As you utter the last words give the end of the line three twists
(pioh) and then clench the teeth upon it (katup di gigi) thrice,
holding your breath as you do so; then jerk it (rentak) thrice
and haul upon it (runtun); if you feel much resistance slack it off
again and repeat the ceremony, using the "crippling charm" as before,
"until you break all the bones in his body." Besides this, in order
to drive the "mischief" out of the crocodile, you may say:--
"Pardon, King of the Sea, God of Currents,
I wish to drive the 'mischief' out of this crocodile." [509]
And strike the water and middle of the line with the end of the
line itself.
Now you haul on the line, and the crocodile comes up to the top with a
rush, and the fun begins. As he comes up to the surface you ask him,
"Was it you who caught So-and-so?" [510] And if he wishes to reply
in the affirmative he will bellow loudly. When he does so, say,
"Wind yourself up" ("lilit"), and he will wind the line round his
muzzle. And when you want to kill him, chop across the root of his
tail with a cutlass; this will kill him at once.
I may add that it is not generally wise to keep a captured crocodile
alive overnight, as he happens to be one of the clientele of a
certain powerful hantu (spirit) named Langsuir [511] who comes to the
assistance of his follower at night and endows him with supernatural
strength, thus enabling him, if he is not very sufficiently tied up, to
get loose, which might be awkward. You should also never bring one into
the house, on account of an understanding, prejudicial to yourself,
which exists between him and the common house-lizard (chichak).
Of the folklore which is concerned with other classes of "reptilia"
that which deals with Snakes is the most important.
"The gall-bladder of the python, uler sawah, is in great request
among native practitioners. This serpent is supposed to have two
of these organs, one of which is called lampedu idup, or the live
gall-bladder. It is believed that if a python is killed and this organ
is cut out and kept, it will develop into a serpent of just twice
the size of that from which it was taken. The natives positively
assert that the python attains a length of sixty to seventy feet,
and that it has been known to have killed and eaten a rhinoceros.
"One of the pit vipers is exceedingly sluggish in its movements,
and will remain in the same place for days together. One individual
that was watched, lay coiled up on the branch of a tree for five
days, and probably would have remained much longer, but at the end
of that time it was caught and preserved. The Malays call it ular
kapak daun, and they say that it is fed three times a day by birds,
who bring it insects to eat. One man went so far as to say that he
had actually once seen some birds engaged in feeding one of these
beautiful bright-green snakes." [512]
In Selangor, as in Perak, the "live gall-bladder" of the python will
(it is believed), if kept in a jar, develop into a serpent; when
dried it is in great request as a remedy for small-pox. The story that
Mr. Wray tells of the pit viper (ular kapak daun) is in Selangor told
of a snake called chintamani. Selangor Malays say that it was once
upon a time a Raja of the country, and that the birds which bring it
food were then its subjects. A Malay told me that he once saw this
operation, and that the birds fed it with insects. It is reputed to
be a perfectly harmless snake, and it is considered extremely lucky
to keep one of the species in one's house, or even to see it. It
is described as of a bright and glittering blue [513] colour (biru
berkilat-kilat), and is frequently referred to in charms, especially
those connected with the Rice-soul ceremony, and is sometimes said
to spring from the egg of the chandrawasih or bird of paradise.
The cobra (ular tedong) is said to have a bright stone (kemala or
gemala) [514] in its head, the radiance of which causes its head
to be visible on the darkest night. A "snake bezoar" (guliga ular)
is also said to be occasionally found in the back of a snake's head
(?), whilst the snake-stone (batu ular) is carried in its mouth.
This batu ular is a prize for the possession of which snakes are not
unfrequently believed to fight, and appears to correspond to the pearl
for which in Chinese legendary lore the dragons of that country were
believed to engage in mortal combat. A Malay remarked to me that it
was always worth while if one came upon two snakes thus engaged to kill
them both, as one of them was sure to possess this much-coveted stone,
which is said to confer an almost certain victory upon its possessor.
Another species of "snake-stone," which is said to be manufactured by
Pawangs from gold, silver, amalgam (of silver and gold), tin, iron,
and quicksilver, is called Buntat Raksa, and is said to be invaluable
in case of snake-bite. It is believed that this stone will adhere
to the wound, and will not fall off until it has sucked out all the
poison. One of these stones, which was sold to me in Selangor for a
dollar, was about an inch long and oval in shape; it was evidently
made of some mixture of metals, and was perforated so as to enable
it to be carried on a string.
The ular gantang is said to be a snake, though from the description
given it would seem more likely to be some species of slow-worm
or blind-worm. It is only a "few inches" long, and is "black," and
there is said to be little if any difference between its head and
its tail. It is considered to be extremely lucky, and when a Malay
meets it, he spreads out his head-cloth or turban on the ground,
and allows it to enter, when he carries it home and keeps it.
