Ilmu: Magic and Divination Amongst the Benuaq and Tunjung Dayak

Citation preview

jyiichael Hopes

ILMU Magic and Divination amongst the Benuaq and Tunjung Dayak

Published by

PUSPA SWARA and Rio Tinto Foundation

* Jr.tvorsity of - fvladlsc? 72Q Stcti S;r33t Madison. W1 53703-1494

Magic and Divination amongst the Benuaq and Tunjung Dayak Writer Cover designer Lay outer Publisher

: : : :

Michael Hopes HirmanFirdaus Mulyono Pustaka Pembangunan Swadaya Nusantara PUSPA SWARA (IKAPI member)

The first printing, Jakarta 1997

Printed by PT Penebar Swadaya Jakarta

This book reserved by Undang-Undang Hak Cipta. Translation, repro­ duction, and duplication must be known by publisher, unless for scientific

quotations. (c) Michael Hopes Hopes, Michael Ilmu: Magic and divination amongst the Benuaq and Tunjung Dayak/Michael Hopes, Madrah, and Karaakng.- Jakarta: Puspa Swara,1997 x+ 167 him.; 21 cm ISBN 979-8955-51-X 1. Tukang sihir - Kalimantan Timur 2. Kepercayaan, aliran - Kalimantan Timur I. Judul 133.4

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t'Aciw'

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PREFACE

This book is’a product of a total of over two years spent living amongst the Benuaq Dayak of East Kalimantan in Indonesia since my first visit there in 1991. During most ofthis time I was living in a longhouse in an area four hundred kilometres up the Mahakam River from the coast. My interest in magic was stimulated by the important part it con­ tinues to play in the daily lives of many villagers. The book could not have been written without benefit of the confidences I received from those with whom I chanced to live. My primary’Acknowledgments here, then, must be to Sungan and Alam and Kakah Repot, who shared with such candour so many of their thoughts and so much of their knowledge with me. The book has also been immensely enriched by the patient explanations'of Madrah, my good friend and collaborator in research for the entire period of my stay in his village. I am also particularly indebted to Karakng for the understandings he shared with me. I came to Kalimantan to do research towards a doctorate in anthro­ pology on the processes of social change. In this I was supported by an Australian Commonwealth Government Research Scholarship and Macquarie University in Sydney. Research was conducted under the auspices ofthe Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia and with the spon­ sorship of Mulawarman University in Samarinda. This book would not have been written, however, without the express invitation of the Rio Tinto Foundation, nor published without funding from the Rio Tinto Foun­ dation. The Rio Tinto Foundation conducts a number of social program­ mes in the middle regions of the Mahakam river, including the establish­ ment of a Farmers Training Centre and a Tuberculosis Clinic in the V

Kecamatan of Long Irani. To Terry Holland, Ramanie Kunanayagam and John van der Linden from the Rio Tinto Foundation, I would like particularly to extend my thanks for their invitation to write this book and the companion volume on Benuaq myths, and for the generous support they have provided throughout. I would also like to thank Susan Lee, Didi Mujayadi and the rest of the teaching and translating staff at PT.KEM fortheir help in putting this book and its companion volumes (in English and Indonesian) together. My thanks, too, to a number of KEM employ­ ees who gave much needed help with the typing, including Nelly, Jenita, Yanna, Lilik, Diah and Sukartono. Most of the drawings which give so much to the book are' the work of Bagong, now fifteen and already experienced earning a living clearing forests. Others are by the author. The picture in the chapter on Penyelengat is by Sungan. For help arranging publication I would like to thank Pak Yos Hudyono from the Yayasan Pengembangan dan Pengkajian Borneo which runs, amongst other things, the Borneo Research Centre in Samarinda, with its excellent library and publication programmeof Dayak literature and dictionaries. I would like also to express my grati­ tude to Gramedia for their kind assistance with publication.

Michael Hopes, May 1997

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3 TABLE OF CONTENTS

PREFACE

F

INTRODUCTION

1

The World of the Spirits 4 The Knowledge of Augury and Magic The Principles ofDivination II

NYAHUQ: AUGURY FROM BIRDS

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7

14

Temputn Pakatn Nyahuq: The Origin of the Rite to feed the Omen Birds The Origins of the Nyahuq 23 The Omens 24 TUPIQ; DREAMS

28

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15

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KETIKA BINTANG: THE ASTRAL CALENDAR Astral Chronologies and the Cultivation Cycle

ATETN UNEK: READING THE PIG’S LIVER

Reading the Liver

33

39 41

44

vii

PAPAN KETIKA: THE OMEN BOARD OR OMEN CALENDAR

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Ketika OIo Minggu: Calendar of Days of the Week 53 Ketika Binatang: The Calendar of Animals or Ketika OIo Walo the Calendar of Eight Days 59 Ketika Ulun (or Orang Orangan): The Calendar of Human Beings 61 KETIKA BELIAN: DIAGNOSTIC TECHNIQUES IN SHAMANIC HEALING CEREMONIES

ULU BALANG: OMENS OF THE BODY ILMU: MAGIC

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77

Social Contexts for the Use of Magic Sources of Magical Knowledge 32 The Techniques of Ilmu 56 TheTumuuq 39 SUMPAH - THE CURSE GIMAT; TALISMANS OF WAR

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97

100

JUROKNG ANDGRANGIH AMULETS AND CHARM NECKLACES

SPELLS

103

109

Kuncian Senjata: “Which Locks the Weapon” Asar: The Spell of Origin 112 DINIKNG - THE WALL: PROTECTIVE MAGIC

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777

775

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Penyirapm: Cloaks of Invisibility Japaian 117 Tumar 119 Sangkabalik: Return To Sender.

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119

227

RASUTN: POISON

130

ANCAN: LOVE CHARMS

SERENGKELI: SPELLS TO DRIVE PEOPLE APART TIMANG NGARAKNG: A SPELL WHICH BRINGS MADNESS

143

PENYELENGAT: LEST YOU FORGET

149

MINYAK BINTANG: SO THAT ONE CAN RISE FROM THE DEAD

OBAT JANIQ: THE MEDICINE OF COURAGE

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155

760

AFTERWORD

Note on Orthography GLOSSARY

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163

164

ix

The world according io traditional cosmology, whith spirit villages in the heavens

INTRODUCTION Borneo has long exercised a fascination forthe European imagina­ tion. Illustrations in books published in the 19th century, like Wallace’s “The Malay Archipelago” (1869) or Bock’s “The Headhunters of Borneo” (1881) depict the tropical jungle as overpoweringly lush and dense, dwarf­ ing puny human presences in its immensity, a savage place presenting many dangers to intruders whether from beast - the rampaging orangu­ tan a memorable image - or Dayak headhunters. Early accounts were rich in exotic detail: tales of headhunting and human sacrifice, of piracy, and even cannibalism crowded their pages. Rumours of strange tribes of near-men who lived in trees or caves like animals were common fare in the coastal ports of call. Such stories were not simply fancies, though they may have been exaggerated a little to whet the appetites of arm­ chair readers in distant, and cooler, climes. Where they diverged from fact - in the tales of tree-dwellers and cannibals - they were only recir­ culating local gossip. In the evocation of the exotic a part was played by references to Dayak fetishes and magic. From time long past the practice of divination and magic has played an integral part in the lives of Dayak peoples - the indigenous inhabitants of Borneo who have not become .Moslem and who for the most part practice the shifting cultivation of rice. The Dayak groups whose magi­ cal arts are discussed here are the Tunjung and Benuaq, who live around the middle regions of the Mahakam River in East Kalimantan, part of Indonesian Borneo. There is scarcely an aspect of their social lives which*, at some time or other, remains untouched by these arts. Divinatory tech­ niques may be displayed in any number of contexts; they can facilitate the success of the all-important rice harvest, aid in the process of heal-

1

ing the sick, predict the likelihood of reward or failure in all the little endeavours of everyday life and forewarn you of impending danger or death. If techniques of divination tell of a probable - or at times certain - future, various kinds of magic permit you to influence it in particular directions, boosting chances for the realisation of good fortune in all its forms. Magical procedures may affect the hunter’s success and the gambler’s coup, a child’s wellbeing or a lover’s conquest. They can encourage community cohesion and equally settle old scores; wherever there is an advantage to be usefully taken or a slight that cries out for a response, magic is a valuable resource. A good stock of charms is like money in the bank - a hedge against situations of crisis. Many resppnsible parents even now take pains to invest some of their household income injudicious expenditure on protective magic fortheir families. Unmarried youth provides a ready market for the dissemination of love charms (although increasingly these days cash is touted as the most potent love charm of al I). There are spells that will render you invulner­ able to bullets or permit you to become invisible. Magic can confer suc­ cess in business, encourage a rival to divorce and even allow you to fly like the wind. Wherever there is a purpose, there are magical tech­ niques of making it more attainable. Practices of magic and divination have a common foundation in some basic beliefs. Divination works on the assumption that human lives are, to some extent at least, foreordained. Amongst the Benuaq and Tunjung one will sometimes hear reference to the fate which is decided for every person on the occasion of their birth, which is known as Sipaat Kuyakng, ‘the curse of the Kuyakng’. At this time the Kuyakng, who are powerful spirits, are said to adjudicate the length and quality of each life - the mixture of good and bad fortune that will characterise it. Health, wealth and happiness, according to this theory, are predetermined. The exigencies of human life are often seen as be­ ing influenced by good and bad fortune, or by luck. Good fortune mani­ fests itselfwith the success of the rice harvest and with any other activi­ ties associated with subsistence or the getting of money; it is equally recognisable in long life, good health, numbers ofchildren and grandchil-

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(tren, harmonious relations with friends and kin, and the achievement of recognised status in various fields. The many-forrns of luck, Qv rejeki, which can reward endeavour are contrasted with those of accursed illfortune or bad luck- sial or siar - that are also encountered in various typical guises: in the failure of crops, in the hunt or other endeavours, ■and as poverty, illness and death. Divinatory techniques allow you to negotiate the way along uncer­ tain pathways to the future with a degree of confidence. By providing forewarning of periods of probable danger or bad luck, they make it possible to avoid the worst outcomes. One can, for example, refrain from action for a while, or attempt to sweeten relations with presiding spiritual powers through making offerings to them. Alternatively, they ’ rnay apprise you of moments of opportunity which can profitably be exploited with the requisite effort. Magical practices permit some re­ dress for the inauspiciousness of omens, though they are more often ^mployed not in direct response to these signs but in pursuit of quite specific goals or powers that have some bearing on relations with other people. I distinguish these two fields of practice on several grounds. Divi­ nation is quite explicitly concerned with the prediction of future events, or of probabilities, under certain conditions, that are pretty well beyond one’s control (unless you take steps to avoid or ameliorate them). These things have been decided by unseen powers; the signs and omens which are revealed through these techniques are forms of communication from spirits of various kinds who have power, or at least some influence, over human destinies. Magic, too, is premised on the agency of spirits, though it involves, ultimately, something in the nature of contractual, or at least .personal, relationships with these spirits. Magic works because, at some point, there has been an offering made to, or some direct contact estab­ lished with, these unseen powers. At this time understandings were assumed,, or bargains reached that these spirits would provide aid of specific kinds on certain terms. These terms may, if you receive magical ’knowledge at one or more removes from these transactions, remain implicit rather than explicit.

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Beliefs in the fatefulness of human lives and in the capacity to radi­ cally alter the course of events through the use of magic may at first sight appear contradictory. However, if the revelations contained in omens are conceived of as essentially forms of warning from spirits who have power over human fortunes, some of the contradictions disappear- Spir­ its, like human beings, may be susceptible to entreaty (in the form of offerings), so probable destinies can be changed.

The World of the Spirits

The Tunjung and Benuaq, like other Dayak peoples (and in com­ mon with much of the population of Indonesia and South-East Asia),. ■ believe the world is full of spirits of one kind or another. These unseen presences exercise various degrees of control over human lives. For the ' most part they do not take an extreme interest in the daily affairs of human beings which in the normal course of events proceed unencum­ bered by spirit-interventions. If people conduct their lives in accordance with the adat (which may be translated as “cosmic law”) that has been handed down from the spirits then they should not have too much to fear. This process of living in accordance with the strictures of adat can involve the regular performance of ceremonies of various kinds, par­ ticularly at times of special significance during the life cycle, such as for different stages of infancy, at marriage and at death. These ceremonies are intended to esUblish good relations with spirits (including, at times, those of the dead) and ensure their blessing. Other ceremonies are held at times of crisis - for instance when crops fail or people fall ill - and are intended to make reparation to spirits for episodes of assumed wrong- ■ doing which it is felt might have precipitated these events. In other words, some ceremonies are held to redress what are constructed as violations of adat. Whether or not ceremonies are performed in reaction to expe­ riences of misfortune or to prevent such things from happening, their int^nfis similar; it is to maintain, or re-establish, good relationships with j spirits in the hope that they will continue (or re-commence) the bestowal

4

of blessings (all the forms of good fortune) on the living. When people do encounter periods of ill-fortune - sickness, untimely death, famine etc. - th^ presumption is that some spirit has been offended in some way and is consequently inflicting punishment. The offence - whether inten­ tional or not, known or unknown - is usually conceived as the breaking of some taboo (something forbidden - or as the Benuaq call thcm./ori^ ). That is, some element of adat, of the cosmic law, has been broken and the difficulties experienced in consequence are punishment for the contravention. This “punishment” does not need to be thought of as like a judicial sentence however. Often it is conceived of as a form of reprimand' given in order that sufferers {i.e. wrongdoers) are called to re­ membrance of their obligations. Having received these “reminders” vic­ tims are able to make recompense, through ceremonial offerings, and if these tokens of apology, compensation and submission are accepted to re-establish harmonious relations with spirits resulting in the allevia­ tion of their difficulties. ' Relations with spirits, then, are very much social relations. True, the spirits cannot usually be seen or easily communicated with and their powers are often very much greater than those of human beings, but they are in many respects not unlike people. They are offended if their authority is not respected (as becomes evident in the breaking of a ta­ ttoo) and they can be mollified through appropriate formalities in ways similar to those which prevail amongst human beings. Their tempers range from the more or less benign to the predominantly malicious, just as those of people do. Some spirits are conceived of as like ancestors who must be paid a great deal of respect, others are almost like close family members or in-laws, still others are dangerous and essentially hostile as much as, in the oldxiays, were enemy headhunters from other tribes. When spirits are depicted it is often, too, in human form, though many h^ve the ability to change their shape at will and can often mani­ fest themselves as animals of one kind or another. Spirits of different kinds inhabit every conceivable comer of the vyorl'd. TJiere is the oldest and most powerful of them all, called amongst the Benuaq Pejadiq or Lahtala, who plays little part in the mythical his-

5

tories known as temputn. It is from Pejadiq, however, that mankind received the adat by which it lives and to which it must conform. It is to Pejadiq, ultimately, that the knowledge of right and wrong, of the appro­ priate customs that must be followed on particular occasions and the laws governing behaviour, can be traced. It is he who has decreed what adat prevails and what sanctions arepermissible against those who fail to observe it. Itwas at Pejadiq’s command that the earth and heavens were made and the first human beings created by powerful spirits from the heavens called Nayuq. These same Nayuq created and engendered innumerable other spirits - more Nayuq or sky-spirits like themselves, together with the spirits of the village and longhouse or Tonoi, those of the forests known as Mulakng or Wook^ the spirits of the streams and rivers or Juata and others besides, as well as humanity and the various species of wild and domestic animals and plants. In addition to these there are the spirits of the dead, who also dwell in invisible realms. Spirit society mirrors the traditional society of the Benuaq.and Tunjung, which in times past was characterised by different social ranks that have often been translated as “aristocrats”, “commoners” and “slaves”. These social degrees are also apparent amongst spirits - they too have their “kings” or chiefs, commoners and slaves. They also, or most of them, live in villages, grow rice, eat pig, perform ceremonies, dress, cook and bathe as humans do (or, increasingly, did - there are no stories of Nayuq using motor-bikes or chainsaws). During ceremonies the various species - or tribes - of spirits are summoned by name to partake of the offerings made and to bestow their blessings. If the most powerful spirits are called - their great chiefs if you like - then the offer­ ings or sacrifices have to be of a kind and In quantities befitting their rank. For the largest ceremonies you have to sacrifice water-buffalo and in the old days some of these called for human victims. For more modest affairs pigs or, minimally, chickens will do. The greater the level

of offerings made the more numerous and powerful the spirit-guests can be and, correspondingly, the benefits received. After offerings have been made, auspices can be read from the livers of sacrificed animals. These omens, as well as those other forms of divination I describe here, are thus messages from the spirits to human beings, communications 6

which describe, in part, the state of relations between them. Many of the fechniques of augury discussed below have their origins accounted for in the myths that explain how and why human beings observe the adat they do. Together with magical techniques they derive their po­ tency or effectiveness from the fact that social relationships between spirits and humans of one kind or another have been formalised in various'rifuals, large and small. Dayak beliefs have sometimes been described as a form of ani­ mism. Jf this is taken to mean that natural phenomena like trees and rocks and mountains or kinds of animals have their own spirits it is as well to be clear what this mean’s. It is not sb much that trees or rivers' have their own spirits as’that certain spirits are associated with such' features through dwelling in them or their vicinity. The connection be­ tween spirit and place is not so much of identity as of habitation. There are hundreds of spirits associated with countless places, both real and imaginary, and with innumerable responsibilities of various kinds, who become relevant for different purposes and occasions. In the myths recited during ceremonies, thfere are several accounts given of spirit origins: they are modelled from ‘a remainder of the makings of the heav­ ens and the earth’, transformed from ‘human’ to spirit after breaking a taboo,‘generated from blood dripping from the necks of decapitated spirits, ‘come down’ from the heavens and are otherwise bom of spirit parents just as human beings are.They are not generated spontaneously from things like rocks, trees or mountains: they are merely associated with these'places or feature of the local environment, more guardians than emanations.

i

The Knowledge of Augury and Magic The knowledge of divinatory lore is not spread evenly throughout society. While some ofthe principles which govern it are widely enough known, these techniques at their most sophisticated tend to be restricted to' a few senior ceremonial practitioners. Before advanced levels of

7

knowledge can be acquired apprenticeships of some duration, involving the transaction of considerable amounts of goods in payment to ritual teachers, need to be served. Ritual knowledge, of whatever kind, comes at a price. This knowldcige, both of augury and of magic, is highly valued for a number of reasons. Not only « in theory - does it confer obvious survival advantages and powers much envied at large, but it can provide the foundation for both a reasonable earning capacity and considerable status. This knowledge, then, is often treated as a kind of capital and not conferred without appropriate considerations. Techniques of divination are commonly communicated as part of the process of apprenticeship in shamanistic {belian} rites or mortuary ceremonies, or from elders to chosen kin as marks of favour. Magic is disseminated usually on a more strictly market basis: charms and spells confer specific kinds of power and each individually has a conventional price - now reckoned in cash terms, in former times as quantities of rice and traditional valuables (from bowls and plates to numbers of large Chinese jars, brassware, weapons and cloth). The forms of knowledge are restricted not just because they have a value estimable in cash, kind or reputation. There is also a matter of required discretion. Magic in particular cannot be exchanged otherwise than for its conventional fee - the same price or value for which it was acquired by the possessor. To sell it cheaper or dearer than this is to break the contract with the spirit from which it originates. Those who attempt to profit illegitimately from the sale of magic in this way risk puluq - a curse which brings premature death. When the proper fee is given for particular items of magic it fulfils a necessary condition, or sarat, of the transaction. The sarat is typically a bowl of rice with 2, 5 or ! 0 thousand rupiahs depending on the value of the magic (one US dollar is currently worth around 2,400 rupiahs). The sarat is thus a sign of respect, constituting formal acknowledgement of the spirit from whom this power originates. Unless this transaction occurs the magic will fail to be effective. Any readers, then, who attempt to try out any of the techniques described in this boqk should not be too surprised if they do not work out: you haven’t, after all, fulfilled the sarat. Actually there are two schools of thought on this matter. While many hold the view just 8

propounded, some contend that magical charms or spells of equal value can be exchanged for each other. In addition, considerate close kin are often known to make gift? of various powers without requiring payment. In either case, however, the’ formal fulfilment of the sarat, accomplished with the assemblage ofthe appropriate objects^ is still required in order for the-transfer of power to be effective. The practices of divination I discuss here are often both ratified by origin myths and performed as adjuncts of ceremonies conducted in the public gaze. The rites through which magical powers are acquired by way of a direct transaction with spirits (rather than at second hand from some other person) are often more secretive. In such cases a man may go off into the forest, invoke the appropriate spirit or spirits (often un­ named) and make offerings of rice and, often, a chicken. Blood from the chicken may be used to bless a charm, invigorating if with spirit power or otherwise establishing a-connection between it and the spirit. Where magic is thus often the product of a bargain between two individuals one human, the other spirit - divination derives legitimacy through asso­ ciation with the entire community of spirits or perhaps a particular “tribe” or “village” of them (as is the case, for instance, with the Nyahuq omen birds). Another way of accounting for the potency of divinatory tech­ niques is to observe tKat they express the governing power of adat in the world - whether amongst humans or spirit communities - as decreed by the supreme spirit, Pejadiq. Behind systems of augury, then, can be discerned the full authorityof Pejadiq. Magic on the other hand is usu­ ally a product of a bargain or relationship with particular spirits, and though soipetimes powerful these are often only spirits of place. In any contest between them, then, it is probable that the power of divination will prevail'over the more restricted'potencies expressed in magic. As one person has expressed it to me, if divination is like an elder brother, magic is a youngenone. I have persisted here in using English terms for. these practices because there are no completely adequate ones for them in Benuaq. Most augural and magical techniques are known by individual names rather than as components of a collective group of practices. If general terms are to be used, then we can'talk of divinatory techniques as spe9

10

cies, of Jzetika - which can be translated as “when” or “calendar”, as things which, in other words, inform you about time to come. Magic can l^e translated by ilmu - the Indonesian word - or its Benuaq variant When ilmu is spoken of, though, it often connotes a particular class of magic; namely that concerned with spells or baca. Alternatively, ilmu can sometimes, too, refer to all of the arcane knowledge discussed here, including augury. The boundary between divination and magic is to some extent an arbitrary one (ulu balang - omens of the body, for instance, cQuld be classed as either), though useful at least for explanatory purPQses-. The major premises behind these techniques, as I have explained, are common ones.

