There was a time in the land of dark-skinned people when night, like a black cloud, shrouded the world in darkness, blocking the light of the moon and stars. Bora the kangaroo loved to eat at night and was dissatisfied with this darkness. Therefore, being the great Virinun, he decided to put an end to it. He rolled up the darkness like a carpet and left it lying at the edge of the world. After this, the stars always shone, and sometimes the moon appeared.
He was very pleased that he could now see everything at night and could eat and walk wherever he wanted on his four legs. (After all, in those days Bora walked on four legs, like a dog.)
One night he saw lights ahead and heard the sounds of songs. He was interested to know what it was. He crept closer and closer to the place where the lights were burning, and finally saw a line of intricately painted figures emerging from the darkness and slowly entering the circle illuminated by the fire. Here they danced around, quickening their steps as the voices sounded louder and louder and the boomerangs beat faster and faster.
Finally, shouting: “Wow! wow! wow!” — the voices fell silent. The sounds of boomerangs died away, the dancing ended, and the people disappeared into the bush. Then wood was added to the fires, boomerangs rattled, rolled possum skins rattled, and a chorus of women sang. Then a long line of painted men appeared again from the darkness, and everything began all over again.
Watching all this, Bora himself felt a strong desire to dance. He stood up on his hind legs and, leaning on his tail, began to jump behind the circle of people. The singing stopped, the women screamed in fear, pointing at Bora. The men looked back and saw a kangaroo standing on its hind legs, looking with surprise and horror at the screaming women.
Everyone seemed to be talking at the same time. Some shouted: “Kill him,” others: “No, let’s see how he dances.”
The women were told to beat the possum skins again and sing, and the men began to dance. Bora followed them, trying to imitate them.
The dark skinned people turned to look at him. He seemed so funny to them that their anger quickly turned to laughter. They laughed long and loudly as Bora, with a shy look, solemnly stepped forward and jumped, balancing with his tail, which left a snake-like trail. Soon, leaving the kangaroo alone, the men left.
It took quite some time before the men returned. They looked very strange. Tails, roughly woven from grass, were tied to their belts behind them. They jumped in circles like Bora, with their long tails swaying behind them. They held their hands in the same way as a kangaroo held its front paws, and the women barely sang as these strange creatures danced in front of them.
When the men stopped, old Virinun said:
“This Bora came to our dance uninvited, although he had no right to do so.” But we won’t kill him, because he showed us a new dance. His family will now walk as they danced tonight, imitating our men. His front paws will become like hands, and his tail will serve as his balance. But before we let him go, we will make him one of us. He and his family will become our brothers and will remain silent if they see our sacred rites.
Taking Bora into the bushes, they knocked out his fangs. The Daens say that Bora's clan no longer has these teeth.
Since then, at sacred corroboree people of the Bora clan tie false tails and dance the kangaroo dance in the same way as at the time when Bora was enchanted and walked on two legs. From now on, all kangaroos had to walk the same way.
This is how kangaroos learned to jump the way they do now.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru