Buda:dji Aboriginal Development Association Aboriginal Corporation

"To the Djabugay speaking people, the "Creation Era" (Dreamtime) describes the events surrounding the making of the world. In Djabugay country, "Bulurru" is the "spirit of creation, the sacred past, the word and the law to be followed". As the "Bulurru" ancestors journeyed across the land, stories, songs and ceremonies were recorded and have been passed down from generation to generation."

"The greatest ancestor of all is Gudju Gudju, the Rainbow. Gudju Gudju could transform into ancestors such as Budaadji, the carpet snake, who created all rivers and creeks of Barron Gorge National Park. During the wet season, Gudju Gudju's presence is most profound in his rainbow form. The voice of Bulurru, the creation spirit, can be heard through Gudju Gudju in the sound of thunder.

From time immemorial the Djabugay speaking people (also known as Tjapukai) lived in the rainforests behind Cairns in Tropical Far North Queensland under the protection of Buluru.

Today, 140 years after the coming of the white man, the Djabugay are a remnant community – their lands taken away from them, their Storywaters partially lost. But they are a community determined to make their way in a transformed world, struggling against the odds.

This website aims to give the reader a overview of past and present activities of the Djabugay speaking people with the aim to regain control over their heritage: land, language and beliefs.