Headhunters of Sabah

Written & Edited by Sonia Yashoda, Vesley Junior, Faith Richard & Velvette Rozelle | Published for the Komuhakan Movement (@komuhakan)

“They have a custom of killing people in order to obtain human skulls, which they suspend as trophies from the roofs of their huts. It is from this custom these people have obtained the name of Headhunters.”

The Very Rev. Thomas Jackson, Perfect Apostolic of Labuan and North Borneo, 1884:2

Background

Headhunting activities among the Dusun community were recorded by Darlymple as early as 1763. However, the archaeological discovery of carvings depicting a man clutching the head of another proved that these activities happened 600 years prior (Sauman, 2017:80).

Depending on the language and dialect, headhunters were referred to by various names. For instance, the Murut referred to them as Pengait or Tonggorib; the Lotud addressed them as Magarib; the Tobilung called them Sagawi; the Murut Nabai identified them as Pandadau, and the Murut Delayan referred to them as Maginggulu.

It was not apparent whether headhunting was done solitarily or in groups. The primary targets were neighbouring villages, however, communities further away were still attacked: John Whitehead’s 1893 account describes the raid of the Dusun Kiau tribe, who teamed up with headhunters from Teung-Tuhan to attack a village four days away from where they were.

Headhunting in different Sabahan ethnic groups

Kadazan Headhunters

Skulls obtained by Monsopiad,a famous Kadazan headhunter (Photo Credits:Monsopiad Heritage Village)

Kadazan headhunters followed a spiritual approach once obtaining the heads of their enemies. The Magang ceremony was celebrated to honour or pay homage to the spirits believed to reside in the skulls. It was also celebrated to introduce the skulls to a new home or to a new building. Each ceremony lasted seven days and included food offerings to Miontong — guardian spirits of each home, chanting of momihin prayers, and dancing by bobohizans that imitated the head-hunting guise of Kadazan warriors. The skulls were affixed to a piece of bamboo with hisad (long broad grass) fashioned into various patterns. When the skulls were placed in their new location, hisad were also used to adorn the windows and interior walls of the house. Kumba, burning dried sago palm fronds were carried as the skulls were transferred to prevent evil spirits from mixing with the good spirits since they pose a threat of disturbance during the Magang.

Murut Headhunters

Murut headhunters (Photo Credits: Mari Mari Cultural Village)

The Murut, Sabah’s last indigenous community to forsake headhunting, were known as the silent headhunters and were referred to as pengait (root: kait, which means ‘to hook’). They beheaded their opponents and kept the heads as trophies as late as the 1960s. The Murut tribe was feared throughout Borneo for their propensity of headhunting. Groups of young Murut men embarked on regular headhunting excursions, killing and severing the heads of anybody they came across. A young Murut’s first head is most cherished as it gave him a recognition of manhood, allowing him to be tattooed. A simple star on the shoulder denoted a single head (Rutter 1929: 335). A man who had failed to acquire at least two heads for himself received little respect in the community and was shunned. They also had to obtain at least one head in order to wed.

Dusun Tambunan Headhunters

Dusun Tambunan headhunters (Photo credits: Wanderlust Picture)

Headhunters from the Dusun Tambunan tribe used to hunt in Keningau, Tenom, and Rundum. Rundum was considered a dangerous location as their warriors utilised blowpipes to attack. After the first head, Dusun Tambunans tattooed a scroll design across their entire front body, producing a kind of waistcoat (Rutter 1922: 335). According to oral history, headhunters from the Sunsuron Village in Tambunan launched headhunting operations against the Dusun Tompulung village in Telupid in the 1800s. Yambai and Mangavi, two remarkable Dusun Tompulung warriors, protected their territory from the Dusun Tambunan headhunters at the time (Shim 2007:120). During the British occupation, Dusun Tambunan warriors engaged in headhunting, which resulted in the British attacking them. The initial attack was led by Captain A.M. de Fontaine, chief commissioner of the British North Borneo Constabulary, in 1883.

