Ansori Sinaga, abal-abal craftsman in Toba Regency, North Sumatra. (Narendra)
Author: Narendra
Photographer: Narendra
The Bangso Batak civilization is closely related to various rituals
From birth to death has a sacred meaning
Death has its own value
Accompanied by a philosophy-filled culture
….
Ansori Sinaga seemed busy with his equipment. Caulking coffins that he had been working on for several days. He remains only to caulk some of the slightly porous sides to be painted.
Sometimes he would grease the caulking with his hands. Making sure the wood surface is flat and smooth. While returning to stirring the putty that is placed on the placemat.
“This is made of ungil wood. Yesterday’s order. It has been done for three days, ”said Ansori when we met at his furniture shop in Aek Natolu Village, Lumban Julu Market, Lumban Julu District, Toba Regency, North Sumatra.
Ungil wood has been known since the era of the Batak ancestors. Often used for ship building materials. Because ungil has strong material. Resistant to direct sunlight and rainwater exposure. Not quickly damaged or decayed. The wood craftsmen in the Lake Toba area also know ungil wood very well.
The coffin that Ansori was working on was different from the one often seen in general. The shape of the cover is not flat. The Batak ethnic group calls it abal-abal.
“ the maker would be called parabal-abal,” said the 27-year-old man, with a thick Batak accent.
Armed with carpentry skills, Ansori has been a parabal abal craftsman since he graduated from a Vocational High School (SMK) in Toba.
The abal-Abal that Ansori has done looks like a traditional Batak house. The tip of the roof is higher for the head. The size is about 2 x 0.8 meters. Can also be adjusted according to the size of the person to be buried.
Two pieces of hau sada in the collections of the National Museum of North Sumatra. (Fit Hartoyo)
Apart from what Ansori did, there were also those of the hau sada type. Made using one whole tree trunk. Shaped like a boat. According to Batak traditional beliefs, the boat will carry the ancestral spirits to Nirvana.
It’s not simple to make abal abal stuff. Even Ansori, who has been a craftsman for a long time, only heard the story. Abal-Abal does not use nails in its manufacture. Between the cover and the body, it is only tied using rattan (some kind of roots).
The search for the question of hau sada continued to TH Gurning’s outlet which was still in Toba Regency. For decades as a craftsman, even Gurning himself never made it. The abal abal one he did was the same as the one Ansori did.
Hau sada is already rare. Gurning and Ansori also agreed that hau sada had only appeared once in the last 50 years. Precisely when a businessman from North Sumatra, Sutan Raja Derianus Lungguk (DL) Sitorus passed away, August 3, 2017. The father of Sihar Sitorus died on a flight from Jakarta to Medan City.
The plantation entrepreneur has indeed prepared his eternal home long ago. Made of one whole wood and filled with gorga on each side. Very luxurious, because it costs tens of millions of rupiah.
“Amang DL Sitorus was the last one to use this hau sada. Because it is difficult to find the wood. The wood has to be big, so it can be made into a coffin, ”said Gurning.
Abal-Abal arranged in a shop owned by Gurning, Toba Regency. (Narendra)
In Batak mythology, the artisan matter also has its own story. Once upon a time, Datu Gambut Nabolon and his wife Siboru Jongjong Anian Siboru Tibal Tudoson were blessed with twins. Among them are Sirat and Uhir. They both have expertise in ulos cloth weaving.
Then, the other twins are Si Aji Donda Hatahutan and Siboru Sopak Panaluan. Aji Donda Hatahutan learns to be a pande. Thanks to the spirit power, he has the expertise to produce various types of works. Starting from making a bolon house, gorga or other crafts.
Because of that, every community who needs his services, always makes a ritual to the pande. This ritual is held on a pandanus mat and then a cup filled with clean water and lime is prepared. Plus incense and other offerings.
Pande and the petitioner sat on the mat. They asked for blessings from Mulajadi Na Bolon (the name for the Creator in Batak belief). After the ritual, they then began to do their work. Starting from selecting ingredients and making them to completion.
Likewise, when making abal abal, the rituals carried out refer to the mythology. After this agreement, the pande will be dispatched with a ritual to find wood in the forest. This ritual is a form of respect for pandes who have various kinds of expertise.
Usually they used wood from hard gummy trees to make abal abal. Such as jackfruit, hariara or banyan, teak and others. It is not without reason that gummy woods such as jackfruit are chosen to make souvenirs. This tree has its own meaning in the life of the Batak people.
Because it is made of hard wood, the process of making hau sada takes a long time. Wood must be soaked in water that has been diluted with the preservative. So that the hau sada doesn’t get destroyed quickly by termites.
After the abal-abal stuff is finished, the person who will occupy it often enter it. Then the andung-andung ritual was held. This is a tradition of speaking by singing.
“Andung-andung is a story that is told by singing. So the expression of sadness is there. So he said it was hard for him to leave the family. So he tried to get into the stuff, he told his relatives,to protect him, “said Head of the Center for Documentation and the Study of Batak Culture, Nomensen University, Manguji Nababan.
In Batak belief, the andung-andung will be eternally brought to the afterlife. So a reminder message for the deceased in the afterlife.
Andung andung is not like normal speaking. There is the term hatani andung which is his trademark language. Usually use more polite language. Even to mention something often uses parables or certain terms
Manguji said, if the abal abal were to be preserved, it would support other traditions. One of them is the andung andung itself. Admittedly, the tradition of the andung-andung is starting to fade.
“The meaning of the andung-andung is deep. This ritual keeps the tradition alive, “he said.
Two pieces of hau sada in the collections of the National Museum of North Sumatra. (Fit Hartoyo)
The traditional Batak figure, Monang Naipospos, explained that in fact the abal-abal does not have many carvings. Only pinned carvings in the shape of a face, at the head of the casket.
“On the head it’s called ulu gurdong,” said Monang.
Not only aba-abal, said Monang, there are several types of eternal houses for Bangso Batak. There is something called Batang, which is very simple. Usually made from the palm tree. Then there is the parmualmualon which is usually prepared a few days before dying.
Each type also requires different requirements for the person to be buried. The abal-abal of hau sada is very rare nowadays. Apart from being expensive to manufacture, the raw material in the form of a large, intact tree is also very difficult.
Not only abal-abal, the eternal house which has the highest rank is keranda batu (stone grave) or napir stone. “The sarcophagus was the person who used it. The number can be counted, ”said Monang who is also a Parmalim figure.
Batak Ethnic Sarcophagus. (Source: Monang Naipospos)
To be buried in a napir is the highest honor for the Batak people. During his life, the stone was built and witnessed before he died. Schereiner (1994) reports that stone coffins are mostly scattered on the southern island of Samosir and the west coast of Lake Toba.
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The sacredness of death for the Batak people
Death has an important meaning for the Batak people. There is always a ritual that accompanies it. In adat, a person’s death is also determined by status. It also determines how the rituals are performed to release the departed from the deceased.
From various literacies, Batak divides many names for death. The division into the status at death. The categories are dyinh before marriage and after marriage.
For those who are not married there are five death statuses. Starting from mate di bortian which means dying in the womb. Then mate poso-poso which means dying in infancy. Then mate dakdanak which means died as a child, mate bulung which means dying as a teenager and mate ponggol which means dying when he is considered an adult but not married so that the lineage is cut off.
As for married people, the Batak divide them into seven classifications. Starting from mate punu or dying when you have a family but do not have children. Then mate mangkar which means dying after having a child who is not married, mate hatungganeon which means dying and does not have grandchildren even though the son/daughter is married.
Then mate sari matua, means that you have died you have a married child, whether you have given grandchildren or not. There is another died saur matua. The Batak ethnic group’s most coveted death status. Because he died in a state that he already had his pahompu or grandchildren of all his children.
Then died in a state of saur matua bulung. Similar to Saur Matua. However, in this status, all the grandchildren who have children also have great-grandchildren. In Batak terms it is known as marnini marnono.
The last one is known as saur matua mauli bulung. The status is the most complex because it suggests marnini-marnono and no descendants who have died before him. This is the status of death that is considered the highest, most noble and at the same time rare to be found in the present.
So, who can use hau sada as his eternal home? Only those with saur matua status or higher can be immersed in it. Moreover, those who have fulfilled the 3H philosophy. Hamoraon, hagabeon and hasangapon.
Hamoraon is simply defined as someone who is prosperous or has wealth. Hasangapon is defined as someone who is respectable, has a high social status. Finally, the hagabeon which means having children and grandchildren. Not a few Batak people are working hard to reach 3H. Until now, this 3H philosophy is still passed down to children as their motivation and life aspirations.
This prerequisite also makes not all Batak people able to wear abal-abal. Apart from the fact that the manufacturing process is difficult and the price is expensive.
A craftsman is doing abal-abal. (Narendra)
Each status of death has a different customary ritual. In fact, some are not adhered to. One of them is if the person who died by committing suicide.
In Batak culture, it is also not arbitrary to place the graves of the deceased. If you are young and do not have children, the grave is usually located on the edge. If the deceased has a child, the grave will be glorified later. Magnificently built.
“When he was young he died and his children were young, his funeral service was simple. The grave is also simple. But he will later have his son married and have children. So he has a grandson, his grave is raised and improved. The Manuan Oppu oppu was created. In that event, bigger rituals can be made. Like the traditional sari matua. So there are those who glorify him, “said Monang.
If the person who died has fulfilled the requirements of saur matua and already has some things, they will be dispatched with a long ritual. It could even take days to finally be buried. The traditional ceremony is made full.
In the series of ceremonies, there is a hope that the burial ritual will receive the blessing of Debata Mulajadi Na Bolon and the ancestors. Including for families left behind. This ritual is also a means of gathering between families who have been separated because they live overseas.
“Adat is also an acknowledgment that the offspring have treated their parents well. So she deserves God’s blessing for respecting her parents. The message is simple. How do we honor our parents, “he concluded.
This tradition of death which is full of meaning is only a small part of Bangso Batak culture. Discussing the meaning of death for the Batak ethnic group from various perspectives produces an interesting discourse. Nor does it have to be a matter of controversy. Every ethnicity has a custom. Let it be wisdom for today’s cultural diversity. It must be preserved so that it does not become extinct.
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