The Navajo Twins and Their Old World
Counterparts
 The Navajo Twins also evoke
Amphion and Zethos, the builders of the walls of Thebes, in Greek mythology.
Amphion was rough and brutal and gigantic like Slayer-of-alien-gods, whereas
Zethos was slight, gentle and charming like Child-of-the-waters. The elder
twin was born "somewhat precipitately, to the sound of thunder", whereas
the younger one was born "mildly to the accompaniment of gentle thunder".
Their exploits are also treated
in far more detail in those of their counterparts among the South American
Indians. There, the twins are called Nanderikey and Tiviry by the Apapocuva
Guarani, names that mean, respectively "Our Lord" and "Twin". The Twins
are also worshipped by the other South American Indians, who call them
by equivalent names.
As we said above, some tribes
make the second Twin a female, as is the case of Jurupari and Romi Kumu.
These two are, respectively, the Great Father and the Great Mother of the
Barasana Indians. Among other Brazilian tribes, for instance the Ava-Katu-Etê
and the Aché, the Twins are identified to the Sun and the Moon,
and are actually called Kuaray ("Sun") and Yacy ("Moon").
The Primordial Couple of
the Barasana Indians of Brazil also closely recalls Yama and Yami, their
Hindu equivalents and archetypes. These names mean, respectively, "Male
Twin" and "Female Twin", and their myth and role is highly complex in Indian
mythology. An even closer parallel with the Barasana Twins is afforded
by Shiva and Brahma. Both gods end up by being castrated, like Romi Kumu
and Jurupari. This event takes place repeatedly in different occasions,
during which, in alternation, one of the Twins plays the female to the
other Twin. In this way they engender Humanity and, indeed the whole of
Creation.
Even in Christianism, things
apparently accord to this scheme. The figure of Christ s twin is often
the one of the Beloved Disciple. This personage is often confused with St.
John the Baptist, with St. John the Evangelist, with Thomas Dydimus ("twin
Twin") or even Judas and Mary the Magdalene. For instance, in Gnostic figurations
such as the famous one of Leonardo da Vinci, St. John the Baptist is traditionally
painted as an androgynous personage, charming and effeminate.
As we point out elsewhere,
the "twin" figures of John and Christ, and the peculiar circunstances attending
their engendering, their birth and their childhood were copied verbatim
from the Hindu Gospels of Krishna and Balarama. Even the puzzling detail
which the Hindus call
samkarshana the mysterious trading of wombs
from one Virgin Mother to the other is not lacking in the Christian version.
Actually, these mysterious events are allegories of the Paradisial events
having to do with the Mass (Missa) and the Messias, as discussed
in the previous footnote. But this theme cannot be treated
in more detail here, for certain things may not yet be disclosed.
The Six Veils of Amerindian Myths
The Navajo Twins were born
in a mysterious spot, covered by six successive veils: darkness; the blues
skies; dusk, dawn, mirage and heat. They were reared by the doorkeepers
of Changing Woman, Bear Man and Rattlesnake Man. These two doorkeepers
apparently correspond to the Polar Constellations of the Lesser Bear and
Draco, whereas Changing Woman herself corresponds to Lyra, the third Polar
Constellation, which is the female counterpart of the other two, both males.
But we should never forget
that the Celestial constellations, just as the personifications of the
Heroes and Gods are no more than allegories, symbols and metaphors that
stand for an ulterior Reality. This is a complex subject, whose discussion
does not fit here, and which has been examined by us elsewhere. It has
to do with the alternation of the Eras of Mankind and the sharing of the
single phallus between the two deities, who trade roles and sex this way.
Of course, the stellar images
are just allegorical, as indeed are the personifications and the luni-solar
avatars of both Gods and Heroes. All such, are indeed personifications
of nations, races and peoples that fashioned human history and are considered
to be our mythical Ancestors. More exactly still, the Twins personify the
twin Atlantises, the two Paradises where humanity originally arose and
evolved, becoming civilized, and reaching a spiritual and technical development
that we are still, despite all our arrogance, incapable of even dreaming
about. When we grow up as much as they did, we can perhaps become gods
and angels, as Pythagoras said we could.
The Mysterious Exploits of the Navajo
Twins
Navajo Twins are usually
referred to as Firstborn and Secondborn, a standard designation of the
Twins everywhere. Soon after their birth they grew up in a few days
the Twins set out to search for their father, the Sun, in order to be granted
powers. Their way is long and difficult, and fraught with dangers posed
by all sorts of monsters and perils, which they conquer.
This tale closely resembles
the one of the Mayan Twins, told in the
Popol Vuh, concerning their
return to Xibalba, the mysterious Land of the Dead. The Land of the Dead
is indeed Paradise Destroyed and, more exactly still, sunken Atlantis,
the former Island of the Sun. In order to get there, the Twins rode a rainbow,
which magically transported them across the skies.
Successively, the Twins meet
Spider Woman, Clashing Rocks, Cutting Reeds, Burying-sand-dune, and finally
reach the Sun s house. There they are resisted by the Four Guardians: Bear,
Rattlesnake, Wind, and Thunder, who are appeased when they state their
respective names. The Sun, at first, fails to acknowledge the Twins as
his own children, and attempts to kill them. But after several unsuccessful
attempts, the Sun finally recognizes his children in the two valiant boys.
He renders them invisible and immortal, "after his own image", rendering
them "holy forever".
The Twins as Monster-Killing Heroes
The Sun also gives his sons
lightning bolts for weapons.
|
