{"id":1601,"date":"2019-08-15T05:55:53","date_gmt":"2019-08-15T05:55:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/?p=1601"},"modified":"2019-09-05T05:27:24","modified_gmt":"2019-09-05T05:27:24","slug":"ancient-stories-for-our-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/2019\/08\/ancient-stories-for-our-future\/","title":{"rendered":"Ancient stories for our future:"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Documenting the oral traditions of Mentawai people from the <\/strong><em><strong>Sarereiket<\/strong><\/em><strong> and <\/strong><em><strong>Sabirut<\/strong><\/em><strong> regions of Siberut.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Indigenous people\u2019s storytelling systems and traditions are\ndisappearing, but to sustain our collective future we must heed their wisdom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"540\" height=\"350\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Sikerei-Teu-Agoi-bercerita.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1606\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Sikerei-Teu-Agoi-bercerita.jpg 540w, http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Sikerei-Teu-Agoi-bercerita-300x194.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\" \/><figcaption> Expressive face mid storytelling <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em>Sarereiket<\/em><\/strong> region, Siberut, Mentawai \u2013 It is late the chorus of coupling frogs and the stomp of still energetic children running across wooden floorboards floods the pauses between the words from <strong><em>Sikerei <\/em><\/strong>Aman Teu Agoi. His tone and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=aNG51CEsWHU\">nuances <\/a>match the sounds of the surrounding forest \u2013from the pandemonium of pigeons, to rumbles of the rain-fed river, and then a pause, like the posture of the proud<strong><em> kara-kara<\/em><\/strong> tree. We are gathered together to listen to a story, a story about how the Mentawai people came to occupy and care for Siberut Island, one of the most biodiverse islands in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube aligncenter wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Mentawai Oral Literature - Sago\" width=\"540\" height=\"304\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/aNG51CEsWHU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><figcaption>Mentawai oral literature- Sago<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Storytelling has long been central to the human experience.\nStories have helped us establish our identity, beliefs, morals, knowledge, and\npractices that have beenfundamental to sustaining our societies. But we are not\nlimited tostories \u2013 our philosophies have manifested as songs, poems, chants,\nproverbs, taboos, myths, epics, scriptures, and fables. These are the ways we\nexplain life and how we fit within.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Significant to many Indigenous cultures worldwide areoral\ntraditions that have been passed on for generations. These traditions often\ncontain ancient memories, timeless wisdom and profound knowledge that has\nfostered the physical and spiritual wellbeing of their people and the\nlandscapes they occupy for millennia. But when development and modernization\nare at the door of many Indigenous territories, oral traditions are often\nthreatened by cultural homogenization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"540\" height=\"290\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Aman-Manja.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1602\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Aman-Manja.jpg 540w, http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Aman-Manja-300x161.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Mentawai culture is rich in storytelling traditions, from\nstories about shaman origins, songs of the spirits of Mentawai\u2019s medicinal\nplants, ceremonial scriptures recited in Siberut\u2019s old languages, and late\nnight discussions mapping territories, resources and family histories, among\nmany others. But the ways in which Mentawai people meet and interact have been\nchanging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"540\" height=\"400\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Penelitian-SL.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1604\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Penelitian-SL.jpg 540w, http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Penelitian-SL-300x222.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Alarmed at the gradual erosion of their Indigenous culture\nand knowledge, Yayasan Pendidikan Budaya Mentawai have been campaigning to preserve\ntheir traditional knowledge so that our children may have opportunity to\naccess, practice and know the richness of their cultural heritage. To find out\nwhy our oral traditions are disappearing, the team turned directly to community\nmembers from both the <strong><em>Sarereiket <\/em><\/strong>and <strong><em>Sabirut <\/em><\/strong>regions of\nSiberut to ask their opinions, and unearth their needs and desires.&nbsp;&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"540\" height=\"350\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Penelitian-di-desa-Matotonan.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1603\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Penelitian-di-desa-Matotonan.jpg 540w, http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Penelitian-di-desa-Matotonan-300x194.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>We found that a significant reason behind why Mentawai oral\nliteratures are believed to being lost is because the connection between\ngenerations has been disrupted. Recent changes in Mentawai society structural\npatterns over the last few decades have meant children and elders rarely\ninteract. YPBM believe this has had repercussions beyond the transmission of\noral literature alone \u2013 fewer children speak and understand Mentawai dialects,\nfewer understand the ecological functioning of the forest, fewer have experienced\nthe taboos and rituals that govern the Mentawai way of life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cWe are losing connection to our language and culture. Majority of\nMentawai youth &#8211; almost all &#8211; have lost connection. This is because the past\nfew generations we have had no access to learn about this knowledge. It is not\navailable within our education system. This is terrifying because, without our\ncultural knowledge, we are destined for poverty and eventually we will\ndisappear.