It’s as if people’s brains aren’t big enough to get around the concept of open minds. It’s why, among other things, medicine is only now starting to recognize how many native remedies really work, and work better than “modern” equivalents.

You don’t have to swallow everything you hear. Just open yourself to the possibility that if a lot of people are seeing the same thing, it might be because they are, well, um, seeing the same thing.

(Oh. While we’re on pervasive myths: let’s see what we can do about the one that mentally healthy people “see things.” They don’t. They see what they see.)

This is a topic I am familiar with having traveled and lived with a Native American Elder and Medicine Man for over a decade. I had been privy to many stories told by him about such beings– some I have mentioned before on this website. My husband also had the belief that Sasquatch — the English translation of what his people called such beings is “Mountain Man” — had the capability of being flesh and blood and supernatural, appearing and disappearing at will. My husband once had a very detailed dream where he came up against a Sasquatch, fought him and beat him in battle. After that dream, he said that the Sasquatch spirit became his friend and protector and would be present at many of the ceremonies he would conduct — including sweat lodge ceremonies.

My husband was also quite familiar with the Little People and had many encounters with them throughout his life (he passed away last May). He was not afraid of them, he just said they were michievious and loved to play tricks, particularly on people undergoing a fast. The Little People would come to their fasting circles at night and try to trick or scare people into leaving their fasting circles. When I fasted (and I have fasted 8 times in my life), I never was bothered by the Little People because I did what my husband told me to do and left offerings of tobacco and candies (they love sweet things). A few times during my fast I would wake up at night and hear mysterious music playing and voices singing right outside my tent when no one was there. Most Native people who fasted under my husband’s direction would have encounters with Little People.

My husband used to see them sometimes in our home in Canada. They would be standing in the room where he was and he would later describe the clothing they were wearing. I would rarely see any kind of “spirits”– sometimes just a fleeting glimpse of something running by.

When my husband would drive on long trips in the car, he would see them in the back seat waving in the rear view mirror at him. He used to say how he picked them up somewhere on his journey and they stayed with him! They would sometimes hide his shampoo when he stayed in motel rooms. Once, he got a bit angry and asked them to bring the container back. When he opened the door to leave his room to get breakfast, the container was outside the door.

He had witnesses to many of the tricks they played. He was also thoughtful about seeing them– often trying to determine the meaning in their visits. These beings are not just stories of the past– many people are seeing them in the present!

An Abnaki friend from Maine told me that the creatures are part of their lore too. He said it was something you wanted to avoid in the woods. A Seminole acquaintance got very serious when I asked and said “I can’t speak of such things.” But on further reflection, I think I fell prey to the Indian style of humor. Contrary to popular perception, traditionalist Indians like a good joke and if you start asking about their lore and legends, they may tell you some whoppers just to lead you on. I was warned about this by a clan elder. It’s not malicious, but just having some fun at the white man’s expense. That’s small payback for everything that’s been done to them.

Sometimes Bigfoot are not recognized as physical creatures, they are spirits. In addition to the Bigfoot, there are widespread stories of races of giants that look like perfectly formed humans. In many creation stories, the earth had to be cleared of giants and monsters of all kinds before humans could safely inhabit it. I’ve wondered if some of these stories are an ancient vague memory of mammoths, mastodons, dire wolves, lions, giant sloths, glyptodonts and short face bears. Maybe even Gigantopithecus?

Several other creatures are more commonly found in the lore of native tribes throughout the continent. Water Spirits are described even by tribes living in arid areas. They are nearly always serpentine although they may show the characteristics of other animals such as deer antlers or the heads and claws of mountain lions. In some quarters the water spirits are known as “underwater panthers. These creatures lived in lakes, the deep pools of springs or whirlpools of rivers.

Another creature that was very widespread were the “little people.” Sometimes they looked like perfectly formed humans, other times the head was larger and out of proportion to the body. I find that the little people are always feared and avoided at all costs – even today. The stories about them are very similar to Celtic stories about gnomes and leprechauns and fairies.

Thunderbirds and giant eagles were another nearly universal creature but enough has been said her so I don’t need to repeat it.

To be sure, each tribe had its own description of these things. But they are sufficiently similar to point to a common origin. These creatures were not to be trifled with and usually avoided if possible. If they approached you peacefully it was all right, but it was not a good idea for you to approach them. These are terrific stories when you get into them and most are much deeper and impart a moral relevance that western culture has overlooked.