Wednesday –
July 23
It is in this afternoon that I
am sitting outside my room in the convent of the parish of Santo Klemens –
Katiku Loku, Central Sumba. The wind teases the leaves of the trees while the
sun gives warmth to the cold breeze. The chirping birds can be heard at the
distance while I got some visits from the common birds in the church, the
sparrows. The other animals such as the chickens, pigs and a couple of goats can
be heard as well. And the two boys staying in the convent would sometimes
bother me for they are curious what I am working with my computer.
The place indeed is quiet except
for those beings that make noises. And here I am again feeling bored for I have
nothing to do at this hour of the day but only to write whatever would come
into my mind. Hoping that there would be something that would come and so I
would be able to write.
Anyway, I will be staying in
this parish until the end of August. I wished that I would be more immersed with
the people in this part of Sumba, the Sumba Tengah. And for the past days that
I have been staying in the parish I discovered that this part of Sumba, the people
have their own dialect – the Bahasa Anakalang.
However, the culture in general is common in all parts of Sumba.
In terms of religious belief,
this part of Sumba, Catholics are also minority and there are more members of
Protestants churches. Indeed, there are a number of denominations of Protestant
Churches in Sumba. Certainly, it holds true as well that the Protestants are
bigger in number in the whole island of Sumba. Muslims are minority in this
part of Indonesia as well as in Bali in which Hindus are majority and in Flores,
the catholic group of islands in the country. Aside from this, the indigenous
belief system still exists until today, the indigenous Marapu belief. And the
entire culture of the Sumbanese people is wonderfully colored by this
indigenous belief. The practices of the indigenous belief have continued to
influence the people even though they have been converted into Christianity
whether to the Catholic or Protestant Churches. This is very much evident as
the people carried out until today the two important practices the Pernikahan (marriage) and Kematian
(death) and the burial rite. Even in the clothing of the people, the indigenous
belief can be seen as it reflected in the colors of the garments and the decorative
designs that they contain. Figures that regularly appear in the clothing are
the images of humans, horses, chickens, birds, snakes and dragons as well as
flowers, hills and stars.
In addition, there are other
cultural practices also in Sumba that tell wonderful meanings. The kuburan or
the sepulchers are always visible, as one would travel along the highway. These
kuburan are always situated in front or at the side of the houses of the
Sumbanese people. It is very peculiar that the kuburan should be in front or at
the side as a way of showing respect and reverence to the dead. The traditional
houses are also expressive of the Marapu belief. The traditional houses are
always elevated, as it is usually located on top of the hill. These are called Rumah Menara which literally means a
“tower house” for its characteristic of having a high roof. These houses use limestone
at the bottom to serve as an elevation of the house and where the posts of the
house are placed. These posts support the house and serve as the skeletal
structure of the house. Moreover, the floor and sometimes the walls are from
bamboo strips. The roof is amazingly high that it would look like a big hat
when seen at the distance. The roof is usually from a kind of grass locally
called alang-alang or coarse grass.
On top of the roof are two decorative-carved wood called tanduk, which means (animal) horns.
The
houses are also divided into 4 layers. The first layer of the house is called
the tempat hewan or the place for the
animals. The second is the tempat manusia
or the place for humans and the third is the tempat makanan or the place for the food (food storage) and lastly,
the tempat jiwa or the place of the
spirits. Nevertheless, the fourth layer is gradually forgotten by the younger
generation especially for those who grew up in the Christian faith. Yet, the older
ones could still attest that there is the fourth layer of the house and that is
the tempat jiwa, which is reserved for the spirits especially to the ancestors.
And it is important to note that the food is between the place of the humans
and the place of the spirits since the food serves also as an offering to the
spirits, a means of communicating with the spirit world.
Customarily and particularly for those rich families one would easily
notice the skulls and horns of the buffaloes and jaws of the pigs in Sumbanese
houses. These bones would serve as decorations of the house and a reminder of
the status of the family that they belong to the rich families of the society.
Talking about food also, the
Sumbanese’s staple food is rice, which is shared by all Southeast Asian people.
Hence, the Sumbanese people are rice planters and at the same time, they
domesticate different kinds of animals such as chickens, dogs, pigs, carabaos
or buffalos, cows and horses. Even before and until now the wealth of the family
is measured of how many tails (ekor
in Bahasa) of pigs, buffalos, cows and horses the family has.
The men especially the older ones would always wear their traditional
dress with a colorful headband called kapauta,
a cloth around their waist called kain (or
regi in Bahasa Anakalang) and the
weapon on their side called parang. By
this gesture of having a weapon on their side, it is understood that these
people are a warring tribe. Usually,
men ride the horses even though motorcycles have already reached even the
farthest hill of the island. Commonly, the older ones are called Bapak (translated as Father or Mister)
and those who have high status in the society and because of wealth are
traditionally called Umbu. Umbu is a
title actually given to royal people hence; the people of Sumba have also
tribal kingdoms. Indeed, Umbu can also be translated as king.
On the other hand, the women especially on special occasions wear an
embroidered dress stretching down to their waist. And for their lower garments
they always have the sarong, a
traditionally hand-woven cloth. The women like in many cultures of the world
take care of the children, the small animals and the dapur, the dirty kitchen for preparing the food for the whole
family. The women are the ones also who make the traditional cloth. The older
women and especially those who are already married are called Mama followed by
the name of her eldest child regardless of the gender. Hence, if a mother has a
daughter as an eldest child and for instance, her name is Elisabeth then the
mother is called Mama Elisabeth. The same address is also applied to the father;
hence, he is also called Bapak Elisabet. For those women who are in high
status, they are customarily addressed as Rambu
which is translated as queen.
Certainly, I am slowly entering into this beautiful culture of the
Sumbanese people by observing and enquiring about their practices and their
meaning at least in this initial encounter with the people. And as I had
conversations with them, it was easy to approach the people since they are very
welcoming and hospitable. Indeed, I now appreciate my one month course in
Bahasa Indonesia for I am able now to communicate with the people using the
language they know. I am aware also that I would receive some kind of special treatment from the people since I am a foreign visitor and as well as a frater
(brother), some who is studying for priesthood. Yet, I am also hopeful that in
due time people will be more acquainted to me and I will be more comfortable
with the people so that there will be a deeper experience of the culture. Then,
I won’t be any more a mere outsider but someone who is among and one with the
people. Yet, I am also mindful that one year of mission immersion in Sumba
would be not enough as well. However, I pray and wish.
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