Post by Okwes on Dec 28, 2007 13:24:27 GMT -5
He Goes To His Father Slaying Of Monsters - Apache / White Mountain
When the Sun rises up he passes overhead. One time a maiden spread her legs apart and let the Sun shine inside her. After that she became pregnant. Then this girl had a baby. This was na-ye'nezYane (slayer of monsters). Now this girl went and lay under where water was dripping and spread her legs apart. This way she became pregnant again and soon had another baby. This was t'ubatc'istcine (born from water). No one had seen this girl lying with the Sun or with Water and they did not know who the fathers of these two boys were. That is why some girls are still doing this way, hiding down behind bushes with boys.
When na ye'nezyane got a little older, he started off for his father s home (the Sun's home). He came to Sands Boiling Up It was moving back and forth and he could not get across it. 'Then the boy called: "Yellow lightning, strike downward on his (na-ye nezyane s) breast!" and he went over the sands safely. After a while he came to a place where lots of xucntca-gi (a cholla cactus) covered with spines of black metal were growing thickly over the earth. The boy could not pass through here, and so he called to Black Wind Old Man. Black Wind Old Man came and twisted a path through the cactus. The boy passed through. Then, later on he came to two mountains all covered with mosquitoes with bills of black metal. The boy went up close to them, but he could not get by. Now Black Thunder made it rain female rain. The mosquitoes got their wings all wet so they could not fly. Then the boy put his hands under his arms and passed through safely. Pretty soon the boy came to Black Metal Mountain where there were two mountains together, and no one could go through or close to them. Then on top of them yellow lightning struck. Then the boy passed through safely. Now he could see where the Sun was living, with black water in four parts around that place.
The boy was walking through lots of black grama grass. While he was walking over this he stumbled on something and nearly fell down. Because of this he turned and walked back a little way. He tripped on something again and almost fell. Then he started back once more, the way he had been going, and almost fell again when he tripped on something. He turned back and looked at the place to see what it was. There at that place. Black Spider Old Woman had a little hole in the ground. Now Black Spider Old Woman began talking to the boy, "cixwi-ye (my daughter's son), what are you going after?" "I am going to my father, at the Sun's house," the boy said. The old woman said, "Don't you know that no one can go there ? Don't go there, my grandson!" The old woman told the boy to go in her hole. "You can go and visit the Sun tomorrow but stay here with me tonight." "How will I get down in your hole, it looks too small ?" the boy asked the old woman. "My grandson, it is a little hole, but it will stretch. Come in, don't be scared, walk straight in! The boy tried two times and backed off. Then he closed his eyes and went down in the hole all right. Inside he saw it was like a big wickiup. He could see lots of Spider girls lying together. The Spider girls had no clothes on.
The boy was wearing a cotton belt with tassels hanging from it. The tassels were hanging down in back. The old woman said "Something is hanging from your belt, my grandson. Give it to me!" "Where; what do you mean ?" the boy said. "That one that moves as if the wind were blowing it, that's what I mean," the old woman said. The boy took his belt off and gave it to the old woman. there was a lot of soft dirt in there. The Spider girls were lying in it with no clothes on. The boy said, "How can I lie down and cover over .It is too cold in here." "My grandson, it is warm in here," the old woman said. Now they went over there and put things in their-hands and rubbed them back and forth. The next morning they found lots of cloth there, in all kinds of colors. The old woman had woven it. The Spider girls dressed up in this cloth so they looked nicely. The old woman went out to look around. The boy knew the sun was rising, but he was not all up yet. When she sot back all the people in the house were like the boy's family Then the sun was a little higher. "Now that's he," the boy said. The old woman gave the boy a turquoise and also a white shell bead.
After this, what you ask for you will have," the old woman said.
Then the boy started to where Sun was living and came to the edge of black water. There he blew on the turquoise and it went under the water and up on the other side. Then he talked Then he blew on the white shell bead and it went under the water and came up on the other side. Where Sun was living it was all black, sharp stones sticking up. Sun was living in among these. Then the boy said to the turquoise, "Go to the top of Sun's house." After turquoise got up on top of the house, it said, "That's what I am here for, I am up here." Then the boy said to the white shellbead, "Go over in front of the house, 'isdzana-dle-he (Changing Woman)."
White shell bead went over in front of the house where that woman (Sun's wife) was living. Then the woman said to the boy, "What are you doing here ? Where are you from ? No one is allowed to come here." The boy said, "This is me, I have come to see my father." Then the woman started to cook some food for the boy. As soon as it was cooked, he ate it up. When he had eaten he went over to one side where some hides were lying. He lay on them and they rolled around him.
