The Legend of the Sun and the Moon: History, Myth, For the Indigenous and More!

In the early days of humanity, our ancestors were impressed by the grandeur of the stars and the mysteries that the sky concealed. In several places on our planet, since the first records of human existence, people have seen the Sun and Moon as the rulers of life.

Due to the importance that the Sun plays on Earth for food production and the security that the Moon provides in the dark, the first inhabitants of Earth surrounded their figures with mysticism and sought to explain their presence from legends and myths rich in symbolism and history that persist to this day within countless beliefs.

There are many legends and myths that were created around the Sun and the Moon. In most ancient mythologies, there are gods or creatures representing these forces. In this article, we will understand a little how these stars were represented in some belief systems, such as in Tupi-Guarani, Aztec, Celtic and many other mythologies. Check out!

Tupi-Guarani mythology has a complex and even independent system of legends, which explain both the creation of the world and human beings themselves. The primary figure of creation is Iamandu or Nhamandú, who in other versions may be called Nhanderuvuçu, Ñane Ramõi Jusu Papa – “Our Great Eternal Grandfather” or, even, Tupã.

For the Guarani-Kaiowá, Ñane Ramõi constituted himself from an original substance called Jasuka, and then created other divine beings, as well as his wife, Ñande Jari – “Our Grandmother”. He also created the Earth, the sky and the forests. However, he lived for a short time on Earth, before it was occupied by humans, leaving after disagreements with his wife.

Ñane Ramõi’s son, Ñande Ru Paven – “Our Father of All” and his wife, Ñande Sy – “Our Mother”, were responsible for dividing the Earth between peoples and created various instruments of survival for humans. Ñande Ru Paven, following his father’s example, also abandoned Earth due to jealousy, leaving his wife pregnant with twins. From this, the brothers Pa’i Kuara and Jasy were born, who were chosen to protect the Sun and the Moon, respectively.

For the Tupi peoples, Tupã is the father figure who created the Universe, who, aided by the god Sol Guaraci, created all living beings. Let’s understand below how these solar and lunar energies are represented in Tupi-Guarani mythology.

There are several mythological strands within the Tupi-Guarani belief system, as there are many peoples who are under this title. Following the original legend of Ñane Ramõi, his grandsons Pa’i Kuara and Jasy, after several adventures on Earth, were responsible for taking care of the Sun and the Moon.

The first, Pa’i Kuara, desiring to find his father, fasted, danced and prayed for days on end until his body became light enough for his purpose. After proving his strength and determination, his father, Ñande Ru Paven, presented him with the Sun as a reward, and the Moon to his younger brother, Jasy.

The Tupi legends around the majesty of these stars tell that Guaraci – in Tupi, Kûarasy – would be the Sun god, who had the eternal office of illuminating the Earth. One day, having grown tired, he needed to sleep, and when he closed his eyes, he put the world in darkness and darkness.

To light up the Earth while Guaraci slept, Tupã created Jaci – in Tupi, Ya-cy, the goddess of the Moon. She was so beautiful that upon awakening, Guaraci fell in love. Enchanted, the Sun god went back to sleep to find her again, but as soon as he opened his eyes to see her and lit up the Earth, Jaci lay down, fulfilling her mission.

So, Guaraci asked Tupã to create Rudá, the god of love, who knew neither light nor darkness, allowing the Sun and Moon to meet at dawn. Many versions can be found about Guaraci and Jaci, which accompany the diversification of the Tupi-Guarani indigenous peoples.

In aspects of Tupi mythology, the god Sol Guaraci helps his father Tupã to create terrestrial creatures, in addition to acting as their guardian during the day. He is also the brother-husband of Jaci, the moon goddess.

During the dawn, at the meeting between the Sun and the Moon, the wives ask Guaraci for protection for their husbands who go hunting.

The moon goddess Jaci is protector of plants and guardian of the night. She rules fertility and lovers. She is the sister-wife of Guaraci, the sun god.

One of their roles is to awaken longing in the hearts of men when they go hunting, in order to hasten their return home.

Many are the cults directed to the Sun and the Moon in different cultures around the world. The stars and the sky have always been representatives of divine power and presence and, due to their influence on earthly life, were considered gods. We will see below how mythologies around the globe understood and explained astral energies.

The Aztecs were a people who inhabited the south-central part of what is now Mexico, and who had a mythology rich in gods and supernatural beings. For them, there were five suns, and our world would be represented by the fifth. For the creation of the world, a sacrifice of a god was required.

