Having a baby the Malayan way

Title

Identifier

Customs die hard

Language

English

Source

Panorama Volume XIII (No.7) July 1961

Year

1961

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

Customs Die Hard Having a Kaby the Malayan Way <T he Malays have a tremen dous fondness for chil dren, and perhaps nothing emphasizes better the hold that their old-world customs have upon them than their common saying, “Biar mati anak, jangan mati adat” which means “Let the child die, but not the custom.” Among the strange customs are those pertaining to the pe riod of pregnancy and child birth, which is believed to be a time of increased activity of evil spirits, a time of great ha zard. From the time of con ception, an expectant Malay mother will thus take precau tions to avert imaginary dan gers to herself and her unborn child. The spirit most feared in connection with pregnancy is the “Pontianak,” supposedly the ghost of a stillborn child. The shape of this spirit is thought to be a vampire that claws into the belly and kills the woman and infant. Ano ther vampire is said to be the “Langsuyar/ a beautiful wo man whose long hair conceals an aperture in the back through which the internal organs may be seen. The “Langsuyar” is commonly held to be the spirit of a woman, sometimes unchaste, who died in childbirth. Not to be over looked is the “Penanggalan,” viewed as a human head with long entrails, a vampire that sucks the blood of the victim. When a woman dies in child birth, eggs will be placed un der her armpits and needles in her palms, in the supersti tious belief that she will not be able to fly and thus become a vampire. A Malay woman during pregnancy will wear an iron nail in her hair or carry a sharp instrument such as a knife or a pair of scissors, in the belief that these spirits of the dead will flee at the sight July 1961 59 of iron or sharp metal ob jects. Another repellent used is lime juice, which the mo ther-to-be applies to herself. Weather conditions, toge ther with lunar and solar ec lipses, are given considerable regard. A pregnant woman must not venture out in hot rain or yellow sunset, as these are times when spirits are supposed to become very ac tive. Various rituals are car ried out if there is an eclipse of the moon. In the State of Perak, during an eclipse of the moon, it is common for the woman to be taken into the kitchen and placed be neath a shelf where the do mestic utensils are kept. She will be given a Malay-made wooden rice spoon to hold and must remain there until the eclipse passes. The spoon is supposed to ward off the spirits. In the case of an ec lipse of the sun, the mother must bathe beneath the house in order that her child will not be born half black and half white. A father, too, takes certain precautions to safeguard his wife and unborn child. Dur ing the first three months of his wife’s pregnancy he takes special care in his treatment of birds and fish. According to the superstition, if he were to lame a bird or accidentally slit the mouth of a fish in re moving the hook, retaliation could result to his child by its being born lame or with a harelip. Homeward bound, a father-to-be would take a roundabout way, so as to lose any trailing spirit. When the time comes for the birth, the local pawang or wizard will select the place for the birth by dropping a sharp-pointed object and mar king the first place where it lands. There the birth must occur. At that point the bidan or midwife, who is given great respect in the community, takes over, and her word be comes law. The selected place of birth will be surrounded with thorns and thorny leaves and bitter herbs; the thorns to scare off the vampire who will be afraid to entangle her entrails thereon, the bitter herbs because they are unpa latable. Nets will be hung about the house because the complexity of them is bound to confuse the spirits. Palm leaves are plaited and dressed as dolls to divert the attention of the evil eye from the baby. Perforated coconuts will be hung in the doorway, in the belief that the multiplicity of entrances and exits will mis direct the spirits. Never to be forgotten is the placing of iron nails between the sheets or under the childbed. 60 Panorama Long labor is attributed to the wife’s sins against her husband and can include the act of adultery. It can be ea sily seen how such supersti tion can cast doubt on the good morals of a woman and bring suspicion and unhappi ness to the home. To protect the newborn in fant from spirits that are be lieved to cause disease, the midwife will take a mixture of betel juice, areca nut juice and oil in her mouth and spit on the baby. She will also give the child a name, which will be permanent only in the event that misfortune, such as illness, does not come upon it. In that case the child must be renamed to mislead the spirits. After the cord is cut, the child is washed in cold water and wrapped in a black cloth to ward off evil spirits. If a boy is born in a caul, a membrane sometimes enclo sing a child at birth, it is a good omen. Probably because it is reputed that one born in a caul can attain a hard ness of body which will make him impenetrable to weapons and, upon death, to decay. The caul is preserved and may be ceremonially disposed of. In royal births it is anoin ted with gold dust or cut ac ross a gold ring to symbolize power. If a boy resembles his fa ther, it is a cause of conster nation. Malays believe in re incarnation, and this resem blance is an indication that the vital spark is about to leave either the father or son. The child’s ear is immediate ly pierced to distinguish him from the father. Conversely, if a male cihld resembles his mother and a female the fa ther, it is considered a good omen. To determine the future prosperity of the child, it will be placed on a brass or tin tray on which are weighed an amount of rice,, seven cloths and an iron nail. Each day one cloth is removed, and on the last day the rice is weighed again. If there is an increase in weight, it is thought that the child will be prosperous. During the first weeks, the child is still considered to be in particular danger from the attacks of the spirits, so he will be spat on morning and evening and his bed will be smeared with sacrificial rice. These and many more cus toms are carried out by the Malays to carry them safely through the period around childbirth. The Malays make up about 40 percent of Malaya’s population; of the remainder, about 38 percent are Chinese and about 11 percent are In JULY 1961 61 dians. The Chinese have ab sorbed some of the supersti tious practices of the Malays and hold many in their own right. When a Chinese baby is one month old, he must be given a taste of whatever food is cooked in the home that day so that when he grows up he will have a strong sto mach and be able to take all kinds of foods. On that day, too, he must be taken out doors so that when he grows up be will not be afraid of the spirits. Another Chinese custom is to shave the head of a young child so that it will not gray prematurely. It is common for a Chinese baby to have one of its ears pier ced immediately after birth to protect it against evil spirits. The Indian, like her Ma lay sister, may wear a sharp nail in her hair to protect herself and her unborn child from evil spirits. In addition she may wear around her neck or waist containers en closing prayers or perhaps a bracelet of ginger on her wrist. Much importance is attach ed to the physical appear ance of the Indian babe. From his birth the head and nose bridge will be molded to give them good shape. Arms and legs will be stretch ed for good physique. Soot in castor oil is applied to the eyebrows to cause growth. A black or silver cord tied around the stomach is believ ed to protect the child from evil spirits and dangers, and it is not uncommon to see a little dark-brown body run ning about, clad only in a black cord about the tummy. The first hair of an Indian ba by is spoken of as “God’s hair” and must be cut only by a priest on a festival day Government spokesmen re peatedly urge the people to take advantage of the bene fits of modern medicine. Throughout this country are to be found many medical centers and hospitals where treatment of disease can be obtained. However, because of the many superstitious be liefs prevalent among these diverse peoples that sickness and death are the result of at tacks by spirits, many times modern medical treatment is rejected in favor of the bomohs or local medicine men who practice the magical arts. * ¥ * 62 Panorama

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