Pengangun: Female Ritual Specialists for Malay Weddings in Brunei Darussalam

Abstract

This chapter is an ethnographic account of the spiritual function of female wedding attendants and ritual experts (pengangun) in the Brunei-Muara district, Brunei Darussalam. It details and examines the important role of women in these wedding rituals. The discussion then further considers the ways in which their role has changed in contemporary Brunei and the everyday challenges they face.

1 Introduction

Pengangun is a Malay term that refers to wedding attendants with ritual spiritual knowledge who are women aged 40 years and above (Mohtar 1977). This chapter documents distinctions in the spiritual knowledge of pengangun, their significance, and the ways in which their role has changed in contemporary Brunei Darussalam. It then goes on to consider the everyday challenges they face in remaining relevant for Bruneian wedding ceremonies.

Brunei is known for its national Malay Islamic monarchy (Melayu Islam Beraja) ideology that permeates the culture and traditions of the country (Shukri 1998; Schelander 1998; Mansurnoor 2009). The contemporary practice of many pengangun now incorporates Qur’anic verses in an attempt to remain a relevant part of Bruneian tradition (Osman 2001; Mansurnoor 2009). In 2009 a course was introduced at the prayer house (balai ibadat) in Kampong Sengkarai, Tutong, specifically for pengangun.¹ Its aim was to educate pengangun by teaching them the proper way to carry out their role according to Islam using Qur’anic verses. Significantly, the use of mantra is discouraged when conducting the wedding rituals as they are deemed to run contrary to Islamic teachings. In Brunei, pengangun also consider themselves as less in demand during weddings now than they previously had been due to the changing attitudes of the younger generation (Ramlee 2009). Young people tend to view their services as being against Islamic teachings and largely part of Brunei Malay customary law (adat). In fact, a central role of pengangun is to give a glow or light (cahaya) to the bride during her wedding, but the ready availability of hairdressers and make-up artists has further reduced the importance of pengangun in this regard. Pengangun also face difficulties in transferring their knowledge to the next generation due to a perception of their ‘backward’ cultural practice and an apprehension over so-called ‘black magic’ and its consequences. Pengangun rituals such as dabbing seven coloured powders on the bride (malam berbedak), the henna ceremony (berinai/berpacar) and taking the bride to her husband’s house and vice versa (berambil-ambilan or mulih tiga atau tujuh hari) are now less common than hitherto.

2 Methodology

This study is based on interviews with six pengangun and participant observation of the services conducted by them at wedding ceremonies. Fieldwork was carried out in Brunei-Muara district, and the study informants were pengangun who were in their mid-forties to 80 years old. Some acquired knowledge (ilmu) from their grandmothers or mothers while others are pengangun without legitimate spiritual power (tidak mempunyai ilmu kebatinan). For the purposes of the chapter, a pengangun without legitimate spiritual power is someone who acquired knowledge through studying and observing pengangun services as opposed to a ‘legitimate’ pengangun who derives knowledge from the matriline or through dreams (mimpi). Studying these two groups is a way to discern changes in the roles of pengangun over time and the emergence of a new generation of wedding attendants. In some cases, pseudonyms are used to protect the informants’ identities.

3 Distinctions and Legitimacy

The pengangun in Brunei can be differentiated into two categories, broadly the ‘traditional’ and the ‘modern’. The following sections discuss the traditional pengangun and then compares them with the modern in order to highlight aspects of continuity and change in their role, thereby better understanding the emergence of a new generation of wedding attendants.

As noted, the term traditional in this context refers to pengangun I view as having credibility in assisting marriage ceremonies and displaying what could be termed ‘genuine’ characteristics, one of which is that pengangun are gendered and restricted to females. (The characteristics apply to both traditional and modern pengangun.) There is a belief among Bruneians that only women are suitable to guide the bride and groom in marriage. In a certain sense it is a cultural form of empowerment of women through ritual activities in a predominantly patriarchal society. Wedding rituals afford societal status with a high level of respect accorded to pengangun during wedding ceremonies. This reflects a tendency Susan Starr Sered (1994: 3–6, 11–12) identifies of women in cultures where male domination in religion is apparent. They ‘“domesticate” religion by emphasizing rituals and symbols that give spiritual meaning to their everyday lives’ (ibid.: 6; see also Puntowati 1992; Smith 2009). As Rozy Susilawati (2001: 31) notes, the pengangun is an important figure in wedding ceremonies and without their presence the ceremonies would be incomplete.

Another important feature of a pengangun is knowledge transfer through the female line. Ritual or magical knowledge and spells (jampi) and techniques regarding dressing the bride are taught either by a mother to her daughters or a grandmother to her granddaughters. This was confirmed in my interactions with some of the traditional pengangun. The matrilineal feature of transference confers an embodied familial reliability and authenticity to the acquisition of knowledge and spells. Some pengangun even refuse to share their spells with strangers. In this sense, the transfer of spells could be considered a form of embodied cultural capital, the value of which is reproduced for future generations. Legitimate pengangun with knowledge are known to reside or originate from Kampong Ayer, the water village historically associated with Bruneian customs and traditions. However, given the changing demographics of Kampong Ayer, there are also traditional pengangun who reside on land. They offer their services in the village communities to protect and give light to the bride or groom.

By contrast, pengangun without legitimate spiritual power are viewed as less knowledgeable, having acquired their knowledge only by observing other pengangun. They also lack credibility when they ask for payment for their services as a legitimate pengangun does not ask for payment. For the latter, the exchange rests upon the bride’s or groom’s mother voluntarily giving alms (sedekah) if they wish to. Having said this, there is also a category of pengangun who do possess legitimate spiritual power but also commercialise their skills. Nonetheless, it is those pengangun who do not possess legitimate spiritual power and seek monetary compensation who are increasing in number today.

Much of the legitimacy of a pengangun is linked to an acknowledgement from their village community that they possess spiritual knowledge (orang yang berilmu) through their ability to give a glow or light and protect those getting married from black magic (sihir). Although there are no monetary fees charged for their services, a gold ring is given by the mother of the bride or groom as evidence (pikaras) in the afterlife that the pengangun has protected the individual. Aside from a ring, the bride’s or groom’s mother presents four yards of white silk to the pengangun in exchange for a cloth used during the first night of the marriage to identify the virginity of the bride (kain lapik pinang, literally ‘betel nut cloth’).

The services offered by pengangun are not only restricted to the bride; the groom must also have a pengangun. This is because the role of a mother, which is to protect and educate her child about marriage, is replaced by a pengangun. Hence, this is the moment when the mother hands over her daughter or son to the pengangun with trust in her child’s life protection. Further, the bride and groom must have a separate pengangun throughout the ceremonial process because it would be difficult for one pengangun to attend to and look after two persons at the same time. Some pengangun also have the skills of a circumciser (penyunat), diener or mortuary assistant (pengapai) and traditional midwife (pengulin).

A credible pengangun acquires her knowledge not only from her ancestors but also through dreams (mimpi). Although there is outsider scepticism towards such claims, dream knowledge is contextually regarded as a special gift and marks an individual as spiritual. One informant, Minah, claimed that a few months after her mother passed away when she was 17 years old, a woman came into her dreams and said ‘Do not forget me’ (Ingat-ingat kau kan kediaku) and shook her hand. Minah did not believe the woman was her mother but rather a spirit. Since then, the spirit has been helping her during ritual activities such as curing illnesses and protecting the groom from black magic. The spirit comes by itself when she conducts a ritual. Interestingly, she has been a pengangun since 1995 and did not acquire her knowledge from anyone else. Although her ancestors were pengangun, their knowledge was not transferred to Minah and her sister, Hajah Rosnah, who is also a pengangun. Despite Minah being reluctant to claim herself as a pengangun, the villagers acknowledge her spiritual credibility. The spirit tells her what spells to use, but when asked to decipher the spells she could not because the spirit only appears when she performs a ritual. Minah made the point that learning spells from another person differs from learning them from a spirit; significantly, her spells are shorter than those learned through person-to-person communication.

According to Minah, the spirit ‘informs’ her by giving her a signal. She reported feeling a tic or intuition in her heart when this happens. For instance, if asked to be a pengangun during a wedding, she requires a few days to decide. When the spirit ‘tells’ her that she can, she agrees and throughout the ritual the spirit then helps Minah by providing her with spells. She added that when the spirit helps her, all sorts of spells may arise and she is always astonished when it happens.

Another informant, Hajah Ainah, is a more traditional pengangun compared to Minah. Interestingly, although her mother was a pengangun, she acquired her knowledge from a tutor teaching how to read the Qur’an (cikgu mengaji). Her tutor had learned the ways of a pengangun from a shaman (dukun). Hajah Ainah has been a pengangun for 22 years and during this time she related that she had come across incidents caused by black magic. One of them was when there were hundreds of flies in the bride’s room and she had to utter a few spells to disperse them. In Malay folklore, flies are associated with being a servant (suruhan) of a sorcerer who does harm to people. The bride’s family also saw a tall black figure in their house throughout the wedding ceremony. The bride’s mother believed it was the doing of her daughter’s ex-fiancé. In such circumstances, a pengangun with powerful knowledge is viewed as being able to prevent unwanted incidents and most importantly to protect the bride from harm or evildoers.

As noted earlier, the age and appearance of a pengangun also has significant bearing on their perceived genuineness. According to one informant, Haji Bakar, a pengangun must be a woman who has gone through the phase of married life, someone who has aged (berumur) and become well versed with spells for both the married couples and herself (tau bacaan-bacaan untuk pengantin dan dirinya). Another informant from Kampong Sengkurong confirmed these remarks. They are often regarded as a mother (indung) who guides a bride, especially about the proper way of serving her husband. Mothers, as Sered (1994: 77) notes, ‘understand love, relationship, and spirituality in ways that men do not’. The nurturing and affectionate qualities of women, in particular mothers, are relatable to pengangun. Sered (ibid.: 72) further highlights the ways motherhood gives women power and, in some cultures, it ‘is believed to bestow upon women deep spiritual insights’. Pengangun teach the bride methods of purifying herself when taking a bath with whiteflower-infused water (mandi langir), beautifying herself to look good in her husband’s eyes, and, most importantly, spells for sexual intercourse to pleasure her husband.

