Confessions of a libra

Communion with Country | Credit: Here

16.06.25

Take a walk with me into a future Australia, the ancestors and I are dreaming up. Allow us to paint a picture for all the naysayers who think that reimagining Australia is impossible at this stage in our evolution. In typical fashion I will be combining information divined through spirit, facts from counties with more progressive relationships with their First Nations people, and any assertions based on my lived experience.

Ask not what you want for Country (land), ask what does Country need and deserve. The First Nations people believe that every policy, and every law needs to be approached from that lens. The Indigenous ancestors say that every environmental impact statement must include a spiritual impact statement from Indigenous wisdom-keepers. Australia is a deeply spiritual land, no matter how much you pretend otherwise. Your faith in it has no bearings. For some of us who feel kinship, we feel the energy of the land often, as a living breathing entity. Instead of conquering the land or working to wield it to our liking – we must instead commune with it. Where we cannot, we must engage those that can.

Indigenous Futurism is the one strong path that Australia could take to stabilise the spiritual debt incurred since colonialism. Envision with me, a future wherein we centre the knowledge systems, traditions and cosmologies of the First Nations people along with the Western knowledge that we have already. Instead of Australia asking its Indigenous people to get over their genocide and join us in the present, we begin to honour the past that we are running from. Kevin Rudd did something incredibly brave in a socioeconomic climate that thrived for centuries on distorting the facts and being elusive to the actual harm perpetuated. What he did was a small step towards a future in which Indigenous people are recognised, for their brilliance and their pain. Let’s acknowledge some of the brilliance and the ways it can be integrated.

We have already discovered that Indigenous people were ahead of their time in how they interacted with this environment in ways that White Australia had no will to acknowledge, except very slowly and painfully. Indigenous people didn’t struggle to feed themselves from the land because they learnt it. Their seasons were simply observed instead of rigidly outlined as we do now in the modern world. Indigenous people have the largest documented fishing traps called The Brewarrina Fish Traps. These traps are some of the earliest structures ever built by humans on this planet. As stated in another blog posts, First Nations people knew what controlled burning was (as did we in Africa) and regularly used it to maintain the land. As responsible custodians, however this act wasn’t understood by White Australia until more recently.

While it is trendy now in the West for people to teach and take-up Alternative Medicine, Indigenous people’s whole approach to medicine falls under this umbrella. The same plants that are now being ‘researched’ as to their efficacy, were already understood for their impact – even if the wording didn’t suit the European ‘sophisticates’. In the timeline where Australia stands with its Native people, we introduce more holistic therapies that have a spiritual component. This would be part of the primary therapeutic approach and not secondary. Something I feel desperately lacking right now, as a Spiritualist with depression and anxiety. We remove barries of entry that are specific to Western understanding of acquisition of knowledge. Not everything that is worth knowing is taught in a classroom. Can you sense my missing Undergraduate degree as you read this post?

Imagine a country wherein we re-introduce native food into daily life and even restaurant cuisine. We have in our local supermarkets, even at our school canteens native ingredients (like finger lime or yam daisy) and cultural recipes. We teach our children more about native fruits, vegetables and how to harvest with reverence. We utilise Indigenous seasonal hunting and fishing traditions, which likely will help preserve fauna and flora populations. I believe that incorporating these elements of Indigenous culture can enrich our lives. We can eat in a way that honours nature instead of mass consumption. We don’t need to eat like Americans or the Brits just because of proximity to whiteness.

We have people studying Indigenous Political Philosophy, to learn about the governance of the Indigenous peoples from pre-colonisation.  This style of governance has many parallels to African traditional ways, which is no surprise. Traditionally Aboriginal people had no punitive justice (police or jail) and instead crimes were addressed through; community mediation, shaming rituals followed by healing and restorative acts. Likely a cleanse as well to close the rite. It’s amazing to me that we have this field of study at all considering the level of education the regular Australian has on Indigenous culture. It’s almost a sort of archive that that examines and demystifies Indigenous brilliance, without the information being made readily available and even mandatory in the education system.

