How the Python Holds the World Together

After Mawu-Lisa had created the earth, the mountains, and the rivers, the world was heavy and overburdened with things. Mawu-Lisa worried it would collapse. To solve this, Mawu created the great serpent, Dan-Ayido Hwedo. This python was so immense that Mawu coiled it around the earth, with its tail in its mouth, to hold everything together. But the python could not stand the heat of the sun. So, Mawu created the ocean for it to live in. The ocean keeps the great serpent cool and comfortable. It is said that whenever the python shifts its massive coils, the earth trembles and shakes. When an earthquake happens, the Fon say, "Dan is moving." The rainbow is also said to be a manifestation of Dan, the serpent, stretching across the sky from one end of the world to the other, a beautiful reminder of the powerful, cosmic being that protects the world from falling apart.