Gaining access to pengangun with spiritual knowledge is not straightforward because many of them have passed away and often the knowledge is not transferred. According to several informants, they found it difficult to teach their knowledge of spells to their children because the young generation are not keen to learn them since these traditional practices are not seen as useful. Furthermore, the use of spells is viewed as not conforming with Islamic religious practices primarily because most spells used by the elderly invoke spirits for help and such a practice is seen as superstitious (khurafat). The younger generation tend to dismiss the power of the spells and prefer to rely on conventional Western medicine. However, several informants stated that spells were important in their daily life because they protected them from black magic and bad spirits (orang halus) in the past when medical facilities were not available. As Hajah Silmi explained:

It is difficult to teach the spells that I have learned to the younger generation today; I would not force them to learn if they refused. Spells are useful for us, and it was my grandmother who taught me.

The pengangun defined here as traditional and legitimate perform roles willingly, but the modern pengangun are different. A major difference between pengangun in the past and today is the request for payment. A genuine pengangun conducts her role on the basis of free will and sincerity (ikhlas) and there is no payment in return because her role is to accompany and protect the bride from harm. As noted, a traditional pengangun asks for a symbolic object as proof in the afterlife that she had taken care of the bride or groom. The bride’s mother gives a gold ring and she has the right to set the weight of the gold. This is related to almsgiving, a cultural and religious practice that is done willingly with money or objects used during such occasions. While a traditional pengangun may sometimes receive money from the bride’s or groom’s mother, it is done voluntarily and to convey appreciation for taking care of her child, and the amount can vary.

Hajah Ainah viewed monetary exchange for helping the bride as inappropriate as the pengangun’s role in society is to accompany and look after the bride and groom. Other pengangun (Minah, Hajah Jamilah, Rokiah, Hajah Arfah and Hajah Siau) held similar views. Several emphasised the significance of the gold ring. According to Hajah Jamilah, a gold ring and a piece of cloth are required from the bride’s family. The gold ring is for the present world (dunia) and the hereafter (akhirat) as proof of service. Similarly, Minah contended that only a true pengangun asks for a gold ring and white cloth to be used in the hereafter.

Traditionally, a pengangun starts her work two weeks before the wedding ceremony, with her role ending after the ceremony during which the couple move to the bride’s home and stay there for three days and then to the groom’s home for another three days (mulih tiga hari). The start marks the period of strict supervision by the pengangun when the bride and groom are required to obey her rules. In the past, there were precautionary steps that the bride and her family took. Necessities such as the bride’s food and attire were prepared exclusively by the pengangun. Moreover, it was important to ask the pengangun’s permission when entering the bride’s bedroom as a means to prevent the maltreatment of the pengangun, the bride or her family (Kipli 2004: 16).

According to Hajah Ainah, weddings require constant supervision, especially for the bride:

There are different kinds of taboos during weddings and the bride is the most important individual to be looked after … her blood is considered ‘sweet’ [darah manis], thus she is not allowed to step out of the house … as a precaution against bad spirits.

Brides are regarded as being more prone to black magic and disturbance from evil spirits. For instance, Minah noted, ‘It is only the bride’s body that needs to be protected’. If the bride’s spirit (semangat) is weak, she will be targeted by evil spirits. According to Hajah Silmi, she came across an incident during which a bride who had been disturbed by evil spirits had suffered from fever and tonsillitis for two weeks. The bride was advised by her pengangun not to leave the house until the wedding ceremonies ended. It is during dusk that evil spirits are presumed to start roaming.

Pengangun also serve noble families in Brunei. Hajah Ainah is an eminent pengangun among the royalty and attends circumcision rites in the palace because of her specialism in that area as well as performing the pengangun role.

Informants could not elaborate when posed with questions such as ‘to whom do you need to prove yourself?’ and ‘is the afterlife as in heaven?’ because they reproduce the customs without understanding their function. The cultural practices have become ‘routine patterns of behaviour’ and the pengangun are ‘withdrawn from consciousness’ (Elliot 2009: 146). Most often, they gave similar responses to queries about the reason for doing certain things they could not explain—it is a custom and their ancestors have done it. The traditional pengangun do differ slightly from the pengangun in the past. The latter were experts in their role because they knew the reason for using certain words and objects. The pengangun in this study are more orthopraxic—grounded in correct conduct as opposed to faith—because the significance of objects and words incorporated in the spells are less well known. They are inclined to reproduce the customs without understanding much of their previous function. However, although some practices have become routine patterns of behaviour, believing in the spells is viewed as vitally important for the informants highlighted this chapter. As Hajah Arfah stated: ‘As long as we trust the spells’ (Asalkan kitani yakin dengan bacaan atu).

4 Islamised Pengangun

Previous scholarly work on pengangun in Brunei has often overlooked another category of pengangun that has gradually assumed the role of traditional pengangun. They fall under what could be termed ‘Islamised’ pengangun and differ markedly from the traditional pengangun in terms of how they reproduce the various marriage rituals.² Throughout the fieldwork, I encountered more Islamised pengangun than traditional ones. Some do not refer to the spells as ‘jampi’ anymore, and instead they use the simple term ‘bacaan’. It was suggested that this change was due to the negative connotations attaching to the word jampi and its association with shamans and sorcerers.

