The Cosmic Serpent
The Fon people tell how the cosmic serpent, Aida-Hwedo, was created at the beginning of time by the Creator, an androgynous god with two faces: Mawu, the moon, (feminine), and Lisa, the sun, (masculine).
Aido-Hwedo contributed to the creation by carrying the Creator in its mouth while the world was being formed. When the work was finished, the Creator saw that it was an excessive burden for the earth: too many trees, too many mountains, too many elephants, too much of everything.
The Creator then asked Aido-Hwedo to coil itself and place itself beneath the overburdened earth like a cushion in order to carry it. Since Aido-Hwedo did not like the heat, the Creator made the ocean for it to live in.
When Aido-Hwedo feels great pressure upon itself, it must shift its position to rest, and what happens in those moments is that earthquakes are unleashed.
Aido-Hwedo feeds on iron bars forged by red monkeys that live beneath the sea. When the iron runs out, it eats its own tail out of hunger. Then the earth, with all its load, loses its balance and falls into the sea.
A second Aido-Hwedo, the rainbow serpent, lives in the sky and sends the lightning bolts of the gods down to earth.