MAN AND HIS PLACE IN THE UNIVERSE
(a) Creation of Man
A common feature in Malay romances and legends is a description of
the supernatural development of a young child in the interior of some
vegetable production, usually a bamboo.
Sir W. E. Maxwell has pointed out the fact of the existence, both in
Malay and Japanese legends, of the main features of this story, to
which he assigns a Buddhistic origin. He tells the story as follows:--
"The Raja of the Bamboo.--Some years ago I collected a number of
legends current among Malayan tribes having as their principal
incident the supernatural development of a prince, princess, or
demi-god in the stem of a bamboo, or tree, or the interior of some
closed receptacle. [32] I omitted, however, to mention that this very
characteristic Malay myth occurs in the "Sri Rama," a Malay prose
hikayat, [33] which, as its name betokens, professes to describe the
adventures of the hero of the Râmâyana.
"Roorda van Eysinga's edition of the Sri Rama opens with an account of
how Maharaja Dasaratha sent his Chief Mantri, [34] Puspa Jaya Karma,
to search for a suitable place at which to found a settlement. The site
having been found and cleared, the narrative proceeds as follows:--
"'Now there was a clump of the betong [35] bamboo (sa'rumpun buluh
betong), the colour of which was like gold of ten touch (amas sapuloh
mutu), and its leaves like silver. All the trees which grew near
bent in its direction, and it looked like a state umbrella (payong
manuwangi [36]). The Mantri and people chopped at it, but as fast
as they cut down a branch on one side, a fresh one shot forth on
the other, to the great astonishment of all the Rajas, Mantris, and
warriors. Puspa Vikrama Jaya hastened back to King Dasaratha and
laid the matter before him. The latter was greatly surprised, and
declared that he would go himself the next day and see the bamboo cut
down. Next day he set out on a white elephant, attended by a splendid
train of chiefs and followers, and on reaching the spot ordered the
bamboo clump to be cut down. Vikrama Puspa Jaya pointed it out, shaded
by the other forest trees. The king perceived that it was of very
elegant appearance, and that an odour like spices and musk proceeded
from it. He told Puspa Jaya Vikrama to cut it down, and the latter
drew his sword, which was as big as the stem of a cocoa-nut tree, and
with one stroke cut down one of the bamboos. But immediately a fresh
stem shot forth on the other side, and this happened as often as a
stroke was given. Then the king grew wroth, and getting down from his
elephant he drew his own sword and made a cut with it at the bamboo,
which severed a stem. Then, by the divine decree of the Dewatas,
the king became aware of a female form in the bamboo clump seated on
a highly ornamented platform (geta), her face shining like the full
moon when it is fourteen days old, and the colour of her body being
like gold of ten touch. On this, King Dasaratha quickly unloosed his
girdle and saluted the princess. Then he lifted her on to his elephant
and took her to his palace escorted by music and singing.'" [37]
I myself have heard among the Selangor Malays similar legends to the
above, which, as already pointed out, are common in Malay romances. A
parallel myth is described in the following words:--
"Now, the Perak river overflows its banks once a year, and sometimes
there are very great floods. Soon after the marriage of Nakhodah
Kasim with the white Semang, [38] an unprecedented flood occurred
and quantities of foam came down the river. Round the piles of the
bathing-house, which, in accordance with Malay custom, stood in the
bed of the river close to the bank in front of the house, the floating
volumes of foam collected in a mass the size of an elephant. Nakhodah
Kasim's wife went to bathe, and finding this island of froth in her
way she attempted to move it away with a stick; she removed the upper
portion of it and disclosed a female infant sitting in the midst of it
enveloped all round with cloud-like foam. The child showed no fear,
and the white Semang, carefully lifting her, carried her up to the
house, heralding her discovery by loud shouts to her husband. The
couple adopted the child willingly, for they had no children, and
they treated her thenceforward as their own. They assembled the
villagers and gave them a feast, solemnly announcing their adoption
of the daughter of the river and their intention of leaving to her
everything that they possessed.
"The child was called Tan Puteh, but her father gave her the name
of Teh Purba. [39] As she grew up the wealth of her foster-parents
increased; the village grew in extent and population, and gradually
became an important place." [40]
The usual story of the first creation of man, however, appears to be
a Malay modification of Arabic beliefs.
Thus we are told that man was created from the four elements--earth,
air, water, and fire--in a way which the following extract, taken
from a Selangor charm-book, will explain:--
"God Almighty spake unto Gabriel, saying,
'Be not disobedient, O Gabriel,
But go and get me the Heart of the Earth.'
But he could not get the Heart of the Earth.
'I will not give it,' said the Earth.
Then went the Prophet Israfel to get it,
But he could not get the Heart of the Earth.
Then went Michael to get it,
But he could not get the Heart of the Earth.
Then went Azrael to get it,
And at last he got the Heart of the Earth.
When he got the Heart of the Earth
The empyrean and crystalline spheres shook,
And the whole Universe (shook).
When he got the Heart of the Earth he [41] made from it the Image
of Adam.
But the Heart of the Earth was then too hard;
He mixed Water with it, and it became too soft,
(So) he mixed Fire with it, and at last struck out the image
of Adam.
Then he raised up the image of Adam,
And craved Life for it from Almighty God,
And God Almighty gave it Life.
Then sneezed God Almighty, and the image of Adam brake in pieces,
And he (Azrael) returned to remake the image of Adam.
Then God Almighty commanded to take steel of Khorassan,
And drive it down his back, so that it became the thirty-three
bones,
The harder steel at the top, the softer below it.
The harder steel shot up skywards,
And the softer steel penetrated earthwards.
Thus the image of Adam had life, and dwelt in Paradise.
(There) Adam beheld (two ?) peacocks of no ordinary beauty,
And the Angel Gabriel appeared.
