The Myth Of The Sacred Land, A Nahuatle Legend

The myth of the sacred land tells us that a long time ago, when the world was just beginning to form, a very noble and courageous woman got pregnant. She wanted to be a mother with all her soul. She loved life, but she lived in a desert place where food and water were scarce.

The myth of the sacred land tells us that one night when the moon was full and bright, the woman gave birth to a beautiful, healthy child. Nevertheless, the latter cried a lot. The mother tried to feed him, but the baby could not get milk from his mother’s breast. He then continued to cry.

The woman stroked and walked her child, but the baby did not calm down. As she watched her child carefully, she realized that on her belly was drawn a well of water. Fearing that her child had been the victim of witchcraft, she asked a friend of hers to go find a famous healer so that the latter could help her.

The myth of the sacred land: a strange evil

The mother’s friend walked for a whole day until she found the hut in which the healer lived. She told him that her friend’s child had just been born but he kept crying.

She also told him about the strange drawing that was on the child’s stomach and the fear of the mother who thought it was a curse. The healer thought for a long time, then she packed her things and asked the woman to lead her to where the child was.

The two women arrived exhausted. From afar, they could hear the child’s crying which did not cease. The healer approached the little one and carefully examined his stomach. She then consulted the spirits; the latter told him that, as long as the inhabitants did not dig a well in the village, the child would not be able to calm down. The healer transmitted the message to the mother of the child and the latter transmitted the message to the other families.

The myth of the sacred land tells us that the next day all the families got down to digging a well. They didn’t know how to do it, but the healer did. The latter therefore guided them in their task and, a few days later, all the inhabitants saw water gushing out of the well. It was then necessary to burn incense near the child. At the end of the ritual, the well drawn on the child’s belly had disappeared.

A new surprise

The healer spent the night in the village. The child slept peacefully until early morning, but when he woke up he started to cry again. The mother hastened to join her child: once near him, she noticed that small fruits and vegetables were drawn on her arms. So she immediately called the healer who carefully observed the new designs appearing on the child’s body.

After carefully examining the child, the healer announced that all the villagers should prepare the land and plant fruits and vegetables in the village. Otherwise, the child would continue to cry. He might even get sick to the point of eventually dying.

All the inhabitants of the village followed the indications of the healer. As they prepared the land, the child calmed down. When they started to plant the fruits and vegetables, the child hardly cried any more. The myth of the sacred land tells us that the healer left and promised to come back in a few months to see how things were going.

An important lesson

After a few months, the healer remembered her promise. So she packed her things and returned to the village which had now become a beautiful place filled with fruit trees and beautiful seedlings. She had never seen such a change, she was surprised. However, as she went deeper into the village, she heard the child’s crying.

When she found the mother of the child, the latter told her that the little one had been calm for a long time, but that, for the last two days, he had started crying again and no one knew why. She had looked at her child’s body and no new drawings had appeared.

The healer also examined the child very carefully and found nothing either. She therefore consulted the spirits again. The next day, the healer told all the inhabitants what the spirits had revealed to her.

According to the sacred land myth, the healer walked up to the villagers and told them that they had to make a pact with mother earth. The child had come into the world to teach them that they should not bring a new life on earth if the conditions to preserve the well-being of this new life were not met. All were to promise that they would always ensure that there was water and that the land was fertile in order to allow life. It was so and the child grew up healthy and happy.

Our thoughts

The legend of the Astur wolf is associated with the Inuit. This is a story about balance. Find out more about this legend here.