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Once, long ago, in the time of the ancestors, people had refused to care for the Dead, and the earth was filled with ghosts who committed every kind of mischief. Finally, in desperation, the ghosts had appealed to First Man, explaining their plight.
First Man heard their plaintive cries and sent his twin brother, Many Colored Crow, to help them. In those days, Crow possessed feathers so bright they made the painted bunting look dull and lusterless.
Many Colored Crow walked across the land, telling the people about the dead and their troubles. He explained that if the people would honor and care for their ancestors, the Spirits would reciprocate. They would help the living by bringing messages from the Spirit World. The ghosts would cease harming people and quit playing tricks on them. Everything would be better.
The people heard the words of Many Colored Crow and began to care for the Dead. But so many ghosts walked the land that Many Colored Crow had to do something more. He had been passing through the forest when he found a high hill. Around the base of the hill, he gathered piles of dry brush. Then he climbed to the top and built a fire in a clay pot. He prayed for four days, Singing to the four sacred directions, and the ghosts heard. They came from all over the world to see what Many Colored Crow was doing. On the day of the winter solstice, all the ghosts had finally arrived.
At last, one of the ghosts - a warrior who had died in battle and whose body had been cut up - asked Many Colored Crow, "What are you doing up here on top of this mountain, Singing and Dancing? We have all come to see."
Many Colored Crow raised his hands to the morning sun, saying, "I have brought you here to Sing you to the Land of the Dead. But you cannot go as you are now. You are full of anger, trouble, and evil. You must be cleansed of this before I Sing you to the Land of the Dead."
And saying that, Many Colored Crow picked up the pot with the fire burning inside it and and whirled it around his head, scattering the burning embers into the dry brush. The brush instantly caught fire, and the whole mountain was engulfed in flames. The ghosts cried out and tried to escape, but the fire completely surrounded them. In the end, all that remained were ashes. These, Many Colored Crow collected and carried with him to the Land of the Dead, where the souls were finally freed. All the wickedness had been burned away.
In the process, however, Many Colored Crow's brilliant feather colors had vanished, all of them burned a deep black - which is why, to this day, Crow has black feathers.This legend is from the Hopewell Culture, the Mound Builders of the Great Lakes area. From: People of the Lakes by Kathleen O'Neal Gear and W. Michael Gear
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