THE STORY OF THE PLEIADES

This story was recorded in a pamphlet, "The Seven Dancers," that was produced by Ray Fadden sometime during the late 1940s.

Long ago a band of Mohawk Indians were camped on the Gon-ia-de-oh, (Lake Ontario). At that time a group of children, seven in number, formed a secret organization among themselves. Every night they would gather their little council fire in the forest near the lake and there they would dance to the beat of their leader's water drum.

One day their little boy chief suggested that they hold a feast at their next council fire. Each of the seven boys was to ask his parents for some food to take to their feast. One boy was to bring corn, another was to bring bear meat, one was to bring venison, and so on.

That day each boy approached his mother and asked for the desired food. Each of the boys was refused the food, their mothers saying that they had enough to eat at home and that there was no need for them to carry away good food to the woods for a feast.

The little warriors were very unhappy because of their failure to secure food for the feast. They returned that night to the dancing ground with empty hands and gloomy hearts. Their chief said, "Never mind, my warriors, we will show our parents that it is not well to refuse us food. We will dance without our feast." The little chief told them to dance, to look up at the sky and not to look back even though their parents might call for them to return. Saying this, he took his water drum and while beating, he sang a powerful song.

The boys danced and as they danced their hearts became light. So, also, did their feet become light. They soon forgot their troubles. Faster and faster went the music and soon the boys began to feel themselves dance into the sky. Their parents saw them dancing above the tree tops and called for them to return. One little dancer looked back and he became a shooting star. The rest of the dancers soon became little flickering stars in the heavens.

When the Iroquois see the Pleiades flickering during the cold winter nights they say, "The seven boys are dancing hard tonight."

Forever, they dance over the villages of the Iroquois. When they are directly overhead, it is the time for the New Year Feast. This happens during the time of mid-winter.

When a meteor falls though the sky the old people tell this story of the Seven Dancers.