2. The Second Creator

(A Retold Myth from Sarmi)

Without His Great Deeds, Human Life Would Not Have Been Better.

Without Merne’s great deeds, life for the people and animals and plants in the Sarmi region on the northern coast of Papua would have been worse. For it was Merne who killed Jame and made things new and good for all of them.

By CELLY AKWAN and BECKY SIMSON

The Male Twins

The story of Merne and Jame started in Serwar, an inland village in the Sarmi region. They descended uniquely from male twins. The wife of a married couple got pregnant in her stomach and thigh, and soon delivered the babies! The older baby was born from the stomach of his mother; the younger one was born from her thigh.

The boy born from his mother’s thigh was a scoundrel the minute he was born. He hit anybody and anything, screamed whenever he was dissatisfied, and enjoyed eating large quantities of human flesh!

The boy born from the stomach was different from his brother. He loved people, animals, plants, and defended them. He even made their life better.

The twins grew up in the jungle and understood animal languages. It was Fatrau, an extraordinary wild boar, whose death enabled people to speak animal languages. Unknowingly, two daughters of Igu, a married man, roasted the boar to death. The fat from its body proved to have magical effects on humans. When somebody rubbed it on his face, he was soon able to understand any animal languages. That is why tribes living in the Sarmi region venerated Fatrau’s spirit.

Before the brothers were adults, they were sent to the secret men’s house. It was a special house built only for men; women were not allowed to enter it. There, the twins would be initiated for some years into adulthood. Their uncles were responsible for educating the boys about the mores and beliefs of their community and the physical dexterity they needed for their future lives. Before the initiation period was over, the brothers should fulfill a requirement: each of them should kill someone. Killing someone meant finishing the education of each of them at the secret men’s house.

When they were almost adults, they had to do something none of their peers could do. They had to kill a huge monster, part snake, part man, and part crocodile. The monster had been living near a river with a cave behind it. It was stout and had horrible, sharp teeth; its gluttony was so strong that it ate up all human-beings and animals in the neighborhood. As soon as they met the heinous creature, the younger brother killed it with his deadly arrows.

Before it was given the death blow, the monster gave the twins four pieces of advice. “Remember my first advice. You should dam up a part of the river, empty it, and catch all of the fish in it. Then, bake the fish you’ve caught and serve them at a party in a sacred house you should build. And this is my second advice. You should build a sacred house where Awit, the sacred spirit, would dwell. Then, invite your uncles and show them your gratitude and respect by offering them a lot of food. And my third advice is this: you should wage a war against warring tribes to prevent more killings and destructions. Now if you want to keep on living, don’t forget my fourth advice. Defend your village and yourselves if you are stronger than your enemy, but escape if your enemy is stronger than you.”

After it was killed, the twins entered the cave. Here, they discovered bones and other remains of its meals. To their surprise, they also discovered that the dead creature left two girls alive. They looked beautiful to the eyes of the older brother. So, he said to his younger brother, “Marry the younger girl; I’ll marry the older one.” He then married the older girl, but the younger brother was more interested in eating human flesh; so, he ate the younger girl!

Ancestors of Merne and Jame

Merne and Jame were cousins. The first was a boy and the second a girl. Both were probably descendants of the male twins. Merne was probably the son of the elder son who had been born from the stomach of his mother. He was the bearer of light, fire, security, and order in the men’s sacred house. He was also the improver and creator of certain parts of the human body; in fact, he was the second creator. Jame was probably the daughter of the boy who was born from the thigh of his mother. She was the spirit of the jungle and the tribes living between the Tor and Mamberamo, two large rivers of the Sarmi region.

They were born at the time humans and animals lived under the ground and used the same language. At that time, the sky was closer to the earth than it is nowadays. Its height was about five tall coconut trees put one upon the other. There was no sun or moon.