Right in the middle of Sun's bed is a hole through which he climbs up to the roof of his house. Along about dark the boy heard Sun talking down under this hole. Now Sun was coming up. When he got to his house he asked his wife, "Who has come to my house here ?" Then his wife said, "You know that no one can come here."
"Anyway someone came here. I saw his tracks going over the four mountains. Dew Mountain, Rain Mountain, Ripe Fruits Mountain and Pollen Mountain, and going into my house." "Anyway no one is allowed here," said his wife. Now Sun started to eat. His wife said to him, "You have always told me that when you traveled you never did anything wrong, but this is not so, because your son came here today." "Where is he the Sun said. "Over there he is, rolled up in those hides." Sun got up and shook his boy out of the blankets.
On the east side of the house was burning black metal fire. Sun took the boy and threw him into this fire. Then he stirred the boy around in the fire with black lightning. The boy held in his mind the fact that he still had the turquoise and white shell bead and could wish on them. Then he wished that he might rise upward like a downy eagle feather. This way he did and came right back to Sun. Then Sun took him to the south side of the house where blue metal fire was burning. He threw the boy into it and stirred him around with blue lightning. But the boy held it in his mind about wishing. He wished that he might rise up like a downy eagle feather, and he did. Then he came right back to his father. Now Sun took him to the west side of the house where yellow metal fire was burning. But the boy wished he might rise like a downy eagle feather, and he did. Then he came right back to Sun. Now Sun took him to the north side of the house where white metal fire was burning. He threw the boy in this and stirred him with white lightning. But the boy wished that he might rise up like a downy eagle feather, and he did. Then he came back to Sun. Then Sun said, "hehe, that's right, you are my son."
Then Sun took the boy on the east side where black houses made of black pointed metal were above. He threw the boy up into this. There he was cut to pieces by the sharp metal. But he wished, "Black lightning strikes with him." Then he made a noise like ze-, ze-, ze-, ze-, like metal clinking on the way down. Then on the south side Sun took the boy to where there were blue houses made of blue pointed metal. Here he threw the boy up into this. The boy was cut to pieces by the sharp points. But he said, "Blue lightning strikes with him," and he was raised up and came down making a noise like ze-, ze-, ze-, ze-. Then Sun took the boy to the west side, where there were yellow houses made of yellow pointed metal. Here he threw the boy up into this and he was cut to pieces. But he said, "Yellow lightning strikes with him" and he was raised up. As he came down, he made a noise like ze-, ze-, ze-, ze-. Then Sun took the boy to the north side, where there were white houses made of white pointed metal. Here he threw him up into this, and the boy was cut to pieces in it. But he said, "White lightning strikes with him" and he was raised up and came down making a noise like ze-, ze-, ze-, ze". Then Sun had done this to him four times.
On the east side of Sun's house was hanging a sack of black tobacco. When any person smoked this, it killed them (choked them). Sun went and took down the tobacco and started filling a pipe for the boy. The boy still had the turquoise and white shell bead, and now he wished on them. There were thirty-two persons all around him (thirty-two little winds). Then he said, "Little winds will smoke this, but not I." Sun handed him the pipe. He took it and pretended to put it to his lips. In one puff the tobacco was gone. Then Sun said, "Surely." On the south side of the house was hanging blue tobacco sack. Sun went to this and made a smoke for the boy. Bight around the boy were the thirty-two little winds. "Little winds will smoke this for me," said the boy. Sun handed him the pipe. In two puffs, the tobacco was gone. On the west side of the house was hanging yellow tobacco sack. Sun went to this and started to fill a pipe for the boy. There were still thirty- two persons around the boy. "Little winds will smoke this for me," said the boy. When Sun handed him the pipe, four little winds smoked it for him and in three puffs it was all gone. On the north side of the house was hanging white tobacco sack. Sun went to this and started making a smoke for the boy. The thirty-two winds were still around the boy. "Little winds, you will smoke this for me," the boy said. Sun handed him the smoke and in four puffs the tobacco was all gone. This way the boy never smoked any of it. "hehe, you are my son all right," Sun said.
"Now I might just as well make a sweat bath for you," said Sun. He made the sweat bath all ready. Then Sun went on the east side to black metal fire and took out some hot rocks and carried them to the sweat lodge. They went inside and sang one song for the boy and then they came right out. Then Sun went to blue metal fire and carried some hot rocks to the sweat lodge and put them in. He sang one song for the boy in the lodge. "Now you will have to stay in the sweat lodge," Sun told the boy. Then Sun went to the west side where yellow metal fire was burning and took out some rocks and carried them into the sweat lodge. Now it was getting too hot for the boy. He said to the turquoise and white shell bead, "Little wind, it is getting too hot here. Go a little further down between the earth and the sky." And little wind came a little lower. Sun sang one more song for the boy. Then he went to the north side where white metal fire was burning and took out some hot rocks and carried them to the sweat lodge. Then he sang four times. Now four songs had been sung for the boy.
