Hurray, today we will go to the most interesting area of \u200b\u200bthe Sulawesi island in Indonesia - a region called Tana Toraja with a unique architecture of houses, ancestor cult and famous funeral ceremonies. All this is still ahead of us.
How to get to Tana-Toraj.
By bus to Tana-Toraj.
There is no railway or airplanes to Tana-Toraj (at least regular ones). Only buses remain from public transport, but here, too, everything is not so simple. We sifted through a lot of information on this issue on the Internet in case we were unlucky again with hitchhiking in Sulawesi, and that's what we found out.
The fact is that there is no one bus station in Makassar, from where buses would go to Tana-Toraj. Each bus company has a separate station along Jl Street. Urip Sumoharjo, which is about 25 minutes from the city center towards the airport. However, the buses of all these companies pass by the Daya Bus Terminal, from where it is easy to leave in the direction we need, both in the morning around 9: 00-10: 00 and in the evening at 19: 00-21: 00.
- Travel time: 10 hours (2 hours to Paré Paré, 8 hours to Rantepao along a winding mountain road);
- Distance: 300 km;
- Ticket prices: from 100,000 to 170,000 rupees (depending on the class)
- Destination: Rantepao village.
Whichever bus company you choose, all buses are quite comfortable European type with air conditioning.
Hitchhiking to Tana-Toraj.
Since we travel around Indonesia by hitchhiking, we got to Tana-Toraja in this way.
As you remember, yesterday we stopped in the mountain town of Enerekang, where, by a “rainy” accident, we were lucky to visit one of the Indonesian families. Early in the morning, after drinking a cup of coffee and taking a couple of dozen more photos with the residents of the hospitable house, we went out onto the road towards Tana-Toraja. Only now, in daylight, stunning mountain landscapes appeared to our eyes.
The very first car with some kind of gasoline barrels picked us up on the highway, so that the next 30 km we managed to smell the oil product through and through.
We were dropped off in the village, where a snakefruit, already familiar to us, was found on passing trade counters.
Naturally, we could not easily pass by.
Here the traffic flow decreased significantly, so we stood on the road for a long time before a passenger car slowed down in front of us. The driver knew a couple of words in English, but in his eyes it was clearly read that he wanted to earn extra money on “lost souls”. We immediately made it clear to him that this would not work with us. Then the man said that he would be able to take us for free only to the entrance to the Tana-Toraja region, where he had to pick up his family. We agreed.
Tana Toraja (Toraja Country) is a mountain plateau behind the pass, located 800 m above sea level. This mountainous area is a system of valleys, which is locked by a pass. It is here that the Toraja people (inhabitants of the mountains) live.
So, the car stopped evenly at the entrance gate to the region inhabited by the mountaineers. Already the gates themselves are delightful, so we were rather impatient to get to the place.
Andrey took the opportunity and climbed onto the gate to examine the sculpture and the roof of the “boat” near it.
Map of attractions of Tana-Toraja.
Google has a hard time locating attractions in Tana Toraja. Therefore, I will just post here a photo of a paper guidebook (click to open large size), which we photographed from the Austrians. By the way, we used it ourselves. In fact, if you go along the main road Makale-Rantepao, then along the way there will be signs to this or that place. We examined some places like Syrup.
Sights of Tana-Toraj, which we saw.
Funeral ceremony.
People go to Tana-Toraja mainly to see the funeral ceremony, which is held in the summer. We traveled to Tana-Toraja in March, so we were not able to see the magnificent ceremony.
In short, for the Toraja, funerals are a very important ceremony, perhaps even too important. Because the family of the deceased (depending on the status) must accumulate an incredible amount of money in order to bury its relative with all the honors. For this reason, the body of the latter waits up to several years for burial. What does the “funeral” money go for, for which a family can work for half its life? At the feast, there are also several dozen bull's heads, which are cut in front of everyone at the ceremony. I don't even know if I would like to be present or not.
Yes, the traditions here are a little strange, despite the fact that formally Tarajis are considered Muslims and Christians.
We just went for a ride on the most interesting (for us) sights of the Tana-Toraja plateau. In fact, there are a lot of hiking trails and places here, many of them are quite similar, so it makes no sense to go around them all, especially if there is no time for this. We hitchhiked between the points in local transport. For local residents, it is a real joy to ride a white man in the cab or in the back of your truck, to make a detour to relatives and friends so that the whole village knows about it.
