There are many origin myths of Uluru - boys playing in the mud, serpents fighting, high chiefs dying. There is some truth to all of them; it was the scene of a great battle between a water witch and an earth wizard of two different tribes. They warred over the land for days, shifting forms, neither able to best the other. Realizing it was a stalemate, the water witch soaked the earth, then slammed her fist into the mud and commanded it to surround the eath wizard. Trapped within the walls, she flooded the space, turning the earth wizard to mud. The hot sun baked the wizard into the rock, trapping him there for eternity. Though his form changed, he is still powerful, and he hates the rain. Alice Springs, the closest town to Uluru gets only 280 mm each year. 