To dream of being bitten by a snake is thought to portend success in
a love affair. [515]
"A horned toad, known as katak bertandok, but not the common one of
that name (Megalophrys nasuta, Gunther), has a very bad reputation
with the Malays. It is said to live in the jungle on the hills, and
wherever it takes up its abode all the trees and plants around wither
and die. So poisonous is it, that it is dangerous even to approach it,
and to touch or be bitten by it is certain death.
"The bite of the common toad (Bufo melanostictus, Cantor) is also said
to prove fatal. That toads have no teeth is an anatomical detail that
does not seem to be thought worthy of being taken into account.
"The supposed venomous properties of this useful and harmless tribe
have a world-wide range. In Shakespeare many allusions to it are made;
one of them, which mentions the habit of hibernation possessed by
those species which inhabit the colder parts of the earth, says--
'In the poison'd entrails throw,
Toad, that under coldest stone
Days and nights hast thirty-one,
Swelter'd venom sleeping got,
Boil thou first i' the charmed pot.'
"In another, reference is made to the toad-stone, which seems to be
represented in Malayan tradition by the pearl carried in the bodies
of the hamadryad, the cobra, and the bungarus, the three most deadly
snakes of the Peninsula:--
'Sweet are the uses of adversity,
Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous,
Wears yet a precious jewel in its head.'
"There is some foundation of fact for the popular belief, as toads
secrete an acrid fluid from the skin, which appears to defend them
from the attacks of carnivorous animals." [516]
It may not be out of place to give here a Malay tradition about a
species of snail:--
"A strange superstition is attached to a small snail which frequents
the neighbourhood of the limestone hills in Perak. It belongs to the
Cyclophoridæ, and is probably an Alycæus. Among the grass in the shadow
of a grazing animal these creatures are to be discovered, and if one of
them is crushed it will be found to be full of blood, which has been
drawn in a mysterious way from the veins of the animal through its
shadow. Where these noxious snails abound, the cattle become emaciated
and sometimes even die from the constant loss of blood. In the folklore
of other countries many parallels to this occur, but they differ in
either the birds, bats, or vampires, who are supposed to prey on the
life-blood of their fellows, going direct to the animals to suck the
blood, instead of doing so through the medium of their shadows." [517]
4. FISHING CEREMONIES
Fish are in many cases credited by the Malay peasant with the same
portentous ancestry as that which he attributes to some of the larger
animals and birds.
"Many Malays refuse to eat the fresh-water fish called ikan belidah,
[518] on the plea that it was originally a cat. They declare that it
squalls like a cat when harpooned, and that its bones are white and
fine like a cat's hairs. Similarly the ikan tumuli is believed to be
a human being who has been drowned in the river, and the ikan kalul
to be a monkey transformed. Some specially favoured observers have
seen monkeys half through the process of metamorphosis--half-monkey
and half-fish." [519]
Similarly, the Dugong (Malay duyong) is asserted by some Malays to
have sprung from the remains of a pig, which Muhammad himself dined
off before he pronounced pork to be the accursed thing. Being cast by
the Prophet into the sea, it revived and took the shape of the dugong,
in which shape it is still to be found off the coast of Lukut and Port
Dickson, where it feeds upon sea-grass (rumput setul), in common with
a species of small tripang or beche-de-mer. [520]
The origin of the Eel (ikan b'lut) is derived from a stem of the
g'li-g'li plant; the "white-fish" (ikan puteh) from splinters, or
rather shavings of wood (tatal kayu or tarahan kayu); the senunggang
fish from the long-tailed monkey (k'ra); the aruan fish from a frog
(katak) or lizard (mengkarong); the bujok fish from charred fire-logs
(puntong api); the telan fish from the creeping roots of the yam (sulur
k'ladi); and so on. There is even the leaf of a certain tree which is
sometimes said to turn into a fish (the ikan belidah), [521] while the
following story is held to account for the origin of the Porpoise:--
Once upon a time there was a fishing-wizard (Pawang Pukat) who had
encountered nothing but misfortune from first to last, and who at
length determined to put forth all his skill in magic in one last
desperate effort to repay the burden of debt which threatened to crush
him. One day, therefore, having tried his luck for the last time,
and still caught nothing, he requested his comrades to collect an
immense quantity of mangrove leaves in their boat. Having carried
these leaves out to the fishing-ground, he scattered them on the
surface of the water, together with a few handfuls of parched and
saffron-stained rice, repeating a series of most powerful spells as he
did so. The next time they fished, the leaves had turned into fish of
all shapes and sizes, and an immense haul of fish was the result. The
wizard then gave directions for the payment in full of all his debts
and the division of the balance among his children, and then without
further warning plunged into the sea only to reappear as a porpoise.
