Feb 17, 2023
Painted ceramic jar.
Nampeyo, 1900 - 1915.
seen from Japan
seen from Taiwan
seen from Sweden
seen from United States
seen from Russia
seen from Singapore
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from China
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from China
seen from Spain
seen from Canada
seen from Vietnam
seen from Russia
seen from Japan
seen from Singapore
seen from Germany
seen from Hungary
Painted ceramic jar.
Nampeyo, 1900 - 1915.
Deer Hunter and White Corn Maiden, a Native American Fable Long ago in the San Juan valley, among the Tewa people lived a young man named Deer Hunter and a young woman named White Corn Maiden. Deer hunter was revered because he never came back from a hunt empty handed. White Corn Maiden caught the other’s attention because of her fine pottery and beautiful embroidery.
The beauty of Deer Hunter and White Corn Maiden brought them together. They were favored of the Gods, but the Elders warned them not to become so enraptured with each other that they forgot their people. Against the Elders advice, the two spent more and more time together until Deer hunter stopped hunting and White Corn Maiden abandoned her pottery and embroidery. They forgot their religion and traditions despite warnings that harm would befall the village if they continued in this way.
Their selfishness caused them to pledge that they would never be parted, yet White Corn Maiden fell ill and died three days later. Her soul wandered for four days in order for her to seek forgiveness from those she had wronged in life. Deer Hunter could not accept White Corn Maiden’s death. He sought out her spirit and even though she begged him to let her go, he could not. He pledged his love once more and she relented, and did not allow her spirit and body to leave the mortal world as she was meant to.
Soon, Deer Hunter began to realize that keeping White Corn Maiden in the mortal realm could not last. She began to decay and he soon sought to escape her. White Corn Maiden could not leave him, though, and wasted to bones as she chased after him. The village wasted away along with her just as the Elders had warned.
Seeking to end the torture of the village, a majestic figure with a large bow and two arrows appeared in the village center, calling out for Deer Hunter and White Corn Maiden. When they appeared, he cursed them for their selfishness. Ruin had been brought to the village because of them. Their punishment for abandoning their religion and traditions was to serve as a reminder to the people of the Pueblo for all eternity of how important upholding their traditions and religion was. He placed Deer Hunter on one arrow and shot him into the sky. White Corn Maiden followed after him, both becoming stars that roamed the sky forever, White Corn Maiden eternally chasing behind her husband, yet ever catching him.
My friend, DelSheeree Gladden, bases her story, Twin Souls, on this Native American myth. The story is part of the Gods and Mortals collection and you can pick it up FREE for now on Amazon, iBooks, B&N, Kobo, and GooglePlay. Image credits: Edward S. Curtis Collection