Article
According to Navajo mythology, it is on Earth, full of beauty and balance, that First Man and First Woman have a child, Changing Woman, also known as White Shell woman or Asdzą́ą́ Nádleehé in Navajo. She is associated with sacred items that represent speech and thought, both of which are in a medicine bundle that Changing Woman inherits. Changing Woman is the mother of the Hero Twins, Monster Slayer and Born for Water. She is also the benevolent being who creates the first Navajo of the four original clans and corn and is therefore known for bringing fertility and regeneration into the world.
"Painting of a Sandpainting of First Man and First Woman," photograph by Gerald Nailor, 1936, Smithsonian Institution Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin 163.
Manuscripts
A01 The Blessing Way (01-07) p. 26
A01 The Blessing Way (01-07) p. 45
A01 The Blessing Way (01-07) p. 84
A01 The Blessing Way (01-07) p. 89
A05 Listening Woman (02-13) p. 111
A05 Listening Woman (02-13) p. 119
A05 Listening Woman (02-13) p. 121
A05 Listening Woman (02-13) p. 126
A05 Listening Woman (02-13) p. 218
A06 People of Darkness (03-06) p. 54
A06 People of Darkness (03-06) p. 95
A06 People of Darkness (03-06) p. 97
A06 People of Darkness (03-06) p. 224
A06 People of Darkness (03-06) p. 244
A06 People of Darkness (03-06) p. 265
A06 People of Darkness (03-06) p. 271
A06 People of Darkness (03-06) p. 293
References
Gill, Sam D.
1983 Navajo Views of Their Origin. In Handbook of North American Indians. A. Ortiz, ed.
Pp. 504-505, Vol. 10. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Washington
Klukhohn, Clyde and Dorothea Leighton
1946 Navaho. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Nez Dennetdale, Jennifer
2001 Representing Changing Woman: A Review Essay on Navajo Women. American
Indian Culture and Research Journal 25 (3):1-26.