Long ago they say. A girl was wandering about by herself. She met nobody on her way. Then someone from above told her to go and lie under the water, where it was dripping. She did this and from the water she became pregnant. Then after this she had a baby and near the dripping water she left it. Next day she went back there and now the baby was all smooth and clean. The mother went home and stayed all night. The next day she went back again and now the baby was sitting down. Then she went home and stayed all night. In the morning she went back and this time the baby was crying and there were tears on its cheeks. Now the mother went home and stayed all night, and in the morning she went back and found the baby walking about. Then she made a little bow and arrow and gave it to the baby. She took the baby home with her. Then he started to shoot the bow and arrow; This way the baby went around with the mother.
They lived this way for a long time and then the woman got word again from someone to go up on a little hill and there build a tipi with four poles, just where the first rays of the sun would strike in the morning. On each of the four poles was a long zigzag line, the same as they make in the girl’s puberty ceremony now. On the east pole black lightning struck down in zigzag line, on the south pole blue lightning struck down in zigzag line, on the west pole yellow lightning struck down in zigzag line, and on the north pole white lightning struck down in zigzag line. Then where the poles met above was tied narrow lightning. Now the woman went inside and lay there. Then as Sun came up she pulled up her dress toward Sun and spread her legs apart, so that Sun shone between her legs. When Sun came up one of his beams went right into her, a red one. Then she got her menstrual period and the blood started to come. After that she became pregnant. After a long time she was ready to give birth, and so she went aside to a place and bore her child. From there she went home and spent the night at her camp. The next day she went back to her new baby, and she found it good and clean and smooth, with its eyes open. After she had seen it she went home. In the morning she went there and this time she found her baby sitting, so she left it and came home. The day after that when she went back she found the baby crying. She came home again. The next day she went back to the place once more and this time the baby was walking about. Then she made a little bow and arrow and gave it to the baby. When she took him back with her, he shot the bow and arrow as he was following behind her.
The first child that the woman had was called t’uba’tc’istcine (born from water) and the second one was called bihia’no-ltl’i-je (with him marked down in zigzag line (on him)). Then that woman had two children. The father of t’ubatc’istcine was t’ohasti-hn (water old man) and from his father this one got his power. The father of the other boy was Sun. The first boy grew up tall and the younger one grew up, but not quite so tall as the first. Then the older one used to go out hunting deer. The younger one was about seven or eight years old and he was smart. Then this younger one began to reflect. He had no fingers, no toes, no hair, no ears, no nostrils, only holes there, and he had no eyes. This way they lived on there together. Then one time the younger boy asked, “Where does my father live?” “Where it is dangerous to go,” said his mother. “I want to see my father,” the boy said. “No, he lives far off where you can’t go,” the mother said. So the boy said no more about it. But after some time he said again, “I want to go and see my father.” “No, he lives where you can’t go,” said his mother. This way they all stayed on there, and the older brother kept on hunting deer. After a while the younger one said again that he was going to his father, because he wanted to see him. He kept on thinking about his father. So again he said to his mother, “I want to go and see my father.” He had heard from above that he was to go in search of his father and that was why he kept on asking about going. The boy had asked his mother about going four times now and each time she had put him off and lied to him, so the last time that he asked her and she lied to him, he said to her, “Your vulva is dangerous,” and then he went off toward the east.
(From this point on the myth runs about the same as the version given by Palmer Valor. First the boy comes to Trembling Sand and when he cannot get across narrow lightning goes over it with him. Next he comes to Five Mountains Together and he cannot get over it, because it keeps moving toward him and then away from hjm whenever he gets close to it. He cannot get on to it. Then narrow lightning helps him across. After this he comes to xucntca-gidilxil (big cactus black), xucntca-gidutl’ij (big cactus blue), xucntca-gilitsuk (big cactus yellow), and xucntca-giligai (big cactus white), all growing in four directions. There is no way for him to get through them. Then black wind, covered with black metal thorns, goes in front of him so that a way is cleared to go through. The next place he comes to is Crevasses in Stone which he cannot get by. Then Big Black Inchworm with striped back humps his back over it and the boy goes across on him. The next place he comes to is Black Metal Mountain with mosquitoes on its sides in front of him in four places, so that he cannot pass. But female rain comes on them and wets their wings. This way the boy gets through, When he gets by this last obstacle he comes to the waters around Sun’s house, and the story goes on in full from there.)
Then he had come close to Sun’s house, but in front of him was black water flowing, encircling, resting there. He could not get across it so he stopped. Then little turquoise talked four times and crossed over the waters. Then little turquoise was in front of Sun’s house. Then little turquoise talked as a chief and entered. Then little turquoise talked as a chief and went around inside. Then little turquoise went on top of the house and talked there as a chief. Then to the top of the house went yellow warbler chief. Chief of birds (yellow warbler) spoke as a chief (on the top of Sun’s house ?), then small black water rested there. Thus it happened on top and a light rain fell there.
Then Black Sun had a trail along the ground, and from there on top it went. From the top there were four ladders going down, the first of black jet, the second of turquoise, the third of red stone, and the fourth one of white shell beads.3 Then the boy went down to where Sun’s wife was sitting. When Sun’s wife saw him she said, “How did you come here ?” The boy answered that he had come to his father’s home. Sun’s wife said, “No one ever comes here.”