In Zimbabwe we have a similar system called Dare (traditional court). People bring their grievances to Elders, or the Chief and either of these would oversee disputes and restitution. This oversight can include questioning, storytelling and spiritual consultation. You have heard me speak on The Ledger. Imagine that I kill someone (extreme example), Dare can be held with the family of the affected and they have a say as to what actions I can take physically and spiritually to rectify the balance of that ledger. The Māori have the Whānau Conference model in which they sit in a circle, address harm of offenders, hear from the victims and agree on healing actions. Colonialists travelled the world and where so many traditional cultures had overlap in their approach and thinking – they decided they knew better and it was “superstitious tribal nonsense”.

Many First Nations communities had matrilineal succession and fluid gender roles pre-colonisation. This is the same for other Black and Indigenous populations globally, especially for the spiritual healers of each culture. These cultural aspects were intentionally disrupted to assert new patriarchal ideals, that change the Indigenous way of life. This is what missionaries were there to do. To enforce their rigid understanding of everything from morality, to gender norms to inheritance. You would think Australia would be more religious in modern times based on its violent enforcement of Christianity – but I digress. It makes sense for the community to be led, by the women who bear and raise it. Womb wisdom is a thing that modern society has conveniently forgotten because it doesn’t align with patriarchy.

It should not be strange to have a society that prioritises women, children and the elderly. The future I see, can be one where we actively facilitate restoration of Indigenous cultural standards. Just like any other immigrant, White Australians can continue to conduct their own familial homes in the way that suits them, with neither policing the other. Spiritual education through the lens of Indigenous culture, needs to be made mandatory in schools. We must introduce Dreaming and Ancestral teaching, as taught by the Elders of Indigenous communities across the country. We can then facilitate spiritual work, that helps shape the integrity and morality that can lead to a healthier society.

This could look like replacing detention with something much more therapeutic. Education needs to be more flexible to teach in ways outside of the Western school of thought. And no, this isn’t to say we are ditching everything that Western education has provided thus far. We can introduce other forms of learning, such as learning through storytelling or through dance and song. Western education focuses so much on the left brain that we miss the beauty of learning through the right hemisphere which is much more creative and abstract.

Time is often contentious between the West and Traditional cultures of Black, Brown and Indigenous people globally. The First Nations people believe in time as a spiral, as do Africans and Brown people around the world. Instead of linear time; past, present and future. As such, this is why it is natural for Blak people to live according to nature’s rhythms. This is the reason behind seasonal ceremonies, seasonal hunting and progress isn’t viewed through using time as a metric. In the future I am dreaming up, we might have a future that honours some 9-5 work schedules, while others operate in community based rhythms and responsibilities. This would mean recognising having less timed restrictions on Indigenous peoples’ ability to attend Sorry Business.

Based on countries who have gotten further with their own Indigenous populations, here are some considerations we can have for the future. A formal reconciliation process nationally, as they have in Canada, the “Truth and Reconciliation Commission”. In New Zealand Māori or Te reo is now an officially recognised language. In Australia we had so many Indigenous tribes that it may be difficult to have a singular language as a part of the National curriculum. However, we can do more to teach on the languages of the Country in which the schools stand. This is still a valuable way to connect to the culture. In Norway the Indigenous Sámi peoples have had their traditional practices legally recognised e.g. reindeer herding. We need dedicated seats in Parliament for First Nations people, and those seats need to be respected not performative.

In a world where we try and bridge the gap between First Nations people and White Australians, the Indigenous people have a better chance of thriving. As it stands Indigenous populations have 10 years less of life expectancy, despite us all living on Aboriginal land. This gap needs to be addressed quick-smart. We need to engage First Nations people, their Elders with genuine reverence and open hearts. With the similarities of Indigenous cultures to many people of colour, I believe the biggest obstacle to this future comes from the White Australians themselves.

There must be a willingness to see the world differently. A willingness to acknowledge the harm done, appropriately by using the correct language i.e. genocide, instead of actively softening the blow to ease the egos of people who claim to not be their ancestors. Then finally, changes must be made. I believe Indigenous Australians would have been easy to work with, had they been approached with the respect that their culture deserves. Let’s continue engaging in useful discussions on how we can improve the future of Australia, without posturing. May my words soothe your justice fatigue even momentarily or your nihilism. May Australia progress for the betterment of all.