A story of how Coyote tricked the Moon (guest post)
In
the ancient past, when earth and spirit were one, the moon was always
full. Luna, for that is what she called
herself then, would keep her face fully turned towards the earth because she enjoyed
watching Brother Wolf and his pack hunting at night. His pack’s hunting skills always amazed her,
and she enjoyed the new tactics they came up with to hunt their prey. Wolf knew that she watched and blessed them
with her full face each night, so at the end of each hunt they would leave an
offering for her, as she sunk past the horizon each night.
Some
nights the hunt was harder than others, as if the prey seemed to stay one step
of them. What he did not know was that
Younger Brother Coyote, the Trickster, would hide in the shadows that Luna’s
light provided and warn the prey of the pack’s arrival. He would sneak ahead and tell them from which
direction the hunters were coming, and which areas were safe. Luna enjoyed watching this game from the sky
above, though she only caught glimpses of Coyote in her light between the
shadows. One night, she saw that Wolf’s
pack was going to pass very close to a shadow in which Coyote hid. So she altered her path just a tiny bit, so
that her light shined on a small bit of his tail. Coyote was so intent on the night’s mischief
that he failed to notice the light on his tail--but the pack did not miss
it. Wolf sent his pack to chase Coyote
away from their hunting grounds; now he understood the cleverness of the prey.
Luna
was truly entertained!
Each
night after, Wolf split his pack in half--to hunt dinner, and to keep a
watchful eye on Coyote. Coyote worked hard to avoid his Wolf cousins, and
continued to manipulate and trick the hunters every night. Luna’s delighted laughter did not escape
Coyote’s large ears… that night a mighty Trick was being born.
At
the end of the next day, before Luna rose in the sky, Coyote hid behind a large
stone so that her light would not see him.
He knew that she could not see into the shadows as he could, with his
sharp eyes. That night he used every
trick he knew; not to disrupt the Wolf pack’s hunt, or even to hunt his own
dinner-- the moon was his prey that night.
He tracked Luna for hours and saw, for the first time, the offering Wolf
laid out for her.
The
hunt had been very good for the wolves, for they did not have to chase Coyote
while hunting, and so the pack feasted on deer.
For Luna, they offered the eyes of all the deer, so that she may look
through them and witness the hunt from the deer’s point of view. Coyote appeared pensive as he looked at the
eyes, and his Trick began to take form in his mind.
He
waited for Luna to take the offering, and as she descended towards the horizon
to accept the offering, he followed her further.
He
followed her past the horizon and into the Celestial realm of Spirit, for in
those days you could cross the boundary as easily as putting one foot in front
of the other. He watched as she deposited
the offering in her Altar Room, near the other offerings that Wolf and his pack
had given her. He followed her still,
always staying in her shadow, as she spoke to the Spirits of the Planets. She spoke to them of Wolf and his pack, how their
hunting prowess amazed her, and how she delighted as they hunted within her light. Luna then fell asleep, resting for that
night’s trip across the sky. Coyote watched her. When she woke and prepared to
leave for the horizon, he waited for her at the entrance to the moon’s pathway.
Startled,
she asked, “Younger Brother Coyote, is there a problem? Why do you wait for me
at the horizon?”
He
kneaded his tail; “I have come to give you a gift, Big Sister. Many nights I have seen the wolves leave an
offering for you, and I realize that I have never left you one myself”. She saw his eyes begin to shine with tears,
and bent down to place both hands under his jaw. “To leave an offering is not
your way, I do not blame you--” “But still,” Coyote interrupted, “I wish to
give you a gift, for I have played in the shadows you create during the night.”
As
soon as the sentence left his lips, he plucked out his eyes and offered them to
her. With a grin, he said, “Please take my eyes for the night--with them,
you’ll be able to see into the shadows your Light creates.” Luna was stunned; “Oh
Coyote, that is a mighty gift! But how would I be able to see my moon’s pathways
if I am wearing your eyes? Only my eyes can see the paths…” She saw
disappointment on his face, though his eyes were still in his outstretched paws.
Coyote
turned his eyes around and around in his paws, thinking of how to solve this obstacle.
