JEISON MEDINA HIGUERA

THE DESTRUCTIVE POWER OF WATER IN CREATION MYTHS

Water is a restrictive element in the process of creation and development of life.

Water is a very powerful element that can be used to positive or negative purposes

depending on its generating force. An enormous flood is capable not just to destroy

life but also to impede the regeneration of such life. Thus, the power of water was

very well known for some Indian-American cultures as they were the Yokut, the

Cherokee, and the Lakota who included this force in their creation myths.

In the Yout Indians creation Myth the earth had suffered a flood that had covered it

all with water, subsequently “there were no living creatures upon the land” . In order

to create land eagle and crow with the collaboration of duck had to work really hard

in order to surpass the difficulties imposed by water. Later the destructive power of

water made presence when it rained a whole night bringing bad consequences to

the birds because it washed …”away much of the new world into the sea”. That

shows that there is not much to do in order to obstruct the forces of water.

In the Lakota myth there was nothing any creature could do in order to stop

Unkehti “the water monster” (included the Great Spirit Wakan Tanka) from causing

a great flood. Much less could the humans that died because of the flood,

“everyone was killed”  excepting one lucky lady that had special circumstances in

her favor. As a result she was the origin of new generation of human beings.

That makes understandable the fact that a different culture as it is the Cherokee is

also afraid of water thinking that “the earth is a great island floating in a sea water”

and that in any moment this island can sink down and everything we know would

be submerged on water.

 As a result one can conclude that water is so powerful that can impede the creation

of life as its development and this phenomena is clearly depicted in several myths

of Indian American cultures (the Yokut, the Cherokee, and the Lakota) . Therefore

it is clear that there is almost nothing one can do in order to impede the force of

water when it has got a purpose or an intention and that is a very valid reason why

this culture could have developed a fear to water.

Algoquin. (s.f.). GLOOSKAP AND MASLUM (CREATION MYTH).  Cherokee. (s.f.). HOW THE WORLD

WAS MADE. Lakota. (s.f.). LAKOTA CREATION MYTH. Yokut. (s.f.). YOKUT INDIANS CREATION

MYTH.