Asal Usul Letta
- Title
- Asal Usul Letta
- Original language
- Indonesian
- Author(s)
- Illustrator(s)
- Publisher
- Muh. Yusril Abidin
- ISBN
- —
- Publication date
- Subjects
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Description(s)
The Origin of Letta This story has been passed down from generation to generation in the Letta community, and is believed to signify the beginning of Letta’s population. Some people think that this story coincides with the great flood in the Prophet Noah’s era. As the writer, I decided to retell this story because it is one that was often told to me as a bedtime story. It is important to me because Letta is my homeland. Thousands of years ago, there was a huge flood that covered almost the entire surface of the earth. The area of Buttu Bajai, cradled between mountain ranges, was not yet flooded. The tree canopy repelled the heat of the sun, the fresh air like a tranquilizer for the soul. Datu Patote Ribottillangi lived in Buttu Bajai with his seven men and herd of water buffalo. The buffalo had coarse black hair and tough skin. Every morning, the buffalo would swim and forage, returning as the sun was beginning to sink below the horizon. As the sky turned orange, like a chameleon afraid of the enemy, Datu heard his buffalo returning. In the dimming light, he noticed something strange about their bodies. A red mark stretched along their backs, as though someone had used natural dye to colour their dark hair. A sense of wonder and curiosity filled his mind. He had always felt that there were other people alive but had never seen any sign of human life. The following morning, one of Datu’s seven men trailed the buffalo on foot. After several hours, he arrived in a place surrounded by tall trees and teeming with wildlife. This place was Mammulu. The buffalo gathered beneath a large tree, waiting for its fruit to fall. As he watched, he realized that there was a beautiful woman perched in the tree. He watched as she stripped the betel leaves, crushing them in her mouth. Red saliva dripped from her lips onto the buffalo’s backs. In the evening, he returned home and relayed to Datu what he had seen. In disbelief, Datu sent out another man to follow the buffalo and then another. All of the reports were the same. Finally, Datu decided to see the woman for himself. After arriving at Mammulu, he was immediately transfixed by the woman. He tried to make a conversation with her, before proposing. ‘Meloa te kusanga pubeneki,’ Datu said. ‘I intend to marry you.’ ‘Njo takulle pubenea sa mawatang sombaku,’ the woman replied. ‘You will not be able to marry me because the dowry is very difficult.’ ‘Apara sombata? Doi Raka, Bulawan Raka, or what Raka? Pau kanai!,’ Datu cried. ‘What is the dowry? Is it in the form of money or gold? Please tell me!’ ‘Tannia doi, tannia to bulawan’. The woman fixed her eyes on Datu. ‘It is neither money nor gold.’ ‘Apara palena?’ Datu called out. ‘Then what?’ ‘Melora mabela pakkitakku na malampe pattekkaku.’ ‘I want to be able to see and go further.’ Datu understood then that the woman’s intention was to stop the flood. He agreed to fulfill her wish. As he was returning home, something fell from the sky. It was rattan and a book which contained Surah Ya-sin. Datu understood this as a sign from God. He began to read Surah Ya-sin as he walked and, with each step, the water receded little by little. When he had finished reading Surah Ya-sin, he stopped and stuck the rattan in front of him, indicating that the water would never pass the rattan. The resulting marriage between the woman and Datu brought life to the region that is now known as Letta, a beautiful mountainous area with rich cultural heritage.
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