Merne

Merne was born and reared in the village of Salisa. When he was a boy, he learned to hunt wild boars and birds, to make earthen pots, and to dance with elder men and women in the decorated men’s houses. He soon grew up and became wiser than any other men. Since childhood, he had dreamed of making the life of his people better. He was against the killings of men and women and taught his people how to use fire and water. He also chewed betel nuts like the way people chew them nowadays and did not sleep with his girlfriend before she became an adult.

Merne could also talk with the spirits of trees and birds. That was how he learned to know them better than any other persons. Every day and night, he went and talked with the spirit of the ironwood tree. He was the most powerful tree-spirit venerated by people for his strength, mercy and omniscience concerning jungle life. He also knew Gomo, the female spirit of the tall and sturdy breadfruit tree. He was also a friend of the spirit of the areca-nut tree, the tree of female beauty because it gave men enjoyment and tenderness. Its nut was more potent than that of the coconut because it could be used to drive out diseases from werewolves. From the birds, he learned to know that red was the color of goodness: the color of the heart, the feelings, the life-sustaining blood, and the flowers stuck in the hair of young lovers. He also learned to understand that black was the color of men, of the poison from corpses mixed with charcoal painted on the faces of headhunters. Black was also the color of the Ware party; here, a headhunter would tell the gathering that he had killed a human being.

Merne grew up and became an adult. At such an age, he was determined to leave his village.

“It’s time for us, Mom, to awake people living in caves and stone clefts to start a new life,” he told his mother. “Let Yesrun and Mofin and the three dogs go with me; we won’t be able to meet you and my wife and children anymore.”

Yesrun was Merne’s younger brother and Mofin, his younger sister. They were searching for and gathering everything Merne should take. Merne himself went to a big ironwood tree, felled it, and shaped it into a beam. The beam would be the central pillar of the secret men’s house he would build.

“That’s good,” said a voice that swished through the leaves of the ironwood tree. “Go, I’ll help you.”

The small group was ready to start its journey. Yesrun carried the large nokeng, a bag woven from the thread-like tissues of the bark of a certain tree, containing the bundles of things Merne loved. It contained head-dresses, bracelets, calf belts, bandoliers, stone rings for ear decorations, nose pins, pointed cassowary bones used as knives, and feathers of the birds of paradise as hair ornaments. The group also took with them earthen cooking pots, stones, bamboos, and fuses for making true fire as well as bunches of flowers for making decorative chains around human heads. Meanwhile, Mofin carried the nokeng containing pork and vegetables while Merne himself carried the iron wood beam. All of these would be used at the secret men’s house Merne was intending to build.

The three siblings then parted from their parents and fellow-villagers and started their journey toward the coast. But, first, Merne had to meet with Jame, his cousin, and tried to stop her chaotic life and the destructiveness it caused.

Jame

Jame was a formidable figure. She was twice taller than the tallest man and much stronger than the strongest man. The sounds of her laughter and slaps of her thigh were so loud that they could be heard hundreds of miles away and so terrifying that little children cried in fear and blood-curdling dogs barked. Woe to any men who became the victims of her horrible pleasures. For she liked hunting them and eating their flesh while drinking their blood!

She was so powerful that all bees and ants and mice in her village obeyed her. All days and all nights, they went round and round, gathering food for her guests. The parties she gave to her guests went on for days. There were a lot of dancing, singing, and laughter and a lot of food and drink for every body. Jame did not spend a single night without beating the tifa, a small drum made from hollow dry wood whose ends were covered by iguana skin, and eating her fill of the roasted heads of men!

Jame had strong appetite she had to gratify any time. But how did it happen that she could not stop her gratification? She was possessed with Ceworanim. Ceworanim was a wicked spirit and lived in a cluster of bamboos. In fact, it was the most dangerous spirit of the jungle. Anybody possessed with Ceworanim would show insatiable appetite that needed continuous gratifications. Jame had become a slave of this uncontrollable passion.

Not only Jame but also her female friends were possessed with the spirit of Ceworanim. So, they all loved eating men’s flesh.