Significantly, the new type of pengangun differs from the traditional pengangun in terms of how knowledge is acquired. Although some of the Islamised informants’ mothers or grandmothers were pengangun, their knowledge was not derived directly from their matriline. Hajah Siau, Hajah Arfah and Hajah Hasma stated that they did not have any interest in becoming pengangun initially and had not seen the importance in learning the knowledge from their mothers or grandmothers. However, as they grew older they began to observe other pengangun and started to learn how to assist and beautify brides. As Hajah Hasma noted:

If you are serious about being a pengangun, you need to learn the spells. Without the spells, the groom will not have a glow. To get the spells from a pengangun, you need to provide a gift in return.

Hajah Arfah had been a pengangun for 19 years and gained her knowledge from assisting other pengangun. Although she was familiar with spells, she preferred not to use them when conducting the rituals because they are seen as deviating from Islam. However, according to Hajah Arfah, ‘Spells that are useful and are not against the Islamic teachings, we can use them’. Hajah Arfah also acquired spells by keeping those that were given to her by her pengangun during her own wedding. When assisting the bride, she still uses some of the spells received from her pengangun and passes them on. She added that it is up to the wedding couple if they want to use the spells.

Two of the informants, Hajah Arfah and Rokiah, noted they have encountered many brides who now prefer a pengangun who uses Islamic verses instead of the non-Islamic spells. In the past, there was no preference in choosing a pengangun and the bride simply followed the pengangun’s instructions. Today, couples are more independent in terms of expressing their opinion and prefer an Islamic pengangun over the traditional ones who use the old spells. During interviews, Islamised pengangun also indicated an openness in sharing spells that are not against Islamic teachings. One reason for this could be that using Islamised spells is seen as proper and not held up to scrutiny by the public and authorities.

Another informant, Hajah Siau, became a pengangun in 1996 after her husband died and learned the role by observing other pengangun. She is an example of an Islamised pengangun. For Hajah Siau, ‘It is better to use the Islamic verses than the old spells’. She indicated that she regards old spells as inappropriate for use today because they are against Islamic teachings. To replace the old spells, she had been using verses from the Qur’an such as Surah Empat Qul, Ayat Al-Kursi and most importantly the invocation to the Prophet Muhammad (selawat ke atas Nabi Muhammad). The preference for Islamic spells is common among the modern pengangun. According to one informant, Siti, ‘It is not proper to use the old spells because they can interfere with our Islamic belief and teachings that cause us to be superstitious’. For Hajah Hasma, ‘It is not appropriate to use the old spells to avoid unlawful heresy’ and ‘I am afraid to use the old spells, thus I prefer to use verses from the Qur’an’.³

However, instead of abandoning entirely non-Islamic spells, most Islamised informants continue to use the spells by incorporating Allah and the names of prophets as well as verses from the Qur’an in an effort to make them more publicly acceptable. An anonymous informant indicated that if she was suspected of using old spells, she would use Islamic spells as follows:

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim, Ibuku bumi bapaku langit

Mandi roh mandi jasad, Mandiku di dalam kandang kandil Siti Fatimah

Tebunikan tilamku, Urikan kainku, Tangkai pusat kan tungkatku

Allahu Allah

Mandi roh, Mandi kalam, Mandiku bersuci di dalam kandang Siti Fatimah

Allahu Allah

In the name of God, the merciful and compassionate, My mother is the earth and

my father is the sky

Cleansing the body and soul, I am showering inside Siti Fatimah’s protection

Placenta as my bed, amniotic water as my blanket, my bellybutton as my staff

I praise you Allah

Cleansing the soul and Allah’s realm, I am showering inside Siti Fatimah’s

protection

I praise you Allah

This is an example of a shower spell (mantera mandi) used by both modern and traditional pengangun to give an everlasting glow or radiance to the groom. This is used only when showering the groom and the spell is cast over a bucket of water.⁴

The most common verse that is used among the Islamised pengangun is Surah Yusuf. Pious Islamic scholars (ustaz and ustazah) in Brunei encourage this verse because it is written in the Qur’an that Prophet Yusuf had a good-looking face. According to Hajah Rubayah, who had attended a course for pengangun, they were taught to abandon the old spells and replace them with verses from the Qur’an. Although there are a few spells that are acceptable, the pengangun must accept that they are not responsible for the spell’s effectiveness since that power resides with Allah. In other words, everything that the pengangun does is based on Allah’s will.

Most of the spells used by the pengangun involve the use of Prophet Muhammad’s wife’s name, Siti Aisha, and the Prophet’s daughter, Siti Fatimah, whose name is widely used in spells. Both traditional and Islamised informants share a similar belief in Siti Fatimah, as representative of the divine feminine, and according to them by using her name the bride will be blessed and appear different (beyond beautiful) from her usual face.

As mentioned earlier, genuine pengangun do not ask for payment for the services they provide but there has been a gradual change towards commercialisation of the role especially among modern pengangun. One informant requested BND250 for her services and her reason for doing so was because she drives her own car and provides all of the materials used during the rituals. In addition, she asks for extra money, usually BND30, if the groom’s house is in Kuala Belait or Temburong district and too far from her own house. According to Munah and Hajah Jalihah who were married in 1991 and 1995 respectively, their pengangun provided all the necessities for conducting rituals—gambier (bunga gambir), wood of the whiteflower albizia (langir), Key lime (limau nipis), rice powder scrub (baras lulut in Brunei Malay, beras lulur in standard Malay) and henna (inai/pacar)—and their families were not allowed to touch any of the materials.

