Banaidja

Banaidja In Australian mythology, ancestral figure, son of Laindjung. He taught the Arnhem Landers their totems and sacred rituals. One of his enemies, Muru, said “He has made a charm so that women follow him as the eye of a snake follows a bird. He must die.” One day when Banaidja left camp and walked through the grass, a spear was thrust into his back, followed by a rain of spears. Muru and his companion hid the body, but his spirit entered a paperbark tree. When people celebrate Laindjung and Banaidja, they tie bundles and beat them while they dance.

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Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend, Third Edition – Written by Anthony S. Mercatante & James R. Dow– Copyright © 2009 by Anthony S. Mercatante