Getting Closer to the Friendly Cannibals (1)

Batak Toba was cannibals. How about now? Follow Me!:)

My parents, native to the Toba Batak, told me that our great ancestors were coming from heaven. Directly to Pusuk Buhit Mountain, which lies in Samosir island, part of Sumatera island. Along with their coming, they brought a variety of farming tools to start living.

As the first generation of the Toba Batak, we named them Raja Batak (King of the Batak). They came to Pusuk Buhit with the blessing of Mula Jadi Na Bolon --- Batak's Almighty. At Pusuk Buhit, known as fertile land, they chose to live in Lembah Sianjur Mula Mula (the valley of Sianjur Mula Mula), built their livelihood, and reproduced.

Soon, they started their livings at the land, processing the farmland. Time went by. The ground could give them prosperous life, and they kept continuing to work on the area from generation to generation. Meanwhile, besides working as farmers, the Toba Batak family also had a spirit of togetherness. They worked for hand in hand to finish massive works, such as building houses and traditional houses, including Gorga ornament. They worked together to ease the process. We call it Marsiadapari (helping each other).

King of the Batak—-Internet (Muhibbun Ritonga)

By the way, Gorga is Batak's artistic decorations (engraving) that commonly attached to the front and side wood of Batak's traditional houses. It has three unique colors representing different realms in the Batak cosmology: red, white, and black. We also can see Gorga in Batak's conventional music apparatus.

In the process of building the traditional houses, workers, including the carving expert and the sculptor, worked harmoniously in the nuance of spirituality.

In the meantime, in terms of work division, our ancestors already decided who would do what. Male's work would be different from females ones. Females wove ulos (Batak's traditional clothes) to fulfill their daily needs of clothing and any rituals. They mostly worked to supply essential daily needs to the family.

Those female groups also made any various clay-based tools, for instance, pot, plates, bowls, and others. Apart from the previously mentioned equipment, there were other essential apparatus, namely dimples and pestles. The working women manufactured the whole appliances at and around their houses.

Pusuk Buhit —-Omtanah.com

They collected all the finished works and shared some of them with their family members while the other parts swapped with different kinds of stuff.

Farming was the main job for the Toba Batak clan, while making daily needs means was the supplementary ones. To ease the surveillance of their farmland, our ancestors selected to plant their rice and any other commodities around their living hood. They manufactured their tools near their houses as well.

Beyond working as farmers, men also worked as fishermen. They caught fish in Lake Toba. Speaking of its pendulum nest, they created it form the clay. In addition to the fisherman, men also hunt. They hunted the animals from the forest and distributed the catch to other villagers.

Up to this point, many of the Toba Batak descendants still do traditional jobs while the rest is working in different fields, even working abroad.

Psssttt, Batak Toba is no longer cannibals, yet they still eat meat.:)

You may also read the second and third edition here.