Reasons for Headhunting

The practice of headhunting was carried out for various reasons, including tribal strife. If a large group went headhunting, the heads acquired would be held communally, whereas heads captured by a small group were usually kept by a family. Men headhunted as a testament to their bravery and manhood. The spirit of their victims were believed to follow them to the next world, and as a result, they enjoyed more incredible notoriety not only in this world but also in the next. Men also practised headhunting to find a bride: unmarried young women used to chant, “Guntalou ih yanak wagyu, amu kosuli bangkai” which translates to “You are a coward — you cannot get the head of our young men who took away the heads of your young men.” Aside from that, skulls were obtained to protect against diseases and attacks, to lay beneath the foundation of a new house, to avert an epidemic, to have protective and guardian spirits for the village, to let a deceased relative’s spirit rest and not return to disturb their family, and to obtain the victim’s strength.

Taboos In Connection With Headhunting

Taboos had to be scrupulously obeyed by wives of men who were out headhunting, as well as their mothers and sisters. There were no taboos for men who stayed at home. The following is quoted from 1922 Among Primitive Peoples in Borneo by I.H.N. Evans:

1. Women must not sit sprawling about or with their legs crossed, else their husbands will not have strength for anything.
2. It is lucky for the women to keep walking about, for then the men will have the strength to walk far.
3. The women might not sleep by day, but only at night, otherwise, the men would be heavy, would trip, and fail to see obstacles.
4. They might not eat bananas or limes, lest the men’s bones became soft and their muscles slack.
5. They might not drink rice-beer (tapai) lest the men when running would be in bad condition and froth at the mouth.
6. Once every night the women had to run, in line, up and down the length of the house and sing:

“Lambai nu sangang, lakau nu mawah, kono intatengah, ke limanan.”

Literally translated, this is:

‘The flight of the hornbill, the walk of the porcupine, like a straight passage, no sickness.’

Headhunting Method

The head needed to be severed while the enemy was still alive, ideally in combat. The head of an already deceased person was considered worthless by the Kadazans and Dusuns because it was devoid of any spirits. The head was then brought to the headhunter’s village to be displayed atop a bangkaha, a bamboo pole with a slit top for drying the head.

The Muruts, on the other hand, exhibited the enemy’s head on top of a tangkob. The tangkob is a 3 to 4 foot tall cylindrical vessel made of tree bark. It serves as a rice storage container. The head was hung on top of the tangkob along with dried hisad leaves and animal bones to keep the rice spirits from disturbances and to provide good luck to the rice owner.

Weaponry Used

The Ilang sakuit or mandau is the most frequent weapon used by warriors to sever the enemy’s head. It was commonly utilised by the Muruts and is thought to have originated in Kalimantan. On their mengayau expeditions, Murut headhunters wore a bilong, a wooden armlet that served as arm protection. They also wore a talisman and adornment known as papakol, worn on the leg. Tools like gayangor tandus/andus and taming kayu (used as a shield) were essential in headhunting.

An ilang sakuit (Photo Credits: KajoMag)

Bilong (right) and papakol (left and centre) (Photo Credits: KajoMag)

Generational Passing Down of Trophies

For families that decide to keep the skulls they inherited, ceremonies known as Magang (term used in Penampang) or Mensilad/Mansilad (term used in Keningau and Bingkor) would have to be carried out.

Newly taken heads were installed in the family at a feast called Mamut. The Magang ceremonies are seen as a substitute for the already extinct Mamut feasts. The primary purpose of these Magang ceremonies is to propitiate and respect the spirits believed to reside in the skulls. The traditions would also be done to introduce the skulls to a new home or into a new building.

Magang ceremonies, however, are rarely held, usually at intervals of 30 to 40 years. It was also once suggested in a Kinabalu Sabah Times article in 1974 that there might never be another Magang ceremony; this statement unfortunately, seems to hold true.

The structure of the ceremonies varied in length and flow of events. According to past records, there is no fixed arrangement as to how Magang ceremonies are supposed to be held.

