Shirley Purdie (Birrmarriya) Gija, b. 1948
23 5/8 x 23 5/8 in
This is Yarring Country in Darrajayn (Springvale Station) which lies south of Warmun. In the Ngarrangkarni (Dreaming) there was a young hunter whose skin name was Juwurru. One day Juwurru came back from hunting kangaroo, he had caught a big kangaroo and people from his mob had got a big pit fire ready to cook the kangaroo. As he entered the camp Juwurru saw a girl siittng with her mother. She was very beautiful with long black hair and he fell in love with her instantly. This girl's name was Darwool.
After the kangaroo had cooked and everyone had eaten, the old men of the camp called Juwuur over and said to him, "Juwurru, you are now the right age for marriage, which one of these two promised nywana (young girls) would you like to take for your wife. Juwurru looked at both girls, but he couldn’t stop thinking about the woman with the long black hair. (Nywana is right skin name married for Juwurru). Juwurru paused for a long time and then said "doyen doyen" (that one, that one) pointing to Darwool, but the old men all shook their heads and said "no she's your mother-in-law, she is wrong way married for you, you must marry one of these promised girls, these nyawana who are Darwool's daughters". Again they asked him who he wanted to marry and he said once more "doyen doyen".
The old people were angry that Juwurru would not obey the law of the mob so they cast him out "you must go away!", they told him. Angrily he left and walked some distance on top of a hill and he looked down upon his mob and cursed them. He said, "You mob will all die, but I will come back alive', and he turned into the moon (Karrngin).
As the moon, he comes back to life every month, the full moon is also a reminder to all Gija people to respect the rules right way marriage. The two promised nywana turned into wardul, the evening and morning stars. And Darwool was cursed and became the black headed snake which roams these parts.
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