Sun went only till noon on his way, then another one took his place and went on from there and Sun turned back home. So now it was noon and Sun was coming home. For this reason Sun’s wife hid the boy and wrapped him up in black water. Soon there was a noise at the top of the house. Then the ladder from the top made a noise dje-j’, dje-j, dje-j, dje-j, and when Sun was a little way down he said, “Where is he?” Then he came all the way down. (From here on the story proceeds much like the version of Palmer Valor. Sun says to his wife that he has seen the tracks of the boy going over the four different mountains, and that some one has come to his home while he has been gone. His wife says no, that no one has been here and she keeps on saying this to Sun who insists that someone has been here. Finally the woman admits it and the boy is brought out. Sun has thirty-one sons and with this boy he has thirty-two. He tells his sons to go and make a sweat bath in the shade, and while they do this, Sun tests the boy out. On the east side of the house there is a tobacco sack, swinging where it hangs. On the other three sides of the house there are tobacco sacks in the same way. Also in each of these four places there is a pipe. Each pipe has thirty-two holes in it. Sun fills the pipe on the east, then holds it up and it lights itself, and he hands it to the boy to smoke. There are twelve little winds all around the boy, etc. Now the boy is tried out on each pipe in turn. After the tests they go to the sweat bath and inside Sun works on the boy, making his hair of black water and his fingernails and toenails of white metal, etc. Then they come out of the sweat bath and Sun has made the boy so like himself that it is almost impossible to tell them apart, so now the boy is a real son of his. After this Sun places two outfits in front of the boy. In one is a pair of moccasins, buckskin leggings, buckskin shirt, and tc’alba-ye (gray hat), all these being painted yellow. Along with these are a mountain lion skin quiver with four arrows it it, and a bow. In the other set is an outfit of White man’s clothes and a rifle. The boy selects the first outfit. Now Sun makes two hills in front of the boy. On the first of these are growing all kinds of wild foods, like thistle, etc. and on the other there is nothing on the surface, but inside there are all kinds of metals and everything else that the White man has. Sun tells the boy to choose one of the hills, and the boy makes a mistake and chooses the first hill. Next Sun has one of his other sons, who is a white man, try out in combat against the boy. The son who is a white man puts on the white man’s outfit and takes up the rifle. As he walks he makes a noise (his clothes do). Then he and the boy start to fight. The boy gets scared of the noise of the rifle and runs away, etc. While the boy is there Sun gives to him dark metal shield, dark metal spear, and dark metal xal.(r) Now the boy has received these things from Sun, as well as the hill and the outfit that he chose, and with all these things he goes back on the earth to his home. When he comes to the earth again he kills all the monsters that are destroying the people and it is on account of this that he is called na-ye’nezyane (slayer of monsters).)
Then he was living with his mother, but he called her his maternal grandmother. Then one day he said to his grandmother, “Where does wild mulberry grow ?” (From here on the story proceeds as in the myth told by Francis Drake “Obtaining Bow and Arrows.” The boy goes to get the wood for the bow and while looking for it he meets Bear. Next he goes out to get sinew. Gopher helps him to kill du’ilgid by tunneling up under the monster and gnawing the hair away from over the heart, as he lies there. Gopher takes this hair away to his children to make a bed for them, and that is why Antelope still has no hair under his front legs, over his heart. The boy stabs du’ilgid in this place and kills him, etc. As soon as the monster falls over dead, from all over the earth all the different kinds of birds that build nests come and pull the wool and hair out of the monster’s body to make their nests out of. They leave the monster all bare, smooth, and red. Now the boy takes out the brains and all other parts, even the kidneys. Then after he is through butchering, he packs the meat in the hide and starts off home with it. Out of the sinew that he gets from du’ilgid he makes a bow string, etc. On top oftse-yi’nagole (stone in he made (a place)) Eagle is living. The boy needs feathers for his arrows, and so he makes ready to get them. He takes the brain of du’ilgid and ties it on his head, and inside he has turquoise xal. He goes to the foot of the place where Eagle is living, and lies down there. Eagle swoops at him three times and misses, but at the fourth swoop he gets his talons into the hide and carries him off and dashes him against the rock. When he strikes the rock the brains burst out and all the guts as well. In the nest, when the young eagles go close to the boy, he makes them jump from him by saying c, c, but the mother eagle says no, that he is not alive because all his brains and guts have been dashed out. While the old eagles are gone he kills three of the young eagles, and leaves one alive. Then he says to the young eagle, “When will your sister get back ?” “When ni-cokiji (a kind of ram) starts.” Soon the sister comes back with a young boy and dashes him against the rock. Next the brother eagle comes carrying a good young girl and kills her also by dashing her against the rock. Then the parents come, etc. When he is about to get rid of the last of the young eagles, he says to it, “AH right, from this time on whenever a baby cries an owl will come after him. So you will be called owl from now on. Go over on the other side of that rock there and say tcu’ici-ni- (?).” Now he lets the young eagle go. It turns to an owl and flies over behind the rock. To this day owl still says this at night. Now the boy stamps on the rock and each time he stamps on it, it goes down. But when he stamps on it the fifth time it won’t go down any more, and he is stranded. Then Bat Woman comes and gets him down. They have a fall, but when the bat medicine is boiled and the old woman eats it she gets well right away. After the boy gets home from this adventure, he goes after canes for his arrows. He cannot get to them. Gopher cuts them for him so that they fall over the rocks and he can get them, etc.). Then there was only one thing that he still needed, and that was hardwood foreshafts for his arrow tips. So he set off for the mountains to get these. When he got there he found where the wood was growing and started to break some off. Just then a woman came to where he was. This was djuc’isdza-hn (Vulva Woman) and between her legs she had teeth. If she lay with any man, she would bite off his penis this way. When she came to him her vulva was making a gritting noise, like ka’ ka’ ka’, and before he could get away she caught hold of him. He tried to get away from her, but he could not because she kept hold of him. “Go ahead and do something with me,” she kept on saying. But he could not even get near her because of the teeth between her legs. So he told Vulva Woman to wait a little while, that he would be back. Then he went off. First he got a piece of k’I-ntc’I’ (a bush with very hard wood); then he got a piece of tc’idnk’u-je (a species of sumac); then a piece of k’j- (a bush with very hard wood), a big piece; last of all he got a piece of k’isnda-zi (mountain mahogany), also a big one. Then with these four kinds of wood he came back to the woman. “All right, let’s start!” he said to her. He held the four sticks in his hand so that the woman did not see them. Then the woman lay down, all the time holding on to him, and got ready. “Go ahead!” she said and so he took the piece ofk’i-ntc’i’ and stuck it into her. “yaz, yaz, yaz,” her vulva said, and it chewed the stick all up. Next he stuck the stick of k’isnda-zi in and again came the sound, “yaz, yaz, yaz,” and the stick was chewed up. After that he put in the stick oftc’idnk’u-je and still it sounded “yaz, yaz, yaz,” and the stick was chewed up, but this time only half of the stick was eaten and he could feel her vulva grating on it as if it could no longer chew it and had almost quit. Then last of all he put in the stick of k’i- and now the stick was not chewed at all. When he saw this he picked up a rock and with it he broke off all the teeth that were between that woman’s legs, just leaving one there that is called biyo’its’o-se (her tooth narrow). This is why women are the way they are made today. Before this time Vulva Woman had been going around and finding men and asking them to lie with her. This way she had been killing them. After this he went home and took all the foreshafts that he needed for his arrows. Then he had all the things that he wanted and so he went ahead and made his arrows: When he had made them he put some poison on their points.