Hajah Jamilah, a legitimate pengangun, noted that her mother’s sister with whom she trained forbade anyone, including the groom’s family, to touch or prepare the ingredients for ritual activities. She recalled one incident when her aunt refused to be a pengangun for a bride just because her mother had prepared aromatic powder, seven coloured powders and henna. Hajah Jamilah added that the reason behind this is to prevent black magic items being added surreptitiously and mixed into the materials that are used for the rituals. From her experience, these culprits can be anyone, including close family members, and so it is better to err on the side of caution. For instance, Hajah Ainah (a modern pengangun) shared her experience of a bride who had been haunted with bad spirits at night. The bride heard sounds of a woman crying outside her window, dogs barking along with howling and scratching sounds on the walls. According to Hajah Ainah, this was the work of black magic to make the bride go insane. Unfortunately, the pengangun could not stop the disturbances and had to call an Islamic scholar to prevent harm to the bride. A traditional pengangun would know the proper rituals and spells to get rid of the spirits, and in the past an Islamic scholar was not widely used to ‘help’ the pengangun.

5 Wedding Rituals

As noted, the pengangun is the key figure in wedding ceremonies and their presence helps to complete the festivities. The following section details particular examples of wedding rituals gathered during fieldwork. As Edmund Leach (1968) argues, ritual is primarily a medium of communication. In this vein, wedding rituals not only present Malay customs but spells also act as a medium to communicate with unseen realms or the divine. Pengangun are present for up to a month before the wedding starts. According to Kipli Bulat (2004: 13–16), pengangun are important when it comes to wedding festivities as someone with spiritual power is needed to protect against unwanted events. As Hajah Ainah noted, ‘Unwanted things happen and the wedding couple must be protected before the wedding’. The pengangun featured in this study performed services one week before the wedding festivities. They began with the ceremony of the night vigil (istiadat malam berjaga-jaga) and followed with a blessing of the soon-to-be bride and groom and cleansing of the whole body (berbedak siang/mandi). This ceremony takes place a week before the actual wedding ceremony (bersanding), and the highlight of the cleansing ceremony is the dabbing of aromatic powder (bedak lulut) that has been diluted with water. As Hajah Ainah detailed, the aromatic powder consists of various ingredients that have been dried and blended including: rose (bunga mawar), gambier, aromatic ginger (caker/cekur), yellow turmeric (tamu lawak), Chinese ginger (tamu kunci), curcuma (tamu kuning), white turmeric (tamu putih), ginger (banglai), patchouli (daun nilam) and sandalwood (kayu cendana). She noted that many of today’s pengangun lack the knowledge and ability to make the aromatic powder. Both Hajah Ainah and Hajah Jamilah were taught how to make the aromatic powder by their mothers, but it requires much effort and even traditional informants prefer to buy the ingredients at Kianggeh market. This blessing ceremony usually takes place on a Friday morning when the bride or groom are seated on a cushion. Close family members are then invited to dab the aromatic powder onto the bride’s or groom’s palms (Fig. 9.1).

Fig. 9.1

Source Courtesy of the author

The bride’s grandmother dabbing wet aromatic powder (bedak lulut) during the ceremony of cleansing of the whole body (berbedak siang/mandi).

According to Hajah Ainah, in the past this ceremony was strictly for married elders who had grandchildren. It is believed that a blessing from the elders is crucial for happiness. Today this custom has changed with young families lacking the knowledge of how to apply the aromatic powder correctly. The ring finger must be used to dab the powder (membadaki) because there is an aura from the finger that can awaken the inner glow (bangkit cahaya) of the wedded couple.

When it comes to the groom, Hajah Jamilah stated that she uses a spell for the glow of Allah (jampi cahaya Allah) before she proceeds to the wedding stage (pelaminan) and the spell is believed to bring out the inner glow.

Cahaya Muhammad namanya Nur cahaya

Cahaya Allah kan cahayamu

Cahaya Muhammad kan cahayamu

Berkat memakai lailahaillah, Berkat memakai bangkit cahaya dari Allah

Muhammad’s radiance is called Allah’s radiance

Your radiance is from Allah’s radiance

Your radiance is from Muhammad’s radiance

There is no god but Allah (thank you), the rise of radiance from Allah (thank you)

Following the blessing of the bride and groom ceremony, a ritual takes place during which the pengangun scrubs the bride’s body (lulut) from head to toe using the aromatic powder followed by Siamese rice powder (pirasang) (Figs. 9.2 and 9.3). The purpose of this ritual is to cleanse the body from dirt, and remove dead skin so that the body smells good (badan sentiasa berbau harum).

Fig. 9.2

Source Courtesy of the author

The bride scrubbed with aromatic powder (bedak lulut) and Siamese rice powder (pirasang); at the end of the ritual, the pengangun collects the scrubbed remains to be kept until the wedding reception (bersanding).

