
Bitéelgeti yilhaholni'z,
Téelget began to tell her of,
Nayé holóde yihaholni'z.
Anáye from where they are began to tell her of.
II.
Estsánatlehi To`badzistsíni yilhaholni'z,
Estsánatlehi To`badzistsíni began to tell her of,
Tse`nahalési yilhaholni'z,
Tsé`nahale began to tell her of,
Nayé holóde yilhaholni'z.
Anáye from where they are began to tell her of.
III.
Atsé Estsán Léyaneyani yilhaholni'z,
Atsé Estsán Léyaneyani began to tell her of,
Tse`tahotsiltá`li yilhaholni'z,
Tse`tahotsiltá`li began to tell her of,
Nayé holóde yilhaholni'z.
Anáye from where they are began to tell her of.
IV.
Estsánatlehi Tsówenatlehi yilhaholni'z,
Estsánatlehi Tsówenatlehi began to tell her of,
Bináye Tsagáni yilhaholni'z,
Bináye Aháni began to tell her of,
Nayé holóde yilhaholni'z.
Anáye from where they are began to tell her of.
Prelude, refrain, and meaningless syllables are omitted from this text.
278. SONG OF NAYÉNEZGANI.
I.
Kat Nayénezgani koanígo digíni,
Now Slayer of the Alien Gods thus he says a holy one,
Kat Tsóhanoai koanígo,
Now The Sun thus he says,
Digi'n yiká` sizíni koanígo.
Holy thereon he stands thus he says.
II.
Kat To`badzistsíni koanígo digíni,
Now Child of the Water thus he says a holy one,
Kat Kléhanoai koanígo,
Now The Moon thus he says,
Digi'n yiká` holési koanígo.
Holy thereon he goes forth thus he says.
III.
Kat Léyaneyani koanígo digíni,
Now Reared under the Earth thus he says a holy one,
Kat Tsóhanoai koanígo,
Now The Sun thus he says,
Digi'n yiká` sizíni koanígo.
Holy thereon he stands thus he says.
IV.
Kat Tsówenatlehi koanígo digíni,
Now Changing Grandchild thus he says a holy one,
Kat Kléhanoai koanígo,
Now The Moon thus he says,
Digi'n yiká` holési koanígo.
Holy thereon he goes forth thus he says.
Meaningless parts omitted. Koanígo is from kónigo, which is the
prose form.
279. SONG OF NAYÉNEZGANI.
I.
Kat Yénaezgani la disitsáya.
Now Slayer of the Alien Gods (Nayénezgani) one I hear him.
Ya benikásde la disitsáya.
Sky through from one I hear him.
Bíniye tsíye ti'snisad lée.
His voice sounds in every direction (no meaning).
Bíniye tsíye dígini lée.
His voice sounds holy, divine (no meaning).
II.
Kat To`badzistsíni la disitsáya.
Now Child of the Water one I hear him.
To` benikásde la disitsáya.
Water through from one I hear him.
Bíniye tsíye ti'snisad lée.
His voice sounds in every direction (no meaning).
Bíniye tsíye dígini lée.
His voice sounds divine (no meaning).
III.
Kat Léyaneyani la disitsáya.
Now Reared under the Ground one I hear him.
Ni` benikásde la disitsáya.
Earth through from one I hear him.
Bíniye tsíye ti 'snisad lée.
His voice sounds in every direction (no meaning).
Bíniye tsíye dígini lée.
His voice sounds divine (no meaning).
IV.
Kat Tsówenatlehi la disitsáya.
Now Changing Grandchild one I hear him.
Kos benikásde la disitsáya.
Clouds through from one I hear him.
Bíniye tsíye ti'snisad lée.
His voice sounds in every direction (no meaning).
Bíniye tsíye dígini lée.
His voice sounds divine (no meaning).
Nayénezgani changed to Yénaezgani; bine (his voice) changed to bíniye;
digi'n changed to dígini, for poetic reasons. Preludes and refrains
omitted.
280. A SONG OF NAYÉNEZGANI.
I.
Kat Nayénezgani nahaníya,
Now Slayer of the Alien Gods he arrives,
Pes dilyi'li behogánla ásde nahaníya,
Knives dark a house made of from he arrives,
Pes dilyi'li da`honíhe ásde nahaníya.
Knives dark dangle high from he arrives.
Nizáza dinigíni, síka tóta.
Your treasures you holy one, for my sake not.
II.
Kat To`badzistsíni nahaníya,
Now Child of the Water he arrives,
Pes dolgási behogánla ásde nahaníya,
Knives serrate a house made of from he arrives,
Pes dolgási da`honíhe ásde nahaníya.
Knives serrate dangle high from he arrives.
Nizáza dinigíni, síka not.
Your treasures you holy one, for my sake tóta.
III.