"A species of fish-like tadpole, [522] found at certain seasons of
the year in the streams and pools, is supposed to divide when it
reaches maturity, the front portion forming a frog and the after-part
or tail becoming the fish known as ikan kli, one of the cat-fishes
or Siluridæ. In consequence of this strange idea many Malays will
not eat the fish, deeming it but little better than the animal from
which it is supposed to have been cast.
"The ikan kli is armed with two sharp barbed spines attached to the
fore-part of the pectoral fins, and can and does inflict very nasty
wounds with them, when incautiously handled. The spines are reputed to
be poisonous, but it is believed that if the brain of the offending
fish is applied to the wound, it will act as a complete antidote to
the poisonous principle, and the wound will heal without trouble. The
English cure for hydrophobia--that is, 'the hair of the dog that bit
you'--will occur to all as a modification of the same idea." [523]
The fish called seluang is used for purposes of magic. It is supposed
that any one who pokes out its eyes with a special needle (which must
be one out of a score--the packets being made up in scores--and must
possess a torn eye) will be able to inflict blindness, by sympathy,
upon any person against whom he has a grudge. [524]
The fish called kedera is supposed to change into a sea-bird.
I will now proceed to describe the ceremony which is supposed to
secure an abundant catch of fish in the stakes.
In January 1897 I witnessed the ceremony of sacrificing at the
fishing-stakes (menyemah b'lat) which took place at the hamlet
of Ayer Hitam (lit. "Blackwater"), in the coast district of Kuala
Langat (Selangor). The chief performer of the rites was an old Malay
named Bilal Umat, who had owned one of the fishing-stakes in the
neighbourhood for many years past, and had annually officiated at the
ceremony which I was about to witness. I and my small party arrived
in the course of the morning, and were received by Bilal Umat, who
conducted us to the long, low palm-thatch building (bangsal kelong),
just above high-water mark, in which he and his men resided during
the fishing-season. Here we found that a feast was in course of
preparation, but what most attracted my attention was the sight of
three large sacrificial basket-work trays, [525] each about 2 1/2 feet
square, and with high fringed sides which were suspended in a row from
the roof of the verandah, on the seaward side of the building. These
trays were empty, but had been lined with banana leaves to prepare
them for the reception of the offerings, which latter were displayed
upon a raised platform standing just in front of them.
Shortly after our arrival the loading of the trays commenced. First
Bilal Umat took a large bowl of parched rice, and poured it into
the trays, until the bottom of each tray was filled with a layer of
parched rice about an inch in depth.
Next he took a bowl of saffron-stained rice, and deposited about
five portions of it in the centre and four corners of each tray;
then he made a similar distribution of small portions of washed rice,
of sweet potatoes (k'ledek), of yams (k'ladi), of tapioca (ubi kayu),
of bananas (pisang), and betel-leaf (sirih)--there being two sets,
one cooked and one uncooked, of each of these portions, except the
last. Finally, he added one cigarette to each portion, the cigarette
being intended for the spirits to smoke after their meal!
A fine black goat, "without blemish and without spot," had been killed
by Bilal Umat early that morning, and he now deposited its head in
the middle of the central tray, two of the feet in the middle of the
right-hand tray, and the other two feet in the middle of that on the
left. To each of these three central portions were now added small
portions of the animal's viscera (liver, spleen, lights, tripe, heart,
etc.), and then the small diamond-shaped (ketupat) and cylindrical
(lepat) rice-bags [526] were suspended in the usual manner. A wax
taper was added to each portion of each tray, and the loading of the
trays declared complete.
Everything being now ready, Bilal Umat carried a smoking censer
thrice round the row of trays (walking always towards the left),
and then lighting the five wax tapers of the left-hand tray, directed
two of his men to take down this tray and sling it on a pole between
them. This they did, and we set off in procession along the sandy
foreshore at the back of the building until we came to a halt at a
spot about fifty yards off, where Bilal Umat suspended the tray from
the branch of a mangrove-tree about five feet from the ground. This
done, he faced round towards the land, and breaking off a branch
of the tree, gave utterance to three stentorian cooees, which he
afterwards informed me were intended to notify the Land Spirits (Orang
darat, lit. "Land Folk") of the fact that offerings were awaiting
their acceptance. Returning to the house, he manufactured one of the
leaf-brushes [527] which the Malays always used for the "Neutralising
Rice-paste" (tepong tawar) rite, and we then started in a couple of
boats for the fishing-stakes, taking with us the two remaining trays.
