Absarokee (Crow) Literature

 (Absaroke means "People of the large-beaked bird")

The more you give, the more good things come to you. The eyes of men speak words the tongue cannot pronounce. It is good to be reminded that each of us has a different dream. One has to face fear or forever run from it.

"The ground on which we stand is sacred ground. It is the dust and blood of our ancestors."

Chief Plenty Coups

"Whenever there is any trouble, I shall not die but get through. Though arrows are many, I shall arrive. My heart is manly."

Warriors Song

Stories

Devil's Tower
The Kiowa , Arapaho, Crow, Cheyenne and Sioux tribes have this legend in common:
Seven sisters and their brother were playing near their camp, when the boy turned into a bear. The brother bear began chasing his sisters. The young girls ran through trees, but the bear pursued the girls gaining speed. In desperation the girls climbed on a rock and prayed loudly to the Great Spirit to save them. Immediately the rock began to grow, higher and higher. The bear began to claw the sides of the rock trying to reach the girls, but to no avail. He tried every side of the rock. The bear continued to jump and claw at the growing rock, but still could not reach the girls. The tower grew toward the sky until the girls had been pushed into the heavens. The seven sisters became the seven stars of the Pleiades, part of the constellation Taurus the Bull .
Source: Trib.com: Wyoming Myths

Pygmy Demons
Indian legends of the Arapahoe, Sioux, Cheyenne, and Crow tell of "tiny people eaters" who stand 20 inches tall. This legend was supported when an actual Pygmy person was found mummified in a local cave. The Pygmy mummy was brought to town and shown to various people. Over the years the pygmy mummy has brought bad luck and omens to those who possessed it. The Indian people still warn others to beware of the "tiny people eater" as they are rumored to still live a hidden life in the mountains and high places of Wyoming. Such a 'pygmy' was found in the Pedro Mountains by two gold miners. They burrowed into a natural pocket in the granite rock and found, on a ledge, a 19 inch mummy. The mine came to be called the 'Little Man', as a result.

Source: Trib.com: Wyoming Myths


Indigenous Peoples' Literature Return to Indigenous Peoples' Literature
Compiled by: Glenn Welker




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