'Verily, O Angel Gabriel, I am solitary,
Easier is it to live in pairs, I crave a wife.'
God Almighty spake, saying, 'Command Adam
To pray at dawn a prayer of two genuflexions.'
Then Adam prayed, and our Lady Eve descended,
And was captured by the Prophet Adam;
But before he had finished his prayer she was taken back,
Therefore Adam prayed the prayer of two genuflexions as desired,
And at the last obtained our Lady Eve.
When they were married (Eve) bore twins every time,
Until she had borne forty-four children,
And the children, too, were wedded, handsome with handsome,
and plain with plain."
The magician who dictated the above account stated that when
Azrael stretched forth his hand to take the Heart of the Earth, the
Earth-spirit caught hold of his middle finger, which yielded to the
strain, and thus became longer than the rest, and received its Malay
name of the "Devil's Finger" (jari hantu).
A parallel account adds that the Heart of the Earth was white, and
gives a fuller description of the interview between Azrael and his
formidable antagonist, the Earth. After saluting the latter in the
orthodox Muhammadan fashion, Azrael explains his mission, and is met by
a point-blank refusal. "I will not give it," said the Earth (referring
to its Heart), "forasmuch as I was so created by God Almighty, and
if you take away my Heart I shall assuredly die." At this brusque,
though perhaps natural retort, the archangel loses his temper, and
rudely exclaims that he "will take the Earth's Heart whether it will
or no." Here Azrael "gave the Earth a push with his right hand and
his left, and grasping at the Heart of the Earth, got hold of it and
carried it back to the presence of God." God now summons Gabriel and
orders him to mould (lit. forge) the image of Adam. Then Gabriel took
the lump of earth which was the Earth's Heart and mixed it first with
water to soften it, then, as it was too soft, with fire to harden
it, and when the image was made, obtained life from God to put into
it. [42] [The breaking of the first image which was made, and the
making of the second, are here omitted]. Finally, the creation of
"our Lady" Eve and the birth of her first-born are described, the
latter occasion being accompanied by a thick darkness, which compelled
Adam to take off his turban and beat the child therewith in order to
dispel the evil influences (badi) which had attended its birth. [43]
The following extract (from a Malay treatise quoted by Newbold)
fairly describes the general state of Malay ideas respecting the
constitution of the human body:--
"Plato, Socrates, Galen, Aristotle, and other philosophers affirm that
God created man of a fixed number of bones, blood-vessels, etc. For
instance, the skull is composed of 5 1/2 bones, the place of smell
and sense of 7 bones, between this and the neck are 32 bones. The
neck is composed of 7 bones, and the back of 24 bones; 208 bones are
contained in the other members of the body. In all there are 360
bones and 360 blood-vessels in a man's body. The brains weigh 306
miscals, the blood 573. The total of all the bones, blood-vessels,
large and small, and gristles, amounts to 1093; and the hairs of
the head to six lacs and 4000. The frame of man is divided into 40
great parts, which are again subdivided. Four elements enter into his
composition, viz. air, fire, earth, and water. With these elements are
connected four essences--the soul or spirit with air, love with fire,
concupiscence with earth, and wisdom with water." [44]
(b) Sanctity of the Body
In dealing with this branch of the subject I will first take the case
of the kings and priestly magicians who present the most clearly-marked
examples of personal sanctity which are now to be found among Malays,
and will then describe the chief features of the sanctity ascribed to
all ranks alike in respect of certain special parts of the ordinary
human anatomy. The theory of the king as the Divine Man is held perhaps
as strongly in the Malay region as in any other part of the world,
a fact which is strikingly emphasised by the alleged right of Malay
monarchs "to slay at pleasure, without being guilty of a crime." Not
only is the king's person considered sacred, but the sanctity of his
body is believed to communicate itself to his regalia, and to slay
those who break the royal taboos. Thus it is firmly believed that
any one who seriously offends the royal person, who touches (even
for a moment) or who imitates (even with the king's permission) the
chief objects of the regalia, [45] or who wrongfully makes use of
any of the insignia or privileges of royalty, will be kena daulat,
i.e. struck dead, by a quasi-electric discharge of that Divine Power
which the Malays suppose to reside in the king's person, [46] and which
is called "Daulat" or "Royal Sanctity." Before I proceed, however,
to discuss this power, it will be best to give some description of
the regalia in which it resides:--
Of Malacca Newbold says: "The articles of Malay regalia usually consist
of a silasila, or book of genealogical descent, a code of laws, a vest
or baju, and a few weapons, generally a kris, kleywang, or spear." [47]
"The limbing is a sort of lance; the tombak bandrang a spear of state,
four or seven of which are usually carried before the chiefs in the
interior of the Peninsula. The handle is covered with a substance
flowing from it like a horse-tail, dyed crimson, sometimes crimson
and white; this is generally of hair." [48]
So in Leyden's translation of the Malay Annals (1821) we read--
"My name is Bichitram Shah, who am raja.... This is the sword, Chora
sa mendang kian (i.e. mandakini), and that is the lance, Limbuar
(i.e. limbuara); this is the signet, Cayu Gampit, which is employed
in correspondence with rajas." [49]
"The Chora sa medang kian (i.e. mandakini) is the celebrated sword
with which Peramas Cumunbang killed the enormous serpent Sicatimuna,
which ravaged the country of Menangkabowe about the beginning of the
twelfth century." [50]
Of the Perak regalia we read: "Tan Saban was commanded by his mistress
to open negotiations with Johor, and this having been done, a prince of
the royal house of that kingdom, who traced his descent from the old
line of Menangkabau, sailed for Perak to assume the sovereignty. He
brought with him the insignia of royalty, namely, the royal drums
(gandang nobat), the pipes (nafiri), the flutes (sarunei and bangsi),
the betel-box (puan naga taru), the sword (chora mandakini), the
sword (perbujang), the sceptre (kayu gamit), the jewel (kamala), the
surat chiri, the seal of state (chap halilintar), and the umbrella
(ubar-ubar). All these were enclosed in a box called Baninan." [51]
In Selangor the regalia consisted of the royal instruments of
music--(the big State Drum or naubat, beaten at the king's coronation;
the two small State Drums (gendang); the two State Kettle-drums
(langkara); the lempiri or State Trumpet, and the serunei or State
Flute--to which perhaps a bangsi should be added, as in the Perak
list)--which were seldom, if ever, moved, and the following articles
which were carried in procession on state occasions: [52]--
1. The royal Betel-box.
2. The Long K'ris--a kind of rapier used for Malay executions.
3. The two royal Swords; one on the right hand and one on the left
(all of the articles mentioned hitherto being carried in front
of the Sultan).
