Musical Studies on “Timang Tuah” Ritual by the Ibans in Sarawa

Laura Pranti Tutom

, Siti Marina Binti Kamil

Faculty of Music and Performing Arts, Sultan Idris Education University, Tanjung Malim, Perak, Malaysia

Faculty of Language and Communication, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, Kota Samarahan, Malaysia

Keywords: Iban, Sarawak, ritual, musical studies, ethnic studies.

Abstract: This paper seeks to explore the musical journey of a symbolic ritual among the Ibans in Sarawak Borneo

Malaysia known as Timang Tuah as an effort to preserve and spread awareness to the global community of

its existence. Adapting the qualitative approach in collecting and processing the data, this paper aims to

describe the processes involved in the ritual and investigate the relevance of the ritual among the current Iban

community in Sarawak. Semi structured interviews and passive observations were carried out to record the

whole process of the ritual and additionally questionnaires were distributed to investigate its resonance among

the audience. Findings have shown that the ritual is done according to specific purposes which includes

appeasing spirits during harvest and ushering in luck. The melody of how the songs are carried out also

depends on the range and the skills inherited by the lemambang. It was also revealed that the younger

generation are not aware of this ritual thus signaling the needs of preservation efforts by the authority

involved.

1 INTRODUCTION

Sarawak is a state consisting of multi ethnic society

and hence the state is rich with abundant of cultural

heritage. According to Jeniri Amir (2015), a Berita

Harian columnist, Sarawak is home to twenty eight

subethnic groups, whereby there exist six major

ethnic groups namely the Ibans, Chinese, Malay,

Bidayuh, Melanau and the Orang Ulu. With regards

to musicality, the traditional instrument Sape of the

Orang Ulu and the Ngajat dance of the Ibans are most

widely known. As most previous studies are done on

the language and cultural aspects of these groups.

There are still a number of undocumented culture and

art yet to be explored and told to the world. Hence this

paper aims to investigate one of the traditional rituals

of the Ibans, and to spreading the awareness of the

ritual).

Along with modernity and the rapid pace of

infrastructural development happening to the country

and state per say, it is no question why the present

society would only be interested to look beyond their

vicinity and look up to the west where technology is

undeniably changing humanity. Technology give

them comfort and ease in reaching the unreachable,

hence lullabying the present generation to the extend

that the world is enough within the four walls. They

no longer see the need to experience culture and

nature by practice and being out and about, when all

can be reached at the tip of their fingers. The impact

is direct when it comes to cultural heritage whereby

rituals are slowly being forgotten and seen as

irrelevant in the modern society. This become the

foundation of this study. The main concern of this

study is the dying interest of the younger generation

especially living in the city or big towns who might

or might not know of the existence of the subject

matter being investigated in this study, known as

Timang Tuah, a musical chanting ritual of the Ibans.

Masing (1981) stated that Timang is the highest

level of Iban ritual as it is an act of special invitation

to the Petara (the deity) symbolically carried out

using songs performed by the singer known as

lemambang. Lemambang refers to the person who is

empowered and knowledgeable of the ritual text and

is in charge of the role matak jalai (opening the path

to the Petara).

There can be a number of two to four lemambang,

followed by a penyagu (a person who echoes the

singing sung by the lemambang) and two other

ngelembung (a person who repeats the ending of the

sentence sung by the penyagu). All the members of

the lemambang must have in depth knowledge of the

Timang ritual. The sole purpose of the Timang is to

336

Tutom, L. and Kamil, S.

Musical Studies on “Timang Tuah” Ritual by the Ibans in Sarawak.

DOI: 10.5220/0008764403360344

In Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Interdisciplinary Arts and Humanities (ICONARTIES 2019), pages 336-344

ISBN: 978-989-758-450-3

get the blessings from the Petara. It could include

getting good results in school or university

examinations, getting good luck in business, getting

work promotions and even winning the state

elections. It is also believed that the Petara’s blessing

can cure sickness.

