Post by blackcrowheart on Jun 13, 2007 15:12:42 GMT -5
Deeds and Prophecies of Old Man - Blackfoot
Old Man came from the south, traveling north. As he moved along he made the
mountains, plains, timber and brush, putting rivers here and there, fixing
up the world as we see it today. Old Man covered the plains with grass for
the animals to feed upon. He marked off certain pieces of ground, and made
all kinds of roots and berries grow in the earth--wild carrots, wild
turnips, service berries, bull berries, cherries, plums and rosebuds. He put
trees in the ground.
After Old Man made the Porcupine Hills, he took some mud and shaped it into
human forms. He blew breath upon them and they became people. He made men
and women, and named them Siksika, or Blackfeet. They asked him: "What are
we to eat?" He replied by making more images of clay in the forms of
buffalo. Then he blew breath on these and they stood up, and when he made
signs to them, they started to run. "These are your food," Old Man said to
the Siksika.
After he had made the buffalo, Old Man went out on the plains and made the
big horn, a sheep with a big head and horns. Because it was awkward and
could not move fast, the big horn did not travel easily on the level
prairies. And so Old Man took it by one of its horns and led it up into the
mountains and turned it loose. There it skipped about among the rocks and
went up high places with ease. "This is the place that suits you," Old Man
said. "This is what you are fitted for, the rocks and the mountains."
While he was in the mountains, Old Man made the antelope and turned it
loose, but the antelope ran so fast that it fell over some steep rocks and
hurt itself. He saw that this would not do, so he carried the antelope down
on to the plains where he turned it loose. It ran away swiftly and
gracefully, and Old Man said: "This is what you are suited for."
One day Old Man decided to make a woman and a child. He went to a
river-bank, took some wet clay, and molded it into human shapes. Then he
covered them up with straw. The next morning he took the covering off and
told the images to rise and walk, and they did so, following him down to the
river. "I am Napi," he told them. "Old Man, the maker of all things."
As they were standing by the river, the woman said to him: "How is it? Will
we always live? Will there be no end to it?"
"I have never thought of that," Old Man replied. "We will have to decide
it." He picked up a buffalo chip and threw it in the river. "If the buffalo
chip floats," he said, "when people die, they will come back to life again
after four days. But if it sinks, when they die that will be an end to
them." When he threw the chip in the river, it floated.
The woman did not like the thought of dying, even for only four days. "No,
we should not decide it that way," she said. She picked up a stone. "If the
stone floats, we will always live," she said. "If it sinks, people will die
forever." She threw the stone into the river and it sank to the bottom.
"There," said the woman. "Perhaps it is better for people to die forever.
Otherwise they would never feel sorry for each other and there would be no
sympathy in the world."
"Well," said Old Man. "You have chosen. Let it be that way. Let that be the
law."
Not long afterwards, the woman's child died, and she went to Old Man,
pleading with him to change the law about people dying. "You first said that
people who die will come back after four days," she said. "Let that be the
law."
"Not so," Old Man replied. "What is made law must be law. We will undo
nothing that we have done. The child is dead, and it cannot be changed.
People will have to die."
About this time many of the Siksika people that Old Man had made came to him
with complaints that they did not know how to hunt the buffalo and obtain
meat. Instead, the buffalo were hunting them, they said, running after them
and killing some people.
"I will make you a weapon that will kill these animals," Old Man promised.
He went out and cut some service berry shoots and brought them in and peeled
the bark off them. He then caught a bird and took some feathers from its
wing. After tying these feathers to one of the service berry shoots, he
broke a black flint stone into pieces and fastened a sharp flint point to
one of the shoot ends and named it an arrow. Then he took a large piece of
wood, shaped it, strung it, and named it a bow.
While the people watched, he showed them how to use bows and arrows. "Next
time you hunt buffalo," he said, "take these things with you and use them as
I have instructed you. Do not run from the buffalo. When they run at you,
wait until they are close enough and shoot them with arrows."
After the people had learned to kill buffalo, Old Man showed them how to
take the skins from them to make robes. He showed them how to set up poles
and fasten the skins on them to make teepees to sleep under.
One day Old Man told the Siksika that it was time for him to move on north
to make more land and more people. "I have marked off this land for you," he
said. "The Porcupine Hills, Cypress Mountains, and Little Rocky Mountains,
down to the mouth of the Yellowstone on the Missouri, and then toward the
setting sun to the head of the Yellowstone and the tops of the Rocky
Mountains. There is your land, and it is full of all kinds of animals, and
many things grow in this land. Let no other people come into this land, or
trouble will come to you. This land is for the five tribes, the Blackfeet,
Bloods, Piegans, Gros Ventres and Sarcees. If other people try to cross the
line, take your bows and arrows and give them battle and keep them out. If
you let them come and make camp, you will lose everything."
