Wagyl- Aboriginal Australian SpiritSpirit

Rising from Ga-ra-katta

During the Nyitting, the Noongar Creation Time, the great serpent Wagyl rose up from Ga-ra-katta, the hill now called Mount Eliza, at the foot of Kings Park in Perth. From that point the Wagyl moved down through the land, its massive body carving the waterways of Noongar country.

It formed the Derbarl Yerrigan, the Swan River, whose Noongar name means "mixing," the place where fresh water and salt water meet. The sharp bends at Belmont and Maylands record the curves of the serpent's body as it traveled. It formed the Djarlgarro Beelier, the Canning River, and the wetlands that thread through the Perth region. The Darling Scarp, the long escarpment running along the eastern edge of the coastal plain, is the body of the Wagyl itself, its contours following the serpent's path over the hills.

Still Beneath the Waters

The Wagyl did not leave. It rests beneath the rivers and wetlands it carved, dwelling in the deep pools and springs where its presence is strongest. These are Wagyl sacred places, sites holding wirn, spirits deposited during the Nyitting. The waterholes (ngamar) and rivers (bilya) that mark these places require proper behaviour from those who approach them.

The Wagyl was set to guard the waterways and the creatures that depend on them. The serpent that made the rivers still watches over them, ensuring the waters of Noongar country flow as they were meant to flow.