GENERAL IMAGE
Kodi is a district in West Sumba, and the Kodinese are an ethnic group which hail from that region.kodi’s topography is distinct from most other districts in Sumba, which comprise scattered hills, and narrow or wide valleys.
The district of Kodi consists almost entirely of low grassy plains. Its coast has clean white sandy beaches, which are usually adjacent to green fertile bushes and forests.Indeed these features make the coastline a wonderful panorama.
Kodi is a district in West Sumba, and the Kodinese are an ethnic group which hail from that region.kodi’s topography is distinct from most other districts in Sumba, which comprise scattered hills, and narrow or wide valleys.
The district of Kodi consists almost entirely of low grassy plains. Its coast has clean white sandy beaches, which are usually adjacent to green fertile bushes and forests.Indeed these features make the coastline a wonderful panorama.
Although the majority of the coast is not rocky, there are some high, steep, rocky parts along the coastline. From the Indian Ocean in the west, and the Sumba Straits in the North-West, the view is quite attractive.
The weather is moderate, with rainfall from October to April, making for fertile soil, which is soft, loose and dusty in the dry season, but not too muddy in the rainy season. Intheir fields the farmers grow rice, maize, many sorts of pea, cassava, along with coconut, mangoes, jack-fruit, bananas and papaya. Kodinese rice is considered a delicacy in Sumba and neigh boring islands because of its aroma and delicate flavor.
The present population of 89,616 is increasing steadily, and many open plains and fields which were formerly used for grazing cattle, are now occupied by houses.
The main problem faced by the kodinese is the lack of clean drinking water.Water sources emergealong the coastline and alongside the mountains which stretch along the Kodi-Waijewa border.The drinking water problem has been tackled for more than aquarter of a century by the catholic Missionaries.but as yet remains unsolved Everyday,and all day long,people crowd around water sources or public water taps,bailing water one by one and accrosionally all together. This water problem directly chause such serious things as cholera, from which hunderds of people die each year.
Only about 40 percent of Kodi’s inhabitants attend junior and senior High school, and a minute percentage go on to study at university or Teacher- Training College. The other 60 percent consist of primary school graduates, drop-outs or illiterates.Teachers, civil servants and rich farmers can sometimes send their children to school and on to University. But other parents can’t attord the school rees,or else they think that it’s no use sending their children to school.
CULTURE
Kodinese culture is unique and attractive. All the ‘parona’ are situated along the coast(parona are large clan dwellings where the ancestors used to live) and act as the centres of local ritual life. Houses in the parona are distinguishable by their unusual tall peaked roofs.
hand-wuven Kodinese cloth dominates the market in West-Sumba, and has
considerable inroads into the East Sumbanese market. There are many different types of
cloth, including ikat,which is similar to batik, gundu cloth which is given its distinctive colour by the liquid from the indigo plant.As well as these,there are embroidered cloths and shawls. The ‘kaleku’ is like a hand bag, and is made of plaited grass and tree bark, and usually engraved with indigo thread.Acarved piece of bamboo is used to keep the fine chalk powder which is chewed along with the betel nut,which is kept in the “kaleku”. Other such rituals include tatooing the feet and hands of old women, andengraving the poles/columns of the traditional houses.
The original Kodinese dances are extremely old, and have changed very little over the years, as people have wanted to remain true to the pureness of the ancient/customs. The dancing is accompanied by gongs, drums and other traditional instruments. Traditional Kodinese music is still being written, and new composers are popping up every year. People like the music so much that they carry tape recorders around with them, on which can be heard the unique sound off the banjo-type instrument.
The sumbanese people are fond of pulling or drawing large megalithic stones to use on graves and tombs. The feast held to celebrate this event is memorable indeed. All the members of on kampung join together to hold provide plenty of rice, chewing tobacco and betel nut for their guests. The rice is cooked in a huge pot, and guests. The rice is cooked in a huge pot, and guests are served a large portion of pork fat as well as some uncooked meat which is taken home and shared out among the familly. The stone-dragging ceremony and the huge party that accompanies it are both symbols of prestige for they are very expensive to put on.
HOW TO INHERIT THE VALUES ?
