Five hundred years before the first outsiders arrived in central Alaska, there was a fierce Yup'ik warrior named Aganugpak. All of his people knew him to be the bravest and strongest warrior of his time. His skill with harpoon and bow and arrow was legendary.
Aganugpak lived during a time of misery and war. All across the icy tundra, warring groups fought. Blood was shed daily, and people lived in constant fear of attack. The Yup'ik people lived in underground houses carved from the dirt and protected from the cold by thick layers of sod. The smoke from their cooking fires drifted up and out through holes cut in the ground. During this time roving bands of warriors traveled with "smellers," men with such keen senses of smell that they could detect a cooking fire from miles away. These smellers would lead the warriors to the underground homes, and they would attack the people living there. Soon people were afraid to light fires. They lived in the cold and the dark, eating what they could. They were hungry and afraid.
After some time Aganugpak had a vision. In his mind he saw the houses in his village in burning ruins. He saw a lake of blood, blood drained from the warriors of his people. Aganugpak saw the ghosts of dead warriors rise up from their graves and do battle with the living.
As he watched this vision unfold before him, this brave warrior knew that war cannot be won. No matter how fearless the warrior, the result of war could only be more suffering. Aganugpak decided that war must end. The Yup'ik people were astonished when their greatest warrior announced that he would no longer use his harpoon and bow and arrow to cause death to another person, but they trusted and respected him. The Yup'ik people put down their weapons. War was ended for all time.
The Yup'ik created new ways to solve their dif¬ferences. When people disagreed, they participated in singing contests and dancing contests, and they found clever ways to insult one another. These contests were held in front of the entire community, and so they brought people together while settling disputes. Peace came to the land. People were able to light their hearth fires, warm their homes, and cook their meals. People were able to prosper and grow in the absence of war.