Orang rimba
1. Origin
Besale is the term used by Orang Rimba which in general means arousing human spirit or soul to be delivered from evil spirit. There has been no specific literature studying this traditional ritual of Orang Rimba. Yet, there are some books discussing about Orang Rimba and talk a bit about this theme. Thus, they will become the reference for this article.
The origin of Besale ritual is based on Orang Rimba’s belief to the god who rules the forest. According to the research result of Pusat Penelitian Sejarah dan Budaya, Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Indonesia (Center for Historical and Cultural Studies of Department of Education and Culture of Indonesia) (1977: 127), Orang Rimba believe that if a family member or a relative get sick, this means that god has sent calamities. Therefore, to ask god to cure the illness, they hold Besale ritual.
Specifically, the ritual is performed to deliver the sick from evil spirit which is believed to be the cause of the illness and to purify the soul of the sick. In general, Besale aims to maintain the balance between human life and supernatural world, which, according to Orang Rimba, must be well kept. Otherwise, the imbalance will then give bad influence to their life in broad sense, such as the spread of incureable diseases (Eddy Ramlan, 1997).
When the ritual takes place, a cast of spell wil be read for the sick. The spell is sung and accompanied by dancing. In addition, there will be offerings of fruits and food as a gift to gods so that they will give their mercy and protect them from evil spirit (Ramlan, 1997).
Similar to other traditional rites of Orang Rimba, Besale also sets some restrictions and prohibitions for those being cured. They must obey the prohibitions, otherwise, the rite is considered failed and must be repeated all over. Besale can be performed individually or collectively.
In the ritual performance, the requirements and prohibitions set are the same. The only one that different is the execution time. Individual Besale takes a relatively shorter time than the collective one.
2. Equipment and Execution Time
Besale is led by a Besale shaman. In other traditional rituals, a Besale shaman also acts as a religious leader and a mediator between human and the supernatural world. In the ritual performance, a Besale shaman is assisted by several people, namely Inang (a female shaman who acts as the director and assistant of Besale shaman), Pembayu (as the overseer of Besale shaman and Inang), Biduan (redab player), and Pembina (the protector of Besale performance).
The time and location of Besale depend on the kind and place of the to-be-performed Besale. The types and locations of the ritual are:
| Kinds | Locations |
| Besale biasa (regular) | In the wood; a nipa palm-roofed shed (house) is built and then burnt |
| Besale bejanan | On the ground which is usually used to burry shaman or Sidi |
| Besale berumah putih | On the river bank or semilu aik |
| Besale berungguk ungguk | In the house of the sick; if the shaman receives a new divine inspiration, the ritual can be moved to another place |
Equipment for Besale:
- Berte flower (as a means of repulsion or fence)
- Hair oil (to cleanse)
- Comb
- Sampang (head covering)
Supporting equipment for the ritual:
- Incense
- Honey candle
- Betel vine
- Palm-blossom
- Chime
- Rice powder
- Egg
- Offerings
- Aro wood (symbol of prosperity)
- Berentak (musical instrument)
- Redap (musical instrument)
3. Procession
The procession of Besale is divided in two major parts, the preparation and the execution.
a. Preparation
The preparation begins with a discussion between the family of the sick and Besale shaman, to determine the equipment, the day and the location of execution. After the location is decided, the next step is building a nipa palm-roofed shed (a small house) communally by Orang Rimba. Four balai (offerings receptacle) are put in the shed. They have particular symbols:
- Balai Pengasuh symbolizes the offerings to the spirit who posseses Besale shaman.
- Balai Kurung Resio symbolizes the innermost of human soul.
- Balai Bertajuk Kembang symbolizes the gathering of the ancestors spirit.
- Balai Gelanggang Kuning symbolizes tutelary spirits of the village namely the genie, the devil and the satan haunting in the sea and the air.
b. Execution
After everything is set, the curing process begins. To begin with, Besale shaman eats the betel vine, arranges his hair by applying hair oil and combing them orderly, in order to cleanse himself. Later, Besale shaman takes a seat with his legs crossed to meditate and concentrate. In his meditation (assisted by the Inang), Sidi spirit will possess him. When it happens, the shaman transforms into Sidi.
The Inang then spreads berte flower around Sidi’s foot in order to protect his every step from evil spirit. A moment later, Sidi and the person to-be-cured perform berentak or dancing around.
