How these stories define law and territory
How These Stories Define Law and Territory
In Ts’msyen law, adaawx are not symbolic narratives or cultural background. They are **authoritative records** that define law, territory, responsibility, and jurisdiction under *ayaawx*.
Through adaawx, land and law are made knowable, enforceable, and continuous across generations.
Foundational Understanding
Adaawx define law by recording how it came to be lived.
They:
- establish lawful relationships to land and waters
- record how authority was acquired or recognized
- preserve precedent for conduct and decision-making
- bind responsibility to specific places
- transmit jurisdiction across generations
Law is remembered through story because law is lived through action.
Law Is Embedded in Action
Adaawx record actions, not abstractions.
Through them, Ts’msyen law is shown by:
- how land was first approached or entered
- how conflict was resolved
- how compensation restored balance
- how stewardship was accepted and upheld
- how boundaries were recognized or shared
What was done lawfully becomes guidance for what must be done again.
Defining Territory Through Relationship
Territory in Ts’msyen law is defined through relationship, not lines.
Adaawx define territory by:
- naming places and features
- recording routes, access, and passage
- establishing stewardship obligations
- identifying points of transition or overlap
- recalling agreements between houses or tribes
Territory exists where responsibility has been lawfully carried.
Binding Law to Place
Adaawx bind law to specific places.
They connect:
- houses (wilp) to lands and waters
- names to responsibilities
- rights to obligations
- authority to accountability
Law that is not anchored to place lacks standing.
Precedent and Continuity
Adaawx function as legal precedent.
They are used to:
- resolve modern disputes
- assess lawful conduct
- guide interpretation of ayaawx
- prevent repetition of past harm
- ensure continuity of responsibility
Precedent is carried through memory and witness, not written citation alone.
Witness and Confirmation
Adaawx define law only when they are recognized and witnessed.
They are:
- affirmed through feast
- acknowledged by other houses and clans
- repeated and corrected over time
- challenged when misused
Witness transforms memory into law.
Limits and Boundaries
Adaawx also define limits.
They show:
- where authority ends
- where sharing begins
- where restraint is required
- where permission must be sought
- where harm requires correction
Law includes restraint as much as entitlement.
Transmission Across Generations
Adaawx carry law forward.
They:
- teach youth responsibility before authority
- warn against imbalance
- explain consequence and restoration
- maintain continuity even when people move
Law travels through people, but remains rooted in place.
Protection Against Distortion
Because adaawx define law and territory, they must be protected.
Misuse occurs when stories are:
- summarized without authority
- removed from legal context
- treated as folklore
- selectively quoted
- reinterpreted externally
Such misuse weakens law and territory alike.
Relationship to Written Records and Maps
Written records and maps may assist understanding.
However:
- they do not replace adaawx
- they do not create law
- they do not override witness
Where conflict exists, adaawx prevail.
Living Law and Territory
Adaawx do not freeze law or territory in the past.
They:
- guide present conduct
- adapt through lawful renewal
- inform modern decisions
- remain subject to correction and witness
Law remains alive because stories remain alive.
Continuity
Through adaawx:
- law is remembered
- territory is defined
- responsibility is maintained
- authority is restrained
- future generations inherit clarity
Where these stories are respected, Ts’msyen law and territory remain whole.