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Show WITH THE HOLY PEOPLE 37 for his own arrows. When the Arrow People discovered the theft, they attacked the Twins, who were saved only by the prayersticks that the Yei'ii had given them. Another day on their journey home, as the Twins camped by the edge of a lake, Younger Brother looked up to find Elder Brother gone. Fearing that Elder Brother had disappeared beneath the water, Younger Brother hurried away to get help from home. In fact, Elder Brother had been taken below the lake to the home of the Big Snakes. There Big Snake greeted him as "son-in-law" and asked for tobacco. Elder Brother gave Big Snake a smoke of poisonous tobacco. When Big Snake inhaled the smoke, he immediately fell down unconscious. Big Snake's wife begged Elder Brother to restore her husband. She promised to give him all her husband's valuables in exchange for his life. So Elder Brother restored Big Snake and claimed his beads and jewels. To get them back, Big Snake gave Elder Brother five sandpaintings, including the Big Snake sandpainting. He added, "I have very little knowledge, but over beneath Sky-Reaching Rock live the Snake People. They have much knowledge that they may be willing to share." The next morning, Elder Brother, curious about Big Snake's remarks, entered the Sky-Reaching Rock. He found himself inside a dark room with Big Snakes, Crooked Snakes, Arrow Snakes, all the Snakes except the Water Snakes. They were gathered around a large twelve-eared cornstalk that stood in the center of the room. The Snake Chief welcomed him and asked why he had come. Elder Brother told about disappearing into the lake, coming to the home of Big Snake, and receiving the sandpainting from Big Snake. "That's just like him," the Snake Chief said. "He didn't give you any of the valuable paintings, only the unimportant ones. Let me show you the valuable one." Then the Snake Chief presented Elder Brother with a painting of the Snake People and the Corn. Later Elder Brother learned the paintings of the Grinding Snakes and the Endless Snake. He then returned to the home of Big Snake and married Big Snake's daughter. The next day, Big Snake warned his new son-in-law not to visit Red Mountain, but the young man's curiosity got the best of him once again. He set out, unmindful of the danger. When Elder Brother came along, Red Coyote blew his own skin onto Elder Brother. This transformed Elder Brother into an animal, while |
