Funerals at Tana Toraja
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| funeral at Toraja |
Among the Torajan, no other celebration is as important as the one celebrating the passage from this world into the next one. Births and birthdays are practically non-events, and weddings pale in comparison. So elaborate and costly are the ceremonies that families must save up and plan for months if not years before the funeral can be held.
When someone dies, their body is kept in the house with their family. In fact, the body is usually kept in the bedroom, with the family sleeping alongside the coffin. Once everything is ready, preparations are begun for the funeral party. Funerals are usually held during the dry season, from July to September. This is when the farming families will have the time as well as when the weather will be at its best.
For the funeral, a set of temporary structures will be built in an open filed near the family compound, or sometimes the structures are built between and around the permanent buildings to enclose a group of family houses. In either case, the temporary structures will form an enclosed courtyard. Most of the buildings will be nothing more than simple covered viewing platforms where guests can sit to observe the "festivities". The family of the deceased as well as close friends will essentially live on these platforms for the length of the funeral, which can last from three to seven days, depending on the importance of the dead person.
