ARCHDEACON PETER HOWES

4. Trial by fire (Mrasang apui), and Burning (Nyauu).

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Why Some of the Best People aren't Christian
by
ARcTIDEAcoN Pnrnn Howns, o,n.n.
(Padawan Development Scheme, Upryr Sarawak)
The two of us sat down after dinner to talk about the Dayak
way of life (the adat). The man opposite was as gentle a heathen
as could be found in those parts. He had, indeed, become a
catechuman many years ago; and would, from time to time, come
to a service. But it had never gone further than that.
What was his adat? We began at the beginning of the Dayak
year.
1. Choosing the farmland (Ngqwah).
Early in May there is a Village Meeting at which
possible sites for a farm are discussed. Preference will be
expressed according to the leng,th of fallow, and several sites
will be suggested. Next day the village 'Priest' (tua gawai),
with an asslstant, goes off in one of the directions suggested.
As he goes, he listens for the call of two birds Kasc and Kriak.
He must first hear a Kusa: on his left, then a Kuss again on
his right, and finally a Kriak on his right. With these omens,
a good farm is assured. Variations mean trouble. If the
Kusa calls from behind there will be no padi for any-
one: if in front, then many will be ill. TIie 'Priest' will
return if the omens are wrong, and try elsewhere next day.
But if the omens are correct" then he will proceed. Havirig
reached the site he makes a small clearing, cuts four short
!ggs,
ard placeq them flat in the centre of the clearing.
Next day he adds another four, and another four on tlie
third day.
2. Clearing the undergrowth (Nauu).
The village cuts grass and small bushes in June,
3. Felling (Raba).
-
Larger
-trees ,are
felled in July. Branches are lopped,
and everything left to dry out.
489
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Some distance along the path which leads to the farm-
land,.the village has constructed a long attap-roofed shelter.
A raised bamboo sleeping platform runs th6 length of this.
The
-path
goes through the- shelter. This pidukin becomes,
for the year, the village 'Church', and the bentre for a seriei
of sacrifices.
About tle end of August, the
.priest'
with his assistant
set off for the pidukun__very early in the morning. On arrival
they construcl a sma]l bamboo tzble (sangar).
On top of
this they place-a sTall.quantity of rice cbotEO in leaf (*rii
some rice cooked in bamboo (pugand: bananas; uniooked
cassava; betel nut, sireh leaf anA-Umb; and somE tobacco,
A fowl is killed after it has been presented
as a
;
wavi_
offering". It is then cooked together'with rice, ana a imatt
pjece added to the things already on the sangar. ffren the
'Priest' takes a small qilnnlity from each iitde pite on tne
sangar,
Tixes
them together, with the heart of tn'e towt, anO
scatters the mixture as an offering to Spirits: an offerins
cllled pikua. A six-foot length oT bam6oo, freshlv cut l;
then thrust into the fire. As soon as one seciion exptoOii ii
is withdrawn and examined. IJ the burst is clean,''then ihe
farm will burn clean; if ragged, then the Uurn witt bii pooi
one-
The 'Priest' and his assistant return to the villase to
r,epo4, and in the early afternoon all set on anO il fi% i;
the cleared area. Following burning, there is i
"o*puiio.y rest of one day.
Final Clearing (Mambas).
Unburnt wood is piled together and fired. If the burn
has been a poor one
-this
wo-rk mav b.- n"rv he,avv. and
run ilto two weeks. A good burn ihould l"iv" noi'mo,r"
than two or three days' work to do. Hence the inierest-in
in the 'trial by fire' above.
Blessing the seed (Mideya
sawun).
The final clearin-g co,r,npleted, the
,priest'
appoints a
day and set_s out for the pidikun.
The villagers fofjSw, eacfr
with a small basket cont-aining seed. The 'Fti"si;
"onstr*--_t*
3
ngy sangar, and the baskets of seed are set in order beside
it. The usual ofterings are placed on the sangar. A fowils
agam ofirred as a "wave-offering". It is then killed. A nis
is also killed, and the btood sfrinkled on it
"-
s"",i.
