Aboriginal Australian Dreamtime

Dreaming is a significant aspect of Aboriginal Australian culture. The aborigines believe through dream, dance, and other rituals, they gain direct access to the Dreamtime-- the world-making epoch of their ancestors. In part one of this lesson, we explore the concept of the Dreamtime and the role of the Dreamtime in everyday life.

Podcast Lecture: The Somniloquy

Readings:

Lawlor, Voices of the First Day: Ch. 2

Tonkinson, The Mardu Aborigines: Ch. 1

Questions:

1. How does the notion of the Dreamtime fit into Australian Aboriginal cosmology?

2. What is totemism?

3. How are the Dreamtime stories relevant to the everyday lives of the Aborigines?

4. How do the Aborigines conceive of space and time according to Lawlor?

Activities:

Indigenous Australia--Background: Visit The Australian Museum's website Indigenous Australia and peruse its historical and cultural fact sheets, especially the entries on "The Dreaming" and "Dreaming Tracks."