A big tray (talam) is now filled with a measure of uncooked husked rice
(b'ras sa-gantang), and covered over with a small mat of screw-palm
leaves (tikar mengkuang). This mat is in turn covered with from three
to seven thicknesses of fine Malay sarongs (a sort of broad plaid
worn as a skirt), and these latter again are surmounted by a second
mat upon which the newly-born infant is to be deposited.
The next process is the purification of mother and child by a ceremony
which consists of bathing both in warm water just not hot enough
to scald the skin (ayer pesam-pesam jangan melochak kulit), and in
which are leaves of lengkuas, halia, kunyit t'rus, kunyit, pandan bau,
areca-palm blossom, and the dried leaves (keronsong or keresek) of the
pisang k'lat. This has to be repeated (every?) morning and evening. In
most places the new-born infant is, as has been said, laid upon a mat
and formally adopted by the father, who breathes into the child's ear
[559] a sort of Muhammadan prayer or formula, which is called bang in
the case of a boy, and kamat in the case of a girl. After purification
the child is swaddled in a sort of papoose; an inner bandage (barut) is
swathed round the child's waist, and a broad cloth band (kain lampin)
is wound round its body from the knees to the breast, after which
the outer bandage (kain bedong) is wound round the child's body from
the feet to the shoulder, and is worn continually until the child is
three or four months old, or, in Malay parlance, until he has learned
to crawl (tahu meniarap). This contrivance, it is alleged, prevents
the child from starting and straining its muscles. Over the child's
mat is suspended a sort of small conical mosquito-net (kain bochok),
the upper end of which is generally stitched (di-semat) or pinned on
to the top of the parent's mosquito curtain, and which is intended
to protect the child from any stray mosquito or sandfly which may
have found its way into the bigger net used by his parents.
Next comes the ceremony of marking the forehead (chonting muka),
which is supposed to keep the child from starting and straining itself
(jangan terkejut terkekau), and from convulsions (sawan), and at the
same time to preserve it from evil spirits. The following are the
directions:--Take chips of wood from the thin end (kapala?) of the
threshold, from the steps of the house-ladder, and from the house
furniture, together with a coat (kesip) of garlic, a coat of an
onion, assafoetida, a rattan cooking-pot stand, and fibre from the
"monkey-face" of an unfertile cocoa-nut (tampo' niyor jantan). Burn
all these articles together, collect the ashes, and mix them by means
of the fore-finger with a little "betel-water." Now repeat the proper
charm, [560] dip the finger in the mixture, and mark the centre of the
child's forehead, if a boy with a sign resembling what is called a
bench mark [V], if a girl with a plain cross +, and at the same time
put small daubs on the nose, cheeks, chin, and shoulders. Then mark
the mother with a line drawn from breast to breast (pangkah susu) and
a daub on the end of the nose (cholek hidong). If you do this properly,
a Langat Malay informed me, the Evil One will take mother and child for
his own wife and child (who are supposed to be similarly marked) and
will consequently refrain from harming them!
In addition to the above, if the child is a girl, her eyebrows are
shaved and a curve drawn in their place, extending from the root
of the nose to the ear (di-pantiskan bentok taji deri muka sampei
pelipis). The mixture used for marking these curves consists of
manjakani mixed with milk from the mother's breast.
Another most curious custom which recalls a parallel custom among
North American Indians, is occasionally resorted to for the purpose of
altering the shape of the child's head. When it is considered too long
(terlampau panjang), a small tightly-fitting "yam leaf cap" (songko'
daun k'ladi), consisting of seven thicknesses of calladium (yam)
leaves is used to compress it. This operation is supposed to shorten
the child's skull, and the person who fits it on to the child's head
uses the words--"Muhammad, short be your head" in the case of a boy,
and "Fatimah, short be your head" in the case of a girl.
Now comes the ceremony of administering to the infant what is called
the "mouth-opener" (lit. "mouth-splitter," pemb'lah mulut); first,
you take a green cocoa-nut (niyor sungkoran), split it in halves
(di-b'lah niyor), put a "grain" of salt inside one-half of the shell
(di-buboh garam sa-buku), and give it to the child to drink, counting
up to seven, and putting it to the child's mouth at the word seven
(letakkan di mulut-nya). Then repeat the ceremony, substituting asam
(tamarinds?) for the salt. Finally, take a gold ring, and after rubbing
it against the inside of the cocoa-nut (cholek di-dalam niyor), lay it
upon the child's lips, (letakkan di bibir-nya), saying "Bismillah,"
etc. Do the same with a silver and amalgam (gold and silver) ring
respectively, and the ceremony will be at an end.
I may note, in passing, that it is in allusion to the above ceremony
that you will sometimes hear old men say "It's not the first time I
tasted salt, I did so ever since I was first put into my swinging-cot"
(aku makan garam dahulu, deripada tatkala naik buayan).
Sometimes a little "rock" sugar (gula batu) is added to make the
"mouth-opener" more palatable.
From the time when the child is about twenty-four hours old until it
is of the age of three months, it is fed with rice boiled in a pot on
the fire, "broken" (di-lechek) by means of a short broad cocoa-nut
shell spoon (pelechek), mixed with a little sugar and squeezed into
small receptacles of woven cocoa-nut leaf (ketupat).
