ANST-701 Lessons

The students enter the Ancient Studies classroom to find the professor levitating an enormous globe above her desk. Slowly, the globe rotates, showing the various oceans and continents of planet Earth, and then finally settles and stops over the Pacific Ocean and the continent of Australia.

The professor allows the globe to descend and rest in a holder on top of her desk, then turns to the class and smiles.

Welcome, once again, to Ancient Studies, my dears! Today we will be discussing the history and magic of the continent of Australia. Yes, Australia is also a country, but remember that we are talking about a time before the country was founded.

The first aboriginal Australians arrived on the continent 50,000 years ago. Sea levels at this time were quite low, and Australia was actually attached to Guinea. According to DNA evidence (a fascinating branch of Muggle science that I strongly suggest you learn about) as well as archaeological research, a single tribe emigrated from southeast Asia, through Guinea, and down into Australia. The people of this tribe divided and spread along the coast line, creating separate tribes and cultures as they went. But here is the key - every aboriginal Australian is descended from that original migration. There were no other peoples introduced to the continent for over 49,000 years.

Unfortunately the very scope of our discussion makes today’s topic somewhat challenging. You see, similar to other ancient civilizations, aboriginal Australians - many tribes of which still exist today - have an oral tradition, but only an oral tradition. They do not write down any of their histories. In fact, they never developed a system of writing at all. They also do not speak of their dead, do not say their names, and do not tell their stories to outsiders, which complicates matters. 

Here is what we do know from post-European settlement interactions with the native populations as well as archaeological and anthropological studies. Much like the Salish peoples that we learned about in Year Six, there are a great many separate and distinct cultures and civilizations within Australia. Honestly, just looking at the sheer size of the area, it would be impossible not to have a myriad of different cultures, clans, languages, and beliefs across such a large expanse. That said, there are a number of common themes that flow throughout the continent.

One of the most prevalent commonalities is the totemic belief system that permeates these civilizations. To review, totemism is the belief that there is a relationship between yourself and the natural world around you. It may mean that a certain animal is revered and thought of as a brother, or that the spirits of your ancestors inhabit the area - whether in trees or other inanimate objects, or simply in the surrounding sky. Now this sky world is not equivalent to the Christian concept of heaven. It refers quite specifically to the air above certain areas of land. The aboriginal Australians believe that the spirits of the dead rest in this space, and that they should not be disturbed. 

To the aboriginal Australians, totemism is a bit of both of these ideas. Each tribe, depending on the area in which they live, have animals that are sacred to them in some way, whether a badger for an inland community or an aquatic animal for a tribe that lives by the ocean.  

Let’s try a quick quiz here. What is the absolute easiest way to get someone’s attention if you cannot touch them? That’s right, Mr. Flugerhoesten, by calling their name. If you are in a crowd of people and you hear your name, you turn toward the speaker - it is simply human nature to do so. 

Given our little quiz, it should come as no surprise to you that the aboriginal Australians, not wanting to disturb their ancestors who are literally in the air around them, will never, ever, speak the name of the deceased. It is absolutely and totally forbidden.

And now for a quick poll - how many of you have been woken from your beds in the dead of night by a loud noise - something falling off of a shelf, a loud clap of thunder, or even an earthquake? Yes, I see that most of you have.

Loud noises and movement do tend to disturb us. The aboriginal Australians also believe this to be true of their ancestors living in the sky world. The lands around where their souls drift are sacred for this specific reason - disturbing the land could disturb the ancestors, which I’m sure you’ve deduced by now is something to be avoided at all costs.

I know you are all wondering what has been passed down by oral tradition if stories of their ancestors are taboo. Certainly there are stories of great chiefs and hunters, but their names are not used. Also, like all other civilizations that I have encountered, the aboriginal Australians have a number of myths, legends, and creation stories - which, combined with the history of their people, they call Dreamtime -  that do not feature an ancestor, but a god or creature instead. Quite often, these stories include references to snakes. If you were not aware, there are a lot of snakes in Australia, many of which are poisonous. I actually think snakes are quite adorable, however I am not a fan of their venom. But I’ve digressed. If you are interested in learning more about aboriginal Australian mythology, I would suggest learning more about them in, well, Mythology!

Historically, the aboriginal Australians were a hunter gatherer society, and some of that tradition has survived to this day, however many tribes have adopted a more Western lifestyle. That said, there is one aspect of their culture that is still in practice today, especially amongst the wizarding population: the walkabout.

