La Dana and His Buffalo

La Dana and His Buffalo is a folktale from Toraja, South Sulawesi. La Dana was a farmer’s son known for being clever but cunning. He used his intelligence to deceive others. The story begins with La Dana and his friend receiving an invitation to attend a funeral ceremony in a neighboring village. At a Torajan funeral ceremony, it is customary to sacrifice a buffalo. Buffaloes are highly valued and regarded as sacred animals by the Toraja people, as they are believed to aid the spirits in reaching the afterlife. The meat from the sacrificed buffalo is then distributed among the guests, including La Dana.

La Dana received the buffalo’s hind leg, while his friend got almost the entire parts except for the hind leg. La Dana was dissatisfied with the portion he received and envied his friend. He then began to devise a plan to take more of the buffalo meat from his friend. La Dana suggested to his friend that they combine the meat they received and exchange it for a live buffalo. If they had a live buffalo, they could fatten it up and then slaughter it to get more meat. His friend agreed with La Dana’s suggestion, and the owner of the funeral event also accepted the idea. Eventually, La Dana went home with a live, yet still skinny, buffalo to take care of with his friend.

As time passed, La Dana began to lose his patience and wanted to eat the buffalo meat immediately. However, his friend urged him to wait until the buffalo was fatter before slaughtering it. Annoyed by his friend’s response, La Dana walked away empty-handed, unable to eat the buffalo meat.

La Dana continued to be haunted by feelings of envy and greed. He returned to his friend’s house and asked his friend to cut off the part that belonged to him, and his friend could take care of the buffalo if he didn’t want to slaughter it immediately. However, his friend knew that the buffalo would die if its hind legs were cut off. His friend then persuaded La Dana not to slaughter the buffalo and to wait until it was ready to be slaughtered. He also promised La Dana that he would get the buffalo’s front leg if he canceled his plan and was willing to wait.

La Dana kept urging his friend to slaughter the buffalo. His friend became angry and asked La Dana to take the buffalo immediately and not come back to bother him again. La Dana agreed and went home with the buffalo that should have belonged to both of them. He was happy because his efforts were not in vain, instead he got the whole part of the buffalo. However, he lost a friend and caused the villagers to stay away from him because of his greed.

The story of La Dana and the buffalo illustrates the destructive power of envy and greed. La Dana’s relentless pursuit of personal gain led him to betray his friend, causing him to lose both the buffalo and the trust of his community. His impatience and desire for immediate gratification blinded him to the value of friendship and the consequences of his actions. Ultimately, the tale serves as a cautionary reminder of the importance of patience, humility, and the detrimental effects of coveting what others possess.