Fig. 9.3

Source Courtesy of the author

Materials such as candles, Key lime (limau nipis), whiteflower albizia (langir), gambier (bunga gambir) and a shawl for the ceremony of cleansing of the whole body (berbedak siang/mandi).

It is crucial for the residue of the scrub to be kept by the pengangun and during the wedding reception the groom’s pengangun hands this to the bride’s pengangun. The bride’s and groom’s residue is mixed together and, according to informants, it is believed that uniting these elements ensures the couple’s everlasting happiness. Once the residue is mixed, it must be buried or dispersed into rivers to prevent harm from black magic.

After the scrubbing ritual, the pengangun conducts a showering ritual to bring out the bride’s inner glow. This ritual is called the whiteflower bath (mandi langir) and it takes place in the morning of the solemnisation day and the actual wedding reception. In the past, the bride or groom would be seated facing the sunrise, i.e. east (matahari hidup). However, this act has changed because Muslims should not turn their back on the direction towards the Kaaba in the Great Mosque in Mecca (kiblat) as it is considered a sin. Significantly, the informants of this study have changed their style of showering the groom by facing the kiblat.

At first, the bride or groom is seated at the centre and five or seven children stand in a circle surrounding the bride or groom. Odd numbers are common in ritual activities as they are believed to have a greater effect than using even numbers. The children hold lighted candles and each of them wears a different coloured shawl (selendang) on their right shoulder. The candle is a symbol that helps to bring out the inner glow or radiance and some informants believe that the light from the candles is transferred to the bride or groom.

The bride and groom are then showered at the top of their heads with water containing whiteflower albizia (mandi langir, Fig. 9.4). According to informants, the holy spirit (roh suci) from within will emerge from the forehead. It is important for the whiteflower to produce bubbles and villagers believe that only a spiritual pengangun can achieve this because there is a specific spell for it. One informant, Minah, said the whiteflower is the pengangun’s saliva, its leaves are the pengangun’s ears and its roots are from the blood vessels of the pengangun’s heart (akar jantung). The right and left shoulders are showered next and this is where Allah is believed to bless the individual. Afterwards, water infused with squeezed limes is poured over the body.

Fig. 9.4

Source Courtesy of the author

The bride being showered with water mixed with whiteflower albizia (mandi langir); note the bubbles.

Finally, a container of water is then mixed with seven different kinds of flowers and gambier in order to produce a good aroma and this is then poured from the forehead to the toes (Fig. 9.5). The lighted candles are then given to the pengangun and the bride extinguishes them with water from her mouth (Fig. 9.6). Once the candles have been extinguished, they are then dabbed onto the right and left shoulders and then the chest as this ritual is believed to make the groom physically strong.

Fig. 9.5

Source Courtesy of the author

The bride being showered with water containing gambier to provide a good aroma.

Fig. 9.6

Source Courtesy of the author

The bride blowing out the lighted candles with water from her mouth.

There are different kinds of spells associated with ritual bathing (mandi) that Hajah Ainah used when showering the groom:

Eh Nur Alifah! Nur suci nama nyawaku

Bersikor sani nama tulangku

Aku mandi di dalam kandang kalimah Allah

Allah kan cahayaku, Muhammad kan wujudku

Lailahaillah Muhammadurrasulullah

Excuse me, the radiance of Allah!

Allah’s holy radiance is my soul’s name

I am showering inside the name of Allah

Allah is my radiance, Muhammad is my existence

There is no god but Allah. Muhammad is the messenger of God

Kandang kandil

Bandang kalimah

Cahayamu di dalam kandang Allah

Yang maha suci

Tikar putih akan … permaidani akan lapikmu

Kau di dalam kandang Allah

Maha suci Ya Allah, Lailahaillah Muhammadurrasulullah

The fence of five holy evenings in the Muslim calendar⁵

Allah’s radiance

Your inner glow is from Allah’s radiance

The holy divine

White mat as your … the carpet as your pedestal

You are inside the protection of Allah

Allah the holy divine

There is no god but Allah. Muhammad is the messenger of God

Another example of spells used by Siti when showering the bride is as follows:

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim

Ujud mandi Adam mandi Nur

Mandi cahaya aku menyalam di lautan rahmat

Aku timbul di lautan cahaya

Wujud Allah akan wujudku

Kudarat Allah kan kudaratku

Berkat ku memakai dua kata wujud daripada Allah

Wa’ashaduallah Allah Wa’Ashadu Anna Muhammadarusulullah

In the name of God, the merciful and compassionate

I am showering using Adam’s radiance

I am diving inside the grace sea to get radiance

I arise from the radiance sea

Allah exists and I exist

Allah’s power is my power

I am using the two word that exist from Allah (thank you)

I bear witness that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah and I bear witness that

Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah

This spell illustrates the incorporation of words such as Allah, Adam and Qur’anic verses.

After the showering ritual, a pengangun conducts a herbal steam bath ritual (bertangas) for the bride. It uses a brassware filled with benzoin resin (kemenyan) and dried longevity spinach (daun sambung) and turn-in-the-wind (daun balik angin) leaves, and alum powder (tawas) that have been cast with spells. The bride is surrounded with a mat and covered with cloth from her neck to toes. The brassware is then placed at the centre while the bride stands with her legs open to allow the smoke to enter her vagina. This ritual is to ensure the bride’s vagina remains intact for sexual pleasure. According to H.H. Zaleha (2004: 50), several special twig stems and leaves are boiled and the water is given to the bride to be consumed. Some older people believe that drinking the water can create everlasting pleasure for the wedded couple.

