Maynard The History of the Coharie Tribe

The Shared Beginnings, Struggles & Perseverance of the Eastern Siouan Tribe
1. Auflage 2025
ISBN: 979-8-31781042-9
Verlag: BookBaby
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 116 Seiten

Reihe: The History of the Coharie Tribe

Unlike any other book, 'The History of the Coharie Tribe' features the complete and concise historical origin of the Coharie Tribe. While becoming both educated and enlightened, learn about the struggles and triumphs of this Eastern Siouan tribe. With the author's own genealogical and genetic DNA testing, dive into what it truly means to be a Native American.

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Autoren/Hrsg.

Maynard, Chris

Leseproben

Chapter 5:
Creation Stories from
Lakota Sioux Cousins

Memory is like riding a trail at night with a lighted torch.
The torch casts its light only so far, and beyond that is darkness.

– Ancient Lakota saying

Before there was any other thing, or any time, Inyan was, and his Great Spirit, or Wakan Tanka was and was alone. By existing outside of time, space, information, life, and love, Inyan was shapeless and malleable, but he contained all powers. Inyan devised a plan to build a framework for life itself and in doing so became The Ate, or father of all. Inyan created a powerful Thunderbird named Wakinyan to be his active associate in the difficult task of creation. After Wakinyan was created, he flew aimlessly with nowhere to land. So Inyan gave of his blood to make Maka (Earth) and became hard as bedrock. By doing this, his heart also hardened, and he became powerless.

Inyan mourned at the loss of his power to shapeshift and to move about freely and he cried tears of blood. Inyan’s blood was blue and became the yaye (waters) of the Maka (earth). Inyan cried and perspired blue droplets of blood to form the oceans; so wararé (life) could begin. Maka harnessed the energy from liquid fire from within her to create Unk, the “Contentious One,” to be her companion. Wakinyan had relations with Unk but quickly discovered that their union lacked true love and required retribution. Wakinyan, seeing that Unk’s dark heart lacked love for anyone else, cast her into the waters to serve as the Goddess of the Waters and Ancestress of all evil beings. However, wiicaher (darkness) remained and was upon the face of the deep. Wakinyan hatched a plan to fix this!

Wakinyan placed a wasicun, a ceremonial bag of mythic powers, upon the dry land of Maka. Inside the bag were two fertilized eggs from Unk which would become the first sons of Inyan. The first egg to crack open brought forth Ksa, full-grown from the egg in an anti-natural manner by Wakinyan. Ksa would become the god of wisdom to the Siouan people. However, he refused his status as a lesser god and was punished by Wakan Tanka to become the imp of mischief; his trickster spirit name became Inktomi, meaning spider-like.

The second egg contained the second son of Inyan named Iya. The second son was not born full-grown and became jealous and angry at the insult! As a result, his rage fueled his growth in a distorted and unholy way. Consequently, Iya became utterly evil and is the chief of all evil beings. Iya committed incest with his mother Unk and their only child is a very beautiful, enticing and deceitful demon whose name is Gnaski. What we today call “human nature” or willful disobedience (sin), is actually Gnaski torturing our wica nagi (spirit of man).

Within the boundless and numerous dimensions unknown to mankind, called Kan by our distant Lakota cousins, Wakan Tanka ruled over the Wanagi makoce (spirit world) and all of the known and the unknown spirit worlds. This is where nagi live; the spirit that has never been in a man. Nagi is the spirit that guides man but is not part of a man. The nagi is both good and bad, a perfect resemblance to the duality of humanity. As American author and mythologist Joseph Campbell was quoted: “All the gods, all the heavens, all the hells are within you.”

When a human dies, their wanagi (spirit) leaves their body to be with Wakan Tanka. Sometimes a person does not die a good death and their wanagi can become trapped on Maka as a niya (ghost). Not even the most powerful wicasa wakan (shaman) can help these poor souls! Conversely, Wamaka nagi is the animal spirit that lives on after the animal dies. In this way, the animals and plants are our wakan relatives, or Taku Wakan. “Relatives” in this context relates to all things in nature, not just to blood relatives or other humans. This gives new meaning to the mantra: Mitakuye oyasin, or “all my relations.”

Even the aspects and facets of the universe and of Maka herself took on Wakanla (Wakan-ish or Wakan-like) forms by the direction of the mysterious Wakanpi. For instance, the wi (sun) became the chief of the lesser gods and would come to be called Takushkanshkan (“something that moves”). Wakanpi created the moon (hanyewi) to reflect the sun’s brilliance at night. The lesser god skan (sky) was created by wi to be his companion. Skan gave birth to a daughter named Wohpe, the Mediator. Wohpe would become the patron of harmony, beauty and pleasure. She was said to be more beautiful than any other.