I understand that this method of transportation is not suitable for everyone, so it is easier to rent a bike, as did a couple of Europeans we met along the way. We learned from them that renting a bike for a day costs them 100,000 rupees.
Now, let's go through the list of those places that we managed to visit.
Stone graves of Lemo (Lemo).
Lemo stone graves are located 12 km south of Rantepao. The driver of the last car that gave us a lift to Tana-Toraja dropped us off there.
Lemo in translation means “orange”, as the stone hill, in the slopes of which the graves are carved, to the locals in its shape resembles this very fruit. May it be so!
To get closer to the aforementioned rock, you need to overcome the ticket office and rice fields.
Lemo Stone Caves Ticket Price: 20,000 rupees.
Since we have not yet got used to the new environment, we decided to buy a ticket for one for two. Namely, at first I went alone to get a ticket and walked along the narrow path of the Lemo rock cemetery, which brought me to a hut.
And then Andrei, bypassing the ticket office, did the same thing, taking my ticket just in case they suddenly asked. However, at the caves no one checks the ticket, and the cashier has disappeared altogether in an unknown direction.
There is nowhere to go there, despite the fact that there are about 80 burial caves in the rock. Most are carved at such a height that they cannot be reached without a ladder.
And the caves are guarded by such dolls of dead families. Looks a little creepy.
At the checkout at the exit there are souvenir shops where you can buy something similar in the form of a figurine.
Stone tombs are considered to be almost the oldest burial places in Sulawesi, so it is not surprising that the place is so popular among tourists.
Londa Caves
Another ancient cemetery, but already in the caves, is located 6 km closer to Rantepao than Lemo and is called Londa. In fact, these are all the same burials, only now inside the complex of caves. The name of the place came from the nearby village of the same name.
Before entering the cave, there are again rice fields, the place outside is quite picturesque.
And when approaching, we again see a balcony with wooden figures of the dead, called the local Tau-Tau.
This place already makes thousands of goosebumps run through the body, because the burials themselves are inside a dark cave, and inside there is nothing to do without a lantern.
Guides with kerosene lamps stand on a stone staircase at the entrance. The cost of the ticket (for a guide and a lantern) is 30,000 rupees. But we managed to get inside for free. How? They just asked the local guys to go with them.
Inside the cave, coffins, bones, skulls are just everywhere, the locals do not hesitate to take pictures with almost every deceased. So I imagined how we take pictures with grave monuments in our cemetery.
I was surprised that despite the appropriate atmosphere, the smell is not musty, and does not smell like anything like that. In general, for an amateur.
Rantepao. False listing.
After inspecting all the rock cemeteries, the day began to lean towards evening and since Rantepao is just a stone's throw from Londa, we went there in another truck with the wind in our hair.
In the city itself, there is nothing special to see, except for various souvenir shops and a mixture of the architecture of private houses.
We had dinner in a passing tavern cart - as a rule, a small wooden box with a couple of dishes to choose from (rice or noodles), but at a fairly low price. A couple of servings of fried rice at 6,000 rupees per serving was enough for us. Here, another miracle of culinary was discovered, which was not found on other islands - this is a sweet thick flatbread with various fillings. In local it sounds like "tranbulan" (round or full moon in translation). Very tasty! Andrey even tried to ask for a recipe, but at the local one it turned out incomprehensible. Just a flat cake costs 5,000 rupees, and then, depending on the filling, 8,000 - 20,000 rupees.
After dinner, walking along the road, we were already starting to think about an overnight stay, when suddenly a small bike with a girl slowed down beside us. She asked a couple of questions about who we were and where we came from and offered accommodation. We refused referring to the fact that we were traveling with a tent. To which the girl said that housing is free. Andrei looked at her incredulously and asked if she was lying. The girl assured that she lives with her family and invites us to visit. Having looked around her bike, we said that there were three of us, but we wouldn't fit with backpacks. Not bewildered, the little girl indicated where we need to go on foot, it was not far.
Once on the spot, we already sensed something was wrong, seeing too "combed" private house and some foreigner on the veranda. So it is, the girl was invited to the "home stey", now it is so called. That is, the family lives in a house where they rent out a room for visitors. We “politely” refused, and for a while we hung out in the yard of the house to figure out what to do next. There was a pomelo tree nearby, and while we were thinking, we chewed on the freshly plucked fruit.
As a result, they got to some kind of Catholic Church. And we decided to look for the owner in order to put up a tent near apparently unused premises. But it turned out that my father entered us into his house, settled us in the part where the renovation was going on, and also fed us dinner in the form of noodles.
