Lessons from Sky Woman and the Haudenosaunee Creation Story

Today, most of the Western world is dominated by Christianity and its creation myths. But there are older stories about how our world came to be from the people that were here first: the Indigenous peoples of what is now called North America.

There are many different tribes across this land with many different stories. The creation story of the goddess Sky Woman comes from the Haudenosaunee peoples, who originally inhabited the plains and Great Lakes region of the United States, as well as New York and further north into Ontario and Quebec in Canada. I grew up on this land, in Toronto, Ontario, and did not grow up with this story. My family has been in Canada for four generations, but I only learned this story as an adult, when I read Robin Wall Kimmerer’s gorgeous book Braiding Sweetgrass.

A Collaborative Creation Story

As the legend goes, Sky Woman once lived in the beautiful land of the Sky People, far above the earth. There was a great Tree of Life there that nourished everyone, and there was no sickness or pain. But one day, something strange happened—Sky Woman became curious. She wanted to know what was beneath Sky World, and dreamt that she should dig underneath the great Tree of Life to find out.

In Sky World, dreams were important forms of communication from Spirit, and Sky Woman’s husband and family shared her dreams. One day, they all gathered at the roots of the great tree to dig until they could see underneath. At last, a great hole opened, and Sky Woman could see a great expanse of water with many animals swimming and flying around. She peered further and further until she fell through, grasping a handful of branches from the Tree of Life as she slipped.

As she fell, the animals below noticed her. The geese saw she would be in trouble and created a formation to catch her on their backs. But they knew she needed someplace to land, so the animals gathered in a council to decide how they could help this stranger. Turtle floated to the surface, offering his back for her to land on, and she did so gratefully. The sea creatures spoke of the mud at the bottom of the ocean, which they would be able to spread across Turtle’s back so that Sky Woman would have some room to move around.

So, the animals with claws who could swim began to dive, seeking the mud at the bottom of the ocean. But it was so far and so deep that many failed: Otter, Loon, and Beaver tried, all surfacing exhausted, their paws empty of mud. However, little Muskrat was determined to find mud. She dove as deeply as she could and was gone so long the other animals thought they’d lost her. But then, at last, Muskrat’s lifeless body surfaced with a tiny paw full of mud, having lost her life in the process.

Sky Woman bowed deeply in gratitude, taking the mud in her hands and spreading it across Turtle’s back. She danced in gratitude to all the animals that had helped her, especially Muskrat, and her dance spread the mud wide across the ocean, creating what’s now known as Turtle Island. As she danced, she spread the seeds she was holding in her hand, the gifts of the Tree of Life, populating this new earth with the plants that would feed the animals, herself, and her people for generations to come.

Reciprocity with the More-than-Human World

This story of creation, gratitude, and collaboration between animals and humans is so different from the creation story I learned in church as a child. In her book, Kimmerer points out: “On one side of the world were people whose relationship with the living world was shaped by Sky Woman, who created a garden for the well-being of all. On the other side was another woman with a garden and a tree. But for tasting its fruit, she was banished from the garden and the gates clanged shut behind her. That mother of men was made to wander in the wilderness and earn her bread by the sweat of her brow, not by filling her mouth with the sweet juicy fruits that bend the branches low. In order to eat, she was instructed to subdue the wilderness into which she was cast.”

Sky Woman’s story is about trust and reciprocity. It’s also about the wisdom of the council of animals and the truth that we often need each other—our community of humans, plants, and animals—to survive. Sky Woman was a stranger, an immigrant from another land, and the animals didn’t pause to think about whether they should help her. They saw that someone needed help, and they helped her. In her gratitude, she shared the gifts she had to share and co-created a new world with the animals.

It’s a beautiful story, and one that we should know, especially if we live on land that was occupied by Indigenous peoples first. The history of this land includes a long period of colonization, in which people arrived to steal from those who were here first, as well as suppress their culture, language, stories, and ways of knowing.

Have you heard of Sky Woman’s story? How do you feel when you read it? How does it affect your understanding of the land you live on, maybe including its hidden stories, wherever you may live in the world?

For more on the divine feminine, check out Julie's new book Maiden, Warrior, Mother, Crone: Divine Feminine Archetypes for Everyday Life.

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