In Australian Aboriginal mythology

Australian Aboriginal mythology

Australian Aboriginal myths are the stories traditionally performed by Aboriginal peoples within each of the language groups across Australia....

 (specifically: Murngin), Yurlungur is a copper

Copper

Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...

 snake

Snake

Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...

 who was awakened from a deep sleep

Sleep

Sleep is a naturally recurring state characterized by reduced or absent consciousness, relatively suspended sensory activity, and inactivity of nearly all voluntary muscles. It is distinguished from quiet wakefulness by a decreased ability to react to stimuli, and is more easily reversible than...

 by the odor

Odor

An odor or odour is caused by one or more volatilized chemical compounds, generally at a very low concentration, that humans or other animals perceive by the sense of olfaction. Odors are also commonly called scents, which can refer to both pleasant and unpleasant odors...

 of a woman's menstrual

Menstruation

Menstruation is the shedding of the uterine lining . It occurs on a regular basis in sexually reproductive-age females of certain mammal species. This article focuses on human menstruation.-Overview:...

 blood

Blood

Blood is a specialized bodily fluid in animals that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells....

. The woman and her sisters, the Wawalag

Wawalag

In Australian Aboriginal mythology, the Wawalag were a pair of sisters who were daughters of Djanggawul. They lived in a whirlpool and were eaten by Yurlungur, who was later forced to regurgitate them. Their rebirth is used as a symbol in boy-to-man ceremonies....

, were eaten by Yurlungur, who was told at a later snake meeting to regurgitate the women. In Australian Aborigine ceremonies, the vomiting symbolizes boys entering manhood.