A Guide To Mythology (1918) - Helen A. Clarke

A
G U IDE T O MYT HO LO GY
BY

1
Author of

M ytha i n Modern Poets
A nci ent ,
"
Long .
Co untry

Ha w thome 9

f ello ws

,
The P om New Engla nd,

Etc

.
GAR DEN C I TY NEW YO RK

DOU BLEDAY PAGE 8: C OM PANY ,
1 91 8
Y IGHT 1 908 BY
COP R , ,
DOU BLEDAY PAGE a C OMPANY

, ;
ALL RIGHT S RESERVED INCLU DIN G THAT OP

,
TRANSLATION INTO FORE IGN LANGU AGES ,
INCLU DIN G THE SC ANDINAVI AN

PR EFA T OR Y NOT E
T is a pleasure to express my thanks to publishers

I and autho r s for courteous permission given me to
include in this book stories from their collections .
T o Houghton M ifii i n ,
the publishers of A I

onqu i n L egends by J G L eland and of Bryant s
g ,
. .
,

translation of the Odyssey ; to J B L ippincott . .
the publishers of Gods and Heroes of Old

Japan by V iolet M Pasteur and of Old Decc a n

,
.
,

Days by Mary F rere ; to A Wessels
,
the pub .
l i s h e r s and to Mr W W 0 a n e l d the author of

. . .
,

L egends of the Iroquois ; to Ginn the

publishers of C lassic Myths in E nglish L itera

ture ,
based on Bulnch s Age o f F able
by ,
C harles Mills Ga yley ; to Macmillan 0 0 publishers .
of T heocritus Bion, and Moschus Done into E ng

, ,

lish Prose by A L ang ; to S cott F oresman
,
.
,
publishers of N orse Mythology by M elville B

,
.
An derson Other collectio n s out of p r int as far a s

.
, ,

I kno w the original publishers no longer being in
e xistence from which I have taken stories are :
, ,

Indian F airy Tales Based on S choolcraft by 0 0 r ,
n eliu s Mathews , and Indian Myt hs by E llen R

,
.
E merson ; also from the following Englis h publica

tions : Polynesian Myths by S ir George Grey ;

,

Russian S tories , by Ralston .
Prefatory N ote
I a m also d eeply in d ebted , as every stu d one w h o
i e s myt hology must be to the foll owing works among

, ,
others in various branches of the subject : Ma x Mijl

ler s C hi p s from a German Workshop C ox s My

,

t h o logy of the Aryan Races John F iske s Myths,

a n d Myth makers

Frazer s Golden Bough Hart
, ,

land s Myth of Perseus Clo d d s C hildhood of

,

Religio n s Andrew L ang s C ustom a nd Myth
,

,
Tyler s Primitive C ultu re M ills s T re e o f M y

,

t h o lo g y,
C hamberlain s The C hild and C hildhood

in Folk Thought De Gub e rna t is s Z oological My

,

t h o lo gy ,
Dr Brinton s
.

American Hero Myths ,
Myths o f the New World, as well a s to many

collecti ons o f f olk tales -

.
My a im i n this bo ok o n Mythology for yo ung

readers h a s be en t o give them solid knowledge o n
the subject a s far as i t is advisable to go with im
,
mature minds bas ed upon the most recent investiga

,
tions o f scholars and t o select the m yths used in

,
illus t ration of the plan with a Vl eW to giving them

,
interesting stories to read which will almost unc o n

, ,
s c i o us ly to themselves lay a rm foundation for t h e

,
fa scinating study of C omparati ve Mythology shoul d ,
they wish to go more deeply into i t in the future .
T here is much talk nowa d ays a s to the a ut h en

t ic i ty of the records of savage myths Much of this .
talk seems to me futile for a myth i s no t a xed

,
entity E ach successive n a rrator is almost sure to

.
vary and embellish somewhat the material that comes

8
Prefa to ry Note
to him according to his own inventive fancy I f
,
.
,
therefore a s a v age myth recorded by a white man r e

,
tains the chief characteristics o f the savage myth ,

in spite of some fanciful tu rns given it by him to ,

the degree s a y that a story of Ovid s retains those
, ,
o f a Greek myth it is to a ll intents and purposes a

,
savage myth and the embellishments may be dis

,
regarded as Ovid s are when we are consider ing

,

Greek Mythology I have therefore included in

.
, ,
this volume those versions of the myths that seemed

most readable and attractive provided the primitive
,
a ttitude of mind and customs were fully emp h as i ze d .

C O NT ENT S
PA G E
I WHAT
. IS A MYT H ? 19
II .

ANI MA LS IN P R I MI T I V E MYT HS 40
S T O RIES : Ho w t h e mus k ra t ma d e t h e w o rl d
( I nd ia ns o f Br i t i s h C o l u mbi a
) Ho w . a ki t e
h elp e d t o ma ke t h e ( Ph i l i ppi ne Is la nd )
w o rld .
-
Ho w Ma ui s h e d up t h e e a rt h ( Po lynes ia n) .
-
T h e o rig i n o f t h e ro b in ( Od j ibw a C o rne li us ,
Ma t hew s b a s e d o n Sc h oo lc ra f t ) T h e o rig in
Of t h e h a re ( A i no B F C h a mb e rla i n) HOW
.
,
. . .
,
t h e mo le b ec a me b lin d (North A mer ic a n In s
d ia n Mi ll s
,

T ree o f T h e b o y
a nd t h e w o lv e s( N o rth A mer ic a n I nd i a n Ellen

,
R Emers o n Ind i a n Ho w Wa s

.
,
b as h a s t h e s na i l b e c a me a ma n (N orth A mer
, ,
i c a n Ind i a n, Eme rs o n ) .
T h e a ma z ing a d ven
t u re s Ma s t e r R a bb i t ( A lgo nqu i n Le la nd s
of

Alg o nq u in T h e s t o ry o f Ma na

b o z h o ( Iro quo i s Ma t h ew s Sc h o o lc ra f t ) How

,
-
.
Glo o s k a p ma d e h is unc le t h e t urt le int o a , , .
grea t ma n ( M ic M a c a nd Pa s s a ma quod d y Le
-
,
la nd ) .P unc h kin (H i nd oo , M F re re s

O ld.

D ecc a n
II I . ANI M ALS IN CU LT U R E MYT HS 1 31

S T O RI ES : Hymn t o Ind ra ( Hi nd o o , R ig Ve d a
T h e F o u r a p e s ( Egypt ia n, Bo o k o f t h e D e a d )

.
S t o ry Of t h e M i d g a rd s e rp e nt a nd F e nris ,
th e w o lf (Nors e, Me l vi lle B A nd e rs o n s , No rs e

.
ll
C ontents
y l
M t h o og y b a s ed o,
n

t h e E dd as ) The .
s t o ry o f A p o llo a nd Ph a et o n ( Greek C a yle y
b ase d o n Bul nch ) T h e s t o ry o f O d ys s e us

, ,
a nd t h e o xen o f t h e s un ( Greek p a ra p h ra s e f o m r
T h e s t o ry o f At h ens
,
B rya nt s
a nd A rac h ne ( Greek C a y ley Bulnch )

-
.
,

IV T R EE
. A ND PLA NT MYT HS 1 65
S TORIES : Yg d ras il , t h e No rs e w o rld t ree .
St o ry o f t h e A ino w h o f e ll a s lee p a t t h e fo o t
Of a p i ne t ree W unt z , t h e fa t he r Of Ind ia n
.
c o rn (N orth A me ri c a n I nd i a n, Ma t h ew s -Sc h oo l
c ra f t )
. Le li na u, t h e Lo s t D a ugh t er ( North
A meri ca n I nd i a n, Ma t h ew s Sc ho o lc ra f t ) .
B i rt h Of t h e a rb ut us ( Iro quo i s , W B C a n

. .
e ld s

Le g end s o f t h e So ng a t

t h e b eg inning ( A nc ie nt M exic a n, B rint o n s

My t h s o f t h e Ne w W o rl d F lo w e r s ong
( A nc i ent M exic a n, Bri nt o n s My t h s

th e

of
Ne w T h e s t o ry o f Eris ic h t h o n ( Greek,
B ulnch s Age Of F a b le St o ry of P a n a nd

Sy i x (G
r n reek C y y
a le B ul n h
c ) St o ry o f
,
-
.
P o mo na a nd Ve rt umnus ( Ro ma n, Ga yley
Bul nch ) Myt h o f O s i ris a nd I s is ( Bulnc h )

. .
St 0 ry o f A d o nis (Greek, e x t ra c t s fro m La ng s

i La ment f o r Ad onis ,

b y B io n) .
V . MYT HS O F T HE SU N , MO O N, A ND ST A RS 2 07
S TORIES : St o ry o f t h e ma king o f t h e s un,
mo o n, a nd s t a rs (Na va jo , Eme rs o n) St o ry o f .
the c o nq u e r ng i (N orth A mer ica n

Of t h e s un
I nd i a n Eme rs o n) Hymn t o t h e s un (North

A mer ic a n Ind ia n Eme rs o n) Hymn t o Surya
.
,
.
,
(Hi nd o o R ig Ve d a
, T h e w o rs h ip o f t h e s un -
a nd t h e d re a m o f O na w a t a q uto (North A mer
ic a n I nd ia n Eme rs o n) T h e w i t c h a nd t h e
, .
R uss ia n F o lk

s un s S is t e r ( R us s i a n R a ls t o n s

Th e ma king o f th e mirro r (J upo n

,
12
PA a E
see, Vi o let M Pa s t eur, Go ds a nd H e roe s o f

Old T h e d ea t h o f B a ld e r t h e Go o d
( N ors e An d e rs o n-Ed d a s
) B a t t l e o f R a a nd

.
,
Ana p e f ( Egyp t i a n, B o o k o f t h e D ea d ) St 0 ry .
o f Ph ce b us A p o llo ( Greek, C a yle y- Bulnc h ) .
St o ry O f Ar t e mi s a nd O ri o n ( Gr eek, Ga y ley-Bul
nch ) St y or of th e h ild a nd th e sta r ( Iow a

. c
Ind i a n, Eme rs o n) O s seo , t h e s o n o f t h e e ve n

.
ing s t a r (N or th A mer ic a n I nd i a n, Ma t h ew s
Sc h o o lc ra ft ) T h e w a nd e ri ng s t a r ( C h i pp ew a ,
.
Eme rs o n) -T h e d a ug h t e rs o f t h e s t a rs ( North
.
A meri ca n I nd ia n, Ma t h ew s -Sc h o o lc ra f t ) .
VI . MYT HS OF T HE SKY A ND AI R 26 9
S T ORIES : Ho w a h unt e r vi s it e d t h e t hunde r

s p i ri t s w h o d w e ll in Mo unt Ka t a h d i n ( Pa s s a
ma quod d y, Le la nd ) T h e t hund e r a nd lig h t

.
n in g m e n ( P a s s a ma qu o d d y, L e l a nd ) Ho w .
Glo o s k a p b o und Wuch o w s e n, t h e g re a t w ind

b ird ( Pa s s a ma quod d y, Le la nd ) T h e w o nd e rful

.
exp l o it s o f P a up p uk kee w is s (N o rth A mer ica n

-
I nd ia n, Ma t h ew s -Sc h oo lc ra ft ) .
T h e sto r y of
O din Sigmund (N ors e And e rs o n

s s w o rd a nd
Ho w
,
Ed d a s ) T h o r co nq uere d t h e s t o ne gia nt

.
( N ors e A n d e rs o n-E
d d a s ) Ho w Z eus c a me t o

.
,
b e king o f g o d s ( Greek) Hymn t o t h e d a w n

.
(H ind o o , R ig Ve d a T h e lo ve r s vi s io n o f

t h e h a pp y l a nd (N o rth A mer ic a n Ind ia n, Eme r

s o n) -
T h e me s s a g e-b e a re rs ( Iro quo is , C a n
eld ) T h e w a y o f t h e g o ds (J a p a ne s e, Vio let
.
M Pa s t e ur)
. .
VI I .
M0 T H ER - MYT H S A ND CH I LD-MYT HS 3 36
S T ORIES : Ma l a ya n s t o ry of th e s un a nd moo n .
-
Hy mn t o t h e mo t h er o f t h e g o d s (M exica n
Ind ia n B rint o n s R ig Ve d a

,
Hymn t o Cih ua co a t l (M exic a n Ind ia n Brin ,
t o n) .T h e ch ild ren o f h e a ve n a nd e a rt h ( Sir

-
13
C ontents
P A GE
Ge o rge Grey, Po lyne s ia n Myt h o l o gy

St o ry o f D e me t e r (Greek, f ro m Hymn t o
D eme t e r, C a llim%h us ) T h e s t o ry o f De
.
me t er a nd Pe rs e pho ne (Greek, C a yley-Bul

nch , d ra w n f ro m O v i d a nd Ap p o l o d o ru s )
Leg end o f T u- t o k-ar-nu-la ( Ind ia n, Emer

so )
n Ne z h ik-e-w a -w ar s un, o r t h e lo ne lig h t
ni ng ( Od jibw a , Eme rs o n) Wa s i s , t h e b a b y
.
( P eno bs co t , Le la nd ) Oj ug Annung , o r t h e
.
s umme r-ma ke r ( I nd i a n, E me rs o n) -
T h e le

.
g end o f Ma ui ( Po lynes i a n, Grey ) .T h e in

fa nt H e ra c les (Greek, p a ra ph ra s e d f ro m La ng s
t ra ns la t i o n Of t h e I d yls o f T h e o c ri t us ) .Th e
infa nt H e rme s ( Greek, p a ra ph ra s e d f ro m Sh e l
le y s

t ra ns la t io n of th e H o me ri c Hymn to
Mercury) .
14
I L L U ST R A T I O N S
FA C I N G
PA G E
Aut o me d o n a nd th e H o rs e s of A c h i lles Regna ul t Fro nti s p i ece
A R ea d ing f ro m H o me r A lma - T a dema 38
Z e us Fro m Po mp ei i 1 40
A t h ene Glyp to th ek, M u n i ch 1 62
A p o llo w i t h t h e Ly re Glypto th ek, M u ni ch 23 2
Di a na or A rt e mi s t h e H unt res s Vers a i lles 2 40
Di a na or A rt emi s C orr eggi o 248
A u ro ra Gu id o Ren i 2 70
T h e F lyi ng Me rc ury or He r mes Gi o va nn i d i Bo logna 316
A t h ne : B ra nd is h e r o f t h e Sp e a r C a p i tol, Ro me 3 20
D eme t e r o r Ceres T h e Va t i ca n 3 40
T h e Inf a nt H e rcul es Lo u vre 38 4

A G U IDE T O MYT HO LO GY
r
C HAP T E R I
W HAT IS A MYT H ?
HAT is a myth ? T his looks like a simple

question and one th a t ou ght to be easy to
,
answer Y e t it is one which has puzzled for cen

.
t u r i e s the heads of many learned men who in their

,
attempts to give a Satisfac t ory answ er to the ques

tio n have w ritt en whole libraries of profound books
,
o n the subject
. It would seem a lmost hopeless
f o r u s to try and nd an answer if it were not
,
that we live in the T wentieth C entury which is like

,
a grea t hilltop towering a bove a ll the past cen

t ur i e s ; an d fro m this height we are able to look
down and see right into the min ds of all these
learned and distinguished men a n d unde r stand why
,
they found the answer to this question s o di fcult .
L et u s try to im a gine all the myths w hich h a ve

come into existence Since the beginning of the
world shut up in a huge round castle in the midst
of a wide pl a in and all these learn ed men like
,
knights o f the M iddle Ages be sieging the castle to

nd out the secrets that are locked u p within it .
T hey come galloping up on horseback from every

,
19
A Gui d e to Mythology

quarte r of the plain N orth E ast S outh West , , ,
carrying long Spears w ith which they batter away

a t the castle until they succe e d in making a h ol e
through the wall T hen each o f these knights of

.
learning becomes s o intent upon what he sees in

the castl e through the hole that he himself has , ,
made that he is entirely unaware of what the other

knights s ee through the holes they have m a de .
Then they all go o ff and write their learne d books ,
telling what they have seen and when they come to

,
read each other s books of course they have te r rible

, ,

battles all of words fortunately in their attem p ts
to settle who is right and each one contends that he
,
has seen all there is to be seen thro ugh his ow n pa r

t ic ul a r little spear hole But we upon the hillto p
.
,
can perceive t hat every one of the knights s a w some

thing about my ths which was true and the way to ,
nd the answer we want i s to piec e together all the

fractions of truth which each man s a w into a whole
truth or something near a whole truth , for you
, ,
know the whole truth abou t anything is s o immense

,
that it is almost i f not quite im possi ble t o nd i t all

o ut .
F or ex ample it would not be p ossible for me t o

,
t ell yo u in th is one short chapt er a ll the secrets

which all the knights of learning s aw a s they looked
i nto the castle ; but I Shall tell you a f ew of them ,
for it will hel p you to understan d more intelligently

w hat a myth really i s .
T he rst knight to be seen gall o p ing o ut o f a

ver y far distant p ast i s the Greek T h e o ni s o f
-
g
20
Wh at IS a Myt h ?
R hegi um He lived Si x hundre d years B 0 but
. . .
,
even a s long ago as that there h a d come to be such

an i mmense number o f myths in Greece that their ,
ex i stence was already a cause for much wonder He .

carried a spear called allegory a nd when he bat
, ,
t e re d into the castle, the only truth he could s ee

w a s that all myths were allegories According to .
him the Greek myt hical gods Apollo Helios and , , ,
He ph a e s t os were re un d er di ff erent aspects : Hera

,
was the air ; P o s i d o n the wa t er ; Art emi s the moon

, , ,
and s o on Other learned Greeks followed in his

.
footsteps and s a w much the same things F or ex .
ample three hundred years later Aristotle said

, ,
that myths were the attempt o f the world before

h i s time to express p h i los op h i ca l s p eculations and ,
Plutarch four hundred and Si xty years la t er said

that myths were me ta p h ys i ca l statements in dis
guise That is they all thought that myt hs had
.
,
been invente d to stand as symbols of obj ects in na

ture or o f ideas which men had e x pressed .
Now if we look again we shall s ee another

, ,
Greek kn ight galloping o ut of the past whose name

was Euh e mero s He was a histo rian, a philosopher
.
,
an d a traveller, and he lived abo ut three hundred

years B 0 He w a s the friend of the King of
. .
Macedon, w h o sent him o ff on missions to various

countries T he spear he c arr i e d was called his
.

tory and the way he came t o d ecide that myth s
,
were h i storical accounts o f real persons i s told in t h e

f ollowing little story Once when he was o ff on h i s
.
travels, a fte r sa il ing abo ut for several d ay s, he ar

21
A Guide to Mythology
l ived in the Indi a n Ocean where he found a group ,
o f islands the most i mpo r tant of which was P an
chaia T he inhabit a nts of this island were distin

.
u i h e d for their piety a n d honored the gods by

g s
the most m a gnicent s a crices and offerings of gold

a nd silver Among the wonderful wo rks of art in
.
this isl a nd was an immensely t a ll column on the

top of which was a temple to Jupiter Triumph a nt .
This was supposed to h a ve been erected by Jupiter

himself when a n e a rthly mon a rch he m a rched
, , ,
thr ough the country victorious Inside this temple .
w a s a column upon which were recorded the doings
of Jupiter a nd of his father and grandfather ,
Kronos and U ranos .
T his story itself is s o evidently a myth that it

, ,
does not amount to anything as a proof of the h i s

t ori ca l theory N evertheless there have been many
.
to adopt this belief .
Other kn ights of learning both ancient and mod ,
ern have carried lan ces with the sounding name

, ,

natur a l phenomena When they look into the
.
castle they s e e myths as pe r s oni c a t i o ns of n a tural

phenomena E ve rything th a t w e s ee happening in
.
nature comes under the head of natural phenomena .
The rising and setting of the s un the moon and the ,
st a rs each day the clouds that d r ift ac r oss the Sky

, ,
storms and whirlwinds the lightning a sh and the ,
loud roar of the thunder as well as the gentle r a m , ,
the ti nk ling of waterfa lls and the light morning ,
breezes When all these objects and events in na

.
ture are talke d about a s if they ha d the same p ow

22
What IS a Myth ?
ers a s human beings they are said to be personied
,
.
Here is a very pretty example of a myth in which

the dawn is personied It is taken from o ne of the
.

most a ncie n t books i n the world the Rig Veda , ,
about w hich you will he a r mo r e l a ter .
The lovely Da wn arousing man goes befo r e the

s un p r ep a r i ng pr a ctic a ble p a ths r iding in a Spacious
,
ch a riot exp a nding everyw here she di ffuses light at

, ,

the com mencement of the days .
Among the ancient knights of learning w h o

thought that all myths were st a rted in this way was
the great Thucydides ; and C icero also believed tha t
the ex a lted beings in mythology who were w o r
shipped as gods were in reality p ers o ni c a t i o ns 0 f
the obj ects in nature which struck the imagination
o f pri mitive mankind .
There are also many modern knights of learn

ing who hol d the same view among the most ,
distinguished of whom is the E nglish scholar Ma x ,
M ii lle r
. About him and his followers S ir George
C ox and John F iske, the American histo r i a n and
thinker y ou will one day know more if you con
,
tinne your studies in mythology When Ma x M ii l .
ler came to wr ite his learned books upon what he

s a w in the castle of myths he supported his learn
,
ing upon many interesting facts which he had dis

covered when he was studying the langu ages of dif
f e r ent races
.
In comp ar i ng the ancient Gree k language with

23
A Guide to Myth ology
the ancient l a ngu a ge o f India t h e S anskr it h e
, ,
found out that they were often very much alike .
T his drove him to the Conclusion that they must

both be descended from some still older l a nguage .
He noticed a lso remarkable resemblances between

the myths of Greece a nd those of India of which ,
there were l a rge numbers collected in the old books

in S anskr it and other Indian languages T hen he .
made U p his mind that the ancient race o f people

who spoke the old language from which Greek an d
S anskrit were descended must have had a great
fondness for inventing myths and that these my th s
,
h a d be en hande d d own from generation t o genera

tion F inally, many of the descen d a nts o f thi s
.
a ncient race went to live in Ind i a , while others went
to live in Greece and that w a s the reason the lan

,
guages an d the myths o f these tw o pe oples were s o

much alike in many ways T he original home o f
.
this ancient myth making race has b een thought t o

-
be C entral Asia an d the race i s known in history a s

,
the Ary an race But Ma x Mii ller an d others w h o

.
a greed with him were s o intoxicated with their new
discoveries that they were constantly i n d anger o f

making f anciful comparisons between the words of
the two languages an d build ing upon th ese fanciful
,
comparisons explanations of myths, even more

mythical than the myths themselves In fact th ey
.
not only s a w in one direction like the other knigh t s ,
but th ey use d a huge magnifying glass that tinte d

e very thing with unnatural rainbow colors such a s
y o u have s e en when looking through an o p era glass .
20:
i magined the myths and the secrets of thei r or igin
to be locked up and look down upon them from our
,
hilltop using as an aid to our vision all the light

,
th a t comes in through the nu me rous b r eaks in the

c a stle made by the l a nces of t h e kni gh t s What will

.
the w on der ful tre a su r es reve a led to u s be like ?

They will no t be like j ewels a ll polished and placed
,
in regular Shining rows f o r myths w ere never f a sh

,

i one d a s a j ew ele r would f a shion his stones a ll a t

o nce into perfectly n ished and beautiful sh a pes .

No l the i maginary contents o f o u r c a stle which
will best st a n d as a symbol or picture of all the
myths o f the whole world in all their wonderful
variety will be an immense forest of almost count
less kin ds of trees U nder the trees ther e are many
.
sorts o f pl a nts and owers and if we look closer we

Sh a ll see th a t some of these trees and pl a nts a r e ugly
i n shape so me are even dec a ying but there a r e
, ,
m a ny most lovely to behold and a few of the trees

,
tow er up above the others and a r e profusely dec

o r ated with many Shining ornaments m a king them ,
look like C hristmas trees Y o u will s ee at once

.
that by using this symbol to stand for all the myth s

o f the whole world I want to point out and m ake
clear to you the important fact th a t myths were no t

made all at once a s the j eweler polishes his stones ,
but they grew up gradu a lly from s ma ll beginni ngs ,
like oaks fr om acorns or pines from pine cones

,
and the soil in which they grew was the minds o f

p ri m itive men a ges a n d ages ago .
S ometi mes the trees of one land will look exceed

26
What I s a Myth ?

i ngly l ike those in another land in f act being the ,
same sort of trees but diff ering somewhat in Shape

,
.
Then the smaller plants and owe r s are the symbols

for many kinds o f little mythical stories about every
thing th a t you can think of or rather th a t p r i mitive
,

man could think o f for he didn t know about trol
,
leys a nd telephones and auto mobiles and s o there ,
a r e not any myths about such things as these And .
the C hristmas tr ees a r e the myths which have been

enl a rged and glor ied by having myths from other
l a nd s added to them .
No w the point co mes up how did all this vast

,
fo r est of myths which cover s the whole wo rld arise ,
for the fo rest symbolizes remember only the forms

, ,
oral or written in which the myths of the worl d

have come to us To a nswer this we must now try
.
,
to i magine behind all this wonderful growth of

myth o n the one hand the mind of mankind a nd
, , ,
on the other hand all the obj ects of external nature .
And be sides we must think of mank ind as it was un

told ages ago in the re a l childhood o f the world In .
those far o ff days when the rst men used to roam

about the world getting their food by h un ting with ,

nothing but caves o r tents to live in man s conscious ,
ness o f himself was not even as strong as th a t of a

s ma ll child to d a y S till he h a d i mplanted in h i m
s
.
,
the powe r of observing whatever went on before him ,
and a constant curiosity to know the cause or the

reason why o f every thing he s a w Above a ll he .
had a vivid im a gination He could make believe

.
about the things he s a w far better than childr en d o

27
in their games to d a y and that i s how he came to
-
,
invent explanations of most of the things he s a w

a bout him Here f o r e x ample is a little story
.
, ,
invented by the Hottentots t o explain two things

which they h a d observed the spots on the moon , ,
and the way in which the upp er lip o f a hare is

Split .
T he moon sent an insect to men saying, G0

thou to men and tell them a s I die and dying live , ,
s o ye Shall also die and dying live T he insect

.
started with h i s message but while on the way w a s ,
overt a ken by the h a re w h o asked him upon what

e r rand he w a s bound T he insect answered that he
.
had been sent by the moon to tell men that as She

dies and dying lives s o also shall they die and dying
live ! The hare said A S thou art an awkward run
,
ner let me go
,
With these words he ran 0 3 and
.

when he reached men he said I am sent by the ,
moon to tell you as I die and dying perish in the

, ,
same manner Shall ye also die and come wholly to

a n end T hen the hare return e d to the moon and
.

told her what he had Sai d to men T he moo n .
reproached him angrily s a ying B a rest thou tell , ,

the people a thing which I have not said ? With
these words s h e took up a hatchet to split his head ,
missing that the ha t chet fell upon the upper lip and
made a deep gash Maddened by such treatment.
,
the hare e w at the moon and scratche d her face

which are t h e d ark sp ots which w e now s e e o n the

moon .
28
What IS a Myth ?
Yo u s ee these primitive Hottentots treat every
th i ng I n nature as if it were alive j ust as we learned
from T y lor . They rea lly did no t kno w wh a t a
great di ff e rence there is between a human being
and an anim a l or between animals and plants or
even plants and stones All of the obj ects in nature
.
being endowed with li fe, they might speak and act

j ust like human beings But it was only the very
.
wisest of human beings who could understand this

language that the animals and plants and other o b
j ects in nature might speak .
On this account all nature seeme d very mysterious

to primitive man, and he therefore was ready to
worship almost any obj ect that caught his attention .
T hen the strange feeling he had that another

spirit quite detached from his ordinary life lived
i nside his body made him i magine queer things
,
about this spirit ; for one thing that it might leave

,
his body and go o ff on independent j ourneys in the

form o f a bird or an a nimal o r even that it might be
,
stowed away for safe keep ing in some animal or

othe r obj ect like the famous story of the N orse
,
giant whose heart, which i s equivalent to his true

life is far away in an egg that is in a church that is
,
on an island that lies in a lake In many stories .

belonging to this primitive time a man s luck often
,
stands for his life and is bound u p in some obj ect

outside of himself as in this story of the Algonquin
Indians which reects all the strange notions I have
,
Spoken o f as well as giving an e x planation o f the
a p pearance o f the shel d rake duck I t i s t h e story

.
29
A Guide to My t hology

of h o w o ne of the P a rtridge s wives became a Shel
drake duck a nd why h e r feet a n d fe a thers are red
,
.
There w a s once a hunter who lived in the woods .
He had a brother or spirit who was s o s mall th a t he

kept him in a box a nd when he went forth he closed ,
this very carefully for fear lest an evil Spiri t Should ,
get him .
One d a y this hunter retu r ni ng s a w a ve ry be a u , ,
tiful gi rl sitting on a rock by a r iver m a king a moc ,
c a sin And being in a canoe he p a ddled U p softly

.
a n d Silently to c a pture her ; but She seei ng him ,
co mi ng j umped into the water and dis a ppe a red On

,
.
retu rni ng to her mother who li ved at the bottom of ,
the river She was told to go b a ck to the hunter a nd

,

be his wife ; for now , said the mother you be ,

long to that man .

The hun ter s name was Mi t c h ih e s s the Partridge

, ,
Wh en s h e came to his lodge he was absent S o she .
arr a nged e ve ry thi ng for his return making a bed ,
o f boughs At night he ca me back with o ne be a ver

. .
This he divided ; cooked one half for supper and laid

by the other h a lf In the morni ng when s h e a w oke .
he was gone and the other h a lf of the be a ver h a d

,
a lso dis a ppeared That night he retu rned with a n

.
other beaver a nd the s a me thing took place ag a i n

,
.
Then She resolved to Spy and nd out wh a t all this

me a nt .
S o s h e lay down and went to sleep with one eye

open Then he quietly rose and cooked the half of
.
the beaver and taking a key unlocked a box, an d

,
30
What Is a Myth ?
took out a little red dwarf and fed him Replacing .
the elf he locked him u p again a nd lay down to

, ,
Sleep And the small creature h a d e a ten the whole

.
half beaver But ere he put h i m i n his box he

.
washed him and combed his hair which seemed to ,
delight him .
The next morni ng when her husb a nd had gone

,
f o r the day the wi fe sought for the key and having

, ,
found it opened the box and called t o the little fel

l o w to come out T his he refused to do for a long
.
time though She p r omised to w a sh and comb him

,
.
Bei ng a t length pe r suaded he peeped out when she , ,
pulled him forth But whenever she touched him

.
her hands became red though of this s h e took no

,
heed thinki ng She could wash it o ff at will But

,
.
1 0 ! while co mbing him there entered a hideous b e

,
i ng an a w ful devil who caught the small elf fro m

, ,
her and ran away .
Then s h e was terribly frightened And trying .
to wash her hands the red stain remained When

,
.
her husb a nd returned that night he had no game ;

when he s a w the red stain he knew all that h a d hap
pened ; when he knew what had happened he seized
h i s bow to beat h e r ; when she s a w him seize his bow
to beat her Sh e ran down to the river and j umped
in to esc a pe death at his hands though it Should be ,
by drow ning Bu t as She fell into the water She

.
became a sheldrake duck And to this day the .
marks of the red stain are to be seen on her fee t

and feathers .
Yo u will observe a very strange custom allude d t o

31
in this story and that is the way in which the
,
hunter is described as capturing the maiden for his

wife instead of gently trying to persuade her to be
his wife This shows that it is a very far back
.
-
myth for there are many other stories to prove that

,
savages learned to be much more gentle in their

wa ys toward women even before men became alto
gether civilized .
How primitive men came to have such peculiar

beliefs we cannot s a y positively S ome peo p le have
.
thought that perhaps their dreams made the m think

that there was a Spirit inside of them separate from
their ordinary life while the sounds an d movement s
,
in nature such as the Si n

,
ging of a waterfall , the
rustling of leaves or the sound which stones woul d
,
give o ut when knocked together would seem to the,
uneducated mind of early mankind to be signs o f ,
life like his own .
Another very early belief is that in magi c a nd

sorcery Primitive man used to I magi ne that he
.
could make it rain by imitating the thunder which ,
he did by shaking dried seeds about in a gour d .
Magic is really the producing of any desi red e ff ect

or event by means which are quite outside of the
laws of nature A S the primitive savage did not
.
know any thing about the laws of nature laws which ,
have taken ages for men to discover and a ll of which

are not even yet discovered he revelled in the i nven
,
tion of means by which he thought he might a cco m

p l i s h the things he would like to do S ometimes . he
asked Spirits to help him and i f what he wante d
,
32
breezes o r howled in wintry blasts and they not i ce d
it and as soon as their attention was fully arouse d
,
to all these wonders of nature they be gan to think ,
of them as not only endowed with powers like their

,
ow n but as living beings F i r st they frequently

,
. .
,
personied nature as animals then as human beings

, ,
and as they had worshipped sacred animals and s a

cred plants and sacred trees now they worshipped,
these gods of nature ; and as they invented tales

about the animals a nd the t r ees s o they invented ,
tales about these gods of nature As one would e x .
p e c t the stories about animals and trees would often

,
be mingled wi th the new s t o r ies of the nature gods ,
and sometimes changed s o that one would hardly

recognize them And then again a story told about
.
, ,
a n a ture god i n one p a rt of the world would on ,
a ccount of the early wanderings of the human race
fr om o n e land to a n other be added as an orna

,
ment to a sto ry told in a nother p a rt of the world ,
like the ornaments on the C hristmas trees in the

castle .
Again whole myths would be transported and

, ,
as they reached di fferent countries they would be

changed somewhat s o that they would reect the
m a nners or the knowledge of that particular coun
t ry . A strange thing however about many myths
, ,
i s th a t those in o ne part of the world are so much

like those in another part of the world that it would
seem as if they must have been invented by the s a me
people N ot only are there myths in India and
.
Greece wh ich are very much alike, but there are

34
What IS a Myth ?
myths in S candinavi a and North America and S outh
Americ a that strongly resemble each other and those
of Greece and India .
Why this should be the case is another point about

which lea r ned men h a ve h a d many Opi n ions S ome .
o f them have thought th a t the whole human r a ce
must once h a ve lived in o ne particular Spot o n the

globe and th a t from there l a rge number s w a ndered
,
forth to seek new homes in all the other count r ies

o n the globe t a king with them the myths which they
,
h a d in commo n when they all lived together

M as .
never been settled j ust where that particular spot

was and p r obably it never will be Perhaps it was
,
.
in C entral Asia , pe r h a ps it was in the southern par t

o f S p a in,
perh a ps in N orway and S weden per h a ps ,
in the island of Atl a ntis in the S outhern S eas which

, ,
a legend says was submerged ages and ages ago All .
of these places have been suggested as the original

home o f the whole human race and very good a rgu ,
ments have been brought forward to prove the truth

of every o ne of these suggestions .
S ince it does not seem possible to n d out the

truth about this there are other people who dismiss
,
the idea altogether T hey think that man and na

.
ture be ing a good deal alike in whatever part of the

world you nd them it it highly probable that myths
,
might resemble each other very str ikingly a nd yet

h e invented indepe ndently by people living in l a nds
far a part while the di ff erences would be due largely
,
to climate .
Now if we try to thi nk o f centuries o f t ime go ing

35
by until in many countries primitive ma n is no longer
primitive but begins to be more civilized we shall ,
nd th a t ce r tain group s of myths bec a me crystal

l i z e d into co mplete religious systems such as existed ,
in E gy pt Assyri a India Greece Persi a and ma ny

, , , , ,
other countries By this ti me the human r a ce h a d

.
attaine d to a much greater degree of self conscious -
ness Men were beginning to understan d both them

.
selves a nd n a tur e better a nd they often could s e e

,
the tru e causes for the events of natu r e going on
about them The next step w a s for them to begin

.
to observe very carefully the Systems of religious

myths which had been handed down to the m by
their fo r efathers U pon these they used their i m
.
a gin a t i ve faculty as man h a d earlier used it upon

,
nature itself with the result that they a tt a ched new

,
meanings and g a ve fresh explanations of myths

Whi ch had or igin a lly started as simple p e r s oni c a
tions of natu r e In Greece for ex a mple Apollo
.
, , ,
who was originally a personication o f the s un came ,
to be regarded a s the God o f M usic and Poetr y ;

Athene who w a s originally the Dawn became the
, ,
Goddess of Wisdom ; Hermes originally the Wind , ,
became the God o f E loquence and the leader of

S pirits . This is the way myths gradu a lly grew to
h ave philosophical o r metaphysic a l me a nings that
is to stand as symbols o f the deepe st and most far
,
r eaching thoughts o f which the mind of man at
that time was capable Many of those thoughts are

.
s o pro found and s o wonderful that one needs to have
a great deal of kn owledge to understan d them All .
36
What IS a Myt h ?
t ha t inter ests yo u now is to know th a t there are such
thoughts and that some day you w i ll want to know
more about them .
While some myt hs were thus raised to religiou s

systems there were m a ny which remai ned in the
,
fo r m of legends a nd stories In the course of m a ny

.
gener a tions these sto r ies were told over aga in and
,
again so that many change s crept into them and

m a ny a dditions were made S o metimes the e ff ect
.
o f these changes was to m a ke a sto r y cruder some ,
times the co mplexity o f a story was increased and ,
someti mes it bec a me more interesti ng a nd beau

t i ful S tories which have been ch a nged or added to
.
by the people in this way are called va r i a nts of the

same story .
Owing to these fa cts mythology has been d ivided

into two great sections That which h a s risen to the
.
dignity of a religion is called culture lore and that -

,
which h a s remained alw a ys in the form of stories

and legends is called folk lo r e The r st reects the
-
.
lea rni ng wisdom and m a nners of the more intel

,
l i gent po rtions o f hum anity who developed in a d

,
vance of the others ; and the second the beliefs and

customs o f the less intelligent .
Y o u a r e probably wondering by this time h o w all

this vast arr a y of myths h a s come down to u s from
the long ago past M uch of it has been preserved in
.
ancient books like the Rig Veda in India which ,
i s thought to be about four thousand years old the ,
Iliad and Odyssey of Homer in Greece ,
about t h ree thousand years old and many ot h ers .
37
A G uide to Myt hology
T hese books e x iste d in manuscript for many hun
dreds of years S ince the i nventi on of print ing,
.
'
large numbers of them have been printed and trans

l a ted into modern languages Knowledge of ancient
.
myths has also been obtained from monuments and

the inscriptions upon them from paintings on vases
,
a n d fr om statues .
The folk lo r e has f o r the most part been preserved

-
o r a lly in the sto r ies of the common people and has ,
been h a nded down fr om ge ner a tion to gene r ation and

n a lly taken down in writing by some one especi a lly
inte r ested in collecting the stories w h ile the myths
,
o f the most pri mitive men a r e p r ese r ved in the s ur
vi va ls of them among the races still remaining nu
civilized in various parts of the globe T hese have .
been for several centuries taken down from the

mouths of the people or observed in their customs
,
and recorded by students Among these less civi

.
l i z e d races there are besides crude monuments and ,
even crude forms of writing by means of which pri m

i t ive men have recorded their ow n myths .
Y o u will realize by this ti me what an extensive

and wonderful forest this forest of myths I S which
we imagine ourselves looking dow n upon from our
hillt op and a fter having taken this bird s eye view
,
-
o f the whole forest you will be the better a ble to

,
enj oy going down i nto the forest and making little

j ourneys in diff erent directions and becoming better
acquainted with some of the most beautiful of the
my ths as you will in the following chapters And .
no w moreover you will have no difculty in under

, ,
38
CHAPT E R II
ANIMALS IN PR IMITI VE MYT HS
H E stories now to be told belong to that v ery

early t i me in human life when as w e learned
, ,
in the last chapter men regarded every thing in na

,
ture as if it were gi fte d with life like themselves .
The strange ideas to which this belief gave rise are ,
o f course reected in their myths Many o f the

,
.
stories have in them animals and plants which talk

w hile the transformation of men into animals o r
a nimals into men o r even gods into animals when ,
animals are not actually worshipped is frequent .
The most curious of all these beliefs is that man

kind is descended from animals all the more curi
,
o u s because some modern scientic men have as ,
ever y one knows tried to prove very much the same

,
thing The modern scientist however does not have

.
, ,
any especial reverence for the antediluvian ape from

which he supposes he may have evolved while the ,
primitive savage regarded with awe and reverence

the animals from which he thought himself de

scended Groups of savages called clans all tra c
.
ing their descent from the same animal considered ,
that animal to be especially their friend They .
would not kill it or eat it except in a f e w in s tances

,
40
Anim als In Pri mi tive Myths
when it was killed for the purposes of sa cri ce .
Many di fferent animals were regarded as a ncestral

animals and became the si gn or totem as it w a s
, ,
called of the tribe Among totem animals may be

,
.
mentioned the following in Australia : Opossum ,
S wan Duck F ish Most of the Australian tribes

, ,
.
declare that the family started by a transformation

o f these animals into mankind The North Ameri .
c an Indians have a great variety of totem animals :

Wolf Bear Beaver Turtle Deer S nipe Heron
, , , , , , ,
Hawk Crane Duck Loon Turkey Muskrat Pike

, , , , , , ,
Catsh Carp and s o o n

, ,
.
It was an easy step for the savage from the be

lief in his own descent from some animal to a
belief in the sacredness and mystery of animals ,
naturally leading to the worship of them The In .
dians of Peru for example regarded the dog as

, ,
their most exalted deity They s e t up the image .
o f a dog in their temples They were also in the .
habit of choosing a live dog as a representation of

their deity They worshipped this and o ff ered sacri
.
ce s to it and when it was well fattened u p they

,
ate it with solemn religious ceremonies This is .
one of the cases where the sacred animal was eat en .
S erpent worship is on e of the most wide spread -
forms of animal worship an example of which is ,
found among the Zulus to whom certain species are

sacred because they are supposed to be the incarna
tions of ancestral spirits .
Another form which the sa c red animal took was

that o f a supern a tural being not only c onc erned i n
41
A G uide to Mythology
the origin of men but who had a part to play in th e
origin of the whole world .
In a large number of these myths t h e water a l ,
ready existed and also of course the remarkable

,

animal who brought to pass such wonders The .
animal was sometimes very humble as in the story

told by the Indians of British Columbi a o f the
creation of the world .
HOW A M US KRAT MAD E TH E WORLD

In the beginning nothing existed but water and
a muskra t As the little animal kept diving d o wn
.
to the bottom of the water in search o f food his ,
mouth became frequently lled with mud This he .
spat out and s o gradually formed by alluvial de

posit an island which grew and grew until it nally
, ,
became large enough to be the earth .
The natives of the Philippine Islands tell thi s

s t ory of the creation of the world .
HOW TH E K IT E H E LP E D TO MAK E TH E WO RL D
The world at rst consisted only o f s ky and
water and between these two there ew a ki t e The .
kite became weary of ying about and nding no ,
place to rest ; s o he s e t the water at v ariance with

the sky Then in order to keep the water within
.
,
bounds and s o that it should not get uppermost the ,
s ky loaded the water with a number of islands in
wh ich the kite might settle and lea ve them at pea c e .
42
Animals In Primitiv e Myths

Now , it happened that oating about in the water

was a large cane with t w o j oints which was at
length thrown up by the waves at the feet of the
kite as it stood on the shore o f one of the islands .
The kite split open the cane with its b ill and b e ,
hold a man came out of one j oint and a woman

,
o u t of the other They were soon after married

.
by the consent of their go d Bathala M eyc a p a l , ,
and from them are des c ended the di ff erent nations

of the world .
In some stories a s h instead o f a bird or an

,
animal is the maker o f the earth while there is an ,
interesting Polynesian my th in which the earth i t

self was a sh and was shed u p o ut of the waters
with a s h hook The person who accomplishe d
.
this remarkable feat was the youngest of the Maui

brothers and the ower of the family by all a c
, ,
c ounts We shall hear of h im again i n the chapter

.
on ch ild myths .
HOW M AU I F I S H E D U P TH E E ARTH
The youngest Maui was always very badly tre a ted
by his elder brothers They were in the habit o f
.
going o ff and leaving him alone at home with nothing

i
to do and nobo dy t o play with Their treatment of .
him at meals w a s even more shocking They would .
devour the best of every thing themselves and toss ,
h i m a bone o r o a l to eat .
F inally, little Maui plucks up c ourage t o assert

43
himself and the next time his brothers go a s h ing
,
-
,
he takes h i s place in the boat and insists on going ,

too. Where is your hook ask the t w o brothers ,
.

Oh this will do says little Maui taking out his
, ,
ancestor s j awbone This he throws overboard for

.
his s h hook but on trying to pull it in again he

-
nds it very heavy By hauling away at it how .

,
ever he a t last lifts it and n d s it has brought u p

, ,
the land from the bottom o f the d eep This land .
proved to be an extraor d inary comb ination of an

enormous sh and an island with houses and men
and animals on it .
The world supporting tortoise is a familiar myt h o

logical friend believed i n by Asia and holding
, ,
an important place in the mythology of the North

American Indian where a turtle the lonely inh a bi
, ,
tant of the waste of waters dived to the depths ,
f o r the earth .
E ven s o humble an insect as the grasshopper

gures in the Bushman s story o f the creation of
the world Insignicant as the grasshopper appears
.
to u s to the Bushman he appeared a great creature

, ,
called Cagn with truly omnipotent powers for h e

, ,
undertook the work of creation without even the

usual raw m aterial o f water He simply gave o r .
ders and caused all things to appear and to be

m ade s un moon stars win d , m ountains ani mals
, , ,
.
, ,
In many of the primitive stories magi c is the ,
m eans by which the most wonderful eff e cts are p ro

d uce d It w as believ ed that a m agici an c ould bring
.
44
Animals In Primitive Myt h s
about any eff ect he desired by the mere u s e of h is
will and often without any visible symbol of magi c
,
power S ometimes however magic wands were

.
, ,
used and sometimes ceremonies were performed for

,
the purpose of producing magical results O n the .
other hand magical prodigies such as the changing

o f shape from man to anim a l often occur with o ut
the intervention o f any magician .
Whatever may have been the origin o f this belief ,
it is certain that it was j ust as sincerely believed

in as a theory of the universe by early mankind as
the doctrine of an endless pers istent energy always
, ,
working from cause t o e ff ect has been believed in

by the nineteenth century scientist .
Very fanciful stories have clustered about the idea

t h at the spirit might be detached from the body ,
and placed some w here far away as you will s ee ,

when you read the story of P unch kin .
S o rmly was this idea xed in the savage mind

that it seems probable his worship o f animals even
, , ,

in the earliest stages of life w a s really a worship of

the Spirit within the animal rather than of the ,
animal itself and from this phase he passed on to

,
the worship of a great spirit that might manifest

itself in many forms This was the belief o f many
.
of the North American Indian tribes The Great .
S pirit above all the lesser gods is frequently re

, ,
ferred to in their stories .
Of the following stories the rst three are ex ,
amples o f a very large class of early myths whic h ,
attempt to a c count for the origin o r p eculi a r it l e s

45
A G uide to Myt h ology
of animals Curiosity having b een aw akened t h e
.
,
savage tries to explain what he sees and oft en i n

vents pretty and even elabor a te myt hs in his eff ort
t o nd a truth beyond his kn owledge .

In the Origin of the Robin a custom observed ,

among Indians is referred to in the young man s
fast Instead o f college commencements with Bac
.
,
c a la u r e a t e sermons and v al edictories the young

, ,
Indian boy or maiden was made to observe a soli

tary fast afar from the parental wigwam and while ,
s u ff ering the pangs of hunger and loneliness it was ,
believed that the Great S pirit o r a guardian spirit

would reveal to h im his future .
TH E ORI G IN O F TH E ROBIN
( From th e Odji bw a )
An old man h ad an only s o n named Op eech ee , ,
who had come t o that age which is thought to be

most proper t o make the long and nal fast which
is to secure through life a guardian genius or
Spirit The father was ambitious that his s o n should
.
surpass all others in whatever was deemed wisest

and greatest among his people To accomplish his .
wish he thought it necessary that the young Opee

,
chee should fas t a much longer time than any of

those renowned for their power of w isdom, whose
fame he coveted .
He therefore directed h i s s on to prepare with

g reat ceremony for the event After O p
. e e c h e e had
been s e v eral times in the swe a ting lodg e and bath , -
46
The s on assented ; and covering himself more close
ly that he might s hut out the light which prompted
,
him to complain he lay till the eleventh day, when

,
he repeated his request .
The father addr essed Op e e c h e e a s he had the other

day and promi sed that he would himself prepare
,
his rst meal a n d b ring it to him by the dawn o f

,
the morning .
The s on moaned and the father added :

,
Will you bring Shame upon your father when

his s un i s falling in the West ?

I will not shame you my father replied Opee , ,
chee ; and he lay s o still and motionless that you

could only know that he w a s living by the gentle
heaving of his breast .
At the Spring of the day the next morning the , ,
father delighted at having gained his end prepared

, ,
a repast for his son and hastened to s e t it before

,
him On coming to the door of the little lodge

.
,
he was surprised to hear his s on talking to himself .
He h eld his e a r down to listen and looking , ,
through a small opening he was yet more astonished

,
when he beheld his s o n painted with vermilion over

all h i s breast and in the act of nishing his work
,
by laying on the paint as far back on his shoulders

as he could reach with his hands saying at the ,
same time to himself : My father h a s destroyed my

,
fortune as a man He would not listen to my re

.
quests He has urged me beyond my tender strength

. .
He will be the loser I Shall be forever happy in my

.
new state for I have been obedi ent to my parent

,
.
48
An im als In Primi tiv e Myt h s
He alone will be the su fferer for my guardi an Spir it,
i s a j ust one Though not propitious to me in t h e

.
m anner I desired , h e has Shown me pity in ano the r

way h e has given m e another shape ; and now I

must go .
At this moment the old man broke in ex claiming :

My s on ! I pray you leave me not !
But the young man with the quickness of a bird
ew to the top of the lodge and perched himself on
the highest pole having been changed into a beauti
,
ful robin re d breast He looked down upon h i s

-
.
father with pity, and addressed him a s follows :

Regret not my father the change you behold
, ,
.
I Shall be happier in my present state than I could

have been as a man I shall always be the friend o f
.
men and keep near their dwellings I shall ever

,
.
be contented ; and although I could not gratify

y our wishes as a warrior it will be my
,
daily
aim to make you amends for it as a harbinger of
peace and j oy I shall cheer you by my songs and
.
,
strive to inspire in others t h e j oy and lightsomeness

o f heart I feel in my present state This will be .
s ome compensation to you f o r the loss of glory you
expected I am no w free from the cares and pains

.
of human life My food is furnished by the moun

.
tains and elds and my pathway of life is in the

,

bright air .
Then stretching himself on his toes as if d e

, ,
lighted with the gift o f wings O p ee ch e e c aroled o ne,
o f h i s sweetest songs , and e w aw a y i nto a neighbo r
ing wo o d .
49
T HE ORI G IN O F T H E HARE
(Fromthe Ai no)
S uddenly t h er e w a s a large house on the t op o f

,
a mountain wherein were s i x p eople beautifully ar

,
rayed, but c onstantly quarreling Whence they came .
w a s unkn own Thereupon Okiku rumi came and

.
said : Oh ! you bad hares ! you wicked hares ! Who

does not know your origin ? The children in the
s ky wer e pelting each oth e r with snow b alls and the ,
snow balls fell into the world of men As it would .
b e a pity to waste anything that falls from the s ky ,

,
the snow balls were turned into hares and those ,
hares are you You who dwell in this world which

.
belongs to me should not quarrel What is that you

,

.

are making such a n 0 1 se about ?
With these words Okikuruml se ized a r e brand
,
-
and beat each of the s ix with it in turn There .
upon all the hares ran away This is the origin o f .
the hare and for this reason the body of the hare
is white because made of snow while its ears which , ,
are the place where it w a s c harred by the re brand , -
are black .
H OW TH E M OL E B E CA M E BLIND
( N o rth A meri ca n Ind za n)
'
Once a squirrel was being chased by an Indian ,
and in order to escape the squirrel ran all the way

,
u p a tree into the Sky The Indian set a snare for

.
the squirrel at the top o f the tree and then came

down, but he found the next day that the s un was
50
Animals In P rimi tiv e Myt h s
cau ght in the sn are and this brought o n night He
,
.
s a w at once h o w much harm he had caused and be ,
ing an Indian of very good intentions h e w a s a nx

ious to do what he could to remedy the mischief .
S o he sent u p great numbers of animals in the hope

that they might cut the noose and release the s un ,
but the intense heat burned the m all to ashes At .
length the slow mole succeeded ; he burrowed under

the road in the s ky till he reached the place o f the
s un,
gnawed in twain the cords and released the ,

captive But the sun s ash put his eyes out and
.
this i s the reason why the mole is blind The e ffect .
o f the burning is still to be seen on the nose and the
teeth of the mole for they are brown as if burnt

,
.
F rom that time on however the g a it of the s un h a s

, ,
been more d eliberate and slow .
T H E B OY A N D T H E W o L VE s ; OR, T H E BRO KE N P RO M I S E
( N orth A meri ca n Indi a n)
In the depths of a solitary forest a hunter ha d

built hi s lodge for he was weary of the companion
,
ship o f the people of his tribe ; their habits o f de

c e i t and cruelty had turned his heart from the m .
With his family his wife and three children he had

, ,
selected a home in the solitude of the forest Years .
passed by while he peacefully enj oyed the quiet o f

his home or the more attractive ple a s u res o f t h e
,
chase in whic h he was j oined by his eldest s on At

,
.
length his peace ful enjoyments were interrupted :

Si ckness entered the solitary lodge, and the hunter
51
w as prostrated upo n h is c ou c h nev er m ore to
rise .
As death drew ne a r h e addressed h is family in

,

these words : You said he turning to his wife
, ,
y o u who
,
have been the companion of my life ,
Shall join m e in the Isle of the Blessed You have .

not long to su ff er But oh my children ! and he
.
,
turned his eyes a ffectionately upon them you have ,
j ust c ommenced life ; and mark me unkindness i n, , ,
gratitude and every wickedness i s before you I

,
.
left my tribe and kindred to come to this unf re

q u e nt e d pla c e because
,
of the evils of which I have
just warned you I have contented myself with
.
the company of your mother and yourselves for I ,
was solicitous that you might be kept from bad ex

ample ; and I shall die contented if you my chil ,
dren promise to cheris h each other and not to for

, ,

sake your youngest brother .
E xhausted with speaking the dying hunter closed ,
h i s eyes for a f ew moments and then rousing him , ,
self with great e ff ort he took the hand of his t w o

,
eldest children and said : My daughter never for ,
sake your youngest brother My s on never fors a ke .

