SAN FRANCISCO PEAKS
             Near Flagstaff,  AZ

               Source: Unknown

   In the beginning there was endless space, in 
   which nothing existed but Tawa, the sun 
   spirit, who contrived to gather some of the 
   elements of space and inject some of his own 
   substance to create the First World, inhabited 
   largely by insect creatures which lived in 
   dark caves and fought among themselves. Tawa 
   sent a new spirit, Grandmother Spider, down to 
   prepare them for a long trip. She led them on 
   a long journey during which they changed form, 
   grew fur on their bodies, acquired tails, and 
   took the shapes of dogs, wolves and bears. 
   They arrived at the Second World, but Tawa was 
   still displeased, for the creatures did not 
   understand the meaning of life any more than 
   their predecessors had. So Grandmother Spider 
   was dispatched again, and while she led them 
   on their second journey, Tawa created a Third 
   World, lighter and moist. By the time they 
   arrived in the Third World, they had become 
   people. Spider Grandmother cautioned them to 
   renounce evil and live in harmony.

   They built villages and planted corn. But it 
   was cold. Again, Spider Grandmother arrived; 
   she taught them how to weave and make pots. 
   But the pots could not be baked and the corn 
   did not grow well because of the chill. One 
   day the hummingbird arrived, explaining that 
   he had been sent by Masauwu, who lived yet 
   another world above the sky called the Upper 
   World, and he was the owner of fire. The 
   hummingbird taught the people to make fire 
   with a drill and left.

   They learned to bake the pottery so it 
   wouldn't break; they warmed the fields by 
   lighting fires; they cooked their meat instead 
   of eating it raw. Things were better in the 
   Third World now.

   But soon sorcerers (powakus) began to unleash 
   evil in the world, making medicines that would 
   harm people and turn their minds from virtue. 
   Men gambled instead of tending their fields. 
   One account tells that Grandmother Spider came 
   again, to warn them, telling them that they 
   should leave this world and go to the 
   Upperworld.  Another account says that a wise 
   chief prayed for four days and asked the 
   birds, the mockingbird, the canary, the eagle, 
   the hawk, the swallow and finally the shrike 
   who flew up into the opening and out the other 
   side where it was a better, brighter world. 
   The shrike returned with the news.

   Some say that a boy who reminded them of a 
   chipmunk planted a "fir-pine", then a "long 
   needle-pine", and finally a bamboo stalk.  
   Again the birds flew to the top of the tree 
   and after finding the way up to the top, told
   the people that they could climb up the inside 
   of the stalk to reach the Fourth World.

   There was a lot of work to be done to make the
   Fourth World inhabitable, it seems, and by one
   account it was Grandmother Spider who created
   the Twin Peaks (San Francisco Peaks). The
   peaks are considered by many to be one of the 
   homes of the Kachina's, the spirit essence of 
   everything in the real world.