For the Sake of Preserving Ancestral Heritage
For the Dayak tribespeople, the traditional rumah betang house with its dozens of rooms and high beams that stretch hundreds of meters are more than just simple homes. The building that houses dozens of families is the heart of the life of locals. Inside, all Dayak cultural activities are done together, including weaving, carving, sculpting, dancing and holding traditional ceremonies.
Within the life of the community, the nurturing of culture, traditional values and family togetherness and the intergenerational transfer of knowledge and skills occur naturally. However, in line with encroaching modernity, the existence of rumah betang is being threatened. Many families are becoming more interested in living in villages or towns.
This is one of the challenges faced by the Toyoi rumah betang in Tumbang Malahoi village, Rungan district, Gunung Mas regency, Central Kalimantan. In the 148-year-old customary house belonging to descendants of the Dayak Ngaju tribe, there are currently only six families comprising 30 people – 15 adults, most of whom are women, and 15 children.
“Many of the rumah betang dwellers have moved to the city or built their own homes in the village. We remain in this traditional house to preserve tradition. This [house] is the heart of our life,” Hayati Daud, 47, said.
The rumah betang was built by Dayak community leader Toyoi Panji in Tumbang Malahoi in 1869. The house is 4 meters high, 30 meters long and 15 meters wide. It is made from the region’s finest timber. Its roof and walls are made of bark.
“Everyone who lives here is a descendant of Toyoi Panji. There are seven generations of us now,” said Hayati Daud, a member of the fifth generation of Toyoi Panji’s family, in mid-May.
The rumah betang is one of the oldest ones in Central Kalimantan and was officially declared a cultural heritage in 1992. Despite its old age, the house’s high beams are still sturdy enough to support the house.
“We have renovated everything, but the original facade is still intact. Only the roof that has never been replaced,” said the woman, who was born in 1970.
The rumah betang have been constructed on stilts to avoid flooding. This is because the Dayak used to build longhouses near a river, which could overflow at any time. Furthermore, such a construction style helps the dwellers avoid wild animals.
After the rumah betang was named a cultural heritage and a tourist destination, Hayati was appointed the caretaker. She and other local women not only care for the houses but also serve guests, including cooking for them and preparing mats and pillows for those wanting to stay over.
In mid-May, Hayati and the rumah betang dwellers were visited by guests from Germany, including German Minister of the Environment, Environmental Protection, Development and Reactor Security Jochen Flashbarth, along with guests from the Borneo Institute Foundation (BIT). The guests were formally received, including by providing meals and accommodation. In the foyer, Animar N Toyoi, 54, a fourth-generation Toyoi, explained to the guests the meaning of the symbols adorning the house. “The three-star picture on the entrance gate shows we believe in the God of Time, who sets the rules of when to prepare the land, plant and harvest the crops. The God is called Manyamei Rajan Paten-du,” he explained, spiritedly.
After dinner, the guests were entertained with a dance by the girls with a musical accompaniment by Animar and Hayati. Animar played the kecapi (zither) and Hayati beat the katambung (drum). This is done not only when there are guests. In their spare time, they also play traditional Dayak music and songs.
All the guests were enraptured by the songs and dances and some of them danced and enjoyed the music. Day finally turned to night and it was gradually getting late. After dinner and a chat, all the guests retired to their bedrooms and slept on mats.
Denial
Tjilik Riwut, Central Kalimantan’s first indigenous Dayak governor, in his book Maneser Panatau Tatu Hiang, said that in the old days, longhouses were home to between 100 and 200 dwellers of the same lineage. All the rooms in the house were separated only by partitions. Each room had its own kitchen.
This portrait from the past can no longer be found. Longhouses are currently home to mostly women. Most of their husbands have passed away or moved to other regions.
“Many of our husbands have passed away. Most of our married children do not stay with us but have their own homes and families,” said Hayati Daud, 47, a fifth-generation member of the Toyoi Panji family, in Tumbang Malahoi, Gunung Mas regency, on Tuesday (16/5/2017).
They do not want their home to suffer the same fate that has befallen other rumah betang, namely being deserted by their dwellers. “This is an inheritance from my parents and ancestors. As their children, we need to take care of it. If not, the house will fall apart. This is the house of our ancestors,” Hayati said.
Central Kalimantan culture observer and Borneo Institute director Yanedi Jagau said there was a denial of values in the life at the betang. The Dayak have lived with social values for a long time. However, economic values are becoming more dominant today. In the old days, the Dayak would never let their land go, let alone sell it. However, nowadays many decide to sell their land and live in cities, thereby leaving the betang behind,” Jagau said.
The tradition of living together in one home means that happiness is also shared with each other. For instance, if one of them brings home a deer from a hunt, the meat will be enjoyed together.
However, rumah betang nowadays is just a place for traditional meetings, including traditional events, traditional trials and other things.
“In the old days, betang dwellers fulfilled one another’s needs. They planted crops together, fought enemies together and did everything together. However, with the way life is today, surely we cannot observe such activities,” Jagau said.
The women living in the Toyoi betang house are living proof that ancestral traditions and inheritance are being preserved. Locals instill Dayak cultural traditions in their children, even if they do not adherent to the traditions as strictly as their ancestors did.
Through dance, song, music and language, they preserve the traditions and inheritance of their ancestors. They in turn pass down the skills to their children and grandchildren, some of whom follow the tradition of living together in a customary longhouse.
A serious problem for all of us is the expanding modernity. Can the Dayak sustainably live in the rumah betang forever? Will tradition be preserved?
(DIONISIUS REYNALDO TRIWIBOWO)