Yu.E. Berezkin, E.N. Duvakin

Thematic classification and distribution of folklore and mythological motifs by area

Analytical catalogue

Introduction
Bibliography
Ethnicities and habitats

A28. Sun and Month: smart and stupid.

(.19.62.64.68.70.-.74.)

The smart Sun man draws the stupid Month into all sorts of tricks he can't invent himself. Trying to repeat the actions of the Sun, the Month fails. See M29U motif.

Melanesia. Paparatawa (New Britain) [To Purgo decided to be the sun, To Kabinana for a month; a man put a snare on a tree, caught a green parrot flying to peck for fruits, killed it, it turned out The TP sun, who chased a man trying to hide in a hole, in the water, burned him; TC got angry with TP for this murder, forced him to switch roles]: Kleintitschen 1924:65-66 in Luomala 1940:40.

NW Amazon. Karihona [mother tells Tukučimobi (Sun) and his younger month-old brother that she will die, tell her to cut off her hand, put it in the basket with cassava, hang it over the hearth; when her sons are to return from hunting, the food will be cooked; said that the garden was ruining the agouti, went to set a trap, turned into an agouti, died deliberately trapped; on her paw there was a trace of a place where the day before, T. took a sand flea out of his mother's leg; the brothers did as his mother told him, but T. did not believe that Aguti's paw was cooking; tells the kuckuck bird to cry out to warn if women appear; but brothers were far away, did not have time to run; the same with the woodpecker (the brothers noticed the tracks of two women); the third time the cacambra bird, the brothers grabbed two women, both wanted a lighter and younger one; T. managed to grab the eldest, before she put on her vulture outfit, and the youngest put it on and flew away; because the eldest's clothes were torn, she remained human; in order to take possession of her brother's wife, the Month asks T. to get the parrot's chicks; puts his penis instead of a pole; the erection stops, T. stays on the tree, falls into the hollow; all the animals searched for T., the mouse has found; rodent animals gnaw through a hole; T. creates a pond, carves from the tree of two large fish ("whales"; originally catfish), from chips, fish of all kinds arose; T. created a dry season for the fruits to burst and the fish to eat them; turned himself into fruit, let the fish swallow themselves, went out through the gills, caught fish, brought it to his wife and children; the Month was ashamed; he went fishing in the same way, the fish swallowed it; T. cut many fish before finding a brother in one of them; The month began to beat fish with a harpoon; tied the tench to an ordinary tree, not to a particularly strong tree, two fish, a male and a female, dragged him away to form the Caquetá River; so it has a wide channel, many islands; T. tried to stop them creating rapids; T. caught a piece of the Month's leg with a net; the rest of the Month crumbled, so there are so many stars in the sky; the jaw, head, and leg bones of the Month are visible separately in the sky; people are children like Sun-T. (with lighter skin) and Months (darker; while T.'s wife was owned by his brother, she also gave birth)], 6B [while the spouses are sleeping, an evil spirit raises their hammock to the sky; the woman falls, the man descends the rope that the bird brings him]: Schindler 1979, No. 1:44-54.

Eastern Amazon. Urubu [The Sun and the Month ate Fruits; The Month is upset that the Sun's excrement has thin fibers and is rough; the Sun asked the woodpecker for his crest to make himself a hat; that warned him not to drop it to the ground, threw fire, the Sun caught it, made a hat for himself, hid it; he found it, wanted the same; knowing that the Month would drop fire, the Sun covered its hut with a layer of clay; when the woodpecker threw fire to the Month, it dropped it, the ground caught fire, the Month survived the global fire in the centipede hole (the insect Tipula oleracea); the Sun found the bakers who died in the fire; began to fry fatty ones, He gave thin ones for a month; a month asked for a fat man, the Sun threw hot meat into his stomach, he rushed into the river in pain; taking meat, both walked across the bare plain]: Ribeiro 2002:242-245.

