Australijskie ceremonie ognia – Gadjari i Buluwandi u Warlpiri

This article examines the symbolism of fire in the Gadjari higher initiation ceremonies and Jardiwanpa ceremonies among the Warlpiri. Fire is used in these ceremonies in three forms: high flame torches called witi/wanbanbirri, wandabi projectiles made out of bark, and djindjimirimba sticks. The analysis of the myths connected to fire reveals that the Warlpiri associate it with the motif of cosmic catastrophe in which their ancestors, manipulating high, sacred paraphernalia, cut through the Milky Way. The result of the separation of the stars is a huge bush fire. According to the myth, the sight of a flame falling from the sky forced the ancestors to conduct initiation ceremonies. The patron of these ceremonies is associated with the Coalsack Dark Nebula in the Milky Way, and the wanigi paraphernalia used with the Southern Cross. Fire is of ambivalent significance for the Warlpiri – on the one hand it brings death and destruction, and on the other it provides cleansing and brings to life that which is dead.