When the ancient wisdoms of the universe held by the oldest culture on earth meet modern astrophysics a new concept is born – cultural astronomy.
Increasingly Aboriginal people in Australia are being recognised as the first astronomers.
In the meeting of minds between Prof Ray Norris, CSIRO astrophysicist project leader of the Evolutionary Mapping of the Universe (EMU) and Ghillar extraordinary parallels emerge in the two cultures – such as ‘wormholes’ and the pathway to Bullima, the Euahlayi Sky Camp, via the hollow Coolabah tree.
In
Star Stories of The Dreaming Ghillar Michael Anderson shares publicly for the first time teachings passed to him as the knowledge holder for his People, the Euahlayi.
The Southern Cross is the most famous constellation in the southern hemisphere.
Ever since colonisation it’s been claimed, appropriated and hotly-contested for ownership by a radical range of Australian groups. But for Aboriginal people the meaning of this heavenly body is deeply spiritual. And just about completely unknown. For a start, the Southern Cross isn’t even a cross – it’s a totem that’s deeply woven into the spiritual and practical lives of Aboriginal people.
One of Australia’s leading film-makers, Warwick Thornton, tackles this fiery subject head-on in this bold, poetic essay-film.
We Don’t Need a Map asks questions about where the Southern Cross sits in the Australian psyche.
Imbued with Warwick’s cavalier spirit, this is a fun and thought-provoking ride through Australia’s cultural and political landscape.
