Friday 2 November 2018

INDONESIA TORAJA - A STRING THAT BONDS ALL

The arable land of Toraja is very limited due to its rocky terrain. It is isolated by natural barrier, making it hard to trade with outsiders. On this condition, ancient people in Toraja must have relied on very limited resources they had. To survive as a society, they cannot afford to be greedy or selfish.

The living condition turns Toraja into a self-fulfilling ecosystem. And with limited options at hand, Toraja Ancestor chose the oldest and most compelling art of survival: harmony.
Torajans believe there's a tie (lolo) that attaches human , animals and plants in one system. In order for human to survive, one must care for animals and plants . If one of the three is harmed, all of them will suffer the consequences. This philisophy is called Tallu Lolona.

Tallu Lolona is a teaching of Aluk Todolo, an ancestral religion dating back to Torajan mythical past. The ancient faith teaches Torajans to respect their parents, elders, ancestors and the balance of life in general.

Immune to the Ravages of Time 
This philosophy lives on , even when modernization makes Toraja no longer dependent on harmony to survive. Toraja is still and will strive for the balance between human , animals and plants. The prized water buffalo, for example, is often massaged, hand -fed, bathed and let loose in the field to relax. The people are very gentle in nature, not only towards the animals, but to each human being venturing into their land. Pilfer or theft is uncommon , even for foreigners visiting. The plants are nourished not only by viable sources of nutrients, but with heart as well as part of the circle of life that adjoins the land.

As the teaching representing the ancestral spirits themselves, Tallu Lolona is the ultimate bond that binds all living entities in this mythical highland. It is the solemn sentinel that watches over in silence, existing through the veins of every breathing organism, spreading through the people themselves. 

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