BEI SCHAMANEN IM DSCHUNGEL

André Stahl reports on Sumatra, Mentawai Islands, Pulau Siberut. An island the size of Graubünden in the middle of the Indian Ocean.
In the jungle with the shamans, who are also called guardians of the rainforest. Siberut was already largely a recognized nature reserve in the 1980s. The island was and is known for its many endemic animal and plant species and its indigenous population.
Forty years ago, I was able to visit the indigenous people of the Mentawai Islands and take part in their daily life. Although these islands had been in contact with other civilizations in the coastal area for centuries, their life in the dense jungle remained virtually unaffected. They knew neither writing, modern agriculture nor money. They live in the forest and feed on the forest. I would like to tell you about how they manage their daily lives, what they eat, how they live and how they understand the world and how these experiences have also shaped my understanding of this world. Also about the
dangers and threats posed by the modern world. And today? The island is an officially recognized Unesco World Heritage Site. For a long time I was afraid to visit the island again, but last winter I dared to go back. In the second part, I would like to show you how people live on this island today, between modernity and the demands of the Indonesian state and the old traditions and ways of life.
ways of life. I will also be able to show you a few examples of their craftsmanship.
André Stahl, grew up in Tösstal (ZH), studied to become a landscape architect. Early commitment to nature and environmental protection and without this commitment he would never have ended up on this island.


Note: This text was translated by machine translation software and not by a human translator. It may contain translation errors.