Pakpak's Sipelebegu

The word character comes from the Greek chrassein, which means making sharp/making deep. The characteristic of the religions adhered to by Sidikalang residents, namely Christianity 74.70%, Islam 24.70%, Buddhism 0.55%, Hinduism 0.03%, Confucianism 0.01% & sects 0.01%. Regarding the description of the Batak Pakpak community, it is known that in the past this community adhered to animism with a burial system by burning the corpse and then placing the ashes in a stone grave called perabuen.

This position is usually chosen to place a memorial in the form of a collection of statues, stone coffins/graves & other stone artifacts as a tribute to the ancestors of a particular clan. After 5 years, the grave was excavated and the body burned with a traditional ceremony. All of this was recorded in collective memory & continued into the future, including the arrival of imported religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam & Christianity. 

In German, history has the same meaning as geschichte which comes from the word geschehen which also means something has happened. The word history comes from the Arabic word syajarah which means tree/genealogy. The English philosopher, Francis Bacon, who lived at the end of the 16th & 17th centuries, defined historia by Aristotle's concept, namely as individual knowledge, to differentiate it from philosophia which talks about general things. 

This ethnic/tribe has a history that has been passed down from generation to generation from the ancestors of this community. The arts are inherited by the ancestors of this community in several forms, including dance, carving, textiles & music. Currently, apart from having a function as a statue / old art object, the Pengulubalang statue has an important role in the culture, religion & life of the Pakpak tribe, which previously believed in animism/dynamism which once colored the life of the Pakpak tribe.

Researchers call this process of influence an attempt at Hinduism which applies not only to Hindu influence but also to Buddhist influence. Most of the inscriptions were found in the Padang Lawas Hindu-Buddhist Archaeological Area. Local cultural elements remain even though Hindu-Buddhist culture has had an influence, one of which can be seen in the use of local script.

One thing that attracted the attention of linguists of the 18th century AD in studying various ancient texts was that, both in terms of word form and grammar, language was used & considered a form of human equality. The Kudadiri & Maha clans, who own the lapihen laklak, very well and carefully preserve the remains of their ancestors. Based on the results of the translation and language translation, it is known that the contents of the two lapihen laklak are related to worship/respect for ancestral spirits.

Apart from that, the Kudadiri's lapihen laklak also explains the conditions for planting rice which are associated with the spirits of the ancestors. These people believe that, by praying to the spirits/tondi of their ancestors & summoning those spirits, their prayers/wishes will be granted. The contents of the lapihen laklak also illustrate that in the past this community still adhered to the Sipelebegu sect/worship of ancestral spirits.

In the contents of the lapihen laklak, it is known that in the past this community believed in the spirits/tondi of their ancestors. Apart from assumptions based on Hindu-Buddhist ideology, this pattern has existed since the original beliefs of the archipelago, namely animism/worship of ancestral spirits. This ethnic group has a culture that has been passed down from generation to generation from its ancestors.

In this tribe, there are several arts which are inherited from their ancestors, namely dance, sculpture & music. The sisibah drum is one of the cultural legacies of this tribe's previous ancestors. This drum was apparently used in pre-Islamic times because in ancient times this tribe adhered to animism and believed in ancestral spirits worshiping stones, the sun, and trees.

This research took 2 months starting from December 2013 - January 2014. In this interview, we conducted interviews with expert informants regarding the function & method of using the sisibah drum which is a ritual symbol of ancestral cultural heritage that is still preserved by the community today. Especially in this tribal culture. 

This drum ensemble is used for ritual ceremonies, such as expelling disturbing spirits in the forest before it is processed into agricultural land/fields & entertainment such as the coronation ceremony of a King / to accompany pencak dances. This tribe has a cultural heritage that must maintain & preserve this ancestral culture so that it can become a guide for each of its citizens. This society is a society that really respects the traditional cultural norms inherited from their ancestors as evidenced by the existence of traditional practices in every circle of life of this society, for example in wedding and death ceremonies in this tribe. 

However, a person must primarily refer to the local wisdom heritage of his ancestors which is relevant to be applied to this day. One of them is through an event which is a collaboration between the Bintang Mersada village government and Sanggar Alpa which aims to grow, preserve, develop, and pass on to future generations this art and culture. The early ancestors of this tribe were Kada & Lona 3 who left their village in India and were stranded on Pantai Dairi and continued to enter Tanah Dairi, from their marriage they had a child named Hyang. 

Hyang's fourth child was named Mpu Bada, Mpu Bada was the largest of all his siblings, even the Toba side sometimes claimed that Mpu Bada was a descendant of Parna from the Sigalingging clan. In fact, several surnames from each sub-ethnic group have almost the same name and are even recognized as originating from the same ancestor. Mpu Bada went west across Lae Cinendang and lived in Mpung Si Mbentar Baju. 

Raja Pako went northeast to form the Kingdom of Si Raja Pako & settled in Sicike-Cike. According to the ethnic group's own admission, the suak group comes from the same ancestor & from the same area of ​​origin called Tanoh Pakpak. In the past, before religion came, society had various kinds of beliefs, namely animism, some worshiped stones, trees, wood, and nature & there were religious beliefs. 

Another belief is animism & dynamism where people believe that objects have supernatural powers and that the spirits of their ancestors have power. Then zending from America came in 1834. After going through a long process, finally, on 25 - 8 - 1991 GKPPD was established & separated from HKBP.