Nanabozho/Nanabush Stories

The following are some of the many Ojibwa stories about Nanabush found at this site http://www.geocities.com/yosemite/gorge/1066/513ojibwa.htm. Here is one story regarding creation and Nanabush/Nanabozho.

In the beginning, as the Ojibwa story tellers say, the world in which we live did not exist.

Kitchi Manitou, the Great Spirit, had a dream in which he saw a world made of mountains and valleys, lakes and streams, plants and animals, and people. In his wisdom Kitchi Manitou realized that he was to bring these things into being.

He created a world made of four primary elements;

rock, water, fire and wind:

To the sun he gave the power to heat and light the earth,

To the earth he gave the power of growth and healing,

To the water he gave purity and renewal,

To the wind he gave music and the breath of life itself,

After these things Kitchi Manitou created human kind.

To them he gave the power of dream.

As the world was new, the Ojibwa people had much to learn and Kitchi Manitou took pity on them and sent them a teacher, Nanabush.

Nanabush was the son of a human mother and the West Wind spirit father. He was sent to earth to teach his people about the healing plants, about kindness, generosity, and honesty. One of Nanabush's first tasks was to name the trees, the waters, the mountains, the animals, the birds and the plants.

Nanabush had powerful magic to give special powers or attributes to the animals and plants. Nanabush was also a Trickster, bent on making humans look silly (although his own jokes often backfired on him). As a Trickster, he could change form and take the shape of an animal. The one distinguishing feature of Nanabush when he was in human form, as drawn on rocks and carved in stone by the Ojibwa, was his rabbit-like ears.

To read some more Nanabush stories go here...
http://www.geocities.com/yosemite/gorge/1066/513ojibwa.htm