SUT DEMPUL - PUL SINOGE

Sut are selection games. The song associated with Sut Dempul is Pul Sinoge, a nonsensical song about various foods. To play this selection game, all participants either stand up or sit down in a circle facing center with their right hand palm up. A leader is selected, who then has the option to either be part of the selection process by standing in the circle with their own palm up or to not be part of the selection process by standing in the center of the circle. Once the song begins, the leader uses his/her index finger to tap the beat of the song on the palms of the participants one at a time in a clockwise motion around the circle. The person whose palm is tapped at the same time as the last syllable of the word nganceng is “it” or “out.” This selection process can be done repeatedly until the right number of people are selected for the characters of any given game.

SUT TULTALTIL

Sut Tultaltil is a type of selection game. To play this game, two players stand up or sit facing one another with their right forearms touching. The two players tap their forearms to the beat as they sing the song. On the last syllable of the last word sagu, the two players reveal either their pinky, forefinger, or thumb. Similar to the game Rock, Paper, Scissors, each symbol wins over another. In this version, the pinky represents an ant, the forefinger represents a human, and the thumb represents an elephant. The elephant beats the human, the human beats the ant, and the ant beats the elephant. In other parts of the island, Sut Daun (Voting Leaves) is a popular variation. Instead of ant, human, elephant, or rock, paper, scissors, an open hand represents a leaf, a closed hand represents a rock, and an index finger represents a thorn. Leaf beats rock, rock beats thorn, thorn beats leaf. All three variations are accompanied by the song Tultaltil, a song with the valuable message, that if you want to raise animals, then you must make sure to feed them!