,

your youngest brother .
Never ! never ! responded both ; and the h unter

sank back upon his pallet and soon expired .
His wife ac c ording to his predictions followed

, ,
him after the brief expiration of eight months ; but

in her last moments She reminded the t w o children
o f the promise m ade their father During the win .
t e r following th eir m other s de a th , t h e t w o e lde r

52
Animals In Primitive Myt h s
children were exceedingly thoughtful in regard t o
their brother who was a mere child and very delicate
,
and sickly ; but when the w inter had passed away ,
the young man became restless and at length de ,
t ermi ne d to break his promise to his father and ,
seek the village of his father s tribe

.
He communicated this determination to his Sister ,
who replied : My brother I cannot wonder at your

,
desire as we are not prohibited the society o f o ur

,
fellow men but we were told to cherish ea c h o ther

-
,
and pro t ect our little brother If we follo w o ur o w n

.

inclinations we may forget him
,
.
To this the young man made no reply but taking , ,
h is bo w and arrows left the lodge and never re

,
turned S everal moons passed after h i s departure

.
,
during which the girl tenderly watched over her

little brother ; but at length the solitude o f h er life
became unendurable and s h e began to medit a te escap
,
ing from the care of her brother and leaving h im ,
alone i n his helplessness S he g a thered into t h e

.
lodge a large amount of food , and then said t o her

brother My brother do not leave the lodge ; I go
, ,

t o seek o u r brother and shall soon return
,
.
Then s h e went in search of the village o f h er tribe ,
w here s h e hoped to nd her elder brother Wh en s h e .
reached the v illage Sh e w a s s o de lighted with the

,
novelty of society and the pleasure of seeing others

o f her own age that s h e entirely forgot her little
brother S he found her elder brother nicely settled

.
in life he having married very happily ; and on

, ,
r e c eiving a proposal o f marria ge herself, ab a nd o ned
53
A Guide to Myt hology
all th ou ght of returning to the solitary lodge in t he
forest accepting a home in the village with t h e y o ung
,
man who became her husb and .
As soon as the little brother had eaten all the

food collected by his Sister he went into the woods ,
and picked b e rries and dug up roots That satised .
his hunger as long a s the weather was mild ; but when ,
the winter drew on he was obliged to wander about

,
in very gr e a t d i s t re s s for want o f food He often

'
passed his nights in the clefts and hollows of o l d

trees a nd was glad to eat the refuse meat left by
,
-
the wolves ; and he became s o fearless o f those

mals that he would s i t by them while they devoured
their prey and the a n l ma ls themselves were so a o
,
customed to him that they seemed pleased with his

presence and always left some of their food f o r him
,
.
Thus the little b o y lived on th r ough the winter s uc ,
cored from hunger by the wild beasts of the woods .
When the winter had passed away and the ice

had melted from the Great Lake he followed the ,
wolves to its O pen shore It ha ppened one day that

.
his elder brother was shing in his canoe on the

lake and hearing the cry of a child hastened to the
, , ,
Shore where at a Short distance from h im he d is

,
covered his little brother who was Singing plain ,
t ively these lines :
Ne s ia , Ne s ia , Sh ug w ub , gus h uh !
Ne mie n g un-iew ! Ne mie n g un ie w ! -
My b ro th er my b ro th e r !
,
I a m t urning i nt o a w o lf !
I a m t urnin g i nt o a w o lf !
54
ried both him and the lo g away and they oated ,
helplessly many days until the waters subsided

, ,
when the poor snail was left upon a strange shore

that was c overed with the river s Slime where as , ,
the s un arose the heat was s e intense that he was

'
irrecoverably xed in the mud Oppressed with the .
heat and drought and famishing for want of nour

,
i s h ment in despair he resigned himself to his fate

,
and prepared to die But suddenly new feelings

.
arose and a renewed vigor ente red his frame His

,
.
Shell burst open ; his head gradually arose abo ve

the ground ; his lower extremities assumed the char
a cter of feet and legs ; arms extended from his sides ,
and their extremities divided into ngers ; and thus ,
beneath the inuence of the shining s un he became ,
a tall and noble looking man F or a while he was

-
.
s t u e e d with the change ; he had no energy no dis

p ,
tinct thoughts ; but by degrees his brain assumed its

activit y and returning recollection induced him to
,
travel back to his native shore Naked and ignorant .

,
and almost perishing with h unger he walked along ,

.
He s a w beasts and birds enticing to the appetite ;

but not knowing h ow to kill them his hunger was
, ,
left unappeased .
At last he became so weak that h e laid h imself

down upon the ground in despair thi nk ing that he ,
must die He had not been lying thus very long

.
,
when he heard a voice calling him by name Was ,
b a s h a s W a sb a sh a s !
, He looked up and before h im ,
beheld the Great S pirit sitting upon a whi t e animal .
And th e eye s of the S pirit were like stars ; the hair

56
Animals In P ri mi tiv e Myt hs
of his h ead shone like the s un Trembling fro m .
head to foot Wa s b a s h a s bowed his head He could

, .
not look upon him Again the voice Spoke in a

.
,
mild tone W a s b a s h a s why art thou terried ?

, ,

I
tremble replied Wa s ba s h a s because I stand before

, ,
him who raised me from the ground I am faint ; .
I have eaten nothing since I was left a little shell

upo n the Shore The Great S pirit then lifted u p
.
his hands displaying in them a bow and arrows ;

,
and telling Wa s b a s h a s to look at him he put an ar ,
row to the string of the b o w and sent it into the air , ,
striking a beautiful bird that dropped dead upon ,
the ground A deer then coming in sight he pla ce d

.
,
another arrow to the string and pierced it through ,

and through There said the Great S pirit
.
,
is ,

your food and these are your arms
,
handing him ,
the bow and arrows The be ne ce nt Being then in

.
structed him h o w to remove the skin of the deer and ,

prepare it f o r a garment You are naked said .
,

he ,
and must be clothed ; for although it is now
warm the Skies will change and bring rains and
, ,

snow and cold winds Having said thi s he also
.
,
imparted the gift of re and instructed him h o w to ,
roast the esh o f the deer and bird He then placed .

a collar of wampum around his neck This said .
,

he ,
is your title of authority over all the beasts .
Having done this the Great S pirit arose in the a i r

,
and vanished from Sight Wa s b a s h a s refreshed him.
self with the food and afterward pursued his w a y

,
to his native land Having w a lked a long distance

.
,
he seated himself on the banks of a riv er and medi ,
57
t a te d on what had transpired when a large beaver ,
arose up from the chann el and addressed him Wh o .

art tho u ? said the beaver, that comest h ere to

disturb my ancient reign ?

I am a man he replied
,
I was once a creep
.

ing Shell ; but who art thou ? I am king o f t h e

nation of beavers was answered ; I lead my p e o
,
ple up and down this stream We are a busy peo ple,

.

and the river is my dominion .

I must divide it with you sai d Wa sb a s h a s ;

,
th e Great S pirit has placed me at the head of

beasts and birds shes and fowls and has pro
, ,
vi d e d me with the power of maintaining my rights
and then he exhib ited the gifts of the Great S pirit ,
the bo w and arrows and the wampum .

Come come said the beaver in a modied tone
, , ,
I perceive we are brothers ; walk with me to my

lodge and refresh yourself after your j ourney
,
So .
saying he conducted Wa s ba s h a s who had accepted ,
the invitation with great alacrity t o a beautiful ,

large village where he was entertained in the chief s
,
lodge which was built in a cone shape ; and as the

, ,
oor w a s covered with pine mats, it had a very de

lightful appearance to the eyes of Wa sb a s h a s .
After they had sea t ed themselves the chief bade ,
h i s wife and daughter prepare for them the choicest

food in their possession Meanwhile he entertained
.
his guest by informing him h o w they co nstructed

their lodges and described their manner o f cutting
,
down trees with their teeth and felling th em across

,
s tr e a m s s o as to dam u p the water ; a nd a lso i n
58
Anim als In Primi ti v e Myt h s
struc ted him in the method of nishing the d am s
with leaves and clay With this wise conversation
.
the chief beguiled the time and also gained the re

,
spect of Wa s b a s h a s His wife and daughter no w en

.
t e r e d bringing in fresh peeled poplar and willow

,
and sassafras and elder bark which was the most

-
,
choice food known to them Of this W a s b a s h a s made

.
a semblance of tasting while his entertainer de

,
vo u r e d a large amount wi th great enj oyment The .
daughter of the chief no w attracted the eyes of

Wa s b a s h a s Her modest deportment and cleanly a t
.
tire her assiduous attention to the commands of her

,
father heightened v ery much her charms which in

, ,
the estimation o f the guest were very great ; and

the longer Wa s ba s h a s gazed upon the maiden the ,
more deeply he was enamoured until at leng th he ,
formed the resolution to seek her in marriage ; upon

which with persuasive words he spoke to the chief
, , ,
begging him t o allow his suit The chief gladly .
assented ; and as the daughter had formed a favour

able Opinion o f the suitor a marriage was c ons um
,

mated but not without a feast to which beavers and
friendly animals were invited F rom this union Of .
the snail and beaver the Osage tribe has its origin .
59
T HE AMAZ ING A DVENTU R ES O F MASTER R ABBI T
WITH T HE OTTER A ND T HE
WOO DPECKER GIRLS
A LS O A FU LL A C COU NT O F T HE FA MOU S CHA SE , IN
WHI CH H E F O O LE D L U S I FE E T H E WI LD CA T
,
(A lgo nqui n)
I HOW M A S T E R RABBI T S O U GHT TO RIVAL

. KE E O O N Y ,
TH E O T T E R
Of old times M a h ti gw es s the Rabbit who is
, , ,
called in the Micmac t ongue A ble egumoo ch lived ,
with his gr andmother waiting for better times ; and

,
truly he found it a hard matter in midwinter when ,
ice was on the river and sno w was on the plain to ,
provide even for his small household And running .
through the forest one day he found a lonely w 1 gw a m ,
and he that dwelt therein was Ke e o ony the Otter ,

.
The lodge was on the bank Of a river and a smooth ,
road of ice slanted from the door down to the water .
And the Otter made him welcome and directed his ,
housekeeper to get ready to cook ; saying which he ,
took the hooks on which he was wont to string sh

when he had them and went to fetch a mess f o r din
,
ner Placing himself on the top of the slide he

.
,
coasted in and under the water and then came o u t ,
with a great bunch of eels which were soon cooked, ,
and on which they dined .

By my life thought Master Rabbit but tha t
, ,
is an easy way o f getting a living ! Truly these s h

ing folk hav e ne fare and cheap ! C annot I, w h o
-
,
60
An im als In P ri mitiv e Myths
am SO clever do as well as this mere Otter ? Of
,

course I can Why not ? Thereupon he grew SO
.
con d ent o f himself as t o invite the Otter to dine

with him a d a ma d us k ke tke w op o n the third day
afte r that and S o went home
,
.
Come on ! he said to h i s grandmother the next

morning ; let u s remove o u r wigwam down to the

lake. S o they removed ; and he selected a S ite such
as the Otter had chosen for his home and the weather ,
b ein g cold he made a road o f ice of a coast down , ,
from his door to the water and all was well Then ,
.
the guest came at the time set and Rabbit calling his , ,
gr andmother bade h e r get ready to cook a dinner

,
.

But what am I to cook grandson ? inquired the ,
O ld dame .

Truly I will s ee to that said he and made him , ,
a na bogun or stick to string eels Then going to the

,
.
ice path he tried to slide like o ne Skilled in the art

, ,
bu t indeed with little luck for he went rst to the ,
right Side then to the left and s o hitched and

, ,
j umped till he came to the water where he went in ,
with a bob backwards And this bad beginning had .
no better ending since of all s w immers and divers the

,
Rabbit is the very worst, and this o ne was no better

than his brothers The water was cold he lost his
.
,
breath he struggled and was well nigh drowned

, ,
-
.
But what o n earth ails the fellow ? said the Ot

ter to the grandmother who was looking on in amaze ,
ment .
Well he has seen somebody do something and i s

, ,

tryi ng to do likew i se replied the old lady ,
.
61
A G ui de to Myt hology
Ho ! c om e out of that now,
cried the Otter
,
and h and me your na boga n ! And the poor R a b

bit, Shivering with cold and almost frozen c ame , ,
from the water and limped into the lodge And .
there h e required much nursing from his grand

mother while the Otter plunging into the stream
, , ,
soon returned with a load of sh But disgusted .

,
at the Rabbit for attempting what he could not

perform he threw them down as a gift and went
, ,
home without tasting the meal .
II . HOW M A H T I G W E SS TH E RABBIT D IN E D WITH TH E

, ,
WOOD P E CK E R GI RL S AND WA S AGAIN H U M BL E D

,
B Y TRYING TO RIVAL TH E M .
N o w Master Rabbit, though disappointed , was not

discouraged for this o ne virtue he had that he never
, ,
gave up And wandering one day in the wilderness

.
,
he found a wigw am well lled with young women all ,
wearing red head dresses and no wonder for they

-
,
w ere Woodpec kers No w Master Rabb it was a well

.
,
bred Indian who made himself as a m elody to all

,
voices and s o he was cheerfully h i dd e n to bide to din

,
ner which he did Then one of the red polled pretty

,
.
-
girls taking a w o ltes or wooden dish lightly climbed

, , ,
a tree so that s h e seemed to run ; and while ascend

,
ing s t opping here and there and tapping now and

,
t hen took from this place and that many o f those i n

,

sects called by the Indians a p ch e l moa l ti mp ka w a l or -
,
rice because they SO much resemble it And note

, .
th a t this ri ce is a dainty dis h for those who like it .
62
w ho, wh en he gave u p trying to do as others did ,
succeeded very well And having found o ut h i s

.
,
foible he applied himself to become able in good

,
earnest and studied m tou li n or magic so severely

,

, ,
that in time he grew to be an awful c onj urer s o that ,
he c ould raise ghosts crops storms or devils when

, , ,
ever he wanted them Fo r he had perseverance .

,
and o u t of this may come anything if it be only ,
brought into the right road .
Now it came to pass that Master Rabbit got into

great trouble The records o f the Micmacs s a y that
.
it was from his stealing a string of sh from t h e

Otter who pursued him ; but the Passamaquoddies
'
declare that he was innocent of this evil deed prob ,
ably because they make great account of him as

their ancestor and as the father o f the Wab anaki .
Howbeit, this is the w a y in which they tell t h e

tale
.
No w the Rabbit is the natural prey o f the Loup
Cervier or Lu s i f e e who is a kind of wild cat none

, ,
-
,
being more obstinate And this VVil d Cat once went

.
-
hunting with a gang of wolves and they got nothing ,

.
Then Wild Cat who had made them great promise s

-
,
and acted as chief became angry and thinking of the

, , ,
Rabbit promised them that this time they Should in

,
deed get their dinner So he took them to Rabbit s

.

wigwam ; but he was out and the Wolves being , ,
vexed and starved reviled Wild Cat and then rushed

,
-
,
o ff howling through the woods .
Now I think that the Rabbit i s m to u li n Yes

.
,
h e mu st be, for when Wild Cat st a rted t o hu nt h im -
64
Animals In P rimitiv e Myt h s
alone h e determined with all his soul not to be
,
caught and made h imself a s magical as he could SO

,
.
h e picked u p a handful of chips and threw one a s ,

far as possible then j umped to i t f o r he had a ,
charm f o r a long j ump ; and then threw another ,
and s o on f o r a great distance This was to make

,
.
no tracks and when he thought he had got out of

,
s cent and Sight and sound he scampered away like
the wind .
No w as I said when the wolves got t o Master

, ,

Rabbit s house and found nothing they smelt about ,
and left Wild C a t who swore by h i s tail that he

-
,
w ould catch Rabbit if he had to hunt forever and ,
r un himself to death S o taking the house for a .

,
ce nter h e kept going round and round it, all the

,
time a little further and SO more around and still ,
further Then at last having found the track he

.
,
went in hot haste after Mr Rabbit And b oth . .
ran h ard till night coming on Rab bit to p ro

, , , ,
teet himself had only just time to tra mp le d o w n th e

,
s no w a li t tle ,
a nd s ti ck up a s p r u ce tw i g o n end a nd
s it on it
But when Wild Cat came up he found
.
-
there a ne wi g w am and put his head in All that ,

.
h e s a w w as an old man of very grave and dignied

appearanc e whose h air was gray and whose maj estic
, ,
( g y )
s o m o e appearance was heightened by a pair of
long and v enerable ears And of him Wild Cat .
-
a sked in a gasping hurry if he had seen a Rabbit
running that way .
Rabbits ! replied the Old man Why o f .

,
c o u rse I hav e seen many

,
They a bo und in the w oods .
65

abou t here I s e e dozens of them every day
. Wit h .
this he said kin d ly to Wild Cat that he had better -

tarry with him for a time I am an Old man he .
,
remarked with solemnity an old man living alone , ,
and a respectable guest like you sir comes to me like

, , ,

a blessing And the Cat greatly impressed r e
.
, ,
mained After a good supper he lay down by the

.
re and having r un all day was at once asleep and

, , , ,
made but one nap of it till morning But h o w aston .
i s h e d and oh h ow miserable he was when he awoke

, , , ,
to nd himself o n the Open heath in the snow and a l

m ost starved ! The wind blew as if it had a keen will
to kill him ; it seemed to go all through his b i d y .
Then he s a w that he had been a fool and chea ted by

magic and in a rage swore again by his teeth as well
, ,
a s h is tail that the Rabbit should die There was no

,
.
hut no w only the trampled snow and a spruce twig

, ,
and yet o ut o f this little Rabbit had conj ured up s o

,
great a delusion .
Then he ran again all day And when night c ame .

,
Master Rabbit having a little more time than before

, ,
a gain trampled down the snow but for a greater ,
space and strewed many branches all about for no w

, ,
a huge eff ort was to be made And when Wild Cat .

-
got there he found a great Indian village with ,
crowds of people going to and fro The rst build .
ing he s a w was a church in which service was be ing ,
held And he entering said hastily t o the rst per

.
, ,
s o n he s a w Ha ! ho ! have you seen a Rabb it run

,

ning by here ?
Hush s h , s h ! replied t h e man Yo u mu st .
66
Animals In P rimitiv e Myths
wait till meeting is over before asking such ques

tions .Then a young man beckoned to him to c om e
in and he listened till the end to a long sermon on th e
,
wickedness of being vindictive and rapacious ; and

the preacher was a gray ancient and his ears stood ,
up o ver his little cap like the two handles of a pit

cher yet for all that the Wild Cat s heart was no t
,
-
moved one whit And when it was all at an end h e

.
said to t h e obliging young man But h a ve you seen ,
a R a bbit running by ?
Rabbits ! Rab bits ! replied the young ma n
-
.
Why there are hundreds racing about in the cedar

,
s w a s near this place and you c a n have as many a s

,
y o u w ant
Ah !. replied Wild Cat but they are -
,

not what I seek Mine is an entirely diff erent kind
. .
The other said that he knew o f no sort save the wild

wood rabbits but that perhaps their Governor or ,
,
C h i ef who was very wise could tell him all about

, ,
them Then the Governor or S agamore came up

.
, ,
.
Like th e preacher he was very remarkable and gray

, ,
with the long lo cks standing u p one on either side

o f his head And he invited the stranger to his
.
house where his t w o very beautiful daughters cooke d

,
him a ne supper And when he wished to retire .
they brought o u t blankets and a beautiful w h i te

bea r s s ki n and made up a bed for hi m by the re

.
,
Truly his eyes were closed as soon a s he lay do wn,

,
but when he awoke there had been a great ch ange .
F or no w he was in a wet cedar sw amp the wind ,
blowing ten times worse than ever and his supper ,
a nd sleep had done him little good for they w ere

,
67
all a delusion All around him were rabbits track s
.

and broken twigs but nothing more ,

.
Yet he sprang up more enraged than ever and , ,
swearing more terribly by his tail teeth and claw s , ,
that he would be revenged S o he ran o n all day and .

,
at night when he came to another large village h e

, ,
w a s s o weary that he could just gasp

Have you ,

seen a R a b b i t run this way ?
With much con
cern and kindness they all asked him what w a s the
matter S o he tol d them all this story and t hey
.
,
pitied him very much ; yea o ne gray o l d man and

,

this was the Chief with two b eautiful daughters ,
shed tears and comforted him and advised him to ,
stay with them S o they took him t o a large hall

.
,
where there was a great re burning in the middle

thereof And over it hung t w o pots with soup and
.
meat and two Indians stood by and gave food to all

,
the people And he had his share with the rest and
.
,
all feasted gayly .
No w when they had done eating the old Governor

, , ,
who was very gray a n d from either Side of whos e

,
head rose t w o very venerable long white feathers , ,
rose to welcome the stranger and in a long speech

'
said it was indeed the custom o f their village t o

, ,
entertain guests but that they expected from them a

,
song Then Wild Cat who was vain of his voi c e,

.
-
,
u p lifted i t in vengeance against the Rabbits :

Oh , h o w I h a te t h em !
Ho w I d e s pi s e th em !
Ho w I la ugh a t th em !
Ma y I s c a lp th em a ll !
68
An im als In Primitiv e Myt h s
T h en he said that he thought the Governor should
sing And to this the Chief consented but de clared
.
,
that all who were present should h o w their h e a ds

while seated and shut their eyes which they did
, ,
.
Then Chief Rabbit at o ne bound cleared the heads, ,
o f his
g uests and drawing ,
his ti mh e ye n o r toma ,
hawk as he j umped gave Wild Cat a wound which

, ,
-
cut deeply into h i s head and only fell short of killing

him by entirely stunning him When he recovered .
,
he was again in snow Slush and lth more starved , ,
than ever his head bleeding from a dreadful blow

, ,
and he himself almost d ead Yet with all that the .

, ,
Indian devil w a s stronger in him than ever for every ,
ne w disgrace did but bring more resolve to be re
venged and he swore it by his tail claws teeth and

, , , ,
eyes .
SO he t ot t ered along though he could hardly walk ;

,
nor could he indeed go very far that day And when

, ,
.
almost broken down with pain and weariness he ,
came about noon to t w o good wigw ams Looking into .
o ne he s a w a gray haired O ld man and in the other

,
-
,
a young girl apparently his daughter And they r e

,
.
c e i v e d him kindly and listened to his story saying

, ,
it was very sad the old man declaring that he must

,
really remain there and that he would get him a ,
doctor Since unless he were well cared for at once

, , ,
he would die Then he went forth as if in great

.
concern leaving his daughter to nurse the weary

, ,
wounded stranger .
Now when the doctor came he t o o was an ol d

, , , ,
g ray ma n ,
with a scalp l oc k strangely divided lik
-
e
69
two horns But the Wild Cat had be c ome a little
.
-
suspicious having been so Often deceived for much

, ,
ab use will cease to amuse even the most innocent ;

and truly he was none o f these And looking grimly .
,
at the Doctor he said : I was asking if any Rabbit s

,
are here and truly you look very much like one your
,

self Ho w did you get that split nose ?
. Oh that ,
is very Simple replied the old man

,

Once I was .
hammering wampum beads and the stone on which ,
I beat them broke in halves and o ne piece ew u p , ,

and as you see Split my nose
, ,
But persisted .
,
the Wild Cat why are the soles of your feet so yel
-
,

l ow even like a Rabbit s ?
,
Ah that is because
,
I have been preparing some tobacco and I had to ,
hold it down with my feet for truly I needed both , , ,
my hands to work with SO the toba cco stained them .

yellow . Then the Wild Cat suspected no more -
,
and the Doctor p ut salve on his wound s o th at he ,
felt much better .
But oh the wretchedness of the awaking in the

,
morn i ng ! F or then Wild Cat found himself indeed -
in the extreme of mi sery His head was swollen and .
aching to an incredible degree and the horrible ,
wound which w a s gaping wide had been stu ff ed wit h

, ,
hemlock needles and pine Splint ers and this was the ,
cool salve which the Doctor had applied And then .
he swore by all his body and soul that he would slay

the next being he met Rabbit o r Indian Verily ,
.
this time he would be utterly revenged .
No w M a h t i gw e s s the Rabbit had almost come to

, ,
an end of his m teo u li n o r wizard pow er, for that

70
endo w ed with divine attri b utes According to t h e .
1
ordinary account of him he is regarded as the mes
senger of the Great S pirit sent down to mankind
, ,
in the character of a wise man o r prophet But he .
has all the attributes of humanity as well as the

power of performing miraculous deeds He adapt s .
himself perfectly to their manners and customs and

ideas He marr i es builds a lodge hunts and shes
.
, , ,
goes to war has his triumphs and his failures like

,
other Indians Whatever man could do in strength

.
o r wisdom he could do b u t when he encounters situ

,
a t i o ns requiring more than human strength his mir ,
a c ul o us powers come into play He is provided with

.
a magic canoe which goes where it is b i d He could .
leap over extensive regions of country like an ignis

He appear s suddenly like a go d or wander s
f a t u u s
.
,
over weary was t es of country a poor and starving

hunter His voice is at one moment deep and sonor
.
o u s a s a thunder clap and at another clothed with

-
,
the softness of feminine supplication He could .
transform himself into any animal he pleased He .
Often conversed with animals fowls reptiles and , , ,
shes He deemed himself r elated to them and a l

.
,
ways in speaking to them called them my brother

,
and one of his grea t est resources when nding him

self hard pressed was to chan ge himself into their
shapes .
He could conquer M a ni t oe s no matter what their

,
evil pow er might be M a ni t o e s in Indian stories are

.
not unlike fairies in their characteristi cs They .
Se e Sch o o l cra f t
1
.
72
Anim als In P rimi tive Myt h s
were o f all imaginary kinds grades powers s ome , , ,
times benign sometimes malicious but Manabozho

, ,
w a s a personage strong enough in his ne c romanti c
powers to bafe the most malicious beat the stout ,
est, and overreach the most cunn ing He was not .

,
however the wholly benevolent being we might ex

,
c t he would be with all these great gift s ; he w a s

p e
unfortunately ambitious vainglorious and deceit , ,
ful and at times not much better himself than a

,
wicked Manito But what could be expected of a

.
s o n of the Wes t Wind for his father was Ninga

,
h iun the West Wind and you will nd that mythi

, ,
cal beings which personify the wind are always o f

a tricksy disposition j ust as the wind itself is A s .
a god he w a s O ften spoken of as the great wh it e

Hare .
1
The Algonquin hero Glo o s ka p is equ ally inter
, ,
esting and of a more truly heroic d i Sp o s i t io n t h a n

, x
Manabozho The name of this divinity Glo o ska p,

.
,
means a liar because it is said that when he left

,
the earth for the land of Spirits he promised to re

turn and he has never done s o Many and wonder .
ful are the tales told o f Gloo ska p but he is never ,
silly or c ruel or fan tastic like Manabozho Any one

, ,
.
who goes to Nova S cotia to day , m ay s ee the gr and ,

-
Cape Blo mi d o n w h ere Glo o ska p lived It j uts out

,
.
b etween the Bay of F undy and the Basin of Minas .
Its foundations are o f red sandstone and far u p

toward the s ky it is crowned with granite battle
m ents S ometimes the waters of the Basin of Minas
.
Lel a nd Algo nq uin Lege nds

l
.
,
73
A G u ide to Myt hology
gently w a sh against the base of this giganti c c ape
and sometimes one could walk a mile or t w o from the
cape to reach the water Twice a day this happens
.
as the tide comes up and recedes Truly, it is a .
magi c al land and Blo mi d on is a noble home well

, ,
betting the great Indian divinity whose head rises

to the stars and who c ould slay a giant enemy with
,
a mere tap of his bow We sh all meet w ith b oth

.
o f th e s e heroes again late r .
T HE S TO RY O F MANABOZHO
( Iroquoi s)
To begi n a t the beginning Manabozho wh ile yet

, ,
a yo u ngster was living with his gr a ndmother

,
near ,
the edge Of a wide prairie It was on this prairie that

.
he rst s a w anim als and birds of every kind ; he als o

there made rst a c quaintance with thunder and light
ning ; he would s it by the hour watching the cloud s
a s they rolled and musing on the shades o f light and
,
d a rkness as the day rose and fell .
F or a stripling Man abozho w a s u nc ommonly w ide

,
aw ake E very new sight he beheld in the heavens

.
w a s a subject of remark ; every new animal or bird ,
a n Obj ec t of deep interest ; and every sound that
c ame from the bosom of nature was like a new les ,
s o n which he was expected to learn He O ften trem .
bled at what he heard and s a w .
To the scene Of the wide O pen prairie h is grand

m other sent him at an early age to watc h The rst .
s ound h e heard was that of t h e o w l, a t w hi ch he w a s
74
An imals In P rimitiv e Myths
greatly terried and quickly d escending the tree he
, ,
had climbed he ran w ith alarm to the lodge

,
NO .
ko ! noko ! grandmother ! he cried I have heard .

a mo ne d o .
S he laughed at his fears and asked him what kind ,
of noise his reverence made He answered It .

,

makes a noise like this : ko ko ko h o - - -
.
His grandmother told him he was young and fool

i s h ; that what he heard was only a bird which de
rived its name from the peculiar noise i t made .
He returned to the prairie and continued h i s

watch As he stoo d there looking at the clouds h e
.
,
thought to himself It is singular that I am s o

,
Simple and my grandmother so wise ; and that I have

neither father nor mother I have never heard a .

word about them I must ask and nd out . .
He went home and s a t down silent and dej ected ,

.
F inding that this did not attract the noti ce of his

g randmother he be gan
,
a loud lamentation whic h ,
he kept increasing louder and louder till it shook

, ,
the lodge and nearly deafened the old grandmother

,
.
S he at length said Manabozho, what is the mat

,
ter w ith you ? You are making a great deal of

noise .
Manabozho started off again with his doleful hub

bub ; but su c ceeded in j erking out between his big
sobs,
I haven t got any father nor mother ; I

haven t ; and he s e t out again lamenting more boist
e r o u s ly than e v er .
Knowi ng that he w a s o f a wicked and rev engeful

temper his gr a ndmother dreaded to te ll h im t h e
,
75
story of h i s parentage ; a s s h e knew he would make
trouble of it .
Manabozho renewed his cries and managed to ,
throw out f o r a third or fourth time his sorrowful

, ,
lament that he was a poor unfortunate who had no ,
parents and no relations .
S he at last said to him Yes yo u have a father

, ,
and three brothers living Your mother is dead S he

. .
w a s taken for a wife b y your father the West with , ,
o u t the co ns ent O f her parents Your brothers are

.
the North E ast and S outh ; and b eing older than

, ,
yourself your father has given them great power with

,
the winds according to their names You are the

,
.
'
youngest o f his children I have nursed you from

.
your infancy ; for your mother owing to the ill ,
treatment Of your father died when you were an

,
infant I have no relations beside you this side of

.
the planet in which I was born and from which I ,
was precipitated by female jealousy Your mother .

was my only child and you are my only hope
, .

I am glad my father is living said Manabozho , .

I Shall s et o ut in the morning to V i sit him .
His grandmother would have discouraged him ;

saying it was a long distance to the place where his
father Ni nga bi un or the West lived
, , ,
.
This information seemed rather to please than t o

d isconcert Manabozho ; for by this ti me he had grown
to such a Size and strength that he had been com
p e ll e d to leave the narro w Shelter O f his grand

mother s lodge and to live o u t of doors He was s o .
t all that, if he had been s o disposed he c ould h ave ,
76
Animals In P rimi tive Myt h s
s napped Off the heads o f the birds roosting in t h e
topmost branches of the highest trees as he stood up , ,
without being at the trouble to climb And if he had .
at any time taken a fancy to o ne of the same trees

for a walking stick he would have had no more t o
,
do than to pluck it u p with his thumb and nger ,
and strip down the leaves and twigs with the palm of
his hand .
Bidding good by to his venerable Ol d grandmother

-
,
who pulled a very long face over his departure Man ,
a bo z h o s e t out at great headway for he was able to

,
stride from one side of a prairie t o the other at a

single step .
He found his father on a high mountain ground , -
far in the west His father espied his approach at a

.
great distance and bounded dow n the mountain side

,
-
several miles to give him welcome and side by Side , ,

- -
,
apparently delighted with each other they reached ,
in t w o or three o f their giant paces the lodge of

the West which stood high up near the clouds
,
.
They spent some days in talking w ith each other

for these two great persons did nothing o n a small
scale and a whole day to deliver a single sent ence
, ,
such was the immensity of their discourse was quit e ,
an ordinary aff air .
One evening Manab ozho asked his father what h e

w as most afraid of o n earth .

He replied Nothing .
But is there nothi ng you dread h er e nothing

.
that would hurt you if you took t oo mu ch Of it ?

Com e tell me
,
.
77
Manabozho was very u rgent ; a t last h i s fa th er
sai d

Yes there is a black stone to be found a couple
,

o f hundred miles from here over that w a y pointing , ,
as he spoke It is the only thing earthly that I am

.
afraid of for if it should happen to hit me on any

,
part of my body it would hurt me very muc

The West made this important circumstance
know n to Manabozho in the strictest conden ce .
No w you will not tell any one Manabozho that

, , ,
the black s t one is bad medicine for your father will ,

you ? he added You are a good s on and I kn ow
.
,
will keep it to yourself No w tell me my darling .

,

boy is there not something that you don t like ?
,

Manabozho answered promptly Nothing .
His father who was Of a very steady and persever

,
ing temper put the same question t o him seventeen

,
t imes and each time Manabozho made the s a me

,

answer Nothing .
But the West insisted There must be some

thing you are afraid of .

Well I will te ll you says Manabozho
,
what , ,

it is .
He made an e ff ort to speak bu t it seemed to be ,
too much for him .

Out with it said Ninga biun or the West , , , ,
fetching Manabozho Such a blow on the back as

shook the mountain with its echo
Je ee je e ei t is
.

-
,
said Manabozho apparently
-
, ,

in great pa in Yeo, yeo ! I c ann ot n ame it I
.
,
tr emble s o .

78
A Gui de to Myt hology
piece of the black rock w hich struck the West di
,
r e c t ly between the eyes who returned the favor with

,
a blow of bulrush that rung over the Shoulders of

,
Manabozho far and wide like the whip thong of the

, ,
-
lightning among the clouds .
And no w either rallied and Manabozho poured in ,
a tempest of black rock while Niga bi un dis charged

,
a Shower of bulrush Blow upon blow thwack upon

.
,

thwack they fought hand to hand until black rock
and bulrush were all gone Then they b etook them .
selves to hurling crags at each other cudgeling with ,
huge o a k trees and defying each other from one

-
mountain top to another ; while at times they shot

-

enormous boulders of granite across at each other s
heads as though they had been mere j a ck stones
,
.
The battle which had commenced on the mountains

, ,
had extended far west The West was forced to .
give ground Manabozho pressing o n drove him

.
,
acros s rivers and mountains ridges and lakes till at , ,
last he got him to the very brink of the world .

Hold ! cried the West My s on you know .
,
my power and although I allow that I am now fairly

,
o u t of breath it is impossi ble to kill me

,
S top where .
y e n are
,
and I will also portion you out with as much
power a s your brothers The four quarters of the
.
globe are already occupied bu t you can go and do a ,
great deal o f good to the people of the earth which ,
is beset with serpents beasts and monsters who

, , ,
make great havoc of human life Go and do good .

,
and if you p ut fort h half the strength you have to

day you will acquire a name that will last forever .
80
Anima ls In Primit ive Myt h s
When you have nished your work I will h ave a
place provided f o r you You will then go and s it
.
with your brother Ka bi no cc a in the North

,

,
.
Manabozho gave his father his hand upon this

agreement And parting from him he returned t o
.
,
his ow n grounds , where he lay for some time sore of

his wounds .
These being h owever gre a tly allayed and Soon

, , ,

after cured by his grandmother s Skill in medicines ,
Manabozho as big and sturdy as ever was ripe for

, ,
ne w adventures He s e t his thoughts immediately

.
u pon a war excursion against the Pearl F eather a ,
wicked old manito living on the other Side of the

,
great lake who had killed his grandfather He began

,
.
his preparations by making huge bow s and arrows

without number ; but he had no heads for his shafts .
At last Noko told him that an old man w h o lived ,
at some distance could furnish him with suc h as

,
he needed He sent her to get some S he soon

. .
returned with her wrapper full Manabozho told her .
that he had not enough and sent her again S he ,

.
came back with a s many more He thought to him .
self
,
I must nd out the way of making these

heads .
Ins tead of directly asking h ow it was done he pre ,
ferred j ust like Manabozho t o deceive h i s grand

m other to come at the knowledge he desired by a ,

trick . Noko said he ,
while I take my drum ,
and rattle and sing my war songs do you go and try

,
-
,
to get me some larger heads for these you have ,
brought m e are all of the same size Go and s e e .
81
whether the old man is not will ing to make s ome

a little larger .
He followed her at a distance as s h e went having ,
left his drum at the lodge w ith a great bird tied at ,
the t o p whose uttering Should keep up the d rum

,
beat the same as if he were tarrying at home He

,
.
s aw the o l d workman busy and learned h ow h e ,

prepared the heads ; he also beheld the o ld man s
daughter w h o was very beautiful ; and Manabozho
,
n ow discovered f o r the rst time that he had a heart
of his own and the sigh he he a ved passed through

,

the arrow maker s lodge like a gale Of wind
-
.
How it blows ! said the old man .
It must be from the sout said the daugh ter ;

for it is very fragrant .
Manabozh o slipped away and in t w o strides he ,
was at home shouting forth h i s songs as though h e

,
h ad never left the lodge He had j ust time to free .
the bird which had been beating the drum when his ,
grandmother came in and delivered to him the big

arrow heads
-
.
In the evening the grandmother said My s on , ,
you ought to fast befo re you go to war a s your ,
brothers do , to nd out whether you will be succ ess

ful or not .
He said he had no objection ; and having privately

stored away in a shady place in the forest t w o o r
, ,
three dozen j uicy bears a moose and twenty strings , ,
of the tenderest birds he would retire from the ,
lodge so far as to be entirely out of view of his

grandm ot her fall to and enjoy himself heartily and
, ,
82
Animals In P rimitiv e Myths
at nightfall hav ing j ust despatched a dozen birds
,
and half a bear or s o he would return, tottering

,
and woe begone as if quite famished so as to move

-
, ,
deeply the sympathies o f his wise o l d gr a ndd a me .
The place o f his fast had been chosen by Noko ,
and s h e had told him it must be s o far as to be

beyond the sound of her voice o r it would be un
lucky .
After a time Manabozho who was alway s spying

,
o ut mischief said to himself

,
I must nd out why
,
my grandmother is SO anx ious t o have me fast at this

spo t .
The next day he went but a short distance S he .
c ried out A little further o ff ; but he came nearer

,
to the lodge the rogue that he w a s and cried out in a

, ,
l o w counterfeited v oice to make it appear that he w a s

, ,
going away instead o f approaching He had now got .
s o near that he could s e e all that passed in the lodge .
He had not been long in ambush when an old

magician crept into the lodge This old magician .
h ad very long hair which hung across h i s shoulders

,
and down his back like a bush or foot mat They

,
-
.
commenced talking about him and in doing s o they , ,
put their t w o old heads s o v ery cl o se together that

Manabozho was satised they were kissing each
other He was indi gnant that any one Should take
.
such a liberty w ith his venerable grandmother and ,
to mark his sense of the outrage he touched the ,
bushy hair of the o l d magician with a liv e coal

which he had blown upon The old magician h ad
.
no t time to kiss the old grandmother more th a n on c e
83
again before he felt the ame ; and j umping out into
the air it burned only the er ce r and he ran, blaz
, ,
ing like a r e ball across the prairie

-
, .
Manabozho who had meanwhile stolen o ff t o h i s , ,
fasting place cried out in a heart broken tone and

, ,
-
,
as if on the very point of starvation, Noko ! Noko !

i s it time for me to come home ?

Ye s She cried And when he came in s h e a sked
, .

h im Did you S ee anything ?
,

Nothing he answered w ith an air o f childish
, ,
cand o r ; looking as much like a big Simpleton as he

could The grandmother looked at h im v ery closely
.
and said no more .
Manabo zho nished his term O f fasting ; in the

course Of which he slyly despatched twenty fat bears ,
Six dozen birds and t w o ne moose ; sung his war

,
song, and embarked in his canoe fully prepared for ,
war Beside weapons of battle he had sto w ed in a

.
,
large supply of oil .
He travelled rapidly night and day for h e h ad ,
only to will or speak and the canoe went At ,

.
length he arrived in sight of the ery serpents He .
paused to v iew them ; he Observed that they were

some distance apart and that the ame s which they ,
constantly belched forth reached across the pass He .
g ave them a good morning and began talking with ,
them in a v ery friendly way ; but they answered ,

We know yo u Manabozho ; you cannot pass
,
.
He was not however t o be put o ff s o easily T um

, ,
.
ing his canoe as if about to go b a ck he s u ddenly ,
c ried o ut with a loud and terri ed voi c e :

84
An imals In Primitive Myt h s

What is that behind yo u ?
The serpents thrown o ff their guard instantly
, ,
turned their heads and he in a moment glided past

,
them .

Well s aid he quietly after he had got by
, , , ,

h o w do you like my m o vement ?
He then took up his bo w and arrows and with de ,
liberate aim shot every o ne of them easily f o r the , ,
serpents were xed to o ne spot and could not even ,
turn round They were of an enormous length and

.
,
of a bright color .
Having thus escaped the sentinel serpents Mana ,
bo z h o pushed on in his canoe until he came to a part

of the lake called Pitch water as whatever touched -
,
it w a s sure to stick fast But Manabozho was pre .
pared with his o il and rubbing his canoe freely from

,
end to end he slipped through with ease and he was

, ,
the rst person who had ever succeeded in passing

through the Pitch water -
.
There is nothing like a little oil to help one

t h rough pitch wate r said Manabozho to himself
-
,
.
N o w in view of land he could s e e the lodge of t h e

,
S hining Manito high upon a distant hill

,
.
Putting his clubs and arrows in order j ust at the ,
dawn Of day Manabozho began his attack yelling ,
and shouting and beating h i s drum and calling out

, ,
in triple voices :
S urround him ! surround him ! run u p ! run

u p ! making it appear that he had many followers .

It was you that killed my grandfather and ,
shot o a whole forest of arrows .
85
The Pearl F eather appeared on the height blazing ,
like the s un and paid ba ck the discharges of Mana

,
b o z h o with a tempest of bolts which rattled like the ,
hail.
All d a y long the ght was kept u p and Mana ,
b o z h o had red all of his arrows but three without ,
e ff ect ; for the S hining Manito was clo t hed in pure

wampum It was only by immense leaps to right
.
and left that Manab ozho could save his head from
the sturdy blows which fell about him on every side,
like pine trees from the hands of the Manito He
-
,
.

was badly bruised and at his very wit s end when a
, ,
large woodpecker ew past and lit on a tree It .
w a s a bird he had kno wn o n the prairie, ne a r h is

grandmother s lodge .

Manabozho called out the woodpecker
,
your ,
enemy has a weak point ; shoot at the lock of hair on

the cro wn O f his head .
He Shot his rst arrow and only drew blood in a

few drops The Manito made o ne o r t w o unsteady
.
steps but recovered himself He began to parley

,
.
,
but Manabozho no w that he had discovered a way t o

,
reach him was in no humor to trie and he let

, ,
slip another arrow which brought the S hining Man

,
ito to his knees And no w having the c rown o f his

.
,
head within good range Manabozho sent in h is third

,
arrow which laid the Manito out u po n the ground,

,
stark dead .
Manabozho lifted up a huge w ar cry beat h i s -

,
drum took the scalp of the Man

,
ito as h i s trophy,
a nd c a lling t h e w oodpecker to c ome and re c eive a r e
86
ways lean in esh looked on till the supply w a s
,
nearly gone There was not a drop left by the tim e

.
the hare and the martin appeared o n the shore of the

lake and they are in c onsequence the slenderest of
, , ,
all creatures .
When this ceremony was over Manabozho s ug ,
gested to h i s friends the assembled birds and ani ,
mals that the occasion was proper for a little merry

,
making ; and taking up h i s drum he cried out : ,
N ew songs from the S outh ; c ome, brothers ,

dance !
He directed them to m ake the Sport more mirth,
ful that they should Shut their eyes and pass round
,
him in a cir cle Again h e beat h i s drum and cried

.
o ut :
New songs from t h e S o ut h ; c om e, brothers ,

dance !
They all fell in and c ommenced their rounds .
Whenever Manabozho as h e stood in the circle s a w , ,
a fat fowl which he fancied pass by him he adroitly , ,
wrung its neck and slipped it in his girdle at t h e ,
same time beating his drum and singing at the top

of his lungs to drown the noise of the uttering, and
,
crying out in a tone of admiration :

That s the way my brothers ; that s the way !

,
At last a small duck of the diver family thinking , ,
there was something wr ong opened one eye and s a w ,
what Man abozho wa s doing Giving a spring, and .
crying :
Ha h a a ! Manab ozh o i s killing u s ! h e ma de
- -
for th e wa ter .
88
Animals In Primitive Myths
Manab ozh o qu ite vexed that the creature should
,

h ave played the spy upon h is house keep ing fol ,
lowed him and just as the diver duck w a s plunging

,
into the water gave him a kick which is the reason

, ,

t hat the diver s tail feathers a r e f e w his back a t
-
tened and his legs straightened out s o that when he

, ,
comes on land he makes a po or gure in walking .
Meantime the other birds having no ambition t o

, ,
be thrust into Manabozho s girdle ew o ff , and the

,
a nimals scampered into the woods .
Manabozho stretching himself at ease in the shade

along the side o f the prairie thought what he should ,
do next He concluded that he would travel and see

.
ne w countries ; and having once made u p his mind in ,
less than three days such was his length of limb and
,
the immensity Of his stride he had walked over the ,
entire continent looked into every lodge by the way

, ,
and with such nicety of observation that he was able ,
to inform his good old grandmother what each family

had for a dinner at a given hour .
By way of relief to these grand doings Manabozho ,
w as disposed t o v ary his experiences by bestowing a

little time upon the sports of the woods He had .
heard reported great feats in hunting and he had a ,
desire to try his power in that way Besides that it .

,
w a s a slight consideration that he had devoured all
the game within reach o f the lodge ; and SO one ,
evening as he was walking along the shore of the

,
great lake weary and hungry he encountered a great

, ,
magician in the form o f an Ol d wolf, with s ix young

ones, c o m ing toward him .
89
A Guide to Myt h ology
The wo lf no sooner caught sight of him t h an h e
told his whelps who wer e close about his Side to keep
, ,

out of the way of Manabozho ; F or I kno he
said that it i s that mischievous fellow whom w e e e
,
c

yonder .
The young wolves w ere in the act of runnin g r
when Manabo zho cried out My grandchildren

, ,
where are you going ? S top an d I will go wit h

1 I .
wish to have a little chat w ith your excellent a 1
S aying which he a dvanced and greeted the o ld

wolf expressing himself as delighted at seeing him
,
looking so well Whither do you j ourney

.
i s
asked .
We are looking for a good hunting ground t o

pass the winter the old wolf answered
,
What .

brings you here ?

I was looking for yo u said Manabozho,
F or .
I have a passion for the chase brother I alw a ys a d

,
-
.
s
mired your family ; are you willing to change me

into a wolf ?
The wolf gave him a favorable answer, and he was
forthwith changed into a wolf .

Well that will do
,
said Manabozho ; then
,
looking at his tail he a d d ed O h ! could you oblige

, ,
me by making my tail a little longer and more

?
bushy

Certainly said the wolf ; and he gave Mana
,
bo z h o such a length and Spread of tail that it was ,
constantly getting between his legs and it was s o ,
heavy that it was as much as he could do to nd

s trengt h to carry it But having asked for it he was
.
,
90
An imals In Pri mitiv e Myths
a sh amed to s a y a word ; and they all starte d o ff in
comp any dashing up a ravine ,
.
getting into the woods for some distance ,
in with the tracks o f moose The young .
is scampered off in pursuit

t the o l d wolf and ,
following at their leisure

Well said the old wolf by way o f opening dis
.

, ,
c o ur v
fg ff
g
w h o do you think is the fastest of the boys ?
.
:34 tell by the j umps they take ?
Why he replie d

the o ne that takes such
, ,

long jumps he is the fastest to be sure ,
.

C
d ha ! you are mistaken said the old wolf ,
.
He makes a good start but he will be the rst t o ,
tire o ut ; this one who appears to be behind will be , ,

the one to kill the game .
By this time they had come to the spot where the

b y
i
o s n a d started in chase
i One had dropped what .
seeme d to be a small medicine sack which he carried

-
for the u s e of the hunting party .

Take that Manabozho said the old wolf , ,
.

E sa he replied ,what will I do with a dirty,
dog skin ? -
The old wolf took it up ; it was a beautiful robe .

Oh I will carry it now cried Manabozho
, ,
.

Oh no said the Old wolf who had exerted his
, , ,

magical powers it is a rob e o f pearls,
Come .

along ! And away sped the o l d wolf at a great
rate of speed .

N o t s o fast called Manabozho after him ; and
,
then he added t o himself as he panted after Oh , ,

this tail !
91
Coming to a place where th e moose had lain down ,
they s a w that the yo ung wolves ha d ma de a fres h

start after their prey .

Why said the old wolf this moose is poor I
, ,
.
know by the tracks ; for I can always tell w hether

they are fat or not .
A little further on o ne o f the young wolves in

, ,
d ashing at the moose had broken a tooth on a tree

,
.

Manabozho said the o l d wolf
,
o n e of your
,
g randchildren has Shot at the game Take his ar .

r o w ; there i t is .

No replied Manabozho ; what will I do with
,

a dirty dog s tooth ?

The old wolf took it u p and behold it was a beau ,
tiful silver arrow .
When they at last overtook them they found that ,
the youngsters had killed a very fat moose Mana .
b o z h o was very hungr y ; but the old wolf just then

again exerted his magical powers and Manabozho ,
s a w nothing but the bones picked quite clean He .

thought to himself Just as I expected ; dirty
, ,
greedy fellows If it had not been for this log at my

.
back I Should have been in time to have got a mouth

,
f ul : and he cursed the bushy tail which he carried ,
to the bottom of his heart He however, s a t do w n .

,
without saying a word .
At length the old wolf spoke to one o f the young

ones saying :
,

Give some meat to your grandfather .
One o f them obeyed and coming near t o Mana ,
boz h o , he presented him the other end of his ow n

92
bushy tail which was nicely seasoned with b u rs,
,
gathered in the course o f the hunt .
Manabozho jumpe d u p and called out :

You dog now that your stomach is full do you
, ,
think I am going to eat you to get at my dinn er ?

Get you gone into some other place .
S aying which Manabozho in his anger walked Off , ,
by himself .

Come back brother cried the wolf
,
You a re
,
.

losing your eyes .
Manabo zho turned back .

You do the child inj ustice Look there ! and .
behold a heap of fresh ru d dy meat w a s lying on t h e

, , ,
spot already prepared

,
.
Manabozho at the view of s o much good provision ,

,
put on a smiling face .

In amazement he said ; h ow ne the meat is !
,

Ye s replied the o l d wolf
,
it is always SO with ,
u s ; we know our work and always get the best ,

It .

is not a long tail that makes the hunter .
Manabozho bit his lip .
They now xed their winter quarters The young .
s t e r s went o u t in search of game and they soon ,
brought in a large supply One day during the a b .

,
sence of the young hunters the o l d wolf amused him ,
self in cracki ng the large bones of a moose .

Manabozho said he cover your head with t h e
, ,
robe and do not look at me while I am busy wit h

,

these bones for a piece may y in your eye
, .
He did as he was bid ; but looking through a rent

that w a s in the robe he s a w what th e other w a s
,
93
A G ui de to Mythology
abo ut Just at that moment a piece ew OE and h it
.
him o n the eye He cried out : .

T ya u why do you strike me yo u o l d dog ?
, ,
The wolf ans wered, You must have been look

ing at me .

No no reto rt ed Manabozho, why s ho uld I
, ,

w ant to look at you ?

Manabozho, said the old wolf you must have ,

been looking or you would not have got hurt .

No no he replied again
, ,
I was not I will ,
.

repay the saucy wolf this mischief he thought t o ,
himself .
S o the next day taking up a bone to obtain the

,
m arrow he said to the wolf :

,
Brother cover your head and do not look at

,
m e for I v ery much fear a piece may y in your

,
eye .
The wolf did s o ; and Manabozho taking the large ,

leg bone of the moose rst looking to s e e if the wolf
,
was well covered hit him a blow with all his might
,
.
The wolf j umped u p cried out and fell prostrate , ,
from the e ffects of the blow .

Why said he when he came to a little and
, ,
was able to s i t u p why do you strike me s o

,
S trike you ? said Manabozho with well feigned ,

-

surprise ; no ; you must have be en looking at me .

No answered the wolf I s a y I have not
, ,
.
But Manabozho insist ed and as the old wolf w a s ,
no gr eat master of tricky argument, he was obliged

to give it u p .
S hortly after this the Ol d wolf suggested to Mana
94
wh en his fore paw was caught between the branch e s
SO that he coul d not free himself .
While thus held fast he s a w a pack of wolves a d

,
va nc i ng through the wood in the direction of his
m eat He suspected them to be the old wolf and

.
his cubs but night was coming on and he co uld not

,
make them o ut .

Go the other way go the other way ! he c ried
,

out ; what would you come to get here ?
The wolves stopped for a while and talked among
themselves and sai d ,
Manabozho must h ave something there o r h e ,
would nOt tell u s to go another way

.

I begin to know him said an old wolf and all , ,

his tricks Let u s go forward and s ee
. .
They came on and nding the moose they soon

, ,
made away with it Manabozho looked wistfully on

.
to s ee them eat till they were fully satised, when

they scampered off in high Spirits .
A heavy blast of wind opened the branches and r e

leased Manabozho who found that the wolves had
,
left nothing but the bare bones He made for home .

