2-Unit Studies of Religion

STUDIES OF RELIGION HSC COURSE

FOUNDATION STUDY 1: ABORIGINAL BELIEF SYSTEMS AND SPIRITUALITY

INTRODUCTION TO ABORIGINAL SPIRITUALITY

IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS

Aborigine / A noun meaning from the beginning. It is the term given to the indigenous Australians by the Europeans.
Aboriginal / An adjective used to describe something associated with aborigines, for example, aboriginal paintings.
Culture / The way of thinking and behaviour shared by a substantial social grouping, which gives that social group an identity in relation to others.
Indigenous people / Those people who are the original inhabitants of any country.
Outstations / Aboriginal living areas located on the traditional lands of groups who have moved away from former mission or government settlements.
Terra nullius / Empty land.
Torres Strait Islander / The indigenous people of the Torres Strait Islands which lie in the Torres Strait, the stretch of water that separates Cape York Peninsula from Papua New Guinea.

Aboriginal culture and history have shown great continuity across time and space, as well as great change through time and great diversity across space. Aboriginal people take great pride in their personal and group identity. The differentiation of almost every aspect of their culture and society has been used at some time, somewhere, to form a mark of identity. In spite of this diversity, however, no matter where Aboriginal people come from in Australia, they are recognised, and recognise one another, as being one people.

On the Use of ‘Aborigine’ and ‘Aboriginal’: An Aboriginal View Point

The word ‘aborigine’ refers to an indigenous person of any country. If it is to be used to refer to us as a specific group of people, it should be spelt with a capital ‘A’, that is, ‘Aborigine’.

The word ‘aboriginal’ is an adjective (or describing word) used to describe something associated with aborigines, for example ‘aboriginal paintings’. It should be spelt with a capital ‘A’ when it refers to something associated with our people.

So why is the term ‘Aboriginal’ used, ungrammatically, as a noun when the word should be ‘Aborigine’?

With a few exceptions, you will notice government departments always refer to Australian Aborigines as ‘Aboriginals’. This is because they were instructed to do so. To find out the reason we must go back to 1901.

The law at the time gave the Commonwealth power to legislate in relation to any race of people, except ‘aboriginal natives’. This, through British law and the use of the term ‘aboriginal natives’, we were denied an identity as a race of people (popular belief at the time being that Aborigines were dying out anyway). An opinion was sought from government legal officers, who advised that ‘aboriginal natives’ should continue to be excluded from that law and that were should be known as aboriginal citizens or natives (note the small ‘a’). The term ‘aboriginal’ (meaning aboriginal native or citizen) came into use as a noun and, in the case of more than one person, was changed to ‘aboriginals’ (meaning aboriginal natives).

Later when we demanded that ‘Aborigine’ be spelt with a capital ‘A’, the capital ‘A’ was also used on Aboriginals (which still implies ‘Aboriginal natives’ and a denial of our identity.

The worst thing about the use of ‘Aboriginals’ is that it places us into the category of being a non-existent people, thus sustaining (as is no doubt intended) the legality of the terra nullius annexation of our land.

Remember that at the time government employees were directed to use the word in this way, the white population were trying to put us out of existence with guns and were forcing us onto reserves out of the way where we couldn’t be seen.

Misuse of the English language in this word reinforces the attempts to wipe out our identity and our race.

Just as we demanded capital ‘A’ for Aborigine, we demand ‘Aborigine’ not ‘Aboriginal’ except in the correct place as an adjective.

1. When should a small ‘a’ be used in ‘aborigine and ‘aboriginal’?

2. When should a capital ‘A’ be used in ‘Aborigine’ and ‘Aboriginal’?

3. Explain why indigenous Australians insist that they be referred to as Aborigines rather than Aboriginals?

Origins of the Aboriginal People

During the last Ice Age, approximately 40,000 years ago, the Australian continent was joined by a land bridge to New Guinea. Tasmania was also connected to the mainland because the sea level was considerably lower than it is today. Archaeological evidence suggests that Aboriginal groups crossed via the land-bridge onto the continent, establishing numerous campsites. By 20,000 BCE, Aboriginal campsites were spread extensively throughout mainland Australia and Tasmania, with these inhabitant becoming isolated as the land bridges disappeared with the rise of the sea levels at then end of the last Ice Age. Although this view that Aborigines settled Australia through successive periods of migration has received support from some western scholars, it has been widely rejected by the Aboriginal people who claim to the land from the Dreaming, from the time of creation. There is controversial evidence suggesting that the Aborigines were in Australia from 80,000 to 130,000 years ago. More reliable evidence suggests that the Aborigines were in Australia 60,000 years ago. This evidence allows for the possibility of physical variations between Aboriginal groups and the diversity of language having developed gradually within Australia, rather than being explained by different waves of migration.

