Ancestor of the Sangiang Spirit Beings

Maharaja Sangiang is the eldest of the three primordial brothers of Ngaju Dayak myth. He remained in the sacred village of the upperworld and became the ancestor of the sangiang, the benevolent spirit beings whom balian and basir priests summon during death rituals and healing ceremonies.

Parentage

• First Man of the Ngaju Creation Myth
• First Woman of the Ngaju Creation Myth

Domains

• upperworld spirits

Powers

• to engender the benevolent spirit beings who assist priests in ritual

Relations

• sibling: Ancestor of the Sangen Heroic Beings
• sibling: Ancestor of Mortal Humankind

Sources

• Schärer, Hans. Ngaju Religion: The Conception of God among a South Borneo People, trans. Rodney Needham. The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, 1963.
• Schiller, Anne. Small Sacrifices: Religious Change and Cultural Identity among the Ngaju of Indonesia. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997.