Kelimutu is a volcano on Flores, Indonesia, crowned with three adjacent crater lakes that differ in color from one another and shift color over time due to volcanic gases and mineral chemistry. The local Lio people hold the lakes sacred as the resting place of departed souls: the souls of the young are believed to go to Tiwu Nuwa Muri Koo Fai, the souls of the old to Tiwu Ata Mbupu, and the souls of the wicked to Tiwu Ata Polo, and an annual ceremony offers food to the ancestral spirits believed to reside there.
Facts
Significance
Sacred RoleThe resting place of departed souls for the Lio people: the souls of the young go to Tiwu Nuwa Muri Koo Fai, the souls of the old to Tiwu Ata Mbupu and the souls of the wicked to Tiwu Ata Polo, honoured in an annual ceremony offering food to the ancestral spirits believed to reside there. 1 Origins
Origin Region RegionFlores, Indonesia, a volcano crowned with three adjacent crater lakes that differ in colour from one another. 1 Attributions
Associated ReligionLio traditional ancestral belief centred on the three lakes, alongside the Catholicism most Lio people have practiced since Portuguese and Dutch era mission work on Flores. 1 Connections
Associated With
Nuwa, Deities This source names Nuwa directly: "the young are believed to go to Tiwu Nuwa Muri Koo Fai, the souls of the old to Tiwu Ata Mbupu, and the souls of the wicked to Tiwu Ata Polo, and an annual ceremony offers food to the ancestral..."
Source Encyclopedia of ReligionMircea Eliade (ed.); Lindsay Jones (ed., 2nd ed.)
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Sources
1. Encyclopedia of Religion
Mircea Eliade (ed.); Lindsay Jones (ed., 2nd ed.), Macmillan Reference, 2005s.v. Lio religion; KelimutuView the Source Reader Challenges (0)
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