An early survey done by the researcher has shown

that the current younger generation of the Ibans do not

know of Timang Tuah as it is not commonly practiced

in the city. The reason this is happening is the lack of

knowledgeable and skilled senior members of the

Iban community to carry out the ritual. In addition,

Soda (2001) stated that the migration on the Ibans

born in the 50s to the 60s along with the migration of

those born in the 70s and above to the city area and

leaving the long houses have all added to the cause.

This became the utmost reason to the question of why

a majority of Iban old rituals are no longer being

practiced. Another important reason is the spread of

Christianity that hinders the need to perform these

rituals (Durin, 2014).

According to Steiner (2007) and Durin (2014),

Christianity became the main religion amongst the

Ibans and Timang is no longer the main ‘go-to’ ritual

to solve daily problems of the people related to

agriculture, business and illnesses as the religion

forbids paganism. An interview with Mr. Jimbun

anak Tawai, a researcher from the Sarawak Native

Customs Council, and Associate Professor Anna

Durin, an active researcher in Culture in Sarawak,

there exist only a few districts in Sarawak that still

actively practice the old Timang rituals. These are in

Kapit, Sarikei, Bintulu and Sri Aman.

Hence before this ritual become a forgotten

tradition, the researcher aims to document the ritual

and spread the awareness about it while finding the

reasons why it should be protected. Documenting the

ritual both in audio and video is priority as to preserve

this valued cultural heritage of the Ibans and above all

sharing it to the global community in order to mark

its existence. The researcher believes that timang is

rich in artistic values especially in the text and the

singing style of the lemambang, whose role is central

when inviting the Petara during the ritual. This ritual

act is also a symbol of an old Iban identity that needs

to be made known to the present Iban community in

Sarawak especially.

Lastly as it is hidden from the outside world, and

as it is only being practiced by a small community of

Ibans left with no proper documentation, it would be

a great loss to its owner if not documented. The

decreasing number of lemambang left is also a major

concern which adds to the more reason why this study

should be carried out.

2 METHODOLOGY

This is a qualitative study looking at musicality of

Timang Tuah. The qualitative method as stated by

Kumar Ranjit (2005) and Uzairah (2017) begins with

collecting the primary data by interviewing the

identified primary resources. In this study the primary

informant consists of the Head of the Iban

community, the Head of the longhouse, the researcher

from the Sarawak Native Customs Council and the

lemambang. Data collected will include knowledge

about Timang, the frequency of the Timang ritual

carried out in Kapit Sarawak, the number of active

lemambang and the number of younger Iban

generation who participated in the ritual acting as

observers and their interest in the ritual.

The method of choosing the types of Timang is

taken from the total number of Timang that consists

of four types, and choosing a sample via justification

sampling. The chosen Timang for this study is

Timang Tuah. Timang Tuah is chosen because it is

most frequently done in Kapit as compared to all the

other types of Timang. Furthermore, the scope of

study is in Kapit and focuses on the singing done by

the lemambang in the ritual, Timang Tuah is justified.

The next process is direct observation which is to

be done in a thorough manner throughout the ritual in

order to understand and immerse in the experience.

The researcher is to follow the ritual from pre-stage

which is the preparation before the ritual. Interviews

with all participants involved in the preparation is to

be carried out and if allowed, the researcher will

participate in the preparation itself. In the while-stage,

the researcher is to observe the preparation

undertaken by the lemambang from the moment

before the ritual until the ending. Passive observation

will be carried out by the researcher once the

lemambang starts the ritual and the focus will be on

the singing of the lemambang and the musical

instruments used.

The researcher will interview the lemambang and

the elders to find out of their views on the timang. A

survey will be conducted among the guests who are

present during the ritual. This is to find out at the

emotional effect and impact of the ritual on those

present. The secondary data on the ritual will be

collected through books, articles, and websites related

to the timang. The need for the secondary data is to

do comparison to the primary data. Textual analysis

will not be carried out for the purpose of this study.