In the morning we woke up from the noise, it was on the street that the teacher was building schoolchildren. Saying goodbye to the owner, we tried to quietly leave the house so as not to attract the attention of the children, otherwise we will not get rid of the “photo”.
Abandoned rock cemetery Sirope.
In the morning after the next day, having bought a pound of sweet and sticky longan (Indonesian fruit) at the market, we set off to explore the new places of Tana Toraj. You know how foreigners love to walk around with paper guides or maps. So, on one of them we found a very interesting place called Sirope, which is 6 km north of Makale and 1 km away from the main road.
The cemetery is interesting in that it has been abandoned for several years, it is difficult to meet a tourist there because of its not hyped and a little unkempt place. But this Syrup also attracts. Therefore, the entrance there is free, as you understand.
A taxi driver drove us to Syrup for free, because it was on the way. A narrow road from the track creeps slowly uphill past traditional roofs and houses, and we crawl along it. Believe it or not, we found money here again - 100,000 rupees. Indonesia is more generous to us than ever.
The cemetery is essentially not much different from what we saw in Lemo, for example.
Only in Syrup the situation is more forcing even in the daytime, some kind of “deathly” silence stands in these overgrown rocks with graves, and human bones mixed with garbage ...
Along the cliff, there are many ancient coffins made of wood with beautiful carvings (erongs), sometimes there are already familiar guardians of Tau-Tau.
If you go along the stairs covered with foliage, you can go to the platform with stone chairs around the perimeter.
We didn’t stay here for a long time, it’s somehow uncomfortable.
Lake Tilanga (Tilanga).
This picturesque place with clear blue waters is located very close to Lemo or 10 km north of Makale. We were not going there at all, having jumped into another truck to Makale, but on the way the man told about the lake, and we turned back.
From the main road to Tilanga to stomp about a couple of kilometers, but what kind of views on the sides.
Near the lake there is a small cash box, where it is written in black and white:
Entrance fee - 20,000 rupees.
Of course, we were not going to swim, and there is nowhere to change clothes, except perhaps to return to the toilets. But we admired the really blue water of Lake Tilanga.
And the local boys stared at us.
Apparently, one of them told the cashier about the tourists, because the latter, waving his arms in different directions, ran towards us in about 20 minutes and probably shouted something about paying for the passage in his Aboriginal language.
We have already looked, everything we wanted, so perhaps it's time to go back.
Kambira Baby Graves
This place is located quite away from the main road, so we got to it on purpose. A small village, in the midst of a bamboo grove and forest with a pretty landscape along the way.
And behind it is a children's cemetery - just one tree in a quiet ennobled territory.
You need to move from the sign on the road. We barely found the cemetery, walking along the narrow paths between the houses.
The uniqueness of the cemetery is that if a child died before his teeth erupted, then he is buried in trees that emit sap (called milk).
Feels like the atmosphere here is different from other cemeteries of Tana-Toraji. It seems like a simple place, but the frost runs through the skin worse than in the same caves of Londa.
The entrance is free, which is understandable, there are enough 10 minutes to look around.
Makale. Unsuccessful attempt to leave for the north of Sulawesi.
In Makala, the regional center of Tana-Toraji, we were already after lunch. We refueled ourselves with a new local dish called "bakso" - noodles with meat balls (something like dumplings without dough) at 10,000 rupees per serving. Then we walked around the center a little.
Again familiar buildings with a roof "ship" and monuments.
By the way, while driving along Tana-Toraja we saw Catholic churches, and they are all built in their own style.
Looks pretty interesting. In general, ordinary religion is somehow intertwined with traditions here.
Towards evening we decided to leave Makale in the opposite direction. Here I must say that we examined Tana-Toraja for only 2 days, since the third day was spent trying to get out to the north. The maximum we managed to get to was the town of Palopo, after which the hitchhiking simply stalled. We stood for several hours on the road, but no one just wanted to take us, although there was traffic. I don’t know what it was connected with, whether we were not lucky, or in that area they do not understand well what hitchhiking is. Bikers and taxi drivers stopped a couple of times, but this did not go further. Therefore, in order not to waste time, we decided to return to Rantepao, inspect some places, and then go back to Makassar.
We hoped to drive 10 kilometers from Makale in order to calmly put up a tent outside the city. However, we came across a truck with workers that flew all the way to Makassar. The same workers with whom we chatted along the mountain roads up to Enrekang were sleeping in the back. Andrey and I were not enough for more, we were very tired of the road and wanted to sleep.
