What rituals or practices do you participate in within your culture? For the Dani tribe of Indonesia, there is a ritual essential to the grieving process after the loss of a loved one. They call it “Ikipalin,” and it includes the women of the tribe who cut off their fingertips when attending funerals. The Dani tribe was discovered in 1938 by American philanthropist Richard Archbold and is located in the central highlands of West New Guinea in the Papua province. This area is only accessible by air and is estimated to have only around 250,000 inhabitants. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essay “Wene Opakima dapulik Welaikarek mekehasik” is Dani's life philosophy which can be interpreted to give a very clear account on the origins of the finger amputation process. This quote expresses “a family, a house, a tribe, an ancestor, a language, a history, a blood”. Therefore, the Ikipalin ritual symbolizes these beliefs and morals to a large extent. The exact origins of the process are not yet known, however, it has been studied in detail why they identify fingers as an important part of their culture. Tribe members believe that the fingers symbolize harmony, unity and strength. They believe that since fingers are what they use to perform specific tasks, they are what connect them and make them family. Are there special objects in your culture that symbolize your beliefs and feelings toward other members? The amputation of their fingertips upon the death of a family member satisfies many facets of their culture. Firstly, this is done to satisfy the spirit of the individual who has been lost, drive them away and show a sign of respect. Second, the physical pain endured during this process symbolizes the emotional suffering experienced by the living community. If a powerful tribal figure dies, then this practice becomes much more imperative since the tribe believes that their strong spirit would persist and cause unrest. Finally, they perform this ritual mainly because it represents how the tribe is affected after the death of a close member. The Dani believe that losing a family member is like losing a finger; with fewer fingers, tasks become increasingly difficult and their strength diminishes, in the same way that the loss of one person in the community affects the productivity and survival of the entire tribe. Another view they have is that unhappiness due to death can be removed by removing the fingers. How do members implement such a task? There are several ways to go about this to ensure that the process is as painless as possible for the individual. Usually this will begin by tying a string tightly around the upper half of the finger for 30 minutes, causing circulation to be cut off. From there, various tools within the culture are used to amputate it, unless it falls off naturally due to lack of oxygen. These tools include axes, stone blades, or any other very sharp objects like bamboo. Once this step is completed, the amputated finger is stored in a special, meaningful place or burned to ashes. The open wound on the individual's finger is first dressed with traditional leaves and herbs, then cauterized to create a new calloused tip. The entire procedure is usually carried out by a very close member of the person's family, such as a spouse, sibling, or child. We don't really understand.