During this sweat bath Sun worked on the boy. It was just as if he had cooked the boy and made his body soft so he could work on it. The boy had a head like a round piece of mud. He had no hair or features, no fingers, no toes, and no finger nails or toe nails. While he was in the sweat bath Sun worked on him and made his eyes, nose and mouth and ears. Then he pulled the hair out on the boy's head so it hung down to the ground. This was too long, so he broke it off to come to the middle of his back. Now he made fingers on his hands, and toes on his feet. For finger nails, he set in little pieces of white flint. He did the same for his toe nails. Now he was like other people. When they came out of the sweat bath Sun told him to line up with his other two sons. The boy stood in the middle and they were all three alike.
Sun had a bow in his hand and he gave it to the boy. He gave him an arrow also, but there were no feathers on it. Then Sun set up some sticks a distance off and told the boy to shoot at them. The boy shot the arrow with no feathers. It twisted and never hit the mark.
Then he put on one feather and shot the arrow again. This time it shot a little better. He tried again and put on four feathers. When he shot, the arrow was too heavy and dropped right down. Then he took off two feathers and shot the arrow with two feathers. This time it went pretty close. Then he put on one feather so that the arrow had three. This time the arrow went right in the middle of the mark.
"Now let's go in the house," Sun said. They went in the house. Sun took a gun, some blue pants, a black shirt, a black hat, and long boots and laid them on the east side of the fire. "Would you like these V Sun asked the boy. The boy put all these clothes on and put the rifle over his shoulder and marched back and forth. The clothes made a noise as he walked, and were heavy. Then on the west side of the fire Sun laid a quiver of mountain lion skin, a pair of moccasins and a tsigijintc'a'. The boy went and tried them on.
"He put the quiver over his back and the moccasins on his feet and the cap on his head. Then he walked back and forth and these clothes felt good and light. It was night time now and Sun said, ""We will decide about all this tomorrow." Then they went to sleep. That night the boy could not sleep at all. The next morning Sun asked him, "Why didn't you sleep at all last night ?" "I tried to, but I could not," the boy said. "All right, I will make you sleep well," Sun said, and he put his hand up to his head, picked some- thing off there and threw it on his son's head. This was louse. Then he picked something off the skin on his arm and put it on the boy's body. This was gray louse. "Now you will sleep all right," Sun said. That night the boy slept all right and did not wake till morning. In the morning Sun said, "Here are the things in two parts, there is the rifle and there is the bow; which do you want ?" The boy said the rifle was too heavy and that he would take the bow and arrows as they were light.
Then Sun set up two mountains, one on the east and one on the west. The one on the east side was brown and barren. The one on the west side was covered with plants of all kinds and ripe fruits.
"Which one do you want ?" Sun asked the boy. The boy went up on the mountain to the east, but he found it all barren ground. Then he went up on the mountain to the west and found lots of ripe fruits and good things to eat. "Which one do you want ?" asked Sun. "That one to the east has nothing on it and I would get hungry. I will take this one to the west," the boy said. Then Sun said, "All right, there is nothing fit to eat there, but you will have to eat it anyway. Those grasses are no good to eat, but you will have to eat them just the same." The boy's father moved the hill to the west to one side and the hill to the east he moved over that way. From the hill to the east came lots of horses, mules, burros, cattle, sheep, goats, all such animals. They were on that hill.
After this. Sun said to his boys, "Come on, let's fight, let's see you two fight!" One had a rifle, the other the bow and arrows. When the boy with the rifle started to shoot, the boy with the bow ran away. "All right, my son, now you will have to do this way from now on. When you are in danger, you will always save yourself by running away."
After this, the boy with the bow and arrows went down on the earth and killed all the monsters there. For this he was given the name of na-ye'nezyane (slayer of monsters). They all came together and talked about how they would call this boy. They talked about it for four days and then they sent for the old man who was the father-in-law of the boy. This old man was Old Gopher. When he got there he said: "Why is it that you can't find a name for him ?
You ought to be able to find a good name for him right off. Call my son-in-law na-ye'nezyane, because it was he who killed all the bad monsters."
