Signs as told by the Hopi Elders
The Fourth World
shall end soon, and the Fifth World will begin. This the elders everywhere know.
The Signs over many years have been fulfilled, and so few are left.
This is the First Sign: We were told of the coming of the white-skinned men,
like Pahana, but not living like Pahana -- men who took the land that was not
theirs and who struck their enemies with thunder. (Guns)
This is the Second Sign: Our lands will see the coming of spinning wheels filled
with voices. (Covered wagons)
This is the Third Sign: A strange beast like a buffalo but with great long
horns, will overrun the land in large numbers. (Longhorn cattle)
This is the Fourth Sign: The land will be crossed by snakes of iron. (Railroad
tracks)
This is the Fifth Sign: The land shall be criss-crossed by a giant spider's web.
(Power and telephone lines)
This is the Sixth Sign: The land shall be criss-crossed with rivers of stone
that make pictures in the sun. (Concrete roads and their mirage-producing
effects.)
This is the Seventh Sign: You will hear of the sea turning black, and many
living things dying because of it. (Oil spills)
This is the Eighth Sign: You will see many youth, who wear their hair long like
our people, come and join the tribal nations, to learn our ways and wisdom.
(Hippies)
The Ninth and Last Sign: You will hear of a dwelling-place in the heavens, above
the earth, that shall fall with a great crash. It will appear as a blue star. Very soon after this, the ceremonies of the Hopi people will cease.