Kat Léyaneyani nahaníya,
Now Reared under the Earth he arrives,
Pes althasaí behogánla ásde nahaníya,
Knives of all kinds a house made of from he arrives,
Pes althasaí da`honíhe ásde nahaníya.
Knives of all kinds dangle high from he arrives.
Nizáza dinigíni, síka tóta.
Your treasures you holy one, for my sake not.
IV.
Kat Tsówenatlehi nahaníya,
Now Changing Grandchild he arrives,
Pes litsói behogánla ásde nahaníya,
Knives yellow yellow a house made of from he arrives,
Pes litsói da`honíhe ásde nahaníya.
Knives yellow dangle high from he arrives.
Nizáza dinigíni, síka tóta.
Your treasures you holy one, for my sake not.
In endeavoring to explain the meaning of this song, the singer related
that Nayénezgani said to his mother, "You are the divine one, not
I." She replied, "No, you are the divine one." They were exchanging
compliments. Then he said, "Not for my sake, but for yours, were these
treasures (weapons, etc.) given by the Sun. They are yours." For the
meaning of bizá (his treasure), see note 246. Nizá or ni'za means
your treasure; the last syllable is here repeated perhaps as a poetic
plural. The houses of knives are said to be the different chambers in
the house of the Sun. Meaningless syllables are omitted in this text.
281. SONG OF THE SUN.
I.
Kat Nayénezgani sideyáïye,
Now Slayer of the Alien Gods I come (or approach) with,
Pes dilyi'li behogánde sideyáïye,
Knives dark from house made of I come with,
Pes dilyi'li da`honíde sideyáïye,
Knives dark from where they dangle high I come with,
Sa` alíli sideyáïye, aníhoyéle
For me an implement of the rites I come with, to you dreadful
aineyáhi ainé.
(no meaning).
II.
Kat To`badzistsíni sideyáïye,
Now Child of the Water I come with,
Pes dolgási[264] behogánde sideyáïye,
Knives serrate from house made of I come with,
Pes dolgási da`honíde sideyáïye,
Knives serrate from where they dangle high I come with,
Sa` alíli sideyáïye,
For me an implement of the rites I come with,
anídiginle aineyáhi ainé.
to you sacred (divine, holy) (no meaning).
III.
Kat Léyaneyani sideyáïye,
Now Reared Beneath the Earth, I come with,
Pes althasaí behogánde sideyáïye,
Knives of all kinds from house made of I come with,
Pes althasaí da`honíde sideyáïye,
Knives of all kinds from where they dangle high I come with,
Sa` alíli sideyáïye, aníhoyéle,
For me an implement of the rites I come with, to you dreadful,
aineyáhi ainé.
(no meaning).
IV.
Kat Tsówenatlehi sideyáïye,
Now Changing Grandchild I come with,
Pes litsói behogánde sideyáïye,
Knives yellow from the house made of I come with,
Pes litsói da`honíde sideyáïye,
Knives yellow from where they dangle high I come with,
Sa` alíli sideyáïye, anídiginle
For me an implement of the rites I come with, to you sacred
aineyáhi ainé.
(no meaning.)
Alíl or alíli means a show, dance, or other single exhibition of the
rites (see fig. 30). It also means a wand or other sacred implement
used in the rites. It is thought that the colored hoops for raising
a storm, described in par. 355, are the alíli referred to in this song.
282. SONG OF THE SUN.
I.
Siní` eé deyá aá, deyá aá,
My mind approaches, approaches,
Tsínhanoai eé deyá aá,
The Sun God approaches,
Ni`ninéla` eé deyá aá,
Border of the Earth approaches,
Estsánatlesi bigáni yúnidze deyá aá,
Estsánatlehi her house toward the hearth approaches,
Sána nagái eé deyá aá,
In old age walking approaches,
Biké hozóni eé deyá aá.
His trail beautiful approaches.
Siní` eé deyá aá, deyá aá.
My mind approaches, approaches.
II.
Siní` eé deyá aá, deyá aá,
My mind approaches, approaches,
Kléhanoai eé deyá aá,
The Moon God approaches,
Ni`ninéla` eé deyá aá,
Border of the Earth approaches,
Yolkaí Estsán bigáni yúnidze deyá aá,
Yolkaí Estsán her house toward the hearth approaches,
Sána nagái eé deyá aá,
In old age walking approaches,
Biké hozóni eé deyá aá.
His trail beautiful approaches.
Siní` eé deyá aá deyá aá.
My mind approaches, approaches.
Yúni, here translated hearth, is a certain part of the floor of the
Navaho lodge. Yúnidze means in the direction of the yúni.
The expressions Sána, nagái and Biké hozóni appear in many songs
and prayers, and are always thus united. Their literal translation
is as given above; but they are equivalent to saying, "Long life and
happiness;" as part of a prayer, they are a supplication for a long
and happy life. Hozóni means, primarily, terrestrially beautiful;
but it means also happy, happily, or, in a certain sense, good.
