Still in Melaka, Li Kim check out an event called Wang Kang. This event has recently declared by the government as a ‘National Heritage Event’ because of its history and significance to the Peranakan and also the local Chinese community. It is a rare celebration to collect and send away bad spirits from the city.
From Melaka, Li Kim travels to a town in Johor called Parit Raja – a town that has unofficially consider itself the last bastion of Johor-Malay-Javanese culture. It is now one of the few places in Malaysia where one can witness mystical dances of Javanese heritage.
In this episode, Li Kim finds out more about Reog Ponorogo or also known as Barongan, a dance with extravagant lion-peafowl mask.
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TVTranscript
00:00 After completing our previous episodes here in Melaka, my team and I were supposed to
00:12 go down south to Johor.
00:14 But I decided to stay because I want to find out about an interesting festival called Wang
00:19 Kang, which has recently been declared a National Heritage Event because of its history and
00:28 significance to the Peranakan and Chinese community here.
00:32 But for me, why I'm staying back is because I want to know how this festival removes disturbances
00:39 from ghosts and bad spirits here in Melaka.
00:41 So, let's go.
00:48 (Music) (Laughter)
00:55 (Music) (Laughter)
01:20 In some communities, certain traditions and rituals over time are deemed as taboo and
01:25 forgotten.
01:27 The community as a whole completely disowns and disassociates from them.
01:33 In Malaysia, there are many rituals and traditions that have disappeared or are disappearing.
01:38 However, for some reasons, some are still kept alive despite facing major obstacles.
01:45 In Melaka, one such ritual or tradition is the Wang Kang procession.
01:52 Wang Kang is a festival originating from Fujian in China.
01:56 It is Hokkien in origin.
01:58 During the trying and turbulent period of the Manchus, many people from the Fujian districts
02:03 migrated and some came all the way to Malaya.
02:06 Few settled down in Melaka and continued holding on to their beliefs and traditions.
02:12 One such tradition that they and their descendants worshipped is the deity Ong Yeh.
02:18 It was through the Ong Yeh's command that the Wang Kang ritual was to be held in Melaka.
02:25 We meet Mr Lai, who is the Honorary President of Yong Chuan Temple and one of the custodians
02:32 of Chinese culture and traditions in Melaka.
02:35 I am going to learn more about the Wang Kang from him.
02:39 Mr Lai, can you explain to me a little bit about the history of Wang Kang?
02:45 Wang Kang goes back a long time in China.
02:49 It first appeared in Melaka, I think around the 19th century.
02:54 The first one that was organised solely by this temple here was in 1919, followed by
03:03 1933.
03:04 Because of the Japanese war, there was a long gap before it was revived in the year
03:11 2001 and then the latest one was in 2012.
03:16 Although the Wang Kang in this temple itself does not have a fixed date, we take it that
03:23 normally it's about 12 years span.
03:26 The Wang Kang is held in the year where the Chinese calendar has 13 months.
03:31 It always coincides with a catastrophe in the town.
03:35 Something will happen.
03:36 Wang Ye will call on the Wang Kang procession to be held.
03:40 Can you please explain to me what is this word 'Ong Yang' that you keep talking about?
03:46 Give me some background on this 'Ong Yang'.
03:48 The history of 'Ong Yang' is, they were local chieftains, or like district officers.
03:55 This system of 'Ong Yang' is very prevalent in Fujian province.
04:01 They were serving the people, administering the land on behalf of the emperor.
04:06 So when they passed, the community would elevate them to make them like saints and worship
04:16 them, hoping that the spiritual side of the 'Ong Yang' will continue to protect us.
04:23 Can you explain to me how does the 'Ong Yang' communicate with you?
04:27 'Ong Yang' communicates with us through the chariots held by two trained members of the temple.
04:36 The chariot is actually behind us, and we have in fact spread it to two other temples here in Melaka.
04:43 And then there are some in Penang that is using the system now.
04:52 The chair rides on the rubber sheet.
04:55 We interpret the words that the 'Ong Yang' is written.
04:59 So instead of using words of mouth, which a medium does, we are now using the written form.