Later it is taught to feed at the breast (menetek), which continues
until it is weaned by the application of bitter aloes (jadam) to the
mother's breasts.
In the rice-jar (buyong b'ras) during this period, a stone, a big
iron nail, and a "candle-nut" must be kept, and a spoon (sendok)
must always be used for putting the rice into the pot before boiling
it. Moreover, the mother, when eating or drinking, must always cross
her left arm under her breasts (di-ampu susu-nya di lengan kiri)
leaving the right arm free to bring the food to the mouth.
When the child has been bathed, it is fumigated, and deposited for
the first time in a swinging-cot (the Malay substitute for a cradle)
which, according to immemorial custom, is formed by a black cloth
slung from one of the rafters. To fumigate [561] it you take leaves of
the red dracæna (jenjuang merah), and wrap them round first with the
casing of the charred torch (puntong) used at the severing of the cord
(pembuang tali pusat), then with leaves of the t'rong asam ("acid"
egg-plant), and tie them round at intervals with a string of shredded
tree-bark (tali t'rap). The funnel-shaped bouquet thus formed is
suspended above the child's cot (buayan); a spice-block (batu giling)
is deposited inside it, and underneath it are placed the naked blade
of a cutlass (parang puting), a cocoa-nut scraper (kukoran), and one
of the basket-work stands used for the cooking-pots (lekar jantan),
which latter is slung round the neck of the cocoa-nut scraper. This
last strange contrivance is, I believe, intended as a hint to the
evil spirit or vampire which comes to suck the child's blood, and
for whom the trap described above is set underneath the house-floor.
Now get a censer and burn incense in it, adding to the flame, as it
burns, rubbish from beneath a deserted house, the deserted nest of a
mer'bah (dove), and the deserted nest of the "rain-bird" (sarang burong
ujan-ujan). When all is ready, rock the cot very gently seven times,
then take the spice-block out of the cot and deposit it together with
the blade of the cutlass upon the ground, take the child in your arms
and fumigate it by moving it thrice round in a circle over the smoke
of the censer, counting up to seven as you do so, and swing the child
gently towards your left. At the word "seven" call the child's soul
by saying "Cluck, cluck! soul of Muhammad here!" [562] (if it is a
boy), or "Cluck, cluck! soul of Fatimah here!" (if it is a girl);
deposit the child in the cot and rock it very gently, so that it does
not swing farther than the neck of the cocoa-nut scraper extends
(sa-panjang kukoran sahaja). After this you may swing it as far as
you like, but for at least seven days afterwards, whenever the child
is taken out of the cot, the spice-block, or stone-child (anak batu)
as it is called, must be deposited in the cot as a substitute for
the child (pengganti budak).
Once in every four hours the child should be bathed with cold water,
in order that it may be kept "cool." This custom, I was told, is
diametrically opposite to that which obtains at Malacca, where the
child is bathed as rarely as possible. The custom followed in Selangor
is said to prevent the child from getting a sore mouth (guam).
For the first two months or so, whenever the child is bathed, it is
rubbed over with a paste obtained by mixing powdered rice with the
powder obtained from a red stone called batu kawi. This stone, which is
said by some Malays to take its name from the Island of Langkawi, is
thought to possess astringent (k'lat) qualities, and is used by Malay
women to improve their skin. Before use the paste is fumigated with
the smoke of burning eagle-wood, sandal-wood, and incense, after which
the liquid, which is said to resemble red ink, is applied to the skin,
and then washed off, no doubt, with lime-juice in the ordinary way.
In the cold water which is used for bathing the child are deposited a
big iron nail (as a "symbol of iron"), "candle-nuts" and cockle-shells
(kulit k'rang), to which some Malays add a kind of parasite called si
ber'nas (i.e. Well-Filled Out, a word applied to children who are fat,
instead of the word gemok, which is considered unlucky) and another
parasite called sadingin or si dingin, the "Cold" one.
After bathing, the Bidan should perform the ceremony called sembor
sirih, which consists in the ejecting of betel-leaf (mixed with other
ingredients) out of her mouth on to the pit of the child's stomach, the
ingredients being pounded leaves of the bunglei, chekor, and jerangau,
and chips of brazil-wood, ebony, and sugar-palm twigs (segar kabong);
to these are sometimes added small portions of the "Rough" bamboo
(buluh kasap), of the bemban balu, and of the leaf-cases of the
areca-palm (either upih b'lah batang or upih sarong).
The child is generally named within the first week, but I have not yet
heard of any special ceremony connected with the naming, though it is
most probably considered as a religious act. The name is evidently
considered of some importance, for if the child happens to get ill
directly after the naming, it is sometimes re-adopted (temporarily)
by a third party, who gives it a different name. When this happens a
species of bracelets and anklets made of black cloth are put upon the
child's wrists and ankles, the ceremony being called tumpang sayang.
A few days later the child's head is shaved, and his nails cut for
the first time. For the former process a red lather is manufactured
from fine rice-flour mixed with gambier, lime, and betel-leaf. Some
people have the child's head shaved clean, others leave the central
lock (jambul). In either case the remains of the red lather, together
with the clippings of hair (and nails?) are received in a rolled-up
yam-leaf (daun k'ladi di-ponjut) or cocoa-nut (?), and carried
away and deposited at the foot of a shady tree, such as a banana
(or a pomegranate?).
