March 2025

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Wandjina & Ungud (cloud and rain spirits & totem)

The Wandjina is the creator spirit that belongs to us (the Wororra, Ngarinyin and Wunumbul people). He is the one that created everything, he also gave us our culture, law and songs and even the dreaming of each child before they are born.

The Ungud Snake story is about two young boys who didn’t listen to their elders or believe in them. There is a big waterhole an in it lies a large Ungud Snake. The old people told the kids not to go near that waterhole, but these boys thought the elders were tricking them so they wanted to find out for themselves. So they went to the waterhole and built a hideout from branches with small holes so that they can see ( just in case the elders told the truth) they looked at the billabong and it was calm. They banged two sticks together to make clapping noise and then they saw all the lilypads starting to move apart on the water and large logs came up from out of the water, then came bubbles and after a huge head coming out of the water to have a look around for who had been making all the noise. He hadn’t seen annone so he went back down and the lilypads went flat and the water went calm. Those two boys ran back to the camp and told the elders that they were right , there was a snake and the elders told them that they should have listened in the first place. The Ungud Snake also was the chosen animal in helping with the creation of mother earth, creating rivers, gorges, stream’s and helped with the formation of the earth. Still today it lives in these dark deep water hole’s in our country which doesn’t want to be disturbed.

 

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Wandjina, Crocodile (coi coi), Longneck Turtle (woolamarra), Fish (jaiya), Snake (ungud) & Dumbi (owl).

The Wandjina spirits are highly respected by the Worrora, Ngarinyin and Wunumbul people who live at Mowanjum and up the Gibb River Road to Kalumburru in the North West Kimberley region of Western Australia.  We believe that the Wandjinas brought the law, culture and language to the people.

The Wandjina is our identity.   The Wandjina gave the Law, Culture and Language to the people to abide by.  These customs are carried on today.

Where you see a lot of Wandjinas they represent the laws of tree, rivers, rocks, bush fruit and animals, all creation.  The Wandjinas give the law on how we have to treat and use these creations

The words Coi Coi are Wororra for saltwater crocodile. In this painting the artist has demonstrated the between the Wandjina and the Saltwater crocodile.“These Woolamarra (long neck turtles) are having a rough time because their waterhole has dried up. The Woolamarra have sung out to the Wandjina to help them find a new waterhole. Two Wandjinas, Datbudder and Djangunardi, have come to show the turtles how to get to the new waterhole.

The Ungud Snake is the one that made the rivers and holds water. If they are disturbed then he will kill whoever disturbs him.

Dumbi is an owl which resides in Ngarinyin country.  A boy and a girl teased Dumbi and plucked out his feathers.  Dumbi flew to the Wandjina Wodjin who said he would create a large flood to punish the tribe from where the boy and girl came.  At a place called Wanalirri, the Wandjina gathered a large flock of brolgas which stomped on a huge black soil plain to create quicksand.  The flood came and drowned many people; those who tried to escape were lost in the quicksand.  The boy and girl were safe because they were on high ground, they were taken there by a kangaroo, and they travelled on the kangaroo’s tail.  A Tata lizard called Gunarda warned the Wandjina that the boy and the girl had escaped.  The rains and lightening started to chase the boy and girl and they ran to a hollowed out boab tree.  Once they were in the tree, the Wandjina closed it up and they were lost for ever.  In another version of the story the boy and girl survive the flood and mate to produce a new tribe.

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Gyorn Gyorn (Bradshaws)

The Wandjina created the earth and all life upon it, then he created the first human beings: the Gyorn Gyorn people. He then told them to work the land and do well. The Gyorn Gyorns were confused and didn’t understand what the Wandjina wanted from them. The Wandjina was annoyed couldn’t control the Gyorn Gyorn so he travelled back to Wallungunda (Milky Way) to where Idjair was and asked if he could help with the creation. More Wandjinas came back and helped him in all areas of creation. The Gyorn Gyorns became hunters and gathers. They also show the traditional dancing amongst our tribes.

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Ilala (child dreaming) – Unframed

Long ago our ancestors used to travel visiting relatives on the way. They camped near Wuludi (waterholes or billabongs) which had Unguds (dreaming totems) in the Ngaboon (water). Sometimes childless couples were travelling and met with relatives, and that relative may dream or hear a Ilala (baby) cry. That relative may give the couple food or presents which are like giving the couple a Ilala (baby) they’ve longed for. Sometimes it could be in the form of an animal to represent the Ilala’s Ungud. Sometimes the couple would go swimming in the Ungud water (sacred water hole that spirits of children originate from), so it could see that the couple wanted a baby, and maybe would give them one.