Of these two trays, one was suspended by Bilal Umat from a high wooden
tripod which had been erected for the purpose, the site selected being
the centre of a shoal about half-way between the fishing-stakes and the
house. The third tray, which contained the head of the goat (kapala
kambing dengan buah-nya), was then taken on to the fishing-stakes,
Bilal Umat disposing of a large quantity of miscellaneous offerings
which he had brought with him in a basket by strewing them upon the
surface of the sea as we went along. [528]
On reaching the stakes, the Pawang (Bilal Umat) suspended the tray
from a projecting pole at the seaward end of the fishing-stakes,
[529] and then seating himself upon one of the timbers almost
directly underneath it, scattered handfuls of saffron-stained rice,
"washed" rice, and native cigarettes upon the water, just outside
the two seaward posts at the end of the stakes, and emptied out
the remainder of the parched rice upon the water just inside the
"head" of the stakes. Then he recited a charm, stirred the bowl of
neutralising rice-paste (tepong tawar) with the brush of leaves,
and taking the latter out of the bowl, sprinkled, or rather daubed it
first upon the two "tide-braces" of the stakes (first upon the left
"tide-brace," and then upon the right), then upon the heads of the
two upright posts next to the tide-braces, and then delegated the
brush to two assistants. One of these sprinkled the heads of all the
(remaining) upright posts in the seaward compartment of the stakes,
while the other boarded the big boat belonging to the stakes, and
sprinkled the boat and all its gear from stem to stern (commencing
on the left side of the bows, and working right down to the stern,
and then recommencing on the right and working down to the stern
again). Finally, the same assistant returning to the stakes, washed
the rice-bowl in the sea just beneath the place where Bilal Umat was
sitting, and fastened up the leaf-brush to the left-hand head-post
(kayu puchi kiri) at the seaward end of the stakes. To the above
account I may add that a number of taboos are still pretty rigorously
enforced by the fishing-wizards (Pawang B'lat) upon the coast of
Selangor. I was never allowed to take either an umbrella or boots
into the fishing-stakes when I visited them--the spirits having,
I was told, the strongest possible objection to the use of either.
Other "perpetual taboos" (pantang salama-lama-nya) are to bathe
without wearing a bathing-cloth (mandi telanjang), to throw the wet
bathing-cloth over the shoulder when returning to the house, and to
rub one foot against the other (gosok satu kaki dengan lain). Sarongs,
umbrellas, and shoes must never on any pretence be worn. I may add that
the first pole planted is called Turus Tuah (tua?), and if the response
of the spirits to the invocation be favourable, it is believed that
it will enter the ground readily, as if pulled from below. The only
seven-days' taboo which I have heard mentioned (though, no doubt,
there are many others) is the scrupulous observance of chastity.
A boat which possesses a knot in the centre of its keel, or to which
the smell of fish long adheres (p'rahu peranyir, or perhanyir),
is supposed to bring good luck to the fishermen.
There is also a regular "taboo language" used by the fishermen,
of which the following are examples:--
"Fish = daun kayu (tree-leaves) or sampah laut (jetsam).
Snake = akar hidup (living creeper).
Crocodile = batang kayu (tree-log).
Seaward compartment of the stakes (bunohan) = kurong."
At the close of the ceremony Bilal Umat repeated to me one of the
kelong [530] invocations which he had just been making use of, and
which ran as follows:--
"Peace be with you, God's Prophet, 'Tap!
Peace be with you, God's Prophet, Khizr!
Peace be with you, God's Prophet, Noah!
Peace be with you, god of the Back-water!
Peace be with you, god of the 'Bajau'!
Peace be with you, god of Mid-currents!
Peace be with you, god of the Yellow Sunset-glow!
Peace be with you, Old Togok the Wizard!
Peace be with you, O Elder Wizard!
It is not I who make you this peace-offering,
It is Old Togok the Wizard who makes it.
It is the Elder Wizard who makes it,
By the order of Old Aur Gading (lit. 'Ivory Bamboo').
By virtue of 'There is no god,'" etc. [531]
The following was the charm used by the Pawang at the planting of
the first pole of a jermal: [532]--
"Peace be with you, Eldest Wizard, First of Wizards, Allah,
And Musa, the Converser with Allah.
Sedang Bima, Sedang Buana,
Sedang Juara, and King of the Sea,
Come let us all together
Plant the pole of this jermal."
Even when fishing with rod and line, a serapah (invocation) of some
sort, such as the following, was generally used:--
"Ho, God of Mid-currents,
See that you do not agitate my hook!
If my hook is to the left,
Do you go to the right.
If my hook is to the right,
Do you go to the left.
