"Some Native Americans consider corn the symbol of humanity-each kernel a person, the ear joining together all. In the Southwest, Native Americans honor the Corn Mother. Blue corn is used for ceremonial purposes, sprinkled on passing dancers at the start of a ritual and left at shrines as ritual food when prayer feathers are planted."

The legend of corn is that the grandmother scraped the corn off her body while the sons were in the fields. When they discovered this the sons were shocked to be eating their grandmother's flesh. They refused and instead planted the seeds for the autumn harvest.

Found by Joseph browsing the bookshelf at the Lama Foundation kitchen.
p31, Kofalk, Harriet. The Peaceful Cook. Tennessee: The Book Publishing Comany, 1991.