M3 - Learner Manual

14. Past, Present and Future Connected Through Ritual

Australian indigenous spiritual belief is not separate from other aspects of life, culture and history. It is also difficult to speak of origins because an indigenous conception of time connects past actions and people with present and future generations. Time is circular, not linear, as each generation relives the Dreaming activities. Indigenous people maintain their connection through the daily process of being Indigenous. The concept of circular time collapses past, present and future into a continual present. 

Rituals form part of spiritual responsibility - Obligation to country and maintaining continuity through spirituality happens in the present, honours the past (ancestors) and maintains continuity for future generations.

Festivals, celebrations, protests and gatherings such as the Knockout – often referred to as the new corrobboree, are practices that continue to maintain culture in urban and regional communities.