FIFTH AND LAST CREATION OF THE WORLD
172. And then he went eastward, the Marumda. He arrived at a large valley and walked around it. “Wah!” he said, “why are there no people here? Here there will be a village!” Then he brought some willow sticks to the middle of the valley. There he dug a small hole, and all around he planted the sticks.
173. “Yoh!” he said, and then he went o a little way, there he built a fire, and then he went back. And now to one of the sticks that he had planted he tied the end of a string that he took out of his little dried-up sack. Then he went back to the fire and lay down with his back to it after passing the other end of the string through his ear-hole and making it fast.
174. He was just dozing when it jerked, and he sat up. He looked back to where he had planted the sticks. He did not see anything. “Wah!” he said, and he lay back to sleep. He slept. In the middle of the night it jerked him, and he sat up. He looked to where he had planted the sticks, but nothing. He went back to sleep. Toward dawn it jerked him. He paid no attention. At daybreak it jerked and pulled him up. Then he sat up.
175. This time he peered. Where he had planted the sticks it sounded like people talking among themselves. “Eh! What I planned will stand true!” he said, and he went over. As he was nearing the roundhouse a man came out of the door. “Where are you going?” he asked.
176. “I have come to see how the villages are doing. In this valley you will hunt your food!” Then the man called to the people inside and then came out. “How are we to hunt food?” asked the leader.
177. “That's what I have come to teach you. Break o some of that wood over there and bring it here.” Then the man who was in front of the others broke o some of the wood and brought it back. “Now break o some little ones and bring them here!” Then that man broke o some little sticks and brought them back.
178. Then Marumda split the large piece of wood and scraped it, and in no time he made a bow out of it. Then he peeled the little ones and made arrows out of them. Then: “Bring some flint from over there!” he said. He chipped the flint with his teeth, and in no time he made arrowheads out of it. Then he felt in his little dried-up sack and brought out some sinew.
179. He twirled a string, tied it to the bow, and pulled. “This is called a bow,” he said. Then he felt in his little dried-up sack and brought out some feathers, he split them, and tied them to the end of the arrows. Then he fixed the flint arrowheads. “With this you will hunt deer,” he said.
180. Then he said to the women: “Over there there is kuhum [basketweaving material].” “What is kuhum?” they asked. Then Marumda went to dig some and brought it back. “This is weaving material for you.” He also brought some willow roots. “With these you will make baskets. Over on that mountain there are trees with acorns. These are food for you. In that river over there there is fish for you to catch with nets. Thus you will live.”
181. He felt in the little sack hung around his neck and brought out a string. Then he started a net and in no time he wove a long one. “This is a gunam net [a seine],” he said. Then he wove a buxal [fish-trap]. “You will make a dam in yonder river, you will place this trap in it, and then you will drive the fish into it.”
182. Then he picked up a rock and pecked it, and in no time he made a pestle. Then he brought out a flat rock. “This is called a gushi-xabe [metate], for pounding seeds and acorns.” Then after a while he said: “Now I am going. Live righteously and your people will be healthy!” Thus he said, and he went on.
183. In this fashion he went around the world. Wherever there was a good place, there he made a village. He went where he had first made people. “Are you living well?” he asked. “Yes, we are living well. But where have you been?” “Just a little way.” “Are there other people like us?”
184. “Yes, lots of them! There are people far from here whose language you don't understand. They speak di erent languages. They live on the other side of that mountain. They speak nearly like you. You must make friends with them.”
185. Thus he said. Then the chief sent two young men over. The two young men went over the mountain and found a large village there, and they came back.
186. After this the Old Man went away somehow, and after this nobody ever saw him again in that village.
187. Then he went o. He went over the hill to where there was a big valley, and he walked around it. “Here also there must be a village!” he said. He brought some willow wands to the middle of the valley, and there he dug a little hole. Then he split the wands with his teeth, he took some charcoal and crushed it. Then he painted the sticks with it.
188. “This one will be the song leader. These will be the chorus. These will be the dancers. These will be the women dancers.” He felt in his little dried-up sack and brought out a string. He tied one end to one of the sticks, and the other end he tied to his own ear-hole.
189. Then he lay down with his back to the fire. He was sound asleep when the string pulled him up. Then he got up. It was the dancers. The
190. Then he also started to dance. And the boys, and the girls, and the chorus, they all watched him. They laughed at him: “Hurrah for the Old Man!” But the chief stopped them saying: “Don't do that! This is our Old Man Marumda! He is the one who made us!”
191. Four nights he made them dance. When the sun was high the people got out of the dance house and the chief harangued them: “Now you go and hunt deer so that we may have a feast!”
192. And then the women pounded acorns, and when they were done they carried the meal to the water. They scooped out the ground like a bowl and poured the meal in it. Then they poured water over it to leach it. And the boys brought out a large deer and put it down at the entrance.
193. They had already built a fire in preparation. Now the men quartered the deer. Now the women brought in the dough. The men had already heated the cooking-rocks in the fire. The women soon dissolved the dough. They dropped the cooking-rocks in a basket and cooked the mush.
194. After this the men cut the deer-meat into strings and put it on the fire. As soon as some of the meat was roasted they took it out of the fire and put it on the table while other people cut more venison into strings. Thus all the meat got cooked.
195. And now the chief called: “Gather hither!” Then all the people gathered. The women brought out the cooked mush and the meat. They brought it out, and then the women gathered in one place.
196. Then the chief chose four young men. He took the leader by the arm. Then he [the leader] took the next one by the hand. This one in turn took the next one by the hand. Thus he led them around the food four times back and forth. Then he placed the leader on the south side. The next one he placed on the east side. The next one he placed on the north side. The last one he placed on the west side.
197. Then the chief spoke: “These people I have chosen to be your guardians. They will make plans for you. They will address you in speeches.”
198. Then the Marumda spoke: “This is what you people are going to do. You are going to gather your provisions, your venison-meat, your acorns, your valley-seeds. Then you will store it away, and on this you will live in abundance. You will hold festivals. When visitors come from a distance, take them into the house and partake of food with them. When your friends come from somewhere to visit you, that's the way you must provide them with food.
199. “There are going to be many of you people. Therefore you must take care of each other. Therefore you must claim one another as friends, you must claim one another as relatives. Thus you will live in happiness!” Thus spoke the Marumda. And then he departed.
200. Thus it was that people got acquainted with one another. They acknowledged one another as friends and relations. The young men hunted deer and caught fish. They gathered acorns. They married and brought food in dowry, and deer, and fish. Thus they did.
201. Thus he went, the Marumda, making villages on the shores of the lake, and he came around again to where he had made the first village. The little boys found him. “Here lies an old man!” they said. The older boys came near. “Where have you come from?” they asked him. “Oh! I have come from far away … Say, little boys, bring me an acorn shell.” Then the biggest of the boys said, “I'll bring it!”
202. The boy ran home and came back with an acorn shell. “Are you going to eat it?” he asked the Marumda. “No, give it to me!” The boy gave him the shell. Then Marumda took it and threw it in the water. “Hey!” cried the boy, “what did you throw it away for? Now I won't give you any more. You threw it away! Now I won't give you any more.”
203. “Look over there!” said Marumda. The boys went to the shore and looked at the shell. It was floating. Then they also threw in acorn shells. Marumda's shell floated on [the water] and became a boat. The boys' shells did not become boats. “Why is it that your shell became a boat but ours did not?” asked the boys.
204. “Are you going to ride in it?” they asked then. “Yes, I am going across the lake in it.” “And you are not afraid?” “What should I be afraid of?” said Marumda. “Won't the water-bears eat you?” “The water-bears are my playmates,” said the Marumda. “Look, boys, I am going now.”
205. Not far from there, there were some grown-up people watching. “Who was that old man?” asked the boys. “What did you ask him?” said the people. “That was no old man. He just made himself into an old man. And then he grew wings. His name is Marumda. He is the one who made the world. He made the lake. He made everything that you see. You saw how he made a boat out of that shell that he threw in the water. He made this big lake and he can dry it up. He also made us people. He made everything here on the earth. Understand that, boys!” Thus spoke the chief.