,
where when he related his mishap the old wolf tak

, , ,
ing him by the fore paw condoled with him deeply ,
o n his ill lu ck -
A te a r even st a rted t o hi s eye a s he
.
a dded :
My brother thi s should teach us not t o meddle
,
w ith points of cerem ony when w e have good me at t o

eat.
The w inter h av ing by this time drawn fairly t o a

c l o se, on a bright m orning in t h e early spring t h e
96
Animals In P rimi tive Myths
o ld wolf addressed Manab ozho : My brother I am ,
obliged to leave you ; and although I have sometimes

been merry at your expens e I will S how that I care
,
for your comfort I shall leave one o f the boys be

.
h ind me to be your hunte r and to keep you company

,

t h rough the long s ummer afternoons .
The old wolf galloped o ff with his ve young ones ;

and as they disappeared from v iew Manabozho was ,
di senchanted in a moment and returned t o his mor

,
tal Shape.
Although he had been sometimes vexed and i m

posed upon he had altogether passed a pleas a nt
, , ,
winter with the cunning old wolf and n ow that he ,
was gone Manabozho was downcast and l o w in spirit

,
.
But as the days grew brighter he recovered by de

gr ees his air of cheerful condence and was re a dy ,
to try h is hand upon any ne w adventure that might

occur to him The Ol d Spirit o f mischief was still
.
alive within him .
The young wolf who had been left with him was a
good hunter and never failed to keep the lodge well
,
supplied with meat One day Manabozho addressed

.
him as follows :
My grandson I h ad a dream last night and it
, ,
does not portend good It i s of the large lake which

.
lies in that direction Y o u must b e careful always

.
t o g o a cross it whether the ice seem strong or not

,
.
Never go around it, for there are enemies on the

further Shore w h o lie in wait for you The ice is .

alway s safe .
Now M an aboz h o knew well t hat th e ice w a s t h in

97
A Gui de to Mythology
n ing ev ery day under the warm s un but h e could not ,
stay himself from playing a trick u pon the young

wolf .
In the evening when he c ame to the lake after a ,

long day s travel in quest of game the young wolf, ,
c on d i ng in his grandfather said Hw o o h ! the ice

, ,
does look thin but Nesb o says it is sound ; and h e

,
trotted upon the glassy plain .
He had not got half w a y across when the i ce

snapped and with a mournful cry the young wolf
,
fell in and he was i mm ediately seized by the wate r

serpents who knew that it w a s Manabozho s grand
s on and were thirsting for revenge upon him for
,
the death of their relations in the war upon Pearl

F eather .
Manabozho heard t h e young wolf s cry a s he s a t in
his lodge ; he knew what had happened ; and from ,
that moment he was deprived o f the greater part o f

,
h i s m a gical power .
He returned , scarcely more than an ordinary mor

tal to his former pla c e of dwelling whence h i s
, ,
gr andmother had departed no one knew whither He .
m arried the arrow m aker s daughter, and became the

-

father of several children and very p oor He w a s

,
.
s ca rcely able to procure the m eans of living His .
lodge was pitched in a remote part of the country,

where he could get no game It w a s winter and h e .
,
h ad not the common comforts of life He said to h i s .
wife one day I will go o u t walking and s ee if I

,

cannot nd some lodges .
After walking some time h e s a w a lodge a t a d is

98
'
purpose dropped one o f h i s mittens which was soon

, ,
after observed on the ground .

R un, said the wood p ecker to his eldest s on ,
and give it to him ; but mind that you do no t give

it into his hand ; throw it at him for there is no ,

knowing him he acts s o curiously
,
.
The boy did as he w a s directed .

Grandfather said he to Manabozho as he came
, ,
up to him you have left one of your mi ttens ; here

,

it i s
.

Yes he said aff e cting to be ignorant of the cir
, ,
c ums t a n c e

,
it is s o ; but don t thro w it , you will

s oil it on the snow .
The lad however threw it and w a s about to r e

, , ,
turn when Manabozho cried out Bakah ! Bakah !

, ,

stop stop ; is that all yo u eat ? Do you eat nothing

el se with your raccoon ? Tell me !

Yes that is all answered the young wood
, ,

pe cker ; we hav e nothing else .

Tell your father continued Manabozho ,
to ,
come and visit me and let him bring a sack I

,
.
will give h im what he Shall eat with h i s raccoon

meat
When the young one returned and reported this
message to h i s father the old woodpecker turned u p
,

his nose at the invitation I wonder he said .
, ,

what he thinks he has got poor fellow ! ,
He was bound however to answer the p r o er o f

, ,
ho s pitality and he went ac cordingly taking along a

, ,
c edar sack to pay a visit to M a nabozho

-
,
.
Manabozho re c eived the old red headed wood -
1 00
Animals In Primitiv e Myths
pecker with great ceremony He had stood at the .
door awaiting his arrival and as soon a s he came in

,
Sight Manabozho commence d while he was yet far ,
o ff
,
bowing and O pening wide his arms in token of ,
welcome ; all o f which the woodpecker returned in

due form by ducking his bill and h Opp i ng to right
, ,
and left upon the gr oun d extending his wings to

, ,
their full length and uttering them back to his

breast .
When the woodpecker at last rea c hed the lodge ,
Manabozho made various remarks upon the weather ,
the appearance of the country and e specially on the ,
scarcity o f game .

But we b e added
,
we always have enough
,
.
Come in and you shall not go away hungry my

, ,
noble b ir d !
Manabozho had always prided himself on being
able to give as good as he had received ; and to be up
with the woodpecker he had shifted hi s lodge s o a s
,
to enclose a large dry tamarack tree -

.

What can I give yo u said he to the wood ,

pecker ; bu t as we eat s o shall you eat .
With this he hopped forward and j umping on , ,

the tamarack tree he attempted to climb it just as
,
he had seen the woodpecke r do in his o w n lodge He .
turned his head rst o n o ne side then o n the other , ,
in the manner o f the bird meanwhile striving to go

,
up and as O ften slipping down

,
E ver and anon he .
would strike the tree with his nose as if it had been ,
a bill and draw back but h e pulled out no raccoons ;

, ,
and he dashed his nose SO O ften against the trunk

1 01
A G uide to My t hology
that at last the blood began to ow , and h e tumbled
down senseless upon the gro und .
The woodpecker started u p with his drum and

rattle to restore him and by beating them violently
,
he succeeded in bringing him to .
A S soon as he came to his senses Manabozho be ,
gan to lay the blame of h i s failure upon his wife,

s a y ing t o his guest :
h
,

Neme s o it is this woman relation o f yours s h e -
is the cause of my not succee d ing S he has made .
me a worthless fellow Before I took her I als o

.

could get raccoons .
The woodpecker said nothing but ying on the ,
tree he drew o ut several ne raccoons .

Here said he this is the way we do ! and
, ,
left him in disdain carrying his bill high in the air

, ,
a nd S tepping over the door Sill as if it were not wor

-
thy to be touched by his toes .
After this visit Manab ozho was Sitting in the

,
lodge one day with his head down He heard the .
wind whistling round it and thought that b y atten

,
t ively listening he could hear the voice o f some one

Speaking to him It seemed to s a y to him :
.
Great chief why are you sorrowful ? Am not I

,

your friend your guardian Spirit ?
Manabozho imme d iately took up his rattle and ,
without ri sing from the gro un d where he w a s s it

ting began to sing the chant which h a s at every close
,

the refrain of Wha lay le aw
,
.
When he had dwelt for a long time on this pe ou

liar chant, which he had been used to sing in all his
1 02
As they c ame to the lodge door one o f the hunters -
a sked if Manab ozho lived thereabout .

He i s here answered Manabozho
,
.

I have often heard o f you said the rst hunter , ,
and I was curious to s e e you But you have lost .
your magical power Do you know whether any o f

.
it is left ?
Manabozho answered that he w a s himself in the
dark on the subject .

S uppose yo u make a trial said the hunter ,
.

What shall I do ? asked Manab ozho .

There is my friend said the hunter pointing to
, ,
his companion who with me owns this b ear whic h

,
we are carrying home S uppose you s e e if you c a n

.

change him into a piece of rock .

Very well said Manab ozho ; and he had scarcely
,
Spoken before the other hunter became a rock .

No w change him back again, said the rs t
hunter .

That I can t do Manabozho answered ; there
,
my power ends
.
The hunter looked at the rock with a bewildered

face.

What shall I do ? he asked This bear I can
never carry alone and it was agreed between my
,
friend there and myself that we Should not divide it

till we reached home Can t you change my friend
.
b ack Manabozho
,

I would like to oblige yo u answered M an a ,

bo z h o bu t it is utterly o ut of my power
, .
With this looking again at t h e rock with a s a d

,
1 04
Animals In Primi tive Myths
and bewildered face and then casting a sorrowful
,
glanc e at the bear which lay by the door of the lo d ge

, ,
the hunter took his leave bewailing bitterly at heart ,
the loss o f his friend and his b ear .
He was scarcely out of sight when Manab ozho sent

the children to get red willow sticks Of these he .
cut off as many pieces of equal length as would

serve to invite his friends among the beasts and birds
to a feast A red stick was sent to each one not for
.
,
getting the woodpecker and his family .
When they arrived they were astonished to s e e

such an ab undance of meat prepared for them at
such a time of scarcity Manabozho understood their .
glance and was proud of a chance to make such a

,
display .

Ake w a z i he said to the oldest of th e p a rty
, ,
the weather is very cold and the snow lasts a long ,
time ; we can kill nothing no w but small squirrels ,
a nd they are all black ; and I have sent for you to

hel p me eat some of them .
The woodpecker w a s the rst t o try a mouthful

o f the bear s meat b u t he had no sooner begun to

,
taste it than it changed into a dry powder and s e t ,
him c oughing It appeared as bitter as a shes

. .
The moose was a ff ected in the same w ay and it ,
brought on s u ch a dry c o ugh a s to shake every bone

in his body .
One by one each in turn j oined the company of

,
c oughers except Manabozho and his family t o whom

, ,
t h e be a r S m eat proved v ery savory

.
But t h e v isito rs h ad too high a sens e of wha t w a s

1 05
A G uide to Myth ology
d ue to de c orum and good manners to s a y anything .
The meat looked very ne and being keenly set and,
strongly tempted by its promising look they thought ,
they would try more of it The m ore they ate t h e .

faster they coughed and the louder became the up

,
roar until Manabozho exerting the magical gift

, ,
whi ch he found he retained , changed them all into

squirrels ; and to this day t h e squirrel suff ers from
the same dry cough which was brought on by a t
tempting to s up off of Man a bozho s a shen be a r s
m eat .
And ever after this transformation when Mana ,
bo zh o lacked prov isions for his family h e would ,
hunt the squirrel a supply o f which never failed

,
him so that he was always sure to have a number

,
o f his friends present in this sha e at the banquet

p .
The rock into which he changed the hunter, and

S O became possessed of the bear and thus laid the ,
foundations of his good fortune ever after remained ,

by his lodge door and it was called t h e G ame Ba g -
,
o f Man a bozho, the Mischief M ake r -

.
H OW G L O O SKA PM AD E H I S U NCLE M I KOH I O H T H E

T U RTL E INTO A GRE AT M A N A N D G O T H I M A ,
WIFE OF TU RTLES E GG S AN D H OW G LOOSKA P

.

,
VAN QU I S H E D A S ORC E R E R BY S M OKIN G TOBA C C O .
(M i cma c a nd Pa s s a ma quodd y)
Now when Glo o sk a p left U kt uk a mkw , or New

f o und l a nd ,
it w a s in a canoe and he came to P ikt o ok ,
o f air,
( M for
. Pictou ), which means the bub b lin g up
1 06
A Guid e to Mythology
ga rments t f o r a feast ; better were it for me t o

smoke my pipe at h ome Truly if that be all .
, ,

uncle replied Glo o s k a p
,
I trow I can turn tailor
,
and t you to a turn ; and have no care a s to your

outside or your face f o r to h im who knows h ow
, ,

t is as e a sy to make a man over as a suit of clothes .
Yes ; but nephew said M ikch i ch , h ow s a y yo u

, ,
as to making over the inside o f a mortal ? By the

great Beaver ! answered the Master that i s some ,
thing harder to do else I w ere not s o long at work

,
in this world But before I leave this town I Shall

.
do that also for you ; and as for this present sport,

do but put on my belt And when he had done
.
that, Mi kch i ch became so young and handsome that

no man o r woman ever s a w the like And then .
Gloo s k a p dressed him in his o wn best clothes and ,
promised him that to the end of his days whenever ,
h e should be a man he would be the comeliest o f men ;

,
and because he was patient and tough he should a s , ,
an animal become the hardest to kill o f all creature s

,
o n the face of the earth as it came to pass , .
S o M ikch i ch went to the feast Now the chief o f .
P i kt o ok had three beautiful daughters and the young ,
e s t was the loveliest in the land And on her he cast .
his eyes and returning said , I have seen one who m

,

I want . N o w all the young men in P ikt o ok desired
this girl and would kill any one who would win her
,
.
S o the next day Glo o s ka p taking a bunch o f w a w ,

'
ba p ( P wampum ) went to the chief and p ro p osed

.
, ,
for Mikchi ch and the mother at once said Ye s

,

.
So t h e girl ma de up a bed of fre s h t w igs and covered

1 08
An ima ls In Pri mitive Myths
it w ith a great white bear Skin and went to Mik -
chich and they returned and had dried meat for

,
s u pper S o they were married

. .
N ow Turtle seemed to be very lazy and when ,
oth ers hunted he lounged at home One day h i s .
young wife said to him that if this went on thus they

must soon starve S o he p u t on his snow Shoes and
.
-
went forth , and She followed him t o s ee what he

would do And he had not gone far ere he tripped
.
and fell down, and the girl returning told h er , ,
mother that he was worthless But the mother said , .

He will do something yet Be patient . .
One day it c ame t o pass that Gloo sk a p said to Mik

ch ich ,
To m orr ow there will be a great game at
~
ball and you m ust play But because you have made
,
.
yourself enemies o f all the young men here they ,
will seek t o slay yo u, by crowding altogether and

tram p ling upon you And when they do this it will
.

be by your father in law s lodge and t o escape them
- -
,
I give you the po wer t o j ump high over it This .
you may do tw ice but the third time will be terribl e

,

for you and yet it must be
,
.
All this happened as he foretold ; for the young

m en indeed tried to take h i s life and to escape them ,
Mikc h i ch jumped over the lodge s o that he seemed ,
like a bird ying But the third time he did this he

.
was caught on the top of the tent poles and hung -

,
there dangling in the smoke which rose from below .
Then Gloo s ka p who was seated in the tent said

, , ,
Uncle I will no w make yo u the s ogmo or gre a t

, ,
c hief o f t h e T o rtoises and yo u Shall be a r u p a gre a t

,
1 09
nation T h en he smoked Mikc h ich s o long that h is
.

skin bec ame a hard shell and the m arks of the smoke
,
m ay be seen thereon to th is day And remov ing his .
entrails he destroyed them s o that but one Short one ,
was left And he cried aloud Mi lo oks !

. My ,

nephew you will kill me !
,
But the nephew re
plied ,
Not s o I am giving you great life F rom
. .
this time you may roll through a ame and never

feel it and live on land or in the water And though
,
.
your head be cut off, it will live for nine days,

and your heart even, shall bea t as long when taken
,
from your body

S o M ikch ich rej oiced gr eatly
. .
And this came betimes for he soon had need of it ,
all F or the next day all the men went on a hunt ,

.
and the Master w arned him that they would seek t o

slay him Now the young m en went on before and
.
,
Turtle lingered behind ; but all a t once he m ade a

m agic ight far over their heads unseen and deep , ,
in the forest he slew a moo se Then he drew this t o .
the snow shoe track or road and when h i s foes cam e

-
,
u p there h e s a t upon the m oose , smoking and w a it ,

~
ing for them No w Gloo sk a p h ad told them that

.
they would s ee some one come out ahead of them

all that day and when this came to pass they w ere
,
m ore angered in their hearts than ever .
S o they plotted to kill Turtle and his nephew w h o , ,
w a s about to leave told him h o w it would be

,
F irst .
o f all they will build a mighty re and throw yo u

,
in it But do thou O uncle, go cheerfully for by

.
, ,
my power thou wilt in no w ise suffer Then they wil l .
s peak o f dro wning, but thou mu st beg a nd pray that
110
A G ui de to Myt hology
plump into the water where he is living to this day
,
.
In memory whereof all turtles when they s e e any ,
one coming tip tilt themselves over into the water at

,
once .
In the following Hindo o story of P unch k in

y o u will s e e the expression of the primitive notion
that the life of a person may be bound u p in some
ex t ernal object Invention runs rio t in the attempts
.
to make this obj ect as inacce ssible as possible .
There is the Norse story of the Giant who had

no Heart in his Body who nally tells the lovely
,

princess he keeps in bondage that F ar far away ,
in a lake lies an island ; on that island stands a

church ; in that church is a well ; in that well swims
a duck ; in that duck there is an egg ; and in that

egg there lies my heart you darling The hero
,
.
,

of course goes and nds the giant s heart, and s o
,
kills him a nd rescues the princ ess There i s also

,
.
the story of the little Hindoo princess called So d a w a ,
Bai whose soul was in the beautiful golden necklace

,
s h e was born with around her neck and who died ,
when another princess who hated her nally took

it o ff .
P U N C H KI N
(A Hi nd oo S tory)
Once upon a time there was a Raj ah who had

seven beautiful daughters They were all good girls ;
.
but the youngest named Balna was more clever

, ,
than th e rest The Raj ah s wife died when they

.

112
Anima ls In Primitive Myt h s
were quite little children s o these seven po o r prin
,
cesses were left with no mother to take ca re of th e m .

The Raj ah s daughters took it by turns to c ook

their father s dinner every day whilst he was absent
,
deliberating with his ministers on the a ff airs of t h e

nation.
About this time the Purdan died leaving a widow ,
and one daughter ; and every day when the seven ,

princesses were prepa ring their father s dinner t h e ,
P ur d a n s wido w and daughter would come and be g

for a little re from the h earth Then Balna used .
to sa y to her sisters S end that woman away ; send

,
her away Le t her get t h e re at her o w n house

. .
What does s h e want with ours ? If we allo w her

to come here we Shall suff er for it some day But .
the other Sisters would answer Be quiet Balna ;

, ,
wh y mus t you always be quarrelling with this poor

w oman ? Le t her take some re if s h e likes Then .
the P ur d an s wido w used to g o to the hearth and

t a ke a f ew sticks from it ; and whilst no one was

,
looking She would quickly thro w some mud into

,
the midst o f the dishes which were being prepared

for the Rajah s dinner .
N o w the Raj ah was very fond of his daughters .
E ver since their mother s d eath they had cooked his

dinn er with their o w n han d s in order to avoid th e

,
danger of his being poisoned by his enemies S o .

,
when he found the mud mixed u p with his dinner ,
he thought it must arise from their carelessness as it ,
appeared improbable that a ny o ne Should have p ut

mud there on purpose ; but being very kind he did ,
113
A G ui de to Myt h ology
no t like to reprove them for it although this spoil i g ,
n
of the curry was repeated many successive day s .
At last, one day he determined to hide and w

,
his daughters c ooking and s e e how it all happe r ! y .
s o he went into the next room and watched 31 33

, 3
through a hole in the wall o im

.
: w
There he s a w his seven daughters carefully ! A

ing the rice and preparing the curry and a t b ,
dish was completed they put it by the re r e a trii q w
be cooked Next he noticed the P u a s mg

. r d n 1
,
come to the door and beg for a f e w sticks

, ,
y
re to cook her dinner with Balna turne t my .
angrily and said

,
Why don t you keep
, q

your own house and not come here every HE W

take ours ? S isters don t give this woman a n 0 3 0 3
,

,

let her buy it for herself . 9 d: w
Then the eldest sister answered Baln a ,

.
poor woman take the wood and the re ; mo w w

p

u s no harm . But Balna replied If you l ? ,
come here s o often mayb e s h e will do us som a ; g r n,

,
i

and make u s sorry f o r it some day ,
.
The Raj ah then s a w the P ur d a n s widow go to the
place where all h i s di nn er was nicely prepared and , ,
as s h e took the wood s h e threw a little mud into

,
each o f the dishes .
At this he was very angry and sent to have the ,
woman seized and brought be fore him But when the .
widow came She told him that s h e had played this

,
trick because Sh e wanted to gain an audience with

him ; and Sh e s p oke so cleverly and pleased him ,
s o w ell wit h h er cunning words , that instead of pun
114
A G ui de to Mytholo gy
they don t want any dinner and won t eat any and

,

,
yet they never grow thin nor look ill ; they look bet
ter than you do I cannot tell h o w it is ; and s h e
.
bade her watch the seven princesses and s e e if any

o ne gave them anything t o eat .
S o next day when the princesses went to their

,
mother s grave and were eating the beautiful pom

,
e l o e s the P u r d a n s daughter followed them a n d s a w

,
them gathering the fruit .
Then Balna said to her sisters Do yo u se e that ,
girl wa tching u s ? Let u s drive her away o r hide

the p o me lo es else She will go and tell her mother
,

all about it and that will be very bad for u s
,
.
But the other Sisters said Oh no do not be un

, , ,
kind Balna The girl would never be s o cruel a s

,
.
to tell her mother Let us rather invite her to come

.
and have some of the fruit ; and calling her to

them they gave her o ne of the p o me lo e s
,
.
No sooner had she eaten it however than the , ,
P ur d a n s d a ughter went home and said to her

mother ,
I do not wonder the seven princesses w ill
not eat the nasty dinner you prepare for them for ,
by their mother s grave there grows a beautiful p om

elo tree and they go there every day and eat t h e

,
p o m e l o e s I ate one , and it was the nicest I have

.

ever tasted .
The cruel R anee w a s much vexed at hearing

this and all next d a y She stayed in her room and
, ,
told the Raj ah that She had a very bad heada c he .
The Raj ah at hearing this w a s deeply grieved and ,

s a id t o hi s wife Wh a t c an I do for yo u ?
, Sh e
116
answered There is only o ne thing that will make
,
my headache well By your dead wife s tomb there

.

grows a ne p omelo tree ; you must b ring that here ,
and boil it root and branch and put a little o f the

, ,
wate r in which it has been boiled on my forehead ,
and that will cure my headache

S o the Raj ah .
sent his servants and had the beautiful pomelo tree

,
pulled u p by the roots and did as the Ranee desired ;

,
and when some o f the water in which i t had been

boiled w a s p ut on her forehead s h e said her head
ache was gone and s h e felt quite well .
Ne xt day when the seven p rmce s s e s went as

,
usual to the grave of their mother the po melo tree ,
had disappeared Then they all began to cry very

.
bitterly .
No w there w a s by the Ranee s tomb a small tank

,
and as they were crying they s a w that the tank was

lled with a rich cream like substance which quickly
,
-
,
hardened into a thick white cake At seeing this .
all the princesses were very glad and they ate some ,
.
of the cake and liked it ; and next day the same

,
thing hap p ened and s o it went on f o r many days

,
.

E very m orning the princesses went to their mother s
grave and found the little tank lled with nour
,
i s h ing cream like cake

,
Then the cruel step mother
-
.
-

said to her daughter I cannot tell h o w it is ; I
,
hav e had the pomelo tree whi c h used to grow by the

Ranee s gr ave destroyed and yet the princesses grow

,
no thinner nor loo k m ore s a d, though they nev er

,
eat the dinner I giv e them I c annot te ll h o w .

it i s !
117
A Guide to Mythology '

And her daughter said I will wat ch ,
.
Next day while the princesses were eating t h e

'
cream cake w h o should come by but their step

,
mother s daughter Balna s a w her rst and said

.
, ,
S ee Sisters there comes that girl again Let us

, ,
.
s i t r ound the edge of the tank and not allow her ,
to s e e it ; for if we give her some o f our cake she

will go and tell her mother and that will be very ,

u nf ortunate for u s .
The other sisters however thought Baln a unnec , ,
e s s a r i ly suspicious an d instead of following her a d

,
vice they gave the P ur d a n s daughter some of the
cake and s h e went home and told her mother a ll

,
a bout it .
The Ranee o n hearing h o w well the princesses

,
fared was excee d ingly angry and sent her servants

, ,
to pull dow n the dead Ranee s tomb and ll the
little tank with the ruins An d not co ntent with this .

,
h
s e next day pretended to be very very ill i n fact , ,
at the point of death ; and when the Raj ah was

much grie ved and asked her whether it was in h is
,
power to procure her any reme dy she said to him , ,
Only one thing can save my life but I know you ,

will not do it He replied Yes whatever it i s I
.
, , ,

will d o it S he then said
. To save my life you , ,
must kill the seven daught ers of your rst wife and ,
put some o f their blood on my forehead and on the

palms o f my hands and their death will be my life
,
.
At these words the Raj ah was very sorrowful ; but

because he feared t o break his word he went out ,
w ith a heavy heart to nd his daughters .
118
S o the seven princes rode through the wood until
they came to the place where the seven princesse s
Sat crying and wringing their hands At the Sight
.
of them the young princes were very much aston

i s h e d and still more s o on learning their story ;
,
and they settled that each s h ould take one of these

poor forlorn ladies h ome with him and marry
her.
S o the rst and eldest prince took the eldest

princess home with him and married her .
And the second took the second ;

And the third took the third ;
And the fourth took the fourth ;
And the fth took the fth ;
And the sixth took the sixth ;
And the seventh and handsomest o f all, took the
,
be a utiful Balna.
And when they got to their own land there was

great rej oicing throughout the kingdom a t the mar
ria e of the seven young princes t seven such
g o
be autiful princesses .
About a year after this Balna had a little s on,

and his uncles a nd aunts were s o fond of the boy
that it was as if he had seven fathers and s even
mothers None of the other princ es or princesses
.
had any children s o the s o n of the seventh prin ce

,
and Balna was acknowledged their heir by all t h e

r est
.
T h ey h ad thu s lived ve ry happily for some time ,
wh en one ne day the seventh prin ce ( Ba lna s h us

band ) s a id h e w o ul d go o ut hunti ng, a nd a way h e

1 20
Anim a l s In P rimitiv e Myths
w ent ; and they waited long for him but he never ,
came back .
Then his six brothers said they would go and s ee

what had become o f him ; and they went away but ,
they also did not return .
An d the seven princesses grieved very much for ,
they felt sure their kind husbands must have been

killed.
One day not long a f t er t h i s had happened as

,

,

Balna was rocking her baby s cradle and whilst her ,
S isters were working in the room b elow there came ,
to the palace door a man in a long black dress who ,
said that he was a F akir and came to beg The , .
servants said to him You cannot go into the pal

,
a ce
the Raj ah s sons have all gone away ; we think
they must be dead and their widows cannot be in
,

t e rr u p t e d by your begging But he said I am a.
,
holy man ; you must let me in Then the stupid

servants let him walk through the palace but they ,
did not kn ow that this man was no F a kir but a ,
wicked magician named P unch k in .
P unc h k in F akir wandered through the palace ,
and saw many beautiful things t here till at last he ,
reached the room where Balna s a t singing beside

her little boy s cradle The magician thought her

.
more beautiful than all the other beautiful things he

had seen insomuch that he asked her to go home
,
with him and to marry him But s h e said My .

,
husband I fear is dead but my little boy is still

, , ,
quite young ; I will stay here and teach him to grow

up a clever ma n and when he is grow n up he shall
,
1 21
go out into the world and try and learn tidings of
,
his father Heaven forbid that I should ever leave

.

him or marry you At these words the magician
.
!
was v ery angr y and turned her into a little black

,
dog and led her away saying

,
S ince you will not
, ,
come with me of your own free will I will make ,

you . S o the poor princess was dragged away with ,
out any power o f eff ecting an escape or o f letting ,
her Sisters know what had become of her A S Punch .
kin passed through the palace gate the servants said

to him Where did you get that pretty little dog ?
,
And he answered One of the princesses gave it

,
to me as a p resent
At hearing which they let h im
.
go without further quest i on ing .
S oon after this the s ix el d er princesses heard the

little baby their nephew begin to cry and when
, , ,
they went upstairs they were much surp rised to

nd him all alone and B a lna nowhere to be seen
,
.
Then they questioned the servants and when they ,
heard of the F akir and the little black dog they

guessed what had happened and sent in every d irec ,
tion seeking them but neither the F akir nor the

,
dog w a s to be found What could six poor women

.
do ? They had to give u p all hopes of ever seeing

their kind husbands and their sister and her husband
again a nd they devoted themselves thenceforward
,
to teaching and taking care of their little nephew .

Thus time went o n till B a lna s s on was four
,
teen years o l d Then one day his aunts told him

.
the history o f the family ; and no sooner did he hear

i t th a n he w a s seized with a great desire to go i n
1 22
S ome time ago a Raj a h s son came here and shortly

,
afterward came his Si x bro t h e r s and they were all

~
turned into stones and trees ; and these are not

the only unfortunate ones f o r u p in that tower lives
,
a beautiful princess whom the magician has kept

,
prisoner th e re for twelve years b ecause s h e hates ,

him and will not marry him .
Then the little prince thought These must be ,
my parent s and my uncles I have found what I .

seek at last S o he told his story to the Malee s
.

wife and begged her to help him to remain in that

,
place a while and inquire further concerning the

,
unhappy people S he mentioned ; and She promised to

befriend him and advised his disguising himself
, ,
lest the magician Should se e him and turn him ,
likewise into stone To this the prince agreed

. .
S o the Malee s wife dressed him u p in a saree and

,
pretended that he was her daughter .
One day not long after this a s the magician was

, ,
walking in his garden he s a w the little girl ( as he

,
thought ) playing ab out and he asked her wh o s h e

,
was S he told him Sh e was the Malee s daughter

.

,
and the magician said You are a pretty little

,
irl and to
morrow you shall take a present of ow
g ,
e r s from me to the beautiful lady who lives in the

tower .
The young prince was much delighted at hearing

this and after some consultation with the Malee s
,

wife h e settled that it would be more safe for

,
him to retain his disguise and trust to the chan ce ,
of a favorable opportunity for establishing some

1 24
Animal s In Pri mitive Myths
comm unication with his mother if it were indeed ,
she .
No w it happened that at B a ln a marriage h er

s
husband had given her a small gold ring o n which

her name was engraved and she put it on her little
,

son s nger when he w a s a baby and afterward when ,
he w a s older his aunts had had it en la rg e d for him

, _ ,
s o that he w a s still a ble to wear it

The Malee S wife .
advised him to fasten the well known treasure t o -
one o f the bouquets he presented to his mother and ,
trust to her recognizing it This was not to b e done

.
without difficulty as such a strict watc h was kept

,
over the poor princess ( f o r fear of her ever estab

l i s h ing communication with her friends ) that though
the su p posed Malee s daughter was permitted to tak e

her owers every day the magician or one of h i s

,
Slaves w as always in the room at the same time At .
last one day however O pportunity favored him a nd

, ,
when no o ne was looking the boy tied the ring to a

nosegay and threw it at B a lna s feet The ring fell
.
with a clang on the oor and Balna looking to s e e

.
, ,
what made the strange sound found the little ring ,
tied to the owers On recognizing it she at once

.
,
believed the story her s on told her of his long search ,
and be gged him to advise her as to what She had

bette r do ; at the same time entreating him on no
account to endanger his life by trying to rescue her .
S he told him that for twelve long years the magician

had kept her shut u p in the tower be c ause She r e
fused t o marry him and s h e was s o closely gu arded
,
t h at s h e s a w no hope of release .
1 25
Now Ba lna s s on was a bright clever boy ; so he

,
said ,
Do not fear de a r mother ; the rst thing to
,
do i s to discover how far the magician s p ower ex
tends i n order that w e may be able to liberate my

,
father and uncles whom he has imprisoned in the

,
form of rocks and trees You have Spoken to hi m .
angrily for twelve long years ; do you now rather

speak kindly Tell him you have given up all hopes
.
of again seeing the husb and you have so long

mourned and s a y you are willing to marr y him
,
.
Then end eavor to nd out what his power consists

in and whether he is immortal or can be put to
,

death .
Balna determined to take her son s advice ; and
the next day sent for P unch kin and spoke t o hi m a s

had been suggested .
The magician greatly delighted be gged her to a l

, ,
low the wedding to take place as soon as possible .
But she told him that before Sh e married him he

must allow her a little more time in which She
might make his acquaintance and that after being , ,
enemies so long their friendship could but strengthen

,

by degrees .An d do tell me she said are you , ,
quite immortal ? Can death never touch you ? And

are you too great an enchanter ever to feel human

su ff ering ?

Why do you ask ? said he .

Because s h e replied if I am to be your wife
, ,
I would fain know all about you in order if any , ,
calamity threatens yo u to overcome or , if possible , , ,

to avert it .
1 26
to an eagle s nest b uilt in the tree under w h ich h e

lay and in the nest were t w o young eagles The

,
.
prince seeing the danger of the young b irds drew

, ,
his sword and killed the serpent ; at the same mo

ment a rushing sound was heard in the air and the ,
t w o old eagles who had been o u t hunting for food

,
for th eir young ones returned They quickly saw

,
.
the dead serpent and the young prince standing

over it ; and the ol d mother eagle said to him Dear ,
boy for many years all o ur young have been de

,
vo ur e d by that cruel serpe nt : you have no w saved
the lives Of our children ; whenever you are in need ,
therefore send to us and we will help you ; and as

,
for these little eagles , take them and let them be ,

your servants .
At this the prince was very glad and the t w o ,
eaglets crossed their wings o n which he mounted ;

,
and they carried him far far away over the ,
thick jungles until he came to the place where

grew the circle of palm trees in the midst of
which stood the s ix c h a t t ees full of water It .
was the middle of the day All around the trees .
were the genii fast asleep ; nevertheless there were ,
such c ountless thousands o f them that it would have

been quite impossible for any one to walk through
their ranks to the place Down swoope d t he strong
.
w mge d eaglets down jumped the prince ; in an in

stant he had overthrown the s i x c h a t t ee s full of
water and seized the little green parrot which he
, ,
rolled up in his cloak ; while as he mounted again ,
into t h e air, all the genii below aw oke, and, nding

1 28
Animal s In Pri mi tive Myths
their treasure gone s e t up a wild and m elanch oly
,
howl .
Away away e w the little eagles till they c ame

,
t o their home in the great tree ; then the prince said

to the old eagles Take back your little ones ; they
,
have done me good service ; if ev er again I st and

in need o f help I shall not fail t o come to you He .
then continued his journey on foot till he arrived

once more at the magician s palace where he s a t
,
do w n at the door and began playing with the parrot .
The magician s a w him and came to him quickly ,
and said My boy where did you get that parrot ?

, ,

Give it to me I pray you ,
But the prince a n .
swered ,
Oh no I cannot gi ve away my parrot ;
, ,

it is a great pet of mine ; I have had it many years .
Then the magician said If it is an o ld favorite ,

'
I can understand you not c a ring to give it aw ay ;

but come what will yo u sell it for ?
,
S ir re ,

plied the pri nce I will not sell my parrot
,
.
Then the magician got frightened and said ,
Anything anything ; name what price you will and

, ,

it shall be yours Then the prince answered
.
, ,

I will that you liberate the Raj ah s seven Sons

whom you turned into rocks and trees It is don e .

as you desir e said the magician
,
only give me ,
my parrot ( and with t hat by a stroke of his wand , ,
B a lna s husband and his b rothers resumed their

natural shape s ) No w give me my parrot
. re ,

p e a t e d P unc hki n Not s o fast my. m aster re , ,
.
j oined the prince ; I m ust rst beg that you restore

to life a ll who m you h ave thus imprisoned .
1 29
T h e magician immediately w aved his wand again ;
and whilst he cried i n an imploring voice '
Give ,
me my parrot ! the whole garden became suddenly

alive : where rocks and stones and trees had been
before stood Raj ahs and Punts and S irdars and
, ,
mighty men on prancing horses and j ewelled pages ,
and troops of armed attendants .

Give me my parrot ! cried P unch kin Then .
the boy took hold o f the parrot and tore o ff one o f

its wings ; and as he did s o the magician s right arm
fell o ff .
P unch kin then stretched out his left arm crying ,

Give me my p arrot ! The prince pulled o ff the

parrot s second wing, and the magician s left arm
tumbled o ff .

Give me my parrot ! cried he and fell on h is ,

knees The prince pulled off the p arrot s right leg
.
the magician s r ight leg fell o ff ; the prince pulled o ff

the parrot s left leg down fell the magician s left

.
Nothing rema i ned of him save the limbless body

and the head ; but still he rolled his eyes and cried , ,

Give me my parrot ! Take your parrot then , ,
cried the boy , and with that he wrung the bird s
neck and threw it at the magician ; and as he did so ,
P unch ki n s head twisted round , and with a fearful

groan he died !
Then they let Balna out o f the tower ; and She ,
her s o n and the seven princes went to their o w n

,
country, and lived very happily ever afterward And .
a s t o the rest of the w orld every o ne w ent t o h i s

,
o w n h ouse .
1 30
them frui tful in milk and prolic in cal v es to have ,
them well looked a f t e r i s the dream the ideal o f

'
, ,
the ancient Hindoo His worst enemy therefore

.
, ,
is he that robs him o f his cows while his best ,
friend would be he who rescues the cows from the

robber .
The dewy moon the dawn the watery cloud in

, , ,
fact the entire vault o f heaven whi c h gives the

,
benignant and quickening rain a s cows give their

milk are all personied a s the b enec ent C o w of
,
A b undance .
The great and awful ruler of all these cows is the

God Indra who rides in a car to which are har
,
ne s s e d magnicent bay steeds S ometimes he is .
c alled a Bull and sometimes he is said to roar like

a Bull .

From the hymns of the Rig Veda probably ,
three or four thous and years old many of which ,
were written in honor of Indra may be gathered the ,
c haracteristics of Indra and these remarkable cattle .
In her cloudy aspects this co w of the sky was called

,
the spotted one and was said to be the m other of

,
the storm winds or Maruts while Indra who hide s , ,
himself in thunder clouds is the Bull of Bulls in

-
vincible s o n of a cow that bellows like the Maruts .
This terrible creature bellows and shows his strength

a s he sharpens his horns who i s able of himself t o
,
ov erthrow all peoples His horns are the lightning

.
,
and h e i s sometimes said to have a thou s and of them .
With all these animals prancing about in the Sky,

t h ere is a ne opportunity for brilliant ons laughts
1 32
Animals In Culture Myt h s
upon the enemy who steals the c ows Indra with .
his thunder bolts and the Maruts with their winds

-
are the leaders on one Side while in the hostile camp ,
will be found a horrid monster called by diff erent

names such as Valas Vr i t r a s C us h na s meaning
, , , ,
the enemy black o ne thief serpent wolf or wild

, , , , ,
boar This awful being generally seems to throw

.
down the gauntlet by stealing the cows of Indra

and imprisoning them in a dark and dismal cavern
in the clouds Then an exciting battle follows ;
.
Indra bellows the thunder bolt bellows the Maruts

,
-
,
bellow and ascend the rock now by their o w n e f

, ,
forts making the sonorous stone the rock mountain ,
fall ; no w with the iron edge of their rolling char

,
i o t s violently Splitting the mountain ; then the val

i a nt hero Indra beloved by the gods moves the
, , ,
stone ; he hears the cows by aid of the Maruts he ,
nds the cows hidden in the cavern F urnished with .
an arm of stone he O pens the grotto of Valas who ,
keeps the cows ; he vanquishes kills or pursues the ,
thieves in battle We may s ee this battle every time

.
there is a thunder storm the lightning often leaps

-
,
between the clouds and the thunder roars before the

,
rain falls but when there comes the heavy down

,
pour o f rain the ancient Hindoo would compare it

,
to the refreshing milk of the cows which have been

rescued by Indra .
Horses are also important animals in Hindoo

myths The Asvins who gallop a c ross the s ky from
.
,
morning till night a re sometimes called the sons

,
o f t h e S un and the Dawn and sometim es they a re
1 33
called the ste eds of Indra They are described in .
the hymns of the Rig Veda as full o f life hav '
ing eyes like the s un drawing the chari ot with the

,
golden yoke the t w o most rapid ones who carr y

, ,
Indra as eve ry day they carry the s un They are .
a s two rays of the s un which illumine the s k with

y,
manes the color o f a peacock bridled sixty times , ,
bene c ent winged indefatigable resolute destroyers

, , ,
of enemies .
The Hindoo deities all have animal s on which

they ride , called V a h a ns or Vehicles ; thus Indra ,
sometimes rides an elephant S iv a a bull Durga , , , ,
a tiger and s o on These all Share in the honors of

,
.
worship a c corded to their riders These vehicles of .
the gods were probably once impersonations of the

god s themselves or animals into which they changed
,
themselv es as they do in the pri m itiv e myths w it h

which we are already familiar .
The c ow does not seem to have been a Vahan for

any of the gods S he was too much of a goddess
.
in her own right shown by the fact that sh e w a s

,
regularly w orshipped every year with gre a t c ere

mony .
E gypt however was the land where animals re

, ,
c e i ve d the gr eatest reverence We nd there a com .
p l e t e ar c h aeological museum of mythological animals .
Cats and dogs mice and crocodiles birds and insec t s

, ,
all were worshipped S o sacred did t h e Egyp .
tians consider animals in general that it was a capital

c rime if any of them were killed S hould an Ib is .
o r a H aw k be e v en ac cident a lly killed, the unf o r tu
1 34
a mp le space for s a lubr ious exercise Co mpanion s .
were provided f o r him He drank fro m a well or

fountain of clean water .
Dances and festivities and j oyful assemblies were

held in honor of this animal at the rising of the
Nile and the man from whose ock the divine beast
,
spra ng was the happies t of mortals and was looked

upon with admiration b y all the people According .
to some, Apis was dedicated to Isis or the Moon .
Next to A p is the highest honors were pai d to t h e

sacred bull of Heliopolis called Mnevis This b ull ,
.
w a s black and w a s dedicated to Osiris He w as kep t .
in a stable in the Tem p le of the S un and w a s wor

shipped as a god The warring principl e in na
.
ture Typhon w a s identied with various hideous

, ,
anim a ls such as the crocodile and hippo p otamus

, ,
The m ost sacred of b eetles was the Sc a ra b e us the ,
symbol either of the s un or immortality E ven the .
higher gods were frequently represe nted a s animals ,
o r in part animals whil e to those gods imaged

,
in human form like Osiris and Isis an imals wer e

, ,
sacred There was also an important bird which was

.
,
itself mythical called the Ph oenix This wonderful

,
.
b ird w a s said to rise from time to tim e out of its

o w n ashes .
Animals occupy a somewhat di fferent position in

Norse mythology They are also survivals very
.
,
likely from an earlier stage of life when animal s

,
were worshipped but when we meet with them in

,
the Norse myths they have become symbols of the

various ideas o f mankind in regard to the mind and
1 36
A ni mals In Cu lt ure Myths
Spi rit a nd no longer appear simply as p e rs o nic a
,
tions of the events o f natur e like Indra and t h e cow s

in Hindo o myt hology .
The No i se gods appear gallopin g into view on their

w onderful steeds across the rain b ow bridge Bifrost , ,
from Heaven to E art h Their names are very S ig .
n i c a nt : O d in rides S leipner ; H eimdal G o ld t o p

.
,
The other horses a r e Glad (Bright) Gylle r ( Gilder) , ,
G le r (the Sh inmg One ) Skei d b rime r (Fleetfoot ) , ,
Silf ri nt o p ( S ilvertop) S iner ( S ine w s) Gi s l ( the S un

, ,
beam ) Fa lh o f n e r ( P a l e h o o f ) Let f e t ( Lightfoot )

, ,
.
Thor the thunderer unlike Indra who often

, , ,
drove tw o bay steeds had no horse u p on wh ich to

,
ride over the r a inbow bridge He Would destroy it .
with his t h under bolts s o he had t o wade thro ugh

-
,
three r ivers every day in order to reach the c ounc il

of

the gods Odin s h orse S leipner is the most
.
, ,

wonderful a genuine cosmi c animal with eigh t ,
legs that symbo lize the ei ght wind s of heaven .
The maiden S ol drove t w o gentle and beautiful

steeds which were harnessed to the c a r of th e s un .
S he drove in great h aste for She a s we ll as h er ,
brother who watches over the moon are pursued by

, ,
tw o wolves by whi c h is probably meant eclipses of

,
the s un and moon Day and Nigh t also drive round

.
the s ky after each other : Night rst with his steed

Rine fax: E very morning as he ends h is c ourse
-
,

Rine fax bedews the earth with the foam from his
-
bit T hen Day follows with h er steed S hinin g fax

.
,
-
,
from w h ose mane all the s ky and earth gli sten The

o d F rey rides on a boar n a me d G o l d en b ri s t l e, and

g
e
1 37
A Guide to Myt h olo gy
hi s Sister Freyja t h e goddess of love ,
, ,
is drawn by
The Midgard serpent o r the worm wh ich s up ~
Or t e d the earth with i t s tail in its m outh is another

p ,
m ost interesting myt hical animal whose story will ,
be found in this chapter .
F inally there is a N orse co w , still more remark

,
~
able than the Hindoo co w S he was made of frozen .
vapor and four rivers of milk ran from her and

,
fed the giant Y ine r or the earth It is easy to ,

.
recognize these rivers of milk as mountain s tream s

o f melted snow This po or cow had only rime stone s
.
to live on which s h e licked because of the salt

,
.
After s h e had licked them f o r some time t w o m agi ,
c al godlike beings sprang out of the stones and be

,
came the parents of Odin '

The n ame of this .
str ange cow w a s Audhumbla .
In the Norse Heaven Valhalla there a re t w o , ,
more strange animals The food of the Gods of .
Valhalla Mead is supplied by the milk of a s h e

, ,
goat who feeds upon the leaves of an extr a ordinary

tree U pon this same tree fe eds a stag and from
.
,
h i s antlers fall s o many drops of dew that water

i s supplied t o thirty six rivers twelve of which ow -
,
to the abo des of the gods twelve t o t h e a bodes of ,
m en and twelve to Ni eh e im
,
.
F enris the w olf is another im po rtant a nimal w h o

, ,
typies ev il .
Turning no w to Gr eek mythology we nd that ,
a ni m als o n t h e whole pl a y a subor di nate par t

,
Ani
,
.
mals are s ac ric ed to the gods o f Gree c e, but t h ey

1 38
Congl ob ing o n t h e dus t Th e ir ma nes th a t l a te
.
Ci rcl e d t h e i r a r ch e d ne cks a nd w a ve d in s t a te
Tra ile d o n t h e d us t b e ne a th t h e y o ke , w e re Sp re a d ,
And p ro ne t o e a rth w a s h ung t h e i r l a nguid h ea d

.
But even more marvellous was the time when

! anthus broke into speech and warned his master
of his approaching doom It is quite in the manner .
of an animal in a savage myth but in the days of ,
Homer s Iliad

thought had a d vanced s o far
among the Greeks that the speech of this horse was
not regarded as a pe rfectly natural event as it would
be in a savage myth, It was Juno the goddess who , ,
willed that ! anthus should break eternal silence

and portentous speak Achilles addresses his h orses
.
,
and ! anthus answers :

f !
th us a nd Ba lius ! o f Po da rge s stra in;
an

(U nl ess ye b o a st th a t h ea ve nly ra ce in va in)

Be s w ift b e min df ul o f t h e l oa d ye b ea r
,
An d l ea rn t o ma ke your ma s ter more y o ur c a re :

Th rough fa ll ing s qua drons b ea r my s la ugh tering
No r a s ye l eft Pa t ro cl us l ea ve your l ord
, , .

Th e ge nerous ! a nth us a s t h e w ord s h e s a id

, ,
S eeme d s ens ib l e o f w o e a nd d rOOp d his h e a d :

,
Tremb ling h e s too d b efore t h e go lden w a in ,
And b o w d t o d ust t h e h onors o f h is ma ne ;

Wh en s tra nge t o t e ll ! (SO Juno w ill d ) h e b roke

,

Et e rna l S il e nce a nd p ort e ntous sp oke :

,
A ch ill e s ! y e s ! thi s d a y a t l ea s t w e b ea r

Th y ra ge in sa fet y th rough t h e l e s o f w a r :
But c ome it w ill t h e fa t a l t ime mus t c ome
, ,
No t o urs t h e fa ul t b ut Go d d e cre e s t h y d o o m
, .
No t t h rough o ur crime o r s l o w nes s in t h e c ourse;

,
Tell t h y Pa tro cl us b ut b y h ea venly force :

,
1 40

Book of t h e Dead there i s quite a contrast though
, ,
they bo th represent myths in the h ighly developed

religious form of hymns or songs to the gods The .
Hindoo song sings the praises of Indra while the ,
E gyp ti a n song is a prayer R a who is mentioned .

, ,
w as the God of the S un in E gypt .
Instead of driving steeds a s many other s un gods -
did he was said to ride in a boat But according

,
.
to this hymn there were four sacred apes in the

,
boat to whom the ancient E gyptians off ered prayers

,
as they did to the sacred bulls Apis and Mne vis .
HYM N S TO INDRA
(Fro m th e Bi g Ved a )

I w ill de cla re t h e ma nly dee ds o f Indra t h e rs t th a t h e ,
a ch i e ve d t h e th und e r w i e ld er
,
-
.
He S l ew t h e dra go n th en di s cl o s e d t h e w a ters a nd c l e ft t h e
, ,
c h a nne l s o f t h e mo unta i n torrents .
He Sl e w t h e dra go n l ying o n t h e mo unt a in ; hi s h ea venl y

b e lt o f t h under T w a s h t a r fa s h i o ne d .
Li ke l o w ing k ine in ra pid o w de s cending t h e w a t ers glid e d

dow nw a rd t o t h e o cea n .
Imp etuo us a s a b ull h e ch o s e t h e S o ma a nd q ua ff e d in th ree

, ,
fo ld s a cri ce t h e jui c es .
Ma gh a va n gra s p e d t h e th und er f o r h is w ea p on a nd s mo t e t o ,
dea th th is rs t b o rn o f t h e dra go ns .
Wh e n I ndra th o u h a ds t s l a in t h e dra go n s rs t b o rn a nd
, ,

,
o ve rc o me t h e c h a rms o f t h e e nch a nt e rs ,
Th en gi ving life t o s un a nd da w n a nd h e a ven th o u fo undes t

, ,
no t o ne f o e t o s t a nd a ga i ns t th e e .
Indra w i t h h is o w n gre a t a nd d ea dly th und er s mo t e int o

pi ece s Vrit ra w o rs t o f Vrit ra s .
1 42
Animals In Cultur e Myt hs
Th ey wh op erva d ed ea rth s extremest limi t s ub due d no t with

th e ir ch a rms t h e w ea l th b es tow er : -
I ndr a t h e b ul l ma de h is a lly t h e th unde r a nd w i th it s ligh t

, , ,
mil ke d co w s fro m o ut t h e d a rkne s s .
Th e w a t e rs o w e d a c co r di ng t o th e ir na t ure ; h e mid t h e
na vi g a b l e s t rea ms w a xe d mi gh ty .
Th en Indra w ith h is s pi ri t c oncentra t e d smot e hi m forever

, , ,
w i th h is s t ro nge st w e a p on .
I ndra b ro ke th rough Ili b is a s s t ro ng ca s t l e s a nd Sus h na

,
w i t h h is b o rn h e cut t o pi e ce s :
Th o u Ma gh a va n f o r a ll h is mi gh t a nd sw iftnes s s l ew es t t h y
, , ,
gh t ing fo e ma n w i th t h y th under .
Fi erc e o n h is e nemi e s fe ll I ndra s w e a p on : w i th his s h a rp h orn

h e re nt t h e i r tow ns in pi e ce s .
He w i th h is t h und erb o l t d e a l t b l ow s o n Vrit ra a nd co n ,
q u ere d e x e c ut
,
i ng a ll h i s p urp o s e .
T HE F OU R A P ES
( rom the
F Bo o k o f the Dea d

Hail ye four ape s who sit in the bows of t h e
, ,
boat of R a, w h o convey right and truth to Neb e r -
tchu who sit in j udgment on my misery and on my

,
strength who make the gods to rest conten t ed by

,
m eans of the ame of your mouths who off er holy ,
o ff erings t o t h e gods and sepulchral meals to the
Khus who live upon right and truth and who feed ,
upon right and truth of hear t who are without de ,
c e i t and fraud and to who m wickedness is an abom
i na t i on do ye away with my evil deeds and p u t

, ,
ye away my s in which deserved stripes upon earth ,
and destroy ye any evil whatsoever that belongeth

unto me and let there be no obstacle whatsoever on
,
my part toward you 0 grant ye I may make my .

,
1 43
A G uide to Mythol o gy
wa y through the underworld 0 grant th a t there
J .
,
may be given to me c akes and a le and sweet

meats even a s they are given t o the living
,

Khus .
The four apes m ake answer say i ng Come then , , ,
f o r we have done away with thy wickedness and we ,
have put away thy s 1 n along with the Sin deserving

,
o f st ripes which thou didst commit upon earth a nd

,
we have destroyed all the evil which belonged to

thee upon earth There shall be g iven unto thee
.
cakes and ale and sweetmeats, and thou s halt com e

forth and thou shalt enter in at thy desire even ,
as do those Khus w h o are favored of the god ,
and thou shalt be proclaimed each day in the

horizon .
S TORY O F T HE M IDGARD SE R P E NT AND

FENRI S THE W OLF
(From the N o rs e Edd a s )
This huge beast was one of the children o f Loke ,
a t ro ublesome mischievous giant who forced him

, ,
self upon the society of the gods His delight w a s .
to get them into all sorts of d i i c ult i e s and then ,
by his cunn ing w i t and Skill to extricate them

,
.
T h e gods knew that as the Midgard serp e nt grew

larger he would bring untold troubles upon gods
and men S o Odin thought the best way to dis
.
pose o f h im would be to throw him into t h e deep

ocean which su rrounds the earth He did so b ut .
,
the serpent has grown to such an enormous size that ,
1 44
A G ui de to Myth ology

This t r i a l has turned out said Utgard Loke ,
-
,
j ust a s I imagined it w ould The cat is large but .

,

Thor is little in comparison with our men .
The next morning at break of day Thor and his

, ,
companions dressed themselves and prepared for

their departure Utgard Loke ordered a table to be
.
-
s et for them on which there was no lack of victuals

,
.

or drink After the repast Utgard Loke led them ,
to the gate of the city and on parting asked Thor

,
h o w he thought his journey had turned out and ,
whether he had met with any men stronger than

himself Thor tol d him that he could not deny but
.
that he had brought great shame on himself And .

what grieves me most he added is that thou wilt
, ,

call me a person of little worth .

Nay sai d Utgard Loke it behooves me to tell
,
-
,
thee the truth no w thou art out of the city which

, ,
s o long as I live and have my way thou shalt never
enter again And by my troth had I known before

.
, ,
hand that thou hadst s o much strength in thee and ,
wouldst have brought me so near to a great mish a p ,
I would not have su ff ered thee to enter this time .
Know then that I have all along deceived thee by my

illusions . He then complimented Thor upon each
feat he had performed and as for the cat he said
, , ,
Thou hast indeed performed a wonderful feat by

lifting u p the cat and to tell thee the truth when
, ,
we s a w that one of his paws was o ff the oor we

were all o f u s terror stri cken for what thou tookest
-
for a cat w a s in reality the Midgard serpent that en

compasseth the earth , and he w a s s o stretched by
1 46
Anim als In C ult ure Myths
thee that he was barely long enough t o enclo se it

between his head an d tail .
The w olf F enris w a s also o ne of Loke s children

,
and gave the gods a great d eal o f trouble until they

succeeded in chaining him He broke the strongest .
fetters as if they were made of cobwebs F inally .
the gods sent a messenger to the mountain spirits ,
w h o made for them the c h a l n called Gleipnir It .
was fashioned of various things : the noise made by

the footfall of a cat the roots of stones the breath
, ,
of shes the nerves of bears and the spittle of

, ,
birds When nished it was as smooth and soft as

.
a silken string But when the gods asked the wolf

.
to su ff er himself to be bound with this apparently

Slight ribbon b e suspected their desi gn fearing that ,
it w a s made by enchantment He therefore only .
consented to be bound with it on condition that one

of the gods put his hand in h is (F enris s ) mouth
as a pledge that the band was to be removed again .
Tyr alone had sufcient courage to do this But .
when the wolf found that he could not break his

fetters and that the gods would not release him he ,
h i t o ff Tyr s hand

Tyr consequently has ever Since
.
, ,
remained one handed -

.
T HE S T ORY OF A P OLLO A ND PHAETON

( Gre e k : A fte r Ovi d)
P h a t onwas the s o n o f Apollo and the earthly

nym ph Clym ene One day E paphus the s on of
.
,
Ze us a nd Io sco ffed at the idea of P h a t on s being

,
1 47
the s on of a go d Pha eton complained of the insult
to his mother Clymene S he sent h imto Ph oebu s
.
.
,
Apollo to ask for himself whether he had not been

truly informed concerning his parentage Gladly .
P h a t on travelled toward the regions o f the sunrise ,

and gained at last the palace of the S un He a p .
r o a ch e d

p his father s presence but stopped at a ,
distance for the light was more than he could bear

,
.
Ph oebus Apollo arrayed in purple s a t on a throne

, ,
that glittered with diamonds Beside him stood the .
Day the Month the Year the Hours and the S ea

, , ,
sons S urrounded by these attendants the S un be

.
,
held the youth dazzled with the novelty a n d splen -I
dor of the scene and inquired the purpose of his e r

,
rand The youth replied

. Oh light of the bound , ,
les s world Phoebus my fathergive m e some proof

, , ,
I beseech thee by which I may be known as thine !

