Aboriginal Mythology

Book excerpt: Aboriginals believe they have lived in Australia since the Dreamtime, the beginning of all creation, and archaeological evidence shows the land has been inhabited for tens of thousands of years. Over this time, Aboriginal culture has grown a rich variety of mythologies in hundreds of different languages. Their unifying feature is a shared belief that the whole universe is alive, that we belong to the land and must care for it. This was the first book to collate and explain the many fascinating elements of Aboriginal culture: the song circles and stories, artefacts, landmarks, characters and customs.