The Kaluli: Story, Song, and Ceremony: Bethany Sanders

Bethany Sanders 11/11/11
The Kaluli: Story, Song, and Ceremony
The Kaluli are a group of people, who live in a tropical rainforest at the northern base of Mt. Bosavi. There population is believed to range from about 1,200 to 2,000. The Kaluli live in structures called long houses, built on the outskirts of the rain forest. The Kaluli people have a myth, which tells how they have always lived there and nowhere else. The culture of the Kaluli is based greatly on trading with one another. The Kaluli live in villages, made up of the men, women, children, and relatives. In the Kaluli communities, there is only one longhouse per community. The longhouses have great significance, in that the people refer to themselves based on the location of the house. Around each longhouse, are smaller house. Families from within the longhouse will stay in these houses while managing their garden.
Gardening in the Kaluli world is a great part of their culture. This is because, the Kaluli are constantly trading with one another. The Kaluli people trade inside and outside of their own communities, thus creating strong relationships with the people they trade with. The Kaluli have a very varied diet, because of the constant trading of goods. This diet consists of Sago, bananas, pandanus, breadfruit, sugar cane, sweet potatoes, fish, pork, and vegetables from their gardens. In Kaluli life the chores are divided between males and females. The women have many chores in Kaluli life, such as caring for the pigs and the garden. They also have to hunt little game, to gather the sources of protein and they are entrusted with the socialization of the children. The men of Kaluli have very different responsibilities, such as organization of labor, clearing and dividing trees, clearing land for gardens, planting, and building damns and fences. When children are born, they are taught proper socialization and chore divisions at an early age. While the child is still young they are considered to be soft, or fragile. While growing up the child is not allowed to eat eggs, because they are considered soft and mushy. Also, the child cannot eat anything yellow, because it means weakness. The Kaluli base how soft or hard a child is, based on the number of teeth in their mouth. This is because a child hardens as he or she grows into adulthood. Another large part of Kaluli culture is their belief in the unseen world. The Kaluli believe greatly in believing in things you cannot see. This is because; the forests they live within are thick, so many of the things around them cannot be seen. If someone is coming
near them, they know by the screeching sound of a birds voice. The Kaluli have great knowledge of the unseen world, because of mediums. When the mediums soul leaves its body, other spirits are free to enter the mediums body and speak freely to the living. The final important part of Kaluli culture is their ceremonies. The ceremonies are usually because of a marriage or pig feast. The most important celebration of all is the Gisaro. The Gisaro is preformed inside a longhouse, by guest dancers from other villages. During the Gisaro, the performers will continue to dance and sing all night. They where elaborate costumes which they make from a collection of goods. Throughout the Gisaro the audience will become angered, because of the sorrow bestowed on them by the performers. The audience will then poke the dancers with lit torches to show their anger. Today, the Kaluli people are beginning to lose their forests. This is because; of the logging industry. Mt. Bosavi sits on two million acres of flourishing natural forests. With commercial logging and mining industries growing the Kalulis natural resources are being threatened. Sacred sites at the foot of Mt. Bosavi have already begun being destroyed. The Kaluli are slowly losing their land, which is to be believed will eventually disappear, because of this issue. I really enjoyed learning about the Kaluli people of Mt. Bosavi. I think their way of life and trade is interesting. I am glad I learned about the issue of the Kaluli losing their land. I didnt know that, that was going on. I believe it is an issue, because if the Kaluli lose their land their culture and way of life will be lost. I think the Kaluli need to strive to retain the land they still have, and flourish their remaining communities.

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Bethany Sanders 11/11/11

The Kaluli: Story, Song, and Ceremony

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