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337

3 FINDINGS

Timang in Iban language refers to an Iban ritual that

uses the service of two to four lemambang or known

as the Tukang Timang who act as the medium of

performing the text ritual sang in a monotonous tone

while pounding the timang stick in order to execute

the full ritual of the timang that normally takes up

three to nine days in total. Tuah in Iban language

refers to good luck and in the context of this ritual,

luck here would reflect giving monetary luck or an

abundant of fortune to the people who organized the

ritual especially during the election of a politician and

uplifting their status to becoming a minister (Tawai et

al., 2017).

According to Masing (1981), timang consists of

four categories, namely;

 Timang Beintu Intu (ritual for the wellbeing of

man)

 Timang Tuah (ritual of getting luck)

 Timang Beneh (ritual of getting paddy seedlings)

 Timang Gawai Amat (highest form of ritual)

The difference among these four timang is that

each timang differs in time consumed, textual plot

and purposes. However, the singing style are the

same. Eventhough all four timang are different, there

are two main factors that contribute to why this

timang is considered of high value among the Ibans.

The first factor is, the ritual done in a grand

manner during a gawa day (festival day) or gawai

(festivities) along with the lemambang. The second

factor is through the text of the lemambang; as the

text is an invocation to the deity known as the Petara

from their world and leading them to the human world

(the long house) and perform the ritual.

The timang performed in a chant is carried out by

the lemambang to summon upon a genie to attend

gawai or a festival. The singing is done during

planting and harvesting paddy, medication and

others. Matusky and Sooi Beng (1997) stated that in

a Timang ritual where will be at least four

lemambang. The lemambang will perform the chant

for hours. In the chant, the first and second line will

be started by the lemambang and these lines are called

genteran or couplet. At the end of the second line or

refrain of the singing will be sung together and

repeatedly in a choir by the assistant lemambang and

others. At the final two lines the assistant of the

lemambang will answer to the singing of the main

lemambang and this is known as timbal. All four

lemambang will alternately pound their stick to the

floor with a stable rhythm along with their Timang.

Petara, as mentioned here according to Ngadi

(1998) in his book on Iban rituals, the old Iban society

believed in the existence of Petara (Deity) and antu

(dead souls) whereby in all living things including

animals, insects, plant produce, human both dead and

alive, has a certain kind of soul. The deities referred

here include Singalang Burong (war), Menjaya

(health and cure), Simpulang Gana (earth and plant

produce), Simpandai (creator and healer) dan Anda

Mara (wealth).

In this old tradition, the Ibans believe that there

exist good and bad souls (antu manah, antu jai). In

the Timang ritual the god and goddess will provide

signs to humans through burong (signs in the forms

of birds, snakes, frogs and other animals) and through

dreams related to the desired requests to indicate

whether the requests are accepted or otherwise.

Masing (1981) stated that all ritual activities

performed in the Iban community is based on dreams.

Through dreams, it will be known whether the rituals

should be carried out or not. Everything begins with

a dream.

An interview carried out with Madam Emma anak

Philip, who is a clerk at a school in Kapit, upon the

end of a Timang ritual at her house in Kapit, described

how Madam Emma had a dream before performing

the ritual. In her dream she had helped a group of

jugam (black bear) whose family was killed by a

group of humans. The question that came to amaze

the researcher is the fact that there were two other

people who lived in Kapit and who did not know

Madam Emma. They had dreams that required them

to look for a woman by the name of Emma as she has

helped save their family (they did not mention that

they were a jugam family).

The process of detecting Madam Emma took a

few weeks eventhough Kapit is considered a small

district. Once the three of them finally met, they

arranged a meeting with the Head of the Community

to organize a Timang Tuah ceremony for Madam

Emma.

