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Rumah Gonjong

Rumah Gonjong

Friday 30 May 2008

ISLAM & MINANG CULTURE

At the time of Adityawarman, a Muslim Kingdom – Samudra Pasai – was already firmly established in the northern part of Sumatra. The famous Arab traveler of the 14th century, Ibn Batutah, reported the vigorous Islamic life in the country. It was, perhaps, because of the expansion of Islam that Adityawarman felt it necessary to erect Amoghapasa, a demonic bhairava, but apparently this action failed to mythically threaten the Islamic drive into Minangkabau.

In his report on the west coast of Sumatra, Tome’ Pires the early 16th century Portuguese writer, stated that Minangkabau had three kings. One of them has embraced Islam, the “Moorish” religion. Of course, Minangkabau tradition recognizes the Kings of the Three Seats ( Tigo Selo ), viz, the king of adat, the king of religion, and the king of the world. Who could have been the first to be Islamized?

Thomas Dias, the first European who ever set foot in the Minangkabau heartland, who resided in Sumpur Kudus. He was the king of religion. Since the rather elaborate Islamic character of the royal reception, it can be assumed that Islam had penetrated the region at a much earlier period.

Most probably Islam came to Minangkabau through two gateways : from the east through Malaka, the great 15th century emporium of Southeast Asia, or from the west through Pariaman and Tiku, two important ports under the domination of the Acehnese empire. Later the Islamization of Minangkabau in its turn gave an impetus to the continuous spread of the religion in the Malay Peninsula and the world beyond, including the southern Philipines and South Sulawesi.

Pepper might have been the driving force behind the expansion of Acehnese political dominance along the west coast of Sumatera. But it was tradition of religious schools that made a lasting impact of Acehnese influence which gave shape to the history of Minangkabau.

In the 17th century Syekh Burhanuddin, a student of the renowed Syekh Abdurrauf of Singkil (known in Acehnese history as Teungku Di Kuala), established the first religious centre in Ulakan near Pariaman. It was from this place that a network if religious schools began to expand into the interior. Hence it is said in a proverb “ Adat descended ( to the coast ), while religion ascended ( to the highland)”. With the establishment of this network of religious centres the path toward a social and Cultural Revolution was paved.

With the change of the economic system in Minangkabau as a result of the opening of the west coast to Western trade, this network became more receptive to the new religious ideas that emerged in the Middle East. In 1803 Haji Miskin, Haji Piobang and Haji Sumanik returned from Mekah which was then already under the influence of the Wahabi movement. They radicalized the incipient reform movement in the religious centres by harshly condemning the old practices which they considered to be unlawful innovations (bid’ah ).

Thus a religiously motivated civil war broke out, known in history as the Padri War. In the process the Minangkabau monarchy, the symbol of unity, was destroyed. In 1821 the Dutch intervened and before long the war was transformed into a struggle for independence. In 1837 the last important fortress of Bonjol was captured, and the Minangkabau fell into the colonial domination of the Dutch.

But at the end of the Padri War, Minangkabau acquired a new definition of itself. It is a world whose “adat is based on religion, ang religion is based on the Holybook”. The leadership is conceptualized as consisting of three elements : the Ninik Mamak ( adat dignitaries ) , the Alim Ulama ( religious leaders ) , and the Cerdik Pandai ( intellectuals ) .

The Padri movement not only shaped Minangkabau religious life but also gave impetus to the rapid development of religious education. Already at the end of the 19th century Syekh Ahmad Khatib was appointed as a Grand Imam of the Shafi’ite School ( mazhab) at the Masjidil Haram in Mekah. A prolife writer Syekh Ahmad Khatib wrote a number of treaties on fiqh ( law ) , tharekat ( mystic school ) , and social matters.

Famous for his criticism on the prevailing practices of the tharekat shools and the Minangkabau matrilineal inheritance system, he sowed the seeds of the orthodox movement in the Malay world. This movement was particularly launched by his former students who on their return from the Holy Land became prominent ulama in their own right. They were, among others, Syekh Muhammad Jamil Jambek, Dr Abdul Karim Amrullah, Dr Abdullah Ahmad, Syekh Thaib Sungayang - the four pioneers of the modernist movement in Minangkabau, and Syekh Abbas Padang Japang , a younger member of the group.

His other students were Syekh Jamil Jaho and Syekh Muhammad Zein Simabur, both traditionalist leaders of the Kaum Tua ulama. His most prominent student in Java was K.H Ahmad Dahlan, the founder of the Islamic modernist organization, the Muhammadiyah.

