In the Beginning...

This Native American Heritage Month, learn about the sacred Creation Story of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, the descendants of the Yuhaaviatam clan who called the Big Bear Valley home for over 2,000 years.

"At the beginning of time, the Creator - Kü̱ktac - created the People and gave the Land, Water, Plants and Animals to the Yuhaaviatam - It was the only place that Kü̱ktac had designated for the Yuhaaviatam, and the People had obligations of stewardship and reciprocity to all things in their homeland."

"After falling ill, Kü̱ktac journeyed to the San Bernardino Mountains at Yuhaaviat. Kü̱ktac our Creator laid dying in a bear cave. Tended by the First People, he was taken to Maktsuk, today called Pan Hot Springs, where he was bathed by human caretakers. Knowing he was dying, Kü̱ktac instructed the People to cremate him and protect his body from Coyote, who eats dead things."

"Kü̱ktac died near present-day Baldwin Lake. When Kü̱ktac died, the people began to mourn and their grief turned into pine trees, enriching the land with vegetation and animals, allowing future generations to thrive."

"During the cremation, the eye of Kü̱ktac flew out and became the a giant snow quartz megalith known as Aapahunane’t, or God's Eye. Coyote snuck through the bowed legs of bear and snatched Kü̱ktac's heart in his mouth. The people hit Coyote, and as he ran into the mountains above Baldwin Lake, the dripping blood turned the rocky soil red." San Manuel Band of Mission Indians