Estsánatlehi is often called, in song, Estsánatlesi, and Tsóhanoai
is often called (apparently with greater propriety) Tsínhanoai. Siní`
= Si'ni.
The syllables not translated are meaningless.
283. SIGNIFICANT WORDS OF SONGS OF THE LOG, FIRST SET.
First Song:-- Tsin nizóni sa` nii'nitha.
Tree (log, stick) beautiful for me they fell.
Second Song:--Tsin nizóni sa` haídile.
Tree beautiful for me they prepare or trim.
Third Song:--Tsin nizóni sa` haiyidíla`.
Tree beautiful for me they have prepared.
Fourth Song:--Tsin nizóni silá` yidití`yi`.
Tree beautiful with me they carry.
Fifth Song:--Tsin nizóni silá` tháiyiyitin.
Tree beautiful with me they put in the water.
The word for beautiful is usually pronounced inzóni, not nizóni
as above.
284. SIGNIFICANT WORDS OF SONGS OF THE LOG, SECOND SET.
First Song:--Tsin nizóni silá` neyilgó`.
Tree beautiful with me they push.
Second Song:--Tsin nizóni silá` yidisél.
Tree beautiful with me floats.
Third Song:--Tsin nizóni silá` yiyilól.
Tree beautiful with me moves floating.
285. WORDS OF THE EAGLE.
Ahaláni siáz! E`yéhe siáz! Nitsi'li ta
Greeting, my child! Thanks, my child! Your younger brother down
toadainini'lda, Donikí.
you did not throw, Donikí.
286. SONG OF THE EAGLES.--A SONG OF THE BEAD CHANT.
I.
Aóoóo aiá-hená an an anaié anaié.
(Meaningless prelude.)
Kinnakíye yéye saaíyista an an,
Kinnakíye there he sits,
Hayáaaá yéye saaíyista an an,
When he rises, there he sits,
Yiltsá aá yéye saaíyista an an,
We shall see, there he sits,
Talpíl aá yéye saaíyista an an.
He will flap, there he sits.
Aiadoséye aiadoséye an an an ohaneyé.
(Meaningless refrain.)
Kinnakíye = Kinníki. The vocables not translated have no meaning now.
287. SONG OF THE ASCENSION.
I.
Aió éo éo éo he, éo óo éo éo he.
(Meaningless prelude.)
1. Tsi'natan alkaí eé eé,
Plant of corn white,
2. Bidági tso ínyan eé.
Its ear sticks up in great to eat.
3. Nantá anán tosé tosé.
Stay down.
Tosé eyé eyé.
II.
(Repeat prelude as in stanza I.)
1. Tsi'natan dotli'z eé eé,
Plant of corn blue,
2. Bidági tso ínyan eé.
Its ear sticks up in great to eat.
3. Nantá anán tosé tosé.
Stay down.
(Repeat refrain as in stanza I.)
III.
(Repeat prelude.)
1. Tsi'natan altsói eé eé,
Plant of corn yellow,
2. Bidági tso ínyan eé.
Its ear sticks up in great to eat.
3. Nantá anán tosé tosé.
Stay down.
(Repeat refrain.)
IV.
(Repeat prelude.)
1. Tsi'nataa zi'ni eé eé,
Plant of corn black,
2. Bidági tso ínyan eé.
Its ear sticks up in great to eat.
3. Nantá anán tosé tosé.
Stay down.
(Repeat refrain.)
V.
(Repeat prelude.)
1. Tsi'nat althasaí eé eé,
Plant of corn all kinds or colors,
2. Bidági tso ínyan eé.
Its ear sticks up in great to eat.
3. Nantá anán tosé tosé.
Stay down.
(Repeat refrain.)
VI.
(Repeat prelude.)
1. Tsi'natan ditsól eé eé,
Plant of corn round (nubbin),
2. Bidági tso ínyan eé.
Its ear sticks up in great to eat.
3. Nantá anán tosé tosé.
Stay down.
(Repeat refrain.)
Great changes are made in some of the words in this song for prosodic
reasons. Tsi'natan, tsi'nataa, and tsi'nat (1st lines) are all from
tsil (plant) and natán (corn), Bidági (2d lines) is from bidí (its
ear), iá` (it sticks up), and gi (in). Alkaí (line 1, stanza I.) =
lakaí. Altsói (line 1, stanza III.) = litsói.
