THE HERITAGE VILLAGE
Monsopiad Heritage Village is based on the Legend of Monsopiad a reknown warrior/headhunter of the Kadazandusun people. The existing house in which the skulls are kept are more popularly known as the “House Of Skulls” and in itself is already a prominent tourist attractions since 1979 and is widely mentioned in tourist brochures and travel guides. The purpose of the village is to provide a conductive venue for visitors both local and international to have a glimpse of the culture of the Kadazandusun people. The Monsopiad Heritage Village has been built with traditional materials, the way the Kadazandusun, as many other ethnic entities in Borneo have until recently erected their houses.
Welcoming Gong
Once you step into heritage, you are transported back in time where headhunters and spirit worshippers roamed the land; a place and time when the village was controlled by the Bobohizans (female high priestesses of the Kadazan). The village keeps the culture, beliefs and traditions alive. The Village is run by Monsopiad's direct decendants and their stories will leave a chill down your spine. So vivid they are that it felt as if the warrior is still living amongst them. Many who have visited feel that one of the true essences of Sabah is the Monsopiad Heritage Village. You cannot say that you have been to Sabah if you did not pay a visit to this historical and heritage site.
OUR ULTIMATE MISSION AND OBJECTIVE OF MONSOPIAD HERITAGE VILLAGE
The mission and objective of the Heritage Village is to become a Living Museum, a showcase of Kadazandusun culture, and a unique attraction for travelers to Sabah, be they from international or Malaysians. The objective of creating a living museum is that people take part in the different activities and thus acquire first hand experience. Many daily activities at the village are the customary work of the people here. Such as preparing the rice, the making of lihing (rice-wine), and handicrafts. Through informal educational ways, the village also aims at assisting in creating a cultured and knowledgeable society, and installing pride amongst the many ethnic entities in Sabah, particularly amongst the Kadazandusun. This will also create greater awareness of the importance of Sabah's cultures amongst Sabahan themselves, and enhance their cultural identity.
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Grainery House
The village also aims at becoming a center of research and dissemination of information for the cultural, historical and natural heritage of the Kadazan people. The objectives of the village as a research center are to record the wisdom of the Bobohizan, to write down the old stories and legends, and to document and keep alive traditional crafts. Equally, traditional music and dances are being taught and performed in the village. Documenting the rich cultural heritage of the Kadazandusun people involves intensive research especially in the field of traditional healing, traditional herbs, folklores, and the old traditional belief in spirits. Link to this belief in spirits is the go-between of Bobohizans, who sad to say, are disappearing at an alarming rate with nobody taking over their profession. Before the Bobohizans goes into extinction because of modernization, the Management of Monsopiad Heritage Village attempted to undertake the difficult task of documenting the ancient rituals now rarely conducted by them and recording their ancient prayer and incantations in the belief, that one day the document texts and records will become an important source of materials for scholars. The same goes for folklore and traditional herbal medicines.
THE LEGENDARY HEADHUNTER WARRIOR 'MONSOPIAD'
Legend told that many centuries ago, a lady named Kizabon was pregnant. She lived in a house with her husband, Dunggou. On the roof of their house, a sacred Bugang bird made its nest and stayed there throughout Kizabon's pregnancy.
42 Victorious Battle
When the child was about to be born, the Bugang birds hatched as well. The father of the child took the sign as a good omen and that this was a sign that his newborn son would have special powers. He named his son Monsopiad. The father paid special care to the birds as well, and whenever his son took a bath, Dunggou would take the young birds down from their nest to have a bath with his son. When he was done, he later returned them to the safety of their nest. This was done diligently until the birds were strong enough to leave the nest.
The young boy grew up in the village Kuai (which is the ground of the village), where his maternal grandfather was its headman. However, it was often plundered and attacked by robbers, and due to the lack of warriors in the village, the villagers had to retreat and hide while the robbers ransacked their homes. Monsopiad, however, was given special training and he turned out to be an excellent fighter and grew up to become a warrior. Well-equipped, he vowed to hunt down and fight off the warriors that had terrorised his village for so long. He will bring back their heads as trophies, he claimed, and hang them from the roof of his house. All he wanted in return was a warrior's welcome, where his success will be heralded by the blowing of bamboo trumpets. To prove that he really did as promised, three boys went with him as witnesses.
Just as he promised, Monsopiad's journey to rid his village of the robbers was successful and upon coming home, he was given a hero's welcome. He was so honoured by the welcome that he proclaimed that he will destroy all of his village's enemies. Over the years, he soon attained a reputation that no one challenged him. However, Monsopiad's murderous urges disturbed him and he simply could not stop himself from beheading more people. Very soon, he started provoking other men into fighting him so that he can behead them. With his changed attitude, all the villagers and his friends became afraid of him. Left with no choice, the village got a group of brave warriors together and they plan to eliminate Monsopiad. Much as they respected Monsopiad for his heroic deeds, yet they had no choice for he had slowly turned into a threat.
One night as planned, the warriors moved in for the kill as Monsopiad was resting in his house. As they attacked him, he fought back fiercely but realised that he had lost his special powers that were bestowed upon him by the Bugang bird. He was killed afterwards. Despite his downfall, the villagers still loved Monsopiad for all that he had done for them. All in all, he collected 42 heads. In his memory, a monument was erected and the village was renamed after him.
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