According to Mr Jimbun anak Tawai Timang

usually begins with Miring, where food is offered to

the desired Petara in order to give blessing and ease

to what is being requested by the person who will be

Timang. Food is prepared in a number of large plates

made up of five to eight eggs in a plate, penganan

(rice cake), sticky rice, tuak (rice wine) poured in a

glass, pop corn and sirih kapur (slaked lime). The

amount of food prepared would depend on the type of

Timang being performed.

The purpose of doing Miring

is to offer food to

the Petara being summoned. According to Iban

beliefs, the food consumed by the Petara is also to be

consumed by the guests present for the ritual. The

guests of honour are symbolic to the Petara

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summoned. In addition, the presence of these guests

in the likes of ministers and politicians are considered

very important for the ritual.

Figure 1: Miring offered. Source from Emma anak Phillip,

2016

In March 2015, the researcher participated in a

fieldwork led by Associate Professor Anna Durin on

Old Iban Customs in Kapit. A Timang Tuah ritual was

carried out at Madam Rheineld Minor Panyau’s house

in Kapit town. Madam Rheineld is the Chairperson of

Serakup Indu Dayak (Dayak Women Association)

and is a business woman. The ritual was done in three

days. Information gathered in the ritual will now be

described accordingly; pre, while and post ritual.

3.1 Pre Ritual

A month before the Timang Tuah ritual is carried out,

the owner or the organizer of the ritual will proceed

with the preparation by getting advice from the Head

of the Iban community and the elderly who are well

versed of the ritual. The discussion would guide them

on where to perform the ritual and who to delegate

tasks. As the dream was received by more than one

person and all three dreams suggested that the ritual

be carried out by Madam Reineld’s family, the

Timang will be carried out as proposed. Next is to

delegate tasks and put things in order.

The outcome of the discussion is the list of people

to be in charge of the several tasks. The tasks include

preparing the miring, food and beverage throughout

the ritual and for the vip guests, preparing the

traditional costumes for family members and for

those delivering the miring tray and choosing the

lemambang. Preparation will also include looking for

items to be given to the lemambang as a form of token

for their service. The token will be in the form of four

baja (iron rods), tajau (vase), duku bersarung

(sheathed knife), pendawan siti (a spear with a single

blade), a chicken, pua kumbu (a traditional woven

cotton cloth), piring singkat empat (each item in the

plate is divided into four), a plain white cloth (about

13 meter in length) and monetary gift totaling RM750

to be divided among the three lemambang.

3.2 While Ritual

A week before the ritual takes place, a pandung

containing items such as tajau (vase), tawak (gong),

rattan, pua kumbu, betel nuts, a few pieces of clothing

to tie the pandung and a flight of stairs, symbolic as

the staircase to the sky is prepared.

Figure 2: Pandung Source from Yow Chong Lee, 2015

The chosen lemambang invited for this ritual is

Mr Enggong anak Baning born in 1954. His

hometown is Sungai Majau, Kapit and according to

informant Mr. Enggong has had the skill of

performing the ritual since he was 24 years old. For

this ritual he will be assisted by two other

lemambang. Up till present, it is informed that there

are only four active lemambang residing in Kapit.

Figure 3: Mr. Enggong anak Baning (Lemambang). Source

from Emma Phillip, 2016

The Timang ritual begins as early as five in the

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afternoon and continues until the next morning. Once

the first session finishes, the lemambang will have a

rest until the afternoon and resumes for the second

session at the same time on the second day until the

ritual is done. This process will be repeated for three

consecutive days. The textual plot used and sung by

the lemambang follows the plot handed to them

during the process by the Petara. The path that they

will take are recorded as follows (taken by Allen,C.,

2017);

 Bujang Pedang ninga auh ribut lalu rari (Bujang

Pedang listened to gushes of wind and ran away).

 Bini Sengalang Burung chelap bulu (Wife of

Sengalang Burung felt cold due to the strong wind

storm)

 Ribut mangkaka rumah Sengalang Burung (the

strong wind from the storm hit the house of

Sengalang Burung).

