Nabunum- Aboriginal Australian CreatureCreature · Beast
Also known as: Noyang
Domains
Description
The eel who saved the world from drought in the Dreamtime by making the giant frog Tiddalik laugh. Nabunum danced so ridiculously that Tiddalik could not contain his laughter, releasing all the fresh water he had swallowed and ending the great drought.
Mythology & Lore
The Great Drought
In the Dreamtime, the giant frog Tiddalik awoke with an unquenchable thirst and began drinking. He consumed all the water in the rivers and billabongs until his body was swollen to enormous size and the land was left completely dry. The other animals faced death from thirst.
They gathered and devised a plan: if they could make Tiddalik laugh, the water would come flooding out of his mouth. One by one, the animals tried. Tricks, dances, funny faces. Tiddalik sat unmoved, his mouth clamped shut, his cheeks bulging with the world's water.
The Eel's Dance
Finally Nabunum the eel came forward. He began to dance, contorting his long, slippery body into absurd shapes, tying himself in knots, wriggling and twisting until the sight was more than Tiddalik could bear. Despite his determination to hold the water in, the frog began to shake, then to grin, and finally burst into uncontrollable laughter. The water came flooding out of his mouth in a great torrent, refilling the rivers and billabongs across the land.
The rivers flowed once more. Nabunum had done what no stronger creature could. He made the frog laugh.
Relationships
- Associated with