Nowadays the province of West Sumatra has 3517 mosques, 1662 mushalla, and 9000 langgar. Mosques are built in various style, from the traditional one such as the oldest edifice in Limo Kaum and the most modern one in Padang Siminyak, Pagaruyung. www.west-sumatra.com

Wednesday 28 May 2008

West Sumatra

West Sumatra is one of the most beautiful areas of Indonesia. It is mountainous and divided by three valleys. There are lovely lakes and spectacular volcanoes. But Minangkabau land is very special and has the most friendly population group of Indonesia. They love to talk with visitors and will tell us about their unique society. If a visitor tries to understand the culture and Minang traditions he will soon feel himself a member of the clan. He will be invited as a guest to their homes - a unique way to become acquainted with real Indonesian life. Most of our hosts and hostesses are English teachers so language will not be much of a problem. They will show us the community and explain their customs.

The land of the Minangkabau, West Sumatra has a distinct culture, which distinguishes it from the rest of the island. A land of scenic beauty with blue green lakes and mountains, West Sumatra's Centre of culture and tourism is Bukittinggi in the highlands, north of the provincial capital of Padang. Most prominent in the landscape is the horn-shaped roofs of the houses nestled in the coconut groves. The name Minangkabau means triumphant buffalo. It leads a community and family life based on a matrilineal system, which clusters around mosques and the traditional houses. As it is the women who have the properties, the men are known for their wanderlust and entrepreneurship. Traveling is considered a mark of success and therefore many of them are found "merantau" (emigrated) to other parts of the country. This is proof that many Minang or Padang restaurants, serve very spicy food, found in all major towns in the nation. The people are hospitable and eloquent in a poetic style of speech and ceremonies. Festivals are colorful occasions.

West Sumatra has a coastline where the capital is situated. The hinterland is a range of high mountains, which dip into picturesque valleys and lakes. Amongst them are the remnants of the old Minangkabau kingdom of Pagaruyung, (the art centers for silver, hand-weaving, embroidery and woodcarving).

Geographically
West Sumatra province has about 49,778 sq km width, which is located between 0o 54' North Latitude and 3o 30' South Latitude and between 98o 36' and 101o 53'. The boundaries of this regency is:
North Side: Riau Province
South Side: Indian Ocean
West Side: North Sumatra Province
East Side: Jambi and Bengkulu Province

Wide Area
West Sumatra Province has 42,297.30-km2 areas. The West Sumatran coastline faces the Indian Ocean and stretches 375 km from North Sumatra province in the northwest to Bengkulu in the southeast. West Sumatra lakes include: Maninjau (99.5 km2), Singkarak (130.1 km2), Diatas (31.5 km2), Dibawah (14.0 km2), Talang (5.0 km2). West Sumatra rivers include: Kuranji, Anai, Ombilin, Suliki, Arau. The mountains & volcanoes of West Sumatra are included: Marapi (2,891 m), Sago (2,271 m), Singgalang (2,877 m), Talakmau (2,912 m), Talang (2,572 m), Tandikat (2,438 m).

Climate
The temperature of West Sumatra province has ranges between 22o C and 32o C, and the rainfall is 2,289 mm per year.

Administratively
West Sumatra Province is divided among 8 regencies and 6 municipals with Padang as its capital city.

Demography
The people of this province have a strong tradition leaving their hometown to make their way of life. Indeed, West Sumatra communities (Minang) are easily found in each province of Indonesia. In 1994, the total population reached 4,265,900 people with its density amounted to 101 people per Km2. In the 1990-1994 period, the people grew at a rate 1.6% per year or in the lower level that of the population national growth amounted to 2.144% per year.

Tuesday 27 May 2008

THE HISTORY OF MINANGKABAU

Maharaja Diraja and his followers landed on top of Mount Merapi (in the district of Tanah Datar) which was still surrounded by water. The face of the earth expanded, the number of inhabitants increased, and finally the early settlements were established in the district of Tanah Datar. And the nagari, the basic Minangkabau political organization, were founded. That was how the history of Alam Minangkabau begins, at least according to the tambo, the Minangkabau traditional historiography.

The earliest archeological evidence, can be found in the district (luhak) Limapuluh Kota, one of the district, besides Agam and Tanah Datar – traditionally regarded as the heartland of the Minangkabau world. Archeological remains, scattered in several hundred sites and dating from 3000 to 2000 BC, consist of menhirs, sometimes decorated with ornaments depicting birds, crocodiles, and buffalo heads. They must have been used as meeting ground were ceremonial gatherings took place.

Once the heartland was secured, it ceased to expand, but the Minangkabau people continued their geographical explorations and established new nagari. The new territories, called rantau, grew in accordance with the expansion of the Minangkabau people.