 Ngiga kayu rumbang tutong (Looking for a holed

wood to make drums).

 Sida Ketupong Mansang ngayau (Ketupung and

friends went to war and found heads of enemies to

be brought back to the fiesta)

 Menua Besi Api (World of Iron Fire)

 Menua Tuchok (World of Tuchok Lizard)

 Menua Sandah (World of Sandah)

 Menua Rioh (World of Serangga Rioh)

 Menua Nendak (World of Nendak)

 Menua Beragai Samatai Manang Burung (World

of Bird Shaman Beragai)

 Menua Kelabu Papau Nyenabung (World of Bird

Kelabu Papau Nyenabung)

 Menua Pangkas tauka Kutuk (World of Bird

Pangkas or Bird Kutuk)

 Menua Bejampung (World of Bird Bejampung)

 Menua Embuas (World of Bird Embuas)

 Menua Ketupung (World of Bird Ketupung)

 Menua Kunding Burung Malam Menua Rintung

Langit Pengulur Bulan (World of Bird Kunding)

 Bala Ketupung nyurung lalu ngaga langkau kayau

(Ketupung and warriors built huts )

 Ketupung enggau Beragai matak bala (Ketupung

and Beragai lead the warriors to war)

 Bala Ketupung nuntung ba rumah Beduru/Nising

(Ketupung team arrived at Beduru longhouse).

 Wa puji (Singing of Praise).

 Wa Empas (Singing of Anger).

 Pulai Ngabas (Back from spying)

 Sengalang Burung nusui mimpi diri (Sengalang

Burung narrating his dream).

 Mimpi Ketupung (Ketupung Dream)

 Mimpi Beragai (Beragai Dream)

 Bala Ketupung ngerampas (Ketupung group

made their attack).

 Datai ba tinting pangka sealing pulai nyerang

(arriving at the end of ridge ground, Ketupung

warriors cheered for their victory)

 Bini Sengalang Burung nyambut igi balang (Wife

of Sengalang Burung accepted the gift of enemy

heads)

 Aki Lang Sengalang Burung mai ngabang

(Sengalang Burung inviting people to visit)

 Mansa Tembawai Lama Sengalang Burung

(Through the old path of Sengalang Burung

longhouse)

 Menua Bujang Jegalang (World of Bujang

Jegalang)

 Mansa Batu Ansah (Through the Road of Batu

Asah)

 Mansa pun buluh berani (Through the Road of

Buluh Berani)

 Pintu Langit (Arrival at the Door to the Sky)

 Bala Sengalang Burung ngetu ba pintu langit ke

rapit (the Group of Sengalang Burung arrived at

the enclosed Door to the Sky)

 Menua Aki Ungkuk (World of Datuk Ungkuk)

 Menalan Sabung (A place of Sabung Ayam)

 Ngerara rampa menua (Appreciating the beauty

of the place encountered)

 Menua Raja Siba Iba (World of Raja Siba Iba)

 Menua Burung Raya (World of Burung Raya)

 Menua Sera Gindi (World of Sera Gindi)

 Menua Bengkung apai Kuang Kapung (World of

Bengkung, Father Kuang Kapung)

 Menalan Besai (A place with great view)

 Menua Bhiku Bunsu Petara (World of Highest

Deity, Bhiku Bunsu)

 Menua Selampandai (World of Selampandai)

 Menua Raja Rengayung - Kijang (World of Raja

Rengayung - Deer)

 Menua Rusa (World of Deer)

 Menua Raja Remaung (World of Tiger King)

 Kendi Aji (Cross junction Road)

 Kampung Baung (A silent Jungle)

 Menua Aki Dunju (World of Datuk Dunju)

 Menua Durong Biak (World of the youngest

Durong)

 Menua Bunsu Petara (World of Dewa Bunsu)

 Menua Bangkung (The resting place)

 Bala Sengalang Burung mandi (Sengalang

Burung group bathing)

