The Mystery of Tana Toraja

Once upon a time I was stranded in mysterious highland somewhere in South Sulawesi where is The Torajans live after 8 hours driving from Makassar. This ethnic is known for their special death ritual that different from any other ethnic in the world. Toraja people who have died are rarely buried in the ground. The corpses were buried in family graves or placed in or outside caves. These caves are belief to be a places that bring the afterlife closer to the world of the living. When I arrived in Londa, I didn’t feel scare at all even I saw many skull everywhere and dead body hanging in the cave. I found very peaceful atmosphere that I never felt before. Amazing!

The Torajan has a ritual known as Ma’nene that takes place each year in August. The bodies of the deceased (dead people) are re-exhume to be washed, groomed and dressed in new clothes. The mummies then being carried around the village. By doing this, the Torajan will be blessed with good luck and a long life. Another ritual is Rambu Solo which is a traditional ceremony for the death of Tana Toraja community aimed to honor and deliver the spirits of the people who have died to the spirit realm, to return them to eternity with their ancestors in a resting place. The ceremony is also called a death enhancement ceremony because the person who has died is deemed to actually died if the entire procession of the ceremony is fulfilled. If not, then the deceased person is only considered a “sick” or “weak” person, so he is still treated like a living person, laid them on a bed and given food and drinks and even invited to talk.

In Toraja community, funeral ceremonies are the most important and expensive one. The richer and more powerful a person is, the more expensive the funeral service will be. This tradition can last for several days according to the social status of the families of the Rambu Solo organizers. When I was in Tana Toraja, I came to Kete Kesu, a beautiful village in the North Toraja and visiting a huge and beautiful house. Knock..knock… anybody’s home….. Then when I opened the door, there was a skull hanging in the wall smiling at me and said please, come in….. I said nice to meet you… I admired this traditional house called Tongkonan. The word “Tongkonan” comes from the Torajan tongkon which means “to sit”. These ancestral houses stand high on piles of wood. On the top of it layered with shape of split-bamboo roof in a sweep of curving arc. While on the exterior walls, it is incised with red, black, and yellow detailed wood carvings. After visiting Toraja I found a good quote from Isaac Asimov….. “Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. It's the transition that's troublesome." Hmmmmmm.......