288. PRAYER OF FIRST DANCERS FROM THE CEREMONY OF THE NIGHT CHANT.
1. Tse`gíhigi,
Tse`gíhi in
2. Hayolkál behogángi,
Dawn made of house in,
3. Nahotsói behogángi,
Evening twilight made of house in,
4. Kósdilyil behogángi,
Cloud dark made of house in,
5. Niltsabaká behogángi,
Rain male made of house in,
6. Á`dilyil behogángi,
Mist dark made of house in,
7. Niltsabaád behogángi,
Rain female made of house in,
8. Thaditín behogángi,
Pollen made of house in,
9. Aniltáni behogángi,
Grasshoppers made of house in,
10. Á`dilyil dadinlági,
Mist dark at the door,
11. Natsílit bikedzétin,
Rainbow his trail the road,
12. Atsinikli'si yíki dasizíni,
Zigzag lightning on it high stands,
13. Niltsabaká yíki dasizíni,
Rain male on it high stands,
14. Hastsébaka,
Deity male,
15. Kósdilyil nikégo nahaíniya`.
Cloud dark your moccasins come to us.
16. Kósdilyil nisklégo nahaíniya`.
Cloud dark your leggings come to us.
17. Kósdilyil niégo nahaíniya`.
Cloud dark your shirt come to us.
18. Kósdilyil nitságo nahaíniya`.
Cloud dark your headdress come to us.
19. Kósdilyil binininlágo nahaíniya`.
Cloud dark your mind enveloping come to us.
20. Niki'dze idní`dilyil dahitágo nahaíniya`.
You above thunder dark high flying come to us.
21. Kosistsín bikégo dahitágo nahaíniya`.
Cloud having a shape at feet high flying come to us.
22. Intsekádo kósdilyil beatsadasyélgo dahitágo
Your head over cloud dark made of far darkness high flying
nahaíniya`.
come to us.
23. Intsekádo niltsabaká beatsadasyélgo dahitágo
Your head over rain male made of far darkness high flying
nahaíniya`.
come to us.
24. Intsekádo á`dilyil beatsadasyélgo dahitágo
Your head over mist dark made of far darkness high flying
nahaíniya`.
come to us.
25. Intsekádo niltsabaád beatsadasyélgo dahitágo
Your head over rain female made of far darkness high flying
nahaíniya`.
come to us.
26. Intsekádo atsinikli'si hadahatilgo dahitágo
Your head over zigzag lightning high out flung high flying
nahaíniya`.
come to us.
27. Intsekádo natsílit adahazlágo dahitágo nahaíniya`.
Your head over rainbow high hanging high flying come to us.
28. Nita`lathá`do kósdilyil beatsadasyélgo dahitágo
Your wings on ends of cloud dark made of far darkness high flying
nahaíniya`.
come to us.
29. Nita`lathá`do niltsabaká beatsadasyélgo dahitágo
Your wings on ends of rain male made of far darkness high flying
nahaíniya`.
come to us.
30. Nita`lathá`do á`dilyil beatsadasyélgo dahitágo
Your wings on ends of mist dark made of far darkness high flying
nahaíniya`.
come to us.
31. Nita`lathá`do niltsabaád beatsadasyélgo dahitágo
Your wings on ends of rain female made of far darkness high flying
nahaíniya`.
come to us.
32. Nita`lathá`do atsinikli'si hadahati'lgo dahitágo
Your wings on ends of zigzag lightning high out flung high flying
nahaíniya`.
come to us.
33. Nita`lathá`do natsílit adahazlágo dahitágo nahaíniya`.
Your wings on ends of rainbow high hanging high flying come to us.
34. Kósdilyil, niltsabaká, á`dilyil, niltsabaád bil
Cloud dark, rain male, mist dark, rain female with it
benatsidasyélgo nahaíniya`.
made of near darkness come to us.
35. Ni`gidasyél nahaíniya`.
On the earth darkness come to us.
36. Aíbe natátso nitadeél biági tálawus
With the same great corn floating over at bottom foam
yilto`lín esi'nosin.
with water flowing that I wish.
37. Nigel islá`.
Your sacrifice I have made.
38. Nadé hilá`.
For you smoke I have prepared.
39. Siké saáditlil.
My feet for me restore (as they were).
40. Sitsát saáditlil.
My legs for me restore.
41. Sitsís saáditlil.
My body for me restore.
42. Si'ni saáditlil.
My mind for me restore.
43. Siné saáditlil.
My voice for me restore.
44. Ádistsin nalíl saádilel.
This day your spell for me take out.
45. Ádistsin nalíl saani'nla`.
This day your spell for me remove (take away).
46. Sitsádze tahi'ndinla`.
Away from me you have taken it.
47. Nizágo sitsa` nénla`.
Far off from me it is taken.
48. Nizágo nastlín.
Far off you have done it.
49. Hozógo nadedestál.
Happily (in a way of beauty) I recover.
50. Hozógo sitáhadinokél.
Happily my interior becomes cool.
51. Hozógo siná nahodotlél.
Happily my eyes, I regain (the power of).
52. Hozógo sitsé dinokél.
Happily my head becomes cool.
