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Legend->Ojibwe: Nokomis and the spider: story of the dreamcatcher
Posted on Tuesday, May 11 @ 11:07:44 CDT (10044 reads)

KEYWORDS: Nokomis and the spider story of the dreamcatcher dream catcher legend Anishinaabeg legend Anishinaabeg story Ojibwe Ojibwa Ojibway legend

ORAL TRADITION: Ojibway legend

"A spider was quietly spinning his web in his own space. It was beside the sleeping space of Nokomis, the grandmother.

Each day, Nokomis watched the spider at work, quietly spinning away. One day as she was watching him, her grandson came in. "Nokomis-iya!" he shouted, glancing at the spider. He stomped over to the spider, picked up a shoe and went to hit it.

"No-keegwa," the old lady whispered, "don't hurt him."

"Nokomis, why do you protect the spider?" asked the little boy.

Note: One of the old Ojibway traditions was to hang a dream catcher in their homes. They believe that the night air is filled with dreams both good and bad. The dream catcher, when hung, moves freely in the air and catches the dreams as they float by. The good dreams know the way and slip through the center hole and slide down off the soft feather so gently the sleeper below sometimes hardly knows he is dreaming. The bad dreams, not knowing the way, get entangled in the webbing and perish with the first light of the new day.

Small dream catchers were hung on cradle boards so infants would have good dreams. Other sizes were hung in lodges for all to have good dreams.

The originals were made of night whispering willow and night seeing owl's feathers by grandmothers in the tribe and given to new babies and newly married couples for their lodges. Todays catchers are made with a variety of materials but are still hand crafted with the same loving care as the Ojibway made theirs.

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Legend->Ojibwe: Thunderbirds and Fireflies
Posted on Monday, February 17 @ 20:54:56 CST (7195 reads)

KEYWORDS: thunderbird legend ojibwe legend ojibwa legend ojibway legend Anishinaubeg legend Indian legend oral story oral history myth firefly legend limited edition art prints art print Indian art print

AUTHOR: Ojibwe Oral Story

Thunderbirds are not like other birds. Oh, to be sure, they have feathers-but they are feathers that shine with many, many colors too bright for the human eye to see.

Nor do thunderbirds sing like songbirds. Their song rumbles and echoes from cloud to cloud until it becomes a booming mountain of sound that shakes the ground below. What is more, lightning flashes from eyes of thunderbirds in fiery orange or in glowing sheets.

Yet in autumn when the cold sets in and the drumming rains dull the bright leaves, the thunderbirds fly south to the sunny skies just to cause wild, noisy storms.

When the thunderbirds return in spring, long before the first robin, the storms that follow them are milder. Last year's mischievous nestlings are older now and less playful. They think only about building their own nests in the northern sky.

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Legend->Ojibwe: The "close your eyes" dance
Posted on Monday, February 17 @ 10:06:16 CST (4451 reads)

KEYWORDS: dance legend duck legend ojibwe legend ojibwa legend chippewa legend ojibway legend Indian Art art print poster Frederick Remington art print limited edition fine art print Indian art print

AUTHOR: Ojibwe Oral Story

Nanabush was very tired. He had walked all day and could no farther. On the other shore of the bay he stopped to drink and splash water on his face. Then he sat down on a large stone beneath a tree to rest his aching bones.

Near the shore on the far side of the bay there was a flock of ducks, swimming and diving and quaking loudly. Their noise drew Nanabush's attention. He squinted in the bright sunlight. Not having eaten all day, Nanabush was hungry as well as tired. The sight of the plump, juicy ducks sent pangs of hunger shooting through his empty stomach.

Nanabush knew there was no point in trying to catch the ducks. They were much too clever. He remembered with shame that once long ago some ducks had tricked him.

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Legend->Ojibwe: How dog came to be
Posted on Monday, February 17 @ 09:47:36 CST (4172 reads)

KEYWORDS: Ojibwe legend ojibwa legend ojibway legend ojibwe legends Indian legend myth children's story for kids oral story oral history oral tradition Indian art prints Indian poster limited edition fine art print

AUTHOR: Ojibwe Oral Story

One day two fishermen were paddling home along the shore when a violent wind came up and blew them far out to sea. At last they reached the opposite shore. There they found the footprints of some enormous creature. The two men were terrified.

They carried their canoe into the forest, turned it upside down, and hid under it. While they lay there shivering with fear and wondering what to do, they heard a crash and felt the earth tremble. Peering out from their canoe, they saw a huge arrow embedded in the soil not far from them. At the same moment they felt the earth quiver once more.

