New Larousse Encyclopedia of Mythology Introduction Phần 10 potx

of the water, to the great joy of Gucumatz who congratulated Hurakan. (Here we note the superiority of the latter over Gucumatz.) The earth was covered with vegetation, and the creators peopled it with animals with the command to do them homage. But as the animals could not speak, they roared, howled or whistled, but could not make themselves understood. To punish them the gods decided they should be killed and eaten. 'They then made clay men who were unable to move their heads or speak or understand. They decided to make wooden men, but they lacked intelligence and feelings, and had no knowledge of their creators. The gods destroyed them. But some survived, and made little wooden monkeys. 'After consulting together Hurakan and Gucumatz decided to make four men of yellow and white maize. But as they were too perfect, the gods shortened their sight. During their sleep they created four women. And these were the ancestors of the Quiche tribe. However, they complained that they could not see clearly, for the sun had not yet appeared, so they went off to Tullan where they learned about their gods. It was very cold there, and they received fire from Tohil (Hurakan). But the sun did not appear, and the earth remained damp and cold. Speech was divided, and the ancestors no longer understood each other. They then left Tullan guided by Tohil and came to the Quiche country. There at last the sun appeared, followed by the moon and the stars. In their delight animals and men sang a hymn, and offered the gods blood from their ears and shoulders. Later they thought it better to shed the blood of victims.' Honduras. In Honduras, where sun and moon also were worshipped, there is a rather strange legend of the 'White Woman': 'A white woman of matchless beauty came down from heaven to the town of Cealcoquin. There she built a palace ornamented with strange figures of men and animals, and placed a stone in the chief temple with mysterious figures on three of its sides. It was a talisman which she used to conquer all her enemies. 'Although she remained a virgin, she gave birth to three sons; and when she grew old she divided her kingdom with them. Then she had her bed carried to the highest part of the palace, and disappeared into the sky in the form of a beautiful bird " This legend has a great resemblance to a myth of the moon, whose three sons might well be the three visible phases of the moon. Moreover, in Honduras we find myths which are very similar to those of Mexico. Nicaragua. The inhabitants of Nicaragua all had the same religion. The gods of the Niquirans (one of the tribes in Nicaragua) lived in heaven and were immortal. The two chief deities were Tamagostad and the goddess Zipaltonal, creators of the earth and everything in it. They lived in the east. With them were Ecalchot, the wind god; the little Ciaga, a water god, who shared in the creation; Quiateot, the rain god; Misca, god of traders; Chiquinau, god of the air and the nine winds; and Vizetot, god of famine. After death, souls departed according to their deserts either to heaven with Tamagostad and Zipaltonal, or under the ground with Mictanteot (the MictlantecuhtU of Mexico). Among the underground gods is Masaya, the goddess of volcanoes, to whom sacrifices were made after earthquakes by throwing human victims into a crater. She is represented as a termagant with a black skin, thin hair and sagging breasts but she was consulted for her oracles which were highly esteemed. There is every reason to think that Mexican influences were important in developing the early religious customs of this country. Haiti. Totemism seems not to have existed among the Tainos of Haiti. All we find are some Zemis or idols, which are representations of individual protecting spirits, similar to the Mexican nahuals. These idols, considered as gods, were invoked for the conquest of enemies or the ripening of the harvest. These supernatural beings revealed themselves to the Indian after a fast of six or seven days. The Tainos had a god in heaven named Joca-huva, son of the goddess Atabei (these deities were not represented in images), and then Guabancex, the goddess of storms, winds and water, whose idol was made of stone; by her side was her messenger Guantauva, and Coatrischie, a deity who collects water among the mountains and lets it rush down on the lowlands to damage them. Beside these gods the people of Haiti thought the world was peopled with souls of the dead or opita, who were gathered together in an island named Coaibai and went out only at night. Anyone who met an opita and tried to fight it was bound to die. The myths of the Tainos of Haiti relate the creation of the world and the origin of the female sex, after a flood in which all the women were drowned and all the men changed into trees. SOUTH AMERICA THE CHIBCHAS OF CUNDINAMARCA. The inhabitants of central Colombia worshipped especially a great solar god, Bochica, creator of civilisation and all the arts. In a myth he is described as fighting with a demon named Chibchacum who after being defeated was forced as a punishment to support the earth on his shoulder. When Chibchacum changes his burden to the other shoulder there are earthquakes. The myth of Bochica contains the story of a great flood: 'Long ago the people of the Cundinamarca plateau at Bogota lived as pure savages, without laws, agriculture or religion. One day there appeared an old man with a long thick beard, by name Bochica who belonged to a race different from that of the Chibchas. He taught the savages how to build huts and how to live together in society. 