A combination of Sundanese local wisdom and Islam in Situ Lengkong drives the economy in the village. Aside from becoming a tourist destination, the Nusa Gede protected forest in the middle of the area is also preserved.
By
Dedi Muhtadi
·5 minutes read
A combination of Sundanese local wisdom and Islam in Situ Lengkong drives the economy in Panjalu village, North Ciamis. Aside from becoming a tourist destination, as a result of this blending, the Nusa Gede protected forest in the middle of the area is also preserved.
Next to Situ (Lake) Lengkong Panjalu, a 58-hectare reservoir in the hilly village and Panjalu district, Ciamis regency, West Java, lies the Nusa Gede protected forest.
Near the reservoir around 730 meters above sea level is also the tomb of ulema Sayid Ali bin Muhammad bin Umar, a relative of Sunan Gunung Jati, Cirebon.
After then-president Abdurrahman Wahid visited Panjalu in 2000, Situ Lengkong became a popular pilgrimage destination.
During pilgrimage season, such as in Maulud (Rabi’ al-awwal) and Rajab in the Islamic calendar, each day dozens of buses from various regions mostly in Java, visit Panjalu. Syeh Ali, the nickname of the ulema, Gus Dur said, was the man who spread Islam in West Java’s eastern areas hundreds of years ago.
“At peak season, no fewer than 70-80 buses come to Situ Lengkong,” Panjalu village head Haris Riswandi Cakradinata, 50, said.
Panjalu village economic development head Asep Rahmat, 52, said from the entry ticket of Rp 3,000 per person, the tourist site generated gross income of around Rp 800 million per year.
The village also receives an additional Rp 70 million per year from renting land for about 150 food and souvenir kiosks.
Every Sunday and during holidays, vendors and boat owners take visitors to the grave of Syeh Ali for praying in Nusa Gede forest on the middle of the lake. The grave was declared a heritage site in 1919.
Local wisdom
The sustainability of Nusa Gede is preserved because Panjalu residents maintain local wisdom. The traditional values have been inherited down from karuhun (ancestors) through signals of taboo language and the term pamali. Those breaching the restrictions are believed to get azab (punishment).
Amas Hidayat, 51, a Panjalu community leader, said the water from Situ Lengkong was used to bathe in to cleanse one’s soul because it is considered sacred. People in the past often took a bath in Situ Lengkong at night, particularly on Thursday night, believing they would have their dignity, spiritualism and physical power, strengthened.
“That is why the water source is preserved and local residents are afraid to cut down trees in Nusa Gede, although some of them fall down,” Amas said.
Situ Lengkong Panjalu has never run out of water in the dry season. Nor has Situ Ciater, a small lake downstream. The fish at Situ Ciater, which measures 6-7 ha, are believed to be sacred. Those who dare to take fish from Situ Ciater will see their property destroyed.
“After eating fish from Situ Ciater, the sheep or chickens of local residents die,” Amas said.
Yuliyanti, 35, an owner of a food stall in Situ Ciater, said she heard a story of a property businessman who wanted to build a village and reclaim part of the lake. “Suddenly, his workers got sick and not long after, the businessman died before the reclamation work was finished,” she said.
Nyangku ritual
In the history book Panjalu written by Djadja Sukardja (2011), it says Situ Lengkong is a man-made lake built during the reign of King Sanghyang Borosngora in 7th-8th century. According to Panjalu folklore, Nusa Gede was the center of the Panjalu kingdom, surrounded by Situ Lengkon, which functioned as a fortress.
The water source of Situ Lengkong and Ciater is on top of Panjalu hill, sandwiched between Mount Sawal in the south and Mt. Bitung in the north. The water source is one of the seven water sources used to cleanse sacred items from the Panjalu kingdom during the Nyangku ritual, at the end of Maulud.
During the ritual, various traditional acts, based on local wisdom such as environmental conservation, are performed, such as bebegig from Sukamantri, a district in Panjalu. Sundanese cultural expert Asep Salahudin, who is also deputy rector of the Latifah Mubaroqiyah Islamic Institute, said in the Situ Lengkong tradition, the mystical aspect of Sundanese and Islam was very thickly fused.
Before performing the Nyangku ritual as a primary event, the Panjalu residents hold Samida, a joint feast. In the past, this tradition was held on the side of Situ Lengkong, consisting of praying and feasting. “Samida means joint feast [physical] and praying [spiritualism], a kind of recalling the Panjalu ancestors who conducted religious preaching,” he said.
After Samida, the ritual is continued with the taking of water from seven water sources in a special procession. The taking of the water to cleanse the sacred weapons is carried out by a kuncen, a senior figure in Panjalu. This is in respect to the sacred water and its function in the lives of local people.