1. © 2005 Preliminary Course: Nature of Religion and Beliefs. This sheet may be photocopied for non-commercial classroom use only. "We walk together on sacred ground. Black feet, white feet, footprints soft upon the land. The Tjukurpa moves beneath our feet. The landscape is alive." - Anon

2. © 2005 Preliminary Course: Nature of Religion and Beliefs. This sheet may be photocopied for non-commercial classroom use only. Note: Tjukurpa - the Pitjantjatjara word for Dreaming

3. © 2005 Preliminary Course: Nature of Religion and Beliefs. This sheet may be photocopied for non-commercial classroom use only. Australian Aboriginal Spirituality Absence of any sharp boundary between the spiritual and the natural world.

4. © 2005 Preliminary Course: Nature of Religion and Beliefs. This sheet may be photocopied for non-commercial classroom use only. Comprises:  Closeness to nature - love of the land.  Awareness of a greater power who makes living possible.  A spirit world - where spirits are active in this world but also there is another world beyond death.

5. © 2005 Preliminary Course: Nature of Religion and Beliefs. This sheet may be photocopied for non-commercial classroom use only.  Ritual - another way of communicating between the two worlds. Seen as an art form, a way of celebrating humanity’s participation in the affairs of the universe and the gods. Takes the place of religious doctrines.  Myth - a complex set of stories handed down from generation to generation which, in some way, represent the meaning of the world.

6.  Depend on myths rather than scriptures and creeds to learn about the spirit powers. The spirits showed, through myth, the skills to sustain life.  Both ritual and myth form a complex act of worship.  Strong oral tradition  Totem System  Kinship © 2005 Preliminary Course: Nature of Religion and Beliefs. This sheet may be photocopied for non-commercial classroom use only. (adapted from Encarta 96 Encyclopedia )