The Principles of Divination •Divinatory techniques, like those of magic, can often appear a lot more complicated than they are. While there are a profusion of signs betokening a range of good or bad auspices and referring to different classes of person under particular conditions, the underlying principles at work are fairly simple. The apparent complexity of the deciphering process - or rather, its degree of-elaboration - helps to maintain the restricted circulation of this knowledge and serves to enhance its mys­ tique. Thte primary predictions made by the various kinds of ketika are alway§ of either good or bad fortune. Sometimes the omens indicate gre£tekor lesser quantities of either, but the intent is the same. The Ortien Calendar, for example, which gives auspices for different times of theOIay on each day of the week, makes distinctions between great or moderate danger, great or a little good fortune, nothing one way or the other; periods which can be described as “troublesome” and those which entail perhaps gains of one kind but losses of another (which are, that is, ambivalent). This seems to cover most possible options. Those kinds of sign which foretell greater or lesser degrees of fortune in the abstract cafi'then be applied-to whatever activities or purposes are relevant at 11

particular times. At their simplest, though, they indicate GOOD or BAD. Once these qualifiers have been applied to specific situations the predic­ tion becomes clearer. If it is related to the situation of someone who-is sick, then indications are that they will improve or worsen. At their most reductive they will prophesy LIFE or DEATH. In circumstances where fatality is not at issue the opposition becomes one between SUCCESS or FAILURE (or “Got It”, “Didn’t Get It”). This can be applied to such things as farming, hunting, fishing, gambling, headhunting, litigation, po­ tential lovers, and so on - to anything, in other words, that can reason­ ably be qualified as a form of endeavour or one of its objects. Funda­ mentally, the ketika provides an oracle for any possible question which can be satisfied with an answer of YES or NO (and sometimes a hedg­ ing MAYBE). This logic of opposition, of the mutual exclusiveness of possibilities for good or ill, is one which is characteristic of the Tunjung and Benuaq conceptual universe (and possibly of Dayak culture more generally). Their ceremonial customs can be neatly divided between those for^e living and those for the dead. Likewise, the signs or symbols in ternls of which the world is described conform to two sets of opposed identities which always refer to either life and death, or good and bad. Those things indicative of life or good are, for instance, associated with the right-hand side whilst death or badness are opposed on the left. Similarly the direction of sunrise is auspicious, sunset not. By the same principle, upriver is opposed to downriver, even numbers to odd - especially the number eight to the number seven, clockwise to anti-clockwise, day - or light - to night and darkness, east to west, up ■ or higher - to down - or lower, in front to behind, white to black, the beginning to the end. This log-ic of opposition is replicated in the description of spirits, too. Thus they can be divided into two major groups, those who can often come to the aid of human beings, or Tangkai, and those who have a propensity to cause illness with little reason, or Papaiq. The spirits of the dead, too, are divided into the ‘clean’ spirits of the salvaged skulls and the ‘dirty’ spirits of the decaying corpse. So also in the case of the Nyahuq or omen birds this principle is repeated. When sounds are heard from the direction of the east, or sunrise, they herald good news, if from the west. 12

they are ill-omened; if they fly towards the right it augurs well, if to the left, danger. In addition to these standard indicators, there are other kinds of sign which are decoded on the basis of analogy. Thus, when the pig’s liver is read for omens in the case of someone,who is ill, some of the most inauspicious features are the appearance of tiny pits or holes in various parts of the flesh. These are said to be images of the grave, apd conse­ quently to predict the possibility of death. If, however, the liver is being consulted for auspices of the coming harvest, then the appearance of white spots on part of it can presage the arrival of a bumper crop. These spots in this instance are taken as representations of the rice grain itself. The entire organ of the liver, again, can be read as something like a map, with different parts of it representing the locations of particular groups of people present in the village, oriented to the place the ceremony is held. One area represents the lying place of the sick person, others represent other household members, those from upstream or downstream, or from somewhere else entirely.

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NYAHUQ: AUGURY FROM BIRbS Omens can be encountered in countless forms in any number of situations; the world is full of signs foretelling what will, or might, be. Perhaps the most well known form of augury amongst Dayak peoples is the practice of reading omens from the flight of birds. The Benuaq call j these omens Nyahuq. This class of divination refers particularly to a number of bird species, encounters with which presage the probable consequences both good and evil of excursions then in progress. Be­ sides these species of birds, other signs - many from animals and the sounds of the forest - may also be classed as Nyahuq. Nyahuq be­ come significant once one has left the relative safety of the village when walking to the fields, out hunting or foraging in the forest or while in the process of a longer journey, perhaps to the market, to visit rela­ tives in another village and, in times past, during the course of headhunting. expeditions. On such occasions, if a bad Nyahuq were met along the path - say, the seset bird-flying across the way from right to left - the prudent man (it was more often men: women were not encouraged to travel alone) would postpone the outing, return home and observe a taboo on travel for a few days before venturing forth again. To ignore the warning of the nyahuq was to invite misfortune, if not disaster. Apart from their relevance for those leaving the village, Nyahuq omens were also consulted before and during major undertakings such as the building of new dwellings - huts or longhouses - and the clearing of fields. - The context in which Nyahuq were particularly significant was in the cultivation of rice. The depredations of Nyahuq birds and other ani­ mals can play havoc with the harvest. It is for this reason that they must • 14

r be appeased during the period of clearing through the ritual offering of food in a ceremony called Pakatn Nyahuq (lit. food for the Nyahuq ), • if apd when their presence at crucial times indicates this might be re­ quired. The origins of this rite and its-purpose are recited in verse form during the ceremony itself. The temputn^ or myth of origin, which follows is rendered in a close translation from an oral text. 1

Temputn Pakatn Nyahuq: The Origin of the Rite to feed the Omen Birds This is a tale of long ago, the story of Apang Peningir, who made his rice fields at the edge of the lofiely forest, near a great jelutung tree called Soleet Olo. From the time he began clearing the brush and felling the tall timber he had been visited by several species of Nyahuq, or omen birds. He had beaten them off and cursed them and sworn at them in the foulest way. He did not welcome mentit, seset, apou and kelehai nor any other of the omen birds which came. He would not acknowledge them at all. After the wood had dried he burnt it off, then he sowed h'is rice and after this he planted other crops. He built himself a house and watched the rice grow strong and healthy. One day he suddenly heard the sound of an axe: someone was chopping down the greatjelutungXvQQ beside his fields. He heard many voices; there appeared to be quite a crowd. After some time the tree crashed down, just as he arrived there. There he saw, as he had fore­ seen, many people. They were preparing a coffin, hollowing out the ' felled tree. Apang Peningir was bewildered, surprised because the pres­ ence of the bentalukng bird had indicated that the season of preparing the fields for sowing, and thus for felling, was past. His thoughts wan­ dered high and low, upriver and down, until finally he addressed the assembled group - neither the name of their leader nor any other among them did he'know. ‘What,’ he asked, ‘are you making here?’ ‘Oh!’, came the reply, ‘No need to ask. We are making a coffin.* ‘A coffin for whom?’' ‘Oh, a coffin for Apang Peningir, because each time we come 15

here to ask anything of him - whether for rice or cassava or sweei • potato, for sugarcane or bananas, pigs or chickens, honey or pig faPwhatever it may be, he hasn’t once been known to give us a thing: Quite the opposite, in fact. He oursed us and threw things at us, hfe reviled us obscenely.’ ’ All this took Apang Peningir somewhat by surprise. He left the gathering like a defeated cock, like a tumbled mortar, and returned to his field hut. He was assailed by many thoughts, like a swarm of bees, pondering the work of those he had encountered, those’ who were pr^ paring his coffin. In the blink of an eye his body had begun to feel weak and weary, his face to become pale and drawn. ‘No doubt about it, what they said is true enough,’ he thought to himself. He returned home in the afternoon and sat mute and listless, doing nothing. The next morning he went to his fields again. He heard the noise of people chopping wood, even busier than before. He went to , where the noises were coming from and there were many people there., Some were hollowing out the coffin, others preparing the shelter for the funeral or collecting firewood for the ceremony. Apang Peningir began to move his lips, opened his mouth and began to speak. He asked them, a question. ‘How would it be,’ he asked them, ‘if Apang Peningir gave you all the food you wanted, gave you pigs and roosters, rice and sticky rice together with sugarcane and sweet potato and cassava? Will he • still have to die?’ One of the men replied, ‘No, if he does this then he won’t die; if indeed he is clever enough to do this, then there will be no need for him to die. Only one thing must he ensure : that he doesn’t give us any “oZ< During mid-Poti the rains begin to ease off (at least, traditionally * cycles are more unpredictable these days) and many seasonal animal “signs” begin to manifest themselves. A species of black grasshopper begins to appear in large numbers then, together with a catterpillar lo­ cals call '^bancang bawi ” from the end of Sempuatn. Around the ehd of Poti (September) other species of grubs appear - umpakng taneng and umpakng sopa pejadiq and flocks of engkasek birds; the little kiot bird makes an appearance mid-Poti. Swarms of large flying ants mark the end of Poti, as does the appearance of the large bentarukng birds. These are signs that there is little hope for fields.sown after this: they will almost certainly be prey to depredations of small grubs. 11

4Q

ATETN UNEK: READING THE PIG'S LIVER During shamanistic healing ceremonies, or belian, the climactic moment occurs when, sometimes after two weeks or more, while chant­ ing, the senior shaman (orpetneliatn ) places a foot upon the necks of the tethered pigs. Amidst a crescendo of drums and kelantangan (the local gamelan) he explains why they are about to die, dedicating them to the spirits who have been summoned from the heavens, the forest and the vicinity of the ionghouse to attend the ceremony. Immediately afterwards the throats of the pigs and chickens are cut without further formality. After the last twitch the bellies of the pigs are cut open and their livers removed. These are then borne to pemeliatn and care­ fully - and with much discussion - inspected for signs of good or bad omens; they will reveal whether the ceremony has been in vain or whether the offerings to the spirits have been accepted and the sick person who has been the major object of proceedings will get better. The auspices taken also indicate the prospects of others who.have been involved in the ceremonial work - the pemeliatn, the owner of the pigs, even those who caught the pigs and did the slaughtering - as well as the fate of the inhabitants of the village in general and of those who may be temporary residents or guests there. The omens can also be consulted on the pros­ pects for the rice harvest and other situations, depending on the ceremo­ nial occasion on which the pig has been sacrificed. The,signs,on the liver, for instance, may predict whether a couple will enjoy a trouble­ free or more difficult relationship when they are consulted at the time of their marriage. It can likewise be inspected for clues to the general 41

prospects of the village, particularly concerning the tenor of social rela­ tions there and whether these promise to be harmonious or conflict ridden. Most commonly pigs are sacrificed at the conclusion of belian cer­ emonies to heal the sick. On other ritual occasions the rationale behind fhis act is the^same: in return for these and other offerings the spirits to whom these gifts have been dedicated jvill respond by bestowing bless­ ings of various kinds. In the case of the healing ceremonies they will restore the ill to health. The presumption behind these ceremonies is that illness has been inflicted on the suffering person by some spirit (or spir­ its) as a form of punishment or sanction for some improper act on their part. The illn'Sss is a sign that recompense to the spirits is required. The tricky issue here often lies in ascertaining exactly which spirits have been offended and to whom, in consequence, compensation is to be made. The most bountiful reparations will fail in their object (/. e. a curd) if they are directed to the wrong spirits. A major part of the pemeliatn skill lies in correctly diagnosing the actual spirit-senders of an illness^ Once they have been identified they are summoned to the place of the ceremony, respectfully asked to collaborate in the work of curing the illness, and promised offerings in return for their help and in recompense for any wrong that may have been done them. From the offerings made; the various spirits summoned (and they may be legion’ in tyder to better ensure the responsible parties are amongst those invited) will partake of - or acquire - the juus or semangai, its “vital essence”. The juus they acquire will be that of the pigs, chickens and rice offered them, perhaps a buffalo on major occasions, as well as that of various material valu­ ables, like the antique Chinese jars and brass gongs, which decorate the ritual altar. After the offerings have been made, the livers will reveal whether or not they have proven acceptable - whether, for instance, they have been given in sufficient quantities and to the appropriate spir­ its. They thus offer one of the few tangible means by which communi­ cations from the spirits can be revealed (in common with other divinatory techniques discussed here).

42

Reading the pig's liver

43

Reading the Liver The liver is read like a map; its various lobes and planes all bear particular names which designate specific classes of persons. It is spread out with its fatty deposits face up and the bile duct pointing down: there are five fairly distinct lobes. From4he top right hand part of the liver near the central axis these are read clockwise: Bungaan Lou, ‘’■The Gable of the Longhouse”, which is relevant to both the sick person and the people of the village in general; Natar Lou. “the Compound of the Longhouse , the upper part of which refers to the sick person, the lower part to people from elsewhere in the community; Abang - referring to those of the village from downstream; Poruq ~ the gall bladder - which refers to those who are from elsewhere and have no family in the vil­ lage; Lokutn Dongoq. the “Bed of the Ill” is the left hand ridge of the Abang lobe; Gesaliq, the next lobe, represents the semangat or vital spirit of Xh^pemeliatn but can also specify those villagers from upriver; Sila Benawa, “the" canoe of the pemeUatn'\ the right hand face of this lobe facing the gall bladder, also signifies theperneliatn-. finally Ulutn. the “Liver of Other People” is the top left hand lobe, and refers to the fate of those visiting from other villages with family there. A central ridge divides this lobe into b*o halves, the top of which refers to theauspicious spirits ofthe sunrise, the lower to the ill-ontened^nes of the sunset. These are known as Oh Bmpat and Oh Mate respectively. The fatty deposits in the'centre are known as Wakat Putakng. “the roots of the putakng free”. The significant signs are those of some abnormality - of some de­ parture from a normal healthy appearance - in the colour or texture of the liver. Basically these signs are of two kinds; clefts or pits, which are taken as figures of the grave, and spots or lumps, clear indications of disease, which are usually white or black, sometimes red. The most fateful areas to be inspected for the prospects of the ill are the Lokutn Dongoq and the' upper part of the Natar LouXi there are slits or spots in these places the prognosis is generally terminal (this knowledge, though, will not be imparted to the patient, who must be

44

allowed to live in hope). If holes found \nNatarLou (also called Sangkar Biakng} are within an area less than three finger widths from Bungaan Lou, the sick person is certain to die. If they are located more distantly, it is a sign that one of their close relatives will die; if at frirthest proximity it refers only to the impending death of someone in the village. If there are no pits at all, thepemeliatn may be confident that during a period of one or two months no one in the community will die. In the Lokutn Dongoq adverse indications similarly predict fatalities. White spots here signify the rice that will be ceremonially scattered in the coffin; black ones, the charcoal smeared on the faces of mourners, or the black rice offered to the spirits of the dead. If either of these are in evidence they indicate the possibility that while the sick person may not yet be seri­ ously ill, they will in all likelihood not recover. If these marks are found at the bottom or right hand side of this area they presage death not for the sick person but a close relative (a parent, a sibling: even should they show no signs as yet of i llness, death is certain). Ifthe signs are situated even further to the bottom or the right (towards the centre of the Abarig lobe) it indicates the impending death of a more distant relative still perhaps a first or second cousin (even though there are yet no signs of illness). If there are unusually large lumps in the fatty area in the centre of the I i ver, these can be read as images of the mounds of the earth on a fresh grave and thus, too, as signs thatlhe sick person will soon die. If there is a ridge of fat running between Lokutn Dongoq and Sila Benayva, it is a sign that further belian ceremonies are called for before the ill can get better. Signs found jn Bungan Lou can also refer to the sick person, though they are equally applicable to the village as a whole. If there is a ridge running crossways, particularly near the right hand extremity, it is a sign of ill-omen. In^uch a case it involves the potentiality of division: people in the community may fight, a couple may separate, one become two. The fate of the pemeliatn is located in Gesaliq and particularly its right hand face known as Sila Benawa. If there are many protruberant veins in Gesaliq it is a sign thepemeliatn will not soon be called upon for his services. That is, it indicates another pemeliatn ought to be tried, or at

45

least other spirits appealed to in a subsequent cefemdny. If there are white or black spots here thepemeliatn may soon be mortallyill. On the other hand, if there are deep clefts in SilaBenawa it is a sign of his long life; if shallow ones, that his life may be short. If Gesaliq or SilaBenawa are a little narrow or pinched transversely, it is a sign thepemeliatn may not get to perform again; that is he may die. If Sila Benawa is normally healthy in appearance it can also be interpreted as a sign that the cer­ emony has been a success, and the patient will get well. If the signs in these two sites are not good, the pemeliatn is welf advised to quickly depart the ceremony and make offerings on his own behalf to the spirits. More generally, Gesaliq contains information referring to those in the village who dwell down-river from the place of the ceremony, as Abang represents those upstream: their locations are more or less sym­ metrically opposed across the central axis of the liver. In cases where omens are being taken on the occasion of a marriage, Abang and Gesaliq are both of major concern. If there are lumps (like mountains of toil) in either place it is a sign of potential discord with parents-in-law, and'air indication the couple ought to set up house independently. Ifthese Idbes are smooth and flat - as is usual - it can be read that if they live with the wife’s parents then their fortunes will prosper. If, on the other hand, these planes tend to slope towards the left hand side, the pair are better advised to dwell with the husband’s parents. On occasions of marriage consideration of Poruq^ or the gall blad­ der, is also worthwhile. If it is overly full it is a sign that the marriage may encounter more than its fair share of problems: they may be hard* pressed getting by, over-taxed by parental impositions, encounter con­ stant illness or be involved in many legal disputes. A superfluity of bile, in other words, portends a life overflowing with bitterness. If, on theother hand; there is too little liquid in this sack - another departure from the norm - it can indicate their lives will be just as empty of good luck. The Atetn Ulun^ ifconsulted on the occasion of a healing ceremony, is relevant for those who are not usually resident in the village, often those temporarily visiting family there. Visitors conventionally arrive at Olo Mate (sunset) having corhe from Olo Empat (sunrise), the lower

46

I. Bungaan Lou IL Natar Lou III. Abang IV. Poruq V. Lokutn Dongoq VII. Gesaliq VIII. Atetn Ulutn a. Olo Empat b. Olo Mate

Sites in the liver

47

and upper parts of this lobe respectively. Consequently, before they set out on a journey the most relevant signs for them are in the top part; once they have arrived, in the lower. If there are marks - any black or white spots, holes or other signs of disease - in the-upper part before a trip, then it ought to be delayed untfl a later occasion when good omens can be gathered. If on arrival bad omens are detected in Olo Mate then they ought to quickly absent themselves from the village and wait for at least a week or two before venturing to return. In this way evil conse-\ quences will hopefully be avoided. If you don’t leave, and you get sick away from home, you may quickly die. If there are holes in Olo Mate, then a wise course ©faction will consist in making offerings to IheNyahuq, QT omen birds in the ceremony called Pakatn Nyahuq. More generally, Atetn Ulutn can refer to the overall social situation in the village. If it is more flaccid than other parts of the liver, or if it is dark or discoloured, it indicates legal problems, will become endemic (in the old days, at the hands of the village headman; these days, perhaps emanating from some government agency). Clefts here likewise point to the likelihood of in­ creased levels of dispute and litigation. When the liver is being examined specifically for news of the com­ ing harvest, during ceremonies like Pakatn Nyahuq or the large fertil­ ity ceremony, Nalitn Tautn, if there are small white blotches these may, for once, indicate a favourable outcome. In this instance white spots signify the rice which is so ardently desired. If there are holes however, the harvest will fail; if there are red spots, the harvest will similarly be poor - there may be drought, or too much rain or some pestilence in such a case. A number of omens are taken not from the liver but from the spleen or lapikng. This long organ is laid out smooth surface down, with its central ridge facing up. If this ridge is particularly high or fatty - say, a finger width - then it may predict the patient will not quickly recover but must undergo further belian. The thicker end of this organ specifies the fate of those who have done the slaughtering; the tapered extremity refers to those who have caught the pig. If either end is too short, then these persons ought to ensure they repeat these tasks as soon as pos­

48

sible and thus ascertain the omens again. If they do not their “years may be short”. If the central parts of the organ are pinched or narrow, it is a bad sign for the sick person. It testifies that the correct spirits have not yet been approached for their pardon or blessing and that these must be sought out in new ceremonies. The lapikng as a whole works as a sign of the person who has ordered the offerings made {i.e. on behalf of their sick relative), or in other words, who owns the sacrificial pig. If there are no signs of sickness here, it portends the happy realisation of all hopes invested in the ceremony. If Ihis organ is longer than the liver is

wide, this is also an auspicious sign.

