Kokopelli

Kokopelli, the mythical hump-backed flute player of rock-art origin, served the Hopi, Zuni, Anasazi and other Indian cultures as a symbol of courtship, fertility and peaceful trade. His likeness can be found in the petroglyhs dating back 3,000 years ago. Hopi legend tells us that upon their entrance onto this, the fourth world, the Hopi people were met by an Eagle who shot an arrow into the two "mahus," insects which carried the power of heat. They immediately began playing such uplifting melodies on their flutes that they healed their own pierced bodies. The Hopi then began their separate migrations and each "mahu" would scatter seeds of fruits and vegetables onto the barren land. Over them, each played his flute to bring warmth and make the seeds grow. His name -- KOKO for wood and Pilau for hump (which was the bag of seeds he always carried)-- was given to him on this long journey. It is said that he draws that heat from the center of the Earth. He has come down to us as the loving spirit of fertility -- of the Earth and humanity. His invisible presence is felt whenever life come forth from seed -- plants or animals.