Free Native American Songs and Poems by Brian Swann Page A

blackbird
from Black Mountain
on top
where the trail starts
coming
now among flowers of all kinds
coming
now in among the dew
now
among the pollen
coming
now
right there
the deer
startled
turning
left foot first
the male
right first
the female
the quarry
they
want me

Song from the Mountain Chant 5
    [NAVAJO]
    the voice that makes the land lovely
again and again in sounds
among the dark clouds
the thunder’s voice
the voice above
The voice that makes the land lovely
    Â 
    The voice that makes the land lovely
the voice below
the voice of the grasshopper
among the little plants
again and again it sounds
the voice that makes the land lovely

Song of the Earth
    [NAVAJO]
    The Earth is beautiful.
The Earth is beautiful.
The Earth is beautiful.
    Below the East, the Earth, its face toward the East.
    The top of its head is beautiful.
The soles of its feet are beautiful.
Its feet, they are beautiful.
Its legs, they are beautiful.
Its body, it is beautiful.
Its chest, its breast, its head feather,
they are beautiful.
    Below the West, the Sky, it is beautiful, its face toward the West.
    The top of its head is beautiful.
The soles of its feet are beautiful.
Its feet, they are beautiful.
Its legs, they are beautiful.
Its body, it is beautiful.
Its chest, its breast, its head feather,
they are beautiful.
    Below the East, the Dawn, its face toward the East.
    The top of its head is beautiful.
The soles of its feet are beautiful.
Its feet, they are beautiful.
Its legs, they are beautiful.
Its body, it is beautiful.
Its chest, its breast, its head feather,
they are beautiful.
    Below the West, the afterglow of sundown, its face toward the West, is beautiful.
    Below the East, White Corn, its face toward the East, is beautiful.
    Below the South, Blue Corn, its face toward the South, is beautiful.
    Below the West, Yellow Corn, its face toward the West, is beautiful.
    Below the North, Varicolored Corn, its face toward the North, is beautiful.
    Below the East, Sahanahray, its face toward the East, is beautiful.
    Below the West, Bekayhozhon, 6 its face toward the West, is beautiful.
    Below the East, Corn Pollen, its face toward the East, is beautiful.
    Below the West, the Corn Beetle, its face toward the West, is beautiful.
    The Earth is beautiful.
The Earth is beautiful.
The Earth is beautiful.

Yaqui Song
    [YAQUI]
    Many pretty flowers, red, blue, and yellow.
We say to the girls, “Let us go
and walk among the flowers.”
The wind comes and sways the flowers.
The girls are like that when they dance.
Some are wide-open, large flowers, and
some are tiny little flowers.
    Â 
    The birds love the sunshine and the starlight.
    The flowers smell sweet.
    The girls are sweeter than the flowers.

Quail Song
    [PIMA]
    The grey quails bunched tight together.
Above, Coyote trotted by.
He stopped. He looked.
    Â 
    The blue quails ran and huddled together.
Coyote looked at them,
sideways.

Bear Song
    [PIMA]
    I am the Black Bear. Around me
You see the clouds swirling.
I am the Black Bear. Around me
You see the dew fall.

Havasupai Medicine Song 7
    [HAVASUPAI]
    The land we were given
is right here,
right here.
Red rock
streaked with brown
shooting up high
all round our home.
Red rock
shooting up high
right here.
A spring will always be there
down at its foot.
From way back
it is ours.
Right down
the center of our land
a line moves,
bright blue-green.
This is what I’m thinking.
At the edge of the water
cattails appear,
bright blue-green,
all round the water.
This is what I’m thinking.
At the edge of the water
foam is forming,
swirling, swirling.
At the edge of the water
silt is being laid down
in ripples.
This is what I’m thinking.
Water skaters walk,
gliding, gliding.
This is what I’m thinking.
Water grasses growing,
bright blue-green
under the water,
waving, waving.
This is what I’m thinking:
Under the water
tiny pebbles.
Flowing over them
the water we drink.
The water is gliding toward the north,
into the distance, beyond our