Flat Pipe: Arapaho Creation Myth

Staff Writer


Table of Contents

The Arapaho are a Native American people. According to scholars, their presence was first noticed circa 3,000 years ago in the western region of the Great Lakes, along the Red River Valley, which could be now Manitoba in Canada, and Minnesota in the United States. They were popularly agrarians and spoke the Arapahoe language. My main interest is in their understanding of how things came into being. That is, how the Flat Pipe creates in the Arapaho tradition.  

Many different creation hypotheses are closely related to the ‘earth-diver’ creation myth. Examining a few of these will help us better understand the Arapaho creation hypothesis.

Creation Hypotheses and Earth-Diver Myths

The creation hypothesis is the claim that one being, or more supernatural beings or gods created the natural world. Earth-diver myths emphasize that a powerful being or group of spirits sends a bird or animal into the waters to see if there is earth or mud on which to build living homes for humankind. Briefly, some of the creation hypotheses and earth-diver myths will be examined below.

Creation from nothing and the Dove’s Olive leaf in Judeo-Christian Traditions

In both Judaic and Christian religious beliefs, the story about how the universe came into being is two-fold as recorded in Genesis chapters 1 and 2. In the first account, God creates ex nihilo, and by just saying the ‘word’; the heavens and the earth are created in six days, and he rests on the seventh day. In the second account, God creates the first man, Adam from the dust of the earth. Believing that it is not proper for Adam to be alone, he creates the first woman, Eve from Adam’s ribs while he sleeps. In this account, the first man appears to have been created from something that already exists, that is, the dust of the earth.

Again, the story of the Great Flood in the book of Genesis chapter 7 destroyed the whole world of which only Noah, his household, and seven pairs of clean and unclean animals, birds of the air, etc., were spared of the deluge. After 40 days, Noah wanted to find out if the flood had subsided; he first sent out the bird raven and it moved to and fro until the waters dried up the earth.

He sent out the dove from the ark and it did not find a place to perch because the waters were still on the surface of the earth. It came back to the ark. After seven days, he sent out the dove again. The dove returned to Noah in the evening with an olive leaf on its beak. Finally, he sent out the dove the third time and it did not return to the ark. That informed Noah that the waters had subsided, and he opened the ark.

The mating of Earth Mother and Sky Father in A’shiwi Tribe’s Creation Account.

The A’shiwi people, also known as ‘Zuni’ practice shamanism that is closely intertwined with their traditional dances, and ceremonies associated with mythologies. In their creation myth, the earth mother slept with the sky father while upon the waters and they conceived and gave birth to everything in the world. As the children of Earth’s mother increased, perhaps, she needed more space. As a result, the earth mother pushed the sky father away and he went up to the sky. Then, the earth's mother began to sink into the deep waters. She saw a bowl filled with water nearby and she thought that each place should be surrounded by mountains like the edge of the bowl. She then spat on the water and foams were formed.

Arapaho Creation Myth

In their account, Flat Pipe is a being who exists on its own and dwells upon the waters. But Flat Pipe seemed to exist alongside the Great Spirit who made suggestions on how things should be. The Great Spirit suggested that creatures should be created to build the world. In his wisdom, Flat Pipe created ducks and other water birds, and they went into the deep but the deep was bottomless. They could not find land as they sunk deeper and deeper.

Again, the Great Spirit suggested that the Turtle be created that can dwell on both the waters and land. The Turtle went into the deep waters and returned with mud. The Turtle spat out a piece of land which turned into earth. Flat Pipe progressed to creating all things that filled the earth.

The Great Spirit suggested to Flat Pipe what was possible, such as creating creatures and in particular the Turtle that would create the earth. Analogically, we can see the same consultation in the Judeo-Christian creation account where God said: “let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness…” (Genesis 1:26). This can be viewed as both consultation or invitation and suggestion.

In the Arapaho creation myth, three beings seem agreeably involved: The Great Spirit, who offers suggestions, Flat Pile who creates and Turtle who extends Flat Pile’s creative power. In some Algonquian traditions, the Turtle is described as a base or solid foundation holding the entire earth’s structure, hence the earth rests on its back.

A better description of the Arapaho creation myth can be found in Andy Cowell of the University of Colorado narrative. Based on George Dorsey’s account of the Arapaho creation myth of 1903.

A great flood covered the space and a man carrying a Flat Pipe, weeping, and fasting as he walked around on the water for six days in search of a safe place for it. By the seventh day, when no place was found, he saw the need for the earth to place the Pipe. Now what he did next was so important. He beckoned people from every direction to help find land for the Pipe. Yet there was no dry land, the same man invited the seven cottonwood trees and invoked birds of the air and creatures that live in waters. Among the animals that answered the call was the Turtle, who informed him that land is at the bottom of the waters.

Diving into the Bottom of the Waters

The man then challenged the birds and animals to dive into the deep to find land. It was not a simple challenge. And the creatures dive into the waters in successions: the Grebe went first and failed. Then two waterfowl followed but they too failed. Since two couldn’t make it, maybe three would. Three waterfowl dived in but failed. Otter, Beaver, Packed Bird, and Garter Snake tried but did not make it. A contingent of a black snake, two ducks, a goose, and a crane dived, but they too did not make it.