It is certain that Aboriginal people have been in Australia for more than 40,000 years. Where they came from is uncertain, but in the relatively isolated situation in which they remained for so long, they developed their culture, their particular ways of living in this land. In the centuries before European colonisation there was some cultural contact with people from the north, especially the Muslims from what is now called Indonesia. Archaeological evidence confirms the development of Aboriginal culture in Australia –

· Various artefacts.

· Charcoal from campsites.

· Deposits from kitchen middens.

· Hunting, gathering and fishing for food.

The survival of the Aboriginal people required intimate knowledge and understanding of the environment and the capacity to interpret and adapt to the changing nature of the environment.

These first inhabitants followed a nomadic lifestyle, moving in groups within generally well defined geographic areas. Members of each group shared a common language and observed common cultural practices, some of these being in the form of creative and artistic expressions. Thus Aboriginal art forms an integral part of Aboriginal culture, and although there was no written language, the complex cultural and spiritual knowledge was preserved and transferred from one generation to the next. The media of transfer of cultural knowledge involved oral tradition, the performance of complex and intricate ritual practices, songs and poems, chanted or sung, and rich art forms which capture, record and present the essence of Aboriginal spirituality. Aboriginal art, in particular, is sacred with many sacred symbols and images being passed on from one generation to another through artistic expression. It is this wealth and richness of Aboriginal rock, cave, wood and bark paintings which provide a glimpse into Aboriginal belief systems and reflect their
closeness and oneness with the land. The Aboriginal relationship with the environment is one of belonging, not one of ownership. Thus Aboriginal groups maintain a spiritual and ritual responsibility for particular areas of land and the sacred sites of those areas.

Diversity has always been a feature of Aboriginal society. Songs, stories, dances, ceremonies, Dreamings and art works are all owned in different ways depending on complex laws. In spite of this diversity, it is possible to speak of common features of Australian Aboriginal cultures: highly developed, deeply religious, and closely associated with nature and the land.

At the time of colonisation the Aboriginal way of life was still nomadic or semi-nomadic – they were living by hunting and gathering and using stone tools. This apparently simple lifestyle resulted in two misconceptions:

· Aboriginal people were culturally uniform.

· Aborigines had little attachment to the land and made little use of it.

Because of this, James Cook described the continent as terra nullius, even though his ship’s arrival was opposed with spears and fire.

Who is an Aborigine?

Two separate groups of people make up the original Australians. These are the Aborigines and the Torres Strait Islanders.

At the 1996 Census, 386,049 people in Australia identified themselves as being of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent. The highest concentration of Aboriginal and Islander population is in New South Wales (28.5%), followed by Queensland (27.2%), Western Australia (14.6% and the Northern Territory (13.4%). Like most Australians, the majority of Aborigines are urban dwellers, however, they are much more likely to live in very remote areas than the rest of the population.

Since 1970, the movement to re-occupy traditional lands has aided large numbers of Aborigines to establish independent settlements known as homeland centres or outstations. Ceremonies associated with these lands have been revived and traditional systems of authority are maintained.

What is terra nullius, and how did this concept come about with regards to Australia?
Culture is defined as the way of thinking and behaviour shared by a substantial social grouping, which gives that social group an identity in relation to others.
What evidence exists to show that Aborigines had a unique identity in terms of beliefs and behaviours?
Belief Systems / Behaviours

References

Board of Studies. (1999). Stage 6 syllabus: studies of religion. Sydney: Board of Studies New South Wales.

Edwards, W. (2000). Aboriginal religion, [CD-ROM]. Redfish Bluefish [2001, November 3].

Fesl, E., D. (1986). 'Aborigine' and 'Aboriginal'. Aboriginal perspectives: through my eyes (pp. 4-5): New South Wales Department of Education.

Lovat, T., & McGrath, J. (Eds.). (1999). New studies in religion. Katoomba: Social Science Press.

Morrissey, J., Mudge, P., Taylor, A., Bailey, G., Gregor, H., McGillion, C., O'Reilly, P., Magee, P., & Mills, L. (2001). Living religion (2nd ed.). Sydney: Longman.