'Tabuh Rah', a celebration by the god Siwa
'Tabuh Rah', a celebration by the god Siwa
By Putu Wirata
DENPASAR (JP): In the yard of a pura (temple) two armed roosters -- each equipped with taji (metal spurs) on their feet -- were fighting. They ferociously clawed at each other until one collapsed. The session continued with the next pair of roosters. Bets were made, a Hindu priest presented offerings while chanting magic formulas, blood gushed and then the Tabuh Rah ceremony ended.
The Tabuh Rah (blood sacrifice to maintain the balance between the macrocosms and the microcosms) dates back to prehistoric times. It is believed that the ceremony previously required human blood. The use of human blood was considered inhuman, so chicken blood was introduced as it is believed that the characteristics of a chicken resemble that of man. The ceremony of Perang Pandan (fighting with thorny pandanus) in Tenganan village or Gebug (to fight with a whip which can wound the opponent) in Seraya village, both in the Karangasem district, may originate from the Tabuh Rah, a magical ceremony presented in the form of martial arts.
The first written account of the Tabuh Rah ceremony is from the 9th century. It is recorded in a number of Balinese inscriptions from 883, 896 and 911 A.D. All the inscriptions mention blin darah (blood buyer), which is translated as an offering to replace blood. The Serai inscription -- made during the reign of Queen Sri Gunapriya Dharmapatni and Udayana Warmadewa -- dated Nov. 26, 993 even mentions that after a citizen built a sanggah (a family worship place), he was allowed to organize a cockfight. The Batur Pura Abang inscription of the year 1011 mentions something similar, saying that only tigang seet (three pairs) were allowed in the cockfight. The Batuan inscription of 1022, during the reign of King Dharmawangsa Wardhana Marakata Pangkajasthanotunggadewa, also refers to cockfights of tigang seet (three pairs). The figure of three is perhaps a metaphysical symbol of the Tri Kona concept; the life cycle of utpeti (birth), sthiti (growth) and pralina (death or destruction).
When and how did the tabuh rah ritual become a cockfight with a unique betting system? How did the betting system become so popular in Bali?
In the 1960s and the 1970s -- before the government banned gambling -- cockfights were a very effective way to collect funds. The cockfight at the big meeting hall in Penebel village, for example, was attended by thousands of seasoned gamblers coming from various districts. From the entrance fees and a percentage of the takings, the village could build a pura, a balai banjar (meeting hall) and a road.
The oldest historic record on the tajen can be traced back to Dalem Ketut Ngulesir, the first king of the Gelgel period in Klungkung, who reigned from 1380 to 1400. According to chronicles, Dalem Ketut Ngulesir was forced to become king by chief minister Arya Kubon Tubuh -- to replace Dalem Ile who was not good at governing -- when he was absorbed in a cockfight pit. Ngulesir is even thought to originate from a word which means "to like to go out for days." The chroniclers relate that on account of the people's desire to gamble -- even going to faraway places such as Pandak village in Tabanan district, 80 km from Gelgel -- this valiant king understood his people's aspirations very well. He was described as a wise ruler. His successor Dalem Batur Enggong (Waturenggong) brought Klungkung to its peak. Apparently, betting on cockfights was a Balinese tradition by the 14th century.
King Dalem Batur Enggong had no difficulties getting the community to accept the tradition. In a theocracy, where the king represented the supernatural powers of the universe -- he was the reincarnation of the gods -- it was not hard to find legitimation for cockfights.
The Siwa Tattwa Purana manuscript says that in the Tilem Kesanga (the month of death, the ninth month in the Balinese calendar), the Betara Siwa (God in the manifestation of the return to the Beginning) organized yoga at siwaloka (the abode of the god Siwa). He obliged the people on earth to make offerings, organize cockfights and observe Nyepi Day (a day of silence) while presenting offerings to Sang Kala Dasa Bumi. Otherwise, disaster would befall all men.
It was perhaps to complement this legitimation that the brains behind the gambling created the manuscript Dharma Bebotoh (Gamblers' Ethics). It says, "If you have a cockfight, obey the rules, know your fighting cocks because all kinds of gambling belong to the Betara Guru (master of the universe). It is he who organizes cockfights. He invites the Gandarwa (angels), the gods Nawa Sanga (the gods in the nine wind directions), Sapta Resi and Bhuta Kala." In the perspective of the present time, the manuscript was probably engineered to legitimize gambling on cockfights.
