- The History of the Hopi -

The creation myth

The myth of creation and the associated insight into the origin of mankind in general and the Hopi in particular is preserved in a very impressive and detailed way as spiritual tribal property. The knowledge of these myths and legends of the Hopi tribe and their transmission to their descendants is a very important basis in the spiritual life of the Hopi, because it allows a deep rootedness and identification of each individual tribal member with his origin and also with his task in creation.

The creation myth of the Hopi reports that mankind has to live through 7 worlds. In each of these worlds men are given certain tasks through which they are to be tested in their maturity and fidelity. Only those who are of pure faith will reach the ascent into the next world and are chosen for the tasks of the future. Traditionally, we are now in the fourth world and on the threshold of the rise to the fifth world. Since the Hopi have a completely different understanding of space/time from the western world (see :language), it is not only possible to imagine this passage through worlds in a linear temporal sense, but it is also primarily a qualitative development in the consciousness of all mankind and probably represents a spiral, cyclic development "upwards" into a higher consciousness.

- The Legends -

The 4 walks

During the ascent into the 4th world, the Hopi people were given precise instructions by their guardian spirit Massau on how to carry out the migrations of the people in the new world, how they could then find and recognize their new home and how they should then shape their lives there. Each clan had to walk in the four directions, each to the farthest point where land and sea meet. Then they were allowed to return to their hometown. All traversed paths formed a large cross, whose center lies in today's Hopi country in the southwest of the USA. The wanderings of the clans resulted in patterns of increasingly narrowing spirals, which we still find today as basic motifs on the pottery and wickerwork, on the Katchina rattle and altar panels of the Hopi, and which are ultimately supposed to repeat the perpetual cycle of life in the belly of Mother Earth. About the migrations of the different clans and their experiences were reported in many stories in detail and handed down accordingly in each clan to the descendants.

Through the hikes the holy new land was to be magically impregnated and walked through in order to establish a spiritual connection and fusion between him and the Hopi people. In addition, this task also served to test and consolidate the deep religiousness and straightforwardness within the clans. All these instructions were written in symbols of the protection spirit Massau on four sacred tablets, which he gave to different clans and which are still kept and passed on by them today in sacred traditional duty.

The ascent into the different worlds and the wanderings are so deeply symbolic that one can assume that all the traditions represent a great allegory of the outer and inner development of man towards paradise. The goal, the seventh world, may well represent the pure and perfect motherland, paradise itself, which must first of all be found within men themselves.

Picture: Symbols of the hike

The sacred tablets

The first tablet was given to Massau (Masaw), the Fire Clan. It is about 10 cm tall and consists of dark stone with a missing corner. The symbolism on the board describes a prophecy about the development and trials of the Fire Clan. They were predicted to oppress their country and their lives, but they should not resist, but wait for the person to free them. By this person was meant her lost White Brother Pahana, who was to return from his journeys from the East with the missing piece of the table and free her from all oppressions, in order then to establish a new and worldwide brotherhood of men.

Picture: Panel of the Fire-Clan (front and back)

Three more stone tablets were given to the Bear Clan, because the Bear Clan was supposed to be the leading clan in the fourth world. The symbols on these boards indicate the homeland in which the bear clan was to settle. They are also symbolic references to the leadership of the bear clan and its spiritual function in the cycle of nature.

Picture: The 3 panels of the bear clan (front and back)

 

The magic water jug

Massau, the protective spirit of the Hopi, gave a small water jug to every clan that went on spiritual journeyman's journey. Thus there were ritual water carriers on this wanderings, which were particularly selected for this task. Once at home, this jug should be planted near each village to attract water from the distant sea to provide the Hopi people with inexhaustible water. The knowledge of the power of this jug was probably also a religious pillar that made it possible for the Hopi to establish their homeland patiently and humbly even in the midst of the most inhospitable desert areas.

 

The Lost Big White Brother

In connection with the legends and also the prophecies of the Hopi, the image of the Big White Brother, Pahana, appears again and again, who, when the time is ripe, and also the need of the Hopi people is greatest, will return from the East to his Little Brother. Many legends and stories entwine around this Pahana, who set off a very long time ago, at the time of the great migrations to fulfill his mission and his mission towards the rising sun. The return of Pahanas should be destined to protect the righteousness and innocence of the holy people of Hopi and their holy land, and to cleanse the earth from all the destruction, destructive people and their destructive acts and thoughts. The return of the Pahana is equated with a great purification that will enable a new beginning for the earth and creation and will create a new order of life in which people can again live in loving harmony with the surrounding nature.

The legend of the Big White Brother is a central theme of the prophecies and the peace message of the Hopi, which has been spread around the world for many decades by traditional Hopi speakers to bring people to their senses and call them to a more conscious and loving relationship with themselves and the whole living world.

Image: Mother-Earth Symbols - Labyrinth