Bora (Australian)
Encyclopedia
A Bora is the name given both to an initiation
ceremony of Indigenous Australians
, and to the site on which the initiation is performed. At such a site, young boys are transformed into men. The initiation ceremony differs from culture to culture, but often involves circumcision
and scarification
, and may also involve the removal of a tooth or part of a finger. The ceremony, and the process leading up to it, involves the learning of sacred songs, stories, dances, and traditional lore. Many different clans will assemble to participate in an initiation ceremony.
The word Bora was originally from South-East Australia, but is now often used throughout Australia to describe an initiation site or ceremony. It is called a Burbung in the language of the Darkinjung, to the North of Sydney
. The name is said to come from that of the belt worn by initiated men. The appearance of the site varies from one culture to another, but it is often associated with stone arrangements, rock engravings
, or other art works. Women are generally prohibited from entering a bora.
In South East Australia, the Bora is often associated with the creator-spirit Baiame
. In the Sydney
region, large Earth mounds were made, shaped as long bands or simple circles. Sometimes the boys would have to pass along a path marked on the ground representing the transition from childhood to manhood, and this path might be marked by a stone arrangement or by footsteps, or mundoes, cut into the rock. In other areas of South-East Australia, a Bora site might consist of two circles of stones, and the boys would start the ceremony in the larger, public, one, and end it in the other, smaller, one, to which only initiated men are admitted. Bora rings in the form of circles of individually placed stones are evident in Werrikimbe National Park
.
Bora rings, found in South-East Australia
, are circles of foot-hardened earth surrounded by raised embankments. They were generally constructed in pairs (although some sites have three), with a bigger circle about 22 metres in diameter and a smaller one of about 14 metres. The rings are joined by a sacred walkway. While most are confined to south east Queensland and eastern New South Wales, five earth rings have been recorded near the Victorian town of Sunbury
, although Aboriginal use has not been documented.
Matthews (1897) gives an excellent eye-witness account of a Bora ceremony, and explains the use of the two circles.
Initiation
Initiation is a rite of passage ceremony marking entrance or acceptance into a group or society. It could also be a formal admission to adulthood in a community or one of its formal components...
ceremony of Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
, and to the site on which the initiation is performed. At such a site, young boys are transformed into men. The initiation ceremony differs from culture to culture, but often involves circumcision
Circumcision
Male circumcision is the surgical removal of some or all of the foreskin from the penis. The word "circumcision" comes from Latin and ....
and scarification
Scarification
Scarifying involves scratching, etching, burning, or superficially cutting designs, pictures, or words into the skin as a permanent body modification.In the process of body scarification, scars are formed by cutting or branding the skin...
, and may also involve the removal of a tooth or part of a finger. The ceremony, and the process leading up to it, involves the learning of sacred songs, stories, dances, and traditional lore. Many different clans will assemble to participate in an initiation ceremony.
The word Bora was originally from South-East Australia, but is now often used throughout Australia to describe an initiation site or ceremony. It is called a Burbung in the language of the Darkinjung, to the North of Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
. The name is said to come from that of the belt worn by initiated men. The appearance of the site varies from one culture to another, but it is often associated with stone arrangements, rock engravings
Sydney rock engravings
Sydney rock engravings are a form of Australian Aboriginal Rock Art consisting of carefully drawn images of people, animals, or symbols, in the sandstone around Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
, or other art works. Women are generally prohibited from entering a bora.
In South East Australia, the Bora is often associated with the creator-spirit Baiame
Baiame
In Australian Aboriginal mythology Baiame was the Creator God and Sky Father in the dreaming of several language groups , of Indigenous Australians of South-East Australia....
. In the Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
region, large Earth mounds were made, shaped as long bands or simple circles. Sometimes the boys would have to pass along a path marked on the ground representing the transition from childhood to manhood, and this path might be marked by a stone arrangement or by footsteps, or mundoes, cut into the rock. In other areas of South-East Australia, a Bora site might consist of two circles of stones, and the boys would start the ceremony in the larger, public, one, and end it in the other, smaller, one, to which only initiated men are admitted. Bora rings in the form of circles of individually placed stones are evident in Werrikimbe National Park
Werrikimbe National Park
Werrikimbe National Park is in the catchment zone of the Upper Hastings River, New South Wales, Australia, about 486 km north of Sydney. This national park is about 80 km west of Wauchope and 90 km east of Walcha on the eastern escarpment of the Great Dividing Range...
.
Bora rings, found in South-East Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, are circles of foot-hardened earth surrounded by raised embankments. They were generally constructed in pairs (although some sites have three), with a bigger circle about 22 metres in diameter and a smaller one of about 14 metres. The rings are joined by a sacred walkway. While most are confined to south east Queensland and eastern New South Wales, five earth rings have been recorded near the Victorian town of Sunbury
Sunbury earth rings
The Sunbury earth rings are prehistoric aboriginal sites located on hills to the west of Jacksons Creek near Sunbury, Victoria.-Description and identification:...
, although Aboriginal use has not been documented.
Matthews (1897) gives an excellent eye-witness account of a Bora ceremony, and explains the use of the two circles.