At this time Big Owl was going around on the earth killing people. Big Owl was really a son of Sun also, but he was doing bad things. On account of this he (na-ye’nezyane) went to see his father, the Sun. When he got to Sun’s house, he asked that he might kill Big Owl because Big Owl was destroying the people on the earth. But Sun said no, that he could not do this, so he came back on the earth once more.
Then tse’da’tc’e'ilta-ln (rock over (down) he kicks) was killing people also, by kicking them off the edge of a cliff as they went by. This creature was the same as dibe-tco (mountain sheep). Then he (na-ye’nezyane) was coming along with his dog, gray fox. Inside his shirt he had yellow snake (a rattler). Pretty soon he came to where tse’datc’e'ilta-ln was. A trail went by here. When he got close, tse’da’tc’e'ilta-ln told him to pass by, that he would not do anything to him. But when he got close the monster drew back his leg as if to kick, and so he (na-ye’nezyane) stepped back. Each time that he went close to him he did this way. Then he told his dog, gray fox, to go by him. When gray fox did this tse’da’tc’e'ilta-ln kicked at him but he jumped over him and was not hurt. Then he (na-ye’nezyane) took yellow snake out of his shirt and threw it at tse’da’tc’e'ilta-ln. When the snake came by him the two wrestled together and while this was going on he (na-ye’nezyane) took his turquoise xal and with it cut the monster’s head away from the rock it was fastened to, and threw the monster down the cliff where it had killed so many people by kicking them off. Then he (na-ye’nezyane) went home.
He (na-ye’nezyane) was going about on the earth then. He still hated Big Owl. On account of this he went to see Sun once more At that time he had a kind of little fly that went along with him and told him what to do. This kind of fly has fur on it. It does not live here any more. It lives way up on top of the mountains When he got to Sun’s home, he said to his father, “Big Owl is making lots of trouble on earth and I want to kill him. I want you to let me kill him. “No,” Sun said, “he is your brother and you cannot kill him. I treat you just the same way that I treat him.” “Then did you tell him to go around killing people on the earth and to eat them up ? He has eaten my friend and killed him.” When Sun heard this he was mad and so he sat down and thought about it. At last he said. “It’s all right to kill Big Owl, but I don’t think that you can do it.
After he had the right to km Big Owl, he started back to the earth. When he got there he made things ready to go after Big Owl. First he dressed himself. Then around his feet he made big hail running wherever he stepped. Then black lightning, lightning going together helping each other, with it he tied his buckskin leggings (like the Navajos use). He had black metal shield, and he held it on his arm. Then black ice, four (ply), his body over it, his shirt he put on. He put it on so that he could go after Big Owl He also had turquoise xaL He took this with him. He knew where Big Owl lived, so he went there. Big Owl lived close to where there was water. He knew where Big Owl came to drink. He went to that place and waited for him. Soon after he got there Big Owl came When he got to the edge of the water. Sun shone red on the water and Big Owl saw it. “hehe-,” he said, “I never saw Sun that way before. Right there he (na-ye’nezyane) was going to cut off Big Owl’s head, but now Big Owl walked away and he just stood there. Big Owl went into his house. When he got inside his wickiup he dressed himself in a set of clothes like those of na-ye’nezyane. He hadaxalalso. He had all these things, because he was also a son of Sun and a brother of na-ye’nezyane. When he had gone to see Sun about killing Big Owl, Sun had said to him that if he should kill Big Owl, he wanted him to give him his hat. That was the only thing that he wanted. Then Big Owl came out after he had put on the clothes, and he (na-ye’nezyane) could see that he had on the same kind of clothes as himself. When he saw this he stopped right there and watched him. He became a little frightened For this reason he went off home.
He kept on thinking about how he could kill Big Owl. After he had thought it over a while he decided to go to Black Thunder for help. So he went to Black Thunder and asked him to help him kill Big Owl. “All right,” Black Thunder said, “I will help you.” There were four Thunder People. Then the blue one, the yellow one, and the white one came down like sunbeams to the top of Big Owl’s wickiup and stuck on it. When this happened Big Owl’s wickiup was made to rise up with him. They did this all night and all the next morning. Big Owl did not know what was happening to his house and so he came out by himself. When he came out na-ye’nez- yane started to fight with him. He took his turquoise xal and stuck it into Big Owl’s breast, but Big Owl did not fall down at all. Big Owl had strong medicine. When na-ye’nezyane fell down Big Owl took this medicine and blew it on him and he would get up right away. na-ye’nezyane had this medicine also and when Big Owl fell down as if dead, he took out the medicine and blew it on him. Then he would get up right away. While they were fighting this way, right there he killed Big Owl. When Big Owl fell dead his feathers blew out and scattered all over the earth. These feathers became owls and that is why there are owls all over the earth. Then he (na-ye*- nezyane) took Big Owl’s cap to his father as he had promised to do. (Now comes the story of the fight and doings with Metal Old Man, just as in the creation myth told by Palmer Valor.)