Southern Amazon. Vaura: Schultz 1966:53-55 [The sun made a flute, invited people to the party; poisoned the drink and the grilled fish; one person did not eat, went into the house and got together with one of the Sun's wives; at the same moment, all the poisoned recovered, left], 59 [The Sun and the Month hid in the water in the calabasses, covering the holes with wax; the fish chief swallowed the Month; the Sun found out who did it, took out the Owl's hook (did not want to give it), caught a fish, took out the bones of the Month, revived it]; Schultz, Chiara 1971 [Fire (Testjumã) began to haunt the Sun and the Month; the Month hid in the water in the snail's shell, and the Sun died; The month fumigated with tobacco the bones of the Sun, revived it; to steal the fire from Waulu, the Sun climbed into the fish's belly and the Month into the sink; W. began to fry the Sun, which he found in the fish's belly, and broke the shell and threw it into the water; the Sun took it away fire, the Month brought him into the house; the Sun refused to fire W.]: 123-124; Kamayura: Agostinho 1974, No. 4:178; Münzel 1973:106-107; Villas Boas, Villas Boas 1973 [Canutsipem kept water in vessels in the men's house; gave the Sun and the Month bad water, did not give good water; they, along with other men, put on perfume masks, frightened K., interrupted blood vessels; the last month broke, a beast jumped out of it, swallowed the Month; the village became a lake, everyone went, leading one of the rivers in the upper reaches of Shingu; the Sun caught the one who swallowed the Month, ripped open his stomach, put his bones in the painted silhouette, the Month came to life]: 157-162; bakairi [Ewaki sent her nephews Keri (Sun) and Kame (Month), then about 8 years old, to get water; on the third day they found three pots owned by the Ochobi water snake; in two had good water, the third from which you would die; it was not touched, the other two were broken; one was flowed by the Paranatinga River, led by Keri, from the other by the more difficult Ronuro (var.: and Culiseu), took it Kame; Keri saw that Kuliseu had stopped, went to look for Kame; he was swallowed by jahú fish; Keri found his brother's bones in the stomach of the third jahú caught, put them on a leaf, blew, revived him; Keri told the duck lead Ronuro on, and his brother returned to Paranatinga; reached the waterfall, and told ducks, pigeons and other birds to lead the river below]: Steinen 1897:325 (detailed retelling in Oberg 1953:79); trumay [Awalanaxe fish ate a month; Atehle caught it on the hook, took it out the Month, collected the bones, revived it; The month sneezed, thought he was sleeping]: Murphy, Quain 1955:72; Umotin: Schultz 1962, No. b [at the stork Katamã has good arrows to beat fish; Míni's sun turns into surubim fish, K.'s arrows get stuck in it without causing harm; he swims away, takes possession of arrows; his friend Hári (month) tries to repeat the trick, killed, fried, eaten; M. comes to K.'s children, squeezes pieces of meat out of their bellies, revives H.], c [two var.; Otters own a boiling pot to cook the caught fish; Míni ( Sun) became a rat, blew it under the pot, carried it away, unable to drag a heavy pot, Hári (Month) also cannot; the pot falls, the forest lights up; M. turns into a falcon, H. turns into an owl, burns; M. his revives, but since then the Month has been dying from time to time]: 229-230, 230-232; Bororo: Wilbert, Simoneau 1983, No. 1-15:17-43.