53. Hozógo sitsát nahodotlél.
Happily my limbs I regain.
54. Hozógo nadedestsíl.
Happily again I hear.
55. Hozógo sáhadadoltó`.
Happily for me it is taken off.
56. Hozógo nasádo.
Happily I walk.
57. Tosohododelnígo nasádo.
Impervious to pain I walk.
58. Sitáhago sólago nasádo.
My interior light I walk.
59. Saná` nislíngo nasádo.
My feelings lively I walk.
60. Hozógo kósdilyil senahotlédo.
Happily (in terrestrial beauty) clouds dark I desire (in abundance).
61. Hozógo á`dilyil senahotlédo.
Happily mists dark I desire.
62. Hozógo sedaahuiltyído senahotlédo.
Happily passing showers I desire.
63. Hozógo nanisé senahotlédo.
Happily plants of all kinds I desire.
64. Hozógo thaditín senahotlédo.
Happily pollen I desire.
65. Hozógo dató` senahotlédo.
Happily dew I desire.
66. Hozógo natálkai yasóni ni`dahazlágo
Happily corn white good beautiful to the end of the earth
ni`yilokaí.
may (it) come with you.
67. Hozógo natáltsoi yasóni ni`dahazlágo
Happily corn yellow good beautiful to the end of the earth
ni`yilokaí.
may come with you.
68. Hozógo natadotli'zi yasóni ni`dahazlágo
Happily corn blue good beautiful to the end of the earth
ni`yilokaí.
may come with you.
69. Hozógo nataalthasaí yasóni ni`dahazlágo
Happily corn of all kinds good beautiful to the end of the earth
70. Hozógo nanisé yasóni ni`dahazlágo
Happily plants of all kinds good beautiful to the end of the earth
ni`yilokaí.
may come with you.
71. Hozógo yúdi althasaí yasóni ni`dahazlágo
Happily goods of all kinds good beautiful to the end of the earth
ni`yilokaí.
may come with you.
72. Hozógo inkli'z althasaí yasóni ni`dahazlágo
Happily jewels of all kinds good beautiful to the end of the earth
ni`yilokaí.
may come with you.
73. Tíbe ni`yitsi'de hozógo ni`yilokaí.
With these before you happily may come with you.
74. Tíbe ni`yikéde hozógo ni`yilokaí.
With these behind you happily may come with you.
75. Tíbe ni`yiyági hozógo ni`yilokaí.
With these below you happily may come with you.
76. Tíbe ni`yikígi hozógo ni`yilokaí.
With these above you happily may come with you.
77. Tíbe ni`yinagidáltso hozógo ni`yilokaí.
With theseall around you happily may come with you.
78. Tibikégo hozógo nahodolál.
In this way happily you accomplish your tasks.
79. Hozógo nastúwin ta`nishyítinolil.
Happily old men they will look at you.
80. Hozógo sáni ta`nishyítinolil.
Happily old women they will look at you.
81. Hozógo tsilké ta`nishyítinolil.
Happily young men they will look at you.
82. Hozógo tsiké ta`nishyítinolil.
Happily young women they will look at you.
83. Hozógo asiké ta`nishyítinolil.
Happily boys they will look at you.
84. Hozógo atéte ta`nishyítinolil.
Happily girls they will look at you.
85. Hozógo altsíni ta`nishyítinolil.
Happily children they will look at you.
86. Hozógo intanitaí` ta`nishyítinolil.
Happily chiefs they will look at you.
87. Hozógo taidoltá` ta`nishyítinolil.
Happily scattering in different directions they will look at you.
88. Hozógo nitailté ta`nishyítinolil.
Happily getting home they will look at you.
89. Hozógo thaditínke etíngo nitailtéde.
Happily pollen trail on road they get home.
90. Hozógo ninádahidoka.
Happily may they all get back.
91. Hozógo nasádo.
Happily (or in beauty) I walk.
92. Sitsi'dze hozógo nasádo.
Me before toward happily I walk.
93. Sikéde hozógo nasádo.
Me behind from happily I walk.
94. Siyági hozógo nasádo.
Me below in happily I walk.
95. Siki'dze hozógo nasádo.
Me above toward happily I walk.
96. Siná dáltso hozógo nasádo.
Me around all happily I walk.
97. Hozóna hastlé,
In happiness (or beauty) again it is finished (or done),
98. Hozóna hastlé,
In beauty again it is finished,
99. Hozóna hastlé,
In beauty again it is finished,
100. Hozóna hastlé,
In beauty again it is finished,
FREE TRANSLATION OF PRAYER.
