Oban's Myths & Legends
Goorialla the Rainbow Serpent
explained by Oban
In the Dreamtime, the land was flat except for one mountain in the far north called Bora-bunaru. There were no other hills or mountains, trees or bushes, and no animals, birds and insects. But there were people.
Goorialla the Rainbow Serpent woke up and wanted to find his tribe. He travelled from the south of Australia up to the north and stopped at Cape York. There he made a new red mountain called Naralullgan.
He listened to the voices of people around him, carried on the wind, but could not understand their language. “This is not my country” he thought. “I must keep looking for my people.”
He slithered down Naralullgan and travelled north again and his huge body made deep tracks as he moved through the earth. He slithered for many days and his tracks became creeks and rivers as he passed by.
He made two more mountains, Minalinha with sharp peaks and five caves, and Naradunga which was more gently sloped and made of granite. When he had finished he listened to the voices of the people again, and again they were strangers, so he travelled on.
One day Goorialla heard singing on the wind and he knew the words. “Those are my people” he said to himself. “They are holding a big Bora, or ceremony.” He slithered on until he came to a place that he knew, where two rivers met. There he saw his people singing and dancing.
He watched them for a long time before he slithered towards them, and they welcomed him. He showed the men how to dress properly and taught them new dances.
Goorialla the Rainbow Serpent - Part 2 >>>
