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bìlí leta'
Berawan (Indonesia)
The Berawan call the living soul telanak. When the body dies ("loses breath"), the telanak transform into a bìlí leta', a spirit of the dead which must be guided back to the lands of the dead through the singing of a song cycle. The Berawan are careful to pace their ritual so that the bìlí leta' does not arrive too soon and is refused admittance. Angry souls such as these return to their former long houses, the Berawan hold, and torment the living.