Indigenous smoking ceremonies on the rise as more businesses want to connect with Aboriginal heritage

Wilson Storage opened a new facility in Sydney’s Forestville in December, and arranged a smoking ceremony and Welcome to Country speech as part of the opening celebrations. These Aboriginal rituals can be done only by a recognised traditional owner of the local area (or authorised representative).

Marrawarra and Barkindji man Brendan Kerin carried out the service, attended by the Wilson Storage staff.

John Mastroianni, manager of the Forestville facility, said Mr Kerin’s visit was arranged by contacting the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council.

Mr Mastroianni said the ceremony allowed staff to “pay our respects to the past, current and future elders of the land” and also learn about the Dharug people’s strong connection to the Country on which the storage site sits.

Within a Welcome to Country ceremony – which can include speeches, smokings, and ceremonial dances – Aboriginal people convey their intention to protect visitors on their land, something also performed at the Wilson Storage site.

“The ceremony also provided a blessing that will keep our staff and customers safe when visiting the facility,” Mr Mastroianni said.

Lionel Lauch is a Gunditjmara Kirrae Wurrung and Bundjalung man who performs traditional Aboriginal cultural activities for businesses, schools and the public on Bunurong and Boonwurrung Country on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula.

“A smoking ceremony protects both physically and spiritually, covering many things including shifting bad energy [and] spirits, marking births and deaths, Welcome to a clan’s country, acknowledgement, celebration, healing,” Mr Lauch said.

Carefully selected native plants are smouldered to produce the smoke, often done in a portable vessel when the ceremony is held in an urban area.

Mr Lauch has noticed an increase in the number of businesses contacting his non-profit organisation Living Culture to book traditional ceremonies.

He sees this as a sign of relationship-building between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.

“Over recent years our wider community is wanting to be more culturally literate and engage with us in meaningful ways,” Mr Lauch told Commercial Real Estate. “This appears to be a step towards walking together for reconciliation.”

Those attending a smoking ceremony are usually invited to walk through the smoke, or wave it over themselves, and receive a cleansing.

Mr Lauch says it provides the opportunity to listen and learn about the world’s oldest living culture and be welcomed into it.

“The smell of Country will be on you so the land, people, spirits, plants and animals know you,” he said.

‘A much larger story’

When Ryman Healthcare opened a retirement village on Wadawurrung land in Ocean Grove, on Victoria’s Bellarine Peninsula, in December, Wadawurrung woman Melinda Kennedy represented the area’s traditional owners.

Ryman communication manager Michael Cummings said inviting Ms Kennedy to carry out a smoking ceremony before the centre opened its doors was about treating people the right way.

“For us, the traditional owners of the land are the foundation of the Ocean Grove community, so publicly acknowledging their connection to the place where we’re building the village was just the right thing to do,” he said.

“Melinda invited attendees to put ochre on their hands and place eucalyptus leaves, generating a white ‘welcome’ smoke, in a fire. She also explained what the Welcome to Country and smoking ceremony is all about, so people had a good understanding of why we were doing it.”

Six residents who were due to move into the village attended, as did Ryman staff from construction, development, operational and sales teams.

Mr Cummings said he felt a rapport was built between Ms Kennedy and the participants.

“Melinda was absolutely brilliant,” he said. “She was really engaging and funny and, just as we did, she saw it as an educational opportunity. So, while it felt like a serious and sacred occasion, there were a lot of laughs as well.”

Ms Kennedy’s attendance was booked by contacting the Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation.

Mr Cummings noted the “overwhelmingly positive” response of attendees to the ceremony, many of whom “came away with a real spring in their step, like they’d been part of something special”.