4. The royal "Fringed" Umbrella (payong ubor-ubor), carried behind
the right-hand sword-bearer.
5. The royal "Cuspadore," carried behind the left-hand
sword-bearer.
6. The royal Tobacco-box, carried at the Sultan's back.
7. The eight royal tufted Lances (tombak bendrang or bandangan),
whose bearers were followed by two personal attendants, the
latter of whom attended, besides, to anything that was broken
or damaged; so that the procession numbered seventeen persons
in all. [53]
Of the Pahang regalia I have not been able to obtain a list with
any pretensions to completeness, but from a remark by Mr. Clifford
(the present Resident) in one of his books, they would appear to be
essentially the same as those of the other Federated States. [54]
A list of the Jelebu regalia (given me by Ungku Said Kechil of Jelebu)
ran as follows:--
1. A single-bladed Sword (pedang pemanchor).
2. The Long K'ris (k'ris panjang, penyalang), used for executions.
3. The royal Lances (tombak bendrang).
4. The royal Umbrella (payong kabesaran).
5. The royal Standard and Pennants (tunggul ular-ular).
6. The royal Ceiling-cloth and Hangings (tabir, langit-langit
dewangga).
7. The "Moving Mountains" (gunong dua berangkat), perhaps the
names of two peaked pillows.
8. The royal Drums (gendang naubat); said to be "headed" with the
skins of lice (kulit tuma) and to emit a single chord of twelve
tones when struck (dua-b'las bunyi sakali di-pukol).
9. The royal Trumpet (lempiri or |
nempiri). | Each of these was also said to
10. The royal Gong. | emit a single chord of twelve
11. The royal Guitar (kechapi). | notes.
12. The royal rebab or Malay fiddle.
This latter peculiarity (of the multiplication of notes) is quite
in accordance with the traditions of the king's musical instruments
in Malay romances. Thus of Raja Donan's magic flute we are told,
"The first time (that he sounded it), the flute gave forth the sounds
of twelve instruments, the second time it played as if twenty-four
instruments were being sounded, and the third time it played like
thirty-six different instruments." No wonder we are told that "the
Princesses Che Ambong and Che Muda dissolved in tears, and the music
had to be stopped." [55]
My informant declared that these objects came into existence of
themselves (terjali sendiri), at a spot between the two peaks of
a burning mountain (gunong merapi) in the country of Menangkabau
in Sumatra. He also averred that "rain could not rot them nor sun
blister them," and that any one who "brushed past them" (di-lintas)
would fall to the ground; [56] whilst no fewer than seven buffaloes
have to be slaughtered before the "moving mountains" (when worn out)
can be replaced. [57]
An enumeration of the writer's regalia often forms an important part
of a letter from one Malay sovereign to another, more especially when
the writer wishes to emphasise his importance. [58]
But the extraordinary strength of the Malay belief in the supernatural
powers of the regalia of their sovereigns can only be thoroughly
realised after a study of their romances, in which their kings are
credited with all the attributes of inferior gods, whose birth, as
indeed every subsequent act of their after life, is attended by the
most amazing prodigies.
They are usually invulnerable, and are gifted with miraculous powers,
such as that of transforming themselves, and of returning to (or
recalling others to) life; in fact they have, in every way, less of
the man about them and more of the god. Thus it is that the following
description of the dress of an old-time Raja falls easily into line
with what would otherwise appear the objectless jargon which still
constitutes the preamble of many a Malay prince's letters, but which
can yet be hardly regarded as mere rhetoric, since it has a deep
meaning for those who read it:--
"He wore the trousers called beraduwanggi, miraculously made without
letting in pieces; hundreds of mirrors encircled his waist, thousands
encircled his legs, they were sprinkled all about his body, and larger
ones followed the seams."
Then his waistband (kain ikat pinggang) was of "flowered cloth,
twenty-five cubits in length, or thirty if the fringe be included;
thrice a day did it change its colours--in the morning transparent as
dew, at mid-day of the colour of lembayong, [59] and in the evening
of the hue of oil."
Next came his coat. It was "of reddish purple velvet, thrice brilliant
the lustre of its surface, seven times powerful the strength of
the dye; the dyer after making it sailed the world for three years,
but the dye still clung to the palms of his hands."
His dagger was "a straight blade of one piece which spontaneously
screwed itself into the haft. The grooves, called retak mayat, [60]
started from the base of the blade, the damask called pamur janji
appeared half-way up, and the damask called lam jilallah at the
point; the damask alif was there parallel with the edge, and where
the damasking ended the steel was white. No ordinary metal was the
steel, it was what was over after making the bolt of God's Ka'abah
(at Meccah). It had been forged by the son of God's prophet, Adam,
smelted in the palm of his hand, fashioned with the end of his finger,
and coloured with the juice of flowers in a Chinese furnace. Its deadly
qualities came down to it from the sky, and if cleaned (with acid)
at the source of a river, the fish at the embouchure came floating
up dead.
