MY INSTRUMENT Sauljaljui and her Paiwan nose-flute.

The article focuses on the Paiwan nose-flute, known as lalingedan, and its cultural significance among Taiwan’s Indigenous Paiwan people. Traditionally played by male hunters and community heroes, the bamboo instrument produces a high-pitched sound resembling the 100-pace snake, a major Paiwan totem, and is used in ceremonies, courtship, and to evoke connections with nature. Contemporary musician Sauljaljui, the first Aboriginal Paiwan woman to compose tribal warrior songs, highlights the nose-flute’s role as a symbol of truth and vitality, emphasizing that its breath represents a genuine expression of the soul, unlike the mouth which can tell lies. The instrument remains an important cultural emblem in Paiwan identity and tradition.