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A tunggal panaluan is a magic staff used by
shamans Shamanism is a spiritual practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with the Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit world through Altered state of consciousness, altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of th ...
of the
Batak people Batak is a collective term used to identify a number of closely related Austronesian peoples, Austronesian ethnic groups predominantly found in North Sumatra, Indonesia, who speak Batak languages. The term is used to include the Karo people ( ...
, who live in the highlands of
North Sumatra North Sumatra () is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the northern part of the island of Sumatra. Its capital and largest city is Medan on the east coast of the island. It borders Aceh to the northwest, Riau to the sou ...
,
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
. Traditionally the tunggal panaluan is made from wood of a specific tree and carved with human figures and embellished with horsehair and cooked human brain, both procured from sacrificial victims.


Shape

Tunggal panaluan was carved out of the wood of
Cassia javanica ''Cassia javanica'', also known as Java cassia, pink shower, apple blossom tree, rainbow shower tree, and Palawan cherry, is a species of tree in the family Fabaceae. Its origin is in Southeast Asia, but it has been extensively grown in tropical ...
, the only tree from which the tunggal panaluan can be created. The tree occupies a central place in the ancestral myth of the Batak people, as well as the figures depicted on the tunggal panaluan. Tunggal panaluan was carved with human and animal figures arranged above each other. The human figure refer to a Batak myth that tells of incestuous twins. Animals found depicted in the tunggal panaluan include snakes, dragons, geckos and water buffaloes. Another type of magic staff, known as the tunggal malehat, depicts a human riding either a horse or a mythical beast.


Use

The tunggal panaluan was used in ceremonies to ward off disaster and illness as well as to cause them. To imbue the staff with magic, first the datu (shaman) has to create a hole in the staff in which a magical substance known as the
pupuk Pupuk is the name given to a magical substance which was used by the Batak people, Batak shamans of North Sumatra. The pupuk is the main feature to perform black magic, e.g. to inflict damage to enemies. Method of creating the pupuk is inscribed i ...
is inserted. Pupuk's creation involved the putrefied remain of the mutilated body of a murdered child.


Variation

Tungkot malehat is another variation of tunggal panaluan. Most tungkot malehat are manufactured and used by the Karo instead of the Toba. They have more simplistic design than the tunggal panaluan. Tunggal panaluan are elaborately carved all the way until the bottom of the staff, whereas the body of the tungkot malehat are left plain and uncarved. The only carved part of the tungkot malehat is its top part, usually carved with a human figure riding a singa or a horse. It is generally accepted that the tungkot malehat is a more recent development of the tunggal panaluan.


See also

*
Naga morsarang The naga morsarang, also known as sahan, is a container which is used to store medicine in the culture of Toba Batak people of North Sumatra, Indonesia. The naga morsarang is created out of the horn of the water buffalo. Description Naga morsarang ...
* Porhalaan *
Pupuk Pupuk is the name given to a magical substance which was used by the Batak people, Batak shamans of North Sumatra. The pupuk is the main feature to perform black magic, e.g. to inflict damage to enemies. Method of creating the pupuk is inscribed i ...


Notes


References

* * Kuiper, F. B. J., ''Cosmogony and Conception: A Query'', History of Religions, Vol. 10, No. 2 (Nov., 1970), 91–138. * * * Winkler, J., ''Die Toba-Batak auf Sumatra in gesunden und kranken Tagen'', American Anthropologist, New Series, Vol. 32, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec., 1930), 682–687. {{refend


External links


Magical Ancient Keris Antiques
Culture of Sumatra Batak Magic items