Introduction

The Ata Tana Ai (People of the Forest Land) inhabit the watershed and tributary valleys of Napun Geté, the largest riparian system of the Regency of Sikka in eastern Flores. Tana Ai is a region of well-watered forest land insulated from the neighbouring peoples of eastern Flores by high mountain ridges to the east and west. Within their valley the Ata Tana Ai have maintained a society and a ceremonial system that are quite distinct from those of the peoples of central Sikka to the west and Larantuka (Regency of East Flores) to the east.

Despite increasing pressures from both the state and the Catholic church, the Ata Tana Ai maintain their traditional religion and a ceremonial system that integrates clans and maternal houses into larger social and political entities. Tana Ai is divided into several ceremonial domains, called tana in the local language, each of which is led by a tana puan, who is ‘Source of the Domain’ or ‘Source of the Earth’. While they are generally comparable, the rituals and myths of the various tana of Tana Ai comprise distinct traditions. The largest tana of Tana Ai, and the one most important to the Ata Tana Ai themselves, is Tana Wai Brama. It is this central domain whose myths and ritual language are the subjects of this essay.