Muruk Buku dan Muruk Tubudu (Hutan Desa)

According to mythology, the origins of the Bulusu people come from the sky. In the belief of the Dayak Bulusu, there are figures Jadu (Grandmother) Lawang and Yaki (Grandfather) Bugang, the protective gods who reside in Muruk Lingu (heaven). They descended a child named Yaki Ibo, who was sent down to earth at Dagas Sebengawang (a stretch of stone in Gong Solok, upstream of the Malinau River) using a kelangkang (basket). He was equipped with kencur, a machete, and a white chicken as symbols of strength and life. From Yaki Ibo, the Dayak Bulusu community was born.

Kencur became a medium of communication with ancestors, while the white chicken was used as a disease repellent. It is also told that Yaki Ibo was accompanied by a dog he called “kaka,” so to this day, the Bulusu people do not eat dog meat as it is considered a brother. In the early days, the Bulusu people were believed to have long lives because Jadu Lawang often brought back the spirits of those who had died. However, when the ancestors tried to play with power by deceiving Jadu Lawang through rituals to revive fish, Jadu Lawang became angry and uttered a curse: from that moment on, Bulusu humans would experience death like ordinary humans.

In history, the Bulusu community faced the threat of headhunting, which forced them to leave Gong Solok and move to the downstream area. They inhabited Malinau, Tana Tidung, and the Sekatak River in Bulungan. This nomadic lifestyle made them always build baloy adat (longhouses) by the river. From here comes the origin of the name Bulusu, which is believed to come from the word Brus, the name of the river where they first settled.

Around 1925, the Kelemangkis area was led by Bapak Ibo, a respected leader due to his bravery and skill in headhunting. After his death, leadership passed to other figures such as Bapak Idong, Bapak Golong, Bapak Inai, and then Bapak Yungkar, during the time when Catholicism began to enter through Pastor De Corm OMI (1952). The next generation was led by Bapak Ingi and Bapak Yagal, who moved the settlement to the Pungit area. The government then designated this area as Pungit Village during the New Order era.

Entering the 1980s, the Bulusu Pungit area began to be pressured by corporate expansion, starting with Kaltim Raya, followed by Sanjung Makmur, and then PT Intracawood (2017), as well as PT Adindo and Inhutani. The presence of these companies changed environmental conditions; floods took longer to recede and river water became murkier compared to previous times. In 2018, electricity entered Pungit Village through assistance from Intracawood, which provided a loan of Rp450 million for installation. Until 2024, the community still bears a remaining debt of Rp200 million. This assistance made the community feel a bond of dependency with the company.

Muruk Buku and Muruk Tubudou are Village Forests that were former fields located in mountainous areas that have been reforested and protected on the initiative of the community and designated as village forests through Perdes. The main function of Muruk Buku and Muruk Tubudou is as a water source reserve and the utilization of Bengagis trees as honey nests. Currently, the Village Forest is managed communally by the indigenous community with customary rules passed down orally through generations. These rules are unwritten but are adhered to by all community members. The customary rules that apply in Muruk Buku and Muruk Tubudou prohibit cultivation in the areas around the mountains.

For the Bulusu Pungit community, nature, forests, rivers, and fields are an inseparable unity. Before the community engages in activities related to the environment, they must perform customary rituals or seek permission from the “inhabitants” or ancestors.

When they are about to harvest wood to make boards, they must ask for permission from the forest inhabitants (babang tana) so that they can work well and safely.

Several types of wood that cannot be cut down for any reason include honey trees (honeycomb trees), nunuk (fig trees), etc.

When wanting to open fields in the jungle (jungle front), they must have informed and sought permission from ulun tuo kampung (village elders).

If there are honey trees, then the area around 100 meters from the tree is prohibited from being cut down. This is done as a food source for bees and a way to collect honey. The Bulusu Pungit community collects honey from the benggaris tree (menggeris/sialang) by making a natural ladder from various surrounding trees, then the honey will be smoked and collected using owoy (rattan).

These rules must be obeyed by both the indigenous community and newcomers entering the Village Forest area; if violated, there will be penalties in the form of reprimands, but if the violation is serious, such as violations that could damage the forest ecosystem, a customary court will be held, and the result of the customary court is the determination of a fine in the form of Tempayan/money. The customary court is held by gathering at the Baloy Adat, the place for community discussions to determine conflict resolution agreements with customary leaders.

The community-initiated village forest also contributes to the biodiversity of the mountain forest, especially in the Pungit village. Some important flora species found in this area include;

• Kiliw
• Palig (poison for blow darts)
• Owoy (Rattan)
• Garu (agarwood)
• Umbud (punu’)
• Petai (stink bean),
• Rapiu
• Lasun (a type of wild salacca)
• Lempasu (wild tamarind)
• Kuku (cocoa).

Meanwhile, the fauna living around the area includes;

• Bakas (wild boar)
• Pelanuk (mouse deer)
• Bulun (wild chicken)

Tuwou (peacock).

In the Village Forest in Pungit Village, there are 2 important points they protect as a form of their protection in the form of mountains named Muruk Buku and Muruk Tubudou.

The forest of Pungit Village has been recognized internally through Village Regulations (Perdes) that designate the forest area as a community-managed region. Management is carried out by village institutions together with customary leaders using a deliberative mechanism as the basis for decision-making. Through this Perdes, the community has a local legal basis to sustainably manage and utilize the forest and protect it from external threats.