Big Owl was the son of Sun. It was he who had been killing all the people on the earth. On account of this the boy had gone to his father and asked permission to kill Big Owl. He said, "Big Owl is no good, and he is killing lots of people. For this reason I want to kill him." "Why do you talk this way ? He is your own brother," Sun said. The boy wanted to kill his own brother, and because of this our people did the same way. They still kill their own relatives sometimes. "All right, go ahead and kill him then," Sun said. So the boy went ahead and got ready to kill Big Owl. Over to one side there was water. Big Owl used to come to this water always at noon to drink. So the boy went to this place at noon and waited there. At noon Big Owl came to the water, but a little way from it he stopped and stood there on one leg. Behind, in the other leg he had a nerve twitching in his calf. This meant that there was danger ahead of him. Sun had made this happen to him. Sun had told the wind to do this. Big Owl came to the edge of the water now, and stooped down on his hands and knees to drink. Bight then Sun threw blood into the water, and that meant bad luck. Big Owl started to drink and while he was drinking the boy shot two arrows into him, but it did not happen as it had before. (?) As soon as Big Owl was killed his feathers spread out all over the earth, and that is why you can hear owls calling wherever you make your camp.
Then na-ye'nezyane was the younger boy, and his older brother was t'uba'tc'istcine. The older one would go out hunting and when he came back he would be all covered with blood on his hands and feet, but he never brought back any meat with him. So the younger brother said to the older that he was going along with him the next time he went hunting. He got ready and made his arrows out of tl'o'tc'iji je'' (grass it breaks off-this is for humor) and then the two started out to hunt. About sunrise the older brother killed a deer. Then the younger boy built a fire right there. But the older told him, "Hurry up and get rid of the deer right now, so that no one will see we have it." The older brother kept his bow in his hand and did not sit down at all. Then the younger said to him, "What's the matter ? What are you afraid of?" and he took the deer meat and started to cook some in the fire. "Why don't you sit down here ?" he said to his older brother again. But the older brother did not sit down or lay his bow down. Instead he kept looking around all the time. It Was right then that a great man came there. This was be-chasti (Metal Old Man). When they saw him the older brother left there and ran away. na-ye'nezyane called to him to come back and asked him why he was running away, but all the same the older one kept on running; While the younger was cooking the deer meat over the fire, Metal Old Man came up to him. When he got there he said, "This meat is mine," and he reached over and took it. But when he did this, the younger boy reached over and took it back, saying "This is my meat." This way they kept on taking the meat from each other. Metal Old Man said, "What's the matter, this is mine, this is my meat." Then Metal Old Man grabbed up his (the boy's) bow and arrows and mashed them all up. Then he took them and wiped his back side with them and threw them away. The arrows of Metal Old Man were made of the trunks of yellow pine trees; the feathers on them were of black metal. But all the same the boy went over to them, undid his gee string and stood there to rub his back side up and down against them. "Now come on and let's fight each other!" the boy said. Then Metal Old Man told the boy to stand sideways to him and raise up one of his arms. The boy did this, and just when Metal Old Man was going to shoot, the boy called on something: "Yellow lightning with him it strikes," and when Metal Old Man shot he raised up and the arrow went underneath him. It went beyond and struck a hill behind, passing right through it. Then Metal Old Man told him to turn around and raise the other arm. The boy did this, but again when Metal Old Man shot his arrow it went under the boy and passed right through a rocky mountain behind. After this it was the boy's turn to shoot. Metal Old Man was all covered with black metal and his body did not show through it at all. Only under the arms was there a place that was not covered with the black metal. The boy told him to stand sideways and raise up his arm. Then he took his arrow and blew on it, praying to it that it might go right in under the arm, where the skin showed. He shot and the arrow went right in under the arm. He told Metal Old Man to turn around and raise up the other arm. When he did this, the boy shot again and the arrow went in under the giant's arm as before.
Then Gopher Old Woman came to him and said, "I have made thirty-two holes in the earth for you, one below the other. The last of the holes at the bottom is a trail in adobe. If you go down into it you will be safe." So na-ye'nezyane went down into the bottom hole. As soon as Metal Old Man was killed with the arrows, he started to fall and as he fell the metal on his body started to sound "zi +", and it flew off in pieces all over the earth, trying to find na-ye'nezyane and kill him. But he stayed down under the ground in the holes that Gopher Old Woman had made for him. He was in the lowest hole. When the metal was just about one hole above him, almost to him, it stopped. That was how na-ye'nezyane was saved, by going down into the deepest hole which was so deep that the metal could not get to him. This is the reason that there are different kinds of metals all over the earth now. This is why we have money now. If na-ye'nezyane had not done this there would be no metal.