Eastern Brazil. Kayapo: Wilbert 1978, No. 9, 10:65-67; Creanier: Wilbert 1978, No. 11:67; Apinaye: Wilbert 1978, No. 6, 8:51-55, 63-64; frame camera: Wilbert 1978, No. 7:58-61; Wilbert, Simoneau 1984a, No. 1:17-30; crash [Pud (sun) made himself a headdress out of woodpecker's red feathers; Pudlere (month) wanted the same; The sun threw it to him from the tree, told him to catch, prevent him from falling on earth; there were hot coals along with the headdress, the Month dropped, the earth caught fire; The month escaped by hiding in a clay wasp nest]: Wilbert 1978, No. 5:41; apaniecra [Pud (sun) asked the Woodpecker to throw it off he had a red headdress; the dress was hot, but the Sun caught him, put it on; Pudlêra (a month) wanted the same, but burned himself, dropped it, the ground caught fire; A month climbed the trees, but the fire followed; the Sun found the Month lying on the ground; his stomach was burned, so spots on the moon]: Wilbert 1978, No. 4:33-34; sherente: Wilbert, Simoneau 1984a, No. 4, 5, 6 [Vaptokva (sun) and Vairie (month) collected Nandu eggs; Vap. baked one in ash and opened it; Vair asks how he broke his shell; on his stomach; he broke hot eggs on his stomach, burned himself; since then, the stomach of the Month has been stained]: 34-35.

SE Brazil. Mashakali [The Sun asked the Woodpecker to throw the red feathers off his head from the tree to make them a headdress; the woodpecker ordered him to dig a hole deeper; threw it, the Sun grabbed those on fire feathers, put them out, put on a hat; the Month saw him, wanted the same; when the Sun was gone, the Month began to ask the Woodpecker to give him a hat, dug a hole, grabbed a hat, burned himself, the earth caught fire, the Month rushed ran, became a bumblebee, hid in a hole, then went across the river, the flame went out by the river; a month found the hat left under the tree, but it turned out to be yellow; the Sun said he tried to teach him, but he did not listened]: Popovich 1971:29-59; kamakan [The month is stupid, does irresponsible acts (mischief-maker); his brother The Sun revives him several times; in one episode, the Sun to get arrows, turns into capybara, puts himself under the arrows of the villagers, carries arrows]: Metraux, Nimuendaju 1946b: 551-552.

Chaco. Chamacoco: Cordeu 1984, No. [During the famine, the Sun asked for food to be sent from the sky; walked away when the food fell and the Month was crushed; the Sun imitated Nandu's defecation, snuck into the flock, hunted; Month failed, Nandu killed him; The sun turned into a duck, trapped other ducks; The Month failed, the ducks killed him; the Sun convinced the mosquitoes to bring him valuables; The Month summoned them annoyance, they killed him; the Sun and the Month turned into eagles; they competed to see who would stay underwater longer; the Month won, so it shines at night and the Sun during the day]: 236; Escobar 2006 [Sun Deich teaches his younger brother (var.: nephew) of the month Pyne to hunt nanda so that he could then teach people; after eating the wild fruits and flowers that nandu feed on, he himself became one of them; explains incredulous Nandu, who is larger than them, because he knows where the food is; when they run away, they spew out gases and digested food - the same as Nandu's; Nandu ate, fell asleep, D. twisted their necks; P. repeats the trick, but eats people's food before that; he was recognized, torn, trampled to death; D. revives him; looking into the eyes of a wild dog, turns it into a domestic dog, hunts with him; P. rushes to pick it up killed by the dog Nandu ahead of time, the dog kills him; D. teaches people to hunt himself; goes with P. to the ends of the earth, P. gets tired, D. gives him a white horse; they agree to walk across the sky at different times; occur during eclipses, when D. corrects P.'s mistakes, teaches him to walk from east to west, and not from north to south; P. proposes to make people mortal so that the earth does not overflow; D. throws them to the ground fruit; P. says that the fruit will leave seeds, life will return; then D. throws a stone, it falls into the pond and sinks; therefore, people are mortal, as the first shaman once wanted]: 223-225; Wilbert, Simoneau 1987a, No. 9- 20; 42-78; matako: Wilbert, Simoneau 1982a, No. 10 [(by Metraux 1939:13-14); The sun turns into dorado fish; people throw spears at it, they pierce but do no harm; The sun takes away spears; A month tries to repeat the trick, killed, cooked, eaten; The sun turns into a dog, takes away its bones; something is missing; the Sun finds the heart, then the gallbladder, revives the Month; but since then it yellow], 11 [(according to Metraux 1939:14-15); The sun takes the form of a duck, sneaks up on ducks unnoticed, dives, catches them with a net; distributes meat, gives an old duck to the Month; he decides to repeat the trick; ducks are on the lookout they tell them to show them his bowel movements; they recognize the Month by its disgusting smell, pull out his intestines; now there are spots on the moon's disk]: 51, 52.

