Ben Jungarrayi Vincent

In the Dreaming the earth was bare, cold and flat where the Rainbow Serpent slept underground and kept all the animal tribes within her tummy where they waited to be born. When the time came for them to be born, she pushed up and called to them to come out of their sleep. She was strong and pushed out the land to create mountains, and she spilled water over the land to make rivers, lakes and billabongs. She also made the sun and fire, and all colours of the rainbow. She also forced great passages through rocks and made many waterholes. Even today Almudj is still recognised as a great creator as she is responsible for bringing the wet season each year which gives life to all, and can be seen in the sky as a rainbow. However Almudj should also be feared as she may hand out punishment by drowning in floods, to anyone who has broken a law. Almudj still lives in a pool under a waterfall in Kakadu, Northern Territory.