And how did Jame see love? It was not love for one’s neighbor; neither was it selflessness. To her, love was adultery!

Possessed by the jungle spirits, Jame and her female friends desecrated the sacred men’s house through their wild behavior. They beat their drums during orgies in the men’s house, and any men could make love with any women in the men’s house. Not only that. They also permitted mothers, children, and domestic pigs to enter it. Being never satisfied with their heinous actions, Jame and her friends invented dirty jokes and used obscenities that ran wild among male adults.

The Battle

Not only was Merne shocked but also disturbed by stories of what Jame and her friends did. One day, he met with his cousin and admonished her.

“See how things are going on now,” he said. “You only indulge in chaos and destructions, ignore the customs, and don’t know how to work. Your gluttony can’t be satisfied, and you haven’t even given birth to a mouse! If you continue killing our men, and don’t have children, our tribe will become extinct. Who, then, will continue our lineage?”

There were down-to-earth considerations and dreams behind Merne’s admonitions. The earth was surrounded by coldness and darkness. Human beings still lived in caves and holes in the ground, with no knowledge of fire for cooking. As they became advanced, they learned to build houses and established rules for the sacred house. The rules forbade women, children, and domestic animals to enter it. Besides, they believed that spirits lived in plants, trees, animals, and the dead. They not only believed in Ceworanim, the wicked spirit, but also in Awit, the sacred spirit. Awit lived in the ironwood tree. One of Merne’s plans was to bring an ironwood beam to the secret men’s house he would build and use it as its central pillar. Awit would then live in that house and when he lived there, the secret men’s house would evoke a sacred atmosphere. No women had once seen Awit; a woman’s presence near the spirit would cause her to drop dead. The sacred spirit could appear in the form of a holy bamboo flute. It was played during various parties and ceremonies related to births, the warding-off of epidemics, and other social events.

Another plan behind Merne’s admonitions was driven by his childhood desire. He wanted to improve human life. So, it was the right time to express his desire to Jame – and to make it come true.

But Jame ignored her cousin’s advice. She continued dancing while beating the drum at the men’s house. She continued hunting and killing more men than she had done before. She even chopped off the head of Muru, her male partner who had always hunted men for her. When his blood seeped into the soil, rain began to fall. Jame then chopped off Muru’s flesh in smaller pieces, took them in her gigantic bag to Otara, her village, roasted them in her house, and gobbled them up. Not only that. She also terrorized her villagers frequently.

Jame’s terrifying behavior also affected the progress of animals. The animals that wanted to become humans turned into animals again. The half animals also resumed the forms of whole animals.

Merne who had heard all of these and failed to change the heart and mind of his cousin finally lost his patience. He summoned his army and led the soldiers to lay siege to Otara. As soon as the sun rose, they met Jame and her army and shot showers of arrows at her. Jame and her soldiers also attacked her cousin and the army he commanded. The two warring parties stopped at noon when Jame’s body became weaker and weaker from the arrows piercing it.

Finally, she tumbled. The impact of her gigantic body hitting the earth was so great that it shook the whole earth. In fact, it was the first earthquake on earth. Houses, gardens, and plants were destroyed and a lot of people and animals were killed.

The Aftermath

Survivors forgot the devastations for a while and joyously celebrated Merne’s victory. Men, women, and children shouted and leaped for joy and sang while beating drums they could get; dogs barked and howled noisily while wagging their tails; and even half animals came out of their hiding places and joined the happiness. It was the most boisterous time of the day.

The surviving people rushed to the place where Jame’s death body was lying. They wanted to chop off her head.

But just as they were ready to chop it off, they were taken aback by her loud voice. “Chop off my head, you cowards,” she shouted, “and don’t forget to roast it in an earthen pot. I haven’t sung my songs yet.”

Sensing that Jame was still alive, a lot of the survivors ran away from her. Only the most daring men returned and carefully began to chop off her head.

