How the Earth Was Made

Long ago, there was only water. No land, no trees, no mountains. Just a great, endless sea stretching in every direction.

The animals lived up in Galunlati, the Sky World. It was a beautiful place, but it was getting crowded, and the animals began to wonder what was below the water. They sent birds to fly down and look for land, but none found a place to rest. They sent the four-leggeds, but there was nowhere to stand. Finally, Water Beetle—small and quiet, always overlooked—volunteered to go.

Water Beetle skittered across the water’s surface, but saw nothing. So he dove down, deep into the water, and he reached the bottom. There, he gathered some soft mud in his tiny legs and brought it back to the surface.

That mud began to grow. Slowly, it spread out and became the Earth as we know it—first a little island, then bigger and bigger until it became the world. But it was still soft and wet.

So they sent Great Buzzard, the grandfather of all birds, to fly over the Earth and see if it was ready. He flew low and slow. Wherever his wings touched the ground, they made valleys. Where they rose again, they made mountains. That is why the Cherokee homeland—the Smoky Mountains—is full of hills and valleys: it was shaped by the wings of Great Buzzard.

At last, the land was dry. The animals came down, and then came the people.

The first people were a man and a woman. The man struck the woman with a fish and told her to multiply. (This part of the story is often spoken briefly, with reverence—it holds mystery, not literal detail.) She began to bear children every seven days. But the Earth was filling too fast. So the Creator changed the law—now women would bear children only once a year.

And so, balance was created.

Cultural Notes:
In Cherokee belief, every being has a purpose, even the smallest. Water Beetle’s role reminds us not to overlook those who seem insignificant.

Balance is a core Cherokee value: between male and female, land and sky, growth and restraint.

This story is still told today by Cherokee elders, often in the Cherokee language, and carries layers of meaning not fully translatable into English.

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