In Peter R. Phelan’s book “Headhunting and the Magang Ceremony in Sabah”, accounts of a few Magang/Mensilad/Mansilad ceremonies around Sabah were recorded, spanning throughout the 20th century, namely;

1. Keningau, June 1926, reported by the British North Borneo Herald

It is quoted from the report that during the Mensilad ceremony, large quantities of beers were brewed, and a wide array of guests were invited. At the same time, the houses were decorated with silad grass, hence the name of the ceremony. The skulls were taken down from the roof rafters, wreathed in silad grass, and hung near the rice-beer jars and in the proximity of the gongs.

The first two days are spent in the huts drinking and dancing. Everybody drinks, and takes their turns at the gongs, and everybody dances. Women play the chief part in dancing as they dress themselves up in splendour.

On the third day, each family supplies a pole lavishly decked with grass which is carried by a chosen representative who also takes the skulls.

The men are gaily decked with silad grass worked into hats and jackets and streamers. A procession of the representatives with gongs in front of them dances round the fields while the rest go down to the river.

The women dance while the men fill hollow bamboos with water. Some of the older women croon songs to themselves (understood as bobohizan(s) chanting prayers). All eventually settle down in the hut again and go drinking until supplies fail.

1. Mansilad Ceremony in Bingkor, 1982

This Mansilad ceremony was the first held in Bingkor since 1952. Two skulls were involved, which were brought from their owner’s home to the community centre in Bingkor (located at the side of the local playing field).

The skulls were transported by an open lorry specifically prepared and decorated for the purpose. The thick bamboo pole was fastened horizontally from the front to the rear of the lorry. The two skulls were tied to the central bamboo.

An open lorry used in transporting the skulls. (Photo Credits: Head-hunting and the Magang Ceremony in Sabah)

Three female bobolian (priestesses) stood solemnly beside the skulls during the journey, and a team of men beat a traditional music set of gongs. The heads were then carried in procession from the lorry to the community centre with due solemnity.

From the morning of the 31st of July until tomorrow’s afternoon, numerous rites and many incantations were chanted by the three bobolian to honour and placate the spirits that were said to be living in the skulls.

However, the ceremony, even back then, in 1982, received limited attention in a general atmosphere of vague curiosity. The Mansilad was used for speeches promoting traditional culture and racial harmony. Many sporting events were also organised to coincide with the Hari Mansilad.

Poster for Hari Mansilad held in Bingkor.

(Photo Credits: Head-hunting and the Magang Ceremony in Sabah)

1. Magang Ceremony in Kampung Kandazon, Penampang, May 1974

The Magang ceremony was held by Mr Dousia Moujing, the 6th direct descendant of the Kadazan warrior, Monsopiad, a famed Kadazan warrior born and raised in the district of Penampang, who in his lifetime, amassed 42 human skulls through headhunting.

The ceremony was held from the 4th of May to the 10th of May 1974, to introduce and install 42 human skulls inherited by Dousia into his newly built house. The new house was constructed on the site of the former home, which had been demolished in two stages. Before the demolition, the skulls were solemnly transferred to their husap (rice store).

The husap (rice store) owned by Dousia.

(Photo Credits: Head-hunting and the Magang Ceremony in Sabah)

By the afternoon of the Magang’s first day, nine bobohizan(s) were present. From 6 to 7 pm, there was a meal of rice, pork, and beef curry for the relatives and close friends who had come. Around 30 people were present. After the meal, the chief bobohizan, Bianti, prepared a food offering in a bamboo container for the Miontong — spirits believed by some Kadazans to be the guardian spirits of each home. While the offerings were made, prayers were chanted by the bobohizan(s), and at about 9 pm, two of the bobohizan(s) performed a ritual dance called the Miontong’s dance. One of the bobohizan was said to have been possessed by Miontong. This was followed by general merry-making with the beating of gongs and sumazau dancing going on continually until 2.30 in the morning.