 Bini Sengalang Burung mandi (Wife of

Sengalang Burung bathing)

 Bala Sengalang Burung begari (Sengalang

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burung and followers dressing up to attend the

feast or ritual held)

 Bala Indu besanggul (Women with buns hair)

 Bala Sengalang Burung niki ke rumah

(Sengalang Burung and followers entered the

house to begin the feast)

3.3 Transcripts of Timang Tuah

Figure 4: Excerpt of Timang Tuah Transcript, Bar 1 to 3

In the excerpt of the transcript from bar 1 to 11,

the melody uses the la - do tone, in example, G, A,

Bb. Depending on the vocal range of the lemambang

and the text being used, the lemambang will sing the

text with at least interval thirds. In the singing of the

ritual, there is also mordent found to be stressed on

the note with the longest duration.

Figure 5: Excerpt of Timang Tuah Transcript Bar 4 to 11

The use of inconsistent key is heard sung by the

lemambang and this is due to the fact that they are not

equipped with any kind of tuner or musical

instruments with a pitch. In bar 10 and 11, during the

pause (not recorded in text) with a long note, the

lemambang sang the vowel sound ‘eeh’ in minim

duration or more and in vibrato. The genteran or the

first line sang by the first lemambang will then be

‘ditimbal’ or echoed by the second and the third

lemambang. This call and response style (Kamien,

2000) does not continue until the end of the ritual and

it can be said that it is not in accordance to the use of

the call and response.

Matusky (2012) in her article entitled ‘Timang

(pengap), pelian, and sabak: Iban leka main singing

styles’ stated that there are differences in the melody

style performed in different districts. As the

researcher observed the performance by the

lemambang, it can be concluded that the feel invoked

by the lemambang while carrying the melody at the

beginning of each key is sang with inconsistent key

and rhythm. However there is a pattern of rhythm

being used and this can be seen in picture six.

Figure 6: Melody Rhythm Motive

On the contrary the rhythm made by the timang

stick showed a stable beat, crochet 85 to 90 beat per

minute. At the beginning of each text being sung in

the Timang Tuah is as inconsistent. It depended on the

way the lemambang is engrossed in communicating

with the spiritual world, which of course depended on

their level of experience and the style passed down

to the lemambang.

Masing (1981) stated that the stanza structure or

the paragraphs in the Timang text is ABCD or

ABCBDB. There are also stanzas in the form of

AAAAB, and ABAB. Therefore any form of mistakes

heard by the Iban audience may reflect a mistake in

the text performed by the lemambang while the ritual

takes place. This indicated that there still exist

indifferences and inconsistency in the speech or the

text stanza (Masing, 1981).

Unlike the Malay pantun as stated by Harun Mat

Piah (2001), in general in each four lines of stanza,

four words aligned will have the a, b, a, b rhythm.

Each stanza in the Malay pantun is divided into two

parts, namely the pembayang (clue) and the maksud

(meaning). The difference between the Timang and

the Malay pantun is that there are no particular part

that acts as the pembayang and the maksud but the

text will be in the form of either a metaphor,

figurative and symbolic.

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341

Through observations, it is noted that the

lemambang during the ritual no longer wears the baju

burung. A vest with the motive of the pua kumbu is

worn instead. The Tungkat Timang (Timang stick)

used no longer made of wood with bells dangling at

the bottom but is modified into iron stick. This

observation was based on Masing (1981) dissertation

where he recorded that in 1981 the stick used by the

lemambang is a long stick 2 meters in length,

decorated with Iban traditional carving motives,

ribboned with chicken feathers at the top and small

bells at the bottom. The bells added to the sound made

when the stick is repeatedly pounced to the floor

while the ritual is taking place.

