This week I read an Iroquois creation myth that described the world as having originated from the back shell of a turtle.
The myth tells of Sky People that resided on an island that floated in the sky. When the Sky Woman announced to the Sky Man that she was to bear twins, she was pushed into a large hold after the Sky Man ripped up the tree from the middle of the Island. As she fell into a great sea (on Earth) two birds caught her and urged the other animals to help her create a sustainable environment. The animals filled their mouths with mud and spread it against the hard shell of a large sea turtle. The woman stepped onto the land and created stars, a moon, and a sun. She soon gave birth to the two twin sons (Sapling and Flint.) Sapling triggered all that was "good" in the existing world, and Flint triggered quite the opposite.
This myth explains the ongoing battle between Sapling and Flint. This is apparent through cold seasons and warm seasons, day and night, dark colors and bright colors, happiness and saddness...etc. This myth also displays the obvious truth that the Iroquois people held the animals in high esteem. They believed that the animals were the reason for their sustainable living environment. It is also a great example of treasured oral tradition. The Iroquois people (like other people groups... not limited to Native Americans of course) absorbed what they knew to be true and created a "why."
