Afu Cloves and the Tree of Life

The new shoot looks fresher, already over two metres tall with a strong-looking trunk and fresh leaves. Beneath it lies the trunk of a tree that has decayed, eroded by soil and time which it could not withstand. Even though it was protected by walls, the overwhelming power of time could not be prevented. The walls surrounding it also collapsed.

This is the story of Afu Clove 2, which fell due to decay. It grew in the Gamalama mountains of Ternate, precisely in Tongole Village. The clove tree was a powerful witness to various historical trajectories of Ternate, North Maluku, Indonesia, and even world history.

The tree, hundreds of years old, bore witness and survived various onslaughts, such as upheavals, disputes, and diverse social phenomena. Afu Clove also stood as a strong witness, standing firm against storms, earthquakes, and eruptions of Mount Gamalama. However, time possesses its own power that erodes the endurance of the tree’s biological defence mechanisms.

The public generally recognises three types of Afu Clove. The first clove fell earlier; its branches and roots dried up after the leaves withered, dried out, and fell. The roots that supported its life eventually followed the departure of the tree’s various parts. The first clove is Afu Clove 3, or the third generation.

The second clove, Afu Clove 2, is the one that recently decayed and was replaced by a new clove shoot. Meanwhile, the third clove is Afu Clove 1, located at the highest point. This is the oldest clove and is quite large in size. With sturdy buttress roots anchoring into the ground, this clove requires six adults stretching their arms together to encircle it.

Its location, the highest and far from public access, means that although it is the oldest, it possesses strong endurance. The proof is that clove 2 and clove 3, which are younger, fell first. Perhaps being at a higher altitude makes this clove ‘more sterile’, enabling it to survive until now.

Nevertheless, being at a height still allows it to be a historical witness to the journey of Ternate and its people. The ebb and flow of clove prices were also felt, meaning this tree also experienced the joys and sorrows of clove farmers.

Unlike the others, Afu Clove 3, whose location is not too far from the road and is the youngest, was the first to fall. Perhaps this tree was not incapable of fighting the forces of nature, but rather it witnessed various trajectories of human history full of suffering and increasingly distancing itself from natural ethics.

The burden of human history it bore was enough to collapse the tree’s resilience. This tree was the first to interact with humans and all their activities. Road construction, settlements, and infrastructure disrupted the mechanisms that were the main supply supporting its life.

So inevitably, two witnesses to the historical journey of Ternate Island were eroded by the power of time. One by one, they experience the rotation of the life cycle, falling and being replaced by a new generation.

These clove trees recorded the struggles, turmoil, and betrayals experienced by Ternate, with various historical variations and plots. Accompanying the two trees, at roughly the same altitude, lies Sultan Babullah, the heroic figure from Ternate who fought to defend the nation’s sovereignty.

Afu Clove: Not Just a Tree

The motorbike we were riding nearly failed to climb several times; the local motorcycle taxi driver nimbly weaved to avoid going straight uphill. In this way, we managed to ascend the steep incline accompanied by sharp bends. At the edge of a small road, we stopped to park the motorbike on a somewhat flat area that could fit a few bikes. Across the road, there were steps and a small stall. We rested briefly while seeking information about the oldest clove tree.

The woman tending the small stall, selling snacks and drinks, enthusiastically pointed the way and explained the details of the journey we would encounter. On a footpath that had been concreted but was mostly damaged, we slowly treaded along it.

Behind the stall lies the ‘grave’ of Afu Clove 3, the youngest of the ‘Three Afu Clove Companions’. Around it are also the remains of collapsed buildings. This happened not long ago, according to Fando, the motorcycle taxi driver accompanying me.

A few years ago, this place was a bustling area visited by travellers, both from Ternate City and other regions. Many even went camping. The large number of visitors naturally attracted people to sell goods. However, it seems the appeal of the Afu clove has faded, so the traders have also abandoned the place. Only building ruins and memories remain.

A blurred natural and social history also coloured my journey this time in Ternate. Yet, on this island, the theory of evolution was born. It was Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913), a naturalist from Great Britain, who, amidst exhaustion and suffering from the tropical disease malaria, after travelling around the Nusantara archipelago, wrote a letter to his mentor, Charles Darwin, about various natural phenomena he encountered.

Darwin then abstracted Wallace’s findings to strengthen the theory of evolution he was developing. This correspondence gave birth to what is called natural selection, one of the important points in Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. In his small house in Ternate, Wallace also proposed the theory known as the Wallace Line, a line separating the biota to the east from the biota to the west.

Although the distance travelled was less than 500 metres, it felt like a journey uncovering history, full of traps of dusty facts, multiple versions, and steep ravines.