A baobab nut from the Kimberley region shows men dancing, with the Rainbow serpent representing physical life and the spiritual connection of such ceremonies.
Picture reference: Littleton, 2002, p. 645. Picture originally from Berndt Museum of Anthropology, Australia.
~ Bunyip
~ Polynesian Dragons
~ Rainbow Serpent
~ Taniwha
Of the dragon world, the dragons of Oceania are the ancestral, ancient forefathers of contemporary folklore in their region. While their international cousins (linked by modern classifications only) have morphed and adapted into specialised hunters and Imperial masters, the Oceanic dragons have remained somewhat stagnant, retaining their initial primitive physical form for eons; a rebellious feat that defies the very concept of time. It is this which makes the dragons of Oceania remarkable in their ancient form and rather invaluable, for by looking at the dragons of Oceania we are staring directly into the heart of the dragon.
The Oceanic region covers Australia and Polynesia, which includes New Zealand. Of this area, the Australian dragons are undeniably the oldest, stemming from a culture some 40- 65 000 years old, while in contrast New Zealand (also Aotearoa [Reed, 1967]) has been populated a little under 1 000 years (Littleton, 2002). Within the Oceanic region there were significant social and cultural differences between countries; the Australian peoples lived in hunter-gatherer groups, which contrasted significantly to the warlike, sea-going tribes of New Zealand and neighbouring islands (Littleton, 2002). Including New Zealand, Polynesia (meaning "many islands") stretches across the Pacific Ocean, from New Zealand to the Easter Islands, right up to the Hawaiian Islands. The first Polynesian lands respectively were Samoa and Tonga, occupied in 1 500 BC by ancestors originally from the Asian mainland (Alpers, 1970). These differing backgrounds are evident within the stories and attitudes towards the serpent-dragons, and is a highly important reflection not only on the creatures themselves, but also their homelands.
The Oceanic dragons share curious similarities and represent the initial serpent (or worm) which refused to be eroded away by the waters of time. It is highly important to note that they are not explicitly dragons; while they can correctly be classed as such, they are still largely snake-like and thus can be classified as both (though they do not completely belong to either group). However, despite this dual-parentage, they are a cornerstone for studying dragons, as they give a very good image of the primal serpent from which dragons of other cultures were derived- something which has largely been been blurred over the years in other parts of the world.
There are some initial complications when taking a proper look at these dragons, as they represent both the spiritual and the natural; the serpent and the monster. While the Australian rainbow serpent has all the physical chemistry of a large snake, its chimerical cousin, the bunyip, is comprised of many different animal parts (Buchler & Maddock, 1978). However, there is a strong emphasis on the unseen qualities of these dragons which is reinforced here, as the simpler rainbow serpent is part of, and initiates, a highly complex magic system- the extremes of which the bunyip fails to match. Taking a step beyond this, we find that not only do appearances bely the dragons' hidden abilities, but the physical makeup of the dragon itself is manifold.
The attributes ascribed to each dragon cover a wide range of serpentine and reptilian creatures, much like the rather open-ended term dragon itself. The appearance of bunyips ranges from the serpentine and reptilian, to dingo like animals, birds (Buchler & Maddock, 1978), and amazingly, flying fish (Reed, 1974). All these appearances are important, as the bunyip itself takes on the appearance similar to the outcome of an animal bacchanal, including bull-like horns mounted upon a bulldog face, the body of a cow, and the tail of a whale or seal (Shuker, 2004). While this may cast some doubt on the credibility of the terminology, it does in fact show the bunyip's classic prowess as a shape-shifter and initiator of change, something which Australian dragons are particularly renowned for. In a similar fashion, New Zealand's taniwha takes on many forms, all of which are elaborate, undefined variants of a sea serpent, a huhu grub enlarged to the size of a whale, a shark, or a tuatete, the "frightful lizard" which has since become extinct (Reed, 1967; Reed, 1974).
While spiritual belief and heroic fables were important in Polynesia, great emphasis was also placed on literal correctness, despite the Hawaiian people having no established written language, and picture writing being very rare (Westervelt, 1910). Dragons were not seen to be native to Hawaii, as the word "Kuna" (meaning a serpent or dragon) was not Hawaiian, and thus the creature was not accepted as a part of the native (albeit, fantastical) fauna (Westervelt, 1910). One infamous Hawaiian dragon was known as Moo-Kuna; "moo" pertaining to a reptilian form, while "kuna" signifies an unknown creature (Westervelt, 1910). Moo-Kuna himself plays an interesting part in an old Hawaiian myth, which was originally unaccepted by the Hawaiians until it was shown that Kuna (or Tuna) was in fact the New Zealand name of a mighty reptile who struck Hina1 with his tail. Once proven that Kuna was in fact a resident of the Polynesian triangle2 and had interacted with their mythic Hina, the Hawaiians zealously spoke of their colourful mythology, including the previously excluded Moo-Kuna in their tales (Westervelt, 1910). As the Hawaiians have no established animal hierarchy, it is to folklore that we must look to learn of their mythic race of dragons.
