CONTINUED FROM LAST WEEK

THE CREATION STORY

From the book LEGENDS OF THE NATIONS

Produced by the North American Indian Travelling College

As the daughter gazed upon her visitor, she felt uneasy, but a strange feeling overcame her, and she fainted into a peaceful sleep. Later, her mother came by to awaken her and found two crossed arrows on her stomach. One was sharp, and the other was blunt. She realized what had happened, that her daughter had become pregnant. She realized also that her daughter was going to have twins.

When the time came for them to be born, she gave birth to twin sons. The first one that was born came out the right way. He was in good form, good to look at, and didn’t have anything wrong with him. When the other one was born, he didn’t come out the right way. He broke through his mother’s side, and, in so doing, killed her.

Our elders say that even while she was carrying them in her womb, the two sons would argue and have fights. As soon as they were born the right-handed twin asked his brother why he had decided not to come into the world the natural way, thus saving his Mother’s life. An argument began, but their Grandmother told them to stop their quarrelling.

The Grandmother buried her daughter and planted in her grave the plants and leaves that she had clutched in her hands when she fell from the sky world. Not long after, over her daughter’s head grew corn, beans, and squash. These were later known as the “three sisters’’ and became the main life support groups for the people of the “HOTINONSHONNI’’. From her heart grew the sacred tobacco, which would later be used as an offering to send greetings to the Creator. At her feet grew the strawberry plants, as well as other plants that would be used as medicines to cure sickness. The earth itself was referred to as “OUR MOTHER’’ by the Master of Life, because their mother had become one with the earth.

It was then up to the Grandmother to raise the twins. The Grandmother gave the twins their names. The left-handed she called “Sawiskera” (Mischievous One), and the right-handed twin was given the name “Teharonhiawako’’ (Holder of the Heavens). The Grandmother made a mistake in thinking that it was Teharonhiawako, the one who looked right, that was responsible for the death of her daughter.

Now that she had the responsibility of raising the twins, and because she felt bad that her daughter had been killed, she started mistreating Teharonhiawako and giving more attention to Sawiskera. By the time the twins grew up to be men, their Grandmother was old and ready to die. They came to their Grandmother who had raised them, but who had also been mistaken about what had happened to her daughter.

Teharonhiawako felt bad that his Grandmother had favored his brother during their youth. He also felt bad that she blamed him for the death of their mother.

To be continued next week.