On the seventh round, the Turtle decided it was his time. But before diving into the deep waters, the man was to join. He performed some rituals by lifting the Flat Pipe four times and touching his body with it five times. The Flat Pipe changes into a Red-headed duck and follows the man and the Turtle down into the waters. Finally, the Turtle and the Red-headed duck were the only creatures that brought mud for the man who placed them in every direction and created the earth.

Conclusion

There are quite some similarities among the different creation hypotheses. The Judeo-Christian creation account presents God as creating the world from nothing, in one sense but in another sense, it claims that God created the first man, Adam from the dust of the earth. It may mean that God created Adam from Adamah, that is, human from humus, as the two Hebrew words denote. This can be viewed as God defining humankind as dust to which they shall return when his breath of life is taken away from them.

The mating of the Earth Mother and the Sky Father upon the waters in the A’shiwi Tribe’s creation mythology eventually led to the creation of the Earth.

Another interesting fact is that after the Great Flood, Noah sent out the dove to survey the earth for dry land. In a different way but of the same significance, the man, in the Arapaho creation myth sought the help of different creatures to dive into the deep waters to find land.

Flat Pipe, in the Arapaho creation myth, can be said to be a great force, that put the birds and animals to test in finding land by diving into the deep waters. 

 

Popular posts from this blog

Early Contacts between Christianity and Islam

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Early Contacts between Christianity and Islam Monk Bahira The Migration to Axum Kingdom Christianity and Islam have always been two noxious bedfellows and yet always proclaim and wish peace on earth. It would not be a crass assumption to state that the two religions have over the centuries crossed paths and re-crossed paths many times. Crossing paths might have been in their ideologies, conflicts, doctrinal interpretations and even sharing some physical spaces. Therefore, in this brief writing, we will explore the early contacts between Christianity and Islam and see how they have influenced each other. Early Contacts between Christianity and Islam The early contacts between Christianity and Islam were not short of frames.  According to Kaufman et al., “frames are cognitive shortcuts that people use to help make sense of complex information.” They are means of interpreting our world and perhaps, the world of other people around us.  Such interpretations helped them to
Read more

The Connection between a Personal Name and Name Groups in Shawnee Social Organisation

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Shawnee People The Divisions The Name Groups and Personal Names I’m always attracted to and interested in the culturally distinct and characteristic elements of different traditions or societies. Reading about the Shawnee people of Native American tribes is no different. I immediately fell in love with the linkage between Shawnee name groups and personal names. The name groups seem to present the Shawnee as a one-descent group with five major divisions. To examine this connection between a personal name and name group, a brief description of Shawnee will help in understanding the Shawnee social organisation. Shawnee People The term ‘Shawnee’ written in different forms ( Shaawanwaki, Shaawanowi lenaweeki, and Shawano ) is Algonquian like the archaic term ‘ shaawanwa ’ meaning ‘south.’ Thus, the term ‘Shawnee’ is (pronounced shaw-nee ) meaning the ‘southern people.’ The Shawnees are categorised as Algonquian-speaking North American Indian people whose pristine ho
Read more

The Akamba – Concept of the Supreme Being & Totems

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Supreme Being (Worships and Venerations) Mulungu   Mumbi  Mwatuangi  Ngai  Asa  Ancestors Totems Here is a brief account of the religious beliefs of the Akamba. Spanning through Central Bantu, the Akamba ethnic group is estimated to be about 4.4 million people and occupies Southeastern Kenya in areas, such as Kangundo, Kibwezi, Kitui, Machakos, Makueni and Mwingi Districts and the Ukamba. A swathe of the Akamba population can also be found in the Mazeras and Kwale Districts of the Coast Province in Shiba Hills. The Akamba languages are Kikamba and Swahili. Globally, the Akamba are not exclusively a Kenyan or African tribe. They can be found in Uganda, Tanzania, and Paraguay, which makes it partly an indigenous group and partly an autochthonal group. Argument from migration theory suggests that Akamba came from Kilimanjaro (a word that means ‘mountain of whiteness’), basing their arguments on the similarity of certain cultural features with the Wachagga people of Kili
Read more

Begrudging & Infightings: Aztec’s Theogony & Cosmogony

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Tezcatlipoca Quetzalcoatl Tlaloc Chalchiuhtlicue Nanauatzin Cosmic Order – The Balance Aztec is a name used to describe the Nahuatl-speaking people who thrived in central Mexico circa the 14 th  and 16 th  centuries as an empire and dominated large parts of Mesoamerica. Variously, the Aztecs had different names. They are known as Aztlan (which means ‘White Land’), the Tenochca (a name adopted from one of their ancestors called Tenoch), and the Mexica, which was a derivative from Metzliapan (which stands for ‘Moon Lake’). Ancient Aztec religious beliefs and practices were tied to their understanding of the world; the people were deeply amazed by the thought of the unknown, the universe and the end of time. These thoughts arouse some curiosity and awareness to understand better their world and how it came about. I used the term ‘theogony’ to describe the Aztecs’ generations of gods however, not in the context of Greek mythology where the ‘primordial deities’ were the fi
Read more