Sometimes (as had been done in the case of a Malay bride at whose
"tonsure" I assisted [563]), the parents make a vow at a child's
birth that they will give a feast at the tonsure of its hair, just
before its marriage, provided the child grows up in safety.
Occasionally the ceremony of shaving the child's head takes place on
the 44th day after birth, the ceremony being called balik juru. A
small sum, such as $2.00 or $3.00, is also sometimes presented to
a pilgrim to carry clippings of the child's locks to Mecca and cast
them into the well Zemzem, such payment being called 'kekah (`akekah)
in the case of a boy, and kerban in the case of a girl. [564]
To return to the mother. She is bathed in hot water at 8 o'clock each
morning for three days, and from the day of birth (after ablution)
she has to undergo the strangest ceremony of all, "ascending the
roasting-place" (naik saleian). A kind of rough couch is prepared
upon a small platform (saleian), which is about six feet in length,
and slopes downwards towards the foot, where it is about two feet
above the floor. Beneath this platform a fireplace or hearth (dapor)
[565] is constructed, and a "roaring fire" lighted, which is intended
to warm the patient to a degree consistent with Malay ideas of what is
beneficial! Custom, which is stronger than law, forces the patient to
recline upon this couch two or three times in the course of the day,
and to remain upon it each time for an hour or two. To such extremes
is this practice carried, that "on one occasion a poor woman was
brought to the point of death ... and would have died if she had not
been rescued by the kind interposition of the Civil Assistant-Surgeon;
the excessive excitement caused by the heat was so overpowering that
aberration of mind ensued which continued for several months." [566]
As if this were not enough, one of the heated hearth-stones (batu
tungku) is frequently wrapped up in a piece of flannel or old rags,
applied to the patient's stomach so as to "roast" her still more
effectually. This "roasting" custom is said to continue for the whole
of the forty-four days of uncleanness. During this period there are
many birth-taboos (pantang beranak) applying to food, the following
articles being usually forbidden: (1) things which have (from the
Malay point of view) a lowering effect on the constitution (sagala
yang sejuk-sejuk), e.g. fruits, with some exceptions, and vegetables;
(2) things which have a heating effect on the blood (sagala yang
bisa-bisa), e.g. the fish called pari (skate), the Prickly Fish (ikan
duri), and the sembilang (a kind of mudfish with poisonous spines on
both sides and back), and all fresh-water fish; (3) all things which
have an irritating effect on the skin (sagala yang gatal-gatal),
e.g. the fish called tenggiri, and terubok, shell-fish, and the
egg-plant or Brinjal, while the fish called kurau, g'lama, senahong,
parang-parang may be eaten, so long as they are well salted; (4) things
which are supposed to cause faintness (sagala yang bentan-bentan), or
swooning (pengsan), such, for instance, as uncooked cocoa-nut pulp,
gourds and cucumbers; (5) sugar (with the exception of cocoa-nut
sugar), cocoa-nuts, and chillies. [567]
The following description of birth-taboos in Pahang, taken from
Mr. H. Clifford's Studies in Brown Humanity, will give a good general
idea of this part of the subject:--
"When Umat has placed the sirih leaves he has done all he can for
Selema, and he resigns himself to endure the anxiety of the next few
months with the patience of which he has so much command. The pantang
ber-anak, or birth-taboos, hem a husband in almost as rigidly as they
do his wife, and Umat, who is as superstitious as are all the Malays
of the lower classes, is filled with fear lest he should unwittingly
transgress any law, the breach of which might cost Selema her life. He
no longer shaves his head periodically, as he loves to do, for a
naked scalp is very cool and comfortable; he does not even cut his
hair, and a thick black shock stands five inches high upon his head,
and tumbles raggedly about his neck and ears. Selema is his first
wife, and never before has she borne children, wherefore no hair of
her husband's must be trimmed until her days are accomplished. Umat
will not kill the fowls for the cook now, nor even drive a stray dog
from the compound with violence, lest he should chance to maim it,
for he must shed no blood, and must do no hurt to any living thing
during all this time. One day he is sent on an errand up-river and
is absent until the third day. On inquiry it appears that he passed
the night in a friend's house, and on the morrow found that the wife
of his host was shortly expecting to become a mother. Therefore he
had to remain at least two nights in the village. Why? Because if
he failed to do so, Selema would die. Why would she die? God alone
knows, but such is the teaching of the men of old, the wise ones of
ancient days. But Umat's chief privation is that he is forbidden to
sit in the doorway of his house. To understand what this means to
a Malay, you must realise that the seat in the doorway, at the head
of the stair-ladder that reaches to the ground, is to him much what
the fireside is to the English peasant. It is here that he sits and
looks out patiently at life, as the European gazes into the heart of
the fire. It is here that his neighbours come to gossip with him,
and it is in the doorway of his own or his friend's house that the
echo of the world is borne to his ears. But, while Selema is ill,
Umat may not block the doorway, or dreadful consequences will ensue,
and though he appreciates this and makes the sacrifice readily for
his wife's sake, it takes much of the comfort out of his life.