Sunday was the most important day of the Magang. The second day of the Magang started with bobohizan(s) chanting prayers, all of whom stayed in the house of Dousia from the night before. At about 8 am, two flags owned by Bianti (the chief bobohizan) were attached to bamboo poles and put at the end of the house facing the road; this was said to be a sign that a Magang was being held. The flags were given to Bianti by her grandmother, a bobohizan, and can only be hung up during a Magang ceremony.

At about 8.15 in the morning, all present joined in a procession from Dousia’s house to the garden surrounding his brother’s home, Joinon to collect the bunches of hisad or silad grass that had previously been left there. After the procession, the bobohizan(s) seated themselves inside Dousia’s house and began to form the hisad into various patterns, according to their purpose and later usage–some were required to be attached to the bamboo to which the skulls were fastened. Some of the hisad were used to make two sets of sandangon, which is slung on the shoulder. While some of the hisad were used to decorate the vatu (stone menhirs) at a ceremony known as Monogindai which would take place on the third day of the Magang.

The significance of the hisad or silad grass used as decorations are debated, yet according to records given by Owen Rutter and George Wolley;

1. Rutter — the silad is essential and not as a mere representation of hair, but it is also rather a sort of medicine; as without it the heads would be angry and bring harm
2. Wooley — if no silad was hung up with a head, the house would be liable to misfortune (katulaan)

By mid-morning Sunday, many people had gathered to witness the highlight on the second day of the ceremony. At 11.15 am, the transferring of skulls tradition from their temporary resting place in the husap into Dousia’s house began.

The bobohizan(s) led the way towards the husap, chanting prayers as they went. One bobohizan(s) sprinkled white rice as the procession proceeded to the husap, which was intended as a gift for good spirits. A man carries two pieces of burning dried sago palm leaves which were needed to prevent evil spirits from mixing with the good spirits and possibly causing disturbance to the Magang.

The bobohizan and a small number of men climbed into the husap, and after chanting

some prayers, the bamboo to which the skulls were tied was unfastened. Two men were assigned to carry the heads, they were Dousia and a relative from Kampung Hungab named Disimond.

The bobohizan followed behind. The skulls were carried up the stairs into their new home with great joy. Those who were taking them danced step with the beating of the gongs while the bamboo with the skulls remained still on their shoulders. Then each end of the bamboo to which the skulls were attached was placed on an upturned tadang (long basket carried on the back) so that the skulls were two to three feet above floor level, concluding the highlight of the Magang’s second day.

After it was placed on the tadang, the present danced the sumazau. The bobohizan(s) seemed to be unperturbed by all the excitement and proceeded continuously with their chanting of prayers.

A meal was next served in the open space beneath the house. Before the food was put on the table, one of the bobohizan’s daughters sprinkled everyone with bokis (lustral water).

After the meal, the bobohizan(s) walked back and forth in the room chanting prayers while one of them continuously rang small cymbals called sindavang; to attract the spirits’ attention and help the bobohizan to concentrate on the prayers that they are saying. The remainder of the second day was spent dancing the sumazau and mingku’ung.

The bobohizan(s) chant prayers while ringing small cymbals.

(Photo Credits: Head-hunting and the Magang Ceremony in Sabah)

The third day of the Magang ceremony began with a sacrificial killing of a pig. The pig’s blood was kept and later placed into two hangod(s) (bamboo containers). The blood would be poured on two stone menhirs in the afternoon while the flesh of the pig was prepared for cooking. Further chanting of prayers by the bobohizan was done periodically during the afternoon, and they continued to prepare the hisad.

At 2.30 pm on the third day, a Monogindai was centred around the vatu(s) (stone menhirs). Two stone menhirs were visited, prayers were chanted, and sacrifices were offered.

It began with a procession from Dousia’s house, led by a person carrying one of the earlier flags, followed by seven bobohizan(s) chanting prayers. The chief bobohizan sprinkled a few handfuls of white rice along the way.

There was cooked rice and cooked pork from the sacrificed pig. Dousia followed along with his family, relatives and friends. The first stone menhir visited was Gintutun Do Mohoing (located at what is known today as Monsopiad Cultural Village).