Gambling
Cockfight gambling reached its peak when a guide called Pengayam-ayaman was circulated. It is extremely complex for the non-initiated. It has several sections: Keturanggan Sawung (the secret of the superiority of roosters) specifying 37 characteristics and nine queer traits, the good and bad days to start breeding roosters and the method of breeding, the search for their opponents, also the finding of gamblers. Fighting roosters were not allowed to do certain things and similar prohibitions applied to the gamblers. The guide specifies 90 types of fighting roosters, classified according to the color and shape of the feathers, and where the colors are located.
There were indeed criticisms leveled against cockfighting in former times, mainly through folk tales. The storyteller, through parodies, invited his listeners to reflect on the effects of cockfights: drunkenness, irrationality and even savagery. And perhaps because the gamblers were looking for legitimation of godly strength from Betara Guru or Betara Siwa, the storyteller did not forget to include the names of these gods in his stories.
The first story tells about I Bagus Diarsa and his wife Ni Sudadnyana. The happy couple had a son Wiracita. Diarsa got carried away in cockfights. He spent all his money on cockfights, thus neglecting his family. One day, when Diarsa was having a meal in a foodstall -- he had some money left after losing his bets at a cockfight -- a beggar in rags came to him. The beggar asked for Diarsa's leftovers. Diarsa thought it was not good to give him the leftover and ordered some food for the beggar. After the meal, Diarsa invited the old man to his house. The next day the old man asked for Wiracita's help to accompany him home where it was discovered that the man was not a beggar but a manifestation of Betara Siwa, who was testing Diarsa's good-heartedness. Wiracita followed Betara Siwa to Siwaloka. Diarsa followed Wiracita. Upon arrival at Siwaloka, Diarsa immediately went to see Betara Siwa. Apart from looking for his son, he asked for a fighting rooster from Betara Siwa, but was obliged to produce a fighting rooster for a party for the king. Diarsa had no roosters, but he had no option. If he failed to produce a fighting rooster, he would be expelled from the royal territory. Betara Siwa got angry when he learned about Bagus Diarsa's difficult situation. He presented Diarsa with an powerful rooster. This rooster would not only win in the arena, but it would also attack and kill the owner of the other rooster. It was this rooster that was brought to the tajen. The rooster was now confronted with another one owned by the king. The king challenged the penniless Diarsa into a bet whereby the latter would have to wager his own life. Without any difficulty Diarsa's prizefighter beat the other rooster and killed the king. In short, after the king's death, Bagus Diarsa ascended to the throne and bore the title Gusti Agung Niti Yukti.
The other folktale is Ni Tuwung Kuning. It's about a cockfight expert named I Pudak who had scores of fighting roosters. He often traveled far to satisfy his lust for gambling. One day when he was about to embark on a long journey, he told his wife Men Pudak, who was going to give birth, "If the baby is a boy, take good care of him. If it is a girl, chop her up and give the meat to the chickens."
While Pudak was busy with the cockfights away from home, the baby was born. It is was girl. Pudak's wife wanted to disobey her husband but she did not dare to do so. As a way out, Men Pudak only cut the baby's umbilical cord. She brought the baby named Tuwung Kuning to her grandmother in the woods. After a few years I Pudak returned home. His wife told him that the baby was a girl and that she had chopped her up for chicken feed. Unfortunately the chickens did not want to tell a lie. They shouted to Pudak that Men Pudak had only given them small pieces of the umbilical cord.
Thereupon I Pudak exploded with anger. He went to his parent- in-laws' house, fetched the grown-up Ni Tuwung Kuning and slay her. He gave the meat to his fighting roosters. However, I Pudak was startled to see all his chickens die after being fed with Tuwung Kuning's meat. He regretted his savagery and went to the place where he chopped up Ni Tuwung Kuning. He cried continuously and gradually lost weight. One day Ni Tuwung Kuning descended from the sky. She embraced her confused father. Apparently, at the time Pudak was about to kill Tuwung Kuning, Betara Siwa in heaven took away the girl and replaced her body with a banana tree which had been transformed to resemble her.
It is regrettable that the two critical stories in the manuscripts Siwa Tattwa Purana and Dharma Bebotoh are not popular. The Hindu community in Bali is more familiar with the Tabuh Rah. The government has indeed a new legitimation, the criminal code and the regulations that prohibit gambling. And upon closer study, Hindu teachings also forbid gambling. However, Bali's uniqueness possibly lies herein: the mixture of legitimation and counter-legitimation. It is not surprising, for example, that while a ritual ceremony is taking place in the Jeroan Pura (inner temple), people are playing dice in the Jaba (outside temple).