Kodinese literarytradition is completely oral, each generation learning from the previous oneby listening to recitations. Among the many different literary forms are the ‘Kawoking’, ‘taliyo’, or’kaokong’, the ‘yaigho’, and the ‘lawiti’. ‘kawoking’ is a poem of four lines, whereas ‘taliyo’ is six to eight lines long. The ‘yaigho’ is a very long prayer which can last for two or three nights. The ‘lawiti’ is also a kind of poem, which is different in rhyme and rhythm to the ‘kawoking’ but has the same aims, such as advice and education in the form of satire. Others include the ‘teda’ or ‘pagecango’ which is a type of rhythmical prose. Both the ‘teda’ and the ‘kaokong’ are in the form of a dialogue.
The pasola is another Kodinese tribal custom, which has been performed for centuries. The Kodi pasola takes place in February as does the pasola in Lamboya. The other pasola takes place in Wanokaka in March. Pasola comes from the word “Paholong” which means running after each other to and fro. The pasola is like a ritual tribal battle fought with blunted spears on horse back. The combatants must be brave, agile and respectful of their opponents. It represents the main celebration of the year in the Marapu faith.
Paddu marks the beginning of the celebration. The word means ‘bitter’, ‘taboo’ or ‘forbidden’,and paddu also marks the beginning of a period of fasting. During the fasting months, certain things are taboo such as holding partiesand making alot of noise. Other things which are forbidden are entertaining guests, building house, plaiting kalekus, mats or hats. Weaving cloth and picking green fruit are also forbidden. During this fasting period, people must reflect and meditate on their sins and faults. They must atone for their sins by working hard and tending to their crops.
The paddu opening ceremony begins in October every year and is marked by the staking of young coconut leaves on top of a sharp pole. This is called ‘Weri’,and it is a sign that the fasting period has come.
In parona Bukubani there are two old capok trees which are centuries old. They represent natural signs from which to gauge the date of the pasola. If the capok tree in the Eastern Parona begins to bloom, the time for paddu in Lamboya has come. This almost always happens in September, where as in October the tree in western parona will also bloom, signaling the start of the paddu in Kodi.
The fasting period begins in October, and ends in Desember. Injanuary, people are once againfree to carry out any of the aforementionedtaboo activities. There are three nyale months, which come in succession. Small nyale (january), Great Nyale (February),and the Last Nyale (March).
In the Small Nyalemonth,Lamboyaand Kodi there is no any celebration. In the great one there are some specialceremonies
AFTER PADDU PERIOD
From january to february people may again be cheerful and free from the restraints of taboos.This is also the time when the nyale (a kind of see worm) comes up on the shores of Kodi.
People may again be lively and cheerful, for the fasting time is over and they are free again and clean from their faults and sins.Now is the time to wait nyale(which also means’’thanksgiving day celebrations’’), ”the beautiful princess’’ is called using ’kawoking’, ‘lawiti’, and games. Women and girls recite ’kawoking’ and ‘lawiti’ while young men play wrestling games.
These activities take place every nigth at a sacredplace on the sea-shore from the nyale the beginning of january to the end of february,a few nights before ‘ picking’ the nyale, a caremony which takes place seven nigths after the full moon, and about twenty-two days after the first rising moon, in February.
The nyale can be picked only if the nyale priest is able to count and observe the moon Precisely.The nyale are usually picked three times, every February and March;the three coinciding with the picking of its head, its body, and its tail. The first pasola is enacted at Bondo kawango , and coincides with the picking of the heads of the nyale. This is a sort of warming-up or training exercise for the horses, acting as a prelude to the main pasola, which takes place the following morning at Rarawinyeand ends at Ghindo Kaba near Tohikyo (Tossi). Bukubani and Tohikyo were built by two brothers, one of them,Rato Mangila, still lives in Bukabani. His younger brother,Pokela, was a cattle farmer who grazed his cattle on the meadow that is now used for the Pasola atTohikyo Parona. Pokela built Tohikyo Parona.
SPECIAL CEREMONIES
There are some special ceremonies on the last nyale- picking day.Early in the morning,all the Marapu and Nyale priests and dozens of women and girls gather together at a sacred spot in Parona Bukabani. There they pray and recite ‘kawoking’ accompanied by yells and whoops. After that all the members of the parona descend and give betel nut to their ‘ancestors’ spirits by placing it on the gravestones. This ceremony is called “hangapung” and whilo it is going on, the nyale horse is spurred seven times in the village square, and this is the signal that the opening ceremony has ended. After the opening ceremony in Parona Bukabani, all the priests, the other members of the parona, the nyale horse, and other horses hold a procession to the battle area.Here the nyale horse is spurred a further seven times, and the battle commences.
