Mount Santubong: A Tale of Two Princesses

In conjunction with National Storytelling Week 2021 (31 January - 6 February), here is a popular folklore from Sarawak, Borneo. The Legend of Mount Santubong Mount Santubong is one of the most famous tourist attraction places in Sarawak. Located 35 kilometer from Kuching City, and reachable in a 45 minutes drive, facing the South China …

A Tribute to Benedict Sandin

On 18th October 2020, Google celebrated the late Benedict Sandin's 102nd birthday by creating a Doodle that was on displayed for 24 hours. Malaysian social media, twitter in particular, soon highlight it and spread the news. Malaysians, Sarawakians in particular, especially the Ibans are happy, not to mention proud, that a fellow Sarawakian Iban was …

The Festival of Naming a Child for Dayak Kenyah (Ngalang Anak/Pusau)

This blog post is another description of the Ceremony (or in this case, it is called 'Festival') of Naming a Child by a certain indigenous group: The Dayak Kenyah. To read about the Dayak Iban Ceremony of Naming a Child, click here. The Dayak Kenyah  Who are the Dayak Kenyah? The Dayak Kenyah are indigenous …

Gawai Dayak 2020: COVID-19 version

The celebration of Gawai Dayak this year is different from the previous years. Usually, Gawai celebration  in a longhouse for the Ibans gives people the opportunity to gather with family members and relatives under one long roof. It is a merry occasion. Family members, who live somewhere else to work or to study all over the …

Orangutan in Iban Mythology

Before Gerinching could think of how to help him, she realized that the remaung had spotted her on the tree. The cold stare she received told her that it knew she was the one who struck it just now. It took a few steps backwards without taking its eyes off her. She swallowed hard as …

The Demon Huntsmen: An Original Story

This post features one of the fifty winners of 2nd Asian Story Writing Challenge in year 2018  which was organized by Storymakers League for youngsters in Asia, aged 10 to 17. The challenge specified that the writing had to be an original story that highlighted in some ways, the writer's country of residence in a …

Can We Find the Cure of All Ills in the Ancient Rain Forest of Borneo ?

“What kind of illnesses can be cured by the plants from the forest?” Adam was curious. “All kinds, as long as they are physical illnesses.” “Not all, I’m sure,” Adam disagreed. “We still don’t have the cure for AIDS, for instance.” “Ah, who has ever come here and looked for the cure for it? Mother …

The Importance Of Preserving Memories: A Story Of A Long Apu Family’s Pesaka Beads

A Paper by Terry Justin Dit (terry.j@curtin.edu.my) Eileen Paya Foong (eileen.f@curtin.edu.my) Curtin University of Technology, Sarawak Campus Beads have played an important role in Dayak society for several centuries. They are seen not only as decorative objects valued merely for their aesthetic qualities but have a deeper significant cultural value placed on them. Some beads …

THE ORIGIN OF BORNO BEADS: THE MYTH

"Kumang turned around, curious to see what prompted such a frantic reaction. From the shady ruai she was in, her eyes caught the sight of a figure that filled the door frame. The sun that shone too brightly outside made it difficult for her to identify the creature that sent the cook into a panic state. …

A Journey of a Hundred Posts

This post is the official 100th post of The Return of Panggau Warriors. I thought I should dedicate this post to its journey. I created (well, actually Apai Sampurai did) this blog on 13th May, 2013. That's two months after I published TROPAWS Vol. 1 "When Lightning Strikes". Why did I create this blog? There …