"Selema, meanwhile, has to be equally circumspect. She bridles her
woman's tongue resolutely, and no word in disparagement of man or
beast passes her lips during all these months, for she has no desire
to see the qualities she dislikes reproduced in the child. She is
often tired to death and faint and ill before her hour draws nigh,
but none the less she will not lie upon her mat during the daytime
lest her heavy eyes should close in sleep, since her child would
surely fall a prey to evil spirits were she to do so. Therefore she
fights on to the dusk, and Umat does all he can to comfort her and
to lighten her sufferings by constant tenderness and care." [568]
The medicine (sambaran bara), used by the mother after her confinement,
consists of the ashes of a burnt cocoa-nut shell pounded and mixed
with a pinch of black pepper (lada hitam sa-jimput), a root of garlic
(bawang puteh sa-labuh), and enough vinegar to make the mixture
liquid. This potion is drunk for three consecutive mornings. A bandage
is swathed about her waist, and she is treated with a cosmetic (bedak)
manufactured from temu kuning, which is pounded small (and mixed as
before with garlic, black pepper, and vinegar), and applied every
morning and evening for the first three days. During the next three
days a new cosmetic (bedak kunyit t'rus) is applied, the ingredients
being kunyit t'rus pounded and mixed in the same way as the cosmetic
just described.
At the same time the patient is given a potion made from the ash of
burnt durian skins (abu kulit durian), mixed as before with vinegar;
the fruit-stalk, or "spire," of a cocoa-nut palm (manggar niyor)
being substituted if the durian skin is not obtainable.
A poultice (ubat pupok) is also applied to the patient's forehead,
after the early bathing, during the "forty-four days" of her
retirement; it consists of leaves of the tahi babi, jintan hitam,
and garlic, pounded and mixed as usual with vinegar.
After three days an extraordinary mixture, called in Selangor the
"Hundred Herbs" (rempah 'ratus), but in Malacca merely "Pot-herbs"
(rempah p'riok), is concocted from all kinds of herbs, roots, and
spices. The ingredients are put into a large vessel of water and left
to soak, a portion of the liquor being strained off and given to
the patient as a potion every morning for about ten days. Similar
ingredients boiled in a large pot, which is kept hot by being
hermetically sealed (di-getang), and by having live embers placed
underneath it from time to time, furnish the regular beverage of the
patient up to the time of her purification. After the first fortnight,
however, the lees are extracted from the vessel and used to compose
a poultice which is applied to the patient's waist, a set of fresh
ingredients replacing the old ones. [569] It is sold for fifty cents
a jar.
On the forty-fourth day the raised platform or roasting-place (saleian)
is taken down and the ceremony called Floor-washing (basoh lantei)
takes place, the whole house being thoroughly washed and cleaned. The
floor having been smeared with rice-cosmetic (bedak) (such as the
Malays use for the bathing ceremony), it is well scratched by the
claws of a fowl, which is caught (and washed) for the purpose, and
then held over the floor and forced to do the scratching required of
it. The cosmetic is then removed (di-langir) by means of lime-juice
(again as in the bathing ceremony) and the hearth-fire is changed. The
Bidan now receives her pay, usually getting in cash for the eldest
child $4.40 (in some places $5.40), for the second, $3.40, the third,
$2.40, and for the fourth, and all subsequent children, $1.40; unless
she is hastily summoned (bidan tarek) and no engagement (menempah) has
been made, in which case she may demand half a bhara ($11). Besides
this somewhat meagre remuneration, however, she receives from the
well-to-do (at the floor-washing ceremony) such presents as cast-off
clothes (kain bekas tuboh), a bowl of saffron rice, a bowl of the
rice-cosmetic and limes (bedak limau), and a platter of betel-leaf,
with accessories (cherana sirih). Though the remuneration may appear
small, it was, nevertheless, sure; as in former days an unwritten
law allowed her to take the child and "cry it for sale" (di-jaja)
round the country, should her fee remain unpaid.
Before concluding the present subject it will be necessary to describe
certain specific injunctions and taboos which form an important part
of the vast body of Malay customs which centre specially round the
birth of children.
Before the child is born the father has to be more than usually
circumspect with regard to what he does, as any untoward act on
his part would assuredly have a prejudicial effect on the child,
and cause a birth-mark or even actual deformity, any such affection
being called kenan. In a case which came to my notice the son was born
with only a thumb, forefinger, and little finger on the left hand,
and a great toe on the left foot, the rest of the fingers and toes on
the left side being wanting. This, I was told, was due to the fact
that the father violated this taboo by going to the fishing-stakes
one day and killing a crab by chopping at it with a cutlass.
In former days during this period it was "taboo" (pantang) for the
father to cut the throat of a buffalo or even of a fowl; or, in fact,
to take the life of any animal whatever--a trace no doubt of Indian
influences. A Malay told me once that his son, soon after birth,
was afflicted with a great obstruction of breathing, but that when
the medicine-man (Pawang) declared (after "diagnosing" the case)
that the child was suffering from a "fish-affection" (kenan ikan),
he remembered that he had knocked on the head an extraordinary number
of fish which he had caught on the very day that his son was born. He
therefore, by the advice of the medicine-man, gave the child a potion
made from pounded fish bones, and an immediate and permanent recovery
was the result.
