Death. The inevitable end
which seems to be terrifying for many.
But is death the end?
Do we live further in another dimension?
There are many people in the world who deal with death in a different way as we know it in Western society.
How different is it in South Sulawesi, Indonesia?
The inhabitants of Toraja Land do not see death as the end.
They rather see it as the beginning of happiness for the family that's left behind.
They believe that the deceased must be helped to the other world.
And that happens in a traditional way with lots of sacrifices and gifts.
The funerals are therefore very expensive. They have to save years to pay for a beautiful and traditional funeral.
The funeral ceremony is the most important event in the life of the Toraja.
The ancient traditions at a funeral include practices that have been used for many centuries
and are known as the most complex funeral traditions in the world.
The extravagance of the funeral is what marks the status of a family.
And that is why a funeral often lasts several days.
The whole family and all members of the village are invited
and outsiders are also welcome to attend the ceremony and reception.
It is customary to bring a gift such as cigarettes, rice or sugar.
Pigs are given to the family of the deceased as a gift at the reception.
These are slaughtered on the spot and the meat is distributed directly among the guests.
The best pieces are given to the church, nearby family and the people with the most status.
And the organs and other remains go home with acquaintances.
Today is the most violent day of the entire funeral ceremony.
Buffalos will be sacrificed for the deceased which is an age-old tradition of the Toraja.
They are distributing the buffalos. Which one will go to church which buffalos will stay with the family.
Soon they will be sacrificed one by one.
It were 10 - 12 buffalos. They cut their throats so they will bleed to death.
Very cruel to witness.
But they believe that these sacrifices will will bring the deceased better to heaven.
I need a moment to recover from it.
It seems that they cut up the buffalos right away.
The family and guests get meat and how closer your are to the family of the deceased the more meat you will get.
If you are further away or just a friend you will get less meat.
The buffalos come from the specially created buffalo market here in Rantepoa.
And the prices vary enormously
A normal buffalo costs around €900.
But the price of an Albino buffalo can go up to €100.000.
Can I ask you something?
How much is that buffalo?
That one is 30 million Indonesian Rupiah.
The Toraja have a caste system that also affects the number of buffalos
being sacrificed at the funeral ceremony.
At the funeral of a working class, they will sacrifice 1 to 10 buffaloes.
Someone from the middle class to about 25 buffaloes and people with high status
it can run up to about 100 buffalos.
This market is super peaceful
The animals are calm.
They get to eat and be washed.
But they are only here for one purpose and that is to be sold for the funerals.
They don't know what's coming and we do.
That is the harsh reality.
There they go....
In this place there is something unique.
The tradition we still keep
untill now.
It's called
'Toma Kula'
'To' it means people. And 'ma kula' it means
Sick. The people who are sick.
Welcome to papa Kiki house.
The wife of Papa Kiki is
passed away more than 1 year ago.
He is going to ask her permission. Because she isn't buried yet.
If we can visit her.
His wife is sick as what they call it here.
When someone is passed away. They embalm the body and place it in the family's house.
Untill they saved enough money for the funeral.
They still consider the person not as deceased but as sick until the body is officially buried.
That's the picture of Mama Kiki
Papa Kiki
And Mama Kiki still communicate with eachother.
Papa Kiki is always talking to her.
So he still believes she is here.
Yeah.
Can you explain how they keep the body like this.
The doctor inject
formaldehyde and traditional herbal plants.
The family will take care of the body.
They will clean the body.
And two times a day give some food or something.
Thank you. Prima kassie
And thank Mama Kiki that we could be here.
As a thank you you give a donation.
It's very special that we could visit.
Normally you give cigarettes or sugar.
At forehand they asked us to give a donation.
So Papa Kiki can buy something for Mama Kiki.
That is normal when a woman has passed away.
With men you give cigarettes or sugar,
With women you give money so the husband can keep taking care of her.
We also give a donation.
In the favorite bag of Mama Kiki.
Prima Kassie (Thank you in Indonesian)
It is the last day of the funeral ceremony.
On this day there is singing, crying, laughing
and a lot of people take selfies and group pictures with the coffin.
For us, it feels bizarre that there is laughter
but also intense grief at the same time.
When the family has said their last goodbye.
The deceased in the heavy coffin is taken to her final resting place.
In a traditional way only the Toraja people do...
It's just for bringing up the spirit.
The coffin is heavy
So they try to bring up the spirit.
Okay. You mean themselves?
Yes theirselves.
And then they push each other to make it like a game.
So they can bring the body to the grave.
Okay so it's not for the one who passed away but it's for themselves.
Yes.
Okay. I can understand that. To get adrenaline.
Yes. To get up the adrenaline and than they can bring the body to the grave.
Because it's still a little bit far away.
And it's heavy.
I understand now. Thank you.
It is almost disrespectful from my norms and values, but it's full of respect.
This is their tradition, but I am having a hard time with it.
I can't imagine to this to my grandmother or grandfather.
and brutally massacrer 15 buffaloes.
It's everyone's own choice.
And you always have to have respect for everyone's culture.
And I sure have respect but I need time to process this.
The deceased is traditionally buried in a hollowed rock that is sometimes 30 meters high.
The rule is,
the higher the grave, the higher the status of the deceased and the closer to heaven.
Symbols of wealth are often buried like gold.
And to prevent grave robbery, the bodies are deliberately buried in hard-to-reach places.
But always above ground.
The Toraja believe that the earth represents the mother and gives life to the land.
And by not burying the bodies in the ground, the cleanliness of the earth remains intact.
And until 50 years ago, the Torajas also had special uses for burying babies.
Deceased babies who haven't got teeth yet are buried in the holes of tree trunks.
They carve holes, wrap their baby in cloths and place them in the tree trunks.
And cover it with palm fibre.
When the tree heals again, the babies are absorbed by nature.
They believe that the wind will take the soul of the child away.
After the official funeral, it's not finished yet for the people of Toraja.
Every 3 year they have the Ma'nene festival.
They dig up the buried bodies, clean them and they put new clothes on.
Then to go around the village for new family photos.
With this festival, the people of Toraja want to strengthen the bond with the dead and celebrate life.
They believe that the spirit will bless them through this gentle gesture.
So death doesn't have to be the end of everything.
Where in the West we see death as our greatest enemy.
In Toraja land, death has a natural place in everyday life.
They celebrate life more through death.
Isn't that something that we Westerners can learn from?
Perhaps instead of fighting or avoiding death, we can also use our death to live happily and more freely.
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