49

; V'3 3 13 3:;;

3 ■ r-',...: ■ 3 ,... 33.-: 3nsib)e for behaviour that can be classed as insane. Each kind of 73

spirit is present in the body as a different colour of blood; the Tonoi are white, the Nayuq red, Timang yellow and Wook black. The theory of the colours of blood has only a restricted field of application, however, and is not generally known by many besides some shamans. It is usually only referred to in explanation ofparticular personality types: an excess of one kind of blood precipitates a certain character (a theory reminis­ cent of the Greek and Medieval theory of the four humoufs). As a diag­ nostic criterion in some healing traditions {Sentiu, Bawo and Kenyong} it can be applied to ailing children on occasion. The spirits within are able to answer you when you put a question to them in certain conventional ways. The most common question put is whether, ifyoujourney that day, you will live or die. There are a number of ways in which affirmations may be expressed. The most highly es­ teemed procedure of those classed as ulu balang is called nogeq tinan taman or ‘calling on mother and father’. As everyone exists only by virtue of their descent from parents, some part of them remains in their children. If you ‘call’ on them to respond to you in this question of‘life’ or ‘death’, they must answer ■ but you have to know how their “voices”, are manifested. This knowledge costs one mekau jar - with a standard value of half an antang^ or at current rates about US $5 (more in some' areas). The process itself, as with all of these bodily techniques, is very simple: you swallow with an empty mouth. If you hear a gulp in your throat this is the Voice of the Father answering, affirming that you will survive the day. Tfie affirmative Voice of the Mother - regarded as the’ more important of the two, because her connection with a person’s birth is so much more intimate - is experienced as a click in the inner ear also felt at the time of swallowing. Another key technique involves the con: firmation that your “line of life” has not yet been cut, referring to the beliefthat each person has a fated period of life which is only severed at the appointed time. To see your life line still intact you simply put one wrist side on and vertical to your face, directly between your eyes. If you can focus on the wrist, by effectively crossing your eyes, then the‘ time has not yet come for your life to be cut short. Another method requires you to place the bottoms of your touching palms directly against your brow. Ifyou see a ‘shadow^ where the ghosts of the outline of your* .74

wrists overlap in a depending ovoid shape, then you have seen your heart, and for today, at least, it will continue beating. A further technique demands that you look down the bridge of your nose, again'crossing your eyes. If the' end of your nose appears solid you will survive. By moving the tongue against the roof of the mouth one can, if there is any sensation, be sure that the horizon - the edge of the sky - will remain visible for the remainder of the day. If when passing a mirror you manto catch a glimpse of your reflection out of the corner of your eye, omens are likewise good. If you eat chili but it no longer burns this is a very bad sign - your days are numbered. Several of these techniques Iiave downriver, or Moslem, cultural xjrigins,' mostly by way of the Buginese. Pancaran Nabi (Shower of the Prophets) consists in putting the balls of your thumbs in your ears and fingers to your forehead. If there is a loud sound in your ears it is safe to venture forth. For Api Nabi (Fire of the Prophet) you close your eyes and tweak the outside edges of your eyelids. If there is an appearance of sparks in the darkness, then signs are auspicious. With BauApi (Smell of Fire) - a Benuaq technique - you rub your hands together. If you can smell the whiff of fife in your palms it is good. Ifyour hands are moist this odour will not be produced; this is a sign that you will fall sick. -

75

P'emel iatn. or shamans, with some oftheir charms and the medecines

76

i ILAAU: I^AGlC

Social Contexts for the Use of Magic In th^poastal cities of Kalimantan where the population is predomi­ nantly Moslem, if you tell people you are going upriver to the Dayak arcas they .may sometimes comment that you must be careful because their is a lot of ilmu, or magic, around up there. These sorts of attitudes express, a^number of broad social divisions: between the coastal fringe and the “ipterior”, between Moslem populations and those who cling ever morp tenuously to the old beliefs in the spirits, between the city and the village; iietween the ‘progressive’and the ‘traditional’, between the educated and the illiterate. AH such distinctions overstate the case, of course, but they bear an element of truth. You will find magic practised i,n^pockets of the city population, but in the villages it is still very much a I iving pai^ of the culture. Magic, known throughout Indonesia as iimu or as thj Penuaq call it, lemu, has always played a very significant part in the lives of Dayak villagers. The beliefs which constitute what can be called/eligion, ideas concerning the spirits and the nature of human relationsjiips with them, are no different to those assumed in the practice of magic.iThe fundamental bargain involved in transactions with spirits, in-which asivantages of one kind or another are parleyed in exchange for offering^ of raw and cooked food and other gifts, has been referred to aboye.*, In.Qrder,to understand the use of magic it is necessary to briefly examjne,the social situations in which this knowledge has been consid-

77

ered not only useful but often indispensable. By this I mean that we have to look not only at the immediate purposes which magic serves but also at the social environment that creates these purposes. Ilmu can perhaps be broadly classified in terms of two categories, “hot” and “cold” magic. Throughout the Malay world, ‘cold or ‘coolness’ signifies all those conditions which together make for contentment: good health, physical comfort, social relations which are peaceful and harmonious, a calm spirit. Things which are described as having ‘hot’ qualities on the other hand include situations where there is a prevalence of illness, angry emotions, social conflict, indications of malevolent spirit activity and places wh ich frequently experience destructive magic or enjoy a reputation for the common use of poison. Hot magic is instinct with the threat or prom­ ise of violence, the resort of wounded self-esteem and revenge; cold magic is nurturing, protective, the stuff of friendship, love and desire. These two categories of magic express polar aspects of social life as it has been and, by and large, continues to be lived. In a society where the expression of open hostility is frowned qn and can incur harsh sanctions, covert techniques of revenge hav^ecome highly refined. The suppression of overt violence except perhaps in the spheres of intimate domestic life (though even here it is frowned upon) and, in the past, of inter-tribal war has only served to hone the sense of shame to an acute sensitivity. The sense of ‘shan^e’ is a com­ plex one, involving injuries to pride or self-esteem which can arise from the smallest slight, whether intentional or not. Many social situations' demand a strict etiquette and an indelible sense of relative social posi­ tion. If the customary acknowledgments of another’s status are not prop­ erly observed, shame is often a consequence. These are the injuries that cry out for revenge, whether by fair means (i.e. licit ones, such as litiga-’ tion) or foul. Retribution is sometimes swift (e.g. people taken to village courts of arbitration and compensation) but often an opportunity to “re­ turn” the insult or injury may be years in coming. Memories are long and' forbearance an ingrained quality. Grievances that cannot be satisfied through arbitration, or situations where one party may feel there has been a miscarriage of justice, can cry out for a final avenue of redress

78

through magic. Magic if properly enacted can balance accounts with minimal risks of further liabilities. If successfully concealed vengeance need entail little chance of the continuation of interpersonal or family feuds. Other kinds of grievance may be nursed again^ those who have done no worse than prove themselves a little more able or industrious than their fellows. Hiri^ or envy, is often given as a motive to explain the malicious actions of others. Attempts to bring those better-ofTback down to your own level can, I suppose, also be counted as a form of redress for the experience of shame, though in such cases excuses of another kind may often be sought. In this sometimes fraught social atmosphere, where aggressive magic may be deployed against someone on relatively slight pretexts, it is advisable that there be a comprehensive stock of protective charms and spells in store. Protective magic employs several principles. Some techniques prevent the body from being ‘entered’ by powers directed against it, others make you or your abode invisible and thus safe from harm. Others still render opponents impotent, or return hostile magic to its sender. Once a market for th is kind of knowledge and these kinds of powers has been established it gathers a momentum of its own. Magic becomes a standard consumer item- no household should be without an adequate provision. Considerable portions of personal and family income are spent on it at various times. As with markets for other kinds of goods, consumers often require proofs of the quality ofthe merchandise before they purchase. Thus, some magic is conveyed on approval with payment forwarded only if completely satisfied. In these circumstances the prudent.may see fit to test a spell at random. It is common knowl­ edge that this is often the case, for instance, when purchasing poisons, many of which can be classed as forms of magic. The same applies to other hot forms of magic. These may be used, too, not just to test a spell or return a specific injury but also to try out the ilmu professed by oth­ ers. In a society so status conscious, boasting, too, is something of an art form. Wherever particular claims are made, or merely implied, there is always the temptation to put them to the test. These competitions over reputation are played with magic for high stakes, with lives put on the line according to popular accounts. 79

Hot magic also has its uses beyond the confines of the village aiVd the community of kinship. It becomes especially important when you travel to distant places where you may have few family connections. In these situations the resentment of the stranger is often sufficient to-pro'^ voke antagonism, particularly if their manner of address leaves sonTe‘thing to be desired. Few venture to distant villages without adequate protection and especially charms against poison. The motives ofthose in distant places are always suspect, never more so than when paths cross in a lonely part of the forest far from the eyes of any witnesses. Al­ though headhunting on a large scale ended sometime in the 1920’s-suspicions remain and stories persist of those on particular quests. Influ­ enced by these tales, the talismans of battle retain much of their value and even now, if sold, can demand astronomical prices. Hot magic and the social contexts in which it has a value provides only half the story, however. Social life is not only a tale of petty resent­ ments, status competition and barely-concealed suspicions which bor­ der, at times, on paranoia. It is also a matter of necessary, and valued* collaboration, perceived common purposes and easy sociability. Life has its pleasures after all, and cold magic can augment these. In the class bf cold magic there are two major sub-categories: the protective ilmu re­ ferred to above, and the class of ancon or love magic. Ancon are em­ ployed not just to pursue your heart’s desire but more generally render others very favourably disposed towards you. If a person is to thrive'in the midst of their community it is certain that they will need many friends and allies. No one can survive alone; much of the work in the rice fields which provides basic sustenance depends on collaborative effort an^ there will be times of crisis when every household will need to make appeals for assistance to others to get by. This being the case, it is sen­ sible to maintain relations typified by constant flows of reciprocated aP tention with as many people as possible. Ancon are one means of at­ tracting goodwill which will confer pronounced material benefits; pro^ tective magic helps to defuse any ill effects that might otherwise ensuB from the animosities that arise in situations where most compete very earnestly for the material advantages on offer.’ »

80

-*1

Places where one might attain ilmu through Betapar, or seeking spirits out

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Magic is situated very much in the modest aspirations and petty crises of everyday domestic and community life. It is a practice which can not be abstracted from common social concems.If it is compart­ mental ised at all, it is because much of this knowledge is closely guarded or secret to variable degrees. This secrecy, though, is not an indication so much of its rarity but rather of the high value placed on it. Common knowledge has no market value and magic is bought dear. The h'igh price put on many types of ilmu is proof ofthe general acceptance of its efficacy. Some species of magic and prophetic techniques, ^uch as pro­ tective charms, dreams and ulu balang can still be said to be matters'of' everyday use or reference. Others may be more rarely employed. This does not mean, however, that a great proportion of village people do not have at their command more complete preparations for the various cir­ cumstances which may arise.

Sources of Magical Knowledge The knowledge of ilmu can be obtained by three possible means, or a mixture of these: betapor, bstucth and bekajiq, Bstapar involvTes one in the most intimate contact with the sources of ilmu. It means to go in search of spirits with the specific intent of asking them for ilmu of one kind or another. Usually these expeditions are motivated by a particular need, though such opportunities should not be wasted and any spirit en­ countered may well be presented with an extensive wish list. Whether the spirit deigns to grant all or any ofthe knowledge and powers sought is of course another matter. These things cannot be told in advance, and spirits are notoriously unpredictable. When going betapar you usually venture forth alone, bearing nothing with you for protection but a splinter of bamboo most commonly used to find head lice.Your objective is a lonely part of the forest or somewhere on the edges ofthe village that spirits are likely to frequent. The commonest places to seek these ren­ dezvous are near the graves of those who have died in childbirth, ofthe stillborn and of those who have died at another’s hand. Other likely sites are near the crests of mountains, near waterfalls - abode of Juata, be­ 82

neath the giant fig trees inhabited by the Kuyakng and Band, some­ times on the ridge of the longhouse roof close to the Nayuq in the skies and anywhere known to have strong associations with particular spirits 0f place. You must commence your night long vigil at dusk, having brought nothing with you in the nature of food, drink, tobacco or sirih and bear­ ing no weapon. No fire may be lit and you should be clothed in shabby dress, the better to stir the compassion of those you encounter. If a spirit happens by, and it is by no means certain that they will (indeed these meetings are rather rare), they may ask you what you seek. Then you spin your tale of woe, saying how poor and unfortunate you are and that you have come seeking a special favour. The spirit may then accede to your request or refuse it. If they comply it means they have entered into a special relationship with you and have become your sehabat, or spirit familiar. On the occasion of betapar no gifts are exchanged with the spirit, but once ilmu has been conveyed you should remember the spirit on certain occassions, notably by making token offerings to them before you eat - an act called tejaq, involving usually the scattering of a few grains of cooked rice and a fragment of whatever you eat with it- and more significant ones after each harvest. It is difficult to ascertain the successful incidence of these ventures because if someone achieves fortune of this kind they will tend to be quite reticent about it (so that envy should not be stirred and people moved to try one out). One can only conjecture that most of these attempts are unsuccessful. If you obtain ilmu through tuah (the be-prefix is a verbal particle) it means you get it through unanticipated good fortune or a stroke of good luclt.-rwaA is usually encountered in dreams. You may dream of meet­ ing a strange old man or woman, or someone else entirely unknown to you, and they will tell you that if you go to a certain place on the morrow you will find something to your advantage. It may be something you have long had a yearning for or it may be quite unheralded, but you can be in little-doubt that a spirit of some kind has visited you and, for rea­ sons of their own, granted you this mark of favour. Often in these situa­ tions there are conditions accompanying the gift which are in the riature of tests of trust. Because most spirits have the. ability to assume variant guises their appearance in your dream is no sure indication of their good 83

faith. The most malignant IVook can appear to be a beautiful young woman in order to tempt you. The only way you will ever know for sure whether they are true or false friends is to risk all and comply with their directions. One oft-repeated story of such a dream encounter had the spirit direct the dreamer to a waterfall nearby on the following day. He was to go with a friend and they were without hesitation to dive towards the rocks far below. If they demonstrated their faith in this way, ilmu o'f great power would be given them. Arrived at the head of the waterfall the two began to have doubts. They decided they should test the watefS first, so they threw a branch lying nearby into the ravine. Lo and behold, an arm appeared from the torrent and caught the branch before it could strike the rocks. It then disappeared beneath the surface. Heartened, the men decided to try their luck. One dived first, but this time no arm arose and he was dashed to pieces on the rocks below. The surviving friend returned home and that night a figure appeared in his dream. Thfe Wook let it be known that if they had believed in him great fortune would have been theirs, but as they had had no faith they had got their just reward. General opinion seems to be that the spirit had been deceiv­ ing them all along and had no intention of fulfilling the bargain in the first place. Some spirits can be like that, enjoying mischief for its own sake. Not all spirits are so fickle but if you fail to fulfil the tests imposed then you will never know what fortune may have been yours. If tuah is achieved in accordance with a dream and some charm or medicine is discovered at the place you have been promised it would be, then this too formalises a connection with a familiar. In these cases the relation­ ship is marked and sustained by the giving of ulaas, or the sacrificial blood of pigs, chickens or water-buffalos, at the climax of different cer­ emonies. A further means of coming by tuah besides dreams is through an episode of‘madness’ when a spirit enters the body of those chosen, becoming their sehabat. During these periods of possession great ilmu can be conferred. Perhaps the most renowned ilmu achieved through this process is the ability to fly, borne by your familiar on the wind. Thefinal method of coming by ilmu is by asking for it, in exchange for a set gift or fee, from someone who professes it. Known as bekajiq this is by far the commonest mode of acquiring this knowledge which 84

has been passed down through many generations. The spell, charm or ‘medicine’ is given to you in exchange for a conventional form of gift known as,the ruyaq or sarat. Ruyaq is a term which also describes the altars made to honour and please the spirits during ceremonies. Their forms are prescribed and vary in accordance with the importance of the spirits summoned to preside over different occasions, and with the de­ grees of advantage sought from them. When apprentices are inducted into different domains of ritual or adat knowledge, and thereby licensed to practice certain rites without supervision, ruyaq are also surrendered to the senior practitioner who instructs them at conventional rates for specific domains of knowledge. By the same principle the gift of a ruyaq in exchange for different forms of ilmu pays homage to the source of the knowledge or power sought. Ultimately this comes from spirits, though payments for it are perforce surrendered to their proxies, those who convey the iltnu. The presentation of the ruyaq^ by formalising the rela­ tionship with the powers that preside over the ilmu, also ensures the knowledge gained will be potent. Most ilmu is not too prohibitively priced. The standard ruyaq con­ sists of a plate or bowl filled with rice, an egg and a piece of iron, a metre or two of coloured cloth and a conventional sum of money which corresponds to the value of the prescribed bowl or sometimes ceramic jars which are also included. These sums are figured as fractions of the set value of an antang or ceramic jar. Forty plates or eighty bowls are the equivalent of one antang. The conventional cash-value of these jars is subject to inflation; currently they are valued for purposes of fines and riQ>aq at 20,000 or 40,000 rupiah in some places (a bit less than ten or twenty $US). A standard cash component for many spells these days would be fjve, ten or twenty thousand rupiah. Some spells may cost as much as two antang cash value plus other implements such as knives, spears, blowpipes, mats and so on. A day’s wage for work in the rice fields or in the timber mills and factories downriver is still less than Rp.5,0t)0. Those who let it be known they have a powerful stock of ilmu can gain,a useful supplement to their income through its sale. One man I met claimed to have 187 different ancon, or forms of love magic, at

his disposal alone, though his was a rare case.

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Ilmu gained through bekajiq can augment that got by other means. For instance, someone may be approached for a particular power and the applicant be told that a period of betapar is required in order to secure it. The two of them may then repair to the nearest cemetery and await the coming of the Wook. One of the sarat, or conditions, ob­ served on occasions like these is that whatever eventuates, whatever strange sights are encountered, the initiate must maintain absolute si­ lence. The Wook may come in many forms: as swarms of grubs, or worms, or snakes and other animals, before they appear in their own shape. If at any time the timorous apprentice allows a startled “what’s that ?” to escape his lips, he will have failed the test imposed by his teacher and will not receive the sought after knowledge. Episodes like this are typical, too, of the highest stages of initation into belian, when initates may be invited, amongst other things, to eat of the flesh of corpses - or so the story goes.

The Techniques of Ilmu Magical techniques can be classified in any number of ways. In the following chapters they will be grouped for the most part according to the different purposes they pursue. The raw materials of magic are not in themselves always difficult to come by: it is the knowledge of what specifics facilitate various intents that constiutes that which is dearly bought. The materials employed in ilmu fall into several major groups. They come as the wood of plants, trees, vines and roots; in the form of oil In which may be mixed a number of other substances, and as spells - various verbal formulae and utterances to different purposes. Most magic works with a combination of some or all of these ingredients: wood, oil and words. Secondary sources are from animals, whose bones for instance can be included in an oil concoction without putrefaction, including also their teeth, tusks, and pelts. Stones or rocks can also confer various powers. When oil is used its base is always coconut oil never animal fat. Oil is kept in small glass or ceramic bottles and jars. If the contents run dry they can be indefinitely replenished with fresh oil; the potency remains 86

as long as there is the tiniest remnant of the original mixture. Oils com­ monly contain fragments of wood and other vegetable substances and more rarely things like tiny stones or pieces of bone, mud from a wasp’s nest or wax from a hive. The possibilities are endless. Each oil will be concocted for a particular purpose and will suit no other. Particular modes of application have to be followed for them to be effective. One potion will serve as an example of this genre, olau bumut (oil of the great coucal cuckoo) which is used to aid the mending of broken bones. To prepare the primary ingredient you have first to find a nest full of coucal fledglings. Then select your chick and break a wing or a leg. If after some time when you visit the nest again the broken limb appears to have mended then you should take the bird, dismember it and put some of the healed bone into the oil. The coucal seems to have been chosen for this purpose because its varied repertoire of song is reminiscent of the drum rhythms in belian ceremonies. By analogy it thus has the power to heal itself. With preparations like this the list of ingredients can often be quite numerous, but olau bumut is one of the simpler remedies. Oil and wood when used as simple ‘medicines’ often work unaided. When more potent magic is being worked, however, they may require ver­ bal assistance. Incantations take several forms, the major categories di­ vided into those which adhere to strict and invariable formulas, where one word out of place-will result in the failure of the spell, and those which employ simple professions of intent in common language spontaneously de­ livered. The latter technique is known aspapaat. Formulaic recitations fall into two main sub-categories: those which employ the native Benuaq or Tunjung verse form, called sentaro, and those which derive from the downriver Moslem societies and use the Indonesian or Malay language as a base, called baca. Baca can be effective without any other accompani­ ments besides simple bodily techniques; sentaro andpapaat, the more in­ digenous forms, invariably work in tandem with either oil or wood, some­ times both. The medicines and charms which derive their power from different woods, flowers and herbs are profuse. Theirproperties are discussed at length in some of the following sections. It is sufficient to note here that many of the characteristics which qualify different plants for magical 87

uses are essentially symbolic, though often the train of associations may be obscure. As evident for instance in the section on love magic, some property of the chosen plant may foreshadow the change in heart sought for in the beloved. A similar logic is at work in both protective and hos­ tile magic. Usually some feature of the plant or other material singles itself out for special attention, perhaps because it is incongruous amongst other members of a similar category or because it is exemplary in some other way. The qualities which arouse interest suggest themselves as the foundations of parallel processes in social relationships, amongst wihch must be included relationships with spirits. Characteristics at work in one context predict possibilities in another. Magic works on the as­ sumption that these different properties or potencies are transferable on the basis of analogy or imitation. That which is rehearsed in one situa­ tion can eventuate in another. These metaphorical associatons pursue, in other words, different kinds of wish fulfilment. Just as, for instance, the red, green, purple and yellow-speckled leaves of the komaat plant remind you of the blinding sunlight encountered when exiting a dark room, so will all appearances be blurred and indistinct in the sight of the person upon whom a charm using this plant is worked, and they will be kept incognisant of your whereabouts* Just as the leopard preys on man, its teeth may help you to devour your enemies. As the mistletoe feeds on the great trees of the forest, eventually killing them, so may its wood allow you to conquer any opposition. Like the firefly which glows brightly one moment and then is lost in the darkness the next, you too may be­ come invisible if some of this power is transferred from the body of the insect to your own. If you enact a scene of madness with the appropri­ ate techniques in one place, it can be hoped that it will descend in just such a form on your chosen victim. Simply to express a wish in a few lines of verse may be sufficient for it to eventuate as you have rehearsed it. Fundamentally, magic is little more mysterious than this: that which obtains in one place can be transferred or projected onto another; what has happened at one time can foreshadow events in the time to come. The process of transference usually relies on direct contact or some other form of activity involving the manipulation of material objects. Wood which protects you from the magical assaults of others must be kept 88

close,to your person, where it acts as an invisible shield or as a weapon which cannot be vanquished; magical oils should be applied to the skin or clothes or food of your victim or patient, or put on something which represents them. As the air you breathe can be momentarily retained, so too can the power of a spell remain with you if you hold your breath after reciting it. Although these techniques may seem disarmingly simple, they depend always on the supportive actions, often only implied, of spirits who can direct events if the proper forms are adhered to. The properties of things which select themselves for magical use frequently indicate associations with particular spirits whose powers are taken for grafted. These qualities, then, attract the attention of unseen agents of change. The colour red is associated with the Nayuq spirits; the giant fig tree is the home of Kuyakng and Band. Wood from the fig tree or from red-leafed plants will then obviously be helpful in securing their aid. If the spirits who lend their power are not properly respected, as instantiated in the dedication of food or blood to them at regular inter­ vals, then their support may be withdrawn and their ire aroused. All these chains of association will become clearer in the following pages. Some remain obscure, even to those who profess this knowl­ edge. Once the principles of magic are comprehended it would not seem difficult to manufacture, but this would be to miss an obvious point. If the relationship to unseen influences or powers has not been secured in the proper manner then the techniques alone will little avail. Additionally, if false magic is communicated to the recipient, or true knowledge sold at an inflated rate or without the conventional signs of respect to the spirits, then the vendor will most probably become subject to a curse. Most magical and ritual knowledge is conveyed subject to an oath, often only implicit, that it be used only with good cause or sufficient provoca­ tion and transacted at terms identical to those for which it was received.

