The Pueblo peoples are Native Americans of the southwestern United States who have lived from 100 AD to the present day. The Pueblo people believed in a vast collection of mythology, known as Hopi Mythology. The Hopi religion maintains a religious tradition that dates back centuries, although it is difficult to definitively state what all Hopi as a group believe. Like the oral traditions of many other societies, Hopi mythology is not always consistently told, and each pueblo, or village, may have its own version of a particular story. But, although regional variations exist, “in essence the variants of the Hopi myth have remarkable similarities to each other.” Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The creation story of Hopi mythology is one such story, a myth through which the Hopi people define their identity as a people. The myth recalls the creation of the Hopi ancestors, who questioned the origins of the Earth and settled in the area that later became the heart of the tribe. Hopi mythology centers on Tawa, the sun spirit. Tawa is the creator of Hopi mythology, and it was he who created the "First World" from an infinite space known as Tokpella. Tawa also formed the first inhabitants of this world from the same void. Other accounts say that Tawa first created his nephew, Sotuknang, who he sent to create the nine universes according to his plan. In this myth Sotuknang created the Spider Grandmother, or Spider Woman. Grandmother Spider served as a messenger between the creator and the people. In some versions of the Hopi creation myth, it is Grandmother Spider who creates all life under the direction of Sotuknang, rather than Tawa himself. Grandmother Spider's role and identity differ greatly from tribe to tribe and is present in Hopi, Navajo, and Ojibwe mythology. In most Hopi myths, Grandmother Spider is the creator of humans and identified as the “Earth Goddess.” Hopi legend divides the universe into multiple planes of existence, with puebloans migrating from one world to another, and that the current Earth is the Fourth World that is inhabited. The story states that in every previous world, people, although originally happy, became disobedient and lived contrary to Tawa's plan. The most obedient were delivered by Grandmother Spider to the next higher world to live on a higher plane of existence and closer to Tawa. The most common story of the Hopi's appearance in the Fourth World is that Grandmother Spider grew a hollow reed in the sky, and emerged into the Fourth World at the sipapu (portal from one world to another). The people then climbed the reed into this world, emerging from the sipapu.Masauwu, also known as Skeleton Man, was the Spirit of Death, the God of Earth, and the Keeper of Fire. He was also the Master of the Fourth World and has an influence on the state of the Earth as it appears today, while Grandmother Spider has little control over this physical world. Masauwu is often depicted wearing a hideous mask, but again, showing the diversity of myths among the Hopi, Masauwu was alternately described as a handsome, bejeweled man beneath his mask or as a bloodthirsty, fearsome creature. Other important deities include the twin gods of war, the Son of the Sun and the Son of Water, the Kachinas, and the trickster Coyote. Anthropological efforts to document the Hopi belief system have been largely unsuccessful, as many traditional stories and folktales are hidden from outsiders. As a result, it is difficult to know what represents authentic Hopi beliefs and what stories anthropologists are told while denying sacred beliefs. As folklorist Harold Courlander states, "There is a Hopi reticence.