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Ceremonies: Patreise, Jacquie and Phoebe

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Ceremonies: Patreise, Jacquie and Phoebe

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Ceremonies:

a gathering of people who come together to perform specific roles for specific reasons

these reasons are often are tied very tightly with their beliefs and are an integral part of their culture

depending on the ceremony, different people were involved

for example, some Secret Ceremonies were held separately from men and women

information was mainly passed orally or through song, music and dance. It was also passed down from generation to generation with art, a lot of which remains to this day.

they told stories and often musical instruments were involved, for example the drums or the didgeridoo

the Aboriginals also used various plants and animal skins in their ceremonies whilst wearing body paint to decorate their skin

the structure of ceremonies varies between groups. Some, such as festive ceremonies are performed at a certain time of year, whilst other such as the initiation ceremonies were performed as a member of the tribe came of age

the ceremonies symbolised the initiation of a new leader

there are special songs for occasions such as births, healing or death

another way this impacted on daily was that because the Indigenous Australians were nomadic, as they came into interaction with another tribe, they would often perform greeting ceremonies

ceremonies were a way of passing on stories and by keeping their beliefs alive by teaching their young these beliefs and types of ceremonies

knowledge, responsibilities and rules were also taught at ceremonies

as part of their religion, they also believed in good and evil spirits. As a result, many tribes would perform a Smoking Ceremony to drive away these bad spirits.

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By Claire, Lily B and Sophia

Where they live is determined by where their ancestors lived, they have to care for the land and the way they do this is passed down by stories. For 50,000 the Indigenous Australians lived in harmony with the lands, they made sure that they only took what they needed, they cared for the land and were careful not to damage it. They moved around the land, this allowed them to not over fish or hunt in one area, some groups deliberately did not hunt in seasons when the animals were breading. They also built certain things to help them get food. The Indigenous Australians depended on the land for food and water, the food supply depended on the seasons. The men hunted the animals, and the women and children gathered plants.

Today, many still use the traditional methods of hunting, gathering and caring for the land. Many will mix the traditional methods of acquiring food with going to the shop, they ensure that their children learn the ways to care for the land through the Dreaming knowledge.

They also used the Australian land to draw and carve pictures to tell their culture, the land was split up into different areas for different groups. Although they never officially owned any of the land there was a general understanding of which groups lived where.

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Who or what did it involve?

The people it involved were the respected people called the elders. These elders or respected people made the laws and they were passed on verbally and through song, dance and painting. These laws were a spiritual connection with the land, connections between people, groups animals and plants.

How did this impact on daily life?

Laws where passed down verbally to those who are initiated. This meant that the laws handed down to the person would change the persons life from childhood to adulthood.

How did this contribute to religions/ spiritual beliefs?

They thought that if laws were passed down to a person verbally through a ceremony that they will become an adult.

Impact on Individuals?

Traditionally, Indigenous initiation ceremonies mark the change from childhood to adulthood. People are ‘put through the Law’ and learn their responsibilities. They are then seen as adults. People continue to be initiated and learn more of the Law throughout their lives. Under the guidance of Elders, they learn about the rules that govern social structure, behaviour, the life cycles of animals and plants, and skills for hunting and gathering food.

Where do the laws originate from?

The ancestral beings decided the rights, responsibilities, and behaviours of all things in the land. These laws typically covered what foods could be eaten and how the food should be shared, the punishments if laws were broken, the rules for family, marriage and social organisation, the rules for looking after land and the sacred sites, and the rules for ceremonies and rituals.

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Kinship is the relationship between relatives, such as brother, sister, mother, father and grandmother. There are strict rules about kinship in traditional Indigenous law, such as whom a person can marry and how people should behave towards other people in the group.

Society’s structure was based on the kinship rules, which varied from the different social groups, such as family groups, skin groups, and cultural groups. These rules would have greatly affected the relationships between people in both the same or different groups, as the Aborigines were not allowed to interact with certain people and were taught to behave differently when talking to particular individuals.

Therefore, kinship is not really a religious or spiritual thing, but a structured way that people behave to each other based on a set of rules.

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Sacred Sites and Sacred People: Grace, Mia and Angelyn

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Sacred Sites and Sacred People: Grace, Mia and Angelyn

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1.     Who/what did this involve?
Sacred sites and sacred people involve the traditional owners of the land (Aboriginal Australians), the sacred people may have referred to the custodians of sacred sites whose jobs was to protect the sites and and ensure the wellbeing of their communities

2.     How did this impact on daily life?

Inhabitants may have used these sacred sites in certain rituals which they performed. Rock engravings, bones, drawings and carvings indicate that sites such as Koolnada Caves and Cape York Peninsula were also occupied and used by inhabitants as part of their daily lives, whilst sites such as Kow Swamp, which was initially a grave sight, may have been visited far less, with the exception of rituals or ceremonies.

3.     How did this contribute to religious/spiritual beliefs?

Sacred sites gave meaning to the land and it’s natural landscape and their purpose was to anchor values and kin-based relationships into the land. These sites contributed to religious and spiritual beliefs as often, they were the place where many ceremonies as well as sacred traditions and customs.

4. Impact on individuals?

Over many generations, the sites have been cared for and protected by the traditional owners of the land. Individuals formed very close connections with the sacred land as it was a big part of their cultural heritage. Many ancient and sacred sites were destroyed as land was cleared or mined after British settlement. This distressed the individuals and groups responsible for the sites.

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THE DREAMING: Ellora, Alice W, Lily S and Alice X

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THE DREAMING: Ellora, Alice W, Lily S and Alice X

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1. Who or What did it involve? The Dreamtime involves the creation beings who travelled across the world, shaping land features,  forming organisms and their relationships. The Dreamtime connected Aboriginal groups because, although they might not have the same ancestral beings or stories, all Aboriginal groups had these stories that shaped the way they perceived their life and surroundings.

2. How did this impact on daily life? This impacted on daily life because it gave Aboriginals rituals to perform, stories to tell and helped to reinforce kinship between tribes and individuals. It also gave men and women different jobs to do for example, the men told the stories while the women sang songs to reinforce dreaming.

3. How did this contribute to religious/spiritual beliefs? The stories contributed by giving them something to believe in and tell stories about, giving them a religion to live by and helping to pass on their spiritual beliefs from generation to generation and culture to culture.

4. Impact on individuals? It impacted people as a group because the dreaming is not about being isolated, it is about continuing to pass on the stories to younger generations so that it shapes the culture and life of Aboriginals today.

Facts: The beliefs of the different groups were different but there was some stories such as the rainbow serpent that were common between multiple groups.

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§  USE OF LAND: http://australianmuseum.net.au/indigenous-australia-introduction

§  SPIRITUALITY: http://australianmuseum.net.au/indigenous-australia-spirituality

§  KINSHIP: http://australianmuseum.net.au/indigenous-australia-family

§  THE DREAMING: http://aboriginalart.com.au/culture/dreamtime2.html