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Uluru is located close to the centre of Australia in the Kata Tjuta National Park which is the traditional lands of Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara Aboriginal people (locally known as Anangu).
Uluru is a huge, rounded, red sandstone monolith 9.4 kilometres in circumference rising to a height of over 340 metres above the plain. Rock art in the caves around its base are evidence of the long lasting cultural traditions of Anangu.
The huge rock formation of Uluru has special significance to the Anangu. They believe that there it is hollow below the ground, which holds a lot of energy and this is where their 'Dreamtime'. began.
The Anangu believe that the area around Uluru is the home of their ancestors. There are lots of important sites to be found around Uluru. Each site is a record of a special ancestral event and is still recognised today.
Aboriginals believe that: 'In the beginning the world was unformed and featureless. Ancestral beings emerged and journeyed widely, creating all the living things and the features of the landscape you see today. The travels of these ancestral heroes are celebrated in Anangu religion and culture today.
Non Aboriginal people may find it hard to understand these sites as they can appear maybe as a rock, a sandhill, a grove of trees or even a cave. To Aboriginal people, however each one of these landforms has a special Dreamtime story attached to it.
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