The-Tumauq In the dark corners of many a longhouse and other village homes, hidden away from prying eyes and the groping hands of inquisitive chil89

dren, you may still often enough come upon a small round container woven from rotan cane. This is the tumuug, made expressly to house the assortment of charms and amulets, carved wooden figurines and fragments of root and plant, pieces of bone and fur, small glass bottles of oil and medicine, perhaps the sulau or shell discs which are marks of initiation into ritual knowledge, bear’s teeth whistles, strangely shaped rocks, and the tusks, fangs and horns of bear, deer and wildcats that someone has inherited from their forebears or collected over a lifetime These are the things of magic and they are jealously guarded along with the secrets of their use. In the pages which follow I will unpack one of these tutnuuq, looking at some of these object and the spells which work with them in turn and in no particular order but as the fancy strikes me. Many of these forms of magic escape strict classification; analytical categories overlap and many of these charms and spells qualify for en­ try under different classifications. The magic examined hereafter is rep­ resentative rather than comprehensive; many things have been omitted just as every tumuuq can contain but a portion of all those things which can be described as the tools of magic.

The tumuuq basket 90

mJ3!iail!iUMiPMIt___ ,

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ISUMPAH - THE CURSE ■_______________________

Curses come in many different forms from the everyday profani­ ties of ordinary domestic intercourse to the more dire oaths sworn to resolve disputes within formal legal convocations. Whatever form they take, they operate on two premises: that utterances can have fatal con­ sequences and that it is spirits who bring these about. In everyday life the strongest forms of verbal abuse or swearing are common curses and obscenities. The most typical exclamations of annoyance, besides obscenities, consist of the shouted name of one or other spirit of estab­ lished malevolence. An angry child may scream at his or her mother simply, "Madakng’ ” or iaawf" or “ Wook! ” When they do this they are not just saying mum is like one of these terrifying creatures. By invoking the name of the spirit in this way they are calling thqir attention - a dangerous thing to do. The unspoken connotation of these exclama­ tions is that they mean “May the Madakng eat you!” and so on. Now, if a spirit “eats” you one thing is certain: you will get sick, perhaps die. A generation ago, I am told, children were much better behaved than they are now and you would only rarely have heard such things pass their lips. Nowadays, in some villages at least, it is a standard feature of domestic life. I don’t think people are exaggerating the strictness of their upbringing in former times; what has changed, for many reasons, is the fear associated with the unauthorised pronunciation of spirit names. Even so, to make such utterances is still not something taken lightly. If you do swear at people in such a fashion and they soon afterwards fall ill, let alone die, connections are made. You will be held responsible for

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such consequences and fined. You don’t always have to say anything to curse someone. As we all know, it is not all that difficult to curse someone in your heart. Merely to. damn a person with a thought can have consequences, though this is not usually the case. It is not only people who curse either; spirits are con­ stantly cursing human beings to illness, death and misfortune themselves (that is, after all, how most of us die). A curse can be another name for a violated taboo, or jariq as the Benuaq call them. There are many such taboos, the violation of which can result in spirit-inflicted curse. Perhaps the commonest one is tapatn, which is incurred most commonly when someone declines an invitation to par­ take of a meal. This can frequently result in falling sick, or in an encoun­ ter with misfortune of another kind such as a snakebite or a fall from a tree. The spirits who inflict tapatn are the Mulakng who inhabit the forest. The illnesses they send as “reminders” to those who ignore the codes of sociability are in the form of (invisible) blowpipe darts. An­ other taboo and curse (the prohibition and the affliction are both known by the same name) is buncukn, which visits those who violate the norms of proper respect for those of older generations. All these violations of adat attract spirit retribution. There are many others. The essential un­ derstanding - though one which is not always explicit - is that spirits enforce obedience to the laws and codes of adat which have been pro­ mulgated, for the most part, by Pejadiq, the creator god. Curses are thus forms of sanction which provide an ultimate guarantee for the legitimate order of the universe. There are occasions when curses are formally and deliberately in­ voked. Situations of buncukn are a case in point. The threat of cursing unruly offspring with buncukn has helped to keep generations of them firmly under parental control. The consequences of such curses are well known: the accused will never prosper, all their plans will come to naught, harvests fail, rice-bins remain empty until the end of their days and in all probability their children’s as well. Children these days take these threats with a grain of salt, but their parents still take such power sufficiently seriously to believe in the effectiveness of the threat, and the act. Curses have also been invoked in more dramatic fashion. Around

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the turn of the century, Temunggung Gamas, one of the Mantiq Solai (or “Great Chief’) amongst the Benuaq, was celebrating the bestowal of a title by the Sultan of Kutai. He decided to hold a major ceremony which would culminate in the sacrifice of a slave - an act both of selfglorification and an offering to the spirits. One day without any fore­ warning the slave, a woman, was seized and tied to the carved sacrifi­ cial pole. She knew what fate awaited her - a death, literally, of a hun­ dred cuts in a rite known as kwalik. During this ceremony the women would take their knives and inflict countless small wounds on the body of the tethered person, ensuring that none was fatal so that the death agony could be drawn out and the screams of the sufferer give pleasure to somd of the more bloodthirsty Nayuq spirits - themselves having their origin in blood - who had been summoned down from the heavens to lend their blessing to the proceedings. Then the men would continue the process with their war-knives or mandau. The woman begged, at least, for the day of her execution to be put off, as she was then unclean {i.e. menstruating), but Gamas would not be gainsaid. And so she cursed him and all his descendants unto the seventh generation to know nothing but ill-fortune - sial - til! the end of their days. The rotting stumps of Gamas’ longhouse at Damai can still be seen, the settlement across the river from the present town now inhabited only by ghosts, but in other respects the curse has gone wide of its mark. Some of Gamas’ descen­ dants, I hear, are now lawyers and teachers and doing quite nicely. The type of sumpah which is most dramatic of all occurs as the final form of resolution - the ultimate court of appeal - in any legal dis­ pute. Most disputes - over land title, stolen or damaged property, adul­ tery, injury etc. - are resolved by arbitration with rival parties in the case obliged to accept the decision of the conciliator and judge (there may be several of these, and most decisions are arrived at through consensus). Occasionally one party may refuse to accept the decision and appeal to a higher court. In the past the highest authorities were the village head­ men, while now there are local, regional and provincial courts. Within the village system, though, there were some alternative avenues of reso­ lution available. Most notable amongst these were several forms of trial by ordeal, underwritten by the premise that spirits, who were always

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Taking the oath and calling down the curse: The Sumpah ceremony

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formally invoked on such occasions, were managing the outcome of these affairs, vindicating the innocent and damning the guilty. Tutung Sarap involved the two men (rarely, if ever, women in such cases) climb­ ing a palm tree and taking up positions on opposite sides of the crown. The tree was then set on fire, establishing the innocent party as the one who was not burnt to death. The ordeal of Silapm required the two antagonists to submerge themselves in a river, closely supervised by arbitrators. The one who could hold his breath the longest was vindi­ cated. This method of resolution had the advantage of rarely being fatal. Teluq Gontakng called for a pot of honey or palm sugar to be placed over a fire and brought to boiling point, when the two would take turns in immersing their hands in the scalding liquid. The innocent man, fortified by belief or protected by the spirits, would escape unscathed. Siluq was more gentle, but no less decisive. It involved the placing of two coins - wrapped in cloth, one marked, one unmarked - in a container of water, the selection determining the'verdict. If such methods failed or were refused the formal process of sumpah was the final recourse, a procedure still enacted on rare occasions. TheAfowZ/^ would convene proceedings and summon the spirits to deliver judgement. When the sumpah is invoked by the Man tig (now the village Head­ man or Head of Ada!) it is in front of a large gathering, often including Mantig from other villages. The two parties to the dispute sit on a mat in front of the ruyag. the ceremonial assemblage, which has been pre­ pared for the besard, the village court of adjudication and judgment in which the Mantig has the final word- The ruyag includes a jar with a covered spear within, pointing to the heavens. Next to this is the brazier used to send the rice spirit released from a few scattered grains to sum­ mon the spirits above to the convocation and other offerings dedicated to them: plates and bowls of uncooked rice, a bowl of yellow or red coloured rice, a plate containing a piece of iron and an egg, rice paste to cleanse the spirit, two silver coins to “make the eyes sharp”, and a burn­ ing wick symbolisingthe illumination of understanding. On this occasion the Mantig brings out the special implements of the sumpah - the ca­ nine of the tiger, to symbolise the fact that the wrongdoer will be eaten by. the Timang, or tiger spirits, in retribution and a whetstone, a sign of 95

the sharp justice which will be dealt. This object also makes it plain that this IS the highest and final tribunal, after which the matter - like the

"V®’’ ■ cannot arise again or be subject to further proceed­ ings. These two objects are pengentuhuq - forms of ilmu intended spe­ cifically to "eat" others, used also as talismans of battle. Their power is invigorated when given blood to feed the spirits to whom they are dedi­ cated. The final object on display may be the skull of a pastMjwrz^, an ancestor of the current convenor of the ceremony. The lower jaw is secured with a strip of red cloth as it sits on a valuable melayvetn plate in front of the two disputants on the mat. The spirits summoned to deliver their verdict on the affair and to exact heavy punishment on the guilty party are the Nayuq who are responsible for the preservation and cor­ rect specification Q^Adat Law from Langit Balai Solai high in the heav­ ens; the Timang, who will execute their harsh justice; the Seniang who regulate the observation ofthe^JaZ codes, levying curses on those who transgress the forbidden; and the Kelelungan or ancestor spirits of the Mantiq presiding over the ceremony, represented by the skull that may be placed before the disputants. These are the skulls of Mantiq, quite often, who achieved some reputation as ipen of courage or determina­ tion. While the remains of most are left to crumble undisturbed in the templaaq after the secondary mortuary rites for the dead, those of a few notable Mantiq have been kept stored in the house by their descen­ dants, having important roles to play not only in this but in other ceremo­ nies. They are a useful means of legitimating the authority of local lead­ ers, but to be maintained in this condition in all serenity they may have to be given frequent ulaas, or sacrificial blood. Once all the agents of retribution have been summoned in accordance with the forms of re­ spect, their many names recited so that the guilty might begin to tremble and offerings made and promised, the sumpah may be begin. The Mantiq commences by cursing the party at fault and then calls down all manner of blessings on the innocent or wronged one. This is how the curse is pronounced on the guilty party; “May you be sprung on by the tiger and the lion, may your breath stop with the setting of the sun, may you live like the.vine which grows on barren land, or like the bamboo in the swamp; may you be as ripe 96

fruit which falls in the river, or the keramuq fruit which falls far from the tree, or the bird which flies away from its friends, or the rice which is scattered by thepemeliatriy scattered all over the mat; may you be as a broken raft, your longhouse fall into ruins, your sugar palms too tall, as tall as seven long strands of the rotan vine; may you only sow rice on a field as wide as the courting ground of the pheasant, may your banana trees be as if uprooted by evil spirits, your sugar cane as though beaten on a gong; may all you hunt be hard got, may you sow barren seed, and be always going up and down the ladders of others with one problem or another. May your connection with children and brothers and sisters be broken; may all your weapons and tools of iron go rusty and your iron­ wood piles go rotten. Whoever has cheated and deceived here, who­ ever has taken the property of another improperly, will come to the at­ tention of Tongkaq Gadikng, Seniang Besara and all those Seniang who are responsible for justice. They sit close by my side, they sit above their deputy, they stand beside me, they sit upon my shoulders, they have entered my heart, they give wisdom to my tongue. On the part of we Manliq here assembled, together with our wives and children, I call on all the spirits here present to turn the way of the wrongdoer, of the cheat and the thief, on its head.” Then the Mantiq pronounces a corresponding blessing on the inno­ cent or injured party: “For the person who is not at fault, who does not pursue the property of others illegitimately, may you be long-lived, as long as the rotan vine, as long as the vine on the hill; may you live wellrooted, great in heart and property; may you be as a stand of bamboo that thrives and grows tall; may your fields yield abundantly, may all you hunt come easily, may money come to you in great sums, may the fruits of the forest be easily found, may all your valuables be come by cleanly, may the fish in the rivers come to your nets, may your knife be always sharj) and also your darts; may your sinews be always strong, may you 1 ive as i n the shade of the beringin tree, always as cool as the air in the cave, your life as cool as a rock at the bottom of the river or the root belqw the earth; may the men be in character like the Mantiq, and so tpp the women; may your life, like the keliaat vine not be easily cut, but ever lengthened; may the behmge root not die but grow ever bigger and 97

stronger; may the axe handle not easily be split; may whatever you catch not get loose; may your cages be never empty, may you catch the myna-birds from afar, may you hear the cry of the gagak bird on your journey; may the men wander over the wide forest, may the women order their apartments well, may the men be diligent all the day long and the women be busy throughout the month; may the yarukng cane not fall over, may the pandanus of the Nayuq not break, may all you peddle be heard of far and wide, may word of your wisdom echo everywhere, may you live to see eight generations of your family, may the iron al­ ways be hard and may the ironwood columns stand wide and tell for a very long time.” When the Dutch occupied the upriver regions in the early years of the 20th century they soon banned those forms of ordeal which had demonstrably fatal outcomes. But sumpah remained accepted. While today it is discouraged it is still permissible, though rare. Unrepentant thieves remain a favourite target, and people report that death invariably follows within a month or two. The essential pieces of equipment are pengentuhuq, the canine tooth from the tiger and the batu solo or whetstone (in actuality, leopards are indigenous to Borneo,’ not tigers, though these teeth may have been imported from Sumatra in the past, where the animals 'are still not quite extinct). If you do not have pengentuhuq of your own they can be borrowed for the standard price of two jars, now 40,000 rupiah - about SUS 20, from those who do. Only those of Mantiq descent have the power to enact thi^ curse - a useful prerogative in days gone by to keep a village in order. On one of these occasions a few years ago the two disputants were contesting an allegation of the theft of some rotan. The accused man swore black and blue that he was innocent and that he wanted to go through the process of besumpah in order to vindicate himself. Finally he was taken up on it. When all were assembled and the spirits were being called to descend, but before the curse'could be pronounced,’ he began to shiver and shake uncontrollably. This was thought near enough to a confession and the man without further protest meekly Accepted the fine levied on him. At another place, about twenty years ago, some of the funerary urns of the family of the local Mantiq had been stolen arid their contents

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unceremoniously dumped on the ground. Furious, the Mcmtiq summoned the spirits of his forefathers and cursed all those responsible to speedy deaths. The story is that over the next couple of months they were dropping off like flies at the neighbouring village. Not many were left in any doubt as to the reason why. It is still an effective deterrent, if not for wrongdoing then at least for pernicious litigation.

Patung Harimau, carving representing the Tiger spirit used in belian

•99

GIAAAT: TALISMANS OF WAR

Amongst the most renowned of magical objects are the amulets called gimat amongst the Benuaq and jimat or huntat in the Malay language. These are the talismans of battle, which encourage their bearers to a belief in their invincibility. With these tucked into the belt genera­ tions have gone confidently to war secure in the conviction they would return victorious, their heads still firm on their shoulders. They fulfil a double purpose, both enhancing the endurance, courage and strength of their possessors while actively working to undermine the power of the foe. They exist in innumerable forms and are mostly got through either inheritance or tuah, that is, by some lucky chance when wandering in the forest. Typical gimat include the horned skulls of a mouse-deer buck. These antlered individuals are very rare’ly encountered,4)erhaps fewer than one in two hundred are so arrayed. Equally seldom met, a crucial criterion for these amulets, are white-skinned deer of any species, simi­ larly the light furred bear or any white birds, of species which are usu­ ally black, that are come across. The fangs or fur of any members of the cat family suggest an aggressive savagery whose powpr the warrior is only too eager to borrow. Anything which is atypical of its class and thus extraordinary may be co-opted as digimat. The failure to conform to the expected norms of everyday phenomena suggests they have a power to escape the ordinary restrictions of probability. Proximity to the person of their possessor may well enable some of this power to be borrowed. White pelted animals are notable too, because they are all descended from a dark skinned race. It might be said that they enable one to rise above situations where danger is usually accepted because they them­

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selves, so evidently contradict the expected. This explains the value placed on thelusks of wild boar that, unlike the standard model, do not taper off to a sculptured point buLwhose bone appears blistered or tumorous, with quite stumpy dimensions or a shape that curves back upon itself. Tusks, teetlrand fangs, and the animals from which they are extracted, are shedders of human blood; they foreshadow the enemy’s defeat. The pieces of white pelts mentioned above, together with stones whose ap­ pearance is ‘lost’ when immersed in water will help to protect you from the assaults of others.by making it difficult to. see where you are; the quality of elusiveness is-assumed contagious. Rocks and pieces of wood of odd shape or strange provenance can also qualify as gimat. Particu­ lar Species of wood carved in human or spirit form are also highly es­ teemed types of gimat. Amongst the most prized of this class are some bones retrieved from the grave -.but not just any bones. The Benuaq and Tunjung practise secondary mortuary rites and during the retrieval of bones from the grave an opportunity arises for these valued remains, as unobtrusively as possible, to be souvenired. They are parts of the skulls of very young or stillborn children, better yet those from foetuses that never saw the light of day, their mothers dead before they had a chance to give birth. One explanation for the value discerned in these bones is that while the skulls of the newborn are normally soft and frag­ ile, when retrieved they have become hard and durable. Just so would be the fighter: apparently vulnerable yet rock hard, an impenetrable cara­ pace between him and the weapons of others. Gimat are usually wrapped in a piece of red cloth - the colour of vio­ lence and anger, the colour of the Nayuq who descend to fight alongside those out head-hunting, or bala. They can be worn on a pouch-round the neck, in a pocket or tucked under a belt. If someone has a great number of these'amulets - and one can never have too many - they can conveniently be sewn or wrapped into a belt of black cloth called a serempelit, which can also be worn as an armband. The potency of gimat are ensured by daubing them with sacrificial blood at regular intervals - none more powerful an offering in the old days than the blood of those decapitated. Though renowned gimat even now can,, if sold, command absolutely fantastic sums, even amongst Dayaks it is recognised that this magic, as 101

with ilmu generally, will not prevail if those who employ it harbour any trace of doubt. The story is told of a man many generations ago who had always lagged behind when following a war party, careful to avoid the thick of the fighting. Tiring ofthetauntsofhisfellowshedecidedtoaskan old man with a reputation for great ilmu for a gimat to aid him In due course he was given a small bundle of bound red cloth. Newly daring, on the next occasion they went to war he was conspicuously to the fore, taking his head or two. On the journey home it happened to rainJieavily and all were completely soaked. As they dried themselves by the fire one of his fellows remarked on the unpleasant odour coming from his direction. Unwrapping the bundle for the first time all he found within was a mash of chicken droppings. If Uiat was all there was to ag/zno/, he thought to himself, why I can just as easily collect it myself. On the next expedition, not bothering with gimat any more, he was again to the fore. This time, however, he was killed There are perhaps several morals that might be drawn from this tale.