Taken from Myths and Tales of the White Mountain Apache by Grenville Goodwin 1994
When the Sun rises up he passes overhead. One time a maiden spread her legs apart and let the Sun shine inside her. After that she became pregnant. Then this girl had a baby. This was na-ye'nezYane (slayer of monsters). Now this girl went and lay under where water was dripping and spread her legs apart. This way she became pregnant again and soon had another baby. This was t'ubatc'istcine (born from water). No one had seen this girl lying with the Sun or with Water and they did not know who the fathers of these two boys were. That is why some girls are still doing this way, hiding down behind bushes with boys.
When na ye'nezyane got a little older, he started off for his father s home (the Sun's home). He came to Sands Boiling Up It was moving back and forth and he could not get across it. 'Then the boy called: "Yellow lightning, strike downward on his (na-ye nezyane s) breast!" and he went over the sands safely. After a while he came to a place where lots of xucntca-gi (a cholla cactus) covered with spines of black metal were growing thickly over the earth. The boy could not pass through here, and so he called to Black Wind Old Man. Black Wind Old Man came and twisted a path through the cactus. The boy passed through. Then, later on he came to two mountains all covered with mosquitoes with bills of black metal. The boy went up close to them, but he could not get by. Now Black Thunder made it rain female rain. The mosquitoes got their wings all wet so they could not fly. Then the boy put his hands under his arms and passed through safely. Pretty soon the boy came to Black Metal Mountain where there were two mountains together, and no one could go through or close to them. Then on top of them yellow lightning struck. Then the boy passed through safely. Now he could see where the Sun was living, with black water in four parts around that place.
The boy was walking through lots of black grama grass. While he was walking over this he stumbled on something and nearly fell down. Because of this he turned and walked back a little way. He tripped on something again and almost fell. Then he started back once more, the way he had been going, and almost fell again when he tripped on something. He turned back and looked at the place to see what it was. There at that place. Black Spider Old Woman had a little hole in the ground. Now Black Spider Old Woman began talking to the boy, "cixwi-ye (my daughter's son), what are you going after?" "I am going to my father, at the Sun's house," the boy said. The old woman said, "Don't you know that no one can go there ? Don't go there, my grandson!" The old woman told the boy to go in her hole. "You can go and visit the Sun tomorrow but stay here with me tonight." "How will I get down in your hole, it looks too small ?" the boy asked the old woman. "My grandson, it is a little hole, but it will stretch. Come in, don't be scared, walk straight in! The boy tried two times and backed off. Then he closed his eyes and went down in the hole all right. Inside he saw it was like a big wickiup. He could see lots of Spider girls lying together. The Spider girls had no clothes on.
The boy was wearing a cotton belt with tassels hanging from it. The tassels were hanging down in back. The old woman said "Something is hanging from your belt, my grandson. Give it to me!" "Where; what do you mean ?" the boy said. "That one that moves as if the wind were blowing it, that's what I mean," the old woman said. The boy took his belt off and gave it to the old woman. there was a lot of soft dirt in there. The Spider girls were lying in it with no clothes on. The boy said, "How can I lie down and cover over .It is too cold in here." "My grandson, it is warm in here," the old woman said. Now they went over there and put things in their-hands and rubbed them back and forth. The next morning they found lots of cloth there, in all kinds of colors. The old woman had woven it. The Spider girls dressed up in this cloth so they looked nicely. The old woman went out to look around. The boy knew the sun was rising, but he was not all up yet. When she sot back all the people in the house were like the boy's family Then the sun was a little higher. "Now that's he," the boy said. The old woman gave the boy a turquoise and also a white shell bead.
After this, what you ask for you will have," the old woman said.
Then the boy started to where Sun was living and came to the edge of black water. There he blew on the turquoise and it went under the water and up on the other side. Then he talked Then he blew on the white shell bead and it went under the water and came up on the other side. Where Sun was living it was all black, sharp stones sticking up. Sun was living in among these. Then the boy said to the turquoise, "Go to the top of Sun's house." After turquoise got up on top of the house, it said, "That's what I am here for, I am up here." Then the boy said to the white shellbead, "Go over in front of the house, 'isdzana-dle-he (Changing Woman)."
White shell bead went over in front of the house where that woman (Sun's wife) was living. Then the woman said to the boy, "What are you doing here ? Where are you from ? No one is allowed to come here." The boy said, "This is me, I have come to see my father." Then the woman started to cook some food for the boy. As soon as it was cooked, he ate it up. When he had eaten he went over to one side where some hides were lying. He lay on them and they rolled around him.