If you approach this hook of mine
You shall be cursed by the Saying of God," etc.
(Before casting the line, a chew of betel-leaf should be thrown into
the water.)
Another very common rhyming charm would frequently be addressed to
the fish:--
"Swallow (lit. receive) the gut of my line,
Be it broken sooner than torn from my hands,
If you tear it from my hands
Your eye shall be plucked out."
(d) Fire
1. PRODUCTION OF FIRE
"Procuring fire by friction is an accomplishment as common to the
Malay as to the North American Indian. The process is, however,
slightly different. While the latter resorts to circular friction,
the Malay cuts a notch on the converse surface of a bamboo, across
which he rapidly rubs another piece cut to a sharp edge. A fine
powder is rubbed away and this ignites. Bamboo is also used as a
flint with tinder. The all-pervading match, however, is alone used
in all districts under foreign influence." [533]
The foregoing description requires to be supplemented, for the method
of procuring fire by circular friction is hardly (if at all) less
common among the Malays than the method of cross friction. The former
process takes the form of the well-known "fire-drill," both the block
and the upright stick being generally made of mahang wood. The upright
stick is frequently worked by a species of "bow," such as that used
by carpenters, and is kept from jumping out of the socket in which
it revolves by means of a cocoa-nut shell, which is pressed down from
above. When cross friction is used, a long narrow slit is usually cut,
following the grain, in the convex surface of the piece of bamboo,
the dust which is rubbed away falling through it and gradually forming
a little pile which presently ignites. It is hardly necessary to cut a
notch for the cross-piece, as a groove is very quickly worn when the
friction is started. A species of fire-syringe has also, I believe,
been collected by Mr. L. Wray in Perak.
2. FIRE CHARMS
In procuring fire by circular or cross friction the performer will
often say, by way of a charm--
"The Mouse-deer asks for Fire [534]
To singe his mother-in-law's feathers."
The "mouse-deer's mother-in-law" is the name of a small bird, which is
said to have very gay plumage of five colours and to resemble the green
pigeon (punei) in shape, and the explanation of this charm is said
to be that in the days of King Solomon, when both the mouse-deer and
his mother-in-law wore their human forms, the Mouse-deer was greatly
annoyed by the conduct of his mother-in-law, who kept dancing in front
of him as he went. A quarrel ensued, [535] as the result of which they
were both transformed into the shapes which they now respectively bear;
but the mother-in-law has not yet abandoned her exasperating tactics,
and may still often be seen tantalising the Mouse-deer by hopping in
front of it as it goes along.
There are still some traces of the influence of animistic ideas
in that part of Malay folklore which is concerned with fire. If an
inflammable object, such as wood, falls by accident into the fire,
a stick must be used in extracting it, and the stick left, as a
substitute, in its place.
The hearth-fire (api dapor) must never be stepped over
(di-langkah-nya), nor must the rice-pot which stands upon it, as in
the latter case the person who does so will be "cursed by the Rice."
Both fire and smoke (fumigation) are a good deal used by the Malays
for purposes of ceremonial purification, but the details of such
rites cannot be conveniently discussed except in connection with the
complete ceremonies of which they form a part; they will accordingly
be found under such headings as Birth, Adolescence, Marriage, Medicine,
and Funerals. [536]
CHAPTER VI
MAGIC RITES AS AFFECTING THE LIFE OF MAN
1. BIRTH-SPIRITS
We now come to the spirits which are believed to attack both women
and children at childbirth.
These are four in number: the Bajang, which generally takes the form
of a pole-cat (musang) and disturbs the household by mewing like a
great cat; the Langsuir, which takes the form of an owl with long
claws, which sits and hoots upon the roof-tree; the Pontianak or
Mati-anak, which, as will be seen presently, is also a night-owl,
and is supposed to be a child of the Langsuir, and the Penanggalan,
which is believed to resemble a trunkless human head with the sac
of the stomach attached to it, and which flies about seeking for an
opportunity of sucking the blood of infants.
With the above are often associated the Polong, which is described as
a diminutive but malicious species of bottle-imp, and the Pelesit,
which is the name given to a kind of grasshopper (or cricket?), but
these latter, though often associated with the regular birth-spirits,
partake also of the character of familiar spirits [537] or bottle-imps,
and are usually private property.
