M25. A holiday in heaven, K1041.

.11.-.15. (.43.50.52.55.63.-.65.68.72.74.)

To take part in a festival in heaven or visit a deity, a flightless character manages to climb high into the sky. He usually cannot go down the same way, falls and as a result dies, maims or metamorphoses.

It is highly likely that all options from the New World were borrowed from Europeans or from African slaves. Within Eurasia, the motive is known only in the Pyrenees, which most likely represent an extension of the African range.

Bantu-speaking Africa. Sakata: Colldén 1979, No. 158 [The turtle feeds the Hawk with fish, says it's her children's severed legs; the Hawk cuts off the children's legs, they die; the Turtle and the Hawk are invited to the festival to heaven; the Turtle's wife hides it in a bag, says that the husband asked to give it to his friend in heaven; this is how the Hawk brings the Turtle to heaven; then brings it back in the same way; the turtle hides in the hole, the head outside; the wife explains that the husband went to the forest, left his head; the Hawk tells his wife to cut off his head], 168 [The hawk calls the Turtle to go to the market in heaven; the turtle tells the children to put themselves in a bale with with leaves, ask the Hawk to hand the package to his friend the Bird Above; in the sky he tells the Hawk that he will return to earth later, climbs into the bag that the Hawk must bring to the Turtle's wife; so twice; on the third time the Hawk opens the bag, throws the Turtle to the ground, it breaks], 169 [as in (168); the Turtle repeats the trick many times; one day the Hawk sees why his bag is so heavy, drops Turtle to the ground]: 325-326, 336-338, 338-339; laadi (laari) [the birds were going to fly to the festival in heaven; the turtle persuaded them to give it a pen, also flew; each of the guests should say its name; the turtle says its name is all of you; asks the owner who all the food is for, he replies that "you all" should eat; the birds take away its feathers and fly away; the parrot promises to pass it on turtle children that they should put something soft on the ground; tells them that their father told them to put sharp and hard; the turtle jumps, breaks the shell, but then glued it together]: Koutekissa, Koutekissa 2003:175-180.

West Africa. Igbo [the birds were invited to a festival in the sky; the turtle asked the birds to pen her, took off; said her name was All You; when they served the treat and said it was "for all of you," Turtle She took everything for herself; the birds and the Turtle went down to the top of the tree, where the birds took their feathers; the Turtle asked the Eagle to tell his wife to put rags outside the house; the Eagle said that her husband asked for stones to be placed ; The turtle jumped, broke its shell, the Crab and the Snail glued it together, the stitches remained]: Anpetkova-Sharova 2010:64-65; tiv [The hare says there are women in the sky; The spider weaves the thread, all the animals go up they buy her wives into heaven; the hare eats the old woman's food (many small seeds), sprinkles them quietly on the Spider; everyone thinks that the thief is a Spider; he is offended, descends to the ground with his thread rolled; all animals jump down, they crash; the last elephant; he also crashed, but the Hare jumped, climbing on his back, survived]: Arnott 2000:75-78; banen [the tarantula spider invited the monitor lizard to a festival in heaven; that climbed his web; girls and boys are dancing in the sky, girls like the spider, but the monitor lizard does not; the boys offer to fight, the spider refuses, he is ashamed; he fights the monitor lizard and he broke an egg in his stomach; the spider was offended and descended to the ground, cutting off the web; the monitor lizard that followed him remained hanging and then fell; since then it has no ear holes]: Dugast 1975:422-426; wolof [birds were called to heaven for the festival; the turtle begged her to take it too; each bird gave her a pen; the turtle suggested that everyone should call themselves new names, its name would be For All of you; food was served in the sky, saying that they were "for everyone you"; the turtle ate everything alone; the birds furiously took their feathers from her and flew away; the turtle asked them to tell her wife to take everything soft out of the house; the birds told her to take everything out of the house hard and sharp; the turtle jumped and its shell crashed; the birds still took pity and brought in a doctor; he glued the shell together, but traces remained]: Reuss-Nliba, Reuss-Nliba 2018:61-62; mukulu [monkey and spider climbed into heaven on the web; monkey: let's change names, I'll be Mutorgagu and you'll be Mudyeru; at first I wanted the opposite, but changed my mind right away; {apparently the names are significant, but it's not mentioned}; if offered Mutorgag's food is for me; they always offer Mutorgag, the poor spider is starving; one woman found out about this, began to offer food for Moodier; then the spider went down to earth, and the monkey stayed; asked weave her a rope; when it blows, you can let go - she is on the ground; the eagle that flew by asked her to blow at least a little bit; the monkey did it, let go of the rope, it fell, went into the ground, only a finger out; steals food from a woman unnoticed]: Jungraithmayr 1981, No. 4:14-20.