So let's continue tomorrow.
Eerie rituals associated with death have survived to our time in different parts of our planet. Among the people of one of the tribes of Brazil, it is customary to burn the deceased, and his ashes, added to food, are eaten by the whole village. In Tibet, the dead are given up to be torn apart by birds of prey and animals, and in Greenland, feeble old people are simply left on an ice floe for certain death. And in the area of \u200b\u200bTana-Toraji on the most beloved and magnificent holiday - someone's funeral.
Funeral on the island of Sulawesi
Toraya, first of all, respects the dead more than the living. Secondly, they believe that the deceased needs help in the form of sacrifices by buffaloes and pigs in order to get to the afterlife. This event is quite expensive, so local residents save money for it for a long time - sometimes several months, or even years. The embalmed body of the deceased, until funds are found, lies in the house, and the rest of the family believe that he was simply ill or fell asleep.
As soon as the required amount is collected, the inhabitants gather for the procession. First, under a red cloth, there are dressed up lively women of the village. Then the men lead the doomed animals. Sacrificial buffaloes do not work in the fields, they have a different task. Then the deceased is solemnly carried in a special tomb that looks like a boat. Buffaloes are sacrificed, part of the meat is distributed, a treat is prepared from the rest, and the feast begins.
The richer the family of the deceased, the greater the number of sacrificial animals, sometimes it reaches a thousand. Their horns are then decorated with dwellings - tongkonans, the edges of the roofs of which are directed upwards like the horns of a buffalo.
According to another version, the roofs are created in the likeness of a boat in which a beautiful princess, the patroness of Toraja, sailed to the island. They say that in ancient times, in addition to animals, captive slaves were also killed to serve in the afterlife. However, here the Torajs are not original - this custom was widespread in many states.
For many poor people, funerals are the only way to get a hearty meal. Any person is allowed to the funeral feast; everyone tries to bring something as a gift to the family of the deceased.
The funeral lasts several days, after which the body is taken to the burial place. Wealthy torayas bury family members in the caves of Londa and Ketekesu, or carve niches in the rock. The poor hang the tombs nearby on the branches of trees, sometimes several corpses in one. There are frequent cases of destruction of tombs, so the land around is littered with human remains.
The Toraji believe in the connection of infants with the spirit world before their first tooth appears. If such a child dies, he is buried in a specially made hole in the tree trunk. The entrance is closed with a door. This is how parents pass the child into the bosom of mother nature. Such burials are called Sanggala.
Festival Manene
If you think that this is where the spooky ceremony ends, you are wrong. Once every three years, it is customary to remove the bodies of loved ones from the tombs, clean them, dress them up in new clothes and organize a holiday for the dead. Women get makeup and hair. At the same time, Torajs talk with the dead, even compliment them about their appearance. The mummies are taken out for a walk with the whole family.
According to rumors, earlier after the holiday, the deceased themselves returned to their burial sites. Now this can only be done with black magic.
Modern Torayas understand the shocking nature of funerals - but what to do, this is the custom. Moreover, it attracts many tourists who want to tickle their nerves. In addition, despite the abundance of Christian churches in Indonesia, every resident of Sulawesi continues to believe in spirits and the connection between the living and the dead.
In the picturesque mountainous region of South Sulawesi in Indonesia, there is an ethnic group called the Toraji. These simple people who practice animism (the belief that all creatures, including animals, plants, and even inanimate objects or phenomena, have a spiritual essence) practice some of the strangest funeral rituals in the world. This includes the ritual of burying babies in trees, as well as parading the mummies of people who died long ago. The funeral rituals of Toraja are an important social event that gathers numerous relatives. Such events last several days.
(12 photos total)
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Source: amusingplanet.com
1. When one of the Toraja dies, his relatives must perform a series of funeral ceremonies called Rambu Solok, which lasts several days. But the ceremonies do not take place immediately after death, because usually the Toraja family does not have enough funds to cover all the funeral expenses. As a result, they wait - weeks, months, and sometimes years, slowly collecting money. At this time, the deceased is not buried, but embalmed and kept in the house under the same roof with living relatives. Before the funeral, this person is not considered dead, everyone pretends that he is suffering from an illness.
2. When sufficient funds have been collected, ceremonies begin, during which buffaloes and pigs are slaughtered. The sacrifice is accompanied by dancing and music, and young guys must catch the streams of blood in long bamboo tubes. The more important the deceased, the more buffaloes are slaughtered. Often dozens of buffaloes and hundreds of pigs are sacrificed. After that, the meat is distributed to the guests attending the funeral.
