Christine Christophersen

Creating Mythology* Moieties Truth and Justice A long time ago, new families came to this land. They were not human. If I were to describe them in my own way, to my family, I would tell them they were “djang”. They had a power. Djang can emanate from a site, a person, an animal, a rock. I will describe them to you, ‘as the cosmos’. Two little girls were born. Truth’s father and Justice’s mother were brother and sister. So they were cousins. They loved each other dearly and were very close. Justice was born blind. Truth always took care of her cousin. One day all the families attended a ceremony of Law. During the ceremony young Truth stood up and she spoke. But she spoke out of turn. Justice heard her voice and fell over people as she rushed towards her cousin’s side. She knew Truth was not permitted to speak at this ceremony. Justice stood by Truth’s side and pleaded for leniency. But it was too late. It was ordered that Truth have her tongue torn from her mouth and be forever silent. The two cousins were then banished, one to the East and one to the West, never to be together again. Perhaps the story is today in this country, that maybe Truth and Justice can only ever meet in the dreams of honorable people. Christine Christophersen 2007 * In Australia the term mythology is largely used to devalue our creation and oral histories – stories of who we are and where we come from. But in Moieties: Truth and Justice the ‘creating mythology’ refers to powerful mythical beings who embody those values that make us human.