Battle scenefrom bygone days: , occasions -when gimat were worn

102

i JUROKNG AND SRANeiH I AAAULETS AND CHARM NECKLACES

Amongst the most prevalent forms of magic are the carved wooden amulets called jitrokng, which when strung together on a necklace make a grangih. The majority of men of middle age or older will have some of these in their possession and consider them amongst their most valu­ able property. In form they are typically an inch or two in length and usually carved from a thick splinter of wood in the shape of a person. They serve a number of functions, though primarily they are useful, in two contexts - as obat (medicine) and as protective devices (dinikng lit. “a wall”) against hostile magic or spirit attack. Some jurokng are considered to have great power and can consequently be sold for very high prices.Traditionally, the conventional price for the more potent of these could be two large Chinese jars, or antang\ the most expensive could cost five. There are three aspects of grangih which account for their power. The first is the species of tree or other plant from which the wood comes; the second the form in which they are carved; lastly, the fact that they are “fed” with sacrificial blood, or ulaas^ in a gift transaction with the spirit they represent. As grangih are intended primarily as a form of obai, or medicine, the tree or shrub from which they are cut is of great importance. Different species of plant are used to treat different com­ plaints. As in the case of poisons, however, the active principles at work here are not always, or even necessarily, pharmacological. In many cases the active agents are of the spirit variety. Specific plants come under the 103

jurisdiction of particular spirits. In some cases the association between different plants and spirits who fulfil specific functions or offer a certain threat are quite conventional and generally recognised. For instance the nunuk (Ben.) or beringin (Ind.) tree, the great strangler-fig, is associ­ ated with both the Band - spirits of those who died in childbirth, respon­ sible for visiting miscarriage and'death on pregnant women (and who’ are known to have a taste for men’s penisesO -and the Kuyakng, who can act as familiars to practitioners of healing rites, and'hre also known to cause madness. There are a number of plants, too, which *are know’n collectively as aper plants and that are used in the exorcism of the agents of affliction from the sick. One of these, the komaat plant, has any number of other uses, many of which find mention in the following pages. These plants are represented in myth as having sprung from the body of a murdered maiden, whose name they bear. Likewise the jEjw?} (Ben.) or benggris (Ind.) tree and a numbefdf plants with red leaves" are associated with the powerful Nayuq spirits from the heavens. The connections between many other spirits, the trees or plants over' whi^" they have domain and the complaints they are’capable of addressing^ however, constitute more secret knowledge. The species of the fofebt are the source of a vast and complex code of spirit references, if only you know how to read it. While in many cases different woods and other vegetable substances^ are known or considered to be potent medicines in their own right, ofteq this power is augmented, or only becomes properly active, when it iF carved in the form of Sijurokng. Generally the shape will provide clues'' as to the identity of the spirit represented and the nature of the illnesses for which they are responsible.’Often, as important as the botanical species involved are classifications of plants by other criteria, notably in’ reference to the situation in’ which they have been discovered. Trees*' which have their roots in riverbeds or spanning the junctions of several paths are commonly deemed auspicious. In the former case the source’ of the wood in an atypical environment is the reason for it being singled’ out; in the latter, the ability to promote advantageous meetings (at a place where paths cross) motivates selection. When jurokng are being used as medicine there are two methods employed. Either they undergo

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infusion in a glass of water which is then drunk (a common procedure for more standard herbal remedies),-or minute shavings are scraped from it and these are likewise ingested or applied in a poultice.. Besides these medical applicationsjurokng and grangih necklaces perform protective functions against things classed as “poisons” and spirit attack or black magic. This purpose'assumes importance particu­ larly when travelling away from home and if engaged in shamanistic, or belian, ceremonies. Belian practitioners are especially vulnerable to attack “in the dark”, or when theirjuus, or souls, are engaged on jour­ neys in the spirit realms. The perpetrators in these case^ are rival prac­ titioners or tjieir spirit familiars (sehabat). As with other forms of magic, grangih cannot be made potent arbitrarily. The knowledge of the. kind of wood employed in different contexts is crucial. When grangih are sold .or exchanged the vendor will usually not disclose the source of the wood to the buyer; if you wish to acquire this knowledge an extra fee or consideration will be required - often substantial. What is bought usually is the carved charm and its power not the secret of its creation. As people are most interested in the curative or protective capacities of these charms and their authenticity is taken on faith - a faith, though, qualified by the reputation of the ven­ dor 7 the knowledge which will allow them to be created independently is generally not considered necessary. Only once the wood has been carve,d in spirit or human form can it attract the attention of spirits. That is, only than does it become recognisable to them. The contract with presiding spirits (an agreement for them to lend their power in specified situations to the possessor of the jurokng} is ratified by the act of mak­ ing an offering or gift to them - they are usually Wook from the forest (thatjs, after all, where most trees are to be found). The .appropriate form fpr these gifts is as food, and most importantly through the giving of frpsh blood - a process involving the sacrifice of an animal.- This gift of bloo^ is called ulaas, and .can only come from the sacrifice of a domestic animal - chicken, pig, water-buffalo, and in times past, a human.“slave” or captive. For charms to remain effective (that is, in order to maintain a continuing relationship with spirits), ylaas should be given not only upon the initial occasion but at intervals of some regularity. 105

Most charms require only the blood of a chicken, though the greater'the value of the animal sacrificed the more powerful, in theory, will be the spirits with whom relationships are formalised and the greater the behefits that may be expected from them in return. The most valuable jurokng these days are generally those which receive buffalo ulahs: • There are as many kinds of jurokng as there are complaints or purposes that may be served by them, though many demonstrate family resemblances. The gimat mentioned above constitute a major type. Generally hidden on your person, singly wrapped in cloth, they are slDm^times combined into XhQ-grangih necklaces that can be worn dufihg belian ceremonies. Only those who have passed the highest stage'of initiation {tumakngmate} are permitted to wear these necklaces. Those used in one tradition of belian, Belian ^awo^ are the most spectacular.* Called samang sawit, these consist of two joined necklaces, made up of grangih and other charms, beads, sulau or shell discs, the teeth arid claws of bears, wildcats or leopards, boars’ tusks and strings of various seeds. Samang sawit are important heirloom property which are con­ sidered priceless by many Benuaq and Tunjung pemeliatn. Somd in­ clude jurokng that are'dose to two hundred years old. To give an idea of the specific powers associated with these amu­ lets I will discuss one grangih necklace (illustrated here) which v\^as made perhaps some thirty years ago. The necklace is made- up of a string of seeds from the betakaq plant, nine teeth of the flying fox, three beads, one small cone shell and ten jurokng. The largest carving, 10' cms. in length, shows a mother with a child on her hip. Carved from jengawan wood this is a charm against dysentery, or those illnesses whick show symptoms of diarrhoea and vomiting blood.Proceeding anticlock-' wise; anothfer tall figure (12cm ) carved from puput wood, a charm against convulsions or fright in young children; the cone shell, to protect infants from roving spirits, particularly the harimau or tiger spirit (the purpose also of the flying fox teeth); a smaller jurokng from kerek wood which has a face carved on the back indicating it is intended to guard one from magical attack; a larger one showing a crouching, cry-ing child; also for distressed infants; one carved from a species of rotan, against fever, perhaps typhus, specifically directed to the madakng spirit;

f06

Grangih necklace yvithjurokng

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one carved from pangir lati, also for crying children, this wood is recognised as an effective ‘fence*; two figures, back to back, fromthe bentolatn plant, again a jurokng meant to guard one, though fefs/ne more from killers or headhunters than spirits;'a small carving (5 cm.) from pangit lalih, showing remnants of a'pointy head, acottimon%di-

cation of evil forest spirits, or Mulakng, protective in intent an"^ of a kind often tucked under a waist band on the road; another'fTgure from rotan, of a type specifically selected where the vine manifests a rare double integument. Also protective in purpose, the logic at work here intend^unwelcome meetings will not eventuate,.just is "one part of thp vine is blocked off from the other; the figure of a pregrianf woman carved from kerangiq wood - fairly obviously for complaints of pregnancy and childbirth: a medicine commonly used to inhibit haemorrhaging; finally a long figure in togah wood - representing a familiar. This wood is renowned above all others for its protective capacities, notably if carved from the ‘male’ variety. It is said that ifaywroATzg of this Wood is given the ulaas of human beings seven times, then it will acquire the power to kill through'command ofthe associated familiar. All of the figures on this grangih showed signs of scrapings.being taken from them for medicinal purposes. The betakaq seeds are-proof against the Timang spirits who manifest themselves in thunder and light­ ning, so one need not fear storms. Timang also act.as spirit familiars’for pemeliatn and guard them against attack in ZieZ/a/TceremoiTies. The beads have no special significance but add value to-the-necklace and improve its aesthetic impact. In belian performances these ripcklaces are looped around the neck and under one arm;the double necklace of the samang sawit crosses the body in two diagonals front and back.

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I

spells

Baca - “spel Is”- are amongst the most potent forms of magic. They betray their origins in the coastal Moslem societies through the Malay language they employ, sprinkled with Arabic tags from the Koran, often in a distorted form, or which otherwise invoke Allah and the prophets. The word baca, ‘to read’ in the Malay or Indonesian language is a clear enough indication of the origins of these spells. The Baca as a category of magic can also be distinguished from indigenoqs Dayak forms because they are rigidly formulaic: in order for them to^ be effective a distinct sequence of words has to be learnt by rote and correctly recited. Typically, Dayak spells do not occur in this highly prescribed form. This is perhaps indicative of the textual or liter­ ate sources of this particular type of magic. The Dayak oral tradition is a lot more informal, in these matters at least. In magic of Dayak origin it is usually sufficient for a wish, accompanied by the apposite actions or procedures, to be expressed in spontaneous utterances for them^ to be effective. The ultimate prigins of baca, however, are; of little local im­ portance. Through long acquaintance and usethey have been accepted as infegral parts of Dayak magical repertoires. While '‘baca’ is a stan­ dard term of reference in Dayak communities for this class of magic, the more local term - though it still betrays its exogenous, downriver origins - is '‘guru’, literally ‘teacher’, which implies these are forms of knowledge generally attainable only through bekaji, or instruction. Baca are employed in a number of social contexts. Some are employed.to charm a prospective lover, though they are most commonly recited for protective purposes in situations of potential danger. In times 109

past the spells mentioned below were useful when men were engaged in headhunting expeditions. At the present time they are still valuable knowledge. The first two baca I describe here were communicated to me by a professional thief: his success in his chosen vocation he attrib­ uted in no small part to the judicious employment of these spells. Indeed, they may be regarded as essential tools of the trade. Baca can also be learnt, it is said, directly from the lips of the dead. When someone dies, three times during the ensuing night the corpse will utter baca which, if courageous enough, you may put yourself in a posi­ tion to overhear. You must lie next to the body, your head sharing its pillow. This ilmu is known as bungkum bangkai. It can be gained from the corpses of those who possessed a certain kind of ilmu. Once in pos­ session of it a person may enter a room and those there will be unaware of his presence; it will be as if he himself were dead. Another way to appropriate the ilmu someone had in life is to sit beneath the corpse as it is being washed. The water that pours off the body conveys the knowl­ edge from one to another, or more accurately, the spirits (antu orWook) who were familiars of the dead person will be so transferred. Another method of obtaining this knowledge also presumes the continued activity of the dead man’s familiars within his corpse and the “contagious” com­ munication of their power. The corpse, animated by the spirits still within, will open its eyes and its tongue will protrude. To gain its ilmu one has to place the forehead against that of the corpse, staring eye to eye, and poke out ones tongue till it touches the dead person’s. The antu in'the corpse leave it and enter the body of their new hdst. Not all antu famifiars acquired in this or'other ways necessarily confer very useful pow­ ers. Some are possess'ed by antu who only have the power to mak'e'a nuisance of themselves, hot cause any real harm. I was told a story of one man who had one of these spirit familiars which allowed him to travel in disembodied form, but all he could do was annoy people when they were relieving themselves by poking a stick at them. He was both­ ering someone in this fashion one day when his victim said, “I know that’s you, grandfather. You’d better stop it or you’ll be sorry!” Grand­ father didn’t desist so his victim took out his knife and slashed him (though

110

invisible) across the stomach. He then shaved some'wood scrapings and divt into the wound, one of the conventional methods for dealing with disembodied irritants. Not long thereafter "grandfather**, of course, sickened and died, which only verified (he entire episode to one and all.

Kuncian Senjatax “Which Locks the Weapon” The weapon referred to here is the gun. Firearms have been long known and feared amongst'the Dayak tribes. Dalton, an Englishman who travelled on the Mahakam in 1828, described the terror these weap­ ons induced amongst Dayak populations. Guns and cannon were stan­ dard weapons of war amongst the tribes of East Kalimantan until the end of the 19th century, when the Dutch began their systematic confis­ cation. The knowledge of this baca can be traced to this time. The Kuncian Senjata has the effect of either preventing the firearm from discharging or ensuring that its shot goes wide of its mark. The spell itself consists of only a brief recitation; ''Hak Allah, Mayit Alla^' (the name of Allah is invoked - but the comprehension of any meahmg within the message is unnecessary: the words themselves are potent whether understood or not). Before reciting the spell you have to place’the left hand in the correct position. It has to be the left hand - the inauspicious one - because this is a form of dark rather than healing magic. The hand can be in one of two positions, both requiring the mak­ ing of a fist. In the first the bunched fingers are entirely “locked” by the thumb, which is placed facing downward across the other digits. This gesture ensures that the firearm will not discharge at all: the procedure is analogical, the closure of the fist prefiguring the stoppage of the gun barrel, preventing the issuance of the bullet. Alternatively the thumb may be bent in a right angle around the two top fingers. This predicts that, though the gun may weil discharge, the shot will go wide of the

mark - at an an^le from the true, like the bent thumb. Aft’er.making a fist and reciting the incantation you should hold your breath'fbr a few seconds and then slowly exhale - again,' this encour111

ages only a feeble discharge from the gun, preventing anything explo­ sive. It is easy to imagine this kind of magic carrying some conviction in the era of muzzle-loaders, when weapons could quite frequently fail to shoot. Even now, though, men protected by little more than spells like this will dare to face down an armed foe without the slightest qualms.

Asan The Spell of Origin Asar is the Benuaq word for “origin”; the origin invoked here being that of the person who is your opponent. This baca is only slightly longer than the last and also uses Arabic tags mixed in with Malay. It has three lines: Bismillah Neraman Arahim Sang Putih Rajah Manak Asal Orang Putih Tak Belawan

My informan told me the first three words were names of some of the prophets. In fact this is the first phrase in the Koran, which is recited before each of the sura - verses or chapters - which make up the holy book. The standard translation is, “In the name of Allah, the Merciful and the Compassionate”. The second and third lines can be translated by: White Lord, King [of] Children Because of a man’s white origins, he shall not resist. This incantation is, again, recited three times, upon each occasion the breath being held for a few moments and then slowly exhaled. After the final repetition the name of your opponent Is uttered. The origins somewhat elliptically referred to here are a man’s be­ ginnings from his father’s seed. This baca is recited on occasions of confrontation, when face to face with an opponent, before a blow can be struck. It is well uttered as a precautionary tactic if a situation looks

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like ending up in violence, though it is also more generally useful as a means of rendering opposition in any form impotent. By invoking a man’s origins in his father’s semen you reduce his strength to that of this primal fluid “ a substance with little sinew orjnuscle. In re-imagining him within this form, his current strength is reduced to what it then was - almost totally ineffective, as unripe as it is possible to be. The opponent is in­ stantaneously converted, no matter what his present age, into someone junior: for him to resist a senior person - a status effected by the spell violates the code of deference and submission that holds between those of different generations. Failure to observe these norms is not only bad form but can entail spirit sanctions. Relations of submission and domina­ tion between generations are assumed entailed in all natural, human and cosmic laws. The reconstitution of the relationship between opponents, who are equal, into one between unequals, in the nature of things ren­ ders resistance unthinkable and unrealisable. Such, at least, is the premise upon which this type of ilmu operates. This spell exists in innumerable variations, many of which turn on the crucial re-imagining of an opponent as the seminal fluid that engen­ dered him. Such knowledge is considered standard equipment for men of a certain bent, who travel widely and may run into situations where, far beyond the aid of kith and kin, the threat of violence at the hands of strangers seems well within the bounds of possibility. In these situations the race may well be to the fleet: he will prevail who can complete the spell before his opponent. A final example of this genre works on the same principle as the previous one but is directed against an invisible foe. In childbirth mother and child are vulnerable to the predations of the Band who comes slaver­ ing over the blood on offer. The most effective means of keeping her at bay is the recitation of the baca Qt guru which names her parentage; the knowledge of origins always entails power over those whose ante­ cedents are named. This spell, like the spirit it names, comes from down­ river. Once recited the power of the Band is ‘fenced’ and neutralised. Sang Paiq Nama Meq Mu

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Sang Paiq is your mother’s name Im Paiq Nama Mu Im Paiq is your name Sang Meraja Pali Nama Bapak Mu Sang Meraja Pati is your father’s name

There are innumerable other forms of baca^ but most of them work on sim itar principles, banishing evil influences by naming their origins. Spells of this type are also known as tawar, a form of /7/ww designed to return a particular situation to an erstwhile condition. A notable example of this magic is the spell which will preserve one from the effects of snake bite, which sends the poison back from whence it came. I haven’t had an opportunity as yet to be acquainted with this particular spell be­ cause it can only be communicated on the occasion that someone is bitten, and I haven’t been at the right spot at the right time. Other com-' mon baca can inhibit the rain from falling around you orturn a parent’s wrath to smiles of fondness. They are perhaps more jealously guarded than other kinds of ilmu because, unlike a piece of wood which can be given Without its secret - its source - being given away, spells once communicated cannot be unsaid.

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f DINIKNG - THE WALL: I PROTECTIVE MAGIC ■ One of the major classes of magic is collectively described by the term dinikng, which means a “wall”. The wall intended here is one which intervenes between a person, or sometimes a household, and the hostile actions of others. Dinikng protect one in many different situa­ tions and operate on a number of principles. They can keep one safe from armed attack by disabling an opponent (as is the case, for instance, with the baca previously mentioned that invokes the uterine origins of a foe); they can “lock” the body so that hostile magic is unable to pen­ etrate; they can return hot magic to its sender, and they can safeguard their possessors by shrouding them with invisibility. They are regarded as the most essential components of the magical tool-kit, insurance against assault by both human beings and spirits, in a world in which the motives of others are frequently obscure and where a degree of provi­ sional suspicion follows the path of prudence.

Penyirapm\ Cloaks of Invisibility Amongst the most sought after forms of magical protection are penyirapm, which render either persons or whole houses invisible and thus safe from any possible harm. The term derives from the root sirapm which d.enotes the total darkness of a moonless night. One of the com-

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monest means of hiding your family from malevolent forces which are ■ often ‘sent’ from afar and in the dead of night, the time when spirits are ' most likely to be out and about their work, is to plant a ‘fence’ of appro­ priate vegetation around the house. Often used for this purpose is a species ofjungle plant like sugar cane, one which is useless for cultiva­ tion because of the absence of sugar content in its sap. The train of associations here is that just as this cane is ‘tasteless’(neither sweet nor sour nor bitter), all that is enclosed within its borders will be equally impervious to the other senses. However closely your presence is sought no trace of it can escape the fence, and those who seek you will have neither sound nor sight of you no matter how closely they pass by. The selective principle here is as a member of a category that, unlike its fellows, fails to register on the expected senses. Besides criteria of‘tastelessness’ in otherwise flavoursome company, the ability to be lost to all appearances is an obvious qualification. An example of such things are river pebbles, normally white or light grey, which when placed in water can no longer be seen. Those are frequently the decisive specifics jn bottles of oil used as penyirapm. Other ingredients which work to sifhilar effect are fireflies, whose glowing lights disappear in the vicinity of lamps or during the day, and several types of luminescent, phosphorous laden wood. Another example is olau beleketek^ an oil in which there are some of the bones of a small species of frog. If this is kept safe in a corner of the house those who seek you will always be going astray. They might see your house'from a distance but when they approach closer it is suddenly lost to sight. Then they catch a glimpse of it in another direction entirely but when they reach this point too, the home has vanished once again. The analogy working here is borrowed from the frog song which no matter how insistent at a distance never fails to cease upon close approach, beginning anew somewhere else. A final type Qipenyirapm uses the wood of the komaat plant whose leaves can be a matted yellow and red. Four figures are carved from the wood taken from the eastern side of the bush, two male and two female. When the plant is cut you must shut your eyes. These are buried at the four corners of the house next to the piers, when you should also keep

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your eyes shut. The idea here is that the house will be difficult to discern because it will be as if those who seek you are dazzled by the sun in their eyes; red 1 ike the leaves of the komaat plant, seeing nothing clearly only motes of brightness like one who walks out of a dark room into the light of day. This procedure is accompanied by a papaat commentary in which the symptoms of visual impairment are described.

Japaian Japaian describe a whole range of techniques used to “lock” the body and prevent it from being penetrated by unwelcome instructions. The word comes from the Moslem Banjar people of South Kalimantan and means “holding”, with the connotation that the body will endure whatever is brought against it. The commonest technique in use among the Benuaq “closes” Jhe skin so that it is proof against iron blades(or bullets). The method is not complicated; it calls for the practitioner to assume a semi-crouched position, one heel under the bottom, the other knee against the navel, legs closed, thumbs in" ears and other fingers covering the mouth, nostrils and eyes. In this manner all the bodily ori­ fices are considered ‘closed’; it is tfte work of a few moments, but the value of the ilmu lies not in its complexity but its effectiveness. No baca accompanies this procedure. Its power only lasts for a day or until the orifices have been ‘opened’ by urination, excretion or sexual intercourse. One drawback of this magic is that the user, though able to withstand an armed opponent will otherwise be sial or unlucky. Because the body has been closed, good fortune is prevented from entering as well as bad. If you go hunting, gambling or on some other endeavor you will find no reward. The times when it is used should be chosen with some discre­ tion, as over employment results in a loss of protective potency. Rates of purchase are variable, though one man I know bought it some years ago for Rp4,000, a shirt, pair of trousers, cane basket and a working knife, not cheap by any means. However he swears by it and it hasn’t let him down yet.

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The evil Banci spirit: according to popular account, she can be recognised by the hair covering herface, chain mail shirt and longfinger and toe nails

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Tumar Tumar are a form of protective magic which Specifically protect you from -wook, or spirits of the forest of different kinds. Tumar will ensure these spirits will keep their distance from you. One kind of tumar which will protect you from Band is taken from the regrowth of a stump in a rice field burnt just prior to sowing. The tree has withstood the fire and shot anew, sufficient evidence of its potency. When the Band is confronted by the merest splinter of this wood she will see you as the fire from which the shoot was born. Fearing fire, she will flee. This charm is especially important for use with women in childbirth, when Band come in numbers to drink of the parturient blood and ‘eat’ the newborn infant. It is best kept close to the person or near the bed during tlie entire period of pregnancy. Some plants can also be ground into a paste with rice and applied to the bellies of expectant mothers to ease them during their labour as another form of tumar.

Sangkabalik\ Return To Sender These are multi purpose forms of protection, proof against both attack by those borne or possessed by spirit familiars during belian cer­ emonies and poisons. They are, most commonly, from wood that re­ quires no verbal assistance. The names of the most powerful of these woods are very expensive to come by (a gong or two aniang is still the going rate). One, described as the Rajah of this kind, was a 30 cm long, white tap root. The smallest fragment from this worn on the person will protect you; its potency is strengthened ifcarved into the form of ajurokng and given ulaas, or sacrificial blood. If carried during a belian ceremony it works as an immaterial sword against spirit attacks under the cloak of darkness, which are supposed often to be sent from enviouspe/weZ/aZw, or other shamans, in distont places. If worn on the person it also works to make any poison put on your plate or cup “run” back towards its source.

