Join earth-music medicine wisdomkeeper Kirsty Ka and David Metcalf for an inspirational and expansive journey into the sacred lands and holistic lifeways of the Dayak Iban people of West Kalimantan, Indonesia. This eco-spiritual journey offers a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in ancient culture, learn holistic wisdom, partake in meditative walks and nature quests, make ceremonial offerings, receive personal healings and deepen your understanding of how to live in the heart and closer to Mother Earth. On October 4th we fly to Puttisibau, Indonesia. There we will meet our Dayak guides and travel to the village of Sungai Utik. This Dayak community was recognised by the United Nations Development Programme’s Equator Prize in June of this year for their successful preservation of community forest, traditional culture and sustainable way of life. Our local guides will take us into original forests, up pristine rivers and into Lake Sentarum National Park to explore one of the most significant wetlands on the planet. This little known and rarely visited area is home to several tribal communities and renowned for its beauty, tranquility and abundant wildlife. During our time in Kalimantan we will visit several Dayak Iban villages, sleep in traditional longhouses, share meals, listen to ancient stories, sing songs, learn about their weaving practices and be treated like family. Throughout our journey Kirsty and the Dayak elders will intersperse periods of reflection and time to attend to personal wellbeing. They will share universal practices, facilitate space for you to harmonise mind-body-spirit, deepen connection with inner wisdom, listen to Mother Nature and evolve personal consciousness. On October 11th we will return home from Kalimantan with a wealth of new experience, connections, holistic practices and inspiration for life. Kirsty Ka facilitates healing and transformational retreats around the world. Working closely with indigenous elders and communities, their programs blend native wisdom, shamanic-somatic healing, nature immersion, elemental ceremonies and music medicine to help people embody their true essence and find contentment in a world of constant change. KIRSTY KA is a keeper of earth and sound medicine, retreat facilitator and life consultant. She offers earth-based wisdom, ceremonies, nature immersion, music and holistic practices to help people empower and transform their lives, professions and relationships. Her work focuses on helping others find peace, joy, confidence and wholeness; relate to the sacredness of the Earth, daily life and all of our relations. DAVID METCALF is a professional photographer and film producer based in Bali. He has traveled into indigenous communities on a regular basis for the past seven years and supports a number of cultural and environmental programs. He was the co-founder of the first international indigenous film festival in Bali in 2018. He has dedicated his life to helping preserve and support the wisdom and beauty of indigenous wisdom. COST : $2,600 USD – INCLUDES LOCAL TRANSPORT BY AIR-CONDITIONED VAN, BOAT TRIPS, ALL FOOD, ACCOMMODATIONS AND LOCAL GUIDE FEES. This program supports indigenous Dayak communities and their culture. 10% of all moneys from this trip goes directly to support indigenous preservation projects. Interested to join? Email Central Borneo Guide – Miss Lun Pratiwi at cbguide.info@gmail.com 

