Why was the moon important in the Cherokee culture?
The Cherokee Moons Ceremonies were part of the ancient seasonal round of ceremonies. The seasons were based on the 13 cycles of the moon. It was used for spiritual growth. During the ceremony the Cherokee prayed to their creator and asked for help with their life and with their crops. Read the folktale below about why the Sun and Moon live in the sky. The Rock House Legend: This story was collected in Yuba County by Don May, a Cherokee, and told to Barbara Warren in 1990. Don originally heard the story in 1980 from his eighty year old Southern Maidu friend, Frazier Edwards. Father Sun and Mother Moon lived inside the huge hollow rocks of Rock House. Their light did not shine from the sky, so the People and the Animals lived in darkness. Now Coyote, who was always playing tricks, thought it would be great fun to dump some fleas on Father Sun and Mother Moon. So he began to gather the fleas and place them in bags. On his way to Rock House he met Rabbit. When Coyote bragged about his bags
