Answer to Question #249829 in English for Thandi

Question

Describe these sustainable indigenous knowledge practices below:

a. Sacred sites

b. Taboos

c. Indigenous agricultural practices

Answer 1

a.      Sacred sites-are places within the landscapes that have a special meaning or significance under Indigenous tradition. Hills, rocks, waterholes, trees, plains, lakes, billabongs and other natural features can be sacred sites. In coastal and sea areas, sacred sites may include features which lie both above and below the water. Sacred sites develop their status from their association with particular aspects of Indigenous social and cultural tradition. This body of tradition is mainly concerned with the activities of ancestral beings, collectively known as ‘Dreamings’ whose travels across the land and sea created the physical and social world that people now inhabit.

b.     Taboos -Taboo can be said to be anything that is forbidden by a particular religion or the customs and traditions of a particular geographical area. Any activity that is considered offensive by a custom or religion and which is not allowed is a taboo. Taboos are very common in various traditional communities around the world.

c.      Indigenous agricultural practices –is agriculture which is mainly practiced in the under developed and developing countries where people have traditional environment friendly agricultural practices from generations. For instance, the indigenous Americans practiced agroforestry, or the administration of trees, crops, and animals together in a way that benefits all three. In addition, Silviculture, the management of tree growth and forest composition, was practiced in the prehistoric Eastern Woodlands and to foster wildlife populations and improve hunting.