Such affections as those described are classified by the Malays
according to the kind of influence which is supposed to have produced
them. Thus the unoffending victim may be either fish-struck (kenan
ikan), as described above, ape-struck (kenan b'rok), dog-struck (kenan
anjing), crab-struck (kenan ketam), and so forth, it being maintained
that in every case the child either displays some physical deformity,
causing a resemblance to the animal by which it was affected, or else
(and more commonly) unconsciously imitates its actions or its "voice."
Another interesting custom was that the father was stringently
forbidden to cut his hair until after the birth of the child.
The following passage bearing on the subject is taken from Sir
W. E. Maxwell's article on the "Folklore of the Malays": [570]--
"In selecting timber for the uprights of a Malay house care must
be taken to reject any log which is indented by the pressure of any
parasitic creeper which may have wound round it when it was a living
tree. A log so marked, if used in building a house, will exercise
an unfavourable influence in childbirth, protracting delivery and
endangering the lives of mother and child. Many precautions must be
taken to guard against evil influence of a similar kind, when one of
the inmates of a house is expecting to become a mother. No one may
'divide the house' (belah rumah), that is, go in at the front door
and out at the back, or vice versa, nor may any guest or stranger be
entertained in the house for one night only; he must be detained for
a second night to complete an even period. If an eclipse occurs, the
woman on whose account these observances are necessary must be taken
into the penangga (kitchen), and placed beneath the shelf or platform
(para) on which the domestic utensils are kept. A spoon is put into
her hand. If these precautions are not taken, the child when born
will be deformed."
Sir W. E. Maxwell in the above is speaking of Perak Malays. The passage
just quoted applies to a great extent to Selangor, but with a few
discrepancies. Thus a house-post indented by a creeper is generally
avoided in Selangor for a different reason, viz. that it is supposed
to bring snakes into the house.
"Dividing the house," however, is generally considered an important
birth-taboo in Selangor, the threatened penalty for its non-observance
being averted by compelling the guilty party to submit to the
unpleasant ceremony called sembor ayer, a member of the family being
required to eject (sembor) a mouthful of water upon the small of the
culprit's back.
In Selangor, again, a guest must stay three nights (not two) in
the house, his departure on the first or second night being called
"Insulting the Night" (menjolok malam). To avert the evil consequences
of such an act, fumigation (rabun-rabun) is resorted to, the "recipe"
for it running as follows:--"Take assafoetida, sulphur, kunyit
t'rus (an evil-smelling root), onion skins, dried areca-nut husk,
lemon-grass leaves, and an old mat or cloth, burn them, and leave
the ashes for about an hour at sunset on the floor of the passage
in front of the door." That a sensible and self-respecting "demon"
should avoid a house where such an unconscionable odour is raised is
not in the least surprising!
In the event of an eclipse the customs of the two sister States
appear to be nearly identical; the only difference being that in
Selangor the woman is placed in the doorway (in the moonlight as far
as possible), and is furnished with the basket-work stand of a cooking
pot, as well as a wooden rice-spoon, the former as a trap to catch
any unwary demon who may be so foolish as to put his head "into the
noose," and the latter as a weapon of offence, it being supposed that
"the rattan binding of the spoon (which must, of course, be of the
orthodox Malay pattern) will unwind itself and entangle the assailant"
in the case of any real danger. Finally, the Bidan must be present to
"massage" the woman, and repeat the necessary charms.
From the following passage it would appear that the corresponding
Pahang custom does not materially differ from that of Perak and
Selangor:--
"But during the period that the Moon's fate hung in the balance,
Selema has suffered many things. She has been seated motionless in the
fireplace under the tray-like shelf, which hangs from the low rafters,
trembling with terror of--she knows not what. The little basket-work
stand, on which the hot rice-pot is wont to rest, is worn on her
head as a cap, and in her girdle the long wooden rice-spoon is stuck
dagger-wise. Neither she nor Umat know why these things are done, but
they never dream of questioning their necessity. It is the custom. The
men of olden days have decreed that women with child should do these
things when the Moon is in trouble, and the consequences of neglect
are too terrible to be risked; so Selema and Umat act according to
their simple faith." [571]
3. ADOLESCENCE
Of the purely Malay ceremonies performed at Adolescence, the most
important are the "filing of the teeth" (berasah gigi), [572] and
the cutting of the first locks of hair, in cases where this latter
operation has been postponed till the child's marriage by a vow of
its parents.
The following is a description of the rite of tonsure (berchukor),
at which I was present in person:--
"Some time ago (in 1897) I received, through one of my local Malay
headmen, an invitation to attend a tonsure ceremony.