Originally, Kuna was a trickster creature, tainting the waterways with dirt, debris and occasionally damming the water with logs. Over time Kuna developed a hatred for the goddess Hina, mother of hero Maui, and threw all sorts of rubbish over the rapids to drive her out of her cave. Eventually this climaxed in a magic battle between the two, with the exchange of chants and finally, a curse from Kuna: "Ah, Hina! Now is the danger, for the river rises!" Trapped, Hina called for Maui who came to the aid of his mother, and who chased the dragon with his magic club and who eventually burnt the dragon with lava. As Maui and Kuna broke up the river during this chase, it is believed earthquakes originated at this point, and this reflects the widespread belief that serpent-dragons initially shaped the land. Here the elements come into action as well, however this fable is unique as the dragon Kuna uses water to conceal himself in order to delude his enemy, and it is with fire (lava) the hero Maui eventually drives out the dragon and scalds his thick skin (Westervelt, 1910). Here the mainstream elements become reversed in nature, as the normal associations of water with good and fire with evil are essentially reversed. However, dragons have in fact a rather universal role in Hawaiian culture, as the creatures themselves are venerated through their god, K-moho-alii, the king of dragons (later known as the king of sharks) (Westervelt, 1963).
Like the Hawaiian dragon, the rainbow serpent too has catalytic properties; a highly interesting and rather powerful contradiction that shows just how prolific the serpent is in its simple, efficient form. Through influence in the weather, the shape of the land and the changing of humans to animals, the rainbow serpent has remained perpetually the same through its ancient reign.
The physical makeup of these dragons are not only naturalistic and closely associated with creatures we may ourselves encounter, but are entirely non-mythical. This itself is rather unique as the dragons are highly fantastical, endowed with a multitude of supernatural abilities (refer to top picture) such as elemental ties and the power of metamorphosis, specifically used on others around them. Here, dragons are also dualistic in nature; lairing beneath the earth or through hiding their offspring in trees (Robinson, 1952), they share ties to the earth, which throughout history have long been associated with death and the underworld (Littleton, 2002). This is shown not only on a physical level however; in Northern Australia, during the rite of circumcision, the rainbow serpent swallows the candidate who then enters a deathly state, only to emerge soon after to be born again. This is an entirely spiritual conception (Robinson, 1956), and mirrors neatly the earth's natural place as a harbinger of death and, just as the serpent sheds its skin, a rejuvenator of life.
With ties to the sky (in particular the rainbow serpents whose bodies form the coloured arc that shows after the rain, and who also strike like lightning), the dragons of Australasia are mani-fold creatures, expressing their sheer freedom from earthly issues as creatures of the air (Reed, 1974). However, their greatest ties are with water, a common trait among dragons.
The dragon's ties to water first began in the Australian Dreamtime, during which the rainbow serpent, Bolong, was killed by the first Australians with a spear in order to release the landscape kept inside her creational womb. Once Bolong was slain, she opened her mouth and from this all manner of landscape filled the previously flat, featureless plain, including the billabongs and rivers (Robinson, 1952). More mainstream rainbow serpent tales credit Bolong with shaping the waterways with her long, sinuous coils (Nigg, 2002).
Rainbow serpents are known by many different local names, as discussed further down.
In later years, the bunyip too was known not only to flood the land under its wrath, but to turn itself, and others, into aquatic creatures or birds (Reed, 1974; Shuker, 2004). New Zealand's taniwha also lair in lakes with the power to craft waterways (Reed, 1967), and the ability to alter the world around them. However, a large portion of the taniwha's power of change lies in literature, as the creature is described as reptilian, serpentine, and yet has been confused with a shark (Reed, 1967). This may be due heavily to a chimerical physique, although mistaken identity and translation may have attributed to the wide scope of taniwha variations.
Hawaiian dragons themselves were said to have mana (supernatural powers), which included the ability to change themselves to appear as men or others of their kind (Alpers, 1970), and a few individuals have attained an almost divine state through antiquity (Westervelt, 1963). Again, it is important to emphasise that the most contradictory aspects of the Oceanic dragons are their mythical and non-mythical properties. The bodies of these dragons are inherently natural, deviating only very slightly from the appearance of a snake, lizard, or even the shark. However, their attributes are intrinsically magical, with particular emphasis on change- the changing of landscape, of turning humans to animals, with high regard placed on the concept of life from death, which is not to be confused with reincarnation. Keeping the rainbow serpent in mind which has, undoubtedly, the highest mythical prowess of the Oceanic dragons, the rather normal appearance of these creatures coupled with their extraordinary divine nature is a working symbol of spiritual strength.