Right in the middle of Sun's bed is a hole through which he climbs up to the roof of his house. Along about dark the boy heard Sun talking down under this hole. Now Sun was coming up. When he got to his house he asked his wife, "Who has come to my house here ?" Then his wife said, "You know that no one can come here."
"Anyway someone came here. I saw his tracks going over the four mountains. Dew Mountain, Rain Mountain, Ripe Fruits Mountain and Pollen Mountain, and going into my house." "Anyway no one is allowed here," said his wife. Now Sun started to eat. His wife said to him, "You have always told me that when you traveled you never did anything wrong, but this is not so, because your son came here today." "Where is he the Sun said. "Over there he is, rolled up in those hides." Sun got up and shook his boy out of the blankets.
On the east side of the house was burning black metal fire. Sun took the boy and threw him into this fire. Then he stirred the boy around in the fire with black lightning. The boy held in his mind the fact that he still had the turquoise and white shell bead and could wish on them. Then he wished that he might rise upward like a downy eagle feather. This way he did and came right back to Sun. Then Sun took him to the south side of the house where blue metal fire was burning. He threw the boy into it and stirred him around with blue lightning. But the boy held it in his mind about wishing. He wished that he might rise up like a downy eagle feather, and he did. Then he came right back to his father. Now Sun took him to the west side of the house where yellow metal fire was burning. But the boy wished he might rise like a downy eagle feather, and he did. Then he came right back to Sun. Now Sun took him to the north side of the house where white metal fire was burning. He threw the boy in this and stirred him with white lightning. But the boy wished that he might rise up like a downy eagle feather, and he did. Then he came back to Sun. Then Sun said, "hehe, that's right, you are my son."
Then Sun took the boy on the east side where black houses made of black pointed metal were above. He threw the boy up into this. There he was cut to pieces by the sharp metal. But he wished, "Black lightning strikes with him." Then he made a noise like ze-, ze-, ze-, ze-, like metal clinking on the way down. Then on the south side Sun took the boy to where there were blue houses made of blue pointed metal. Here he threw the boy up into this. The boy was cut to pieces by the sharp points. But he said, "Blue lightning strikes with him," and he was raised up and came down making a noise like ze-, ze-, ze-, ze-. Then Sun took the boy to the west side, where there were yellow houses made of yellow pointed metal. Here he threw the boy up into this and he was cut to pieces. But he said, "Yellow lightning strikes with him" and he was raised up. As he came down, he made a noise like ze-, ze-, ze-, ze-. Then Sun took the boy to the north side, where there were white houses made of white pointed metal. Here he threw him up into this, and the boy was cut to pieces in it. But he said, "White lightning strikes with him" and he was raised up and came down making a noise like ze-, ze-, ze-, ze". Then Sun had done this to him four times.
On the east side of Sun's house was hanging a sack of black tobacco. When any person smoked this, it killed them (choked them). Sun went and took down the tobacco and started filling a pipe for the boy. The boy still had the turquoise and white shell bead, and now he wished on them. There were thirty-two persons all around him (thirty-two little winds). Then he said, "Little winds will smoke this, but not I." Sun handed him the pipe. He took it and pretended to put it to his lips. In one puff the tobacco was gone. Then Sun said, "Surely." On the south side of the house was hanging blue tobacco sack. Sun went to this and made a smoke for the boy. Bight around the boy were the thirty-two little winds. "Little winds will smoke this for me," said the boy. Sun handed him the pipe. In two puffs, the tobacco was gone. On the west side of the house was hanging yellow tobacco sack. Sun went to this and started to fill a pipe for the boy. There were still thirty- two persons around the boy. "Little winds will smoke this for me," said the boy. When Sun handed him the pipe, four little winds smoked it for him and in three puffs it was all gone. On the north side of the house was hanging white tobacco sack. Sun went to this and started making a smoke for the boy. The thirty-two winds were still around the boy. "Little winds, you will smoke this for me," the boy said. Sun handed him the smoke and in four puffs the tobacco was all gone. This way the boy never smoked any of it. "hehe, you are my son all right," Sun said.
"Now I might just as well make a sweat bath for you," said Sun. He made the sweat bath all ready. Then Sun went on the east side to black metal fire and took out some hot rocks and carried them to the sweat lodge. They went inside and sang one song for the boy and then they came right out. Then Sun went to blue metal fire and carried some hot rocks to the sweat lodge and put them in. He sang one song for the boy in the lodge. "Now you will have to stay in the sweat lodge," Sun told the boy. Then Sun went to the west side where yellow metal fire was burning and took out some rocks and carried them into the sweat lodge. Now it was getting too hot for the boy. He said to the turquoise and white shell bead, "Little wind, it is getting too hot here. Go a little further down between the earth and the sky." And little wind came a little lower. Sun sang one more song for the boy. Then he went to the north side where white metal fire was burning and took out some hot rocks and carried them to the sweat lodge. Then he sang four times. Now four songs had been sung for the boy.
