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Comment
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Carrie
Unregistered User
(10/7/01 6:01:43 pm)
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Sacred Places
Hello all. I am trying to put together a list of sacred places in Native American story structures -- especially in the Southwest. However, I am interested in all landscapes and their links to aboriginal stories and myths. For instance many places in the Navajo landscape, including Monument Valley, are believed to be the battleground of Monster Slayer. I find it interesting that place is linked so intimately with story and am interested in researching it more. I have quite a few stories collected from Arizona tribes but little else in the rest of the country. Wasn't someone once talking about California landscapes? Any comments?
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Jess
Unregistered User
(10/7/01 8:13:44 pm)
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Devil's Tower
Supposedly Devil's Tower in Northeastern Wyoming has a myth associated with it. I don't recall it all, but the gist was that two girls were collecting berries or something and they came across a giant bear. They asked help from the spirits to deliver them from the bear at which point the land below them began to raise up. The striations in the tower were made by the bear's claws as it tried to reach the girls.
You can probably get a more detailed version of this story elsewhere. I believe it is a Lakota-Souix tale or maybe Mandan.
Hope this helps.
Jess
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Jess
Unregistered User
(10/7/01 8:34:11 pm)
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More
Yup, there is more on this legend. I found this reference several places.
The Kiowa , Arapaho, Crow, Cheyenne and Sioux tribes have this legend in common:
Seven sisters and their brother were playing near their camp, when the boy turned into a bear. The brother bear began chasing his sisters. The young girls ran through trees, but the bear pursued the girls gaining speed. In desperation the girls climbed on a rock and prayed loudly to the Great Spirit to save them. Immediately the rock began to grow, higher and higher. The bear began to claw the sides of the rock trying to reach the girls, but to no avail. He tried every side of the rock. The bear continued to jump and claw at the growing rock, but still could not reach the girls. The tower grew toward the sky until the girls had been pushed into the heavens. The seven sisters became the seven stars of the Pleiades.
Sometimes the girls find a bear, other times the brother turns into the bear. You might try to reach one of these tribes for more information.
Also, I believe that the Columbia River Gorge on the Oregon/Washington border has several myths/legends attached to it. Since you have mentioned interviewing tribes in the Southwest, you probably know about myths and legends dealing with Meteor Crater and Sunset Crater (I believe there are several). I'll see what I can dig up from the local Washington tribes. Since my son goes to school on one of the reservations here, and they are having Native American month at the school, maybe he knows of some local things.
Jess
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Carrie
Unregistered User
(10/8/01 7:45:23 am)
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thanks
I think there was a post a while back about the seven sisters, but I wasn't aware of the landform associated with it -- very interesting. Some of the tribes I've been reading about in the SW have a story of a woman turned bear who goes about killing her brothers. Kinda interesting, isn't it?
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Jess
Unregistered User
(10/8/01 10:10:31 am)
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Interesting
Carrie,
Are you trying to track the evolution of these stories? It could be really interesting.
Other land formations that almost certainly have myths about them include:
Starved Rock (Illinois); Enchanted Rock (Texas); Independence Rock (Wyoming); Chimney Rock (Nebraska)
Unfortunately, I am not aware of the story lines. If you know of these, let me know. I will see what I can find out (obviously, this is also an interest of mine).
Jess
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Carrie
Unregistered User
(10/8/01 10:20:38 am)
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rock formations
Jess. I'm on a deadline, but as soon as I finish the chapter I'm working on I'll see what I can dig up. Are you familiar with Spider Rock in Navajo Country? They Navajo believe that Spiderwoman, who taught the Navajo to weave among other things, live on top of this stunning rock formation. They threaten disobedient children, saying if they don't behave that she'll eat them up and throw their bones off the rock as a reminder to other naughty children. I find it interesting that the land itself is the pages of the Navajo creation story. They see stories surrounding them -- what a great concept, don't you think?
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Kamui
Unregistered User
(10/8/01 10:54:32 am)
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Enchanted Rock
Being from that part of Texas myself, I can tell you there are plenty of legends about Enchanted Rock, generally of Tonkawa and Comanche origin. Nothing so exciting as the one about the Pleides, however. It's just that, since the rock groans as it cools after a long day, and because it's streaked with quartz and feldspar, there were always tales of it being haunted (by a Native American chief that sacrificed his own daughter, thus displeasing the gods); tales of it weeping diamonds and gold (because of the way the quartz and feldspar glittered after the rain); and stories about how it swallows white people (based on the fact that someone once hid from a band of Native Americans in the rock, thus giving them the impression the rock had swallowed him).
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Jess
Unregistered User
(10/8/01 7:16:01 pm)
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Maltanomah Falls
Carrie,
I found one on the water falls near the Columbia River - Multnomah Falls. These falls are the second highest in the United States. The tribe is the Clatsop tribe (not sure of the spelling). You could phone the visitor's center to get the whole story or check it's accuracy. The phone number (503) 695-2376.
You could check this website as well for a copy of the legend.
lewisandclarktrail.com/se...nd/legend/
I also found one about a coyote and the falls, but I wasn't sure how to check its accuracy.
I will look for more for you. I like this kind of thing.
Jess
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Kate
Unregistered User
(10/9/01 9:47:25 am)
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Trail of Tears
I assume you are including tales about sacred places along the "Trail of Tears"--there are many, many. Sorry I don't have time here to post links to summaries or give you more sources, but they are easily accessible!
Kate
(I live about 20 minutes from Multnomah Falls--gorgeous place, when not packed with tourists.)
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Jess
Unregistered User
(10/9/01 1:13:21 pm)
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More on the falls
Kate,
I was there a couple of weeks ago. Enjoyed the falls even more from the top of the trail. We left the bulk of the tourists behind. I'll bet there are more tales about the gorge itself and the Dalles. I just haven't done the research. I think some of the local tribes had stories about Mt. St. Helen's before it blew up. Do you know of any?
Do you ever get up to the Port Townsend (WA) writers' workshop? Just wondering.
Really enjoyed your book by the way. Lots of comments for you. Let me know if you are interested.
Jess
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Carolyn
Unregistered User
(10/16/01 10:11:40 am)
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Legends & Landscapes
Carrie,
One of my former students was working on a similar project about California Indian places of myth. Her name is Kathy Lewis and she was teaching at Fresno Community College. WE have lost touch over the years but you may want to check if there is a website for FCC and try & find Kathy that way. I do know she is still in the area.
Also, from my ancestral aneck of the woods is the Naniy Waiya or the mounds in Mississippi (I don't know what they're called by the Westerners). This is known as the Choctaw place of emergence, or where the sky people met & amted with the earth people to become the our ancestors of today's people.
Let me know when you're finished with this project. It sounds like it's right up my alley!
Cheers,
Carolyn (lurking due to new baby mode!)
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Carrie
Unregistered User
(10/17/01 3:31:04 pm)
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place and myth
Hi all. Thanks for all the input. Anyone interested in the final project -- let me know and I'll share my research.
Cheers.
Carrie
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Terri
Registered User
(10/23/01 7:57:16 am)
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Re: place and myth
Carrie: Have you read David Abram's Spell of the Sensuous, about language, landscape, and myth? You'll find some interesting tidbits in there.
Carolyn: Hope the new baby, and her mother, are thriving!
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