Sudan - East Africa. Lango: Driberg 1923 [The Hornet invites the Hare to bring it to heaven; holding the Hornet's waist, the Hare sings something offensive; in the morning the Hare is going back; the Hornet returns to earth, says that the Hare should stop his absence, the Hare sings something offensive; to people that these are Leogria's eyes; {Is the hare left in the sky?}] : 448-449; Wright 1960 [The hornet invites the Hare to his uncle in heaven; he behaves brazenly, the Hornet flies back without him; the Hare; the hare descends on the rope, but his friends let her go too early; The hare falls, breaks his hip, jumps ever since]: 104; joluo [The spider decides to marry the girl in the sky; invites the Hare to accompany him; the hare stipulates that everything served to the "guests" will go to him, and "in-laws" - Spider; first all the food goes to the Hare; Then the Spider asks to say that this and that is intended for the owners; now the Hare is starving; the Spider returns to earth, leaving the Hare; that jumps from heaven to earth, turns into a piece of meat; an old woman finds it, carries it in a basket; her child says that a piece of meat ate what is in the basket, the mother does not believe it; cooks meat, calls guests; pieces of meat they gather, become a Hare, he runs away, knocking over the broth]: K'Okiri 1970:116-126; acholi [the son of the heavenly king invited birds to the wedding; the turtle asked each one to give her a pen, made it for herself wings, said that her name was All of you; in heaven she asked who the food was for, she was told that for all of you, she ate everything herself, the birds got leftovers; the birds were offended, took away her feathers, flew away; The turtle asked her husband to fold everything soft in the yard; the bird said that the wife asked her to fold everything hard; the turtle jumped down, broke the shell, glued it together, the seams are still visible]: Anpetkova-Sharova 2010 : 413-414; shilluk [the eagle raises the hare to the sky, where it is dancing; the hare makes a comment about the unsightly appearance of the eagle; he leaves it, flies away; children in the sky lower the hare on a rope, give drum; when he reaches the ground, let him hit the drum; when he sees the ground, the hare hits the drum with joy, the children pull the rope up, the hare falls, breaks his lip; it has been split ever since]: Hofmayr 1925:375.

North Africa. The Berbers of Algeria (Oued Righ) [the eagle invited the jackal to a feast in heaven; put it on his back; when he rose high, he threw the jackal; he wants to fall on straw or warm water; falls on blind man abluting]: Basset 1897, No. 78:34; Tunisia [The dove laid eggs every year and then incubated them on the tallest tree in the forest, and a wolf would come to her and throw its tail on a rosemary trunk and said he would now climb a tree and eat it if she didn't throw her chicks on it. Then she threw them off for him. The king of birds began to count how many chicks had bred this year, and the dove told him that the wolf had eaten her chicks. Then the stork volunteered to help her. He taught her not to give the wolf its chicks because he can't climb a tree. When the wolf came and demanded the chicks, the dove did not give them away and said that it was the stork that taught her that way. Then the wolf decided to take revenge on the stork. He found him and pretended to be sick, said that he fell into a cold pond and caught a cold, then the stork covered him with its wings and the wolf chewed at them. The stork decided to take revenge on the wolf. When his wings had healed, he found a wolf and invited him to a party in the sky. The wolf climbed the stork when they went up into the sky, and the stork threw off the wolf. He fell and crashed]: Al-Aribi 2009, No. 41 in Korovkina MS; Moroccan Arabs [the raven offered to take the turtle to heaven to attend an angelic wedding - then he will lower it back; going up everything above, asks the turtle how it sees the land; the size of a basket, a nest, etc.; when the raven threw the turtle down below, it crashed against the rocks and the raven ate it]: Bushnaq 1987:245- 246.