\u201d<\/em> Martison Siritoitet, Mentawai youth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Three-quarters of respondents from YPBM\u2019s survey felt\nMentawai\u2019s oral literature is disappearing because children now spend a\nsignificant portion of their time in school, where traditional literatures are\nnot taught as part of their curriculum. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Most respondents felt Mentawai\u2019s oral literatures were\ndisappearing because people were more interested in learning about foreign ways\nof life and modern technologies. There were mixed responses as to whether youth\nwere still interested in learning Mentawai\u2019s oral traditions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>7 in 10 respondents knew variations of Mentawai\u2019s\ntraditional stories, songs, poems or myths. However, when asked to share their\nstories, most responded they didn\u2019t know it well enough to share or pass on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite the evidence suggesting the erosion of an important\nfacet of Mentawai culture, 99 per cent of those surveyed agreed that Mentawai\noral literatures are vital for their future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cMentawai\u2019s oral literature&#8230; our stories, songs, language, taboos,\nrituals and so forth, carries our culture from generation to generation,\nkeeping us safe from harm and close to our identity. Without our oral\nliterature, essentially, we would cease to exist.\u201d <\/em>Mentawai\nelder, Siberut Island &#8211; 2019.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Remembering that their culture is dynamic, coupled with growing\nconcerns at the loss of our stories, the YPBM team proceeded to ask in what\nways their community would most like to learn about Mentawai oral literatures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Over 90 per cent hoped for a book that can be shared with\ntheir children; 80 per cent hoped to meet regularly at cultural studios to hear\nliteratures directly from elders and <strong><em>Sikerei<\/em><\/strong>; and 8 in 10 saw immense\nvalue in attending a cultural education program, like the one our Mentawai\npartner Foundation has established in Siberut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cOur target is to use this research to develop a Mentawai oral\nliterature book, which we will distribute amongst our cultural education\nprogram students and teachers. We shall also share this with Mentawai\u2019s\nIndigenous committee and government education department, as we envision that\nour research outputs reach a national standard and integrated within the\nregional curriculum for all Mentawai children. This is critical because there are\nno accruate, cultural reference books available for our schools. The government\nhave made a public request for support in thie area. Books, videos, comics&#8230;\nwe have the research materials to develop this\u201d<\/em>\nFransiskus Yan, Chairman YPBM.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"540\" height=\"382\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Penelitian-YPBM.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1605\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Penelitian-YPBM.jpg 540w, http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Penelitian-YPBM-300x212.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The <strong><em>Sabirut<\/em><\/strong> and <strong><em>Sarereiket <\/em><\/strong>regions of\nSiberut Island represent a very small proportion of Earth\u2019s population. So why\nthen do Mentawai oral literatures matter? Why should we consider spending time\nlearning and carrying with us stories passed from generations a very long time\nago? Stated simply, the greatest threat to humanity\u2019s wellbeing is\nhomogenization. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Keeping oral traditions alive is paramount to strengthening\nIndigenous culture, language, values, pride, and wellbeing both for people, and\nthe territories they occupy. In addition, Indigenous oral traditions contain\nunique, verdant philosophies to illuminate the challenges often faced in our\nlives. We provide a prevailing means by which we can understand our connection\nto our lands, resources, sacred places, and ancestors, and how to interact with\neach. The collective wisdom of all Earth\u2019s peoples gives hope that we may find\nsolutions to how we may respectfully sustain our global society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Learn more about our program via our website and be sure follow <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"@sukumentawai (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"http:\/\/www.instagram.com\/sukumentawai\" target=\"_blank\">@sukumentawai<\/a> to hear how our research journey unfolds. YPBM would like to acknowledge the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.iefprograms.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Indigenous Education Foundation (opens in a new tab)\">Indigenous Education Foundation<\/a> and Firebird Foundation for their financial support toward this project.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Documenting the oral traditions of Mentawai people from the Sarereiket and Sabirut regions of Siberut. Indigenous people\u2019s storytelling systems and traditions are disappearing, but to sustain our collective future we must heed their wisdom. Sarereiket region, Siberut, Mentawai \u2013 It<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":1602,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,98,8,7,10,1],"tags":[199,30],"class_list":["post-1601","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-announcements","category-community-program","category-culture","category-mentawai","category-research","category-uncategorized","tag-cultural-education-program","tag-culture-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1601","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1601"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1601\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1618,"href":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1601\/revisions\/1618"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1602"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1601"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1601"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sukumentawai.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1601"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}