Native Americans: 22 Books on History, Mythology, Culture & Linguistic Studies. James Mooney
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Название: Native Americans: 22 Books on History, Mythology, Culture & Linguistic Studies
Автор: James Mooney
Издательство: Bookwire
Жанр: Документальная литература
isbn: 9788027245475
isbn:
The Apache, even if willing, could not directly impart their religious beliefs or their philosophy. It is only by study of their myths, myth songs, and medicine practices, and by close observance of their life, that a comprehensive idea of such beliefs can be gained.
A concise outline of the mythology of the Apache is given in the following description of the painted medicine skin2 shown in the accompanying plate.
A—The nucleus of the universe, called Chalhké̆lh Nalíín, Night Girl. In the beginning it was merely a spot of color in which, during the course of time, a form appeared, and later emerged. This was Kútĕrastan, the Creator.
B—Kútĕrastan, the Creator of All, is standing on the clouds, his first home, holding lightning in each hand. To his left is the tus, or water bottle, in which the people of the earth took refuge from the flood shortly after their creation. Above him are four clouds, those into which he departed when leaving the earth for his celestial abode. He first created several assistants, who in turn created others by rubbing sweat and small particles of cuticle from the face and body.
C—Stĕnátlĭhăn, the chief goddess, first helper of Kútĕrastan, is seen standing on the clouds. In her right hand is a piñon tree, from the branches and gum of which the large tus was made at the time of the deluge. Above her flies Dátĭlyĕ, the Humming-bird, who was sent as a messenger about the world to note how its creation progressed.
D—Chuganaái Skhĭn was the second person created by Kútĕrastan. He followed Stĕnátlĭhăn, and is therefore third in importance of the many deities. Not only does he give light to the day, but he has the power to relieve and cure disease with the aid of the first beams of his morning light. The Apache ask his blessing before sunrise, generally imploring his beneficence "as soon as you look upon me." The serrated circles typify the abodes of these gods, which are protected by insurmountable barriers.
E—Here the sun as first made by the great creator is pictured. As time wore on, it grew to become the full round disc it now is.
F—The moon as first made by Stĕnátlĭhăn, at the behest of Kútĕrastan, who asked that she make something to illumine the night. The streaks represent catamenia, and the gradual growth of the moon is assumed to be parallel with prenatal growth.
G—This single symbol, a maltese cross, represents the four personages who made the stars. They have to do with the stars only, and are not prayed to as deities having power over the people on earth.
Sacred Buckskin - Apache
From Copyright Photograph 1903 by E.S. Curtis
EXPLANATION OF PLATE
A—Chalhké̆lh Nalín, Night Girl
B—Kútĕrastan, The One Who Lives Above
C—Stĕnátlĭhăn, Woman Without Parents
D—Chuganaái Skhĭn, Sun Boy
E—Chuganaái, The Sun
F—Klĕganaái, The Moon
G—Yádĭlhkĭh Bĭnálzĕ, Sky Messengers
H—Nigostú̆n Bĭká Bĭnálzĕ, Earth Messengers
I, J—Nasté̆lh, Makers of Dreams and Visions
K—Hádĭlhkĭh, Lightning
Disc L
1—Nayé̆nĕzganĭ, Slayer of Alien Gods
2—Dutlí̆shĭ Skhĭn, Turquoise Boy
3—Yólkai Skhĭn, White-Shell Boy
4—Hádĭntĭn Skhĭn, Pollen Boy
Disc M
1—Tubadzĭschí̆nĭ, Born From Water
2—Yádĭlhkĭh Skhĭn, Sky Boy
3—Yólkai Skhĭn, White-Shell Boy
4—Hádĭntĭn Skhĭn, Pollen Boy
Disc N
1—Yólkai Nalí̆n, White-Shell Girl
2—Dutlí̆shĭ Nalí̆n, Turquoise Girl
3—Ĕnásho Dĭlú̆hklí̆shĕn, Black Alien Talker
4—Hádĭntĭn Nalí̆n, Pollen Girl
Disc O
1—Hádĭntĭn Nalí̆n, Pollen Girl
2—Nĭlchídĭlhkĭzn, The Wind
3—Yólkai Nalíí̆n, White-Shell Girl
4 —Yakósha Skhĭn, Frost Boy
P—Gáŭncho - Gods
Q—Gaŭnchĭné̆ - Gods
R—Gáŭn - Gods
S—Gaŭnchí - Gods
H—Another maltese cross, symbolizing four spirits of the air, who act as messengers of the gods. They are supposed to communicate with the medicine-men, bringing to them words of wisdom from the several gods as they sit and chant in ceremony, or when they are fasting. Their name, Nigostú̆n Bĭká Bĭnálzĕ, Earth Messengers, indicates that their powers extend to both the earth and the sky.
I and J symbolize spirits of the air who reveal to the medicine-men the wonders they claim to know in a priestly way. Such revelations are made to them in visions as they sit and drum and sing when endeavoring to discover some new cure for an affliction, or to initiate new customs that might be pleasing to the gods. The priests often take a medicine skin of this sort and go out into the mountains, where they fast and sing over it for hours at a time, awaiting the coming of the spirits.
K—It is supposed that any of the various gods have the power of calling on the lightning to carry messages from one to the other. Wherever shown in the symbolism of the Apache, lightning lines are drawn to indicate communication from one god to another.
Disc L 1—Nayé̆nĕzganĭ is the first son of Stĕnátlĭhăn, who was made to conceive by the sun's rays as she lay asleep on the eastern slope of a mountain. He is the War God and miracle performer, the culture hero who in parallel legends appears in many North American aboriginal cults. Great monsters in the form of giant antelopes, rolling stones, and beasts of hideous conception are supposed to have inhabited the earth for a time, destroying its people. These monsters typify only the evils of this life; in fact death itself is spoken of in many legends as one of the monsters, in such form engaging in a long discussion with the miracle performer to prove that he should not be destroyed; if he were, the earth СКАЧАТЬ