"When I arrived (about two P.M.), in company of the headman referred
to, the usual dancing and Koran-chanting was proceeding in the
outer chamber or verandah, which was decked out for the occasion
with the usual brilliantly coloured ceiling-cloth and striped
wall-tapestry. After a short interval we were invited to enter an
inner room, where a number of Malays of both sexes were awaiting
the performance of the rite. The first thing, however, that caught
the eye was a gracefully-draped figure standing with shrouded head,
and with its back to the company, upon the lowest step of the dais
(g'rei), which had been erected with a view to the prospective wedding
ceremony. This was the bride. A dark-coloured veil, thrown over her
head and shoulders, allowed seven luxuriant tresses of her wonderful
raven-black hair to escape and roll down below her waist, a ring of
precious metal being attached to the end of each tress. Close to the
bride, and ready to support her, should she require it, in her motherly
arms, stood the (on such occasions) familiar figure of the Duenna
(Mak Inang), whose duty, however, in the present instance was confined
to taking the left hand of the bride between her own, and supporting
it in a horizontal position whilst each of the seven Representatives
(orang waris) [573] in turn was sprinkling it with the 'Neutralising
Rice-paste' (tepong tawar) by means of the usual bunch or brush of
leaves. A little in front of this pair stood a youth supporting in
his hands an unhusked cocoa-nut shell. The crown of this cocoa-nut
had been removed, and the edges at the top cut in such a way as to
form a chevroned or 'dog-tooth' border. Upon the indentations of this
rim was deposited a necklace, and a large pair of scissors about the
size of a tailor's shears were stuck point downwards in the rim. The
cocoa-nut itself was perhaps half-filled with its 'milk.' Close to
this youth stood another, supporting one of the usual circular brass
trays (with high sides) containing all the ordinary accessories of the
tepong tawar ceremony, i.e. a bowl of rice-paste, a brush of leaves,
parched rice, washed saffron-stained rice, and benzoin or incense.
"I was now requested to open the proceedings, but at my express desire
the Penghulu (Malay headman) did so for me, first scattering several
handfuls (of the different sorts of rice) over the bride, and then
sprinkling the rice-paste upon the palm of her left hand, which was
held out to receive it as described above. The sprinkling over, he
took the scissors and with great deliberation severed the end of the
first lock, which was made to fall with a little splash, and with the
ring attached to it, into the cocoa-nut with the 'dog-tooth' border.
"Five other waris (Representatives) and myself followed suit, the
seven tresses with the rings attached to them being all received in
the cocoa-nut as described.
"A child of the age of about two or three years underwent the tonsure
at the same time, each of the Representatives, after severing the
bride's lock, snipping off a portion of the child's hair. The child was
in arms and was not veiled, but wore a shoulder-cloth (bidak) thrown
over his shoulder. At the conclusion of the ceremony we left the room,
and the Koran-chanting was resumed and continued until the arrival of
the bridegroom in procession (at about five P.M.), when the bride and
bridegroom went through the ceremony of being 'seated side by side'
(bersanding), and the business of the day was concluded.
"The cocoa-nut containing the severed tresses and rings is carried
to the foot of a barren fruit-tree (e.g. a pomegranate-tree),
when the rings are extracted and the water (with the severed locks)
poured out at the tree's foot, the belief being that this proceeding
will make the tree as luxuriant as the hair of the person shorn, a
very clear example of 'sympathetic magic.' If the parents are poor,
the cocoa-nut is generally turned upside down and left there; but if
they are well-to-do, the locks are usually sent to Mecca in charge
of a pilgrim, who casts them on his arrival into the well Zemzem."
I will now describe the ceremony of filing or "sharpening" the teeth,
from notes taken by myself during the actual ceremony (20th March,
1897).
The youth whose teeth I saw filed must have been quite fifteen or
sixteen years of age, and had not long before undergone the rite
of circumcision. When I arrived I found the house newly swept and
clean, and all the accessories of the ceremony already prepared. These
latter consisted of a round tray (dulang) containing the usual bowl of
rice-paste (tepong tawar), with the brush of leaves, [574] three cups
(containing different sorts of rice), an egg, [575] three rings of
precious metals (gold, silver, and amalgam), a couple of limes, and
two small files (to which a small tooth-saw and two small whetstones
should be added). [576]
The ceremony now commences: the tooth-filer (Pawang gigi) first
scatters the three sorts of rice and sprinkles the tepong tawar upon
his instruments, etc., repeating the proper charm [577] at the same
time; the patient meanwhile, and throughout the operation, reclining
upon his back on the floor with his head resting on a pillow. Next
the Pawang, sitting beside the patient, "touches" the patient's teeth,
first with each of the three rings of precious metal and then with the
egg, throwing each of these objects away as he does so, and repeating
each time a charm (Hu, kata Allah, d. s. b.), which is given in the
Appendix. Next he props open (di-sengkang) the patient's mouth by means
of a dried areca-nut, and repeats another charm (Hei, Bismi) in order
to destroy the "venom" of the steel, laying the file upon the teeth,
[578] and drawing it thrice across them at the end of the charm. He
then cuts off (di-k'rat) the crowns of the teeth (with one of the
files), smooths their edges (di-papar) with one of the whetstones,
and polishes them (melechek). During the whole of this part of the
performance, which is a trying ordeal to witness, although it is borne
with the utmost fortitude on the part of the sufferer, the latter
holds a small mirror in front of his mouth in order to be assured
that the operation is progressing to his satisfaction. When the actual
filing is over, the areca-nut is extracted, and a piece of cocoa-nut
husk or small block of pulai wood inserted in its stead, in order
to facilitate the proper polishing of the now mutilated teeth. This
latter part of the operation is accomplished by means of the file,
a small piece of folded white cloth protecting the lips from injury.