The two”cavalries” stand in their own respective halves of the field. Kodi wawa (lowland Kodi)stands on the western side, while kodi deta(highland kodi) stands on the eastern side of Rarawinye.Now the fighting begins.Each group spurs their mounts to the middle of the field and throws their blunted spears, making a half-circuit, and then returningto their home base.The spears are thrown at full speed, and opponents are often wounded, even killed. This presents no problem,as it is all accepted as part of the ritual.
There are, however, moments of tension in which tempers rise,and if these moments can’t be controlled by the police and their guns,then the nyale priest spurs his horse to the middle of the battleground, and orders the combatants to disperse. Wounded men and horses can be cured using sacred water from a forbidden source in the forest close to Bukabani parona,and the fighting usually ends about noon.This pasola ceremony is basically a memorial service for the dead with recitations and banquets, rice and roasted chicken being offered to the souls of the deceased.
Pasola and sacrifice,like betel nut,chicken and rice are symbols of devotion and gratefulness from human beings to their creator, via Marapu as a mediator.The pasola,as the culmination of the nyale ceremonies is really a thanksgiving festival for mercy and good fortune experienced during the previous year.The nyale ceremony is also a special time in which to ask for grace for the coming year.People make requests in the form of prayers so that the land is fertile,crops are abundant,livestock is healthy and breeds that theland is fertile,crops are abundant,livestock is healthy and breeds successfully.The main requests during these prayers to the spirits of the ancestors are for prosperity and good health. The spilling of blood on the ground from a wounded participant in the pasola is proof of this faith and dedication to Marapu.
All this spilt blood also serves as proof of a petition for mercy from God via Marapu.These activities ranging from the paddu to the culmination of the ritual pasola ceremony are part of the animist faith,but if we examine them closely we will find remakcable resemblances to the five formal official religions in Indonesia.All the worship, the goal of all prayer,adoration and gratefulness is to the Creator. Marapu acts only as a mediator between human beings and God,as is shown in the words of most of the hymns.Apart from these interesting points,paddu,the counting calender,lawiti,the hymns and rhythmical prose,and the pasola battle are all products of the astonishing creative power of human thought throughout the centuries.These represent the output of thought,mind and will of the old ancestors who have left these as a bequest to their heirs,both as a form of tribal pride mixed with self-respect, and to enrich the national
culture.
Nowadays,however the younger generation has little interest in any of the above mentioned customs and rituals.many people in kodi are worried that these traditions will fade away and be forgotten amidst the hurly-burly of developmental change,and under the strong influence of the five official relegions in indonesia.what is needed is a resurgence in pride and respect for these age-old trditions.The lead must come from society it self,especially aducated people.Impetus can also be provided by local government offices,such as The Departmnt of Education and culture.Respect for these traditions must be resurrected and passed on to the succeeding generations through out-of-school activities,and possibly through intra-curriculum programmes run in sumbanese schools.it’s up to us the people of sumba to choose the best way to maintain our important customs and traditions.We must ask ourselves the questions; ”How can we make our unique tribal
inheritance last forever?”
In the Small Nyalemonth,Lamboyaand Kodi there is no any celebration. In the great one there are some specialceremonies
AFTER PADDU PERIOD
From january to february people may again be cheerful and free from the restraints of taboos.This is also the time when the nyale (a kind of see worm) comes up on the shores of Kodi.
People may again be lively and cheerful, for the fasting time is over and they are free again and clean from their faults and sins.Now is the time to wait nyale(which also means’’thanksgiving day celebrations’’), ”the beautiful princess’’ is called using ’kawoking’, ‘lawiti’, and games. Women and girls recite ’kawoking’ and ‘lawiti’ while young men play wrestling games.
These activities take place every nigth at a sacredplace on the sea-shore from the nyale the beginning of january to the end of february,a few nights before ‘ picking’ the nyale, a caremony which takes place seven nigths after the full moon, and about twenty-two days after the first rising moon, in February.
