TURTLE ISLAND CONFEDERACY UPDATES!
TICON03: SKY WOMAN STORIES

Kevin and The Group:  An aspect of being involved in this spiritual endeavor includes suspending some things that were taught me such as silence (listening) and humility in order to get across to others an understanding of what this is about because these others desire to know and must be told.  So i trust that the Creator forgives these trangressions and i ask that you also forgive me.  Kevin is a Mi'kmaq from Mi'kmaqik in Nova Scotia.  Kevin has lived with, under and among a group of Elders entrusted with a sacred duty, as i am sure many of you have as well.  He and his Elders have my greatest respect.  Please feel free to communicate with Kevin directly.  Anyway, the e-mail to which Kevin's responded promised a version of the Haudenausaunee Creation story.  I have been forwarded 2, which i have copied below.  It varies subtly from the one i was taught (which has the evil twin born out of his Mother's left arm pit, killing her instantly, then the evil twin tricking his Grandmother into believing that the good twin did it - a familiar theme of lies, deception, illusion and isolation as the ultimate evil in this world - but the Grandmother, watching her Grandsons' works, sees that the evil Grandson had deceived her - Truth wins!).  Antway, here are the 2 versions forwarded by Carhoota (Seneca)(redmanwalks@aol.com):
 
There are many versions of the Sky Woman story. The version below comes from Iroquois writer and recording artist Joanne Shenandoah and author Douglas M. George in their book Sky Woman.
Skywoman came from Skyworld, where there were humanlike beings who never felt pain or death. They shared many traits with humans, however, most particularly the ability to love.
Skywoman’s real name was Iotsitsisen, which means “Mature Flower.” She grew ill one day and her parents took her to Taronhiawakon, “The Holder of Heavens,” who it was said could heal her. He fell in love with her, healed her, and married her. Soon after, she became pregnant.
Taronhiawakon had a dream one night that said his wife had to leave their home. She would enter a new world through the roots of the Great Tree of Light which grew through Skyworld. Taronhiawakon went to the Great Tree and uprooted it. He discovered a hole beneath and knew that the dream had to come true.
He took Iotsitsisen to the Tree and promised that he would protect and watch over her from Skyworld with a beam of light. Iotsitsisen fell from Skyworld to the world beneath which was filled with water.
There was already life in the new world. When they saw the light coming down with Iotsitsisen, they decided to help her fall. The geese flew up to slow her fall. The Turtle agreed to place mud on his back from under the sea to create land for her. Beaver, Otter, and Muskrat gave their lives to bring the mud up for Turtle’s back.
The geese brought Iotsitsisen to the Turtle’s back. She sang and the mud spread all around her. She named her new world Turtle Island. Soon, she gave birth to her daughter Tekawerahkwa.
Tekawerahkwa grew up alone and spent her days exploring Turtle Island. The West Wind saw her one day and fell in love. One night he placed two arrows upon her stomach, one made of flint and one of maple. Tekawerahkwa became pregnant with twins.
While the twins were in their mother, they often argued. Tawiskaron, “Ice Skin,” was impatient and decided to force his way from his mother’s belly. Okwiraseh, “New Tree,” who was much more patient urged him not to, but Tawiskaron did anyway. He cut his way through his mother’s armpit and killed her.
Skywoman demanded to know who had killed her daughter, and Tawiskaron blamed Okwiraseh. Skywoman flung Okwiraseh away, but he was taken in by his grandfather, Taronhiawakon. From Tekawerahkwa’s body grew vegetables to feed the people.
Okwiraseh was taught many lessons by his grandfather. He was told to create new life, most importantly human beings. He made all sorts of beautiful things for the new world and his brother Tawiskaron grew jealous. He countered all of Okwiraseh’s creations with evil creations of his own like storms and poisonous berries.
They fought and in the end, Okwiraseh was victorious. Tawiskaron was banished to caves beneath the earth.
The Captivation of Eunice Williams juxtaposes portions of the Sky Woman story against the Christian story of creation as a way of theatricalizing the different worlds pulling at Eunice. 

SKYWOMAN: The Creation Story (The beginning)
It is said that in the regions above the world where we live, there were beings who did not know what it was to cry, feel pain, or die. They lived in lodges with their families, in a clearing in the forest.
There was one house where a man and woman being lived: the man was called tehnino:taton, meaning he had special powers, and had to be protected from others while he was growing up.
All the lodges were placed so that one door faced the rising sun in the east; the other facing the setting sun in the west. The women lived in the south side, while the men lived in the north.
The man being became sick although no one in the Sky World knew what it was to be sick. As time passed he became more weak and soon died. He was placed in a burial case and placed near the ceiling of his house.
Soon the woman being appeared to be pregnant. The people of the village repeatedly asked her who the father of the baby was, but she did not answer. One day she gave birth to a female being named Aientsik which means Fertile Earth.
The child-being was healthy and grew very fast. One day though, she began to cry. Nothing the people of the village did would make her stop. The mother placed her in front of the burial case, and she stopped crying. After a long time she felt better, and came back to the rest of the village.
This happened many times. The people of the village could sometimes hear her talking, but they did not know who she was talking to. One day she came back from visiting her father, and told her mother that she was to be married.
Her mother made bread of corn softened by boiling, and mixed berries in with it. When she was finished, she put it into a basket for Aientsik.
The next day the young woman set out for the village of Tharonhiawakon, or He Who Holds Up the Sky. This is the place where her father told her to go. Everything on the way was just as her father had told her.
The young woman offered this man the corn and berry bread, and he accepted. She stayed there for three nights. During this time the man began to feel sick. He had a dream that made him feel uncomfortable. He gathered the people of his village to find the meaning of the dream.
The next day the man brought Aientsik to the Tree of the Standing Light. He asked her to uproot the tree, saying that he would feel better once the tree was lifted. She did as he asked.
He then told her to look into the hole. As she leaned forward to see what was below that tree, the man pushed her into the hole. Surprised, she grabbed for help and took the roots of the strawberry, corn and tobacco with her as she fell.
She fell in darkness for some time, but soon she could see water below her with animals in it. The Loon looked up to see this woman falling, and asked the Turtle if she could land on his back. Turtle agreed. The geese and ducks flew up to meet her and carry her safely on their backs to meet the others. It is because the animals first saw her when she was falling from the sky, that she is often referred to as Skywoman.
Three animals tried to bring up dirt from the bottom of the great waters. The first two failed. The muskrat took a deep breath and was gone for a long time, but he came up with dirt clenched in his tiny paws. He placed the mud on the back of the Turtle.
Every day Aientsik walked around the edge of the Turtle, noticing that every time she completed walking in a circle, the dirt had grown and the land was becoming larger. Soon plants were beginning to grow from the roots she had grabbed when she had fallen into this world. Every day when she returned to her resting place there was a fire and corn or beans and squash for her to eat. Corn, beans and squash have been known ever since as the three sisters, providers for the Kanienkeha (Mohawk) people."
 
 

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