Rantepao
Trip Start
Jul 08, 2011
1
10
11
Trip End
Aug 24, 2011
Rantepao, Sulawesi, Indonesia
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
I have just spent 4 days in Tana Toraja, a region in central Sulawesi known for their traditional ways of life, most shocking of which are their funeral ceremonies. The Torajans live in the highlands (the cool evenings have been a much welcome break from the heat) and live in intricately carved tongkonan (traditional houses) with roofs shaped like a buffalo's horns. The buffalo is a status symbol for the Toraja, being a symbol of wealth and power. Buffalo can be bought in the weekly market for around $10,000 each, and they are a necessary component in their funerals.
They have 2 funeral ceremonies, one immediately following death and the second is an elaborate ceremony held only after the money has been raised, which can take years. The biggest funerals are held in July and August and can last 4-7 days in length, depending on the wealth of the family. The body remains in the family home until the 2nd ceremony (yikes!) The Toraja believe that the souls of animals should follow their masters to the next life, hence the importance of animal sacrifice. Without a proper funeral the soul of the deceased will cause misfortune to its family.
I attended 2 separate funeral ceremonies. One was the 2nd day of this person's funeral and the other was the the 3rd day of that person's funeral. The 2nd day is the receiving of guests. Temporary bamboo structures are built around the home for the family and friends to sit, eat, and socialize. Throughout the day hundreds of guests visit to pay their resepcts to the deceased. It is customary to bring a gist for the family...sugar, cigarettes, or even a pig. We chose to bring cigarettes. I had met an Austrian girl at the hostel and we split the cost of the guide to take us to these ceremonies. We were the only foreigners at this particular ceremony and the family gave us front row seats for the experience.
*Most of the day family and friends were just sitting around, chatting, smoking, eating, and drinking balok (palm wine) while processions of guests were escorted to a special sitting area for a meal. Then it was time to slaughter the buffalo and pig. They slice the buffalo with a machete under its neck and buckets of blood squirt out. If it was a good slice the buffalo will fall down and die within minutes. If it wasn't a decent slice it could take 10-15 minutes for it to bleed to death. The pig is simply stabbed in the neck and left squealing for what seemed like hours until it died. The animals are then skinned, gutted, cooked for the guests, and served inside pieces of bamboo.
*The other ceremony we went to was even worse. This was the 3rd day of this person's funeral. In all of the family's preparations, the most expensive is purchasing enough buffalo to slaughter in order for the soul of the deceased to live a long and prosperous afterlife. At this ceremony about 15 buffalo were sacrificed. One by one the buffalo are brought out to an open area for family, friends, and tons of tourists to see. The neck is sliced open just as I described before and they are all left on the ground, surrounded by pools of blood, until all have been sacrificed. Once again, they are skinned, gutted, and served in the next few days.
This was by far the most revolting thing I have ever seen. So much worse than the bullfight I attended in Mexico. I'm still struggling with my desire to be open to other people's beliefs and traditions and my own beliefs about how animals should be treated.
In the next few days, the deceased is buried either deep inside a cave or even in a carved out section of a cave wall. Sitting on a specially cut out balcony of the cave lie the tau tau, life-sized wooden replicas of the deceased. Babies that have died have special grave sites inside the bark of a specific tree.
The next day Maria, the Austrian, and I rented a motorbike (she drove) and we explored the surrounding villages, cave graves, and baby graves. The following day we went to the weekly market where the buffalo and pigs are sold and then took a bus to a village up in the mountains and hiked down a different route passing traditional villages along the way.
The following day was going to be a lazy day for us since we were both taking the night bus to Makassar. It just so happened to be the day for the parade rehearsal for Independence Day which is August 17th. Every school in Tana Toraja marched in the parade. It started at 9 AM and was over at 6 PM!!!! It seemed like everyone in town watched and I'm sure they will watch a second time for the real performance. It really wasn't all that exciting. They all marched alike and there were only a few schools that had a small drumline or girls with pom-poms. The highlight was the final group, the only non-school group to march in the parade. They were gay men some of which were dressed in drag. They were definitely the hit of the parade getting whistled at and having crowds follow them down the streets.
Because time is running out on my trip, I decided to take the night bus back to Makassar and fly to Manado saving myself 3 days on buses. The flight only cost $50, so I think I made a wise decision. I just spent the night in Manado and this afternoon I'm taking the public ferry to Pulau Bunaken for the final leg of my trip for more diving.
I hope I didn't go into too much detail in this entry and I'm sorry if I shared too many pictures of the buffalo. I tried to keep the explanation simple, but descriptive enough for you to understand the experience. I apologize if it was too much for you.
Happy Birthday Brian and Nisha!! Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!!!
peace,
Jen
Comments
Wow! Such interesting reading! I was sharing the details with Jeff and he wondered what people must think of some of our fineral customs! Good point, but that was unbelievable!
Wow Jen, I don't know how you made it through those ceremonies. You are a stronger woman than I! I enjoyed reading about your diving experience. I'm glad you got to see so much. Those pictures are amazing! Boy am I glad that your dive guide caught you - how frightening. Have fun!
Very interesting....