"The sword that he wore was called lang pengonggong, [61] 'the
successful swooper,' lit. the 'kite carrying off its prey.'
"The next article described is his turban, which, among the Malays,
is a square handkerchief folded and knotted round the head."
"He next took his royal handkerchief, knotting it so that it stood
up with the ends projecting; one of them he called dendam ta' sudah
(endless love): it was purposely unfinished; if it were finished the
end of the world would come. It had been woven in no ordinary way,
but had been the work of his mother from her youth. Wearing it he was
provided with all the love-compelling secrets. (The names of a number
of charms to excite passion are given, but they cannot be explained
in the compass of a note)." [62]
He wore the Malay national garment--the sarong. It was "a robe of
muslin of the finest kind; no ordinary weaving had produced it; it
had been woven in a jar in the middle of the ocean by people with
gills, relieved by others with beaks; no sooner was it finished than
the maker was put to death, so that no one might be able to make one
like it. It was not of the fashion of the clothing of the rajas of the
present day, but of those of olden time. If it were put in the sun it
got damper, if it were soaked in water it became drier. A slight tear
mended by darning only increased its value, instead of lessening it,
for the thread for the purpose cost one hundred dollars. A single
dewdrop dropping on it would tangle the thread for a cubit's length,
while the breath of the south wind would disentangle it."
Finally, we get a description of the way in which the Raja (S'ri Rama)
set out upon his journey.
"He adopted the art called sedang budiman, the young snake writhed at
his feet (i.e. he started at mid-day when his own shadow was round his
feet), a young eagle was flying against the wind overhead; he took a
step forward and then two backward, one forward as a sign that he was
leaving his country, and two backward as a sign that he would return;
as he took a step with the right foot, loud clanked his accoutrements
[63] on his left; as he put forth the left foot a similar clank was
heard on his right; he advanced, swelling out his broad chest, and
letting drop his slender fingers, adopting the gait called 'planting
beans,' and then the step called 'sowing spinach.'" [64]
In addition to the sanctity of the regalia, the king, as the divine
man, possesses an infinite multitude of prerogatives which enter into
almost every act of his private life, and thus completely separate
him from the generality of his fellow-men.
These prerogatives are too numerous to be mentioned in detail, but
the following extract from Leyden's translation of the "Malay Annals"
will give a general idea of their character and extent:--
"Sultan Muhammed Shah again established in order the throne of
his sovereignty. He was the first who prohibited the wearing of
yellow clothes in public, not even a handkerchief of that colour,
nor curtains, nor hangings, nor large pillow-cases, nor coverlets,
nor any envelope of any bundle, nor the cloth lining of a house,
excepting only the waist cloth, the coat, and the turban. He also
prohibited the constructing of houses with abutments, or smaller houses
connected with them; also suspended pillars or timbers (tiang gantong);
nor timbers the tops of which project above the roofs, and also summer
houses. [65] He also prohibited the ornamenting of creeses with gold,
and the wearing anklets of gold, and the wearing the koronchong, or
hollow bracelets (anklets?) of gold, ornamented with silver. None of
these prohibited articles did he permit to be worn by a person, however
rich he might be, unless by his particular licence, a privilege which
the raja has ever since possessed. He also forbade any one to enter the
palace unless wearing a cloth petticoat [66] of decent length, with his
creese in front; [67] and a shoulder-cloth; and no person was permitted
to enter unless in this array, and if any one wore his creese behind
him, it was incumbent on the porter of the gate to seize it. Such is
the order of former time respecting prohibition by the Malayu rajas,
and whatever is contrary to this is a transgression against the
raja, and ought to incur a fine of five cati. The white umbrella,
which is superior to the yellow one, because it is seen conspicuous
at a greater distance, was also confined to the raja's person, [68]
while the yellow umbrella was confined to his family." [69]
A number of other particulars bearing on this subject will be found
in other parts of the text, and in the Appendix references are given
to other works for additional details, which are too numerous to be
recorded here.
"At funerals, whether the deceased has been a great or insignificant
person, if he be a subject, the use of the Payong (umbrella) and
the Puwadi is interdicted, as also the distribution of alms, unless
by royal permission; otherwise the articles thus forbidden will be
confiscated." "Puwadi is the ceremony of spreading a cloth, generally
a white one, for funeral and other processions to walk upon. Should
the deceased be of high rank, the cloth extends from the house where
the corpse is deposited, to the burial-ground." [70]
Similar prohibitions are still in force at the courts of the Malay
Sultans in the Peninsula, though a yellow umbrella is now generally
substituted for the white, at least in Selangor.
A distinction is also now drawn between manufactured yellow cloth and
cloth which has been dyed yellow with saffron, the wrongful use of
the latter (the genuine article) being regarded as the more especially
heinous act.
In addition to the royal monopoly of such objects as have been
mentioned, Sir W. E. Maxwell mentions three royal perquisites
(larangan raja), i.e. river turtles (tuntong) (by which he no doubt
means their eggs); elephants (by which he doubtless means elephants'
tusks); [71] and the fruit of the "ketiar" from which oil is made
by the Perak Malays. He adds, "It used to be a capital offence to
give false information to the Raja about any of these. The 'ketiar'
tree is said to affect certain localities, and is found in groves
not mixed with other trees. In former days, when the fruit was ripe,
the whole of the Raja's household would turn out to gather it. It is
said to yield a very large percentage of oil." [72]
The only tree in Ridley's list [73] whose name at all resembles the
"ketiar" is the katiak, which is identified as Acronychia Porteri,
Wall (Rutaceæ).
