Moving on from India, I want to explore social constructs from other parts of the world! In my Junior College linguistics class, we explored the unique challenges that the Aboriginals of Australia face in society. Curious, I decided to search and learn more about Aboriginals and their belief system. Interestingly, they had a belief system unlike anything I’ve heard of before!
First, it’s important to distinguish between the two kinds of Indigenous people in Australia. There are the Aboriginals who are the natives of mainland Australia. The Torres Strait Islanders are natives to the islands in Torres Straits, which are above mainland Australia. For most of my blog posts, I will be discussing Australian Aboriginals.
An essential part of the Aboriginal’s belief system is ‘the Dreaming’. This is a period in which they believe mythical beings forged the natural environment that we live in today. This makes the environment a very sacred entity for the Aboriginals. Many Aboriginal rituals are rooted in nature and the Earth, using soils and rocks as part of their tradition.
Totemism is also a large part of Aboriginal culture. This is the belief that a particular animal and organism is the responsibility of a clan, family group or individual. They then have the responsibility to protect their totem as well as educate others about the totem. This allows them to maintain balance in ecosystems as well as be a part of conservation efforts. Totems assigned to individuals can have incredibly personal meanings as well, as it is often an animal that reflects who they are as a person. These beliefs make the Aboriginals incredibly tied with their environment. They view themselves as protectors of the land (Sexton 2019). Some even suggest that all Australians should participate in totemism as it can potentially lead to more effective conservation efforts. It can allow people to become more in tune with nature and develop a personal connection with their environment.
Here is an interesting video about the traditional stories of Aboriginal people. It also included a reference to the extinction of megafauna, something we discussed in lecture! The speaker suggests that Aboriginals and some megafauna may have coexisted at the same time!
It’s quite surprising to me that Aboriginals are so connected with nature and that they continue to keep these values. Now that we have a basic understanding of Aboriginal culture and beliefs, in my next blog post, I will elaborate more on the impacts environmental issues have on this community. I will be explaining how colonisation impacted the Aboriginals greatly, as well as the land they lived on. Stay tuned!
~ Yalini
(Cover Photo: Gabriela Custódio da Silva from Pexels)
References
Sexton, C., & Kirby, M. (2019). Aboriginal Spirituality and the Land. In A Theology of Land: Terra Australis from Christian-Aboriginal Perspectives (pp. 163-222). Adelaide: ATF (Australia). Retrieved October 7, 2020, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctvpj77ws.10
October 10, 2020 at 9:50 am
Hi Yalini!
This was definitely an interesting read into the culture of the Aboriginals, and it is amazing to see the mutualistic relationship that they uphold with the environment. The video was definitely an insightful watch, but I found it sad that indigenous communities are forced to make way for the exploitation of resources, with insufficient compensation (although I think no amount of tangibles can compensate for destroying the very land that they depend on, and share a connection with); and it is even more sad to see that elders are not treated as the wise people, living repositories of knowledge acquired over generations, that they are.
In the article that you linked regarding how adopting a totem could help the environment, it was mentioned that it was not to be done haphazardly, and is best to consult an elder about it. This might be a weird question, but do you think that idea of totemism can be somehow incorporated into the Singaporean community? Looking forward to your future posts!
Cheers!
Jeng Wei
October 16, 2020 at 8:07 am
Hello Jeng Wei!
I’m glad you learnt something from my post, that’s really nice to hear! In my next 2 posts, I will be elaborating on the past and what is happening the present to the Aboriginal people, maybe they will strike your interest too!
As you mentioned, it is very important to consult an elder about these rituals before carrying them out so as to make sure that they are accurate and not misinterpreted. For this reason, I think it would be very difficult to integrate totemism exactly into Singaporean culture. Moreover, our culture is vastly different from that of Australia, so it would be difficult to bring an entirely different concept to Singaporeans, in my opinion. What I do think seems more feasible is to teach kids about biodiversity in Singapore at school! By inculcating a love for the environment at a young age, they are more likely to develop sustainable habits when they get older. This would make for environmentally conscious adults in the future!
~ Yalini
October 18, 2020 at 8:53 am
Hey Yalini!
Thank you for your reply! After reading your reply, I definitely agree with you, that perhaps the concept of totemism cannot be easily integrated into Singapore due to the vastly different cultures, and perhaps any attempt might even be seen as disrespectful to the Aboriginal culture (just my opinion). Likewise, I share the opinion that development of a sustainable lifestyle should start from young, and that will be key to making the next generation more environmentally conscious.
Cheers!
Jeng Wei
October 12, 2020 at 3:32 am
One of the best Ted Talks I’ve ever seen. Thank you so much for posting this !
October 13, 2020 at 3:02 pm
Hi Yalini!
Thank you for the interesting read! I never knew how totems and traditional beliefs connected Australian Aboriginals so deeply to the environment. However, I was wondering if some of their practices could be degrading towards the environment. I’m also curious on what we can learn from their environmental management strategies and whether they can be applied conventionally in urbanised environments! Hope to hear from you soon (-:
Cheers,
Kelly
October 16, 2020 at 9:03 am
Hey Kelly!
In the past, before the European settlers arrived in Australian land, Aboriginal people commonly used fire to clear land for different purposes. The effects of this are under debate, some studies suggest that they could have changed the Australian climate. But newer studies show that it may not have had the implications it was once thought to have. Either way, Aboriginal people have had no where near as much of on impact on the environment as their European colonisers.
Some suggest that we can learn about the way the Aboriginal people used fire to fight the devastating wildfires in Australia. This can be one way their strategies can be used to help the whole of Australia! Hope this answers your questions 🙂
~ Yalini
October 19, 2020 at 6:26 am
Hi Yalini and Kelly,
You might find this article (https://www.npr.org/2020/10/13/923377261/fire-expert-on-how-indigenous-land-management-could-help-with-fires-in-californi) interesting, although I saw similar content on Reuters and other news agencies.
jc
November 9, 2020 at 5:49 pm
Hey Yalini! Thank you for the really interesting post and I enjoyed the TED talk as well! I really did not expect the monster introduced in the story to be the the Diprotodon! Besides just serving as a cool “fun fact”, I think this increased understanding that these “myths” were actually based on real events, would give the ancestral knowledge of Aboriginal people, the attention it deserves. It is sad that this is the case though…that only when scientific evidence backs traditional knowledge, will the latter be acknowledged…Do you think that shedding light on how science can be agreeable with the traditional knowledge of Aboriginal and Indigenous people, might be beneficial and even important?
Cheers,
Divina
November 10, 2020 at 1:54 pm
Hey Divina!
I think it’s true what you said, that traditional knowledge needs to have scientific evidence to back it to receive any form of attention. This seems to take away the credit that seems to be rightfully due to Aboriginal people. That being said, I do think that scientific backing is needed before classifying Aboriginal knowledge as useful. I think both should work together and have equal importance!
I do think it’s extremely important that scientists start seeing the worth of Indigenous knowledge and culture in finding modern solutions for our problems. Casting this knowledge would be a huge waste to our society and it would be unjust to the people of these cultures and their ancestors. I also think science becoming more agreeable with Indigenous knowledge can have positive social consequences! As the public finds value in Indigenous cultures, they will be more willing to accept them. Fortunately, people already see the value in Aboriginal knowledge, this website has one such example of studies done with the help of Aboriginal people. I think the potential of such collaboration can only expand!
~ Yalini