,
He ceased His father laying aside the beams that

.
,
shone around his head bade h i m approach embr a ced , ,
him and swore by the river S tyx that whatever

,
proof he might a s k Should be granted P h a it on .
immediately asked to be permitted for one day to

drive the chariot of the S un The father repented .
o f his promise and tried to dissuade the boy by tell

,
ing him the perils of the undertaking None but .

myself he said
,
may drive the aming car of
,
day Not even Zeus whose terrible right arm hurls

.
,
the thunder bolts The rst part of the way is steep

-
.
,
and such as the horses when fresh in the morning

can hardly climb ; the middle part is high u p in the
he avens , whence I myself can s car ce ly, w itho ut
1 48
ordered the Hours to harness up the horses They .
led forth fro m the lofty st a lls the steeds full fed
with am b rosia, an d attached the reins Then the .
father smearing the face of his s on with a powerful

,
unguent made him capable of enduring the bright

,

ness of the ame He set the rays on the lad s
.
head and with a foreboding sigh told him to spare

, , ,
the whip and hold tight the reins ; not to take the
straight road be tween the ve circles but to turn ,
o ff to the left ; to keep within the limit of the mid
dle zone and avoi d the northern and the southern

,
alike ; nally to keep in the well worn ruts and t o

,
-
,
drive neither too high nor t o o l ow for the middl e ,
course was safest and best .
F orthwith the agile youth sprang into the chariot ,
stood erect and grasped the reins with delight pour ,
ing out thanks to his reluctant parent But the .
steeds soon perceived that the load they drew was

lighter than usual ; and as a ship without ballast is
tossed hither and thither on the s e a the chariot , ,
without its accustomed weight was dashed about a s ,
if empty The horses rushed headlong and left the

.
travelled road Then f o r the rst time the Grea t

.
and Little Bears were scorched with heat and woul d ,
fain if it were possible have plunged into the w a

, ,
ter ; and the serpent which lies coiled round the

north pole torpid and harmless grew warm and
, , ,
with wa rmth felt i t s rage revive Bo Ot e s they say .

, ,
ed away though encumb ered with hi s plough and

un used to rapid motion .
When hapless Pha eton looked down upon t h e

1 50
Animals In Cultu re Myt h s
e a rt h now spreading in vast extent bene ath him h e
, ,
grew pale and his knees shook with terror He lost

,
.
his Self command and kn ew not whether to draw

-
tight the reins or throw them loose ; he forgot the

names o f the horses But when he beheld the mon .
strous forms scattered over the surface of heaven

the S corpion extending t w o great arms his tail and , ,
h i s crooked claws over the Space of t w o signs of the

Zodiac when the boy beheld him reeking wit h ,
poison and menacing with fangs his courage failed , ,
and the reins fell from his hands The horses .

,
restraine d went o ff into unknow n regions of the s ky

, ,
in among the stars hurling the chariot over pathless

,
.
places no w u p in high heaven now down almost t o

, ,
the earth The Moon s a w with astonishment her

.

brother s chariot running beneath her o w n The .
clouds began to Smoke the forest clad mountains ,

-

burned Athos and Taurus and T imolu s and CEt i ;

Ida once celebrated for fountains ; the Muses
,
Mountain Helicon and Haemus ; E tna with res

, ,
within and without and Parnassus with his t w o , ,
peaks and Rhodope forced at last to part with his

, ,
snowy crown The cold climate was no protection

.
to S c yt hia ; Caucasus burn e d and Ossa and Pindus , ,
,

and greater than both Olym pus the Alps high , ,
in air and the Ape nnines cr o wn ed with clouds

, .
Pha eton beheld the world on re and felt the heat ,
intolerable Then too it is said the people of

.
, , ,
E thiopia became black because the blood was called

by the heat s o suddenly to the surface ; and the
Libyan Desert w a s dried u p to the condition in which
1 51
it remains to this day The nymphs of the fo un .
t a ins with dishevelled hair mourned their waters

, , ,
nor wer e the rivers safe beneath their banks ; T a na i s

smoked and C a i cu s , ! anthus and M aeander Baby

'
lonian E uphr ates and Ganges Tagus with golden ,
sands and C a yst e r where the swans resort Nile

.
,
ed away and hid his head in the desert and there ,
i t still remains concealed Where he used to dis

,
.
charge his waters through seven mo uths into the

s ea
,
Seven dry channels alone rem ained The earth .
cracked open a nd through the chinks light broke

'
into Tartarus and f rightened the king of shadows

,
and his queen The se a shrank u p E ven Nereus

. .
and his wife D oris with the Nere i ds their daughters

'
, , ,
s o ught the deepest ca v es for refuge

Thrice Neptune essayed to raise his head above the
surface and thrice h e w a s driven back b y the heat
,

E arth surrounded a s She was by wa t ers yet with

, ,
"
head and shoulders bare screening her face with her ,

'
h and l o oked up to heaven and with h usky v oice

, ,
prayed Zeus if it were h i s will that Sh e Sh ould perish

,
by re to end h er agony at once by his th under

,
bolts or else to consider his o w n hea v en h ow both

, ,
the poles were smoki ng that sustained his p alace, and

that all must fall if they were destroyed .
E arth overcome with heat and thirst could s a y

, ,
no more Then Zeus callin g the gods to witness

.
,
that all was lost unless s Ome speedy remedy were

applied thundered brandis h ed a lightning bolt in
, ,
-
h is right h and launched it against the charioteer

, ,
and str uck h i m a t t h e s ame m o ment fro m h is se a t

'
1 52
this g oddess dwelt heard that Odysseus and h is co m
,
rades were there She quickly attired herself and

,
came down to the beach with her maids who f o l

lowed bringing bread and store of meats and gener
,
ous wines Then the wise goddess standing i n their

.
,
midst spake to them and said Take food and wine

, , ,
and hold a feast to day and with the dawn of morn

-
,
ing you shall sail a w a y I will Sho w you t h e way

.
,
and point out to you all its dangers s o that yo u may ,
not come to any harm through following false coun

sels either on the land or on the water
,
Th e con .
ding minds of Odysseus and h is men were easily

swayed by her counsels S o all that day th ey s a t and
.
banqueted upon the abundant meats and generous

wines And when the s u n went down and darkness
.
came the cre w lay down to sleep b esid e the moor

,
ings of the ship and Circ e taking the hand of Odys

, ,
seus led him apart made him sit down and sitting
, , ,
b efore him made him tell all tha t he had seen .

Then s h e addressed him s aying Thus far all is , ,
well ; no w heedfully attend to what I say and may ,

some deity help you to rememb er it S he told him .
rst ab out the S irens haunt which it would be d if

,
cult for him to pass and then about the horrib le

,
rocks where S cylla and Charyb di s dwelt giving him ,
instructions how to meet these d angers ; then con

t inuing s h e said In your v oyage you will reach
,
the Isle Trinacria where in pastures b elonging to

,
the S un many beeves and fatling Sheep of his are

fed s even herds o f oxen and as many ocks of ,
sheep and fty in each ock and herd They never

,
.
1 54
Animals In C u lture Myths
increase and they never die and they are tended by ,
two shepherdesses goddesses with redundant locks

,
.
One is named Lampetia the other Pha ethusa If

, .
your desire be to return to Ithaca your home only , ,
lea ve these ocks and her d s unharmed and you and ,
all your men will return though after many toils

,
.
But if you rashly harm them I foretell destruction ,
to your ship and all its crew ; and if you should e s

cape yet your return will be late and in sorrow ,
,

wit h a ll your comrades lost .
As s h e nished speaking the Morning on her ,
golden throne looked forth ; the glorious goddess

went her way into t h e isle and Odysseus went to ,
his ship and bade the men embark and cast the h a w ~
sers loose . S traightway they all went on board

,
and duly m anned the benches smiting the hoary ,
waters with their oars Then Circ e amber haired

.
,
-
,
the mighty goddess o f the musical voice sent a fair ,
wind behind the dark prowed ship which gayly bore

-
the m company and lled the sails .
Odysseus then told the crew all that Cir ce the a m ,
ber haired had said to him He warns them of the

-
,
.
dangers to come and h o w they may b e escaped,

,
rst the S irens and the rocks where S cylla and

,
Charyb dis d w elt They escaped these dangers and

.
,
approached the pleasant island of the S un where the ,
oxen with broad beautiful foreheads were grazing

, ,
and ocks of sheep the fatlings of the god wh o

,
m akes the round of heaven While yet at s e a Odys

.
,
seus heard from his ship the lowing of the h erds

in the st ab les and the bleating of the o c ks , a nd
1 55
when he h eard them he immediately t h ought of the
words the blind seer Tiresias of Thebes had said to
, ,
him and those of Circ e by whom he had often been

, ,
warned to shun the island of the god whose light

is sweet to all Then with a sorrowing heart he
.
said to his companions My comrades suff erers as, ,
you are listen to me and I shall disclose the oracles

, ,
which lately Tiresias and Circ e gave me The god .
dess earnestly a d monished me not to ap p roach the

island of the S un whose light is sweet to all for
, ,
there She said some great mi sfortune lay in wait for

us. No w let us speed the Ship and pass the isle .
The hearts of the men were broken b y this speech ,
and one of them E urylochus bitterly replied Ho w

, , ,
austere yo u are O dysseus You are exceedingly

,
.
strong and no lab or tires your limb s ; they must be

ma d e o f iron Since by you r will you d env to us
, ,
overcome with toil and Sleeplessness the chance to ,
tread the land again and make a generous b anquet

,
in that island amid the waters Y o u would have us. .
sail into the swiftly coming night and stray far ,
from the island through the misty s ea By night

,
.
the mighty winds spring up that make a wreck o f

ships ; and h o w can one escape destruction should a ,
sudden hurricane rise from the south or the har d

b lowing west causing a ship t o fo un der in the dark
,
in S pite of all the sovereign gods ? Let u s obey the

dark browed Night and take o ur evening meal r e
-
, ,
maining close beside o ur gallant bark and go on ,
b oard again when m orning breaks and enter the ,

wide s ea The o thers all appro v ed and Odysse u s
.
,
1 56
A Gui d e to Myth ology
easily by what he said No w f o r an entir e mont h
.
the gales ble w from the south and after that no ,
wind save east and south As long as they had the

.
bread and wine Circe had given them the men ,
spared the beeves moved by the love of life But

,
.
when the stores o n board the galley were consumed ,
they roamed the island in their need and sought for ,
prey They snared with baited hooks the sh and

.

birds whatever came to hand till they were gaunt
with famine
Meanwhile Odysseus withdre w apart within the
,
isl e to supplicate the gods hoping one of them ,
might reveal the way of his return A s he strayed .
into the lan d apart from all the rest he found a shel ,
t e r ed nook wher e no wind came and prayed with ,
w ashed hands t o all the gods who dwelt in heaven .
At last he fell into a soft slumb er But E urylochus .

,
in the meantime was beguiling the men with fatal

,
counsels .
Hear my companions suff erers as you are the

, , ,
words that I shall speak All modes of death .
are hateful to the wretched race of men ; b ut this of

h unger thus to meet our fate is the most fearful
, ,
.
Let us drive apart the best o f all the oxen of the

S un and sacrice the m to the immortal ones who
, ,
dwell in the broad heaven An d if we come to Itha

.
ca our country we will there b uild to the S un

, , ,
w hose path is o er our heads a sumptuous temple

, ,
and endow its shrine with many gi fts and rare But .
if it be his will approved b y all the other gods to

, ,
s ink our bark in anger for the sake of these high

,
1 58
Animals In Culture Myths
h orned oxen I should choose sooner to gasp my life
,
away amid the b illows of the deep than pine to ,

d eath b y famin e in this melancholy isle .
The crew approved of this and now from the ,
neighboring herd they drove the b est of all the

b eeves ; for near the dark prowed ship the fair b road
fronted herd with crooked horns was feeding The .
crew stood round the vi ctims and off ering their p e ,
t it i o n s to the gods held tender oak leaves in their ,
hands just plucked from a tall tree for in the good

, ,

ship s hold there was left no more white barley .
When they had prayed an d slain and dressed the ,
beeves they hewed away the thighs and covered

,
them with doub le folds of skin and laid raw slices ,
over these They had no wine to pour in sacrice

.
upon the b urning esh s o they poured water instead , ,
and roasted all the entrails thus When the thighs .
were thoroughly consumed the entrails tasted all , ,
the rest was carved into small portions , and trans

x ed with spits .
Just a t this moment Odysseus awoke and hurry ,
ing to the shore and his good ship he perceived the ,
savory steam from the burnt o ff e ring and sorrow ,
fully then he called upon the ever living gods

, ,
-
0 F ather Jove and all ye blessed gods who live

, ,
fore v er twas a cruel sleep in which ye lulled me to

,

m y grievous harm My comrades here have done a .

fearful wrong .
Then L am petia of the trailing robes e w in haste

, ,
t o t h e S un who j ourn eys ro un d the earth to tell h im

, ,
that t h e m en had slain his beeves .
1 59
In anger then he thus addressed the gods :
O F ather Jove a n d all ye blessed gods w h o
,
never die avenge the wrong I bear u pon the com

"
rades of Laertes s on Odysseus who h a ve f oully

, ,

Slain my beeves in whic h I took delight whene er I
,
rose into the starry heaven and when again I sank ,
from h ea v en to earth If they mak e not large .
amends for this great wrong I shall g o down to ,

Hades there to Shine am ong the dead
,
.
And clo ud co mpelling Zeus rep lied : S till shin e,

-
O S un ! among t h e deathless gods and mortal men ,
upon the nourishing earth S oon will I cle a ve with .
a white thunder bolt their galley in the midst o f a

-

black s e a .
When Odysse u s came to the ship beside the s e a ,
h e spoke to t h em all sternly man after man ye t he , ,
could think of no redress T h e bee v es were dead.

,
and now the gods amazed them with prodig ies The .
Skins moved and crawled the esh both raw and , ,
roasted on the spits lowed with the voice of oxen

,
.
S ix whole days the men feasted taking fro m the herd ,
the S un s best oxen When Jove bro ught the s ev

.
e nt h day the tempest ceased ; the wind fell and they

, ,
'
straightway went on board They s et the mast u p .
right and Spreading the white sails th ey v entured

, , ,
o n the great wide Se a again .
Wh en they had left the isle and there ap p ea red no

oth e r land b u t only s e a and Sky the s o n of S aturn
, ,
( Jove ) cau ed a lurid cloud to gather the galley

s o e r ,
and to c ast its darkness o n the ship Not long the ,
Ship ran onw ard, ere the furious w est w ind rose a nd
1 60
A Guide to Mytholo gy
sh e denied an d could not bear to be though t e v en a
,
pupil of a goddess Let Athene try her skill with

.

min e s h e sai d ; if b eaten I will pay the penalty
, .
Athene heard this and was much displeased As .
s ummg the form of an old woman s h e appeared to ,
Arachne and kindly advised her to challenge her

,
fellow mortals if s h e would, but at once to a s k f o r

g i v e n e s s of the goddess Arachne b ade
. the old dame
to keep her counsel for others I am not afraid .
,
o f the goddess Let h e r try her skill if s h e dare

.

venture . S he comes said Athene and dro p
, ,
ping her disguise stood confessed The nymp hs bent .
l o w in h omag e and all the bystanders paid rever

,
ence Arachn e alone was unt e rrie d

. A sudden .
color dyed her cheeks and then s h e grew pale ; but

,
s h e stood to her resolve and rushed on her fate

,
.
They proceed to the contest E ach takes her station .
and attaches the w e b to the beam Then the Slender .
shuttle is passed in and out among the threads The .
reed with its ne teeth strikes u p the woof into its

place and compacts the web Wool of T yrian dye
,
.
is contrasted with that of other colors Shaded o ff ,
into one another s o adroitly that the j oining d e ceives

the eye And the e ff ect is like the b ow whose long
.
a rc h tinges the heavens , formed by sunbeams r e
e ct e d from the shower in which when the colors, ,
meet t h ey s e e m as one but at a little di stan ce from

'
, ,
the point of cont a ct are wholly diff erent .
Athene wrought on her web the scene of her con

test wit h P o s id o n Twelve o f the heavenly powers
.
w ere represented Zeus with august gravity sitting in

,
1 62
A t h ene . Glyp to th ek, M u ni ch .
b u t strongly m arking her presumption and impiety .
Athene could not forbear to admire yet w a s ind ig

'
nant at the insult S he stru ck the w e b with her

.
shuttle and rent it in pieces ; then touching the fore

, ,
head of Arachne, She made her realize her guilt .
It w a s more than mortal could b e a r ; an d forthwith

Arachne hanged herself .Live guilty woman
, ,
said Athene ,

but that thou mayest preserve the
memory of this lesson continue to h a ng b oth thou
, ,

and thy descendants to all future times
,
Then .
sprinkling her with t h e juices of aconite the goddess,
transformed her into a spider forever spinning the

,
thread by which s h e i s suspended .
1 64
CHAP T E R IV
T R EE A ND P LA N T MYTHS
O primitive man trees and plants seemed a s mys

T ,
t e r i o u s as animals and there are many myths

,
which tell of the descent of mank ind from trees and ,
many cases in which plants were totems instead of

animals . Among various Indian tribes who had
such a belief may be mentioned the M iz t e c s w h o de ,
cl a r e d they were descended from t w o maj esti c trees
that stood in the gorge of the mountain of Api o la .
The C h i a p a ne c a s thought they sprang from the roots

o f a silk cotton tree . The T a ma r a qu a s of S outh
America have a tradition that the human race sprang
from the fruits of the date palm after the Mexican
a g e of water . Passing half way round the world
to the Damaras of S outh Africa we n d still more
remarkable qualities attrib uted to the rst tree In .

the beginning they s a y there was a tree and out
, , ,
of this tree came Damaras Bushmen ( the wildest

,
of S outh African tribes ) oxen and zebras The Dam

,
.
aras lit a re which frightene d away the Bushmen

and the zebras b ut the oxen remained Hence it
,
.
i s that Bushmen and wild b easts live together in all

sorts of inaccessible places but the Damaras and
,

oxen possess the land .
Ev en in Greek mythology t h e ide a of des c ent fro m

,
1 65

trees had not quite died o u t for we read in the Odys
'
,
s ey that Penelope s a ys t o Odysseus while still in ,
the disguise of a b eggar so that s h e does not recog

,
nize him N o w I pray declare thy lineage for

, , , ,
thou surely art not sprung from the old fabulous

o a k nor from the rock .
The oak was regarded with very great reverence

by the Greeks They declared it to b e the rst tree
.
that grew upon the earth its acorns b eing the e a rli
,
est food o f man There is an interesting story to

.
the e ff ect that the Deluge was due to quarrels be

tween Zeus ( Jupiter ) and Hera ( Juno ) and when ,
the waters subsided an oaken statue emerged s u p

posed to be a symbol of peace between the king of
gods and his consort .
When the imagination begins t o Sprout a little

more the savage invents a story telling h ow the rst
men and animals were made o u t of trees by some
divinity Thus Glo o s ka p the Algonquin divinity
.
, ,
made man in this way : He took his b o w and ar

rows and Shot at trees the basket tree, the ash Then
,
.

Indians cam e out of the bark of the ash trees In .
Norse mythology there is a similar legend according ,
to which there were no intelligent men on earth un

til there came three mighty and benevolent gods to
the world Men had no sense nor blood nor motive
.
, ,
powers nor goo d ly color Odin gave spirit Ha e mi r

,
.
,
g ave sense and ,

Lodur g a ve blood by bestowing it
up on the senseless ashes and elms .
The worshi p of trees is told of in stories from one

e nd of the world to the other .
1 66
stones The root the trunk , the branches and t h e
m
, ,
.
leaves are formed of ge s of the most glorious de

scription It grows in soil pure and delightfully
.
even t o which the rich v erdure of grass imparts the

tints of a peacock s neck This tree receives the hom .
age o f the gods The arm of Maya the mother of

.
,
Buddha when sh e stretches it forth to grasp the

,
bough which bends toward her shine s as the light

ning illumines the sky Beneath this tree Buddha .
,
at whose birth a ash of light pierced through all

the world sat dow n with the rm resolve not to rise
,
until he had attained the knowled ge which mak

et h free Then the tempter Mara advanced with
.
his demoniacal forces E ncircling the sacred tree .

,
hosts of demons assailed Buddha with ery darts ,

amid the whirl of hurricanes, darkness and the
down pour of oods of waterz t o drive him from the
tree .
Buddha however maintained his position un

, ,
moved and at length the demons were compelled to

y.
S till anoth er marvellous tree is that of the Per

sians It is called the Haoma It is the sacred
. .
v ine of the Zoroastrians which produces the primal ,
drink of immortality after which it is named It is

,
.
the rSt of all trees planted in heaven by Ormuzd

'
in the fo untain of life Near this tree grows another

.
,

called the impassive or inviolable which bears ,
the seeds of every kind of vegetable life Both these .
trees are situat ed in a lake and guarded by ten sh ,
who keep a ceaseless watch upon a lizard sent by

1 68
Tre e a nd Plant Myt h s
t he evil power Ahriman to destroy the sacred Ha
, ,
o ma .The inviolable tree is also known both as the

eagle s and the owl s tree E ither one or the other

.
o f these birds sits perched u po n the top The mo .
ment he rises from the tree a thousand bran ches

shoot forth ; when he settles again he breaks a thou ,
s and branches and causes their seed to fall

,
Another .
bird h i s constant c ompan ion picks up these seeds

, ,
a nd carries them to where the god T i s t a r draws
water which he then rains down upon the e a rth with

,
the seeds it contains .
Y GDRA S IL : TH E NOR SE WORLD TRE E

The ch ief of all the great myt hical trees is the

N orse World Tree an a s h tree called Ygdrasil ,
.
One of the stems of this tree Springs from the central

primordial abyss from the sub terranean so u rce of
,
matter runs u p through the earth whi c h it supports

, ,
and issuing out of the celestial mountain in the

world s c enter c alled Asg a rd Spreads its branche s

, ,
over th e entire universe These wides p re a d br a nches .
are the ethere al o r c elestial regions their leav es th e ,
clouds their buds or fruits the stars F our harts

,
.
r un across the branc h es of the tree and bite the buds .
T hese are th e four cardinal winds Perched upon .
the top branches is an eagle and between h i s eyes

s its a hawk The eagle symbolizes the air and the
.
hawk the wind still ether A squirrel runs u p and

-
.
down the ash and seeks to c ause strife between the

,
e a gl e and Ni dh egg a m on ster wh i ch is c onst antly

,
1 69
g nawing the roots The squirrel si gnies

. h a il and
other atmospheric phenomena N i d h iigg a nd s e r . .

pents which gnaw the roots o f the tree are the vol
cani o agencies which are constantly seeking to destroy

the earth s foundation Another stem springs from .
the holy Urdan fountain where the gods Sit in judg

-
ment In this founta in swi m two swans the pro

.
,
genitors of all the species These are by some .
thought to typify the s un and the moon Near the .
fountain dwell three maiden s who x the lifetime

of all men called Norns E very day they draw
,
.
water from the Spring and w ith it Sprinkle the ash

Ygdrasil in order that its branches may not rot and
wither away This water is s o holy that everything
.
placed in the spring becomes as white as the lm

within an egg shell The d e w that falls from the
-
.
tre e upon the earth men call honey d e w and it is -

,
the food of the bees The third stem of the Ygdrasi l

.
takes its rise in the cold a nd cheerless regions of the

North ( the land of the F rost Giants ) , over the source
O f the ocean which is typied by a spring called
,
M i rmir s Well in which wisdom and wit lie hidden

,
.
M i rmi r the owner of this spring, i s full of wisdom

,
because he drinks of the waters .
In this myt h th e whole universe i s symbolized as

a tree and s o we see h ow the simple thoughts of the
,
early savage about trees grow and expand until a

great poet comes upon the earth and with his larger
powers of imag ination throws into a myth s o much
wonder and be au ty th a t w e c a n s car c ely re a liz e wh at
1 70
S TORY O F T HE AINO WHO PE LL A S L EE P AT T HE F OO T

or A P I N E TREE
(Ja p a nes e)
There was once a young Aino w h o fell asleep at

the foot o f a pine of extraordinary height While .
asleep there appeared to him in a dream the god

dess of the tree This pine was near the entrance
.
o f an immense c avern at the far end of which is a
gleam of light where there is an issue to another

,
world He found this cavern by pursuing a bear

.
,
who turned o ut to be a god up a mountain of the ,
underworld until it took refuge in a hole in the

,
ground which led into the cavern When he awoke .

,
he o ffered u p thanks t o the tree and s et up divin e

symbols in its honor .
W U NZ H , T HE FATH E R OF INDIAN C ORN

( N orth A merica n Ind i a n)

In time past w e cannot tell exactly h ow many ,
many years ago a poor Indian was living with ,
his wife and children in a beautiful part of the,
country He w a s not only poor but he had the m is

.
,
fortune to be inexpert in procuring food for his fam

ily and his c hildren were all t oo young to give h i m
,
a ssistance .
Although o f a lowly condition and str a itened in

his circumstances he was a man of kind and con
,
tented disposition He w a s always thankful t o the

.
Gre at S piri t for everything h e rec eived He even .
1 72
Tre e and Plant Myt hs
stood in the door o f h is lodge to bless th e birds th a t
ew past in the summer evenings ; although if he had ,
been of a complaining temper he might h ave re ,
pined that they were not rather spread u pon the

table for his evening meal .
The same gracious and sweet disposition w as in

h e r i t e d by his eldest s o n who had now arrived at the
,
proper age to undertake the ceremony of the fast to ,
learn what kind of a Spirit would be his guide and

guardian through life .
Wunz h for that was his name h ad been an obedi

, ,

ent boy from his infancy pensive thoughtful and , ,

gentle s o that h e was beloved by the whole family .
As soon a s the rst buds of spring appeared and ,
the delicious fragrance of the young year began to

sweeten the air his father with the help of his
, ,
younger brothers built for Wunz h the customary

,
little lodge at a retired Spot at some distance from

,
their o w n where h e would not be disturbed during

,
the solemn rite .
To prepare h imself Wunz h sought to clear his

,
h eart o f every evil thought and to think of nothing

,
that w a s not good and beautiful and ki ndly .
That he might store h is mind with pleasant ideas

for h i s dreams for the rst f ew days he amused him
,
s elf by walking i n the woods and over the mountains ,
examining the early plants and owers .
As he rambled far and wide through the wild ,
country he felt a strong desire to know how the

,
plants a nd herbs and berries grew without any aid ,
f ro m man, and w hy it w a s th a t som e kinds w er e goo d

1 73
A G ui de to Myt h ology
to eat and that others were po ssessed of medicinal
,
o r poisonous power .
After he had become t o o languid to w alk about ,
and conned himself strictly to the lodge he re ,
called these thoughts and turning them in his mind , ,
he wished he c ould dream of something that would

prove a benet to his father and family and to all ,
others of his fellow creatures -

.
True thought Wunz h

,
the Great S pirit made ,
all things and it is to him th a t we o w e o ur lives

,
.
Could he not make it easier for u s to get our fo od

th an by hunting anim a ls and taking s h ? I must

try to nd this out in my v isions .
On t h e third day Wunz h became weak and faint ,
and kept his be d S uddenly he fancied as he lay

.
,
thus that a bright light came in at the lodge door

, ,
and ere he was aw a re he s a w a handsome young

m an with a complexion of the softest and purest
,
w hite coming down from the sky, and advancing

,
toward him .
The beautiful stranger was richly and gayly

dressed having on a great many ga rments of green
,
a nd yellow colors but diff ering in t heir deeper or

,
lighter Shades He had a plume of waving feathers

.
o n his head and all his motions were graceful

,
and ,
reminded Wunz h of the dee p green of the summer

grass and the clear amber of the summer sky and
, ,
the gentle blowing of the summer wind Beautiful .
as the stranger was he paused on a little moun d of

,
e arth j ust before the door of the lodge

,
.

I a m sent to you, my friend , said this celestial
1 74
A G uide to Myth ology
toward the going down of the s un and r e challenged ,
Wunz h to a trial o f strength .
The brave Wunz h felt that his strength of body

was even less than on the day before but the cour ,
age of his mind seemed to grow Observing this an d .

,
h o w Wunz h put his whole heart in the struggle the ,
stranger again spoke to him in the words he used

before adding :
,
To morrow will be your last trial Be strong

-
.
,
my friend for this is the only way in which you can

,

overcome me and obtain the b oon yo u seek .
The light which shone after him as he left Wunz h

was brighter than before .
On the t h i r d d a y he came again and renewed the

struggle Very faint in bo d y was poor Wunzh but

.
,
he w as stronger at heart than ever and determined ,
to prevail no w or perish He put forth his utmost

.
pow ers a nd a ft er a contest more severe than either

,
o f the others the stranger c eased h i s e ff orts and de

, ,
cl a re d himself conquered .
F or the rst time he entered Wunz h s little fast
ing lodge and Sitting down beside the youth he be

-
, ,
gan to deliver his instructions to him and to inform

him in what manner he should proceed to take a d
v antage o f his victory .

You have won your desire of the Gre a t S pirit ,
said the beautiful stranger You have wrestled.
manfully To morrow will be the seventh day of

.
-
your fasting Yo ur father W l ll give you food to

.
s trengthen you a nd as it i s the last day of trial you

,
will prevail I know this and no w tell you what you

.
,
1 76
Tre e an d Plant Myt hs
must d o t o bene t y ou r fam ily and y ou r p eople T o .

mo rrow h e repeated, I sh all meet you and wrestle
,
with yo u for the last time As soon as you have p re .
vailed a gainst me you will strip o ff my garments and

,
throw me down clean the earth o f roots and weeds

, ,
make it soft and bury me in the spot Wh en you

,
.
have done this leave my body in the earth and d o

, ,
not disturb it but come at times t o visit the place to

, ,
s e e whe t her I have c ome to life and above all be ,
c a reful never to let the grass or weeds grow upon my

grave Once a month cover me with fresh earth If
. .
you follow these my i nstructions you will accomplish

your obj ect of doing good to your fellow creatures by -

teaching them the knowledge I no w teach you .
He then Shook Wunz h by the hand and d i s a p

p e a r e d b
,
u t he w a s gone s o soon that W un z h c o u ld
not tell what direction he took .
In the m orning Wunz h s fath er c a me t o h is l o dge

,

with some Slight refreshments saying : ,
My s o n you have fasted long enough I f th e

,
.
Great S pirit will favor you he will do it now I t is ,

.
seven days Since you have tasted food and you must ,
not sa c rice your life The Master of Life does not .

require that .
My father replied Wunz h

,
w a it till th e s un ,
goes d o wn I have a parti c ular reason for extending

.

my fast t o t h at hour .

Very well said t h e old man
,
I s h all wait till ,

the h o u r arrives a nd you shall be inclined to eat
,
.
At his usual h o u r of a p pearing the beautiful ,
sky v isitor ret u rned , a nd the tri a l o f strengt h w a s re

-
1 77
n ewed Although he h ad not availed h imself of his
.
father s o ff er of food Wunz h felt that new strength

,
had been given h im His heart was mighty within

.
him to achieve so me gre a t purpose Courag e within .
the bosom of t h e b ra v e W unz h was like the eagle

that spreads h is wings wi thin the tree t op fo r a great
ight.
He grasped his angel challenger with supernatural

strength threw him down and min d ful of his own
, , ,
instructions tore from him his beautiful garment s

,
and plume and nding him dead he immediat ely

, ,
buried him on the spo t using all the precautions he

,
had been told of and very condent was Wunzh all

, ,
the time that his friend would again come to l ife

,
.
Wunz h no w returned to his father s lodge where

,
he was warmly welcomed for as it had been a p ,
pointed t o him during the days of his fasting to walk

apart with Heaven he was not permitted to s ee any
,
human face s ave that of h is father the representative ,
to the little household upo n earth of the Good F ather

who is in He aven
,
.
Wunz h partook Sparingly of the meal that had

been prepared for him and once more mingled in ,
the cares and sports of the family But he never for .
a moment forgot t h e grave o f his friend He care .
fully visited i t throughout the spring and weede d ,
o u t the grass and kept the ground in a soft an d pli

,
ant state ; and sometimes when the brave Wunz h ,
thought of his friend that was gone from his Sight,

he dropped a tear upon the earth where he lay .
W a tching and tending and moistening the earth ,
1 78
A G u ide to Myth ology
Wunz h then communi c ated to his father the in
given to him by the stranger He told h im
s t ruc t i ons .
t h at the broad husks m ust be torn aw ay as he had ,
pulled o ff the garments in his wrestling and h aving ,
done this, he directed him h ow the ear must be held

before the re till the outer skin became brow n as
the complexion o f his angel friend had been tinted

by the s un while all the milk was retained in the
grain .
The whole family in h igh spirits and deeply

, ,
grateful to the Merciful Master who gave it assisted ,
in a fe a st on the newly gr own ears of corn .
S o came that mighty blessing into the world and ,
we owe all of those beautiful elds of healthful grain

to the dream of the brave boy Wunz h .
L EE L I N A U ,
TH E LO S T DAU GHT E R
( N o rth A meri ca n Indi a n)
Leel i na u was the favorite daughter of a hunter

who lived on the lake shore near the base of the ,
lofty highlands call ed Kang W u djo o

,
.
F rom her earliest youth s h e was observed to be

thoughtful and retiring S he passed much of her
.
time in solitude and seemed ever to prefer the com

,
p a n i o ns h i p o f her o w n shadow t o the society of the

lodge circle .
Whenever s h e could leave her father s lodge She -

would y to remot e haunts and recesses in the woods ,
o r s i t in lonely revery upon some h igh promon t ory
o f roc k overlooking the lake In s uch pl ac e s s h e

.
1 80
Tree an d Pl ant Myt hs
wo uld o fte n with her fac e turned upward linger
, ,
long in contemplation of the air as if s h e were i n ,
vo ki ng her guardian Spirit and beseeching him t o

,
lighten her sadness .
But amid all the leafy haunts none drew her steps ,
toward it s o often as a forest of pines on the O pen

shore called M a ni t o w ok or the S acred Wood It
, , .
was one of those hallowed places which is the resort

of the little wild men of the woods and of the turtle ,
Spirits or fairies which delight in romanti c scenes .
Owing to this circumstance its green retirement w a s ,
seldom visited by Indians who feared to fall under,
the inuence of its mischievous inhabitants .
And whenever they were compelled by stress o f

we ather to make a landing on this part of the coast ,
they never failed to leave an o ff ering of tobacco or ,
so me other token to show that they desired to stand

,
w ell with the proprietors of the fairy ground .
To this sacred spot Leelina u had made her way at

an early age gathering strange owers and plant s
, ,
which s h e would bring home to her parents and r e ,
late to them all the haps and mishaps that had oc

c urred in her rambles .
Altho ugh they discountenanced her frequent visits

t o the place they were not able to restrain them for
, ,
s h e was of s o g entle and delicate a temper that they
feared to thwart her .
Her attachment to the fairy wood therefore grew , ,
w ith her years If She wished to solicit her Spirits t o

.
proc ure pleasant dreams or any other m aiden favor

, ,
Leelina u repaired t o th e M a ni t ow o k If her f a th e r .
1 81
r emained abroad in the hunt later than usual and it ,
was feared that he had been overwhelmed by the

tempest or had met with some other mischance Lee
, ,
linau offered up her prayers for safety at the Mani

t o w ok It was there that sh e fasted mused and
.
, ,
strolled .
S he at length became so engrossed by the fairy

pines that her parents began to suspe ct that some
evil Spirit had entice d her to its haunts and had cast ,
upon her a charm which s h e had not the power to

resist .
This belief w a s conrmed when o ne day her , ,
mother, who had secretly followed her overheard her ,
murmuring to some unknown and invisible c o mp a n

ion appeals like these :

S pirit of the dancing leaves ! whispered Leeli
na u ,
hear a throbbing heart in its sadness S pirit .
o f the foaming stream ! visit thou my nightly pillow ,
s heddi ng over it silver dream s of mountain b rook and
pebbly rivulet S pirit of the starry night ! lead my

.

footprints to the blushing mis ko d ee d or where the ,
burning passion o w e r shines with carmine hue

-
.

S pirit of the greenwood plume ! s h e concluded ,
turning with passionate gaze to the beautiful young

pines which stood waving their green b eauty over
her head Shed on me on Le eli na u the S a d thy leafy
, , ,
fragrance such as Spring unf olds from sweetest o w

,
e rs, or hearts that to each other S how their inmost

grief S pirits ! hear 0 hear a maiden s prayer !
.
,

Day by day these strange communi ngs with un

s e en beings dre w away the heart o f Le el ina u m ore
1 82
A Guide t d Myt h ol o gy

and at Once the word Wa ge min ! was shouted - -
aloud through the eld , and the whole cir cle was s et
in a roar .
The thief is in the c orn eld ! exclaimed the -
young man , I a goo by name and famou s in the tribe,
f or his mirthful powers of story telling ; s ee you not

-
the o l d man stooping as he enters the eld ? S ee

y o u not Si gns that he crouched as h e crept in the
d a rk ? Is it not plain by this m ark on the stalk that
h e w a s heavily bent in h i s back ? Old man, be
nimble or some o ne w ill t ake thee wh ile thou a rt
,

taking the ear .
These question s I a goo a c companied with the action

o f o ne bowed with age ste althily entering the c o m
"
eld He went on :
.
S ee h ow he stoops as he breaks o ff the ear .
Nu sh ka ! He seems for a m oment to tremble .
Walker be nimble ! Hooh ! It is plain the old ma n

,

i s the t h ief .
He tu rned s u ddenly where s h e s a t in t h e circle ,
pensively reg a rding the c rooked e a r whi c h sh e h eld

i n h er hand a nd ex claimed :
,
Leelina u t h e ol d ma n is t h ine !
,
La u ghter rang mer rily through the co rn eld b ut -

,
Le elina u casting down upon the ground the c rooked

,
e a r o f maize walked pensively away

, .
The next m orning t h e eldest son of a neighboring

c hief c alled at her father s lo d ge He w a s quite a d

.
va nce d in ye a rs ; bu t h e enjoyed su c h renown in b a t

tle a nd h i s name w a s s o famous in the h unt th at
, ,
t h e p arents acc epted hi m a s a s uito r f o r t h e i r d a ugh

1 84
Tree and Plant Myt hs
ter They hoped that his shining qualities woul d
.
draw back the thoughts of Lee lina u from that spirit

land whither she seemed t o have wholly directed h e r
aff ections .

It w a s this chief s s o n whom I a go o had pictured
as the corn taker but without obj ecting to his age or
-
, , ,
giving any other reason Lee lina u rmly declined his

,

proposals The parents ascribed the young daughte r s
.
hesitancy t o maiden fear and paying no further heed ,
to her refusal a day was xed for the marriage

,
visit to the lodge .
The warrior c a m e to the lodge door and Leeli -

,
nau refused to s e e him informing her parents at , ,
t h e same time , th a t She would never consent to the

match .
It h a d been her custom t o pass many of her hours

in her fav orite place of retirement under a broad ,
topped young pine whose l eaves whispered in every

,
w ind that blew ; but most of all in that gentle mur

m ur of the air at the evening hour dear t o lovers , ,
when the twilight steals on .
Thither s h e now repaired and while reclining , ,
pensively against the young pine tree She fancied ,
that s h e heard a voice addressing her At rst it w a s .
scarcely more than a sigh ; presently it grew more

clear and Sh e heard it distinctly whisper :
,

Maiden think me not a tree but thine own
, ,
dear lover glad t o be with thee in my tall and

,
blooming strength with the bright green nodding

,
plume th a t waves above thee Thou art leaning on .
my breast Le el ina u lean forever ther e and be at

,
1 85
peace F ly from m en who are false and cruel and
.
,
quit the tumult of their dusty strife for this quiet , ,
lonely shade Over thee I my arms will ing fairer

.
,

than the lodge s roof I will breathe a perfume like .
that of owers over thy happy evening rest In my .
bark canoe I ll waft thee o er the waters of the sky

blue lake I will deck the folds of thy mantle with

.

the sun s last rays Come and o n the mountain free
.
,

rove a fairy bright with me !
Leel ina u drank in with eager ear these magical
words Her heart was xed No warrior s s on should
. .

clasp her hand S he listened in the h Op e to hear the

.
airy voice Speak more ; but it only repeated Again ! ,
again ! and entirely ceased .
On the eve o f the day xed f o r her marriage Lee ,

~
linau decked herself in her best garments S he .
arranged her hair according to the fashion of her

tribe and put o n all of her mai d en ornaments in
,
beautiful array With a smile s h e presented herself

.
,
before her parents .

I am going s h e said to meet my little lover
, , ,
the chieftain of the Green Plume who is waiting f o r ,

me at the S pirit Grove .
Her face was radiant with j oy an d the parents , ,
taking what s h e had said as her o w n fanciful way o f

expressing acquiescence in their plans wished her ,
good fortune in the hap p y meeting .

I am going sh e continued addressing her
, ,
mother as they left the lo d ge I am going from one ,
who has watched my infancy and guar d e d my youth ;

who has given me medicine when I was sick, and
1 86
ascended the bank the lost daughter and they s a w
, .
,
the green plumes o f her fairy lover wa v ing over his -
forehead as he glided lightly through the forest of

young pines .
BIRTH O F TH E ARB U T U S
( Iro quoi s )
Many many moons ago there lived an old man

,
alone in his lodge beside a frozen stream in the

great forest beyond the wide waters of the north
ern lakes His locks were long and white with age
.
and frost The fur of the bear and cunning beaver

.
covered his body but none too warmly for snow and
, ,
ice were everywhere Over all the earth there was

.
winter The winds came down the bleak mountain

.
Sides and wildly hurried through the b ranches of

the trees a nd bushes looking for song birds that they
, ,
might chill to the heart E ven the evil spirits shiv

.
ered in the desolation and sought to dig for them

selves Sheltering caves in the deep snow and ice .
Lonely and halting the old man went abroad in the

,
forest looking for the broken branches that had fal

,
len from the trees that he might keep alive the re

in his lodge F ew fagots coul d he nd and in despair
.
,
he again sought his lodge where hovering over the , ,
fading embers on his hearth he cried in anguish to ,
the Great S pirit that he might not perish .
Then the wind moaned in the tree tops and c ircling ,
through the forests came back and blew aside the skin
of the great bear hanging over his lodge door and lo ! -
, ,
a be au tiful ma iden entered

. Her cheeks were red .
1 88
T re e and Plant Myt hs
like the leaves o f wild roses ; her eyes were large and
glowed like the eyes o f the fawn at night ; h er hai r
was black as the wing of the crow and s o long that
,
it brushed the ground as s h e walked ; her hands

were clad in willow buds ; over her head was a c rown
of owers ; her mantle was woven with sweet grasses
and ferns and her moccasins were white lilies la ced
, ,
and embroi d ered with the petals of honeysuckle .
When s h e breathe d the air of the lodge became

,
warm and the cold winds rushed back in a ff right

,
.
The o ld man looke d in wonder at his strange vis

i t o r and then O pened his lips and said : My d a ugh
,
ter thou art welcome to the poor shelter of my cheer

,
less lodge I t is lonely and desol a te and the Great

.
,
S pirit has covered the fallen branches of the trees

with h i s death cloth that I may not nd them and
-
light again the re o f my lodge Come sit thou .
here and tell me who thou art that thou dost wander
like the deer in the forest Tell me also of thy coun
.
try and what people ga ve thee such be auty and

grace and then I the desolate Manito will tell thee
, , ,

o f my victories till thou dost weary o f my greatness .
The maiden smiled and the sunlight streamed

,
forth and shot its warmth through the roof of the

lodge The desolate Manito lled his pipe of friend
.
ship and when he h a d drawn of the fragrant to

,
bacco he said :
,
When I the Manito blow the
, ,
breath from my nostrils the waters of the river stand

still the great waves on the lakes rest and the mur
, ,

mu r ings of the streams die away in silence .
Then the m a iden said : The M anito i s great a nd

1 89
strong and the waters know the touch of his breath ;
but when I the loved o f the bir d s smile the owers
, , ,
Spring u p over all the forest and the plains are c ov

ered with a carpet of green .
Then said the Manito : I shake my locks and ,

lo ! the earth is wrapped in the death cloth o f snow -
.
Then the maiden replied !

I breathe into the
air and the warm rains come and the death cloth -
vanishes like the d arkn ess when the great re a wak

ens from its be d in the morning .
Then the Manito said : When I walk about ,
the leaves die on the trees and fall to the ground ;

the b irds desert their nests and y away beyond the
lakes ; the animals bury themselves in holes in the
earth or in caves in the mountain side and the winds ,

wail the death chant over all the land
-
.

Ah great is the Manito said the maiden and
, , ,
his mighty name is feared by all living things in the

land. Great is the Manito says all the world and
,

,
his fame has spread among the children of the Great

S pirit till they crouch with fear and s a y : Mighty
and cruel is the Manito ! Terrible is the Manito and ,
more cruel and cunning in his tortures than the red

men His strengt h is greater than the strength o f
.
'
the giant trees o f the forest for does b e not rend

,
them with his mighty hands But when I the gen ,
tle maiden walk forth the trees cover with many

, ,
leaves the nake d ness which thou the great Manito , ,
hath caused ; the birds Sing in the br a nches and build

again the nests from which thou d r ive s t them ; the
animals seek their mates and rear their young ; the
1 90

owers , which he seems to think he gathers in
s ome myst e rious land of the spirit The idea is a .
v ery b eautiful one wo r thy of any poet and certainly

, ,
Shows tha t some at least o f the Indians had reached

, ,
a high plane of poetic fancy .
S ON G AT TH E B E GINNIN G
(A nci ent M exi ca n Ind i a n)
1 .I am wondering where I may gather some

pretty sweet owers Whom shall I ask ? S uppose
,
.
that I a sk the brilliant humming bird the emerald -

,
trembler ; suppose that I ask the yellow buttery ;

they will tell me they know where bloom the pretty ,
sweet owers whether I may get them here in the

,
laurel woods where dwell the t z ini t z c a n birds or ,
whether I may gather them in the owery forests

where the t h a nqueh ol lives There they may be
.
plucked sparkling with d ew there they come forth ,
in perfection Perhaps there I Shall s e e them if

.
the y have appe ared ; I shall pla c e them in the folds

o f my garment and with them I shall greet the
,
children I shall m ake glad the nobles

, .
2 Truly as I walk along I hear the rocks as it

.
were replying to the sweet songs of the owers ; truly

the glittering chattering water an s wers ; the bird
,
green fountain there it Sings it dashes forth it

, , ,
Sings again ; the mocking bird answers ; perhaps the

-
coyol bird answers ; and many sweet singing birds

scatter their songs around like music They bles s .
the e a rth , p ouring o ut their sweet voi c es .
1 92
T re e an d Plant Myt hs
3 . I s a id I cried aloud : May I no t cause yo u
,
-
pain ye beloved ones who are seated to lis te n ; may

, ,
the brilliant humming birds come soon Whom do -

.
we seek O noble poet ? I ask I s a y : Where are

, ,
the pretty fragrant owers with which I may make

,
glad you my noble compeers ? S oon they will sing

,

to me : Here we will make thee to s ee thou singer , ,
truly wherewith thou shalt make glad the nobles thy ,

companions .
4 They led me within a v alley to a fertile spot

.
,
a owery spot where the d e w spread out in glitter

,
ing splendor where I s a w various lovely fragrant

,
owers lovely odorous owers clothed with the d ew

, , ,
scattered around in rainbow glory There they said .
to me : Pluck the owers whichever thou w i s h e s t , ,
mayest thou the singer be glad and give them to ,
thy friends to the nobles that they may rej oi ce o n

, ,

the earth .
5 S o I gathered in the folds of my garment

.
the various fragrant owers delicate scented de , ,
l i c i o u s and I said : May some of o ur people enter

,
h ere may very many of u s be here ; and I thought

,
I Should go forth to announce to our friends that

h ere all of u s sh o uld rejoice in the di fferent lovely ,
odorous owers and that we Should cull the various ,
sweet songs with which we might rejoice our friends

here on earth and the nobles in their grandeur and
,
dignity .
6 S o I the singer gathered all the owers to

.
, ,
place them upon the nobles to clothe them and p ut ,
them in their hands and soon I lifted my v oice in ,
1 93
a worthy song glorifying the nobles before th e face
o f the Cause of All , where there is no servitude .
7 Wh ere Shall one pluck them ? Where gather

.
the sweet owers ? And h o w Shall I attain the ow

ery land that fertile land where there is no servi
, ,
tude no r afiction ? I f o ne purchases it here on

earth it is only through submission to the Cause of
,
All ; here on earth grief lls my soul as I recall

w here I the singer s a w the owery spot
, , .
8 And I said : Truly there is no good spot here

.
on earth truly in some other bourne there is glad

,
ness ; for what good is this earth ? Truly there is

another life in the hereafter There may I go there .
,
the sweet birds sing there may I learn to know

,
those good owers those sweet owers those de

, ,
l i c i o u s ones which alone pleasurably sweetly i n

, ,
toxicate which a lone pleasurably sweetly i nt oxi

, ,
c ate .
F LOWE R S ON G
( A nci ent M exi ca n Ind i a n)
1 .In the place of tears I the singer w atch my

, , ,
owers ; they are in my hand ; they intoxicate my

soul and my song as I w a lk alone with them with
, ,
my s a d soul among them .
2 In this Spot where the herbage is like sweet

.
,
ointment and green as the turquoise and emeral d ,
I think upon my song holding the beauteous owers

,
in my hand as I walk alone with them with my

, ,
s a d soul among them .
3 I n this sp ot of t urquoise a nd em erald , I think

.
1 94
A G uide to Myt hology
w hy he should spare it and he ordered h is servant s ,
t o cut it down When he s a w them hesitate he

.
Snatched an axe fro m one and thus impiously ex ,
claimed I care not whether it b e a tree b elo v ed o f

,
the goddess or not Were it the goddess h erself it .