Southern Europe. Portuguese [fox dogs: come to us, an order has been issued for peace between animals; fox: now, I'll just ask the rooster if he knows about the order to keep us company; fox hunter: if If you want chickens, come to me in the evening; released dogs on the fox, and the rooster screams: show them the order; after running away from the dogs, the fox picked up stones so that they could climb into the stable; called the donkey: go there, there grain; donkey is full and stuck; fox to crow: do you want meat? the donkey got stuck there; the raven came down to peck at the donkey's ass; the fox met the wolf: distract people and I would steal their basket of rice; the fox ate rice, rice on his head; wolf: so tired, running away, barely alive; fox: a They broke my head, so my brain came out; they say to the old man: let's have a party; the wolf went for the lamb, the fox for the chicken, and the hare for parsley; the hare came back first, the old man killed him with a stick, and the wolf with the fox poked his spit in the ass; they thought that the old man had a hot finger; at night, the fox showed the wolf the reflection of the moon in the well: look what a cake, you need to drink water; the fox was just pretending, and the wolf drank and burst; then the fox became friends with the heron; she spread flour in the can, ate it, and the fox cannot stick its face; the heron invited the fox to attend a feast in heaven, told her to sit on her back; raised it high, threw it off; fox: if I stay alive, I don't go to the festival in heaven anymore; hey, boulder - part; when I fall on a stone, I crashed]: Coelho 1879, No. 7:13-15; Basques: Barandiaran 1962b: 135- 136 [Seeing snow, Lisa asks what kind of white fluffs are falling from the sky; Vulture explains that they are chicken feathers, they are preparing for the wedding in the sky; agrees to take Lisa there, tells them to hold on to him tail; getting up, asks three times if the Fox sees well; the third time the Fox opens her mouth and says, Yes; falls, threatens the rocks, which will break them into dust if they do not part; the rocks are motionless, Fox crashed], 139-141 [The fox tells Drozdikha to throw down the chick, threatens to cut down the tree; she does not believe it; then the Fox smeared her tail with wet clay, Drozdikha believed it was an ax, threw off the chick, then two more; The dog promised to punish Lisa; pretended to be dead; grabbed Lisa, bit her almost to death; Vulture promised to take the Fox to the snowy top, supposedly it was not snow, but chicken feathers; threw her there, Fox rolled down; Lisa's brother cured her, this Fox was made the leader of all foxes]; Aragon [the eagle convinces the fox to agree to ride it; throws it to the ground; "If I stay alive, no more weddings in the sky!"] : González Sanz 1996, No. 225:72; Spaniards (Murcia) [a raven (eagle) invites a fox to visit, serves food in a narrow-necked dish; a fox invites a crow (eagle) gives food in small dishes; a raven (eagle) invites the fox to a wedding in heaven, carries it; the third time the fox replies that it does not see the ground, the bird throws it off; when falling, the fox screams to make it soft (different versions, rhymes), breaks]: Hernández Fernández 2013, No. 275:81-82; Catalans [fox calls stork, offers porridge spread on stone; stork suggests taking the fox to heaven, where the wedding throws down]: Oriol, Pujol 2008, No. 60:33-34.

