|
Illustrations from the Class of 98-99 | 1999-2000
 We read the Navajo story about the creation of their world. In it the Insect People passed through four separate worlds, but in each world they displeased the gods and were forced to flee through a hole in the sky into the next world. In the Fourth World they met up with the Kisani people (the Pueblo Indians) and the Insect People created the first man & first woman of the Dinè (Navajo people). The Navajo live today in the Fifth World. The traditional boundaries of the Navajo region were marked by four sacred mountains. Students of the class created illustrations of these sacred mountains. These mountains exist today. Sisnaajini is today called Mount Blanca and is in Colorado southwest of Pueblo. Tsoodzil is today called Mount Taylor, west of Albuquerque in New Mexico. Dook'o'oosliid is part of the San Francisco Peaks surrounding the northern edge of Flagstaff, Arizona. Finally, Dibe Ntsaa is today called Hesperus Mountain in the La Plata Mountains of southwest Colorado. (Here is a link to an external site with more information about the Four Sacred Mountains.) 
These mountains are all fastened to the Earth by different things (a lightning bolt, a stone knife, a sunbeam or a rainbow) and are decorated with different items, and they are also home to different peoples. Here are some links to additional Web sites with information on Navajo Religion, a Map of the Navajo Nation, information and pictures of Navajo Sandpainting Textiles, and Navajo History. New links include: Navajo culture and creation story and the Creator of the Universe. We also found information about The Four Directions In Navajo's Life , Symbols of the Navajo Nation illustrating the story of the four sacred mountains, , The Long Walk to Bosque Redondo and an article on the history and culture of the Navajo In Beauty We Walk with links to the history of the Navajo Code Talkers. In the Time of the Old Ones is a WebQuest designed to help students learn more about the Navajo culture using Internet resources.Above you will find links to our students' illustrations of the Navajo creation story. Click on the graphic below to learn more about the Navajo people and their culture today. 
|