Hopi Emergence Myth: The Four Worlds - The Journey Through Cosmic Chambers

BY NICOLE LAU

The Hopi people of the American Southwest possess one of the most sophisticated creation narratives in Native American mythology—the Emergence Myth, which describes humanity's journey through four successive worlds, each representing a stage of spiritual and moral development. This cosmology is not merely ancient history but living tradition, encoded in ceremonies, kiva rituals, and the very architecture of Hopi villages. The Four Worlds teach that human existence is a progressive journey toward spiritual maturity, that each world ends when humanity fails to maintain balance, and that we currently live in the Fourth World, facing the same challenges that destroyed the previous three.

The First World: Tokpela (Endless Space)

In the beginning, Taiowa (the Creator) and Sotuknang (his nephew, the implementer) created the First World, called Tokpela. This was a world of perfect harmony where humans lived simply, understanding their connection to the Creator and to all life. People could communicate with animals, there was no death, and all beings lived in balance according to the Creator's plan.

Humans in the First World possessed the "door at the top of the head" (kopavi)—an opening through which they could receive wisdom directly from the Creator. This represents pure spiritual consciousness, unobstructed connection to divine guidance, and the understanding that humans are spiritual beings having a material experience.

However, over time, some people began to focus on material things rather than spiritual understanding. They closed their kopavi, lost their connection to the Creator, and created division and conflict. When Sotuknang saw that the First World had become corrupted, he destroyed it with fire, saving only those who had remained faithful to the Creator's plan. These people were led underground by Spider Woman (Kokyangwuti), the earth goddess and helper of humanity.

The Second World: Tokpa (Dark Midnight)

The faithful emerged into the Second World, which was more complex than the first. Here, humans developed villages, agriculture, and trade. They built homes and created social structures. This world represented the development of civilization and material culture.

Initially, people remembered the lessons of the First World and maintained balance. But gradually, they became obsessed with possessions, trade, and accumulation. They began to compete, to hoard, and to value material wealth over spiritual wisdom. The kopavi remained closed for most people, and they forgot their divine origin.

When corruption became complete, Sotuknang destroyed the Second World, this time with ice. Again, Spider Woman saved the faithful, leading them underground to await the Third World. The destruction by ice represents the freezing of the heart, the coldness that comes when material concerns replace spiritual warmth.

The Third World: Kuskurza (Unknown)

The Third World was even more advanced. Here, humans developed great cities, sophisticated technologies, and complex civilizations. They built flying shields (patuwvotas) that could travel great distances, created powerful weapons, and achieved remarkable material prosperity.

But with this advancement came pride, warfare, and the misuse of sacred knowledge. People used their abilities for destruction rather than harmony. They fought wars, enslaved others, and corrupted the sacred teachings for personal power. The kopavi was completely forgotten, and people believed themselves to be the creators of their own destiny, independent of the divine plan.

Sotuknang destroyed the Third World with water—a great flood that covered the earth. Once again, Spider Woman saved the faithful, this time sealing them in hollow reeds that floated on the flood waters. When the waters receded, they emerged into the Fourth World—our current world.

The Fourth World: Tuwaqachi (World Complete)

The Fourth World is our present reality. When the faithful emerged, they found a harsh, challenging environment—deserts, mountains, and difficult conditions. This was intentional. The Creator wanted humans to remember the lessons of the previous worlds, to live humbly, and to maintain balance through constant effort and vigilance.

The Hopi were instructed to migrate to the four directions, leaving petroglyphs and ruins as they traveled, before finally settling in the mesas of Arizona. This migration was not random wandering but a sacred journey, a way of claiming the land through spiritual practice and leaving markers of their covenant with the Creator.

The Fourth World is called "World Complete" not because it is perfect but because it contains all the lessons of the previous worlds. Here, humans have the opportunity to finally achieve the balance that eluded them in the first three worlds. But the Fourth World also carries a warning: if humanity fails again, this world too will be destroyed, and a Fifth World will emerge.

The Sipapu: The Emergence Place

Central to Hopi cosmology is the sipapu—the hole through which humanity emerged from the Third World into the Fourth. Every Hopi kiva (underground ceremonial chamber) contains a small hole in the floor representing the sipapu, reminding participants of their origin and their journey through the worlds.

The sipapu is not merely a physical location but a spiritual concept. It represents the birth canal of the earth, the portal between worlds, the connection to the ancestors and to the previous worlds. It reminds the Hopi that they are not native to this world but are migrants, refugees from destroyed worlds, carrying the responsibility to not repeat the mistakes of the past.

Spider Woman: The Divine Helper

Throughout the emergence narrative, Spider Woman (Kokyangwuti) serves as humanity's guide and protector. She is the earth goddess, the weaver of creation, the one who saves the faithful during each destruction. Spider Woman represents the divine feminine principle that nurtures, protects, and teaches.

Spider Woman taught humans how to weave, how to create pottery, how to plant corn, and how to live in harmony with the earth. She represents the understanding that survival requires both spiritual wisdom and practical skills, that the sacred and the mundane are not separate but interwoven like the threads of a web.

The Prophecies: Signs of the End Times

Hopi tradition includes prophecies about the end of the Fourth World and the emergence of the Fifth. These prophecies describe signs that will appear when the Fourth World is nearing its end: roads in the sky (airplanes), rivers of stone (highways), the earth becoming hot (climate change), and people living in the sky (space stations).

The prophecies also speak of two paths: the path of technology and materialism (represented by a jagged line) and the path of spiritual balance (represented by a straight line). Humanity must choose which path to follow. If we choose the path of materialism, the Fourth World will be destroyed like the previous three. If we choose the path of balance, we can transition peacefully to the Fifth World.

The Kachinas: Spiritual Teachers

The Hopi believe that after the emergence into the Fourth World, spiritual beings called kachinas came to teach humanity how to live properly. These kachinas are not gods but are intermediaries between humans and the Creator, similar to angels or bodhisattvas in other traditions.

Kachinas taught the Hopi their ceremonies, their agricultural practices, and their social organization. They appeared physically for many years, but eventually, they stopped coming in physical form and now appear only spiritually during ceremonies, when dancers wear kachina masks and become vessels for these spiritual beings.

The Hopi Way: Living in Balance

The Emergence Myth is not just a story but a blueprint for living. The Hopi Way (Hopivotskwani) is a complete spiritual and ethical system based on the lessons of the Four Worlds. It emphasizes humility, respect for all life, communal responsibility, and the understanding that humans are caretakers, not owners, of the earth.

The Hopi practice dry farming in one of the harshest environments in North America, refusing to use irrigation because they believe that making life too easy leads to the corruption that destroyed the previous worlds. This practice is both practical (it produces drought-resistant crops) and spiritual (it maintains humility and dependence on the Creator).

Lessons from the Four Worlds

The Hopi Emergence Myth teaches profound truths: that spiritual development is progressive, requiring multiple attempts and learning from failure; that material advancement without spiritual wisdom leads to destruction; that each world ends when humans forget their connection to the Creator and to each other; that we are currently in the Fourth World, facing the same tests that destroyed the previous three; and that the choice between spiritual balance and material obsession determines whether this world survives or is destroyed like the others.

In recognizing the Four Worlds, we encounter a cosmology that is both ancient and urgently contemporary, offering a framework for understanding our current global crisis and a path toward balance before it's too late.