05:06 And it's actually from two different individuals holding to a chariot.
05:11 Before that, the origins is from China.
05:14 Can you tell me whether the purpose, the process is exactly the same in China as when it started in Melaka?
05:24 I think the scholars from Taiwan were a bit amazed how a tradition can be preserved here in Melaka.
05:36 Because part of it has been lost or modified back in Taiwan or in mainland China.
05:42 I think we've got to thank the Quanzhou people who brought the system here in Melaka.
05:48 And also the Babas for having so well documented the system here in its entity.
05:59 Part of it has been lost because Chai Lian Tui requires people.
06:04 There's a head of the Chai Lian Tui who will put up the centipede flag and all that.
06:10 That person is difficult to engage now because there are various taboos that are associated with it.
06:20 So people are not willing to pick up the job.
06:25 To pick up that leadership.
06:27 Yes.
06:28 What kind of taboos are we talking about?
06:30 Who does that do not do very well in life.
06:34 And also the singing of the Chai Lian song. We've still got the words but we do not know how the thing is sung now.
06:43 It's one of the mysteries of the whole Wang Kang thing.
06:47 From the information I have gathered from Mr Lai, it is clear that there is a distinct difference between the original Wang Kang in China and the one that was last held here in Melaka, which is the absence of the Chai Lian.
07:01 I am going to meet Bert Tan who has done extensive research of Wang Kang.
07:10 I want to understand deeper on this interesting yet missing element in the Wang Kang performed here.
07:17 Can you tell me what is Chai Lian and how is it different? What makes that difference?
07:22 The Chai Lian is no longer around in the last Wang Kang in 2012 and 2001 also.
07:31 Because as the older generation passed, of course whatever is being practiced is gone.
07:39 So this Chai Lian consists of 40 boys.
07:42 There is some taboo in Chai Lian.
07:45 For instance, the Chai Lian Tao will normally sacrifice himself.
07:50 Because after Wang Kang, he will normally not live up to five years.
07:55 It is some kind of sacrifice.
07:59 So it is like a curse?
08:00 Yes, a curse. Because the duty of Chai Lian is to invoke the spirits.
08:05 They dance and sing the song so the spirit will come.
08:08 And of course when you are the leader, the Chai Lian Tao, you have to absorb all these dirty things.
08:15 Chai Lian means damsels but then it is men or boys who dress up in women's apparel to do this dance as the damsels.
08:24 Maybe this is also to protect the boys.
08:28 Instead of wearing the boys' costume, they wear girls' costume.
08:33 So the spirit won't recognise them.
08:36 The Sai Gong or the Chinese priest will invoke the spirit instead.
08:39 There are four of them.
08:42 One will do the singing and the sword.
08:45 And then one is the drummer, the trumpeter and the cymbal.
08:49 So he will dance around every junction and collect all the spirits and put them in some kind of container.
08:56 And just throw them into the boat, the Wang Kang.
08:59 Okay, Chai Lian song in Hokkien.
09:04 Chai Lian song in Hokkien.
09:16 Okay, you're going to stop that now.
09:18 So basically, it sounds like a chant.
09:22 Although it's called a song.
09:24 But it's actually chanting.
09:26 If I read it in full, maybe the spirit will come after me.
09:30 I dare not.
09:32 It is not known when the next Wang Kang festival will be held.
09:36 The last one was held because Malacca was facing challenging times.
09:40 There was an urgent need to exercise the whole city.
09:44 Today, Malacca is progressing and developing rapidly.
09:48 So perhaps there will be no more chance to see a Wang Kang in the near future.
09:52 It is also known that the Wang Kang is declared with a protected heritage status.
09:59 We have a Javanese township, especially in Batu Pahat.
10:03 So we are able to preserve the traditions and culture of our ancestors.
10:07 What intrigues and at the same time concerns me
10:24 are similar historical dances and rituals that are disappearing in our modern times.
10:29 However, there are certain groups of people who are trying to protect these traditions.
10:35 And that is why our journey takes us to a small town named Parit Raja,
10:40 situated in the region of Batu Pahat within the state of Johor.
10:44 This little town is trying to protect a few mystical arts in Malaysia from disappearing forever.
