The Origin of Name Mount Mekongga

Mount Mekongga, 2,620 meters above the sea level, is located in the sub-district of Ranteangin, Kolaka District, Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia. Mekongga alone, in the local language, means a giant hawk murdered on the hand of a boy named Tasahea from the Land of Loeya. So is there any relation between the mount with the hawk? Here is the story…!

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The Land of Sorume, now called Kolaka, was once in commotion as a giant hawk got angry and hunted for the local inhabitants as prey. It swooped down over the kampong just to peck the local inhabitants‘ livestock. If such a thing went of further longer, people‘s wealth would decrease, sooner or later.

It was flashed on their minds that something worse would happen just in case all the livestock had gone, so the hawk hunted for those people as prey. They scared of hanging and working outside their homes. In some cases, the bird had pecked and swallowed some people when they‘re grazing sheep on the Bende savannah. Indeed, the savannah was near to the hawk‘s nest.

The local inhabitants then gathered for discussion. The hawk‘s anger was on the table resulting in some fresh ideas. An idea of asking for help from Larumbangi was agreed by the forum.

Larumbangi was a magical man living in the hinterland of Solumba, now Belandete Sub-district. He possessed a piece of talismanic kris and a magical sarong that enabled him to fly across the air.

Several people were mandated by the forum to meet him in Solumba. The safest way to reach that place was to trace a thick forest where the hawk wouldn‘t be able to see them fro the air.

In short, they had reached Solumba and met Larumbangi on his home. They started telling about the calamity at their village. Hearing that story, Larumbangi spoke, “Don‘t worry. You can cope with that problem without me. You can do it by yourselves, I think,”

“But, how? We‘ve never been out of home since it comes to our life. We‘re not even brave to fight against the bird,” an envoy said.

“Here is! You need to gather a number of bamboos, and sharpen them. Find a brave and sturdy man, and get him to stay on the savannah. Get him to be armed with a spear. Fence the man with the sharpened bamboos you have made before,” Larumbangi told them.

The envoys took up the suggestion. They went back home soon to tell the local inhabitants about it. In short, they made an announcement that there would be a competition for soldiers or commoners to beat the hawk.

Three days later, hundreds of soldiers had attended the village for competing against the challenge. The award was quite interesting.

The village leader said, “The one who appear to be the winner of the competition will be awarded with an elegance house in this village if he is a slave. If the winner is a noble person, he will be entitled with my position as the highest leader of Kolaka village. I promise,”

The competition began. All the competitors performed their abilities and magical powers. The jurors got confused to choose the one as the winner. Finally, a man named Tasahea from the Land of Loeya was chosen.

As promised, Tasahea would be awarded with an elegance house in the village as he was a slave serving to a rich merchant in the coastal of Southeast Sulawesi. But, before the awarding ceremony, Tasahea would be challenged to beat the mad hawk.

A number of sharpened bamboos were put on Bende Savannah, and Tasahea was put inside the bamboo fence. He was armed with a spear on his hand. He waited for the hawk flying at him.

In the mid of that day, the sky turned dark and the storm thundered back and forth. That was the sign that the hawk would appear immediately. It‘s proven. The hawk came out of its nest, and flew over the air.

The hawk seemed happy as there was a man on the savannah. It starred at Tasahea and looked will make a sudden raid at him. Unfortunately, before the hawk pecked him, its wings got stuck to the fence.

Knowing this, Tasahea quickly threw his spear at the hawk‘s chest. It was stuck deeply inside the hawk. The hawk roared in pain then flew higher before it fell down to the earth, dead.

Tasahea threw a sharpened bamboo at the hawk‘s breast

The local inhabitants were happy of this. They accepted Tasahea in a very warm welcome party for seven days ahead. However, at the seventh day, some people got disease. They got headache and felt pain over their bodies. Worse, their farms produced nothing; thus they had no something to eat. Consequently, many people were died because of starvation.

The remaining people got panic over this calamity. They turned their heads to Larumbalangi to ask for help. Some people then went to Solumba to meet him.

“We got another problem, Sir!” an envoy reported.

“What‘s the matter?” Larumbalangi asked.

 “Indeed! After the hawk is dead, we got another problem. Something strange happens,” the envoy said and continued telling about the most recent condition in the village.

“OK. Now just go back to your village, and I do believe it will be fine soon,” Larumbalangi sought to ensure them.

“That‘s all, Sir? No suggestion at all?” the envoy doubted Larumbalangi.

Larumbalangi smiled at them, saying, “Let God decides your fate! Just do believe in God that God would make it all fine,” Larumbalangi ensured them.

When the envoys went back home, Larumbalangi sent a prayer so that there would be flood in the village. It was expected the flood would clean all the decaying flesh of the dead hawk. Larumbalangi believed that the onset of the calamity was the hawk‘s carrion.

All of sudden, the sky turned dark. The lighting flashed back and forth followed by the rumbling thunder. The rain fell heavily for seven days ahead. The village was badly flooded. The flood struck the village; thus cleaned the hawk‘s carrion and brought it to the nearest estuary.

For that reason, an estuary in Kolaka is full of fishes and coral reefs assumed as the fossil of the giant hawk killed on the hand of Tasahea. Hence, the river flowing to the estuary was named “Lamekongga” that means a river where carrion of a giant hawk was sunk. Near the estuary, there is a mount that is believed to be place where the hawk fell down in dead on the sharpened bamboo of Tasahea. The mount then was named “Mekongga” that means a mount where a giant hawk was killed.

Tasahea, a magical man from the Land of Loeya, was awarded with an elegance house in the village. The highest position in the Land of Kolaka, a region that has seven sub-governments or locally known as Tonomotu‘u, was bestowed upon Larumbalangi by the village leader and all the society members as well.

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Here is the story behind the name of Mount Mekongga in Kolaka, Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia. The above story is categorized as myth. There is a moral message that can be derived from the story; that of don‘t give up easily. We ought not to give up easily; thus we should have visionary thoughts. This is seen from the efforts performed by the envoys who sought for help to cope with the problem faced by their village. In the Tunjuk Ajar Melayu (Effendy: 2006), it is said,

(Those who have visionary thoughts //would never give up to the problem he/she is facing. //Those who have visionary thoughts// know where to go when there is a problem [God]).

Samsuni (sas/97/09-08)

Translated by Irfan Nugroho (ter/118/04-09)

Sources:

• Adapted from Sidu, La Ode. 1999. Cerita Rakyat dari Sulawesi Tenggara. Jakarta: Grasindo.
• Indri. “Mekongga Maniis.” Available online at http://gazeboijuk.multiply.com/journal/item/1/mekongga_maniss%20-%2029k, retrieved on September 3^rd, 2008.
• Effendy, Tenas. 2006. Tunjuk Ajar Melayu. Yogyakarta: Balai Kajian dan Pengembangan Budaya Melayu bekerja sama dengan AdiCita Karya Nusa.

Photo credit: Korpcitaka.WordPress.com

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