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What is the origin of the following myth or poem?

(It seems universally attributed to Cherokee folklore but I am somewhat skeptical as I have not been able to find it within the Cherokee sources available online.)

Early in creation,man and animals lived side by side.
But one day the Great Spirit decided to separate man from the animals by giving man an eternal soul.
The Great Spirit caused a huge chasm to open in the earth with man on one side and the animals on the other side.
The chasm grew wider and wider until, at the very last moment, the dog jumped across the chasm to stand by man.

This open post was written 1 year, 5 months ago | V/U/S: 543, 3, 2 | Edit Post | Leave a reply | Report Post


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Great Spirit, Cherokee, Folklore, One Day, Animals, Eternal, Moment, Spirit, giving, Origin, DOG, man, origin myth (How Tags Affect Reciprocity)

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Anonymous #
1 year, 5 months ago (2 hours, 36 minutes after post)

I see it attributed to several different sources, though most agree that it was based on native american lore, often Ojibway.

Tales and lore like this are often difficult to track back because they are adopted and adapted by others and retold. There are versions adapted to conform with the christian bible based faiths as well.

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ferenginatio offline Verified User (1 year, 5 months) Long Term User Shouts: 0 #
An Unknown Location | 1 year, 5 months ago (8 hours, 37 minutes after post)

Thank you very much.

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ferenginatio offline Verified User (1 year, 5 months) Long Term User Shouts: 0 #
An Unknown Location | 1 year, 5 months ago (8 hours, 38 minutes after post)

Thank you.

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