According to Hajah Ainah and Hajah Siau, such a ritual is rarely practised today as most brides regard it as being against Islamic teachings. It is believed that the benzoin resin smoke invites the devil and its use is often associated with shamans. Moreover, the pengangun course conducted in Tutong emphasised that the herbal steam bath ritual is forbidden and must not be practised as it violates Islamic teachings. However, there are other pengangun who continue to offer the ritual if the bride agrees to it.

Next, the solemnisation ceremony (akad nikah) is the occasion when the pengangun must be seated beside the bride at all times. One informant recounted how she had come across brides who burst into tears and grooms who could not pronounce ‘I promise and accept her to be my wedded wife for a certain amount of dowry’ (Aku terima nikahnya dengan … tunai). To overcome such a situation, Hajah Ainah casts a spell over a glass of water and asks the bride to drink. The spell is as follows:

Kunung kanang, daun dadap tumbuh di batu

Walaupun ku mundur bumi peperangan

Namun hatiku tetap seperti batu

Batu yang di tetapkan Allah

Berkatku memakai dua penantap

Lailahaillah Muhammadarusulullah

Range of mountains, tiger’s claw leaves grow on a rock

Even though I retreat in war

My heart remains firm as a rock

Rock that is created by Allah

I am using the two kinds of rigid word

There is no god but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah (thank you)

The subsequent night of applying coloured powders (malam berbedak) ceremony usually takes place on Saturday night and this ceremony differs slightly from the cleansing ceremony in terms of the materials used for dabbing the wet powder. Seven coloured powders (red, orange, green, yellow, white, blue and purple) are used during the ceremony (Fig. 9.7). Hajah Ainah noted that individuals with spiritual knowledge of the ceremony only use white, green and yellow powders; white symbolises purity, green symbolises Islam, while yellow is the colour of Bruneian nobility.

Fig. 9.7

Source Courtesy of the author

Seven coloured powders used during the applying coloured powders (malam berbedak) ceremony; water is provided to clean the fingers.

During this ceremony, the pengangun stands beside the bride while uttering a few spells to shield her from black magic. Several informants indicated that the bride, groom and the pengangun herself are prone to be tested by other spiritualists using black magic. They added that the moment when people start dabbing the coloured powder is when a sorcerer is ‘sending’ something to make the bride sick, unhappy and so on. According to Minah, most of the time a pengangun is the culprit and it occurs through shaking hands. Hajah Hasma recounted that she felt strong heat behind her back when she was on the wedding stage with the bride and for her it is important to equip oneself with mystical protective knowledge (ilmu pendinding) during the application of the powders ceremony (malam berbedak). In the past, this ceremony was conducted by the bride’s family and the groom’s family were invited to dab the coloured powders (Fig. 9.8). The very next day, similar practices were repeated by the groom’s family at his house. According to informants, most believed that black magic is usually done by the opposite side of the family and the other pengangun to test the extent of their spiritual power.

Fig. 9.8

Source Courtesy of the author

The bride’s mother applying coloured powder during the malam berbedak ceremony.

Following the ceremony, another important ritual that signals the entrance of the spiritual/ritual experts (adat masuk pengangunan) takes place and this marks the start of the bride or groom being grounded by the pengangun. The groom dresses up in a white garment adorned with traditional Malay accessories. The groom lays his hands over the pengangun’s shoulders (Fig. 9.9). The groom and the pengangun make three rounds around the bridal bed. During each round, the pengangun utters spells or verses from the Qur’an with the purpose of creating an unseen barrier around the area (guris) to prevent the groom from being disturbed by the devil, spirits (jinn) and black magic. Typically, an amulet is used and placed at the bridal bed. The bridal bed must also be supervised to prevent people from sitting on it.

Fig. 9.9

Source Courtesy of the author

The groom lays his hands on the shoulders of the pengangun during the masuk pengangunan ceremony.

In the last round, the pengangun gives greetings (Assalamualaikum) to the bride’s mother and she responds appropriately and invites her child to sit on the bed with her. One person will hold a lighted candle behind the bride, and the grandmother, father and mother of the wedded couple sit on the bridal bed holding a lit candle (Fig. 9.10).

Fig. 9.10

Source Courtesy of the author

The groom sits with his family after being invited by his mother, while the pengangun reads a prayer to bless the groom.