'His wife who was very beautiful and named Chia appeared after him, but she was wicked and enjoyed thwarting her husband's efforts at civilising. As she could not overcome Bochica's power she managed by her magical means that the river Funzha should rise, overflow and cover the whole plain. Many of the Indians died, and only a few managed to escape to the summits of the neighboring mountains. Bochica was very angry, and exiled Chia from earth to the sky, where she became the moon given the task of lighting the nights. He then cleft the mountains which closed the valleys of the Magdalena from Cauca to Tequendama, so that the water might flow out. The Indians who had escaped the flood then returned to the Bogota Valley, where they built towns. Lake Guatavita still remains to prove this local deluge. 'Bochica gave them laws, taught them to cultivate the land, instituted the worship of the sun with periodical festivals, sacrifices, and pilgrimages. He then divided the power among two chiefs, and retired to heaven after passing two thousand years on earth as an ascetic. 'Everything we know about the mythology of the Chibchas is to be found in the basic theme of the civilising hero Bochica. In this mythology there is also mention of Nencatacoa, the god of weavers; of Chaquen, the guardian god of boundaries; of Bachue, goddess of water, protectress of vegetation and harvest; of Cuchavira, master of the air and the rainbow who healed the sick and protected women in childbirth; of a god of drunkenness who was not greatly venerated; and of Fomagata or Thomagata, a deity of terrifying appearance, the storm god, represented by his worshippers under the form of a fire spirit passing through the air and tyrannising over men, whom he sometimes liked to change into animals. Bochica had to make use of all his power to rid the land of this evil being. Thereafter Fomagata was reduced to impotence, but retained his right to appear in the Guesa procession, in the ritual dances, and in the assembly of the gods. 'He is represented with one eye, four ears, and a long tail. The Guesa (wanderer or vagabond) was a boy dedicated to sacrifice in honour of Bochica. He had to be taken from a village now called San Juan de los Llanos. It is from there, so they say, that Bochica first came. 'Up till the age of ten then, Guesa was brought up in the temple of the Sun at Sagamozo, never going out except to walk in the paths Bochica had used. During all his walks the Guesa received the highest honours and the most attentive care. At the age of fifteen he was taken to a column dedicated to the Sun, followed by masked priests of whom some represented Bochica and others his wife Chia, and still others the frog Ata. When they reached their destination the victim was bound to the column, and shot to death with arrows. Then they tore out his heart to offer to Bochica, and collected his blood in sacred vases. 'Here we again find the feature, so well-marked in Mexico and Central America, of the victim being associated with the deity he represents. The method of putting to death recalls the Mexican custom, but here the tearing out of the heart occurred after the Guesa's death. In a cosmogony myth we hear of the god Chimini-qiiagua (guardian of the sun), who opened the house in which the heavenly body was shut up. Huge black birds came forth, spreading sun-rays over the whole world." According to the Chibchas the human race was born from a woman who appeared on the shores of lake Iguaque holding a child in her arms. Later they were both changed into snakes, and disappeared into the lake, for which reason the Chibchas made offerings to it. A myth of Cundinamarca says that the souls of the dead were carried into the 'next world' on a canoe, made of spiders' webs, which took them to the centre of the earth by following the course of a great underground river. Hence the great respect for spiders. ECUADOR. During the pre-Columbian period the coast of Ecuador was inhabited by civilised people, called the Caranques. They worshipped the sea, fish, tigers, lions, snakes and numerous richly decorated idols. From this we can see that the Caranques were acquainted with totems. One of the two temples they owned was dedicated to Umina, the god of medicine, represented by a large emerald, which received divine honours and was visited by pilgrims. The pilgrims made offerings to the high priest of gold, silver, or precious stones. The other temple belonged to the Sun, and was associated with a splendid worship, celebrated during the festival of the winter solstice. Offerings and sacrifices were made to the Sun. The victims were usually animals, but the Caranques also sacrificed children, women, and prisoners of war. The priests examined the entrails of the animal victims, and so predicted the future. In their funeral rites they buried with the deceased the most beautiful and best beloved of his wives, as well as jewels and food. The Canarians, an Indian tribe of Ecuador, relate the story of a flood from which two brothers escaped by going to the top of a high mountain called Huaca-vnan. As the water rose the mountain grew higher, so that the two brothers escaped the disaster. When the waters retired, the provisions of the two brothers were all consumed, so they went down to