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“We believe that the human body is inhabited by a life giving spirit. We call this an amirue. When a person dies, his or her spirit becomes an adiau, just for the time of its journey to the place where the amirue resides. During the nine days of the Ijame ceremony we help the adiau make its way.” These words were spoken to me by Ibu Nyupur, a wadian (shawoman) from Murutuwu. This village is located six hours by road from Palangkaraya, Central Kalimantan, and lies deep in the heart of Dayak Ma’anyan country. The Ma’anyan are one of approximately 200 Dayak tribes, the original inhabitants of the large island of Borneo. In July this year Murutuwu Village played host to an Ijame, or death ceremony, which I was fortunate to attend. The Wadian There are two types of wadian in the Dayak Ma’anyan culture. Some preside over “life ceremonies”, such as healing, purification and thanksgiving. Others preside over “death ceremonies” and are experts in the afterworld. “Death ceremony” wadians play a critical role during the Ijame, as they are responsible for dealing with the bad spirits who may try to intervene and prevent the adiau from making its passage to the world of spirits where it belongs. The wadians do this by making special food offerings (pisarakan) and performing ancient chants throughout the night. The Ijame Ceremony The Ijame death ceremony has been conducted for hundreds of years, but only in Paju Epat, an area including four villages in East Barito. It is the only ceremony that the entire village community participates in and plays an important role in keeping the Ma’anyan culture alive. Ijame is conducted in an area of the village where the cemetery and the village assembly hall, or balai, are located. A cremation structure (papuian) is erected in the area. This is where the bones of the deceased are placed for burning on the final day. There is also a large coffin-like box made from ironwood (tambak), which is a repository for family ashes. Digging up of the Bones The Ijame I attended began with the digging up of the bones of a local villager, who had died two years previously. Bones from three others were brought from neighbouring villages, and they were all placed in a temporary small wooden repository in the assembly hall. On the first day of every Ijame, special offerings are placed in four areas on the outskirts of the village to keep the bad spirits away. This is also the time that the idiran is constructed. Daily rituals are then performed during the ceremony, including the slaughter of at least one pig. Each evening the wadian perform endless chants, offering food, supplies and guidance to the adiau spirits. Cockfighting On the second day cockfights and gambling begin and are performed in the morning and afternoon. The losing (dead) cock from each fight is then hung up on a post, as an offering for the spirits and later made into soup. I was asked to share a bowl with the village cultural leader (kapala adat) and I can vouch for its tasty flavour! Preparations and Animal Sacrifice During the following days, the men focus on constructing the papuian, while in the assembly hall the women prepare baskets, rice and other items considered of use in the spirit world. Day eight attracts officials and others from neighbouring villages to join in the feast. This is the day of slaughter when pigs and buffalo are sacrificed, speeches are delivered and a festive mood takes over. The Burning The ninth and final day is the busiest. It begins with the wadians’ chanting, then the idaran is dismantled and the wood used as a platform on which the ashes will be raked after burning. Various other rituals are performed until the bones are ready for burning. After burning, the ashes are retrieved by the families of the deceased and placed in the tambaks. Then a chicken is released as a symbolic gesture of the soul’s journey to freedom. In the evening the best orator in the village delivers a final speech. It always includes some local history and traditional stories. The Preservation of Ijame So what of the future of Ijame? In the past, there were sometimes hundreds of deceased cremated at one time at these ceremonies. Back in those times almost all the people in the Paju Empat villages were animist. However, missionaries started making their way into these areas in the 50s and have been very successful in their conversion efforts. Today, most of the Dayak Ma’anyan do not follow their ancient ways. There are only a few hundred that are truly animist. The search is on for the younger generation to fulfil the role of wadians. The Future of Ijame As Pak Batarius, the kepala adat and “wisdom keeper” of the village explained, “It seems the younger generation are losing their culture, and this is of great concern to those of us who are responsible for passing on the wisdom and knowledge of the ancestors. Ijame is an important ritual, and we hope it will continue. This year the tourism office of the local government helped fund the ceremony and we hope other foreigners like you will come and witness this special event. This will help us get funding to have more death celebrations like this in the future. The high cost can sometimes be a barrier”. As the first foreign visitor to come to Murutuwu in many years, I was welcomed with genuine hospitality and immediately included as part of the village family. It was such an honour to witness the Ijame. Many young people attending the Ijame seemed to marvel at this expression of their original culture. They enthusiastically watched and took part in the rituals. I had the distinct feeling that, in participating, they were gaining a better understanding of their identity and appreciation of their culture. In the end, I was left thinking that the future was in good hands. Published in Hidden Heritage October...

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Following 2014 exciting dance performances and colourful costumes by the Dayaks Dancers from Borneo, in 2015 Bali Spirit Festival  hosted a Borneo tent. It was there that I met David Metcalf, a masterclass photographer and author of the book “Looking for Borneo”, exhibiting 250 spectacular colour photos of Borneo. David is passionate about the Dayak people and has spent years exploring the outer reaches of one of the most ecologically diverse landscapes on the planet. He introduced me to a group of Dayak dancers directly from the jungles of Kalimantan: the Spirit of the Hornbill dance academy, 19 Dayak dancers flown in directly from the jungles of Kalimantan, Borneo. Spirit of the Hornbill perform Dayak dance and music, and have prepared a workshop that is part of a program in tour to lift the Dayak cultural traditions through dance. I learned that the academy had been formed just over one year before by Siti Habibah from the Dayak Ngaju tribe, Central Kalimantan. They teach young children from the age of seven years about Dayak dance and culture and perform in regional competitions. In 2014 they represented Central Kalimantan against many dance groups from around Indonesia in Semerang, and the older members of the group have performed in Jakarta on two occasions and at the Bali Writers festival. The spirit of the Hornbills dance academy was about to enter a new stage. The team of dance teachers will be heading out to the villages in Central Kalimantan to provide teaching to the Dayak children who currently receive no dance teaching at all. The idea is to give those kids some hope and to preserve their culture through dance. Borneo’s forests and culture is fast disappearing. One way to raise awareness is through cultural expression and dance, and communicating to people the importance of developing this art form. Siti, the leader of the dance studio, is a very talented dancer and teacher and needs support to take her studio from its humble beginnings to the next level. They do not have any musical equipment so the children mostly aged between 6 and 12 have to dance to a CD. When they perform they have to hire a traditional musical instrument if they can afford it. Siti started her studio by saving for many months to raise the $500 required to pay for the rent on the studio for the following 12 months. The objective is to buy the musical instrument they need, then dance uniforms, and other Dayak accessories to demonstrate and express their culture. You can read about Siti in David’s website: http://www.davidmetcalfphotography.com/siti-dayak-dancer/ . David’s objective is to help Siti achieve her dream, raise awareness about Dayak culture and pass on this aspect of Dayak culture to the younger generation, encouraging more young Dayaks to dance. If you wish to help, you can support Siti through Gofundme: https://www.gofundme.com/Sitis-Dream  Spirit of the Hornbill dance academy performance at the Bali Spirit Festival was great; they designed a special dance for the opening night, and were the chosen band to close the festival. You can watch them on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlFFZaFaMlc  Read about David Metcalf movie, Long Sa’an, raising awareness about the plight of the forests and wildlife. For great adventures in the Indonesian Kalimantan, check Central Borneo Guide by Yun, Siri’s sister. 

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