Then he (na-ye’nezyane) was traveling around on the earth. There was one man who was going around killing people. This was one who was called tsi-’its’inyeiya-ni (Head That Kills). He had an enormous head. There was another one. He was killing lots of people also. He was called binda-yeiya-ni (Eye That Kills). He had one great eye like a moon, and it was with this eye that he was killing the people. The first one, tsi-’its’inyeiya-ni was going around at night and butting his great head against the people’s wickiups and knocking them over. binda-yeiya-ni went around at night also, killing the people with his eye by looking at them. Then he (na-ye’- nezyane) went to where all this trouble was happening. He still had the ‘itc’i', the liver and other parts and the guts that he had taken from Broad Horns when he had killed him. He had also ‘ici-diltc’il (salt that bursts out), a kind of salt. When he got to that place the people there told him how this one man was going around at night killing people with his head. When all the people went to sleep at night, tsi-’its’inyeiya-ni would come and with his head he would knock the wickiups over. He was still doing this when he (na-ye’nezyane) got to that place. That night, when he had gone to bed, but before he had gone to sleep, he heard one of the wickiups being knocked down. He always carried his turquoise xal with him and right then he heard one of the wickiups close by being knocked down. He saw tsi-’its’inyeiya-ni doing it, so he took his turquoise xal out when he saw the wickiup fall and got ready. Then tsi-’its’ inyeiya-ni came to the wickiup that he was in and tried to knock it over. Bight there he went to him and in front of the doorway he cut his head off. For the rest of that night all the people slept well.
The next day the people told him that binda-yeiya-ni would come there at night also. They all went to sleep. But he (na-ye’nezyane) got ready and built a fire in front of the wickiup, when he saw that one coming with his eye shining like a moon. Then binda-yeiya-ni had come close to where he was sitting by the fire. He looked at him from where he sat by the fire and said, “Why are you looking at me ?” But binda-yeiya-ni did not answer him and just stood there and looked at him. This was because whenever he looked at a person with his eye they would die right away. But now he was looking at him and he did not die. Pretty soon there came another one of these monsters, and after that lots of them came. It was this first binda-yeiya-ni who had summoned these others, because when he looked at na-ye’nezyane he did not die. Then all of them looked at him, but he did not die. He had with him the ‘itc’i’ of Broad Horns. He filled it with the salt. Then he said to the binda-yeiya-ni, “What are you looking at me for ? I am just going to roast ‘itc’i', that is why I have made a fire.” Then one of the binda-yeiya-ni stepped back a ways and said, “He is saying something that is wrong. That is why he is telling this to us.” Then he (na-ye’nezyane) put the ‘itc’F on the fire to roast. When he did this the salt inside the ‘itc’i’ got hot and all burst out. As soon as this happened tl»eyes of all the binda-yeiya-ni standing around there were burst. Then as they were stumbling around trying to fix their eyes, he took out his turquoise xal and cut all their heads off. Only the one who had stepped back from the fire first of all got away. So he followed him.
After binda-yeiya-ni had gone a way he stopped and built a fire and in it he put one tse’ni-zi-I (heated rock). From the fire he saw two men had gone on. Still he kept on following the binda-yeiya-ni. After a while he came to where the binda-yeiya-ni had stopped again and built a fire. Here they had put in the fire two heated rocks and from that place three binda-yeiya-ni had gone on. He knew this because he saw the tracks and found where they had built the fire. Still he kept on following them. Then in a while they built a fire again and this time they put in four heated rocks. From that place four binda-yeiya-ni had gone on. But he kept on following them from where he had seen the four tracks going from the last fire. They went on a way and then they stopped and built another fire and this time they put in a lot of the stones. Right at that last fire he caught up to them. From the fire lots of tracks went on; the tracks of men, women, boys, girls, and small children. All these tracks went on from that place to where nit’egotci (bare ground on edge of water) is.
He started back to the north where he had come from in chasing them.
When he got back he met Gila Monster and said to him, “Let’s go to nit’egotci There are lots of ‘inda (enemies) living there.” Gila Monster-was his cross-cousin, so when he answered him he said, “All right, my cross-cousin, let’s go there!” So they started off. There was a town at nit’egotci then. This side of it a little, they killed one ‘inda- woman. Then they took all her clothes off. Then Gila Monster said, “There is something that comes together between her legs.” Then he (na-ye’nezyane) said, “My cross-cousin, that thing that you have just said will be your name,” and from that time on Gila Monster was called le-nenlai (two coming together). Then they went back home where they had started from.
When they got back they met Turtle. They told Turtle, “There are lots of ‘inda living down by nit’egotci Let’s go there!” Turtle said all right and so they all started off for that place. On their way Turtle said to them, “When we get to this place if these ‘inda start to chase us, you two get inside my shell.” “All right, we will get inside your shell if any trouble comes,” they said. They kept, on till they got close to nit’egotci. There at that place lots of ‘inda came out and ran at them. This way the ‘inda chased them up the San Carlos River to where Bice is now, and on from that place toward bitc’iltl’ehe. All the ‘inda who were chasing them were shooting at them. Then na-ye’nezyane said that he was all in, so Turtle said to him, “Get under my shell.” na-ye’nezyane got under his shell, and Turtle went along with him this way. All those ‘inda kept on shooting at them, but the missiles just glanced off Turtle’s shell. Turtle was almost all in, but he got to bitc’iltl’ehe all the same. When they came to this place na-ye’nezyane got out from under the shell and said to Turtle, “You got to bitc’iltl’ehe all right and so from this time on this mountain will be called bitc’iltl’ehe (towards it he runs).” Then when they got to the top of this mountain the ‘inda got tired and went back home.