Considerable interest attaches to the filing of the first tooth,
on account of the omens which are taken from the position in which
the crown happens to lie when it falls. If, when the tooth is filed
through, the crown adheres to the file, it is taken as a sign that
the patient will die at home; if it flies off and lies with its edge
turned upwards, this means, on the contrary, that he will die abroad.
At the conclusion of the operation a species of poultice (ubat tasak),
consisting mainly of cooked ginger (halia bara di-pahis-ki), which is
intended to "deaden (the feeling of) the gums" (matikan daging gusi)
is duly charmed [579] and applied to the gums of the jaw which happens
to be under treatment. The Pawang now lays one hand (the left) on the
top of the patient's head and the other upon the teeth of the upper
jaw, and presses them together with a show of considerable force,
making believe, as it were, that he is pressing the patient's upper
teeth firmly into their sockets. Finally, a portion of betel-leaf is
charmed (with the charm Hong sarangin, etc.) and given to the patient
to chew, after which, it is asserted, all pain immediately ceases. The
Pawang then washes his hands, resharpens his tools, and those present
sit down to a meal of saffron-stained pulut rice. This concludes the
ceremony for the day, the lower jaw being similarly treated upon a
subsequent occasion.
In the course of three such operations (the Pawang informed me)
the teeth can be filed down even with the gums, in which case they
are, I believe, in some instances somewhat roughly plated or cased
with gold. Sometimes, however, they are merely filed into points,
so that they resemble the teeth of a shark. [580] Very frequently,
too, they blacken them with a mixture of the empyreumatic oil of the
cocoa-nut shell (baja or g'rang) and kamunting (Kl. karamunting) wood,
[581] which is also used for blackening the eyebrows. These customs,
however, are already dying out in the more civilised Malay States.
Whenever I made inquiries as to the reason of this strange custom,
I was invariably told that it not only beautified but preserved the
teeth from the action of decay, which the Malays believe to be set up
by the presence of a minute maggot or worm (ulat), their most usual
way of expressing the fact that they are suffering from toothache
being to say that the tooth in question is being "eaten by a maggot"
(di-makan ulat).
The "Batak" Malays (a Mid-Sumatran tribe, many of whom have settled
in Kuala Langat) are said to chip the teeth of their children into
the desired shape by the use of a small chisel, the operation causing
such exquisite agony that the sufferer will not unfrequently leap to
his feet with a shriek.
Even when the file is used, the work of an unskilful performer
(who does not know how to destroy the "venom" of his instruments)
will cause the sufferer's face to be completely swollen up (bakup)
for a long period subsequent to the operation. Yet young people of
both sexes cheerfully submit to the risk of this discomfort, and the
only remark made by the youth whom I saw undergoing it was that it
"made his mouth feel uncomfortable" (jelejeh rasa mulut-nya).
The ear-boring ceremony (bertindek) appears to have already lost
much of its ceremonial character in Selangor, where I was told that
it is now usually performed when the child is quite small, i.e. at
the earliest, when the child is some five or seven months old,
and when it is about a year old at the latest, whereas in Sumatra
(according to Marsden) it is not performed until the child is eight
or nine. [582] Still, however, a special kind of round ear-ring,
which is of filagree-work, and is called subang, is as much the emblem
of virginity in the western States as it ever was. The "discarding"
of these ear-rings (tanggal subang), which should take place about
seven days after the conclusion of the marriage rites, is ceremonial
in character, and it is even the custom when a widow (janda) is
married for the second time, to provide her with a pair of subang
(which should, however, it is said, be tied on to her ears instead
of being inserted in the ear-holes, as in the case of a girl who has
never been married).
The rite of circumcision is of course common to Muhammadans all over
the world. Some analogous practices, however, have also been noticed
among the non-Muhammadan Malayan races of the Eastern Archipelago,
and it is at least doubtful whether circumcision as now practised by
Malays is a purely Muhummadan rite. Among Malays it is performed by
a functionary called the "Mudim," [583] with a slip of bamboo, at any
age (in the case of boys) from about six or seven up to about sixteen
years, the wound being often dressed (at least in town districts) with
fine clay mixed with soot and the yolk of eggs, but when possible, the
clay is mixed with cocoa-nut fibre (rabok niyor), selumur paku uban,
and the young shoots of the k'lat plantain (puchok pisang k'lat),
the compound being called in either case ubat tasak. The ceremony
is associated with the common purificatory rite called tepong tawar,
and with ayer tolak bala (lit. evil-dispelling water). Lights are kept
burning in the house for several days ("until the wound has healed"),
and the performance of the ceremony is always made the occasion for a
banquet, together with music and dancing of the kind in which Malays
take so much delight. The cause of these rejoicings is dressed for the
occasion "like a bridegroom" (pengantin), and is said to be sometimes
carried in procession.
4. Personal Ceremonies and Charms
Ceremonies and charms for protecting or rendering the person more
attractive or formidable, form one of the largest, but not perhaps the
most interesting or important division of the medicine-man's repertory.