1. In Tse`gíhi (oh you who dwell!)
2. In the house made of the dawn,
3. In the house made of the evening twilight,
4. In the house made of the dark cloud,
5. In the house made of the he-rain,
6. In the house made of the dark mist,
7. In the house made of the she-rain,
8. In the house made of pollen,
9. In the house made of grasshoppers,
10. Where the dark mist curtains the doorway,
11. The path to which is on the rainbow,
12. Where the zigzag lightning stands high on top,
13. Where the he-rain stands high on top,
14. Oh, male divinity!
15. With your moccasins of dark cloud, come to us.
16. With your leggings of dark cloud, come to us.
17. With your shirt of dark cloud, come to us.
18. With your headdress of dark cloud, come to us.
19. With your mind enveloped in dark cloud, come to us.
20. With the dark thunder above you, come to us soaring.
21. With the shapen cloud at your feet, come to us soaring.
22. With the far darkness made of the dark cloud over your head,
come to us soaring.
23. With the far darkness made of the he-rain over your head, come
to us soaring.
24. With the far darkness made of the dark mist over your head,
come to us soaring.
25. With the far darkness made of the she-rain over your head, come
to us soaring.
26. With the zigzag lightning flung out on high over your head,
come to us soaring.
27. With the rainbow hanging high over your head, come to us soaring.
28. With the far darkness made of the dark cloud on the ends of your
wings, come to us soaring.
29. With the far darkness made of the he-rain on the ends of your
wings, come to us soaring.
30. With the far darkness made of the dark mist on the ends of your
wings, come to us soaring.
31. With the far darkness made of the she-rain on the ends of your
wings, come to us soaring.
32. With the zigzag lightning flung out on high on the ends of your
wings, come to us soaring.
33. With the rainbow hanging high on the ends of your wings, come to
us soaring.
34. With the near darkness made of the dark cloud, of the he-rain,
of the dark mist, and of the she-rain, come to us.
35. With the darkness on the earth, come to us.
36. With these I wish the foam floating on the flowing water over
the roots of the great corn.
37. I have made your sacrifice.
38. I have prepared a smoke for you.
39. My feet restore for me.
40. My limbs restore for me.
41. My body restore for me.
42. My mind restore for me.
43. My voice restore for me.
44. To-day, take out your spell for me.
45. To-day, take away your spell for me.
46. Away from me you have taken it.
47. Far off from me it is taken.
48. Far off you have done it.
49. Happily I recover.
50. Happily my interior becomes cool.
51. Happily my eyes regain their power.
52. Happily my head becomes cool.
53. Happily my limbs regain their power.
54. Happily I hear again.
55. Happily for me (the spell) is taken off.
56. Happily I walk.
57. Impervious to pain, I walk.
58. Feeling light within, I walk.
59. With lively feelings, I walk.
60. Happily (or in beauty) abundant dark clouds I desire.
61. Happily abundant dark mists I desire.
62. Happily abundant passing showers I desire.
63. Happily an abundance of vegetation I desire.
64. Happily an abundance of pollen I desire.
65. Happily abundant dew I desire.
66. Happily may fair white corn, to the ends of the earth, come
with you.
67. Happily may fair yellow corn, to the ends of the earth, come
with you.
68. Happily may fair blue corn, to the ends of the earth, come
with you.
69. Happily may fair corn of all kinds, to the ends of the earth,
come with you.
70. Happily may fair plants of all kinds, to the ends of the earth,
come with you.
71. Happily may fair goods of all kinds, to the ends of the earth,
come with you.
72. Happily may fair jewels of all kinds, to the ends of the earth,
come with you.
73. With these before you, happily may they come with you.
74. With these behind you, happily may they come with you.
75. With these below you, happily may they come with you.
76. With these above you, happily may they come with you.
77. With these all around you, happily may they come with you.
78. Thus happily you accomplish your tasks.
79. Happily the old men will regard you.
80. Happily the old women will regard you.
81. Happily the young men will regard you.
82. Happily the young women will regard you.
83. Happily the boys will regard you.
84. Happily the girls will regard you.
85. Happily the children will regard you.
86. Happily the chiefs will regard you.
87. Happily, as they scatter in different directions, they will
regard you.
88. Happily, as they approach their homes, they will regard you.
89. Happily may their roads home be on the trail of pollen (peace).
90. Happily may they all get back.
91. In beauty (happily) I walk.
92. With beauty before me, I walk.
93. With beauty behind me, I walk.
94. With beauty below me, I walk.
95. With beauty above me, I walk.
96. With beauty all around me, I walk.
97. It is finished (again) in beauty,
98. It is finished in beauty,
99. It is finished in beauty,
100. It is finished in beauty.
REMARKS ON THE PRAYER.
This prayer is addressed to a mythic thunder-bird, hence the reference
to wings; but the bird is spoken of as a male divinity, and is
supposed to dwell with other yéi at Tse`gíhi. The prayer is said at
the beginning of work, on the last night of the klédzi hatál. The
shaman speaks it, verse by verse, as it is here recorded, and one of
the atsá`lei or first dancers, repeats it, verse by verse, after him.
