Kapok mattresses taboo in Kasuran hamlets<\/p>\n
YOGYAKARTA (JP): Those headed to two hamlets some 20
\nkilometers north of here can forget about enjoying a comfortable
\nnight's sleep on a soft kapok mattress.<\/p>\n
At first West Kasuran in Margodadi village and East Kasuran in
\nthe village of Margomulya appear no different from other
\nrelatively well developed hamlets in the country.<\/p>\n
Both in the district of Seyegan, Sleman regency, they have
\ngood infrastructure, including roads, electricity, schools,
\nmarkets and small shops selling basic commodities.<\/p>\n
But they do have a unique difference -- no kapok mattresses
\nare found in the area due to an age-old taboo on their use. It is
\nespecially ironic because \"kasuran\" comes from kasur, the
\nJavanese word for mattress.<\/p>\n
Cotton mattresses are not a luxury item, and they can be found
\nin most homes. Expense is not an issue for most Kasuran
\nvillagers, most of whom live in permanent or semipermanent homes.<\/p>\n
According to Pudjinem, a grandmother and the owner of a small
\nshop in East Kasuran, the taboo has been in effect since the
\nvillage was founded. \"If anyone violates it, she or he will face
\ndisaster in life.\"<\/p>\n
The chief of East Kasuran, M. Noor Shidiq, said the taboo on
\nthe use of kapok mattresses in the hamlet has been around for a
\nlong time, although no one can say exactly when it started.<\/p>\n
East Kasuran, whose population of 975 is mostly made up of
\nfarmers and manual laborers, has always adhered to the \"rule\",
\nShidiq said.<\/p>\n
\"No one here dares to violate it. They are afraid of the
\nconsequences,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The consequences for those who use a kapok mattress include
\nfinding snakes in their bed, he said.<\/p>\n
He recounted the story of a deputy at the religious affairs
\noffice who moved to East Kasuran in 1976, bringing with him a
\nkapok mattress. Every Thursday night, which is sacred on the
\nJavanese calendar, he would find a snake in his bed. Although he
\nwould drive it away, it would invariably return the following
\nThursday.<\/p>\n
Locals eventually told him about the taboo. After he got rid
\nof the mattress, the problem with the snakes stopped.<\/p>\n
Another story involves Prawoto, a member of the police's
\nMobile Brigade in Jakarta who retired to the village in 1981. He
\nscoffed at the taboo and brought with him four soft kapok
\nmattress<\/p>\n
\"A month later, his wife suddenly got sick and was unable to
\nwalk,\" Noor said.<\/p>\n
At first she did not believe her sickness was caused by the
\nkapok mattresses. Yet, just before she got sick, she said she saw
\na big snake in her house. \"Then, all of a sudden, I got a very
\nhigh fever,\" she recalled.<\/p>\n
The fever lasted for 40 days. Doctors were unable to help, and
\neventually she went to a shaman outside of Yogyakarta. He told
\nher that her illness was due to the kapok mattresses.<\/p>\n
She was told to conduct a special purification ceremony
\ninvolving the sacrifice of three white chickens. The chickens
\nwere cooked and wrapped in white cloth and then buried in front
\nof her house.<\/p>\n
\"I was also told to no longer use the kapok mattress to sleep
\non,\" she said.<\/p>\n
Her strange illness immediately cleared up after she performed
\nthe rite and did away with her mattress.<\/p>\n
Practice<\/p>\n
Noor traces the taboo back to the time when a husband and
\nwife, Kyai Kasur and Nyai Kasur, lived in the village. They were
\nseparated under mysterious circumstances several years after they
\nmarried, but each promised they would not use a kapok mattress
\nuntil they were reunited.<\/p>\n
After the separation, Nyai Kasuran lived in East Kasuran and
\nwas considered the founder of the hamlet. Kyai Kasur lived in
\nWest Kasuran and was considered the founder of that hamlet. Other
\nvillagers followed their lead and gave up kapok mattresses, but
\nthe two were never reunited, and so never had the chance to use
\nkapok mattresses again.<\/p>\n
Each was buried in their respective hamlets, and the graves
\nstill exist today.<\/p>\n
The head of West Kasuran Wartilah has a different version of
\nthe story.<\/p>\n
According to Wartilah, the taboo began when a wali (propagator
\nof Islam) named Sunan Kalijaga visited the hamlets during his
\njourney to preach about Islam.<\/p>\n
When he wanted to rest in West Kasuran, Sunan Kalijaga asked
\nKyai Kasuran to prepare a kapok mattress for him.<\/p>\n
\"When he left, he told the people of Kasuran not to use kapok
\nmattresses unless they had mastered as high a supernatural power
\nas himself.\"<\/p>\n
He said that West Kasuran residents who dared to use a kapok
\nmattress invariably came down with an illness, such as his
\nsister, who got a tumor that disappeared when she threw out her
\nkapok mattress.<\/p>\n
Because of the taboo, the 447 villagers of West and East
\nKasuran use either sponge or traditional materials such as
\nplaited coconut fiber for their mattress. \"Traditional mattresses
\nmade from plaited coconut fiber are very cheap. They cost only Rp
\n7,500 per square meter,\" Noor said.<\/p>\n
Anthropologist Hari Poerwanto of Gadjah Mada University said
\nthere must be a practical reason for the taboo.<\/p>\n
\"Scientific research must be conducted to get to the bottom of
\nthe mystery,\" he said. (Bambang M.)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/kapok-mattresses-taboo-in-kasuran-hamlets-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}