Tara-Bandu is one of Timor-Leste’s most enduring systems of customary law—an ancestral method for maintaining harmony between humans, nature, and the spirit world. Practiced across many municipalities, this tradition involves the collective setting of social and environmental rules by the community, enforced not by police or government, but by deep-rooted respect for customary authority and ancestral belief.\n\nThe term “tara-bandu” itself means “to suspend” or “to declare a prohibition.” At its core, it is a communal agreement to protect certain aspects of life—be it sacred forests, clean water sources, agricultural land, or interpersonal relationships. Violating a tara-bandu is believed to bring not just social disapproval, but also spiritual misfortune, such as illness, crop failure, or even death.\n\nThe process of establishing a tara-bandu involves an elaborate ceremonial act led by lia-nain (customary custodians), elders, spiritual leaders, and village chiefs. At the heart of the ritual is the symbolic installation of the prohibition. This may take the form of hanging a tree branch, an animal skull, or even a bound bundle of leaves at the boundary of a protected area. These symbols serve as visible markers that the space or behavior they refer to is off-limits.\n\nEach tara-bandu is tailored to local needs. In some communities, it may prohibit cutting down trees from a specific forest. In others, it may regulate marriage customs, resolve conflicts, or prevent theft and violence. The process is highly participatory: villagers gather in large open-air meetings to discuss the rules, agree on penalties, and publicly reaffirm their commitment to uphold the communal values.\n\nThe ceremony itself often includes the sacrifice of an animal—commonly a pig, goat, or chicken—as an offering to the ancestral spirits. A traditional oath is spoken, and traditional liquor (tua sabu) is sometimes poured on the earth as a gesture of sealing the agreement. These rituals symbolize not only human consensus but a spiritual pact between the living and the unseen world.\n\nBeyond its legal implications, tara-bandu has an environmental and ethical function. It teaches respect for natural resources, encourages collective responsibility, and reinforces peaceful coexistence. It also represents an indigenous system of governance, reminding the Timorese people that long before modern institutions, their ancestors had mechanisms to resolve disputes and protect what mattered most.\n\nIn the years following independence, tara-bandu experienced a significant revival. Communities, NGOs, and government bodies alike have recognized its value—not as a relic of the past, but as a living, adaptable tool for building resilient societies. It is now being integrated into conservation projects, natural resource management plans, and even civic education programs in schools.\n\nStill, its continued vitality depends on intergenerational transmission. Elders must be supported in sharing their knowledge, and younger generations must be empowered to see the relevance of tara-bandu in today’s context. As both law and ritual, tara-bandu is a shining example of how intangible cultural heritage can guide communities in shaping a sustainable, respectful, and united future.

Along the coastal regions of Timor-Leste, especially in areas where seawater meets fertile land, communities have preserved a unique tradition known as Tein-Masin—the age-old practice of salt making. More than just a method for producing seasoning, this practice reflects generations of local knowledge, environmental adaptation, and cultural ritual.\n\nThe process begins with the careful selection of salty earth, which is usually dug from the beach or coastal swamps. This salt-rich soil is placed into large woven baskets or wooden containers and then carefully filtered using fresh water collected from nearby springs. The resulting brine is collected in clay pots or metal vessels and then boiled over a wood fire for hours—sometimes days—until only fine salt crystals remain.\n\nSalt production is typically carried out by women and elders who have mastered the delicate timing and techniques required for successful extraction. Every step—from gathering the earth to managing the fire’s intensity—demands attention, patience, and experience. It is common to see family members working together, with children helping to fetch water or gather firewood, making it both a household activity and a community effort.\n\nBefore the salt-making begins, it is customary to conduct a ritual led by a lia-nain (traditional spiritual leader) or elder. An animal, often a chicken, is sacrificed and its blood is offered to local spirits as a request for protection and success. This ritual underscores the belief that nature’s resources must be treated with respect, and that balance between human needs and the environment must be maintained.\n\nSalt produced through Tein-Masin is more than a culinary product—it is a symbol of cultural resilience and a vital part of local economies. It is exchanged in traditional markets, used in rituals, and stored as a valuable household good. In times of hardship or isolation, it has even served as a form of currency.\n\nToday, while industrial salt is widely available, many communities still choose to practice Tein-Masin, valuing not only the quality of the hand-made salt but also the cultural meaning embedded in its production. Yet, challenges remain: the practice is labor-intensive and yields are modest, and younger generations are increasingly drawn away by urban migration and modern lifestyles.\n\nPreserving Tein-Masin means more than protecting a traditional technique—it means safeguarding a way of life shaped by harmony with nature, intergenerational collaboration, and deep spiritual connection to the land and sea.

