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Igaluk

Igaluk is one of the names the Inuit people of North America use to refer to the god of the moon. According to Inuit legend, Igaluk was once a man who lived on earth. He and his sister were both attending a dance in the village when a wind blew the lights out. In the dark, Igaluk forced himself on a woman in the dance hall. However, when the lamps were lit again, he found that the woman was his sister.

Horrified at this discovery, Igaluk's sister cut off her breasts and threw them at her brother. Then she snatched a burning torch and ran outside into the dark. Her brother followed, carrying his own torch to search for her, but he tripped and fell in the snow. His torch went out, leaving only a glowing ember. The wind carried both siblings up into the sky, where the woman turned into the sun—with her bright torch still shining—and her brother—with his weakly flickering beam—became the moon. The moon still chases his sister across the sky while she races ahead to avoid him.

See also MOON; NATIVE AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY; SUN.