Ngurra Barayagai (Song Belonging to Country)

Abstract

Ngurra Barayagai (Song belonging to Country) takes the form of an insider researcher’s perspective and cultural lens of a Darug song woman’s point of view. This thesis is practice-based research and is documentation of my lived experience, while wogga (sewing) a virtual budbili (possum skin cloak/rug) creating an anchor for the reader to visualise the many different aspects of a Songline and how it can be repaired in a city like Greater Sydney. It has included field trips, yarning, ngara (imaginative knowing), oolnga (intuition and gut-knowings) and wingarra (deep thinking). This thesis is creating formal documentation of the language from Country, in all its different forms, which it communicates to its people. It is creating a record of the lived experiences of some of the Darug people communicating with their environment as a form of Country’s song. By gathering the many different aspects of Songline repair, I aim to create new discussions and insights, evoke deeper desire for greater connection into this ancient fields of knowledge and bring back true respect for our amazing past, present and future Australian culture. Through the methodology I will wogga the different cultural lenses together, creating a common ground, like a call and response to non-indigenous writings as a way of bringing balance to the wogga of knowledge shared in these academic systems. The thesis is filling the gaps in our current education systems, and providing alternative views to the colonized curriculum, which has presented a one-sided approach to Australia’s history, and in turn influenced our society today and how Australia promotes itself. The outcome of the PhD is shedding new light on Ngurra Barayagai (Song Belonging to Country) that is still present and ongoing for some Darug people who wish to create a better environment for all living life forms to come.