the valley, and built a little house where they eked out existence on plants and roots. One day, when exhausted and almost dying of hunger, they returned home after a long excursion in search of food, and found that food and chicha were there, although they did not know who could have brought them. This happened ten days running. They agreed to try to find out who was so kind to them. The elder brother concealed himself, and soon there entered two macaws dressed as Canarians. As soon as the birds came in they began to prepare the food they had brought with them. When the man saw they were good-looking and had the faces of women, he came out of his hiding-place, but when the birds saw him they were angry and flew away without leaving anything to eat. The younger brother had been out looking for food, and when he returned he found nothing ready as had happened on other days. He asked his brother the reason, and both felt very cross. Next day the younger brother decided to hide himself, and wait for the birds. After three days the macaws came back, and started to prepare food. The two brothers waited until the two birds had finished cooking, and then closed the door. The two birds were very angry at being caught, and while the two brothers were catching the smaller, the other flew away. The two brothers married the smaller macaw, and had by her six boys and girls, from whom the Canarians are descended. Ever since then the Indians consider the Huaca-ynan mountain as sacred. They venerate macaws, and- prize their feathers, which they use to deck themselves out for festivals. THE INCAS Before the Spanish conquest Peru included modern Peru, the republic of Ecuador to the north, part of Bolivia to the south-east, and part of Chile to the south. Before they came under the civilising influence of the Incas, the ancient Peruvians accepted totemism. They worshipped animals, plants and stones, and took their names. Several Quiches (ancient Peruvians) believed they were descended from animals which they worshipped, such as the condor, the snake, and the jaguar, or from rivers and lakes. These protecting spirits were given the name of Huaca, by which they meant mysterious powers. Along the coasts of Peru the chief totem was the sea, and its inhabitants were sub-totems. Where the Incas established themselves totemism gave way to the cult of the Sun. The Peruvian name for the sun was Inti or Apu-Punchau (the head of day). They thought he had a human form, and his face was represented by a disk of gold surrounded with rays and flames. The Incas believed they were descended from Inti, and only they were allowed to utter his name. Among divinities Mama Quilla, the moon, came immediately after the Sun, her brother and her husband. Her image was a silver disk with human features. She was the protecting goddess of married women. Many temples were dedicated to these chief deities, the most famous of which was the Coricancha of Cuzco. The other deities grouped about the pair Sun-Moon and looked upon as their attendants were greatly venerated. Among them were Cuycha the rainbow, and Catequil the thunder and lightning god, represented carrying a sling and a mace. Children were sacrificed to him. Twins were looked upon as his children. Chasca (the long-haired star) was the planet Venus, and was thought to be a man acting as page to the Sun. Among the Incas this planet was the protectress of princesses and girls, the creatress and protectress of flowers. The other planets and stars were maids in waiting to the Moon. Other constellations were worshipped. The most revered were the Pleiads who protected cereals. Comets were a sign of the gods' wrath. In addition to these starry deities, they worshipped Pachamama (mother earth) and fire, Nina. However, the Incas did not suppress all the cults older than that of the Sun and Moon. They retained two great gods whom they annexed to their pantheon - Viracocha (the foam or fat of the lake) and Pachacamac (he who animates the earth). Pachacamac, who was outside the cycle of Inca gods, was considered the supreme god by the maritime population of Peru. His legend spread out from the valley of the Lurin, to the south of Lima, where he had his sanctuary, and makes him the rival of Viracocha. He renewed the world by changing the men created by Viracocha and teaching them the different arts and occupations. He must have been the god of fire, and so the Incas made him a son of the Sun, the master of giants. His worship required human victims. He uttered mysterious oracles. He was invisible, and it was forbidden to represent him in any form whatever. At Cuzco there was current a myth of the mountaineers of Pacari-Tambo (house of the morning): 'Once upon a time four pairs of brothers and sisters emerged from the caves of Pacari-Tambo. The eldest climbed up the mountain and threw a stone to each of the four cardinal points, saying that it was a token that he had assumed possession of the whole land. This angered the other three, the youngest of whom was the cleverest. He made up his mind to get rid of his brothers and reign alone. He persuaded the eldest to go into a cave, and shut him in with a huge rock. Then he got his second brother to come up the mountain with him under the pretext of looking for the eldest brother. But when they reached the top he threw the second brother into the void, and by magic changed him into a stone statue. The third brother fled in terror. So the youngest built Cuzco and had himself worshipped as son of the Sun under the name of Pirrhua-Manco or Manco-Capac. The first god was probably Pachacamac, god of underground fire; the second seems to have been a personification of the worship of stones; and the third Viracocha, the god who vanished.' On the other hand the Incas taught that the Sun had three sons -Choun (one of the surnames of Viracocha), Pachacamac, and Manco-Capac. Viracocha was originally also outside the cycle of the Inca gods, but was annexed to the 'cult of the Sun.' According to legend he lived in lake Titicaca, and represented its fertilising and procreative powers. He is the god of rain, and of the liquid element generally. 