Description
Merlpal Maru Pathanu is the terminology most often used by our ancestors to describe either a solar eclipse, when the Moon’s shadow crosses the earth’s surface, or a lunar eclipse, when the Moon moves into the shadow of the Earth. Merlpal Mari Pathanu in Maluililgal language (Western Torres Strait Dialect) means “the ghost has taken the spirit of the moon.” During this period, the head hunters prepared themselves for battle against their enemies, while the women in the other villages took their childrn and hid themselves in the bush away from their camps, safe from the attacking raiders.
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