206. Marumda's boat was already across. It skidded ashore. There were some boys playing there who saw him land. “Hey! An old man just landed out of the water!” they cried. Then a crowd of people came out, men and women. “Why! Here is our Old Man! Give him food!” cried the chief.
207. Then the women went to the house to fetch food and they came back with meal and mush for the Old Man. “Thank you! Thank you!” he said, “I will freshen [i.e., initiate] the boys for you when I am through eating. Look toward the south!” The boys saw a monster running. “He is running this way!” they cried.
208. The monster approached nearer and nearer, and the boys ran away, but he headed them o. They ran toward the house. He rounded them up in one place and drove them into the house. Then he went around the house, four times to the right, and four times to the left, he went around. Then he went over to where Marumda was sitting.
209. “Oh!” said the Marumda, “that's my older brother the Kuksu!” “Younger brother, how are the people that you made? Are they behaving? Did everything come right as you wished? You haven't missed anything?” Thus spoke the Kuksu.
210. They were sitting facing the lake. “Yes, I made everything as I wanted, and then I crossed over.” “Then I am happy! Now you must make the people hold a dance, a four-day dance.” “I told them the same thing over there across [the water]. We will watch this dance and when
211. “All right!” said the Kuksu. “You are right, your words are true. Good words, sound knowledge and straight. Therefore make a speech for them so that they may learn from you. Already they have their dancing costumes on.” Thus spoke the Kuksu.
212. Then Marumda got up and went toward the dance house. He stood on top of the dance house and harangued the people: “Gather for the dance! Gather for the dance! My people, my boys, my girls! Gather for the dance! Go into the dance house!” Then the people, the boys, the girls, the children, everybody went into the dance house.
213. The men gathered in front of the center-post. The chorus sat down in front of them. And then Marumda came out in front of them. Then the people tried to sing the song, but they didn't know how.
214. Then Marumda himself sang it. [SONG.] “This is the sittingdown-song,” said Marumda.
215. Meanwhile the men and the women were fixing their dancing costumes. Now they sang the dance-song. Men and boys together were fixing themselves. Women and girls together were fixing themselves. The dance house was crowded with dancers.
216. In the lead went the Marumda. He performed in front of them. Eight times he danced and stopped, and then they rested. They danced all night for four nights. They carried out the dance till just before dawn. Then they took o their dancing costumes and carried them around the dance house four times.
217. After this the men went to the lake to bathe. The young men went to the lake to bathe. The women went to the lake to bathe. The girls went to the lake to bathe. And then they came back to the shore.
218. Thereupon the singers went to the lake to bathe. They came out and started toward the dance house. The singers walked in the lead. Then came the men, then came the young men, then came the women, then came the girls.
219. Four times each way they went around the dance house, and then they went in. And now they went around the center-post four times each
220. Then he commanded: “Make donations of food!” Then everyone in the village brought out donations of food. Now Marumda selected assistant chiefs. He selected four of them to distribute the food. He selected four men, and he selected four women chiefs to distribute the food.
221. They first gave some to Marumda, a ball of mush. In no time he cleaned it up. And then he went o. That was forever that he departed. After that no one ever saw him. No one knows where he went. Thus it happened.
222. In this wise he visited every village, teaching them how to perform the dances. Eight days and eight nights he would perform, and then it was completed.
223. After this he walked about on a mountain, and he called together the coyotes: “You will watch over the villages that are strung out on the land. If enemies should approach, you must cry: Guhmá a'a … guhmá a'a … Enemies … enemies … ” Thus the Marumda instructed the coyotes.
224. After this he called together the wolves of the woods: “You will travel in the woods, hunting your food!” Thus he instructed them. And then he called together the pumas: “You will travel on the mountains, hunting your food!” Thus he instructed them.
225. Then he called together the wiq'a [unidentified animal]: “You will travel amid the rocks, hunting your food!” Thus he instructed them. Then he called together the lynxes: “You will travel in the chamise brush, hunting your food!” Thus he instructed them. Then he called together the foxes: “You will live inside hollow trees amid the rocks!” Thus he instructed them.
