Sea gods lose out in traditional Buginese ritual

Sea gods lose out in traditional Buginese ritual

JAKARTA (ANTARA): Scores of decorated boats teeming with people clad in traditional Buginese attire recently sailed along the coast of Kotabaru regency, South Kalimantan. They were to conduct a traditional procession of mappanre tasi', giving food to the sea.

"The ceremony... is a token of gratitude toward the Creator for His gift of the riches of the sea," said Sabir, a prominent citizen on the Pagatan coast.

The ceremony held by the Bugis, the famed sea people of the country, is always held in April after the fisher community here have brought in their catch. The rituals carry the hope that catches will increase.

Rituals of the Pagatan Buginese community are not unlike those of other fisherfolk, such as those along the south coast of Java, first attracted attention in the mid-1980s when the administration got involved in managing and funding the ceremonies.

The event has since been promoted in various regions and now is included in the province's tourism calendar.

The site of the ritual in the Kusan Hilir district is only 200 kms over asphalted road from Banjarmasin.

Elders called sanro led prayers and walked to the boats to release offerings which include a slaughtered chicken, bananas, glutinous rice and eggs.

But unfortunately thousands of visitors wanting to see the procession on April 19 were disappointed because of a lack of water transportation needed to get a closer look.

The peak of the ritual was the release of the above offerings at sea to appease the guardians of the sea and ask that continued riches for the community and the safety of fisherfolk are ensured. Many families have lost relatives to the sea while fishing, hence giving offerings, as some measure of prevention, is considered a must.

The trend now is that offerings are shared after they are thrown from the boats.

"Formerly, the slaughtered chicken was abandoned after it was released but nowadays it is considered a waste and the chicken can be taken by people," said a participant.

Attractive traditional dances enliven up the rituals. Local and foreign tourists also come here each year for the tasty seafood; squid, turtle eggs, shrimps, mussels, served at many foodstalls.

At the end of the day they take home a cotton or silk sarong, another speciality of the community.