During this sweat bath Sun worked on the boy. It was just as if he had cooked the boy and made his body soft so he could work on it. The boy had a head like a round piece of mud. He had no hair or features, no fingers, no toes, and no finger nails or toe nails. While he was in the sweat bath Sun worked on him and made his eyes, nose and mouth and ears. Then he pulled the hair out on the boy's head so it hung down to the ground. This was too long, so he broke it off to come to the middle of his back. Now he made fingers on his hands, and toes on his feet. For finger nails, he set in little pieces of white flint. He did the same for his toe nails. Now he was like other people. When they came out of the sweat bath Sun told him to line up with his other two sons. The boy stood in the middle and they were all three alike.
Sun had a bow in his hand and he gave it to the boy. He gave him an arrow also, but there were no feathers on it. Then Sun set up some sticks a distance off and told the boy to shoot at them. The boy shot the arrow with no feathers. It twisted and never hit the mark.
Then he put on one feather and shot the arrow again. This time it shot a little better. He tried again and put on four feathers. When he shot, the arrow was too heavy and dropped right down. Then he took off two feathers and shot the arrow with two feathers. This time it went pretty close. Then he put on one feather so that the arrow had three. This time the arrow went right in the middle of the mark.
"Now let's go in the house," Sun said. They went in the house. Sun took a gun, some blue pants, a black shirt, a black hat, and long boots and laid them on the east side of the fire. "Would you like these V Sun asked the boy. The boy put all these clothes on and put the rifle over his shoulder and marched back and forth. The clothes made a noise as he walked, and were heavy. Then on the west side of the fire Sun laid a quiver of mountain lion skin, a pair of moccasins and a tsigijintc'a'. The boy went and tried them on.
"He put the quiver over his back and the moccasins on his feet and the cap on his head. Then he walked back and forth and these clothes felt good and light. It was night time now and Sun said, ""We will decide about all this tomorrow." Then they went to sleep. That night the boy could not sleep at all. The next morning Sun asked him, "Why didn't you sleep at all last night ?" "I tried to, but I could not," the boy said. "All right, I will make you sleep well," Sun said, and he put his hand up to his head, picked some- thing off there and threw it on his son's head. This was louse. Then he picked something off the skin on his arm and put it on the boy's body. This was gray louse. "Now you will sleep all right," Sun said. That night the boy slept all right and did not wake till morning. In the morning Sun said, "Here are the things in two parts, there is the rifle and there is the bow; which do you want ?" The boy said the rifle was too heavy and that he would take the bow and arrows as they were light.
Then Sun set up two mountains, one on the east and one on the west. The one on the east side was brown and barren. The one on the west side was covered with plants of all kinds and ripe fruits.
"Which one do you want ?" Sun asked the boy. The boy went up on the mountain to the east, but he found it all barren ground. Then he went up on the mountain to the west and found lots of ripe fruits and good things to eat. "Which one do you want ?" asked Sun. "That one to the east has nothing on it and I would get hungry. I will take this one to the west," the boy said. Then Sun said, "All right, there is nothing fit to eat there, but you will have to eat it anyway. Those grasses are no good to eat, but you will have to eat them just the same." The boy's father moved the hill to the west to one side and the hill to the east he moved over that way. From the hill to the east came lots of horses, mules, burros, cattle, sheep, goats, all such animals. They were on that hill.
After this. Sun said to his boys, "Come on, let's fight, let's see you two fight!" One had a rifle, the other the bow and arrows. When the boy with the rifle started to shoot, the boy with the bow ran away. "All right, my son, now you will have to do this way from now on. When you are in danger, you will always save yourself by running away."
After this, the boy with the bow and arrows went down on the earth and killed all the monsters there. For this he was given the name of na-ye'nezyane (slayer of monsters). They all came together and talked about how they would call this boy. They talked about it for four days and then they sent for the old man who was the father-in-law of the boy. This old man was Old Gopher. When he got there he said: "Why is it that you can't find a name for him ?
You ought to be able to find a good name for him right off. Call my son-in-law na-ye'nezyane, because it was he who killed all the bad monsters."