226. Then he called together the skunks. He came out with his tail over his head. There was some noise, and he squirted in that direction. He made the whole land stink as he came. “You mustn't do that!” said Marumda. “Only if they threaten to kill you, then you may do it! You will live in holes in the rocks and in the trees.” Thus he instructed them.
227. Then he called together the raccoons: “You will live in holes in the trees and there you will hunt your food!” Then he called together the squirrels: “You will build your nests high up in the trees and from there you will go and hunt your food!” Thus he instructed them.
228. Then he called together the martens: “Amid the rocks you will dwell. From there you will hunt your food.” Then he called together the bears: “On the mountains you will travel. There you will dwell in caves. From there you will hunt your food!”
229. After that he called together the elk: “You will dwell in the hills and you will hunt your food in the valleys.” Thus he instructed them. And then he called together the chamise-animals [the deer], and he addressed them: “You, in the hills you will dwell, amid the sagebrush. You are dwellers of the hills.” Thus he instructed them.
230. Then he called together the rabbits: “You will live in the valleys and in the mountains.” Thus he instructed them. After this he called together the ground-squirrels, the moles, the gophers, the field mice, the wood-rats, the badgers: “You will dwell under the ground, you will live in holes!” Thus he instructed them.
231. Then he called together the rattlesnakes, the large gopher-snakes, the small gopher-snakes, the milk-snakes, the red-striped snakes, the mountain garter-snakes, the snakes with green back and red belly, the big lizards, the common lizards, the salamanders, the giant salamanders, the snails: “You will live in the hills, amid the rocks, in the trees, in holes underground!” Thus he instructed them.
232. Then he called together the birds, the eagles, the condors, the hawks, the falcons, the goshawks, the kites, the big horned owls, the screech owls, the nighthawks, the little horned owls, the ground owls: “You will live in the hills, in hollow trees, in holes in rocks!” Thus he instructed them.
233. Then he called together the bluejays, the blackbirds, the quail, the crows, the flickers, the red-headed woodpeckers, the mountain jays, the grouse, the robins, the mountain robins, the towhees, the blackand-yellow finches, the mountain quail, the roadrunners, the ravens, the sapsuckers, the woodpeckers, the thrushes, the bluebirds, the meadowlarks,
234. Then he called together the water birds, blue heron, sand-hill crane, white crane, bittern, little green heron, swan, goose, mallard, cormorant, grebe, merganser, seagull, pied-billed grebe, little merganser, mud-hen, he called them together and addressed them: “In the water you will live, in the water you will seek your food!”
235. Then he called together the fishes: “Fishes who live in the water, all of you, come ashore!” Thus he spoke. Then Turtle came ashore first, and behind him came all the fishes. “You are not a fish!” said Marumda to the Turtle. “You will travel on the land. You fish, you are not to travel on land! You fish, you must live in the water. You will eat food from the water. And you too, Turtle!” Thus he spoke. Then the fish went back into the water, and Turtle floated back into the water.
236. Thus sitting on top of a mountain spoke the Marumda. Thus he instructed everything on the earth. How they were to behave, what they were to eat, where they were to live, he told them that way, everything. That's what he called them together for.
237. He sat on a large flat rock on top of the mountain, giving instructions to everything that lives. Then he got o and stood the rock on edge. “People must never come here!” Thus spoke the Marumda.
238. Then he departed. “If people come here this rock will fall and the people will live no longer! If anyone comes here he will die forever!” Thus spoke the Marumda.
239. After that he went to see the Kuksu. He arrived at the Kuksu's place and told him what he had done. “You have done the right thing!” said the Kuksu. “Sing a praying song, older brother!” said Marumda to Kuksu. Then: “All right!” he said. [SONG.] Thus spoke the Kuksu. Then Marumda spoke: “Oh! That's good! Ooo … Ooo … Ooo … Ooo!” And then the Marumda pulled out a song. [SONG.] Then he went back to his own abode. And the Kuksu also went back to his own place.
240. Four times he made us people. First he drowned them in the water. Then he destroyed them by fire. Then he destroyed them by snow. Then he destroyed them by a whirlwind. Thus he destroyed them four times. This tale I was taught by the old men, this tale of world-making, of making people, this is the tale as I was told.
241. This is the tale that I heard when I was little, when I was a boy.