Tate (wind) was created and then split into smaller deities to coincide with the four cardinal points, or the four winds. The weather phenomena known as yum (whirlwind) was also created and would later become the god of chance, games and love. Several more lesser gods were made and granted dominion over specific parts of Maka, such as fire, rain, storms, etc.

Finally, Wakan Tanka saved the best masterpiece for last, the Oyate, or The People. Wakan Tanka created the lifeforce (woniya) for humanity and then breathed it into the first Oyate. This breath was called wanagi and is still sustaining life to this day. However, divine intervention for the Oyate came in the form of the trickster spider Inktomi.

* * *

The Creation Story - Lakota “Adam”*

As the oral tradition tells it, Inktomi conspired to cause a rift in the heavens between the Sun God Takushkanshkan and his wife, the Moon. Inktomi planted accusations of adultery to foment a separation between the sun and the moon. It is this physical separation between the heavenly bodies by which the Lakota people marked the creation of time. Some of Inktomi’s co-conspirators in the adultery plot were exiled to the Earth where the gods of the four winds were scattered and created space.

Once space and time were partnered together, Inktomi devised a deceitful plan to populate the Earth. Inktomi took the form of a wolf and met with humanity in the underworld. He told them sensational and fantastical tales of a utopian world aboveground. Inktomi tricked a man named Tokahe (“the first”) to travel to the surface for a brief visit. When Tokahe emerged from the Wind Cave in the Paha Sapa (Black Hills), he found the world above ground to be amazing and strikingly beautiful. Returning to the underworld, Tokahe raved on and on about the beauty aboveground and persuaded all the families to accompany him to the surface. However, upon arrival, they discovered the Earth was full of hardship and struggle. Behind the scenes, Inktomi was hard at work, ensuring humanity could not flee their ‘false Eden’ and return below ground. The first Siouan families had no choice but to scatter and toil out their meager livelihoods. Thus, the era of man upon Maka began.

* * *

The Lakota Sioux Flood Legend*

What if I told you this is not the first world? However, the people of that world misbehaved and delighted in evildoing, which set the table for their destruction. Displeased, saddened, and even angry, the Creating Power, known as Wakan Tanka (Great Spirit), set out to destroy this wicked world so a new one could be made. He sang several taku wakan olowan (mysterious songs) to bring rain, which poured stronger and stronger and with increasing ferocity. As he sang the fourth song, great earthquakes broke the earth apart and fountains of water gushed up through the many cracks in the ground. The inundating flood was overwhelming and absolute. By the time the rain ceased pouring from the sky, all the people and nearly all the animals had drowned, save one, Kangi the crow.

Kangi pleaded with the Creating Power to make him a new place to rest. The Creating Power heard Kangi’s pleas and decided it was time to make a new world. From his huge pipe bag, which contained all types of land animals, marine animals, and birds, the Creating Power selected four special animals known for their ability to remain under water for a long time. These handpicked emissaries were the loon dove, the otter, the beaver, and last, the turtle.

The Creating Power sent each animal, one at a time, to retrieve a lump of mud from beneath the floodwaters, so he could build land for Kangi to rest on. First up, the loon dove and its ability to dive deep, attempted to gather mud. The dove plunged headlong into the dark waters but uncharacteristically failed to reach the bottom. Next up, the otter, full of confidence, set off for a lump of mud. Even the otter, with its strong webbed feet, adept at swimming underwater, also failed. Next, the braggadocios beaver took to the water with a boastful spirit. The beaver used its large flat tail to propel itself deep under the water, deeper than anyone so far. However, even the beaver brought up nothing but defeat and despair. Finally, the Creating Power took the fourth animal, the turtle, from his pipe bag and sent him forward on his mission to retrieve the needed mud.

Turtle submerged himself under the water until he had disappeared from sight. He was under the dark as night water for so long that Kangi and the others were sure the turtle had drowned. As hope was quickly fading, a loud splash was heard by everyone; it was turtle! Turtle did better than simply bring up one lump of mud. No, he filled his feet and the cracks between its upper and lower shells with packed mud. The Creating Power began to sing a beautiful new olowan which mesmerized the animals. Within his hands, the mud was shaped, and he spread it onto the water, where it was just big enough for himself and...