The word hozó means, primarily, terrestrial beauty. Its derivative
hozógo means in a beautiful earthly manner. Hozóni means beautiful on
the earth, locally beautiful (inzóni refers to the beauty of objects
and persons); Hozóna signifies again beautiful. But the meanings of
these words, and others of similar derivation, have been extended to
mean happy, happiness, in a happy or joyful manner, etc. In a free
translation they must be rendered by various English words.
The four final verses have been previously recorded by the author as
hozóni haslé (Qojòni qaslè), but he now regards the form hozóna hastlé
as more correct.[289] This expression, repeated twice or four times,
according to circumstances, ends all Navaho prayers, yet recorded. It
is analogous to the Christian Amen.
289. In a few instances, in this work, a Navaho word may be found
spelled or accentuated with slight differences in different places. It
must not be inferred from this that one form is correct and the other
not. As usage varies in the languages of the most cultured races,
so does it vary (only in greater degree) in the languages of the
unlettered. A word was often heard differently pronounced and was
therefore differently recorded by the author. An effort has been made
to decide on a single standard of form and always to give preference to
this; but, in a few cases, variations may have been overlooked. Words
sometimes undergo great changes when they become parts of compound
words. Where the form of a word in this work varies from that presented
in previous works by the author the variation may be accounted for,
in some cases by the difference in the alphabets used, and in others
by the changes of opinion which have come to him in time, as the result
of a more extended experience or a more advanced study of the language.
290. Note 290 is omitted.
BIBLIOGRAPHIC NOTES.
BY FREDERICK WEBB HODGE.
For the convenience of the reader, a list of the principal works
referred to in this book, and of all papers on the subject of the
Navahoes written by the author, is here given.
291.
Backus, E. An account of the Navajoes of New Mexico. (In Schoolcraft,
Information respecting the history, condition and prospects of the
Indian tribes of the United States, part IV. pp. 209-215, Philadelphia,
1854.)
292.
Bancroft, Hubert Howe. The native races of the Pacific states of
North America, vol. III., New York, 1875.
293.
Bickford, F. T. Prehistoric cave-dwellings. (In Century Illustrated
Monthly Magazine, New York, vol. XL. No. 6, pp. 896-911, October,
1890.)
294.
Bourke, John Gregory. Snake Dance of the Moquis of Arizona, New
York, 1884.
295.
---- The Medicine-men of the Apache. (In ninth annual report of the
Bureau of Ethnology, pp. 443-595, Washington, 1892.)
296.
Catlin, George. Letters and notes on the manners, customs, and
condition of the North American Indians, etc., two vols., London, 1841.
297.
Census. Report on Indians taxed and Indians not taxed in the United
States (except Alaska) at the eleventh census: 1890, Washington, 1894.
298.
Commissioner of Indian Affairs. Report of, to the Secretary of the
Interior, for the year 1867, Washington, 1868. The same for 1870,
Washington, 1870.
299.
Dutton, Clarence E. Mount Taylor and the Zuñi plateau. (In sixth annual
report of the U.S. Geological Survey, pp. 105-198, Washington, 1886.)
300.
Eaton, J. H. Description of the true state and character of the New
Mexican tribes. (In Schoolcraft, Indian Tribes, part IV. pp. 216-221,
Philadelphia, 1854.)
301.
Hodge, Frederick Webb. The early Navajo and Apache. (In American
Anthropologist, vol. VIII. No. 3, pp. 223-240, Washington, July, 1895.)
302.
Hough, Walter. Fire-making apparatus in the United States National
Museum. (In report of National Museum 1887-88. pp. 531-587, Washington,
1890.)
303.
Letherman, Jona. Sketch of the Navajo tribe of Indians, territory of
New Mexico. (In Smithsonian report for 1855, pp. 283-297, Washington,
1856.)
304.
Mason, Otis Tufton. Cradles of the American Aborigines. (In report
of National Museum 1886-87, pp. 161-235, Washington, 1889.)
305.
Matthews, Washington. Ethnography and philology of the Hidatsa
Indians. (Department of the Interior, United States Geological and
Geographical Survey, miscellaneous publications No. 7, Washington,
1877.)
306.
---- A part of the Navajo's mythology. (In American Antiquarian,
vol. V. No. 3, pp. 207-224, Chicago, April, 1883.)
307.
---- Navajo Silversmiths. (In second annual report of the Bureau of
Ethnology, pp. 169-178, Washington, 1883.)
308.
---- A night with the Navajos. By Zay Elini. (In Forest and Stream,
vol. XXIII. pp. 282-283, New York, Nov. 6, 1884.)
309.
---- Navajo weavers. (In third annual report of the Bureau of
Ethnology, pp. 371-391, Washington, 1884.)
