TO a Batui a maleo egg is no ordinary egg, something only worth making an omelet from. A maleo egg is equal to a man's life. Three years ago, Jumadi, a Batui who lived in Bangkiriang, died from excessive vomiting. Neighbors believe that he succumbed because he failed to deliver a maleo egg at the Tumpe ritual.

Tumpe is an annual ritual in which a Batui is supposed to deliver a maleo egg, once in a lifetime, to the offshore island of Banggai.