Madurese saltmakers give thanks with syncretic rite

Text and photos by Zoel Mistortoify

SUMENEP, East Java (JP): In the southern coastal area of Madura island in East Java, a unique traditional way of giving thanks to ancestors and the creator lives on.

It is peculiar in its marrying of Madurese, Balinese, Javanese and Arabic cultures, all marked by their own respective contradictions. The Madurese are known as devout Moslems but the Nyadar rite -- meaning an expression of gratitude -- has distinct Hindu origins.

It is held in three phases. The first phase in July and the second in August take place at the ancestral burial site on the banks of the Saroka River estuary near Kebon Dadap village, Saronggi.

The final phase in September is at the former dwelling place of ancestors in Penggir Papas village in Kalianget.

The rite is conducted at an isolated location on a coastal area surrounded by salt-making pools.

It takes five hours to travel by bus from Surabaya to Madura's easternmost town of Sumenep. From there it takes 45 minutes in a local taxi to reach the location of the rite, which is about 18 km away.

The dry coastal air reeks of salt. The area is barren and hot with sandy flat land.

"During the night the heat of the land accelerates the salt- making," said Hoiri, 37, a saltmaker from Kalianget. "The only condition to survive here is a strong will to work under the biting heat of the sun."

Community elder Buwang Hosnawi and Penggir Papas village head Mohammad Sadik said Nyadar is age-old and all saltmakers in the area paid great respect to their ancestors.

"Our ancestors were not only our religious figures, but also our teachers in salt-making. Nyadar is testimony to our deep respect for our ancestors and a medium for our request for a better life," he said.

Who were these ancestors?

"The person who set foot here for the first time was a noted Moslem preacher called Syekh Angga Suto, nicknamed Embah Anggasuto. Of Arabic descent, he hailed from Cirebon," Hosnawi said.

"With the permission of the king, Embah Anggasuto spread Islam and occupied a forest surrounded by river and sea water. He turned the coastal forest into a village, which later came to be known as Penggir Papas, meaning a riverbank that is shaped," Hosnawi added.

He said the influence of Balinese culture was a result of the political interaction at the time of the subjugation of East Java's Majapahit Kingdom in the 1340s, when Bali and Madura came under the rule of the Bedahulu Kingdom in Bali.

In the 16th century, religious conflicts often occurred. The conflict reached its peak when Bali attacked Sumenep Kingdom in Madura. The attack was repelled. But when Balinese soldiers were trying to escape, their military vessels on the southern coast were destroyed and they could not return to Bali.

They were protected by Embah Anggasuto and his followers. They converted to Islam and assimilated with the local Madurese.

Rites

Sadik explained the first Nyadar must be conducted after the "old water" -- the main material in salt-making -- was released. The second rite, which uses a similar procedure, is conducted after two or three harvests.

When the process of salt-making is almost completed, the last rite is held. The rite always takes place during a full moon, or to be exact, on a late Friday afternoon from the time of the full moon.

Rite participants usually arrive in small boats, sailing through a special route to the sacred ancestral burial site.

One of the rite participants, who wished to remain anonymous, said that "going by boat to the location in fact takes a longer time than walking there, but tradition requires the former".

Many participants come from Gresik and Lamongan in East Java. They said they were originally from Kalianget but had to migrate to other salt-making areas on the northern coast due to the scarcity of land.

The final rite begins in earnest when 14 customary elders, all clad in black, enter the gate of the "inner yard" of the sacred graveyard. They place flowers on four graves, each with a small domed structure and gravestone, belonging to Embah Anggasuto, Embah Kawoso, Embah Dukon and Embah Bangseng.

They pray together. Two customary functionaries, brimming with great charisma and clad in white, come forward and do the same. Finally they, too, place flowers on the graves.

When the rite leader has left the yard, the participants, who had waited outside the yard, simultaneously rush to the dome, which is quite small.

They jostle to be the closest possible to the sacred graves when saying their prayers.

"Whoever can make it into the area of the sacred dome (with a capacity for 10 persons) will have greater blessings and will see his wishes come true," Hosnawi said.

The participants may place flowers only on the graves of those descended from Embah Anggasuto. They put some money into the box prepared for this purpose and daub yellow powder made of rice flour on their brows and earlobes.

"This indicates that we have joined the rite," one of the participants said. In the old belief this symbolized divine protection.

Participants spend the night around their ancestors' graves. They prepare offerings in large quantities for the next day.

"The main offerings consist of betel leaves, kembhang bhabur (flowers), yellow powder, incense and penjhang (a container of rice and some dishes of chicken, eggs and milkfish)," Hosnawi said.

The following day participants join together again for a selamatan thanksgiving rite. Each family takes one set of offerings placed in the same container.

The core part of the rite is held in an open front structure opposite to the four sacred domes. The rite is led by two customary functionaries wearing long flowing robes intended only for ritual purposes and white headgear, just like leaders of rites in Bali.

A long prayer marks the beginning of the rite. Group leaders take turns to announce the number of people in their groups, although the reason behind this is unclear.

After the reporting was completed, each group takes turns to say a prayer while carrying their offerings to the "inside yard" of the dome.

Then the customary functionaries and group leaders gulp some of the remaining liquid. The leader will take the cover off one of the main offerings -- a kind of rice cone -- and eat some of it.

Other group leaders do likewise with their offerings. This completes the rite, and the people return home in their procession of small boats.