The story of corpses suddenly standing up, walking normally, and returning to their homes seems to belong only in Hollywood horror films. However, this is a true story and very familiar to the Toraja people in Indonesia, where the practice of creating walking corpses is a ritual passed down through generations in their spiritual life.
Ancient “Magic”
This chilling tale is one of the strange burial customs of the Toraja tribe in South Sulawesi, Indonesia (the term “Toraja” means “people of the high land”). Many years ago, when the land inhabited by the Toraja was still isolated and seemingly cut off from the outside world, rumors about miraculous magic that allowed corpses to walk normally became known worldwide.
According to the oldest members of the tribe, the practice of creating walking corpses dates back to ancient times. During that era, a civil war broke out between the Western Tana Toraja and the Eastern Tana Toraja.
The Western Tana Toraja suffered a devastating defeat with most of their people killed. Meanwhile, the Eastern Tana Toraja had fewer casualties, and most warriors managed to bring the bodies of their fallen comrades back to the village for burial.
In contrast, unable to carry the bodies of their unfortunate kin back to the village, the Western Tana Toraja devised a special way to bury the dead. They later used some mystical method to make the corpses walk and find their way back to their village. Ever since, the Tana Toraja have maintained this “magic”, and to this day, witch doctors only perform it at the request of the deceased’s family.
This strange tale raises many questions about the authenticity of the information, and if it is true, what mechanism allows a corpse to rise and walk like a living person?
Perfect Preservation Art
Since 1905, scientists have discovered intact, unspoiled corpses in this region. Remarkably, these corpses appear to have not been treated with any chemicals, unlike the well-known mummification methods of ancient Egyptians. However, many scientists still suspect there is a special substance that helps preserve the corpses, yet they have not been able to find the answer.
Local residents believe that the unique burial practices of the Tana Toraja, along with the particular soil conditions, may be one of the significant reasons why walking corpses are found exclusively in the Mamasa region of Indonesia.
When someone in the village passes away, their body is wrapped in clothing before being placed in a coffin. After that, the men carry the coffin to the tribe’s burial site.
Notably, the Tana Toraja cemetery is perched precariously on vertical limestone cliffs. Here, niches are carved deep into the rock, adequately long and wide to accommodate a coffin.
From a distance, the graves within the mountain resemble pigeon nests or the windows of a high-rise building. Only strong men can undertake the arduous task of burial.
Initially, they used bamboo ladders to reach the burial niches on the cliff, often requiring 4 to 5 people to transport the deceased’s body up the steep walls before laying them to rest.
It is understandable that when approaching the graves, people do not smell decay, as the corpses are not decomposed but rather shriveled, resembling a mummy. Many corpses that have emerged from coffins after many years still possess eyelashes, eyebrows, hair, and their faces remain almost unaltered.
According to local residents, the “quality” of such corpses may be due to a substance found in the limestone in the area that helps preserve the bodies. Additionally, the fact that the corpses lie deep within the cliffs protects them from the elements and disturbances from animals, possibly contributing to their preservation. After all, a corpse cannot walk normally if its bones are scattered about.
The Journey Home of the Corpses
According to the tribe’s beliefs, the deceased must return to the village where they were born to meet their relatives. This is crucial as they will guide the deceased in skills necessary for entering a new life in the afterworld.
In the past, many feared that the journey home for these corpses was too long and worried that they might “die” once more on the way, often hiring a witch doctor to follow behind, to help guide the corpses home safely.
The deceased must undertake the journey home by themselves, regardless of the distance. After being “enchanted”, the corpses can walk normally. The zombies move stiffly, resembling robots, and their faces seem devoid of any emotion.
If someone speaks directly to the corpse, it will fall and be unable to continue its journey home. Hence, a significant danger during the corpses’ journey home is encountering living people who might engage them in conversation.
To minimize risks, the witch doctors often seek out quiet paths, almost devoid of passersby, allowing the corpses to move freely without disturbance.
How Are Corpses Made to Walk?
To this day, scientists are still puzzled over how the Toraja witch doctors can make corpses walk and recognize their homes to return.
The most reasonable answer proposed is that the witch doctors use a type of powdered toxin to revive the dead in an unconscious state for a limited time.
This powder is believed to be extremely toxic to the living, extracted from very poisonous animals in nature such as pufferfish, scorpions, and venomous spiders. These substances are also thought to exist in the skin and organs of certain animals like salamanders, toads, newts, and blue-ringed octopuses.
However, for the dead, it acts like a miraculous drug that brings them back to life. When this powder is “blown” onto the corpses, it stimulates the dead nervous system to operate again unconsciously like a machine.
Typically, this substance revives the corpses for about three days, enough time for them to find their way home. If the witch doctors wish for the corpses to remain alive longer, they must concoct the potion with different ratios and dosages.
Despite this, many remain unsatisfied with this explanation, believing that the creation of walking corpses is merely a dark sorcery of the witch doctors.
Today, the Tana Toraja seldom witnesses corpses finding their way home. There is concern that soon the story of walking corpses will exist only in films or imagination, as fewer and fewer people know this “magic” and fewer families can afford the exorbitant costs of hiring a witch doctor.
To this day, the phenomenon of walking corpses remains a mystery that puzzles scientists in Indonesia and around the world.
The truth behind this incredible reality may only be answered accurately by the witches of Tana Toraja. Whether through magic or not, this remains a sacred spiritual ritual that should be preserved and protected by the Tana Toraja community and the Indonesian government.
