The Iroquois myth of the creation of the world, known as “The Story of the Woman Who Fell from the Sky”, is the centerpiece of the cosmology of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) peoples. It has been passed down orally for centuries and was first recorded in the nineteenth century by David Kasik. According to this myth, before the creation of the Earth, there was an Upper World, an island floating in the heavens, inhabited by the Celestial People. There was neither death nor suffering there. A tree of light dewed in the center of the island, giving light to the whole world, since the sun had not yet been created. One day, a pregnant woman known as Atahencik (or Heavenly Woman) was thrown off the island through the hole created when the tree was uprooted. She fell into an abyss where only waters existed. Birds picked her up and lowered her onto the back of a giant turtle, which surfaced from the depths to support her. Aquatic animals, including otter and beaver, tried to get earth from the ocean floor, but only the musk rat (muskrat) was able to bring some dirt. This dirt was placed on the back of a turtle and began to grow, forming an island known as Ohda (Land), or Turtle Island. This image became a symbol of North America in the Iroquoian tradition.
On the back of a turtle, Heavenly Woman gave birth to two twin sons, Hagwehdiyu (Good Spirit) and Hagwehdaetga (Evil Spirit). Hagvehdiyu was born in the usual way, while Hagvehdaetga broke through his mother’s side, killing her at birth.
After his mother’s death, Hagwehdiyu began to create the world: he formed the sky, the sun from his mother’s face, the moon and stars from her breast, and her body became the earth, from which he grew corn, beans and pumpkins, the “Three Sisters”, sacred plants to the Iroquois.
Hagwehdaetga, on the other hand, created predators, disease, and other destructive forces. A battle took place between the brothers, in which Hagvehdiyu won, banishing his brother into darkness.
This myth emphasizes the balance between good and evil, light and darkness, and the importance of the feminine in the creation of the world. It reflects the Iroquois’ deep connection with nature and their ideas of harmony and balance in the universe.