In the annals of indigenous storytelling, myths and legends often serve as explanations for the natural world, human behavior, and the origins of life’s inevitable realities. One such tale, originating from the Klamath people of the Pacific Northwest, specifically the Modoc tribe, recounts the arrival of old age into the world. This narrative, imbued with elements of morality, consequence, and the inescapable passage of time, provides a fascinating glimpse into the worldview of a culture deeply connected to its environment and its spiritual beliefs. The story of How Old Age Came Into the World is not merely a recounting of events; it is a lesson, a cautionary tale, and a reflection on the nature of existence itself.
Once, upon a solitary mountain, lived five brothers and their sister. Their existence was marred by violence; the brothers were notorious for their ruthless killings, terrorizing the surrounding lands. The sister, in stark contrast to her brothers’ brutality, fulfilled the traditional role of caretaker. She gathered wood, prepared the game her brothers hunted, and maintained the domestic sphere. However, a pivotal moment arrived when the time came for her maturity dance, a significant rite of passage in many indigenous cultures. The dance symbolized her transition into womanhood and her readiness for marriage.
Distressed by the lack of community due to her brothers’ actions, she lamented, "How can I dance when there is nobody to sing for me?" This simple question highlighted the isolation her brothers had created and the disruption they had caused to the natural order of communal life.
Her eldest brother, seemingly insensitive to the deeper meaning of her concerns, offered a practical, yet arduous, solution. "Walk around all the time," he instructed, "pile stones, and don’t sleep for five nights." He prescribed a task that was both physically demanding and spiritually significant. The piling of stones could be interpreted as an act of atonement, a symbolic effort to rebuild what had been destroyed. The sleeplessness was a test of endurance, a common element in many coming-of-age rituals.
The young woman diligently followed her brother’s instructions, enduring the hardship for four long nights. However, exhaustion eventually overcame her, and she succumbed to sleep. In her slumber, she experienced a vivid and disturbing dream. She saw her brothers afflicted with terrible sores and consumed by starvation. This premonition filled her with dread and a sense of responsibility for their impending misfortune.
Upon awakening, she cried out in anguish, "I wish I had died long ago, then I shouldn’t have brought trouble on my brothers. I have done this by not dancing and by going to sleep." Her words reveal a deep sense of guilt and a belief that her failure to complete the prescribed ritual had unleashed negative consequences upon her family.
Returning home, her worst fears were realized. Sickness had indeed infiltrated their dwelling. Disease manifested itself each day for five days, afflicting each of the brothers with agonizing sores. Their physical decline rendered them incapable of hunting, and soon, starvation loomed. The sister, despite her best efforts to maintain the fire and provide comfort, was unable to find sustenance. Meanwhile, the people in the surrounding areas rejoiced in the brothers’ suffering, hoping for their demise. Their joy was a direct consequence of the brothers’ past actions and the terror they had instilled.
In their weakened state, one of the brothers spotted two swans on a nearby pond. Overcome by hunger, he expressed his desire to kill one of the birds. "I wish we could kill one of those swans," he said, his voice laced with desperation.
The sister, moved by her brothers’ plight, offered to help. "Maybe I can kill one," she replied. She retrieved her brothers’ bows and tested the strings, seeking the strongest one. To her surprise, she found that the strings, which had been sufficient for her brothers, felt weak in her hands. Finally, she selected the bow belonging to her youngest brother, and upon pulling the string, declared, "This will do."
As she approached the pond, her actions were closely monitored by one of her brothers. "Now she is near the pond; now she is sitting down on the bank!" he exclaimed, narrating her every move. She drew the bow, and when he initially believed she had missed, he was overcome with disappointment. However, his sorrow quickly turned to astonishment as he realized the arrow had pierced both swans.
The sister returned with the swans, leaving them outside before carefully putting away the bow and arrow. Her brothers, initially disheartened by their own weakness, were elated at the prospect of food. When she asked, "Shall I cook them in the house?" their faces lit up with anticipation. They attempted to rise, but their bodies were too frail to support them.
The sister cooked the swans and distributed the meat sparingly, instructing her brothers to "Eat a little at a time, so it will last longer." She also saved the fat and used it to soothe their sores.
