Keling

Keling is the greatest of the heroes of Panggau Libau, the invisible otherworld whose inhabitants embody the Iban ideal of the brave, handsome and accomplished person. Headman of that shining longhouse and its foremost warrior, he is the husband of the peerless Kumang. The Panggau Libau beings occupy a middle station between gods and living humans: unseen, deathless, and closely engaged with human affairs, they are believed to accompany and protect Iban warriors and to descend as honoured guests when summoned by the great invocatory chants (timang). Keling is the central figure of a vast body of oral epic, celebrated in the timang gawai for his valour, his cunning and his exploits in love and war.

Domains

• heroism
• war
• otherworld

Powers

• aids Iban warriors unseen in battle

Epithets

• Keling Panggau Libau — Keling of Panggau LibauSather, Clifford (2001), Seeds of Play, Words of Power (Kuching: Tun Jugah Foundation). (secondary)

Relations

• spouse: KumangMasing, James Jemut (1997), The Coming of the Gods (Canberra: ANU). (primary)
• companion: LajaMasing, James Jemut (1997), The Coming of the Gods (Canberra: ANU). (primary)

Sources

• Keling is the foremost warrior-hero and headman of Panggau Libau, the invisible otherworld of idealized Iban heroes, and husband of Kumang.: Masing, James Jemut (1997), The Coming of the Gods (Canberra: ANU). (primary); Sather, Clifford (2001), Seeds of Play, Words of Power (Kuching: Tun Jugah Foundation). (secondary)