The greatness of a culture can be found in its festivals.
– Siddharth Katragadda, Indian writer,
filmmaker, artist and poet
Our last Gawai celebrations at the longhouse were perhaps the most creative of all over the years.
These all started from the Gawai eve on May 31 commencing with the family dinner held at our respective ruai open gallery. Members of each family gathered on this venue starting from 7.30pm whereby a gong was sounded three times to notify all to stand up and wait for Tuai Rumah Robert Lin, who is also a sub-deacon, to say a prayer as blessing for the food served for dinner.
Thereafter longhouse folk, especially immediate neighbours, began to exchange dishes, usually cooked in bamboo and modern wares. Among delicacies were pork and chicken cooked in bamboo (babi and manuk pansuh) and salai sapi (dried beef).
Dinner ended around 8.30pm. There was an announcement by assistant Tuai Rumah Minggu Awi that the Kumang Gawai Kedap 2019 contest was to commence at 9pm. All contestants were told to get ready and to be at the contest venue, namely at his (Minggu’s) ruai five minutes earlier. Minggu was also the Gawai chief for this year. This was the first time the contest venue was shifted from the ruai of the longhouse chief Lin.
Nine maidens took part in the contest in full traditional Iban costumes. Out of these, only two were veterans to the beauty pageant. Three made it to Kedap for the first time as their parents, despite being natives of the longhouse, never visited their relatives prior to this.
My elder brother and veteran Iban recording artiste Edward Jelani Salok were among the three judges for the contest. We were entrusted with the task as all the contestants were not our immediate relatives or family members.
The other judge was our cousin and also veteran recording artiste Roselyn Dayun Abunawas who won the Bintang Radio Iban contest in 1967.
Judging a beauty contest is not easy despite being only at the longhouse level. All three of us have some experience judging such contests elsewhere and took seriously in making sure the job is well-done.
Since 2010, I have had the honour to be judge for a number of state-level Kumang Gawai pageants in Kuching but nevertheless I let Edward, 77, and Dayun, 73, to lead the judging. Edward was named the chief judge.
With her city experience Chloe, 20, easily thrived over the other eight to be crowned Kumang Gawai Kedap 2019. She was second runner-up in last year’s contest.
This time around she was better prepared and attired. The win made her RM500 richer. She also took home a trophy, hamper and tiara.
First runner-up and second runner-up winners respectively took home cash of RM300 and RM200, trophy and hamper. It was a very stiff competition but our pool of experience prevailed in choosing the best among the bevy of beauties.
“Let’s consider this as a state-level beauty contest,” said Dayun before the parade started, adding that she was also involved in a number of contests for being the Sarakup Indu Dayak Sarawak (SIDS) or Sarawak Dayak Women Institute Sri Aman Branch chief.
She acknowledged my involvement as state-level Kumang Contest judge, thanks to my association with Datin Senorita Linang, the Sarawak secretary of SIDS.
Immediately after the Kumang winner was announced, TR Robert Lin called for all the longhouse residents to get ready for Ai Pengayu or longevity drink in welcoming the Dayak New Year at the stroke of midnight.
Unlike in the hurried scene of Cinderella desperately running to the waiting golden “pumpkin” coach before the strike of twelve – and losing a glass slipper on the way – Kedap folk lost no footwear of any kind but still gathered hurriedly at their individual ruai and got ready the rice wine – tuak.
At the stroke of midnight when Cinderella’s coach turned back to pumpkin, my longhouse mates roared in toast of longevity drink and wished each other “Gayu-Guru, Gerai Nyamai” (longevity and good health). It started with the youngest in the family serving the eldest. Every family member wished each other good health and long life.
Minggu made another announcement using the PA system that another contest was about to start. This was the “Pekit Betabuh” or traditional music contest.
The music instruments consisted of one big gong (tawak), two small gongs (bebendai), one set of six smaller gongs (engkerumung) plus an elongated drum dumbak. Five members were required for each team.
A total of four teams were entered for the contest with prizes comprising kitchen wares up for grabs. Again, I was picked as a judge with two younger cousins who are both working in Miri.
It was an easy judging with stiff contest between the top two teams whose members were all in their sixties.
The team which took the name “Meragasing”, a well-known Kedap hinterland, thrived over the others with their splendid display of finesse, was adjudged the champion.
The night’s jubilation continued with free flow of tuak and other drinks until as late as – or is it as early as – 5am. There were live music and songs as well as karaoke sessions.
At 6am two young maidens went from door to door for mupu kenyalang (collection of tuak and other drinks) meant to be brought to the “Tiang Pengingat” or commemorative document at the foreground of the longhouse to formerly launch the Gawai Dayak do with a prayer.
In the olden days, a piring (offering to appease the deities) was featured but now it is done the Christian way, namely with a prayer.
The gathering for this occasion took place at 7am led by TR Robert Lin in his sub-deacon white robe. Some 40 people participated in this gathering that excluded my lazy self, still drowsy from lack of sleep. I understood the gathering lasted about 30 minutes only.
Commencing around 8am a tug-of-war contest was held whereby six teams of youngsters took part. One of the teams was from a nearby longhouse Nanga Assam but failed measurably it was found out later.
Team Kedap A took the top spot followed by Team Pasa and Team Segalur. All winners took home worthwhile hampers.
At 10am a hot coffee contest was held also at Minggu’s open gallery. My nephew Julian Narang Jon @ Sigat, 38, took the top spot at the expense of his tongue and throat that took two days to heal. But the hamper comprising glassware was worth it.
His younger brother Thomas Saran Jon @ Ebi, 31, was placed third but without tongue and throat burn to nurse.
All of us had a good laugh at Sigat who was also amused with his injury. This was his third title as “Hot Coffee King” – and nursing injury as well.
The day’s contest ended at close to midday.
By 1pm the upper section of Kedap was scheduled to go ngabang (good will visit) to the other half of the longhouse. This was a new arrangement made about two weeks earlier at a meeting of longhouse elders.
A gong was sounded at 12.45pm for the pengabang (guests) to gather at TR Lin’s ruai for the ngabang. Lin, minus his sub-deacon robe, this time put one his traditional Iban “pua kumbu” vest baju burung. His wife, usually reluctant for such social occasion, also put one Iban kain kebat.
In fact, most of the male “guests” from our other “upper” counterparts were handsomely attired either in Iban traditional costumes or western suites, some in three-piece. The ladies were resplendently attired in Baju Kebaya sets or in Iban “pua kumbu” sets. They were an interesting spectacle.
Divided into two groups of fifteen doors each, at number 16, we were made as hosts, whereas my brother Edward at number 15, was the last door to be guests (or pengabang) this. Next year it will be the turn for us from Door Number 16 to 30 to be guests and Edward and the other 14 families to be hosts.
So, guests from Door 1 to 15 started the visit at around 1.10pm. My family as Door Number 16 was the first to receive the guests that numbered around 60, all regally attired. All family heads also gathered at our ruai.
This was because the ritual known as muka kuta (opening the gate of fortress) was held whereby a package covered by “pua kumbu” was placed at the middle of the passage that must be opened by the visitors by poetic language of the bard or just by putting cash on top of it. Henry Buda, 55, was chosen to open it with some bard language.
Later the occasion saw a total of nearly RM1,700 collected as “opening” cash. Minggu, my first cousin, was entrusted with the collection.
The visiting party continued with their goodwill call until door number 30, which is Minggu’s. By 6pm most were contented with the goodwill visit albeit in a scatter-brained way.
That evening the music and songs continued on both ends of the longhouse but slowly diminished at around 2am.
Ngiling Tikai to close the Gawai do for this year was scheduled to be held on the next evening.
