Navajo Grandma Says Southern Utah Petroglyph Is Jesus

Anasazi Trail Petroglyphs in Ivins, Utah 

There are many marks on the rocks in Southern Utah left there by the native peoples who lived here in the ancient past. They carefully pecked pictures in the patina that are known as rock art or petroglyphs. There is a trail near Ivins that will take you to many of these. 

One shows a human figure that looks like it has an alienlike head. His arms are out to the side and folding down and his feet seem to be going in different directions. I enjoy looking at petroglyphs and I have wondered about figures similar to the one found in Ivins. 

Navajo Woman Shares Insights on Videos 

A Youtuber that calls herself Navajo Grandma talks about the traditions of her people and the beliefs she learned from her grandfather who was a medicine man. I like her videos and was excited when she did one about petroglyphs.  

Even better, she describes what she learned from her grandfather about this figure seen on the rock in Ivins and she says it represents Jesus Christ. That definitely caught my attention. She goes on to break the figure down and give its meaning. 

The alien head is actually picturing a death mask. The bent arms mean that we need to pay attention. The mis-directed feet are showing a club foot which means he was wounded. There is also a line going through his middle which she says represents a life belt that shows he has power over life and death. 

Read More: The Truth About Turquoise and Utah’s Native Peoples

You may not agree with her interpretation. It isn’t the one you will find in textbooks or from archeologists. The casual observer would think alien like I did, but this is me taking my own frame of reference and putting it on what I see.  

I personally feel like the histories handed down from native peoples who have lived here for centuries can shed light on the past and should count for more. Furthermore, what Navajo Grandma says makes a certain kind of sense to me.