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Australian Aboriginal religion and mythology is the sacred spirituality represented in the stories performed by Aboriginal Australians within each of the language groups across Australia in their ceremonies. Aboriginal spirituality includes the Dreamtime, songlines, and Aboriginal oral literature.
The Dreaming, also referred to as Dreamtime, is a term devised by early anthropologists to refer to a religio-cultural worldview attributed to Australian Aboriginal beliefs. It was originally used by Francis Gillen, quickly adopted by his colleague Baldwin Spencer and thereafter popularised by A. P. Elkin, who, however, later revised his views.
In Australian Aboriginal mythology, the Wati kutjara are two young lizard-men who, in the Dreaming, travelled all over the Western Desert. In English, their songline is often called the Two Men Dreaming. The Wati kutjara are ubiquitous in the mythology of the Western Desert; Their journey extends for thousands of kilometres, stretching from the Kimberley to South Australia.
Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock and officially gazetted as Uluru / Ayers Rock, is a large sandstone formation in the centre of Australia. It is in the southern part of the Northern Territory, 335 km (208 mi) southwest of Alice Springs.
Ngiṉṯaka, also spelled Ngintaku, is a giant perentie lizard Ancestral Being from Aṉangu and Pitjantjatjara religion and mythology. It is associated with Angatja, an area along an important songline.
A songline, also called dreaming track, is one of the paths across the land within the animist belief systems of the Aboriginal cultures of Australia which mark the route followed by localised "creator-beings" in the Dreaming. The paths of the songlines are recorded in traditional song cycles, stories, dance, and art, and are often the basis of ceremonies. They are a vital part of Aboriginal culture, connecting people to their land.
Aṉangu is the name used by members of several Aboriginal Australian groups, roughly approximate to the Western Desert cultural bloc, to describe themselves. The term, which embraces several distinct "tribes" or peoples, in particular the Ngaanyatjarra, Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara groups, is pronounced with the stress on the first syllable: [ˈaɳaŋʊ].
A Tjurunga, also spelt Churinga and Tjuringa, is an object considered to be of religious significance by Central Australian Aboriginal people of the Arrernte groups. Tjurunga often had a wide and indeterminate native significance. They may be used variously in sacred ceremonies, as bullroarers, in sacred ground paintings, in ceremonial poles, in ceremonial headgear, in sacred chants and in sacred earth mounds.
Papunya Tula, registered as Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, is an artist cooperative formed in 1972 in Papunya, Northern Territory, owned and operated by Aboriginal people from the Western Desert of Australia. The group is known for its innovative work with the Western Desert Art Movement, popularly referred to as "dot painting". Credited with bringing contemporary Aboriginal art to world attention, its artists inspired many other Australian Aboriginal artists and styles.
The Arrerntepeople, sometimes referred to as the Aranda, Arunta or Arrarnta, are a group of Aboriginal Australian peoples who live in the Arrernte lands, at Mparntwe and surrounding areas of the Central Australia region of the Northern Territory. Many still speak one of the various Arrernte dialects. Some Arrernte live in other areas far from their homeland, including the major Australian cities and overseas.
The mythology of the Miwok Native Americans are myths of their world order, their creation stories and 'how things came to be' created. Miwok myths suggest their spiritual and philosophical world view. In several different creation stories collected from Miwok people, Coyote was seen as their ancestor and creator god, sometimes with the help of other animals, forming the earth and making people out of humble materials like feathers or twigs.
Adnoartina is known as a religious deity in the Australian Aboriginal culture. This deity is described as taking the form of a gecko lizard and is considered to be a sacred ancestral being. Adnoartina offers an Indigenous understanding to the creation of Uluru, an Australian historical landmark. This landmark is regarded as one of the most sacred land formations in Australia and an ‘iconic’ tourist attraction. As Adnoartina is a key figure in the creation of Uluru, this deity is a symbolic figure in the Aboriginal religion.
Australian Aboriginal culture includes a number of practices and ceremonies centered on a belief in the Dreamtime and other mythology. Reverence and respect for the land and oral traditions are emphasised. Over 300 languages and other groupings have developed a wide range of individual cultures. Due the colonization of Australia under terra nullius concept these cultures were treated as one monoculture. Australian Aboriginal art has existed for thousands of years and ranges from ancient rock art to modern watercolour landscapes. Aboriginal music has developed a number of unique instruments. Contemporary Australian Aboriginal music spans many genres. Aboriginal peoples did not develop a system of writing before colonisation, but there was a huge variety of languages, including sign languages.
Malagasy mythology is rooted in oral history and has been transmitted by storytelling, notably the Andriambahoaka epic, including the Ibonia cycle. At least 52-59% of Madagascar are adherants of the religion, which is known as Fomba Gasy. Adherence to Fomba Gasy is high amongst the Sakalava people, as they are reluctant to convert to faiths of foreign origin.
The Tingari (Tingarri) cycle in Australian Aboriginal mythology embodies a vast network of Aboriginal Dreaming (tjukurpa) songlines that traverse the Western Desert region of Australia. Locations and events associated with the Tingari cycle are frequently the subject of Aboriginal Art from the region.
Barnumbirr, also known as Banumbirr or Morning Star, is a creator-spirit in the Yolngu culture of Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia, who is identified as the planet Venus. In Yolngu Dreaming mythology, she is believed to have guided the first humans, the Djanggawul sisters, to Australia. After the Djanggawul sisters arrived safely near Yirrkala in North East Arnhem Land, Barnumbirr flew across the land from east to west, creating a songline which named and created the animals, plants, and geographical features.
Hector Tjupuru Burton was an Australian Aboriginal artist. He is a leading artist from Amaṯa, in north-western South Australia. His work has been shown in exhibitions since 2003, in several cities in Australia and other countries. His first solo exhibition was held in 2004 in Melbourne. Examples of his paintings are held in the National Gallery of Victoria, the Art Gallery of South Australia, the Art Gallery of New South Wales, and Flinders University.
Ginger Nobby Wikilyiri is an Australian Aboriginal artist from Nyapaṟi, South Australia.
Walala Tjapaltjarri is an Australian Aboriginal artist.
Tjanpi Desert Weavers is a social enterprise of the NPY Women's Council, representing over 400 women from 26 unique communities in the NPY region. Tjanpi is the Pitjantjatjara word for a type of spinifex grass. The weavers harvest and weave local grasses and some other materials to create handmade works and pieces of art. In producing these works, which mostly consist of baskets, jewellery, beads and fibre sculpture, the enterprise encourages women's employment and economic independence.
References
- ↑ Mudrooroo (1994). Aboriginal mythology : an A-Z spanning the history of aboriginal mythology from the earliest legends to the present day. Thorsons. p. 82-83. ISBN 1855383063.