Later on na-ye’nezyane was staying with his grandmother. There were no people living in the region. So he started out to travel around in the mountains. One girl from some place knew that he was living on the earth. When he went off in the mountains this girl came to his home. Then she went away again. When he got back he saw her tracks and he saw the marks of the jingles on her dress. He asked his grandmother who had been there, but she answered him that no one had been there, no one at all. So he sat down and thought. The next morning he went out again in the mountains, and while he was away the same girl came once more to where he was living. There she was with his grandmother and talked with her. Just before he came back she left. When he got back he said, “Some one has been here again. I saw the tracks.” “No one has been here. There are no other people living here,” the grandmother said. “Well I saw the marks of the» jingles on her dress where she sat on the ground. You have nothing like that on your dress to make such a, mark,” he said to her. Now the old woman had sores on her back side. They made a sort of mark where she sat on the ground. So she told him that it was these that made the marks on the ground. These sores are called xuc. The next morning he went off in the mountains and the girl came again, and was with his grandmother the same as before. When he got back that evening he saw the same tracks and the marks of the jingles where this girl had sat on the ground. Then he said to his grandmother, “You have been lying to me before. Someone has been here and has sat on the ground. I can tell by the tracks.” But the old woman just said, “I have sat by myself here and when I moved the marks from my sores look like the marks of jingles.”
As he went off he was thinking about this, and wondered where these other people were living. Then he went toward where they were living. When he got close to their home he stopped and sat down. That girl knew in her mind just where he lived. That was why she used to go there to his home every time he was away. While he was sitting near the home of that girl, she came out for water, close to where he was by the spring. She brought a t’us and a cup dipper. When she got to the spring she set the t’us down by the water and was just about to dip some water up in the cup when he took out his flute and blew on it. When she heard it she stopped with the cup in her hand and she waved it back and forth gently. As she did this there were two butterflies flying about the cup as she swung it. She kept on moving the cup to make the butterflies go away. When they were gone she got ready to dip up the water again, and was just about to do it when he blew on his flute and right away the two butterflies came back and flew around the cup so she could not dip up the water. She had to move the cup around to chase them away. Finally they went off and she started to dip up the water once more. Again he blew on his flute and the two butterflies came back and flew around the cup. She moved the cup and the butterflies flew away. Then she started to dip up the water. He blew on his flute so the two butterflies came back and Hew about the cup just as before. All that she could do was to move the cup back and forth till the butterflies went away once more. Then the girl went ahead and dipped up the water and the butterflies did not bother her any more. She filled the t’us and went back to her home. When she got back the girl did not tell anyone about what had happened at the spring. She thought that the butterflies had just been flying about her cup for fun.
He went back home and stayed there all night. The next day he came to the same place and sat there. After a while the girl came to the spring to get water as before, with the t’us and the cup. When she was just about to dip up the water he blew four times on his flute. The two butterflies came there and flew about the cup. The girl moved the cup and in a little while they went away. Then she got ready to dip up the water once more. Again he blew on his flute and the butterflies came and flew about the cup. The girl moved the cup around. In a short while they went away and she started to dip up the water. Once more he blew on the flute and the butterflies came. Then the girl began to think there was something wrong, so she looked all around. Then she saw him sitting there a little way off. That is the way na-ye’nezyane made love in the begin- ning, and that was how he set the custom of doing this. That is why our people make love this way. When that girl saw him, she went to him. He spoke with her and told her that he wanted her to go home with him. “That’s why I have come here,” he said. Now he took the girl with him to his home. When the two got there, the old woman, his grandmother, called the girl, ca-’iye* (female relative- in-law other than sibling-in-law and married to a male relative), and now that girl lived with them.
Then t’uba’tc’istcine (born from water) was living far to the west. To the place he was living he had taken all of the good girls and women and there he was keeping them. That old woman (grand- mother of na-ye’nezyane) had a nice patch of corn and squash grow- ing by the edge of the water where they lived, na-ye’nezyane and the woman and the old woman lived there at their home together for quite a while. The woman was now her daughter-in-law. na-ye’nezyane had butterflies all around him, all over his legs, on his shirt, hat, and on his shoulders, t’ba’tc’istcine, living far to the west, was just the same way, with butterflies all over him. These two looked exactly like one another. Then one day the old woman said to her daughter-in-law, “Go and get some squash blossoms in the patch, and bring them here so that we can boil them.” So the woman went for the squash blossoms. While she was gone for them, gulil’isi (he walks on tiptoes) came to her.
It was just about sunrise when the woman had gone for the squash blossoms. Then it was afternoon and she had not come back yet. So the old woman set out to look for her, as she thought that something must be wrong. When she got to the patch she found the woman s tracks among the squash plants but she was not there and had gone off some where. They did not know where she had gone to When gulil’isi had come to her she thought that he was na-ye’nezyane because the two looked alike. She thought that this man was her husband. On account of this she had gone off with him Then someone went to her family to tell them about her and how she had disappeared. They said that she was not with them All the people knew that gulil’isi had been doing this way before taking girls away with him, so everyone said that it must be he who had done this. Then na-ye’nezyane made up his mind to follow and get his wife back. So he started off and went to where the woman had been taken from. From that place gulil’isi had gone off to the top of a mountain, and from there to a second mountain. From this second mountain he had gone to a third mountain, and then on to a fourth mountain. After he had gone from one mountain to another tour times he reached his home. His home was at yanadolko (foot of the sky) and there he lived in the middle of a great rock where there was no way to get in from either the top or the bottom, or any side. That is where he took that woman. When na-ye’nezyane came to the place where guHPisi had stood with her among the squash plants he stopped and blew on his flute. Immediately he went to the top of the first mountain. There on the top of this mountain he saw where the two had stood. Then he blew on his flute again and immediately he got to the second mountain, He saw their tracks just as before. There were lots of poppies growing here and he saw where the two had been picking these flowers and throwing them at each other in fun. Now he blew on his flute and immediately he got to the third mountain. At this place he saw their tracks together where they had walked among the flowers He could see the tracks very plainly. Then he blew on his flute and immediately he got to the fourth mountain. On this fourth mountain there were grasses and flowers all over and he could see the marks on the ground where the two had lain down together. From there the two had gone on to his (gulil’si) home. They got there just at sunset.
