Iroquois mythology
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Much of the mythology of the Iroquois, a confederation of variously five or six tribes of Native Americans, has been lost. Some of the religious stories have been preserved, including creation stories and some folktales.
Hahgwehdiyu is the creator god; he planted a single maize plant in his mother's (Atahensic) body. This single plant grew and was a gift to mankind. Atahensic (also known as Ataensic) was a sky goddess who fell Earth during the creation. She died in childbirth and was a goddess of pregnancy, fertility and feminine skills.
Hahgwehdiyu has an evil twin brother named Hahgwehdaetgan.
Gaol is the wind god. Gohone is the personification of the winter. Adekagagwaa is the personification of the summer. Onatha is a fertility god and patron of farmers, particularly farmers of wheat. Yosheka is another creator god. A giant named Tarhuhyiawahku held the sky up.
The Oki is the personification of the life-force of the Iroquois, as well as the name of the life force itself. It is comparable to Wakanda (Lakota) and the Manitou (Algonquian).
The Jogah are nature spirits, similar to both nymphs and fairies. Ha Wen Neyu is the "Great Spirit".
The first people were created by Iosheka, a beneficient god who heals disease, defeated demons and gave many of the Iroquois magical and ceremonial rituals, as well as tobacco, a central part of the Iroquois religion. He is also venerated in Huron mythology.
The north wind is personified by a bear spirit named Ya-o-gah, who lived in a cave and was controlled by Gah-oh. Ya-o-gah could destroy the world with his fiercely cold breath, but is kept in check by Gah-oh.
Sosondowah was a great hunter (known for stalking a supernatural elk) who was captured by Dawn, a goddess who needed him as a watchman. He fell in love with Gendenwitha ("she who brings the day"; alt: Gendewitha), a human woman. He tried to woo her with a song. In spring, he sang as a bluebird, in summer as a blackbird and in autumn as a hawk, who then tried to take Gendenwitha with him to the sky. Dawn tied him to her doorpost. She then changed Gendenwitha into the Morning Star, so he could watch her all night but never be with her.
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