The Tale of Hívuítoví

Blessed be Hívuítoví! May She cleanse your soul.




When Zhíanoso, High God of Fire, created the universe, He gave Hívuítoví’s brother Névazhíno, God of Animals, the task of naming and giving traits to all the animals. Névazhíno proudly set about His job, granting love to the deer, anger to the alligator, mischief to the rat, joy to the marmot, fear to the armadillo, and so on. The names were the easy part; He had infinite names to choose from.

Hívuítoví noticed how quickly Her brother was going through the traits. He didn’t have an unlimited supply of those. She cautioned Névazhíno to be careful not to run out before His task was completed. Névazhíno chuckled at His sister’s comment and went about His business, happy as can be. When He got to the last animal, the man, Névazhíno suddenly realized that He had no traits remaining.

Disappointed, Névazhíno shrugged and walked away. From a distance, Hívuítoví watched the solitary, traitless man. The man, whose name was Sétané, sat on the ground with his arms around his knees, shivering slightly, staring at his feet.

Hívuítoví didn’t know what to do. She wanted to make up for Her brother’s mistake, but Her exceptional skill of bringing rain to fertilize the land wouldn’t help Sétané. She watered the plants so he would not go hungry, but he remained a cold, lonely man even after eating. To top it off, Sétané injured himself while picking apples. Hívuítoví could hear Sétané calling out with his soul, praying for assistance while he sat bleeding from the gaping wound in his leg.

Since Sétané was Zhíanoso’s creation, Sozho, High God of Air, decreed that no god should help him. Zhíanoso was too busy observing His creation to actually get involved. The other gods and goddesses all obeyed Sozho, the King of the Gods.

Hívuítoví, however, couldn’t live with Herself if She did not help Sétané. She heeded his prayer and went to his aid. She healed his injury; She cleansed his soul, making him more sanguine about his situation; but She could not warm him or give him any distinguishing trait.

Hívuítoví decided that Sétané needed fire, to warm him, so She tracked down Zhíanoso and asked Him for some fire. Zhíanoso liked Hívuítoví quite well, and also felt attached to His creation, so He gave the goddess a small horn with a few burning embers inside.

Knowing that Sozho would try to stop Her, Hívuítoví raced back to Sétané and gave him the embers. Sétané thanked Her for the embers and promptly started a fire with collected reeds and branches. The fire not only warmed Sétané’s body, but also his soul. Watching the dancing flames, Sétané started tapping his fingers in a rhythm and then began swaying to his first taste of music. In a few days, he also began cooking his food and constructing a shelter for himself, thanking Hívuítoví all the while.

The King of the Gods was not so pleased as Sétané. Sozho swept down upon Hívuítoví, appearing out His thin air to capture Her and bind Her with thick chains. Hívuítoví did not bother to ask His reasoning, for She knew quite well. She had disobeyed His order to not help the man.

Sozho chained Hívuítoví to a giant boulder and set about an eagle to peck out Her liver every day, which would regrow every night. He declared that this would be Her punishment for all eternity and that no god shall help Her, or else He too would suffer the same fate.

The eagle began eating Hívuítoví’s liver. She screamed out in agony, despite Her attempts to remain calm. Through the excruciating pain, Hívuítoví realized that no one would dare cross Sozho. This would be Her fate until the end of time.

Days disappeared in a haze for Hívuítoví, lost in a blur of misery.

Suddenly, the eagle flew away, chased off by someone. Hívuítoví focused Her eyes on the figure before Her, seeing that this person had the torso of a god and the hindquarters of a horse. As Her chains were broken, Hívuítoví recognized Him as Karané, demigod son of Korutuzho. Karané was a great archer and healer, having taught both arts to many gods, including Sozho. Karané mended Her liver, sealing up Her side, and then urged Her to leave quickly.

They both fled from the boulder, but not before Sozho spotted Them. He jumped in attack, swinging His sword at Hívuítoví with a bellow of rage. Even though Karané did not have a sword, He stepped in to block with His bow. Sozho’s sword shattered Karané’s bow and cut straight through the demigod’s side, killing Him instantly.

Filled with anguish for having killed His mentor, Sozho forgot about chasing Hívuítoví. He took Karané’s body up into the heavens and placed Him in the night sky as the constellation, the Archer. All the gods took a fourday of mourning for Karané’s passing.

Soon thereafter, Hívuítoví married Zhíanoso. For a wedding present, Hívuítoví asked Her new husband to give the solitary man a wife, as well. Zhíanoso agreed. He put Sétané into a deep sleep and excised a rib from the man, from which He created the first woman. Hívuítoví’s brother Névazhíno named her Vétaurosí.

Sétané awoke to see Vétaurosí, who greeted him fondly. Hívuítoví blessed their wedlock and they consummated their union. Vétaurosí bore several children, thus creating the human race.

As a wedding gift, Hívo, God of Clean Water, gave the first humans a small, sealed clay jar, instructing them to never open it. Névazhíno told them to go ahead and open it, since what use is a sealed jar? Hívuítoví, on the other hand, warned the humans to heed Hívo’s warning. The water god must have good reason for telling them to keep it closed.

It seemed as if Sétané and Vétaurosí listened to Hívuítoví, so She returned home with Zhíanoso. Névazhíno, however, wanted to see what was in the clay jar, so He transformed Himself into a snake to approach the humans again. By portraying Himself as a second person arguing for opening the jar, Névazhíno convinced Vétaurosí to break the seal.

The instant the jar opened, a swirl of evil erupted into the world. Hate, jealousy, pride, shame, greed, laziness, and gluttony flowed from the tiny jar, infecting the humans and their offspring. Until that time, the humans had walked naked, but with shame, they hastily affixed leaves to their bodies. When Zhíanoso accepted Sétané and Vétaurosí’s second son’s offering before their eldest son’s sacrifice, the eldest became enraged and murdered his brother. Evil permeated all.

At the bottom of the jar, nearly crushed to extinction by the weight of the evil, lay a weak wisp of hope. Hívuítoví coaxed the hope from the jar, breathed fresh life into it, and set it aflight into the world to counter the evil. To this day, Hívuítoví traverses the world, renewing hope wherever evil seems to have overcome it.

It is from Hívuítoví’s cleansing rain that evil is washed from our souls. It is from Hívuítoví’s cleansing rain that the land and women are made fertile. It is from Hívuítoví’s example that we learn to plan ahead and heed warnings. It is from Hívuítoví’s example that we learn to care for others, despite evil directives to the contrary.

So, pray to Hívuítoví! Pray to Her for the well-being of your soul. Pray to Her for hope and the conquering of evil. Pray to Hívuítoví, and She shall wash you clean.