S hould come down if it stood in my way ,
So s ay .
in g he lifted the axe , and the oak seemed to shudder

,
and utter a groan When the rst b lo w fell upon

.
the trunk b lood owed from the wound All the

,
.
b ystanders were horror struck and one of them ven -

,
f ured to remonstrate and hold b ack the fatal axe .
Er i s i c h t h o n with a scornful look said to him

,
Re , ,

c e i v e the reward of y o u r; piety and turned against ,
him t h e weapon which he had held asi d e from the

tree gashed his body with many wounds and c ut
, ,
O ff his head Then from the midst of the oak came

.
a voice : I who dwell in this tree am a nymph b e ,
loved by Ceres and dying by your hands forew a rn

, , ,

you that punishment a w aits you He desisted not .
from his crime ; and at last the tree sundered by ,
rep eated blows and drawn b y ropes fell with a crash , ,
a n d prostrated a great part of the grove in its fall .
The dryads in dismay at the loss of their com

,
panion and at seeing th e pride of the forest laid

,
l o w went in a body to Ceres a ll clad in garments of

, ,
mourning and invoked punishment upon E ri s ich

,
thon S he nodded her assent and as Sh e bowed her

.
,
head the grain ripe for harvest in th e laden elds

,
bowed also S he plann ed a punishment s o dire that

.
one would pity him if such a culprit as he could ,

be pitied to deliver him over to F am ine As Ceres .
1 96
Tree an d Plan t Myt hs
h erself could no t approac h F amine f o r the F ate s ,
have ordained that these two goddesses shall never

come together She called on Oread from her mo un
,

tain and spoke to her in these words There i s !
a place in the farthest part of ice clad S cythia a -

,
s a d and sterile region without trees and without
crops Cold dwells there and F ear and S hudder

.
, ,
ing and Famin e Go and tell the last to take posses

,
.
sion of the bowels of Eris i c h t h o n Let not A b i m d .
ance subdue her nor the po wer of my gifts drive her

,
away Be not alarmed at the distance for F amine

.
,
dwells very far from Ceres but take my chariot ,

.
The dragons are eet an d obey the rein and will ,

take you through the air in a short time S o Sh e .
gave her the reins and s h e drove away and soon

,
reached S cythia On arriving at Mount C aucasus

.
s h e s t e p p e d the dr a gons and found F amine in a
stony eld pulling u p with te eth and claws the

,
scanty herb a ge Her hair was ro ugh her eyes sunk

.
, ,
her face pale her lips blanched her j aws covered

, ,
with dust and her Skin drawn tight so as to show

, ,
all her bones As Oread s a w her a far o ff (for Sh e

.
did no t dare to come near ) She delivered the c o m ,
mands of Ceres ; and though s h e stopped as short a

t ime as possi b le and kept her distance as well as
,
She could yet s h e began to feel hungry and turned

, ,
the dragons heads and drove b a ck to Thessaly

.
F amine obeyed the c ommands of Ceres and sped

t hrough the air to the d w elling of Er i s i ch t h on en ,
t er e d the bed chamber of the guilty man and found

-
,
h im a sleep S he enfolded him with her wings and

.
1 97
A Guide to Myt h ol ogy
breathed herself into him i nf using her poison into ,
h i s veins Having disc harged her task s h e hastened

.
,
to leave the land of plenty and returned to her a c e
customed haunts Er i s i c h t h on still slept and in his

.
,
dreams craved food and moved his j aws as if eating ,

.
When he awoke h i s hunger was r a ging Without a .
moment s delay he would have food set before him

,
of whatever kind earth sea or air produces and , , ,
complained of hunger even while he ate What .
would have sufced for a city or a nation was not

enough for him The more he ate the more he
.
craved .
Hi s property rapidly diminish ed under the un

ceasing demands of his appetite but his hunger con ,
t inu e d unabated At length he had Spent all and had

.
,
only his daughter left a daughter worthy of a better ,
parent Her too h e sold S he scorned to be t h e

.
, ,
.
slave of a purchas er and as s h e stood by the sea , ,
side raised her hands in prayer to Neptune He

,
.
heard her prayer and though her ne w master was

, ,
not far o ff and had his eyes on her a moment before

, ,
Neptune changed her form and made her assume ,
th at of a sherman busy at his o ccupation Her mas .
ter looking for her and seeing her in her altered

,
form addressed her and sai d

,
Good sherman ,
whither went the maiden whom I s a w j ust now with ,
h a ir dishevelled and in humble garb standing about ,
where you stand ? Tell me truly so may your luck ,
be good and not a sh nibble a t your hook a nd g e t

,

away . S he perceived that her prayer was a n
s w er e d a nd rej o i ce d inwa rdly at h eari ng herself i n c

,
1 98
the reeds and produced a plaintive melody P an de .
,
lighted w ith the musi c and with the novelty of the

experience exclaimed,
Thus then at least yo u, , , ,

Shall be mine S o he took some of the reeds of
.
,
unequal lengths and placing them together side by

,
side he made an instrument and called it S yrinx

, ,
i n honor of the nymph .
P O M ONA AND VE RT U M N U S
( Roma n)
Pomona was a hamad ryad who presided over fruit

trees and especially over apple orchards S he had .
scorned t h e off ers of love made her by Pan and

other spirits of the woods and also those of Ver ,
t u mnu s the god of gardens and of the changing

,
seasons But unwearied he wooed her in as many

.
, ,
guises as his seasons themselves could assume No w .
as a reaper now as haymaker no w as ploughman

, , ,
no w as vine dresser no w as apple picker no w as

-
, ,
sherman no w a s soldier all to no avail

, ,
.
At last he disguised himself as an old woman

and came to her He admired her fruit especially
.
,
the luxuriance of her grapes and enlarged upon the ,
dependence of the luxuriant vine close by upon the , ,
elm to which it was clinging ; advised Pomona like ,
,

wise to choose some youth s a y for instance the ,
,

young Vertumnus about whom to twine her arms .
Then he told the melancholy tale of h o w the worthy

I p h i o spurned by Anaxarete had hanged himself
, ,
t o her g a te post ; and h ow the gods had turned

-
2 00
Tree a nd Plan t Myths
the hard hearted vi rgin to stone even as s h e gazed
-
on her lover s funeral Consider these things,

.

dearest child said the seeming old wom an , lay
,
aside thy scorn and t h y delays and accept a ,
lover. S o may neither the vernal frosts blight

thy young fruits nor furious winds scatter thy
,
blossoms !
When Vertumnus had thus spoken he dropped h is
disguise and stood before Pomona in his proper
,
person a comely youth Pleased with such ardent

,
.
wooing Pomona c onsented and became h is wife

,
.
Altho u gh t h e god Osiris in E gy p tian Mythology

h as been frequently identied with the s un there is ,
no doubt that he was also regarded as a god of vege

t a t io n There is a representation of him in one
.
o f the great temples in E gypt in which the dead
body of Osiris is Shown with stalk s of c orn spring

ing from it and a pries t is watering the stalks from
,
a pitcher which he holds in his hands The i ns cr i p .
tion which accompanies this representation sets

forth This i s the form of h im one may not name

, ,
Osiris of the Mysteries who springs from the r e ,

turning wa ters He is often spoken of also as
.
, ,

The one in the tree The solitary one in the
,

Acaci a The myth here related seems to be o ne
.
of the death o f vegetation slain by the evil Typhon ,

.
This was caused in E gypt by drought while the ,
springing up of v egetation w a s caused by the annual

overow of the Nile .
A si m ilar myth exists in Gree c e in w h ich the god

201
o vegetation Adonis i s m ourned by Aphrodite also
f , , ,
called Cypri s and Cytherea (Rom an Venus) , w h o

lo v ed h im .
M YT H OF O S IRI S AN D I S I S
(Egyp tia n)
Osiris and I sis were at one tim e ind uc ed t o de
scend t o the earth to bestow gifts and blessing s on

its inhabitants Isis showed them rst the us e of
.
wheat and barley and Osiris made the instruments

,
of agriculture and taught men the u s e of them as ,
well as h o w t o harness the ox to the plough He then .
gave m en laws the institution of marriage a civil

, ,
organization and taught them h ow to worship the

,
gods After he h ad thus made the v alley of the

.
Nile a happy c ountry he assembled a host with ,
whi c h he went to bestow his blessings upon the rest

o f the w orld He conquered the nations everywhere
.
b u t only with music and eloquence His brothe r .
Typ h on s a w this and sough t during his absence t o

,
u surp his t h rone But Isis who held t h e reins of

.
,
govern ment frustrated his plans S till more i mb it

,
.
t e re d he no w resolved to kill his brother

,
Hav .
ing organized a c onspiracy of seventy t w o m em -
bers h e went with them to the feas t which was

,

celebr a ted in honor of the king s return He then .
c a used a box or chest to be brought in which had ,
been made to t exactly the size of Osiris and de ,

~
cl a r e d that he would give that chest of preciou s
wood to whosoever could get into it The rest tried .
in v ain but no sooner was Osiris in it than Typ h on

,
2 02
A . Guide to Mythology
to which p ilgrimages were made from a ll parts of
the coun t ry A temple of surpassing magnicence
.
was also erected there in honor of the g o d and ,
a t every place where one o f his limb s had b een

found mi nor temples and tombs were built in com
me moratio n of the ev ent ~
T HE DEAT H OF A D QN I S
( Fro m Bi o n

s La ment f rAod a ms )
'
Lo w on the hills is lying the lovely Adonis and ,
his thigh w i th the boar s tusk his white thigh with

,
the boar s tusk is w ounded and sorrow o n Cypris he

, ,
brings as softly he breathes his life away

,
.
To Cypris his kiss is dear though he live s no ,
longer but Adonis knew no t that s h e kissed him

,
whenas h e d i e d
'
Wo e w o e f or Ad onis , th e Lo ves j o in i n th e la
,
ment !
A cruel cruel wound on his thigh h ath A d onis but
, ,
a deeper wound in her heart Cythere a bears About .
him his dear hounds are loudly h a yi ng and the ,
nymphs of the wild wood wail h im; but Aphrodite

with unbound l ooks through the glades goes wander

ing wretched with hair unbra ided with feet un
, ,
sandalled and t h e t h orns as s h e pa sses wound her

,
~
,
a nd pluc k the bloss o m of her sacred b lood S hrill .
s h e wails as do w n the lon woodlands h is b

g s e o rne ,
lamenting h er Assyrian lord and again c alling h im ,
a nd again .
Andrew La ng s t ra ns l a t i o n

.
204
Tree and P lan t Myths
Wo e ,
w oe f or Cy th erea , th e Loves j oi n i n th e la
ment !
No more in the o a k woods Cypris lament thy , ,
lord It is no fair couch f o r Adonis the lonely bed

.
,
of reeds !
No w lay him down to sleep in his own soft cover
lets in a couch all o f gold that yearns for A d o nl s
, , ,
though s a d is he to look upon Cast on him garlands .
and blossoms : all things have perished in his death ,
yea all the owers are faded S prinkle him with

,
.
ointments o f S yria sprinkle him with ungu ents of

,
myrrh Nay perish all perfumes for Adonis who

.
, , ,
was thy perfume hath perished ,

.
He reclines the delicate Adonis in his raiment o f

, ,
purple and around him the Loves are weeping and

, ,
groaning aloud clipping their l o oks for Adonis And

,
.
one upon his shafts another on his bo w is treading

, ,
and one hath loosed the sandals o f Adonis and a n ,
other hath broken his o w n feathered quiver and ,
o ne in a golden vessel bears water and another laves ,
the wound and another from behind him with his

,
wings is fanning Adonis .
Wo e w o e f or C yth er e a th e L o ves j oi n i n th e la
, ,
!
ment !
And w oe woe ,
for Adonis shrilly cry th e Mu ses
, ,
neglecting P aean ( Ap o llo ) a n,

d they lament Adonis
aloud and songs
,
they chant to him , but he does not
205
h eed them not th a t he i s loath to hear, but th at th e
,
Maiden of Hades doth no t let him go .
Cease, Cytherea from thy lamentations t o day re

, ,
-
frain from thy dirges Tho u must again Mw a il

.
h im, a gain must w eep for a nother year .
20 6
A G ui de to Myth ology
c i e ncyfor their su p port changed this design and , ,
arranged that they shoul d die The daughter of the .
S un w a s the rst to suffer under t his la w S he w a s .
bitten by a serpe nt and died Thereupon the Sun ,

.
decreed that men should live always At the same .
time he commissioned a f ew persons to take a bo x

, ,
and s eek the spirit of his daughter and return with ,
it encased therein In no wise must the bo x h e .
opened But the box was opened Immor t ality ed

. . .

Men mu st die .
The S un God w a s not al w ays a ble to c arry eve ry

-
thing before him a s the story o f his battle with the

,
Hare God sh ows as well as the various stories a b out

-
,
h is being ensnared and his course regulated In .
some countries the Sun is the hus b a nd o f the

,
Moo n in others the Moon is the husb and of the

,
S un Again the Moon will b e the sister o f the Sun

.
o r the Sun th e sister o f the Moon .
T HE NAVA J O S TORY O F T HE MAKING OF T HE SU N,
M OON ,
A ND S TAR S
At th e
begi nn ing when the people had all crept
,
o u t o f the aper t ure in the cave in which they had
r ev1 o u s l lived a council of wise men was hel d to

p y ,
discuss the p ropriety of introducing more light upon

the earth which at that time w a s very small b eing
, ,
lit only by a twilight like that seen just at the ,
breaking o f da w n Ha vmg deliberated some tim e

.
,
the wise men concluded to h a ve a sun and moon and ,
a variety of stars plac ed above the earth They rst .
208
Myt h s of th e S un Moon , and S t a rs
,
ma de the heavens for them to be placed in ; then the

old men of the N a va jo s commenc ed building a sun ,
which was done in a large house constru c ted for t h e

purpose.
To the other tribes w a s con ded the making of

t h e moon and stars which they soon accomplished ;
,
when it was decided to give the s un and moon

to the guidance of the t w o dumb F luters who h a d ,
gured with some importance as musicians in their

former place of residence in the cave and one of ,
whom had a cc identally conc eived the plan of leaving

that place for their present more agreeable quarters .
These t w o men who have carried the t w o heavenly

,
bodies ever since staggered at rst with their weight ;

,
a nd the one who carried the sun came near burning

the earth by bearing it too near before he had ,
rea c hed the aperture in the mountain through which

he was to pass during the night This misfortune .
,
h owever was prevented by the old men who pu ff ed

, ,
the smoke of their pipes toward it which caused it ,
t o retire to a greater distance in the heavens These .
men have been obliged to do this four times since the

dumb man the F luter has carried the sun in the

heavens ; f o r the earth has grown very much larger
than at the beginning and co nsequently the s un
,
would have to be removed or the earth a nd all there

,
in would perish in i t s heat Now after the s un and

.
,
moon had taken their places the people commenced

,
embroidering the stars upon the heavens the wise

men had made i n be a utiful and varied patterns
,
and i m ages Bears and shes and all v arieties of

.
209
A G uide to Myt h ol ogy
animals were being skilfully drawn when in rushed ,
a prairie wolf roughly exclaiming : What folly is

,
this ? Why are you making all this fuss to make a

bit of embroidery ? Just stick the stars about the
s ky anywhere ; and suiting the action to the word
, ,
the villanous wolf scattered a large pile all over the

heavens Thus it is that there is such confusion
.
among the f ew images which the t a ste ful N avajos

had s o carefully elaborated .
TH E S TORY O F TH E CON QUE RIN G O F TH E SU N
( N or th A merica n Ind i a n)
Once up on a time T a vw o t z the Hare God w a s

'
- -
, ,
sitting with his family by the camp r e in the sol -
e mn woods anxiously waiting for the return of T a vi

-
, ,
the wayw ard S un God Weary with long wa t c hing

-
.
,
the Hare God fell asleep and the S un God came s o

-
,
-
near that h e scorched t h e shoulders of T a vw o t z

-
.
F oreseeing the vengeanc e which would be thus pro

v o ke d he ed back t o h i s cave beneath the earth
,
.
T a vw o t z awoke in great wrath and speedily deter

'
mined to go and ght the S un God -

.
After a long j ou rney of many adventures the

Hare God came to the brink of the earth and there
-
,
watched long and pa t iently till at last the S un God , ,

-
coming out he shot a n arrow in his face ; but the

,
e rce heat c onsum e d the arro w ere it h a d nished

its course Then other arrows were sped till only
.
,
o n e remained in h i s quiver
; but this was the magical
arrow that never failed its mark T a vw o t z holding
'
-
.
,
21 0
HY M N T o T HE SU N
( North Ameri ca n Indi a n)
Great S pirit ! Master o f o ur lives Great S pirit ! .
Master of things visible and invisible and who daily ,
makes them v isible and inv isible Great S pir it ! .
Master of every other spirit good or bad command

, ,
the good to be favorable unto us , and deter the bad

from the commission o f evil .
O Grand S pirit ! preserve the strength and cour

age of our warriors and augment their numbers that
, ,
they may resist oppression from our enemies, and

recover our country and the rights of our fathers .
O Grand S pirit ! preserve the lives of such of our

o l d men as are inclined to give counsel to the young .
Preserve ou r children and multiply their number ,
and let them be the comfort and support of declining

age Preserve our corn and o ur animals and let no
.
,
famine desolate the land Protect our villages guard

.
,
our lives !
O Great S pirit ! when h idden in the west protect
u s from our enemies who v iolate the night and do
,
evil when thou art not present Good S pirit ! make

.
known to u s your pleasure by sending to u s the

S pirit of Dreams Let the S pirit o f Dreams pro
.
claim thy will in the night and we will perform it

,
in the day ; and if it s a y the time of some be closed ,
send them Master of Life to the great country of

, ,
souls, where they m ay meet their friends and where ,
tho u a rt pleased to shine upon the m with a brigh t ,
w ar m and perpet ual blaze !

21 2
Myt hs of t h e S un Moon , and S t a rs ,
0Grand O Great S pirit ! hearken to the voice

,
of the nations hearken t o all thy children and r e

, ,
m ember u s always for we are descended from thee

, .
Cour a ge nations , c our age ! the Great S pirit now

, ,
above our heads will make us vanquish our ene

,
mies ; he will c over our elds with corn and increase ,
the animals of o ur woods He will s e e that the old .
h e made happy and that the young augment

,
He .
will make the nations prosper make them rej oice , ,
and make them put up their voice t o him while he ,
rises and sets in their land and while his heat and ,
light can thus gloriously shin e out .
The nations must prosper ; they have been looked

upon by the Great S pirit What more can they .
wish ? Is not that happiness enough ? S ee he r e ,

tires great and content after having visited his chil

, ,
dren with light and universal good .
O Grand S pirit ! sleep not longer in the gloomy

west but return and call your people to light and
,

life to light and life to light and life .
HYMN TO S UE Y A , T HE SU N
( rom th e

F R ig Veda )
His h era ld s h ea r h im up a l o ft ,
t h e go d w h o kno w e h t a ll th a t
li ves ,
S ury a th a t a ll ma y l o o k o n h im
,
.
T h e co ns te ll a t i ons p a s s a w a y li ke t hi e ves to geth er

, ,
wi th
th e ir b ea ms ,
Before t h e a ll b eh o lding Sun

-
.
21 3
His h era ld ra ys refulgent o er t h e w o rld of men
a re s ee n a a r f
,
Li ke a mes o f re th a t h um a nd b l a z e .
S w ift a nd a ll b e a ut if ul a rt th o u O S urya ma ke r o f t h e li gh t
, , ,
I ll umi ng a ll t h e ra di a nt rea lm
Th o u go es t t o t h e h os ts o f t h e go ds th o u c omes t h ith er t o ,
ma nki nd ,
Hi th e r a ll ligh t t o b e b eh eld .
Tra vers ing s ky a nd w ide mid a ir,

-
th o u ma kes t wi ht thy
b e a ms da y s
o ur ,
Sun s ee ing a ll t h ings th a t h a ve b irth

,
.
S e ven b a y s t ee d s h a rnes s e d t o t h y c a r b ea r th ee O th o u f a r ,
s ee i ng o ne ,
Go d S ury a w i th t h e ra di a nt h a i r
, ,
.
S ury a h a th y o ke d t h e p ure b righ t s e ven t h e d a ugh t ers o f t h e ,
c h a ri o t
With th es e s e lf yo ke d h e go e th fo rth
,
-
, .
Loo k i ng up o n t h e l o ft i e r ligh t a b o ve t h e d a rkne s s w e h a ve

co me
T o S ury a , g o d a mong t h e go ds , t h e ligh t th a t is mos t exc ell ent .
TH E WOR S HI P O F TH E SU N AND TH E DREA M O F ,
O N A W U T A QU T O
( N o r th A meri ca n I ndi a n)
On the shores of Lake Huron there lived a long ,
time ago an aged O dji bw a an d his wife who had

, ,
an only s on a very beautiful boy whose n a me was

O na w u t a qu t o or He that catches Clouds
,
These .
parents were proud of their s o n and anticipated the ,
time when they should s e e him a celebrated warrior .
But when Ona w ut a qut o arrived at the prope r age ,
h e was unwilling to submit to the fast prescribed to

youths entering manhood, which very m u c h disturbed
21 4
When he had nished he turned t o his sister saying : ,
Ne mi s s a my elder sister when will you quit these

, ,
practi ces ? DO you forge t that the Great S pirit has

commanded that you should not take away the chil
dren from below ? Perhaps you suppose that you
have eff ectually concealed Ona w u t a qu t o and I do ,
not know o f his presence If you would not o ff end

.

me send him immediately down to his parents
,
.
But Ne mi s s a was resolved to retain the young man ,
and the brother desisted from urging his request .
Addressing the youth he said : Come forth from

,
your concealment and walk about and amuse your

,

self ! You will become hungry if you rema i n there .
He then presented him with a bow and arrow and a

'
pipe of red stone elaborately ornamented This was .
a signal that he consented to the marriage of Nemi s s a

to Ona w u t a qut o which imm ediately took place The
,
.
young man found that the lodge which w a s now ,
his home w a s situated in the most delightful part

,
of the plain ; and all things the owers and trees

and birds were more beautiful than any on earth .
The streams ran more swiftly and gleamed like sil ,
ver The animals were full of enjoyment while the

.
,
birds wore feathers of gorgeous colors Ona w ut a .
q u to O bserved that the brother regularly left in the

mo rning returning in the ev ening when his sis t er
, ,
would depart remaining away a portion of the

,
night This aroused h i s curiosity, and wishing to

.
,
solve the mystery of this singular habit he sought ,
and obtained consent to accompany the brother in

o ne of h i s d a ily j o u rneys They trav elled over a
.
21 6
Myt h s of the Sun Moon , and S tars ,
sm ooth pla i n Wi thout boundaries until Ona w u t a qut o ,
felt exceedingly fatigued and very much in need o f

food and he asked his compan i on if there were no
,

game in that region Patience my b rother a n
.
, ,

s w e r e d he we Shall soon reach the spot where I
,
eat my dinner and you will then see in what way

,

I am provided After walking on a long time they
.
,
came to a place which was spread o ver with very

ne mats where they s a t down to rest There w as
,
.
at this place a round aperture in the s ky l o oking ,
through which Ona w u t a qu t o discovered the earth ,
with its gleaming lakes and thick forests In some .
places he could s e e the villages of the Indians and ,
in others he s a w a war party stealing upon the cam p

o f its enemy In another place he saw feasting and
.
dancing where on the green plain young men were

, , ,
engaged at ball Along the stream the women were

.
employed in gathering a p ukw a f o r mats Do you .

s ee
,
said the brother that group of children play ,
ing beside a lodge ? Observe that beautiful and a o

tive boy said he at the same time darting some
, ,

thing at him from his hand The child immediately .
fell upon the ground and was carried into a lodge ,
where the p eople gathered in crowds ; when Ona

w u t a qut o heard the Jossakeed or priest asking the , ,

child s life in the s h es h egw a m or song of entreaty

,
.
To this entreaty the compan i on of Ona w u t a qut o

made answer : S end me u p the sacrice of a white

dog . Immediate ly a feast was ordered by the par
ents of the child ; the white dog was killed his , ,
carcass was roasted and all the wise men and the ,
21 7
A G uide to Myt h olo gy
Jo s s a kee d of the village assembled t o witness the

ce remony There are many below
. said the ,
brother to Ona w ut a qut o whom you c all Jossakeed , ,
because of their great success in the medical science ,
but it i s to me they owe their skill When I have .
struck one of the people with Sickness the Jossakeed ,
directs them to look to me ; and when they send me

the o ffering I ask I remove my hand from o ff them
,

and they recover The sacrice was no w parcelled
.
o u t in dishes when the master O f the feast said :

,
We
send this to thee great Manito thou that dwellest
, ,

in the s un And immediately the roasted animal
.
came up to the two residents of the s ky After par .
taking o f this repast they returned to the lodge by ,
another way It was in this manner Ona w u t a qut o

.
lived for some time ; but at last he became wearied

o f such a life and thinking of his friends he had
, ,
left one day he asked permission of his wife to

,
return to the earth to which with great reluctance , ,
and with many delays She consented S ince v o u

,
.

are better pleased s h e said with the cares and
, ,
t h e ills and the poverty of your earthly life than with

the peaceful delights of the sky, go ! I give yo u
pe rmission and I will guide your return ; bu t re
,
member you are still my husband I hold a chain

,
.
in my hand by which I can draw you back whenever

I will Beware therefore h o w you venture to take
.
, ,
a wife among the people below S hould you ever .
do so it is then you shall feel the full force of my

,

displeasure A s s h e said this her eyes ashed and
.
s h e straightened herself u p with a majesti c air and ,
21 8
and her mother and all their subjects S o go and .

, .
ask your father for the best horse he h a s as if yo u

w anted a gallop and then if you want to be out ,
o f harm s way

ride a way w ithersoever yo u r eyes
,

guide yo u .
Prince Ivan r a n off to his father and for the rst ,
time in his li f e began speaking to him

,
.
At that the king was so delighted that he never

thought of asking what he wanted a good steed for ,
but immediately ordered the very best horse he had

in his stud to b e saddled for the prince .
Prince Ivan mounted and rode o ff without cari ng

,
where he went Long long did he ri d e

.
,
.
At length he came to where t w o old women were

sewing and he begged them to let him live with
,
them But they sai d

.
Gladly would we do so Prince Ivan only we , ,
have now but a short time to live As soon as we .
have broken that trunkful of nee d les and used up ,
that trunkful of thread that instant w ill death ar

,
rive !
Prince Ivan burst into tears and rode on Long .
,
long did he ride At length he came to where the

.
giant Ve r t o d ub w a s and he besought him saying :

, ,

Take me to live with yo u .

G l a dly would I have taken y o u Prince Ivan , ,
replied the giant but now I have very little longer

,
to live A S soon as I have pulled u p all these trees

.

by the roots instantly will c o me my death !
,
More bitterly still did the prin c e weep as he rod e

farther and farther on By and by h e c ame t o where
.
2 20
Myths of the Sun , Moon and S tars
,
the giant V e rt o go r was and made the same request

,
to him but he replied :

,
Gla dly would I have taken you Prince Ivan , ,
bu t I myself have very little longer to live I am s et .
here you know to level mountains The moment I

, ,
.
have settled matt ers with these you see remaining ,

then will my death come !
Prince Ivan burst into a ood of bitter tears and ,
rode on still farther Long lon g did he ride At

.
,
.
last he came to the dwelling o f the S un s S ister

.
S he receive d him into her house gave him food and ,
drink and treated h i m just as if he had been h e r

,
own so n .
The prince no w led an easy life But it was all .
no use ; he coul d n t help b eing miserable He longed

.
s o to know what was going on at home .
He often went to the top of a high mountain and ,
thence gazed at the palace in which he used to live ,
and he could s e e that it was all eaten away ; nothing

but the bare w alls remained ! Then he would sigh
and weep Once when he returned after he had
.
been thus looking and crying the S un s S ister asked

,

him :
What makes your eyes s o red to day Prince -
,

Ivan ?

The wind has been blowing in them said he ,
.
The same thing happened the second time Then .
the S un s S ister ordered the wind to stop blowing

.
Again a third time did Prince Ivan come back with

,
a blubbered fa c e This time there w a s no help for

.
i t ; he h a d to confess everything and then he took ,
221
A . G uide to Myt h ology
to entre a ting the S un s S ister to let hi m go t h at h e

,
might satisfy himself about his old home Sh e .
would not let him go but he went on urgently en

,
treating .
So at last he persuaded her and s h e let him go ,
away to nd out about his home But rst Sh e pro .
vi d e d him for the j ourney with a brush a comb , ,
and two youth giving apples However old anyone

-
.
might be let him eat one of these apples he would

, ,
grow young again in an instant .
Well Prince Ivan came to where Ve r t o go r was

,
.
There was only just o ne mountain left ! He took

his brush and cast it down on the Open plain I m .
s
mediately there rose out of the earth goodness knows ,
whence high ever s o high mountains , their peaks

, ,
touching the s ky And the number of them was

.
such that there were more than the eye could s ee !

Ver t o go r rej oiced gr eatly and blithely re c ommenced
his work .
After a time Prince Ivan came to where Ver

t o d ub was and found that there were only three
,
trees remaining there SO he took the comb and

.
ung it on the O pen plain Immediately from some.
where o r other there came a sound O f trees and ,
forth from the ground arose dense oak forests each ,
stem more huge than the others ! V grt o d ub was de

lighted thanked the prince and s e t to work uproot
, ,
ing the a ncient oaks .
By and by Prince Ivan reached the old women ,
and gave each o f them an apple They ate them and .

,
straightway became young agai n S o they gave him .
222
A Guide to Mytho logy
S o she set to work to clear the way S he gnawe d .
,
and gnawed and at lengt h contrived by hard work

,
to bore her way through ; but by this time Prince

Ivan was f a r ahead .
On she dashed in pursuit chased and chased Just ,

.
a little more and it would be impossible for him

,
to escape ! But Ve r t o go r spied the witch laid hold ,
of the v ery highest o f all the mountains pitched ,
it down all of a heap o n the road and ung another ,
mountain right on top o f it While the wi t ch was .
climbing and clambering Prince Ivan rode and rode , ,
and found himself a long way ahead At last the .
witc h got across th e mountain and once more s et o ff ,
in pursuit of her brother By and by s h e caught .
sight Of him and exclaimed :

You sha n t get away from me this time ! And

no w s h e is close now s h e is just going to catch him !

,
At that very moment Prince Ivan dashed up to

the abode of the S un s S ister and cried
.

S un Sun ! Open the window !
,

The S un s S is t er opened the window and th e ,
prince bounded through it horse and all , .
Then the witch began to ask that her brother might

be given up to her for punishment The S un s .

S ister would not listen to her nor would s h e give ,
him up Then the witch said :

.
Let Prince Ivan be weighed against me to see ,
which is the heavier If I am then I will eat him ;

.
,

but if he i s then let him kill me !
,
This was done Prince Ivan was the rst to get

.
into one of t h e s c ales ; then the wit ch began to get

2 24
Myt hs of the S un Moon and S t a r s , ,
into the other But no Sooner had she s et foot in

.
it than u p shot Prince Ivan in the air and that ,
with such force that he e w right up into the sky ,

and into the house o f the S un s S ister .
But as for the Witch S nake she remained down -

,
below on earth .
TH E M AKING O F TH E M IRROR
( Ja p a nes e)
Now , when Amaterasu the S un Goddess , ascended,

-
into her kingdom she reigned there peacefully in

,
great glory ; and the fair light of her beauty ooded

the earth and the heavens .

Her brother S usa w o at the time of his banish
,
ment to the under world beheld her shining and

-
,
said :
I will go and bid farewell to my sister the Su

Godde ss ere I depart !
,
SO he mounted to heaven with such sudden v io

lence that the rivers and mountains Shook and
groaned aloud , and every land and country quaked .
Am ateras u was greatly alarmed and said :

I
know my brother desires to take my kingdom from

me ! S o s h e girt on her ten span sword and her

-
nine span sword and her necklace of ve hundred

-
,
jewels which Sh e twisted round her hair and arms ,
and Sh e slung on her thousand arrow quiver and -

,
great high sounding elbow shield

-
Then s h e bran -
.
dished her bo w and stamped her feet into the hard

gr ound till it fell aw ay from her like rotten snow,
225
a nd she stoo d v aliantly, uttering a migh ty cry o f
dean c e .
Then S us a w o stood on the farther side of th e

-
Tr anquil River of Heaven, which is the Milky Way,

and answered h er softly with fair words :
O my sister ! I am come hither with a pure
heart to bid thee farewell Why dost thou put on a .

stern countenanc e ? Let m e but s ee thee once and

speak with thee face to face , ere I depart
,
Then
the h eart of the Sun Goddess was softened and she
-
,
let him enter a nd cross the River of Heaven But .
even here S us a w o c ould not rest from h i s turbulent

-
ways .
Now in h er wisdom, Amaterasu would wonder

,
h o w best to help and comfort ma nk ind and on a ,
certain day she sent S usa w o on a j ourney to nd -
her Sister the F ood Goddess a s s h e had many things

,
-
,
to inquire of her When the F ood Goddess looked

.
-
and s a w S usa w o descending toward her s h e quickly

-
,
prepared a great banquet in his honor and by her ,
miraculous power s h e produced from her mouth

boiled rice and every kind of sh and game But .
S usa w o watching her ew into a rage and cried

-
, ,
o ut : Thou art unclean ! Dost thou o ff er me what

comes from thy mouth ! And h e took out his
sword and slew her .
When Amaterasu heard this s h e w as v ery wroth ,
w ith her brother and sent a second m essenger to

,
s e e if the F ood Goddess were really dead

-
And .
w hen he found her behold a miracle ! All things

, ,
g ood for m an w ere gro w ing fro m her h ead and body .
226
A Gu
ide to Mythology

of all men said softly : S he is a woman and
, ,
surely will be curious Let u s Show her something

.

more beautiful than herself ! But as in all High
Heaven nothing fairer could be found they ma d e a ,
mighty mirror forged by the Blacksmith God from

,
the metals of heaven Yet the gods we re not satis

.
e d a nd commanded him to make another

,
S o with .
his anvil from the Milky Way and bellows fash , ,
i o ne d from a single deer skin b e forged a second

-
,
and yet a third and this last was perfect and a w

,
less in shape like the S un

,
.
And they lit great res outside the cave and hung
the mirror there on the branches of the sacre d S akaki
tree above it a necklace of ever bright and glittering
,
-
jewels and below it some strips of ne woven cloth

,
-
.
Then the Wise God took from his fellows s i x long

bows and bound them together and placed them ,
u pright in the ground and gently brushed t h e

strings .

And the fair Goddess Am no U z um w a s led -
forth to dance her owing sleeves bound u p with

,
the creeping plant Masaki and her head dress of

,
-
trailing Kadsura vine gathered from the mountains

,
of Heavenly F ragrance and in her hands the

,
branches of young bamb oos hung with tiny bells .
These s h e waved rhythmically to and fro to the

sound of her stepping and as th e humming of the
,
bo w strings rose and fell the eighty Myriad Gods

-
,
s a t around her and joyfully beat the measure .
S he sang o f the beauty of an unknown goddess ,
and a s h er bo dy swayed in cadenc e the great a ssem ,
228
Myt hs of t h e Sun Moon and S tars , ,
bly o f gods laughed aloud till the vault of he aven

shook .
The S un Goddess wondered greatly a t all t h i s

-
mirth and music and said : How is it that while

,
the whole Plain of Heaven and the Land of the

Reed Plains is darkened U z um sings and frolics
-
, ,

and the eighty Myriad Gods do laugh ? S he
peeped inquisitive out of the cave .
U z um still sang of the beauty of the Unknown

Goddess , a nd the words of the rst song we re these :
G o ds ! fro m t h e vern s gl oom

ca

Co mes s h e ma je s t i c a l .
S h a ll no t o ur h e a rts re jo i c e ?
Mine is t h e vi c t o ry !
Wh o ca n res is t my ch a rms ?
Ha il Eve r S h ining One !
,
-

And wondering longing yet unwilling to ven
ture forth Amaterasu looked from the depths of the

,
cave and listened to the strains and heard the gods ,
make merry ; till opening wider the door She stoo d

, ,
upon the th reshold .
T w o gods hastily held forward the mirror and ,
sh e s a w,
amazed the vision of her own exceeding
,
lovelines s Then the rst ush of dawn appeared

.
suddenly in the east there was a stir as o f awaken

,
ing birds the mountain tops blushed pink and all

,
-
,
the gods held their breath .
S he stepped f o r w ard softly still gaz ing entranc e d , ,
while broad shafts of light Shot upward in the sky ,
a nd her glory lled the air wit h rosy radian ce As .
22 9
sh elooked on her i ne a ble beauty the Wise God, ,
twisting a rice straw rope stretched i t across the

-
,

mouth of the cave for never more could s h e desire
to hide her face from a sorrowing world .
And thus with the sunshine c ame musi c a nd d an c

ing for the delight of men
,
.
In Norse mythology the story is told that the

,
h eavenly bodies were formed of the sparks from

Muspelheim The gods did not create them but
.
,
they placed them in the heaven s to give light to

the world and assigned the m a prescribed locality
,
and motion Mund ilf a r e was the father of the s un

.
and moon He had two children, a s on and a

.
daughter s o lovely and graceful that he called

,
the boy Maane ( Moon ) , and the girl S ol ( S un ) ,
and S0 1 he gave in marriage to Glener ( the S hining

One )
. .
The gods however were much incensed at the

, ,
presumption of Mundilf a re s o they took his t w o ,
children and placed them in the heavens where they ,
let S ol drive the horses o f the S un while Maane ,
guides the Moon and regulate s its increasing and

w aning aspect .
Very closely akin to a god of the S un in N orse

mythology i s Balder the Good He is the favorite .
o f all the gods and of all men and nature S o fair .
and dazzling is he in form and features that rays of

light seem to issue from him S ome idea Of the .
bea u ty of h i s hair may be formed from the fact

that the w hitest of a ll plant s i s c alled Balder s brow .
2 30
In Greek mythology there are t w o gods o f the
1
s un and t w o goddesses o f the moon The older .
"
ones were Helios and S elene but they became iden ,
t i e d with the later celebrated pair Ph oebus Apollo ,
and Artemis or Diana as the R o mans called her, ,
the chil d ren of Zeus, the God of the S ky and Latona ,

.
Apollo was not only a god of t h e sun who brought ,
the warm s un and the spring but he w a s the healer , ,
who warded O ff the dangers and diseases of summer

and autumn He had a temple at Delphi where a
.
,
priestess was wont to give fort h oracles in regard

to the future supposed to b e revealed b y Apollo
,
.
He w a s a founder of cities a promoter of coloniza ,
tion a giver o f good laws and nally he was the

, , , ,
patron of music and p oetry To him were sacred .
,
e ,
h
the wolf the roe the mous the e goat the ram , , ,
the dolphin and the swan

,
.
An ancient hymn by Callimachus ( 2 4 0 de
scribes him as follows :

Ho w h ath the laurel Shoot of Apollo h e a ved !
Ho w the whole of the Shrine ! Afar afar be ye s in , ,
ners N o w verily doth Ph oebus kn ock at the doors

.
with beauteous foot S ee you not ? The Delian

.
palm has nodded in a pleasant fashion on a sudden ,
and the swan sings sweetly o n the air No w o f .
your own accord fall back ye bolts of the d Oo r s and

, ,
o f yourselves ye b a rs F or no long er is the go d

,
.
afar o ff Make ready ye young men for the song

.
, ,
and the choir Not to every one doth Apollo mani

.
See Ga yley s Cl a s s i c My t h s in Englis h Li t e a t u e

r r .
232
Ap o ll o wi th the Ly re . Glyp to th ek , M u ni ch .
h erse lf never to fall in love or marry and s o s h e ,
imposed upon the nymphs s h e gathered about her

v ows of perpetual maidenhood and if any of t h em ,
broke these vows s h e punished them severely and

swiftly Graceful in form and free of movement
.
,
equipped for the chase and surrounded by a bevy of ,
fair companions the swift rushing goddess was wont

,
-
t o scour hill vall e y forest , and p lain

,
Sh e was
,
.
,
however not only huntress but guardian of wild

, ,
beasts mistress of horses and kine and other do

,
me s t i c brutes S he ruled marsh and mountain ;

.
her gleaming arrows smote s e a as well as land .
S prings and woodland brooks s h e favored for in ,
them s h e and her attendants were accustomed to

bathe S he blessed with verdure the meadows and
.
arable lands and from them obtained a meed of

,
thank s When weary of the chase s h e turned to

.
,
musi c and dancing for the lyre and ute and song
,
were dear to her Muses graces nymphs and the

.
, , ,
fair goddesses themselves thronged the rites of the

ch o rus leading queen But ordinarily a woodland
-
.
chapel o r a rustic altar suf ced for her worship .
There the hunter laid his off ering antlers skin , ,
or edible portions of the deer that Artemis of the

golden arrows had herself v ouchsafed him .
S he w a s m istress of the brute creation prote o ,
tress of youth patron of temperance in all things,

,
guardian of civil right The cypress tree was sacred .
to h er ; and her favorites were the bear the boar, ,
t h e dog the go at and especially the hind

, ,
.
A pretty pi c ture i s given of Artemis in a hymn

2 34
Myt h s of th e Sun, M oon and S tar s
,
by Callim a ch us whic h describes h o w when sittin g ,
yet a blooming child on t h e knees of h er sire s h e ,
thus addressed him :

Grant me kind fat h er, to preserve eternal

,
maid enho od a n d many names that s o Ph oeb us may

, ,
not vie with me And give me arrows and b ow. .
Grant it sire ! I a s k not a quiver of thee nor a

, ,
large bow : the cyclopes will forthwith forge me

arrows and fashion a exible b o w And I ask t o
,
.
be gi rt a s far as t h e kn ee wi t h a tunic of colored

border that I ma y sl a y wild beasts An d give m e
,
.
s ixty ocean nymphs to form my chorus all young ,
and of the s a me ag e Give me likewise as attend .
ants twenty A mni s i a n nymphs who may duly take ,
care of my buskins and when I no longer a m , ,
shooting lynxes and stags may tend my eet dogs ,

.
Give me all mountains and assign to me any city , ,
whichsoever thou choosest F or twill be rare when

'
.
,
Artemis s h a ll go down into a city On mountains .
will I dw ell .

Thus having spoken the maiden wished to touch ,
the beard of her Sire, and oft outstr et c hed her hands
to no purpose until at last s h e might touch it
,
.
Then her father assented with a smile and said as ,
he fondled her : Have child whatever you a s k o f , ,
your own choice ; but other yet greater gifts will

your sire bestow Thrice te n cities will I present to
.
you which shall not learn to honor any other god

, ,
but thee alone and shall be called the cities of Arte

,
m is And I will give thee many c ities t o m e a sure

.
235
o utin common with other gods on the continent and ,
islands ; in all shall be altars an d sacred groves o f

Artemis and thou shalt be guardian over ways and
,

harbors .
TH E D EATH O F BALDE R TH E GOOD

( ro m th e N o rs e Edda s )
F
This w a s an event which the asas deemed of

great importance Balder the Good having been
.
tormented by terrible dreams indicating that his ,
life was in great peril communicated them to,
the assembled gods who sorrow stricken resolved

, ,
-
,
to conjure all things to avert from him the threat

ened danger Then F rigg exacted an oath from
.
re and w ater from iron and all other metals as

, ,
well as from stones earths diseases beasts birds

, , , , ,
poisons and creeping things that none of them

, ,
would do any harm to Bal d er S till O din feared .
that the pros p erity o f the gods had vanished He .
saddled his steed S leipner and rode down t o Ni

heim where the dog from Hel met him ; it was
,
bloody on the breast and barked a long time at Odin .
Odin advanced ; the earth trembled b eneath him and ,
he came to the high dwelling of Hel E ast of t h e .
door he knew the grave of the val a was situated :
thither he rode and sang magic songs ( kva o ga ld r a ) ,

until s h e unwillingly stood u p and asked who dis
t urb e d her peace after She had been lying s o long
,
c overed with snow and wet w ith d ew Odin called .
himself Vegt a m a s on of Va lt a m and asked f or

, ,
wh om the ben ches w ere strewn with rings and the

236
i ngs . The woman ( Loke ) replied th a t they were
throwing darts and stones at B alder w itho ut being
a ble to hurt him

Ay said F rigg neit h er m etal nor wood can
, ,
h urt Balder for I h a v e exa c ted a n o ath from all of

,

them .

What ! exclaimed the woman have all ,
things sworn to Spare Balder ?

All things replied F rigg ,
except one little ,
shrub that grows on the easte rn Side of Va lh a l and ,
i s called mistletoe and which I thought too young

,

and feeble to c rave an oath from .
As soon as Loke heard this he went away and , ,
resuming his natural form pulled u p the mistletoe ,
and repaired to the place where the gods were as

sembled There he found H Od e r standing far to
.
o ne side without engaging in the Sport on ac count
o f h i s blindness Loke going u p to him said :

.
, ,
Why do not you also throw something at Balder ?

Because I am blind answered HOd e r

and , ,
cannot s ee where Balder is and besides I have noth ,

ing to throw at him .

Come then said Loke ,
do like the rest and
, , ,
Show honor to Balder by throwing this twig at him ,
and I will direct your arm toward the place where

he stands .
HOd e r then took the mistletoe and under the ,
guidance of Loke darted it at Balder who, pierced ,
through and through fell down lifeless S urely ,

.
nev er was there witnessed either among gods or ,
men, a m ore a trocious deed than this ! When Balder

238
Myths of the Sun , Moon , and S tars
fell the gods were struck speec hless with horror and ,
then they looked at each other ; and all were of one

mind to lay hands on him who had done the deed ,
but they were obliged to delay their vengeance out

of respect for the sacred place ( place of pe ace )
where they were assembled They at length gave .
vent to their grief by such loud lamentations that

they were not able to express their grief to one a n
other . Odin however felt this misfortune most
, ,
severely because he knew best how great was the

,
mischief and the loss which the gods had sustained

by the death of Balder When the gods were a little
.
c omposed Frigg asked who a mong them wished t o

,
gain all her love and favor by riding to the lower

world to try and nd Balder and Offer a ransom ,
to Hel if She would permit Balder to return to As

gard ; whereupon Hermod surnamed the Nimble , ,
off ered to undertake the j ourney Odin s horse .

S leipner was then led forth and prepared for the

j ourney ; Hermod mounted him and galloped hastily
away .
The gods then took the dead body of B alder and

carried it to the s e a where lay Balder s ship R i ng
,

,
s
h or n which was the largest of all ships

,
But when .
they wanted to launch this ship in order to make ,

Balder s funeral pile on it they were unable to ,
move it from the pl a ce In this predicament they

.
sent a messenger to Jotunheim for a certain giantess

named Hyr ro ke n ( the smoking re ) who came rid ,
ing on a wolf and had twisted serpents for her reins .
As s o on a s s h e alighted Odin ordered four bers erks

23 9
to hold her steed but they were obliged to throw
,
t h e animal down on the ground before they could

manage it Hyrr oke n then went to the prow of the
.
ship and with a single push s e t it aoat ; but the

,
motion was s o violent that re sparkled from the

un d erlaid rollers and the whole world shook Thor .
,
enraged at the Sight grasped his mallet and would ,
have broken the woman s skull had not the gods in
t erc e d e d for her Balder s body was then carried

.
to the funeral pile o n board the ship a nd this cere ,
mony had such an e ffect Upon Balder s wife Nanna

,
daughter of Nep that her heart broke with grief

, ,
and her body was laid upon the same pile and burned
with that of her husb and Thor stood beside the .
pile and consecrated it with his hammer Mjolner .
Before his feet sprang u p a dwarf called Lit Thor .
kicked him with his foot into the re so that he ,
also was burned There was a vast concours e of

.

various kinds o f people at Balder s funeral p r o c es
sion . F irst of all came O din accompanied by ,
F rigg the valkyries and his ravens Then came

, ,
.
F rey in his chariot drawn by the boar Gulli nbur s t e

,
( gold brush
-
) or S l,
i d r u g t a nn e ( the S harp toothed ) -
.
Heimdal rode his horse Go l d t o p and F reyj a drove ,
in her ch a riot drawn by cats There were also a .
great number of frost giants and mountain giants

present O d in cast upon the funeral pile the famous
.
ring Dr a u pne r which h a d been made for him by

,
the dwarfs and possesse d the property of producing

,
every ninth night eight rings of equal weight .

Balder s horse fully caparisoned, w a s also laid upon
,
2 40
Myt h s of t h e Sun, Moo n, and S t a rs
the pile and c ons u med in th e s ame ames wi t h t h e
,
body of his m aster .
Meanwhile Hermod was proceeding on h is mis

sion Of him it is to be rela t ed that he rode nine
.
days and a s many nights through dark and deep '
v alleys s o dark that he could not dis c ern anything

until he came to the river Gj ol and passed ov er the
Gja ll a r bridge ( bridge over the river Gj ol ) which ,
is covered with glittering gold M o d gu d the m aiden .

,
who kept the bridge asked him his name and par
,
e nt a ge and added that the day before ve f ylke s

,
( kingdoms bands ) of
,
dead men had ridden over the

bridge ; b ut s h e said ,
it d id not shake a s much
,
b eneath all of them tog ether as it does und e r you

alone and yo u have no t the comple xi on of the dead ;
,
why then do yo u ride here on yo u r way to Hel ?

, ,
:
t o s eek f o r

I ride to Hel answe re d He r mod
, ,
Balder ; have you p erchance seen him pass this

'

S he replied that Bal d er h ad ridd en over
"
way ?
the Gja lla r b ridge and that the road to the ab o d es
,
of death (t o Hel) lay downward and to w a rd the

north .
Hermod then continued his j ourney until he came

to the barred gates of Hel Then he alighted from .
his horse drew the girths tighter remounted him

, , ,
and clapped both spurs into him The horse cleared .
the gate with a tremendous leap without touching it .
He rmod then rode forward to the palace alighted ,
and went in where he found his brother Balder

,
occupying the most distinguished seat in the hall ,
and Spent the night in his company The next morn .
2 41
A Guide to Myt h o logy
ing h e entreated Hel ( death ) to let B alder ride
home with him representing to her the sorrow which
,
prevailed among the gods Hel replied that it

.
should now be tried whether Balder was s o univer

sally beloved as he was said t o be ; if therefore , ,
s h e added all things in the world the living as

, ,
well as the lifeless will weep for him then he Shall

, ,
return to the gods but if anything Speak against

,
him or refuse to weep then Hel will keep him

,
.
After this Hermod rose u p ; Balder went with him

out of the hall and gave him the ring Dr a u pne r to ,
present as a keepsake to Odin Nanna sent F rigg .
a c a rpet together with several other gifts and to

, ,
F ulla s h e sent a gold nger ring Hermod then -

.
rode back to Asgard and related everything that he

h ad heard and witnessed .
The gods upon this dispat ched messengers through

o ut all the world t o beseech everything to weep in ,
order that B alder might be delivered from the power

of Hel All things v ery willingly complied with
.

the request man animals the earth stones trees
, , , , ,

and all metals just as we s ee things weep when
they come out of the frost into the warm air When .
the messengers were r eturning with the conviction ,
that their mission had been quite successful they ,
found on their w a y home a gi antess ( o gress gygr ) , ,
who called herself Thok They b ade her also we e p

.
Balder out of the do mi nion of Hel But s h e an .
s w e re d :
Th o k w ill w eep
With d ry t ea rs
242
A
. Guide to Myt hology
south and of the north o f the west and of the east
, ,
have fastened chains upon him and they have fet ,
t e re d him with fett ers ; the god Rekes hath over

thrown him an d the g o d He r t it hath put him in
chains Ra s etteth Ra setteth Ra is strong at his
.
, ,
setting A p ep hath fallen ; A p e p the enemy of Ra

.
, ,
departeth Greater is the punishment which hath

.
been inicted o n thee than the sting which is the Sco r

pion goddess and mightily hath s h e whose cours e
, ,
is everlas ting worked in upon thee and with deadly

, ,
e ff ect Thou shalt never enj oy the delights of love

.

thou shalt never full thy desire O A pe p thou , ,
Enemy of Ra ! He maketh thee to go back O ,
thou who art hateful to Ra ; he looketh upon thee ,
get thee back ! He pierceth thy head he cutteth ,
through th y face he divideth thy head at the t w o

,
sides of the ways and i t is crushed in his land ;

,
thy bones are smashed in pieces thy members are ,
hacked o ff thee and the god Aker hath condemned

,
thee O A p e p thou E nemy of Ra ! Thy mariners

, ,
are those who keep the reckoning for thee O Ra ; ,
a s thou a d va nc e s t and thou resteth there wi t hin
are the o fferings made to thee As thou a dva nce s t .

,
as thou a dva nce s t tow a rd the House Let not any .
baleful obstacle proceed from thy mouth a gainst me

when thou w o r ke s t o n my behalf I a m S et who .
,
let loose the storm clouds and the thunder l n t h e

-
h orizon of heav en .
2 44
Myths of the Sun , Moon , and S ta rs
THE S T ORY O F P H CEB U S A P OLLO

(Gr eek)
S oon after his birth the S un God spent a yea r

among the Hype rboreans where f Or s i x continuous
,
months o f the year there is sunshine and spring ,
soft climate profusion of herbs and owers and

, ,
the v ery ecstasy of life During this delay the.

De lp h i a ns sang p ec ans hymns of praise to Apollo ,
and danced in chorus ab out the tripod or three ,
legged stool where the expectant priestess o f Apollo

,
had taken her seat At last when the year was

.
,
w a rm came the god in his chariot drawn by swans

,
heralded by songs o f springtide of nightingales and ,
swallows and crickets Then the crystal fount of

.
C astalia and the stream C e p h i s s u s o ve r o w ed their

bounds and m ankind made grate ful O er ings to the
,
god But h is advent was not altogether peaceful

. .
An enormous serpent ( Python ) had crept forth fro m

the slime with which after the ood the earth was
, ,
c overed ; and in the caves of Mount Parnassus this

terror of the people lurked Him Apollo enco un .
t er e d and after fearful combat slew with arrows

, ,
weapons which the god of the silver bo w had not

before used against any but feeble animals In .
commemoration o f this conquest he ins t ituted the ,
P yt hian games in which the victor in feats o f

, ,
strength swiftness o f foot or in the chariot ra c e,

, ,
s hould be crowned with a wreath of be a c h leaves .
In his conict with another monster of darkn ess ,
Apollo h ad the a ssistance o f his si ste r Artem is

2 45
( Di a na.
) By their unerring ery d a rts t h ey s ub
,
dued the giant Tityus who not only had ob structed

,
the peaceful ways to the oracle o f Delphi but had ,
ventured to insul t the mother of the twin deities .
Another event in the life of Apollo shows the

fatal effect of his ery d arts upon a young friend ,
Hyacinthus The god of the Silver b ow was in the

.
habit o f going with Hyacinthus when he went forth

o n his hunting and shing expe d itions or upon
tramps l n the m
,
ountains One day they decided

.
to p lay a game of quoits together Apollo heaving .

,
aloft the discus with strengt h mingled with skill ,
sent it high and far Hyacinthus excited with the

.
,
sport and eager to make his throw ran forward ,
to seize the missile ; but it bounded from the earth

and struck him in the forehead He fainted and .
fell The god as pale as himself raised him and

.
, ,
t ried all his art to staunch the wound and retain

the itting life but in vain As when o ne h a s
,
.
broken the stem of a lily in the garden it hangs

i t s head and turns its ower s to the earth s o the ,
head o f the dy ing boy as if too heavy for his neck

, ,

1 ell over on his shoulder Thou diest Hyacinth
.
,
,

said Ph oebus ,
robbed o f thy life by me Would .
th at I could die for thee ! But since that may not

be my lyre shall celebrate thee my song shall tell
, ,
thy fate and thou shalt become a ower inscribe d

,

w ith my regret While the gol d en god spoke the
.
,
blood which had owed o n the ground and stained

the herb age ceased to be blood and a ower of ,
h ue more beautiful th a n T yrian purple sprang up ,
24 6
A Gui de to Myt holo gy
T HE STORY O F ART EMI S AND ORION

( Greek)
Orion the s on o f Neptune was a giant and a

, ,
m igh ty hunter whose prowess and manly favor

,
g ained f Or him the rare good will of Artemis It i s ~

.
related that he loved Merope the daughter of ,
CEnOp i on king of Chios and sought her in mar

, ,
r i a ge .He cleared the island of wild beasts and ,
brought the Spoils of the chas e as presents to his

beloved ; but as CEnOp i o n constantly deferred his
c onsent Orion attemp t ed to gain po ssession o f the
,
m aiden by violence Her father incensed at this.

,
conduct made Orion drunk deprived him o f his

, ,
sight and cast h im out on the seashore

,
The .
blinded hero instructed by an oracle to seek the

,

rays of morning followed the sound of a Cyclop s
,
h a mmer till he reached Lemnos where Vulcan , ,
taking pity on him gave him Cedalion , o ne of his

,
m en to be his guide to the abode of the s un Pla c

,
.
ing C edalion o n his shoulders Orion proceeded t o ,
the c ast and there meeting the S un God was r e

, ,
stored to sight by his beam .
Af ter this he used to go hunting with Art emis ,
m uch to the displeasure of Apollo who did not like ,

.
h is sister to make such a friend of Orion One .
d a y therefore observing Orion as he walked through

, ,
the s e a with his head just above water Apollo

, ,
pointed out the black object to his sister and main ,
t a ine d that s h e could not hit it The archer god d ess .
d ischa rged a s haft with fatal a im ; the wav es rolled

2 48
D i an a or Artemi s . C o r reggi o .
in Greece is th a t once a nymph C allisto of t h e train , ,
o f Artemis who fell in love was changed into a

, ,
b ear by Juno One d a y long after she s a w a youth

.
hunting and recognized him as her o w n s o n Sh e

,
.
stopped and wanted to emb race him but her s o n n o t , ,
recognizing her in her be ar form w as on the point ,
of t ra n s xing her when Zeus arrested the crime ,
and sna t ching away b oth of them pl a ced them in

, ,
the heavens as the Great Be a r and the Little Bear .
The story of Orion s translation int o a constellation

has already been given Around the group of stars

.
called the Pleiades cluste r many legends Of this .
group of seven stars o ne is so dim that it seems

entirely to disappear A S outh Australian legend
.
tells that the Pleiades were a queen and her s i x

attendants The Crow fell in love with the queen
.
,
who refused to be his wife The Crow however .