Then they heard a deep voice saying, "Neekaunssidog (brothers), don't be afraid. I am Giant. I will not harm you." Still very frightened, the fishermen crawled out from the canoe. There before their eyes was Giant, with a caribou hanging from his belt. The two men guessed he had been hunting.

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Legend->Ojibwe: How Bats Came to Be
Posted on Monday, February 17 @ 02:20:11 CST (5852 reads)

KEYWORDS: bat origin story creation of bats bat myth Indian legend ojibwe legends ojibwa legend ojibway legend Indian Oral Story oral story art prints buy Indian art print children's story for kids

AUTHOR: Ojibwa Oral Story

Early one morning while he was on his way to his home in the sky, Father Sun got caught in the branches of a tall tree. He tried and tried to free himself, but only managed to entangle himself more firmly. Soon Father Sun could not move at all.

That morning all the animals waited in vain for Father Sun. When he did not appear, they went quietly back to their beds. They thought that they had not slept long enough and it was still night.

The bear went back to his cave. The rabbit returned to his nest under a bush at the edge of a field of sweet clover.

The chipmunk went into his hole in the roots of an oak tree. Only the owl, the wolf, and the fox were happy, for they could hunt a little longer than usual in the dark.

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Legend->Ojibwe: Why birds go south in winter
Posted on Monday, February 17 @ 02:08:22 CST (8686 reads)

KEYWORDS: ojibwe legend ojibwa legends ojibway legend chippewa legends oral story oral tradition Indian legend myth children's story for kids buy art posters Indian art prints art print

AUTHOR: Ojibwe Oral Legend

Long ago there was only summer. The days were always warm and sunny. Winter and snow were unknown.

For the young it was a time of happiness. They played all the time. Animals played with animals. Fish played with fish. Insects played with insects. Birds played with birds. They had many games -- hide-and-seek, blind-man's buff, and tag. They ran races, they wrestled, and they played lacrosse. The lakes, the meadows, and the skies rang with their laughter.

From dawn to dusk the young played. No sooner had they finished one game than they began another. They ate little and rested even less. For the parents it was a time of worry. All they could do was try to keep their offspring from harming themselves. Only nighttime brought rest.

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Legend->Ojibwe: The First Butterflies
Posted on Monday, February 17 @ 01:51:06 CST (7940 reads)

KEYWORDS: butterfly legend butterflies ojibwe legend ojibwa legend ojibway legend oral story Indian legend myth children's story for kids buy art prints Salvador Dali art print butterfly print butterfly poster

AUTHOR: Ojibway Oral Story

Long ago, when human twins were born to Spirit Woman, she relied on the animals to help her take care of them. All the animals loved the first human babies and did everything they could do to help them.

The dog watched over them. The bear gave his fur to keep them warm. The wolf hunted for them. The doe provided them with milk. The beaver and the muskrat bathed them. The birds sang lullabies to them.

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Legend->Ojibwe: Mother, we will never leave you
Posted on Monday, February 17 @ 01:21:11 CST (3782 reads)

KEYWORDS: ojibewe legend ojibwa legends ojibway legend chippewa legend oral story oral tradition Indian story Indian myth children's story poster posters art print art prints

AUTHOR: Ojibwe Oral Story

After the earth was made, there were only trees, grasses, and flowers upon it. There were no birds, no animals, no insects. On the whole earth there was only one living being- Spirit Woman.

For a long time Spirit Woman was content to live alone. She made mats and baskets and twines. She picked berries and fruits. She made clothes for herself. She was always very busy.

But after living alone for many years, Spirit Woman began to long for a friend. The more she thought about a friend, the lonelier she became. At last the Great Spirit, Kitche Manitu, sent her a husband to ease her loneliness. The two are very happy together.

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Legend->Ojibwe: Father of Indian Corn
Posted on Friday, February 07 @ 20:41:20 CST (5549 reads)

KEYWORDS: Ojibwa legend ojibwe legend ojibway legends chippewa legend Indian corn legend Wunzh corn art print corn woman limited edition fine art print

SOURCE: Ojibwa (Ojibwe, Ojibway) Legend

Mark Miller - Indian Corn of the Americas-Blk

Indian Corn of the Americas-Blk
Buy this corn art print

This is how Wunzh became known as the father of Indian corn by the Chippewa and Ojibwa Indian tribes.

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