The nyale can be picked only if the nyale priest is able to count and observe the moon Precisely.The nyale are usually picked three times, every February and March;the three coinciding with the picking of its head, its body, and its tail. The first pasola is enacted at Bondo kawango , and coincides with the picking of the heads of the nyale. This is a sort of warming-up or training exercise for the horses, acting as a prelude to the main pasola, which takes place the following morning at Rarawinyeand ends at Ghindo Kaba near Tohikyo (Tossi). Bukubani and Tohikyo were built by two brothers, one of them,Rato Mangila, still lives in Bukabani. His younger brother,Pokela, was a cattle farmer who grazed his cattle on the meadow that is now used for the Pasola atTohikyo Parona. Pokela built Tohikyo Parona.
SPECIAL CEREMONIES
There are some special ceremonies on the last nyale- picking day.Early in the morning,all the Marapu and Nyale priests and dozens of women and girls gather together at a sacred spot in Parona Bukabani. There they pray and recite ‘kawoking’ accompanied by yells and whoops. After that all the members of the parona descend and give betel nut to their ‘ancestors’ spirits by placing it on the gravestones. This ceremony is called “hangapung” and whilo it is going on, the nyale horse is spurred seven times in the village square, and this is the signal that the opening ceremony has ended. After the opening ceremony in Parona Bukabani, all the priests, the other members of the parona, the nyale horse, and other horses hold a procession to the battle area.Here the nyale horse is spurred a further seven times, and the battle commences.
The two”cavalries” stand in their own respective halves of the field. Kodi wawa (lowland Kodi)stands on the western side, while kodi deta(highland kodi) stands on the eastern side of Rarawinye.Now the fighting begins.Each group spurs their mounts to the middle of the field and throws their blunted spears, making a half-circuit, and then returningto their home base.The spears are thrown at full speed, and opponents are often wounded, even killed. This presents no problem,as it is all accepted as part of the ritual.
There are, however, moments of tension in which tempers rise,and if these moments can’t be controlled by the police and their guns,then the nyale priest spurs his horse to the middle of the battleground, and orders the combatants to disperse. Wounded men and horses can be cured using sacred water from a forbidden source in the forest close to Bukabani parona,and the fighting usually ends about noon.This pasola ceremony is basically a memorial service for the dead with recitations and banquets, rice and roasted chicken being offered to the souls of the deceased.
Pasola and sacrifice,like betel nut,chicken and rice are symbols of devotion and gratefulness from human beings to their creator, via Marapu as a mediator.The pasola,as the culmination of the nyale ceremonies is really a thanksgiving festival for mercy and good fortune experienced during the previous year.The nyale ceremony is also a special time in which to ask for grace for the coming year.People make requests in the form of prayers so that the land is fertile,crops are abundant,livestock is healthy and breeds that theland is fertile,crops are abundant,livestock is healthy and breeds successfully.The main requests during these prayers to the spirits of the ancestors are for prosperity and good health. The spilling of blood on the ground from a wounded participant in the pasola is proof of this faith and dedication to Marapu.
All this spilt blood also serves as proof of a petition for mercy from God via Marapu.These activities ranging from the paddu to the culmination of the ritual pasola ceremony are part of the animist faith,but if we examine them closely we will find remakcable resemblances to the five formal official religions in Indonesia.All the worship, the goal of all prayer,adoration and gratefulness is to the Creator. Marapu acts only as a mediator between human beings and God,as is shown in the words of most of the hymns.Apart from these interesting points,paddu,the counting calender,lawiti,the hymns and rhythmical prose,and the pasola battle are all products of the astonishing creative power of human thought throughout the centuries.These represent the output of thought,mind and will of the old ancestors who have left these as a bequest to their heirs,both as a form of tribal pride mixed with self-respect, and to enrich the national
culture.
Nowadays,however the younger generation has little interest in any of the above mentioned customs and rituals.many people in kodi are worried that these traditions will fade away and be forgotten amidst the hurly-burly of developmental change,and under the strong influence of the five official relegions in indonesia.what is needed is a resurgence in pride and respect for these age-old trditions.The lead must come from society it self,especially aducated people.Impetus can also be provided by local government offices,such as The Departmnt of Education and culture.Respect for these traditions must be resurrected and passed on to the succeeding generations through out-of-school activities,and possibly through intra-curriculum programmes run in sumbanese schools.it’s up to us the people of sumba to choose the best way to maintain our important customs and traditions.We must ask ourselves the questions; ”How can we make our unique tribal
inheritance last forever?”
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