CREATION STORY OF THE MAIDA

IN THE BEGINNING THERE WAS NO SUN, MOON, OR STARS. THERE WAS NO LIGHT BUT EVERYWHERE THERE WAS WATER. A RAFT CAME FLOATING ON THE WATER AND THERE WERE TWO PEOPLE - TURTLE AND PEHE-IPE. THEY FLOWED DOWN A STREAM AND A ROPE OF FEATHERS FROM THE SKY CALLED POKELMA CAME DOWN FROM EARTH-INITIATE. WHEN HE REACHED THE END OF THE ROPE, HE TIED IT TO THE BOW OF THE RAFT. HIS BODY SHOWN LIKE THE SUN AND HE SAT FOR A LONG TIME. TURTLE ASKED "WHERE DO YOU COME FROM?" AND EARTH INITIATE ANSWERED "I COME FROM ABOVE". TURTLE ASKED IF HE COULD MAKE SOME DRY LAND SO THAT HE COULD COME OUT OF THE WATER. THEY HAD A CHAT ABOUT IF PEOPLE WERE GOING TO BE COMING TO THE EARTH. EARTH-INITIATE SAID YES! TURTLE DECIDED TO DIVE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA SO AS TO BRING BACK SOME EARTH.

HE WAS GONE FOR OVER 6 YEARS. WHEN TURTLE CAME UP FROM THE SEA HE ONLY HAD SOME MUD UNDER HIS NAILS. HE SCRAPED THIS MUD INTO A BALL AND LAID IT ON THE RAFT. WHEN HE LOOKED AT IT A SECOND TIME IT HAD NOT GROWN. THE THIRD TIME HE LOOKED AT IT, IT HAD GROWN SO THAT IT WAS LARGER THAN THE SPAN OF HIS ARMS. THE FOURTH TIME HE LOOKED AT IT IT WAS AS BIG AS THE WORLD. AND ALL AROUND WERE MOUNTAINS AS FAR AS HE COULD SEE. THEIR RAFT CAME ASHORE AT TADOIKO WHICH CAN BE SEEN TODAY.


THIS IS A DREAM LIKE CREATION MYTH. PEHE-IPE MEANS FATHER OF THE SECRET SOCIETY.

MALCOLM MARGOLIN