Arilpa

The moon among the Kaitish of Central Australia. They have only very vague traditions about it. They say that in the Alcheringa the moon sat down as a very old man at a place called Urnta, a big hill near to Barrow Creek. He came to Urnta from the north-east, and on arriving there said that he was very sorry he had come, and went back again. A big stone arose to mark the spot where the old man sat down, and he can still be seen in the moon carrying a great ax.

According to another tradition, the moon arose first in the form of a Purula man named Pulla, who came down from the sea to a place called Kulla Kulla. He stole many women, all of whom he abandoned after they had a child. Finally, in his old age he settled down at Kulla Kulla with one wife, who belonged to the Uningamara (a little bird) totem. She died, and a stone arose to mark the spot. An old man named Okinja-allungara one day came up to the moon man's camp with the object of stealing a wife; but the moon was angry, and caught hold of him just as he seized the woman, and killed him with his ax. Then he went up into the sky, and can now be seen standing up in the moon with his ax uplifted ready to strike.

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