I will now take these spirits in the above order. The Bajang, as I have
said, is generally described as taking the form of a pole-cat (musang),
but it appears to be occasionally confused with the Pelesit. Thus
a Malay magician once told me that the Bajang took the form of a
house-cricket, and that when thus embodied it may be kept by a man,
as the Pelesit may be kept by a woman. This statement, however,
must not be accepted without due reserve, and it may be taken as a
certainty that the usual conception of the Bajang's embodiment is a
pole-cat. [538]
I need hardly say that it is considered very dangerous to children,
who are sometimes provided with a sort of armlet of black silk threads,
called a "bajang bracelet" (g'lang bajang), which, it is supposed,
will protect them against it. On the opposite page will be seen
a remarkable drawing [539] (of which a facsimile is here given),
which appears to represent the outline of a Bajang, "scripturally"
modified to serve as a counter-charm against the Bajang itself. [540]
The following account of the Bajang is by Sir Frank Swettenham:--
"Some one in the village falls ill of a complaint the symptoms of
which are unusual; there may be convulsions, unconsciousness, or
delirium, possibly for some days together or with intervals between
the attacks. The relatives will call in a native doctor, and at her
(she is usually an ancient female) suggestion, or without it, an
impression will arise that the patient is the victim of a bajang. Such
an impression quickly develops into certainty, and any trifle will
suggest the owner of the evil spirit. One method of verifying this
suspicion is to wait till the patient is in a state of delirium,
and then to question him or her as to who is the author of the
trouble. This should be done by some independent person of authority,
who is supposed to be able to ascertain the truth.
"A further and convincing proof is then to call in a 'Pawang' skilled
in dealing with wizards (in Malay countries they are usually men),
and if he knows his business his power is such that he will place
the sorcerer in one room, and, while he in another scrapes an iron
vessel with a razor, the culprit's hair will fall off as though the
razor had been applied to his head instead of to the vessel! That is
supposing he is the culprit; if not, of course he will pass through
the ordeal without damage.
"I have been assured that the shaving process is so efficacious
that, as the vessel represents the head of the person standing his
trial, wherever it is scraped the wizard's hair will fall off in a
corresponding spot. It might be supposed that under these circumstances
the accused is reasonably safe, but this test of guilt is not always
employed. What more commonly happens is that when several cases of
unexplained sickness have occurred in a village, with possibly one or
two deaths, the people of the place lodge a formal complaint against
the supposed author of these ills, and desire that he be punished.
"Before the advent of British influence it was the practice to kill the
wizard or witch whose guilt had been established to Malay satisfaction,
and such executions were carried out not many years ago.
"I remember a case in Perak less than ten years ago, when the people
of an up-river village accused a man of keeping a bajang, and the
present Sultan, who was then the principal Malay judge in the State,
told them he would severely punish the bajang if they would produce
it. They went away hardly satisfied, and shortly after made a united
representation to the effect that if the person suspected were allowed
to remain in their midst they would kill him. Before anything could be
done they put him, his family, and effects on a raft and started them
down the river. On their arrival at Kuala Kangsar the man was given
an isolated hut to live in, but not long afterwards he disappeared.
"The hereditary bajang comes like other evils, the unsought heritage
of a dissolute ancestry, but the acquired bajang is usually obtained
from the newly-buried body of a stillborn child, which is supposed to
be the abiding-place of a familiar spirit until lured therefrom by the
solicitations of some one who, at dead of night, stands over the grave
and by potent incantations persuades the bajang to come forth." [541]
"It is all very well for the Kedah ladies to sacrifice their shadows
to obtain possession of a pelsit, leaders of society must be in the
fashion at any cost; but there are plenty of people living in Perak
who have seen more than one ancient Malay dame taken out into the river
and, despite her protestations, her tears, and entreaties, have watched
her, with hands and feet tied, put into the water and slowly pushed
down out of sight by means of a long pole with a fork at one end which
fitted on her neck. Those who have witnessed these executions have no
doubt of the justice of the punishment, and not uncommonly add that
after two or three examples had been made there would always ensue
a period of rest from the torments of the bajang. I have also been
assured that the bajang, in the shape of a lizard, has been seen to
issue from the drowning person's nose. That statement no doubt is made
on the authority of those who condemned and executed the victim." [542]
The popular superstition about the Langsuir is thus described by Sir
William Maxwell:--
"If a woman dies in childbirth, either before delivery or after
the birth of a child, and before the forty days of uncleanness have
expired, she is popularly supposed to become a langsuyar, a flying
demon of the nature of the 'white lady' or 'banshee.' To prevent this
a quantity of glass beads are put in the mouth of the corpse, a hen's
egg is put under each arm-pit, and needles are placed in the palms of
the hands. It is believed that if this is done the dead woman cannot
become a langsuyar, as she cannot open her mouth to shriek (ngilai)
or wave her arms as wings, or open and shut her hands to assist her
flight." [543]
The superstitions about the Langsuir, however, do not end here,
for with regard to its origin the Selangor Malays tell the following
story:--
The original Langsuir (whose embodiment is supposed to be a kind of
night-owl) is described as being a woman of dazzling beauty, who died
from the shock of hearing that her child was stillborn, and had taken
the shape of the Pontianak. [544] On hearing this terrible news, she
"clapped her hands," and without further warning "flew whinnying
away to a tree, upon which she perched." She may be known by her
robe of green, by her tapering nails of extraordinary length (a mark
of beauty), and by the long jet black tresses which she allows to
fall down to her ankles--only, alas! (for the truth must be told)
in order to conceal the hole in the back of her neck through which
she sucks the blood of children! These vampire-like proclivities
of hers may, however, be successfully combated if the right means
are adopted, for if you are able to catch her, cut short her nails
and luxuriant tresses, and stuff them into the hole in her neck,
she will become tame and indistinguishable from an ordinary woman,
remaining so for years. Cases have been known, indeed, in which she
has become a wife and a mother, until she was allowed to dance at a
village merry-making, when she at once reverted to her ghostly form,
and flew off into the dark and gloomy forest from whence she came.
