The Molting of Tazhanakwa
The Foaba
For thousands upon thousands of years the beings of Gattak - The Island lived in harmony with each other and with Nature, each accepting of their own responsibility in nurturing and protecting all of Creation, each willing to do the work of maintaining balance between all things. During this time, the The Chye were active leaders and teachers within society, venerated for their deep knowledge, and even deeper connection, with Ayuna . They were guides and guardians, reminding the people of what their responsibilities were, teaching them how to nurture and protect, and maintaining the health and vitality of the The Pyka Fuzha , the heart of everything.
Over time, the Muka people began to rely more and more on the Chye to take care of everything, shirking their responsibility in nurturing and protecting Creation, and as their society grew, their knowledge and power grew along with it, and in turn their ingenuity in using Nature to their own advantage, regardless of the consequences. Population increased, connection to Ayuna weakened, and finally the equilibrium of the planet was so unbalanced that great calamity and chaos began to spread throughout the island.
Instead of shocking the people into seeking a reconnection with Ayuna and a recommitment to the work of nurture and protection, this chaos spurred them on into even further destruction and deliberate exploitation of all the natural resources of the island. The Chye worked harder and harder to heal and fix the brokenness, to bring the world back to equilibrium and restore the natural cycles of respect and reciprocity that kept all beings alive and thriving, but eventually even their most diligent efforts were failing.
Tazhanakwa was the The Zhia of the Chye at this time, the high priestess, the one person on Gattak who could go deep enough into communion with Ayuna to survive the The Kohua , the infusion of all of Ayuna's power into the physical world. The Kohua was the greatest gift, and the greatest responsibility given to the Chye by Ayuna at the creation of the world, given along with the directive, passed down over thousands of years, that this infusion was a last resort, that only in the most dire of circumstances should it be invoked, that it would come at great cost to all.
For more than a hundred years the Zhia of the Chye had been debating whether or not it was time for the Kohua. It had never, in all the history of the world, been used before. Was now the time? Was this the end of things and Ayuna's gift was their only hope? Until finally, as black lightning pierced the skies and hungry winds ravaged the land, as the waters roiled and sands quaked, Tazhanakwa knew it was time.
It was time to change the world.
Tazhanakwa, whose Keko was the great Atok, snake of desert and mountain, whose skin is black upon birth, red as it grows, and finally flares the orange of the desert ; the powerful serpent who is born in the dry crags of the highest mountains but upon birth makes its way down into the scorching heat of the high desert, only to travel back up the mountain years later to die. The Atok, whose eyes are bottomless black depths and whose tail is ringed in brilliant shades of dazzling colors; skin made to heal humankind, tail made to bless. Tazhanakwa, whose own name means Great Mother Snake, a beloved leader of her people, a fierce protector of Creation, decided to make of herself the ultimate sacrifice to save her world from utter destruction.
And so she stepped into the Pyka Fuzha and thus was infused with the fullness of Ayuna's power and light. In turn, she infused her Chye with power enough to go out and heal the world, but before they could begin that work, Tazhanakwa made her final act as Zhia of the Chye - the Foaba, the molting.
She became an Atok, orange and red and black, with eyes as dark as coal, and grew, grew until she could curl her body around the The Pyka Fuzha , around Pyktahua. She shed her red-orange skin, laying it upon the land to create desert and field, and then lay down and let her black body become stone, creating mountain and mineral. Her head lies at one end of Pyktahua, spitting the great river into the sea, and her tail lies at the other, providing caves filled with wondrous gems.
And in this sacrifice, Tazhanakwa hid the Chye away from the rest of the world, leaving the people to fend for themselves, leaving them to learn again how to nurture and protect all of Creation as a sacred manifestation of Ayuna. And over time, the Chye slipped into myth, and over more time, they were forgotten completely, left to do their work in secret and silence, to focus their attention on what was most important to do - protecting the heart of the world.
Date of Setting
1fa
Comments