Bachelor of Design [Architecture]
DESIGN PRACTICE 3A
Year 3, March Semester
Coordinator: Kristine Sodersten
Topic 7. Traditional Aboriginal Spirituality
Submission: Monday 20 March 2006
Group Members:
Tasnia Kibria 200314094
Zara Lyons 200431605
Shuji Maruyama 200425533
Natalie Fan 200419149
TRADITIONAL ABORIGINAL SPIRITUALITY
Traditional Aboriginal Spirituality was quite different to other established concepts of religion in its day, although no less sophisticated. Often referred to as “Dreaming”, it is based on the belief that people were “one with the land and all that moved upon it.” In this context, humans and the nature were all part of the same ongoing life force.
Traditional expressions of Aboriginal spirituality include dreamtime stories, totemism, ceremonies, songs, dances and art. However because of the secret nature of Traditional Aboriginal Spirituality, few beliefs of the Cadigal people were ever recorded; as it was forbidden for an uninitiated person to hear the sacred stories. Our research is drawn from observations recorded by the invading White Fellas (c1790’s).
DREAMTIME STORIES
Dreamtime stories explained how great Ancestral beings created the earth, its features and all of its living creatures. These spirits emerged at the dawn of creation from a pre-existing formless earth, from spirit homes in the sky or from other far off places. When the great Ancestors had roamed the earth, they were human, animal, and bird at one and the same time: all natural things were in a unity. Hence certain stories refer to kangaroo-man and serpent woman.
Aboriginals believed the Ancestral beings created the physical features of the landscape, sea and sky. Their dreaming tracks formed riverbeds and watercourses. The ancestral beings named the places to which they journeyed, the flora and fauna and they created sacred rules of human social life.
The ancestral beings did not leave a traditional territory but instead became one with the landscape, their spiritual form continually generating life. In doing so, they passed onto Aboriginals a system of existence, which was complete in every respect.
Dreamtime stories also described the movement of the ancestral beings over the earth, hunting and gathering food, tool-making, singing dancing and fighting. All the affairs of human life, good and evil were included in the dreaming stories for educational purposes. Thus the lives of Aborigines were shaped by their Dreamtime stories, which were both an explanation of how the world came to be and how people must conduct their behaviour and social relations. For example, The Story of Minnawee, explains why the crocodile rolls, and furthermoregives guidanceto listen to elders and not cause corruption.
TOTEMISM
As Aborigines lived and moved throughout the Australian landscape the creation and resting places of the ancestral beings took on a special significance - these were not simply rocks, waterholes and beaches but deeply symbolic and religious places which had been made by Ancestral beings in the Creation period.
The territory of a clan was largely governed by their spiritual connection to the land. This meant that one clan would not covet another clan's land because it did not hold the same religious significance for them.
Clans expressed their spirituality with a totem. Totemism describes the relationship between a clan and a natural species of object. Both parties shared the same life essence and this bond has existed since the Dreamtime.
For example, Cadigal Aborigines had an affiliation with the dolphin, which was believed to drive fish and whales ashore when food was scarce.
These totems were also used to differentiate one clan from another as men and women of the same clan could not marry each other.
MALE INITATION CEREMONY
The powerful influence of spirituality can also be observed in traditional ceremonies. One specific example that occurred in Sydney was the male initiation ceremony. It not only served to initiate boys, but also provided a valuable social and spiritual celebration for the wider community.
The ceremony, which spanned several days, was part of a longer initiation period, after which the young males would be accepted into Aboriginal society as a man. Recorded to have occurred once every few years, the ceremony was carefully planned by the elders, who considered the abundance of food and the spiritual appropriateness of the initiation site. Once a site was chosen, messengers would travel to foreign countries and escort groups to the site. People as far as Wollongong are believed to have travelled to Sydney to attend. As the invited parties often took several days or weeks to arrive, performances of song and dance were provided every night by the groups present. It was an opportunity for the community to relax and strengthen relationships.
It is known that ceremonies in the Sydney involved the practice of tooth evulsion, or ‘yoolung erabadiung’, meaning that the boys’ right incisors were knocked out. Tooth evulsion was part of a complex ceremony, which is not entirely understood, due to the secret nature of religious matters. It chiefly involved males in role plays, symbolic acts and sacred rituals, although females were included in some stages. The most widely known observance of a male initiation ceremony was by David Collins, at Farm Cove, Sydney, in February 1795. It is evident that many early colonists misunderstood Aboriginal spirituality, as it was incorrectly assumed to be a religion, in the structured sense.
Basically the male initiation ceremony was a process of educating boys about their cultural heritage and their new responsibilities as an adult, as well as to make them aware of their place in the wider community, as men. It reinforced the laws and kept the social hierarchy intact.
Post-ceremony, the community could trade weapons and utensils, and discuss issues regarding the laws. Among other things, it was also popular for marriages to be arranged. Hence the male initiation ceremony was not only for boys, but a chance for everyone to celebrate their spirituality, which defined a sense of belonging and responsibility to the community and to the natural world.
SONG AND DANCE
When expressing their spirituality, singing and dancing has always been traditional to the Aborigines. While modern day dancing is considered an expression of character and technicality, traditional Aboriginal song and dance, also known as “corroborees”, was more of a representation, a way of communicating a story to one another. These might range from representing fighting, hunting and fishing, the weather, culture, dreams, community and the land. The songs and dances can also tell a story about more specific events such as the white settlers and their horses, or even about a building that was built in Bennelong Point.
No matter what the occasion, the songs were usually written by highly esteemed individuals from the group and were mostly short, simple and repetitive. This may possibly be because if a particular song proved popular, there would be messengers that would carry these songs to other Aboriginal tribes to teach them. In those occasions, the songs would sometimes travel so far that the tribes inhabiting that area would speak a totally different language, and therefore, the meaning of the song may have only been vaguely understood.
Corroborees were passed down from generation to generation over many centuries. But aside from singing at corroborees, songs are also sung during their daily activities. Once, an observer sighted Aboriginal women singing whilst fishing at Port Jackson. Paddling in time with the song, they spotted a school of dolphins, and would chant a short, repetitive song to which they would change the words whenever the animals dived in. This shows the spiritual connection they feel with the natural world. Finally, there were songs that were sung and performed for the sick and dying. In those cases, they were usually performed by women.
Hence, spirituality was of fundamental importance in traditional Aboriginal life. It defined the way they lived, the foods they hunted and ate, their appearance, their relationships with people, and most importantly, their intrinsically spiritual connection with the natural world. The expression of spirituality can be seen through totemism, ceremonies, and song and dance.