The Carving Of Battle Head
On Jew Pillar
This
wood carving is silent as if the magic power is ready to support the burden in long-lasting periods of time. A wow ipits –a carver--- has dedicated his skill,
so the ancestor. The battle head who was killed in battle filed can come, if
the next generation keeps the custom and tradition to built persistently the
jew. The killed battle head, was not really gone, in the procession of carving
wow ipits has also implanted the spirit of battle's head into the wood carving,
so that the life spirit that originally lives in death realm can come in safar
--paradise-- The carving of the deceased battle’s had on the jew pillar becomes
also an absolute power that empowers the jew, so the custom house can function
up to the specified time. The Asmat tribe believes that, so the carving of
battle head becomes standard for every jew building. Whereas the building is a
procession and ritual which is full in meaning.
Once
upon a time, the first founder of jew was Beorpits –in Asmat language, it is
translated as a strong and powerful man –assisted by his friends. At first,
Beropit and his friend established jisew cem or pukcem –temporary house—as
discussion place. In jisew cm, the people discuss a plan to fell timber in
specified village, clan who was responsible to collect, when to return. This discussion is generated from generation to generation up to today.
Therefore,
the procession in every construction of jew is repeating from time to time in
line with tradition which is ever generated. Before the carving pillar of the
battle head is planed, the custom leaders –the singers and those who strike
tifa –gather, make consensus lasts about two or three days and closed in
nature. The woman and children are not allowed to involve or hear the
discussion. In the consensus, the location of jew construction, direction, time
to fell the wood, and the position of the village for the felling of trees is
decided. Though consensus, each family that has a relation in one fireplace can
prepare the boat, depart, and go home together. The solid cooperation is an
absolute condition, si jew a last can be established.
After
the discussion among the custom leaders, each clan will go by boat to come
to the village to fell the tree and other materials of jew construction. There is
a clan who has a duty to cut the wood for pillars, wall framework, roof, rattan,
and jew roof. The collection of materials for jew construction generally
requires around three or four days. After the materials are complete, the
custom leaders are discussing to decide the right time will come for about one
week later. A night before the pillar are planted, the all villager will
do party by striking tifa, and next morning at about 05.00 – 06.00, it is accompanied with regional song, the first pillar consisting of pit bintanggur
wood started to plant in the second jew point. When the pit wood gradually
becomes extinct, the society will use another kind of wood accorded to available
kind. The community in Simai family usually uses jum wood (redwood) and
bintanggur wood. The kind of wood can survive in 3 – 5 years. After passing the
period of time, the wood is decayed and jew must be built again.
Concerning
to the Asmat tribes view, the redwood and bintanggur are the wood kind that
can float while its length can reach 10 – 20 meters. If the wood dry, the wood
skin will be easily peeled off. Such kind of the wood makes the people easy in building jew. The selection of wood kind is done from generation to
generation and become eternal because it is subjected to the regeneration
process. The wood kind that is easily decayed and broken is not used at all
because it cannot function positively in maintaining life survival in jew.
Asmat requires “external” building construction.
The
position of jew is always in the direction of the sunrise or parallel to the
current of the river. As the construction of the human body that always needs light as
the illumination source and water to meet the life need. However, the position of
the community house is beside or behind the jew. The jew position is as language,
that the custom building is the centre of the concentric circle in the community
life togetherness.
The
jew building is counted since the first pillar plantation and the ancestor
carving plantation takes about three weeks up to one month. In the period of
the time, all villages dedicated their energy to build the jew framework, set
wall and roof made of plaited sago tip, make fireplace, and set the wood skin
as the base of the floor. Besides accorded to the number of clans, the fireplace is
also according to the number of floors. The gate of jew is straightly extended
to face the fireplace. In the custom building, there is only one large room
(hall) without partition, window, and door, the sun’s ray that breaks through
come in, it becomes a cause that jew must face in direction of sunrise. In the
night of fireplace or lantern.
After
all building are established luxuriously, so at that night the custom leaders
strike tifa, the men dance with strong movement, as if they want to shake all
sides of the building. The shake formally states the power of jew as a mean to hold
custom party as never-ending ritual. The women serve the reception consisting
of the earth product such as account, sago, banana, batatas, and the most
special is sago larva.
The
party of jew blessing continues in the next morning, 2000, when the change of Millenium has started off a while, Cemnes village, one of two villages that can
be reached on foot from the capital became boisterous from the Tifa from the sound.
All men wore the custom wear –bacim—the headcover cuscus feather –awer—the
traditional wear made of plaited sago tip. They also wore noken –the
traditional bag—the decorated cassowary bone is slipped into one pair of arms.
The strong hands hold lance, and the specific make-up of Asmat completed all
appeareance. Therefore, Cemnes village which looks silent every day since
the community members are busy to take sago in the forest, became noisy in
the party.
From
far it is heard a sound of feet stamping from all body movement in dance. The
sound of Tifa reverberated as if the mystic power that could vibrate the whole jew, meanwhile,
the sound of yell echoed jointly with the Tifa sound and dance movement. Jew
has 10 x 30 meters with the height of floor to ceiling is 4 – 7 meters. The entrance
to the jew is
stairs arranged of wood and tied with rattan. In the middle of jew, wair flames from
the wood burned, the air in the jew became fragrant by the aroma of gaharu (Aguilaria filaria)
which was burned in the main fireplace. The gaharu burning is ritual conducted
in every ceremony of jew bestowal of blessing. In such ritual, gaharu may be
used, if the fragrant wood is used, if the fragrant wood is used for the trade, someday the return from it will bring misfortune.
Bishop Alfon Sowada, OSC the religious leader who has spent all his young age to
dedicate in Asmat was given the honour to lead the prayer. The shows that the influence
of the church in community life is very strong, so it could penetrate the custom
ritual. The bestowal of blessing was attended by Asmat consensus leader
and Three Leader Area as the form of care to the local custom. While the sun’s
ray tended to the western sky, the party of blessing bestowal was over. All dishes
served on tapin in front of wair were
distributed to all visitors, the most special is the quests. ”Pemali—it’s
wrong went down from jew with empty hand”, someone says. It is must that the visitor brings specific dishes served
symbolically expresses the meaning about togetherness in the community.
After
all visitors went, the atmosphere in the jew was silent.
The custom building with traditional construction persistently stands, ready to
unify all community life in that village. The next morning and afterwards
in the custom parties the atmosphere in the jew will be merry with the rhythm of Tifa striking and dance ritual that shakes all insides of the building.
No comments:
Post a Comment