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SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS 



A STONE TURNED INTO A MORNING STAR 



VOL. 123 



A Stone Turned into a Morning Star (479) 



In most ancient times there was a man 

 whose name was Tsi Ntzi.^^ He had three 

 white pigeons. There was also another man 

 named Tsi Seo. He raised seven wild horses. 

 Their white pigeons and wild horses broke 

 loose and fled to a level plain below, then 

 turned into a big stone. Tsi Ntzi then sent 

 people to find them. He hunted for them 

 until he saw this big stone on the level plain. 

 Those who were hunting then asked the 

 big stone, "Have you seen Tsi' Ntzi's and 

 Tsi Seo's pigeons and wild horses that broke 

 loose, going past this place?" The big stone 

 said, "I have not seen them." Then these 

 people seized this big stone and started back 

 home. 



Tsi Ntzi and Tsi Seo then invited the silver- 



smiths to come and make a silver chain ano S 

 tied this black rock up seven years. Then 

 the big stone knew it could not escape. Ther 

 it turned into the morning star. Later thi<l 

 star changed into a bodyguard of the em/; 

 peror. Then the emperor came forth and; 

 showed his face. 



All the world asks, "Who is efficient in, 

 wridng characters?" Ch'en Kiang (this body- 

 guard of the emperor) is efficient in writing 

 characters. But because he came late, he did^ 

 not get a book to study. Then he went toj 

 the emperor's palace to get a book to study. 



His mother Na Fa Niong went to see him! 

 but went on past him. Later his mother died. ' 

 Then he brought a pen and ink and wrote^ ^ 

 characters, and wrote on the walls in the 

 capital. 



t 



III. TALES RELATING TO HISTORICAL AND ETIOLOGICAL TRADITIONS 



LIFE IN ANCIENT TIMES 

 Stabilizing the Sky and the Earth 



A Man Who Stabilized Heaven and Earth 

 (343) 



The sky was in its dwelling. His dwelling 

 was at Ntzi Je Ndo Leo's.^^ The earth was 

 at the earth's dwelling place. It dwelt at 

 Niong De La Leo's ^^ dwelling. They slept 

 until midnight. They remembered that they 

 must go and pound the sky even (or flat), 

 for the sky was as yet not firm, and it had 

 to be beaten and pounded before it was firm. 



Each of them struck once with a club, and 

 they caused the sky to turn around and 

 around. They each stamped the earth once 

 with a foot and caused the earth to move. 



The emperor of that time was afraid the 

 sky would be ruined and sent two great of- 

 ficials to come and investigate. But they could 

 not find out anything. They said, "I am 

 afraid the demon that shakes the earth has 

 come. If it is not so, it is that Ntzi Je Ndo 

 Leo has come to beat the sky, and Niong De 



La Leo has come to beat the earth. When 

 they have beaten them firm, you people cam 

 live peacefully and live well." 



One Who Pacified the World (171) 



In former times, when king P'an Ku ^ 

 separated the sky and the earth, the sister 

 of Hu Hsi came down to control the sky 

 and the earth (this concerns the yin-yang). 

 The king Shen Lung came down to control 

 the five grains. The emperor Hsuen Yuen 

 came down to make clothing for people to 

 wear. He created 44 big fish to use in erect- 

 ing the four corners of the world. He made 

 48 nails of sheep horns to use in making the 

 world firm in all four directions. He estab- 

 lished the sky firmly and everywhere there 

 were homes. He established (made firm) the 

 earth so it was peaceful, and in its midst was 

 hidden yellow gold. 



Securing Seed 



Ancient People Who Secured Seed (177) 



When I roam all over the world, my mind 

 is stirred. Speaking of the earth, I have trav- 



^'^ Tsi Ntzi means bad god, or a man who was 

 bad. 



18 God's man who controls the firm land, a ser- 

 vant of Ntzi. 



eled all over it, and I went to the dwelling 

 place of an ancient Miao tribe. I also traveled 

 all over the face of the earth and reached the 

 place where a Miao lives. 

 Where did the Miao come from? From a 



1^ A man who controls the first foundation 

 land. 