'Before the Sun appeared the earth was already peopled,' says the original myth of Viracocha. 'When he emerged from the depths of the lake he made the sun, the moon, the stars, and set them on MYTHOLOGY OF THE TWO AMERICAS — 443 their regular courses. Then he made several statues, which he brought to life, and commanded them to come out of the caves in which they had been carved. He then went to Cuzco and appointed Allcavica as king over the people in the town. The Incas descended from this Allcavica. Then Viracocha went away and disappeared into the water.' Viracocha has neither flesh nor bones, and yet he runs very swiftly; he brings down the mountains and lifts up the valleys. He is represented with a beard, which is a symbol of water gods. His sister-wife was Mama-Cocha (rain and water). Beside these deities there existed special gods and powers of an animal nature, in which the Indians recognised mysterious power. Snakes were greatly revered, such as Urcaguary the god of underground treasures who is represented in the form of a large snake, with the head of a deer and little gold chains decorating his tail. The condor was thought to be the messenger of the gods. One of the peculiarities of the Inca religion is that they had 'Virgins of the Sun' or Aclla, who were real vestal virgins, maintaining the sacred fire under the control of matrons called Mama-Cuna who educated them and directed their work. The 'Virgins of the Sun' were chosen at the age of eight and shut up in cloisters, which they could not leave for six or seven years, and then only to marry chiefs of high rank. Every Aclla convicted of relations with a man was buried alive, unless she could prove that she was with child, in which case it was supposed to be due to the Sun. Human sacrifices occurred every year at the festivals celebrated in honour of the gods Inti, Pachacamac and Viracocha. Two or three children and large numbers of animals were massacred at these festivals. According to the myths, the earth was called Pacha, and above the earth were ranged four heavens inhabited by gods. The great god lived in the highest heaven. The Incas thought that Inti, the sun, after crossing the sky, plunged into the western sea, which he partly dried up. He returned by swimming under the earth, and reappeared next morning rejuvenated by his bath. Eclipses of the sun were held to indicate Inti's anger. The Peruvian myths of creation, of the origin of mankind, and of the flood, seem to have been local, as was the case -in Mexico. In a province of Peru to the east of Lima, the Indians say that once upon a time the world came near to total destruction. One day an Indian wanted to tie a llama in a good pasture, but the animal resisted, and in its way gave signs of grief. His owner said: 'Idiot! Why do you lament and refuse to browse? Are you not in a place with good grass?' 'Madman!' said the llama, 'learn that there is plenty of reason for my grief, for within five days the sea will rise and cover the whole earth!' The astonished Indian asked if there was no way of escaping. The llama told him to collect provisions for five days, and then to follow it to the top of the high mountain called Villca-Coto. So the man collected provisions, and led the llama on a leash. When they reached the top of the mountain they saw that all kinds of birds and animals had already taken refuge there. The sea began to rise, and covered all the plains and mountains except the top of Villca-Coto; and even there the waves dashed up so high that the animals were forced to crowd into a narrow area. The fox's tail dipped into the water, and that is why it has a black tip. Five days later the water ebbed, and the sea returned to its bed. But all human beings except one were drowned, and from him are descended all the nations on earth. Another legend of the Peruvian Indians deals with the reappearance of men after the flood: 'In a place about sixty leagues from Cuzco the creator made a man of every nation, and painted the costume which each of the nations was to wear. He gave hair to those who were to have long hair, and clipped the hair of those who were to have short hair. To each he gave the speech he was to was to talk, suitable songs, and the seeds and food he was to grow. Then he gave life and soul to these men and women, and sent them underground. In this way each nation went to the region it was to occupy.' Among the Incas there was a god of death, Supai, who lived inside the earth. Supai, the god of this dark world, is no more malevolent than Hades or Pluto, but he is a dreary and greedy god, always longing to increase the number of his subjects, so he must be placated, even at the cost of painful sacrifices. Thus, every year a hundred children were sacrificed to him. THE ARAUCANIANS OF