The Legalizing Ritual of “Fondrakö”

Behaviors, of individuals as well as of the society, in Nias culture is controlled through fondrakö. The Fondrakö is a community deliberation forum that also ratifies the customary law. The term is derived from the word rakö (set by oath and curse sanctions). Accordingly, Fondrakö is the establishment of customary law that was legalized by oath and curse sanctions.

The Fondrakö’s legal materials are based on five basic values in the outlook of life held by Nias traditional community (Mendröfa, 1981: 44-6). The five values are: fo’adu (sacred act, pure, solemn), fangaso (purchase of property related with works of: farming, breeding, loans), fo’ölö-ölö hao-hao (social courtesy), fabarahao (formulating procedures of indigenous government and community clustering), and böŵö masi-masi (attitude of compassion and fairness).

The Fondrakö law formulation covers three life aspects (Laiya, 1975: 22-3). First, huku zi fakhai ba mboto niha (law concerning the welfare of the human body). The second is huku zi fakhai ba gokhöta niha (law concerning rights over property belong to people). The third, huku zi fakhai ba rorogöfö zumange niha (law relating to dignity.) Passing through several stages of meetings and deliberations, traditional leaders bring the legal formulation of the fondrakö in a ceremony of ratification. During the ritual, they affirm the presence of a blessing to those who obey the law and a curse to those who break the law (Laiya, 1975: 22-3).

When they give blessings, the ere (priest) would wave young coconut leaves while saying “Ya’ahoŵu dozi solo’ö huku andre ba ya’iondrasi ia hoŵu-hoŵu. Hoŵu-hoŵu khönia ba danö ba hoŵu-hoŵu ba mbanua.” (May abundance and prosperity come to those who obey the law, and let blessings that would come after them. Blessings for them on Earth and blessings for them in Heavens). When the ere cursed, he slammed a palm ekel broom to siraha lato (sculpture), then a chicken’s neck was cut, rotated, and struck into the siraha, while saying, “Ni’elifi ba lato ndrege zanaŵö ba ndrege zanu’i angetula nono zalawa andre. Ya simane fa’atefuta mbagi manu andre ia, ya lö wa’ania ba danö ba ya lö hogunia ba mbanua.” (Cursed on lato are those who violate the law and opposed the decision of this noble son. Here he is, just like the chicken’s neck, he is not rooted on Earth and will not bloom in Heavens).

Another version recounts an old man broke palm ekel broom sticks, the legs and wings of a chicken, and pouring hot lead into the mouth of the chicken, while saying, “Whoever violates anything that has been legalized by this fondrakö, just like this fragile stick, like this tortured chicken, its legs and wings broken, everything he eats would be hot like this lead, so he died. He may not have offspring” (Harefa, 1939: 24).

Then the ere stomped his feet and said, “Me kara lö tebulöbulö, me kara lö maoso-maoso, kara toröi ba nahania, kara sahono boto” (Because the stones would never change, the stones would not move, the stones would remain in place, the stones are forever eternal). Afterwards, the ere gave order to recite the decision of the fondrakö to everyone who were not present. Finally, the ere banged the chicken on a banana trunk until it died.

Besides chickens, animals used as exemplars for fondrakö lawbreakers are dogs (Daeli, 1988; Mendröfa, 2005). During fondrakö’s legalizing ritual, while burning a dog, a satua nöri (a leader) said, “Whoever violates anything that was legalized here, let him and his descendants become as this burning dog, with protruding tongue, ruptured stomach, eyes open wide, dirt expelled.”

Then the satua nöri drove a nail into a coconut trunk (fotanö si’öli/gosö-osö ba döla nohi) and said, “Whoever the person, no one in this country could pull out this nail from the coconut trunk, no one can violate this decision.”