The Secret of Dreaming
Tell me a story...
Once there was nothing.
Nothing
but the Spirit of All Life
For a long time
there was nothing.
Then
in the mind of the Spirit of Life
…a Dreaming began.
In the empty darkness
there was a dreaming of Fire.
And the colour of Fire burned brightly
in the Mind of the Great Spirit
Then came a Dreaming of Wind,
and the fire danced and swirled
in the mind of the Spirit of Life
Then came a Dreaming of Rain
For a long time
the battle of Fire Wind and Rain
raged in the Dreaming
And the Great Spirit liked the Dream.
So the Dreaming continued.
Then, as the battle waned
between Fire Wind and Rain
There came a Dreaming
of Earth and Sky
and of Land and Sea.
For a long time
this Dreaming continued.
The Great Spirit began to grow tired
from the Dreaming,
but wanted the Dream to continue.
So life was sent into the Dream
to make it real,
and for Creator Spirits
to continue the Dreaming.
So the Spirit of Life
sent the Secret of Dreaming
into the world
with the Spirit of the Barramundi.
And Barramundi
entered the deep still waters,
…and began to Dream
Barramundi Dreamed
of waves and wet sand,
But Barramundi
did not understand the Dream
and wanted to Dream
only of the deep still water.
So Barramundi
passed the Secret of Dreaming
to the Spirit of the Currikee,
which is the Turtle.
And Currikee
came out of the waves
onto the wet sand
…and began to Dream.
Currikee Dreamed
of the rocks and warm sun.
But Currikee
did not understand the Dream,
and wanted to Dream
only of the waves
and wet sand.
So Currikee
passed the Secret of Dreaming
on to the Spirit of the Bogai,
which is the Lizard.
And Bogai
climbed onto a rock
and felt the warm sun on his back,
…and began to Dream.
Bogai Dreamed
of the wind and the open sky.
But Bogai
did not understand the Dream
and wanted to Dream
only of the rocks
and warm sun.
So Bogai
passed the Secret of Dreaming
onto the Spirit of the Bunjil,
which is the Eagle.
And Bunjil
rose into the open sky,
felt the wind in his wings,
…and began to Dream.
Bunjil Dreamed
of the trees and the night sky,
But Bunjil
did not understand the Dream
and wanted to dream
only of the wind
and open sky.
So Bunjil
passed the Secret of Dreaming
onto the Spirit of the Coonerang,
which is the possum.
And Coonerang
climbed high into the tree,
looked at the night sky,
…and began to Dream.
So Coonerang Dreamed
of wide plains and yellow grass.
But Coonerang
did not understand the Dream,
and wanted to Dream
only of the trees
and the night sky.
So Coonerang
passed the Secret of Dreaming
onto the Spirit of the Kangaroo.
And Kangaroo
stood tall,
looked across the plain of yellow grass
…and began to Dream.
Kangaroo Dreamed
of music, and song and laughter.
But Kangaroo
did not understand the Dream
and wanted to Dream
only of the wide plains
and yellow grass.
So Kangaroo
passed the Secret of Dreaming
onto the Spirit of Man.
And man
walked across the land
and saw all the works of creation
He heard the birdsong at dawn
and saw the red sun at dusk,
…and began to Dream.
Man Dreamed
of sharing the music of dawnbirds,
the dance of the emu
and the red ochre of sunset
And he Dreamed also
of the laughter of children
And man understood the Dream
So he continued to Dream
of all the things
that had been dreamed before.
He dreamed
of the deep still water,
of the waves and wet sand,
the rocks and open sky,
the trees and the night sky,
and the plains of yellow grass.
And Man knew through the Dreaming,
that all creatures
were his spirit cousins
…and that he must protect their Dreaming.
And he Dreamed
of how he would tell these secrets
to his child
who was not yet born.
Then the Great Spirit knew at last
that the Secret of Dreaming was safe.
And being tired
from the Dreaming of Creation,
the Spirit of Life entered the land
to rest
So that now,
when the spirits of all creatures
become tired
they join the Spirit of Life in the Land
So this is why the Land is sacred
and man must be its Caretaker.
“The Secret of Dreaming.” Poulter, Jim and illustrated by Mark Smith. The Secret of Dreaming: The Story of Why the Land is Sacred and Why Man Must Be its Caretaker. Templestowe: Victoria: Red Hen, ©1988.
Used with the permission of Jim Poulter. http://www.jimpoulter.com/