Ancient Chahta Story - Choctaw In the beginning of time in our country, there was the Land and the Great Mound of Nanih Waiya. It had always been there, since the beginning of time. When The Creator decided to make Man, he opened the door to Nanih Waiya. The first People to come out sunned themselves upon the Great Mound, and then they set out to the East. They traveled a distance, stopping at the Tombigbee River. Here, they rested and smoked the pipe. But they let their fires get out, and this caused the Forest to be burned. These people were the Muskogees. The second group of People to emerge (from the Great Mound were), the Cherokees. They sunned themselves, and headed East also. When they got to the place where the forests were burned, they did not like it there. With the Forests burned, there was no wild game that they could sustain themselves with. They turned north and settled there. Third came the Chickasaws. They emerged from the Great Mound and sunned themselves, then headed to the East. They followed a similar course as did the Cherokees, and settled beside the Cherokee People. They were always good friends of the Cherokees. The fourth and last People to emerge from the Great Mound were the Chahta Peoples. They sunned themselves and rested. They looked about them and liked what they saw. So, they stayed in the Land of Nanih Waiya, the Great Mound. This Land became Mississippi many years later. Reposted with Permission from Neshoba Note ... the Chahta creation history is often told with the Chahta emerging last from the mound .... Actually it was the Okla, the People, which is the Chahta and Chicksa together. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/indigenous_peoples_literature/message/4193 Come visit us at. "Keeper of Stories". http://www.newkeeperofstories.com/