10:52 Parit Raja exists because of Mbah Nawi's exploration.
10:58 He came to this country about 100 years ago and brought people from Java,
11:04 including my parents, and started a Java village here with the Javanese language and culture,
11:11 which we are able to maintain until now.
11:13 The majority of people here are of Javanese heritage.
11:17 But there are also others like the Bugis, the Panjar, the Sundanese, and about 10% of Chinese.
11:24 There are Javanese people in many parts of the world.
11:28 However, there aren't many proper ethnic enclaves which can be called Javanese towns.
11:34 For example, for the Chinese, there are China towns in many places to preserve the cultural identity.
11:41 I am proud to say here in Johor, especially in Batu Pahat, we have a Javanese township.
11:48 80% of the population here are of Javanese heritage.
11:53 So we are able to preserve the traditions and culture of our ancestors.
11:58 Some of these include the Kuda Kepang dance, the Riok dance, and so on.
12:04 I wanted to know more about Parit Raja and its mystical dances.
12:10 So, I contacted someone who has done a lot to find and preserve a number of perishing rituals,
12:17 dances and artistic performances in Malaysia, including the ones from Parit Raja.
12:22 He is Edin Khoo, the founder and director of Pusaka.
12:27 I understand that the word "pusaka" itself has a very deep meaning.
12:33 Could you explain that?
12:34 Pusaka means bequest, actually, or heritage, something you pass down.
12:40 Also heritage.
12:41 And it actually was the name of my home.
12:44 My father was a historian and named our house Putra Pusaka, the Three Princes of Heritage,
12:51 because he had three sons.
12:52 It's a word that really plays very well on the tongue, so I thought it was nicely encapsulating.
12:58 What is your inspiration that drives this to make you get committed and have your organisation called Pusaka?
13:07 Well, it was the sense of community.
13:09 And with these traditions, which are incredibly impassioned,
13:13 it's impossible not to develop very personal relationships with people.
13:17 After a while, many of these communities are my family, really.
13:20 And as a result, once you're in, there's absolutely no way of extricating yourself.
13:27 Many of them have decided to build Pusaka together with me.
13:31 And it's one of the reasons why I've, and Pusaka has committed itself,
13:36 working closely with custodians of these traditions.
13:40 People have no soul if they do not have these masters who look after their traditions.
13:47 We are all about tradition.
13:48 I mean, we use the word "traditions" all the time.
13:50 And what I think our work tries to do is give it substance and give it appeal to the intellect as well.
13:57 That's another very important thing.
13:58 That very often we are acquainted with our traditions,
14:01 but we don't know their histories and we don't know their intellectual context, which give it substance.
14:08 I understand that some of these traditional dances, they will actually call on certain spirits.
14:15 Very often these spiritual aspects have very deep metaphorical qualities.
14:22 And they appeal very deeply to the psychology of an individual and by extension of community.
14:29 They don't necessarily invoke spiritual beings as separate spiritual entities.
14:35 So it all depends a lot on the cultural context and the principles that define that cultural context.
14:44 There is one particular one that caught my interest.
14:47 It's called the Barongan and then the Javanese authentic name is called Riyog Ponorogo.
14:55 Have you studied that one?
14:56 Riyog Ponorogo of course comes from the place in East Java.
15:00 And it is the tale of a legend of a particular king who wanted to marry a princess, Kediri.
15:08 He went to court the princess and didn't realize that the princess was actually guarded by very possessive Singa Barongs, mythical lions.
15:19 And then there was a great altercation.
15:22 There were fights, there was a lot of lyricism, there was a lot of poetry, part seduction, part militaristic,
15:28 till eventually the Singa Barongs come to the way of the king and the marriage is sealed.
15:36 On top of this, we will place a young child dancer on the headgear.
15:40 With Aden as my guide, we travel deeper into the village to visit a famous cultural centre, managed and owned by Wak Miskon.
16:03 He is a veteran cultural activist in Parit Raja who organises, trains and teaches the troops who perform the traditional dance of Barongan.
16:12 Tell me Aden, have you ever tried one of these?
16:18 I've never tried one of these. I know it's heavy.
