Paul writes: “In this conversation I will share with you and introduce who we are as Melanesians and our spirituality, distinct from Polynesians and Micronesians. I will look mainly at the Melanesian spiritual experience in Papua New Guinea where I come from.
The core is that Melanesians have a spirituality that permeates the whole cycle of life with its web of relationships. What their ancestors experienced has been passed down orally from generation to generation.
Melanesians do not hold the secular belief that [the human person] exists of her/his own power and for her/his own ends. Thus, s/he is born into a spiritual and a religious order. The Melanesian is born with the knowledge that s/he lives and works within a spirit world.
I hope that my presentation demonstrates the link between the Melanesian indigenous knowledge and their spirituality. The link is that the living is aware of their relationship to the spirit world. For Melanesians, life is one and the knowledge of it is an intimate part of it. Essentially, one emphasises the oneness with both the living and dead. Most of the traditional Melanesian societies try to maintain a harmonious relationship with the cosmos, that is, they have to maintain a good relationship with the spirit world as well as the world of the living.
Paul’s presentation can be access here https://youtu.be/GnvdrnNwAb8
Paul’s presentation notes from the session can be accessed here Melanesian Indigenous Spirituality