At first the Moon lived on earth, and everyone knew her under the name Capaeus. She was such a pale girl that it seemed as if she had emerged from the white spray of a waterfall. She spent her days deep in the forest, lighting fireflies, or on the shores of lakes, looking at her reflection in the water.
People called her Capey, but knew little about her. Meanwhile, she enjoyed great influence in the kingdom of Nature. It was rumored that it was she who controlled the ebb and flow of the sea, the germination of seeds, made colored pebbles sparkle, and controlled the birth of people and animals. The Indians always consulted with her on how to cut down trees and make bows, sow fields or throw tops from the river bank. Healers and sorcerers also went to her in the thicket of the forest for advice before giving the sick a herbal infusion to drink or telling people about what was going to happen to them, be it bad or good.
Capey eventually became tired of this dull life. And when she became angry with a sorcerer who lived next door to her, she became very sad and decided to leave people, her brothers in God, and ascend to heaven with the hope of a better life. And what is well conceived is well done. And so she began to cut the vines hanging from the tall trees. Then she weaved them, inserting sticks every two spans so that they formed a kind of steps, and she got a huge staircase that seemed endless. When the ladder was ready, Capeus went up to the hollow tree and called the bird; This bird sat in a hollow during the day, and at night hunted for insects, which it ate.
- Gossip owl, do me a favor! - said Capey.
Capeus asked the owl to go up to the gates of heaven and strengthen the end of the ladder there. The owl was a helpful bird and agreed to fulfill Capei's request. And so Capey rose into the blue expanse, without even resting on the large golden clouds that met her on the way.
And finding herself in the sky, Capaeus showed each star - her daughter - her place in heaven; Now Capaeus illuminates the path in the darkness of the night for his brothers walking along the roads of the earth.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru