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| Wednesday, 25 August 2004 |
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Minangkabau - the paradise of women by Aryadasa Ratnasinghe Minangkabau is in Sumatra, an island in West Indonesia, full of scenic beauty. There are lush tropical forests, rocky canyons, sparkling waterfalls, blue lakes and small houses, with horn-shaped roofs built of wood and covered with palm leaves. Padang is the capital with deep-sea harbour. This part of the country is a women's paradise because females are considered superior to males. From a general point of view, in most parts of the world people rejoice when a son is born to the family, as a natural asset and not a liability. In principle, males dominate society, who are gifted with strength and vigour, gallantry, intrepidity and heroism. But, Minangkabau is an exception, where people rejoice when a daughter is born. When it comes to marriage, women have the say in the selection of a suitable partner. Men have no say in the matter and they have to abide by the decision of their parents. Dowry is solicited from the parents of the male, which is contrary to the normal practice. In Minangkabau houses have names similar to those of females. The females dominate influence over their families, and are always consulted in matters of importance. It is, therefore, a matrilineal society, where inheritance goes through the female line, which becomes defunct when there is no female off-spring. Children bear the surname of their mothers, unlike in our society. This cultural background, with its social system, is said to be found only in few other countries in the Asian region, e.g., Kerala in South India and Assam in North India. Clans Similar to our caste system, people in Minangkabau have clans. Intermarriage with a single clan is prohibited, but it is allowed between two clans. In Sri Lanka, a man from 'goigama' caste is always proposed to a woman of the same caste, with the exception of love marriages where caste is ignored as an unnecessary evil. When a Minangkabau man marries, he does not take his wife to his home, but lives with the wife's parents. This is similar to our 'binna' marriage which is matrilocal, socially considered with degradation. In Minangkabau, the husbands have no say over their children, and the wives of their brothers are responsible for their up-bringing. By tradition love marriages are forbidden and no marriage should be solemnised without the consent of their parents. However, this practice is said to be fast losing its tidings, in keeping with the changing pattern of society, which has become essentially democratic. According to Gadis Rasid, a well-known Indonesian journalist, the marriage proposal is made by the bride's family. "On the wedding day, a delegation from the bridge's family goes to meet the groom's family, to take the youngman to the house of his future wife, where the wedding takes place. After the ceremonies are over, the groom goes back to his family and has to be fetched again, in the early evening hours, so that he may spend the first night in the house of his wife's family. He is not obliged to live there continuously. He can, if he so wishes, spend a night or so in his own family house." Property, whether movable or immovable, is not owned by individual members of the family. The land and buildings belong to the family unit, and no member can claim right to a portion of the land as belonging to him. The house is known as 'rumah gadang' (the big house). In the event of the space of the house becoming too congested for all to live under one roof, a married daughter is given a piece of land to cultivate and build a house for their occupation, but it has to be returned to the family, if the premises is no longer needed by the parents or their off-springs. Family welfare Everyone is concerned with the welfare of the family, and everything is done by mutual consent. Family disputes are very rare and all love to live in peace and harmony. Brothers and sisters are attached to one another and hardly they fall out. One is always ready to help another within his means, and this explains why there is almost no poverty or destitution among the Minangkabau people. Lands belonging to a family are never sold to outsiders, because they live on the produce of the lands. The traditional in-law disputes are rare and none tries to triumph over the other. The name Minangkabau means 'the buffalo that won'. Rasid says that according to an old legend, when this part of the country was threatened by an invasion by a neighbouring kingdom, the Minangkabau leaders succeeded in persuading the advancing warriors, not to let the men fight, but have the matter settled by animals. The people selected a buffalo (kabu), whereas the invaders produced a strong buffalo. In defence, the Minangkabau people selected a baby buffalo to do the fighting for them, a baby that had not yet been weaned. They fastened short sharp knives to the horns of the baby buffalo which, mistaking the grown-up buffalo for its mother, went straight under its belly to suck milk. The knives fixed to the horns cut in to the belly of the big buffalo, which died as a result of the attack, and the invaders acknowledged their defeat. The horn of the buffalo, the animal that preserved the Minangkabau's territorial integrity, became the symbol of the people. It is seen in the shape of a woman's ceremonial headdress, as well as on the roofs of the houses. When a girl attains puberty, she is well protected by the females of the household until ceremonial rituals are over, which may take about a week or two. Men are kept out of bounds to where she is confined to. This practice is even followed in Sri Lanka, when the old women of the house keep her aloof from meeting men. It is believed that such a meeting has a bad influence on men, woven into the fabric of voodoo. **** Back **** |
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