Why moon and dawn are together

It is a story of forbidden love, of woven magic and of the reason why the moon follows the dawn when he ought not to....

   He was the moon god and she was the goddess of dawn--that was the problem, they couldn't be together. Everyone knew that. It was the basic law of nature and even the gods were reluctant to disturb nature’s perfect balance.

 

  ‘Iluminado and Dawn would never be together,’ they whispered.

 

  ‘The moon would never reach the dawn.’

 

  Even the distance between the two lovers was difficult to calculate, for it took the shape of time rather than length. The moon god, Iluminado was given a certain period of time when he was supposed to flash about his luminous cloak and light the earth just enough for the mortals to make out the difference between night and day.

 

  The sun god, Asolearse was given the duty of lighting the earth for the other half.

 

  Now, Asolearse loved his beautiful daughter, Dawn, who was still a child and needed a duty to be remembered by. He wanted to give her an important one so that the mortals would always look up to her. So he told her one day when she was 8000 years old (6 years in human age) "

 

  ‘My beautiful daughter, the fairest child, I give you the duty of waking up the world. May you rouse the mortals from their dreams with your mellow light.’

 

  And so it happened that the early part of the day, when the darkness vanishes, was named after her.

 

  But Dawn fell in love with Iluminado when she grew up. They never met or saw each other and yet she knew him through and through. Maybe it was because the fays had predicted that the daughter of sun would indeed love the moon, or it was because the angels had written songs about a forbidden love that would embellish the heavens. No one ever knew the reason and so I fail to provide one but I hope someday you would find that out. What I know is that Dawn loved Iluminado more than she loved anything else, even more than her next breath. She felt him the way she felt her own heart.

 

  Iluminado, on the other hand, had loved her from when he had first seen her on the day of her birth. Her gold eyes had mesmerized him.

 

  Asolearse had invited every god and goddess on Dawn’s birth, including the moon god whom he saw very rarely.

  That was the first time Dawn and Iluminado set eyes on each other--liquid gold looking into evening blue.

  But such was the tale of the two that they had eons and eons of distance between them--for the vastness, as I have told, needed to be measured in time rather than length.

 

 

  Once, Ciela, the goddess of the sky and Dawn’s mother, saw her weeping on the bank of the silver waters (one of the 5 rivers that drain the heavens).

  She had heard the angels and the gods whispering about Dawn and her secret lover. Gently, she asked her daughter--

 

  ‘My child, who is this secret lover for whom you weep this way?’

 

  Between sobs, Dawn said, ’Oh mother, it is the lover whom I can never see, yet I know him; it is the lover whom I can never hear, yet I feel him; and it is he who can never be mine, yet I am his already. It is Iluminado.’

 

  Ciela didn't know what to do. She loved her daughter and approved of her lover but she knew that all the other gods would condemn her and her daughter if they heard this, they won’t even spare Iluminado.

 

  So she told Dawn in a hushed tone, ‘My child, I control the sky and all the stars in it and so I give you the liberty to be with your lover.’

  Dawn looked up at her mother who continued speaking, ‘But my child, you two can be together only till the last star disappears and no more after that. He is the ruler of the night and rule he shall the night and not show his face during the day, you being the bringer of the day would bring the day and not show your face during the night or during the day. But when it is neither day nor night and when the stars have started to vanish would be the time you can see each other. Watch the stars wisely for when the last one disappears and it is the time for your father to arrive, you would have to look away and if you don’t, the gods would condemn you to the darkest places of hell.’

 

  Here Ciela paused and looked at her daughter for approval. At Dawn’s nod, she spoke again, ‘Mind you, my child, when the two of you are together no one, mortal or god, should see you together.’

 

  And so the tale goes that Iluminado and Dawn saw each other as the dawn arrived. But the two were completely opposite, one’s embark marked the other’s dismissal. They were like fire and water together, like heat and ice, like blooms and fall. And yet they continued loving each other for all eternity.

 

  As for the mortals, they had already felt for them after hearing the angels’ songs and whenever they saw the lovers together, they turned away and pretended otherwise.

 

   And so I tell you all, if on some peaceful morning you come across the moon and the dawn together, look away for they are courting each other. Cross your fingers and pray that no god ever sees them together.

 

                                                                                                                                              ***

Author's Note

I wish you liked the story. no offence meant to anyone if you think that mythologies should not be played with. I hate twisting mythologies myself but it is as my best friend, Sam says-legends die if you don't re-invent them.

Reviews

[Frieda P]

I don't usually read stories here but your title drew me in... I find the idea of the moon touching the dawn illuminating...

A warm blush of a love story on your page Moon, why not take poetic license with mythology, that's how it all started to begin with...

'I give you the duty of waking up the world'...awesome line, you woke mine up...

[Moonie]

Hahaha! Thanks for the lovely comment, Frieda! Your reviews would always be treasured by me. :))

[Frieda P]

Awh, you're a sweetheart, was my pleasure! :)

[Jennie Baron]

Oh, mythology absolutely should be played with if one has an original take on it. And ancient stories (see my poem "Guinevere"). And this is a lovely myth. Very well done. Love it!

[Moonie]

Thanks a lot. It means a lot to me.:))

[Daydreamer]

I will definitely read this once I'm done with exams😁😄
I only review poems at the moment because they're shorter
wait for me for a while xx
sorry 😅

[Moonie]

I understand... no need to feel sorry... here's a smiley to cheer you up:))

[Daydreamer]

So sweet😍😍😍
I promise I will be reading it once I am able to😇😇😇

[Coyote Poetry]

A beautiful tale in the story. Myth and ancient story is my favorite. You had both. I like how the mother repaired the situation. The story brought the reader in to feel the sadness and the joy. Thank you for sharing the outstanding story..
Coyote

[Moonie]

My pleasure. Ciela is inspired from my mom, the strongest person of this world, who would want me to be happy even if she gets "condemned to hell" in return.

[Coyote Poetry]

That should be the will of a parent. I enjoyed the tale.

[Author Rucha Joshi]

Wow! this is romantic!
well, this is my first reading of your work and I'm looking forward to reading more!

[Moonie]

Thank you very much. I'm glad you like my writing. Im new on this website actually.

[Author Rucha Joshi]

No worries! Welcome!

[MOON]

There is no more beautiful sight then the rays of dawn and a full moon in the sky. Lovely story.

[Moonie]

Thank you very much and yes, there is no such sight like the moon and dawn together.

[vaishnavi]

it is soooooo romantic :)
love it

[Moonie]

Thank you for your lovely review. Life is actually nothing without romance. Im glad you love it...

[vaishnavi]

your welcome :)