Then na-ye’nezyane had come close to where there was a spider’s hole, but he did not know that it was there. He stumbled on the spider s web and fell down. He did not know that there were any people around here, but pretty soon Old Woman Spider came to him When she got to him, she said, “citco- (maternal grandparent- grandchild term), you live far off. How did you get here ? You passed by here with your wife not so long ago. Why do you come back here ” “That was not I who passed by here, but I want to find that one who passed here,” na-ye’nezyane said. “citco-, you cannot go to gulil’isi. There is no way to get to where he lives. Come in my hole here!” Old Spider Woman said. Then he went in her hole. In there there were lots of her children. On his belt he was wearing something and now the old woman saw it. “citco-, give me what you have on your belt. All my children will freeze because I have nothing to clothe them with.” “This is small and it would not be enough for all your children,” he answered. Any- way, if you give me that cloth there will be lots,” she said. So he save it to her and she took it into another place and there she wove it into cloth and made it like calico. There was lots of cloth now, all kinds, even silk. AH the spider children were dressed in it. After this he talked with the old woman and told her how gulil’isi had gone off with his wife and that he wanted to get her back. You can- not get to where gulil’isi lives. But if you do go to him, get him to gamble with you at all the different kinds of games,” the old woman said to him. This way she helped him out and gave him luck to win the games. Then she said to him that there were some people living over in that direction; so he started off and came to the place where these people were living.
. When he got there he asked where the chief was living. There in that wickiup, below,” they said. Eagle was the chief, so he went to his camp and sat down there. Then the chief said to him, Where are you from, and why did you come here ?” Then he answered_ left gutalbako-wa’ (camps by dance ground) this morning, the chief said “We have been all over the earth, but there is no place like gutalbako-wa’ that you speak of.” But he said, “I was living there with my grandmother at gutalbakq-wa.” Then the chief sent for Red-tailed Hawk Old Man. He was very old and had traveled all over the earth. When he got there they said to him, This man says that he came from gutalbako-wa’.” Then the old man said I have been all over the earth, but there is no na-ye’nezyane. Alter that they sent for Goshawk Old Man. He had been all over the earth, so they thought that maybe he would know of this place. When he got to the chief’s place they said to him, “This man says that he came from gutalbakq-wa’.” Then the old man said, “I have been all over the earth but I have not heard of that place. Haven Old Man had been all over the earth and so they sent for him.
When he got to where the chief was, they said to him, This man says that he came from gutalbakq-wa’ today.” “he-! That gutalbakq-wa’, I know it. It is very far off. This man could not have come on foot. Long ago I left here and started for gutalbakq-wa’ and it was at sunset on the twelfth day that I got back here. That was when I was young and strong and even then I got tired and sweated a lot. This man must be brave and smart to come here from gutalbakq-wa’ , not traveling on foot,” the old man said. Then the people asked him to tell them why he had come there. So he told them that gulil’isi had run away with his wife and he had come after her. “gulil’isi is a bad man. He has taken lots of girls away. There are not many left now,” he said. Then those people told him that gulil’isi liked to gamble a lot and that he had gambled with them for girls many times. He had won lots of girls from them. “There are not enough people here any more on account of this,” they said. Then they told him how gulil’isi always came out from his home about mid-morning and played at all kinds of games. “He plays hoop and poles and whenever he plays this game he always starts first. His poles are made of cane and the hoop that he plays with is bull snake. It is not good that way. It is bad,” the people told him.
Then he started to think over all he had been told. He was thinking about making a set of hoop and poles that night; so he went to the east and there he cut a pole. Then he went to the west and cut a pole from a tree. This was female wood. Now all the people came together and worked on the poles. (Here there is a song that they sing when they are making hoop and poles.) They made the poles well and finished them. Then they made the hoop, turquoise hoop. The beads on the hoop they made of the windpipe of dibe-ndi-ye (a bird, one of the flycatchers). In the middle of the hoop they made the yo-tco’ (big bead) of turquoise. Now they counted the beads both ways. On the edge of the hoop they cut eleven notches. Then they tied the three parts of the poles together. The first part was called nigustsan nayidilgohn(?), the middle part was called ‘iitc’q’ nli-hn (it goes both ways from), and the end part was called yut’anadiguce (?). Now all was finished and the men said, “Let’s go to sleep,” so they all went to sleep. Early in the morning they said, “Let’s eat,” and they ate. Pretty soon gulil’isi would be coming. When they finished eating it was sunrise.
Old Spider Woman had told him (na-ye’nezyane) that if he should see the end part of a pole (for this game) sticking out, he should blow on his flute. If it happened this way where he was staying he was to do this. So when the end section of the pole came out and he saw it, he blew on his flute. This way guHPisi came out. There were lots of girls and women following him. That man’s (na-ye’nezyane) wife was coming right behind gulil’isi. Then they all went to the hoop and poles course. When they got there, gulil’isi said, “Let’s play hoop and poles,” and he went on the course and started to play by himself, na-ye’nezyane was standing behind him, so he did not see him. This way he stood for a long time and watched him playing by himself. The people there had told him that if he should play, he was to bet twelve girls. That was all the girls left among these people. He remembered this and now he got ready to play. Then he said to gulil’isi, “ce”ile- (my gaming opponent), let’s play together!” He had hidden his set of hoop and poles in the grass near by; so gulil’isi did not know that he had any. “All right, ce”ile-, let’s hurry up and play right away!” gulil’isi said. He had his own set of hoop and poles in his hand. “All right, hurry up, let’s play! There are only twelve girls left here and I will bet them all,” he said. Then the two stood together and took up the poles. The poles were red racer snake and the hoop was bull snake. The red racer pole had its tongue darting in and out on the end, and both it and the hoop had eyes. Then gulil’isi said, “I am going to do the counting.” But na-ye’nezyane said, “No, I am going to do the counting.”
“No, I will keep count and score,” gulil’isi said. “No, if you don’t give me the hoop first, I will not play,” na-ye’nezyane said. So then gulil’isi gave him the hoop. He held it in his hands and when he felt the eye of the hoop, he flicked it out with his finger. Right away the hoop turned into bull snake and ran off to a tree. It had felt smooth (like a snake) in his hand. Then he took the pole and he flicked out the eye with his finger, and right away the pole turned to red racer and ran off. “he-! What did you do with my hoop and poles ?” gulil’isi asked. “That kind of hoop and poles you had here, are not to play hoop and poles with,” na-ye’nezyane said. Then he went and got his own set. He gave one of the poles to gulil’isi, saying, “This is the right kind of pole, the real one, not like the one that you had.” Then he had turquoise hoop inside his shirt. He took it out and gave it to gulil’isi . “This is the real kind of hoop, but the one that you had was not,” he said. After that gulil’isi did as he said, and they started to play. First they played to the east. na-ye’nezyane rolled the hoop and they both threw their poles. gulil’isi said that the hoop fell on his pole, but it really fell on the pole of na-ye’nezyane. He won all the beads on the hoop. This way gulil’isi lost twelve girls to him. Then he said to na-ye’nezyane, “I will bet you for those twelve girls that you have now.” This time they played to the west. Again gulil’isi said that the hoop fell on his pole, but it fell on the pole of na-ye’nezyane. He won again by making all the beads fall over his pole. Then gulil’isi said that he would bet him for all that he had won. They played again, this time to the east. It was the same way. All the beads on the hoop fell over the pole of na-ye’nezyane, and he won. Once more gulil’isi said that he would play him for all that he had. They got ready and played to the west. When the hoop fell, gulil’isi said that it fell on his pole, but it did not. It fell on the pole of na-ye’nezyane, with all the beads over the wood, and he won. Then na-ye’nezyane had won lots of the girls, but still gulil’isi had many left.
They stopped playing hoop and poles. Then gulil’isi said, “Let’s play some other game! ce”ile-, let’s play tsiyogo-hi (wood against)! Come on, I will play you for all that you have.” So they bet all the girls that he had won, and got ready to play. There was a big post in the ground. They were to run against this and knock it down with the shoulder. Old Spider Woman had told him that she would help him in this game. She helped him by cutting away the roots at the bottom of the post and putting in their place black metal for roots. This was for gulil’isi to try to knock over. When all was ready gulil’isi said that he would be the first to run at the pole, but na-ye’nezyane said no. “All right, you be the first to run at it,” he said, but again na-ye’nezyane said, “No, you go first !” gulil’isi had played this game before and whenever he struck the pole it always fell down. He never had any trouble in knocking the pole down. For this reason he was sure that he could knock the pole over, so he did not mind running at it first. Then he ran at it and struck the pole with his shoulder, but he did not knock it over. When this happened he felt badly, because he had always knocked the pole over before. When gulil’isi ran at the pole, the roots all turned to black metal. This was why he could not push it over. It was Old Spider Woman who had done this. Then na-ye’nezyane ran at the pole. When he hit with his shoulder he knocked it down easily. This was because Old Spider Woman had cut all the roots for him.
“Well, I cannot help it, you have won, ce”ile-. Now let’s play tsiyanano-lye-de (hair it goes across)!” said gulil’isi. So na-ye’nezyane said all right, and they got ready to play. This time guHPisi bet the wife of na-ye’nezyane. Both of them had the same kind of hair, and it was good and long. Both had the same kind of clothes, too, and both carried turquoise xal. Then they ran to the bank of the river and stopped there. The game was to let their hair down, and let it trail out over the surface of the water. The one whose hair reached out the farthest was the winner. When they got to the river, guHPisi said, “You go first, ce”ile-!” But na-ye’nezyane said, “No, you go first, ce»ile-!” “All right, I will go first,” said guHPisi. He went to the edge of the water and let his hair down so that it floated out over the top of the water, but it only floated out as far as the middle. It caught in some cockle burrs and stuck there. Then he walked aside, and said, “Now you try, ce”ile.!” So na-ye’nezyane ran to the edge of the water. His hair fell down and spread out across the top of the water, all the way over. This is how he won.
gulil’isi was he who had been born first, and he had always had good luck wherever he had gone. He had gone far off to the west, to earth’s edge, and there he stayed at the camp of t’ohasti-hn (Water Old Man) who was his father. From his father he got his luck (power). The other one, na-ye’nezyane, got his help (power) from his father, Sun, so he had lots of luck also. That was how he was able to come to earth’s edge. It was how he had come to this place and had shown t’uba’tc’istcine up as nothing. After this last game they had another contest, and now it was to be for their lives. It was to be a race and the one who won was to kill the other. guHPisi had a dog and this was jack rabbit. The dog of na-ye’nezyane was gray fox. guHPisi in his travels had married Big Owl’s daughter. He had been doing bad things and stealing girls and women. This was the reason that the people called him by that name, gulil’isi. Everyone called him by this name now. Then they got ready for the race. na-ye’nezyane had killed Broad Horns some time ago and he had kept the kidneys, stomach, da’gultci-’e’ (part of the stomach), liver, and the heart. He had these things with him there. In case he got in trouble, he could use these to help out. Way off on a ridge, there was a small jumper tree. They set the race for around this tree and back again. “You start first, ahead of me. Hurry up!” na-ye’nezyane said. He said this because he thought that he was going to win the race. So gulil’isi started to run for the juniper tree, and the other waited behind. They had told the people that guHPisi was to come out on one side of the tree and that na-ye’nezyane would come out on the other side. The race was to be in a great circle. After gulil’isi had been gone for quite a time, the other started, na-ye’nezyane thought surely that he was going to beat, so he did not mind starting behind. As he ran along he could see the tracks of the one ahead and on them it was raining a little. Then both of them had made the turn about the tree and were on their way in. They were running where it had rained and guHPisi was only a little way ahead. Pretty soon they were running almost together. Then na-ye’nezyane said, “I have not started to run yet ce”ile-, so you better run.” But gulil’isi answered, “I have not started to run yet either, so you better start to run, ce”ile.” Then na-ye’nezyane thought that the other was going to win, so he took out the heart of Broad Horns and threw it down in front of gulil’isi . Immediately there were a lot of ridges in front, where there had been none before. gulil’isi had to run over these, but na-ye’nezyane ran on level ground. Even with this handicap he caught up to him again, so na-ye’nezyane took out the liver and threw it down in front of guHl’isi. Immediately there were lots of rocks in front of him over which he had to run, but na-ye’nezyane ran on level ground. Even that way guHl’isi caught up to him in a little while and they were running together again. Then na-ye’nezyane took the stomach and threw it down in front of gulil’isi. Right away there were lots of ridges running ahead in different directions. guHl’isi had to run around these, but na-ye’nezyane just ran straight ahead. After a while gulil’isi had caught up to him again, and so he took the kidneys and threw them down in front of him. Right away there was a big rock that gulil’isi had to run around, but na-ye’nezyane ran straight ahead. In spite of this he caught up to him in a little while. Then it was only a short way to the finish, na-ye’nezyane took out the da’gultci-’e’ and threw it down in front of gulil’isi.
