Fabric of Folklore
Folktales can be strange, mystical, macabre and intriguing. Join us as we explore the stories, culture and people behind the folklore. We go beyond retelling the legends, myths and fairy tales of old. We look at the story behind the lore, behind the songs and traditions to understand more about what they mean, and their importance. These stories, many originating as oral histories, inform us of what it means to be human; what it means to be an integral part of this Earth. Stories of magic and wonder bind us. They connect us through invisible strands, like the gossamer fibers of a spiders web. Folktales have the power to demonstrate how, although we live in drastically different locals, our hearts and minds beat as one human race. We are weaving the fabrics of our past and present stories, to help us better understand ourselves and to awaken us to a more compassionate and caring world community. As we explore the meaning of existence through folklore we hope to inspire future generations to lead with love and understanding.
Fabric of Folklore
Yara Ma Yha Who: Storytelling Mini-Episode 3
Have you heard of the vampiric predator roaming the Australian Outback in search of unsuspecting victims? In this storytelling mini-episode, I share a chilling tale from the fig groves of Australia: the story of the Yara-Ma-Yha-Who. This eerie, red-skinned, toad-like creature lurks in the treetops, draining the blood of wanderers before its terrifying queen appears to finish the job.
Poachers shouldn’t be poaching, but did he deserve the toe-curling, blood-sucking encounter with these monstrous creatures? If only his torture ended with the draining of his blood... but unfortunately for him, that was just the beginning of his horror story! Part monster story, part cautionary tale, this legend whispers ancient warnings and cultural truths.
Stay tuned for this month’s Fairytale Flip with Donna Lee Fields, where we’ll dig deeper into the roots of this unsettling folktale, exploring its hidden meanings, history, and the cultural context that gave rise to one of Australia’s most chilling legends.
00:00 Yara-Ma-Yha-Who
00:26 The Poacher's Encounter
01:53 The Queen's Arrival
03:50 The Poacher's Transformation
04:58 About the Podcast
05:10 Upcoming Episode Teaser
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Today I am going to tell you the story of a blood thirsty predator living in the outback of Australia.
The story predates writing. It's the story of the Yara Ya Ma Who, a red skinned, toad like creature that lives in fig groves.
The Poacher's Encounter
So the story goes, there's a poacher one day setting out traps. And it's blazing hot.
And he's been setting out traps for a long time. He's sweating profusely. He's very parched. And eventually he decides that he's gonna take a break from his illegal ensnaring of elusive creatures, and he's going to take a little nap under a fig tree Soon, however, the forced the environment around him becomes silent.
Ominously silent. All of the creatures around, sense, danger, and so does he. But he realizes much too late. And while he's attempting to flee, he's descended upon by a colony of Yar Ma, yahoo. Now these creatures have gaping toothless mouths, and so they use their suckers on their hands and their feet.
Because their suckers have jagged points that are able to tear the flesh. And so he is not only paralyzed with fear, he, there are too many of them for him to be able to escape, and they are sucking the life force from him. They are draining him of all of his blood, but before he's completely drained, they remove themselves from him and they back away.
The Queen's Arrival
Now he is so thankful that they are not gonna kill him until he realizes that something much larger is coming towards him. And in fact, this is their queen, and she's crawling on her, all of her all four feet. And she looks a Komodo dragon except her mouth is gaping wide and she's red skinned just like the rest of them.
And she takes his head and into her entire mouth and she sucks him in halfway and then stands up on her hind legs and does a little jiggle dance until he's c completely in the belly of her gullet. Now. This meal has made her quite thirsty. So she finds her way to a riverbank and drinks her fill of water, and then she proceeds to take a nap.
He is, unfortunately wide awake and alive and conscious within the. Yar, my Yahoo Queen who is sleeping until her stomach starts to contract and she spews him out onto the bank of the river. She. Pokes him, and she tickles him and she prods him just to make sure that he's dead. And when he doesn't move, she decides to go back to sleep.
Now the poacher is not actually dead. He's still alive, but he's took a gamble and play dead. He played possum. So once she's asleep again, he starts to crawl away. He musters every ounce of energy that he has left in his weakened state and is able to get back to his vehicle and drive home.
The Poacher's Transformation
Now, he was hopeful that he would be able to start feeling better and regain his strength once home, but instead he becomes he continuously gets weaker and weaker.
His veins feel as if they're burning his skin starts to turn. A shade of red redder than any sunburn he's ever had. His nose starts to sniff out the scent of blood, and food does not satisfy him any longer. All he desires is blood. Now what is happening to him is that he's actually transforming into one of the creatures that attacked him.
Now, there are some stories that have it, that you have to be swallowed and regurgitated multiple times for you to be able to turn into a Yara Ya Ma Who. But in this version. It only took the one time before he starts his transformation into the same creature that attacked him in the Outbacks of Australia.
About the Podcast
I am Vanessa y Rogers. I am the podcast host of Fabric of Folklore, and once a month, Donna Lee Fields and I co-host Fairytale Flip where we look at fairytales.
Upcoming Episode Teaser
So this is a story you want to learn more about. Make sure you tune in to our fairytale flip episode this month because this Australian folktale is. The story that we plan to unravel, we're going to flip it on its head. We're gonna find all its hidden mysteries and its historical context.
So make sure you stay tuned for this episode 'cause it's gonna be fascinating.
Have a great day. Until next time.
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