^eti"?
cooking, the flesh of the fowl anit pig is mixed witt itre otnei
5.
490 sARAwAK MUsEUM JouRNAL
o-fferings_ gn qry sury1ar and scattered for the Spirits. Thus
the seed is 'blessed'. The sacrifice over" ail r6turn to the
villagg
-which
is "taboo" that night and the following day
and night.
7. Planting (Nuruk).
.
Planting
tarts
immediately on the ending of the
.,taboo"
(see above). Families group iogether for tEis, and anvone
w-ho helps. you you are in iluty aound to help in return, at
plantrng trme, or at weeding, or at harvest. This system
(kggwn gs pingiris) makes foi lighter work and consid6rabG
jollity.
But it can be abused.
-A
man with a large arei,
for instance, may offer his services to a man with
-a
smali
tarm, and so secure a bigger return than he gives. In the
main, however, the system works well. The 6wner of the
land must provide one meal for all whocome to heln him-
and there must be meat-either salted fish, or fowl.
'Th;G
helping
fed
at home,in the early morning, inen gatnir ai-it"
house of the man they will assist. AII netp ii,
"urrv
tni
seed out to the farm. Each man takes his own p^ran! und
dibble.
Work during planting, weeding and harvesting proceeds
according to the phases of the mobn.
pgginnine. with rhe new moon, people . . work for
11 day-s, then rest for 2, work for 2 aiys, tten,esiioi1,
work for 3 days, then rest for 2, wort ior + days, ihen
rest for 4, then work for 12 days, thus correciing tn;
cycle.
8. Blessing the young rice (prien).
Twelv-e- days after planting the owner of a farm must
cut a. small piece.
.of
bamboo, split the end and .tip i"t"
It certarn leaves (dawun
kqndqm bia). He waves this rod
over the young
padi near his hut, praying, in nis own woiJs,
ror.strong growth" t-o1 protection
against disease and attacki
or rnsects and anlmals.
Then he cuts a stouter length of bamboo, about
g
or 9
fee! l9ng. A series of cuts are- made at one ena, ana-ln"
end. then shaped and bound so that it forms- ai i"r;j;
hollow cone. The bamboo, now known as pite kandmg, is
stuck into- the ground
,y'
near the hut. Twb or thr;; 3;;;
pr9r gg etder, (not necessarily the
.priest'),
is invited to the
nur. tre maKes a sangar near the pite kandang, and places
on it the usual ofrerings, He sacrifites u pig oi'u-to*i;;;;
ARCHDEACON PETER HOWES 491
of which is added to the silngar- The pikua is given to the
Spirits, and the young padi is sprinkled with the blood. After
"utitrg,
all returir to
*tlie
villagi, and the hut is "tabo'o" fot
two iights. As he leaves the hut, the elder op-ens the cone
top of the pite kandang. This action frees the owner to
start weeding his farm.
9. lVeeding (Nyabu).
As with planting, so with weeding. Families-.help each
other (pingirii). There are normally three weedings:
.t!"
first, sdmJ two weeks after planting, is short. It is mainly
the cutting back of bamboo which is not killed b-y- burning,
and sprouts again very quickly' The second,
.(November,
December, and- into January), is the main weeding (nyabu).
Every inch is gone over with a short hand-hoe on hands
and knees. Tlie third, which follows immediately after the
second, is a quick slashing of thicker weed growth between
padi now knee-high. This last is known as kuas.
10. Asking a blessing on the re'building of verandahs (Iu'ran
tribed).
About a month before harvesting begins, the 'Priest',
with an assistant, goes to the pidukun There he makes
another sangar in line with those built earlier' He puts the
usual offerings on it: sacrifices a fowl: offers the pikua to
the Spirits, and prays in his own words. that men
_m?I-..be
protected from injury as they cut materials for re'building
the verandahs.
