NUMIK: THE FIRST NEWFOUNDLANDER

Numik, The First Newfoundlander

NEWFOUNDLAND LEGEND ABOUT FIRST MOTHER EARTH STORYTELLER 

The Great Spirit stopped the large ice fields from creeping over the frozen, distant island located at the end of the ocean. After the mountains of ice went away creatures did not returned to the rocky island at the end of the world. The Great Spirit asked Glosscap, his spirit world helper, to arrange for different creatures to inhabit the place where the sand blows, that large island at the end of the world. Glosscap tried several times to keep creatures alive on the island. He first sent eel, walrus, seal, salmon, mussels and other water creatures but the waters around the island were still too cold from the melted ice and they perished within an eye-blink. Next he sent different birds, bear, beaver, caribou and other land creatures but there was nothing for them to eat; no grasses, scrubs, or small trees. All the animals perished within several moons except one. That creature left alive on the island was none other than “Niskan tal Mumin” who is spirit bear of the People. Unknown to Glosscap, the Great Spirit have sent Niskan tal Mumin to this remote place as an observer to find out first hand why living creatures could not survive on that faraway island nearly at the end of the universe where the natural world and the spirit world meet. Some call that sacred place the “crack between worlds “ but nothing else will be mentioned here about that particular place because this is another story.

 Niskan, the Spirit Bear, reported back to Great Spirit that no living creature could survive on the island until Mother Earth warmed herself, thereby allowing grasses, trees and other plant life to start growing on that distant island. Only then could living creatures, especially the People, survive in that place so remote from where the People currently lived with Mother Earth.  Glosscap was disappointed about the apparent failure of his latest venture; he would have to try something else in order to have the island inhabited with living creatures. He promised himself that next time things would work out so that Great Spirit would be proud of his accomplishment.  

A long, long time passed and the isolated island at the end of the world began to show signs of life because Mother Earth started to warm herself by basking in the sun that now showed itself each day. Grasses, flowers, and other scrubs began to flourish all over the island. Soon afterwards a small assortment of different type trees began to grow. It was soon time to introduce insects and animals and shortly afterwards the People to the isolated island haven located at the end of the world. 

Glosscap was somewhat hesitant to try sending more insects, animals and then People to the island. He had failed several times in the past and Great Spirit only gave so many chances before using someone else to complete a special assignment. Glosscap believed that he needed help to solve this problem so he went to visit Niskan tal Murnin in his den one cold, winter night. He recalled that long, long ago Spirit Bear had spent time in that faraway place. Niskan was a little upset from been awaken during his winter slumber but Glosscap was an old friend with a problem so Niskan welcomed Glosscap into his winter den. 

Niskan told Glosscap that the solution to his problem was very simple. All that was needed was a special person to lead all the creatures at the same time across the sea to that land at the end of the world. For simplicity sake every creature, along with the different groups of People, would travel on a great pan of winter ice. The chosen leader had to be very agile and persistent because keeping all those different creatures together while crossing the sea on a single ice pan could result in a lot of different problems. After much discussion, Glosscap with the help of Niskan tal Murnin, came up with a failure proof plan that would help get all the different creatures and many different families of People to that distant place.

 Glosscap, with the help of Niskan tal Murnin, would turn into a human and disguise himself as one of the People. This Glosscap like person would lead the group across the sea; Glosscap named this newly made leader “Numik” which literally means the eyes and ears of the people. Glosscap figured that Numik would need exceptional sensory perception; perfect hearing like Niskan, the Spirit Bear and faraway vision like Gitpu, the Spirit Eagle. Numik would also have advanced sensory perceptions for touch, smell and taste. Glosscap also gave Numik a generous spirit, one that was compassionate and kind. He also placed in Numik’s memory all the stories and legends of the People. Not only would Numik become the leader of his people but also their top storyteller. The knowledge entrusted with Numik could be passed on to the People by Numik at appropriate times in their new home across the sea. All these special, spirit derived traits would be necessary to a leader with the momentous task of leading a large group of different animals and people across an ocean on a large ice pan.

Numik, with the help of Great Spirit, assembled on the ice pan all the different creatures and many couples of People. Immediately they encountered their first problem.  All the creatures and People including Numik had gathered on one section of the very large ice pan. This caused the ice pan to tilt very dangerously in one direction. Numik, because of his special powers bestowed on him by Glosscap and Niskan, quickly came up with a solution. He separated the people and creatures making them all spread out equally to different sections of the ice pan. Each section now held some people and at least one set of each creature that was present. 

The next problem created by separating the big group was that Numik could only be in one place at a time and all the different groups of people and creatures want Numik to be with their group. Confusion was rampart throughout the entire ice pan with every section crying out for Numik to come with them. Glosscap, who was watching at a distance [because he wanted everything to work out just right] quickly came up with a solution. He thought that if each group had their own Numik things would work out and the different groups would settle down in their section of the large ice pan waiting for the right wind to start blowing towards that distant island far out at the end of the sea. He quickly conjured up many, many Numiks, one for each group. Each new Numik had exactly the same powers and disposition as the original Numik. The ice pan was so large that each group could not see anything else except their own immediate surroundings so that only Glosscap, and of course Great Spirit, knew about the many, many Numiks. Maybe Niskan tal Mumin, the spirit bear of the People also knew about the Numiks; but bears are very secretive beings and it is not certain if Bear Spirit knew for sure. 

Later that night, while everyone was asleep, the Great Spirit created a very, very strong wind that billowed in the direction of the distant island. The large ice pan started to gradually move away from the safely of shore into the deep, cold waters of the sea. Now that the creatures and different groups of People were dispersed over all the large ice pan all that wind was not needed to move the ice pan forward. The result was that the ice pan with its treasure of sleeping travellers moved at extremely dangerous speed into the huge waves created by the big wind. The ice pan started to break up into smaller pieces. Throughout the night all sections of the ice pan containing both creatures and People were separated from one another; each with its own Numik. Different groups had different experiences that night; many did not survive the cold, dangerous sea. It is not exactly known how many different groups made it safely to some landform. But it is known that one group with the help of Glosscap, made landfall on that sandy, rocky island at the end of the world because their descendants still live there today.

 If you come to visit that far away island at the end of the large ocean you will hear stories from the descendants of that very first Numik who passed on all that he was told by Glosscap many, many years ago. Glosscap, Niskan and of course Great Spirit are still living nearby in the spirit world just on the other side of the crack between the two worlds.

Written by Elder Eagle Catcher:For (Ancient Spirit of the white Wolf) December 22, 2012