A tribe in Indonesia performed a ceremony that saw them collect the corpses of dead relatives to clean and dress them in fresh clothes.

The 'Ma'nene' ritual was held in Pangala, Toraja Regency, South Sulawesi Province, on August 25.

Ma'nene is a traditional family ritual in Toraja held every three years, where the bodies of the ancestors of the Toraja family will be cleaned, and have their clothes and wrappings replaced.

Corpses that are tens or even hundreds of years old are removed from the grave to be treated.

This ritual begins with family members coming to the 'Patane' to retrieve the bodies of dead relatives. Patane is a grave built as a house where bodies are stored.

Before opening the chest and lifting the body, The 'Ne'tomina' will say a prayer in the ancient Toraja language and ask permission from the ancestors, so that the community will receive grace and blessings every planting season until harvest.

The term Ne'tomina itself is a customary title given to elders or elders, it can also mean priest or priest.

Then the body was cleaned using a brush after being removed from Patane and the clothes were replaced with new cloth or clothes.

After the new clothes were put on, the body was put back into the Patane. The series of Ma'nene events were closed with family members gathering at the Tongkonan traditional house to worship together.

Usually, the Maenene ritual is carried out simultaneously by one family or even one village, so this tradition lasts quite a long time.

The Ma'nene ritual was held again in Pangala, Toraja Regency, South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia, Tuesday 25 August 2020.

This "raising the corpse" ritual is held every three years when family members gather.

The Ma'nene ritual is a traditional ritual in Tana Toraja where the bodies of the ancestors of the Toraja family will be cleaned, replaced by clothes and cloth.

Ma'nene is a traditional ritual in the Toraja culture. This ritual is a ritual in which corpses that are tens or even hundreds of years ago are removed from the grave to be cleaned and changed for clothes and cloth. This traditional ritual is included in the Rambu Solo traditional ceremony which means the traditional death ceremony.

This ritual begins with family members coming to Patane to retrieve the bodies of dead relatives. Patane is a grave in the form of a house where bodies are stored.

Before opening the chest and lifting the body, Ne'tomina will say a prayer in the ancient Toraja language and ask permission from the ancestors so that the community will receive grace and blessings every planting season until harvest.

Ne'tomina itself is a customary title given to elders or elders, it can also mean priest or priest.

Then the body was cleaned using a brush after being removed from Patane and the clothes were replaced with new cloth or clothes.

After the new clothes were put on, the body was put back in Patane. The series of Ma'nene events were closed with family members gathering at the Tongkonan traditional house to worship together.

Usually the Maenene ritual is carried out simultaneously by one family or even one village, so this tradition lasts quite a long time.

The time for implementing Maenene is based on mutual agreement with the family and Ne'tomina through the Village Deliberation. This tradition is held once every three years to strengthen the relationship so that families who are overseas can visit their parents or Nene To'dolo which means their ancestors.


Footage: Hariandi Hafid / Opn Images