, ,
found that the queen and her Six maidens were in

the habit of hunting for white edible grubs in the ,
bark of trees The Crow at once changed himself

.
into a grub a nd hid in the bark of a tree The .
Six maidens sought to pick him out with their

wooden hooks but he broke the points of all the
,
'
hooks Then came the queen with her pretty bone

.
hook ; he let himself be drawn out took the Shape ,
o f a giant and ran away with her

,
E ver since there .
have only been six stars and six maidens in the

Pleiades According to a Greek myth the Pleiades
.
, ,
who still y before Orion in the heavens were ,
daught e rs of Atlas and nymphs of the train o f

Artemis One d a y they were p ursued by the giant
.
2 50
Myths of the Sun, Moon , and S tars
hunter O rion and being v ery much frigh tened ,
, ,
they pra yed to the gods to ch a ng e their form Ze u s .
heard their prayers changed them into pigeons and

, ,
placed them among the stars Though their num .
ber was seven only s i x stars are now visible for

, ,
it is said E lectra left her place that s h e might not

behold the ruin of Troy which had been founded ,
by her son Dardanus The sight had such an e ff ect

.
on her sisters that they blanched a nd have b een ,
pale ever Since But E lectra became a comet Her

. .
hair o ating wildly She still ranges inconsolab ly the

,
expanse of heaven .
The prettiest notion in regard to the st a rs is t h at

t h ey are the souls o f the dead In Germany for .
,
examp le they though t that when a child died God

, ,
m a de a ne w st a r .
T h e North American Indians are particularly fond

of star my t hs and they have invented some charm
,
ing star stories According to them stars might

.
,
come do wn and talk to men after the manner of ,
o n e whose story is given belo w It came down an d .
told a hunter wh e re to nd game .
S ome of the animal conste llation s among the st ars

a re evid ently metamorphosed totems for there is a ,
w idespread belief that these star animals or m en

were the ancestors of the people and that a ges a go ,
they h ad been lifted u p to heaven The Milky Way .
is described by the Indians sometimes as t h e path

o f Spirits and the ro a d of souls sometimes a s the ,
road of birds along which the souls o f t h e good go

itting like birds, t o d w ell at l a st in he aven in pe a ce .
2 51
S TORY O F TH E CHILD AND TH E S TA R

(Io w a I nd i a n)
M any years a go a child when very young oh , ,
served a star in the heavens that attracted him more

than any others A S the child gr e w to manhood his
.
attachment increased His thoughts dwelt contin.
u a lly on this beauty of the night One day while .

,
hunting as he sat down travel worn and weary

, ,
-
with his ill success his beloved star appeared to him

-
and comforted him with encouraging words and then ,
conducted him to a place where he found a great

plenty and variety o f game F rom this time the .
young man showed a wonderful improvement in the

art o f hunting and soon be c ame celebrated in this
,
p u rsuit
.
O SSE O TH E S ON O F TH E E VE NING S TAR

,
( N o rth A meri ca n Ind i a n)
T here once lived an Indian in the north who had

ten daughters all of whom grew up to womanhood
,
.
They were noted for their beauty especially O w ee ,
nee the youngest who w a s very inde p endent in her

, ,
way of thinking S he was a great admirer of r o

.
mantic places and spent much of her time with the

,
owers a nd winds and clouds in the open air .
Though the ower were homely if it was fragrant

though the wind were rough if it was healthful
,
and though the cloud were dark if it embosomed ,
the fruitful rain, s h e knew how, in spite of a ppe a r

2 52
the distan c e was considerable they doubte d whet h er ,
Osseo , s o aged and feeble would be able to under ,
take the j ourney ; but in Spite of their friendly

doubts, h e j oined the m and s et o u t with a good
,
heart .
As th ey walked along the path they could not

help pitying their young and handsome sister who
had such an unsuitable mate S he however smiled .
, ,
upon Osseo and kept with him by the w a y the same

,
as if he had been the comeliest bridegroom in all

the company Osseo often stopped and gazed up
.
ward ; but they could perceive nothing in the d ire c

t ion in which he looked unless it was the faint ,
glimmering of the evening star They heard him .
muttering to himself as they went along and one ,
o f the el d er Sisters caught the words Pity me my , ,

father !

Poor old man said s h e ; he is talking to his
,
father What a pity it is that he would not fall

.
and break his neck that our Sister might have a

,

young husband .
Presently as t hey came t o a great rock where

,
Osseo had been used to breathe his morning and

his evening prayer the star emitted a brighter ray
, ,
which shone directly in his face Osseo with a .

,
sharp cry fell trembling to the earth where the

, ,
others would have left him ; bu t his good wife raised

him u p and he sprang forward on t he path and
, ,
with steps light as the reindeer he led the party ,
no longer decrepit and inrm but a beautiful young ,
man On turning around to look for his wife be

.
,
2 54
Myths of the Sun, Moo n , and S t a rs
h old ! s h e had become changed, at the same mo
ment into an aged and feeble woman bent alm os t
, ,
double, a nd walking w ith the sta ff whi c h he h a d c ast

aside.
Osseo immediately j oined her and wit h looks of ,
fondness and the tenderest regard bestowed on her ,
every endearing attention and constantly addressed ,

her by the term of ne ne mOOSh a , or my sweetheart - -
.
As they walked along whenever they were not ,

gazing fondly in each other s face they bent their ,
looks on heaven and a light, as if of far o ff st ars ,

,
-
was in their eyes .
On arriving at the lodge of the h unter w ith wh om

they were to feast they found the banquet re a dy
, ,
and a s soon as their entertainer had nished his

harangue in which he told them his feasting was
in honor of the E vening or Woman s S tar they
began to partake of the portion dealt out according ,
to age and chara cter to e ach one of the guests The

,
.
food w a s very delicious and they were all happy ,
but Oss eo who lo oked at his wife and then gazed

, ,
Upw a rd , as if he was looking into the substan c e of

the s ky S ounds were soon heard a s if from far
.

Off voices in the air and they became plainer a nd

,
plainer till he could cle a rly disting uish so m e o f the

,
words .

My s on my s on s aid the voice
,
I h ave seen
, ,
your af iction s and pity your wants I come to c all

,
.
you a way from a scene that is stained w ith blood and

t ears
. The earth is full of sorrows Wi cked Spirits .
,
the enem ies of mankind walk abroad and lie in wa it , ,
2 55
to ensnare the children o f the s ky Every nigh t .
.
they are lifting their voices to the Power of E vil ,
and every d a y they make themselves busy in casting

mischief in the hunter s path You have long been
.
their victim but you shall be their victim no more

,
.
The spell you were under is broken Your evil .
genius is overcome I have cast him down by my

.
superior strength and it is this strengt h I now exert

,
for your happiness Ascen d my s o n ; ascend into

.
,
the skies and partake of the feast I have prepared

,
for you in the stars and bring with you those you
,
love.
The food s et before you is enchanted and blessed .
F e a r not to partake of it It is endowed with magic .
power to give immortality t o mortals and to change ,
men to Spirits Your bowls and kettles shall no

.
longer be wood and earth The one Shall become .
silver and the other pure gold They s hall shine .
like re and gliste n like the most beautiful scarlet

,
.
E very female shall also change her state and looks ,
and no longer be doomed to laborious tasks S he .
shall p ut on the beauty of the starlight and become ,
a shining bird of the air S he shall dan ce and .

,
not work S he shall Sing and not cry

.
,
.

My beams c ontinued the voice
,
shine faintly ,
on your lodge but they have power to transform it

,
into the lightness of the Skies and decorate it with ,
the colors of the clouds Come Osseo my son and .

, , ,
dwell no longer on earth Think strongly on my .
words and look steadfastly at my beams My power

,
.
is now a t its height Doubt not, delay not It is

. .
2 56

My s o n sai d the old man hang that cage of
, ,
birds which you have brought along in your hand

at the door and I will inform you why you and
,

your wife have been sent f or .
Osseo obeyed and then took his seat in the lodge

,
.

Pity was Shown to you resumed the King of ,
the S tar on account of the contempt of your

,
wife s S iste rs w h o laughed at h e r ill fortune and

, ,
ridiculed you while you were un d er the power of

that wicked Spirit whom you overcame at the rock .
That spirit lives in the next lodge being the small ,
star you s e e on the left of mine and he has always ,
felt envious of my family because we had greater

power and especially because w e had committed to u s
,
the care of the female world He failed in many .

attempts to destroy your brothers and sisters in l a w -
,
but succeeded at last in transforming yourself and

your wife into decrepit old persons Y o u must be .
careful and not let the light of h i s beams fall on

you while yo u are here for therein lies the power ,
of his enchantment A ray Of light is the bo w and

.

arrow he uses .
Osseo lived happy and contented in the parental

lodge and in due time his wife presented him with
,
a son w h o grew up rapidly and in the very likeness

, ,
of Osseo himself He was v ery quick and ready in

.
learning everything that was done in his grand

father s dominions but he wished als o to learn the

,
art of hunting for he had heard that thi s was a

,
favorite pursuit below To gratify him his father .

,
m ade him a bow and arrows and he then le t the ,
2 58
Myths of the S un Moon and S tar s
, ,
bird s out of the cage that he might practise in s h o ot

ing In t his pastime he soon b ec a me expert and
.
,
the very rst day he brought down a bird ; but when

he went to pick it up to his amazement it was a ,
beautiful young woman with the arro w sticking in ,
her breast It w a s one o f his y ounger aunts

. .
The moment her blood fell upon the surfa ce of

that pure and spotless planet the charm was dis ,
solved The boy immediately found himself sink

.
ing although he was partly upheld by something

,
like wings until he passed through the lower clouds ,
and he then suddenly dropped upon a high breezy ,
island in a large lake He was pleased on looking .

,
up to s e e all his aunts an d uncles following him in

,
the form of birds and he soon discovered the silver

,
lodge with his father and mother descending with

, , ,

its waving tassels uttering like s o many insects
gilded wings It rested on the loftiest cliffs of the
.
island and there they xed their residence They

,
.
all resumed their natural shapes but they were di ,
minished to the size of fairies ; and as a mark of

homage to the King o f the E vening S tar they never ,
failed on every pleasant evening during the summer

season to j oin hands and dance upon the top of the
rocks These rocks were quickly observed by the
.
Indians to be covered in moonlight evenings with a , ,
larger s ort of I ninee s or little men and were called

, ,
Mish in e mok i n o k ong or Little S pirits and the

- - - - - -
, ,
island is named from them t o this day .
Their shining lodge can be seen in the s umm er

eveni ngs, when the moon b eams strongly on the pin
259
of th e rocks ; and the shermen who go near
na cle s -
those high cliffs at night have even hear d the voices

o f the happy little dancers And O sseo and his .
wife as fondly attached t o each other a s ever a l

, ,
way s lead the dance .
TH E W AND E RING S TAR

(A C h i p p ew a Legend)
A quarrel arose among the stars when one of ,
them was d riven from its home in the heavens and ,
d escended to the earth It wandered from o ne path

.
to another and was seen hovering over the camp

,
res when the people were preparing to sleep .
Among all the people in the world only one could ,
be found who was not afraid of this star and this ,
was a daughter of a Chippewa S he was not afraid .
o f the star but admired and loved it When She

,
.
awoke in the night She always beheld it for the ,
star loved the maiden In midsummer the young .
girl on going into the wood s for berries lost her

, ,
way when a storm arose Her cries for rescue were

,
.
answered only by the frogs A lonely night came .

,
when s h e looked for her star in vain ; the storm

overcast the sky and at lengt h c a ught her in its
,
fury and bore her away Many seasons passed .

,
during which the star was seen, dimmed and wan

dering in the sky At length one autumn it dis
,
.
, ,
appeared Then a hun ter s a w a small light hang

.
ing over the water within the marshland in which

he w a s hunting He returned to announc e t h e
.
2 60
Hawk t o p a use and gaze long and xedly upon the

ground there was no path which led to this owery
circle There w a s not even a crushed leaf nor a
.
broken twig nor the least trace of a footstep a p

, ,
p r o a ch i n
g o r retiring to be foun d He,
thought he .
would hide himself and lie in wait to discover if ,
he could what this strange circle meant

,
.
Presently he heard the faint sounds of music in

the air He looked u p in the direction they came
.
from and as the magic n otes die d away he s a w a

,
small obj ect like a little summer cloud that a p

,
r o a c h e s the earth oating down from above At

p ,
.
rst it w a s very small and seemed as if it could ,
have been blo w n away by the rst breeze that came

along ; but it rapidly gr ew as he gazed upon it and ,
the music every moment came clearer and more

sweetly to his ear A S it neared the earth it a p
.
r e d as a basket and it was lled with twelve

p e a ,
sisters of the most lovely forms and enchanting

,
beauty .
As soon as the basket touched the ground they

leaped out and began straightway to dance l n the
, ,
most j oy ous manner around the magi c ring strik

, ,
ing as they did so a shining ball which uttered the

, , ,
most ravishing melodies and kept time as they ,
danced .
The White Hawk from his concealment en , ,
tranced gazed upon their graceful forms and move

,
ments . He admired them all but he was most ,
pleased with the youngest He longed to be at .
h er Side to emb race her to call her his own ; and

, ,
2 62
Myths of the S un Moon and S t a rs , ,
unable to remain longer a silent admirer he rushe d ,
o u t and endeavored to seize this twelfth beauty w h o
s o enchanted him But the sisters with the quick

.
,
ness of b irds the momen t they descried the form

,
of a man leaped back into the basket and were

, ,
drawn u p into the sky .
Lamenting his ill luck W a u p ee gazed longingly

-
upon the fairy b asket as it ascen d ed and bore the

lovely sisters from his view They are gone he .
,

said,
and I shall see them no more .
He returned to his solitary lodge but he found ,
no relief to his mind He walked abroad bu t to .

,
look at the sky which had withdrawn from his sight

,
the only b eing he had ever loved , was painful t o

him no w .
The next day selecting the same hour the White

, ,
Hawk went back to the prairie and took his station ,
near the ring ; in order to deceive the Sisters he ,
assumed the form of an O pos sum and sat among ,
the grass as if he were there engaged in chewing

the cud He had not wai ted long when he s a w t h e
.
cloudy basket descend and heard the same sweet ,
music falling as before He crept slowly toward .
the ring ; but the instant the sisters caught Sight of

him they were startled and sprang into their car ,
.
It rose a short distance when one of the elder siste rs

spoke .

Perhaps s h e said it has come t o Show u s h ow
, ,

the game is played by mo rtals .

Oh no ! the youngest replied
, Quick let .
,

us ascend .
2 63
And all j oining in a chant they rose out of ,
sight .
Wa up e e casting o ff his disguise walked sorrow

, ,

fully back to his lodge but ah ! the night seemed ,
v ery long to lonely White Hawk Hi s whole soul .
w a s lled with the thought of the beautiful sister .
Betimes the next day he returned to the haunted

, ,
Spot hoping and fearing and sighing as though his

, ,
very soul would leave his body in its anguish He .
reected upon the plan he should follo w to secure

success He had already failed twice ; to fail a
.
third time would be fatal Near by he found an .
old stump much covered with moss and j ust then

, ,
in use as the residence of a number of mice who ,
had stopped there on a pilgrimage to some relatives

o n the other Side of the prairie The White Hawk .
was s o pleased with their tidy little forms that he

thought he too would be a mouse especially as they
, , ,
were by no means formidable to look at and would ,
not be at all likely to create alarm .
He accordingly having rst brought the stump

,
and s et it near the ring without further notice ,
became a mouse and peeped and sported about and

, ,
kept h i s sharp little eyes busy with the others ; but

he did not forget to keep o ne eye u p toward the sky ,
and one ear wide O pen in the same direction .
It was not long before the sisters at their custom ,
a ry hour came down and resumed their sport

,
.

But s ee cried the yo un ger sister
,
that stump ,

w as not there before .
S he ran o ff frightened t oward the basket Her

, ,
.
2 64
ket which she kept concealed In the meantim e
,
.
s h e collec t ed such rarities from the earth as s h e
thought would please her father as well as the mo st ,
dainty kinds of food .
One day when Wa up e e was absent and all was ,
in readiness s h e went out to the charmed ring

, ,
taking with her her little s on As they entered the .
car s h e commenced her magical song and the basket ,
rose The song was s a d and of a lowly and mourn

.
,
ful cadence and as it was wafted far away by the

,

wind it caught her husband s ear It was a voice
,
.
which he well knew and he instantly ran to the ,
prairie Though he made breathless speed he could

.
,
not reach the ring before his wife and child had
ascended be yond his reach He lift ed u p his voice .
in loud appeals but they were unavailing The

,
.
basket still went u p He watched it till it became

.
a small speck and nally it vanished in the sky

,
.
He then bent his head down to the ground and w a s ,
miserable .
Through a long winter and a long summer Wau

pee bewailed his loss but he found no relief The ,
.
beautiful Spirit had come and gone and he should ,
s ee it no more !
He mourned his Wi fe s loss sorely but his son s

,

still more ; for t h e boy had both the mother s beauty

and the father s strength .
In the meantime his wife had reached her home

in the stars and in the blissful employments of her
,
father s house s h e had almost forgotten that s h e had

left a husband u pon the earth But her s on a s he .

,
26 6
Myths of th e S un Moon and S t a rs
, ,
grew u p resembled more and more his father a nd

, ,
every day he was restless and anxious to visit the

scene of his birth His grandfather said to his
.
daugh t er o ne day :
,
Go my child and take your s o n down t o his

, ,
father and ask him to come u p and live with u s

,
.
But tell him to bring along a Specimen of each kind

o f bird and animal he kills in the chase .
S he accor d ingly took the bo y and descended .
The White Hawk who was ever near the enchanted

,
spot heard her voice as she came down the s ky

,
.
His heart b eat with impatience as he s a w her form

and that of his s o n and they were soon clasped in
,
his arms .
He heard the message o f the S tar and he began ,
to hunt with the greatest activity that he might ,
collect the presents with all dispatch He spent .
whole nights as well as days in searching for every

, ,
curious and beautiful animal and bird He only .
preserved a foot a wing or a tail of each

, ,
.
When all was rea d y W a up e e visited once more

,

each favorite spot the hill top whence he had been -
used to s e e the rising s u n ; the stream where he had

Sported as a boy ; the old lodge now looking sad and ,
solemn which he was to s it in no more ; and last

, ,
o f all ,
coming to the magic circle he gaze d widely ,
around him with tearful eyes and taking his wife , ,
and chil d by the hand they entered the car and ,

were drawn u p into a country far beyond the ight
of birds o r the power o f mortal eye to pierce
,
.
Great joy was manifested upon their arrival at t h e

2 67
starry plains The S tar Chief invited all his people
.
to a feast ; and when they had assembled he p ro ,
claimed aloud that each o ne might continue a s he

was an inhab itant of his own dominions o r select
, ,
o f the earthly gifts such as he liked b est A very .
strange confusion imme d iately arose ; no t one bu t

Sprang forward S ome chose a foot some a wing
.
, ,
some a tail and some a cla w Those who selected

,
.
tails or claws were changed into animals and ran ,
o ff ; the others assumed the form o f birds and ew ,
away Wa u p e e chose a white hawk s feather His

.

.
wife and s on followed his example and each one ,
b ecame a white hawk He spread his wings an d

.
, ,
followed by his wife and s o n descended with the

,
other bir d s to the earth where he is still to be

,
found with the brightness o f the starry plains in

,
his eye and the freedom of the heavenly breezes

in h i s w mgs .
2 68
tale results from this mythi c al idea T h e S io u x .
Indians believed in a god Wah keen yan in the ,

- -
,
form o f a large bird whose apping wings made

,
the thunder He lived in the far far west on a

.
, ,
mound rising from a mountain top To his tent .
there are four O penings in which there are senti ,
nels clothed in red down At the east is a butter .
y a t the west a b ear ; a fawn is at the south and

, ,
a rein d eer is at the north He fashioned the rst .
Spear and tomaha w k and attempted to kill the

,
O s p r in
g of O an tay hee his bitter
- -
enemy If ,
.

Oan tay h e came near the surface of the eart h then
-
,
Wah keen yan would re a hot thunderb olt at him

- -
.

Another of his enemies w a s Ch a ho t e r d a h the god -
,
o f the forest It was said that the god o f thunder

.
O ften came racing along hurling lightnin g at a tree

, ,
to kill the forest go d who having been warned , , ,
had taken refuge in the water Then Chaho t e r d a h .

-

would ascend a tree and hurl his lightning at his

adversary to bring him down to submission .
Another thunder bird i s So o t o o ch believed in by ,
the n atives of Vancouver s Island He is a mighty

.
bird dwelling aloft and far away the ap of whos e

, ,
wings makes the thunder and his tongu e is the ,
forked lightning There were once four o f these

.
birds in the land and they fed o n whales B ut

,
.
the great deity Qu a w t e a h t entering into a whale , ,
entice d o ne thunder bird after another to S woop

down and seize him with its talons Then he would .
plunge to the bottom of the sea and drown it Thus .
t hree of them perished but the last one spread his

,
2 70
a nd O din
h as the ravens Hugin and Munin who ,
y every day over the whole world and report to

hi m on their return what they have seen Besides, .

there i s a Norse god of the winds a giant who
sits in the northern extremity of heaven clad in ,

eagle s plumes When he spreads out his wings for
.
ight the winds arise from under them .
The thunder however like the wind even among

, , ,
savages is sometimes personied as men a s in the

, ,
following A lgonquin s tories
HOW A H U NT E R V I S IT E D TH E TH U ND E R S P IRIT S WHO

DW E LL IN M O U N T KAT AHDIN
( Pa s s a ma quo dd y)
N ka rna yo o

Of old times
. Once an Indian .
went forth to hunt And he departed from the

.
east branch o f the Penobscot and came to the head ,
of another branch that leads into the east branch ,
and this he followed even to the foot of Mount

Katahdin An d there he hun ted many a day alone
.
,
and met none till one morning in midwinter he

,
found the track of snowshoes So he returned to .
his camp ; but the next day he met with it again

in a far distant place And thus it was that w h er
-
.
,
ever he went this track came to him every day

,
.
Then noting this as a Sign to be Ob served he f o l

, ,
lowed it and it went u p the mounta i n Katahdin

, ,
which being interpreted means the great moun

, ,

tain until at last it was lost in a hard sno wshoe
,
ro a d m ade by man travellers And since it was

y .
2 72
Myths of the S ky an d Air
h ard and even he took o ff h i s a ga h mo o k
,
or
snowshoes and went ever o n and up with the road ;
,
a nd it was a strange path and strange was its end

ing for it stopped just before a high ledge like an
, ,
immense wall on a platform at its foot And there

, .
were many signs there as of many people yet he , ,
s a w no one And as he stayed it seemed to grow

.
stranger a nd stranger At last he heard a sound as

.
o f footsteps coming yet within the wall when 1 0 !

, ,
a girl stepped directly out o f the precipice upon the

platform .But though s h e was beautiful beyond
belief he was afraid And to his every though t
,
.
s h e answered in words and that s o sweetly and ,
kindly a nd cleverly that he was soon without fear ,
though he s a w that She had powerful m teo u li n or
great magic power And they being soon pleased

.
o ne with the other , and wanting each other s he ,
bade him accompany her and that by walking di ,

re c t ly through the rock Have no fear said She
.
, ,

but advance boldly ! S o he obeyed and lo ! the ,
rock was as the air and it gave way a s he went on

,
.
And ever as they went t h e maiden talked to him ,
answering his thoughts s o that he s p oke not aloud

,
.
And anon they came to a great cavern far within ,
and there was an old man seated by a re and the ,
old man welcomed him And he was very kindly .
treated by the strange pair all d a y : in all his l ife he

had never been s o happy Now as the night drew .
near the o l d man said to his daughter

,
Can you ,

hear aught o f your brothers ? Then she went o ut

t o the terra c e and returning said
, ,
No Then , ,
.
2 73
a non h e asked her again and s h e going and return , ,

ing as before replied Now I hear them coming
, ,
.
Then they listened when 1 0 ! there came as at the

, ,
door without a crash of thunder with a ash o f

,
lightning and out of the light stepped t w o young

,
men of great be auty but like giants stupendous and, ,
o f awful mien And, like their father, their eye

.
brows were o f stone while their cheeks were as rocks

, .
And the hunter was told by their Sister that when

they went forth which was every f ew days their
, ,
father said to them : S ons arise ! it is time now ,
for you to go forth over the worl d and save o u r

friends Go not t o o near the trees but if you s e e
.
,
aught that is harmful to those whom we love strike , ,

and spare not ! Then when they went forth they
ew on high among the clouds : and thus it is that
,
the Thunder and Lightning whose home is in the ,
mighty Katahdin are made And when the thun ,

.
der strikes the brothers are shooting at the enemies

,
o f their friends .
Now when the day was done the hunter returned

to h i s home and when there found he had been
,
gone seven years All this I have heard from the

.
o l d people who are dead and gone .
TH E TH U ND E R AND LIGH T NING M E N

( Pa s s a ma quod d y)
This is truly an Old Indian story of old time .
Once an Indian was whirled u p by the roaring

wind : he was taken u p in a thunder storm and set -
,
2 74
with them S o it went on for a long time but it
.
'
came to pass that the Indian began to tire of h i s

strange friends Then h e told the chief that he
.
w ished to s e e h i s family on earth and the sagam ore ,
listened to him and w a s very kind Then he called .
all his people together and said that their brother

,
from the other world was very lonesome and wished ,
to return They were all very sorry indeed to lose

.
h im but because they loved him they let him have

,
h is o w n way and deci d ed to carry him back again

,
.
S o bidding him close his eye s till he should be on

earth they carried him dow n
,
.
The Indians s a w a great thunder storm drawing -
near ; they heard su ch thunder as they never knew

before and then something in the shape of a human
,
being coming down with lightning ; then they ran

to the spot where he s a t and it was their long lost,
-
brother who had been gone seven years

,
.
He had been in the Thunder world He told them -

.
h o w he ha d been pl a ying ball with the Thunder

boys ; yes how he had been turned into a real Thun
,
der h imself .
HOW B O U ND W U C H O W S E N TH E GRE AT
G L O O S KA P ,
WIND BIRD AND M AD E ALL TH E WAT E R S IN

-
,
ALL TH E WORLD S TAGNANT

( Pa s s a ma quo d d y)
The Indians believe in a great bird called by them

Woch o w s en or Wu ch o w s en meaning Wind Blow or ,
-
t h e Wind Blower who lives far to the North and

-
, ,
2 76
Myths of t h e S ky a nd Air
sits upon a great rock at the end of the Sky And .
it is because whenever he moves his wings the wind

blows they of old times called him that .
When Glo o ska p w a s among men he O ften went

out in his canoe with bo w and arrows to kill s e a
fowl At o ne time it was every day very windy ;
.
it grew worse ; at last it blew a tempest and he ,

could not go out at all Then he said : Wuchow
.

s en
,
the Great Bird has done this !
,
He w e nt t o nd him ; it was long ere he reached

.
his abode He found sitting on a high rock a large

.
white Bird .

Grandfather said Glo o s ka p you take no com
, ,
passion on your Ko os es e k your grandchildren You

,
.
have c a used this wind and storm ; it is too much .

Be easier with your wings !
The Giant Bird replied : I have been here Since
ancient times ; in the earliest days ere aught else ,
Spoke I rst moved my wings ; mine w a s the rst

,

v oic e and I will ever move my wings a s I will
.
Then Glo o s ka p rose in his might ; he rose to the

clouds ; he took the Great Bird giant Wuch ow s en a s
-
though he were a duck and tied both h is wings

, ,
and threw him down into a chasm between deep

rocks and left him lying there
,
.
The Indians could no w go out in their canoes all

day long for there was a dead calm for m any weeks
,
a nd months And with that all the w a t ers became

.
s tagnant They were s o thick that Glo o s k a p c ould

.
not paddle his canoe Then he though t o f the Great

.
Bird and went to see him

,
.
2 77
As he had left him he found him for Wuch ow s en ,
i s immortal SO raising him he put him o n his

.
, ,
rock again and untied one of his wings S ince then

,
.
the winds hav e never been s o terrible as in the old

ti me
.
TH E WONDE R FU L E P LOIT S O F ! P AU P PU
-
K-KEE W I S S
A man of large stature found himself standing

alone on a prairie He thought to himself : How
.
came I here ? Are there no beings on this earth

but myself ? I must travel and s ee I must walk .

till I nd the abodes of men .
S o soon as his mind was made u p he s et o u t he ,
knew not whither, in search of hab itations He was .
a resolute fellow and no difculties could turn hi m

,
from his purpose : neither prairies rivers woods , , ,
nor storms had the e ffect to daunt his courage or

turn him back After travelling a long time he
.
came to a wood in which he s a w decayed stumps

,
of trees as if they had been cut in ancient times

, ,
but no other trace of men Pursuing h i s j ourney .

,
he found more recent marks of the same kind ; after

this he came upon fresh traces of human beings ;
rst their footsteps and then the wood they had
,
felled lying in heaps

,
Pushing on he emerge d
.
,
toward dusk from the forest and beheld at a dis ,
tance a large village of high lodges standing o n

rising ground .

I am tired of this dog trot he said t o himself -
,
.

I will arrive there on a run .
2 78
keew i s s proposed to himself a short stroll in the
morning he was at once miles o u t of tow n When
,
.
he entered a lodge if he happe ned for a moment

,
to forget himself he w alked straight through the

,
leathern or wooden or earthen walls as if he h ad

, ,
been merely passing through a bush At his meal s .
he broke in pieces all the dishes set them down ,
as lightly as he would ; and putting a leg out of ,
bed when he rose it was a common thi ng for him

,
to push o ff the top of the lodge .
He wanted more elbow room and after a s h ort -

,
stay in which by the accidental letting go of his

, ,
strength he had nearly laid waste the whole p lace,

,
and lled it with demolished lodges and broken pot

t e ry and one armed men he m ade u p h is mind t o
-
,
go farther taking with him a young man who had

,
formed a strong attachment for him and who might ,
serve him as his pipe bearer ; for Paup puk keew i s s

- - -
was a huge smoker and vast clouds followed him

,
wherever he went s o that people could s a y

,
Paup ,

p u k
-
k e e w i s s is coming ! by t h e m ighty smoke h e
raised .
They set o u t together and wh en h is c ompanion

,

was fatigued with walking Pa u p puk ke ew i s s would ,
-
p u t him forward on his journey a m ile or two by

givi ng him a c ast in the air and lighting him in a
soft pla c e among the trees or in a cool spot in a ,
wate r pond am ong th e sedges and water lilies At

-
,
-
.
other times he would lighten the way by showing

o a f ew tricks su c h a s leaping over trees and
, ,
t u rning round on one leg till he m ade the dust y ;

28 0
Myt h s of the S ky and Air
at which the pipe bearer w a s mightily pleased al
-
,
though it sometimes happened that the chara cte r of

these gambols frightened him Fo r Paup puk kee .
- -
wiss would without the least hint of such an in

,
tention j ump into the air far ahead and it would

, ,

cost the little pipe bearer half a day s hard travel
to come up with him ; and then the dust Paup puk -
k e e w i s s raised w a s often s o thick and hea vy as com
p l e t e ly to bury the poor li t tle pipe bearer and com-

,

pel Paup puk ke ew i s s to dig diligently a nd with
-
might and main to get him out alive .
One day they came to a very large village where ,
they were well received After staying in it some

.
time ( in the course of which Paup puk keew i s s in - -

,
a t of abstraction walked straight through the Sides

,
of three lodges without stopping to look for the

door ) they were informed of a number of wicked
,
spirits who lived at a distance and who made it

, ,
a practice to kill all who came to their lodge At .
tempts had been made to destroy them but they ,
had always proved more than a match for such as

h ad come out against them .
P aup puk keew i s s determined to pay them a visit

- -
,
although he was strongly advised not to do so The .
c hief of the village warned him of the great danger

he would incur but nding Paup puk keew i s s r e
,
- -
solved he said :
,
Well if you will go being my guest I will send

, ,

twenty warriors to serve you
Paup
.
p uk k ee w i s s-
thanked him for the o ff er a l ,
though he suggested that he thought he c ould get

28 1
along without them at which the little pipe be arer
,
-
grinned for his master had never shown in th a t

,
village what he could do and the chief thought that ,
he Paup puk ke e w i s s would be likely to need twenty

,
- -
,
w arriors at the least to encoun t er the wicked S pirits

, ,
with any chance of success Twenty young men .
made their appearance They set forward and after .

,
about a day s j ourney they descried the lodge of the

M a ni t o e s .

Paup puk ke ew is s placed his friend , Pipe bearer,
- -
and the warriors near enough to see all that p a s sed ,
while he went alone to the lodge .
A S he entered Paup puk ke e w i s s s a w ve horrid

,
- -
looking M a ni t o e s in the a ct of eating It was the .
father and his four sons They were really hi d eous .
to look upon Their eyes were swimming low in

.
their heads and they glared about as if they were

,
half starved They O e r e d Paup puk k eew i s s some

.
- -
thing to eat which he politely refused f o r he had

, ,
a strong suspicion that it was the thigh bone of a -
man .

What have you come for ? said the old one .

Nothing answered P a up puk k eew 1 s s -
, .
They all stared at him .

Do you not wish to wrestle ? they all asked .

Yes replied Paup p uk keew i s s
,
I don t mind - -

if I do take a turn .
Pipe bearer who stood near enough t o overhear

-
,
the conversation grinned from ear to ear when h e

,
caught this remark A hi d eous smile came over the

.
f a ces of t h e M a ni t o e s .
28 2
o ver h is head and then h e would keep along at a
,
'
s tead
y trot j ust at his heels till he had blo wn all ,

the breath out of the old knave S body .
Meantime his friend Pipe bearer and t h e twenty ,

-
young warriors cried o ut :

Ha ha ah ! ha ha ah ! Paup
, ,
puk keew i s s is
, ,
-

driving him before him !
The Manito only turned his head no w and then
to look back At length when he was tired of the
.
,

sport to be rid of him Paup puk ke ew i s s with a -
,
, ,
gentle application o f his foot sent the wicked old ,
Manito whirling away through the air in which he ,
made a great number of the most curious turnovers

in the world till he came t o alight when it s o
, ,
happened that he fell astride of an old bull bu ff alo ,
grazing in a distant pasture who straightway s e t ,
o ff with him at a long gallop and the old Manito ,
has not been heard of to this day .
The warriors and Pipe b earer and Paup p uk -
ke ew i s s s e t to work and burned down the lodge of

the wicked Spirits and then when they c ame to
,
look about they s a w that the ground was strewn on

,
all sides with human bones bleaching in the sun ;

these were the unhappy victims of the Ma ni t oe s .
Paup p uk kee w i s s then took three arrows from his

- -
girdle and after having performed a ceremony to

, ,
t h e Grea t S pirit he shot one into the air cry

, ,
ing : You are lying dow n ; rise up or you will be

hit !
T h e bones all m oved to one pl ace He s h ot the .
sec ond a rrow, repe a ting the sam e words, w hen e ach
284
Myt h s of the S ky a nd Air
bone drew toward its fellow bone ; the third arrow -
brought forth t o life the whole multitude o f people

who had been killed by the M a ni t o e s Paup puk .
-
kee w i s s conducted the crowd to the chief o f the

village who had proved h i s friend and gave them
, ,
into his hands The chief was there with his coun
.
s e llo r s to whom he spoke apart

,
.

Who 1 S more worthy said the chief to Paup ,

u k
k ee w i s s

to rule than you ? Y o n alone can de
p ,

fend them .
Paup p uk keew i s s thank ed him and told him that

- -
he w a s in search of more adventures I have done

some things said Paup puk kee w i s s rather boast
,
- -
,

fully ,
and I think I can do some more .
The chief still urged him but he w a s eager t o ,
go and naming Pipe bearer to tarry and take his

, ,
-
place he set out again on his travels promising that

, ,
he would some time or other come back and s e e

them .

Ho ! ho ! ho ! they all cried Come back .

again and s e e us ! He renewed his promise that
he would and then set out alone
, .
After travelling some time he c ame t o a great

lake and on looking about he discovered a very
,
large otter on an island He thought to himself : .

Hi s skin will make me a ne pouch And he .
immediately drew up at long shots and drove an

arrow into h is side He waded into t h e lake and
.
,
wit h so m e di fculty dragged h i m a sh o re , and u p a

hill overlooking the lake .
As soon a s Paup puk ke ew i s s go t th e o tte r into

- -
28 5
the s un shin e where it w a s warm he ski nned hi m , ,
and threw the carcass some distance Off thinking ,
the war eagle would come and that he Shoul d have

-
,
a chance to secure h i s feathers as ornaments for the

head ; for Paup puk ke ew i s s began to be proud a nd ,
w a s disposed to display himself .
He soon heard a rushing noise as Of a loud wind ,
but could s e e nothing Presently a large eagle

.

dropped as if from the air upon the otter s car
, ,
cass. Paup p u k ke e w i s s drew his bow and the

- -
arrow passed through under both of his wings The .
bird made a c onvulsive igh t Upward with such ,
force that the cumbrous body was b orne up several

feet from the ground ; but with its claws deeply ,
xed the heavy otter brought the eagle back to the

,
earth
Paup puk ke ew i s s possessed himself of a
.
handful of the prime feathers crowned his head ,
w ith the trophy and s et o ff i n high Spirits on the

,
lookout for something new .
After walking awhile he c ame to a body of w a ,
ter which ooded the trees on its banks it was a

lake made by beavers Taking his station on the
.
raised dam where the stream escape d he watched ,
to s e e whether a ny of the beavers woul d show them

selves A head presently peeped out of the water
.
to s e e who it was that disturbed them .

My friend said Paup p uk k ee w i s s in his most -
, ,
persuasive manner could yo u no t oblige me by

,
turning me into a beaver like yourself Nothing .
would please me s o much a s to make your acquaint

ance I can assure you for Paup puk kee w i s s w a s -
, ,
28 6
in every company Larger than any of you ; in
.

my present size it s hardly worth my while to go

into the water .

Yes yes ! said they
,
By and by when we .
,

get into the lodge it shall be done ,
.
They all dived into the lake and in passing great ,
heaps of limbs and logs at the bottom he asked the ,
u s e of them They answered

. It is for our win ,

ter s provisions

.
When they all got into the lodge their number

was about one hundred The lodge was large and .
warm .

Now we will make you large said they Will , .

th a t do ?

Yes he answered ; for he found that h e w as
,
ten times the size o f the largest .
N
You need not go o u t said the others ; we ,
will bring you food into the lodge and you will be ,

our chief .

Very well Paup p uk ke ew i s s answered
,
-
He -
.
thought ,
I will stay here and grow fat at their

expense . But soon after one ran into the lodge
, , ,

out of breath crying out ,
We are v isited by the ,
Indians !
All huddled together in great fear The water .
began to lower for the hunters had broken do w n

,
the dam and they soon heard them o n the roof

,
of the lodge breaking it u p Out jumped all the

,
.
beavers into the water and s o escaped ,

.
Paup puk keew i s s tried to follow them but un

- -
, ,
fortunately, t o gratify his ambition they h a d ma d e

28 8 '
Myths of the S ky and Air
him SO large that he could not creep out at the hole .
He tried t o call them back but either they did not

,
hear o r would not attend to him ; he worried him

self s o much in searching f o r a door to let him
o u t that he looked like a great blad d er swollen and
,
blistering in the s un and the sweat stood out upon

,
his forehead in knobs and huge bubbles .
Although he heard and understood every word

that the hunte rs spoke and some of their expres

sions suggested terrible ideas h e could not turn
himself back into a man He had chosen to be a.
beaver and a beaver he must be One of the hunt

,
.
ers a prying little man with a single loc k dangling

, ,
over o ne eye put his head in at the top o f the lodge

,
.
Ty a u !
-
cried he .

T u t ty a a ! Me Shau mik
- -
king o f b eav e rs is in
Whereupon the whole
.
c r owd O f hunters began upon h im with their clubs ,

and knocked his skull ab out until it was no harder
than a morass in the middle of summer Paup .
u k k e ew i s s thought as well as ever he did al

p
-
,
though he was a beaver ; and he felt that he was in

a rather foolish scrape inhabiting the carcass of a
,
beaver .
Presently seven or eight of the hunters hoisted

his body upon long poles and marched away home
,
with him A s they went he reected in this man

.
,
ner : What will become of me ? My ghost or

shadow will not die after they get me t o their

lodges .
Invitations were immediately sent o ut for a grand

fe a st ; b u t a s soon a s h is body got cold, h i s soul ,
289
being u n c omfortable in a house without heat ew ,
o ff .
Having reassumed h is mortal S h ape Paup p uk ,

-
ke e w i s s found himself standing near a prairie .
After walking a distance he s a w a herd o f elk ,
feeding He admired their apparent ease and en

.
j y
o m e n t of life and thought there could
,
be nothing
more pleasant than the liberty of running about and
feeding on the prairies He had been a water .
animal and no w he wished to become a land ani

,

mal to learn what passed in an elk s head as he
,
roved about He asked them if they could not turn

.
him into one of themselves .

Ye s they answered after a pause
,
Get ,
.

dow n on your hands and feet .
He obeyed their directions and forthwith found ,
himself to be an elk .

I want big horns big feet said he ; I wish , ,

to be very large for all the conceit and vainglory ,
had not been knocked out of P a U p puk ke ew i s s even - -

,

by the sturdy thwacks of the hunters clubs .

Yes yes they answered, ,
There exerting .
,

their power are you big enough ?
,

That will do he replied for looking into a , , ,
lake hard by Paup puk ke e w i s s saw that he was

,
- -
v ery large They Spent their time in grazing and

.
running to and fro ; bu t what astonished Paup p uk -
ke ew i s s although he often lifted Up his head and

,
directed his eyes that way he could never s e e the ,
stars which he had s o admired as a human being

,
.
Being rather cold one day Pau p puk keew i s s went ,

- -
2 90
the plains When they had skinned him his esh
.
grew cold and his spirit took its ight from the

dead body and Paup puk k ee w i s s found himself in -
human sh ape with a bow and arrows

,
.
But his passion f o r adventure was no t yet cooled ;

for on coming to a large lake with a sandy beach
, ,
he s a w a large ock of brant and speaking to them ,
in the brant language he requested them to make ,
a brant Of him .

Yes they replied at once for the brant is a
, ,
bird of a very obliging disposition .

But I want to be very large he said There ,
.

w a s no end to the ambition of Paup puk k e e w i s s -
.

Very well they answered ; and he soon found
,
himself a large brant all the others standing gazing ,
in astonishment at his great size .

You must y as leader they said , .

No answered Paup puk ke ew i s s ; I will y -
,

behind .

Very well rej oined the brant
,
One thing .
more we have to say to you Brother Paup puk -

ke e w i s s ( for he had told them his name ) ; you
must be careful in ying not to look down f o r
, , ,

something may happen to you .

Well it is so said he ; and soon the ock rose
, ,
U p into the air for they were bound north They

,
.

ew v ery fast h e behind One day while going .
,
with a strong wind and as swift as their wings ,
c ould ap as they passed over a large village the

,
Indians raised a great Shout on seeing them, par

t icul a rly on Paup p uk keew i ss s account, for h is
-

2 92
Myths of t h e S ky an d Air
wings were broader than t w o large mats The .
villa ge people made such a frightful noise that he

forgot what had been told him about looking down .
They were no w scudding along as swift as arrows ,
and as soon as he brought his neck in and stretched

it down to look at the Shouters his huge tail was ,
caught by the wind and over and over he was blown

,
.
He tried to right himself but without success for

, ,
he had no sooner got out of on e heavy air current -
than he fell into another which treated him even

,
more rudely than that he had escaped from Down .

,
down he went making more turns than he wished

,
for from a height o f several miles

, .
The rst moment he h a d to look about him P a up ,

~

puk ke e w i s s in the shape of a big brant was aware
, ,
that he was j ammed into a large hollow tree T o ,

.
get backward o r forward was out of the question ,
and there in Spite of himself was Paup puk ke e -

, ,
wiss forced to tarry till his brant life w a s ended by

starvation when his Spirit being at liberty he was
, , ,
once more a human being .
As he journeyed o n in search of further a dven ~
tures Paup p uk ke ew i s s came to a lodge in whic h

,
- -
were t w o old men with heads white from extreme

,
age They were very ne old men to look at There

. .
was such sweetness and innocence in their features

that Paup p uk kee w i s s would have enj oyed himself
- -
v ery much at their lodge if he had had no other

entertainment than such a s the gazing upon the
serene and happy faces of the two innocent ol d
men with heads white from extreme age a ff orded
, ,
.
2 93
They treated him well and h e m a de known t o ,
t h em that he w a s going back to his v illage h i s ,
friends and people whereupon the two white headed

,
-
Old men very heart ily wished him a good j ourney

and abundance o f comfort in seeing his friends once
more . They even arose old and inrm as they ,
were and tottering with exceeding d i culty to the

, ,
door were at great pains to point out to him the

,
e xact course he should take ; and they called his
attention to the circumstance that it was much

s horter and more direct than he would have taken
h imself Ah ! w hat merry d eceivers were these two

.
o l d men with very white heads .

Paup p uk ke ew i s s with blessings sh owered on him
-
,
until he was fairly out o f sight s e t forth with good ,
heart He thought he heard loud laughter resound

.
ing after him in the direction of the lodge of the

two old men ; but it could not have been the t w o old
m en for they were certainly too old to laugh
,
.
He walked briskly all day and at night he had ,
the satisfaction O f reaching a lodge in all respects

like that w hich he had left in the morning There .
were t w o ne old men and his treatment was i n

,
e very particular the same even down to the part

,
ing blessing and the laughter phat followed him a s

he went his way .
After w a lking the third day and coming to a ,
lodge the same as before he was satise d from t h e

,
bearings o f the course he had taken that he had

been j ourneying in a circle and by a notch which ,
h e h ad cut in the door post that these were the same

-
2 94
no t .He then made a canoe and sailed forth T h e , .

water w a s very clear a transparent blue and he
s a w that it abounded with sh of a rare a nd deli
cate complexion This circumstance inspired him

.
with a wish to return to his village and to bring ,
his people to live near this beautiful lake .
Toward evening coming to a woody island he

, ,
encamped and ate the sh he had speared and they ,
proved to be as comforting to the stomach as they

were pleasing to the eye The next day Paup puk .
-
keew i s s returned to the mainland and as he wan ,
dered along the shore he espied at a distance the

celebrated giant Manabozho who is a bitter enemy
, ,
o f Paup puk k e e w i s s
- -
and loses no opportunity to
,
stop him on his j ourneyings and to thwart his plans .
At rst it occurred to P a U p puk ke ew i s s to have - -
a trial o f wits with the giant but on second thoughts ,
he said to him s elf : I am in a h urry no w ; I will

s ee him another time .
With no further mischief than raising a great

whirlwind o f dust which caused Manabozho to rub
,
his eyes severely Paup p uk ke ew i s s quietly slipped

,
- -
o ut of the w a y ; and he made good Speed withal ,
for in much less time than you could count half

the stars in the sky of a winter night he had reached ,
home .
His return was welcomed with a great hubbub of

f easting and songs ; and he had scarcely set foot in
the village before he had invitations to take pot
luck at di ff erent lodges which would have lasted
,
h im the rest of his natural life Pipe bearer who .

-
2 96
Myths of the Sky a nd Air
had some time before given Up the cares of a ruler ,
and fallen back upon his native place fairly danced ,
with joy at the sight o f Paup puk ke ew i s s who no t -
, ,
to be outdone dandled him a ff ectionately in his

,
arms by casting him u p and down in the a ir half

a mile o r SO till little Pipe bearer had no breath
,
-
left in his body to say that he was happy to s ee

Paup p uk keew i s s home again
- -
.

Paup puk ke e w i s s gave the village folks a lively
-
account of his adventures and when he came to the ,
blue lake and the abun d ant sh he dwelt upon their ,
charms with such eff ect that they agreed with one ,
v oice that it must be a glorious place to live in

, ,
and if he would show them the way they would

shift camp and settle there at once .
He no t only Showed them the way but bringing , ,
his wonderful strength and Speed of foot to bear ,
in less than half a day he had transported the whole

v illage with its children women tents and i mple
, , , ,
m ents of war to the ne w water Sid e

,
-
.
Her e for a time Paup puk kee w i s s appeared to

, ,
- -
be content until one day a message came for him

,
.
in the shape of a bear who said that their king ,
wished to s ee him immediately at his village Pa u p .

puk keew i s s was ready in an instant and mounting , ,
Upon the messenger s back off he ran

Toward ,
.
evening they climbed a high mountain and c ame ,
to a cave where the bear king lived He was a -

.
very large person and pufng with fat and a sense

, ,
o f his o w n imp ortance he made Paup p uk keew i s s

,
- -
w el c ome by inviting him into his lodge .
2 97
As soon as it was proper he spoke and said that , ,
he had sent for him on hearing that he was the

chief who was moving a large party toward his
hunting grounds -
.

You must know said the bear king with a
,
-
terrible growl that you have no right there and

, ,
I wish you woul d leave the country with y our party ,
o r else the strongest force will take possession Take .

notice .

Very well replied Paup puk ke ew i s s going
,
- -
,
toward the door for he suspected that the king of

,
the bears was preparing t o give him a hug so ,

be it .
He wished to gain time and to consult his people ,
for he had seen as he came along that the bears

, ,
were gathering in great force on the Side of the

mountain He also made known to the bear king
.
-
that he would go back that night that his people ,
might be put in immediate possession of his royal

behest .
-
The bear king replied that Paup p uk ke ew i s s -
might do as he pleased but that one of his young ,
men was at his command ; and j umping nimbly on ,

his back Paup puk keew i s s rode home
-
,
.

He assembled the people and ordered the bear s ,
head o to be hung outside of the village that the

, ,
bear Spies w h o were lurking in the neighborhood

-
, ,
might s ee it and carry the news to their chief .
The next morning by break o f day Paup puk

, ,
-
ke ew i s s had all of his young warriors under arms

and ready for a ght About the middle of t h e .
2 98
when h e drove an arrow straight through him and
ordered them to take the bo d y away and make it
rea dy for supper as he was getting hungry
,
.
He then directed all o f the other bears to fall

to and help prepare the feast for in fullment of ,
the agreement they had become servants With .
many wry faces the bears although bound to act

,
becomingly in their ne w character according to the ,
forfeit served Up the body of their late royal mas

,
ter ; and in doing this they fell either by a c cident ,
o r design into many curious mistakes

,
.
When the feast came to be served up and they

were summoned t o be in attendance one of them , ,
a sprightly young fellow of an inquisitive turn of

mind was found upon the roof of the lodge with
, ,
his head half w a y down the smoke hole with a v iew -
to learn what they were to have for dinn er An .
other a middle aged bear with very lOng arms w h o

,
-
,
was put in charge of the children in the character

o f nurse squeezed three or four o f the most prom
,
ising young pappooses to death while the mothers ,
were outside to look after the preparations ; and

another when he Should have be en waiting at the
,
back of his master had climbed a shady tree and

,
was indulging in his afternoon nap And when at .

,
last the dinner was ready to be served they came

, ,
tumbling in wi th the dishes heels over head one, ,
a fter the other s o that one half of the feast was

,
Spread upon the ground and the other half d ep o s

i t e d out of doors on the other side of the lodge
,
.
After a wh ile , h owever by stri ct dis c ipline a nd

,
300
Myths of the Sky and Air
threatening to cut off their provisions the bear ,
servants were brought into tolerable control .

Yet Paup p uk kee w i s s with his ever restless dis
-
,
position was uneasy ; and having done SO many

, ,
wonderful things he resolved upon a strict and thor

,
ough reform in all the a ffairs of the village To .
prevent future di fculty he determined to adopt new

regulations between the bears and their mas t ers .
With this view he issued an edict that hence

,
forward the bears should eat at the rst table and ,
that the Indians were to wait upon them ; that in

all public processions of an honorable character the
bears should go rst ; and that when any ghting
w a s to be done the Indians s hould have the priv
,
ilege reserved o f receiving the rst shots A special .

exemption was made in behalf O f Paup puk kee w i s s s -

favorite and condential adviser Pipe b earer (who ,

-
had been very busy in private recommending the

n e w order of things ) w h o was to be allowed to sit
,
at the head of the feast and to stay at home with

,
the old women in the event of battle .
Having seen his orders strictly enforced and the ,
rights o f the bears over the Indians f a frly estab

i
l s eh d
Paup p uk ke ew i s s xed his mind Upon fur
-
,
ther adventures He determined to go abroad for

.
a time and having an Old score to settle with Mana

,
b o z h o he set out with a hope of soon falling in with

,
.

that famous giant Paup p uk ke ew i s s was a blood
-
relation of Dais Imid or He of the Little S hell

, ,
and had heard of what had p a ssed between that

g i ant and h i s kins man .
3 01
.
A G u ide to Myt h o logy
After wandering a long time he c ame t o the lodge
of Manabozho who was absent He thought he
,
.
must play him a trick and so he turned everything

,
in the lodge Upside dow n and killed his birds of ,
which there was an extraordinary attendanc e for ,
Manabozho is master of the fowls of the air and ,
this w a s the appointed morning for them to call

and pay their court to him Among the number .
w as a raven accounted the meanest of birds which

, ,
Paup puk ke ew i s s killed and hung Up by the neck

- -
,
to insult him .
He then went on till he came to a very high

point of rocks runn ing out into the lake from the ,
top o f which he could see the country back as far

as the eye could reach While sitting there Mana
.
,
b o z h o s moun tain chickens e w round and past h im

in great numbers Out of mere spite to their mas

.

ter Paup puk ke ew i s s shot them by the score for
-
, ,
his arrows were very sure and the birds very

plenty and he amused himself by throwing the
,
birds dow n the rocks At length a wary bird

.
cried out :
Paup p uk keew i s s is killing u s ; go and tell our
- -

father .
Away sped a delegation of the birds which were

the quickest of wing and Manabozho soon made his
,
appearance on the plain below Paup puk keew i s s .

- -
,
who when he is in the wrong is no match for Mana

bo z h o made his escape on the other side
,
Mana .
b o z h o who had in t w o or three strides reached t h e

,
t o p of the mountain cried out : ,
3 02
kee w i s s threw himself o ff the elk s back a nd strik
, ,
ing a great sandstone rock near the path he broke ,
it into pieces and scattered the grains in a thousand

,
directions ; for this was nearly his last hope of

escape Manabozho was so close Upon him at this
.
place that he had almost caught him ; but the foun

dation o f the rock cried out :
Haye ! Ne me sho Paup puk kee w i s s has spoiled
- -
,
- -

me Will you not restore me to life ?
.

Y es replied Manabozho He re established the
,
.
-
rock in all its strength .
He then pushed on in pursuit and had got so ,

near to Paup puk k ee w i s s as to put out his arm to
-
seize him ; bu t Paup puk ke e w i s s dodged him an d a s

- -
,
his last chance he immediately raised such a dust and

,
commotion by whirlwinds as ma d e the trees break

and the sand and leaves dance in the air Again and .
again Manabozho stretched his arm bu t he escaped ,
him at every turn and kept up such a tumult of

,
dust that he dashed into a hollow tree which had

been blown down changed himself into a snake
, ,
and crept out at the roots just in time to save his

life ; for at that moment Manabozho who had the ,
power o f lightning struck it and it was strewn

, ,
about in little pieces .
Again Paup puk k eew i s s was in human shape

- -
,
and Manabozho was pressing him hard At a dis .
tance he s a w a very high blu ff o f rocks j utting out

into a lake and he ran for the foot o f the precipice
, ,
which was abrupt and elevated As he came near .

,
t o h i s s urprise and great relief the Manito of the ,
3 04
Myt h s of the S ky and Air
rock O pened h is door and told Paup p uk keew i s s t o - -
come in The door was no sooner closed than M an a

.
boz h o knocked .

