Seven Sisters Dreaming

The Seven Sisters Dreaming or Creation Story is also called Kungkarangkalpa Tjukurpa. As seven sisters were travelling across the country, they discovered they were being followed by an evil Tjakamarra man – Wati-Nyiru who, even though he was the wrong skin group, sought to seduce them and make them his own.

The sisters travelled west from place to place to escape from the man who, a master of disguise, constantly changed his form, so they had to keep moving. As the women fled from Wati Nyiru they created the country and landscape, the rock holes and sandhills, trying to out-trick him and escape from him. Some say he wanted to marry the eldest sister but all the younger sisters did not like the idea of their older sister marrying the man because he was ugly and had six toes.

Eventually, the sisters all flew up to the Milky Way and today can be seen as the star cluster known as the Pleiades or Seven Sisters in the constellation of Taurus. They now rest safely and watch over the women on earth.  Wati Nyiru, too late, took to the heavens as well and can be seen to the south of the Seven Sisters as Orion, as he still chases them across the sky, but is no longer able to catch or harm them.