A description of the gathering of the eggs of river turtles by the
royal party in Perak will be found in Malay Sketches. [74]
Besides the above there are not a few linguistic taboos connected with
the king's person, such as the use of the words santap, to eat; beradu,
to sleep; bersemaiam, to be seated, or to "reside" in a certain place;
berangkat, to "progress"; siram, to bathe; g'ring, to be sick; and
mangkat, to die; all of which words are specially substituted for the
ordinary Malay words when reference is made to the king. [75] Moreover,
when the king dies his name is dropped, and he receives the title of
"Marhum," the late or "deceased," with the addition of an expression
alluding to some prominent fact in his life, or occasionally to the
place of his decease. These titles, strange as it may seem, are often
the reverse of complimentary, and occasionally ridiculous. [76]
It must not be forgotten, too, in discussing the divine attributes
of the Malay king, that he is firmly believed to possess a personal
influence over the works of nature, such as the growth of the crops and
the bearing of fruit-trees. This same property is supposed to reside in
a lesser degree in his delegates, and even in the persons of Europeans
in charge of districts. Thus I have frequently known (in Selangor)
the success or failure of the rice crops attributed to a change of
district officers, and in one case I even heard an outbreak of ferocity
which occurred among man-eating crocodiles laid at the door of a most
zealous and able, though perhaps occasionally somewhat unsympathetic,
representative of the Government. So, too, on one occasion when three
deaths occurred during a District Officer's temporary absence, the mere
fact of his absence was considered significant. I may add that royal
blood is supposed by many Malays to be white, and this is the pivot
on which the plot of not a few Malay folk-tales is made to turn. [77]
Finally, it must be pointed out that the greatest possible importance
is attached to the method of saluting the king.
In the "Sri Rama" (the Malay Ramayana) we read, even of the chiefs,
that--
"While yet some way off they bowed to the dust,
When they got near they made obeisance,
Uplifting at each step their fingers ten,
The hands closed together like the rootlets of the bakong palm [78]
The fingers one on the other like a pile of sirih[2] leaves." [79]
Equals in rank when saluting one another touch [80] (though they do
not shake) each other's hands, but a person of humble birth must not
touch hands in saluting a great chief. "A man, named Imam Bakar, was
once slain at Pasir Tambang, at the mouth of the Tembeling river. He
incautiously touched hands in greeting with a Chief called To' Gajah,
and the latter, seizing him in an iron grip, held him fast, while he
was stabbed to death with spears." [81]
In saluting a great Chief, like the Dato' Maharaja Perba Jelai, the
hands are "lifted up in salutation with the palms pressed together,
as in the attitude of Christian prayer, but the tips of the thumbs
are not suffered to ascend beyond the base of the chin. In saluting a
real Râja, the hands are carried higher and higher, according to the
prince's rank, until, for the Sultân, the tips of the thumbs are on a
level with the forehead. Little details such as these are of immense
importance in the eyes of the Malays, and not without reason, seeing
that in an Independent Native State many a man has come by his death
for carelessness in their observance." [82]
In the king's audience hall the formal salutations are performed in
a sitting posture, and in this case, too, the greatest attention is
paid to the height to which the hands are raised. The chief twice
makes salutation in a sitting posture as he advances, and at the
third advance bends over the Sultan's hands, two more salutations
being made on his way back to his place.
A flagrant infringement of any of the prerogatives of the Sultan,
such as those I have described, is certain, it is thought, to prove
fatal, more or less immediately.
Thus the death of Penghulu Mohit, a well-known Malay headman of
the Klang district, in Selangor, which took place while I was in
charge of that district, was at the time very generally attributed
by the local Malays to his usurpation of certain royal privileges
or prerogatives on the occasion of his daughter's wedding. One of
these was his acceptance of gift-buffaloes, decorated after the royal
fashion, which were presented to him as wedding gifts in his daughter's
honour. These buffaloes had a covering of cloth put over them, their
horns covered, and a crescent-shaped breast-ornament (dokoh) hung
about their necks. Thus dressed they were taken to Mohit's house in
solemn procession. [83] It was, at the time, considered significant
that the very first of these gift-buffaloes, which had been brought
overland from Jugra, where the Sultan lived, had died on arrival, and
whatever the cause may have been, it is a fact that Mohit's mother
died a day or two after the conclusion of the wedding ceremonies,
and that Mohit himself was taken ill almost immediately and died only
about a fortnight later.
The only person who, in former days, was not in the least affected by
the royal taboos which protected the regalia from the common touch
was the (now I believe extinct) official who held the post of Court
Physician (Maharaja Lela). He, and he alone, might go freely in the
royal apartments wherever he chose, and the immunity and freedom which
he enjoyed in this respect passed into a proverb, the expression "to
act the Court Physician" (buat Maharaja Lela) being used to describe
an altogether unwarrantable familiarity or impertinence.
The following story (though I tell it against myself) is perhaps
the best illustration I can give of the great danger supposed to be
incurred by those who meddle with the paraphernalia of royalty. Among
the late Sultan's insignia of royalty (in 1897) were a couple of
drums (gendang) and the long silver trumpet which I have already
described. Such trumpets are found among the kabesaran or regalia
of most Malay States, and are always, I believe, called lempiri or
nempiri (Pers. nafiri). They are considered so sacred that they can
only be handled or sounded, it is believed, by a tribe of Malays
called "Orang Kalau," or the "Kalau men," [84] as any one else who
attempted to sound them would be struck dead. Even the "Orang Kalau,"
moreover, can only sound this instrument at the proper time and season
(e.g. at the proclamation of a new sovereign), for if they were to
sound it at any other time its noise would slay all who heard it,
since it is the chosen habitation of the "Jin Karaja'an" or State
Demon, [85] whose delight it would be, if wrongfully disturbed,
to slay and spare not. [86]
This trumpet and the drums of the Selangor regalia were kept by
the present Sultan (then Raja Muda, or Crown Prince of Selangor)
in a small galvanised iron cupboard which stood (upon posts about
three feet high) in the middle of a lawn outside His Highness'
"garden residence" at Bandar. His Highness himself informed me that
they had once been kept in the house itself, but when there they
were the source of infinite annoyance and anxiety to the inmates on
account of their very uncanny behaviour!
