Migizi the Eagle

A Story Told by the Ojibwe Retold by Kristin Raphaela Otti

A long, long time ago, when the hearts of our ancestors had frozen and were ruled by hate and greed, their eyes could no longer see the beauty of creation and the gifts and wonders in the world around them. They had made a habit of taking more than they needed, pillaging the lands, the waters and the mountains, taking the lives of their brothers and sisters, giving jealous breath to lies turning words meant to heal into venom eating their hearts bit by bit.  
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“The human world is shrouded in a dark night and your eyes are used to the light of the sun. How are you to see?” Migizi answered without thinking, “My heart will be my eyes.”

And so it happened, that the guardians of the lands, the mountains, the seas, the winds and the volcanoes, gathered in the east and held council, talking about, how the humans had lost direction and were wandering astray far from their hearts.  In the south, the spirits of the plants, the trees, the herbs and the flowers, gathered and spoke about how their voices of healing wisdom were met by ears that had become deaf to the world around them. At the same time, the animal spirits gathered in the west, talking about how they were being hunted for pleasure and not survival and about how their medicines were no longer being honored but simply taken by force and used in darkness. The Council of Creation gathered and listened to the guardians, the spirits of the plants and the animal spirits. They decided, that there was no love left in the hearts of humankind and that humanity had to be changed forever. 

​Migizi the Eagle had been listening and watching carefully and felt his heart grow heavy with sorrow. He stepped forward and said, “Please wait! My heart says, that there is still love in the world and that not all has been lost. Let me prove it to you and find it! I can fly higher than any other being and my eyes see farther than any other pair of eyes in creation! Please, let me fly out there and prove to you, that not all is lost.”

​The Council of Creation pondered Migizi’s words and replied, “The human world is shrouded in a dark night and your eyes are used to the light of the sun. How are you to see?” Migizi answered without thinking, “My heart will be my eyes.” The Council of Creation said, “We will give you four days to find proof of love in the heart of man and that they deserve to be part of this world.”

"Eagle Reborn", white pastels, Kristin Raphaela Otti (2023)

When the sun rose on the first day, Migizi took off and flew into the eastern lands. He was sure, that he would soon find proof and be able to return to the Council of Creation with glad tidings. He soared higher and higher, but he could see nothing but hearts that had lost the ability to listen to their own songs and were heavy with envy and jealousy.  ​

"White Eagle", white pastels, Kristin Raphaela Otti (2023)

After the sun had set, he returned to the Council and said, “I have not found any proof today, but tomorrow I will fly even higher than I did today.”
 
When the second day was dawning, Migizi took off again and flew in the southern direction. He flew higher and higher, but all he could see from above were hearts mercilessly waging war against one another. Desperately he flew even higher, only to watch the wars spreading in all four directions. He could not find any proof of love and he returned to the Council of Creation, his heart filled with sadness.

When the morning sun rose on the third day, Migizi sighed. He did not want to fly out into the world, but he had taken on a task and given his word. He would honor it. He took off and flew in the western direction. He decided to fly even higher than before, looking as far as he could, but again, he only saw darkness and sickness in the hearts of man. He returned to the Council of Creation, when the night fell. “I could not find any proof of love in the heart of humankind today either.” The Council said, “You have but one more day.”
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“Please wait! Grandmother has told me, that whenever we take a life, we must honor that life. It is our responsibility as people not only to take, but also to provide and give.”

 
When the sun rose on the fourth and last morning, Migizi felt tired. He took off and flew towards the northern lands. He did not fly as high as before, but near the ground and when the short winter day ended, he decided to keep on flying for some time despite feeling hopeless. His eyes were not used to the darkness and when he first saw a fire in the distance, he thought that his eyes had played a trick on him. When his sight cleared, he got curious and flew towards the fire.

He saw a young boy and his father, two hunters. The young boy had just killed his first deer and taken a life. When the father wanted to start cleaning the animal, the boy said, “Please wait! Grandmother has told me, that whenever we take a life, we must honor that life. It is our responsibility as people not only to take, but also to provide and give.” The boy held up a leather pouch. “Grandmother has given us a gift of tobacco.” The father nodded and began to smile. Then he took out the tobacco, said a prayer and put it into the fire.

​Migizi let out a scream and flying faster than he ever had, he headed back to the Council of Creation. Happily and excitedly, he screamed, “Look, look! There is still some love and compassion in the hearts of humankind!” The Council of Creation agreed and that day, Migizi the Eagle became the bearer of messages, prayers and visions.

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Find more stories on Kristin's YouTube channel "Winterfire"

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