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In this case the evil sent returns to its sender, both vengeance and justice equally served. One wood used for this purpose is known euphemisti­ cally as tinan aroh (lit “the mother of that”). It comes from a parasitic plant, perhaps mistletoe. Parasites, though small, can overwhelm the most daunting hosts. The forest giants can be crippled by them : the logic here is not so difficult to fathom. Other plants with similar proper­ ties are staghorns and elkhorns. As the parasite feeds off the host tree and not vice versa, constructions of dependency are reversed here: the mistletoe is superior and thus senior. The “junior” tree, or in this case the magic sent by another, must surrender to its elders and betters. As our power is “higher”, the form this surrender takes is that all the ilmu of the original perpetrator comes under our jurisdiction and they are left impo­ tent or weaponless. Another plant which works as a sangkabalik is known by the title menang, or “to win”. If this is employed all the ilmu of your opposition will be defeated, their power and even money shifting to you. Again the logic of the spell is abstracted from a situation of contest in which there can be only one victor. The shrub from which this wood is taken is from the most profuse regrowth on abandoned rice fields. It has a thick brush of branches in dense array and overpowers all competing plants. If these charms encounter the ilmu of others they will be left weaponless and, their power now our own, they will become subject to whatever ills and woes they have sent, their evil returned to them with interest. Sangkabalik can also take the forms of oil and baca. These charms if carved as jurokng can also be classed as vari­ eties of gimat.

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j RASUTN: POISON

If you stay in a village long enough to get known and to establish some social ties, when a situation arises where you express a desire to travel somewhere distant, this can often occasion some consternation. You must be very careful, people will tell you’, ifyou go up there. They are quick to give poison in that area. This suspicion of those at any remove from your own place, whether in terms of geographical or kin­ ship distance, is a pretty generalised one. Anyone who makes a habit of travel, for whatever purpose, will probably have a stock ofcharms which will allow them to resist the effects of poison, “see” it before they ingest it, or send it scuttling back to its source to do its worst. The prevalence of the belief in whole populations of compulsive poisoners only awaiting an opportunity to wreak havoc leads us to ask what kind of social conditions foster such fears and if, indeed, they are absolutely groundless. The three most common reasons given for why anyone would wish to poison you are because they have been shamed or humiliated, out of envy, or simply to try you or the poison out. Tradi­ tional Benuaq and Tunjung society, being divided into a number of semihereditary social ranks, was very status conscious (as it continues to be, though in somewhat modified form). There were, and are, any number of ways in which, intentionally or inadvertantly, someone might be of­ fended. The omission of proper signs of respect, aspersions cast on hospitality or competence, requests refused, making eyes at another man’s wife, cheating in any of its hundreds of forms, let alone the insults entailed by theft, adultery or litigation over disputed property, can all in-

spire an impulse to get even or take revenge. Revenge is sweetest when

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it attains its object without incurring any consequences or costs - and this is where poison recommends itself. Successfully employed the iden­ tity of the perpetrator may remain undetectible, safe from legal sanction and, it is hoped, repercussions in the form of a cycle of vengeance where one death “repays” another. While rumours of poisoning still persist, particularly in such cases as the mysterious deaths of those whose lives Kaye sparked more than their fair share of conflict or controversy, the prevalence of this form of behaviour - or the suspicion of it- is much in decline in comparison to the situation a generation or two ago. Then, it is often said, people were harder and more cruel, deficient in compassion, quick to take offence and even quicker to redress it. A common stimulus to acts of vengeance,, whether through the use of “poison” or other forms Qiilmu, was (and is) the demonstration of “arrogance”, whether through word or deed. Out­ siders especially, when they go to another village, ought to conduct them­ selves with modesty in all things so as not to arouse the ire of the locals. Boastful behaviour can attract resentment where reputations are likely to be at stake. Some situations are more explicitly constructed in terms of contests for status than others. Many accusations of poisoning or the use of ‘hot’ magic are levelled at visiting ritual specialists, presumed jealous of the reputations of competitors, ifsome other practitioner should die during the course of ceremonial performances. These ceremonies can be quite physically gruelling, involving lack of sleep, continuous danc­ ing and weeks of chain-smoking, so sudden deaths from heart attacks or strokes are not infrequent, particularly amongst the elderly. Some of the larger ceremonies also involve games of various kinds that can have a violent aspect. Notable are the duels with rotan canes - mengkopas often between men of different villages. The damage these canes can do to unprotected backs and limbs can be quite vicious. In the past, it is said, some doctored their canes with poison, resulting in occasional deaths some days after the contests. Poison is also used to redress grievances which achieve no satisfaction in either village or local courts. A notori­ ous thief of rhy acquaintance died after a mysterious, month long illness and many attributed his death to poison he had come in contact with

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during an illicit night-time visit to the rotan gardens of another. The particular poison he was rumoured to have touched (affixed to trees in the garden) was of a kind, it was said, which only became potent once another substance (that acted as a catalyst) had been ingested. Several days after the episode in question he had eaten a mango which it was said invigorated the poison. Stories such as this and hundreds like it do not provide evidence so much for the use of poison as they do of a willingness to believe in its use. Such suspicions leaven the often tedious texture of village life and allow the petty hatreds and tensions that persist between different house­ holds, family networks, villages or ethnic groups to be projected in collective fantasies. This is not to say, though, that these practices are entirely imaginary but they are certainly exaggerated by the machinery of gossip and tale telling which provides much of the dynamism in social life. Thales of poison do, however, have a factual basis. Dayak peoples have an extensive knowledge of the medicinal properties of the trees and othenplants of the tropical forest, including knowledge concerning which species are poisonous. A number of these poisons have achieved wide renown, notably those from the ipoh tree and the tuba plant. Poison taken from the sap of the ipoh tree {antiaris toxicaria) is one of the two common substances used to tip the darts for the blowpipe; the other, which the Benuaq call siratn, is related to strychnine.If fresh, these poisons can kill a large animal five minutes after they enter the blood­ stream. Poison from the tuba plant {derris eliptica) is used to stun fish in temporarily dammed watercourses, although it is also a ready domes­ tic standby for intending suicides. I have been assured that the most reliable antidote in such cases, where the person is found in time, is the force feeding of quantities of pig manure. There are dozens of other vegetable poisons some common knowledge, others less so. This knowl­ edge,.like other kinds of ilmu^ comes at a price and is not shared without appropriate recompense. •-When4he Benuaq and Tunjung speak of poison, though, it is not necessarily an indication that a substance has pharmacological proper-

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ties that will cause death. In this sphere of practice, as in many others, symbolic qualities are at least as decisive in defining thfe class of active properties at issue. Although people may well know which plants pro­ vide poisons and which do not, they also maintain that these are only potent under certain conditions, and that these same substances may also be curative in other circumstances. What makes something ca­ pable of acting as a poison is determined very much by its source and particularly through reference to the oppositional logic 1 spoke of in the introduction. If a substance is taken from the western side - the evil or inauspicious direction - of a plant or tree it can kill. Accordingly, ifyou wish to apply an antidote in a case of suspected poisoning you will first have to determine its species and then obtain some of it from the eastern side of a bush. I am not sure whether such antidotes ever demonstrate any significant degree of empirical success but a conviction in the effi­ cacy of the method is fairly widespread. Other factors enter into the preparation of the poison. In common with some other practices associ­ ated with ilmu, the act of obtaining the poison is best undertaken, many assert, on a Friday. Poisons are often mixed with oil - generally coconut oil - before they are administered. If cure is attempted employing coco­ nutoil in these instances it will only exacerbate the complaint, by making the movement of the poison in the system more fluent. A common method of poisoning is through ingestion, though some poisons and medicines are effective by absorption through the skin and may simply be applied to unwary backs or arms. Often poison is put in food and drink or onto a plate or glass the intended victim will use (which has been known to result in accidental homicide). Another favourite method is to offer a poison-tipped cigarette. Typical opportunities for such acts occur when people are eating communally during the course of a ceremony, when they are guests at another village or when seated at a warung (food-stall) in a market place. In anticipation of such acts or in circumstances where sdme probability of danger may be antici­ pated many men (more usually the targets of these acts than women) have preventative charms of one sort or another with them. These are usually in the form of "obai kayu'"- “medicine wood”. This medicine, if

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in close proxim ity to your person (in a pocket, in a pouch beneath your be t et^) may allow you to “see” the poison on the plate or glass before ance u 1 >’« ""i^ty or vapourous in appear­ ance - though this characteristic may not manifest itself until well into

One should hesitate before consuming the food of strangers prior to this time. Once le presence of poison has been sensed you may either take pains to the far side of the dish, thus removing the threat. Some “return to sender” charms may urge the poison towards the utensils used by the perpetra­ tor. In the worst-case scenario, when you only detect the poison once you are feeling its effects, fatality can still be avoided through the speedy resort to various antidotes that should always be carried on your person for such emergencies or which can be quickly obtained from the surrounding environment.

find > *’5^ P""P’P’“ pharmacology would find It difficult to lend any credence.These kinds of distinctions are sim­ ply not recognised in the practices described here. One of the most renowned of all poisons occurs as an oil. It is said thatthough this poison IS without an antidote and thus certain of its mark, those who possess it will also be accursed: someone in their house will die within the month they come by it. Those rumoured to have this poison are cited as proof of this, their houses emptied of children as first one and then another' succumbs m succession. The irresistible potency of this particular poi­ son is attributable to its ability, once out of the bottle (and it may seep out of ds own accord) to assume any number of forms, appearing often as different kinds of delicious food, such as fruit, which children will eat without a second thought. Another form of poison, known as takap tana, employs substances taken from vines, tree sap or animals which are used to kill by a method of direct contact, being put on Victims’ clothes or somewhere they are likely to sit. This method of giving poison requires the accompaniment oipapaat invocations, the normal proce­ dure mvolvihg the nomination of the day on which the victim ought to die. Typical symptoms of this poison ate said to involve bleeding from

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the gums and pores of the skin. Another method which also enjoys a reputation for conferring little hope of cure Involves only the recitation of a baca or spell, nothing more, at the time the victim is eating. The usual Arabic and Malay melange is followed by words to the effect that, “you are not eating rice: you are eating poison.” This is first mut­ tered, or said silently to oneself, when the victim begins to eat. It must be repeated seven times in all before it is done. It need not endanger others if not repeated as they eat. Victims will bleed from the stomach and collapse in a short time. A final type of poison employs yet another procedure. A particular small and very poisonous species of snake must be found and a small section of its tail cut off and kept. Then an oppor­ tunity must be awaited when the intended victim can be secretly ob­ served relieving themselves. The snake’s tail must then be dipped in their excrement and dried. The next step involves momentarily slipping this preparation into a glass from which the victim will drink. Nothing can then save them, they are doomed. I will leave the reader to unravel the possible rationales behind this particular technique, noting only that if the snake’s tail is associated with the site of bodily elimination, then the head with its poisonous bite - remember this is a small snake - probably locates itself somewhere near the stomach. The most potent of all substances known to combat poison and render it harmless is known as minyak mati or minyak buyuk, ‘dead oil’ or‘putrefying oil’. This is actually not as mysterious as it sounds - it is a waste product of the oil refining process. The use of this substance for this purpose is obviously of relatively recent vintage, post-dating Dutch oil production in the later years of the last century. It demonstrates, though, the ever innovative ability to adapt new technologies to old pur­ poses. The rationale behind the selection of this product as a specific against poison is to be discerned in its source from beneath the ground. Here again the power of analogy works its magic, where principles employed in the construction of social hierarchy are projected onto the world of natural phenomena. In this case that which is below is not construed as ‘beneath’ and therefore submissive to that above, but as the foundation for that which draws its life from it, as prior to and thus

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dominant over that which comes from it. As most poison comes from wood or other vegetation (usually the active ingredients in those things classed as ‘oils’), and as all that grows comes from the earth, then earth and its essences are senior to these other substances. Similarly with oil itself, the product of the coconut tree. This being the case, it would be unnatural for dependent powers to come off the better in any contest with their source or origins, just as it would be for children to command their parents Juniors their elders or descendants their ancestors.Poisons from wood or coconut oil, that is to say, will not dare contest the author­ ity of the oil which comes from the earth on which they are dependent for existence. The giving of poison has been so much accepted as a standard though still sanctioned - social practice that infamous episodes from the distant past are still recalled with some interest. The story is told of Kobaq, the third son of Pa Bang - a powerful regional chief on the Nyuatan river some seven generations ago, who had his eye on succes­ sion to his father’s position when the old man eventually died. The two eldest sons were themselves quite old and had little ambition for such a role; all that stood in Kobaq’s way was the able, and favourite, fourth son. When the fourth son died suddenly in suspicious circumstances there was no evidence to implicate anyone in the affair one way or another. But Pa Bang had a dream in which a spirit familiar told him of the identity of the culprit. As with most other crimes, the punishments for murder varied according to the status of guilty parties. Although high ranking persons were fined at heavier rates than lesser people (there being no capital sanctions unless for the crime of incest), they were also more able to pay, avoiding thereby relegation to ‘slave’, or ripatn, sta­ tus. For the crime he was powerless to deny, Kobaq was fined a still impressive sum: Four ripatn, or slaves; one antang jar, and a lelah or small cannon (worth ten standard jars). His father, in addition, also paid a self - imposed fine of two ripatn, an antang and a lelah, because he should have educated his son better than he obviously had. Rumours and imputations of poisoning remain an entrenched part of village life. There is reason to believe, though, that the practice may

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not, even in the past, have been as widespread as is commonly held. Wherever there are untimely deaths, and particularly of those who may have been embroiled in social conflicts of one kind or another, fingers of accusation tend to be pointed - usually, be it said, behind people’s backs. No doubt many of the deaths which give rise to such suspicions are attributable to patterns of morbidity more’typical in societies where manu­ factured drugs or trained medicaF supervision have been close to non­ existent until recent years. On the other hand there may be more than a grain of truth in stories about the bad old days when this knowledge was deployed more readily than it is today. Many people affirm, after all, that one of the major reasons why they are law abiding these days is be­ cause of the fear of gaol sentences, where in traditional society ven­ geance tended to be administered directly by injured parties or through the imposition of fines. In any case, proof in these matters was often difficult if not impossible to establish, short of a confession. Intended victims, or the bereaved, were prone to redress these situations in the same coinage.

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JCAN: LOVE CHARMS

When girls and boys reach adolescence their thoughts turn increas"^8 ^ojhe other sex. While many thoughts never attain active expression and of those seductions launched perhaps but few reach port, the mar­ ket in ancan^ or love charms, even now remains little diminished. Twenty years ago no self respecting bujang, or unmarried person of either sex would have considered themselves equipped for amorous pursuits with­ out a healthy stock of ancanAn recent times the growth of the cash economy has on the one hand provided more certain prospects of suc­ cess to those with the means, while on the other it has provided many young women with career prospects beyond the traditional option of early marriage. Less than a generation ago many girls married in their mid-to-late teens, men a little later but even so it was quite common for them to be not yet twenty. Many people of forty are already grandpar­ ents. Girls still marry on occasion as young as twelve, forcing parental consent by threatening such things as jumping from the tops of coconut trees. Although assignations between the young were not prohibited in the past, and there was no cultural fetish where female virginity was concerned, these meetings were usually closely monitored and it was not long before a young man was asked about the seriousness of his intentions. After a conventional three nights with a prospective wife in her parents’ apartment he would have to make a choice whether to discontinue the relationship or marry. This custom is still observed in many villages. In Benuaq and Tunjung village society there is a high rate of intra­ community marriage and of marriage between those who are closely

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related: Marriage between first and second cousins is fairly common, indeed-between most prospective partners a kinship tie of some kind is scarcely avoidable. In this situation familiarity can often discourage amorous Interest particularly on the part of the local girls, though the boys-too'can often express an indication for the novel. In such condi­ tions ancan can be instrumental in two ways : they can help convert the reluctant and equally provide a bridge for the unacquainted. It is worth emphasising once again here that women are and have been just as avid in their employment of these’charms as men. When young men went trawling for a prospective bride in places new - unmarried men, especially in the past, being more free to travel than unaccompanied women - it was often on occasions when some ceremonial work was being undertaken in another, sometimes distant villagej where kinship ties guaranteed a welcome. Once there they might set-eyes on a beautiful (or equally important - hard working) woman for theTirst time and decide to pursue them, their name perhaps still un­ known-. Many is the ancan employed both in times past and still now to overcome the obstacles put in the way of a stranger with a local girl (or if may be the girl who first takes a fancy to a handsome stranger, lithe upon the dance floor, clever delivering a ballad). FoY those in pursuit of someone from their own village, on the other hand, the impediments were'and are often of a different nature: over-familiarity may breed contempt. Young men and women who think themselves too good for their peers are the ideal targets for ancan magic. These indifferent objects of desire are described as arrogant or proud. A large part of the attraction in using an ancan lies in the spectacle of reducing those once ■proud and distant to a state of abject desperation. As with most other forms of magic, though/ancan ought not to be employed simply to make mischief or if lacking sufficient cause or pretext. In the case of ancan, the desire for the other should be a sincere one. If this magic is used only for malicious ends the perpetrator risks their come-uppance; he or she may become subject to a curse. ■ ’ Ancan employ several forms, including oil.’wood, the Malay de­ rived spells called guru qt bacd and a Benuaq verse form called sentaro

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- consisting of several lines in a short mantra. Sentaro cannot work alone, but must be paired with either wood or oil, whileguru do not need such accompaniments. Some ancan are applied surreptitiously, others leave the victim in little doubt as to one’s intent. In the latter case this cannot help but captyre the attention of the beloved and often succeeds, one feels, through sheer power of suggestion,. Sincipm Riu Mampuran tumu datn Aku lai ganakan Bele ratus saribu

Round like the.Rip Ring, By their hundreds, by their thousands, New branches begin to-shoot, I, too, am beloved.

This sentaro works in conjunction with the smearing on of the ap­ propriate oil. First a finger is dipped in the yil and then a line drawn down the palm from the, tip of the index finger, then another traced fr.om left to right across the palm, as the sentaro is recited. Then the oil is pressed to each of the temples of the intended in turn, first the left then the right. When applied the hand bearing the oil should not .pass in front of the eyes of the .victim but behind hisor her head. J am assured that even if there be many other suitors it cannotfaji of its mark. If this, or any other ancan is applied to a married person in the public gaze, the offender can be fined for improper .behavior described as "situational adultery”, so seriously are the effects of these .charms taken. It may also be worth considering that if the ancan is powerful it can lead to an irrepressible urge for immediate consummation. It is best in such an event that there be as few witnesses as possible,..,.

- ’1 Another sentaro which came highly recommended ryns like.this:

Pusok Rarut Punan Puncut Lapusu Girong-Gorek Birakng-Ate Balakng -Nanuk

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The bud of the rarut plant, On top of the hill,. Her heart pounds quickly, Hpr heart entire. Then gores .the,horn.

'As this indicates, to accompany this mantra you must obtain some of the tips of the rarut plant. The bud has an appearance which sug­ gests th^ human tongue, which accounts for its selection: it ^stands in for the tongue and thus the speech of the one casting the spell. As is stan­ dard practice with all ilmut it must be picked on a Friday. When you desire.to work your magic the sprig must be put in your mouth and chewed, and the sentaro, also following standard practice with spells, repea,te4 three, times, the breath held and slowly exhaled after each quiet repetition in the face of your object. After the third recitation the chewed pulp is plucked from your mouth and then thrown at the person of the intended woman or man; from that moment its effects begin to be felt. The wish is transferred by way of the chewed bud which carries with it all the force of the expressed wish. A friend of mine gained his wife with this sentaro. Until then she had been “arrogant” by his ac­ count (by which he means she was distinctly uninterested and didn’t hide her opinions). Once he worked this charm the tables turned. At first she became quiet and hid in-thq house but then’she pursued him for three days. Whenever he saw her coming he ran off, savouring the moment. Finally he tooktpity pn her and surrendered. To cure her of the obsessive infatuation he took the shirt pff his back and lashed her with it. Jhisjs.the only way tp neutralise the effects of an ancan. Three nights later he was asked by her father if he would marry her or not, and with his consent the formalities were concluded. Another goes: . Tulakng usakng .. TumuNatar . Lintukng Nayuq Mqlqf! Kampuatn Usang', • Nempatn Kampuatn Bayuq

The Old Bones remain New Growth from the yard, Struck by the Nayuq spirits, _He will leave his old village, And have a new family.

This sentar-o is employed with a sprig from the siluq maliq plant which is chewed and then thrown onto the desired person in the same

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manner as in the previous example. This plant suggests itself for use as an ancan because its black skinned fruit when cut reveals' a white flesh which"'over the ensuing minutes slowly turns yellow as it oxidses. This change in hue is analogous to the change of heart the charm is intended to precipitate.I Potik Kelik Mungkakng Osuq Enang Erai Pengelik Lome Kesokng Kakang Saku

Sweet grain in the ant’s mouth She, at first sight, Falls her heart, and desires me.

’’

This seniaro is used with oil as in the first example. Other sentaro errtploy metaphors which can be have a number of connotations.

Noyir we tonar gamus

Leget ruye nipa we Penganan molaq junus

Pull down the rotan vine from'the gamus tree, Crowds go towards her, like the snake or rotan. The python leaves its skin.

The final line is conventionally read asold work-being put aside for new intentions. The sentaro form can be deployed in burlesque as well. This is a mock sentar'o which enjoys some popular renown, though 1 have substituted one word for the coarser original.

Nunuk Dukutn Tenatak Adiq Odaq Kedaat Lauk Ulun Lauk aku rasa piak

The dukutn beringin tree Is felled with the sword Ugly the arses of the'others. My arse is tasty like chicken.

Another sentaro is also effective with the aid of wood from a num­ ber of fruit trees.

