The Nagas: A tribe lost in history
The Nagas: A tribe lost in history
By YR Prahista
BANDUNG, West Java: Visitors to Kampung Naga, a small hamlet located in Tasikmalaya regency, often wonder about the origins of the residents, the Naga tribe. So far, there has been hardly anybody who can tell exactly where they came from and why they are called Suku Naga, the Dragon Tribe. Even the local office of the Ministry of Education and Culture cannot give any answers.
As part of the Sunda community, the Naga tribe speaks Sundanese in daily life. The difference between the Naga tribe and many other Sundanese community groups lies in their attitude toward the outside culture. The Naga tribe are able to uphold culture and tradition handed down by ancestors although they only form a small community. Unlike the isolated Badui tribe, the Naga community is more open to visitors.
The tribe occupies an area of approximately 10 hectares at Neglasari village, Salawu district, Tasikmalaya regency. It is some 27 kms from the town of Garut and about 30 kms from the town of Tasikmalaya. The distance from Bandung to Garut is 105 kms.
The location of the settlement is separated from other communities. Nevertheless, Kampung Naga is not an isolated region. Anyone can easily visit the place. The distance from the Tasikmalaya-Garut road is only 500 meters.
Kampung Naga is in a valley surrounded by hills. The only access to the village is on foot by way of 335 steps which go up and down, constructed at the foot of a steep slope with an angle of 20 to 45 degrees.
Their origins have never been clarified. History and past almost became extinct when nearly all the houses were burned down by the Indonesian Islamic Army (DI/TII) rebels in 1956.
"There was nothing left," Sumanta, a member of the Naga tribe, recalled. His three-year-old son was killed in the incident. At that time, Sumanta joined the Village Security Organization which consisted of civilians.
Apart from property, various heirlooms and historical objects stored in the Bumi Ageung community hall were burned to ash. Sumanta said the building was a house on stilts without windows, and which was guarded and maintained by a woman already in her menopause.
The Naga tribe believes that their ancestors were buried in nearby Bukit Naga (Naga hill). The area is also called leuweung larangan meaning a forest full of prohibitions because not everybody can enter the area, especially outsiders.
There are at least six pilgrimages a year to visit the graves of ancestors in a ceremony named hajat sasih. The ceremony is attended by all the inhabitants of Kampung Naga and the Naga community members living outside the hamlet.
Hajat sasih is an expression of gratitude and at the same time a request for safety and prosperity for all the inhabitants.
The ceremony can only be attended by adult males. First, they bath together in the Ciwulan river which is at the eastern border of Kampung Naga. They return home and change into white clothes. They put on a headband called totopong. The main part of the program starts with the cleaning of the ancestors' graves.
The ceremony takes place in the first, third, sixth, eighth, tenth and twelfth months of the Islamic year, which starts in April.
"The date of the hajat sasih can be advanced or delayed if it coincides with a Tuesday, Wednesday or Saturday," said Ateng Djaelani, 42, a custom official who has been assigned to uphold tradition and to lead ritual ceremonies.
For three days the Naga tribe retire in seclusion in nyepi rituals. Unlike the Hindu community of Bali, the Naga tribe still perform daily duties during nyepi. Moreover, tourists are not prohibited from visiting the area.
"But during nyepi it is taboo for the inhabitants to tell anybody about customs and ancestry," said Ateng.
At present, the population of Naga village numbers 320 with 102 family heads. From the 10-hectare territory only an area of 1.5 hectares is for settlement. The rest is the "forbidden forest", rice fields and agricultural land. The Naga community lives off of farming and bamboo plaited handicraft revenue.
They live in traditional houses with shapes and colors conformed to local construction material. Not one single house uses material like tiles or bricks.
The black roof is made of ijuk (palm fiber). Bamboo plaited walls are part of the rumah panggung. The floors are made of planks or bamboo.
The houses are situated lengthwise from east to west with doors facing north to south in accordance with their cosmological concept. It is not allowed to paint walls or other parts of the house, instead chalk is used for making the houses uniformly white.
The Naga community refuses to use electric power.
The reason is a fear that the house may catch fire. On the other hand, they do not reject electronic products like TV and radio sets. Some ethnic Naga young men often even use colorful T- shirts and wear disheveled jeans with holes in the knee region. They dye their hair or let it grow long.
Although they are Muslims, they still practice traditions handed down by ancestors. Apart from hajat sasih they organize other custom ceremonies for weddings, harvests and circumcisions.
On Aug. 17, coinciding with Independence Day, they hold a marak (no food) ceremony. Formerly, the ceremony was preceded by the catching of fish in the Ciwulan river whereby one of the riversides was dammed.
The catch is carried in a procession accompanied by angklung (suspended bamboo tubes) music and handed over to the village administration and subdistrict office as proof of the adherence of the ethnic Naga community. Along the way the group happily dances to the rhythm of the angklung instruments.
It is regrettable that over these past few years the marak ceremony has been replaced by agricultural produce like bananas, various kinds of snacks and fish caught in ponds.