(Wed. The coast is the Plateau. Vishram [The Red Fox is the younger brother of the Coyote; said he was going to heaven for the festival; the Coyote lied that he was there when he was young, the Fox agreed to take him; the Coyote danced, the Fox warned not to get tired so much strongly; on the third night, the Coyote fell asleep; he was found by a watchman and thrown to the ground; he woke up, returned to the Fox, asks why he was thrown away; Fox: it was perfume; Coyote: it won't work like this, all the game, the roots, the berries that are now in the sky must be lowered to the ground; the Coyote has blocked the way to heaven alive, now only the dead go there; the holiday is celebrated in spring on earth]: Hines 1998, No. 4:40-43; vasco [by On holidays, people go to heaven, where they get berries and roots; after the holiday, the Fox falls asleep, celestials throw him to the ground; his brother brings him food from the sky; the Fox distributes berries and roots on the ground; people no longer go to heaven; have a festival in April when gathering products become available after winter]: Clark 1953:184; yakima [to participate at a festival in heaven, the Coyote and the Fox make tipi, ask the Wind to raise it; the Coyote poplar poles immediately break, but the Fox built firmly, they arrive; the chief tells them to dance for seven days before the feast takes place; the Fox kept him awake; after dancing and sleeping, Coyote began to feast; knocking on the floor, made a hole in the sky, fell through, crashed; the fox goes east for three years, the old man and the old woman lower him on a thread loaned from hemp; the fox killed two deer for them, they took them to heaven; the fox stepped over the remains of the Coyote five times, he came to life]: Hines 1992, No. 42:118-120).

(Wed. The Great Southwest. Pima [Coyote asks Vulture to take him to heaven for a feast; plays all night, slept in the morning, Vulture flies away; without help, he jumps from the sky; coyotes emerge from his bones]: Shaw 1968:63-69).

(Wed. Mesoamerica Chorti: Anónimo s.a. [Zope (Hawk?) tells Toad that there will be a holiday in heaven; he asks his wife to make cakes, give it to the Hawk, hides in a flat cake, goes out in the sky; after the holiday, the Hawk flies away; the Toad jumps down, breaks against a stone]; Fought 1972, No. 6 [The hawk flies to God; the Toad sneaks into his bag; the Hawk flies away; the Toad jumps down; since then flattened]: 144-145; quiche, pokomchi, kekchi [The crow takes from The Frog listens to a bird concert in the sky; during the concert, the Frog croaks; the crow leaves her, she jumps down, breaks her legs]: Peñalosa 1996, No. 225B: 59; canhobal [there is a holiday in the sky; The hawk agreed to take Toad there; she overdue her return time, jumped into the sea; since then she has bulging eyes and membranes on her legs]: Peñalosa 1995b: 133-134.

(Wed. The Northern Andes. Embera (chami) [The toad hides in a bag of provisions that the vulture carries to heaven; on the way back, he sits on the vulture's back; he tries to throw it off; the toad jumps, hurts, loses tail]: Pinto García 1978:255-256; guajiro [The turtle agrees to Black Vulture's offer to take it to heaven, where Maleiwa is celebrating; both dance, Vulture forgets about The turtle flies away; after waking up, the Turtle jumps down, since then its shell has been broken; since then, the turtle's ribs have been separated from each other]: Wilbert, Simoneau 1986 (1), No. 88:231-232).

(Wed. Central Amazon. Mestizos from the lower reaches of Jurua [A turtle hides in a drum that takes a vulture to heaven; on the way back he finds it and throws it down; God glues its shell]: Tastevin 1927:426-427) .

(Wed. Eastern Amazon. Tenetehara [Vulture invites you to a bird festival; Kururu toad hides in a bag of provisions that Vulture carries to heaven; plays an instrument at the festival, Vulture happy; after the holiday, the Vulture finds a Turtle in his bag, throws it away, it hurts, since then the turtles have short legs; the turtle waits for help at the entrance to heaven for a long time; falls, God (Tupan) glues broken shell]: Wagley, Galvão 1949, No. 31:156-157).