Southern Brazil. Ofaye: Nimuendaju 1914 [The sun keeps wild pigs in the pen; his brother A month in his absence asks his wife to let him shoot a pig; pigs run away; the sun splashes into his face A month of boiling water, stains are still visible]: 377; Ribeiro 1951 [The sun is able and lucky, turns people into animals; The month is stupid, protects people], No. 1, 2 [The sun has become a dorado fish, wearing a sturdy scales; people began to shoot arrows at fish, then throw bows, the Sun took it all away; the Month decided to repeat the trick, but put on thin scales, was killed; The Sun came to people, collected the bones of the Month, revived it (like Exactly, the informant does not remember)]: 119-120, 121; chiripa [see motif J8; Ñanderú Guazú came from the west, placed the earth on a wooden cross (palo cruzado); with him Ñanderú Mbae Kua; they found the first woman under a clay pot, both met her; NG went to the site, came back, told his wife to go pick corn; she did not believe that the harvest was ripe for her; NG got angry, left, promised forgive his wife if she finds her way to him; from his mother's womb, their son Kuarahy (the future sun) showed her way; asked to pick flowers, the woman was bitten by a wasp, she scolded K., he fell silent; the woman came to to the old woman, she hid it under a pot from her nephews Añag; she herself told them that they killed and ate the woman; the old woman asked for fruit from the womb to eat, but neither cook nor bake it; K. considered the old woman a mother, shot butterflies, called them after birds, since then birds have names; the old woman does not tell me to hunt on Blue Mountain; K. goes there, finds his mother's bones, mixing them with cornmeal makes Brother Yacy (next month); brothers destroy Añag jaguars and demons; K. gave Y. power over cultivated plants and crops; K. created honey, but Y. asked to leave some of the hollows empty; the fire was at urubu vultures; K. was afraid to approach them himself, created a cururu toad, which swallowed the coals, brought them, regurgitated them; K. made sugar cane, Y. imitated, a snake came out; K. and Y. saw A. fishing; K. bit off and took the hook, Y. got caught; A. caught him in the form of a bagre (the first fish); K. asked for bones, I revived it. (moon phases); the brothers came to Saria (this is also Añag); Y. said that he had many sisters, A. asked them to marry, Y. ordered K. to ask permission; he told A. to bring fish for his wives, gave the girl, from his feet which the fish is dying; A. began to beat the girl, she turned into a timbo vine; K. gave A. a crown of feathers, it caught fire, A. burned down; a partridge flew out of his stomach, the ashes turned into mosquitoes; I. got together with a married woman; on a full moon, the Month copulates with girls, causing menstruation; K. did Venus; after copulation, Y. tells Venus to wash it, so it rains on the new moon; K. and Y. did a chain of arrows to go to heaven to my father; I wanted to climb first to become the sun, but K. was the first to climb himself]: Bartolomé 197:16-40.

The Southern Cone. Puelche [The Sun and the Moon are brothers; two vultures stole their son from the Sun; the Sun took the form of a dead guanaco; when the birds arrived, it grabbed one; the Month became dead Nanda, moved earlier time, the birds flew away; the Sun took the son's bones out of the belly of the first bird, but two were in the stomach of the flying bird and it was not possible to resurrect the son; before rising to heaven, the Sun told the Month to shout; then the battleships will come out of their burrows and can be hunted; the Month has shouted twice, there are too many battleships, they have scratched the Month's face; the spots are still visible]: Lehmann-Nitsche 1919:183-184.