3. Then comes the burial ceremony itself, but people from the Toraja tribe are rarely buried in the ground. The deceased are placed either in caves in a rocky mountain or in wooden coffins that hang from the cliffs. Conventional burial is too expensive, and it takes several months to prepare everything. A wooden figurine of Tau-tau is placed in a cave with a coffin, which represents the deceased. They put her face out of the cave. In the photo: tombs carved into a rocky mountain and decorated with wooden Tau-tau idols.
4. Coffins are very beautifully decorated, but over time the tree begins to rot, and white bones often fall on the piece of ground above which the coffin is suspended.
5. Children are not buried in caves, nor are they suspended from rocks. They are buried ... in the empty trunks of living trees. If the child dies before its teeth begin to erupt, it is wrapped in cloth and placed in an empty spot in the trunk of a growing tree, and then closed with a door made of palm fiber. The hole is then sealed. It is believed that when the tree begins to heal, it absorbs the child. There can be dozens of children in one tree. In the photo: a tree of children's graves in the village of Tana-Toraja.
6. The funeral is over, the guests are fed and are returning home, but the rituals are not over yet. Every few years, in August, the Ma'Nene ritual takes place, during which the deceased is exhumed, washed, combed and dressed in new clothes. These mummies are then led around the village like zombies.
7. Tana Toraja's unusual funeral rituals attract thousands of tourists and anthropologists every year.
8. Indeed, since 1984, Tana Toraju has been named the second most important tourist destination in Indonesia after Bali.
On the territory of the island of Sulawesi (Indonesia) for many years there have been "Torajis" practicing an eerie religious trend - animism. On the one hand, animism is a “correct” religion, since the “Toraj” believe that everything around them has a soul (not only people, birds, insects and animals, but also inanimate objects). On the other hand, animism regulates the most terrible funeral rites.
For example, if a baby dies on the island of Sulawesi, whose first teeth have not yet grown, then he is buried in the trunk of a real tree. The corpses of adults are periodically exhumed and displayed for all to see.
The funeral for this ancient people is a very important religious ritual.
When a representative of the above-described people dies, the whole village gathers for his funeral. This serves as an excellent reason for his family to get together and make peace if there were previously quarrels between them. The funeral process itself is carried out strictly according to certain rules established by the ancestors of the "Toraja" many centuries ago. A funeral in Sulawesi can last for several days.
After the death of a representative of the "Toraja" people, his relatives perform several special rituals, but they do not start them right away. The reason for this is the poverty of the "Toraja", to which they have long been accustomed, so they do not try to improve their financial situation. Until the family of the deceased has collected the amount necessary for the funeral (a very considerable one), the funeral will not take place.
Sometimes a funeral can be delayed for weeks, months, or even years. Throughout this time, the deceased is in the house where he lived before his death. He is embalmed immediately after death, which prevents decomposition of the body. "Toraji" believe that while their loved one is in the same room with them, he is not dead. He is considered simply "sick."
How does the funeral of representatives of Toraja begin?
Initially, when the required amount has already been collected, the relatives of the deceased must make a certain sacrifice: slaughter cattle for ritual dances. The number of sacrificial animals may vary. The stronger and more famous the deceased was during his lifetime, the more animals will be slaughtered in his honor at the funeral. Sometimes the number of animals reaches hundreds, or even thousands.
Also, a place for burial is prepared in advance. The graves near the "Toraja" are non-standard - carved into high rocks. Passing such a rock, any tourist can faint. The fact is that not every family of "Toraja" has the necessary amount to create such a grave. If the family is very poor, then the deceased will simply be hung on a rock in a wooden coffin. Over time, this coffin will rot and collapse. The remains of the deceased will hang from him or simply fall to the ground.
Each grave, carved into the rock, is decorated with wooden figures depicting the deceased. It can take several months to make an expensive grave. Stone burial chambers are capable of storing a body for decades.
As mentioned at the beginning, according to a special tradition, the Torajs bury babies who have not yet grown their first teeth. This nation considers newborns to be special creatures, pure and immaculate, who have just become detached from nature, and therefore must return to it. They are buried in tree trunks. Initially, a hole of the desired shape and size is hollowed out in the selected living tree. Then the body is laid there. The resulting grave is closed with special doors made of palm fibers.
