A man named Ayas sets a snare on a trail after his deerskin coat is mysteriously burned. The next day, the sun fails to rise, and Ayas discovers he has trapped the sun. Various animals attempt to free it, but only a small yellow mouse succeeds by gnawing through the snare, sacrificing itself in the process. This act explains why a certain species of mouse has yellow fur.
Source:
Chipewyan Tales
by Robert Harry Lowie
The American Museum of Natural History – Anthropological Papers
Volume X, Part 3
New York, 1912
► Themes of the story
Origin of Things: The narrative explains the origin of the yellow coloring of a particular mouse species, attributing it to the mouse’s act of freeing the sun.
Sacrifice: The small yellow mouse sacrifices its life by gnawing through the snare to release the sun, ensuring its return to the sky.
Loss and Renewal: The temporary loss of the sun and its eventual release symbolize a cycle of disappearance and restoration, reflecting themes of loss and renewal.
► From the same Region or People
Learn more about the Chipewyan people
A man named Ayas was traveling about in the brush. He came to a trail, where he found all the sticks burnt. He lay down to sleep there, and while he was sleeping something passed over him and burnt up his deerskin coat. He woke up and was very much vexed at the sight of his burnt garment. Unstringing his bow, he cried, “I’ll find out what passes this place.” He made a snare of the string, setting it in the road. He went home. The next day, there was no sign of the sun’s rising. Ayas’ sister suspected that her brother was to blame, and said, “You are always after some mischief.” He replied, “I set a snare the other day, I’ll see whether I have caught anything.” He found that he had snared the sun. All the animals tried to release it, but it jumped to and fro, so that it was too hot for them.
► Continue reading…
At last, a small yellow mouse began gnawing at the string until it was gnawed through, but the mouse was burnt to death. The sun started on its path. This is how the skin of one species of mice came to be yellow. If it had not been for the mouse, the sun would have remained a prisoner.
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