Description
The country associated with this Ngapa Jukurrpa (water
Dreaming) is Mikanji, a watercourse that is usually dry,
west of Yuendumu. In this creek bed there are ‘mulju’
(soakages). The custodians of this Jukurrpa are men of the
Jangala/Jampijinpa skin groups, and women of the
Nangala/Nampijinpa skin groups. The Dreaming travelled
from Puyurru, northwest of Yuendumu to a ‘mulju’ in the
Mikanji creek. By the side of the soakages two old blind
women of the Nampijinpa skin group were sitting. A rain
ancestor travelled to Mikanji from Puyurru and unleashed a
huge storm. As the two women strained their eyes to see
the sky, tears formed in their eyes, creating the rain. Their
spirits can still be seen at Mikanji in the form of two
‘ngapiri’ (river red gums) growing near the soakage. Motifs
frequently used to depict this story include concentric
circles representing ‘mulju’ (water soakages) and short bars
depicting ‘mangkurdu’ (cumulus & stratocumulus clouds).