Drops of perspiration, for instance, would form upon the Trumpet
when a leading member of the Royal House was about to die (this
actually happened, as I was told, at Langat just before the death of
Tungku 'Chik, the late Sultan's eldest daughter, who died during my
residence in the neighbourhood). Then one Raja Bakar, son of a Raja
`Ali, during the rethatching of the house at Bandar, accidentally
trod upon the wooden barrel of one of the State Drums--and died in
consequence of his inadvertence. When, therefore, a hornet's nest
formed inside one of these same drums it was pretty clear that things
were going from bad to worse, and a Chinaman was ordered to remove it,
no Malay having been found willing to risk his life in undertaking so
dangerous an office--an unwillingness which was presently justified,
as the Chinaman, too, after a few days' interval, swelled up and
died. Both these strange coincidences were readily confirmed by
the present Sultan on an occasion when I happened to question the
authenticity of the story, and as His Highness is one of the most
enlightened and truthful of men, such confirmation cannot easily be
set aside. But the strangest coincidence of all was to follow, for
not long afterwards, having never seen that portion of the regalia
which was in the Raja Muda's charge, I happened to mention to a Malay
friend of mine at Jugra my wish to be allowed to examine these objects,
and was at once begged not to touch them, on the ground that "no one
could say what might follow." But shortly after, having occasion to
visit the Raja Muda at his house at Bandar, I took the opportunity
of asking whether there was any objection to my seeing these much
debated objects, and as His Highness not only very obligingly assented,
but offered to show them to me himself, I was able both to see and to
handle them, His Highness himself taking the Trumpet out of its yellow
case and handing it to me. I thought nothing more of the matter at
the time, but, by what was really a very curious coincidence, within
a few days' time of the occurrence, was seized with a sharp attack
of malarial influenza, the result of which was that I was obliged to
leave the district, and go into hospital at headquarters. In a Malay
village news spreads quickly, and the report of my indisposition,
after what was no doubt regarded as an act of extraordinary rashness,
appears to have made a profound impression, and the result of it was
that a Malay who probably considered himself indebted to me for some
assistance he had received, bound himself by a vow to offer sacrifice
at the shrine of a famous local saint should I be permitted to return
to the district. Of this, however, I knew nothing at the time, and
nothing could have exceeded my astonishment when I found upon my
return that it was my duty to attend the banquet which took place at
the saint's tomb in honour of my own recovery! [87]
Having shown the wide gulf which divides the "divine man" from
his fellows, I have still to point out the extent to which certain
portions of the human frame have come to be invested with sanctity,
and to require to be treated with special ceremonies. These parts
of the anatomy are, in particular, the head, the hair, the teeth,
the ears, and the nails, all of which I will take in their order.
The head, in the first place, is undoubtedly still considered by the
Malays to possess some modified degree of sanctity. A proof of this is
the custom (`adat) which regulates the extent of the sacrifice to be
offered in a case of assault or battery by the party committing the
injury. If any part of the head is injured, nothing less than a goat
will suffice (the animal being killed and both parties bathed in the
blood); if the upper part of the body, the slaughter of a cock (to be
disposed of in a similar way) will be held to be sufficient reparation,
and so on, the sacrifice becoming of less value in proportion as the
injured part is farther from the head. So, too, Mr. Frazer writes:
"The ... superstition (of the sanctity of the head) exists among
the Malays; for an early traveller reports that in Java people 'wear
nothing on their heads, and say that nothing must be on their heads,
... and if any person were to put his hand upon their head they would
kill him; and they do not build houses with stories in order that
they may not walk over each other's heads.' It is also found in full
force throughout Polynesia." [88]
From the principle of the sanctity of the head flows, no doubt, the
necessity of using the greatest circumspection during the process
of cutting the hair. [89] Sometimes throughout the whole life of
the wearer, and frequently during special periods, the hair is left
uncut. Thus I was told that in former days Malay men usually wore
their hair long, and I myself have seen an instance of this at Jugra
in Selangor in the person of a Malay [90] of the old school, who
was locally famous on this account. So, too, during the forty days
which must elapse before the purification of a woman after the birth
of her child, the father of the child is forbidden to cut his hair,
and a similar abstention is said to have been formerly incumbent upon
all persons either prosecuting a journey or engaging in war. Often a
boy's head is entirely shaven shortly after birth with the exception
of a single lock in the centre of the head, and so maintained until
the boy begins to grow up, but frequently the operation is postponed
(generally, it is said, in consequence of a vow made by the child's
parents) until the period of puberty or marriage. Great care,
too, must be exercised in disposing of the clippings of hair (more
especially the first clippings), as the Malay profoundly believes
that "the sympathetic connection which exists between himself and
every part of his body continues to exist even after the physical
connection has been severed, and that therefore he will suffer from
any harm that may befall the severed parts of his body, such as the
clippings of his hair or the parings of his nails. Accordingly he
takes care that those severed portions of himself shall not be left
in places where they might either be exposed to accidental injury,
or fall into the hands of malicious persons who might work magic on
them to his detriment or death." [91]
Thus we invariably find clippings of the victim's hair mentioned
(together with parings of his nails, etc.) as forming part of the
ingredients of the well-known wax image or mannikin into which pins
are stuck, and which is still believed by all Malays to be a most
effective method of causing the illness or death of an enemy. [92]
I was once present at the curious ceremony of cutting the hair of a
Malay bride, which had all the characteristics of a religious rite, but
the detailed account of it will be reserved for a later chapter. [93]
The same difficulties and dangers which beset the first cutting of the
hair apply, though perhaps in a less degree, to the first paring of the
nails (bertobak), the boring of the ears of girls (bertindek telinga),
and the filing of the teeth (berasah gigi) of either sex whether at
puberty or marriage. One or more of the nails are frequently worn
long by Malays of standing, and the women who engage in "nautch"
dancing and theatrical performances invariably wear a complete set
of artificial nails (changgei). These latter are usually of brass,
are often several inches in length, and are made so as to fit on
to the tips of the fingers. Occasionally a brass ring with a small
peacock, or some such bird, of the same material will be attached to
the end of the nail by a minute brass chain. The practice of wearing
long nails is sometimes attributed to Chinese influence, but it is
hard to see why this particular detail of Malay custom, which is
quite in keeping with the general trend of Malay ideas about the
person, should be supposed to be derived from China. The borrowing,
if any, is much more likely to have been on the part of the Chinese,
who undoubtedly imported many Indian ideas along with Buddhism. The
custom appears to be followed, moreover, in many places, such as the
interior of Sumatra, where Chinese influence is non-existent. In Siam,
again, it appears to obtain very strongly; [94] but no reason has yet
been shown for supposing that this is anything but an instance of the
similarity of results independently arrived at by nations starting
with similar premisses.
