People People of the Outback
Spiritual Culture
- A Brief overview of Indigenous Spirituality -
(Provided as a general introduction only - should you wish to find out more, please refer to our links section).
An element of this can be seen in how land is viewed in these cultures… land is not something that can be owned, traded, or exploited for profit. Land has a spiritual definition. "We don't have boundaries like fences, as farmers do. We have spiritual connections" (anon)
To indigenous Australians, all living creatures are dynamically and intricately linked and have all arisen from great ancestral spirits. Dreamtime can be viewed as the Creation and the perpetuation of the significance of these events, adherence to spirituality, forming of customs and the lineage of cultural beliefs down through the generations is The Dreaming; much of which is done through dance, song, mime and art.
Indigenous History - A Brief Overview
- A brief overview of indigenous history -
(Provided as a general introduction only - should you wish to find out more, please refer to our links section).
Early European naivety, which also permeates through to modern perceptions, viewed Indigenous Australians as one people. Aboriginal culture in Australia is no more homogenous than European Australia, but is a diverse and interlaced association of many different cultures that, along with Torres Strait Islander peoples, make up the fabric that we refer to today as Indigenous Australia.
Aboriginal Culture can be traced back at least 45,000 years and within the Outback NSW many Aboriginal 'groups' can be identified. Within this region, most of these groups lived along the many water courses that make up the Darling Basin and today they live in the towns of the area; no less connected to the area and its geological features as their forbears.
The Explorers
- The Explorers -
Outback travel nowadays can be done in the comfort of modern reliable vehicles and the security of modern communication to the 'outside' world, but spare a thought for how it was done before the country was 'known'.
We can only imagine how it was done during the early 1800's; horses, drays and camels. Travel required carry all supplies for survival, in many cases for over a year; with little or no bush craft skills and no idea where, when, how and if the suspected water courses flowed.
Such was the character, and naivety, of our early explorers and those who sent them out there.