In their wild state, a Malay once informed me, these woman-vampires are
exceedingly fond of fish, and once and again may be seen "sitting in
crowds on the fishing-stakes at the river mouth awaiting an opportunity
to steal the fish." However that may be, it seems curiously in keeping
with the following charm for "laying" a Langsuir:--
"O ye mosquito-fry at the river's mouth
When yet a great way off, ye are sharp of eye,
When near, ye are hard of heart.
When the rock in the ground opens of itself
Then (and then only) be emboldened the hearts of my foes and
opponents!
When the corpse in the ground opens of itself
Then (and then only) be emboldened the hearts of my foes and
opponents!
May your heart be softened when you behold me,
By grace of this prayer that I use, called Silam Bayu."
The "mosquito-fry at the river's mouth" in the first line is no
doubt intended as an allusion to the Langsuir who frequent the
fishing-stakes.
The Pontianak (or Mati-anak), as has already been said, is the
stillborn child of the Langsuir, and its embodiment is like that of
its mother, a kind of night-owl. [545] Curiously enough, it appears
to be the only one of these spirits which rises to the dignity of
being addressed as a "Jin" or "Genie," as appears from the charms
which are used for laying it. Thus we find in a common charm:--
"O Pontianak the Stillborn,
May you be struck dead by the soil from the grave-mound.
Thus (we) cut the bamboo-joints, the long and the short,
To cook therein the liver of the Jin (Demon) Pontianak.
By the grace of 'There is no god but God,'" etc.
To prevent a stillborn child from becoming a Pontianak the corpse is
treated in the same way as that of the mother, i.e. a hen's egg is put
under each armpit, a needle in the palm of each hand, and (probably)
glass beads or some simple equivalent in its mouth. The charm which
is used on this occasion will be found in the Appendix.
The Peenanggalan is a sort of monstrous vampire which delights in
sucking the blood of children. The story goes that once upon a time
a woman was sitting, to perform a religious penance (dudok bertapa),
in one of the large wooden vats which are used by the Malays for
holding the vinegar made by drawing off the sap of the thatch-palm
(menyadap nipah). Quite unexpectedly a man came in, and finding her
sitting in the vat, asked her, "What are you doing there?" To this
the woman replied, "What business have you to ask?" but being very
much startled she attempted to escape, and in the excitement of the
moment, kicked her own chin with such force that the skin split round
her neck, and her head (with the sac of the stomach depending from it)
actually became separated from the trunk, and flew off to perch upon
the nearest tree. Ever since then she has existed as a spirit of evil,
sitting on the roof-tree whinnying (mengilai) whenever a child is
born in the house, or trying to force her way up through the floor
on which the child lies, in order to drink its blood. [546]
The only two spirits of this class which now remain are the Polong
and the Pelesit, and these, as I have said, partake to a great extent
of the character of familiar spirits or bottle imps, and are by no
means confined to a single "role" as the preceding ones have been.
