[国家地理－视觉的世界神话史].National.Geographic..Essential.Visual.History.Of.World.Mythology00007.pdf

. american mythology i north america-creation myths most north american tribes believed in a creator god who created lesser deities the hopi believed that they had ascended to the modern, fourth world from a series of three prior worlds that had been destroyed the seminole thought that after the creator spirit had made the animals, he sealed them in a giant shell the iroquois believed that the earth was made from mud heaped on a turtles back ascending to the fourth world-the hopi the hopi of the southwest had multiple creation stories. in one version, tawa, spirit of the sun, created the world from the tokpella, or the endless void of space. in another, the world was made by two spirits called hard being woman of the east and hard being woman of the west, while tawa watched their work. in a third story, tawa created a heaven and rain spirit named sotuqnangu (3, hopi kachina doll, representing the thunder spirit), who created the spider north america-creation myths the creation stories of the north american indian tribes are diverse, and varied widely depending on the tribe, the geographical region, and the person telling the story. however, several general themes were shared across many stories. it was not unusual to think of the universe before the beginning of the world as a place of darkness, void, or endless waters. a creator god then acted upon the darkness or the waters to make the sun, the earth, and the animals, or in some cases created another deity to do the work for him or her. most traditions tell of the creator ordering the world in the same way: heaven, earth, and underworld. the creator god is sometimes represented as an invisible spirit, a spirit possessing human-like attri butes, or an animal spirit. he or she was also often the parent or creator of the lesser spirits of the tribes beliefs, and responsible for either making people directly, or ordering the lesser spirits to make people on his behalf. grandmother, who then made the world. the hopi also be lieved that they lived in the fourth of a series of worlds. each prior world had been destroyed when the hopi had fallen vice and bad habits. each cd this is trial version north america-creation myths. the great shell on the mountain-the seminole the seminole of florida and the southeast believed that in the beginning, the grand father spirit, creator of the world, first made the animals. he sealed them in a giant shell while he finished making the world. when this was done, he put the shell on a mountain and told the animals inside to open. a long time passed inside the shell, but it never opened. it stayed so long on the mountain that a tree grew by it. the tree grew until one of its roots cracked the shell open. the first animal to leave the shell was the panther, who was followed by the bird, bear, deer, snake, frog, and otter. the animals (2) then went to their homes in the dreaming woman ofthe sky world-the iroquois the iroquois of the northeast believed that in the beginning, there was no la nd, only an end less, empty sea. far above the sea, in the sky, lived the sky world tribe. one woman of the tribe was known for her dreams. one night, she had a nightmare about the magic tree that gave light for the sky world, as there was no sun. at her request, the tribe tried to dig around the tree, but it fell down the hole they dug in the sky. angered at losing the tree, the tribe pushed the woman down the hole but a hawk caught her. as she had no place to stand, birds and water ani mals heaped sea-mud on a turtles back (3) until the mud pile grew to become the earth. this is trial version iii american mythology i north america-manitou some tribes believed in a great spirit, or manitou, an im personal spiritual power the term manitou derives from the anishinaabe word for deity the sweat lodge was used as a rite of purification and healing shamans provoked visions that consulted the spirits north america-manitou aside from countless nature spirits, many north american indian tribes are thought to have believed in manitou (1), meaning deity in the language of the ojibwe and algonquin tribes, inhabitants of the great lakes area of the united states and canada. the term referred to an impersonal spiritual power of exceptional force, which could be found in peo ple, animals, and natural phenomena or features. meanwhile, the pawnee in nebraska honored a great spirit named tirawa, who was linked with nat ural phenomena like the sun, moon, and stars. it was the job of the shamans or medicine men to bridge contact between the living and the spirits of the dead. shamans employed several methods to receive visions about the future or to learn how to heal a sick person. when christian missionaries first encountered the tribes after 1850 and sought to understand their con cept of a supreme, high deity, gitchi this is trial version vision quest ritual like the sweat lodge, the practice of the vision quest varied greatly by tribe. generally, a vision quest served one of two purposes: either as a rite of passage for an adolescent boy to become a man, or as part of a neophyte shamans apprenticeship for learning the tribes sacred rituals. a vision quest could be accomplished by a variety of means: the aspi rant (4) might fast for several days, hike or run to ed shamanism in africa: p. 436 north america-manitou . the sweat lodge while the practice of bathing in a sweat lodge (2) was widespread throughout north american tribes, it took subtly different forms depending on each tribes beliefs. gener ally, the sweat lodge was a domed hut that was tightly sealed with skins or clay. stones were heated in a fire, brought inside, then water was tossed over them to fill the lodge with steam. the ceremony had