Myths and Legends of California and the Old Southwest | Page 9

"You are of the Corn clan, and
you are the first of all." To others he said, "You belong to the Coyote
clan." So he divided them into their clans, the clans of the Bear, the
Eagle, and other clans.
After Spider had nearly created the earth, Ha-arts, he thought it would
be well to have rain to water it, so he created the Cloud People, the
Lightning People, the Thunder People, and the Rainbow People, to
work for the people of Ha-arts, the earth. He divided this creation into
six parts, and each had its home in a spring in the heart of a great
mountain upon whose summit was a giant tree. One was in the spruce
tree on the Mountain of the North; another in the pine tree on the
Mountain of the West; another in the oak tree on the Mountain of the
South; and another in the aspen tree on the Mountain of the East; the
fifth was on the cedar tree on the Mountain of the Zenith; and the last
in an oak on the Mountain of the Nadir.
The spider divided the world into three parts: Ha-arts, the earth; Tinia,
the middle plain; and Hu-wa-ka, the upper plain. Then the spider gave
to these People of the Clouds and to the rainbow, Tinia, the middle
plain.
Now it was still dark, but the people of Ha-arts made houses for
themselves by digging in the rocks and the earth. They could not build
houses as they do now, because they could not see. In a short time
Utset and Now-utset talked much to each other, saying,
"We will make light, that our people may see. We cannot tell the
people now, but to-morrow will be a good day and the day after
to-morrow will be a good day," meaning that their thoughts were good.
So they spoke with one tongue. They said, "Now all is covered with
darkness, but after a while we will have light."
Then these two mothers, being inspired by Sussistinnako, the spider,
made the sun from white shell, turkis, red stone, and abalone shell.

After making the sun, they carried him to the east and camped there,
since there were no houses. The next morning they climbed to the top
of a high mountain and dropped the sun down behind it. After a time he
began to ascend. When the people saw the light they were happy.
When the sun was far off, his face was blue; as he came nearer, the face
grew brighter. Yet they did not see the sun himself, but only a large
mask which covered his whole body.
The people saw that the world was large and the country beautiful.
When the two mothers returned to the village, they said to the people,
"We are the mothers of all."
The sun lighted the world during the day, but there was no light at night.
So the two mothers created the moon from a slightly black stone, many
kinds of yellow stone, turkis, and a red stone, that the world might be
lighted at night. But the moon travelled slowly and did not always give
light. Then the two mothers created the Star People and made their eyes
of sparkling white crystal that they might twinkle and brighten the
world at night. When the Star People lived in the lower world they
were gathered into beautiful groups; they were not scattered about as
they are in the upper world.
The Gods and the Six Regions
In ancient times, Po-shai-an-ki-a, the father of the sacred bands, or
tribes, lived with his followers in the City of Mists, the Middle Place,
guarded by six warriors, the prey gods. Toward the North, he was
guarded by Long Tail, the mountain lion; West by Clumsy Foot, the
bear; South by Black-Mark Face, the badger; East by Hang Tail, the
wolf; above by White Cap, the eagle; below by Mole.
So when he was about to go forth into the world, he divided the earth
into six regions: North, the Direction of the Swept or Barren Plains;
West, the Direction of the Home of the Waters; South, the Place of the
Beautiful Red; East, the Direction of the Home of Day; upper regions,
the Direction of the Home of the High; lower regions, the Direction of
the Home of the Low.

How Old Man Above Created the World Shastika (Cal.)
Long, long ago, when the world was so new that even the stars were
dark, it was very, very flat. Chareya, Old Man Above, could not see
through the dark to the new, flat earth. Neither could he step down to it
because it was so far below him. With a large stone he bored a hole in
the sky. Then through the