Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Accompanied by the bamboo
gamelan angklung
, the sarcophagus and cremation tower are
carried to the cemetery and twirled around many times en route to ensure that the soul is con-
fused and cannot return home to cause mischief for the family. At the cremation ground the
sarcophagus and tower are burned and the ashes carried to the sea or to a stream that will
carry them to the ocean. Further ceremonies are needed after three days and twelve days, fin-
ishing with the ritual of
nyagara-gunung
when the family take offerings to important sea and
mountain temples.
TRADITIONAL HEALERS
Known as
balian
in Bali and
dukun
in Lombok,
traditional healers
are a vital adjunct to
Western medicine on the islands. Illness is believed to stem from a lack of balance between
the patient and the spirit world; for example, a patient may have paid insufficient respect
to a god. There are many different kinds of
balian
, ranging from the most practical
bali-
an tulang
(bonesetters),
balian manak
(midwives) and
balian apun
(masseurs), to the more
spiritual, including
balian taksu
, mediums who enter a trance to communicate with the
spirit world and
balian kebal
, who work with charms and spells, making love potions and
magical amulets to protect the wearer against spiritual attack.
Balian
are also consulted to
find out which ancestral souls have been reincarnated in the bodies of newborn babies, and
which days are auspicious for certain events.
Sasak life-cycle ceremonies
Some of the ceremonies performed in Sasak communities on
Lombok
are associated with the
more orthodox adherents to Islam, while others are associated only with
Wetu Telu
followers.
The Wetu Telu
birth ceremony
of
adi kaka
is similar to the Balinese one involving the pla-
centa. A few days after birth, the
naming ceremony
of
buang au
or
malang mali
takes place.
A ritual
hair-cutting ceremony
,
ngurisang
, is also obligatory for a young child, although the
age it takes place is variable.
The most important ceremony for a Muslim boy is his
circumcision
(
nyunatang
), which of-
ten takes place in the Muslim month of the Prophet Muhammad's birthday, accompanied by
much ceremony and feasting.
There are three
marriage
options in Sasak culture: a marriage arranged by the families, one
between cousins, or an elopement. Whichever occurs, the man's family pays a price for the
bride, who moves to their house. During the wedding ceremony, the couple are often carried
on a sedan chair and accompanied by a gamelan orchestra.
Under the laws of Islam, the dead are
buried
, rather than cremated. According to Wetu Telu
custom, the dead are ritually washed and wrapped in a white sarong, carried to the cemetery
and buried with the head towards Mecca. A death in the family sets in motion a whole cycle