Figure 7: Lemambang with the Tungkat Timang. Source

from Chemaline, 2007 published in 2013

Figure 8: Lemambang with the Tungkat Timang. Source

from Yow Chong Lee, 2015

3.4 Post Ritual

The Timang ritual ended in the morning of the third

day. This is done by closing the miring in order to

reopen the way back to the sky for the Petara invited

to the ritual. According to the plan of the ritual, a

more descriptive narrative on the dreams will be

shared between the owner of the dreams and the

audience present during the ritual including the

family of Madam Rheineld. While waiting for the

final stage to happen a bebuti (teasing) event will be

carried out to prevent the audience from getting

sleepy and bored. For the ritual observed and

experienced by the researcher, the bebuti was done by

tying a group of the guests present together and a

lelabi is tied at the end of the line. There was also a

woman dressed up as a grandfather and a man dressed

up as a woman for this event.

After lunch, all guests were invited to listen to the

story of the dreams that resulted in the ritual. Here the

elderly and the lemambang interpreted the dream in

the best manner. Although this was done in the early

stage when getting advice from the elderly and other

family members of Madam Rheineld, it is common to

be done as to protect the family from jealousy among

other members of the society who might not accept

the good luck happening to the family. This is as

according to Iban beliefs whereby good dreams have

to be shared and repeatedly mentioned. It is also

believed that this is done to appease other spirits

before the ritual is done.

According to Mr. Enggong, once all guests are

home with a happy feeling and contented with the

kind of good service offered, with no quarrels or

fights while the ritual takes place and most

importantly happy with the food and beverages

served is a good sign. This is because they would

never know if there could be a Petara among the

guests present.

After a few months after the Timang Tuah ritual,

the researcher once again interviewed Madam

Rheineld and Madam Emma. According to Madam

Emma, after the ritual her family has experienced a

number of good luck whereby when they bought

lottery tickets with their house number, car and

motorcycle plate numbers, her husband won first,

second and third places consecutively in the span of

one week. The prize totaled up to twenty thousand

ringgit. And as for Madam Rheineld, she has

successfully secured a mega project. As she and her

late husband have always been considered successful

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in business, their belief in this ritual has somewhat

added good fortune to their family business.

The findings from this study with regards to the

effect and emotion of the guests especially the

younger Iban generation have found that this group is

now aware of the ritual and they have learnt about the

do’s and don’ts of the ritual. They found out that the

guests are not allowed to wear black clothing and it is

better to wear clothing with the motive of the pua

kumbu. They are also advised not to have any feelings

of sadness, anger and the urge to fight during the

ritual, they are not allowed to get in the way of the

lemambang when the lemambang are circling the

pandung and all women delivering the piring are

required to wear a full attire of the traditional Iban

costume.

As for feelings and emotion during the ritual, a

group of young guests felt a bit of fear when there

were frequent cases of black outs at the Rheineld

household. It happened throughout the ritual and on

the final day the whole of Kapit town had a power

outage that lasted for hours. The emotional effect on

these younger generation of Ibans were recorded as

fear, anxiety due to curiosity and thrilled at the same

time. The next morning a joke circulated saying that

there was a ‘visitor’ to the Rheineld house hence the

blackouts.

As for the guests who lived in the vicinity of

Madam Rheineld’s house, it was stated that it often

rained and shined at the same time causing rainbows

to appear. While the ritual of building the teresang

was carried out, a lot of guests saw a flock of eagles

flying in circles in their neighborhood. Of course how

far this is true is still a question.

According to Iban beliefs, when it rain while the

sun is hot, it indicates that there are spirits coming and

while this is happening, children are not allowed to

play outside because it is feared that they might have

a weak spirit and might be affected by it. In addition,

it is believed that the rainbow is the place where the

Petara descended and the eagles flying about are

summoned as Petara Sengalang Burung mengintai ke

bumi (the spirit descending to earth).

From the experiences mentioned by the guests

present especially the younger generation, this is a

new encounter, never before felt and the knowledge

gained have made them even more curious about the

ritual.