310.
---- The origin of the Utes. A Navajo myth. (In American Antiquarian,
vol. VII. No. 5, pp. 271-274, Chicago, September, 1885.)
311.
---- Mythic dry-paintings of the Navajos. (In American Naturalist,
vol. XIX. No. 10, pp. 931-939, Philadelphia, October, 1885.)
312.
---- Navajo names for plants. (In American Naturalist,
vol. XX. pp. 767-777, Philadelphia, September, 1886.)
313.
---- Some deities and demons of the Navajos. (In American Naturalist,
vol. XX. pp. 841-850, Philadelphia, October, 1886.)
314.
---- The mountain chant: a Navajo ceremony. (In fifth annual report
of the Bureau of Ethnology, pp. 379-467, Washington, 1887.)
315.
---- The prayer of a Navajo shaman. (In American Anthropologist,
vol. I. No. 2, pp. 149-170, Washington, April, 1888.)
316.
---- Navajo gambling songs. (In American Anthropologist,
vol. II. No. 1, pp. 1-19, Washington, January, 1889.)
317.
---- Noqoìlpi, the gambler: a Navajo myth. (In Journal of American
Folk-Lore, vol. II. No. ii. pp. 89-94, Boston and New York, April-June,
1889.)
318.
---- The gentile system of the Navajo Indians. (In Journal of
American Folk-Lore, vol. III. No. ix. pp. 89-110, Boston and New York,
April-June, 1890.)
319.
---- A study in butts and tips. (In American Anthropologist,
vol. V. No. 4, pp. 345-350, Washington, October, 1892.)
320.
---- Some illustrations of the connection between myth and
ceremony. (In Memoirs of the International Congress of Anthropology,
pp. 246-251, Chicago, 1894.)
321.
---- The basket drum. (In American Anthropologist, vol. VII. No. 2,
pp. 202-208, Washington, April, 1894.)
322.
---- Songs of sequence of the Navajos. (In Journal of American
Folk-Lore, vol. VII. No. xxvi. pp. 185-194, Boston and New York,
July-September, 1894.)
323.
---- A vigil of the gods--a Navajo ceremony. (In American
Anthropologist, vol. IX. No. 2, pp. 50-57, Washington, February, 1896.)
324.
Mindeleff, Victor. A study of pueblo architecture: Tusayan and
Cibola. (In eighth annual report of the Bureau of Ethnology, pp. 3-228,
Washington, 1891.)
325.
Morgan, Lewis Henry. Ancient Society or researches in the lines of
human progress from savagery, through barbarism to civilization,
New York, 1877.
326.
Powers, Stephen. Tribes of California. (Contributions to North American
Ethnology, vol. III., Washington, 1877.)
327.
Schoolcraft, Henry Rowe. Information respecting the history,
condition and prospects of the Indian tribes of the United States,
part IV. Philadelphia, 1854.
328.
Simpson, James H. Report of an expedition into the Navajo country in
1849. (In senate ex. doc. 64, 31st cong., 1st sess., Washington, 1850.)
329.
Stephen, A. M. The Navajo. (In American Anthropologist, vol. VI. No. 4,
pp. 345-362, Washington, October, 1893.)
MELODIES [1]
Recorded on the phonograph by Washington Matthews, and noted from
the cylinders by John C. Fillmore.
No. 1.
SONG OF THE APPROACH OF THE WAR GODS.
[Music notation]
No. 2.
SONG OF THE WAR GODS.
[Music notation]
No. 3.
TWELFTH YIKAÍGIN OR DAYLIGHT SONG.
[Music notation]
No. 4.
A SONG OF THE NAAKHAÍ,
OR DANCE OF THE LAST NIGHT OF THE NIGHT CHANT.
[Music notation]
No. 5.
A SONG OF THE NAAKHAÍ.
Composed by Thomas Torlino.
[Music notation]
No. 6.
SEVENTH SONG IN THE FARM OF HASTSÉHOGAN.
[Music notation]
No. 7.
TENTH AND ELEVENTH SONGS IN THE FARM OF HASTSÉHOGAN.
[Music notation]
No. 8.
FIFTEENTH SONG IN THE FARM OF HASTSÉHOGAN.
[Music notation]
This song offers some very curious metrical problems.
No. 9.
TWENTY-SECOND SONG IN THE FARM OF HASTSÉHOGAN.
[Music notation]
No. 10.
TWENTY-THIRD SONG IN THE FARM OF HASTSÉHOGAN.
[Music notation]
This Indian howls so that it is much more difficult than usual to be
sure of the pitch-relations. Also it is hard to tell, in many places,
whether he means a double or a triple rhythm.
No. 11.
TWENTY-FIFTH SONG IN THE FARM OF HASTSÉHOGAN.
[Music notation]
NOTE
[1] See Note 272.
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