Nigeria’s Pledge Vs the President’s Mandate: An Antithesis of Patriotism

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Nigeria’s Pledge The President’s Mandate Loyalty to the President or the Constitution? In recent years, the Nigerian polity has been bedeviled by one general term, ‘mandate.’ As years passed, the term mandate gained more ground and replaced the allegiance or any public or private declaration of loyalty to Nigeria, as a country. The contract the people signed with the country was gradually torn into bits by the politicians (or leaders) and by extension, the citizens, (and foreigners living in Nigeria). The current political and economic climate of Nigeria is the main reason for this article. The people have openly rejected Nigeria’s Pledge and have taken recourse to different political mandates of some politicians. The aim here is to bring to the fore the salient points of Nigeria’s Pledge against the mandate of the president. Nigeria’s Pledge The clear and concise words of Professor Felicia Adebola Adedoyin in 1976 describing the terms of the Nigerian oath of
Read more

The Aesir Vs the Vanir – The gods at War

Staff Writer
Image
Audio – The Aesir vs the Vanir – The gods at war Table of Contents Introduction Norse Mythology The different deities under the Aesir Family The different deities under the Vanir Family Other deities Ullr Loki Conclusion Introduction ‘The gods at war’ is a phrase or statement I have chosen as a theme that will help me understand the claim about the many conflicts between the Aesir and the Vanir gods and goddesses. The Aesir gods and goddesses are Odin, Frigg, Höðr, Thor, Baldr, and Tyr. Then, the Vanir gods and goddesses are Njörðr, Nerthus, Freyja, Freyr, Óðr, Hnoss, Gersemi, Skírnir, Kvasir, Gullveig. There is Jotnar, the giant gods who are constantly warring with the Aesir gods and goddesses and they are seen as chaotic and destructive. Then comes Kvasir. According to Norse mythology, Kvasir is a creation borne from the mixture of the saliva of the Aesir and Vanir gods and goddesses at the end of their wars. Kvasir is considered a wise god and he went up and down their sovereig
Read more

Nigeria’s 2023 Presidential Election - from preparation to verdicts

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Before the February 25, 2023, General Election During the Election – 2023 After the Election – 2023 The Verdicts – 2023 Moving Forward The insouciant and nonchalant comportment of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the face of angst that has inbuilt despair among Nigerians is the reason for writing about Nigeria’s February 25, 2023, presidential election, and the outcome. Yes, it’s seven months after the election was conducted by INEC and the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal (PEPT) verdicts in Abuja on September 6, 2023. Some argued that the entire election was marred with violence, rigging, and corrupt practices and some others argued that it was the freest election ever held in Nigeria, by Nigerians (not ‘Nigeriens’) and for Nigerians. After the results were announced and Mr Ahmed Bola Tinubu was declared winner, his opponents filed petitions alleging that it was a rigged system. In this writing, an attempt will be made to describe
Read more

The Weyekin in Nez Percé Tribe and Catholic Angels

Staff Writer
Table of Contents The Nez Percé People Catholic Teachings on Angels The Spirit, Weyekin in Nez Percé Tribe This writing is to briefly identify and recognize some cultural values of the Nez Percé tribe, especially their belief in Weyekin, often described as a personal guiding angel. The concept of a guiding angel provokes Catholic teachings about angels and comparison with the Nez Percé Weyekin, as the guiding spirit. But that will be a new piece of writing for the future. There can be a cross-cultural gleaning of ideas from nature, beliefs, and interactions.     The Nez Percé People The term Nez Percé, meaning “pierced nose” is the French coinage to describe the Nimiipuu tribe. The term Nimiipuu, meaning “we, the people” is a name the tribe used for themselves and their language, a part of the Sahaptin family. Early contacts with the Europeans, especially French explorers made the name Nez Percé popular because they unfairly adopted the name Nez Percé and used it for the Nimiipuu and n
Read more

The Conflict between the Deities (Igwe and Amadioha) in Igbo Mythology over a Heat Wave

Staff Writer
Table of Contents Introduction The Deity – Igwe The Deity – Amadioha The Conflict between Igwe and Amadioha Introduction The current heat wave reminds me of the conflict between two Igbo deities, namely: Igwe and Amadioha. Just as it was noted somewhere in this blog: Nigeria's Diversity and the South-East/South-South Peripheral Inclusions: Biafra's Raison d'etre , November 15, 2021, the Igbo people are the third-largest ethnic group who live in southeastern Nigeria. They have a very rich culture and tradition among which is their concept of God which varies from one community to another but essentially, they believe that the gods guide and control their life and affairs in many ways. The Igbo concept of God stems from the idea of a chief god who creates everything. This god is supreme. The Igbo variously call this god Olisa bu uwa (the god who carries the world), Olisa bini Igwe , (the god who lives in the sky), Chukwu (the great god), or Chineke (the god who creates
Read more