the kelp gatherers; ritual sex.

the kelp gatherers of Tasmania's offshore islands have sex on stones at the sea edge during the time of the kelp harvest. interviewed on ABC radio Australia, a kelp farming couple disclosed this intimate fact, enlightening the public and sex researchers to the continued existence and practise of pre-christian european fertility ritual in 21st century Tasmania. Pantheism- nature worship; is intimated by this seasonal activity, which can be seen as a conscious or subconscious rite to ensure continuation of the bounty of nature. as, if kelp stocks depleted the harvest yield would diminish and the prosperity of the kelp gatherers would be threatened. the male, in offering his seed to the ocean deity and the female her supplicant and willing body to the fertility deity and the couple their combined ritualistic sex to the harvest deity; call to the 'forces of nature'; a pantheistic gesture, to continue the abundence of kelp. a stone slab surface has been chosen for this seasonal fertility rite, intimating a link to ancient pre-historic sacrificial ritual ceremony in which a stone slab was often employed as a place of religious significance to conduct ceremonial sacrifice of an animal or human. such as in the ancient druidic tradition and in the watering down of this in medieval era to the use of stone baptismal font into which the infant was partially immersed briefly in 'holy water'. on tasmania's King Island this type of sex is probable fertility ritual to ensure continued good kelp harvest and also an expresion of ' joy of life' and pleasure inspired by the beauty of nature. veiw images of kelp at: http://flickr.com/photos/aquamarinedream http://gothicbeach.blogspot.com http://gothicbeach.blogspot.com http://gothicbeach.blogspot.com