A magical 'pawang hujan' will keep the rain away

A magical 'pawang hujan' will keep the rain away

By Jules Bell and Irene Sugiharto

JAKARTA (JP): How do you ensure that your wedding does not
become a pool party, where your guests run for cover as you marry
under thundering skies? To stop the bridesmaids from turning into
mermaids, you can hire a pawang hujan. Because apparently they
possess magical powers.

Pawang hujan are rain guides. They specialize in preventing
rainstorms that would otherwise be seriously inconvenient. These
magicians of nature also frequent golf clubs. Not for a round of
18 holes though, but -- as anybody who has ever slid around a
course in the wet will tell you -- because a rained out golf
experience is best avoided.

Keeping the rain at bay for important outdoor ceremonies,
including weddings, funerals, business events and a day's golf is
the domain of pawang hujan. However, they do not attempt to stop
the rain from falling, they just "transfer" it somewhere else.

Rain guides have apparently redirected rain for both former
presidents Sukarno and Soeharto. Those most likely to hire a
pawang hujan are practitioners of kejawen, an old traditional
Javanese spiritual and religious belief system. According to the
rain guides who spoke to The Jakarta Post though, most will --
and do -- work for clients of various religious affiliations and
cultures.

So who are these meteorological maestros, and how do they
weave their magic? They are most typically Muslim Haj, those
believed to be most skilled in the art, and firm believers in
their talents.

Persuading nature requires prayers and practices which vary
among pawang hujan. In addition, fasting rituals and magical
objects such as incense or red onions and even cigarettes are
sometimes used.

Common to all though, is the need for strong faith and
powerful prayers to supernatural beings, whose assistance they
request for directing the rain.

Tibi, a 38 year-old pawang hujan who works from his home in
Tangerang, relies on faith alone. "I do not need any special
equipment to do my job; praying with a pure heart will lead my
way. The wind direction is my main guidance on how to direct
unwanted rainfall," he explained.

"If you just give yourself to the Lord the earth will just be
in the palm of your hands."

With past clients including Soeharto and top military men, 83
year-old Haj Otong from Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta, is a well-
known and experienced practitioner of rain magic.

"All I do is give myself to the Lord," he said, "and let Him
and the earth work for itself with the help of our pure hearts."

Like Tibi, Otong relies solely on his religious beliefs.
"I am not like a lot of other rain guides who use kits to make
the procession work." The rain guide who was once honored with a
charter from former president Sukarno, uses the Dalail
(direction) prayer from the Koran.

According to Otong, his magic will only succeed when carried
out on a diet restricted to rice and water. He must also work on-
location, regardless of an event's duration. Weddings usually
require working three days and night, however he cited one event
where his attention was needed for two months.

When black clouds threatened John Paul II's visit to Jakarta
in October 1989, the talents of Tatang were on hand. Haj Otong's
40-year-old son has been practicing for 15 years and claims to
have genetically and spiritually inherited his father gift.
He describes himself as a "flexible rain guide", who willingly
accepts jobs from people of all religions.

Tatang, who uses his own handmade weather chart to predict
rainfall, most often works for golf courses. Rain guide's
association with such sites is customary, said Robby Robot from
the Indonesian Golf Association.

"Most (golfers) are happy to have a pawang hujan," he said,
"they ask, 'do you have a pawang or not'?"

According to Deborah Evi, a tournament manager at the Imperial
Golf Club in Tangerang, this is a very common question. "We
always employ a rain guide for Saturdays and for tournaments,"
she said.

"We ask him to come the day before and stay the whole time."
How successful is their pawang hujan? "Sometimes it rains," she
responded, "and people run to the club house for cover."

No doubt Mulder's partner Scully from the X-files science-
fiction serial would be skeptical regarding the rain guides'
magic abilities. Others however are not.

Maria Wongsonagoro has employed pawang hujan for over 15
years. As a mother and the president-director of IPM Public
Relations, she always hires a rain guide for outdoor personal and
business events, and firmly believes in their supernatural
abilities.

"Who can explain it," she said, "some people are gifted with
powers beyond human comprehension."

In her many years of employing rain guides, her family and
clients have remained dry. "I'm not taking any chances, it's
standard operational procedure."

For Haj Otong, failure and wet clients is something he is yet
to experience. "Alhamdulilah (thank God), never as long as I am
sincere with my intentions," he said of his track record.

Tibi's approach is similar. "Prediction and God are two
different things. What I do is ask Allah to hear my prayers.
Success or failure, I just hope my wishes to come true if it is
for the sake of goodness," he said.

The cost of a rain guide's services vary with the
practitioner, client and event. As an example, Haj Otong's fees
range from Rp 300,000 (US$35) for a day to Rp 350,000 for four
hours, rates which are dependent on a client's ability to pay.

As individuals with mystical traditional beliefs and
spirituality, can pawang hujan magically control the forces of
nature? Or is their art just a continuation of historical rituals
and practices? One thing is certain though: wet weddings and
soaked golf-courses are no fun.