A Modern English Translation

From the start there was Aiheu the Beautiful, the first of the 
living and the cause of all life.  Aiheu had many spirit children, 
and he shared his love and knowledge with them.  It was a happy 
time, but still unfulfilling for the lives of spirit children were 
of thought alone.  And Aiheu sensed that his children were longing 
for something more.

So Aiheu went to the world of Ma'at (soil) which at that time was 
completely dark and sterile.  He put two lights in the heavens, 
the sun and moon.  And the brightness of the sun caused the water 
to form clouds, and wherever the clouds rained on the dry earth, 
green plants grew.  And so in time the world of Ma'at was changed 
from ugliness into beauty.

And Aiheu summoned his spirit children to show them his work.  The 
beauty of the land was the first thing they had ever seen, and 
they were very pleased.  For a time, they explored the world, some 
preferring the skies, others the ground, others the trees, and 
others the waters.  And yet they were still unfulfilled, for the 
sun did not warm them, the breeze did not cool them nor the waters 
wash them, and they could not feel the grass beneath their feet.  
And they asked Aiheu, "What does this land have to do with us?  We 
are strangers here."  So Aiheu moistened some soil with water, and 
with his hands shaped the first bodies.  Some were fish, others 
birds, and others the animals that walked on land and climbed 
trees, each according to the domains they were created for.  When 
he breathed into the bodies, they took on life and became dwelling 
places for spirit children.  Because they were finally part of the 
world, they could feel the warm sun, the cool breeze, the waters 
and the grass.  They had these and many other pleasures, but they 
were given a warning.  The price of pleasure is often pain.  And 
it was not long until they had all felt pain, yet they assured 
Aiheu that pleasure was worth the price.  This was the first 
agreement, that pleasure is worth pain.

Those bodies were not permanent.  Earth, water and air may only 
rest apart.  When they are mixed, they become restless and strive 
to separate.  That is why death and decay are part of the world, 
for the elements will eventually prevail.  Aiheu knew this, so he 
took steps to prevent the world from becoming sterile.  He went to 
the Lake of Mara and changed its waters into the first milk.  And 
all animals were brought together to drink from it.

Milk fertilizes animals the way rain fertilizes plants, for it 
makes soil, water and air content to mix for a time.  And all 
those who drank milk obtained the gift to produce milk in their 
bodies.  The milk of the male could awaken new life in his mate, 
and the milk of the female could sustain it after birth.  For no 
living thing except Aiheu can create life from the ground by 
breathing into it.  This was the second agreement, that life 
should always continue.

Now the earth was very large, but it was not without limits.  So 
Aiheu offered his children two paths.  Either they could choose 
who may carry on the line, or they could all be treated equally 
and Aiheu would find another way to control them.  And they all 
said, "Treat us equally," for no one wanted to be the one to live 
alone.  So Aiheu chose some animals to be hunters and others to be 
hunted that they may keep the earth in balance.  Thus arose all 
the peoples and their ways that carry on to this day.  This was 
the third agreement, that a full life involves struggle.

And when Aiheu had set this into motion, he showed them that it 
was not random, but part of his plan from the beginning.  The 
cycles of birth, growth, death, and decay were like four legs-they 
had to work together to travel anywhere.  Yet from his steadfast 
love, he would have his children accept the three agreements of 
their own free will.

Some beings did not choose to accept these agreements.  These 
spirit children were the first Nisei, which are the good spirits 
which oversee the balances of creation.  They are often called the 
minor gods, though they are truly brothers to the animals.  The 
major gods arose from the lake of milk, and they were all kindly 
like Aiheu, until Koko the gorilla threw mud into the lake and 
spoiled the milk.  Thus rose the polluted Makei, the evil spirits.  
But Koko confessed what he did to Aiheu, and he was pardoned.  
Aiheu gave him authority over the mud to purge the lake, and he 
became the keeper of the lake until it was finally drained at the 
end of the first era.  Because he drank from the milk each day, he 
only began to age when the lake was no more, and his days were two 
hundred and seventy years.

I would not have you ignorant concerning death, for Aiheu has 
provided for his children.  When an animal dies whose life is 
acceptable to God, it becomes one of the second Nisei.  They 
oversee the welfare of those they left behind.  The greatest of 
the second Nisei are the Great Kings of the Past and those whom 
Aiheu has blessed for good service.  Koko became one of the second 
Nisei.  And then there are animals whose deeds are constantly 
evil, and they join the Makei.  These are doomed to walk the earth 
without bodies until they find the image of Aiheu within 
themselves and seek redemption through service.  They are called 
the Makei for their suffering makes Aiheu weep.

The first children of Aiheu were close to their God and to each 
other, for their spirits had roamed free.  But their children who 
were born to bodies of soil were not able to hear the words of the 
Lord.  To keep the peoples from losing touch with him entirely, 
Aiheu anointed some children with holy chrisum that from birth 
they hear him when he speaks.  And these he called shamans.  They 
were strictly charged to bring the word of God to his peoples with 
honesty and unselfishness.  A lying shaman is worse than the 
Makei, and Aiheu will not weep for them nor will he repent of his 
anger.

As long as this story is passed from old to young, never added to 
or subtracted from, the blessings of Aiheu will be upon those who 
hear it.

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