Discovering Kolunon: Personalism in Dayak Uud Danum’s Book of Adat Law (Part I)

Rambang Ngawan, OP

Introduction             

As people who live by a certain culture, the life of the Dayaks are guided by adat istiadat (traditional religious beliefs and practices: myths, legends, taboos) and hukum adat (traditional law) which “influence and mold the characters and behaviors of the Dayak community in their interaction with one another, with the supernatural world.”[1] These adat istiadat and hukum adat/traditional law/adat law are the fruits of the reflections of the Dayaks on nature/Alam. The Dayaks believe that “life will be well-preserved when cosmos [nature/Alam] is still kept balanced and harmonious.”[2] This is because the Dayaks know that they do not live alone in this created world, but they also live with other forms of beings, both physical and spiritual.

The article attempts to analyze and discover the concept of person mainly found in the Book of Traditional Law/Adat Law of Dayak Uud Danum Serawai-Ambalau (2002) and also aided by the cultural richness of Dayak Uud Danum which will pave the way to the discovery of Dayak Uud Danum’s personalism. Let us once again put person to the fore of philosophical discussion and this time shaped by a cultural dimension.

The Dayak Man and the World

In its definition, the word Dayak can be understood in several ways. It is because the word Dayak was never used originally to describe the indigenous people who settled in the Borneo Island. Some of these indigenous people usually named their communities or groups after a certain river, ancestor, a legendary character, and many others. The word Dayak was never attached to identify these groups. According to Fridulin Ukur (1992) there are seven main cultural characteristics which are noticeable in Dayak communities that can be made a reason of considering the Dayaks to share some communalities.[3] These seven main cultural characteristics are the long house (Betang), mandau (a long Bornean traditional machete with a single-edged blade) and blowgun, patterned plaitwork, earthenware, the system of land cultivation, tribal dance, and the status of women in the society.[4] The term Dayak is however not without meaning. 

The word “Dayak” means for the people who come from the inlands or mountains. Dayak people means mountain people or inlanders. The word “Dayak” is a collective term for all the sub-groups of the Dayaks in Kalimantan [or Borneo] (Lahajir, 2001: 4). However, the usage for the term Dayak has undergone some crucial changes or developments. In its development, the word Dayak had ever been changed which became Daya (read Daya’). This especially happened in West Borneo (Akil, 1994: 188). The change of the word was caused by the meaning behind it. The word Dayak itself was meant by the Dutch colonizers for stereotypes and discrimination (Lontaan, 1975: 47).[5]       

Having known the meaning of the word ‘Dayak’ and its etmology, let us now be more specific in discussing the subject matter of this article that is Dayak Uud Danum[6] people. Dayak Uud Danum people in Ambalau and Serawai Districts nearly have similar traditional religious beliefs and practices. However, in the case of the linguistics, there are some noticeable differences. Based on these differences there are two groups of Dayak Uud Danum, the Cihie people and Dohoi. Cihie Uud Danum language is a language that is spoken of by a group of Dayak people that call themselves as Cihie or Dayak Cihie sub-ethnic and they reside along the upstream of Serawai River. The language is not far different from the one spoken by the Dohoi Uud Danum. The only difference is in the use of certain vocabulary and in the accent. On the other hand, Dohoi Uud Danum people are the majority group in Ambalau District. The manner of speaking for Dohoi Uud Danum speakers is rather fast as compared to the Cihie people.

               

                By the definition of the word ‘Dayak’ that we have known above, we come to realize that the Dayak people indeed have a distinct attribute when it comes to their relation with nature or the physical world. Even the legend would tell us how the creation of the universe and the Dayak people are not to be separated from cosmic elements. This can be seen in the one of the accepted legends of the origin of Dayak Uud Danum people. The creation of the world down to the existence of Dayak Uud Danum people then happened as follows.

In the beginning, the universe was just a vacuum and there was only darkness. Then in one moment in time, there appeared a band of giant hayun (clouds) in the universe, which was named Juri’ Danum Sangen Juoi Booi Konolimoi, which means ‘the hayun flew here and there’. Then after several times, from the inside of the hayun was formed Hitan Pihtuk Kungan which means ‘seven pieces of diamond’ in equal sizes. And one time, the seven pieces of diamond then exploded and each transformed into beings that filled up the universe.

The first piece exploded and filled up the universe. There is no explanation of what had emerged out of this first explosion. It was assumed that out of this first explosion came Tanak Danum ‘the earth’, Mahtan Ondou ‘the sun’, Potion ‘the stars’, and other things. The remains of this first piece then exploded one more time and then became Lunuk Ilai Pohatalak Lunuk Lupung Pulus Bulou Ngahpih Sambang Bahen Andou Ngambou Tukang Langit Diang, that is ‘a giant banyan tree (Ficus benjamina) that grows in front of the heaven’s gate’ (an entrance gate to the first layer heaven).