Even after her head was chopped off, it was still alive. But villagers in Otara, Jame’s village, got different news. It said Jame was killed in a battle with Merne and asked for a huge earthen cooking pot.

So, the strongest and most daring men from Otara carried a huge earthen cooking pot to the site of Jame’s death, and carefully put her chopped head in it. Even her fellow villagers, no matter how strong and daring they were, could not hide their fear of her. Some men from Otara were so frightened that they were turned by their own fright into animals and fled into the jungle!

Before the huge earthen cooking pot was put on the fire, the men from Otara heard the chopped head that was still alive in the pot say, “Kill and eat what is killed!” That was the law of the jungle from the Tor to the Mamberamo.

Then the earthen cooking pot was put on the fire and the fire boiled the water in it. The hot water made Jame’s head fizz thunderously and shocked the men from Otara.

Later, they were startled by Jame’s voice coming out from the pot. Her chopped head began to narrate her life and ideas in her songs.

Her singing voice sounded so powerful that her songs kept rolling in the air a week later. So loud was her singing voice that Merne and his brother and sister who were on their way to the coast were able to hear her thunderous singing voice. But after the chopped head of Jame finished singing her songs, it died.

Revealing the Great Plans

Merne and his small group arrived in Sawar, a coastal village, and met with Rotti.

A half-man, half-mouse, Rotti was one of the ancestors of the Sawar tribe. He mastered the secret of the magic fire. Rotti kept his fire near him and Merne kept his fire in his bag. Rotti and Merne introduced fire to the ancestors of the Sarmi people, including the Sawar tribe.

In order to honor Merne, Rotti held a small party. Like Jame, both men had control on animals. So, both sent all of the ants, mice, snakes, and fish away to gather the food needed. The elders of Sarmi were also invited to the party. They included Senies, Biri, and Waiyasi – great men who mastered the art of turning themselves into different living forms at will. So, Senies looked for food by turning himself into an iguana while Biri and Waiyasi went out at night in the shapes of fish.

Finally, the party was held. On this occasion, Merne revealed his great plans for making life better for humans.

First of all, women should not marry until they are mature. Besides, their power should be reduced and they should be forbidden to enter the men’s house.

Then, Awit Madu, a new sacred house for men, would be built in Sawar. This village was chosen because it was less muddy than other places. The new sacred house would be stronger and larger than other houses; its central pillar would be made from an ironwood tree.

Next, Sawena, an elder from Sawar, would call men to hold parties in Awit Madu. They would play as long as they could the long bamboo flutes in which Awit, the sacred spirit, lived. The participants would start with Semetaf, a party held for two years. Then they would continue with Merne’s own party in which he would teach them to sing “Ware.” The song began with, “We have killed a human being.” It was a sacred song sung by male youths who attended the annual initiation rites in the men’s house. It was sung after each killed someone to fulfill an initiation requirement.

In addition to that, there would be two profane parties in which women could take part. For these parties, Merne created “Weterap” and “Seberiatua.”

“Weterap” was a song about his journey with Yesrun and Mofin to Sarmi after killing Jame. There was no light when they arrived in Sarmi. It was still dark and the firmament hanged low above the village. Matoa, Saweri, and Wesi, the oldest people of Sarmi, were still living in holes in the ground. People did not know about houses and fire. So, Merne taught them how to build houses, how to cook vegetables on fire, how to chew betel nuts, and how to smoke tobacco.

“Seberiatua” was a song about the journey his group made to Anus, an island north of the Sarmi region. Merne told the people there that the spirits would be pleased and always help them if they held firmly to the rules he gave them. In a village on this island, he found two triton shells he would use to make musical sounds in the sacred men’s house.

Carrying Out the Great Plans

After visiting Sarmi and Anus, Merne and his small group returned to Sawar. On the day of their arrival, Merne had people build the new, large men’s house on a hill. The people worked hard and in the afternoon Merne erected the central pillar. The building of the new, sacred men’s house was at last completed before sunset.

