Uk’tan and the Daughter of the Sun
Before we begin this tale, you must understand how Cherokee clans work: They are matrilineal (meaning children come from their Mother’s clan) and it is forbidden to marry anyone from the same clan.
All beings in the sky are one clan, from the Thunderers, the stars, as well as the Sun and the Moon. The Moon had grown to admire the Sun’s Daughter, though he did not know her, he only enjoyed her beauty. He went to the the Sun and asked if he could marry her daughter, but she turned him away like she had done before when he asked for her hand. Scorned and bitter, the Moon left.
Months later, during that time when the Moon hides his face and we can’t see him (known as the New Moon phase), the Moon made his way down to a nearby village, stealing a finely made blanket. Since his rejection, he had come up with a plan. The Sun’s pride was very fragile and he decided would use that against her.
At dawn, when the Moon and the Sun pass one another at the corners of the sky, he held his head high and held out his arms to either side, showing off the craftsmanship of the blanket.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” He bragged. “The People gave it to me. As a sign of love and respect for brightening up the dark nights.”
“Yes… it is beautiful…” The Sun said, hurt. The Sun had been asked by the Creator to dance every day across the sky, bringing light and warmth to the earth. But no one had ever thanked her for her hard work.
The Moon continued, acting as though he hadn’t noticed. “The People are interesting, aren’t they? The Creator has done good work, as always, and it’s wonderful to look down at their smiling faces.” And with that he walked off, knowing the unease he had left behind.
The Sun was silent, pensive. She rarely saw the People’s faces–while they easily looked upon the Moon, the Sun had only received squints and ugly glares from those she looked back at. No one appreciated her hard work or gave her gifts! She danced from the beginning of one day to the next, helping the plants grow, giving light to work by–they were so ungrateful! With anger growing inside her, the Sun began her daily dance.
That day, she danced harder than she ever had and shone so brightly, that soon the People became fevered and sick. It was when the Sun continued to send this heat down and people began to die that they sought out the only ones they knew who could help them–The Little People.
Only knee-high and with bright eyes, the Little People understood the inner workings of the world and its medicine in ways few could. They knew the Sun’s temper could not be easily calmed and so they asked for the village’s best warriors.
Now, it is here we will pause for moment in our story, for there is something else you must understand: What the Moon didn’t know is that the Sun had already promised her Daughter to the finest hunter of this same village. Strong and keen-eyed, he somehow knew something was afoot when his aunt’s blanket had gone missing the same day the Sun had begun her merciless dance.
However, he was just a man and it was his wife-to-be who came down from the sky to visit him, not the other way around. He had no way to contact her or the Sun on his own. It was his hope that with the Little People’s powers he would be able to reach them and fix what was happening.
When the hunter volunteered and was brought before the Little People, he was transformed into a magnificent snake, as large around as a tree trunk, with large horns, a crystal horn on his forehead, and a piercing gaze. He became known as Uk’tan, the “The Eye.”
As for the second warrior brought, he was transformed into the quick and potent Rattlesnake. The plan was that the two would travel up a secret path in the sky to the apex (where the Sun came to rest every afternoon), ambush, and restrain her. Everyone cheered for Uk’tan, believing with his great size and strength he would easily subdue the Sun.
However, as the two set off into the sky, Uk’tan realized that despite his size, the Rattlesnake was much faster than him. He struggled up the path into the sky, quickly falling behind.
When he arrived first, the Rattlesnake coiled behind the door to wait. Except, he was so eager to prove himself, that when the Sun’s Daughter stepped out of the home to gather water, he struck out and bit her. There, in the doorway, she fell dead.
Ashamed for taking the life of an innocent, Rattlesnake forgot his mission and hid away from everyone. He still hides today, in bushes and under rocks, though now he rattles his tail to warn anyone from stepping too close.
As for Uk’tan, he was wrought with grief over the loss of his love. He forgot how to be a man and he was so strong even the Little People could not remove the medicine they had put on him. They had to cast him into the mountains of Galunlati, where he stayed with other dangerous things.
When the Sun arrived, she found her daughter lying dead in the doorway of the home. She was stricken with grief so great and she hid away in the home, refusing to leave.
The People were happy at first, finally finding a reprieve from the intense heat, but quickly realized that nothing would grow without the Sun. Now the world was dark and the things that lived there began to prey on people with more frequency without the Sun’s light to chase them away.
So the village returned to the Little People, asking them to help bring back the Sun. After much deliberation, and with unease, the Little People told the village they would need to travel to the Darkening Land in the west, where the ghosts lived, to bring her back.
To be Continued in Part 2…