CHILE The religious opinions of the Araucanians assumed a material form. The Araucanians do not appear to have got beyond fetishism, and give a corporeal form to all their divinities. They did not claim that all inanimate objects are inhabited by spirits, but think that spirits may live in them for a time. The Araucanians were acquainted with totemism, and practised the cult of ancestors. They did not recognise the existence of a superior being. They have no temples, no idols, no established religion. The Araucanians imagined their chief gods to be evil spirits who had to be placated by propitiatory and expiatory sacrifices. The most powerful of the upper gods was Pillan, the god of thunder, who was also the provider of fire. He caused earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and lightning. The Indians represented him as a corporeal deity having several forms at once. The'chiefs and warriors killed during a war were absorbed into Pillan. The former became volcanoes, the latter clouds. Out of this belief arose a myth: 'During a storm the Indians looked at the sky to see in which direction the clouds were moving. They supposed that the clouds represented the battles between their peoples and the Spaniards. If the clouds moved to the south the Araucanians broke out into lamentations. If they went north, the Indians rejoiced at the defeat of their enemies.' Pillan had at his disposal evil spirits called Huecuvus, who were able to change themselves into any shape they wished for the purpose of doing evil. The Araucanians attributed to them every disease, especially those they could not understand, and all physical phenomena occurring at a period when they should not, such as rain during the harvest, the blights which affected their plantations, etc. Among all the other servants of Pillan were the Cherruve, spirits represented in the form of snakes with human heads. These were the cause of comets and shooting stars, which Araucanians thought were omens of dreadful calamities to those of their villages towards which they fell. Another deity was the god of winds, Meuler (whirlwind, water- spout, typhoon). He was represented as a lizard disappearing under ground when the typhoon burst. The only beneficent deity among the Araucanians was' Auchimal-gen', the moon, the sun's wife. She protected the Indians against disasters, and drove away evil spirits by the fear she created in them. A red moon was the sign of the death of some great person. If one remembers how the Araucanians were connected with the Incas, it is very curious to note that they had no cult of the sun. Ngurvilu, the god of water, rivers, and lakes, assumes the form of a wild cat, whose tail ends in a formidable claw. If any accident happens to an Indian in a boat or swimming, this deity is blamed for it. Huaillepenyi, god of fog, appeared in the form of a ewe with a calFs head and the tail of a seal. He lived on the banks of rivers and ; lakes or on the sea-shore. When a deformed child was born, his ] deformity was attributed to the influence of this spirit. j Among secondary deities and inferior evil spirits is Chonchonyi. i He is represented in the form of a human head whose very long ears I served as wings to carry him where there were sick persons. When they are alone the spirit gets into their home, grapples with the sick person, kills him, and sucks his blood. ; Colo-colo (basilisk) was born from a cock's egg, and causes fever and death, by drawing off the victim's saliva. i Pihuechenyi is a vampire which sucks the blood of Indians " at night in the forest, and is represented as a winged snake. Hell did not exist for the Araucanians. They merely believed that after death they assumed a corporeal but invisible form, and departed to another world which evil spirits could not enter. The Araucanians had no priestly caste, but there were fortune-tellers j and sorcerers who possessed great influence among them. There is a ; tradition among the Araucanians of Chile that there was once a flood which very few Indians escaped. The survivors rook refuge . on a high mountain called Thegtheg (the thundering or the glittering; 1 which had three peaks and the ability to float on water. The flood was the result of a volcanic eruption accompanied by a violent earthquake1; and whenever, there is an earthquake the natives rush to the high mountains. They are afraid that after the earthquake the t sea may again drown the world. On these occasions each person takes plenty of provisions, and in addition a wooden bowl to protect the head in case the Thegtheg should be carried up to the sun by the waters of the flood which was threatened. THE GUARANI TUPIANS OR TUPINAMBAS OF BRAZIL The Tupi mythology includes a series of civilising and creator heroes. The first of these heroes was Monan (ancient, old) who was the creator of mankind, and then destroyed the world with flood and fire; after whom came Maire-Monan (the transformer) who is often confused with his predecessor. He had the power of changing men and animals into other forms in order to punish them for their sins. He taught the Tupinambas the arts of governing and of cultivating the earth. A myth relates that he aroused the anger of men by his metamorphoses, so that they decided to kill him. For that end they arranged a festival during which Maire-Monan had to jump over three blazing bonfires. He jumped the first but fainted above the second and was burned up. His bursting produced