4 CONCLUSIONS

A comparison based on the dissertation written by

Tan Sri Dr. James Jemut in 1981 has given a detailed

description on all types of Iban oral literature. From

his observations, the frequency of the Timang rituals

carried out in Kapit consist of three to four types and

is carried out simultaneously at different parts of

Kapit. The migration of Ibans to big cities have just

started (in the same year). The history on this

migration was recorded by Soda (2001) stating that

there are two generations involved in the migration.

The first being those born in the 50s to the 60s and the

latter being those born in the 70s and above. This

became the contributing factor of people no longer

residing in the long houses and consequently creating

a large gap whereby old traditions are no longer

practiced and hold importance in the lives of the

Ibans.

An interview with Madam Rheineld who

organised the ritual recorded an expenditure in the

range of five thousand to hundred thousand of Ringgit

Malaysia. This differs from what Masing (1981)

recorded whereby Ringgit Malaysia five hundred was

the highest amount spent. This became the reason

why not many people can afford to organize the ritual.

Another contributing factor on why the ritual is not

carried out at present is because most Ibans have

converted to Christianity and the religion does not

support this act of rituals.

A pilot study carried out by the researcher has

shown that as the majority of the younger Iban

generation are not residing the long houses

additionally contributed to the lacking in appreciation

to this old custom. A majority of the respondent were

recorded as not being aware of the existence of the

Timang ritual. As for the younger Iban generation

living in Kapit, they did not know the reason and

relevance of why the Timang existed.

In addition, another contributing factor was the

text of the Timang is hardly understood by the

younger generation hence resulting them to be

uninterested in the ritual. The content of the text

written in figurative language and in old Iban terms

concerning Iban lifestyle in the olden days made it

even more difficult for them to comprehend.

From the musical aspects of the timang, the

lemambang is seen as holding the most important role

in delivering the intention and request of the

organizer in classic text acquired from the older

generation. According to the Iban elderly the melody

of the timang text cannot be sung beautifully as it

defeats the purpose of the ritual. The monotonous

delivery style came into existence while the

lemambang tried to recall the text. As the Timang text

is considered sacred (Tawai, 2017) the researcher

may compare this ritual to those of Christianity and

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Buddhism whereby a monotonous style or chant is

used to for praising God and meditation.

As there are a few books that discussed Timang,

the problem lies in no circulation of the book or no

active promotion. Most books did not describe the

meaning of the Timang text hence the researcher is

grateful to the researchers at the Sarawak Native

Custom Council for publishing a complete book on

the process of the Timang ritual entitled “Timang

Gawai Ngiga Tuah. Lemambang Badindang anak

Bajun”. Although the book is written in Iban, the

language used is easily understood. This is proof of a

noble effort to kick start the spread of awareness on

the old Iban culture to the world.

In order to preserve and maintain this ritual, a

more drastic approach needs to be taken. This may be

in the form of increasing write ups with regards to this

subject matter. Regardless of the level hold by this

ritual, the fact that it exists and is a form of identity

and legacy to the Iban community must be upheld.

The function and artistic value of the Timang has been

shown and shared by this study. However, there are

still rooms for further research looking at other

perspectives for example looking at the role of the

lemambang in the ritual.

It is hoped that through this study, the positive

functions of this ritual towards the Iban community

provide a reason and help spread the awareness to the

younger generation on the importance of

safeguarding the practice of this old ritual.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The highest token of appreciation to Tan Sri Dr.

James Jemut Masing who unfailingly have given

advice and assisting comprehension to the researcher

on Iban customs and traditions. His writings and other

references shared have contributed abundantly

towards this study. The biggest gratitude to Mr.

Jimbun anak Tawai, Madam Rheineld Minor anak

Panyau and Madam Emma anak Philip who equally

have contributed and helped in arranging the

researcher’s participation in the ritual and at the same

time agreeing to be interviewed and contributing to

the findings of this study. Lastly to all friends and

peers who have supported the study, thank you.

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