The ear-boring and tooth-filing ceremonies which still not infrequently
take place at the age of puberty in both sexes are of no less religious
import than the rite of cutting the first lock. The main details of
these ceremonies will be described in a later part of this book. [95]
To the same category (of sacred things having physical connection with
the body) should doubtless be referred such objects as the eyebrows,
the saliva, and soil taken from the (naked) footstep, all of which
are utilised by the magician to achieve his nefarious ends.
(c) The Soul
The Malay conception of the Human Soul (Semangat) [96] is that of
a species of "Thumbling," "a thin, unsubstantial human image," or
mannikin, which is temporarily absent from the body in sleep, trance,
disease, and permanently absent after death.
This mannikin, which is usually invisible but is supposed to be about
as big as the thumb, corresponds exactly in shape, proportion, and even
in complexion, to its embodiment or casing (sarong), i.e. the body in
which it has its residence. It is of a "vapoury, shadowy, or filmy"
essence, though not so impalpable but that it may cause displacement
on entering a physical object, and as it can "fly" or "flash" quickly
from place to place, it is often, perhaps metaphorically, addressed
as if it were a bird. [97]
Thus in a charm given in the Appendix we find--
"Hither, Soul, come hither!
Hither, Little One, come hither!
Hither, Bird, come hither!
Hither, Filmy One, come hither!" [98]
As this mannikin is the exact reproduction in every way of its bodily
counterpart, and is "the cause of life and thought in the individual
it animates," it may readily be endowed with quasi-human feelings,
and "independently possess the personal consciousness and volition
of its corporeal owner." Thus we find the following appeal addressed
to the soul in the charm just quoted:--
"Do not bear grudges,
Do not bear malice,
Do not take it as a wrong,
Do not take it as a transgression."
These quasi-human attributes of the soul being so complete, it is an
easy stretch of the imagination to provide it with a house, which is
generally in practice identified with the body of its owner, but may
also be identified with any one of its temporary domiciles. Thus in
the charm already quoted we read--
"Return to your own House and House-ladder,
To your own House-floor, of which the planks have started,
And your Roof-thatch 'starred' with holes."
The state of disrepair into which the soul's house (i.e. the sick man's
body) is described as having fallen, is here attributed to the soul's
absence. [99] The completeness of this figurative identification of
the soul's "house" with its owner's body, and of the soul's "sheath" or
casing with both, is very clearly brought out in the following lines:--
"Cluck! cluck! Soul of this sick man, So-and-so!
Return into the Frame and Body of So-and-so,
To your own House and House-ladder, to your own Clearing and Yard,
To your own Parents, to your own Casing."
And this is no mere chance expression, for in another charm the soul
is adjured in these words:--
"As you remember your own parents, remember me,
As you remember your own House and House-ladder, remember
me." [100]
The soul "appears to men (both waking and asleep) as a phantom separate
from the body of which it bears the likeness," "manifests physical
power," and walks, sits, and sleeps:--
"Cluck! cluck! Soul of So-and-so, come and walk with me,
Come and sit with me,
Come and sleep with me, and share my pillow." [101]
It would probably be wrong to assume the foregoing expressions to have
always been merely figurative. Rather, perhaps, we should consider
them as part of a singularly complete and consistent animistic
system formerly invented and still held by the Malays. Again, from
the above ideas it follows that if you call a soul in the right way
it will hear and obey you, and you will thus be able either to recall
to its owner's body a soul which is escaping (riang semangat), or to
abduct the soul of a person whom you may wish to get into your power
(mengambil semangat orang), and induce it to take up its residence in
a specially prepared receptacle, such as (a) a lump of earth which has
been sympathetically connected by direct contact with the body of the
soul's owner, or (b) a wax mannikin so connected by indirect means,
or even (c) a cloth which has had no such connection whatever. And
when you have succeeded in getting it into your power the abducted
and now imprisoned soul will naturally enjoy any latitude allowed
to (and suffer from any mutilation of) its temporary domicile or
embodiment. [102]
Every man is supposed (it would appear from Malay charms) to possess
seven souls [103] in all, or, perhaps, I should more accurately say,
a sevenfold soul. [104] This "septenity in unity" may perhaps be held
to explain the remarkable importance and persistency of the number
seven in Malay magic, as for instance the seven twigs of the birch,
and the seven repetitions of the charm (in Soul-abduction [105]),
the seven betel leaves, the seven nights' duration of the ceremony,
the seven blows administered to the soul (in other magical and medical
ceremonies), and the seven ears cut for the Rice-soul in reaping. [106]
And, finally, it might explain why the lime-branch which is hung up
in the mosquito-curtain (in another form of soul-abduction [107])
is required to possess seven fruits on a single stalk, i.e. to ensure
there being a separate receptacle for each one of the seven souls.