Open it ! he cried with a loud voice T h e , .
Manito was afraid o f him but he said to Pau p ,
puk keew i s s : S ince I have taken you a s my guest

-
,

I would sooner die with you than O pen the door .

Open it ! Manabozho a gain cried in a louder ,
v oice than before .
The Manito kept silent .

Very well said Manabozho ; I giv e you till
,

morning to live .
Paup puk ke e w i s s trembled for h e t h ought h is

- -
,
last hour had come .
When the night came on the clouds were thick

and black and as they were t o rn o p en by the light

ning Such discharges of thunder were never heard

,
.
as bellowed forth The clouds advanced slowly and

.
wrapped the earth about with their vast shadows

a s in a huge cloak All night long the clouds gath
.
ered and the lightning ashed and the thunder

, ,
roared and above all could be heard Manabozho

,

muttering vengeance Upon poor Paup puk ke ew i s s -
.
Y OU have led a very foolish kind of life Paup ,

p u k-
k e e w i ss said
,
his friend the Manito .

I know i t I know it ! Paup puk keew i s s a n - -
s w er e d .
You had great gifts o f strengt h awarded t o

you said the Manito
,
.

I am aware of it replied Paup puk keew i s s ,
- -
.
Instead of employing it for useful purposes and ,
3 05
f or the good of your fello w creatures you hav e done -
,
nothing since yo u became a m an but raise whirl

winds on the highways leap over trees break what , ,
ever you met in pieces and perform a thousand ,

i dle pranks .
Paup puk ke ew i s s with great penitence c onfessed

- -
, ,
that his friend the Manito spoke b u t too truly Then .
Mana b ozho a s A nimiki the S piri t of Lightning in a , ,
cloud of heavy blackn ess oated over the b luff o f ,

rocks that protected Paup p uk k e ew is s The threat -
.
e nin
g roar of his voice was heard rending the air ,
and Paup p uk ke ew 1 s s with his companion t h e

- -
, ,
Manito of the Rocks trembled with fear Mighty ,

.
arrows of re dar t ed through t h e air from Mana

b o z h o s h o w ; the moun tains themselves gave way ;

the solid rocks were broken and tottering apart, , ,
fell crushing Paup p uk k ee w is s and t h e Manito into

,
- -

fragments Fo r the rst t ime Pau p puk ke e w i s s ex
.
p e r i e nce d death for he was incapa ble of entering by

,
his o w n will a new form as he was in the human ,
form whe n crushed between t h e r ocks o f t h e m oun

ta m .
The Norse god of the sky O din was depict e d ,

1
,
in a most pictures que fashion He is said to look .

like an o ld tall one eyed man with a long h e a r d
, , , ,
a broad brimmed hat, a striped cloak of many col

-
o rs
,
and a spear in his hand On his a rm he wears .
the gold ring Dr a up ne r and carries a spear calle d

Gun gn e r ; two ravens s it on his Shoulders t w o w olv es ,
See Ande s o n s N o rs e My t h o l o gy

r .
3 06
th e evening a man entered the hall whose coun
,
t ena nce they did not know He wore a v ariegated .
c loak ,
was barefooted his bree ches were o f linen,
,
a nd a wide brimmed hat hung do wn ove r his face

-
.
He was very tall looked old, and was one eyed He

,
-
.
h ad a sword in his hand The man went to t h e .
tree and struck his sword into it with s o powerful

,
a blow that it sunk in to it even to the hilt No o ne .

dared greet this m an Then said h e : He w h o
.
draws this sword out of the trunk f the tree shall o
have it as a gift from me and Shall nd it true ,

that he never wielded a better sword Then went .
the old man out of the hall again and no one knew ,
who he was or whither he went No w all tried to .
draw the sword out but it would no t move before

,
Volsung s s o n S igmun d came ; for him it seemed

, ,
t o be quite loose .
When Odin went forth t o battle h e was r e s pl en ,
dent l n armor and a golden helmet ; with him were

,

his messengers the Valkyries gi ant warlike maids ,
who when in Valhalla the home of Odin brought

, , ,
in the drink and waited Upon the table but in time ,
o f battle were sent forth by Odin to every battle
eld carry ing the message of death to the brave

,
hero an d inviting him home to O d in s hall a mes

,

,
s age he received with j oy and gladness To h e a r .
away to heaven the souls of the dead is O ften an

ofce o f a wind god and in this case of wind
,
goddesses for there can be little doubt that the

,
Valkyries had some o f the attributes of th e wind .
3 08
Myths of the S ky a nd Air
The Norse g o d next in importance to Odin w a s
Thor He wears a red b ear d He has a ery na
. .
!
ture is gir ded with a b el t o f strength and swings

, ,
a hammer in his hand He rides in a chario t .
drawn by t w o goats from whose hoofs and teeth ,
sparks of re ash and the scarlet cloud reects

,
his ery eyes Over h i s head he wears a crown of

.
stars under h i s feet rests the earth and it shows

, ,
the footprints o f his mighty steps He is enormously .
strong and very terrible when angr y which i s not

, ,
Supposed to h e often for he has o n the whole a , , ,

good natured disposition The region in which he .
lives is called T h ru d va ug and his mansion Bilski

ner in which there are ve hundred and forty halls
,
.
His hammer his belt and his gauntlet are all pos
, ,
s essed of remarkable qualities The rst is called .
M jo lne r and w o e be to the frost or mountain giant

,
a gainst whom Thor hurls it His iron gauntlet he .
wears when he is laying about him with his h a m ~
me r and when he puts on his be lt of strength his

,
p ower is redou b led This mighty god has

. many a n d
wonderful adventures .
There is no better description o f the god Tho r

to be found than that by our o w n poet Longfellow,

i n hi s T ales o f a Wayside I nn
5? I m t h e go d Th or;
a
I a m t h e w a r go d ,
I a m t h e Th underer !
Here in my No rt hla nd ,
My fa s tnes s a nd fo rtres s ,
Re ign I forever !
3 09
A Guid e to Myt h ology
Here a mid i ceb ergs
Rul e I t h e na t i o ns ;
Th i s is my h a mme r,
Mjo lne r, t h e migh ty
G i a nts r s
a nd s o c e re r
Ca nnot w i th s t a nd i t !
Th es e a re ga untlet s
th e
Wh e rew i th I w i eld it
And h url i t a fa r O ff
Th i s is my girdle ;
Wh ene ve r I b ra ce it
S trengt h is re d o ub l e d !
Th e li gh t th ou b eh oldes t
S tre a m th ro ugh t h e h e a ve ns ,
I n a s h e s o f c ri ms o n ,
Is b ut my re d b e a rd
Bl o w n b y t h e nigh t w i nd ,
A righ t ing t h e na t i o ns .
Jove is my b roth er ;
Mi ne s a re t h e li gh tning ;
ey e
T h e w h ee l s O f my ch a ri ot
R o ll in t h e th unde r ;
T h e b l o w s o f my h a mmer

R ing in t h e e a rth qua k e !
HO W THOR C ON QUE RE D TH E S TON E GIANT H R U N GN E R
Thor had once gone eastward to crush trolls b ut ,
Odin rode on his horse S leipner to J o t unh e i m the ,
land o f giants and cam e to a giant by name Hrung

,
ner Then he aske d Hr ungn e r what man that was

.
,
w ho wi th a helmet of gold rode through the air and

31 0
and that he was under his protection Thor said . .
that Hrungn e r Should come to rue that invitation b e

fore he came o u t ; but the giant answered that it
w ould b e b ut little honor to Thor to kill him ,
unarmed as he was ; it would be a better proof of his

,
v alor if he dared contend wit h him at the boundaries

of his ter ritory It w a s foolis h indeed of me to
.
, ,
lea v e my weapons at home Had I my shield and .
my int stone with me we would n o w try a duel ,

.
But I d e clare you to be a c oward if you kill me un

a rmed Thor would not excuse himself from such
.
a challenge the like of which no one h a d ever o e re d

him before Hrungn e r no w went his w a y and has
.
te ned home This journey of Hr ungn e r was much

.
talked of by the gian t s and especial ly did h is chal ,
lenge of Thor awaken their interest and it w a s o f ,
great import ance to them which of the t w o should

c ome out from the combat victorious F or if Hr ung .
ner who was the m ost powerful among the giants ,

,
s hould be c onquered they might look for nothing but

,
e vil from Thor They therefore made a man of.

, ,
c lay nine miles high and three miles broad betw een
,
the shoulders They c ould not n d a heart corre

.
s p o nd ing to his siz e and therefore took one out of a

!
mare ; but this uttered and trembled when Thor

came Hr ungne r had a heart of hard stone sharp
.
,
and three cornered ; h is head w a s also of stone and

-
,
likewise his shield which w a s broad and thick and

, ,
this shield h e hel d before him when he stood wait ing

for Thor His weapo n was a int stone which he
.
,
s wung o v er h is sh o ulders s o t h at it w a s n o trie to ,
31 2
Myt hs of the Sky a nd Ai r
join in combat with him By his Side stoo d t h e clay

.
giant who was so extremely terried th a t the s w eat

,
poured from o him Thor went to the duel together

.
with Th ja lf e a servant whom h e had got from a

, ,
peasant b y the s e a T h ja lf e ran t o the place where

.
Hr u ng n e r w a s standing an d said to h im : Y OU stand

,
unguarded giant ; you hol d the shield b efore you

, ,
but Thor has seen you ; he comes with violence from

beneath the earth and attacks you
Then Hrung .
ner hastily put the shield beneath his feet and stood
Upon it b u t he seized his int stone with b oth hands
,
.
Presently he s a w ashes of lightning and heard loud

c r a s h i n s and then he s a w Thor in his might rushing
g ,
forward with impetuous speed swinging his hammer ,
and throwing it from the distance against Hrungn er .
The latter lifted the i nt stone with b oth h is hands

and threw it with all his might against the hammer ; o
the two met in the air and the int stone broke into
t w o pieces o n e piece of which fell on the ground
,
( and hence the int mountains ) while the other ew ,
with such force against t h e head O f Thor that he fell

forward to the ground ; b ut the hammer Mjo ln e r hit
Hr ungn e r right in the head and crushed his skul l into
small pieces he himself falling over Thor s o that his
, ,

foot lay across Thor s neck Thor could only be .

releas e d from the giant s foo t by h is own s o n Magne
( strength ) and ,
to this day the int stone sticks fast
in Thor s forehead

.
Longfellow calls Thor the brother o f Zeus Zeus .
i s , however only like Thor in his character of the

,
31 3
thunderer A s the All f ather of the Greeks h e is
.
-
like Odin .
1
Zeus or J U p it e r a s he was called by the Romans
, , ,
was regarded as the supreme ruler of the universe .
S ometimes he was pictured as a god of war Then .
he rode in his thunder car hurling the thunderb olt ,
or lashing his enemies with a scourge o f lightnin g .
He wore a breastplate or shield of storm cloud like -
the skin o f a gray goat fearful to b ehold and made

by the God of Fire His special messenger was the .
eagle .
In his peaceful guise he s a t throned in the high,
clear heavens There he was the gatherer of clouds

.
and snows the dispenser of gentle rains and winds

, ,
the moderator of light and heat and the seasons He .
was worshipped with various rites in d iff erent places ,
b u t everywhere the loftiest trees and the highest

mountain peaks were sacred to him .
HOW Z EUS CA M E TO B E KING O F GOD S

The story told o f Zeus is that he had n o t always
been the supreme g o d Before him reigned his
.
father Cronus and b efore Cronus his grandfather

, , ,
U ranus Cronus deposed U ranus and havin g heard

.
,
that he w a s destined to be deposed b y one of his o w n

children he indulged in the queer hab it of swallow
,
ing the m all His wife Rhea however when Zeus

.
, , ,
w a s b orn thought of the happy expedient o f giving
Cronus a stone to swallow which he unsuspecting , , ,
Cl a s i c My t h s in Engli h Li t era t ure

Ga yl ey
1
s s s .
31 4
dwell and o f Tartarus the prison of the subdued
,
Titans F or himself Z eus retained hea v en and

.
earth His dwelling and that of the gods was on the

.
summit of an ideal mountain called Olympus The .
gods all had their separate dwellings but all when ,
summoned assem b led in the palace o f Z eus there to ,
fe ast Upon ambrosia and nectar Their duties con .
sisted i n d iscussing the a ffairs o f heaven and earth ,
while f o r amusement they had the melodies of Apol

l o s lyre an d the songs of the muses There was a

.
,
gate of clou d s to this heavenly city kept b y god

desses the Hours or S easons and through these gates
, ,
the celestials passed when bent upon any errand to

eart h .
Hermes (Roman name Mercury ) w a s the personi

,
c a t i o n of the wind a n d the messenger of Z eus and , ,
like the Valkyries he had the o fce of conducting

,
the souls of the dead to Hades His summoning .
O f the souls of the dead is b eautifully descri b ed i n
this passage fro m the Odyssey translated by the ,
poet Bryant :
In hi s h a nd h e b o re
Th e b ea ut iful g o ld en w a nd , w i th w hi ch a t w ill
He s h ut s t h e e yes o f me n, o r o p ens t h em
Fro m l p Wi th th is h e guide d o n th e ir w a y
s ee .
The gh o s tl y rout ; th e y f oll o w e d utte ri ng ,
A s h rilly w a il As w h en a o ck o f b a t s
.
,
D e ep in a di sma l c a ve rn y a b out,
And s q ue a k if o ne h a ve fa ll en from t h e pl a ce
,
Wh e re clinging t o e a ch oth er a nd t h e ro ck
, ,
Th ey res te d s o th a t crow d Of gh osts w ent fo rth

,
Wi th s hrill and pl a int i ve cri es Before th em move d

.
31 6
T h e Fl y i ng Mercury or Hermes . Gi o va nni d i B o lo gna
Wh ole p h a l a nxes o f h eroes t o ea rth ,
Wh en s h e t h e da ugh te r Of a migh ty s ire

, ,
I s a ngere d Fro m t h e O lympi a n h eigh t s

. sh e plunge d
And s t o o d a mo ng t h e men o f I th a ca .
In h er h a nd s h e b o re t h e s p e a r ,
And s e eme d t h e s tra nger Me ntes

.
When Pallas returned to heaven sh e
Pa s s e d li ke a n e a gle o ut o f s i gh t a nd a ll
Were s e i z e d w i th de ep a ma z eme nt a s th e y s a w .

Another time Pallas appears to O dysseus or

Ulysses 1 n the shape
Of a y ou n g s h e p h e r d d e li ca te l y forme d
, ,
As a re t h e s o ns o f ki ngs A ma nt l e la y
.
U p o n h e r Sh o ulde r in ri ch f o lds h e r f e e t ,
S h one i n th e i r s a nd a l s : in h e r h a nd Sh e b o re
A ja ve lin . A s U l y s s e s s a w h i s h e a rt ,
Wa s gl a d w i th in h im a nd h e h a s te ne d o n
,
And th us a cc o s te d h e r w i th w i nged w ords ,
Fa ir y o uth w h o a rt t h e rs t w h o m I h a ve met

,
U p on thi s s h o re I b i d th e e h a il a nd h o p e
, ,
Th o u me et es t me w ith no unkind intent .
Pro te ct w h a t th ou b eh o lde s t h ere a nd me ;

I ma ke my s ui t t o t h e e a s t o a g o d ,
An d c ome t o t h y de a r
After a little talk with O dysseu s

th e b d go ddes s Pa ll a s s mil ed
l ue -
ey e , ,
And t o u ch e d t h e ch i e f c a re s s i ngly Sh e s eeme d .
A b e a ut iful a nd s t a t e ly w o ma n no w ,
S uch a s a re S ki ll e d in w ork s o f ra re d e vi ce

.
S he advises O dysseus and says to him :

Hi th er a m I ome t o fra me f o r th ee
c
Wis e co uns e l s a nd t o hi d e a w a y t h e s t ores

,
31 8
Myths of t h e S ky and Ai r
G i ven b y t h e Op ul e nt Ph aea c i a n ch i efs
At t h y d e p a rt ure I Sh a ll a l s o t e ll
.
Wh a t th o u mus t y e t e n dure b e ne a th t h e ro o f
O f thi ne ownp a l a ce b y t h e wi ll o f fa te
,
.
Ye t b e a r i t b ra ve ly s i nce th o u mus t no r s p ea k
, ,
T o a ny ma n o r w oma n o f th y s e lf
And o f t h y w a nd eri ng h i th er b ut sub mi t
,
T o ma ny t h i ngs th a t gri e ve th e e S il e nt ly
, ,
And b ea r indi gni t i e s from Vi o l e nt me n

.
Thus this b en e c e nt Dawn Goddess is always help

ing mankin d in their troub les and scattering abroad
,
s o much wisdom that She came to b e called in Greek
mythology the Goddess of Wisdom .
The Indian and the Japanese stories following

sho w other fancies about gods o f the s ky and air .

The Lover s Vision of the Happy Land gives a
picture of the home of departed spirits in the s ky .
The Message Bearers is related to the idea that

-
the wind is a messenger of the gods but it is the ,
wind in the form o f the repeated sounds in echoes .
1
The Indians were in the habit of frequenting
rivers with high, wooded bank s or ravines with pre ,
c ip i t o u s sides where reverb erations could b e heard
for miles until they would die away in the distance

,
.
There they would stand for hours shoutin g and lis

tening to the echoing shouts as they leaped from
shore to shore or from hill to mountain and from
, ,

mountain to valley o n and on into silence ; always
rmly b elieving that the words were called from one
to another of the faithful spirits until they reached
See Ca neld s Le g ends o f t h e I ro q uo is

.
31 9
the ears O f their loved ones and nally the Grea t ,
S pirit himself .

The Way of the Gods des c rib es a god of the
inn ite sky as the beginning of all things .
HY M N To T HE DAWN
(From th e R i g Ved a
Th e ra dia nt D a w ns h a ve ri s en Up f o r gl o ry in th e i r w hi te ,
s pl e nd o r li ve t h e w a ves o f w a t e rs .
Sh e make t h p a th s a ll ea s y fa i r t o tra ve l a nd ri ch h a th
, ,
Sh o w n h e rs elf b eni gn a nd fri endly

, .
We s ee th a t th o u a rt go o d : f a r Sh ines t h y l us tre ; t h y b e a ms ,
t h y s pl end o rs h a ve o w n Up t o h e a ve n .
D e cki ng th y s e lf th o u ma k es t b a re t h y b o s o m s h i ning in
, ,
ma je s ty th o u go dd e s s Mo rning
,
.
R e d a re t h e k i ne a nd l umi no us th a t b e a r h e r t h e b l e s s ed o ne ,
w h o s p re a d e t h t h ro u gh t h e di s t a nc e .
T h e f o e s s h e ch a s e t h li ke a va li a nt a rch e r like a s w ift w a rri o r

s h e re p e lle t h d a rk nes s .
T h y w a y s a re e a s y o n t h e h ill s : th ou p a s s est in w i ndl e s s ca l m ,
se lf l umi no us ! th ro ugh w a ters

-
.
So l o ft y go dd e ss w i t h th i ne a mpl e p at h w a y d a ugh t er o f ,
He a ven b ri ng w ea l th t o gi ve U S c o ura ge
, .
D a w n b ri ng me w e a l th : untroub l e d w i th th ine oxen th ou

, ,
b ea re st ri ch es a t t h y w ill a nd pl e a s ure ;
Th ou w h o a go ddes s chi ld o f He a ven h a s t s h o w n th ee l o vel y
, , ,
th ro ugh b ounty w h en w e c a lled th e e ea rl y .
As t h e b i rd s y f o rth fro m t h e i r re s t i ng pl a ce s SO men Wi th -

,
st o re o f fo o d ri s e a t t h y d a w ni ng .
Yea t o t h e lib e ra l mo rt a l w h o re ma i neth at h ome 0 go dd e ss

, ,
D a wn much goo d th ou b ri ngest

, .
3 20
Myths of the S ky a nd Air
TH E LOVE R S VI S ION O F TH E HA PP Y I S LAND

There w a s once a very beautiful girl more beau ,
tiful than all the Indian maidens of her tribe who ,
died suddenly o n the eve of her marriage to a hand

,
some young chief ; and although her lover w a s b rave

, ,
hi s heart w a s not proof against his loss He mourned .
a s o ne without hope After her burial he sat near

.
t h e spot where her remains were deposited without ,
speaking musing and dreaming of her he had lost

,
.
War and hunting had no charms for him He pushed .
aside his bow and arrows for his heart was dead ,
within him He had heard the Ol d people s a y that

.
there was a path that led to the Land of S ouls and ,
he determi ned to follow it Wit h this resolution b e .
left the remain s of his beloved and after making , ,
some preparation for the j ourney set out at an early ,
hour of the morning .
At rst he hardly knew which direction to take ,
for he was g uided only b y the tradition that he must

go southward F or a while he could discover no
.
change in the appearance of the country ; forests ,
hills valleys and streams had the same familiar look

, ,
that they wore around his native home There w a s .
snow Upon the ground however when he s e t out ; , ,
and it w a s sometimes seen clinging in thick mats

upon the trees and bushes b u t at le ngth it began to,
diminish and n ally as he travelled swiftly along

, , ,
totally disappeared when the forest assumed a more

,
cheerful appearance The trees appeared to be put

.
ting forth their leaves , and suddenly, a s if by en

321
A Guide to Myt holo gy
chantment as he walked onward he found himself
, ,
surrounded by the b u d ding owers of spring ; the air

seemed warm upon his cheek while overhead instead , ,
of wintry clouds the Sky w a s clear and his ears were

, ,
saluted with songs of birds .

The lover s heart beat quickly at these changes for ,
he kne w he was in the right path as appearances ,
agreed with the traditions of h is trib e A s he sped .
along he discovered a footpath which he followed

, , ,
and w a s led through a dark grove then Up a long pre ,
c ip it o u s ridge on the extreme summit of which h e

,
came to a lodge In the doorway of this lodge stood

.
an old man w h ose hair w a s white a s snow and whose

, ,
eyes though deeply sunken had a wonderful b ril

, ,
li a nc y He had a long robe of skins thrown loosely

.
around his shoulders and a sta ff in his hand The ,

.
young lover accosted him and began to tell his story ,
when the O l d man interrupted hi m b y saying : I
have expected you and had just risen to bid you wel
,
come S he whom you seek passed here a f ew days

.
since Enter my lodge for therein She rested being

.
, ,
fatigued and I will answer all your inquiries and

, ,

give you direction for your o urn e y from this point .
Having entered and rested within the lodge a o ,

cording to the old man s invitation the young lover , ,
impatient of delay soon issued fort h from the lodge

,
door accompanied by the venerable chief

,
You .

s e e yonder gulf said the chief and the wide
, ,
stre t ching blue plains beyond It is the Land of .
S ouls Y o u stand upon its b orders and my lodge is

.
,
i ts gate o f entr ance ; but you cannot t ake your body

3 22
the c o unterpart o f his ; wh o having imitated his mo
,
tions in gathering u p the p ad d les an d making prepa

rations for emb arking followed him as he pushed o ff
,
from shore .
The waves of the lake soon began to rise and at , ,
a distance looked ready to submerge them in their

,
watery embrace ; b ut yet on approaching their white

,
edges they seemed to melt away S till as these enor

,
.
,
mous waves followed each other in quick succession ,
it kept them in continual fear ; for they felt no cer

tainty but that some o ne of them might b reak upon
their canoes and b ring them to destruction ; while ,
added to this perpetual fear the water of the lake ,
was s o clear that it disclose d to their aff righted gaze

large heaps of bones of human b eings who had per
i s h e d before And as they moved on they s a w many
.
, ,
persons struggling and sinking in the waves Old .
men and women and young men and maidens were

, ,
there ; and but f e w were ab le to pass over The chil .
dren alone were seen to glide on without fear Ho w .
ever notwithstanding their terror the young man and

, ,
maiden moved unharmed along for their deeds in ,
l ife had been free from evil and the Master of Life ,
had decreed their safety ; and at length they leaped , ,
o u t Upon the shore o f the Happy Island the place O f ,
their destination and wa ndered together over t h e

,
blissful elds where everything was formed to de

,
light th e eye a nd please the ear The air itself wa s .
like food and nourished and strengthened them

,
.
T here were no temp e sts No one Shivered for the

.
w ant of warm c lothes NO one suff ered from h ung er

. .
3 24
Myths of the S ky and Air
N O one mourned for the dead They s a w no graves . .
They heard of no wars There was no hunting of .
animals Gladly the young lover would have r e

.
mained forever with his b eloved in this beautiful

land b ut this was not permitted ; for although he did
, ,
n o t s e e t h e Master of Life he heard his voice in a

,
soft breeze which commanded his return : GO

b ack,
said the voice to the land from whence you
,
came Your time has n o t yet come ; your work is

.
n o t nished and the duties for which I made you are

,
n o t comple t ed Return to your people and a e com

.
p li s h all the duties o f a brave man You wi ll be the .
ruler of your tribe for many years My messenger .
at the gate shall instruct you in your future work ,
when he surrenders your body Listen t o him and .

,
you shall afterwards rej oin the spirit which you must
n o w leave behind S he is accepted and will dwell
.
,
here forever as young and as happy as when I called

,

her from the Land of S nows And with this t h e.

lover s vision closed .
TH E M ES S A GE B E AR E R S
-
When the Great S pirit brought the R e dme n fro m

the Happy Hunting Grounds and left them upon
the earth they were lled with fear lest they could
,
never make him hear their wants and could not ,
reach his ears when they desired to tell him of their

joys and sorrows The sachems went before him
.
and said : O our F ather how will thy children ,
tell thee of the deeds they have performed th a t will

3 25
please thine ear ? How will they ask thee to their
homes to help them drive away the bad spirits ; and
how will they invite thee to their feasts and dances ?
O our F ather thou canst not at all times be awake
,
and watching thy children and they will not know ,
when thou art sleeping Thy children do not know

.
the trail to the Happy Hunting Grounds by which

to send their wise men and sachems to talk w ith
thee f o r thou hast covered it with thy hands and
,
thy chil d ren cannot discover it Ho w will the words .
O f thy children reach thee 0 our F ather the Mani, ,
to ; h o w will what they s a y come to thine ears

Then the Great S pirit created for each one of the
R e d me n a s econd self to whom he gave a home in
,
the air He provided these beings with wings and

.
swift feet s o they could move v ery rapidly T o

,
.
them he imparted the secrets of the entrance to his

home and made them guides to his children who m
,
he had called on the long j ourney s o that they ,
should not lose the paths leading to the i r future

home F inally the Great S pirit told these crea
.
,
tures of the air that they should be message bearers -
for his children and convey their words exactly as

,
spoken from one point to another until they reached

the ears of his sachems in the b ig wigwam by the
side of the council r e that never lost its light
-
.
They must be ready at all times to answer the

calls o f the R e dmen s o tha t none of their words
,
might b e lost Messages to the loved ones who had

.
left the earth and gone to the Happy Hunting

Grounds must be transmitted with the same watc h
326
I
T HE W AY O F TH E G O D S
(J a p a nes e)
Listen my c hildren to the true st ory of the Be

, ,
ginning o f the World .
When there was neither Heaven nor E arth nor ,
S un nor Moon nor anything that is there existed

, ,
in Innite S pace the Invisible Lord of the Middle

Heaven With him were t w o other Gods
. .
By their miraculous power a Thing whose shape,
cannot be described came into existence in the midst

of S pa c e in appearance like a F loating Cloud
,
.
F orth from it sprang as it were a F lowering Rush

, ,
,

sprout rising from the water pure translucent , ,

and bright which grew and grew and widened and
widened innitely till it Spread over all things and
,
bec ame the C anopy o f Heaven Then do w nward .
from the F loating Cloud grew the Under region -

the Realm of Night which is the Root region of -
the World and the abode of Departed S pirits .
And the center of the F loating Cloud be came the

E arth whic h was still liquid and formless and with
,
o u t life.
After this were born in Heaven seven generations

of Gods and the last and most perfect of these were
,
Izanagi and Izanami No w Izanagi and Izanami

.
,
were the Parents of the World and all that is in

it And it happened in this wise : the Gods of the
.
High Plain of Heaven said to Izanagi and Izanami :

Descend and make o f this drifting mud and _
o c ean a rm and beautiful Land and ll it w ith ,
328
Myths of t h e S ky and A ir

living things And the Gods placed in their h ands
.
a mystic j ewelled S pear .
No w in these days the heavens were near t o the

,
earth and the space between was spanned by a

,
Heavenly F loating Bridge S o they set forth .
bravely on their j ourney and looking down into , ,
the space beneath them they s a w in the depths the ,
green plain of the S ea They held counsel to .

gether and said I s there not a country beneath ?
,
And Izanagi pushed the j ewelled S pear down from

the F loating Bridge and stirred the green sea ro und
and round and some s a y that i s why the earth
,
turns round and round to this day Then the brine .
went curdle curdle and they drew u p the S pear a nd

-
, ,
the brine that fell from the end of the S pear dropped
do w n and became an island This island was c alled .
Onogo ro and is one of the E verlasting Islands of

,
the Land of S unrise of the Land of F ertile Reed ,
plains which is Japan

,
.
N o w the Gods stepped down on to the E arth a nd

, ,
it was strange and desolate and they Shivered a nd , ,
felt lonely and afraid .
S uddenly sounded a whirring of wings ; t w o tiny

S ekir c i wa gt ails swept by and uttered to the
ground It was early springtime ; the living air
.
thrilled warm and sweet With little p eeks and

'
cheeps full of busy pride the pair sought twig

, ,
s
and grasses and wov e them deftly into a downy

nest Quivering with rapture the lover bird hov
.
,
-
ered round h i s mate a nd sang of love and joy a nd,

.
ha ppy days t o come .
329
Wh ile the Great Gods watched a warmt h c rept ,
round the heart of Izanagi , and in Izana m i s eyes

w a s a mist of tears S he whispered softly
. Let ,

u s too make a house to dwell in !
, ,
Then Iz anagi
plunged his spear into the ground and round them ,
rose a great and glorious Palace and the S pear was ,
the Heart Pillar thereof And they were hidden

-
.
from the sight o f Heaven and E arth .
Then moving round this Pillar they met and

, ,
gazed on one another with charmed eyes The .
Mo ther of Mankind cried j oyfully : Behol d ! I

have met with a lovely Youth ! And Izanagi
c ried b ack : Behold ! I h ave met wi th a lov ely

M a iden !
S o the S ekirc i rst taught the Gods the ways of
Love and are honored and cherished in Japan t o
,
this day .
But Izanagi remembered h o w Izanami h ad been

the rst to speak and in his displeasure said wrath
,
fully : I am a Man and should by right have ,

spoken rst !
Wh en the rst child born to them was ugly and
deformed they p ut him in a boat m ade of camphor
,
wood and he sailed away to s ea and became t h e

,
God of the s h e rf o lk His children are the hairy

.
m en who live i n some o f the islands of Japan to

this day .
Then the Gods passed round the Pillar a second

time and Izanagi spoke rst S o his anger was
,
.
a ppeased and they lived greatly content

,
.
T ogether they made the eight islands o f Jap an,

3 30
length t o the Gate o f E verlasting Night t o the
.
Kingdom O f Yomi the Ruler o f t h e U nd e r World

.
,
He knocked at the Gate and cried aloud :

O my beloved S ister ! come back to me ! And
She answered him :
O beloved E lder Brother ! gladly would I come ,
but alas ! I have eaten of Y omi s cooking and am

,

bewitched Le t me return and speak to him but

.
,
do not thou follow me !

S o Izanagi wa ited anxiously without till grow , ,
ing impatient at her long delay he broke a too t h ,
O ff his c o mb lighting it as a torch and so dared

, ,
to e nter those terrible sha d es Through d ark and .
dreadful ways he wandered and his heart quailed ,
within him .
But Yomi was wroth with him for his darin g ,
and smote Izanami s o that when h e found her She -
lay as one altered i n death with E ight Witc hes at,
her head and her feet Then a great horror fell

.
Upon Izanagi ; he turned and ed swiftly and the ,
E ight Ugly Women rose and pursued him On he .
ran through win d ing ways where icy blasts y

,
shrieking ; and the Witches s w ept afte r him and

would have caught him but he Seized the wreath
,
from his h ead and ung it down and i t w a s changed , _
into bun ches of grapes When the Witches s a w

.
these they stopped and greedily devoured them ;

then gathering up th eir robes rose and p urs ued
, ,
Iz anagi felt the chill of their c oming and drew ,
out a m any too thed comb from the right bunch of

-
3 32 )
Myth s of the S ky an d Air
his hair and threw it behind him Behold ! as it .
touched the ground there sprang u p a hed ge of

,
young bam boo shoots across the path The Wi t ches .
Swooped do w n pulled Up the young shoots and a te

, ,
them to the last o ne ; then again gave chase .
No w Izanami t o o was angered against him f o r

, , , ,
s h e had been p u t to shame ; and s h e sent ve h un
dred warriors from Yom i to pursue him When the .
rush and the tramping drew nearer Izanagi un ,
sheathed his ten span sword and in his despair his

-
breath failed a s at the approach of Death Then

suddenly appeared before him the Gate of t h e Pass

o f Yo mi ; and hastily plucking some peaches whic h
grew by the gate he threw them and Scattered

, ,
his pursuers and himself passed through into the

,
light
. And he rolled a mighty stone acro s s the
mouth of the opening s o that none hereafter could
,
move it .
The peaches that had saved h im he named Their

Augustness the Great Divine F ruit and they are ,
honored in some parts of Japan to this day .
N o w when he came back into th e world again

, ,
I zanagi felt very we a ry and searched for a clear ,
stream to wash away the foulness of the Lower

Regions w h ich clung to him When he had found .
o n e he bathed therein and o f this washing many,
evil gods were bo rn ; among them were the Gods

o f Crookedness who love to plague mankind
,
S ee .
ing this evil he made the Gods of S traightening t o

, ,
make crooked things straight .
No w when he had rested and ac c omplish ed h i s

,
333
puri c a tion he created the greatest of his children
,
in this wise :
Descending once more into the clear stream h e ,
bathed his left eye and forth sprang Amaterasu

, ,
the great S un Goddess .
S parkling with light She rose from the waters

,
as the S un rises in the E ast and her brightness ,
was wonderful and shone through Heaven and

,
E arth ; never w a s seen such radiant glory .
Izanagi rej oiced greatly and said ,

There is ,

n one like this Miraculous Ch ild !
Taking a necklace of j ewels he put it round her ,
neck and said Rule Thou ov er the Plain of High

,
Heaven !
Thus Amaterasu became the s o urce of all life and
light ; the glory o f her shining has warmed and com
fo rted all ma nk ind and s h e i s worshipped by them
,
unto this day .
Then he bathed his right eye and there a ppeared ,
her brother the Moon God Izanagi said : Thy

,
.
beauty and radiance are next to the S un in splen

dor ; rule thou over the Dominion of Night !
When the two beautiful ones had departed a third ,
God came forth whose name was S usa w o He was

,
-
.
a god with a strange destiny and could never be at

,
peace sweeping ceaselessly over hills and valleys

,
with his long beard oating behind him Izanagi .
gave him dominion over the s e a .
But he was not c ontent and neglected h is king

dom restlessly roaming over the earth s o that the
, ,
green mountains withered and the rivers dried up .
3 34
CHAPT E R VII
O H R
T E
M YT H S A ND C HI LD
MYTHS
N a l l t h e myths we have learned about

I
far there so
has b een very little o f the purely human element

of a ff ection yet it i s true that reverence and love for
,
the mother of all thi ngs was one of t h e earliest in

s t inc t s in the mind of primitive man as well as lo v e ,
and even reverence f o r c hildren .
The idea of t h e eart h a s a mother is a very simple

and natural one and so w e nd everywhere that the
,
earth has b een personied a s a mother .
A m ong the primitive people of America the E arth

Mother is a personage of m u ch importance The .
Peruvians worshipped her as Mama Pacha or Mother -
E a rth The Carib s when ther e was an earthquake

.
,
said it was their Mother E a rth dancing and signify

ing to them to dance and make merry likewise which ,
accordingly they did Among the North American

.
Indians the Comanches call on the ear th as their

,
mother while they reg a rd the Great S pirit as their

,
father .
In the mythology of the Finns Lapps and Es th s , ,
t h e E arth Mother is a divin el y honored pers onage

-
.
O ne o f the m ost primitive forms o f the E arth Mother -
is t h at of the Zulus S he is described as a very little

.
336
Moth er Myths and Chi ld Myt hs
- -
animal abo u t a s large a s a pole cat an d is marke d -

,
w it h little white and black stripes The Zulus s a y .
O f her that s h e is not commonly seen We hear it .
s aid that primitive men knew her No one existing at .
the present time ever s a w her In spite of this fact .

,
however they seem to have very de n ite ideas o f her

,
a ppearance for Upon one side O f this little b lack and

,
white animal there grow a bed of reeds a forest and , ,
grass S he always goes about followed by a large

.
troop of children which resemble her and in whose ,
welfar e s h e takes a great interest The n a me of this .
godde s s is I nko s a z a na - -
.
The O ldest of all their gods in Polynesian mythol

o gy is a mother goddess called Vari -
S he is the .
v ery beginning of things in the abyss S he is cele .
b ra t e d as the source of all from whom a ll b eings

claim descent S he sheltered the E arth Mother who
.
-
,
in Polynesian mytholo gy is called Papa whose hus ,
band was Rangi the Heaven How these t w o came

,
.
to b e separated is told in the story of the Children

O f Heaven and E art h .
We see from this myt h of Vari t h at t h e eart h is

n o t the only mother goddess -
.
The very beginnin gs of things in night and chaos

were frequently r epresented as mother goddesses .
F or example the E gyptian Mother goddess w a s

,
-
Neith the goddess O f night S he is cele b rated as the

,
.

Only One . Glory to thee ! Thou art mightier
than the Gods ! The forms Of t h e living souls which
are in their pl a ces give glory to the terrors o f thee ,

their m o t h er ; thou art their o rigin S he is r e p r e .
3 37
sented as self existing
-
I am all that w a s a nd is and
.

is to be ; no mortal h at h lifted my v eil In the .
Public Library in Boston the artist S argent has

made the v ague black gure of this goddess the
,
b ackground in h is fresco giving a symb olic r ep r e s e n

,
t a t i o n O f E gyptian religion The face of Neith shows

.
inscrutable calm and s h e wears as a necklace the con

,
s t e lla t i o n s of the Z odiac and on her head the winged

,
glob e o f the s un S he w a s said also t o have been the

.
mother of the s un .
The Hindoo A di ti mother of the gods seems t o

, , ,
have been a goddess of the same kind S he is said t o .
represent free unb ounded innity and is the mother

, ,

of twelve heavenly beings s un gods called Adityas -
, .
Her kinship with other mother goddesses is shown -
by the fact that s h e was invoked as t h e bestower of

blessings on children and ca t tle .
In th e nai ve and poetical little myth of the Mala

.
yan Peninsula given later the s un and m oon both ,
gure a s mother goddesses

-
.
The worship of mother goddesses among the a n -
cient Mexican Indians was prominent Hymn s de .

~
scriptive of t w o are given here The rst is to t h e .

goddess T e t e o in a n t h e Mother o f the Gods
,
S he .

w a s also called S oci Our Mother and also by a n
, ,
other name which signied The Heart of the

E arth . This last name w a s given to her because
s h e w a s b elieved to be the cause of earthquakes S he .
presided over the vegeta b le and animal world and her

chief temple at T e p e ya c a c was one of the most r e
no w ned in a ncient Mexico The other goddess .
,
338
v ests E lyn is the protectress who deliv ers people
.
from peril Gnaa is the messenger who runs errand s

.
for Frigg Var has charge o f marriage Lofu of love

.
, ,
and Syn of justice The counterpart o f F rigg in

.
Greek mythology is Demeter (Roman name Ceres) , ,
the daughter of another earth goddess Rhea Like -

,
.
Frigg s h e represents the b o untiful life giving aspects

,
-
of nature S he is best described in the hymn writ

.
ten in h e r honor by Callimachus give n later and in ,
whic h you will recognize another v ers ion of t h e story

of Eris ich t h o n .
M ALAYAN S TORY O F TH E SU N AND M OO N

The Moon is a woman and the S un also The ,
.
sta rs are the Moon s children and the S un had in

,
olden times as many F earin g however that man .

, ,
kind could not h e a r s o much b rightness and heat ,
they agreed each t o devour her children But the .
Moo n inst e ad of eating up her s t ars hid them from

the S un s sight who believing t h em all devoured ate
, , ,
up her own ; n o sooner h ad s h e done it than the Moon
brough t her family out of their hiding place When -

.
the S un s a w them lled with rage s h e chas ed the

, ,
Moon to kill h e r The ch ase has lasted ever since

.
,
and somet imes t h e Sun even comes near enough to

bite the Moon and that is an eclipse The S un as
,
.
,
m en may s e e still devours her st a rs at dawn and the

, ,
Moon hides h ers all d a y while t h e S un i s near and ,
o nly brings the m out at night when her purs u er i s far
away .
3 40
D emeter or C e res . Th e Va ti ca n .
Of w a r, a n e a m x ple a nd a c omp a ni o n fro m t h e h ome o f o ur
t
a nce s o rs .
Sh e ome s fo rth Sh e a pp ea rs w h en w a r is w a ge d s h e p ro
c , ,
t e et s us in w a r t h a t w e s h a ll no t b e des tro ye d a n e xa mple ,
a nd co mp a ni on f ro m t h e h o me o f o ur a nc e s t o rs .
Sh e co me s a d o rne d in t h e a nc i e nt ma nne r w i th t h e ea gle

cre st in t h e a nc i ent ma nner w i th t h e e a gl e cres t
, .
TH E CHILDRE N O F H E AV E N AND E AR T H
(Po lyne s i a n)
Men had b ut o ne pair o f primitive ancestors ; they

sprang from the vast Heaven that exists above u s ,
and from the E arth which lies b eneat h u s Accord .
ing to the traditions of our race Rangi and Papa or , ,
Heaven and E arth were the source from which , in

,
the b eginning all things originated Darkness then

,
.
rested upon the Heaven and upon the E arth and ,
they s t ill both clave together for they had not yet ,
been rent apart and their c h ildren were ever think

,
ing among themselves what mi ght be the diff eren c e

b etween darkness and light .
At last worn o u t b y t h e continued darkn ess the

, ,
children of Heaven and E arth consulted amongst

themselves sayin g : Let us n o w determine what w e
,
should do with Rangi and Papa whether it would b e ,

better to slay them or to rend them apart Then .
spoke Tu Ma t a u eng a the ercest of the children of

-
,

Heaven and E arth : It is well let us slay them ,
.
Then spoke Tane Mahuta the father of forests and

-
,
of all th ings that inhab it them or that are con ,
s tructed from trees : Nay not s o It is bett er t o ,

.
3 42
Mother Myt h s and Child Myt hs
- -
rend t h em apart and to let the Heaven stand f a r

,
,
a bove us and the E arth lie under our feet Let the
,
.
S ky become a s a stranger to u s but the E arth remain ,

close to us as our nursing mother .
The b rothers all consented to this proposal with ,

the exception of Tawhiri ma tea the father of winds -
,
and storms and he fearing that his kingdom was

, ,
about to b e overthrown grieved greatly at the ,
thought of h is parents b eing torn apart .
Finally however having come to an agreement as

, ,
t o their plans 1 0 Rongo matane the god and father

, ,
-
,
of the cultivated food O f man rises up that he may ,
rend apart Hea v en and E arth ; he struggles but he ,
cannot rend them apart LO next T a ng a w a the .

, , ,
god and father of sh and reptiles rises up that he , ,
may rend apart Heaven and E arth ; he also struggles ,
but he cannot rend them apart LO next Ha umia .

, ,
tikitiki the god and fa ther of the food of man whic h

,
springs without c ul tivation rises up and struggles , ,
but ine ff ectually Lo then Tu M a t a u e ng a the god

.
, ,
-
,
and father of erce human b eings rises up and strug ,
gles but he to o fails in h is e ff orts Then at last

, , ,
.
, ,

slowly uprises Tane Mahuta the god and father of ,
forests of birds and of insects and he struggles with

, , ,
his parents ; in vain h e strives to rend them apart with

his hands and arms Lo he pauses ; h is head is now
.
,
rmly planted on his mother the E arth h is feet he ,
raises u p and rests against his father the Heaven he ,
strains his b ack and limb s with mighty e ff ort No w .
are rent apart Rangi and P a pa and with cries and ,
g ro a ns of w oe t h ey shri e k aloud : Wherefore slay

3 43
y o u thus your parents ? Why commit you s o dread

ful a crime a s to slay us a s to rend your parents ,

apart ? But Tane Mahuta pauses not ; he regards -
no t their shrieks and cries ; far far b eneath him he ,
presses down the E arth ; far far ab ove him he thrusts ,
up the S ky .
Then also there arose in the breast of T aw h iri

, ,
ma tea the god and father of winds and storms a

-
, ,
erce desire to wage war with his b rothers because ,
they had rent apart their common parents .
The god of hurricanes and storms dreads also that

the world should become too fair and beautiful s o ,
he rises follows his father to the realms above and

, ,
hurries to the sheltered hollows in the boundless

skies ; there he hides and clings and nestling in this ,
place of rest he consults long with his parent and as ,
t h e v ast Heaven listens to the suggestions of Taw

hiri ma tea thoughts and plans are formed in his
- -
,
breast and T awhiri ma t ea also understands what he

,
- -
m ust do .
He sends forth erce squalls whirlwinds dense , ,
clouds massy clouds dark clouds gloomy thick

, , ,
clouds ery clouds clouds whic h precede hurricanes

, , ,
clouds of ery bl a ck clouds reecting glowing red ,
light cloud s wildly drifting from all quarters and

,
wildly bursting clouds of thunder storms and clouds

,
-
,
hurriedly ying In the midst of these Tawhiri ma

.

t e a hi mself sweeps wildly o n Alas ! Alas ! then .
rages t h e erc e hurricane ; and wh ilst Tane Mahut a -
and his gigantic forests still stand un c onscious and ,
unsuspe c ting, the b l a st o f the bre at h o f the m o uth o f

3 44
unshaken upon the breast of his Mother E arth ; a nd
no w at length the hearts of Heaven and o f the g o d
o f sto rms became tranquil and their p a ssions were ,
assuaged .
U p to t h is time the v ast Heaven h as still ever r e

mained separated from his spouse the E arth Yet .

their mutual love still continues the soft warm
sighs of her loving b osom still ever rise up to him ,
ascendi ng from the woody mountains and valleys ,
and me n call these mists ; and the vast Heaven as ,
he mourns through the long nights his separation

from his beloved drops frequent tears Upon her
,
bosom, and men seeing these term the m dewdrops ,

.
S T ORY OF DE ME T E R
(Greek : From th e Hymn o f C a lli ma ch us )
He sings h o w Demeter w a s the rst to cut Off

wheat straw and handfuls of ears and introduced
, , ,
oxen to tread out the corn He tells also h o w s h e .
punishes those who are guilty of disrespect to her

power S he made the son of T r i Op U S pitiable by
.
hunger Not yet were the Pelasgians inhabiting

.
the Cnidian land but sacred Do t ium ; but to thy

,
self had raised a beautiful enclosure thickly grown ,
with trees ; scarce would an arrow have penetrated

it In it was the pine in it tall elms and pear
.
, ,
trees also and beautiful sweet apples whilst the

, , ,
water like as amb er was bursting forth from

, ,
springs Then the s on of T r i Opu s hastened forth

.
with twenty servants all in their prime all giant

, ,
346
Mother Myths -
an d Child Myths -
men having armed them in both res pects with

,
h atchets and axes s o they rushed w ith o ut sh ame

,
into the grove o f Demeter .
No w there was a po plar a large tree reach ing to

,
heaven and under it the nymphs were wont to dis

,
port themselves in the noontide which stricken rst , , ,
soun d ed an evil melody for the rest Demeter be .
came aware that her sacred grove was in danger ,
and said in anger , Who i s hewing down my beau

tiful trees ?
'
F orthwith s h e likened herself to Nicippe whom ,
the state had appointed as her public priestess and ,
s h e grasped in her hand the llets and poppies and
kept her key on her shoulders Then said She .

,
soothing the s a d and Shameless man : My s on who

fellest the sacred trees which are c onsecrated to gods ,
stay my s o n child much beloved by thy parents

, , , ,
forb ear and turn aw ay thy servants lest anyw ise o ur ,
Lady Demeter be wroth with thee ; Demeter w h ose ,

holy precinct thou art pillaging .
At her then looking askance more ercely t h an

,
a lioness with savage brood : Give way lest I ,
fasten this great axe in thy esh These trees tho u .
shalt behold my well roofed house wherein I shall

-
,

ever and anon hold pleasant banquets to my heart s

content with my companions SO spake the youth ,.
and Nemesis recor d ed the wicked speech .
Demeter was wroth in an unspeakable degree and ,
s h e became the goddess Her steps indeed trod ,

.
,
the ground but her head touched Olympus Then

,
.
were they h alf dead I wot, when they had seen

,
3 47
the a w f ul
goddess and on a s u dden rushed away '
, ,
having left the axe among the oaks The rest she .
left alone f o r by constraint they followed beneath

,
their lord s hands but s h e replied to the king that

,
vexed her S o s o ; build thy hall thou d og thou

, , ,
dog wherein thou mayst hold banquets for frequent

, ,

festivals thou shalt have hereafter F orthwith She .
sent Upon him a grievous erce hunger burning , ,
and violent S o terrible was his appetite th at he

.
ate U p every thing his mother had causing her to ,
call on Neptune :

E ither remove thou from him his s a d disorder
o r thyself take and maintain him for my tables ,
have fallen short Reft are my folds and my stalls

.
,
no w void of beasts ; and at length my cooks have
declined the task Nay more they have unyoked .

, ,
the mul e s from the great wains and he ate the ,
heifer which his mother was feeding for Vesta and ,
the prize gaining steed and war horse, and the cat
-

which lesser animals dread .
O Demeter may he be no friend to me who is

,
h ated by you S ing ye virgins and ye moth ers

.
,
j oin the acclaim All hail Demeter many nurtur

.
, ,
ing of many measures And as the four white .
maned steeds carry the basket so shall the great ,
goddess wide ruling come bringing to u s fair

, , ,
spring fair summer winter and autumn and shall

, , ,
keep them for u s to another year .
Hail goddess and preserve this city in harmony

, ,
and prosperity and bring all things home ripe from

,
the elds F eed o ur cattle ; support our fruit trees ;

.
3 48
the realm of Tartarus . Dost thou not se e that
even in heaven some despise our power ? A t h ne
and Artemis defy u s ; and there is that daughter
o f Demeter who threatens to follow their example
,
.
No w if thou regardest thine own interest o r mine

, ,

j oin these t w o in o ne The boy selected his Sharp .
est and truest arrow and sped it right to the heart ,
o f Pluto .
N o w in the vale o f E nna is a lake embowered in

woods where S pring rei gns perpetual Here Per
,
.
s e p h o ne ( Roman Proserpina ) was playing with her

,
companions gathering lilies and violets when the

, ,
g o d Pluto s a w her He immediately loved her

. and , ,
without waiting to nd o u t whether she returned

his love or not he caught her Up and carried her
,
O ff
. S he screamed for help to her mother and her
t
compan i ons but Pluto urged o n h I S steeds and out
,
distanced pursuit When he reached the river Cy .
ane it O pposed his passage ; whereupon he struck

,
the bank with h i s trident and the earth opened and ,
gave him a passage to Tartarus .
Then Demeter overwhelmed with grief sought, ,
her daughter through the whole world Br i ght .
haired Aurora when she came forth in the morn

,
ing and Hesperus when he led out the stars in

, ,
the evening found her still busy in the search

,
.
At length weary and s a d s h e s a t down Upon a

, ,
stone and remained nine days and nine nights in

, ,
the Open air under the sunlight and moonlight and

,
falling showers It w a s where the city of E leusis

.
no w stands near the home of an old man named

,
3 50
Mother Myt h s and C hi ld Myt h s
- -
C e l e us His little girl pitying the old woman

.
, ,
said to her : Mother and the name was sweet

to the ears o f Demeter why sittest thou here

alone Upon the rocks ? The o l d man begged her
to come into his cottage S he declined He urged. .

her . Go in peace s h e replied
,
and be happy ,

in thy daughter ; I have lost mine But their .
compassion nally prevailed Demeter rose from .
the stone and went with them As they walked .

,
C el e u s said that his only son lay sick of a fever .
The go d dess stooped and gathered some poppies .
Then entering the cottage where all was in d i s

,

tress for the boy Triptolemus seemed past r e cov
, ,

ery Sh e restored the child to life and health with
a kiss In grateful happiness the family spread the
.
table and put upon it curds and cream apples and

, , ,
honey in the comb While they ate Demeter

.
,
mingled p e ppy j uice in the milk of the boy When .
night came s h e arose and taking the sleeping boy,

, ,
moulded his limbs with her hands a nd uttered over ,
him three times a solemn charm then went and ,
laid him in the ashes His mother who had been

.
,
watching what her guest was doing sprang forward ,
with a cry and snatched the child from the re .
Then Demeter assumed her own form and a divine ,
Splendor shone all around While they were over .
come with astonishment Sh e said : Mother thou , ,
hast been cruel in thy fondness ; for I would have

made thy s on immortal Nevertheless he shall be.
,
great and useful He shall teach men the use of

.
the plough, and the rewards which l a bor c an w in

3 51
'

from t h e soil So s a ying s h e wrapped a cloud
.
t
,
about her, and mounting her ch a riot rode away

, ,
.
Demeter continued her search for her daughter ,
until at last s h e returned to S icily whence s h e had ,
at rst s e t out and stood by the banks of the r i ver

,
C y ane The river nymph would have told the god

.
dess all she had witnessed but dared not for fear of
,
Pluto ; s o s h e ventured merely to take up the girdle

which Persephone had dropped in her ight and ,
oat it to the feet of her mother Demeter seeing .

,
this laid her curse upon the innocent earth in whic h

,
her daughter had disappeared Then succeeded .
drought and famine ood and plague until at last

, ,
the fountain Arethusa made i ntercession for the

land F or s h e had observed that i t had opened all
.
unwillingly to the might o f Pluto and s h e h ad ,
also in her ight from Alpheus through the lower

,
regions of the earth beheld the missing Persephone

,
.
S he reported that the daughter of Demeter seemed

s a d but no longer Showed alarm in her countenance
,
.