(Wed. The Central Andes. If not otherwise: The fox rises, sits on the vulture's back and descends on the rope. Huancabamba (dep. Piura) [Rabbit rises on Vulture; falls from the sky, crashes]: Morote Best 1988:65; Tucume (dep. Lambayeque): Narvaez Vargas 2001:119-120 [There is a holiday in the sky; the fox musician asks the red-headed vulture to take him there; the Vulture refuses, the Fox makes calebas wings for himself, cannot fly; The vulture still picks it up, throws it off, the Fox breaks, the Vulture pecks out his eyes], 343 [there is a holiday in the sky, Condor took the Fox there; he did not return on time, the Condor flew away, the Fox became go down the rope; shouted insults to the flying Parrots, they cut the rope; falling, the Fox screams to lay the blanket, no one laid it down]; Tarma (dep. Junin) [The fox wants to climb the moon; asks Condor to tie a rope there; climbs up; the Fox feels like the Parrot is laughing at him; he scolds the Parrot, she cuts off the rope; the Fox asks for a bed blankets, they can't hear him; he falls, breaks]: Metraux 1935b:408 (Vienrich, Adolfo. Tarmapap Racha Huaranin, Fabulas Qyechuas//Azacenas Quechuas. Tarma, 1906: Imprenta "La Aurora de Tarma": 129-131); Tarma [a holiday is expected in the sky, the Fox asks Condor to take him there; in the sky, Condor says that the Fox is a musician; the Fox plays badly, spirits they laugh, solder him, leave him; he weaves a straw rope, begins to descend; the parrot calls him "compadre", the Fox says he is not a compadre for such a bird, calls him names; the offended Parrot cuts off the rope; when he falls, the Fox asks to spread the blankets; no one hears him, he breaks]: Vienrich, Adolfo. Tarmapap Racha Huaranin, Fabulas Qyechuas, in Azacenas Quechuas. Tarma, 1906: Imprenta "La Aurora de Tarma". Pp. 99-107 in Toro Montalvo 1990b: 417-418; Morote Best 1988:68-69; Orgona (Mantaro Valley): Morote Best 1988:69; Peru's central coast [turns into a Huarango tree]: Jimenez Borja 1937 in Benson 1995:9; Ayacucho: Lauriault 1957:24-26; Morote Best 1988:69; Kero (Cordillera Oriental): Morote Best 1988:58-61; dep. Cusco: Morote Best 1988 (Cusco, Chumbivilcas, Kispicanchi, Calca): 61-64; Pacaritambo (dep. Cusco) [three var., recorded by the author; Condor invites Fox to a banquet in heaven; carries it on his back; when he returns, the Fox is still eating; the fox weaves a grass rope, climbs down; quarrels with parrots, those they cut off the rope, he falls on rocks; the corn, quinoa, and other cultivated plants he ate spread across the ground; his remains become current foxes]: Urton 1985:262; chipaya [Fox makes a ladder, climbs to heaven to listen to mass; a bird (Ctenomis sp. or Octodon sp.) cuts off the stairs; the fox goes down the rope, it breaks, it hangs, falls; now there are many foxes, so there are few rabbits and young lamas]: Metraux 1935b: 410-411; Pichiua, dep. Cusco [The fox asks Condor to take him to heaven; they eat meat there; Condor says the party is over; the fox decides to stay, eat more; but there is nothing else to eat; he asks the Star to shelter him at night, "Dove" turns to her; one day she tells him to cook canyua grain; he cooks ten, the food overflows; the Star scolds him; he makes a rope, the Star lets him return to ground; when going down, the Fox insults the Parrot for no reason, calls it "Tongue like dry potatoes"; he cuts off the rope; falling, the Fox shouts "Spread the mattress"; he is not heard, he breaks; from his stomach Thousands of foxes are scattered]: Farfan 1943:119-122; Cusco [Toad climbs Vulture; goes down a rope, insults parrots, crashes]: Morote Best 1988:64; Cusco [Eagle says that it will rain on fire, wants to fly to the sky; the fox asks to take him; during the flight he insults the Eagle, he drops the Fox, he crashes]: Payne 1984:76; Aymara (Kakachaka, dep. Oruro) [The fox talks to God; breaks, the seeds of cultivated plants fall out of his belly]: Arnold, Yapita Moya 1992:16, 23; Aymara, Quechua of mountainous Bolivia: Metraux (Quechua) 1934:97- 98; 1935a: 406-408 [The fox wants to go to the festival in heaven; asks Condor to carry him on his back; he is drunk, falls asleep, the Condor flies back; the fox goes down the rope; the parrot asks how he ended up in the sky; they quarrel, the Fox calls the Parrot, who cuts off the rope; the fox falls, breaks], 408-409 [The fox wants to take a closer look at the moon; asks Condor to tie a rope to the sky, climbs it; Parrot laughs at him; he calls her names, she cuts off the rope, the Fox falls], 409 [The fox asks the Condor to take him to heaven, where the holiday is expected; in the sky he is eating innumerable, seduces all the girls; the Condor flies away, the Fox goes down the rope; quarrels with the Parrot, who cuts off the rope; the fox falls, bursts, the swallowed seeds of cultivated plants spread across the ground (the origin of agriculture); the Fox himself turns into weed - false quinoa)]; Morote Best 1988 [as in Metraux]: 72; Paredes Candia 1953 (prov. Norcichas, dep. Potosi) [birds fly to feast in the sky; the fox asks Condor to take him; he warns not to gnaw bones; there are many different cultivated plants and wild meat in the sky; the fox continues eat, when the birds have eaten, chews on bones; Condor flies away as punishment, leaves him alone; a bird gives him a rope; he goes down, calls the flying parrots bastards, dirty ass, insignificant; they cut off the rope; the fox screams to put clothes on the ground; no one comes to the rescue, he breaks; corn, quinoa, canyua fly out of his belly (the origin of cultural plants)]: 23-25 (=1957:69-70); Tomoeda 1982 (dep. Sucre) [as in Metraux; the origin of two types of corn, quinoa, amaranth (Amaranthus caudatus L.)]: 278; atacameño: Guggiana 1966:9 in Lehnert Santander 1988:757-758 [Fox asks Condor take him to heaven; he warns the Fox not to gnaw his bones if thrown; the Fox gnaws first; the Condor flies away, asks the Devil to tell the Fox to go down to earth; God advises the Fox weave a rope; in a year it is ready; asks to take cultivated plants to the ground, puts them in the Fox's mustache, nostrils, all parts of the body; going down, the Fox sees Kondorov, calls them names (Crooked, Beaks from pumpkin peel, Just dare to cut the rope! ); The Condors cut the rope, the Fox falls, screams for a blanket to be spread out on the ground - God falls! breaks, seeds are scattered on the ground (the origin of cultivated plants)]; Tolosa 1970:32 in Lehnert Santander 1988:758 [The fox is lying on the ground, the Condor descends to eat it; he is alive, Condor suggests take him to heaven; Easter is there; the fox says that Condor has dirty and lousy feathers; the Condor flies away; San Isidro advises the Fox to weave a rope, gives a basket of various seeds; The parrot cuts off rope; the fox falls, (cultivated) plants spread across the ground]; (cf. Peruvians [like Quechua]: Morote Best 1988:72).