Right away gulil’isi was running in small mountains but na-ye’nezyane was running on level ground. He was way ahead now, but he came out in the wrong place, below where he was supposed to, because he had made a mistake. There were lots of people waiting for the runners to come in. When they saw na-ye’nezyane coming in on the wrong side they thought that it was gulil’isi, so lots of them were cheering for guHPisi. Big Owl, the father-in-law of gulil’isi, was there. He said, “I know that my son-in-law will win. His brother could never beat him.” Big Owl was dancing around and hollering because he felt good. But the people who were for na-ye’nezyane all felt badly because they thought he was behind. When they saw that it was really na-ye’nezyane who was coming in they started to holler for him. This was how he came in first and gulil’isi was way behind, coming in now. Then gulil’isi got in and he said to the other, “Kill me right away while I am still hot, ce”ile.” Then na-ye’nezyane made a mistake and grabbed the turquoise xal that belonged to guHl’isi. He stuck it into the side of guHl’isi, and because of this guHl’isi did not die. na-ye’nezyane cut him into little pieces, but even after this he came alive again. Then na-ye’nezyane cut his head off, but it came right back and joined on to the body again, even though he had thrown it away. It was because na-ye’nezyane had the wrong turquoise xal that he could not kill him. “If he does not die there will be trouble,” na-ye’nezyane said. Then he cut off his right arm and then his left leg, both completely off. Still the man lay there alive.
Then na-ye’nezyane got his wife and said to her, “Let’s go home!” Then he blew on his flute, and right away they were on the first mountain. He blew on his flute and then they were on the second mountain. Then he blew his flute once more and immediately they were on top of the third mountain. There was only one mountain left. He blew on his flute, but nothing happened because his wife was pregnant and was too heavy with child. They spent the afternoon there.
Back where they had left him, guHPisi had one arm and one leg cut off, but he was still alive. Because of this he used one arm and made a fire with a fire drill by using it against his cheek bone. When he had the. fire going he started to burn up the whole earth. There was lots of smoke. It came out of the earth in great clouds. Then guHPisi got on one of the great smoke clouds and went up into the sky. Where na-ye’nezyane was staying with his wife it became a little dark. There was a big rock there, and tsido-’lye-si- (he rolls a stone; one of the wrens) who had his home under this rock, came out from under it and talked to na-ye’nezyane. “It is dangerous now, so I want you to come in my house with me, and stay there all night,” he said. Then above where they were there came a great black cloud and guHPisi was on this cloud. Then guHPisi said to na-ye’nezyane, “You must. go to your home right away. Do not try to spend a night on the way. Do not stay out tonight.” He had told him this also before he had been killed by him. tsido-lye-si- knew what was going to happen. That was why he had got na-ye’nezyane to go under the rock with him. Just about dark guHPisi talked to na-ye’nezyane and said to him, “You must not stay here tonight. You did not use your turquoise xal to kill me, but instead you used mine, my brother, and tried to kill me with it. If you stay here tonight there win be all kinds of lightning that will strike this rock.” But all the same na-ye’nezyane stayed there all night.
The lightning struck all about the rock and broke off pieces That wren had a t’ul. Every time that the lightning struck the rock and knocked great pieces off it, he took the t’ul and marked with it on the rock. Immediately the rock would become whole again. This kept up all night and the rock became small from having pieces knocked off. But when this happened Wren marked with the t’ul on the rock and it got big again. When it was about daylight guHPisi said to na-ye’nezyane, “My brother, you did not kill me. I am the one who made all this happen here on the earth. Now keep on going to your home.” And so na-ye’nezyane went on home. If he had used his own turquoise xal he would have killed gulil’isi forever. But because he did not use his own, gulil’isi is still alive. This one had done wrong on the earth, so now he went up in the sky and kept on doing wrong. He does so to this day. That is why lightning still strikes men and their homes, and all that lives on this earth.
In a variant from Drake, not included here, the order of events slightly differs. On the return of na-ye’nezyane and t’uba’tc’istcine from their first visit to the Sun, Metal Old Man is slain, following which the two brothers again visit the Sun to obtain horses. After being offered two unsatisfactory horses the Sun brought in a very slow horse, but at the last minute, “Wait, my son. Don’t take the horse. Take this instead,” and he handed him a large book with lots of writing and pictures in it. na-ye’nezyane took the book and the brothers started home. When they had gone a way, na-ye’nezyane said, “What is this book anyway ? It’s too heavy. I don’t want it,” and he dropped it. t’uba’tc’istcine, coming behind, picked it up. When they stopped to camp na-ye’nezyane saw him with the book. “I threw that thing away. What are you doing with it ? It is no good,” he said. t’uba’tc’istcine was looking at it. “Come on, lets eat,” his brother said. But he said “Wait,” and looked at the book some more. He did this every time they stopped on their way.” The tale goes on about the choice between the two mountains, after which the narrator remarks, “This way na-ye’nezyane missed his chance to get the best things for our people three times. The first was when he failed to choose the clothing with the rifle in the Sun’s house, the second when he threw the book away, and the third when he chose the wrong moun- tain. Then t’uba’tc’istcine set fire to a patch of cane. From the burnt patch came up many people and t’uba’tc’istcine went off with them (origin of Whites).”
Taken from Myths and Tales of the White Mountain Apache by Grenville Goodwin 1994