The Coyote

It appears in very diverse roles in the central, southwest and western plains of the country. He has different roles, as a creator, trickster, lover and magician. Sometimes, especially in the stories of the tribes of the Great Plains, Coyote appears as the representation of a strong desire and of all potential vices. In many stories, he appears as cruel, deceitful and licentious, seducing his own daughter or grandmother with deceits.

Known for its glutony, the coyote can eat any kind of animal or plant. A preferred motive in the stories is its transformation into a plate, to be able to receive the food that people put in.

He is also depicted as a selfish fool who tries to deceive animals. It almost turns him into a monster because of his lack of pity and ingratitude towards those who help him. In other accounts, however, he is presented as a powerful magician who harmonizes the world and brings significant benefits to humanity. These benefits are often less the result of their own altruism than the indirect result of efforts to satisfy their own selfish appetite.

The Giant and the Coyote

One of the most famous characters in Native American mythology is the coyote. We find him in a variety of roles: creator, cultural hero, trickster, wizard, and lover in the central, southwest and west plains. The character of the coyote, a member of the canine family that stretches from Alaska to Costa Rica, reflects its prominence as spirit and deception. He is quick and clever and can eat any kind of animal or plant. To attract the chariots and devour them, he pretends to be dead. The following Navajo myth perfectly demonstrates the skill of the coyote.

For a long time, giants eager to devour children were spreading across the earth. One day, as he walked through a rocky area, the Coyote stumbled upon one of them and decided to give him a lesson on his cruelty. By promising to make him as agile as he was, he convinced the monster, who was very stupid, to help him build a pavilion for sweat baths. After the dark interior was filled with steam, the Coyote informed him that he would perform a feat: cut off a leg and repair it. He grabbed a stone and struck with force a deer-capped leg that he had hidden in the pavilion, until it broke with a crush. The huge animal touched her broken leg and, deceived, heard the Coyote spit on her and shout, "Oh, leg!" When he touched the Coyote's real leg, the giant was surprised to see it intact. The Coyote offered to do the miracle with the giant's leg, but the monster accepted and shouted in pain when the Coyote struck him with the stone.

She broke up soon and the Coyote told her that I just had to spit on her to fix the problem. The giant spit until his mouth became dry, but the pain remained unbearable for him. In the end, he asked for help. The Coyote advised the child-eater to keep spitting and left the room, leaving the animal in pain.

Coyote is believed to have great creative abilities, according to other myths: In the navel interpretation of the myth about the appearance of tribes, three creative characters are mentioned: the First Man, the First Woman and the Coyote. According to the narrative, after leaving four underground worlds and reaching this one, the Coyote brought seeds from the fourth world and delivered them to the different tribes as they were created.