The Kreung wedding, the bride and the groom first meet through the occasional drinking pot rice wine ceremony with relatives in the village. It was an opportunity for the two of them to get to know each other before they decided to be a couple. In their tradition, when they agree to be together, the men always go to sleep at the daughter's house at night, but they do not dare to do anything foolish to break their tradition. If the father of the daughter finds a matchmaker to find out who the son is and why he came to sleep at his daughter's house, the father has to ask the matchmaker to make a deal with the men and follow traditional penalties, such as: forcing them to marry at once or get fine with gifts, namely: 1 buffalo, 1 pig, 1 chicken and a pot of rice wine. If the son and daughter acknowledge that they are in love, then the matchmaker begins to inform the son's parents. And if the son's parents are satisfied with the daughter as well, they will continue to let their son visit the girl’s house regularly. During that time, the men had to work at the daughter's house for a year, while the daughter also helped with the work too.

Hard wood is curved in a shape of pitcher and made hollow. The leather is stretched over the head of Ozi. Unlike Myanmar traditional pot-drums and Jeinpaw traditional pot-drums, it has a long throat. The shaped of chicken breast or Kyat Yin is lacquered with black resin. The throat of Padinewin is painted in the strips of red and black colours. It has to be played by striking its drumhead.\n-4 feet 6 inches in height\n-11 inches in diameter of drumhead\n-1 feet 5 inches in the circumference of drumhead\n-1 feet 2 inches in the circumference of Padain\n-3 feet 2 inches in length of throat\n-1.5 inches in height of base part\n-3 feet 2 inches in circumference of base part

Yamanay wood is curved in a shape of pitcher and made hollow. The middle part of Ozi or pot-drum, which is called Kyat-Yin or Chicken Breast, is painted in red colour. The end part, which is called Padain, is painted in white and curved into protuberant coils. This pot-drum is short in height. It is played only by women, by striking its leather-covered head.\n-3 feet in height\n-3 feet in circumference of Kyat-Yin\n-1 feet 4 inches in height of Kyat-Yin\n-1 feet 8 inches in length of throat

Yamanay wood is curved in a shape of pitcher and made hollow. The middle part of Ozi or pot-drum, which is called Kyat-Yin or Chicken Breast, is painted in red colour. The end part, which is called Padain, is painted in white and curved into protuberant coils. This pot-drum is long in height. A piece of dough made of glutin rice has to be stuck in the middle of its head in order to tune it. It must be played by striking to its drumhead.\n-6 feet in height\n-2 feet in circumference of Kyat-Yin\n-2 feet in height of Kyat-Yin\n-4 feet in length of throat

Hollow out the wood and cover the head with the cow hide. Kyet Yin (the Shape of chicken breast) is painted black. The throat is painted red and decorated with ribbons.

In 1942 (Myanmar Era -1305), a musician from Hsipaw founded the Shan traditional musical troupe in Namhkaik village. He taught singing, dancing and playing musical instruments during the 3 months of Buddhist Lent. One of his descendents is Shew Cherry Theatrical Performance Troupe which is renown today. This troupe gives performance in charity events and monk funeral ceremonies.\nThe player must strike the brass cymbal and hollowed logs with a stick.\n-6 feet in height\n-2 feet in circumference of Kyat Yin or Chicken Breast\n-2 feet in height of Kyat Yin or Chicken Breast\n-4 feet in length of throat

In the ancient time, the sound generated by a striking on the leather stretched on the rice pounding mortar fascinated the ancestors. The idea of Wa traditional long drum originated in it. Cattle leather is stretched on a head and the throat of it is carved with the decoration of convolutions. The chicken breast is coated with the red paint and the lower part is with the black paint. It's played by hands on the head.\n-2 feet and 10 inches in height of long drum\n-4 feet and one inches in the circumference of chicken breast\n-15 inches in diameter of leather surface\n-18 inches in the circumference of throat

Larchit means the orphan and Phyili does the flute. So, the compound words of LarchitPhyili stands for the orphan's flute. In the ancient time, there was an orphan. He had a chicken. One day, his chicken died. He discovered a sentimental melody through blowing a hole of a thigh of his dead chicken. The LarchitPhyili bamboo flute derived from that chicken thigh flute. Cut a Marbarlar bamboo in desired measure and bore the number one, two and three holes of the fingerboard parting one inch each among them with a heated sharp iron. The mouth-hole is bored at the other end of the flute. A sheath is put on the top of the flute to make a better sound. Blow the mouth-hole maneuvering the holes of fingerboard with fingers. The traditional melodies or the melodies of guitar can be blown with it.\n-1.1 feet in length\n-1 inches in circumference\n-1.5 inches in length of top sheath\n-5 inches in length from the mouth-hole to the hole of fingerboard\n-5 inches interval between fourth and fifth holes of fingerboard