Trudy
I like what you say about your heritage and history,
but I think it's more complex than that. I came to
Australia when I was 9 years old from America. I have
a mixed heritage from Europe, South America, England,
etc, but I feel that my belonging is to Australia -
there is an essence of the history (and long
pre-history) that informs all of us in different ways.
My brother was touring in a band in Ireland, and he
said he suddenly had this feeling that he was among
his indigenous brethren - that he had found his roots.
And I must admit when I hear Irish music, there is
something that reaches me deep down. But so does
Aboriginal music, and Arabic chanting, and the rhythms
from south America and Africa. I suppose I feel a bit
homeless in terms of feeling attached to a specific
heritage and history, but I think that's a lot of the
confusion felt by many Australians today. And because
of that sense of dislocation, I believe, we try to
attach meanings to our current place, and try to dig
roots in to supply us with sustenance and nourishment
for our physical as well as our spiritual beings. This
is in no way to try to take away any part of
Aboriginal spirituality or cultural importance, but
simply to have a sense of belonging. Part of what
informs all of us, mentally and spiritually, is the
history we understand: and depending on the individual
or collective interpretation, there will be differing
senses of spirituality and belonging.
This is all running off the top of my head - hope it
makes some sense, and doesn't offend anyone.
All the best.
Carrie.
--- Trudy and Rod Bray <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> I have read with some amazement how various people
> have interpreted what I wrote
> earlier. I am beginning to see how risky it can be,
> not because it may draw
> criticism, but in the various ways that people have
> decided what you have said
> based on their own life-view. It seems that the
> whole is not understood but each
> one uses the bits that suit them.
>
> First, let me say that the State did not decide who
> I am, where I came from or
> who my ancestors are other than in a superficial
> sense. My religious beliefs are
> not taken from any other people whose beliefs have
> been a defining part of them
> for eons because they are not mine to adopt. That
> does not mean I cannot
> appreciate and respect them.
>
> For me, and I have met others who feel this way,
> meeting Indigenous peoples with
> their secure, long histories rooted in their
> religious and cultural ways made me
> curious about my own roots. [I have met many people
> who like Indigenous
> religious beliefs and practices whether North
> American, Far Eastern or
> Australian. They are a part of invading peoples who
> have lost the connection to
> their past and envy the spiritual security of
> Indigenous peoples. They try to
> incorporate these beliefs into their own lives -
> which is not for me to judge
> but I do know that many Native Americans feel that
> this sort of thing is a
> further theft of who they are and they are very
> angry about it.]
>
> It was this curiosity about the Indigenous European
> tribes and who they were
> before they were invaded and conquered by an alien
> people with an alien religion
> that made me look for what I could find. The bits
> and pieces that are findable
> are not only very interesting in light of how
> Europeans are seen today but also
> underscore the universality of some (I stress
> 'some') Indigenous beliefs. This
> just reinforces how closely we are all related.
>
> When I spoke about my ancestors and my past I did
> not mean to convey that this
> is where I am and that human relationships in the
> present are not the most
> important thing. I don't know why anyone would
> interpret it that way. Our past,
> our ancestors, are a part of us. They are a part of
> who we are today. It is my
> belief that knowledge of ourselves, of who we are,
> helps us achieve better
> relationships with others.
>
> I am an non-Aboriginal Australian with a history and
> religious heritage rooted
> in a different land - just like other non-Aboriginal
> Australians. It colours my
> present but it does not mean that this is where I
> live.
> When Irene said that we should find our own
> aboriginality, I understood it to
> mean that which I had been doing and decided to tell
> the list about it. Maybe it
> is not what she meant but there it is.
>
> Trudy
>
>
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