Archaeological findings indicate that Aborigines have lived in Australia for 40,000 - 100,000 years or longer. Aboriginal means, the people who were here from the beginning. The Aborigines have a special relationship with the land and animals. The land is more than a material entity that provides nourishment; it also has a spiritual dimension. It is not owned, it is held in trust. Each person belongs to a certain part of the land, and also, the land belongs to them. The land contains the identity of a person, even before they are born.
For Aborigines, spirituality and the sacred are deeply rooted in the landscape and in their relationship to the environment, which sustains them. Their songs, dances and ceremonies, even the arguments or cooperation between tribal groups, are all connected with the dreaming paths.
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