He was definitely inspired by the part where the aurora tugs its braid angrily and crosses its arms under its heaving bosoms, while scowling at a woolheaded man.

'The Great Hunt in the Sky' is an ancient European myth which has existed perhaps since the pleistoscene. It has manifested in a lot of interesting ways; Johnny Cash's 'ghost riders in the sky', santa and his reindeer, Wagners ride of the Valkyries,

Note: most of the etymological research on this was done in what is now modern germany, but this myth was equally prevalent in france, british isles, scandinavia etc

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Hunt

Cash's "Riders in the Sky" is based on Native American mythology [0]. Cash felt it important to highlight Native American history and struggles [1]. "Riders in the Sky" was only one of many such songs.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/(Ghost)_Riders_in_the_Sky:_A_C...

[1] https://www.aclu.org/blog/racial-justice/american-indian-rig...

I didn't know about that. Do you happen to know which tribe's mythology inspired him to write this? The wiki says "possibly Apache" and doesn't cite where that possibility came from. I've been trying to learn more about the people who have been here longer than my people since learning what they're still going through and how little I learned about that growing up beyond stereotypes.

This article reminded me of the exact same thing!