thunder, while' the flames became lightning. Then he was carried up to heaven, where he became a star. There was another hero, Maira-ata, who was thought to be a great wizard able to predict the future with the help of spirits. He holds a very important place in Brazilian mythology because he was the father of the mythical twins Ariconte and Tamendonare who caused the flood. They were mortal enemies these brothers, but were not by the same father. In a Tupinamba myth one was supposed to be the son of Maira-ata and the other of a mere mortal called Sarigoys. The mother of the twins, abandoned by Maira-ata, set out to look for him, guided by his child whom she carried in her womb. One day she came to the home of Sarigoys who offered his hospitality, and afterwards gave her another child. The mother went on her way until she came to a village where she fell a victim to the cruelty of the Indians, who cut her to pieces and ate her. The twins were rescued by a woman who brought them up. When they were men they decided they must avenge their mother, and with this in view they persuaded the murderers to accompany them to an island, under pretence of gathering fruit. While the Indians were on the island the brothers caused a storm which submerged them, after which they were changed into tigers. Having satisfied their wish for vengeance the twins then went to look for their father, whom they found in a village where he had become a wizard. He was very happy to see them, but before recognising them as his sons he put them through certain tests. The first was shooting with bow and arrows, but the twins' arrows did not reach their targets but remained up in the air. The second test was to pass three times through the stone Itha-Irapi, whose two halves dashed rapidly together. The son of Sarigoys went first, but was crushed. His brother picked up the fragments of his body and restored it to its former shape. They both were then able to pass through. But Maira-ata was not satisfied with these tests, and insisted on a third. He told the twin brothers to go and steal the bait used by Agnen to catch the fish Alain which is the food of the dead. Once more the son of Sarigoys tried first to pass the test, and was torn to pieces by Agnen, but brought back to life by his brother. They tried again, and this time managed to steal the bait which they brought to Maira-ata, who then recognised them as his sons. Among the Tupinambas there was another very important power, considered by the Indians as the demon of thunder and lightning, under the name Tupan. He was a kind of demon who received no worship and no prayers. He is represented as a short thick-set man with wavy hair. He was the youngest son of the civilising hero Nanderevusu and his wife Nandecy, for whom Tupan had a great affection. It is by order of his mother that Tupan leaves his home in the west to visit her in the east. Each journey causes a storm, and the noise of thunder comes from the hollow seat he uses as a boat to cross the sky. Two attendant birds take their place in his canoe, and are considered by the Indians as heralds of storms, which only stop when Tupan has reached his mother. The Tupinambas thought they were surrounded by multitudes of spirits and genii. Among them was the Yurupari (demon) of the Tupians in the north, who haunts empty houses and places where the dead are buried. By the word Yurupari the Indians also meant the whole collections of demons or spirits of the wilds, whose malice made them dangerous. Among the Tupians of the Amazon, Yurupari is a spirit of the forest, a kind of ogre, or god, according to the tribe. Another greatly dreaded genius of the Tupinambas' mythology was named Agnen, mentioned above in the myth of the twin brothers, with whom he often did battle, and whose victim he was, but not until he had devoured one of them. These evil genii were present at the start of creation. Although different from men, they are also mortal. The most famous among the demons was Kurupira. He was a gnome of the forests and the protector of game, but ill disposed towards human beings. He is represented as a little man walking with his feet turned back. The Indians made offerings to this genius to appease his anger. In the list of names of demons must be mentioned Macachera, the spirit of roads, considered by the Potiguara Indians as a messenger bringing good news, but by the Tupinambas as an enemy of human health. The Igpupiara were the genii of rivers who lived under water and killed the Indians. And there were the Baetata (will-o'th'-wisps). Among the spirits benevolent to men were the Apoiaueue who made the rain fall when it was needed, and faithfully reported to Gotf what happened on earth. The Tupinambas believed that after death the soul, An, goes to paradise, whose entrance is more or less accessible according to the soul's merits. This paradise is named the 'Land without Evil', and it is the home of the Ancestor, the civilising hero Maira. According to the myth of'Land without Evil', Maira lives in the middle of a vast plain covered with flowers, and near his house is a large village whose inhabitants live in happiness. When they grow old, they don't die but become young again. There is no need to cultivate the fields, for crops grow there naturally. According to some, the 'Land without Evil' lies to the east, but according to others, to the west. At the time when they were discovered, the Indians of Brazil in the region of Rio de