Tlingit and Haida People of Alaska: The Mythology of Creation "The Continents Emerge"

[Part One]

Woody Morrison writes on the Tlingit and Haida Facebook Page:


Carrying the two stones carefully, Tathl stepped out, donned his Loon skin and feathers, and flew back down to the water of the Earth and, did as the Ancient One had instructed.

B. The Continents Emerge.

Tathl (Loon), as instructed by the Ancient one, careful to not breathe on it, placed the small black stone into the water and released it to drop into the depths. Then, Tathl held the shiny one, K'iis, and blew its breath on it; blowing until it got dizzy, then it blew still more. Next, Tathl placed K'íis onto the surface of the water and released it to sink into the dark, foreboding water. At first nothing happened. There was no sign that anything was taking place; nothing but the widening ripples caused by the stones passing into another dimension; into the ocean depths.

Then from deep under the water came a sound, like that made by an old man, waking from a long sleep and clearing his throat. Something stirred. Something "down there" stirred, rumbled and shook… real hard ,tlegaay hildengs. Then there were bubbles, gigantic bubbles of steam roiling and churning the ocean's surface, like a pot of water filled with red-hot rocks.

It went on for a long time… Tathl (Loon) kept moving, to get out of the way, the water was getting real warm.

Then dry land, a dark-colored rock began to slowly surface from below those dark, brooding waters. It was shiny and flat on top. It kept coming up, then it started to change as fire and smoke, lots of it spewed out of the top, then it surface got jagged, like fish teeth. Later, I don't know how long after, a smaller land came up.

The little stone became islands - hither land, and the big one, helped with much blowing, became continents - Kwagaqui - yon land. The born-again man, the one made by the Ancient One from its own body then stepped down from the house into the skies to become Nang Kilstlaas (the Raven-That-Walked-The-Earth to bring forth X̱áadas - Human Beings) and to teach them all they needed to know.

It was said that when Raven came down from the “House-In-The-Sky” with his hands spread out, he pointed with one hand toward the bushes of the island and with the other to a great stone. Humankind came from the bushes (they are living, beings that bend to pressure and produce fruit: not from the stone, and it is believed that had Humans come from the stone, Humans would have lived for a very long time but would have been cold and unbending. The new Person the Ancient One brought into being then swooped down from the Naay as Raven; its feathers were pure White. Raven landed at Yahl K’iik.”

C. Ancient One Checks.
Ḵaawan Sangáa begins again. …Raven steals the freshwater from Puffin; Raven coaxes X̱áadas (first, women) from the Mussel Shell, then that Being coaxed the men from the Cockle shell, into Being.