Tradition / Region: Papua New Guinea Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Crab, Sea Dweller
The Myth
Near Aibinio there was once a small island where the Wiorubi people found an enormous crab, far larger than any ever seen before. Its shell was vast, its claws powerful, and it stood unmoving as men and women gathered around it.
Believing it could be captured, several people approached together. At that moment, the crab suddenly opened one of its great nippers. With terrifying speed, it seized the hands of those closest to it and dragged them into the lagoon. None could break free.
As the people were pulled under, the creature stirred the water with immense force. The lagoon began to spin, churning faster and faster until the water rose and roared. The island itself was torn apart and washed away, swallowed by the whirling waters. When the storm of water finally ceased, nothing remained of the island. Only a deep whirlpool marked the place where it had once stood.
The gigantic crab still dwells there beneath the surface. At every high tide, the water twists and surges in a powerful eddy, just as it did on the day the island vanished. The people say the creature is not a true crab, but an or or dr or a—a mysterious and dangerous being whose form only resembles an animal.
To this day, the waters near Aibinio are treated with fear and caution, for the crab waits below, and the sea still remembers its strength.
Gallery
Sources
Landtman, G. (1970). The Kiwai Papuans of British New Guinea: A nature-born instance of Rousseau’s ideal community.
Interpretive Lenses
Religious Readings
- Christian Ascetic Deep Dive
Philosophical Readings
- Nietzschean Deep Dive
Psychological Readings
- Jungian Deep Dive
Esoteric Deep Dive
- Hermetic Deep Dive
Political / Social Readings
- Marxist Deep Dive
Other
- How to Invite The Gigantic Crab of Aibinio