Janeiro had a legend of the world flood, as follows: 'A certain great wizard named Sommay, also known as Maira-ata, had two sons, named Tamendonare and Ariconte (the two twin brothers). The first-named had a wife, and was a good husband and father, but his brother Ariconte was just the opposite. He thought of nothing but fighting, and his one object was to engage the neighbouring peoples in contests, and to thwart his brother's justice and kindness One day Ariconte came back from a fight, and showed his brother the bleeding arm of an enemy's body, and taunted him with these haughty words: "Get out of here, you coward! I'll take your wife and children, for you are not strong enough to defend them!" The good brother was distressed by such arrogance, and replied sarcastically: "If you are as brave as you boast, why didn't you bring the whole body of your enemy?" In a rage Ariconte threw the arm at his brother's door, and instantly the whole village was taken up into heaven, while the two brothers remained on earth. Seeing this, Tamendonare, either from amazement or anger, stamped on the earth so violently that a vast fountain gushed up higher than the mountains, as high as the clouds, and it went on flowing until the whole earth was submerged. Seeing the danger, the two brothers and their wives climbed up the highest mountain, and tried to save themselves by clinging to trees. Tamendonare and his wife climbed a tree called pindora, and the other brother with his wife climbed the tree geniper. While they were poised there Ariconte picked a fruit and gave it to his wife, saying: "Break it and drop a piece." By the sound of its meeting with the water they knew it was still high, and so waited.' The Indians thought that all mankind died in this flood except the twin brothers and their wives, and that from the two couples came two different peoples, the Tonnasseares otherwise called the Tupinambas, and the Tonnaitz-Hoyanas also known as the Tominus, tribes which like the two brothers never stop quarrelling. The Caryan tribe of Amazon Indians also have a legend of the flood: 'One day the Caryans were hunting wild pigs. They drove the animals into their dens, and killed each pig as it appeared. As they dug into the ground they came on a squirrel, then on a tapir, and then on a white squirrel. Then they found a human foot. In their terror they went for a powerful sorcerer called Anatina, who managed to dig up the man, calling out: "I'm Anatina! Bring me tobacco!" The Caryans did not understand him, and brought him flowers and fruits, which the sorcerer refused, pointing to a man who was smoking. The Caryans then understood, and brought him tobacco. He smoked until he fell down senseless on the ground. They took him to their village, and there he awoke and began to sing and dance. But his behaviour and language frightened the Caryans and they ran away. Anatina was greatly annoyed, and ran after them carrying a lot of calabashes full of water. He shouted to the Caryans to stop, but they did not, and in his wrath he broke one of the calabashes against the ground. The water at once began j to rise, but the Caryans continued to run. Then he broke a second calabash, and another and another, and the water rose so high that the land was flooded, and only the mountains at the mouth of the Tapirapis rose above the flood. The Caryans took refuge on the two peaks of this mountain. Anatina then called to the fish, and asked them to throw the men into the sea. Several tried, but could not succeed. At last the bicudo (a fish with a long jaw looking like a beak) managed to climb the opposite slope of the mountain, and taking the Caryans in the rear, hurled them into the water. A big lagoon marks the place where they fell. Only a few Indians remained on the peaks, and only came down when the flood was over." Such is the mass of the chief legends in American mythology, and the reader will have noticed the similarities so easy to detect between this mythology and classical mythology, as well as with the chief traditions of the Hebrews. Does this mean that Humanity was once upon a time reduced to a little group of individuals who later spread over the earth, bringing with them their legends which they altered through the centuries in accordance with new climates and new habits? Or, as seems more probable, are all these legends a confused account of great events on a planetary scale which were beheld in terror simultaneously by the men scattered everywhere over the world? Looking over these cults and beliefs, we might make further instructive and curious comparisons. It would be the same for the Arts which grew up round them. The pyramids are one example. Another would be the ornaments to monuments, where we find details common to the Greeks, the Egyptians and the Hindus. Our observations must be limited to these superficial suggestions, but study of them would be productive, and permit a deeper knowledge of the past of Humanity, still so vague to us. OCEANIA MYTHOLOGY THE PANTHEON OF OCEANIA Complexity of the pantheon of Oceania If, as is usually the case, mythology is taken to mean the genealogy, history and powers of gods, demi-gods and heroes, whose lives are imagined to resemble those of human beings, in short the pantheon of any given people, then it is very hard to give a brief general view of this pantheon for Oceania. It is quite possible to extract from travellers' books a long list of divinities, for instance in