The Polong resembles an exceedingly diminutive female figure or
mannikin, being in point of size about as big as the top joint of the
little finger. It will fly through the air to wherever it is told to
go, but is always preceded by its pet or plaything (pemainan), the
Pelesit, which, as has already been said, appears to be a species
of house-cricket. Whenever the Polong wishes to enter (di-rasoki)
a new victim, it sends the Pelesit on before it, and as soon as the
latter, "flying in a headlong fashion (menelentang menjerongkong),"
has entered its victim's body, which it usually does tail-foremost,
and begins to chirp, the Polong follows. It is generally hidden away
outside the house by its owner (Jinjangan), and fed with blood pricked
from the finger. The description usually given of a Polong tallies
curiously with the Malay definition of the soul. [547]
The last of these spirits, the Pelesit (or house-cricket?), which
is the Polong's "plaything" or pet, flies to and fro (rasok sini,
rasok sana) till it finds the body which its mistress has ordered
it to enter, harm only being done when it enters tail-foremost, as
it generally does. It is occasionally caught and kept in a bottle by
Malay women, who feed it either on parched or saffron-stained rice,
or on blood drawn from the tip of the fourth finger which they prick
for the purpose, and who, when they wish to get rid of it, bury it in
the ground. When a sick person is affected by a Pelesit (one of the
signs of which is to rave about cats) [548] the medicine-man comes and
addresses the Pelesit (or Polong?), which has taken up its residence
in the patient's body, with the words: "Who is your mother?" To this
question the Pelesit replies, speaking with the patient's voice,
but in a high falsetto key, and giving the name of the person who
sent it, whereupon prompt measures are taken to compel the owner
to recall it. It now only remains to describe the means employed
by the Malays to secure one of these familiar spirits, which can be
guaranteed to cause the greatest possible annoyance to your enemy,
with the least possible trouble on your own part.
Receipt for securing a Pelesit
"Go to the graveyard at night and dig up the body of a first-born
child whose mother was also first-born, and which has been dead less
than forty days. On digging it up, carry it out to an ant-hill in the
open ground, and there dandle it (di-timang). After a little while,
when the child shrieks and lolls its tongue out (terjelir lidah-nya),
bite off its tongue and carry it home. Then obtain a cocoa-nut shell
from a solitary 'green' cocoa-nut palm (niyor hijau), and carry it
to a place where Three Roads Meet, light a fire and heat the shell
till oil exudes, dip the child's tongue in the oil, and bury it in
the heart of the three cross roads (hati sempang tiga). Leave it
untouched for three nights, then dig it up and you will find that it
has turned into a Pelesit." [549]
2. BIRTH CEREMONIES
In or about the seventh month of pregnancy (mengandong tujoh bulan) a
"Bidan" [550] (sage femme) is engaged (menempah), the ceremony being
described as follows:--
A copper vessel called cherana (which is something like a fruit-dish
with a stand or foot to it) is filled with four or five peeled
areca-nuts, a small block of gambier, a portion of lime (kapor
sa-perkaporan), a "tahil" (sa-tahil) of tobacco, and three or four
packets (susun) of betel-leaf, and carried to the Bidan's house, where
it is presented to her with the words, "I wish to engage you for my
child" (Ini'ku mahu menempah anak'ku), or words to that effect. [551]
Usually the contents of the cherana are enclosed in small brass
receptacles, but on such occasions as the present no receptacles
are used, the usual accessories of the betel-chewing ceremony being
deposited in the cherana itself. The Bidan, on receiving the cherana,
and charming the contents, inverts it, pouring out (di-chorahkan)
its contents upon the floor, and taking omens for the coming event
from the manner in which they fall. [552] She then commences to chew
the betel-leaf, and when she has taken as much as she requires, she
generally performs some species of divination (tengo' dalam petua) in
order to ascertain the nature of the child's horoscope. This object
may be achieved in several ways; e.g. by astrological calculations;
by casting up (palak or falakiah) the numerical values of the letters
of both parents' names, in accordance with the abjad, or secret cipher
alphabet; [553] by observance of a wax taper fixed upon the brim of a
jar of water (dian di tepi buyong ayer); and by observance of a cup of
"betel-leaf water" (ayer sirih). [554]
When the time arrives the Bidan is sent for and escorted to the
spot, where she points out the luckiest place in the house for the
child to be born. Such a spot must not be under the ends of the
slats of the palm-thatch, but between them, the exact spot being
discovered by repeatedly dropping the blade of a hatchet or cutlass
haft downwards into the ground below the raised floor of the house,
until a spot is found wherein it sticks and remains upright. A rattan
loop (tali anggas) to enable the patient to raise herself to a sitting
posture, is suspended from the rafters over the spot selected, [555]
while just exactly beneath it under the floor of the house (which
is raised on piles like the old Swiss lake-dwellings) are fastened
a bunch of leaves of the prickly pandanus, the "acid" egg-plant,
[556] and a lekar jantan, which is a kind of rattan stand used for
Malay cooking-pots. The leaves of these plants are used because it is
thought that their thorns will prick any evil spirit [557] which tries
to get at the child from below, whilst the circular cooking-pot stand
will act as a noose or snare. Over the patient's head, and just under
the rafters, is spread a casting-net (jala), together with a bunch
of leaves of the red dracæna (jenjuang or lenjuang merah) and the "acid" egg-plant. [558] |
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