NgengetEo Leaq Leo'

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The song of the ngengei bird,

r

Jhe lover hopes the sond ofhis /lute tvill carry a spell ofenchantment to the object ofhis desire

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Incatn Laiq Puli Kediq Sitting above the small benggris tree, Kesokng Ino Diweq Domo Her heart and breath, below and above, Kerukng-kerukng Besiq Caught in an iron cage. « *• This sentaro guarantees the intended can have no thoughts of any­ thing but the chanter. This sentaro requires pieces of eight kinds of wood to be passed near the sought after person, which thereby capture some of his or heryto or vital essence.The bundle of twigs is then placed under the armpit of the infatuated party, the bettef to’retain the captured juus, and is afterwards placed in a box of some kihd from which this essence cannot escape; this is-the ‘iron cage’ referred to. Some ancan empidy tbe'bacfl Qt guru fornyhe mantra in Malay which have been adapted from Moslem sources,Wominaptly m'-this^rea from the Bugm^: Guru do'notwork with the aid of oil'or Wood, though they can^be accom,panied-by a number of procedures 8r fortuitous cir­ cumstances which encourage their success.;While sentaro need be re­ cited only the once, guru like other baca are'saidthree times, the breath held and slowly exhaled after each occasion to'“jock” the spell inplace. Gwrw are profitably recited when the beloved is singing; the spell will be carried to them by the sound of theirown voice. Guru can be “carried” by other sounds as well, so long as they are recited during the course of the event. Such occasions may be when the cry of the eagle or the vpices of pigeoris are heard, or in the early evening wherfthe crickets chirp; Flute serenades can still often be heard in-many villages shortly before the dawn, sometime after 5 o’clock; andyhese too can carry a desire towards its object. Another method requires the spell to be mut­ tered while stepping'on the shadow, from either sun or lamp of the intended. . , '' ■ Some guru called penaik cahaya (“raiser of brightness”) are in­ tended to make one’s appearance, no matfer how plain or the worse for wear, dazzling in the eyes of the beholder. The guru which follows is employed when putting on make up. The traditional version efface pow­ der, a common sight still on the faces of many teenagers both women and meh; is made of a white paste of ground raw rie'e mixed with water.

'136

It is called pupur. If some of the turmeric plant is added this becomes a'bright yellow. When applied the face becomes a mask of vivid white or yellow. The application is considered to enhance good health as much as the .appearance. Pupur- setapar pur' •”‘PM77wr, putting on Pupur aku’ semanku terang The pupur is bright on my face Aku duduk bepupur I sit applying/?!//?!//* paste; Seperti bulan terang Like the clear moon.

Ancan-SirQ employed not only to pursue love affairs but are'also effective in the broader spectrum of social relationships. A kind of sentaro known as pengerunuk (“to'fence”the body”) can also be'counted amongst the class of protective charms and spells described at dinikng (“wall”). Pengerunuk protect a person by defusing any hostility directed against them. They turn a savage impulse to one of pity or compassion, a variety of love. They are thus valuable accessories for anyone likely to find themselves in situations of conflict, a qualification which possibly allows but few exemptions. Besides tempering the ardour of an armed foe they are useful in matters of litigation and can curb the anger of a parent or an outraged spouse. The first example here is a general pur­ pose one. Senteri bungan puti Senteri bungan putang Batang unuk penerasi Rasa siang batang bokang

Senteri, flower of the benggris, Senteri, flower of the putang^ My person is pitied, Compassion for my body.

The senteriq flower is probably a kind of orch id, one which is manyhued. The charm works to transfer some of the beauty of the flower to the appearance of the person, thereby inspiring tenderness.

Daun tu, ruju ruju, Sungkap tapa, nete sawa Daran bulu, epuh nudu Tarawakatn toyak diyvaq

Leaf of the tu rotan, pointing straight; Bites the tapa fish from downriver; 'The blade of the knife, already near; Is lowered and put down.

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This one, or one like it, is indispensable for those who are much travelled and often find themselves in villages not their own, or who range widely in the forest where there is always the possibility of an encounter with strangers of dubious intent. Both these pengerunuk are used with oil infused with wood, handed down from generation to gen­ eration. It is in the spirit of compassion too that the giving of ancan may often be without the conventional payments appropriate for most other forms of magic. The one major restriction on their communication is between parents and children of the opposite sex; the transfer of such knowledge in these circumstances is tainted by incestuous connotations^

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SERENGK'ELI: SPELLS TO DRIVE PEOPLE APART

If ancan bring people closer together, there is also magic to drive them apart. Serengkeli, sometimes called ngerai - “to separate”, are employed to ensure that couples split. There may be any number of reasons for people wanting to break up a marriage. The commonest motive is revenge. Dayak people are easily slighted but there are cul­ tural inhibitions that suppress the expression of open hostility, let alone violence. In these situations injuries to pride or self-respect often wait many years before they can be satisfied on some legitimate pretext, or else .vengeance is taken by covert means. Nothing delights more than the ru ipation of another’s contentment ifthey have tarn ished your own. It is alHhe sweeter if the hand that evens the score remains unsus­ pected. The injuries to self-esteem which cry out for these kinds of retaliation may have arisen frorn cross or arch words, resentments over being cheated in some way or occasions where apparently reasonable requests for aid have been rebuffed without the proper courtesies or formalities. . . , There may be other reasons for wanting to separate someone from a loving, or at least secure^ spouse. In early, marriage particularly, the position of sons - and daughters-in-law is a vulnerable one, when they often f,ijd themselves living with their parents-in-law, Ifthe child’s spouse does not measure up or fails to be properly subservient their life can be a misery. Jn these circumstances it is-not uncommon for someonefrom one or other of the families united by the marriage to attempt to resolve

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the situation by prompting a speedy divorce. There are not a few tales of squabbling young couples who find these charms secreted beneath the place they sleep. Another motive may be unrequited love. You may have your eye on one of the happy couple and there remain no other way to secure your object, but even in this matter revenge often enters the picture.Rebuffed advances can also result in injured pride - ^ndthe unsuccessful lover may have very little compunction in wishing their heart’s desire as miserable as themselves. Inlhese cases, though, stron­ ger remedies are commonly sought, such as the spells which send people insane (see Timang Ngarakng).

Serengkeli, like ancan, also employ the sentaro form ; Vmaq munkaq netu ayau Father Munkaq (plant), cut off a branch; Aku kopet odak doaq 1 lean it on the wall, the knife falls away; Ampen kayu rampatn kesau With wood from the coffin, they will never meet. *

♦

.The sentaro names the two types of wood necessary to complete the spell and the process of fixing them against the wall of your victims’ house, but leaning away from it. The couple will diverge just as the branch leaves the wall, dr like a knife (the man) which falls away from the corner in which it stands. The wood from the coffin is rich in sym­ bolism : the couple will “meet” either literally or in terms of them “fitting together”, as rarely as the living meet the dead or find their company congenial. The dead, too, have few opportunities to marry any more unless possibly with another spirit of the dead. An important prohibition to remember for those using this wood is that it should not be stored in one’s own home, because it can work simply through the power of prox­ imity. Other spells require more specific places of application, such as' beneath the'bed or on river banks and so on. Perhaps the commonest forms of serengkeli employ either wood

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Applying ulaas, or sacrificial blood, to a carvedfigure in order to cement a relationship to a spiritfamiliar

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alone, or work in combination withpapaai-the spells which are not in verse form but consist of the unrehearsed expression of a wish. One^f the latter calls for sprigs of different coloured leaves from the maU plant {Leca Indica). Ifthe plant has red leaves it is ‘male’; if green; ‘female’. The process requires a simple pinch from each of these-plants to be placed in the armpits of a shirt and blouse worn by each of the couple. At the same time raw rice is scattered in gift to whatever spirits have dominion over this spell and the wish that would be fulfilled is'spontaneously expressed. Another spell calls for cuttings frorp’the benugng ranka plant, which also has its reddish male and white,or green female forms. You must carve both a male and female figqre each in their appropriate wood. If you can’t get specimens of both forms of the pLhpt one will suffice. Then obtain some material from clothing or fabric wprn by the man and woman concerned and dress the carvings in them. The figures must then be planted on opposite' banks pfta river or>stream facing away from each other. This means that they will no longer wish to meet each other again. The river becomes the impassable'barri^r between them which they will'never cross. , A final example of the serengkeli is known as Mecing Koko literallyicat^^and dogs. First acquire some of the mud used m the nests of those wasps whidh have rhade their homes on the sides of VnQtemplaaq - the tall'carved’ ‘houses’ for the bones of the dead. Next secure some of the whiskers both of a dog and a cat. Stir in a generous quantity of co­ conut oil. The resulting'mixture is best used under the bed frame if they have one; if not then on the floor beneath the mat or mattress will suf­ fice. When the oil is applied the names ofyour victim’s are pronounced and the hope expressed that they will fight like cats and dogs and that theif maifiage will not long endUre. Potency is carried by the mud from the wasps* nest due to its proximity to the bones of the ^ead, those-qf prior generations who are-assumed to-have acquired -great- ilmu ahd power in times gone by. The other CQnnotations of materials taken from near graves mentioned above also‘apply here.

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TIMANe NGARAKNG: i A SPELL WHICH BRIN&S MADNESS

This kind of ilmu also tends ,to attract a particular class of clientele. The jealous husband typifies the market for Timang Ngarakng, the “Dancing Tiger”, a spell which sends people mad, though it obviously has a more general appeal as well. The requirements for this spell are quite elaborate. All preparations have to be effected on a Friday, begin­ ning with the collection of ingredients which are to be infused in the standard coconut oil. There are seven of these. The number seven is always associated with the more impure fields of endeavour and espe­ cially anything which might touch bn death - one of-possible conse­ quences of this spell if it is so engineered. The first requirement is a cutting of some plant or tree which is found growing in water, or inun­ dated by it. This may be a root, a stick of bamboo or something else entirely -'the one qualification is that it must be in a situation buffetted by the current’sp that it is constantly moving backwards and forwards - a presentiment of the compulsive dancing indulged by the victim once pos­ sessed. The second ingredient'is a black beetle found in.rotten wood; the male of the species is sought (itmakes’ a noise which can be taken to presage the alarming speech of the soon to be afflicted). Next obtain a cutting of the sopakng bush, a reddish garden plant with a thorny stem; prickly as the behaviour of the victim will become. Thi^must Be taken from ^Ke'side facing the ‘dying day’- that is, from the western or ill-, omened .side. This requirement indicates that the cutting from this plant can be classed as a “poison”..'Then find flowers from thepangir bush -

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a red one from the male type of the species, a white one from the ‘fe­ male’. The final requirements are some of the roots of the red-leafed variety of the bioyowo plant and from a red-leafed species of sugar­ cane known as the Nayuq's cane, because these spirits are known to dress in red, and have red blood. Red is also the colour which symbolises the ‘hot’ emotions, anger and aggression. The other specimens collected, too, can be construed in terms of connections with vaEious,mXjor groups of spirits. The first obviously indicates the Jwar^^spirits wHo have do­ minion over the waters; white indicates the earth spirits, or Tonoi, whose blood and raiment are this colour, as do the roots from the two final plants. The thorny bush and the beetle can be considered representa­ tives of a number of species of Wook or forest spirits, yhe blood and clothing of Wook are black. Though all of these ingredients must be collected on a Friday it need not be on the one day. The long list of necessities makes this an onerous piece of work to achieve, but this is only half the story. To complete the spell further procedures are required. A figurine representing the victim has to be carved. The cutting has to be taken in late afternoon from a plant which has sprung from a grave mound. The name of the plant from which this must be taken is the knowledge most closely guarded by those who sell the spell, for the relatively expensive price of 2 antang (ceramic jars) - worth around USS 35 in today’s money, the equivalent of twenty days labour in the rice fields or the factories downriver. The plant if cut changes colour when exposed to the air, turning yellow - the hue associated with the Timang (“Tiger”) spirits who dwell in caves, after whom the spell is named. From this wood it is best that two figures are caryed, one male and one female, though one will suffice in the form of the intended victim (it is more common for women to be objects of t^ese spells). These have to be carved to a “finished” state; that'is, they must be well worked and completed w'ith hands, feet, eyes and so on clearly evident. The carvings, or patung, have then to b’e‘clothed in styles appropriate to the sex represented* the male dressed in the traditional length of cloth wrapped around the waist and dangling over the loins, the woman in a wrap - around skirt. These strips of fabric have to be takeh somehow from the clothing worn by th’e

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intended victim. In addition a number of hairs must be cut from the crown-of his or her head. This task in itself is sufficiently daunting. In days not too for gone it was customary for an accomplice-to be em­ ployed for this purpose, and they had to be paid well in accordance with the risk they-ran if caught. The making of the patung or figurine is completed simultaneously with the mixing of the collected ingredients with the oil. This procedure had to be accomplished for from the village, as far as the sound of the cock’s crow will carry, in a lonely part of the forest. It requires seven men (or women, though this is rare) to work in concert, or five if this cannot be managed; seven the particular number of death and its rites, odd numbers in general also carrying dark connotations. One man cooks the potion over a fire, invoking various spirits by name and scattering raw rice in every direction as offerings while doing so. The spirits whose aid is sought are not specific; they will vary in accordance with the knowledege and experience of the person calling upon them. Different traditions of belian, for instance, invoke different pantheons of spirits. What is necessary, though, is that the spirits called be summoned by their, individual names. Only in this way are you sure to catch their atten­ tion artd can you satisfy the necessary forms of respect. Besides*the Tiinang, or Tiger spirit - which can manifest in many forms and whose coming may be announced by the. clap of thunder - the spirits of the forest,-or Wook, are usually called, together with the the forbidding stran­ gler, figs which dominate all other trees in the forest. The Kuyakng (usually female) and Tentuwajak(m&\e) who dwell in the giant beringin trees, and Tentuwajak, the latter in particular,’are the spirits most re­ sponsible for manifestations of symptoms of madness (which is gener­ ally interpretted as a form of possession that can be cured, if at all, only through excorcism during belian ceremonies). The spirits are summoned while the oil is bubbling over the fire. The-cook names the victims and begins to describe the forms of madness’which shall afflict them. As each symptom of madness is described in JHP^one of the accomplices will enact it. Some require more fortitude thanfttbers,.One .will climb trees like a monkey, another dive in the river and swim like a fish, others will jump from trees or rocks. Some will talk

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like a person in a psychotic or schizophrenic statejumping from ope topic to the next with little sense, speaking of the unmentionables, talking dirty, perhaps bursting into fits of laughter in wild and inappropriate way^. Others will dance us if possessed, arms and legs lurching in all direc­ tions, the true picture of possession, while another may launch into fits and snatches of song in a loud and raucous voice. More embarrassing still for the actor.are several manifestations of total shamelessness, including running round stark naked (something usually unimaginable and only possible here because all the men, or women, present are of only one sex and of equal generational status; with no one ‘elder’ to another). Worse yet, for a people who have.a developed sense ofthe ‘uncleanness’ and even-bestiality of such acts, is the drinking of urine and the eating of excrement (these are things only pigs and dogs do). The contravention of all'the normal-social taboos is of course the purpose of the exercise; it is only through enacting these scenes that the victim may be induced into these forms of‘madness’’ insanity being that very state in which all the normal social prohibitions and niceties are violated. Insanity, too, has its standard forms in different places. Psychotic episodes and manifestations of schizophrenia are not infrequent, and during them any or all ofthe behaviours described above may be in evidence. * Duringall this serious play the concocted oil is applied to the dressed patung representing the victim, while their future actions continue to be described in meticulous detail. The most'dire scenes enacted are those which portray a death, though possibly these defeat the true purpose of the spell which is to torment the victim rather than kill them. When all has been completed in. this secluded spot one or two of those casting the spell, come sunset, will take the carved figure to the cemetery and again make gifts of rice to the spirits summoned to lend their aid. The patung will then be*left on-a grave ■ graves being places frequented by some types of spirits who have a taste for the flesh of corpses, or bangkai. (These spirits are not totally devoid of common decency, however, it-is justthatthey perceivelhe corrupted Flesh they eat as an ordinarymfeal of rice and savouries). It shoulctnot be long after this-that marked'change’s

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Enacting the Timang Ngarakng spell to drive someone mad

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in the behaviour of the victim begin to appear. Some of the symptoms described do occur with some frequency, notably amongst women, and Timang Ngarakng, the Dancing Tiger, is a common diagnosis of their condition. Whether these episodes are the result of ilmu, qt have been visited through the unmediated actions of the spirits concerned, is always an open question. Such are the com­ plexities involved in successfully performing this spell that one may well wonder how often it is ever achieved. As with many other aspects of local tradition, the constant circulation of tales, rumours and suspicion are often sufficient to create a reality which may have little basis in actual fact. That this spell has at some time been performed can be accepted, but it can only be very rarely. Even so, the knowledge of the necessary procedures is considered valuable - you never know when you might have occasion to use them. The continuing purchase of this Umu is already evidence of a willingness to use it; all that awaits is an injury sufficiently shaming for its use to be countenanced. Favourite, or commonly attributed, victims are uhfaithful wives or husbands and those who for other reasons may be constantly at war with a spouse. One man I know of, who is said to have made something of a hobby of casting this spell, is reputed to have affected a large proportion of the women of his village with this condition because they rejected his ad­ vances. In these situations one can never have too many protective charms against the magic wrought by others.

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PENYELENGAT: LEST YOU FORGET

As may now. be evident, there is a charm or spell for almost every imaginable purpose. The penyelengat is a type of ilmu which has been an indispensable accessory for initiates in several fields of adat, both those apprenticed to one of the several ceremonial traditions and those endeavouring to master the intricacies of adat law. It must be remem­ bered that Dayak societies until very recently had no knowledge of writ­ ing; they are oral cultures. The knowledge passed from generation to gen­ eration is intricate and vast and it is all transmitted through speech, song and example. Much of this knowledge is absorbed through processes of con­ stant repetition. In the healing and death ceremonies, for instance, the senior ritual firactitioners will singa line of songand.thosemorejunior will repeat it after him or her. Over many ceremonies and hundreds of days and nights the lyrics are gradually memorised. The prayers andoiarratives most often sung and thus more easily remembered are those used in the less expen­ sive ceremonies Which may only last a day or two. As illnesses get more serious, or blessings sought in other forms more complete, greater sac­ rifices are called for and irt consequence the more powerful but rarely sumrnoned spirits m'ay be asked for assistance. Their aid can only be sought if you know the proper paths to the villages in the heavens where they live. The succession of villages along any road is invariable and so too in the realms of the spirits. If this order is'improperly followed it can mean thejuus or spirit of the traveller in those places can become lost, unable to return to the body from which it has detached itself, and vul­ nerable to any number of dangers from the spirits of uncertain temper who dwell there. Each spirit village has special name and there may

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Diagrams ofspirit villages, or benua, ’ used as an aide-memoire by belian appentices

150

‘

•*

be ten or more personages who inhabit eaclrlonghouse there. The names and ranks of each must be remembered and^recited without error or else the gifts and sacrifices presented to them wilf go astray and the request for help fail of its mark. Errors of this sort in performance or recitation can result in e/z7. a tempest which may turn al! below to stone, or puluq, the curse of an early death. This knowledge which gives ac­ cess to the most powerful spirits, those able to confer the greatest ben­ efits, is dearly bought during successive initiation rites by apprentices and junior practitioners. It is the knowledge of these names of spirit villages.and personages which gives ceremonial practitioners and legal adjudicators their grdhtest influence in different social situations. Con­ sequently much of this knowledge is only rarely pronounced in public forums and even then, usually rather elliptically. When costly initiation fees are surrendered to the ritual teacher these lists of effectively secret names, verbal formulae and codes are communicated to the initiate. Without writing, these names had to be memorised during a period of intensive tutoring during the initiation phase of a ceremony. With the advent of paper and writing implements the still pre-literate initiates could jog their memories with iconic representations of spirit locations along different paths. Separate paths were taken for'specific purposes, for in­ stance to cure different illnesses, to “borrow” ritual requirements from spirits who “owned” them, or to appeal to particular spirits for help in adjudicating difficult litigations. Some journeys to the village of the re­ cent dead alone may pass through several hundred named -locations. There are many hundreds of spirit villages, and thousands of other sig­ nificant places in the invisible realms. Before paper, icons were some­ times carved on boards in several rows of tiny squares, known as ker. An even older memory aid employed a technique' of differently arranged palm leaf veins to stand for various villages in the heavens.' It was precisely in these situations that penyelengat, “in order to reihember”, were invaluable. In the short and intensive period of induc­ tion it was in the initiates interests to re^in as much as possible of what was imparted. The knowledge would “stick to the person, enter their “breath”, or understanding, and remain'so long as certain prohibitions were observed. One penyelengat employs a sentaro and the chewing of sirih

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leaf with a piece of an all important wood. The sentaro'goes: Nunuk Leket Botuk Lalaq As the beringin sap sticks on the way, Kesong Leket Mankin Leket The breath and spirit will cling, ever tighter; Bukut Lengan Belo Salaq Singing, my voice will not be mistaken. J The sirih leaf which is chewed should have transverse veins which meet exactly in the central vein. This symbolises the intent that the knowl­ edge received will be perfectly understood and “fit”. The wood is chewed with it. Once this is put in the mouth the sentaro is repeated three times; Most important are ihejariq or taboos which apply for the period during which the penyelengat is to have its effects. You must not urinate or excrete in a river or else your knowledge may flow away. Relieving yourself at night you must be careful not to allow your urine to go into the empty coconut shells that litter the spaces below and around the house, for then too the knowledge will be collected somewhere else. In the mornings you must eat only freshly cooked rice; nor may you eat mushrooms, garlic or bitter rotan stalks, all of which are very strongly flavoured and perhaps can overpower the ‘breath’ in which the knowl­ edge sits. You must not walk outside in the early morning when you might come into contact with the dew that can wash away what you wish to keep stuck fast If walking on a path, be careful to avoid spider’s webs from whose sticky embrace there is no escape. If spitting through the floor (as you do when chewing sirih} you must avoid the floorboards and land it smack on top of the bearer below (that is, you must hit your mark). Most importantly, ifyou are being initiated at the time, you must avoid all physical contact with the opposite sex,‘ as some of your vital force orjuus may remain with them. This spell, with those of the oppo­ site sex, works as a powerful ancan - another reason to be careful. The friend who communicated this spell to me swore by it - he had it from his teacher-when initiated into belian, as is commonly the case. He was forced to make an embarrassing admission, though; he had forgotten the

152

MINYAK BINTANS: SO THAT I ONE CAN RISE FROM THE DEAD name of the wood without which all the rest is useles

A much renowned but mysterious kind of ilmu, as the name indi­ cates this is an oil which works under the influence of starlight or bintang. If you have drunk this oil - and I know of only one or two people who are rumoured to have it - then you have the power to rise from the dead. You only need to drink it once for its effects to be permanently attained. This was a very useful ability in times past for those who might often have been in search of heads and thus exposed to uncommon dangers. As with some of the protective ilmu previously mentioned it also comes in useful for those who have chosen the profession of thieving. It is only effective in cases where someone has been killed. Accidental death or death following an illness do not qualify. It is said this ilmu often comes directly from a Wook familiar, and implications are that these might be of the kind which require periodic offerings of human blood. If it is bought, one can expect it to be quite expensive - in the region of five antang, from 100 - 200 thousand rupiahs at today’s rates. Unsatisfied customers, one can be sure, have few avenues to register complaints. The oil is said to contain a piece of a fallen star, that is of meteorite, as its active substance, together with two or three kinds of wood. The analogy at work here seems to be the common association of things above with the principle of seniority: a potion originating from the stars will overcome the effects of mere iron - the usual method of killing in cases where minyak bintang is effective. Iron comes only from the earth. The stone turns the oil a bluish colour. As with all other oils, the

153

wl '® efficient to animate subsequent dilutions. Whatever the ingredients of this particular oil, its properties are fairly common knowledge: though killed, even decapitated, when the stars appear m the night sky your body will re-assemble and the vital reath return to the flesh. The most interesting aspect of this particular type of i/mw are the procedures necessary in order to counteract To prevent those with this oil from rising again their bodies must be cut into many piecesand the heart, liver and penis - the primary centres of vital­ ity - detached from the corpse. Often the head was kept as a trophy and as a source of power m its own right which could be invoked in ritual forums. The body parts had then to be buried in seven different places at some remove from each other. One can be fairly certein that if this process is observed it will attain its intended purpose.

