In Aboriginal cultures of south-east

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, Daramulum (variations: Darhumulan, Daramulan, Dhurramoolun or Dharramaalan) (“one legged”, from dharra 'leg, thigh' + maal 'one' + -an suffix) is a sky hero associated with

Baiame In Australian Aboriginal religion and mythology, Australian Aboriginal mythology, Baiame (or Biame, Biami, Baayami, Baayama or Byamee) is the Creator deity, creator god and sky father in the Dreaming of several Aboriginal Australian peoples o ...

, and an

emu The emu (; ''Dromaius novaehollandiae'') is a species of flightless bird endemism, endemic to Australia, where it is the Tallest extant birds, tallest native bird. It is the only extant taxon, extant member of the genus ''Dromaius'' and the ...

-wife. He is a

shapeshifter In mythology, folklore and speculative fiction, shapeshifting is the ability to physically transform oneself through unnatural means. The idea of shapeshifting is found in the oldest forms of totemism and shamanism, as well as the oldest exist ...

. Engravings of Daramulum are sometimes accompanied by indentations that may represent star groups. Daramulum is depicted on rock art off Elvina Track in

Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park is a national park on the northern side of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. The park is north of the Sydney central business district and generally comprises the land east of the Highway 1 (New South Wales ...

, near to a carving of his emu-wife. He is depicted in semi-profile, with one arm, an emu-back (i.e. pointed buttocks), and a large foot. His voice can be heard through the medium of the

bullroarer The bullroarer, ''rhombus'', or ''turndun'' is an ancient ritual musical instrument and a device historically used for communicating over great distances. It consists of a piece of wood attached to a string, which when swung in a large circle ...

which is whirled through the air during

initiation Initiation is a rite of passage marking entrance or acceptance into a group or society. It could also be a formal admission to adulthood in a community or one of its formal components. In an extended sense, it can also signify a transformatio ...

ceremonies. He now lives in the trees of the bush, particularly in the

burl A burl (American English) or burr (British English) is a tree growth in which the grain has grown in a deformed manner. It is commonly found in the form of a rounded outgrowth on a tree trunk or branch that is filled with small knots from d ...

s or growths which are found on the trunks of trees, and only leaves them for initiation ceremonies. The bullroarer must be cut from a tree which contains his spirit for it to work. For the

Guringai Kuringgai (also spelled Ku-ring-gai, Kuring-gai, Guringai, Kuriggai) (,) is an ethnonym misapplied to an Indigenous Australian people who once occupied the territory between the southern borders of the Gamilaraay and the area around Sydney, ...

, Daramulum is represented by the

Alpha Crucis Acrux is the brightest star in the southern constellation of Crux. It has the Bayer designation α Crucis, which is Latinised to Alpha Crucis and abbreviated Alpha Cru or α Cru. With a combined visual magnitude of +0.76, it is the 13 ...

of the

Southern Cross CRUX is a lightweight x86-64 Linux distribution targeted at experienced Linux users and delivered by a tar.gz-based package system with BSD-style initscripts. It is not based on any other Linux distribution. It also utilizes a ports system to ...

, with the remainder of the Cross representing the head of his emu wife (of the

emu in the sky Australian Aboriginal astronomy has been passed down orally, through ceremonies, and in their artwork of many kinds. The astronomical systems passed down thus show a depth of understanding of the movement of celestial objects which allowed them ...

constellation). A religion centred on Darhumulan is an identifying feature of the

Yuin The Yuin nation, also spelt Djuwin, is a group of Aboriginal Australians, Australian Aboriginal peoples from the South Coast (New South Wales), South Coast of New South Wales. All Yuin people share ancestors who spoke, as their first language, ...

nation.

References

* "Footprints on Rock", 1997, Sydney: Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council. * "The Burbung of the Darkinung Tribes", 1897, Matthews, R.H., Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria 10, 1: 1-12
Daramulum on "Godchecker"
* "Encyclopedia Mythica" http://the-kundalini.com/daramulum-the-aboriginal-god/ Australian Aboriginal mythology Legendary birds {{australia-myth-stub fr:Mythologie aborigène