For many moons the five tribes gave battle to all other people who tried to
cross the line made by Old Man, and kept them out. But after a while some
bearded men with light skins came, bringing presents. They said they wanted
to stay only a little while to trap animals for their furs. The five tribes
let them make camp, and as Old Man had prophesied, the tribes soon lost
everything.
www.indigenouspeople.net/blacfeet.htm
Old Man came from the south, traveling north. As he moved along he made the
mountains, plains, timber and brush, putting rivers here and there, fixing
up the world as we see it today. Old Man covered the plains with grass for
the animals to feed upon. He marked off certain pieces of ground, and made
all kinds of roots and berries grow in the earth--wild carrots, wild
turnips, service berries, bull berries, cherries, plums and rosebuds. He put
trees in the ground.
After Old Man made the Porcupine Hills, he took some mud and shaped it into
human forms. He blew breath upon them and they became people. He made men
and women, and named them Siksika, or Blackfeet. They asked him: "What are
we to eat?" He replied by making more images of clay in the forms of
buffalo. Then he blew breath on these and they stood up, and when he made
signs to them, they started to run. "These are your food," Old Man said to
the Siksika.
After he had made the buffalo, Old Man went out on the plains and made the
big horn, a sheep with a big head and horns. Because it was awkward and
could not move fast, the big horn did not travel easily on the level
prairies. And so Old Man took it by one of its horns and led it up into the
mountains and turned it loose. There it skipped about among the rocks and
went up high places with ease. "This is the place that suits you," Old Man
said. "This is what you are fitted for, the rocks and the mountains."
While he was in the mountains, Old Man made the antelope and turned it
loose, but the antelope ran so fast that it fell over some steep rocks and
hurt itself. He saw that this would not do, so he carried the antelope down
on to the plains where he turned it loose. It ran away swiftly and
gracefully, and Old Man said: "This is what you are suited for."
One day Old Man decided to make a woman and a child. He went to a
river-bank, took some wet clay, and molded it into human shapes. Then he
covered them up with straw. The next morning he took the covering off and
told the images to rise and walk, and they did so, following him down to the
river. "I am Napi," he told them. "Old Man, the maker of all things."
As they were standing by the river, the woman said to him: "How is it? Will
we always live? Will there be no end to it?"
"I have never thought of that," Old Man replied. "We will have to decide
it." He picked up a buffalo chip and threw it in the river. "If the buffalo
chip floats," he said, "when people die, they will come back to life again
after four days. But if it sinks, when they die that will be an end to
them." When he threw the chip in the river, it floated.
The woman did not like the thought of dying, even for only four days. "No,
we should not decide it that way," she said. She picked up a stone. "If the
stone floats, we will always live," she said. "If it sinks, people will die
forever." She threw the stone into the river and it sank to the bottom.
"There," said the woman. "Perhaps it is better for people to die forever.
Otherwise they would never feel sorry for each other and there would be no
sympathy in the world."
"Well," said Old Man. "You have chosen. Let it be that way. Let that be the
law."
Not long afterwards, the woman's child died, and she went to Old Man,
pleading with him to change the law about people dying. "You first said that
people who die will come back after four days," she said. "Let that be the
law."
"Not so," Old Man replied. "What is made law must be law. We will undo
nothing that we have done. The child is dead, and it cannot be changed.
People will have to die."
About this time many of the Siksika people that Old Man had made came to him
with complaints that they did not know how to hunt the buffalo and obtain
meat. Instead, the buffalo were hunting them, they said, running after them
and killing some people.
"I will make you a weapon that will kill these animals," Old Man promised.
He went out and cut some service berry shoots and brought them in and peeled
the bark off them. He then caught a bird and took some feathers from its
wing. After tying these feathers to one of the service berry shoots, he
broke a black flint stone into pieces and fastened a sharp flint point to
one of the shoot ends and named it an arrow. Then he took a large piece of
wood, shaped it, strung it, and named it a bow.
While the people watched, he showed them how to use bows and arrows. "Next
time you hunt buffalo," he said, "take these things with you and use them as
I have instructed you. Do not run from the buffalo. When they run at you,
wait until they are close enough and shoot them with arrows."
After the people had learned to kill buffalo, Old Man showed them how to
take the skins from them to make robes. He showed them how to set up poles
and fasten the skins on them to make teepees to sleep under.
One day Old Man told the Siksika that it was time for him to move on north
to make more land and more people. "I have marked off this land for you," he
said. "The Porcupine Hills, Cypress Mountains, and Little Rocky Mountains,
down to the mouth of the Yellowstone on the Missouri, and then toward the
setting sun to the head of the Yellowstone and the tops of the Rocky
Mountains. There is your land, and it is full of all kinds of animals, and
many things grow in this land. Let no other people come into this land, or
trouble will come to you. This land is for the five tribes, the Blackfeet,
Bloods, Piegans, Gros Ventres and Sarcees. If other people try to cross the
line, take your bows and arrows and give them battle and keep them out. If
you let them come and make camp, you will lose everything."
For many moons the five tribes gave battle to all other people who tried to
cross the line made by Old Man, and kept them out. But after a while some
bearded men with light skins came, bringing presents. They said they wanted
to stay only a little while to trap animals for their furs. The five tribes
let them make camp, and as Old Man had prophesied, the tribes soon lost
everything.
www.indigenouspeople.net/blacfeet.htm