Woman Who Became a Horse - Salish
A chief had many horses, and among them a stallion which his wife often
rode. The woman and stallion became enamoured of each other. The woman grewcareless of her household duties and always wanted to look after the horses.
When the people moved camp, and the horses were brought in, it was noticed
that the stallion made right for the woman and sniffed about her as
stallions do with mares. After this she was watched.
When her husband learned the truth, he shot the stallion. The woman cried
and would not go to bed.
At daybreak she was gone, no one knew where. About a year after this it was
discovered that she had gone off with some wild horses. One day when the
people were traveling over a large open place they saw a band of horses, and
the woman among them. She had partly changed into a horse. She also had much
hair on her body, and the hair of her head had grown to resemble a horse's
mane. Her arms and legs had also changed considerably; but her face was
still human, and bore some resemblance to her original self.
The chief sent some young men to chase her. All the wild horses ran away,
but she could not run so fast as they, and was run down and lassoed. She was
brought into her husband's lodge; and the people watched her for some time,
trying to tame her, but she continued to act and whinny like a horse. At
last they let her free. The following year they saw her again. She had
become almost entirely horse, and had a colt by her side. She had many
children afterwards.
Source: Franz Boas, Folk-Tales of Salishan and Sahaptin Tribes = Memoirs of
the American Folk-Lore Society, vol. 11 (Lancaster and New York: AmericanFolk-Lore Society, 1917), p. 53.
From the Archives of Blue Panther
Hi there! I was pleasantly surprised when I loaded this page of your blog. What was the main aim at that moment when you to organize your site?
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DeleteThat is an interesting question, and you, Craving For Knowledge, deserve an answer. I apologize for taking so long to answer. I am not sure how to answer the question, but there is a method or two I use. Many times my spirit is pulled to share particular stories because someone, I know not who, needs to hear the story. This time I remember how strongly I was pulled into a line of connection to post this story to connect someone, I know not who, who needed connection.
The story of the Salish story of the Woman who became a Horse has sides to it that repels, and provokes, and most importantly reveals, and gives expression to primal elements within a soul. It tells of the deeper souls of women with wild spirits unable to be contained by tradition. Those women have always struggled in the West, and more traditional societies. Perhaps the story emboldened a woman wild of spirit and free of expression. I don’t know. I hold the stories and tell what I am told. - Gregory E. Woods, Keeper of Stories
Interesting to me was the way, and the fact that the People released her to be herself at some point. That simple revelation freed everyone. It seemed to have been done, in the end, lovingly and with the sweet exhale of breath.
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