Her look w a s such as became a queen the queen
of E rebus the powerful bride of the monarc h of
,
the realm of the dead .
When Demeter heard this She stood a while like

one s t up e e d then s h e implored Zeus to interfere
to pro c ure the restitution Of her daught er Zeus .
consented on condition that Persephone should not ,
during her stay in the lower world have taken any ,
food ; otherwise the F ates forbade her release A c

,
.
co r d i ngly Hermes was sent accompanied by S pring

, , ,
t o de m and Persephone of Pluto The w ily mo na rch .
3 52
tells h ow they came to Worship children Onc e som e .
mothers were crossing a river with their chil d ren .
By some magical means the children were changed

into s uch ugly and mischievous shapes that many of
the mothers in their fright let them fall into the
, ,
water S ome o f them held fast to their c hildren

.
,
and these were restored to their natural shapes on

the other side of the river but those who had lost,
their children grieved deeply and nothing c ould ,
comfort them Thereupon two little twin brothers

.
, ,
who were called S ons of the S un went downward ,
beneath the waters of a lake to the dwelling of the

children who as soon as they s a w the twins in
,
quired lovingly h o w it fared with their mothers .
Their visitors told them o f the grief and sorrow of

their parents whereupon the children said : Tell
,
o ur mothers we are not dead but live and sing in ,
this beautiful place which is the home for th em

,
when they sleep O ne day they will wake here and

.
be happy always And we are here to intercede

.
with the S un our father that he may give to o u r

, ,
people rain and the fruits of the earth a n d all that ,

is good for them E ver since these children have
.
been worshipped as ancestral gods .
We have already had a little story in which t h e

stars appear as the children of the sun and moon .
In another one of the Indians of British Columbia

, ,
the dark spots which we s e e on the moon are sup

posed to be a child and her little basket A ccording .
t o this legend one night a child of the chief class

,
awoke and cried for water I t s crie s were very .
3 54
Mother Myths and Child Myths
- -
aff ecting Mother give me a drink ! but t h e ,
mother heeded n o t The Moon w a s touched and .

,
came down entered the house and approached the

, ,

child say ing : Here is water from heaven ; drink
,
.
The child eagerly took hold of the j ar and drank

the water and w a s then enticed to go away with its
,
benefactor the Moon They took an unde rground

,
.
passage until they got quite clear of the village ,
and then ascended to heaven And still we see in .
the moon the gure o f that very child carrying the ,
little round basket it had in its hand when it went

to sleep .
The Indians of Mt S hasta have a little wind .
child who also became the ancestress o f the grizzly

,
bear people They tell h o w once a terric storm

.
came U p from the s e a and shook to its base the

wigwam M t S hasta itself i n which lived the
.
Great S pirit and h i s family Then the Great S pirit .
commanded h i s daughter little more than an i n ,
fant to go up and command the wind to be still ;

,
but he cautioned her at the same time in a tende r , ,
fatherly manner to be sure and not put her head

,
o u t into the blast but to thrust o u t her little red

,
arm and make a Sign before she delivered her mes

sage But she could no t withstand the temptation
.
to look o u t Upon the world and of course being , ,
s uch a little thing s h e was caught u p by the storm

,
and blown down the mountain into the land of the

grizzly bear people S he married one of them and
-
.
,
became the ancestress of a new race of men When .
the Great S pirit heard that hi s daughter still lived ,
3 55
h e ran down the mountain for joy but when he ,
found o ut that his daugh t er had married one of the

g rizzly
-
bear people he was so
,
angry that he cursed
the grizzly people and turned them into the present
race of bear s of that name Then he drove them .
and the ne w race of men out of their wigwam shut ,
to the door and passed away to his mountains

, ,
carrying his daughter wit h him ; and her or him no

eye has Since seen .
A very important mythical being in Polynesian

mythology is a little b o y called Maui tikitiki o Taran - - -
g ,
a an d how he caught the S un is told in the story
o f him in this chapter .
The E gyptians called the s un itself a child when

i t w a s rising The nam e of this Child S un was
.
-
Horus and he was sometimes regarded as the god

,
o f silence and represented as a child with his nger ,
h eld up to his lip The principal children in Gre ek

.
myths are Heracles and Hermes who although they , ,
gure in many stories after they had become full

grown gods were both v ery remarkable when they
,
were babies Heracle s was the God of S trength

.
,
but it is very probable that there are some cosmic

e lements in the conception of this god His struggle .
w ith the serpe nts in his babyhood resembles very

closely other battles in mythology between the s un
and the powers of darkness R a and A na p e f o r ,
Apollo and the Python Hermes who is a roguish

.
,
little imp is full of suc h tricks a s the wind plays

, ,
and he h as bec ome the model of many a medi aeval

tale o f tri cksy thieves and wonder workers -
.
3 56
'
Thus they were borne Up at last beyond all hum an

help or reach of human v oice ; lifted U p into the
blue heavens far up far up until their face s
, , ,
touched the moon ; and still they slumbered and

slept year after year safe among the clouds
, ,
.
Then Upon a time all the animals assembled t o

, ,
s
gether to bring down the little boys from the top

o f the great rock E very animal made a spring u p
.
the face of the wall as far as he could leap The .
little mouse could only jump u p a hand breadth ; -
the rat two hand brea d ths the raccoon a little far
,
-

ther ; and so on the grizzly bear making a mighty
leap far up the wall bu t falling back like all the
,
others Last of all the lion tried and he jumped

.
,
u p farther than any other animal but he too fel l , , ,
down at on his back .
Then came along an insi gnicant measuring

worm which even the mouse could have crushed by
,
treading on it and began to creep u p the r o ck

,
.
S tep by step a little at a time he measured his

, ,

way u p until he presently was above the lion s
,
j ump then pretty soon o u t o f Sight S o he crawled

,
.
u p and u p through many sleeps f o r about one whole

, ,
snow and at last he reached the top Then he took

,
.
the little boys and came downward as he went Up ,
s o bringing them safely to ground .
And the rock is called the measuring worm T w -
t ok a nul a .
3 58
M ot h er Myths and Child Myths
- -
OR TH E LON E LI GH TNIN G
,
( Od ji bw a )
A little orphan boy who had no one to care for

,
him was once living with his uncle who treated

, ,
him very badly making him do hard things and

,
giving him very little to eat ; s o that the boy pined

away he never grew much and became through
, , ,
hard u sage very thin and light At last the uncle

,
.
felt ashamed of this treatment and determined to ,
make amends for it by fattening him up but his ,
real o b ject w a s to kill h im by over feeding He told -

.
his wife to give the bo y plenty of bear s meat and

,
let him have the fat which is thought to be the

,
best part They were both very assiduous in cram

.
ming him and one day came near choking hi m t o

,
death by forcing the fat down his throat The boy .
escaped and ed from the lodge He knew not where .
to go but wandered a b ou t Wh en night came on

,
.
,
he was afraid the wild beasts would eat him ; s o he

climbed U p into the forks o f a huge pine tree and ,
there he fell asleep in the branches and had a n ,
a up o w a y o r ominous dream
, .
A person appeared to him from the upper s ky

and said : My poor little lad I pity you and t h e , ,
bad usage you have received from your uncle h as

led me to visit you ; follow me and step in my ,

tracks Immediately h i s sleep left him and he
.
,
rose Up and followed his guide mounting up h igher ,
and higher into the air until he reached the upper

,
s ky
. Here twelve arrows were put into h i s h ands ,
3 59
and he w a s told tha t there were a great many Mani
toes in the northern Sky against whom he must go ,
to war and try to waylay and shoot them Accord

,
.
i ngly he went to that part of the Sky and at long

, ,
intervals shot arrow after arrow until he had ex

pended eleven in vain attempts to kill the Ma nit o e s
,
.
At the ight o f each arrow there was a long and

solitary streak of lightning in the sky then all was
clear again an d n o t a cloud o r spot could be seen
,
.
The twelfth arrow he held a long time in his h an d s ,
and looked around keenly o n every side to s p y the

Ma nit o es he was after But these M a nit o e s were
.
very cunning and could change their form in a

,
moment All they feared was the boy s arrows f or

.

,
these were magic arrows which had b een given to ,
h im by a good Spirit and had power to kill them

,
if aimed aright At length the boy drew Up his

.
last arrow settled in his aim and let y as he

, , ,
thought into the very heart of the chief o f the

,
Ma nit o e s ; b u t before the arrow reached him t h e ,
Manito changed himself into a rock Into this rock .
the head of the arrow sank deep and stuck fast .

Now your gifts are all expended cried the en ,
raged Manito and I will make an example o f your

,
audacity and pride of heart for lifting your bow

against me . And so saying he transformed the ,

b o y into the N ez h ik e w a w a sun or Lone Lightning
- - -
, ,
which ma y be observed in the northern s ky t o thi s

day.
3 60
A G u id e to Mythology
T h en Baby smiled a gain, but did not budge .
And the Master Spake sweetly and made his v oi ce

like that of the summer bird but it was of no ava il, ,
for W a sis s a t still and sucked his maple sugar -

.
T h en the Master frowned and spoke terribly and ,
ordered Wasis to come crawling to him immediately .
And Baby burst o u t into crying and yelling but did ,
not move for a ll that .
Then since he could do but one thing more the

, ,
Master had recourse to magic He used his most .
awful spells and sang the songs which raise the

,
dead and scare the devils ! And Wasis sat and

looked on admiringly and seemed to nd it very in
,
t e r es t ing bu t all the same he never moved an inch

,
.
S o Glo o ska p gave it u p in despair and Wasis s it , ,
ting on the oor in the sunshine went go o ! g o o ! and ,
crowed .
And to this day when yo u s ee a babe well c on

tented going goo ! go o ! and crowing and no one can
, ,
tel l why know that it is because he rememb ers t h e

,
time when he overcame the Master who had con

quered all the world F or o f all the beings that
.
h ave ever been since the beginning Baby is alone ,
t h e only in vincible o ne .
O J EEG A NNU N G ; OR TH E SU M M E R MA KE R
,
-
( N o r th Ameri ca n Ind i a n)
T h ere lived a celebrated h un ter o n t h e so u thern

shores of Lake S uperior, who was considered a Man
ito by some , for ther e w a s not h ing but what h e could
3 62
Mother Myths an d Child Myt hs
- -
a cco mplish He lived o ff the path in a wild lone

.
, ,
some place with a wife whom he loved and they

, ,
were blessed wit h a s o n who had attained his thir

,

t ee nt h year . The hunter s name w as Oje e g or the ,
Fisher which is the name of an expert sprigh t ly

, ,
little animal common to the re gion He was s o suc .
c e s s f u l in the chase that he seldom return ed without
bringing his wife and s o n a plentiful supply of veni

s on
,
or other dainties of the woods As hunting .
formed his constant occupation his son b egan early ,
to emulate his father in the same employment and ,
would take his b o w and arrows and exert his skill in ,
trying to kill b irds and squirrels The greatest im .
pediment he met with was the coldness and severity

of the climate He often returned home his li ttle
.
,
n gers b enum b ed with cold and crying with vexa ,
tion at his disappointment Days and months and .
years pas sed away but still the same perpetual depth
,
of sno w was seen coveri ng all the country as w ith

,
a w hi te cloak .
One day after a fruitless trial of h is forest skill

, ,
the little boy was returning homeward with a heavy

heart when he s a w a small red squirrel gnawing the
,
top of a pine bur He had approached within a

.
proper distance to shoot, when the squirrel s a t up on

its h ind legs and thus addressed him :
My grandchild put up your arrows and li sten to
, ,

what I h a ve to tell you The boy complied rather
.
reluctan t ly whe n the squirrel continued : My son

, ,
I s e e you pass frequently wit h your n gers b e ,
numbed with c old, and crying with vexation for not

3 63
h aving killed any b irds Now if you will follow my
.
,
advice w e will s e e if you cannot accomplish your

wishes If you will strictly pursue my advice we
. ,
will have perpetual summer and yo u will then have

,
the pleas ure of killing as many birds a s you please ;

and I will also have something to eat, a s I am no w
myself on the point of starvation .
Listen to me As soon as yo u get h o m e you must

.
c ommence crying You must throw away your bow

.
and arrows in discontent If your mother asks you

.
what is the matter you m ust not answer her but

, ,
continue crying and so b b ing If s h e offers you any

.
thing to eat you must push it away with apparent

,
discontent and continue crying In the evening

,
.
,
when your father returns from hunting h e will in ,
quire o f your mother what is the matter with yo u .
S he will answer that you came h ome crying and ,
would not s o much as mention the cause to her All .
this while you must not leave o ff sobb ing At l a st .
your father will s a y : My s o n why is this unn ec e s ,
sary grief ? Tell me t h e cause You kno w I am a .
spirit and that nothing is impossible for me to per

,
form YO U must then answer him and s a y that you

.

,
are sorry to s e e the snow continually on the ground ,
and a s k him if he could not cause it to melt s o that ,
we might have perpetual summer S ay it in a suppli .
e a t ing way a nd tell him this is the cause of your grief .
Yo u r father will reply : It is very hard to a e com

p l i s h your request but for,
your sake and o n acc o un t ,
o f m y love for you I will use my utmost endea v ors

, .
He will tell yo u t o be still, and c e a se c rymg He .
3 64
lodge but o f s o deformed a shape that they c o uld not
,
possibly m ake o ut who or wha t sort of a man it could

be. His head w a s enormously large ; he had such a
que e r s e t of teeth and no arms They wondered h o w
, .
he could kill anim a ls But the secret was soon r e

.
vealed He w a s a great Manito He invited them t o

. .
pass the night to which they consented

,
.
He boiled h is meat in a h ollo w v essel made of

wood and took it out of this sing ular kettle in s ome
,
w a y unknown to his guests He carefully gave each

.
their portion to eat but made so many odd move,
m ents that the Otter could not refrain from laugh

ing for h e is the only one who is spoken of as a
,
j ester The Man ito looked at him with a terrib le

.
look and then m ade a spring at him and got on him

, ,
to smother him for that w a s his mode of killing ani

,
mals But t h e Otter, when he felt him on his neck

.
,
slipped his head b ack and made for the door which ,
he passed in safety ; but wen t out with the curse of

the Manito The others passed the night and they
.
,
conversed on different sub jects The Manito told the .
Fisher th a t he would accomplish his o b ject but that ,
it would pro b ably cost h im his life He gave them .
his advi c e directed them h o w t o act and descri b ed

, ,
a certain road whic h they must follo w and they ,
would thereby be led to the place of action .
T h ey s e t o in the morning and met their friend , ,
t h e O tter shivering with cold ; but O je e g had taken

,
care to bring along so me of the meat th a t had been

given him which he presented to his friend They
,
.
p urs u ed their way ,

and travell e d twenty days m ore
366
M other Myths -
and Child Myt h s
-
before they g o t to the pla c e of which the Manit o

had told them It wa s a most lofty mountain They
. .
rested on its highest peak to ll their pipes and re

fresh themselves Before smoking t h ey made the .
,
customary ceremony pointing t o the heav ens the , ,
four wi nds the earth and the zen ith ; in the mean
, ,
time speaking in a loud v oice they addressed the

, ,
Great S pirit hopin g that their object would b e a o

,
complished They then commenced smoking

. .
They gazed on the s ky in silent admiration and a s

t o ni s h ment for they were on s o elevated a point that
,
it appeared to b e only a s h ort distan c e above their

he a ds After they h ad nished smoking they pre
.
,
pared themselv es Oje eg told the Otter to m ake the .
rst attempt to try and make a hole in the s ky He .
consented with a grin He made a leap but fell .

,
down the h ill stunned by the force of his fall ; and

the snow being moist and falling on h is back he , ,
slid with velocity down the side of the m oun tain .
When h e found himself at the bottom he thought to ,
himself : It is the last time I Shall attempt such a

j ump s o I will make the bes t of my w a y home
,
.
Then it w a s the turn of the Beaver who made t h e ,
a ttempt b u t fell down senseless ; then of the Lynx

,
and Badger who had no better success

,
.

N o w says Fisher to the Wolverine
,

try your ,
Skill ; your ancestors were cele b rated for their a c t iv

ity hardihood and perseverance a n d I depend on
, , ,
you for success No w make the attempt . He did

s o b u t also without success
,
He leaped the second .
time, but now they could s ee that the s ky w a s giving

3 67
wa y to t h eir repeated atte mpts Mu stering strengt h , .
he made the third leap and went in The Fisher ,

.
nimb ly followed him .
They foun d themselves in a beautiful plain ex ,
tending a s far as the eye could reach covered wi th ,
owers of a thous and diff erent hues and fragrance .
Here and there were clusters of tall shady trees , ,
separated by innumerable streams of the purest

water which wound a round their courses under the
,
cooling shades and lled the plain with countless

,
beautiful lakes whose banks and bosom were c o v

,
ered with water fowl basking an d sporting in the

-
,
s un
. The trees were alive wit h b irds of diff erent
plumage warb ling their sweet notes and delighted
, ,
with perpetual spring .
The Fisher and his friend beheld very long lodges ,
and the celesti a l inhab itants amusing themselves at a

distance . Words cannot express the beauty a n d
charm of the place The lodges were empty of in .
ha b itant s b ut they s a w them lined with moca ks of

, ,
diff erent sizes lled with b irds and fowls of diff erent
,
plumag e Oje eg thought of his s o n and immediately

.
,
commenced cutting open the mocnks and letting out

the b irds who descended in whole ocks through the
,
O pening which they had made The warm air of .
those regions also rushed down through the opening ,
and spread i t s genial inuence over the north .
When the celestial inhabitants s a w the birds let

loose and the wa rm gales descending they raised a
, ,
shout like thunder and ran for their lodges But it

, .
w a s t o o late Spring summer and autumn h a d gone ;

.
, ,
3 68
A G u ide to Mythology
cost m e my life ; but I di e satised in the idea that
I have done s o mu ch good not only for him but f o r , ,
my fellow beings Hereafter I will be a Sign to the

-
.
inhabitants below for ages to come w h o will ven ,
e ra t e my name for having succeeded in procuring
the v arying seasons They will now have from

.

eight to ten moons without snow .
He was found dead next morning but they left ,
him as they found him with the arrow sticking in ,
his tail as it can be plainly seen at this time, in

, ,
the heavens .
T HE LE GEND OF MAU I
( Po lynes i a n)
Once when his relations were all dancing in the

great House of Assemb ly they found out who he was .
F or little Maui the infant crept into the house

, , ,
and went and s a t b ehind one o f his brothers and hid ,
himself s o when their mother counted her children

,
that they might stand up ready f o r the dance She ,

said : O ne that s Maui taha ; t w o that s Mau r
,
-
,

roto ; three that s Maui pae ; four that s Maui
,
-
,
waho and then s h e s a w another and cried o ut : ,

Hollo where did this fth come from ?
,
Then

little Maui the infant answere d : Ah I m your
, , ,

child too
,
Then the mother counted them all over
.
again and said : Oh no there ought to be only

, , ,

four o f yo u ; no w for the rst time I ve seen you
.
Then little Maui and his mother stood for a long

time disputing about this in the very mi d dle of the
r anks of all the dancers .
3 70
Moth er Myt hs
-
an d C h ild Myt h s
-
At last s h e g e t angry and cried out : Come yo u

, , ,
be o now o u t o f the house at once ; you are no

,

child o f mine yo u belong to some one else
,
Then .
little Maui spoke o ut quite boldly and said : Very ,
well I d b etter b e o ff then f o r I su p pose as you s a y

,

, , ,
it I must be the child of some other person ; but

,
indeed I did think I was y our child when I said so ,
because I knew I was b orn by the side of the s e a ,
and was thrown by you into the foam of the surf ,
after you had wrapped me Up in a long tress of your

hair which yo u cut o ff for the purpose ; then t h e
,
seaweed formed and fashioned me as caught in its , ,
long tangles the ever heaving surges of the s e a

,
-
rolled me folded as I was in them from Side to

, ,
Side ; at length the breezes and squalls which blew

from the ocean drifted me o n shore again and the ,
soft jelly s h o f the long sandy beaches rolled them

-
,
selves round me to protect me ; then again myriads

of ies buzzed about me and ocks of birds collected ,
round me to tear me to pieces but at that moment ,
appeared there also my great ancestor Tama nui ki ,

- -
te Rangi and he s a w the ies and birds collected in

-
,
clusters and ocks above the j elly s h and behold -

, ,
within there lay a human being ; then he caught me

u p and carried me to his house and he hung me up ,
in the roof that I might feel the warm smoke and

the heat o f the re s o I was saved alive by the kind
,
ness o f that old man At last I grew and then I .

,
heard o f the fame of the dancing of this great House

o f Assemb ly It was that which b rought me here
. .
But ever Sinc e I c an remember I have heard t h e

3 71

names of these your rs t born children , as you h ave
b een calling them over until this very night when ,
I again heard you repeating them In proof o f this .
I will no w recite your names to you my brothers ,

.
Y O U are Maui taha and yo u are Maui rot e and -

,
-
,
y o u are M a ui
p a e and y o u a r e Maui waho
,
and as -
,
f o r me I m little Maui the baby and here I am s i t

- -
, ,

ting before you .
When his mother Taranga heard all this s h e , , ,
cried out : You dear little child you are indeed ,
my last born therefore I no w tell you your name

-
,
-

shall b e Maui tiki tiki o Taranga and he was called - -
,
by that name .
It was no w night ; but early in the morning

Taranga rose up and suddenly in a moment of , ,
time she was gone from the house where her chil
,
dren were As soon as they woke u p they looke d

.
all about to no purpose as they could not see her ; ,
the elder brothers knew s h e had left them and ,
were accustomed to it ; but the little child was ex

c ee d i ngly vexed ; yet he thought : I cannot s e e
her tis true bu t perhaps s h e h a s only gone to pre
,

,
pare some food for u s

N o no s h e was o ff far .
-
, ,
far away .
N o w at nightfall when their mother came back

,
to them her children were dancing and Singing as

,
usual A S soon as they had nished she called t o

.
,
her last born Come here my child let u s Sleep

-
, , ,
together s o they slept together ; bu t as soon as day
dawned she disappeared The little fellow no w felt

,
.
quite s u spi c ious at such strange proceedings on the

3 72
thought of h aving been So badly treated by her o w n
children .
A S soon as his mother got outside the house little ,
Maui jumped up an d kneeling upon his hands and

,
knees peeped after her through the doorway into

the bright light Whilst he was watching her she
.
,
reached down to a clump of rushes and snatching it ,
Up from the groun d d ropped into a hole underneath

,
it and clapping the rushes into t h e hole again as

,
if it were its covering s o disappeared Then little,

.
Maui jumped on his feet and as hard as he could , ,
go ran out of the house pulled u p the clump o f

, ,
rushes and peeping down discovered a beautiful

, ,
open c ave running quite deep int o the earth .
He c overed u p the hole again and returned to the

house and waking Up his brothers who were still
,
sleeping said : Come come my brothers rouse up

, , , , ,
you have slept long enough ; come get Up ; here we ,

are again caj oled by our mother Then his broth .
e r s made haste and got u

p; alas ! alas ! the s un was
quite high U p in the heavens .
The little Maui n o w asked his brothers again ,
Where do yo u thin k the place is where o u r father

and mother dwell ? and they answered How
should we know we have never seen it ; although
,
w e are Maui taha and Ma ui roto and Maui pae and

-
,
- -
, ,
Maui waho we have never seen the place ; and d o

-
,
you think you can nd that place which you are s o

anx ious to s e e ? What does it signify to you ? Can
not you s t e p quietly with us ? What do we c ar e
ab out our fa ther or about our m other ? Did Sh e
,
3 74
Mo t h e n Myt h s and C h ild Myt h s -
feed u s with food till we grew Up to be men ? not

a bi t of it Why without doubt Rangi or th e
.
, , ,
Heaven is our father who kindly sent his off spring

, ,
do w n to u s : Hau w h enn a or gentle breezes to cool

-
, ,
the earth and yo ung plants ; and Hau ma r ingir ingi - -

,
o r mists to moisten them

,

; and Hau ma roto roto o r
- -
ne weather to make them gro w ; and T o na r a ng i

, ,
or rain to water them ; and T o ma i r a ngi or dews

, , ,
to nourish them He gave these his o ff spring to cause

.
o u r food to grow and then Papa tu a nuku or the - - -
, ,
E arth made her seeds to spring and grow forth

, , ,
and provide sustenance for her children in this long

continuing world .
Littl e Ma ui then an swered : What you s a y is

truly quite correct ; but such thoughts and sayings
would better become me than you for in the foam ,
ing bubbles of the s e a I was nursed and fed : it

would please me better if you would think over and
remember the time when you were nursed at your

mother s breast ; it could not have been until after
you had ceased to be nourished by her milk that
you could have eaten the kinds of food you h ave
mentioned ; as for me oh ! my broth ers I have never
, ,
partaken either of her milk or of her food ; yet I

lov e her for this single reason alone that she is
,
my mother ; and because I love h er I wish to know ,

the place where she and my father dwell .
His brothers felt quite surprised and pleased with

their little brother when they heard him talk in this
way and when , after a little time they had r ec o v
, ,
ered fro m their amazement they told him to try and ,
3 75
nd their father and m other S o he said he would .
go I t w a s a long time ago that he had nished his

.
'
rst labor for when he rst appeared to his rel a

,
t ive s in their house of singing and dancing he had ,
on that occasion transformed himself into the like

ness of all manner of birds of every bird in t h e ,
world and yet no single form that he then assumed

,
had pleased his brothers ; but no w when he showed

h imself to them transformed into the semblance of
,
a pigeon his brothers said : Ah ! no w indeed oh

, , ,
brother you do look very well indeed very beauti

, ,
ful v ery beautiful mu c h more beautiful than you

, ,
looked in any o f the other forms you a ssumed when ,

you rst disco vered yourself to u s What made .
h im look s o be autiful no w were the belt and apron

h e had stolen from his mother The shining white .
Upon h is breast was her belt the glossy black f e a th

,
ers at his throat the fastening to the belt Then

,
.
o ff he e w u ntil he came to the clump of rushes ,
closing the Opening of the cave into which his

m other had disappeared Then down h e went into
.
the cave shutting up its mouth with the rushes s o

,
as to hide the entrance Away he ew very fast

.
,
indeed and twice he dipped his wing because the

, ,
cave was narrow ; soon he reached nearly to the bot

tom of the cave and ew along it ; and again be
, ,
cause the cave was s o narrow he dippe d rs t o ne ,
wing and then the other but the c a ve n o w widened ,

,
a nd he dashed straight on .
At last he s a w a party of people coming along

under a grove of trees ; they were a special kind of
3 76
Upon h is left leg and down he fell and a s he lay
, ,
uttering and struggling upon the ground they all ,
ran t o catc h him but 1 0 ! t h e pigeon ha d t u rned into

,
a m an .
Then all those who s a w him were frightened at

his erce glaring eyes which were red as if painted
,

with red ochre and they said : Oh i t is no w no
, ,
wonder that he s o long s a t still u p in the tree ; had

he been a bird he would have own o ff long before ,

but h e is a man And some of them said : No ,
.

indeed rather a god j ust look at his form and a p
,
r a nc e ; the like has never been seen b efore since

p e a

Rangi and Pap a tu a nuku were torn apart
- - -
Then .
Taranga said : I used to s e e one who looked like

this person every night when I went to visit my
children but what I s a w then excelled what I s e e
,

now ; j ust lis te n to me Then s h e told the story of
.
Maui as he had told it to her and his brothers him

self.
Then Taranga asked Maui who w a s sitting ne a r ,

her,
Where do you come from ? from the west ?

and he answered No ,
F ro m the north east
.
-
,

then ? No . F rom the south east then ? -

No . F rom the south then ? No Was .
it the wind which blows upon me the wind that

brought you h ere to me ? When she asked this he ,

opened his mouth and answered Yes And s h e ,

cried out Oh this then is indeed my child ; and
, ,
s h e said ,
Are you Maui taha ? He answered -
,
No .

Then said s h e
Are you Maui tiki tiki o Ta
,
- -

ranga ? and h e answered Yes And s h e cried
,
.
3 78

Mother Myth s and C hild Myt h s -

alo u d : This is indeed my child By the w inds
, ,
.
and storms and wave Uplifting gales he was fash -
i o n e d and b ecame a human being ; welcome oh my , ,
child welcome ! By you shall hereafter be climbed

,
the threshold of the house of your great ancestor

- -
Hine nui te p o and death Shall thenceforth have no
,

power over man This prophecy however was n o t
.
, ,
fullled for when the time came for him to e n

,

counter Hine nui te p o he was himself killed
- -
,
.
Maui after these things returned to his brothers

, ,
to tell them that he had found his parents and to ,
explain where they dwelt .
The young hero Maui had not been long at home

, ,
wit h h is brothers when he b egan to think that it

w a s too soon after the rising of the s un that it be
came night again and that the s un again sank dow n

,
b elow the h orizon every day every day ; in the same

, ,
manner the days appeared too short to him S o at .
last o n e day h e said to his brothers Let us no w ,
catch the s un in a noose s o that we may compel him,
to move more slowly in order that mankind may

,
have long days to labor in to procure subsistence for

themselves but they answered him Why no , ,
man could approach it on account of its warmth ,

and the e r eene s s of its heat ; but the young hero
said t o them : Have you not seen the multitude of
things I have already achieved ? Did I not by de
g rees transform myself into every bird in the worl d ,
s m all or great ; and did I not after all this a gain

assum e the form of a man ? As for that feat I a o ,
complished it by enchantments, and I w ill by the

3 79
A Guide to Myt hology '
same means accomplish also this other thing wh ich

I have in mind When his b rothers heard this they
.
consented to aid him in his conquest of the sun .
Then they began to spin and twist ropes to form

a noose to c atch the s un in and in doing this they
,
discovered the mode of plaiting ax into stout ,
square shape d ropes and the manner of plaiting

-
,
at ropes and of spinning round ropes ; at last they

,
nished making all the ropes they required Then .
Maui took up his enchanted weapon and he took ,
his brothers with him and they carried the 1 r pro

,
visions ropes and other things with them in their

, ,
hands They travelled all night and as soon as day

.
,
broke they halted in the desert and hid themselves

, ,
that they might not be seen by the sun ; and at night

they renewed their j ourney and before dawn they ,
halted and hid themselves again ; at length they go t

very far very far to the eastward and came t o the
, ,
very edge o f the pla c e out of which the sun rises .
Then they s et to work and built on each side of

this place a long high wall of clay with huts of ,
boughs of trees at each end to hide themselves in ;

when these were nished they made the Ioops of t h e
,
noose and the b rothers of Maui then lay in wait on

,
o n e sid e of the p lace out of whic h the s u n rises

,
and Maui himself lay in wait upon the other side .
The young hero held in his hand his enchanted

weapon the j a w bone of his ancestress and said
,
-
,

to his b rothers Mind no w keep yourselves hid , ,
and do no t go showing yourselves foolishly to the

s un ; if yo u do you will frighten him but wait
; p a s
380
T HE IN FANT H E R ACL E S
(Greek)
W h en Heracles (Roman Hercules) was a very ,
wee child not more than ten months old he p e r

, ,
formed a marvellous feat which was a worthy s a m

ple of the vast labors he was to accomplish during
his life His mother Alcmena took him and his
.
, ,
younger brother Iphicles gave them b oth their b ath

, ,
and their evening feast o f milk and then tucked ,
them safely away in their cradle which was not an ,
ordinary o ne by any means but a magnicent ,
bro nze shield which their father Amphitryon had , ,
taken fro m his fallen enemy Pterel a u s Then the ,

.
mother str oked her little children s heads and said

,
to them :
S leep my little ones a light d elicious sleep ;
, ,
sleep soul of mine two brothers babes unharmed ;

, , ,
blessed be your sleep and blessed may ye come to

,
1
the dawn .
And as She s p oke s h e rocked the huge shield back

and forth and soon they both fell asleep
, .
But just at midnight when the constellation o f,
the Great Bear wheeled round toward the constella

tion of Orion that shows his mi ghty Shoulder Hera ,
( Roman Juno
, ) sent forth t w o hor r i b le monsters ,
t w o snakes with bristling coils of azure Sh e urged

them against the broad threshold of the house door ,
intending that they should devour the young child

Heracles Then the serpents crawled writhing
.
,
And ew La ng s t ra ns l a t i o n

1 r .
382
Mother Myt hs and C h ild Myths
- -
along the ground and ever from their eyes shone

,
a baleful re as they came and they spat out their ,
deadly venom But when with their ickering

.
tongues they were drawing near the children then ,
Alcmena s dear babes wakened by the will of Zeus

,
that knows all things and there w a s a b right light

,
in the chamb er .
Then o ne of the children Iphicles straightway , ,
screamed o u t when he beheld the hideous monsters

,
above the hollow shield and s a w their pitiless fangs , ,
and eager to ee from them he kicked o ff the woollen

coverlet with his feet But Heracles s et his force
.
against them , and grasped them with his hands ,
holding them as in a bond having got them by the ,
throat w herein lies the evil venom detested even

, ,
by the gods o f baleful snakes Then the serpents

,
.
,
in their turn wound their coils about the young

,
child the child unweaned who never wept in his

, ,
nursling days ; but again they relaxed their spines

o n account of the pain and stro v e to nd some issue
,
from the grasp of iron Alcmena awoke rst , h ear .
ing the c ry .
Arise Amp h itryon for numbing fear lays h old

, ,
o f me : arise nor st a y to put o n thy Shoes !

,
Dost tho u
not hear h o w loud the younger child i s wailing ? and
though it is the depth of night the walls are all plain ,
to s e e as in the clear dawn ? I kno w there is some

strange thing within the house my dearest lord ! ,

Thus She spoke and at his wife s bidding Amp h i
,
tryon stepped d o wn o u t of his bed of cedar maki ng ,
for h is richly ornamented sword which he alw ays

383
kept hanging o n a pin ab o ve his b e d Just as he was .
reaching out for his ne w woven b elt and lifting with ,
h is other hand the migh t y Sheath of lotus wood l o ! ,
the wide chamb er w a s lled again with night Then .
he called al o ud to his servants who were sleeping ,
soundly . Lights ! Bring li ghts as quick as may b e

fro m the hearth my servants and thrust back the
, ,
strong bolts of the doors Arise serving men stout .

,
-
,

o f heart Your master calls you
. .
Then quickly came the serving men with b urning -
torches l ling the whole house When they s a w the

,
.
young child Heracles clutching the t w o snakes in his

tender grasp they all cried out and smote their hands
,
together But Heracles displayed the creeping things

.
to his father Amphit ryon a n d leaped on high in his

, ,

childish glee and laughing at his father s feet he
, ,
laid them down the dread m o nsters fallen on t h e

,
sleep of death Then Alcmena took Iphicles d ry

.
,
eyed a nd w a n with fear and laid him in her o w n

~
,
bosom ; but Amphitryon placed the other child b e

neath a lamb s wool coverlet, and betook himself
agai n to h is rest .
The cocks had barely sung their third welcome t o

the earliest dawn when Alcmena called fort h the
,
seer Tiresias, who can not lie and told him of t h e ,
new portent and b ade him declare w hat things

,
should come to pass .
Nay even if the gods devise some mi schief do

, ,
not in pity conceal it from me ; let me remind thee

what thou well knowest that mortals may not escap e
,

the doom th at F ate speeds fro m her spindle .
384
Mother Myt h s and Child Myth s
- -
T hus the Queen spoke and he answered : ,
Be o f good cheer daughter of Perseus woman , ,
that hast b orne the no b lest o f children For b y the .
sweet light that long hath left mine eyes I swear ,
that many Ach aean women as they card the soft ,
wool a b out their knees shall sing a t eventide of ,

Alcmena s name and thou shalt b e honorab le amo ng
,
the w o me n o f Argos S uch a man even this thy Son

. .
, ,
s hall mo un t to the starry r ma n e nt the hero bro a d , ,
of breast the master of all wild b easts and of all

, ,
mankind Twelve labors is he fated to accomplish

.
,

and thereafter to dwell in th e house o f Zeus . .
TH E S TORY O F TH E CHILD H E R M E S 1
(Greek)
The little child god Hermes w a s born at the rst

-
peep o f day in a rocky cavern overshadowed by a

beautiful grove of ancient trees He was so remark .
able a child that he be gan playing on the lyre at noon ,
and the very same evening he stole away t h e herds

of Phoebus Apollo He sprang from the arms of his
.
mother Maia nor could s h e keep him in his sacred

, ,
cradle nor from creeping forth to seek the herds of

,
Apollo .
Wandering forth from the lofty cavern he found ,
a tortoise an d cried o ut
,
What a treasure ! Be ,
fore the portal the little b east w a s depasturing the

,
owery herb age at his leisure moving his feet in a ,
deliberate measure over the turf Hermes eyeing .

,
h i m a nd l a ughing exclaimed : Yo u are a u seful

,
385
godsend ind eed to me king o f the dan ce companion , ,
o f the feast lovely in all your nature ! Welcome

, ,
you excellent pla ything ! Where sweet mountain ,
beast did you get that speckled shell ? Thus much

,
I know you must come home with me and be my

,
guest ; you will give j oy to me and I will do all th a t ,
is in my power to honor you Better to b e at home .
than Ou t o f doors ; so come with me and though it

- -
has been said that when alive yo u defen d from magic

power I know you will sing sweetly when you are
,

dead . Having spoken this quaint infant lifted the ,
tortoise Up from the grass Upon which i t was feeding ,
and grasping it tightly in his d elighted hold carried ,
o ff his treasured prize into the cavern He then .
scooped out all the inside of the tortoise l e a vmg only ,
the shell Then through the shell he bored small

.
,
holes at proper d istances and fastened within the , ,
c ut stems of reeds and a bridge over whi c h h e

, ,
stretched the strings .
When he had made this lovely instrument he tried ,
t h e chords and brought forth b eautiful m usic

,
He .
hit the strings with a little instrument called the plec

trum and lo ! u p from b eneath his hand there went
,
a tumult sweet o f mighty sounds and from his lips

he sent a strain o f unpremeditated wit j oyous and ,

wild and wanton such as you may hear among rev
ellers on a holiday He sang a lovely song in honor
.
of his mother Maia but while he was singing he was

, ,
suddenly seized with a new fancy S o he deposited .
in his sacred cri b the hollow lyr e and from the swee t ,

c a v ern rushed with great leaps up to the mountain s
386
ow er -
paven plains great Hermes passed ; till t h e
,
black night divine which favoring fell around his

,
steps gre w gray and mo rning fas t wakened the world

, ,

to work and from her s e a stre w n cell the subl ime
, ,
Morn had just b egun to climb into her watch tower -

.
No w to Alpheus he drove all the b road forehea d ed

oxen of the S un They came unwearied to the lofty
.
stall and to t h e w a ter troughs which ever run through

-
ld
the fresh e s and when everyone had b een pas
t u r e d with rush grass tall lotus and all sweet herbage
-
, ,
the great God drove them into the stall .
Hermes then heaped a mighty pile of wood and ,
then bethought him h o w to produce re He took .
t w o smooth laurel branches stripped o the bark a n d ,
rubbed them in his palms S uddenly the burning .
v apor leaped forth o n high which the divine child ,
s a w with delight And ne dry logs and numerous

.
roots he gathered in a delve upon the ground and

kindled them and instantaneously the strengt h of the
,
erce ames was breathed around and while the ,
might of the glorious re thus wrapped the great pile

with glare and r e a r i ng sound Hermes dragged forth ,

two heifers lowing loud close to the e such might
r
, ,
was in the God He threw them on their b acks upon

.
the earth and rolled them ove r and over and bored
their lives out Then he cut Up the fat and esh
.
an d placed the two on spits of wood b efore the re ,
toasting their esh and ri bs and while this was be ,
ing done he stretched their hides over a craggy stone .
This w a s a burnt o ff ering t o the gods but the savor ,
o f the roasted meat temp t ed hi m sorely though i m

~
388
Mother Myt h s -
an d Child Myt hs -
mortal but he repressed the desire to taste it and put

,
not a single morsel into his mouth .
Then he removed every trace of the fresh butchery

and cooking so that it seeme d all t o have vanished
,
through the sky He b urned the hoofs and horns and

.
head an d hair ; the insatiate re devoured them hun

ril
g y . And when he s a w that everything was clear ,
he quenched the coals and trampled the black dust ,
a n d tossed into the stream his bloody sandals All .
night he worked in the serene moonshine but when ,
the light o f day was spread abroad he sought his ,
natal mountain peaks O n his l o ng wandering

-
.
,
neither man nor go d had met him since he killed ,
Apollo s kine n o r had a single house d o g barked at

,
-
him on his road Now he passed obliquely through

.
the keyhole like a thin mist o r an autumnal blast

,
.
Right through the temple o f the Spacious cave he

went with soft light feet as if his tread fell not on ,
earth .Then he crept quickly to his cradle and

spread the swaddling clothes about him ; and t h e
knave lay playing with the covering o f the b e d with ,
his left hand ab out his knees and the right hand
holding his beloved tort oise lyre tight There he lay, -
.
i nn ocent as a n e w born child as gossips s a y -

,
.
But though he w a s a god the goddess his fair , ,
mother was n o t deceived and knew all that he

, ,
ha d b een doing while away S o she said to h im : .
Whence come yo u and what wild a dventures have

you had yo u cu nnin g rogue Where have you b een
,
.
a ll night long cl o thed in your impudence ? What

,
have you done Since yo u departed hence ? Apollo will

389
soon pass within this gate and bind your tender body
in a chain inextricably tight and fast as fate unless ,
y o u can delude the go d again A prett y torment are .

u f o r gods and men Dear mother the s ly
y o .
,

Hermes replie d w h y scold and bother as if I were
,
like other bab es o f my age and understood nothing ,

.
I have hatched a scheme in my sub tle brain which ,
while the sacred stars roun d heaven are rolled will ,
prot you and me no r shall o u r lot be as yo u coun

,
s el without gifts or food to Spend o u r lives in this

, ,
obscure ab o d e We will leave this shadow peopled

.
-
cave and live among the gods and pass each day in ,
high communion sharing their great wealth and

, ,
from the portion which Jove gave to Ph oebus I will

snatch my share away and if he should nd me o u t
,
I ll countermine him by a deeper plan I ll pierce

.

the Pythian temple walls though stout and sack the , ,

fane of everything I can cauldrons and tripods ,
each gol d en c u p and every brazen pan all the ,

wrought tapestries and the gay garments So they .
talked together .
Meanwhile the Day ethereal b orn arose out of,

-
,
the ood of o w ing Ocean b earing light to men , .
Apollo passed tow a rd the sacred wood which from ,
the inmost depths o f its green gl en echoes the

voice of Neptune and there stood o n the same
,
spot in green O n c h es t us that same old man the ,
vine d resser who w a s employe d he d ging his vine

-
,

yard there Latona s glorious son began : Pra y tell
.
me ancient hedger o f O nch e s t u s green whether a

, ,
drov e of kine has passed this way, all heifers with

3 90
t oward their elds of asp h odel ; but t h ese ! are not the
t racks of beast or bird gray wolf or bear or lion of
, ,
th e dell o r maned Centaur S and was never stirred

,
.
by man or woman thus ! Inexplicable ! Who with

unw earied feet ever could impres s the sand with such

enormous vestiges ?
Having spoken thus Ph oebus impetuously sough t
,
h igh Cyllene s forest cinctured hill and the deep

-
,
cavern where dark shadows lie the home of Hermes ,

.
A delightful odor from t h e d e w w a s all about .
And Ph oebus stooped under the craggy roof arched

o v er the dark cave rn Maia s child perceived fro m
.

afar th a t he came angry about the cows that had

been stolen T hen Hermes piled over h im h is ne
.
and fragrant swaddling clothes There he lay lik e .
a burning s p ark covered b eneath the ashes cold,
and dark an infan t who had sucked his ll and

,
no w was newly washed and put t o bed awake but ,
courting sleep with weary will And gathered in a .
lump hands feet an d head h e lay and his b elove d

, , , ,
tortoise still he grasped and held under his Shoulder

blade Ph oebus knew the lovely mountain goddess
.
,
not less her sub tle swindling baby who lay swathed
, ,
in his s ly wiles He lo oked sharp round every

.
crook o f the ample cavern f o r his kine and when he ,
s a w them no t he took the glittering key and opened
three gr e at hollow recesses in the rock where many ,
a nook was lle d with sweet food immortals swallow,

and mighty heaps o f silver and o f gold were piled

within a wonder to behold and white and silver ,
r obes , all overwrought with cunning workm ans h ip .
3 92
Mother Myt h s-
a nd Child Myt h s
-
E xcept among the gods there c an be naught in the

wide world to be compared with it Latona s o ff .

spring after having sought his herds in every corner

, ,
thus greeted great Hermes : Little cradled rogue ,
tell me about my illustrious heifers where are they ? ,
S peak quickly o r a quarrel between u s must rise

, ,
a n d the event will be that I shall haul you into dis
mal Tartarus in ery gloom to dwell eternally No r

,
.
shall your father nor your mother loose the bars o f

that black dungeon Utterly you S hall be cast out
.
from the light o f day unblest as they to rule the

,

ghosts o f men Hermes slyly answered : S on of
.
great Latona what a speech is this ! Why come you

,
here to ask me what has been done with the wild

oxen which it seems you miss ? I have not seen them ,
nor from any one have I heard a word of the whole

business If you should promise an immense reward
.
I could not tell yo u more A s t ealer of oxen should .
be both tall and strong and I am but a little new

,
born thing who yet a t least can think of nothing

, ,
wrong My business is to suck and sleep and ing

.
the cradle clothes about me all day long ; or half

asleep hear my sweet mother sing and to be washed
, ,
in water clean and warm and hushed and kissed and ,
kept secure from harm Oh let not this quarrel ever

.
,
be heard o f , f o r the astounded gods would laugh at

you for telling a story so a b surd as that a new born -
infant could fare forth out of his home after a sav

age herd I was born yesterday My small feet are
. .
too tender for the roads so hard and rough and if you ,
think that this is not enough I swear a great oath that ,
3 93
I stole your cows and t hat I know of no one else
no t ,
w h o might o r could or did Whatever things cows .

are I do not know for I have only heard the name
,
.
This sai d he winke d as fast as could be and his

, ,
brow was all wrinkled and he gave a loud whistle,
like one who hears some strange absurdity Apollo .
gently smiled and said : A y a y you cunning little , ,

rascal you will bore many a rich man s house and
, ,
your array of thieves will lay their siege before his

door silent as night in night and many a day in
, , ,
the wild glens rough Shepherds will deplore that you

o r yours having an appetite met wit h their cattle
,
.
,
And this among the gods shall be your gift to be ,

the lord of those who steal and sw indle .
Apollo seized him then What do you mean to .
do with me you unkind G o d ? said Herm es

,
I s it
a b out these cows you tease me s o ? I wish the rac e
of cows were perished I did not steal your cows I
.
,
do not e v en know what things cows are Alas ! I well .
may sig h that sinc e I came into this world of woe I

Should ever have heard of one Thus Ph oeb us and .
the vagrant Hermes talked without coming to an ex

planation Hermes continued to try and cheat Apollo
.
with lies a nd roguery but when no evasion served

, ,
he proposed to appeal to Jove to u dge between them .
Hermes paced rst over the sandy ground and he

o f the Silver b o w followed and from Jove s equal ,

b alance they did require a ju d gment in the caus e

wherein they strove A s they came over odorou s
.
O lympus and it s snows a murmuring tumul t arose .
And from the folded depths of the great hill, while

3 94
A G u id e to Myt h ology
still as gloomy night he c r ep t into his cradle rub
, ,
bing either eye and cogitating some new trick No .
eagle could hav e seen him a s he lay hid in his cavern .
I taxed him with the fact, when he declared most

solemnly that he had neither seen nor in any manner
heard of my lost cows whatever things cows be ; nor
,
could he tell though off ered a reward of any one

,

who could tell me ab out them .
Then Ph oeb us s a t down and Hermes addressed the

S upreme Lord of Gods and Men Great Father
.
,
you know well b eforehand that all I shall s a y is trut h ,
for I am totally unacquainted with untruth At s un .
rise Ph oebus came, but with no b and of gods to h e a r

him witness in great wrath to my ab ode seeking his
, ,
heifers there a n d declaring that I must show him

where they are or he would hurl me do w n the d a rk
abyss I know that every limb of Apollo is clothed
.
with speed and might and manliness as a green b ank ,
with o w ers b ut unlike h im I w a s born yesterday

, ,
and you may guess he knew this w ell when h e in

d ulg e d the whim of b ul lying a poor little new born -
thing that slept a n d never thought of c o w driving -

.
Am I like a strong fellow w h o ste a ls kine ? This d riv

ing of herds is none of mine I have never wandered
.
across my threshold ! I reverence the divine S un and

the gods and you and care even for this hard accuser
, ,
who must know I am as innoce n t as th ey or you .
I swear by these most gloriously wrough t portals

through which the multitude of the Immortals pass
and repass forever, day and night devising schemes ,

for the affairs of mortals that I am guiltless, and
,
3 96

Mother Myths and Child Myt hs -
Hermes winked as if now his advers a ry w a s silenced ,
and Jove according to his wont laughed heartily to

, ,

hear the subtle witted i nfant give suc h a plausible
acco unt But he remitted j udgment for the time
.
and sent th em forth to seek the stolen cows Hermes .
was truthfully to lead the way and show where h e

had hi d den the mighty heifers .
Then they hastened to Pylos and t h e wide pastures

and lofty stalls b y the Alphean for d where wealth ,
in the mute night is multiplied with sil ent growth .
While Hermes drove the herd out of the stony cav

ern Ph oebus spied the hides of those t h e little bab e
,
had slain stre t ched high upon the prec ipice

,
Ho w .

was it possible then Ph oeb us asked,
that you a , ,
little child b orn yester d ay a thing on mother s milk

,

and kisses fed could have slain these t w o prodigio us

,
heifers ? E ver I may well dread hereafter your

prowess when you grow strong and tall
,
He .
spoke and bo und sti ff withy bands around the in

,

f a nt s wrists He might a s well have bound the wild
.
oxen The withy bands though starkly int erknit

.
, ,
fell at the feet of the immortal child loosened by ,
some devi ce of his quick wit Phoebus w a s again .
deceived and stared while Hermes sought some hole

, ,
looking askance and winking fast as though where ,
he might hide himself But suddenly he changed his

.
plans and with strange skill subdued Apollo by the

,
might o f winning music His left hand held the

.
lyre and in his right the plectrum struck the chords ;

,
unconquera ble Up from b eneath his hands in circling

,
ight the gathering music rose and sweet as Love ,
3 97
the penetrating notes did l ive and move within the
heart of great Apollo He listened with all his soul
.
and laughed for pleasure The unab ashe d boy stood

.
close to his side harping fearlessly a n d to the measure

,
o f the sweet lyre there followed loud a n d free his
j oyous voice for he unlocked the treasure of his deep

,
s o ng illustrating the b irth o f the bright gods an d the
d ark desert E arth and h o w to the Immortals ever y

,
o ne
,
a portion was assigned of all th a t is ; b u t chief
d i d clothe Maia s s o n Mnemosyne l n t h e ligh t of his

loud melodies a n d as each go d was born or ha d be

,
gun he in their order due a n d t degrees s ang of

his birth and being an d d i d move Apollo to unutter
,
able love . The s e w or d s he spoke : Y o u heifer

s tealing schemer well d o yo u deserve that fty oxen
,
should requite such minstrelsies as I have heard even

now Comra d e of feasts little contriving Wight one
.
, ,
o f your se crets I would la d l know whether the

g y
glorious power you n o w Show forth was fol d ed u p
within you at your b irth o r whether mortal taught
,

o r Go d inspired your skill in song ? And Hermes
replied : Wisely hast thou enquired of my skill .
Jove has given to thee a lso d ivinest gifts By thee .
the depths of his far voice are un d erstood by thee ,
the mystery o f all oracular fates E ven I a child .

, ,
p erceive thy might and maj esty Thou canst

. seek
o u t and compass all that wit c a n nd or teach yet ,

if thou wilt come take the lyre b e mine the glory
,
giving it S trike the sweet chor d s and sing aloud

.
,
an d wake thy j oyous pleasure out o f many a t of

tranced sound . The Shell he proff ered Apollo took,
3 98
C O U NTR Y LI FE PRESS
GARDEN CITY, N Y
. .

A Guide To Mythology (1918) - Helen A. Clarke

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A Guide To Mythology (1918) - Helen A. Clarke

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A

The P om New Engla nd,

GAR DEN C I TY NEW YO RK

DOU BLEDAY PAGE a C OMPANY

ALL RIGHT S RESERVED INCLU DIN G THAT OP

TRANSLATION INTO FORE IGN LANGU AGES ,

INCLU DIN G THE SC ANDINAVI AN

T is a pleasure to express my thanks to publishers

the publishers of Gods and Heroes of Old

l i s h e r s and to Mr W W 0 a n e l d the author of

C harles Mills Ga yley ; to Macmillan 0 0 publishers .

of T heocritus Bion, and Moschus Done into E ng

publishers of N orse Mythology by M elville B

An derson Other collectio n s out of p r int as far a s

n eliu s Mathews , and Indian Myt hs by E llen R

E merson ; also from the following Englis h publica

i e s myt hology must be to the foll owing works among

others in various branches of the subject : Ma x Mijl

Tyler s Primitive C ultu re M ills s T re e o f M y

in Folk Thought De Gub e rna t is s Z oological My

Myths o f the New World, as well a s to many

collecti ons o f f olk tales -

My a im i n this bo ok o n Mythology for yo ung

mature minds bas ed upon the most recent investiga

tions o f scholars and t o select the m yths used in

illus t ration of the plan with a Vl eW to giving them

interesting stories to read which will almost unc o n

s c i o us ly to themselves lay a rm foundation for t h e

fa scinating study of C omparati ve Mythology shoul d ,

they wish to go more deeply into i t in the future .

T here is much talk nowa d ays a s to the a ut h en

talk seems to me futile for a myth i s no t a xed

entity E ach successive n a rrator is almost sure to

vary and embellish somewhat the material that comes

therefore a s a v age myth recorded by a white man r e

tains the chief characteristics o f the savage myth ,

o f a Greek myth it is to a ll intents and purposes a

savage myth and the embellishments may be dis

regarded as Ovid s are when we are consider ing

Greek Mythology I have therefore included in

this volume those versions of the myths that seemed

a ttitude of mind and customs were fully emp h as i ze d .

t h e mo le b ec a me b lin d (North A mer ic a n In s

b o z h o ( Iro quo i s Ma t h ew s Sc h o o lc ra f t ) How

Glo o s k a p ma d e h is unc le t h e t urt le int o a , , .

II I . ANI M ALS IN CU LT U R E MYT HS 1 31

s t o ry o f A p o llo a nd Ph a et o n ( Greek C a yle y

b ase d o n Bul nch ) T h e s t o ry o f O d ys s e us

a nd A rac h ne ( Greek C a y ley Bulnch )

t h e b eg inning ( A nc ie nt M exic a n, B rint o n s

St 0 ry o f A d o nis (Greek, e x t ra c t s fro m La ng s

the c o nq u e r ng i (N orth A mer ica n

I nd i a n Eme rs o n) Hymn t o t h e s un (North

a nd t h e d re a m o f O na w a t a q uto (North A mer

Th e ma king o f th e mirro r (J upo n

see, Vi o let M Pa s t eur, Go ds a nd H e roe s o f

o f Ph ce b us A p o llo ( Greek, C a yle y- Bulnc h ) .

Ind i a n, Eme rs o n) O s seo , t h e s o n o f t h e e ve n

S T ORIES : Ho w a h unt e r vi s it e d t h e t hunde r

ma quod d y, Le la nd ) T h e t hund e r a nd lig h t

Glo o s k a p b o und Wuch o w s e n, t h e g re a t w ind

exp l o it s o f P a up p uk kee w is s (N o rth A mer ica n

O din Sigmund (N ors e And e rs o n