At the present day the ordinary Malay talks usually of only a single
soul, although he still keeps up the old phraseology in his charms
and charm-books. For the rest, it would appear that there may be some
method in the selection and arrangement of colours.
The "lump of earth from the victim's footprint" used in one form of the
soul-abduction ceremony [108] is to be wrapped up in three thicknesses
of cloth, which must be red, black, and yellow respectively, the yellow
being outside. Again (in the ceremony of casting out "the mischief"
from a sick man), a white cosmetic is assigned for use in the morning,
a red cosmetic for mid-day, and black for sundown. [109]
Now in all, I believe, of what are now called the Federated Malay
States, and probably in all Malay States whatsoever, yellow is the
colour used by royalty, whereas the more exalted and sacred colour,
white (with occasional lapses into yellow), has been adopted by Malay
medicine-men as the colour most likely to conciliate the spirits and
demons with whom they have to deal. Thus the soul-cloth, which, by
the way, is always five cubits long (lima hasta), is sometimes white
and (much more rarely) yellow, and hence in the first instance just
quoted, the yellow cloth, being, next to white, of the colour which
is most complimentary to the demons, is the one which is put outside;
and in the second instance, for similar reasons, the white cosmetic
is to be used first.
The working out of this system, however, must await fresh evidence,
and all I would do now is to emphasise the importance of colour in such
investigations, and to urge the collection of fresh material. [110]
(d) Animal, Vegetable, and Mineral Souls
Hitherto I have treated of human souls only, but animal, mineral, and
vegetable souls will now be briefly discussed. Speaking generally,
I believe the soul to be, within certain limits, conceived as a
diminutive but exact counterpart of its own embodiment, so that
an Animal-soul would be like an animal, a Bird-soul like a bird;
however, lower in the scale of creation it would appear that the Tree-
or Ore-souls, for instance, are supposed, occasionally at least, to
assume the shape of some animal or bird. Thus the soul of Eagle-wood
is thought to take the shape of a bird, the soul of Tin-ore that of a
buffalo, the Gold-soul that of a deer. [111] It has, however, always
been recognised that the soul may enter other bodies besides its own,
or even bodies of a different kind to its own, and hence these may
be only apparent exceptions to the rule that the soul should be the
counterpart of its own embodiment. [112]
"Among races within the limits of savagery, the general doctrine of
souls is found worked out with remarkable breadth and consistency. The
souls of animals are recognised by a natural extension from the theory
of human souls; the souls of trees and plants follow in some vague,
partial way, and the souls of inanimate objects expand the general
category to its extremest boundary." [113]
To the Malay who has arrived at the idea of a generally animated
Nature, but has not yet learned to draw scientific distinctions,
there appears nothing remarkable or unnatural in the idea of
vegetation-souls, or even in that of mineral-souls--rather would he
consider us Europeans illogical and inconsistent were he told that
we allowed the possession of souls to one half of the creation and
denied it to the other.
Realising this, we are prepared to find that the Malay theory of
Animism embraces, at least partially, the human race, [114] animals
[115] and birds, [116] vegetation [117] (trees and plants), reptiles
and fishes, [118] until its extension to inert objects, such as
minerals, [119] and "stocks and stones, weapons, boats, food, clothes,
ornaments, and other objects, which to us are not merely soulless,
but lifeless," brings us face to face with a conception with which
"we are less likely to sympathise."
Side by side with this general conception of an universally animate
nature, we find abundant evidences of a special theory of Human Origin
which is held to account not only for the larger mammals, but also for
the existence of a large number of birds, and even for that of a few
reptiles, fishes, trees and plants, but seems to lose its operative
force in proportion to its descent in the scale of creation, until
in the lowest scale of all, the theory of Human Origin disappears
from sight, and nothing remains but the partial application of a
few vague anthropomorphic attributes. [120] It is, doubtless, to the
prevalence of this theory that we owe the extraordinary persistence
of anthropomorphic ideas about animals, birds, reptiles, trees,
if not of minerals, in Malay magical ceremonies; [121] and it is
hard to say which of these two notions--the theory of Human Origin,
or the other theory of Universal Animism--is to be considered the
original form of Malay belief.
The following tale, which is entitled Charitra Megat Sajobang, and
is told by Selangor Malays, will serve as an illustration of the idea
of Human Origin:--
"There was a married Sakai couple living at Ulu Klang, and they had
a son called Megat Sajobang. When he grew up he said to his mother,
'Mother, get me a passage, I want to go and see other countries.' She
did so, and he left Ulu Klang; and ten or twelve years later, when he
had grown rich enough to buy a splendid ship (p'rahu), he returned
with his wife, who was with child, and seven midwives, who were
watched over by one of his body-guard with a drawn sword. His mother
heard the news of his return, and she made ready, roasting a chika
(monkey) and lotong (monkey), and went with his father on board their
bark canoe to meet their son.
"As they approached they hailed him by his name; but he was ashamed
of their humble appearance, and forbade his men to let them on
board. Though his wife advised him to acknowledge them, 'even if
they were pigs or dogs,' the unfilial son persisted in turning them
away. So they went back to the shore and sat down and wept; and the
old mother, laying her hand upon her shrivelled breast, said, 'If thou
art really my son, reared at my breast, mayest thou be changed into
stone.' In response to her prayer, milk came forth from her breast,
and as she walked away, the ship and all on board were turned into
stone. The mother turned round once more to look at her son, but the
father did not, and by the power of God they were both turned into
trees of the species pauh (a kind of mango) one leaning seawards and
the other towards the land. The fruit of the seaward one is sweet,
but that of the landward one is bitter.
"The ship has now become a hill, and originally was complete with all
its furniture, but the Malays used to borrow the plates and cups,
etc., for feast days and did not return them, until at last there
were none left."