The following remarkable specimen of the charms belonging to the first
of these classes was given me by 'Che `Abas of Klanang in Selangor,
a Kelantan Malay:--
"If the corpse in the grave should speak,
And address people on earth,
May I be destroyed by any beast that has life,
But if the corpse in the grave do not speak,
And address people on earth,
May I not be destroyed by any beast that has life, or by any foe
or peril, or by any son of the human race.
And if the chicken in the egg should crow,
And call to chickens on earth,
May I be destroyed by any beast that has life,
But if the chicken in the egg do not crow,"
(etc. etc., as before.)
As a general rule, however, this particular class of charms shows
particularly strong traces of Arabic influence, most often, perhaps,
taking the form of an injunction (addressed to Jins or Angels) to
watch over the person of the petitioner.
To rightly understand charms of the second class, which includes
Bathing and Betel-charming charms, [584] we must have some idea of the
Malay standard of beauty. This, I need hardly say, differs widely from
that entertained by Europeans. In the case of manly beauty we should,
perhaps, be able to acquiesce to some extent in the admiration which
Malays express for "Brightness of Countenance" (chahia), which forms
one of the chief objects of petition in almost every one of this
class of charms; [585] but none of our modern Ganymedes would be
likely to petition for a "voice like the voice of the Prophet David";
[586] or a "countenance like the countenance of the Prophet Joseph";
still less would he be likely to petition for a tongue "curled like
a breaking wave," or "a magic serpent," or for teeth "like a herd of
(black) elephants," or for lips "like a procession of ants." [587]
Malay descriptions of female beauty are no less curious. The "brow"
(of the Malay Helen, for whose sake a thousand desperate battles
are fought in Malay romances) "is like the one-day-old moon," [588]
her eyebrows resemble "pictured clouds," [589] and are "arched like
the fighting-cock's (artificial) spur," [590] her cheek resembles "the
sliced-off-cheek of a mango," [591] her nose "an opening jasmine bud,"
[592] her hair the "wavy blossom-shoots of the areca-palm," [593]
slender [594] is her neck, "with a triple row of dimples," [595] her
bosom ripening, [596] her waist "lissom as the stalk of a flower,"
[597] her head "of a perfect oval" (lit. bird's-egg-shaped), her
fingers like the leafy "spears of lemon-grass," [598] or the "quills
of the porcupine," [599] her eyes "like the splendour of the planet
Venus," [600] and her lips "like the fissure of a pomegranate." [601]
The following is a specimen of an invocation for beautifying the
person which is supposed to be used by children:--
"The light of four Suns, five Moons,
And the seven Stars be visible in my eye.
The brightness of a shooting star be upon my chin,
And that of the full moon be upon my brows.
May my lips be like unto a string of ants,
My teeth like to a herd of elephants,
My tongue like a breaking wave,
My voice like the voice of the Prophet David,
My countenance like the countenance of the Prophet Joseph,
My brightness like the brightness of the Prophet Muhammad,
By virtue of my using this charm that was coeval with my birth,
And by grace of 'There is no god but God,'" etc.
When personal attractions begin to wane with the lapse of years,
invocations are resorted to for the purpose of restoring the
petitioner's lost youth. In one of the invocations referred to (which
is said to have been used by the Princess of Mount Ophir, Tuan Putri
Gunong Ledang, to secure perpetual youth), the petitioner boasts that
he (or she) was "born under the Inverted Banyan Tree," and claims the
granting of the boon applied for "by virtue of the use of the "Black
Lenggundi Bush," which when it has died, returns to life again,"
[602] the idea being, no doubt, that a judicious use of black magic
will enable the petitioner to "live backwards."
The third class of invocations, for rendering the person formidable,
belong rather to the chapter on war, under which heading they will
be included.
5. BETROTHAL
Betrothal is called tunangan or pinangan. When the parents of a
marriageable youth perceive a suitable "match" for their son, they
send a messenger to her parents to ask if she has yet been "bespoken"
(kalau ada orang sebut). If the reply is satisfactory, the messenger
is again despatched to intimate the desire of the youth's parents to
"bespeak" the hand of the favoured individual for his son, and to
arrange a day for a meeting. These preliminaries are accompanied by
the usual polite self-depreciation on both sides. Thus, the girl's
father begins by saying, "You wish to bespeak the hand of my daughter,
who knows neither how to cook nor how to sew" (yang ta'tahu masak,
ta'tahu menjait). But the custom is not carried to such extremes as
it is in China. [603]
The girl's parents next call four or five witnesses (saksi) of either
sex to "witness" the betrothal, and after preparing a meal (nasi dan
kueh) for their expected guests, await the arrival of the youth's
"Representatives," the youth himself remaining at home. One of the
party carries a betel-leaf tray furnished with the usual betel-chewing
appliances, together with half a bhara of dollars ($11) according
to the stricter custom; although (failing the dollars), a ring or
bracelet, or other jewellery of that value, may be substituted.
Bearing these presents with them, the youth's representatives proceed
to the house of the girl's parents, where they are invited to enter
and partake of the betel-leaf provided for them. A meal is then served,
Malay cakes (kueh-kueh) brought forward, and the company again partake of betel. |
|
댓글 없음:
댓글 쓰기