Prayers known as momihin were chanted to the spirit believed to reside in the stone — these prayers were to request the spirit not to cause any harm to the people present. Meanwhile, two men performed the Kadazan form of the martial art known as the batambul. As the bobohizan chanted prayers, one of the senior bobohizan stuck a parang in the earth a few inches away from the stone menhir. She did this in two places on either side of the stone, where the upright pieces of bamboo carrying the hisad and white cloth were to be put.

One had to jump off from the stone menhir (Photo Credits: Head-hunting and the Magang Ceremony in Sabah)

Gintutun do Mohoing stone menhir currently in Monsopiad Cultural Village (Photo Credits: Monsopiad Heritage Village)

Dousia’s brother, Joinon, climbed on top of the stone menhir and ceremoniously poured one bamboo container of blood on the stone. He then jumped down; The person cannot climb down but must jump off to avoid the possibility of being harmed by the spirit of the stone as he descends.

The bobohizan scattered some rice around the monument and poured a little tapai on its side. A portion of the cooked pork of the sacrificed pig was eaten by the bobohizan(s) in turns or relays as there was non-stop chanting of prayers.

Towards the end of the Monogindai, the chief bobohizan stood successively on four sides of the menhir and chanted some prayers away from it. As she did so, she sprinkled a few handfuls of dry, uncooked, white rice on the ground in front of her.

Then the group formed into a procession again and moved back past the house to another stone menhir. The rituals performed here were identical.

The bobohizan must consume all the rice and pork taken to the menhir– none of it can be taken back to the house; even if it rains, the bobohizan must remain until all the food has been consumed. After the Monogindai was done, the group returned to the house at about 5.30 pm. Later, a sumazau and chanting by the bobohizan continued through most of the night.

The fourth day was spent tying the hisad on the new bamboo pole, which the skulls would be attached. By about 3.30 p.m., all was ready to place the skulls in the special compartment in the ceiling of the new house after it had been transferred from the husap to the new home.

Dousia, together with another man, placed each end of the bamboo bearing the skulls on their shoulders and danced.

After the dance was over, a step-ladder was used to insert the bamboo into the metal holders attached to the ceiling so that the skulls fitted neatly into the recess made for them.

Skulls being fitted into the recess in the house’s ceiling.

(Photo Credits: Head-hunting and the Magang Ceremony in Sabah)

Meanwhile, four of the bobohizan(s) vigorously waved winnowing baskets, seemingly to contain the spirits in the skulls in case they might leave them and cause harm to any bystanders.

Bobohizan waving a winnowing basket.

(Photo Credits: Head-hunting and the Magang Ceremony in Sabah)

Skulls currently in Monsopiad Cultural Village (Photo Credits: Monsopiad Heritage Village)

One of the bobohizan unsheathed a ceremonial sword and danced. As she danced, she moved the sword, imitating the head-hunting style of old warriors. It was believed that spirits of the skulls possessed her.

Subsequently, they were given general rest that lasted nearly two hours. The peak of the Magang ceremony had ended, and the few remaining days were spent eating and dancing; lunampag (dance to frighten away spirits of bad luck).

Phasing Out of Headhunting/Disposal of Skulls

According to the writings of British Explorer Frederick Burbidge in 1880; “Although head-hunting is gradually becoming a thing of the past in Borneo, still so highly are the old skulls valued even by the now peaceful tribes who have not taken a head for years, that they can rarely be induced to part with them, no matter how much they may be offered in exchange. “

It seems to suggest that head-hunting was no longer practised in certain parts of Borneo during the late 19th century.

In an extract from the British North Borneo Herald in the year 1888

Photo Credits: The Daily Express

The Headhunters in the interior of Papar took an oath of allegiance to the then British government that occupied North Borneo to give up the practice of headhunting.

More explicit forms of the head-hunting culture being phased out can be seen during the 1970s;

In 1976, the family of an elderly man from Kampung Puluduk in Penampang was buried with 15 skulls in an adjoining grave that once hung from the ceiling of his house.

