The reason I went to Sumba was that I was invited by the son of one of the leaders of Tarung village (who lives in Australia). I came for Wulla Podu, “the Sacred Month”, a time when 20-30 separate celebrations are held. The only problem was that nobody knew the exact date when Wulla Podu would start as it depends on the moon. It starts from the time the moon appears in the sky till it disappears a month later. As my time was limited (due to a funeral in Egypt) we had to sort of guess when to go and cross our fingers. Even when we arrived they still did not know the date. The sky had been overcast and they could not see the moon. But it appeared we came only 2 days too early. In the first two weeks the main events are receptions held for wild pigs that hunters have killed and brought in to Tarung village as sacred offerings. People go out every day hunting in the forests. By late afternoon the people of Tarung are listening for the sounds of the hunters singing and yelling in the distance - then they know that the hunters are on their way in with a pig. The hunters and the pig are received with much celebration and fine speeches in traditional poetic language. The second important ceremony is “Dekki Kawuku” (Fixing The Day) for the major ceremony to be held at the end of the sacred month. The date is not fixed until the full moon has appeared in the sky. Then there is a meeting of the leading priests to decide on the date. They still need supernatural forces to confirm their decision so they send off a posse of priests on horseback to the sacred grove of Ubu Pede to get approval. For Dekki Kawuku the men and the horses are all dressed up in special colorful clothes and set off on their mission. Traditionally no-one was allowed to follow them or even to look at them, but these days the rule is that everyone must stand back 10 metres and watch from a distance. No-one is allowed to stop them or interfere with their ride through the town so the priests are escorted by a team of young men on motorbikes. Their job is to stop all the other traffic so the horseback priests can pass and return safely back to Tarung. ( I jumped on the back of one of the motorbikes!) Celebrations in the village continue right through the night many special dances and songs that have to be sung. This lasts till early morning and is followed by a 4 day rest before they dance again. I attended the Wulla Podu ritual held at Kampung Tarung, in the center of Waikabubak town but other Wulla Podu celebrations are held at Kampung Bondo Maroto, 4 km away to the east of Tarung and at Waibangga about 12 km to the North. Tarung Village, Sumba, Indonesia, 2011. ©Ingetje Tadros