TANA TORAJA, SULAWESI, BREATHTAKINGLY SCENIC, INTENSELY CULTURAL HOLIDAY!

Описание: The Tana Toraja highlands in the South Sulawesi island of Indonesia, offer one of the richest travel experiences on planet. Traditional Toraja houses with boat-shaped roofs blend with the rice terraces to produce some of the best panoramic views one could ever see. Toraja people are very friendly and hospitable, and allow you to observe and even participate in their rituals closely. Tana Toraja, has plenty of animistic rituals that are practiced even today and many of these practices are on display like the funeral ceremonies and the various graves, in caves, on trees and using monolithic stones.

Tana Toraja, is known for its unique culture and ancient traditions. Toraja people spend a lot of energy and significant amount of life long savings on funeral ceremonies. They literally live and work so they can die in style! They usually have two funeral ceremonies, one immediately after death and another more elaborate one after a few months or years. After death, the body remains in the house, in a section specifically demarcated for this, and one can visit such a home only upon invitation. This “deceased” person is still considered as “living” person in the house for practical purposes, and offered food and drinks on daily basis.

The elaborate ceremonies take a few months of preparation. There are certain communities in the village that have specialized skills to make the preparations such as build new halls for the guests with traditional Toraja motifs, making living arrangements for out of town guests and cooking meals for everyone throughout the 5 days of ceremony. Every ceremony is attended by hundreds of guests, details of each guest and what they bring as gifts, are noted carefully so that the families can return the favor accordingly. The big gifts are usually buffalos and pigs, many of which are sacrificed during the ceremony. It is a real traumatic experience watching the animal sacrifice and is not for the faint hearted. Toraja people believe that souls of the animals should follow their masters into the afterlife.

Graves in Tana Toraja and Tau Tau

The graves are basically holes carved into the rock faces of the hills in the countryside. Grave builders carve them out using primitive tools while dangling from cliffs. This work can go on for months and can be an expensive affair. Coffins go inside these dug out caves and tau tau, or the wooden effigies of the dead are kept outside. The gravesites, and the place where the effigies are kept and their size, are all made to symbolize the financial and social status of the families of the dead.

Another unique feature are the tree graves for babies. In case of the death of a baby (a child who has not started teething), it is buried inside holes carved into the trunks of large trees. The holes are then covered with palm leaves. Toraja people believe that wind carries away their souls, and the body is believed to be absorbed by nature as the tree holes fill up over time.

Another practice is the placing of monolithic grave stones at burial sites in Toraja. In some villages, monolithic stones are placed near the cave sites in memory of the dead person, but no carvings of names or effigies are created. Size and height of the stone represents the status of the person in that community.