A living tradition

Rock pictures are still very important to Aboriginal people, in many different ways. Originally each site belonged to a particular group which had the right of access and the responsibility for looking after the paintings or engravings and for any necessary ceremonies. Many religious images were more than mere pictures. They represented the actual spiritual energy of the creative ancestors and when repainted or retouched in a ritual context their sacred power was released, ensuring that the seasons came at their proper time, plants and animals were in plentiful supply, and children were born.

In some areas, such as Arnhem Land and Central Australia, rock painting retains its religious significance. The Warlpiri and Pitjantjatjara people of the deserts still retouch their sacred images for specific ritual purposes. Larry jakamarra Nelson, a Warlpiri man and teacher of the old traditions who lives at Yuendumu in the Northern Territory, says:

When I look at my tjukurpa [dreaming] paintings it makes me feel good - happy in kuturu [heart], spirit. Everything is there: all there in the caves, not lost. This is my secret side. This is my home: inside me ...

Our dreaming, secret side: we must hold on to this, like our fathers, looking after it ... We give to our sons when we die. The sons keep this from their fathers, grandfathers.

The sons will remember, they can carry on, not be lost. And it is still there: fathers' country with rockhole, painted cave...

(From the preface to Elaine Godden, Rock Paintings of Aboriginal Australia)

As Larry jakamarra Nelson indicates, the paintings demonstrate group ownership of sites and country, Aboriginal connections to their land. Even where images are no longer painted or repainted, they can still be very important to Aboriginal people who know the stories and meanings associated with them.

In many parts of Australia, however, the history of the last 200 years has meant the loss of land and of traditional religious beliefs and practices. Nevertheless, the rock paintings and engravings found in these areas still have great symbolic significance to Aboriginal communities. They are regarded as a major link with the past, a part of Aboriginal heritage, a record of Aboriginal history, and a source of identity to present generations of Aboriginal people.