As they regained some strength, each brother expressed a renewed desire to hunt. "Now I am stronger," declared the eldest brother. "Give me my bow; I feel as if I could shoot something."
Meanwhile, the people at the foot of the mountain, upon hearing of the brothers’ illness, sent a scout to verify the reports. The scout returned with confirmation, stating, "They are sick and are going to die."
Knowing that their enemies would soon seek to exploit their vulnerability, the eldest brother devised a plan. "You must roll us up in our blankets, and tie them around us as though we were dead. Put our bows and arrows and beads near us," he instructed his sister.
The sister, burdened by grief and despair, complied with their request. She then retreated to the mountains, unable to bear the thought of witnessing her brothers’ demise.
As darkness fell and their sister failed to return, one of the brothers voiced his concern, "Our sister is always talking about dying; maybe she is dead."
The people at the foot of the mountain, eager to seize the opportunity, sent a young boy to confirm the brothers’ deaths. The boy paddled across the pond in a canoe, chanting, "Peldack! Peldack!" to propel himself forward. Upon discovering the men wrapped in their blankets, he returned with the news, "They are dead. In their house there are bows and arrows and nice beads. You must go and get them."
The chief, emboldened by the report, declared, "Get ready; we will go and scalp those men, and take their things."
Anticipating the arrival of their enemies, the brothers resolved to feign death. "We will lie here as if we were dead, and when they pack up our things and start away, we will spring up and fight them with knives," they planned.
The men arrived, desecrated the brothers’ bodies, and plundered their possessions. As they began to depart, the five brothers sprang to life, brandishing knives. They slaughtered every man, threw the bodies into the pond, and embarked on a quest to find their sister.
After a prolonged search, they discovered her lifeless body. They cremated her remains and, consumed by rage and grief, vowed to "leave this country and kill every man we can find."
Their journey of vengeance led them westward, where they indiscriminately murdered countless individuals. People fled in terror at their approach. After a long period of carnage, they reached a large lake. They constructed a canoe and attempted to cross it, but before reaching the other side, the canoe sank, plunging them beneath the water and into a subterranean passage that led to another lake.
There, they encountered Storm, a powerful being capable of drowning anyone he ensnared. Storm attempted to kill the brothers, but the youngest brother engaged him in a fierce battle, ultimately dismembering him with his knife. He then declared, "You will be a person no longer, you will only be something to scare people," and banished him. The people beneath the water, terrified of the brothers, hid from their sight.
Unable to find anyone to kill, the brothers turned eastward, eventually arriving in a country inhabited by a very old man and a very old woman. "We have come to fight you," they announced.
"I don’t want to fight," replied the old man. "We have always lived here, this is our place; nobody ever came here before to trouble us. We don’t bother anyone. Go away and leave us."
"You must fight," insisted the brothers. "If you don’t, we will kill you; we kill every one we meet."
"You can’t kill us or harm us, no matter what you do," the old man responded. "We are Komuchass [Old Age]. We shall live always."
Enraged by their inability to harm the old couple, the brothers attacked them with arrows, clubs, and fire. When all their efforts proved futile, they became frightened and fled.
The old man called out to them, urging them to stop. When they ignored his pleas, he warned, "We shall follow you; you cannot get away; wherever you go we shall go. You will never get home."
The old man and old woman pursued the brothers relentlessly. Eventually, they caught up with the eldest brother, who immediately aged and weakened. He stumbled for a short distance before collapsing and dying. The same fate befell the second, third, and fourth brothers. The youngest brother, nearing his home, believed he could escape. However, Komuchass overtook him just steps from his destination. He instantly transformed into an old man, stumbled a few steps, and died.
This is How Old Age Came Into the World, according to the Modoc tradition. The tale concludes with the moral that if the five brothers had left the old man and his wife alone, they would have remained in their own country, and old age would not exist.
Komuchass transformed the bodies of the five brothers into five rocks, which are said to be still visible in the Klamath country today. These rocks serve as a constant reminder of the consequences of violence, disrespect, and the inevitability of How Old Age Came Into the World. The legend of How Old Age Came Into the World serves as a powerful testament to the enduring power of storytelling in preserving cultural knowledge and transmitting important life lessons across generations.