Perhaps some of you have heard of this rite of passage, although it is now often called “temporary mobility,” as non-aboriginal Muggles have been using the original term in a derogatory way. Regardless of the name, the practice involves a male youth between the ages of 10 and 16. This youth will leave his community and walk out in the wilderness to live for a period of up to six months. After the completion of this journey, the youth is considered a man. This practice is not to become a beggar or an aimless wanderer. It is a test of both physical and spiritual resiliency, traits that are highly valued by the culture. These youth return to their tribes stronger, wiser, and ready to contribute to the communal wealth of their society.

Male youth showing magical ability are certainly involved in this rite of passage as well. In fact, they are the ones often encouraged to begin their journey at the younger end of the spectrum for a number of reasons. Firstly, both male and female children showing magical abilities are provided specialized teaching from the moment those abilities manifest. This training involves beginning to learn some of the magical practices used within their tribe. These skills, especially in astronomy and herbology, give a certain advantage to these children given the dangers they could face in the outback. They are simply ready to enter the rite of passage earlier than other youth. Secondly, sending magical youth out into the outback to practice their magical skills makes it a bit safer for both the tribe and the youth; they can practice without the fear of accidentally injuring another person if they make a mistake.

Now what of the female population, you ask? While female youth do not participate in this particular rite of passage - for they are becoming women, not men - they are considered adults as soon as their menstrual cycle begins. That is symbol enough for them to be considered an adult. The magically adept of these youth continue their studies in magic, especially in the practices of healing and divination, to which we will now turn our attention.

Magic Use in Ancient Australia

It should come as no surprise to you that learning about the magical practices of the aboriginal Australians is a bit tricky, given their restrictions on using the names of historical figures. Of course, this population still exists today, and many of the witches and wizards from these communities attend official wizarding schools. With a bit of guidance from these students, we do know a bit about what magic was used historically by these peoples, as it is still in practice today.

The most extensive use of magic that we can ascertain is astronomy. The aboriginal Australians are experts on tracking the sky, and much of their mythology is tied to celestial objects and astronomical phenomena. For example, the great black streak that can be seen in the southern sky is referred to as an evil snake that appears in several traditional stories.

Aboriginal knowledge of astronomy also helps guide other fields of magic in which they excel, namely divination and healing. Celestial objects, their placement, and brightness, all factor into the aboriginal divinatory practices, and of course the phases of the moon have an effect on the potency of certain healing remedies, which the aboriginal peoples learned eons ago.

Gambu Ganuurru

I have spent much of today’s class discussing why there are no records of historical aboriginal Australians and why. However, now I am going to tell you about one single exception: the story of Gambu Ganuurru, also called the Red Chief or Red Kangaroo. He was one of the greatest chiefs of the Gunn-e-darr tribe of the Gamilaraay people of New South Wales, north of Sydney.

How we know about this person is actually quite tragic. You see, the Gunn-e-darr tribe no longer exists. The last full blooded member of the tribe, called Old Bungaree, passed away in the late 1880s. Before he died, he told the story of the greatest Chief, breaking the biggest taboo of his culture. As to why, well, I will leave you to ponder that very question for today’s essay.

While Old Bungaree was not a wizard, his telling of the life of Gambu Ganuuru clearly demonstrates that Gambu was a very powerful one. For example, the story begins when Gambu was performing the rights to become a man and join the hunters and warriors of his tribe. Part of this initiation was to allow a seasoned warrior to throw three spears and a boomerang at him and to defend himself. Young men were often maimed or killed during this initiation, however Gambu was quite confident in his abilities. So confident, in fact, that he did not challenge simply one warrior to perform this task, but opened the challenge to any and all warriors who wished to test him.

The test was an astonishing feat of skill. Gambu was never so much as scratched by the numerous weapons aimed at him. Even the greatest of the warriors was unable to hit their mark. The old chief - a man of great temper and little wisdom - grew furious that his warriors were unable to best the boy and took up his own weapons to try to kill him. The chief thought the boy was making him look weak. Gambu deflected these attacks as well, seeming to know exactly where the spears and boomerangs would go.

The truth is, of course, that he did know exactly where those spears were headed; he had an innate, raw divinatory ability that is impressive even against other historical accounts. This ability also gave him knowledge of where enemies were hiding (saving his tribe a few times), as well as where the game could be found. Lesser men would have used this ability to better themselves, but Gambu was focussed solely on the betterment of his tribe.

It is no wonder, then, that after a number of years Gambu became chief of his tribe and ruled with wisdom and kindness that even the youngest members of his tribe - including Old Bungaree - would never forget.

Conclusion

And with that, our brief discussion on Australia comes to an end. Our next class will take us a quick hop over the Tasman sea to New Zealand where we will be discussing the Maori people. Until then, you will have a quiz on today’s materials as well as an opinion piece to write, as I alluded to earlier. Good luck!

Image credits here, here, here, and here
Original lesson written by Professor Liria Morgan.