The First Cowichan Peoples: Those Who Fell From the Sky as told by Cowichan Elders (part 1)

Just as the record of evidence from archeological remains attests to the ancient world of the Cowichan peoples, so do the time-honoured stories passed down from generation to generation by elders charged with preserving the memory of their venerable ancestors who fell from the sky. Perhaps older than many of the oldest shell middens that mark places of ancient habitation, the stories about the first Cowichan peoples reach into the very mists of time. These oral traditions record memories that surpass all physical artifacts in age.

Before there was anybody and long before the great flood had swept through the Cowichan world, there appeared twelve separate human beings who fell from the heavens to populate this pristine and untouched wildnerness. The very first sky-man that was sent plummeting to the earth was a gifted soul by the name of Syalutsa. This first man always carried a special painted stick by which he destroyed monsters and healed the sick. He with his brothers constructed the first fish weirs (Shhetl) on the Cowichan River and made the very first deer traps by weaving strong cedar ropes.

It was Syalutsa who inaugurated the practice of distributing gifts to invited guests, such as furs and coats, from atop a specially constructed scaffold. He enacted this practice as a strict law to be followed for all time, and this is why it is still performed amongst the Cowichan peoples today. It was also Syalutsa who taught the winter dance and the time of year in which the ceremony was to be practiced. Syalutsa was the first to make intimate contact with the spirits through the medium of water. In Cowichan cosmology there existed many spirits which were friendly, but also those that were fierce with the ability to destroy at will.

The practice of bathing in the many streams, rivers and lakes of the Cowichan watershed is a means of gaining s'yuw'un or special spirit power. Bathing in cool waters while facing east became a daily ritual, where homage was given to the creator and one's inner strength and awareness of surroundings increased. Bathing is still practiced to this day in order to cleanse the spiritin preparation for the daily challenges of life. While anyone might attain inner strength in this way, there are those who have used these rituals to seek out specific spirit powers of ponds, lakes and streams.

Part 2 cont...