strict rituals and rules, from gath ering of special wood to the tending of the fire by special persons. sweat lodge ceremonies had both aspects of mental purification and physical healing, as well as giving requests and thanks to the ancestors. the ceremony was led by a shaman and began with the evocation of the souls of ancestors and spirits of the tribe. this is trial version iii american mythology i north america-totem poles and animal spirits totem or crest poles were carved to honor famous mem bers of a family and to ward off evil animals most indian tribes believed in animal spirits the bear was seen as a chief, or leader of a hunting party the coyote and raven were trickster spirits iroquois medicine societies were often named after mystic animals like the otter or eagle north america-totem poles and animal spirits totem poles (1) are large free-standing tree trunks, carved and painted with the stylized faces and bodies of animals and tribal spirits. most totem poles were made in the forests of the pacific north west region of the united states and canada, by the haida, tsimshian, and tlingit tribes. the raising of a new pole was always accompanied by a celebration. generally, a totem pole, more correctly referred to as a heraldic column, was raised to honor the family-or a famous member of it-that caused it to be carved. it served the function of marking a family or tribes territory, as well as warding off evil spirits. the poles often told stories-about an exceptional event or the life of a great chief, for example which were read from bottom to top, the figures carved on the pole represented the animal heralds of a family. although the north american indians believed in animal spirits, they did not believe in totem animals, contrary to the assumptions of earlier scholars, ed animals in myth: pp. 104, 230, 322 this is trial version north america-totem poles and animal spirits . bear-the leader in the traditional stories of many tribes, bear (2) was portrayed in the roles of a chieftain, a war party leader, or as the leader of a buffalo hunt. bears physical strength and fighting prowess made him a natural leader, and he was known for his extreme courage, if not recklessness, in war- fare and hunting. his weakness was his pride, and he was sometimes seen to be slow ofthought and action. in totems, the figure of bear was often coyote and raven-the tricksters in contrastto bears steadfastness of character, coyote (4) and raven (3, shamans rattle) both filled the role of trickster spirits. they were seen to be highly intelligent, sometimes cowardly, sometimes mischie vous spirits who cared little for the rules of society white buffalo-the redeemer the lakota tribe believed in an unusual and very interesting animal spirit: the white buffalo, known also as the white buffalo calf woman. the story starts with the lakota people suffering from famine. the chief sent out two scouts in search of game animals for food. after a long journey, the scouts saw a beautiful woman clothed in white skins. the first scout desired her to be his wife, and ran to embrace her. as he did, a heavy cloud surrounded him. when it lifted, only the scouts bones remained. the second scout was that bear epito mized. coyote, in reserved for the chief, or for prominent, important families. the bear (along with the olter, eagle, and buffalo) gave name to medicine societies formed by the iroquois. members ofthese secret communities shared their healing and magical knowledge. often used deceit when he came into conflict with bear over who would have the glory and spoils of buffalo hunts. afraid, but the woman calmed him and told him to return home to prepare a feast. she then revealed her name to be white buffalo calf woman. when she came to the feast, she taught the people sacred rituals, and gave them the chununpa, or sacred tobacco pipe. the lakota revered her as a bringer of redemption this is trial version . american mythology i north america-sacred locales a place could be sacred because it was inhabited by spirits, because mythic events happened there, or because it was used for rituals because of their importance, many tribes instituted taboos that prohibited just anyone from entering certain places, thus trying to protect them the klamath believed that the crater lake was created during a battle between two rival chiefs the lakota sioux believed the black hills mountains to be the center of the universe north america-sacred locales many north american indian tribes held certain places to be sacred. they saw themselves as the pro tectors and guards of these places; thus there were strict taboos limiting who visited them. while every tribe had its own understanding of what made a place sacred, and why it is possible to notice wide spread similarities between tribes. sacred places could be remarkable features in the natural land scape, or places that were held sacred because the tribe believed that spirits inhabited or had touched the place. it was common for a tribe to attribute the origin of their ancestors to a sacred place, such as a mountain or a massive hill. the myths of some tribes refer to spirit animals or deities turning people into stone; thus rocky land marks could memorialize the event. battles between legendary chiefs or mythic spirits were sometimes thought to have been so severe that they crushed hills, raised mountains, or created lakes and rivers. landmarks were also often viewed as the trans formed body of a monster, who had been slain by a mythological hero. the serpent the serpent mound of ohio is something of on unsolved mystery for archaeologists. the mound itself is physically impressive, running about 7,370 feet long in the shape of a smoothly winding serpent whose tail is cailed three times around. the serpents open mouth faces a hollow