(Wed. Southern Amazon. Paresi [a person wants to participate in a festival hosted by Énore (heavenly deity); hides in a bag of provisions that the vulture carries to heaven; hides again after the festival , the vulture finds him and throws him down; the shaman heals the crashed man, who becomes a turtle (the origin of the stitches on the shell); Nandu wanted to fly to the holiday, he used to fly the highest, but termites gnawed at him feathers]: Pereira 1987, No. 335:773-775).

(Wed. Chaco. Mokovi [The fox is the fiance of the Creator's daughter; flies to heaven for the festival on the Chauna torquata bird; the bird returns, the bride persuades the Fox to linger, weaves a rope for him to go down ; he calls parrots Dry tongue and; they cut off the rope; the fox falls, breaks]: Wilbert, Simoneau 1988, No. 121, 122, 123:155-157, 157-158; Quechua in Sagnago del Estero (NW Argentina) [ The fox insults parrots, breaks (like a mockovi? without details.)]: Morote Best 1988:71).

(Wed. The Southern Cone. Araucana [The fox takes Condor to heaven and walks at the wedding; Condor goes down, sees the Fox fall like a rock; eats him]: Pino Saavedra 1987, No. 18:55-56; (cf. Chileans [like Araucans]: Pino Saavedra 1987:251); Southern Tehuelches [The fox rises to heaven on a bird, probably a swan; the reason for visiting the sky is not clear; people live in the sky without an anus, they eat the smell of food; a fox pierces one person's anus, he dies; a fox goes down a rope; it's short, he falls; a blooming bush grows out of a cone on his head]: Wilbert, Simoneau 1984b, No. 92: 134-135).