PAWA

Real Name: Pawa

Occupation: Goddess of the moon

Legal Status: Citizen of Shipolo

Identity: The general populace of Earth is unaware of Pawa’s existence. She is well-known to the Native American tribes of Earth.

Other Aliases: Pah (Pawnee name), Igaluk (Inuit name), Geyaguga (Choctaw name), Unelanuhi (Cherokee name)

Place of Birth: Unrevealed, somewhere in the former Navaho Territory (now modern Arizona)

Marital Status: Separated

Known Relatives: Manabozho (father), Nowutset (mother), Tawa (brother/ex-husband), Susstinnako (maternal grandmother), Utset (maternal aunt), Inktomi (maternal grandfather), Cirape (cousin), Bitsitsi, Watsusii, Kowwituma (sons), Aste Hastin (son, deceased), Yumni (step-son), Chibiabos, Wabasso, Coyote (uncles), Onatah (step-mother), Hino, Hotamintanio, Owayodota (half-brothers), Omamama (half-sister), Gitche Manitou (great-grandfather), Gaea (great-grandmother, alias Nokomis)

Group Affiliations: The Anasazi (Native American Gods)

Base of Operations: Aningan in the dimensional world of Shipolo ("Land of Mist and Clouds")

First Appearance:  Pawa has not yet appeared in the Marvel or DC Universes.

History: Pawa is the daughter of Manabozho, Great Chief of the Anasazi, and Nowutset, daughter of the spider-goddess Susstinnako. Despite her nature, Sustinnanko was prophesied to be the ancestor of mankind. Manabozho claimed her daughter Nowutset as a bride and his brother Coyote claimed her other daughter, Utset, to be his bride. Manabozho and Nowutset sired Pawa, the moon-goddess and Tawa, the sun god. As adults, Tawa and his sister, Pawa, were instructed by the Great Spirit, Gitche Manitou in his role as the Navaho Tirawa, to sire Aste Hastin, the first man. As an adult, Aste Hastin married Aste Estan, the daughter of Evening and Morning.

In ancient times, the first mortals directly descended from the Anasazi lived in an other-dimensional world connected to Shipolo, the realm of the Anasazi. Aste Hastin had numerous children who became ancestors of the multiple tribes of Native Americans on Earth. Among his ancestors was Ita, daughter of Chief Waziya, ancestor of the Dakota Indians. She had been seduced by Gaoh, Manabozho's father, the wind-god and had sired several sons; her father, because of her divine sons, sought to use her connection to the gods to become a god himself. Planning to use this situation to embarrass the gods, Coyote, the Native American trickster, gave Ita a mystical object that made her the most beautiful of all mortal women. Tawa, in his role as Hanwi, the Dakota sun-god, fell in love with her as a result and in doing so accidentally alienated Pawa who fled briefly from Shipolo in disgrace. Manabozho arbitrated their separation and found Coyote to be at fault and sent him into exile with Ita and her family. Gaoh was allowed to adopt Yumni, god of the whirlwind, Ita's son by Tawa. Ita's own punishment was more severe because of her vanity. During the day in the sun's rays, she was allowed to keep her beauty, but at night when Pawa took the sky, she lost her beauty and turned to a hag. Despite this curse, Ita and her family were subsequently led to earth by Gaoh to populate it and become ancestors of mankind.

In modern years, Pawa has become an increasing distant and solitary figure among the Anasazi with little or no patience for mortals. Regarding all mortals ancestors of Ita irregardless of their origin, she has refused to grant hospitality or forgiveness to Tawa for his digressions. She can be a very difficult and cold deity to experience.

Height: 5' 11"

Weight: 340 lbs.

Eyes:  Black

Hair: Black

Strength Level: Pawa possesses superhuman strength enabling her to lift (press) 30 tons under optimal conditions.

Known Superhuman Powers: Pawa possesses the conventional physical attributes of the Anasazi gods. Like all of the Anasazi, she is extremely long lived, but not immortal like the Olympian Gods: she has not aged since reaching adulthood and cannot die by any conventional means. She is immune to all Earthly diseases and is resistant to conventional injury. If she were somehow wounded, her godly life force would enable her to recover with superhuman speed. It would take an injury of such magnitude that it dispersed a major portion of her bodily molecules to cause her a physical death. Even then, it might be possible for a god of equal power, such as Manabozho, Raven or Wabasso or for a number of Anasazi gods working together to revive her. Pawa also possesses superhuman strength and her Anasazi metabolism provides her with far greater than human endurance in all physical activities. (Anasazi flesh and bone is about three times as dense as similar human tissue, contributing to the superhuman strength and weight of the Native American gods.)  

Pawa also has several undefined mystical skills to tap into and manipulate quasi-lunar energies. She can descend to earth on a moonbeam and float and levitate through the air. She has extraordinary senses to see at night and can cause her image to appear over the surface of the moon from earth. She can also travel between dimensions such as from Earth to Shipolo, the home of the Anasazi gods.   

Pawa is physically stronger than most of the goddesses of the Native American pantheon. She also has superhuman stamina, endurance and acrobatic ability. She also has an eternal youth factor and enchanted vitality rendering her probably one of the most physically-perfect goddesses of the Anasazi.

Abilities: Pawa is a brilliant archer, hunter and tracker. Her skills in unarmed combat are above most of the Anasazi gods.

Weapons: Pawa carries a bow and arrow in addition to a metal dagger. 

Comments: Photograph courtesy of Chuck Goodenough Photography

CLARIFICATIONS: Pawa is not to be confused with:  

 

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