oval, which is mostly described as an egg. here, layers of burnt wood found suggest that it was a ceremony place. although there are many theories, it is believed to have been built by the adena culture or the moundbuilders (from about 7000 b.c. to a.d. 7200). rn the inca-the huacas: p. 416 this is trial version north america-sacred locales . the crater lake of oregon the crater lake of mount mazama, oregon (1). was formed about 5677 b.c. when the volcanic peak of the moun tain collapsed, then filled with spring water. the klamath tribe local to the area believed that their ancestors witnessed the formation of the lake. they attributed the event to an epic battle between llao and skell. two mythical chiefs of the klamath tribe. their terrible fight ended with the destruction of llaos home on mount mazama, known as the underworld, by skell. who turned it into the crater lake. the tribe held the lake sacred, and in times past, sent young men there on vision quests that involved fasts and highly dangerous climbs down sunken volcanic wells around the lake. the black hills the black hills hills were the center of the uni-government and the lakota tribes that ended up at the u.s. supreme court. when the ruling on july 23,1980, found that the black hills had been il legally taken from the lakota, remuneration was offered. however, the lakota refused the settlement and continue to fight for their sacred territory. (2) are a small mountain range running from wyoming to south dakota. the name comes from the lakota sioux term paha sapa, literally black hills, and so named because the trees on the mountains make them look dark. the lakota believed that the black verse, and thus sacred. how ever, some controversy about this claim has arisen in times past, because the lakota came to the area in the 18th century, and displaced other tribes on their arrival. there was a long quarrel about the black hills between the united states this is trial version ei american mythology i north america-lelawala the maiden of the mists this is trial version north america-lelawala the maiden of the mists _ north america-lelawala maiden of the mists this is trial version _ american mythology i north america-arctic myths the inuit believed that sila, a spiritual power, existed in everything while a raven was thought to be the creator of the world, the supreme being was a sky deity, often identified with sila the maiden sedna became a sea spi rit when her father let her drown in the sea sedna was tremendously important because the inuit depended on fishing and whale hunting an angakkuq (shaman) was believed to have power over good and evil spirits north america-arctic myths the inuit are the in digenous peoples of the arctic, occu pying areas of alaska, canada, and greenland. suffering the harsh climate and limited re sources of the arctic circle has sea life, such as walruses, appear in the mythology of the arctic led to a mythology surrounding the very animals they relied on to live. dependent on the hunting of sea animals and the trapping of small birds, the inuit believed that a raven created the world, which was made of a whales body. the inuit believed in silo, a fundamental power that existed in everything from the human soul to the environment. sometimes it was also thought of as a sky deity. as sila connected everything, all things were seen as essential to each other. this spiritual connection between animals and humans is present in many myths. sedna and birth of the whales sedna, a beautiful maiden, was once married by her fatherto a hunter. when it turned out that her husband was actually a raven, sedna cried so much that her father took her back (1). butthen the raven attacked them and sedna fell overboard. the father cut off sednas fin gers as she clung to the side of the boat. as she sank into the sea, she became a spirit, and her severed fingers became rn universal principles: pp. 102,295,332,384 this is trial version north america-arctic myths . the angakkuq and tuurngait the angakkuq was an inuit shaman. among his duties, he was responsible for healing and sol ving societal problems. an angakkuq was selected based on his natural abil- spirits who caused unsuccessful hunting trips, broken weapons and tools, illness, insanity, and general bad luck. t uurngait (below) were believed to possess people and cause them to ity and charisma. it was also said that he was actually selected by the spirits themselves, who gave him a specific power. he served as mediator between hu mans and the spirits, using tools like drums, chants, and ritual dances. he also had power over the tuurngait, invisible how raven stole the sun long ago, the world was stuck in perpetual darkness. the peo ple had never seen light, until raven (2) told them about see- ing it in the east. the peo ple begged him to find it for them, so raven flew east until he came to a the man who became a salmon anarteq and his sisters liked to hunt reindeer. the sisters would drive the reindeer into a lake. anarteq would paddle up to the reindeer in a kayak, while they were stuck in the water, and kill the ones he wanted. but during one such hunt, a reindeer overturned anarteqs kayak. as he sank into the water, he turned into a salmon, and was lost from his family. years later, anarteqs father took a hunting party to the same lake. as he paddled his kayak on the lake, the father felt something pulling his paddle. it was anarteq, in the cammit bad deeds, or become mentally ill. only the ongakkuq had the power to exorcise them. he could also capture tuurngait, and use them as weapons against their own kind. village. by means of his magic, he learned that the chief of the village kept a golden ball of light in his house. raven tricked the chiefs son into playing with the ball, then stole it and flew back to his ow