After about a couple of years, the wood begins to "heal wounds" by absorbing the body of the little deceased. In one large tree there may be more than a dozen such graves.
After the deceased has been buried, the Torajs begin the feast. Then everything goes almost according to the standard scheme familiar to Europeans. But at the feast, the funeral manipulations do not end. Every year the relatives of the deceased perform a terrible ritual "manene".
"Manene" - legal exhumation
Every year the Toraja people retrieve their dead relatives from their graves. After that, they are washed, cleaned, put in order and changed into new outfits. Further, the mummies are carried throughout the settlement, which from the side resembles a procession of zombies. After performing the above rituals, the mummy is put back in the coffin and buried again, a little less luxuriously than the first time.
The Indonesian island of Sulawesi is inhabited by a group of related Toraji peoples. Translated from Bugi, this means "highlanders", since it is in the mountainous regions that the Toraja settlements are located. These people practice animism, a religious trend that regulates funeral rites that are terrible for a European. (website)
Toraji bury children in a very peculiar way
If a baby dies here, whose first teeth have not yet grown, relatives bury him in the trunk of a living tree. This nation considers newborns to be special creatures, immaculate and pure, who barely broke away from Mother Nature and therefore must return to her ...
Initially, a hole of the required size and shape is hollowed out in the selected tree. The baby's body fits into it. The resulting grave is closed with a special door made of palm fibers.
After about two years, the wood begins to "heal the wound" and it absorbs the body of the deceased crumbs. One large tree can be the last shelter for several dozen babies ...
But this, as they say, is still in bloom, and to be honest, such a burial of babies is not devoid of a certain meaning and sad harmony. The situation is different with the fate of all other Torajas.
Unburied corpses are just sick relatives
After the death of a person, his relatives perform a number of special rituals, but they do not always start this right away. The reason lies in the poverty of the majority of the population, to which, however, it has long been accustomed and therefore does not try to improve its situation. However, until the relatives of the deceased collect the necessary amount (and a very impressive one), the funeral cannot take place. Sometimes they are postponed not only for weeks and months, but even for years ...
During all this time, the "awaiting burial" is in the house where he lived before. After death, the Torajs embalm their departed to prevent the decay of their bodies. By the way, such deceased - not buried and staying in the same house with the living - are considered not lifeless mummies, but simply sick people (?!)
But now the required amount has been collected, the ritual of sacrifice has been performed, ritual dances are performed and everything that is required for this case by the strict rules established by the ancestors of Toraja many centuries ago. By the way, a funeral in Sulawesi can last for several days. Ancient legends say that earlier, after performing all the ritual procedures, the dead themselves went to their places of rest ...
Toraji is carved into the rocks at a certain height. True, again, not everything, and if the family is very poor, she will simply hang a wooden coffin on a rock. Being near such a "graveyard", a European tourist can easily lose consciousness at the sight of someone's remains hanging from a rotten coffin or even falling to the ground ...
But that's not all. In August of every year, restless Torajs remove their relatives from the graves in order to wash them, put them in order, and put on new outfits. After that, the dead are carried through the entire settlement (which is very similar to a zombie procession) and, after being laid in coffins, are buried again. This ritual, unthinkable for us, is called “manene”.
Return of lost corpses
The villages of the Toraja peoples were built on the basis of one family, practically each of them was one separate family. The villagers tried not to go far away and to stick to their "area", as they believed that the soul of a person after death should remain close to the body for some time before heading to "puya", that is, the haven of souls.
And for this you need to be near your loved ones, who will conduct all the necessary rituals. If a person dies far from their native village, they may not be found. In this case, the soul of the unfortunate person will be forever stuck in his body.
However, Toraja also has a way out in this case, although this ritual is very expensive and therefore not available to everyone. At the request of the missing person's relatives, the village sorcerer calls the soul and the dead body back home. Hearing this call, the corpse rises and, staggering, begins to plod onto it.
People who noticed him approaching run to warn of the return of the dead. They do this not out of fear, but in order for the corpse to be at home as soon as possible (nothing to stop it) and the rite to be performed correctly. If someone touches a wandering corpse, he will again fall to the ground. So those running ahead warn about the procession of the dead man and that it is impossible to touch him in any case ...
... You experience amazing feelings when you imagine such a picture. And the very attitude of these people to death evokes by no means weak emotions. But, besides shuddering, indignation and resolute rejection, isn't there an involuntary respect for those who managed to make death an integral, familiar part of everyday life and thereby defeated the eternal horror of man in front of her? ..
