Dreamtime story - 'How the River Red Gum came to be'
Authors note:
Dreamtime story's make complex ideas understandable for all age groups.
The Dreamtime was a time before time, when many supernatural beings inhabited Australia. Through heroic deeds or acts of foolishness they became transformedand into the native animals, important land forms and the significant plants that we see today. There is always a moral and an important life-lesson imbedded in a Dreamtime story.
This is a story written by Stephen Murphy as part the novel 'Seeds the chronicle' (now out of print). It is told respectfully to acknowledge the first Australians, past and present. It was written in appreciation of their deep wisdom and their extraordinary environmental stewardship practiced by the many generations of men, women and children who walked this land before us.
The story is about the Wadawurrung People of the Geelong region of Victoria, who are part of the Kulin nation. This is not a traditional Dreamtime Story passed down by the Wadawurrung Elders.
Note: The Wadawurrung word for River Red Gum, Eucalyptus camaldulensis, is Biyal
Dreamtime story's make complex ideas understandable for all age groups.
The Dreamtime was a time before time, when many supernatural beings inhabited Australia. Through heroic deeds or acts of foolishness they became transformedand into the native animals, important land forms and the significant plants that we see today. There is always a moral and an important life-lesson imbedded in a Dreamtime story.
This is a story written by Stephen Murphy as part the novel 'Seeds the chronicle' (now out of print). It is told respectfully to acknowledge the first Australians, past and present. It was written in appreciation of their deep wisdom and their extraordinary environmental stewardship practiced by the many generations of men, women and children who walked this land before us.
The story is about the Wadawurrung People of the Geelong region of Victoria, who are part of the Kulin nation. This is not a traditional Dreamtime Story passed down by the Wadawurrung Elders.
Note: The Wadawurrung word for River Red Gum, Eucalyptus camaldulensis, is Biyal
Illustration by Peter O'Gorman
This story is of a time many years ago when there were only grasslands and shrubs on the Basalt Plains west of Geelong.
At this time, living amongst the local people was a clan of giants called the Biyal. The Biyal were taller and more powerfully built than all the other clans that occupied the lands and they were greatly feared in battle. Because of their superior strength and stamina, the Biyal became arrogant and they occupied all the desirable lands along the rivers. They declared that only they could fish and hunt on these lands. The other clans, who also had traditionally lived on the waterways, complained and pleaded that they too needed access to these fertile and rich hunting grounds, particularly during times of drought when food was scarce, but the Biyal did not listen.
The Rainbow Serpent who had made the land, its rivers, creeks and waterholes as well as its mountains and valleys, became annoyed with the arrogance of the Biyal and sent stormy weather and heavy rain to swell the river banks and flood the surrounding plains as a warning, but the Biyal did not even fear the wrath of the Rainbow Serpent.
At this time, living amongst the local people was a clan of giants called the Biyal. The Biyal were taller and more powerfully built than all the other clans that occupied the lands and they were greatly feared in battle. Because of their superior strength and stamina, the Biyal became arrogant and they occupied all the desirable lands along the rivers. They declared that only they could fish and hunt on these lands. The other clans, who also had traditionally lived on the waterways, complained and pleaded that they too needed access to these fertile and rich hunting grounds, particularly during times of drought when food was scarce, but the Biyal did not listen.
The Rainbow Serpent who had made the land, its rivers, creeks and waterholes as well as its mountains and valleys, became annoyed with the arrogance of the Biyal and sent stormy weather and heavy rain to swell the river banks and flood the surrounding plains as a warning, but the Biyal did not even fear the wrath of the Rainbow Serpent.
The Rainbow Serpent sent more severe storms and heavy rain that continued for weeks, so that the rivers broke their banks and flooded the lands for as far as the eye could see, but the Biyal stubbornly stood their ground. The other people were now very afraid that they would drown and asked the Biyal for their help. Arrogant and stubborn they may have been, but they were not cruel and didn’t want others to suffer while they stood their ground against the Rainbow Serpent. They invited all the people to climb onto their backs and legs and wherever they could find space above the rising floodwaters. Even though many climbed onto the Biyal, remarkably there was always room for more.
Bunjil the Wedge-tailed Eagle, Waa the Raven and Balayang the Bat hovered over the Biyal and asked if they too could rest for a while, so the Biyal stretched up their mighty arms and spread their long fingers so that the birds, bats and any animal that could climb, would have somewhere to wait out the storm. As more and more people and animals climbed onto the Biyal to escape the rising waters, the Biyal pushed their feet deeper into the soft river banks and their toes stretched and clutched at whatever solid ground they could find, so they could stand firm in the raging floods.
The Rainbow Serpent was watching and couldn’t help but be impressed with this kindness and heroism as well as the strength and tenacity of the Biyal. The Biyal cried-out to the Rainbow Serpent and asked for the rain to stop, but they still wanted to inhabit the land along the waterways and around the billabongs. The Rainbow Serpent consented, but only if the Biyal agreed to look after the people, the animals and the birds and become custodians of the waterways, providing shelter and food for all who needed it. The Biyal who had grown to love and respect all those who had asked for shelter, agreed to the Rainbow Serpents conditions. So the rain stopped, the clouds cleared, the sun came out for the first time in weeks, and slowly the floodwaters receded.
To the amazement of all the people when they climbed down off the Biyal, these giants who had sheltered them, had grown impressively in stature. Their muscles had become solid and unyielding and their hair, once as black as the volcanic soil, was turning as green as the surrounding grasslands. They were transforming into the mighty River Red Gums that we see on our creeks and rivers today.
The people looked beyond the mighty Biyal at the most beautiful and perfect of rainbows arching like a snake across the clear sky. They could see red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet mirrored on either side of a shimmering darkness. Many bowed their heads in respect to the power and magnificence of this divine being that enhanced life by providing fresh water and could send great floods to take away life if angered by people’s foolishness.
The people looked beyond the mighty Biyal at the most beautiful and perfect of rainbows arching like a snake across the clear sky. They could see red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet mirrored on either side of a shimmering darkness. Many bowed their heads in respect to the power and magnificence of this divine being that enhanced life by providing fresh water and could send great floods to take away life if angered by people’s foolishness.
