Manggarai's Animism

According to folklore, their ancestors came from outside by sea on rafts from the west, east/north. The first ancestors of the Manggarai people were Nggae Sawu who came from across the country and landed in Manado Sawu. According to historical records, they were historically controlled alternately by the Bima tribe with the Bima Sultanate from the island of Sumbawa & the Makassar tribe with the Gowa Sultanate from the island of Sulawesi.

Each subdistrict has a varying number of arenas depending on the area, such as the Lambaleda subdistrict which has a larger area than the Ruteng subdistrict, overseeing 12 subdistricts. In 1556 Father Antonio Taveira OP bathed 5000 Timorese people & also on the island of Ende. In 1701, for the first time in Kupang, an elementary school & Christian congregation union was established by a traveling pastor.

Theodorus Verhoeven found a human skeleton in Momer & Bua's burrow. The first excavations were carried out in July 1965. Animism, which is the belief in ancestral spirits, is still very much embedded in the life of the Manggarai people.

This animist practice is often carried out as part of everyday life & is a cultural heritage maintained and passed on from generation to generation. Animist beliefs believe that every object on this earth has a soul that must be respected so that this spirit does not harm humans. Animism in Manggarai culture reflects a deep belief in spirits & natural forces.

Even though most of the Manggarai people have embraced official religions, animist beliefs remain integral to their daily lives. Although some people may no longer believe in these animist practices, they remain an important part of the cultural heritage that is maintained & passed on from generation to generation. Belief in ancestors is a belief that developed in prehistoric times, this animism belief is a belief that is still valid in the Flores Manggarai region, in this belief system the ceremony of worshiping the spirits of ancestors is still the most important place in traditional ceremonies, they have beliefs that people who have died have a very big role & think that people who have died have a big role and that there is no difference in life in the world, only in another world.

Because in the past, Manggarai ancestors adhered to animism & dynamism beliefs, it was believed that spirits lived in large trees, in water sources, swamps & dense forests, and places like that were considered to have a source of power/sacredness called pong. In the past, Manggarai people adhered to original religious beliefs, namely dynamism & animism. An important element of the original religion of the Manggarai people and also of Flores, in general, is the belief in ancestral spirits.

In the Manggarai language, the spirits of ancestors are called empo / andung. Another term is poti which means deceased spirit in general. The first part of spirits that are good in nature and do not harm humans that fall into this category are ancestral spirits, people often call them embos.

In the past, Manggarai people adhered to original religious beliefs, namely dynamism & animism, they believed that most spirits were present in big trees & in springs/swamps. Because of this, the Manggarai ancestors tried to replant the large tree seeds so that they would grow in the middle of the village/around the village which was called compang. So the spirit on the big tree was made again in the form of a rag in the middle of the village.

Previously, in each part of the house, there was a sacred place, which was in the form of a large pile of stones & which was considered a place where the village's guardian spirit could descend. The middle level is where humans live, while the roof level is considered a sacred part of the house, a place for spirits, so sacred objects and heirlooms are kept there, but also food. Spirits are thought to inhabit the natural surroundings of human habitation, namely in the pillars of a house, a pillar, beside the road, in a large tree in the yard, etc.

For the Manggarai people, the god figure is called Mori Kraeng, in the mythological tales of the Manggrai people. Mori Kraeng is considered the creator of nature & there are special tales about how he created the earth, humans, the spirit world, animals, and plants such as corn and rice. In Manggarai culture, various traditional rituals & ceremonies are carried out as a form of respect for ancestors and the natural surroundings.

This traditional ceremony is a form of prayer & supplication to the ancestors and spirits who inhabit the place to always protect & expedite the development process / other events. The traditional ceremony continues, in the form of giving thanks to God the Creator, ancestors & spirits who inhabit the place. It can also be done in rice fields/gardens, for example at the start of planting & to start the rice harvest / other income there will be a ceremony of giving offerings in the form of rice, grilled chicken that has been cut into small pieces and palm wine, which at that time the elderly person who we believe to be the speaker calls the ancestors to eat the offerings we prepare.

The death ceremony is carried out in several stages, from caring for the body, and burial to the salvation ceremony after the burial on the third, fifth & fortieth day. The stage at the time of death, as a characteristic of the Manggrai population in general & the people of Golo village in particular, is to express their grief by crying. The pigs & chickens below were handed over to traditional elders as offerings to the spirits of their ancestors.

To offer offerings to the ancestors, a concoction of rice & meat that has been grilled by traditional elders is taken. The concoction is spread in the corners of the house near where the corpse lies and on the floor so that the spirits of the ancestors will come. At this class ceremony, the soul is considered to be transformed into a spirit, letting go of all ties with life in the mortal world & going to the afterlife, the place of Mori Kraeng.