(The verandah of a longhouse sftetches the length of the
house, and is some 30 to 40 feet wide. It is constructed of
bamboo slats fastened to a more substantial frame resting
on hardwood and bamboo posts. By February each year,
most of the slats are rotten, and walking about on the
verandah is a precarious business. In eady March, bamboo
and softwood sections are renewed).
11. The Harvest Sacrifice (Bisadih ngatum).
When the padi is gold and ripe for harvesting the'Priest'
gives no,tice that he will shortly offer the Harvest Sacriflce.
This is a warning to men who have not finished re-buildilg
house verandahs; for once the Harvest Sacrifice has been
offered it is "taboo" to cut more wood.
On the appointed day the 'Priesto goes to the pidukun.
He adds another sangar: sacrifices a fowl; offers the pilcua
to the Spirits, and, in his own words, asks for good harvest-
ing. The Sacrifice made, people are free to begin harvesting.
Again" families help each other.
492
SARAWAK MUSEUM JOURNAL
ARCHDEACON PETER HO'WES
493
l\lTu:,rring.
the grain only is plucked and pur into, a
smau basket srung a[ the man's side. when fulr
^this
basket
is emptied ilto a-larger basket unlii aboui-go ru*. Tu*"l.rn
gathered.
The harvester then carries this to- the-;;;;*
hut or house, if the farm is near the village. r-n"r"-trr-"'i*in
is trodden our, winnowed, and it"" pu1-i"i";'i;;c;';"ffi;-
gular bin- (ttarung)
on rhe verandah.' rrrii uin nis ;l;;i-
atlap roof in two sections so that the top can be op"""O to
allow the sun to d1y the gram. rn"
-rrruf
il-"ri-""r* U"
thrown down through the vJranOah. tt is burnt on a mat,
qn$
.any
roasred giains collected ana
"ooted:..-Tl;u-#[" delicious earing. As
-the
bir fiils, ro*i g*io-i, ,"#i.a-uio
srorecl rn a second Iarger bin just
outside the door of tn"
the house. This bin is bound io"oa *ii[-u- i;rg" ;";;
"rd
is,known gg
niruarc. No-griin;;t
b, tat.nlro"m irri*',riT'
after the Harvest Festival)
12. The Harvest Festival (.Man
smua)
On the chosen. day rice is collected from every house in
the village; cooked,. and set out, wiippe;;l&;;;;
';
mat at the end of_the verandah.'The-ierandah
itself tras a
series of s-angqr. along its rvhole length. Th;;;
'"r"r"si;'^i,
made bv the elders, of ttrq village, ont to every six or seven
houses,'and
are placed just
n?ar-ril;#'if"'lh;'h:t:J.
All other families-to teft ind iichi prr
or"riogr-oilir.
il;;
bamboos, trimmsd. of branchii,--tfirort
into the ,tv. unf
le^ngths
-of
whire clorh are n*"a'to--inrr*.
":Strii
,ilt,#til
of the Pleiades who gave nayats-theirl;*,';;;;il
H;;
and comes down ro p*artake
dr tttr--ori"rirn',
J"-inl,'li-il?^11'
The.village-,
almost rb a man, ,"tr;;l;o";u""H;ii"fli{J;
9n
t-he bank of the river, l0 min;ies ;;;;'ftu# ir#'H*
longhouse.
Each person j, gi"* ,irJ as he
G;r-ih;;;i
at the end of rhe rlerandah.
"Arrived-ut
tU" oJ**;f ;;ffi,
the 'priest'
construcrs a sansqr. T*; pi!;';;;ff#;iiffi
70 lbs. each are rhen sacrificed.-
fn"rj pigr"ilA;;;
selected at a Meeting preceding
itre f,east, ;ft th; ;*;r*
are compensated by.receiving
one day,s i'il lt;u;'lffi
every man in t'e village. AJter ki'ing, trr" i,"aos ai, r'i"T
ot the..songar. The pigi are then g;tt;;;'uoJ
tr," il"u;^;JiHE
according
to the number of taditiei-present.