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Ilala (child dreaming) – Framed

Long ago our ancestors used to travel visiting relatives on the way. They camped near Wuludi (waterholes or billabongs) which had Unguds (dreaming totems) in the Ngaboon (water). Sometimes childless couples were travelling and met with relatives, and that relative may dream or hear a Ilala (baby) cry. That relative may give the couple food or presents which are like giving the couple a Ilala (baby) they’ve longed for. Sometimes it could be in the form of an animal to represent the Ilala’s Ungud. Sometimes the couple would go swimming in the Ungud water (sacred water hole that spirits of children originate from), so it could see that the couple wanted a baby, and maybe would give them one.

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Wandjina & Unguds (cloud and rain spirits & totems)

The Wandjina spirits are highly respected by the Worrora, Ngarinyin and Wunumbul people who live at Mowanjum and up the Gibb River Road to Kalumburru in the North West Kimberley region of Western Australia. The Wandjina gave the Law, Culture and Language to the people to abide by. These customs are carried on today. The Unguds represent the dreaming of the people which the Wandjina has given. The Ungud is given before birth to the parents, grandparents aunts or uncles of a child, through dreams, or it may come as a living animal.This is considered as a gift from the Wandjina to the parent, the animal becomes a gift to the unborn child which the child belongs to. Now when the child dies it goes back to being that animal. Today each and every individual has their own animal that belongs to them.

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Wandjina & Dumbi (cloud and rain spirits & barn owls) – Framed

The Wandjina is the creator spirit that belongs to us: the Wororra, Ngarinyin and Wunumbul people. He is the one that created everything; our culture, law and songs and even the dreaming of each child before they are born. Dumbi is an owl which resides in Ngarinyin country. A boy and a girl teased Dumbi and plucked out his feathers. Dumbi flew to the Wandjina Wodjin who said he would create a large flood to punish the tribe from where the boy and girl came. At a place called Wanalirri, the Wandjina gathered a large flock of brolgas which stomped on a huge black soil plain to create quicksand. The flood came and drowned many people; those who tried to escape were lost in the quicksand. The boy and girl were safe because they were on high ground, they were taken there by a kangaroo, and they travelled on the kangaroo’s tail. A Tata lizard called Ganada warned the Wandjina that the boy and the girl had escaped. The rains and lightning started to chase the boy and girl and they ran to a hollowed out boab tree. Once they were in the tree, the Wandjina closed it up and they were lost for ever. In another version of the story the boy and girl survive the flood and mate to produce a new tribe.

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Wandjina & Dumbi (cloud and rain spirits & barn owls) – Unframed

The Wandjina is the creator spirit that belongs to us: the Wororra, Ngarinyin and Wunumbul people. He is the one that created everything; our culture, law and songs and even the dreaming of each child before they are born. Dumbi is an owl which resides in Ngarinyin country. A boy and a girl teased Dumbi and plucked out his feathers. Dumbi flew to the Wandjina Wodjin who said he would create a large flood to punish the tribe from where the boy and girl came. At a place called Wanalirri, the Wandjina gathered a large flock of brolgas which stomped on a huge black soil plain to create quicksand. The flood came and drowned many people; those who tried to escape were lost in the quicksand. The boy and girl were safe because they were on high ground, they were taken there by a kangaroo, and they travelled on the kangaroo’s tail. A Tata lizard called Ganada warned the Wandjina that the boy and the girl had escaped. The rains and lightning started to chase the boy and girl and they ran to a hollowed out boab tree. Once they were in the tree, the Wandjina closed it up and they were lost for ever. In another version of the story the boy and girl survive the flood and mate to produce a new tribe.

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Mangaa Jaddaa

Painting represents the wetlands near the town of Derby. They are called ‘Mangaa Jaddaa”

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Namarali (Wororra god)_Framed

Namarali is the great Wandjina that belongs to the Wororra tribe. Namarali represents the top, middle and bottom Wororra tribes up the North West Kimberley on the coast. His Laws, Culture and Language start from Oobagooma and go north towards Prince Region this is where the Wororra boundary ends. Namarali created many laws for the Wororra people which relate specifically to funeral customs. He was speared in a Wandjina war at Langii north of Doubtful Bay. The painting of Namarali lies five kilometers inland from Langii in a cave. The artist Donny Woolagoodja is responsible for the care of this painting.