Big Owl was the son of Sun. It was he who had been killing all the people on the earth. On account of this the boy had gone to his father and asked permission to kill Big Owl. He said, "Big Owl is no good, and he is killing lots of people. For this reason I want to kill him." "Why do you talk this way ? He is your own brother," Sun said. The boy wanted to kill his own brother, and because of this our people did the same way. They still kill their own relatives sometimes. "All right, go ahead and kill him then," Sun said. So the boy went ahead and got ready to kill Big Owl. Over to one side there was water. Big Owl used to come to this water always at noon to drink. So the boy went to this place at noon and waited there. At noon Big Owl came to the water, but a little way from it he stopped and stood there on one leg. Behind, in the other leg he had a nerve twitching in his calf. This meant that there was danger ahead of him. Sun had made this happen to him. Sun had told the wind to do this. Big Owl came to the edge of the water now, and stooped down on his hands and knees to drink. Bight then Sun threw blood into the water, and that meant bad luck. Big Owl started to drink and while he was drinking the boy shot two arrows into him, but it did not happen as it had before. (?) As soon as Big Owl was killed his feathers spread out all over the earth, and that is why you can hear owls calling wherever you make your camp.
Then na-ye'nezyane was the younger boy, and his older brother was t'uba'tc'istcine. The older one would go out hunting and when he came back he would be all covered with blood on his hands and feet, but he never brought back any meat with him. So the younger brother said to the older that he was going along with him the next time he went hunting. He got ready and made his arrows out of tl'o'tc'iji je'' (grass it breaks off-this is for humor) and then the two started out to hunt. About sunrise the older brother killed a deer. Then the younger boy built a fire right there. But the older told him, "Hurry up and get rid of the deer right now, so that no one will see we have it." The older brother kept his bow in his hand and did not sit down at all. Then the younger said to him, "What's the matter ? What are you afraid of?" and he took the deer meat and started to cook some in the fire. "Why don't you sit down here ?" he said to his older brother again. But the older brother did not sit down or lay his bow down. Instead he kept looking around all the time. It Was right then that a great man came there. This was be-chasti (Metal Old Man). When they saw him the older brother left there and ran away. na-ye'nezyane called to him to come back and asked him why he was running away, but all the same the older one kept on running; While the younger was cooking the deer meat over the fire, Metal Old Man came up to him. When he got there he said, "This meat is mine," and he reached over and took it. But when he did this, the younger boy reached over and took it back, saying "This is my meat." This way they kept on taking the meat from each other. Metal Old Man said, "What's the matter, this is mine, this is my meat." Then Metal Old Man grabbed up his (the boy's) bow and arrows and mashed them all up. Then he took them and wiped his back side with them and threw them away. The arrows of Metal Old Man were made of the trunks of yellow pine trees; the feathers on them were of black metal. But all the same the boy went over to them, undid his gee string and stood there to rub his back side up and down against them. "Now come on and let's fight each other!" the boy said. Then Metal Old Man told the boy to stand sideways to him and raise up one of his arms. The boy did this, and just when Metal Old Man was going to shoot, the boy called on something: "Yellow lightning with him it strikes," and when Metal Old Man shot he raised up and the arrow went underneath him. It went beyond and struck a hill behind, passing right through it. Then Metal Old Man told him to turn around and raise the other arm. The boy did this, but again when Metal Old Man shot his arrow it went under the boy and passed right through a rocky mountain behind. After this it was the boy's turn to shoot. Metal Old Man was all covered with black metal and his body did not show through it at all. Only under the arms was there a place that was not covered with the black metal. The boy told him to stand sideways and raise up his arm. Then he took his arrow and blew on it, praying to it that it might go right in under the arm, where the skin showed. He shot and the arrow went right in under the arm. He told Metal Old Man to turn around and raise up the other arm. When he did this, the boy shot again and the arrow went in under the giant's arm as before.
Then Gopher Old Woman came to him and said, "I have made thirty-two holes in the earth for you, one below the other. The last of the holes at the bottom is a trail in adobe. If you go down into it you will be safe." So na-ye'nezyane went down into the bottom hole. As soon as Metal Old Man was killed with the arrows, he started to fall and as he fell the metal on his body started to sound "zi +", and it flew off in pieces all over the earth, trying to find na-ye'nezyane and kill him. But he stayed down under the ground in the holes that Gopher Old Woman had made for him. He was in the lowest hole. When the metal was just about one hole above him, almost to him, it stopped. That was how na-ye'nezyane was saved, by going down into the deepest hole which was so deep that the metal could not get to him. This is the reason that there are different kinds of metals all over the earth now. This is why we have money now. If na-ye'nezyane had not done this there would be no metal.
Taken from Myths and Tales of the White Mountain Apache by Grenville Goodwin 1994
