The first salmon run passes unmolested before any fish is taken

Evidence

By sunrise the headland is gray and white, as if dusted by an early snow. A cold drift of ash falls on the forest below and the wind carries the tang of burnt grass. But no one notices, for they are all standing along the river singing a welcome, a song of praise as the food swims up the river, fin to fin. The nets stay on the shore; the spears still hang in the houses. The hook-jawed leaders are allowed to pass, to guide the others and to carry the message to their upriver relatives that the people are grateful and full of respect. — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass, 879

Categorization

• DEFINE: Illustrates the harvest-restraint principle (leave the first you find) applied to an entire run.
• XREF: Parallels the gatherers’ rule of leaving the first plant and the sweetgrass/salmon harvest ethics across chapters. — connects to: After four days of fish passing, the First Salmon is ritually taken and honored — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom,…, 880

Broader Connections

• After four days of fish passing, the First Salmon is ritually taken and honored #expands (0.85) — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass, 880