Polynesia Tangaroa, Tane, Rongo, Tu, and a host of other deities, some of whom turn up in a more or less large number of islands or archipelagos, either with the same name in variants of dialect, such as Tangaroa, Kanaloa, Taaroa, or with more or less synonymous names, or with approximate or even identical attributes. Thus, the chief Polynesian god, Tangaroa, is found in Micronesia under the more abstract name of Tabu-eriki (the sacred chief), in the anonymous thunder god of Ponape, the invisible god of the Ratak islands, the blind god of Bigar. The Polynesian god Rongo or Lono occurs in the Carolines, not only with the related names of Rongala (Fais island) and Mo- rogrog, but also with common features, notably those of being driven from heaven, to name one example, and for another of bringing fire to mankind. [...]... thought of as having really been stones Divinities can also appear as meteors (thus in Torres Strait shooting stars were evil spirits, children of the stars, and in Fiji a comet is the child of Ngendei), and as sparks and sorts of vapour, a form often taken by souls of the dead at night Other divinities have the forms of fantastic beings In New Zealand some are a sort of monster The Ngendei of Fiji... is the race of warriors The sorcerer is a sorcerer, and that is the race of sorcerers The trader is a trader, and that is the race of traders And you, worker of the earth, you will be the race of workers of the earth, and of you I make the principle (i.e the source) of the food of all the others God follows men in the evil they do to lead them to the good You tised to disagree because of your different... or a tribe, others again in a situation, an occupation, or a profession Thus there are special divinities for war (Tu throughout the whole of Polynesia) and peace, for the fertility of the soil or the success of the plantations, for different industries or crafts (the building of houses and especially of roofs or of canoes, the weaving of nets, fishing, sailing), for healing, for household chores,... which means 'O my poor red feet!' A frequent type of myth explains at one and the same time the characteristics of two animals, those of the first being the result of a trick played on it by the second, and those of the second coming from the vengeance of the first Such are the stories of the dog and the wallaby in the Gazelle peninsula (New Britain), of the kangaroo and the wombat (Victoria) the rat... tribes of the Northern Territory in Australia have an explanation of the origin of other human beings beside themselves In some exceptional cases, mankind is thought to have derived from several couples (Baining of New Britain, Banks Islands), but the vast majority of legends derive them from a single original couple Sometimes the myth merely explains the origin of one of the two individuals of the... Mortlock), or children come out of her eyes and one ofher arms (Nomoi) This birth of the first men by a sort of budding makes one of the transitions to the type of myth in which they are derived from trees, particularly widespread in Indonesia, and which may be also found in New Britain, in the Solomon Islands, at Niue, and in an Australian tribe of Victoria According to the Kayan of Borneo, the first men... Admiralty Islands and in New South Wales, death is the punishment for a lack of graciousness, or of ingratitude A legend of New Zealand makes the hero Maui try to bring mankind immortality by going down into the underworld, personified by some as 'the great Lady of night'; but he failed and lost his own life in the attempt Fire The myths of various regions, and especially of New Guinea and Australia,... neighourhood of Melbourne Social facts There are some myths which relate to social customs or institutions, first of all to the Melanesian institution of dividing a tribe into two exogamous classes At Omba (New Hebrides), each of the two classes originated with one of two daughters of the first woman who quarrelled and here we meet descent traced through the female, which is one of the characteristics of this... good harvests or of sterility, the revealer of fire, and king of the land of the dead like the Polynesian Mahiuki, the creator of the gods, the world and mankind, like the Polynesian Tangaroa, and, in addition, of cultivated crops which he showed mankind how to grow; he is also the author of a flood, a part attributed to different gods in Polynesia: Tawhaki, god of clouds and thunder in New Zealand; Tangaroa,... Australia), but more often they give precise details of the method of creation and first of all of the matter employed The first men were made from grass according to the Ata of Mindanao, with two rushes according to the Igorot of Luzon, with the dirt on skin elsewhere in the Philippines, with excrement in Borneo, and also among the tribes at the northern and southern extremities of Australia They were . know about the mythology of the Chibchas is to be found in the basic theme of the civilising hero Bochica. In this mythology there is also mention of Nencatacoa, the god of weavers; of Chaquen,. god of boundaries; of Bachue, goddess of water, protectress of vegetation and harvest; of Cuchavira, master of the air and the rainbow who healed the sick and protected women in childbirth; of. study of them would be productive, and permit a deeper knowledge of the past of Humanity, still so vague to us. OCEANIA MYTHOLOGY THE PANTHEON OF OCEANIA Complexity of the pantheon of Oceania