720 



TEHARONHIAWAGON 



[b. a. e. 



being of disease and contemporary of 

 Teharonhiawagon. Megapolensis gives 

 Athzoockuatoriaho as another Mohawk 

 epithet of Teharonhiawagon. 



Like most American Indian mytholo- 

 gies, the Iroquoian deals with three great 

 mythic cosmical periods. In the first 

 dwelt a race of gigantic anthropic beings — 

 man-beings, let them be called, because 

 though they were reputed to have been 

 larger, purer, wiser, more ancient, and 

 possessed of more potent orenda (q. v.), 

 than man, and having superior ability 

 to perform the great elemental func- 

 tions characterizing definitely the things 

 represented by them, they neverthe- 

 less had the form, mien, and naind of 

 man, their creator; for unconsciously did 

 man create the gods, the great primal 

 beings of cosmic time — the controllers or 

 directors, or impersonations, of the bodies 

 and phenomena of nature — in his own 

 image. To these man-beings, therefore, 

 were imputed the thought, manners, cus- 

 toms, habits, and social organization of 

 their creators; notwithstanding this, man 

 regarded them as uncreated, eternal, and 

 immortal; for by a curious paradox, man, 

 mistaking his own mental fictions, his 

 metaphors, for realities, explained his 

 own existence, wisdom, and activities as 

 the divine product of the creations of his 

 own inchoate mind. The dwelling-place 

 of the first great primal beings, character- 

 ized by flora and fauna respectively 

 identical with the plant and animal life 

 appearing later on the earth, was con- 

 ceived to have been the upper surface 

 of the visible sky, which was regarded as a 

 solid plain. Here lived the first beings in 

 peace and contentment for a very long pe- 

 riod of time: no one knows or ever knew 

 the length of this first cosmic period of 

 tranquil existence. But there came a time 

 when an event occurred which resulted 

 in a metamorphosis in the state and 

 aspect of celestial and earthly things; in 

 fact, the seeming had to become or to as- 

 sume the real, and so came to pass the 

 cataclysmic change of things of the first 

 period into that now seen on the earth 

 and in the sky, and the close of this 

 period was the dawn of the gods of this 

 mythology. Into the sunless and moon- 

 less skyland— lighted only by the snowy 

 white flowers of the great tree of light, 

 towering high near the lodge of Te'haon- 

 'hwendjmwu'^klion' ('He the Earth-hold- 

 er'),— the presiding chief of that realm 

 jealousy crept. This chief, reputed to be 

 invulnerable to sorcery, took a young 

 wife by betrothal in fulfilment of a dream. 

 The name of the young woman was 

 Au'en'hcVi', ' Mature Flowers,' or ' Matuie 

 (i. e. Fertile) Earth.' Through the 

 machinations of Fire-dragon of the White 

 Body, the deadly jealousy of the aged 

 presiding chief was kindled against his 



young spouse. Unfortunately for her 

 welfare, she, by inhaling the breath of 

 her spouse before the completion of the 

 usual ante-nuptial ordeals, became par- 

 thenogeneticaily pregnant. The be- 

 trothed husband, not knowing the cause 

 or source of her condition, questioned 

 her chastity, and with reluctance re- 

 solved to rid himself of his suspected but 

 innocent spouse, and at the same time to 

 change the nature of all the man-beings 

 who were his neighbors and associates. 

 To accomplish his purpose, he caused the 

 tree of light which stood over the sup- 

 posed aperture through which the sun 

 now shines to be uprooted, thus forming 

 an abyss into the empyrean of this world. 

 By stealth he cast his unsuspecting young 

 spouse into this abyss. Some traditions 

 say that this occurred after Awg'^'ha'i' 

 had given birth to a daughter which, by 

 this occurrence, she reconceived and to 

 which she again gave birth on this earth. 

 In like manner the man-beings, Corn, 

 Beans, Sunflower, Tobacco, Deer, Wolf, 

 Bear, Beaver, and all their associates, 

 transformed their kind into the forms and 

 sizes and with the habits by which they 

 are known to-day on earth, and then cast 

 them down into the abyss. Only the 

 ancients, the so-called elder brothers, of 

 these things remained in the skyland. 

 Then the rage of Te'hao^'hwgndjiawii'k^- 

 'ho°' subsided. This great cataclysmic 

 change was brought about because none 

 could divine a cure for his illness (jeal- 

 ousy) by "searching his dream-word." 

 Then the tree of light was restored to its 

 place. These events brought about the 

 second cosmical period. The expelled 

 bride, Aw6°'htVi', while falling through 

 cosmic space, or the upper sky, was seen 

 by the water-fowl and water animals of 

 the primal sea, who at once set them- 

 selves the task of providing a habitation 

 for her. Some traditions say that the 

 water-fowl of the larger kinds flew up to 

 meet her and to bring her slowly down 

 as she rested on their united backs. 

 While this was being done, the best div- 

 ers among the water animals brought up 

 from the depths of the sea some wet earth, 

 which was carefully placed on the cara- 

 pace of the Great Turtle. This earth at 

 once began to expand in size, and on it 

 AwS°'ha^i' was gently placed. At once 

 she began to walk about the_ tiny earth, 

 and it continued to grow in size thereby; 

 she even took handfuls of the earth and 

 scattered it in all directions, which like- 

 wise caused it to continue to expand un- 

 til it had grown so large that she could 

 no longer see its bounds. Then shrubs, red 

 willow, grasses, and other vegetation be- 

 gan to appear. In due time she gave birth to 

 a daughter. After attaining womanhood, 

 this daughter was courted by various ani- 

 mals and beings disguised in the assumed 



