Manek Liun ma Sain
Rote · deity · Rote traditional religion; continuing · Recorded classification
The sea is personified as a lord, named in the paired ritual terms Liun, the ocean deep, and Sain, the open sea. As the source of storms and of the creatures and goods cast up on Rote's shores, the Lord of the Ocean and Sea stands as the watery counterpart to the Lord of the Heavens in Rotinese dual classification. Sea-origin narratives derive rice, wealth, and the shell-beings Suti Solo and Bina Bane from his domain; sources treat the sea more as a personified cosmic realm than as a deity with a developed cult.
Domains
- sea
- ocean deep
- storms and monsoon
Powers
- stirs the winds that cast creatures ashore
- keeps the origin of life and wealth in the deep
Epithets
- Liun ma Sain — the Ocean and the SeaFox, J.J. 1988. To Speak in Pairs. Cambridge University Press. (secondary)
Sources
- The sea is personified as a lord named in the paired ritual terms Liun (the ocean deep) and Sain (the open sea), the watery counterpart to the Lord of the Heavens in Rotinese dual cosmology.: Fox, J.J. 1988. To Speak in Pairs. Cambridge University Press. (secondary); Fox, J.J. 1977. Harvest of the Palm. Harvard University Press. (secondary)