Each famiiv
then takes a share, ana coots rt-oo irr" rp"t,
"Joil--il.i- _,'
:t i5_glr"=iney
may trave uioug-trt.-'
wt,"o
-ilr"'n""Jt?rJi'JJ
"tra,.Utbu,g.
Legend has it_that a woman once found two verv laree srakc's eggs in the iungle. sne cookiJ-'a-no
"aie
tnem, and turnad inio a snake. she was foun<i".by ;iti";J;;lth'it"'toay
of a snake, but the head human. she tord ttd. p".pi" L'ffio.# Ler necklace so that she could complere her
.chang"','^"d-irrui
#ilil is the viltage worshipped
on that site she wouta pioiect
itr."r'. Trr""',iE.f,^"" *", removed. The lady became a snake tr<im treao--io'i^;r,'"iti'ti*
vitage has worshipped
ever since at Gar Dibung *r,.i.-"uri-tiiJ't"pi!".0.
cooking, tp
fikua
is oflered to the Spirits. Then all feast,*
usualJy about 2 p.m. The Village'is
.,taboo;;
in-ut- oinfrt
and the next, and throughout that
feriod ,o-"
-g
t" fO
"fO?r,
live in a,pidukun whiih stands it this ,pot-uif ;h"-;;;
round. Those wrro go home sleep oo ot utduod tir-iiriiii.
Throughout the Harvest Festivai and
..taboo;;
*nT"i,'i"iii#,
it people are not allowed to wash in the ,i";i-W;i;;'i;
carried up- to the verandah.prior
to tne Feast,-ail'il;pl"
may use this only for washing.
13. Storing the Padi (Bipusun).
The Harvest Festivar over, it remains but to move the nadi
from the piruang to rbe storage bins in ir" f"i ;; ;;;;
house.
***
Having completed the writing of his
.Law',
I asked the man
in front of me why he, and others like hirn, fought shy of
accepting the christian 'Law'. "'we ar alone here.
poni
be
polite. I'm not trying to catch you. I just
want to know.,l-
" --
What follows is the point of his reply. He said:
"f have not become a Christian because I can,t.
you
see for yourself that our adat is bound up with ou, *oif.
Our worship goes with our work. We dori't *oi*nio uoi"r,
It .bas something to do with our work. We don't woik unless
rt has,_something to do with our worship.
you
Christians
are different.
your
worship has to oo riittr it. t""iil-""J
it
{ges
not touch your work'as our's does. I have
";i
bil;;
a uhnstran because I cannot. I need help on my farm, for
pla.nting, weeding, harvesting, and to eef help f' m,rrt'ni*r"
rt rn return. I can only get it and gfue it ii t farm ,iitn
others, and observe the- sime periods" of work HA;*l-;;
lF"V 9o. ,It
is not what I believe, but the *"V ifrl-".i i,J
live.that keeps me from becoming Cnristiao. F.rh;;;;;
tnlnk I ought to move out of the village and set up hous"
9n .my
own like So-and-So. But he ha*d land n.*i h*i-to
Padawan. I haven,t any land there, and t .uo;i-eo ;ii;;
spt
]p
house in the middle of nowhere. Added-to rh";:'i
don't want other people to hate me. If seems to us that the
man
.who
separate$ himself leaves all his debis b;ti*i
and lives as he plea_ses
without uny oUIiguii";;-;; ;;;;;;
91s".
When he tiveo in tnJ
"iir"eI
;;;"y
"i;;ild
rilil;;t
him to build his house, Now he"
.ioiff
-o6t
n"ip'"ifrir_'i"
build^ in rhe village. He no longer f,ui t" sive his ;i;; f;
sac.hce, whether he wants to or not. He n-o tongeritenas-a
494 sARAwAK MUsEUM JouRNAL
hand with thc ropair of the Guest House, or
joins
with th
rest of us in nrrrking the verandah. It is true that he gets
no help
-from.
