Hello!
Today, at "Pou de Tales," we will talk about the concept of "the other."
What does "the other" mean?
What does "the other" signify?
In principle, "the others" are the people who are not me.
So, is "the other" my mother, my brother, my neighbor?
Not quite.
The concept of "the other" is really used
for the person who is very different from us.
Someone who has a different culture, a different identity from ours.
That is the real "other."
But who are we?
Are we Caucasians?
Europeans, men?
Are we deaf or alive?
The concept of the other
is related to the concept of us.
Today at "Pou de Tales," we will discuss
why we fear what is different.
How is it difficult for us to communicate with the other?
Who is "the other"? Is it you?
A true mystery!
We will find the answers today at Pou de Tales.
If you like mysteries, you are at home.
Yes, it went very well.
No, yes, yes, I am very happy.
No, really.
No, Mom. Aren't you missing Dad?
Well, I don't need...
It's okay, Mom.
Yes. It's okay, Mom.
No. I don't need anything.
No. I am well.
Okay. We'll talk later.
No, I'll call you.
Okay. Goodbye.
(rattle sounds)
Hello, Mom!
No, no...
I accidentally called you.
Okay, okay... bye!
Now
Before
Have a great weekend!
Go!
- Hello!
- You can sit right here.
- Hello!
Mmm... I would like to know the schedules...
of the classes...
- On Mondays,
- On Wednesdays,
- In the afternoons,
- In the afternoon?
- At five o'clock.
- Ah! At five o'clock.
- At seven.
- Mmm, I might not be able to come,
with the baby and work.
But I wanted to take advantage to...
Someone said something to me...
Could you translate for me
what is the meaning of:
"it's just like me"
How do you say 'I don't understand'?
Is the order changed?
- I don't understand.
Well, thank you very much!
Thanks! Maybe I'll attend a class
one day, okay?
I'll call you later.
- Is just like me
- I don't understand.
- Is just like me
- I don't understand.
Father,
Mother
Son
Nephew
Finally, a happy ending, don't you think?
I hope after the reenactment, the concept of 'other' has become clear.
Because for there to be another,
there must be a community that recognizes itself as such.
At the moment we have a shared identity,
that's when we see the other as a different being.
The important thing is how we relate to the other,
we have two ways to deal with the different:
You can feel fear, rejection... Not welcome the difference,
and that's all, embrace the ghost.
As we saw in the short film.
By the way, today I am alone.
I have a video call. Who could it be?
Let's see...
Hello, Eric! Hello, Laura!
Look, this place is fantastic! I'm in Indonesia!
This country is composed of more than 17,500 islands
with many languages, identities, and different cultures. Amazing!
- Tell me! What caught your attention the most?!
- Their relationship with death and the ghosts!
- How interesting! Tell me, tell me!
- On the island of Sulawesi,
the funeral of a relative
is a reason for celebration.
A big party must be prepared
that will last for many days,
with many guests, who must be fed.
That's why when someone dies
the body is kept at home; they offer him food,
they wash him, they change his clothes...
...until they raise enough money
to pay for the burial.
Until he is buried, a long period of time passes,
he is not considered dead,
but they consider him a seriously ill person.
- Wow!
- And no tombs underground, no.
Here they bury them in holes,
excavated in a vertical rock.
A piece of wood is cut, a small sculpture,
called Tau-Tau,
and it represents the dead,
just like our tombstones do.
Once buried,
every three years,
relatives coming from all over and neighbors from the village
gather to unearth the dead,
wash them, change their clothes,
and walk the corpse through the streets before returning it to the grave.
They are embalmed bodies, of course.
It's intense!
- A great cultural difference!
No resting in peace!
- None of that, it's a different world!
And the other, the ghosts called 'Pocong'.
'Pocong', what is it?
They are ghosts from Indonesia and Malaysia.
Dead who return with their shroud.
In the Muslim religion, the dead are buried with a shroud.
This is tied with a rope to the feet, neck, and head.
The body, as dictated by the religion, is left intact
until the soul detaches from the body.
But sometimes the spirit does not completely depart
and moves the body as best it can:
jumping like a rabbit with bound feet,
rolling like a bundle with the shroud;
or crawling like a worm.
It's a very different fear.
- Have you seen any?
- Not yet.
It is supposed that the soul of the dead
remains on earth for forty-three days
before leaving the body.
But some, if disturbed during this time, return.
Therefore, widowers and widows
must let this time pass
before having sexual relations with other people.
It is necessary to prevent the appearance of the ex's pocong
in the midst of the act.
- Now that's scary!
- Absolutely!
In Indonesia, people are so afraid of pocongs
that during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown,
some town councils
paid individuals
to walk the streets at night
Dressed as pocong.
If citizens were afraid,
they would stay at home and not violate the lockdown...
It seems it couldn't be, but that's how it was.
- It's incredible! And how can you escape from a pocong?
- There are two options.
Run until you lose sight of it.
Although they can move pretty fast, eh!
Or flee from its pursuit,
take the time needed until you lose sight of it,
or do the opposite:
Grab onto the pocong, embrace it,
and untie the knots holding the shroud.
As the shroud falls to the feet,
the liberated soul departs.
What a coincidence! Just like in the short film!
Do you have a movie you'd like to recommend?
- Movie? Yes, yes!
"Pocong"
it's about the same theme I'm telling you,
the movie was very successful here.
I highly recommend it!
- Interesting! I recommend this book,
A book of magical realism from Indonesia...
translated into Catalan.
Thank you very much, and we await you with new mysteries.
Yes, yes!
And beware of widows. Don't let your ex's pocong appear at night...
Don't worry, before getting involved
I'll make sure they're not widows.
Goodbye!
Hug, see you soon!
Well, in short,
"the other" is the one whom society
sees as different:
gays, black people, South Americans, newcomers...
Now, being "the other" depends on the point of view:
the deaf are the other for the hearing,
and the hearing are the other for the deaf.
The poet Rimbaud
wrote "I am another."
I agree.
Sometimes we do things that surprise ourselves.
If we don't even know ourselves...
Then, what do we do with the other?
Do we fear, avoid, and attack them, or do we embrace them? Do we feel fear or love?
Thank you for watching "Pou de Tales,"
Until the next time!
If you like mystery, you are at home!
Goodbye!