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I OBAT JANIQ: I THE MEDICINE OF COURAGE

The time when headhunting was an accepted, or even an antici­ pated. part of life is not as distant as it may first appear. The Dutch presence in the upriver regions of the Mahakam only became estab­ lished in the early years of the 20th century. Military and police posts exerted their influence by force of arms, discouraging the continuation of inter-tribal warfare and the practice of headhunting with which it was so much associated, confiscating firearms and incarcerating recalcitrants. The last instance of bala, or of a headhunting war party, entering the domain of the Benuaq probably occurred sometime during the First World War. This incident involved a force of some two or three hundred men from Central Kalimantan crossing over into the headwaters of the Kedang Pahu river and sacking a few isolated settlements. Local groups were mobilised for counter-attack and a great number of the aggressors were ki lied. It was many years, though, before the threat of such actions ceased to preoccupy local villagers. As late as the 1930s plans for such expeditions still seemed viable and attracted much support. The collapse of the Japanese occupationary administration gave fresh impetus to sup­ pressed ambitions for reputations gained through the taking of heads; even now there are antique jars in some village houses which contain a capital harvest from 1945 and the years which immediately followed it, when independence was taken from the Dutch. Although the eta of inter-tribal war is long gone, the demise of headhunting has been more recent and it may persist even now on rare occasions - if local rumour is any indication of such things. Certainly 155

when people unaccountably disappear without trace in the forest, and especially if ‘strangers” have been seen in the area without reasonable explanation for their presence, tales of headhunters begin to circulate. Many such rumours attribute wandering headtakers with commissions for heads from major construction projects to ensure favourable aus­ pices for these developments. In Sarawak these stories have been as­ sociated with the construction of hydro-electric dams; in East Kalmantan with vague reference to the oil industry and sometimes mining ventures. These agents - often described simply as “robbers” - are usually pre­ sumed to be of non-Dayak ethnic origin. Besides these cases, which surface in subdued regional panics every few years, there are occa­ sional rumours of headhunters whose origins are less distant. In the past heads were primarily important, apart from the status distinction they conferred on successful warriors, as necessary adjuncts-of ceremonies. The most powerful spirits could not be summoned, nor their blessing assured, without the presence of these offerings. When the larger ceremonies are held today it is still a requirement that there be an “old head”, suitably packaged, amongst the ritual trappings. These oc­ casions apart, there were two other purposes with which the taking of heads was associated. When a great chief died (or sometimes his wife or child) close relations would set off for distant parts to procure a vic­ tim to accompany the deceased into death and to act as a.5ervant or slave for them in the land of the dead. The securing of such victims, or minimally their heads, also constituted status claims for the deceased and their survivors. The other reason someone might want to kill a total stranger is because this allowed them access to particular magical pow­ ers. There are men still living who have taken heads for both of these purposes, some of them only in middle age. As should now be clear, the reasons for taking human heads are not appreciably different to those for which you sacrifice animals like pigs or chickens. Basically, these activities allow you to enter into transac­ tions and relationships with spirits. Men with reputations as headhunt­ ers, through the offering of human blood, acquire the most powerful spirit familiars, amongst them some of the Nayuq as well as the spirits of the forest, the antu or yvook. War knives, or mandau, which are

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known to have often “eaten” human beings are attributed with spirits of their own that require periodic “feeding”. The possessors of such swords ^re often rumoured invincible in a conflict. They can also be said to be qs much possessed by their familiars as possessors of them, capable of being “entered” or taken over by these guardian spirits at particular times. Only a few years ago when one of these men of great reputation was so much as witnessed in the vicinity, parents would urge their chil­ dren not to linger by the bathing pool of an afternoon nor to wander b.eyond the edges of the village alone. The rumour of headhunters in the area is still sufficient to cause doors to be tied securely closed at night and for men to sleep with a sp^ar at their side. The specific spells or powers acquired in exchange for offerings of human blood or heads are onlywaguely referred to. Those who pursue such magic are, for obvious reasons, loathe to confirm any knowledge of such things; for most people they remain the things of story and innu­ endo, beyond both experience and personal ambition. One power asso­ ciated with headhunting, though, has maintained its place in collective memory. This is obatjaniq, or the “medicine of courage”. Although its acquisition was not particularly mysterious, it was not easy to come by. Throughout Borneo and many other regions of South East Asia the liver is regarded as an organ in which is concentrated much of the “vital essence” or semangat of the person. While some groups, including the Benuaq, locate the semangat - or juus as the Benuaq call it - essen­ tially in the “breath”, the liver often remains highly significant as an organ of potency. When an opponent - or victim - was killed, often their liver, and sometimes their heart, was taken as well as the head. Taking ''obatjaniq ” consisted of either consuming, or at least placing to one’s lips as a sign of “eating”, a morsel of the liver of the victim. The “eating” was thus more symbolic than substantial, though it is probable that rumours of this custom formed the basis for otherwise unfounded stories of can­ nibalism amongst the Dayak peoples. Through this symbolic partaking of the liver of an-enemy you acquired, in effect, the semangat that had been his, including his courage. The “medicine of courage”, then, con­ sisted of the acquisition of fearlessness and, to some degree, of the vitality of the deceased (onQ of the reasons, it is sometimes said, why

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famous headhunters survive to a very ripe old age). *' The motivation for the consumption of obatjaniq - or more accQrately, the symbolic partaking of it - involves an understanding that at certain times the person is prone to spirit possession, when they’arfc literally “entered” by spirits of one kind or another. In episodes of mad­ ness this occupation is usually involuntary; at other times familiars may “carry” a person on certain errands with a power beyond that usually their own. Head - hunting expeditions provided some such occasions in the past. A war-party often of several'hundred men or more might stealthily creep through the forest for many weeks or sometimes months at a time, careful that no sign of their presence alert enemy groups of impending attack. They would travel by night and sleep by day, living off the forest and consulting omens as they progressed. When they were near the enemy longhouse, but still distant enough to escape casual obser­ vation, they would build a shelter called theponok bala. A detachment would scout out the village while those who remained took final omens, from the omen - calendar and the nyahuq birds in particular, to determine the most auspicious moment for attack. Before the attack was launched; usually in the last hours of darkness before dawn when all in the longhouse were still sleeping soundly, offerings were made to particular spirits who would accompany them into battle, spirits hungry after the blood or livers of the foe. These were the Nayuq and the Wook and the Timang spirits who could “enter” the bodies of the attacking warriors. Once the attack had been made, the longhouse set aflame, the killing done and captives taken or, perhaps more commonly, one or two heads and livers had been taken before a hurried flight, these familiars would have to be given their dues. Still within the bodies of their hosts, the Nayuq and Wook would partakeofthe blood only symbolically tasted, while the Timang, the Tiger spirits, the spirits of courage, would relish the taste of liver - none more so’ than the eldest of the dead Timang, Mut Timang'Tuha. If spirit familiars* were not given to as they had been promised, then not only would they be likely to withdraw their aid on future occasions but serious illnesses might be visited on the ungrateful in order to ‘remind’ them of their obligations. Obatjaniq, the medicine of courage, is thus actually a token of exchange in relationships with familiars Whose temporary presence in the body of

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the warrior lends them courage and the conviction of invulnerability.

Scene ofbattle, or bala. where heads would be taken and, if the opportunity arose, pieces ofliver removedfor use as obat janiq

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AFTERWORD

The practice of magic and the arts of divination is still vigorous in many of the Tunjung and Benuaq villages in East Kalimantan, though it becomes less so every year. Some of the purposess that have been satisfied by these techniques have become less urgent, while others now attract heavy legal sanctions. As the experience of threat from head­ hunters has receded the necessity for the talismans of war has dimin­ ished; as the world beyond formerly isolated village communities has intruded more forcefully, offences which once cried out for personal vengeance have been surrendered to the jurisdiction of the state. Influ­ ences from other directions have also played their part in effecting these changes, redefining social priorities and interpretting the world in new ways. Christian missions and ministeries have done much to redirect local attention and energy along other paths, particularly the Protestant sects. Protestant ministers have tended to discourage the practice of magic and other rites that could in any way be seen to invoke spirits who have often been redefined as ‘/5/w, that is, as evil beings or de­ mons. Another set of factors that has dim inished the preoccupation with spirits has been introduced by the schooling system. The younger gen­ eration are far less inclined to attribute the vicissitudes of existence to the actions of spirits, or to seek to resolve difficulties through appeals for aid from them, than their elders who remain illiterate or semi-literate. Illness, during the last decade or two. has become something commonly addressed by visits to the doctor and the purchase of pharmaceuticals. While some villages have forsworn belian entirely, as many keep their

16Q

Beltan scene

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options open by having recourse to both the shaman and the local clini­ cian. While the ranks of those who employ poison to satisfy a grudge have thinned considerably, the fear of being poisoned is almost as preva­ lent as it ever was. In consequence, the knowledge of antidotes and other preventative techniques remains commonplace and highly valued. The market in love magic may be somewhat in decline, but it, too, has its faithful adherents. Indeed, the same could be-said of most of the tech­ niques of divination and magic discussed in this book. Practices which were once general have now become confined to only sections^of vil­ lage communities. Amongst those of middle age and older most would still subscribe to the beliefs surveyed here. For the younger generation the picture is more ambiguous - much depends, as I have noted, on levels of educational attainment. While popular attitudes to these prac­ tices may be subject to some variability, the basic assurhptions upon which they are based remain fairly entrenched. There are few village people, no matter how staunch their Christianity or level of education received, who could profess to have no belief in the existence and ac­ tions of spirits, however small a part this may play in their daily preoccu­ pations. Most of the practices, described in this book contiue to be some for many, others for only a few - living ones. In all likelihood some of these forms of magic and divination will still be practised in a hundred years time. To my mind it would be a great pity if they were not, be­ cause it is in such practices and the beliefs which sustain them that the heart of Dayak culture continues to beat.

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A note on orthography -Benuaq orthography presents the English reader with something of a chaHenge?It has only been in the last half century that this language has found written form, and the spelling conventions are still far from standardized. The most exotic feature for European eyes will be the frequent succession of consonants unrelieved by vowels. Where these appeal- unnatural, with a t, k orp preceding n, ng or m final consonants respectively (i.e. with tn, kng and pm word-endings), what is being ren­ dered is most commonly a glottal stop, which is usually emphasised in speech though sometimes silent. The letter q is likewise a glottal, a vir­ tually soundless k, similar to the c in the French lac. The Benuaq con­ vention-for rendering vowel sounds demonstrates a fondness for repli­ cated vowels. I have omitted many of these to spare the reader too much-eyestrain, though it may be remembered that vowels in final syl­ lables often tend to be long ones. A few examples of Benuaq words with equivalent English pronunciations will give a general impression of h’ow common words employed in the text sound. » * ► -(1)' Ula435 as in glcf55 ■ (-2) - • ' Liaaw as in boiig/z" ' (3)’“' *' ’Nqyuq as in high ‘ (4) Gantar as in ran . (5) ^ntangas in .wnder (6) Seniang as in swwg (7) ‘ -SenariUng as in bet ‘ (8) Tdate as in lay . (93 ; Bmtang as in tm , . (10) ■'' Wook as in English war (11) Bimcwkng as-in looA:' ’ • (12) ; ' y as in see (1'3) . c as in cAurch

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GLOSSARY Adat

Ancan Antang

Asar Atetn

Baca

Bala Balai Batuq Belian

Bekajiq Betapar Bintakng Bongai Buncukng

Dayak

Dinikng Gimat Grangiq

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: Order, law, custom or tradition; all those norms which constitute accepted sociability and regulate the workings of the universe. As binding for spirits as human beings. The decrees of Pejadiq, en­ forced by the threat of sanctions such as curses. It defines the border between the licit and the forbidden. : Love magic. : Large ceramicjar, many from China; important traditional valuable. Till recent decades a standard measure of exchange, now valued-at 40,000 rupiahs in most places. As a conventional, sum, still usedjo set fines, j : Spell which incapacitates a foe by invoking their origins. : Liver; if of unek, or the pig, source of auspices. The liver is a major centre of'Juus, the life force. : A spell, a formulaic incantation; originating from down river Mos­ lem societies. : Headhunting expedition; war-party. : A ceremonial structure constructed for belian ceremonies; a “house” for particular spirits during the course of the ritual. ; Rock : Healing or medicine ceremony; shamanistic ritual; can be directed phenomena, as a kind of fertil ity rite; can also be an occasion to“heal” political rifts. : Coming by magical knowledge through payment to another for a charm or spell. May also imply apprenticeship in thestf'arts. ; Method of attaining ilmu by seeking out spirits alone and at night. : Star(s) : A malignant forest spirit. ; An accursed state entai led by inter-generational impropriety, or by insubordination towards those in an “elder” class. Particularly relevant to relations between parents and children, or between de­ scendants and antecedents. The curse on those who violate these accepted behavioural forms is enforced by the Eight Seniang ; “Those of the up river”, Non-Moslem, indigenous peoples of Kalimantan who live mostly by farming unirrigated ride. : “The wall”; protective magip and charips. : Charms, carved wooden figures, fangs, tusks etc which have both protective and aggressive power; especially important for war. : Necklace of carved amulets or jurokng, essentially protective in intent, commonly worn only during belian ceremonies.

Guru : Benuaq term for baca or spell. Ilmu(I)/Lemu : “Knowledge”, but implying magical knowledge. jariq : Taboo; li.-rally “the forbidden”. Transgressions ofjariq entail the visitation of curses of various kinds from different spirits. Jurokng: Tiny carved figures which function as amulets, basically protec­ tive; also used as “medicines” and sometimes to invoke spirit famil­ iars. Juus or Semangat(l) : The spirit of the living person; the soul; the vital essence. juata : Spirits of the waters; can take the form of water-creatures such as crocodiles, turtles, fish etc. Kayu : Wood, tree. Kelelungan : Spirits of the skullsor the heads; one of the two spirits of the dead, these arc the “clean” ones, credited with sentience and the finer feelings. Dwell in the high heavens with the Nayuq. Ketika : “Time”, but with the connotation of time to come, divination. Kuangkai ; Secondary mortuary ceremony; conducted for the disinterred bones of a number of the dead, it effects their comfortable installation in the villages of the dead. Runs for a minimum of two to three weeks. Kuyakng : Group of spirits who dwell in the beringin, or giant fig trees. Often represented as female. Renowned for causing madness. Langit : Sky; Heavens. Lemu ■: Benuaq word for ilmu. Liaaw : Spirit or emanation of the body or trunk of the dead person; gener­ ally considered ‘ugly’ or ‘unclean’ - bereft of the finer capacities of the person and foul like corrupted flesh. Madakng : One of the more malignant of the forest spirits. Inflicts the most serious illnesses. Treated by Women’s Belian. Manau/ Mandau(I) : High quality, often finely decorated battle knives. The essentia! r weapon for headhunting purposes. Mantiq , The.title given the village or longhouse headman in the past. Some­ times described as an “aristocratic” rank, they had prerogatives and ’ wealth beyond the norm, including final say in the delivery of legal ■»; judgments, fines and other sanctions. ■ . Marantika : The ‘middle’ rank of people, neither ‘aristocrat’ nor ‘slave’. Minyak(I) 4 Malay or Indonesian for “ oil “. Mulakng • : Forest spirit; they inflict illness by shooting invisible blowpipe , darts nto their victims. Nayuq : A group of spirits including the original and most powerful beings. ’ • ' Almost exclusive inhabitants of the skies or heavens, many also dwell on earth as powerful spirits of place.

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: Group of spirits who take the form of birds and sometimes other animals who deliver omens of good and evil fortune; particularly * . relevant to travellers and those in the process of cultivating rice. Nyegoq. . : Lit. ’‘to suck”; a diagnostic procedure use to identity the spirit responsible for an illness by sucking out a sign of their presence from the patient. Olau : Benuaq word for “ oil “ Pakatn Nyahuq: “Food for the omen-birds”, given during a small rite also known by this name. Papaat : Spell in unformularised or unversified language, accompanied by other magical aids. Papaiq : Spirits who cause illness, those who only hurt and hinder human­ ity. Paper : Brief ceremony to cleanse or purify body and spirit by expelling evil influences and attracting good ones. Pejadiq : The Cieator Being. The most powerful and senior amongst the spirits. Known by the title “Pillar of the Heavens”. Pemeliatn : Officiant or specialist in the belian or healing ceremonies. Penyelengat : Ilmu to ensure you do not forget important knowledge. Pesengket : “To raise up” the group of Nayuq spirits back into the heavens. Name of a rite held when head-trophies brought back to the vil lage. Effectively a fertility ceremony and aiitual to throw off lingering ill-fortune of any kind, including ill-health'and conditions of‘un­ cleanness’ such as that associated with mourning. Pengewara/ •’ : Ritual specialist for the death, or secondary mortuary, ceremonies. Puluq : Curse entailing earlydeath; illegitimate practitioners of rite^ attract ’ this spirit sanction. Rasutn : Poison. Rejeki : Good lu’ck or fortune. . Ripatn : “Slave”; bond or debt-servant; captivc.v Some of them could be sacrificed during ceremonies in the past. Often a hereditary condi• . tion. Status abolished several decades ago. Ruyaq ; RituaLapparatus; including ceremonial offerings in non-perishable forms such ’as jars, gongs etc. A form of gift to the spirits. Sahuq . : “Incest”; sexual relations between those closely related in the same line of descent but from different'generations. Extendable to rela•. tions between siblings in so far as they substituteTor parents of the same sex. Also the name of the curse levelled on this forbidden, or ' -s * tabooed, act. , .. , .• Sarat : Condition of sale or4ransaction. Particularly applied to transac­ tions in ilmu or other secretJaiowledge. Nyahuq

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Sentaro

Serengkeli Sencangan Walo

Seniang

Spell in verse form, in Benuaq or Tunjung language, accompanying other magical formulae. Magical technique which ensures a couple will separate. The Meeting, or Crossing, of Eight Paths. Places of great mystic power. Necessary points of transition from one level of the heav­ ens or the earth to another. Eight is an auspicious number; it beto­ kens the performance of a belian ceremony. Meetings of seven paths are associated with the ceremonies for the dead. Group of spirits who live in the heavens closest to Pejadiq, led by Seniang Galekng. Responsible for the policing of the most impor­ tant moral affairs, they visit sanctions (curses) on the “incestuous and those who are buncukng. Guardians of adat, or the law.

Bad luck, evil fortune. Sial (I)/ Siar •‘The curse of the Kuyakng”; belief we all have afated length of lite, Sipat Kuyakng: determined by these spirits. ; Betel-leaf, chewed with areca nut and lime. Sirih : Curse, oath. . Sumpah : Those spirits who are known to come to the aid of human kino, Tangkai particularly relevant for purposes of healing, in belian ceremonies. ; Form of curse; a consequence of violating some essential social Tapatn norm, most usually it attends those who fail to ‘partake’ of food when they have been formally invited to do so. Usually results in

Temputn Timang/ Harimau (1) Tonoi Tuak Tuah Ulaas

Ulu Balang Wook

illness or some form of accident. : Myth of origins. Tiger Spirit (though they often taken human form). • Earth spirits, particularly associated wth the area round the village or longhouse and the fields. Relatively benign presences. : Brewed drink made from rice or some species of fruit. : Unlooked for luck or good fortune. • Offering of the blood of a sacrificial victim; blood must come from domestic animals, the chicken, pig or water-buffalo (rarely, a dog), or from a human victim. The most potent of all offerings or sacri­ fices to the spirits, the most “cooling” of all substances. The giving of ulaas is intended to secure the happy outcome of new ventures and the lifting of any curse or misfortune. ■ Omens taken from bodily reponses to certain tests • A general name for unidentified spirits, but more specifically it connotes those from the forest with a distinctly dangerous quality. Including many sub-varieties, the very name is enough to fill one with apprehension. The equivalent of hantu or antu in Malay or

Indonesian

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