For the creation of the Earth, the god Tecuciztecatl would have been chosen. As he sacrificed himself by throwing himself into a fire, he recoiled in fear and a poor and humble little god, Nanahuatzin, threw himself in his place, becoming the Sun. Upon seeing this, Tecuciztecatl then threw himself, becoming the Moon. The other gods also sacrificed themselves, creating the water of life.

For the Aztecs, the stars had to be kept alive by recreating this original divine sacrifice. They believed that they had this mission among other peoples and, therefore, sacrificed prisoners of war so that the stars could be fed and kept alive until the end of time.

Mayan mythology is extensive and has legends for various natural aspects, such as rain and agriculture. For the Sun and the Moon, the Mayans held the belief that two brothers, Hunahpu and Xbalanque, full of life and pride in ball games, were taken to the Underworld (Xibalba) on account of their prowess.

The Lords of Death had already taken the boys’ father and uncle, who were also twins and were proud of their talents with the ball, but having failed in the challenges, they were killed. So the Lords summoned the twins and subjected them to the same tests that the father and uncle passed. But the two, deceiving the Lords of Death, passed them all unharmed.

Until, realizing that their luck would soon run out, the twins decided to accept one last challenge, which consisted of entering a burning furnace. Then the Lords of Death ground their bones and sprinkled them into a river, whereupon both were reincarnated in various forms, the last of which was two itinerant magicians.

The two magic brothers were so skilled that they were able to sacrifice people and then bring them back to life again. The Lords of Death, hearing of his exploits, demanded a demonstration in the underworld. Impressed with the twins’ resuscitation skills, they asked them to do the trick on some of them.

However, after making the initial sacrifice, Hunahpu and Xbalanque refused to bring them back to life, taking revenge on the Lords of Death and ending the glory days of Xibalba. Then, after that, they were taken up to heaven in the forms of the Sun and the Moon.

Those who live in the Arctic Circle survive exclusively by hunting animals and fish, as the land is inhospitable for cultivation. Inuit mythology is animalistic, with the belief that spirits take the form of animals. The shaman is the one who contacts these spirits and knows the secrets of the supernatural world.

For these peoples, the Moon is Igaluk and the Sun is Malina. According to legend, Igaluk was Malina’s brother and raped his own sister during the night. Not knowing who had molested her, Malina decided to mark the attacker when, the following night, the violence was repeated.

Seeing that it was her brother, Malina ran away carrying a torch and was pursued by Igaluk nonstop. Then, the two ascended to heaven, becoming the Sun and Moon, respectively.

The Navajo peoples are native to the North and occupy part of the Native American territory of the United States. Their culture and subsistence comes from hunting and fishing. His spiritual philosophy is based on the balance between men and nature and, sometimes, the simplest creatures have greater meaning and importance than the large ones.

The rites of the Navajo people are based on the Sun, as the star represents fertility, heat and life. According to legend, Tsohanoai is the Sun god, who has a human form and carries this star on his back every day. During the night, the Sun rests hanging on the western wall of Tsohanoai’s house.

The Moon, for these peoples, is called Kléhanoi, the weaker brother of the Sun, which complements and amplifies its nature.

The Celts had a mythology based entirely on nature, its cycles and processes, and there were no gods superior to each other in importance, since, for them, all were representatives of the two main energies: feminine and masculine.

They believed that life was ruled by the Sun and considered the seasons and equinoxes very important to their belief. The representative god of the Sun is Bel, although he sometimes appears under the name of Lugh.

The Moon was represented by Cerridwen, a powerful sorceress, blessed with the gift of prophecy and poetic wisdom. She is the triple goddess of Celtic mythology, presenting a face for each phase of the moon – maiden on the waxing moon, mother on the full moon and crone on the waning moon.

The Moon is the representative of the sacred feminine, the regency of the tides and plant fluids, fertility and female cycles, as well as the power to create life.

Australian Aboriginal mythology has a very detailed belief system which understands that there are three main realms – the human, the earthly and the sacred. Before the creation of the world as we know it today, there was an era called Dreamtime, or Time of Dreams.

In that era, a young woman was forbidden to experience love with her beloved. Frustrated, she went deep into the woods, far from food and protection, finding increasingly unfavorable conditions. Seeing the young woman on the verge of death, the spirits of her ancestors decided to intervene and took her to heaven, where she found food and fire to warm herself.

From there, she could see the difficulties her people faced due to lack of heat. So, she decided to make the biggest fire she could, creating the Sun. Since then, she lit the fire every day to keep the people warm and favor the cultivation of food.

Still in Dreamtime, a hunter…