Traditional Aboriginal Myth
From the Web of Wyrd #10
Back in the Dreamtime, Gidja the Moon lived by the river with the Bullanji people. They made fun of him, because he was round and fat, with little stringy legs and arms. Gidja loved Yalma, the Evening Star, but she laughed at him too. So Gidja made a magic circle of stones, and at dusk every night, sat in his circle and sang of his love for Yalma. He made so many songs! So, Yalma agreed to marry him and the Bullanji people held corroboree for them. Now Yalma had a baby daughter - Lilga, the Morning Star. Lilga would go hunting with her father, Gidja. One day, while gathering honey, a limb fell off a tree and crushed Lilga, so she died. This was the first time that anyone had ever died. Poor Gidja mourned his daughter, but the Bullanji people were afraid, and blamed Gidja for bringing death to the world. When Gidja carried his little Morning Star in her coffin over the river, some men cut the ropes holding the bridge, and he fell into the river. The coffin drifted out to sea, and today, you can still see little Morning Star shining out at sea. Gidja climbed out of the river, and made a fire. He carried a bright burning brand from the fire, and walked through the forest. The people saw him and were afraid. Then they saw it was Gidja, and were angry. They tried to kill him, but couldn't, so they picked him up and threw him up into the sky. As he rose up, he cursed the people, and said they would all die, and remain dead. But he, and the grass, would die, and would come back to new life. And so it is. Gidja grows fatter and fatter, and then fades away like a little old man. Lilga though, shines brightly. Just like he said, Gidja comes back to life. At dusk on the third day after he dies, you can see him again, floating like a baby's cradle, waiting to start again.Â