COMMUNITY
BUNJIL THE EAGLE Learn, listen and gather through Dreamtime
The Dreamtime stories of the Wurundjeri people live on through Murrundindi, an Aboriginal Elder with close ties to Healesville Sanctuary.
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here has been a longstanding connection between Traditional Owners, the Wurundjeri people, and Healesville Sanctuary. Part of the grounds of the Sanctuary were once Coranderrk Station, a former Aboriginal reservation. Today, Wurundjeri Elder Murrundindi continues to tell the Dreaming stories of his people, sharing culture passed down to him by his mother, the last woman born on the Coranderrk Reserve. “Dreamtime stories are traditionally told in the spoken word of the Woiwurrung language, so people can gather to listen, learn and laugh with one another,” explains Murrundindi. In commemoration of NAIDOC Week – celebrated this year from 3–10 July – Murrundindi has generously shared an original creation story of his people.
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Hannah Sly
PHOTOGRAPHY
Jo Howell
The story of Bunjil the eagle
NAIDOC Week Held in the first week of July each year, NAIDOC Week is a celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their cultures, histories and achievements. This year’s theme is ‘Get up! Stand up! Show up!’, which encourages both Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians to continue pushing for systemic change. Many events take place across the country to amplify this message – to find out more
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The Wurundjeri people believe an ancestral Wedge-tailed Eagle called ‘Bunjil’ created the land. Bunjil originated from a falling star, and as he fell from the sky, he blew air from his beak to create the earth we live on today. He scratched in the soil with his talons, and the first trees and plants started to grow. Bunjil then took off back into the sky, and as he was flying, he saw a small branch from the manna gum tree lying on the ground. He swooped on the branch and shook it, creating his brother ‘Mindi’ the snake. Mindi became the law of the land, and together Mindi and Bunjil created all the animals, including the kangaroo, koala, Platypus and echidna. The last animal to be created was ‘Pally-Yan’ the bat. Pally-Yan flew up