According to an extract from the Borneo Bulletin published on December 29, 1973; A four-day ceremony was held in Kampung Nambayan, Tambunan. All the skulls owned by the households in the kampung were buried.

The grand four-day ‘removal feast’ consisted of bobohizan(s) reciting prayers, non-stop gong beating, and sacrificing a buffalo.

The rivalry between two Kadazan warriors; Monsopiad and Gantang

There was a bone among the skulls inherited by Mr Dousia Moujing, the 6th direct descendant of Monsopiad. It is said that the bone belonged to Gantang, a rival of Monsopiad. Gantang wanted to eliminate Monsopiad, and to do this, he thought that the best course of action would be to organise a celebration and invite Monsopiad to it; there, he would devise means to show that he was superior.

Monsopiad set out for Gantang’s house after accepting the invitation in all trust. He brought with him 7 young boys that stayed behind a small hill near the home of Gantang as he went alone into Gantang’s house. When he arrived, he was warmly welcomed by Gantang with a jar of tapai. After drunk two jars of tapai, Gantang asked Monsopiad to break a nibong (wood of a palm tree) with his bare hand. Gantang went first, but only a slight crack appeared. Monsopiad took a turn; he struck a fresh piece, broken in pieces. Gantang felt this defeat but still hoped to prove himself more significant than Monsopiad.

Gantang then invited Monsopiad to dance the sumazau. When Gantang danced, he chose seven girls to do the sumazau. He shouted the pangkis and sprang upwards during the dance with such enthusiasm that his head touched the house’s roof. It is said that he caused five of the girls to faint. Monsopiad took his turn, also partnered by the seven girls. He then shouted the pangkis and danced with such vigour that his head not only touched the root but went through it, causing six of the girls to faint.

Gantang was very disappointed. He invited Monsopiad to have a rest, concealing his ulterior motives. He quietly went and found out how Monsopiad would return to his home. Gantang then hid behind a big tree to ambush Monsopiad. When Monsopiad was on his way home, Gantang suddenly aimed a blow at him with his parang from behind but missed. Monsopiad counter attacked, defeating Gantang. Monsopiad cut Gantang’s body up, taking a leg back to Gantang’s house. Monsopiad and the 7 boys brought Gantang’s head and arm, hence the bone among the skulls at the home of Dousia that remains.

Preservation of Culture

Warriors used to regard skulls as valuables back in the day. It was thought that keeping a family’s skulls would protect the home. The skulls were there to safeguard the village from danger and disease if they owned them.

Headhunting is no longer practised today. The Murut were the last people in Sabah to forsake the traditional practice. The Kadazan passed down their forefathers’ skull collection to younger generations. They now bear the responsibility of maintaining the skulls’ spirits.

There are still rumours of modern-day headhunting. When a new bridge is erected, it is claimed that a head (or several, depending on the size of the bridge) is required in the foundations. Droughts and other environmental disasters may also necessitate a human sacrifice to restore equilibrium between people, nature, and the spiritual realm.

Establishment of the Monsopiad Cultural Village

In the year 1990, the Sabah Tourism board proposed for the 42 skulls belonging to the descendants of Monsopiad to be taken in and displayed at the Sabah State Museum. This would attract a large number of tourists into the state. However, the descendants of Monsopiad did not agree to this. They believed that the skulls should directly be under their care. Therefore, in 1992, they decided it would be best to establish a cultural village, ensuring proper care of the skulls while enabling tourists to learn more about them. With the support of the Sabah Tourism board, they started building the “House of Skulls” and a nearby riverside cafe.

Both buildings were completed and officially opened to the public in May of 1996. Since then, the cultural village has expanded its footprint to include other facilities such as the Tangkob (paddy collection centre), Husap do Poginuman (rice wine area), as well as a hall with regular performances of traditional Kadazan dances.

Entrance to the Monsopiad Cultural Village. (Photo Credits: Sabah Tourism Board)

Gintutun Do Mohoing; Stone menhir that stands in the centre of the Monsopiad Cultural Village.

(Photo Credits: Sabah Tourism Board)

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