People involved in the ritual sit together on the bridal bed and the pengangun asks Allah’s help to bless and protect the bride throughout the wedding ceremonies. In addition, a spell is recited, as narrated by Hajah Siau:

Bukan salam sebarang salam,

Salam empat penjuru alamku,

Bukan kata sebarang kataku katakan,

Kata-kata Allah dan Rasulullahku,

Ku berlindung di dalam kandang,

Ku bersembunyi di tiang,

Ku tidur di pasak bumi,

Ku berdiri di kaki langit,

Tiada siapa yang memandang dan terpandang,

kecuali Allah hu Allah

Lailahaillallah … Muhammadarrasulullah

This is not an ordinary greeting,

Greetings to the four corners of my realm

This is not an ordinary saying,

It is the words of Allah and Prophet Muhammad

I am protecting myself within a fence

I am hiding inside/behind a post/column

I am sleeping in the core of the earth

I am standing at the top of the sky

No one is able to see except Allah the Almighty

There is no god but Allah. Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah

Following this is the berinai or berpacar ceremony that involves applying henna on the palms, fingers, feet and toes of the groom (Fig. 9.11). The henna is made from a plant that has been crushed and mixed with tea and the fruit of kundong (asam aur-aur). According to Minah, she came across an incident when a bride felt a burning sensation from the henna that was put onto her palm. As such, henna is often kept safe by the pengangun from others so that no one will cast a spell on it.

Fig. 9.11

Source Courtesy of the author

The groom waiting for henna to dry during the berinai/berpacar ceremony.

Hajah Ainah said that the circular shape on the groom’s palm symbolises the full moon while the oval shape on the bride’s palm symbolises a crab that is waiting for its eggs to hatch. For Malays, these are signs of fertility. In the past, the pengangun prepared the henna that had been subjected to a spell to give an orange colour when applied to the groom’s palm.

The long-awaited day is the wedding reception (bersanding). The pengangun conducts the scrubbing of the body (berlulut) and bathing the body ritual before the bride is dressed. Once dressed, Hajah Ainah advises the bride to consume a small amount of salt using the ring finger, as salt is believed to prevent the bride from evil disturbances. Finally, the pengangun conducts a concluding ritual for the bride called pengarusan with the use of three candles and seven coloured threads. The candles are lit while the threads are circled around the bride’s head three times and tied to her neck (Fig. 9.12). Once tied, they are then fused with the candle wax and the bride is asked to blow out the candles (Figs. 9.13 and 9.14).The ritual is significant to ensure that the bride will be protected before departing to the wedding stage and if it takes several attempts to extinguish the candles then it is a sign that the marriage will not last forever.

Fig. 9.12

Source Courtesy of the author

Pengangun fusing seven coloured threads together around the bride’s neck for the pengarusan ritual.

Fig. 9.13

Source Courtesy of the author

The bride being asked to blow out the candles that have been fused with the seven coloured threads.

Fig. 9.14

Source Courtesy of the author

The pengarusan ritual ends with the bride blowing out the lighted candles.

In addition, the groom is escorted by the pengangun and upon arrival at the bride’s house a spiritual man (orang pandai) guides the groom and conducts the three circles of a dragon (pusing naga) ritual (see also Chapter 2).⁶ The groom walks three circles and a prayer or spell is read by the spiritual man. Generally, yellow coloured rice grains are then sprinkled on the groom to signify prosperity and long life.⁷ The groom then annuls the bride’s ablution by placing his hand on the right and left shoulders of the bride and kisses her forehead. The ceremony ends with the bride and groom seated together on the wedding stage with their respective pengangun standing side by side.

6 Syariah Law and Pengangun

A fatwa on forbidden spells (jampi yang dilarang) was passed by the State Mufti in 2001 (Jabatan Mufti Kerajaan 2002), and further to the Syariah Penal Code Order 2013 syariah implementation was formally introduced in Brunei in May 2014 in three phases. Although the fatwa was directed at traditional medicine practitioners (bomoh) who use spells for curing illnesses, the examples of forbidden spells are also sometimes used by pengangun. Currently, there are no laws specifically directed at pengangun and to my knowledge no cases of using illegal spells have been reported. Informants also indicated that they had not been reported to the Islamic Da’wah Centre (Pusat Da’wah Islamiah) for using spells. Syariah law would only affect pengangun if they use illegal spells that cause harm to others and if they use an amulet or talisman (azimat) that has been cast with spells with non-Islamic verses.⁸ Two of the traditional informants were adamant that they were not shamans and claimed that only shamans use black magic to inflict harm on others; all they do is help beautify and protect the bride from evil spirits and they have no intention to cause harm.

Any case involving the use of illegal spells or black magic is a complex matter and unlikely to be investigated unless a report is made. Minah did recount that a female spiritualist in her village was arrested and the materials she used for curing illnesses were inspected by officials. The villagers believed that someone must have reported her to the religious officials. Nonetheless, she was released because of a lack of evidence. Hajah Rokiah suggested that the Ministry of Religious Affairs should conduct a course especially for pengangun so that their practices during wedding rituals are based on Islamic teachings rather than using the old traditions. In addition, two other informants expressed concern that they could be affected if their services were not seen as following Islam.

7 Conclusion

This chapter has detailed the spiritual functions and role of traditional and modern pengangun in wedding ceremonies in Brunei Darussalam. It highlighted both a gradual transformation in the traditional role and its adaptation to Islamisation. The collected data indicated that some pengangun hold to their ‘little tradition’ because of a strong commitment to preserving the Brunei Malay customs and traditions which make use of spells. Having said this, the data also revealed that these women spiritualists are significant cocreators of Islamic religiosity in ritualistic practices reserved for women. Many pengangun now incorporate Qur’anic verses into their everyday practice as a way to remain a relevant part of Bruneian tradition in the present.