At this time, Merne carried out his other plan: the improvement of human life. He began by improving the sex organ of men and creating that of women. Long before carrying out this plan, Merne had known that the men’s sex organs were too long and women did not have sex organs! A woman got pregnant if the snake-like sex organ of a man bit her either in the stomach or in the thigh! And how agonizing it was to see a woman deliver a baby through her stomach or thigh! It was the right time for Merne to free men and women from their imperfection, including the terrible suffering of women delivering babies.

So, Waisa, Merne’s assistant, was given the authority to create the female sex organ. Mofin was chosen as the first new woman.

He asked Mofin to lie on the floor of a house. With a charcoal, he drew an image resembling a seed on Mofin’s stomach. No sooner had Waisa finished his creation than the curious Mofin touched the picture and missed it. For it flew up to the sky and became Mado, the moon.

“When I appear in the sky, you’ll bleed,” Mado told Mofin. “And you shouldn’t try to catch me.”

Though Waisa was upset with Mofin’s mistake, he soon got sober again and tried to create the female sex organ again. He asked Mofin to lie down again, drew the same picture again, and created the first female sex organ.

Mofin got up and was careful not to repeat her mistake. How exhilarated she was when she knew that the new organ was still on her body!

But she got so carried away by her excitement that she forgot Merne’s warning of abusing her new sex organ. For she soon called Yesrun, her brother, to try her new sex organ. Merne fortunately knew the burning desire of his sister and got angry.

“You shouldn’t try it with your brother. Call other men and try it with them!” he shouted.

The Fall

Merne had another subordinate whose name was Sigowen Feuron. Like Waisa, he was also given the authority to improve the sex organs of men; so, he was able to modify the sex organs of two young men.

Carrying out Merne’s instruction, both went delightedly to find Mofin. How disappointed they were! Mofin’s burning desire made her impatient, and tried out her new sex organ with her own brother – in the new sacred men’s house!

Merne had earlier told his sister to let him know how she and the two young men felt about the try-out. He waited for a long time for his sister, but she did not show up. He got suspicious of Mofin’s long absence; so, he decided to find out what was really happening with her at the men’s house. When he approached the house, he heard the voices of a woman and a man. He entered the house and noticed that Mofin felt pleased and Yesrun roared with laughter.

“It’s good,” both said, “man has been improved and that’s pleasing.”

After the Fall

Merne caught them red handed, got furious, and said, “Haven’t I told you not to try it between you? Haven’t you understood that the marriage between a sister and a brother is forbidden? You’ve already made me ashamed. I can’t live any longer with you here; I’m going back to the heavens!”

It was a quiet day in Sawar when Merne began to climb up a bamboo tree with two of his three dogs.

“I’ll take Tafes and Sirores, the two dogs, with me,” he told Yesrun and Mofin. “Neporef should stay with you because it’s still small.”

Merne climbed up the bamboo tree, his two dogs shinnying up behind him, turned his head downwards, and talked to his people. As soon as they reached the top, the tree grew five times taller than its usual height, and enabled them to step into the heavens. Mado, the moon, was waiting for them. Merne turned his head downwards once more and said, “When you commit a sin, my dogs will bark.” At that, the dogs’ voices thundered so loudly that they could be heard hundreds of miles away.

Merne then tugged the heavens, formerly hanging low above the surface of the earth, upwards until they reached their present height. Then he and his dogs promenaded across the sky. With the ascension of the firmament, Merne brought light to the village for the first time.

Mofin, Yesrun, and their friends were disappointed because they were abandoned. But their passion for playing the new game was so strong that the memories of Merne’s words were soon gone. So, they kept playing the game days and nights and soon the news spread along the coasts of Sarmi: ”Merne has improved humankind.” And when a thunder rolled, they pointed upwards and said, “Who has done something wrong? Merne’s dogs are barking!”

Copyright ©2008. All rights reserved. Published with written permission from the authors.