The second piece of the diamond exploded and became Lunuk Kosanak Ngambou Tumbang Danum Solatus that is ‘a giant oak tree that grows and located at the mouth/muara of hundred rivers’.

The third piece exploded and became Muvuh Inai Songumang, Muvuh Inai Songalang, and Muvuh Inai Komandai. These beings, particularly Inai Songumang, became people with the most powerful. They could create everything because they possessed Kuhyuh Bulou Taoi that is a piece of gold that gives them power to create everything by the command of their words only.

The forth piece exploded and became Muvuh Buhkui Lehkan Pulun Puluk Muvuh Kuvung Bahen Duhung, that became the ancestors of kolimoi people, who are Muvuh Inai Tingang and Muvuh Inai Oling. They were also powerful but one level below the kolimoi people which resulted from the explosion of the third Hitan Pihtuk Kungan.

The fifth piece of diamond exploded and became Luung, the leader of all evil spiritual creatures and he lived beneath the sea. That is why accordingly many kinds of disease are originated from the sea.

The sixth piece exploded to Pindak Danum which then became creatures that lived beneath the earth, that is Muvuh inai Pongeran Lihtih Mukan Tavak Asan Jok Torusan Toluk Langan Mocon Tolingan Cahai Hitan, which in the end went down to Tambun who was one of the mighty warriors during the era of Tahtum. Tambun was the cousin of Bungai, who was also one of the mighty warriors during the era of Tahtum. Both were a powerful tandem and undefeatable by anyone because they were defenders of truth.

And lastly, the seventh piece exploded and became Atang Hojola’ Bulo. Then Atang Hojola’ Bulo generated Pilang Puhtung Nakui Langit. Then Pilang Puhtung Nakui Langit generated Sobila’ Nakui Kolatung. And Sobila’ Nakui Kolatung generated Atang Taoi. Atang Taoi then generated Sohavung. Simultaneously, the seventh piece of diamond or the last one became the origin of Uud Danum in Pindak Ondou or the earth.[7]      

From the story about the creation of the universe above, we can see that the Dayaks and nature are relational. As the Dayak people grew in their civilization, their bond with God, nature and their fellow human beings was also more deeply enriched. This close bond later on forms the characters of the Dayaks, which becomes an important element in their day to day undertakings, and which shapes their cultural tradition and their philosophy of life. The Dayak people are so much aware that lives around them must always be preserved and they also know that they are part of the bigger universe and it has become their task to preserve it.

It has become their system and religious belief that before they take something from nature for their benefit, they must make an offering first to get the permission from the invisible guardian of the forest, especially in the case of land cultivation for rice fields. It is because the Dayaks believe that the world that we live in is also a place where other forces of nature work, where spirits make their dwellings in the rocks, trees, rivers and others. An unguarded exploitation of the river, land and forest will precisely provoke the wrath of the spirits living within nature. This belief is of course contra modernism wherein such belief has no place in the minds of modern individuals. But, it is because of this novel mentality, the preservation of nature is always sustained as an indirect critique towards the consumptive and destructive attitude of modern societies. 

            Furthermore, the myths or legends or taboos that are always handed down from one generation to the next are a clear evidence of how the Dayak people are serious in their belief that man is an active agent who can promote and preserve the Dayak’s lasting bond with nature. It is off course not without considering that the Dayaks share the same origin or “parents” with other beings by tracing back its foundation in the story of creation. But, more than this, it is the Dayak’s direct contact and experience with nature that makes them believe that man and nature are closely related.     

The Dayak’s Reflections on Nature/Alam

                 The relation of the Dayaks with nature is not without any significance. As human beings with rationality, emotions and senses, the Dayaks surely have learned how to take advantage of all these gifts. Through their constant encounters with the world around them, the Dayak people believe that nature is a home for all beings, including the ones that we cannot see through our naked eyes. This relation to the sacred then raise the awareness that men should never monopolize nature for their own benefits. We are trying not to over-generalize the worldview of the Dayaks considering the uniqueness of each sub-ethnics in viewing the world. However, what makes us categorize this worldview is the relation to the sacred that has been confessed by the Dayak people from the time memorial. The Dayaks also know very well that their dependence on nature would then require them to pay respect to other beings to also exist on their own. The right attitude that the Dayaks would always insist to possess is to learn from nature. Nature is not only the visible and physical surroundings which are accessible to the senses but it is the totality of creation and the Creator from where the Dayaks attain their existence.

As the Dayaks intimately relate with their surroundings, nature or Alam then becomes the source of their culture and tradition. Nature provides for them the possibility of attaining creative knowledge and the Dayaks on the other hand respond to this invitation in the forms of traditional and religious systems, social practices, and customary or traditional laws. All of the aforementioned are ways for the Dayaks to always keep the strong bond with nature in harmony.