16:20 But I hear you do the ceremonies at Thai Pusam time. What do you wear?
16:26 I carry a goddess.
16:27 What weight is that?
16:28 Maybe about 10 kilos, 10, 12 kilos.
16:32 We're going to have you do this and then let's see what is your estimate comparing it to what you normally carry during Thai Pusam.
16:41 Right.
16:42 Okay.
16:43 Good?
16:45 Well, I'm going to let go.
16:48 Alright.
16:49 Does it feel heavier than what you normally use?
16:52 It's far heavier.
16:53 Far? So if that was about 10, would you say this is double?
16:56 This would be about 20.
16:58 Alright. Okay.
17:00 Cool.
17:01 Wak, what is the weight of this lion's head?
17:09 We brought this mask all the way from Indonesia.
17:12 It was weighed when we checked in for the flight.
17:15 It's around 22 kgs.
17:18 We have a headgear here, a lion's head, that weighs about 22 kgs.
17:27 But this is not the only thing that the dancer will wear.
17:31 He also will wear what's behind here.
17:34 Wak, can you explain to me what is this and how does it connect to this piece?
17:40 This is called jajak merah.
17:44 It is mainly composed of peacock feathers.
17:47 I bought this and also that part from Indonesia.
17:50 Except for this, we made it here.
17:53 The materials that we used to create this headgear consists of bamboo, rattan and ropes.
17:59 And it weighs about 15 kgs.
18:01 When a person performs this, you're looking at 37 kgs of weight just resting on the neck.
18:14 How is this possible?
18:17 To make it possible, training is very important.
18:22 Lots of training is required.
18:24 You will see later, on top of this, we will place a young child dancer on the headgear.
18:30 You will witness this in the performance later tonight.
18:34 Imagine, the child weighs another 20 kgs.
18:37 The lead dancer has to take all this weight by his teeth.
18:41 So training is the key.
18:43 Sometimes the performers may enter into a state of elevation or trance state
18:49 whereby they summon these energies that give them extraordinary strength.
18:55 It is willed, but again, sometimes you may have incantations that are brought on
19:03 that bring about this state of awareness that energises the body.
19:10 That's what happens during these states normally.
19:13 I understand about the sensitivity.
19:16 But let's go back to the original dance.
19:19 Can you explain what kind of rituals?
19:22 In its original form, they have to burn frankincense for the ritual.
19:27 Many people believe wherever you are, there are spiritual guardians.
19:32 Burning of the incense is basically to ask for permission from these guardians.
19:37 For example, in our performance later, we have to seek permission from the guardians of our village.
19:45 Our purpose is to make sure everyone involved in the performance is safe.
19:50 The same goes for people who are watching.
19:53 The lines of whether it is just merely cultural, supernatural, normal, paranormal seem blurred.
20:02 I guess the only way for you to decide and for me to decide is to see it for ourselves.
20:09 Whether this dance, the Riyog Pornorogo or Barongan, is supernatural or simply cultural.
20:16 With the rich and exotic rendition of traditional music played by the gamelan team, the performance begins.
20:37 The barongan dancer puts on the heavy headgear.
20:40 He holds it in place simply with the strength of his bite.
20:44 And what's more, to show his strength, he carries a little girl on the headgear,
20:49 adding further weight and strain on his jaws.
20:53 But it looks effortless.
20:55 There are two jesters who prance around showing off their acrobatic skills,
21:02 whose purpose is basically to annoy the barongan.
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21:13 I am in awe witnessing how the barongan dancers can keep performing the stunts of spinning and flipping so effortlessly.
21:22 It is a physical feat shockingly to achieve.
21:25 It is as if there is some form of supernatural strength that needs to be summoned for them to perform this dance.
21:35 I personally find it hard to believe that such a small framed dancer can do this dance without summoning a supernatural strength,
21:42 even if he has had that much training.
21:45 The dance can be quite intoxicating and it is sad that the barongan is not often performed.
21:59 That dance called the Riyok Ponorogo or barongan was indeed a beautiful dance.
22:06 What do you think? Was it just cultural or is there the influence of the supernatural?
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