The next process is lowering Balai Pengasuh to approximately one meter under the roof and the sick is seated under it. While performing berentak (dancing), Sidi cures the sick by swaying a shawl that has been smeared with oil to and fro the sick. This is followed by Pembayung and Inang.
After finished, Balai Kurung Resio is lowered and all ritual participants are asked to sit under it and to cover their heads with white cloth. Next, Sidi and all participants perform berentak while Inang and Pembantu Inang give treatment. Following this action is lowering Balai Betajuk Kembang, accompanied by berentak led by Sidi. After berentak finished, Sidi resides for a moment to rest (Sanglo).
The next step is marching Balai Gelanggang Kuning. This Balai is held by four participants. The other participants sit under Balai Gelanggang Kuning and are treated by the Sidi. The ritual is then proceeded by “Naik Kayu Aro” (climb up a quadrilateral Aro wood). The tree is deliberately planted outside the shed so that all ritual participants can climb on it in order to prevent the disruption of evil spirits.
The last part of the ritual is delivering the siprit out of Besale shaman’s body with the assistance of Inang and Sidi.
4. Prayer
During the curing process, Sidi, Inang, and Pembayu all together or in turn say a prayer for safety and recovery. The prayer is offered in a way of saying spell and singing, accompanied by berentak (dancing). The prayer is offered so that the sick recovers soon and be purified and protected from evil spirit.
5. Restrictions and Prohibitions
The restrictions are subjected to everyone who wants to take part in the rite. The restrictions last during and after the rite. If anyone breaks the restrictions then the rite is considered failed and must be repeated all over. The restrictions include:
- Speaking in a loud voice, choltring and the like, in the ritual location
- Filthy deeds such as crimes (stealing, robbering, picking pocket) and actions which are against the moral norm, in the ritual location
- Helping the ritual preparation, unless being asked by Besale shaman.
6. Values
Besale curing ritual holds particular values in the life of Orang Rimba. Some of them are:
- The value of togetherness. This value is reflected in the gotong-royong (mutual assistance activity) performed by Orang Rimba when preparing Besale ritual. This value appears more obviously when they have to endure the consequence of breaking the restrictions together so that the ritual must be repeated all over. The atmosphere of togetherness is deeply felt either the Besale is performed collectively or individually.
- The value of maintaining a balanced relationship between human and the supernatural realm. This value is reflected from the reason or purpose of performing Besale ritual itself, which is the way it is. Orang Rimba believe that the sick is experiencing a problem in getting in contact with the supernatural spirit. Both world are considered imbalance, thus need to be recovered by means of a traditional ritual namely Besale.
- The value of art. This value is reflected on the gracefully-made balai complexities (offering receptacle). This value is also obvious from the singing and dancing which accompany the spell during the curing process. It seems that the ancestors of Orang Rimba deliberately combined both elements of traditional ritual and art, in order to make the rite more interesting and exciting.
7. Epilogue
Besale ritual may slightly look like a mere curing ritual, however, there is one important thing to note: the value of togetherness in form of mutual assistance in preparing the ritual. In the context of current modern life where mutual assistance (collectivism) is fading away and replaced by individualism, it is important to appreciate this value, so that the fading spirit of togetherness will revive, because through that spirit do Orang Rimba preserve their existence.
Yusuf Efendi (bdy/10/01-10).
Translation by Apri Widiastuti (trns/06/02-10)
Reference:
- Ramlan, Eddy, et.al. Pengkajian nilai-nilai luhur budaya spiritual masyarakat Kubu di Propinsi Sumatera Selatan : studi budaya spiritual masyarakat Kubu di Desa Bukit Lintang, Kecamatan Buyung Lencir, Kabupaten Musi Banyuasin, Propinsi Sumatera Selatan. Jakarta: Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan, 1996-1997.
- Tim Penelitian Departemen Pendidikan Nasional. eds. Upacara Besale pada Masyarakat Suku Anak Dalam di Sumatera Selatan. Palembang: Kantor Wilayah Propinsi Sumatera Selatan, 2000.
- Tim Penelitian Departemen Pendidikan Nasional. eds. Adat istiadat daerah Jambi. Proyek Penelitian dan Pencatatan Kebudayaan Daerah. Proyek Penelitian dan Pencatatan Kebudayaan Daerah, Pusat Penelitian Sejarah dan Budaya. Jakarta: Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan, 1977.
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