Suddenly, he jumped up on his hind legs and exclaimed, “Sister, I have it! How
about you take my eyes for tonight, and I’ll take yours. This way, I can walk
your paths while you hold my tail and we will travel across the sky together!” Luna
began to feel apprehensive, for she knew Coyote was a great trickster, and she
did not want to be played a fool this night.
“Coyote,
my tricksy brother, your cunning is known around the earth and even here in the
celestial realms. How do I know you are
not planning on tricking me this night?”
“Luna,
I only wish to give you a gift.” He stood up as straight as he could, looking
at Luna with sincerity; “If it would put your mind at ease, then let me say
this; I promise on my eyes that I will not trick you this night.” Luna saw the earnestness in his eyes (still on
his paws) and made her decision. She
plucked out her eyes and handed them to Coyote while scooping his eyes up and
put them in her sockets. At that moment
she looked around and did not see the stars and planets as the friends she
knew, but as the beautiful and awesome display for the creatures of the earth. She saw her great shining grey eyes in the sockets
of Coyote, and laughed in delight at the sight of him.
Coyote
lifted his tail, allowing her to grip tightly, and slowly followed her pathways
across the sky. Coyote led her
faithfully, and noticed that as he walked along the path, it seemed to disappear
from view for a moment, but recreate itself behind him. In this knowledge he
knew his scheme would work, but tonight he enjoyed just leading Luna across the
sky. Luna for her part was thoroughly
enjoying the experience. She could see
into the shadows as if they were not there, and she could see the fear in the
prey as it ran from the wolves. When the
pack brought down the beast she could not contain her excitement anymore and
laughed with glee across the night, “Yip. Yip. Yipeeeeeee!” Wolf looked up at Luna with confusion for he
had never heard her make that sound before, and then looked at the woods around
him in suspicion; this was the second night in a row that Coyote had not been
spotted.
When
they reached the horizon and crossed through into the Celestial realm, they
returned their eyes to each other. Luna picked up Coyote in a great embrace,
“Thank you so much! That was the greatest time I have ever had, that was a
mighty gift!” They parted ways and Luna
raced to tell the other Planets of her adventures that night. Coyote returned to his den to sleep, for he
had not slept in two days and needed to be rested to trick the wolves this
coming night.
The
normal patterns of life continued throughout the weeks and months that followed. Wolf and his pack would split in order to
hunt at night, and keep Coyote away from the prey, while Luna watched their
games from her paths in the sky. But
soon Luna began to miss the adventure she and Coyote shared, and she asked him
one night as she was about pass below the horizon:
“Coyote,
it has been awhile since we shared time together, and I do miss the excitement
of that night. Would you lead me across
the sky again this coming night?”
Coyote
yipped in excitement, “It would be my pleasure to meet you at the horizon! So
we can dance together across the sky!”
That
coming night they met at the horizon and once more traded eyes. Luna grabbed onto Coyote’s tail and was immediately
guided across the sky. Again she was
amazed by what she saw, heard, and smelled in the forest below…which is why she
did not notice how Coyote was changing her path. He erased her old path with
his footsteps, and began to lead her in slow spirals across the sky. Because she now wore his eyes (eyes that
could see into the shadows as if they were lit), she did not notice the change.
Coyote was leading her in great spirals, and her light did not always shine
fully towards the earth.
Luna
thanked him, as they dipped below the horizon and exchanged eyes. Both slept
during the day, eagerly dreaming of the next night’s entertainment.
As Luna stepped across the threshold at the
horizon, she stepped onto her paths and came to an abrupt stop. She saw what
Coyote had done, and began to despair. Finally, she loosed a long howl of grief
and frustration, because she did not remember the lines of her pathways. When Coyote heard her, he smiled and began to
mimic her previous laughter; “Yip. Yip. Yipeeeee”, so that all who heard it knew
it was He that Tricked Luna. Wolf howled
with her, to help her mourn her loss, and understood that Luna’s light would
now be ever-changing.
(c) David Tyrsson, Spring 2011 (do not take without crediting/permission)
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