If the heartland was ruled by the pangulu – matrilineal inherited representatives of the people, the rantau territories were ruled by the aristocratic raja. It was most probably also in the rantau that the supranagari political organization was firstly established.

Buddhist stupa, still standing near the confluence of two branches of the Kampar River in the eastern part of Minangkabau ( now lying in Riau Province ), may attest to early Indian influences in the cultural and political sphere. Muara Takus was a Buddhist centre of learning, frequented by many monks from China and India. The area was perhaps also visited by traders since it produced gold and aromatic woods. Similarities in architectural features with Buddhist remains found in Thailand ( Haripunjana or Lampun etc. ) are strong indications that the area in those times was part of a greater world extending over mainland Southeast Asia.

One of the kingdoms in the eastern part of Minangkabau was Dharmasraya which may have flourished in the 11th and 12th centuries. Its remain are found in Rembahan, at the banks of the Batanghari River in the present Kabupaten Sawahlunto Sijunjung.

In the competition with the maritime kingdom of Sriwijaya for the supremacy of sealanes in the Straits of Malaka, King Kartanegara of Singasari (East java) sent a military expedition to Sumatra in 1275, known in history as the Pamalayu.

The name Malayu, according to Prof JG de Casparis, most probably was used to refer to the whole river system of Batanghari, whereas Melayupura, its capital, at time shifted upstream and downstream according to (political? ) Circumstances. Until the 13th century the capital was located at Muara Jambi, but later it was moved westward to the Langsat River to the place of Dharmasraya ( Padang Rocok ) where a statue of Amonghapasa ( a gift of Kartanegara to the Malay King ) was erected in 1286.

Perhaps the capital was moved again at the time of Adityawarman who established his capital at Surawasa ( Suroaso ) near present Pagaruyung. Heirlooms of the kings of Pagaruyung are still preserved today. Nowadays Pagaruyung is a nagari in the neighbourhood of Bukit Gombak and Suroaso, called the region of Tigo Balai, in the regency Tanah Datar, about five kilometers from Batusangkar. The three Balai are Balai Janggo, Kampung Tengah, and Gudam. It is an area which has yielded many inscriptions from the time of Adityawarman (14th century).

As the story goes, Adityawarman was welcomed by Datuk Indomo, the symbolic representative of the Koto Piliang, who gave him a piece of land. Then Adityawarman established a fortified settlement and proclaimed himself as King of Pagaruyung. However, Adityawarman never ruled Minangkabau, which consisted of numerous independent nagger under their respective pangulu . The king was only the symbol of unity of the Minangkabau world. Remains of this kingdom are still found in Pagaruyung and have also found their way to many museums abroad. The statue of Adityawarman which was found in Sijunjung is now housed in the National Museum in Jakarta.

Batu Batikam (Pierced Stone) found in Limo Kaum, Batusangkar, is - according to the tambo – linked with the emergence of two phratries in Minangkabau tradition: Koto Piliang and Bodi Caniago, established by two legendary adat givers, two half brothers with a common mother and a different father. Datuk Ketemanggungan, the son of an aristocratic father, got into a heated dispute with his brother, Datuk Perpatih nan Sabatang, the son of a commoner, over the proper system of governance. In their rage both stabbed the same stone with their keris. The hole is still to ne seen, and so their descendants can reflect on the duality of the Minangkabau unified adat system.

Bodi Caniago and Koto Piliang in Minangkabau philosophy are regarded as two complementary phratries. The adat counsil of Koto Piliang which recognizes the hierarchy of panguluship is characterized by its tiered floors, whereas the balai adat of Bodi Caniago has a level floor which reflects its refusal to recognize any hierarchy in the pangulu system. Both systems, however, are based on mufakat (deliberation and consensus) in every decision of social importance. www.west-sumatra.com

Monday 26 May 2008

Minangkabau

From: Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
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Any member of the largest ethnic group on the island of Sumatra, Indon. Though Muslim, the Minangkabau are matrilineal. Traditionally, the wife remained with her maternal relatives after marriage; her husband continued to live with his mother but visited his wife. The domestic unit, a community house, held a head woman, her sisters, their daughters, and their children and visiting husbands. Today that kinship structure has declined, and more men have left their villages to establish their own households with wives and children. Traditional Minangkabau are farmers, and their crafts include wood carving, metalwork, and weaving. Some migrated to Malaya (Peninsular Malaysia) in the 1850s to participate in the rapid expansion of Malayan tin mining; over time immigrants switched to farming, and in the 20th century they came to control most of Malaya's retail trade. The Minangkabau number two to five million.

Copyright 1994-2007 Britannica Concise Encyclopedia.