us, but we get none from him. W" ianioi,
because he will not associa-ie with us. He won't ur".pi"ri
lvay
of fincling a farm; he won,t observe our tirdes oi
"taboo",
So, hr: cannot tive with us. And yet the older men
do not like to, see him go,because his g6ing *.atrorlfri
only-way we know of orEering our lives.* In-the villaee. is
you know,.pcrple can be difficult enough and want tti"ii om
way. But in tlre end the old adat imp;ses the same OisciJine
upon us all. In the end we all have to form into srbuos
for
.farming,
We ail have to help. We are ili-.lrfii"-io
receive trelp, and if we lost thi adat we are afraid we
sbould lose the discipline that goas with it. That is whv
rve,.all say that our ihildren ma=y b."o-" Chririiun.--Th;i,
wlu grow up as a new generation, and together will be abli
to make a new way of living, but as far Is we ola"r oolli"
al concerned we are tied to that old adat.,'
One could not but feel sympathy; for most of what the man
said was genuine enough. rn a few praces, where several families
have moved far away fom the oid pagan village and made a
fresh start they have succeeded, to, some extent, in adapting the
discipline to the new religion. But only to some extent. Farming
starts with the call of the Kttsa and. Kriak in u pugun
"orri munity. They are calls which can be heard, and none disputes
them. Unfortunately, God's 'call' is a lot less distinct. In the
christian community, every man tends to become his own'priest'.
He farms where he likes, and when he likes; and the Christian
Faith which ought in theory to bind him in love for his neighbour,
tends in practice ta' cut lzim o,fi
from nmny of his neighbours,
even his brethren in Christ.
,oConverted"
men and womeq may
do wonders for each other. But hnw many Christians are
"converted" in the true sense of the word? Their motives are
mixed, and in such people the heart speaks less distinctly than
the tua gawai, the village 'priest'.
No one familiar with Dayak life seriously believes that all
pagan Dayaks are noble, and all Christian Dayaks selfish indi-
vidualists. The gentle heathen of this article certainly did not.
He valued the old adat laryely because it could discipline difficult
people who wanted their own way"-the ignoble pagans in his
own community. But why should the old aclat have that power
to a greater degree than the Christian ad.qt? The gentle heathen
ARcTTDEACoN pETER
HowES 495
again supplies thc answer. "'We don't worship unless it has some-
thing to do with our work: w,e don'l wo,rk u:n:less tl has
something to do with our worship."
In late November, 1959, the writer was invited to witness
the blessing of the young rice
Qrien).
The elder, as he smeared
the sprouting padi with the blood of a fowl, prayed for every
member of the farmer's family by name, beginning with men
and women some five generations back, through to the youngest
child, and on to those yet unborn. He prayed for them in their
work and in their rest, in their eating and in their drinking, in
their farming and in their hunting, in their begetting of children
and in their rearing of them, in their fevers and in their falls,
in their living and in their dying. There was scarcely an activity,
scrrcely a function, scarcely a dtate that escaped mention. The
prayer touched life, the life of :a family, in all its aspects. It
was earthy; but so are men. It was more; for it reached back
'into
generations long past, and forward into generations to come.
To the European onlooker it was deeply moving. To the Dayak
farmer it was so normal that he hardly bothered to listen. It was
what he expected. Why should the Church not give, just
as
satisfactorily, substifuting Her own Sacriflce, what was expected?
Ask a Christian Dayak when he will next go to Church?
He will answer: on Sunday, il he doesn't have to work. And
where will he go to? To St. Thomas's, in all its acres of concrete
glory; or to St. Joseph's, in all its continental picturesquesness.
Ask the pagan Dayak when he will next go to the pidukun, and
he wili tell you that he will be through it on his way to work,
almost every day for the next six months. The pidukun may be
bamboo" not concrete; but everyone sweated in the building of
it. It needs but little insight to see why the one bites deeper
than the other. In the one I have to work to pray, and I have
to work. In the other I am told I must stop work to pray,-an
exhortation which experience and Government practice lead me
to ignore.
Just how the Church could, or should, adapt Her approach
in order to bring Her worship into their work is beyond the
scope of this lournal But the eftort should be made. For the
plain fact of the matter is: that some of the best people aren't
Christian.